All posts by h716a5.icu

Dean Minors, the Bermuda wicketkeeper, has announced his retirement from all cricket after being dropped from the squad for the World Twenty20 Qualifiers in UAE next month

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Feb-2012Dean Minors, the Bermuda wicketkeeper, has announced his retirement from all cricket after being dropped from the squad for the World Twenty20 Qualifiers in UAE next month.Minors, 42, had earlier been lured out of retirement by Bermuda Cricket Board (BCB) to bolster the national team ahead of last July’s Americas Division One Twenty20 Tournament in Florida. However, he had told the BCB that he couldn’t commit to training because of his day job as a teacher.”I explained to them that my first priority would be to my work commitments,” Minors told the . “And after giving the national team 20 years of service and then on top of that come out of retirement to assist I thought I would’ve been given a bit more flexibility.”In the last few weeks leading up to the tournament I was even trying to work overtime to allow myself to train extra so there was a lot of manoeuvring on my part to make time and make myself available because of the importance of this tour. But of course it was not meant to be and I just wish the team the best of luck in Dubai.”Minors said it was time for a new wicketkeeper to step into his role. “After the team (Twenty20 squad) was announced something came over me and I just thought it was time to retire. I can’t go on forever and I think it’s time for wicketkeepers like Jason [Anderson] and Jekon [Edness] to step up.”Minors is contemplating staying with cricket through umpiring. “The suggestion came from Clay (Smith). he was saying why not consider umpiring because of the shortage of umpires,” Minors said. “I just want to help raise the standard (of cricket) and if I can do that through umpiring then I am more than willing to stand in the middle and do what I have to do.”

Trent Copeland reminded Australia’s selectors of his credentials with a five-wicket haul that set up victory for New South Wales in Sydney

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Nov-2011
ScorecardTrent Copeland collected 5 for 44•Getty ImagesTrent Copeland reminded Australia’s selectors of his credentials with a five-wicket haul that set up victory for New South Wales in Sydney. Copeland was axed from the Test squad for the series against New Zealand, having toured in South Africa and Sri Lanka, and in his second match back for the Blues he picked up 5 for 44 to help restrict Western Australia to 199.Copeland struck three times in his first three overs and the Warriors never fully recovered from their shaky start of 4 for 14. The opener Wes Robinson steadied things somewhat with 87 but his only serious support came from the fast bowler Nathan Rimmington, who was coming off his maiden first class hundred and scored 46 in an 89-run stand with Robinson.The visitors were all out in their 49th over and didn’t crack the 200 mark, hardly what the stand-in captain Luke Ronchi wanted when he chose to bat. The New South Wales chase was reduced to 198 from 46 overs due to rain and when they stumbled to 5 for 103 the hosts looked in danger.But half-centuries to Steven Smith (57 not out) and Peter Nevill (55 not out) got the hosts home with 16 balls to spare.

Dean Elgar and Rory Kleinveldt have been included in South Africa’s 14-man squad for the first two one-day internationals against Sri Lanka

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Dec-2011South Africa one-day squad

AB de Villiers (capt & wk), Hashim Amla, Johan Botha, JP Duminy , Faf du Plessis, Dean Elgar, Jacques Kallis, Rory Kleinveldt, Morne Morkel, Wayne Parnell, Robin Peterson, Graeme Smith, Dale Steyn, Lonwabo Tsotsobe

Dean Elgar, the uncapped left-handed batsman, and seamer Rory Kleinveldt have been included in South Africa’s 14-man squad for the first two one-day internationals against Sri Lanka. The series will also be the first chance for AB de Villiers as captain after injury meant he missed the matches against Australia.Elgar, the Knights opening batsman, is the only rookie in the squad. Kleinveldt has already represented South Africa in two Twenty20 internationals, the latest one during the 2009 ICC World Twenty20 in the Caribbean.The squad includes three changes from the one that faced Australia at home recently. de Villiers will take over the wicketkeeping duties from Mark Boucher alongside his captaincy duties, while Elgar replaces batsman David Miller and the selectors chose to switch legspinner Imran Tahir for Kleinveldt.”We have chosen a squad of 14 for the first two games only,” Andrew Hudson, the Cricket South Africa’s selection convener, said. “Those members of the squad who are not involved in the final Test match in Newlands next week will be released to play for their franchises before the squad assembles on January 9.”There have been a number of batsmen showing good form in domestic cricket, and Elgar fully deserves his opportunity,” Hudson added. “He was the leading run-scorer in the One-Day Cup (567 runs) and also had the best average (81). In addition he gives us very useful bowling options as a left-arm spinner.”Kleinveldt played an important role with the ball in helping the Cobras to win the One-Day Cup and he also has a lot of potential as a lower-order power hitter.” Kleinveldt was the second-highest wicket-taker for the Cobras, taking 13 wickets in nine matches.With Johan Botha and Robin Peterson the two specialist spinners in the side, Hudson said the committee didn’t feel the need to include Tahir, even though he adds variety with his legspin.”We feel we won’t need three frontline spinners in South African conditions, so it makes sense to change the bowling balance of the squad slightly,” Hudson said.The first match starts on January 11 at Boland Park, Paarl.

ESPNcricinfo previews the third Test between England and India as the home side aim to become No. 1

Preview by Andrew McGlashan09-Aug-2011Match FactsAugust 10-14, Edgbaston
Start time 11.00 (1000GMT)Tim Bresnan is certain to keep his place after Chris Tremlett was ruled out injured•Getty ImagesThe Big PictureIn 1981 the race riots were an undercurrent throughout a summer where England claimed a famous Ashes series victory. Thirty years later the unrest which began in London and has now spread elsewhere has overshadowed the build-up to a Test match where England can go No. 1 in the world with victory over India.The England team were locked in their hotel on Monday evening, while India were keeping tabs on the situation, but the match is expected to go ahead as planned at a new-look Edgbaston which has undergone extensive redevelopment. The hosts are a win away from taking over from India at the top spot in Test cricket and they will take some stopping in their current form.India have been a major disappointment during the opening two matches except for the herculean efforts of Rahul Dravid and occasional bursts from their pace bowlers. The batsmen have failed to reach 300 in four innings, while the support bowling for the quicks has been awful and the fielding often poor. For a side that came with such a mighty tag it has been quite a fall from grace.MS Dhoni, himself in a poor run of form, and coach Duncan Fletcher have a major challenge. They will hope the return of Virender Sehwag can provide an x-factor but he’s played hardly any cricket recently, falling for 8 against Northamptonshire over the weekend. Still, he has never been a player to value warm-up matches too highly.Despite England’s outstanding performances it is now that they could be at their most vulnerable. They have a recent track record of losing their way when a major target is there for the taking; at Headingley in 2009 and Perth in 2010 they stumbled with the Ashes up for grabs before recovering to claim the prize while last summer against Pakistan they lost at The Oval having been 2-0 up. This time they’ll be desperate not to leave the series open.Form guide (Most recent first)
England WWDDW
India LLDDWWatch out for…India have sent out their SOS – Send our Sehwag. After three months on the sidelines with a shoulder injury Virender Sehwag has returned to action although it remains to be seen how effective he can be. His shoulder is still causing trouble and he’s also suffered partial deafness. Yet he has the ability to open some old scars. His 83 off 68 balls in Chennai was the key innings in India’s successful run chase during the 2008 series against England. Sehwag is the type of batsman who can score a hundred in a session and give a struggling team belief. Still, it’s asking a huge amount of one cricketer.Another batsman returning to Test cricket, although under different circumstances, is Ravi Bopara. However, with Jonathan Trott unlikely to be absent for long it is set to be a one-off chance for Bopara to show his game has matured to make him a viable option in the Test team. He’ll slot in at No. 6, a more natural position than No. 3 where Australia found him out, but still needs to convince he has the technique and temperament for the top level. However, having narrowly missed out to Eoin Morgan earlier in the summer he knows he’s still the next in line.Team newsWith Trott and Chris Tremlett ruled out England don’t face any last-minute selection issues. Steven Finn is part of the squad but won’t keep out Tim Bresnan after his outstanding display at Trent Bridge. Bopara is likely to bat at No. 6 on his Test return which means Morgan moving up one spot.England (probable): 1 Andrew Strauss (capt), 2 Alastair Cook, 3 Ian Bell, 4 Kevin Pietersen, 5 Eoin Morgan, 6 Ravi Bopara, 7 Matt Prior (wk), 8 Tim Bresnan, 9 Stuart Broad, 10 Graeme Swann, 11 James Anderson.India know they’ll be without Zaheer Khan, Harbhajan Singh and Yuvraj Singh for the rest of the tour, but will at least be able to welcome back Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir to strengthen the batting and allow everyone to play in their usual positions. Given Suresh Raina’s problems against the short ball Virat Kohli, who replaced Yuvraj, may be considered while Amit Mishra is still favourite to come in for Harbhajan despite talk of a four-man pace attack.India (probable): 1 Virender Sehwag, 2 Gautam Gambhir, 3 Rahul Dravid, 4 Sachin Tendulkar, 5 VVS Laxman, 6 Suresh Raina, 7 MS Dhoni (c) (wk), 8 Amit Mishra, 9 Praveen Kumar, 10 Ishant Sharma, 11 Sreesanth.Pitch and conditionsThe surface was very green in the days leading up to the game and although some grass will be taken off there should still be plenty to encourage the seamers. However, Steve Rouse, the Edgbaston groundsman, said there won’t be much pace. The ground has had problems with wickets this summer and one Championship pitch was ruled ‘poor’ and cost Warwickshire eight points. The forecast, meanwhile, is mixed with rain expected to be around at times.Stats and trivia England have won four out of five Tests against India at Edgbaston although the two teams haven’t met on this ground since 1996, when Nasser Hussain and Sachin Tendulkar scored hundreds. Kevin Pietersen averages 60.57 at this ground but the next best among the fit England batsmen is Andrew Strauss’s 32.10.For a full stats preview click hereQuotes”Even in the two Tests we’ve played, there are moments when we’ve really had our backs to the wall. We’re not expecting anything different from them, we’re going to have to work very hard and hopefully earn the right to get on top in this Test match.”
“If he nicks it and doesn’t walk it may be different, but apart from that he’s quite good.”

The continuous crush of high-profile cricket combined with the heat and humidity of the subcontinent seems to have taken its toll on England, with a string of players picking up fitness problems

Siddarth Ravindran in Chennai 16-Mar-2011″This is a good time to play England, they have been on the road a long time, in order to stay on in India they have to win,” West Indies captain Darren Sammy said on Wednesday, before joking, “Maybe some of them want to go home to their families, you never know.”Much has been made of the England team having spent only four days at home since late October when they departed to Australia for a dominant Ashes campaign. The continuous crush of high-profile cricket combined with the heat and humidity of the subcontinent seems to have taken its toll on the squad, with a string of players picking up fitness problems.The fast bowler Ajmal Shahzad is the latest casualty, missing Wednesday’s practice session at the MA Chidambaram Stadium after falling ill. It is still unclear whether he will recover in time for the must-win match against West Indies on Thursday. “We are not sure at this stage whether that will affect Shahzad’s chances of being selected for tomorrow,” England captain Andrew Strauss said. Shahzad had taken three wickets in the match against Bangladesh in Chittagong on Friday, and his possible absence increases the chances of James Anderson retaining his place in the XI.There was better news for England regarding two other key players who were struggling with their fitness, with Strauss and offspinner Graeme Swann both recovering from the stomach bug that preventing them from training on Tuesday. “I’m feeling very well, I was a bit laid low day before night and yesterday morning,” Strauss said. “Swann is also recovering well, should be practising today, don’t know if he is quite as buoyant as I am, very confident that he’ll be fine for tomorrow.”Chris Tremlett could join Tim Bresnan in the England side if Ajmal Shahzad’s illness doesn’t clear•Getty ImagesTheir most consistent batsman of the tournament, Jonathan Trott, had also been a member of their sick list earlier this week before recovering from a fever. These concerns are in addition to losing influential players Stuart Broad and Kevin Pietersen to injuries. Pietersen’s tweet outlining the bright side to his injury added to the claims of homesickness. “Well, as frustrated as I am to be missing the rest of the World Cup & IPL, I’ll be at home with my family & friends, I haven’t been home properly since 29 Oct.,” he had written after being ruled out of the tournament.Strauss, though, was adamant the time way from home and the amount of cricket England have played over the past six months were not affecting their performance. “We have been on the road for a long time, but fatigue is the last thing on our mind,” he said. “Potentially we have got four more games to play before a nice, long break.”The illnesses were common for teams touring the subcontinent, he said. “It’s happened to a lot of the sides in this tournament, that guys go down. It’s par for the course in this part of the world, we try and take all the precautions, but these things can strike at any stage.”He said the motivation of keeping the campaign for a first World Cup alive was motivation enough for his side. “We know what the prize there is. We are determined to make the most of the opportunity and take that prize,” he said. “Fatigue is not an issue for us at the moment, and it won’t be until right at the end of the tournament.”The end of the tournament could come as early as Thursday, giving Strauss’ team two extra weeks of rest at home, unless they round off their league phase with a win against West Indies and results out of their control go their way.

Shaminda Eranga, the fast bowler, has a strong chance to make his Test debut for Sri Lanka in the second Test that begins tomorrow in Pallekele, as left-arm seamer Chanaka Welegedara struggles with a knee problem

Daniel Brettig in Kandy07-Sep-2011Shaminda Eranga, the fast bowler, has a strong chance to make his Test debut for Sri Lanka in the second Test that begins tomorrow in Pallekele, as left-arm seamer Chanaka Welegedara struggles with a knee problem. Eranga, 25, had impressed during his appearances on the ODI-leg of this tour, and Australia were a little surprised not to see him in the XI for the first Test in Galle, which the hosts lost by 125 runs.Welegedara had trained gingerly on Wednesday, and his place in the side will hinge on a fitness test scheduled an hour before the Test begins. Ajantha Mendis is also likely to be included in the Sri Lanka XI in place of Suraj Randiv.”[Mendis] is in the 13, we have not picked the final XI,” Sri Lanka’s captain Tillakaratne Dilshan said. “Welegedara is having slight knee pain and we have to assess his fitness tomorrow morning and then make a decision.”Sri Lanka’s readiness for the contest has been questioned after the Galle Test, with former captain Arjuna Ranatunga saying that while the hosts look the stronger side on paper, Australia were more committed. Dilshan said his team had built up a more positive mindset while training in Pallekele, and was now ready to fight for a series-levelling victory.”In the last two days we’ve had good training sessions, everyone is ready to play their part in this match. I think we have the confidence [to bounce back], everyone is good mentally.”A potential ally for the hosts is the pitch in Pallekele, which seems to display none of the ill-will of the Galle surface, allowing Dilshan, Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene to harbour thoughts of dominating with the bat. Australia’s defeats in the last Ashes, Sri Lanka would recall, came as a result of the weight of runs pressed upon them by England’s batsmen.”It looks a good wicket, especially for the batsmen. I think for the first three days it will be good for batting and then it will start turning,” Dilshan said. “In Galle I lost the toss, batting in the second innings was a little hard, but this is a different wicket.”Dilshan’s own performance in the first Test placed him under heavy scrutiny, but he has no intention of changing his attacking methods. He is looking forward to improving his productivity though, and the memory of his blistering century in the first Twenty20 international of the tour at this venue could put his mind in the right space.”I do need to put some runs on the board, especially at the start. The start is really important,” Dilshan said. “Definitely this wicket will help the batsmen – all the batsmen can take advantage and score some runs.”We have talked about what happened in the last match. This is a new match, a new wicket, new conditions. We’re looking forward to coming in with new tactics.”

ESPNcricinfo previews the Clydesdale Bank 40 final between Hampshire and Warwickshire at Lord’s

Alex Winter14-Sep-2012The decline in attraction of cricket’s domestic cup final has parallels with football’s FA Cup final – shifting time slots and sponsors, the rising importance of more valuable competitions – but while the Football Association will always be able to shift tickets for Wembley, the ECB has been forced into some blue sky thinking to try and boost the profile of an occasion where not so long ago, the cricket did all the talking.Friends Life t20 finals day saw a host of comedians keep the crowd chuckling but for the CB40 final, Lord of the Dance will provide the supplementary entertainment. More than 500 young people from schools around the country will perform a “unique choreographed dance routine” – the largest ever staged at Lord’s. One can only assume there have been others.Whoever bats second will be hoping a mass of young children do nothing to affect the condition of the outfield, as chasing has been the path to victory in each of the last four finals. Chasing has also been very successful for Warwickshire; five of their eight victories in the group stage came via bowling first and only one of those pursuits was tight. Only once did they lose batting second.Their success with the bat has gone hand in hand with Varun Chopra’s excellent season. He has made 446 runs at 55.75. Chopra’s opening partner William Porterfield has also been in form with 395 runs, although he is at the World Twenty20 with Ireland. When you add Tim Ambrose’s average of 59 in eight innings into the order, it is easy to see why they won the second-highest number of games of any team in the group stage. And they needed those wins, qualifying only on countback ahead of Kent – who inflicted Warwickshire’s only batting aberration, when the Bears were shot out for 96 at Edgbaston.The bowling attack also boasts the names that have been lauded as Warwickshire took the County Championship title. Chris Wright’s 19 victims have cost 21.15 apiece; Chris Woakes’ 13 just 16.92. Spinner Jeetan Patel has also replicated his Championship influence in the CB40, going at fewer than four runs per over and picking up 11 wickets.The spin department may prove the widest gap between the teams: Hampshire are without Danny Briggs, their leading wicket-taker with 19 victims, who is also at the World T20 in Sri Lanka, with England. But Hampshire do welcome back Neil McKenzie. He flew home after the Friends Life t20 final but has travelled back to try and help Hampshire to a one-day double, which would prove ample compensation, financially if anything, for failing to win promotion in the Championship.Also missing for Hampshire is Dimitri Mascarenhas, one of their most experienced campaigners. He aggravated an injury in the FLt20 final and is now resting ahead of the T20 Champions League in October.But Hampshire have become used to the big occasion, winning the FLt20 in two of the last three seasons. Four of this year’s squad – Jimmy Adams, Michael Carberry, Sean Ervine and Liam Dawson – also played in their last final appearance in the longer one-day competition, when they beat Sussex to win the 2009 FP Trophy, although talisman Dominic Cork, who took four early wickets that day, is no longer around. Ervine is also a veteran of the 2005 final, in the old 50-over format, and he scored a 93-ball hundred as Hampshire defeated this year’s opponents, Warwickshire, by 18 runs.Also returning from that match is Warwickshire’s Neil Carter, hoping for one last tilt at glory. His five-for and pinch-hit 32 were in vain in 2005 but he got his hands on the inaugural CB40 trophy in 2010, when Ian Bell’s hundred saw them to victory. And it is the likes of Bell, Chopra, Wright and Woakes – players in form, who have played high-quality cricket all summer – that give Warwickshire the edge. Hampshire, however, will hope their underdog spirit can produce the sparkle this flagging tournament desperately needs.

After watching India bat through 160 overs, England were plunged into huge trouble in the closing stages of the second day as they lost three late wickets to close on 41 for 3 in reply to the hosts’ imposing 521 for 8 dec

The Report by David Hopps16-Nov-2012
Scorecard and ball by ball detailsFile photo: On day two in Ahmedabad, Cheteshwar Pujara made his first Test double hundred (ESPNcricinfo is not carrying live pictures due to curbs on the media)•Associated PressAfter the certainty of Cheteshwar Pujara’s unbeaten double century for India, England’s fallibility against spin bowling was even more painful for them to bear. India have plotted turning pitches, they opened the bowling with a spinner and in 18 overs of gathering mayhem struck three times in the closing phase of the second day. Initial evidence at least suggests that England’s Asian nightmare is about to continue.One of those three wickets was a nightwatchman – Jimmy Anderson, who prodded the left-arm spinner, Pragyan Ojha to short leg – but that was small consolation for England. Nick Compton batted reasonably securely on debut until R Ashwin, who had opened the bowling, found sharp turn to bowl him through the gate. Jonathan Trott also fell to Ashwin for a fourth-ball duck, a cast-iron push forward and another catch at short leg off bat and pad.What a contrast this was with what had passed earlier. England knew little of Pujara before the series: a bit of a recce in a warm-up match, a few shots watched on a laptop, a provisional theory or two about how best to get him out and a worried expression or two from statisticians unable to deliver megabytes of data.England know lots more about Pujara now. When India declared, to leave England 18 overs before the close of the second day, Pujara had batted in accomplished fashion for more eight-and-a-half hours. But they still do not have much idea how to get him out. Not on low, ponderous surfaces like this, at any rate.When Jimmy Anderson took the first wicket by an England seamer, in the 158th over, there was an emotional argument for throwing the laptops in the skip, but England’s management stared into them with the staunch, glassy-eyed futility of a touring party under enormous pressure.The scorecard showed them that Graeme Swann, valiantly bearing an onerous responsibility as England’s only specialist spinner, had maintained an immaculate line, bowling in traditional offspinner’s style, to finish with 5 for 144. Swann added one more wicket on the second day, bowling MS Dhoni behind his legs, a deflection off a glove as he tried to sweep.Pujara’s progress will have had the connoisseurs purring. He played in stately and composed manner, producing a masterpiece of strategic thinking. Rahul Dravid has retired to England’s relief and they have walked straight into another India batsman with an insatiable appetite for batting. It is understandable how to an Indian eye he might occasionally resemble VVS Laxman, but his mindset is pure Dravid. He bats more elegantly but, like Dravid, has no need for flourish or frippery. The man himself, looking on from the commentary box, could not fail to be mightily impressed.Smart stats

Cheteshwar Pujara’s 206 is his highest Test score surpassing the 159 he made against New Zealand in Hyderabad in 2012. It is also the first double-century for India against England since Rahul Dravid’s 217 at The Oval in 2002.

India’s total of 521 is their tenth 500-plus total against England overall and their fourth against England in home Tests. The previous 500-plus total at home came in Mumbai in 1993.

The 130-run stand between Pujara and Yuvraj Singh is the fifth-highest fifth-wicket stand in Tests in Ahmedabad.

R Ashwin is now the joint fourth-fastest bowler to reach the 50-wicket mark in Tests (nine Tests) and the fastest Indian bowler to reach the mark going past Anil Kumble (ten Tests).

Graeme Swann’s five-wicket haul is his fifth in the subcontinent. His tally of 58 wickets in ten Tests is the second-highest for an England spinner in the subcontinent.

Swann apart, for England there was no encouragement. The ball refused to deviate, in the air or off the ground, for a hard-pressed seam attack as India’s first innings moved inexorably forward. After the Sehwag-fuelled start on the first day, India ground on, their rate slowing. By the declaration, they had added a further 198 at 2.82 runs per over. It was a day in which India’s domination was not expressed noisily but seeped into England’s consciousness.Pujara had rounded off the first day by driving Jimmy Anderson crisply through mid-off for four, a satisfying finale, but one which left him on 98 not out. England sensed an opportunity.Stuart Broad allowed him a comfortable leg-side single to move to 99, and hammed up a vociferous lbw appeal for a ball pitching outside leg; Swann bowled an intelligent maiden. But he picked off another single in Broad’s next over to reach his second Test hundred and celebrated with a quiet air of contentment. When he later reached 200 by steering Anderson past gully, the crowd were ecstatic at the success of one of Gujurat’s own, but Pujara struck you as the sort of level-headed man who does not dance easily in company.His innings, characterised by subtle placement and a sober mind, was a model of restraint and orthodoxy. How England must regret Anderson’s inexplicable misjudgement when Pujara was 8, dashing forward too far at mid-on as he misjudged the flight of Pujara’s leading edge against Tim Bresnan. The decline in England’s fielding has been marked for some time and, as Anderson showed again, it is afflicting both the best and the worst.The most romantic story of all failed to materialise. Yuvraj Singh made a successful return to Test cricket after treatment for cancer, but there was no comeback century, that hope ending when he was unhinged by a groin-high full toss which he whacked obligingly down to long on in the fourth over of the afternoon. Patel had the good grace to look sheepish.Yuvraj entertained, though. His skip down the pitch to strike Swann straight for six was the shot of the morning and was followed by a sweep that fell short of six by inches. Fifteen came from the over; if India broke Swann, England really were in trouble. They never did, but Yuvraj, as a left-hander, had an appetite for Patel, an inconsequential second spinner. His place at No. 6 is justified by his adroitness against spin but, in this Test, his own left-arm slows look slightly round-arm and unthreatening.

Shahid Karim, Mohammad Amir’s lawyer at the spot-fixing hearing in Doha, has said that the ICC tribunal’s decision to defer their verdict gives his client hope

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Jan-2011Shahid Karim, Mohammad Amir’s lawyer at the spot-fixing hearing in Doha, has said that the ICC tribunal’s decision to defer their verdict gives his client renewed hope.”The last day of the (six-day) hearing was very positive,” Karim told on his return to Lahore. “It could be a silver lining for us. I hope Amir will be exonerated next month when the verdict will be announced.”Karim had earlier requested the three-man tribunal examining the charges to take more time to study the case before announcing its verdict, which was initially due on January 11. Following the six-day hearing, the tribunal deferred the verdict to February 5.Karim hopes Amir’s age and unblemished record will work in his favour. “I am happy with the procedure of the hearing,” he had said in Doha. “The ICC code of conduct has a clause which points to looking at the player’s age and past disciplinary record and Amir is young, so we hope the tribunal will keep this in mind.”

Shane Watson has said he is looking forward to an “exciting” new era as his team shifts focus from a disappointing World Cup campaign to the one-day series against Bangladesh

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Apr-2011Shane Watson, the newly appointed Australian vice-captain, has said he is looking forward to an “exciting” new era as his team shifts focus from a disappointing World Cup campaign to the one-day series against Bangladesh.”It’s very disappointing not to get through further than what we did in the World Cup. Unfortunately, that’s been done with and we have got to move on,” Watson said on Wednesday. “We have got three games in Bangladesh with a new captain (Michael Clarke) that will add a slightly new dynamic to our team. I think it’s really an exciting phase in Australian cricket. It’s a changing time in Australian cricket.”This will be Ricky Ponting’s first ODI series as a rank-and-file player since 2002, after leading Australia in a record 228 one-dayers. He stepped down as leader after Australia’s campaign for a fourth straight World Cup ended in a quarter-final defeat to India last month.Watson said the continued presence of Ponting in the side will help Australia’s attempts to arrest their slide from dominance. “I think it is absolutely brilliant that Ricky still continues to play on. Having his experience around the group is very important for our development moving forward.”Australian coach Tim Nielsen agreed Ponting will be an influential player during the transitional phase. “Michael had done a little bit of captaincy before but Shane hadn’t necessarily been involved in the leadership group at all. So it will be excellent for both of them to have Ricky’s experience, cricket knowledge and his competitiveness.”Australia play a Bangladesh Cricket Board XI on Thursday in Fatullah, before taking on Bangladesh in three one-dayers starting April 9.