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Elite Championship Sixth RoundTamil Nadu 240 (Sriram 58, Viswanathan 50, Vishnuvardhan 5-79) and 37 for 1 trail Hyderabad 447 by 170 runs
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Tamil Nadu folded for 240, largely due to Sankinani Vishnuvardhan’s five-for, and were forced to follow on at Hyderabad. Despite half-centuries from Sridharan Sriram and Sunil Vishwanathan, Hyderabad’s 447 was always a daunting target. Vishnuvardhan, the left-arm medium-pacer, followed up his breezy 59 yesterday with an effective bowling performance, while Faiz Ahmed and Jogram Yadav chipped in with two wickets each. Tamil Nadu lost the wicket of Dinesh Kartik when they batted again, and need to summon their entire batting prowess to prevent an outright defeat tomorrow.Baroda 249 (Mongia 85) and 69 for 4 trail Uttar Pradesh473 by 155 runs
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Baroda were forced to follow on after a modest batting performance at the IPCL Stadium in Vadodara. After chasing leather for almost two days, Baroda began disastrously, and were reduced to 74 for 6, but Nayan Mongia, first with Tushar Arothe (34) and then with Shekhar Joshi (33), nudged them towards the follow-on mark. In the end they fell short by 24 runs as Ashish Zaidi and Rajneesh Mishra, the medium-pacers, grabed seven wickets between them. There was no change in the script the second time around, and Baroda found themselves in a deep hole as stumps were drawn, although Mongia was still there in the middle.Mumbai 388 and 82 for 3 lead Railways 198 by 272 runs
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The last seven Railways batsmen could muster only 97 runs, as Mumbai gained a huge lead on the third day at the Wankhede Stadium. Ramesh Powar followed up his heroics with the bat with a four-wicket haul, and was supported by Swapnil Hazare and Usman Maulvi – who snapped up two apiece. Mumbai lost quick wickets in the second innings – all to Jai Prakash Yadav (3 for 13) – and were reduced to 28 for 3. But Vinod Kambli and Amol Muzumdar steadied the ship with a 54-run stand and remained undefeated at stumps.Delhi 108 for 0 (Gambhir 61) trail Kerala 371 (Kudva 123, Oasis 63*) by 263 runs
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Ajay Kudva and Sunil Oasis propped up the Kerala innings at the Harbax Singh Stadium in Delhi. Kudva completed a patient century which included 13 fours. But Sarandeep Singh and Rahul Sanghvi ensured that the tail did not wag, before the Delhi openers made a strong statement before stumps. Gautam Gambhir and Rajat Bhatia got them off to a rollicking start, adding 108 runs in only 20 overs. Gambhir smashed nine fours in his 57-ball 61, while Bhatia summoned the strength to clear the ropes once.Gujarat 210 and 152 for 5 (Modi 53, Joshi 5-51) lead Karnataka 353 (Rowland 150) by 9 runs
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Sunil Joshi’s fine bowling performance gave Karnataka the distinct advantage on the third day at Ahmedabad. Joshi snapped up all the five wickets to fall, after Nilesh Modi and Akash Christian had set up a solid platform. Modi remained unbeaten on 53, complied in 216 balls. Earlier, Barrington Rowland added 28 runs to his overnight score to finish with a round 150. He received valuable support from Joshi and Venkatash Prasad towards the end. Siddharth Trivedi’s medium-pace brought him four wickets, while Salil Yadav, the legspinner, snapped up three this morning.Punjab 209 (Sahabuddin 5- 52) beat Andhra30 and 84 (Gagandeep 5-32, Sharma 4-32) by and innings and 95 runs
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After being run over for 30 yesterday, Andhra were demolished again as Punjab wrapped up the match (with a bonus point) at Mohali with two days to spare. Punjab’s batting was characterised by some quick cameos by Yuvraj Singh (38), Dinesh Mongia (38) and Pankaj Dharmani (39), which gave them a mammoth lead of 179. That proved to be more than enough, as Andhra crumbled to only 84 with none of the batsmen passing 25. The bowling heroes were again Gagandeep Singh and Vineet Sharma taking nine wickets between them.Plate Championship Fourth RoundTripura 255 for 8 (Chanda 73*) trail Madhya Pradesh 454 by 199 runs
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Yogesh Golwalkar, the legspinner, finished with 4 for 73, and enabled MP to move towards the first-innings lead at Indore. Timir Chanda stood tall with a 137-ball unbeaten half-century, but the rest of the Tripura batsmen frittered away their starts. T Roy, Sadagoppan Mahesh and Chetan Sachdev managed to pass 30, but failed to kick on to something bigger. Chanda stroked 11 fours in his 154-minute knock and needs all the support from numbers 10 and 11 to eke out as much as possible tomorrow.Vidarbha 379 beat Jammu & Kashmir 111 and 163 (Mahajan 51, Gandhe 5-49) by and innings and 112 runs
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Dhruv Mahajan made a sedate 51, but that only delayed the inevitable as Vidarbha wrapped up the match at Nagpur with a day to spare. The J&K batsmen fell to the wiles of Pritham Gandhe, the offspinner, who bagged five wickets. J&K had folded for 111 yesterday and none of their batsmen could match the exploits of Vidarbha’s Faiz Fazal, who hammered 151 on the first day. And that was after Vidarbha lost the toss…Himachal Pradesh 111 and 230 for 8 (Mannu 58*, Sandeep Sharma 53) lead Goa 312 (D’Sousa 74, Jakati 66) by 29 runs
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Amit Dani, who had rocked HP on the first day, picked up four wickets in their second innings and Goa inched towards their first victory of the season at Dharamshala. Ajay Mannu and Sandeep Sharma provided some resistance, but HP finished the day just 29 runs in front, with only two more wickets remaining. Shadab Jakati, the left-arm spinner, was also in the thick of things with 3 for 41.Services 287 for 7 (AP Singh 144, Yashpal 58, Kulkarni 6-47) trail Maharashtra 403 by 116 runs
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At Pune, Amit Pal Singh slammed a fine 144 and Yashpal Singh contributed 58, but Maharashtra clawed back into the match through Charudatta Kulkarni’s medium-pace. The two Singhs added 94 runs to the third wicket, before Yashpal was out to Iqbal Siddiqui. Kulkarni devoured the other six that fell, as Amit Pal lost partners at regular intervals. Amit Pal hit 22 fours from 386 balls, and fell at the fag end of the day, with Services still 116 runs adrift.Orissa 320 for 8 (Raul 107, Mullick 60, Subrat Behera 50) lead Saurashtra 228 by 92 runs
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Orissa put on a solid batting display at Cuttack, with Sanjay Raul leading the way with a steady century. Raul, the captain, stroked 14 fours in his 242-ball effort and was ably supported by Pravaranjan Mullick (60) and Subrat Behera (50). Though a result is unlikely, Orissa have done enough already to take away two points from the game.

Canterbury and Wellington shared the State League trophy after rain forced the abandonment of the women’s final at Lincoln University.The final had already been switched from the original venue – Redwood Park in Christchurch – after yesterday’s washout to try and beat the weather, and the captains got as far as tossing. But no sooner had they done so than the heavens opened again and th rain was unrelenting."It is disappointing not to be able to play the match, but it is out of our hands," Haidee Tiffen, Canterbury’s captain, admitted. "We wanted to win it but we are still happy to have a share of it."Maia Lewis, the Wellington captain, said the strength in depth in the competition was a bonus."Central Districts have always been strong on paper but they came on this season so there is not much difference between the top four and us," she said. "The competition is healthy."

Come October and the West Indian cricketers are likely to become full-time, contracted cricketers. According to a report in Trinidad and Tobago Express, the West Indian Players’ Association (WIPA) and the board held discussions last week in which it was agreed that a Memorandum of Understanding would be signed between the two parties soon.Roger Brathwaite, the chief executive of the West Indian Cricket Board (WICB), announced that the second stage of negotiations had been completed. The report mentions that the next stage of talks – dealing with the WICB’s use of the contracted players’ images for advertising – would be held later. Brathwaite confirmed that the contracts should be ready in about four months: “I think it would be realistic to expect that we would have tied up everything and that the chosen players would be on contracts by October 1, which is the start of our financial year.”Teddy Griffith, the president of WICB, mentioned that while the contract system of various countries were studied, the Australian model was the one that they decided to follow most closely. He noted that since the West Indian team comprised players from various countries, the contract was designed keeping in mind the different labour laws in various regions. Under the system, the contracted players would be assured an annual salary, apart from the match fees and endorsement money.Griffith also clarified that the board was planning to have a system in place which would reduce the possibility of a strike by the players. “We have agreed on a process that overcomes that and ensures that we should not have a repetition of the players’ strike of last year. It does not remove the players’ right to strike but it does put in place an agreed procedure before that can occur.” The semi-finals of the Carib Beer Cup was delayed by a day last season due to a strike.Australia, South Africa, England, New Zealand and Zimbabwe all have a contract system in place, while India is likely to have one too before the start of the next season.

First-class domestic squads for 2004-05 Pura Cup and ING Cup competitions with notable player gains and losses:Victoria Cameron White (capt), Jason Arnberger, Rob Cassell, Gerard Denton, Matthew Elliott, Brett Harrop, Shane Harwood, Ian Harvey, Brad Hodge, David Hussey, Mathew Inness, Nick Jewell, Brendan Joseland, Michael Klinger, Michael Lewis, Andrew McDonald, Jonathon Moss, Peter Roach, Graeme Rummans, Tim Welsford, Shane Warne, Allan Wise.
Gains – Gerard Denton (Tas). Losses Darren Berry (retired).Queensland Jimmy Maher (capt), Andy Bichel, Scott Brant, Lee Carseldine, Joe Dawes, Chris Hartley, Nathan Hauritz, Matthew Hayden, James Hopes, Shane Jurgensen, Michael Kasprowicz, Martin Love, Damien MacKenzie, Ashley Noffke, Aaron Nye, Clinton Perren, Craig Philipson, Nathan Rimmington, Wade Seccombe, Chris Simpson, Andrew Symonds, Shane Watson.
Gains – Shane Watson (Tas). Losses – Stuart Law (retired), Steve Magoffin (WA).Tasmania Ricky Ponting (capt), George Bailey, Michael Bevan, Andy Blignaut, Luke Butterworth, Sean Clingeleffer, Jamie Cox, Michael Di Venuto, Michael Dighton, Xavier Doherty, Andrew Downton, Brett Geeves, Adam Griffith, Rhett Lockyear, Daniel Marsh, Scott Mason, Damien Wright.
Gains – Andy Blignaut (Zimbabwe), Michael Bevan (NSW). Losses – Shane Watson (Qld), Gerard Denton (Vic).Western Australia Justin Langer (capt), Ryan Campbell, Beau Casson, Michael Clark, Ben Edmondson, Sean Ervine, Adam Gilchrist, Murray Goodwin, Kade Harvey, Brad Hogg, Mike Hussey, Sam Howman, Steve Magoffin, Shaun Marsh, Damien Martyn, Scott Meuleman, Marcus North, Chris Rogers, Luke Ronchi, Craig Simmons, Adam Voges, Darren Wates, Brad Williams, Peter Worthington.
Gains – Sean Ervine (Zimbabwe), Steve Magoffin (Qld). Losses Jo Angel (retired), Paul Wilson (retired), John Taylor (Vic).New South Wales – Simon Katich (capt), Aaron Bird, Doug Bollinger, Nathan Bracken, Shawn Bradstreet, Stuart Clark, Michael Clarke, Edward Cowan, Brad Haddin, Phil Jaques, Jason Krejza, Grant Lambert, Brett Lee, Stuart MacGill, Glenn McGrath, Greg Mail, Don Nash, Matthew Nicholson, Aaron O’Brien, Matthew Phelps, Dominic Thornely, Liam Zammit.
Gains – nil. Losses – Steve Waugh (retired), Mark Waugh (retired), Michael Slater (retired), Michael Bevan (Tas).South Australia Darren Lehmann (capt), Nathan Adcock, Greg Blewett, Ben Cameron, Mark Cleary, Mark Cosgrove, Daniel Cullen, John Davison, Shane Deitz, Chris Duval, Callum Ferguson, Jason Gillespie, Ryan Harris, Mark Higgs, Trent Kelly, Graham Manou, Mick Miller, Paul Rofe, Jack Smith, Shaun Tait, Matthew Weeks.
Gains – nil. Losses – Andy Flower (Essex).

Victoria 5 for 72 beat New South Wales 71 (Smith 4-10) by 5 wickets – best-of-three series level at 1-1
ScorecardVictoria Spirit levelled the best-of-three finals series in a low-scoring encounter at Sydney’s Bankstown Oval. First they bowled the New South Wales Breakers out for 71, then crept to their target in 39.1 overs, with five wickets to spare.On a difficult pitch only three players managed to reach double figures in NSW’s innings – Lisa Keightley and Alexandra Blackwell, who both made 13, and Sarah Andrews, who top-scored with 19. Clea Smith took 4 for 10 in her ten overs, and Jodie Dean also conceded just ten runs in ten overs as NSW found scoring almost impossible. There were also three run-outs.Victoria weren’t much quicker, but reached their small target in the end. Belinda Clark made 20 to steady the ship after two early wickets went down, but a mid-innings wobble in which Louise Broadfoot and Emily McIntyre both departed for ducks jangled the nerves. But the wise old head of Cathryn Fitzpatrick (12 not out) and Kelly Applebee (27 not out) inched Victoria home.The deciding match will be played at the same ground tomorrow.

The confusion surrounding South Africa’s tour of India in November deepened with the news that the Indian board (BCCI) had submitted a revised itinerary less than 24 hours after the initial schedule had been rejected by the South Africans.The South African board (UCBSA) dismissed the original proposal, for seven one-day internationals and no Tests, yesterday on the grounds that it wanted Tests as well as one-dayers. But last night Gerald Majola, the UCBSA’s chief executive, revealed that he had been sent a new itinerary which included two Tests in place of the one-dayers.Majola was clearly as confused as everyone else. “I don’t know what’s going on,” he shrugged. “They keep on moving the goalposts. It now looks as if they want to host Pakistan as well for some sort of jubilee match, and they are trying to fit us all in to a very short period of time.” He added that it would be impossible for South Africa to agree to the new schedule.”They now want to extend our tour to December 7, whereas it would have ended on November 30 with the limited-overs itinerary. But we can’t possibly agree to extend the tour that far because England arrive here on December 5, and the first Test against them is on December 17. That means, with their journey home from India, the players would not even have two weeks to recover before going straight into another Test series.”South Africa would certainly reject any suggestion that the England tour be rearranged. Majola explained that tickets had been printed, and with thousands of tourists traveling from England to watch the games, any revision of dates would present a logistical nightmare. He added that ICC regulations stipulate that there should be a two-week gap between Test series, adding that tour schedules should be finalised a year in advance.The confusion is not only at South Africa’s end. Majola revealed that he had been told by the BCCI that the earlier schedule sent to him had not been approved by them before it was forwarded. He described the situation as “crazy”.Majola concluded by expressing his disappointment with the role of the ICC in the matter. It had, he claimed, washed its hands of the whole matter and said that it was down to the two countries to resolve. But Brendan McClements, the ICC’s general manager, said that: “It’s not unusual for these discussions over schedules to occur.”

Towards the end, he was reduced to walking singles, one of the fittest men in the side reduced to a heat-exhausted wreck by the capricious whims and fancies of a cricket board that cares only about two things – the bottom line and top dollar.And if the BCCI has its way, Rahul Dravid and his fellow players might have to play ten more such games over the space of the next month, with efforts on to squeeze in five ODIs against Sri Lanka at the completion of this Pakistan tour. If the weather conditions resemble those experienced at Kochi today, the series sponsor might as well be some manufacturer of IV drips.To say that the conditions were inhuman would be the mildest of understatements. By the time the clock-arm had spun around to 12, the mercury was touching 40C with humidity close to 90 percent. The bands were beating a wearier rhythm and the carnival atmosphere was dulled as the pressure-cooker conditions affected everyone.Not that it matters to the golden-goose killers. Who cares about a dehydrated and cramping player or three when there’s money to be made by selling series rights? Who cares if the average fan in the stands slows down like a wind-up toy after not being allowed to bring in any water to drink? As long as the fat cats are happy with their finger food and air conditioning in the corporate hospitality boxes – next dodgy TV deal in the pipeline? – all’s well with the world.India’s players perhaps need to have a word or two with Tim May and friends about forming a strong association that will put a stop to such nonsense. Players are not cattle – and few farmers would treat livestock with such contempt – to be herded across from one obscenely hot venue to another in a season when no one would step out of the shade unless they absolutely had to.The enthusiasm and verve of this Kochi crowd has been a lesson to many established centers where spectators have come to take their cricket for granted while being boorishly partisan. But while such a magnificent turnout deserves due reward, it shouldn’t come in the form of a match in sizzling summer heat. This is no time to play or watch cricket – even an April fool could tell you that.

Alex Tudor, the Essex and former England fast bowler – whose career has been blighted by persistent injuries – is struggling to be fit for the start of the domestic season following complex knee surgery.Tudor signed for Essex two years ago but played just twice last season, when a degenerative knee defect was identified.”I’m really chuffed with the way he has progressed. It’s a case of crossing our fingers,” Ronnie Irani, the Essex captain, told BBC Sport while on tour with his county in South Africa. “Prior to his arrival at Essex, Alex had a hip problem which was the reason why he was released by Surrey .”But we sorted that out and he doesn’t have an issue with that anymore. We are very hopeful that Alex is going to perform wonders for us at this county and if he stays fit then he will do exceptionally well.”Essex’s first Championship game of the summer is against Northamptonshire on April 19 at Chelmsford.

Sabina Park in Kingston, Jamaica, and the multi-purpose Trelawny Stadium are likely to miss out on first-class action in the forthcoming season owing to ongoing World Cup preparations. The Jamaican Cricket Association (JCA) had written a proposal to the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) requesting that all first-class matches in the two venues for the Carib Beer Series be relocated.Paul Campbell, the vice-president of the JCA, stated that they did not want work to come to a standstill at Sabina Park while the sewerage work at Trelawny, situated on the outskirts of Kingston, was yet to be completed. He added that the JCA had altered the fixtures and were awaiting a green signal from the WICB. Trelawny was originally scheduled to host Guyana from January 20 while the matches against Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago were slated for Sabina Park.”Initially, those two venues, Sabina Park and Trelawny, were scheduled to facilitate testing,” Campbell told the . “We have submitted the changes. We asked for Guyana to be played at Kensington Park; Barbados at Chedwin Park and Trinidad & Tobago at Alpart, that’s our proposal. We are waiting on their (WICB) input to find out if that is ok.”He added that they were waiting to find out if it would be possible to play the domestic one-day games in the same venues. All three matches of the KFC Cup one-day tournament have been scheduled two days after the four-day first-class games.

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Don Maxwell cracked a boundary-laden 114 and Nicholas Ifill contributed 83 as Canada overcame a poor start to pile up 340 for 9 declared on the opening day of the Intercontinental Cup game against Cayman Islands.Canada were reduced to 83 for 4 earlier in the day but Maxwell received some good support, first from Sunil Dhaniram, who made a rapid 37, and then from Ifill to help Canada post a healthy total. However, Ryan Bovell, who ended with three wickets, pulled it back for the Cayman Islands towards the end of the day.The Cayman Islands had to bat just three overs before stumps were drawn but lost Ainsley Hall for a duck and finished at 5 for 1.