Danish KaneriaOn comparing his performance here to the effort at Kolkata
The wicket here suited me much more than the Kolkata pitch. I was also suffering because of dehydration at Kolkata and couldn’t get into the right rhythm. Here I found my rhythm early and it worked out well.On whether he had a specific plan for Sourav Ganguly
Nothing was planned for Ganguly. He was dropped of the earlier ball so I thought he would try and come down the track and attack me. I thought he might want to disturb my length and sent down a googly. That’s exactly what happened and he was stumped.On tomorrow
I am confident of giving it my 101% and bowling India out tomorrow. We will surely be trying our best for a win.On the pitch
It has deteriorated day by day. The ball was turning today but it was mainly slow turn. But if a bowler is willing to put in some effort then he can surely get some turn. Considering it will be a fifth-day wicket, it will surely help me. The bowlers haven’t done much in this game so far because of the pitch and also because of some extraordinary innings played. But it depends on the day tomorrow and I am confident of doing well.On the declaration
I think it is a fighting target.On his own performance over the last few months
My confidence has improved after every performance. County cricket definitely helped me because I learnt to bowl on pitches that didn’t suit me.On the key wicket tomorrow
Definitely Rahul Dravid. He is a big player – the Wall as they say – and he is the one batsman who can prevent us from winning. Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag are also very dangerous but Dravid will be the main wicket.VVS Laxman
On the strategy tomorrow
We will definitely go for a win. The start is very important. We have had fantastic starts throughout the series from both Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir. The strategy will be based on the start tomorrow.On his innings today
I was disappointed at not reaching a hundred. It was not my usual type of free-flowing innings but I had to adapt to the situation.On batting with the tail
It’s a different experience at No. 5 or 6. One has to adjust to the situation. It’s also important to have confidence in the tailenders’ batting ability. All our tailenders have done well in the recent past and there is a lot of competition in the lower order now. Lakshmipathy Balaji did well at Mohali. Harbhajan Singh and Kumble had a good partnership at Kolkata. And Irfan Pathan has batted well earlier. I just tell them to hang in there.On a few tailenders throwing away their wickets irresponsibly
It is disappointing but the tailenders can also benefit from going for their shots. So it works both ways.Siddhartha Vaidyanathan is on the staff of Cricinfo.

Inzamam-ul-Haq admitted that a target of 282 was achievable, but blamed the sudden batting collapse for Pakistan’s tame defeat. Here’s what he had to say in the post-match press conference:

On whether Pakistan was complacent today after winning the Bangalore Test
Tests and ODIs are very different games. The boys worked hard today in the heat but sometimes these things just happen.On the first-ball let-off for Virender Sehwag
He’s a good one-day player and if you drop him it will always be expensive. Without him India would not have made 281.On Sachin Tendulkar’s golden arm
Non-regular bowlers occasionally pick up wickets. Today was a good day for India when everything they did worked.On the target
The target of 282 was a gettable one, it shouldn’t have been difficult because the pitch was still in very good condition. The turning point came when we slipped from 45 for no loss to 64 for 4 very quickly. After that it was very difficult.On why Shahid Afridi didn’t open the batting
He has batted lower down the order for us in the last 15-20 matches and he has been very successful, so we decided to keep him there.On the weather
Obviously the weather was very difficult and it was very hot. The gloves were becoming difficult to grip because of the heat but we are professionals and we should be able to adjust to these weather conditions.On Younis Khan’s fitness
He is still not fit but we have two more days to go before the next game so he can’t be ruled out yet.

Surrey’s ignominious performance in the field against Nottinghamshire has been exacerbated by the news that they have been given a five-run penalty for ball-tampering, after an incident that came to light after the first day’s play at The Oval.The match umpires, Mervyn Kitchen and Nigel Llong, revealed that they had taken the overnight decision because of alterations to the condition of the ball. No single player could be singled out, they stressed to reporters at the match, although the pair added that Mark Ramprakash, Surrey’s captain, had been warned after 35 overs after it was spotted that the quarter-seam had been lifted.Llong checked the ball again with five overs of the day remaining and found no further evidence, but when he discovered at the close of play that the condition had altered once again, he reported the matter to the England & Wales Cricket Board. The old ball is now in the possession of the ECB, and Nottinghamshire’s batsmen were permitted to chose a new one for the resumption of play. They chose wisely as well, as Stephen Fleming hurtled to a magnificent double-century against a demoralised attack.Alan Butcher, Surrey’s stand-in coach, told the Press Association: “Further to the umpires’ ruling and the alteration of the condition of the ball we will co-operate with any inquiry by the ECB. We are conscious of the need to uphold both the spirit and the letter of the laws of cricket.” Nottinghamshire’s coach, Mick Newell, added: “I thought the umpires got it about right.”

Richie Benaud added his voice, on Sunday, to calls for Bangladesh and Zimbabwe to be dropped from senior international cricket. Benaud, currently in England where he is commentating for broadcaster Channel 4, made his comments after witnessing Bangladesh’s innings and 261-run defeat in the first Test at Lord’s.The match, Bangladesh’s first Test in England, finished before lunch on the third day with Benaud labelling it an “absolute shambles”. Benaud, writing in the News of the World, was adamant that the presence of Bangladesh – whose only win in 37 Tests has come against fellow strugglers Zimbabwe – was neither good for the game as a whole or for the teams themselves.Benaud said: “After witnessing this two-and-a-bit day farce at Lord’s, I am convinced our game’s governing body – the ICC – must make a firm and swift decision, They must remove Bangladesh and Zimbabwe from full-time international cricket until their ability and infrastructure warrant their re-inclusion.He added: “Both teams need to be put on hold for the good of cricket. They are simply not good enough to be pitched against proper Test match countries. What should be done is to have both countries scheduled to play a carefully programmed series of matches against A teams and minor teams from the other eight [Test] countries and they should play against one another as well. They can undertake short tours where none of the opposition will be of international standard and we can see if they are improving, standing still or going backwards.”The ICC is due to hold its annual meetings at Lord’s in June. However, it is unlikely that the standing of either Bangladesh or Zimbabwe will be on the agenda given that the governing body has repeatedly said their Test status is not up for discussion. Benaud, 74, one of cricket’s best-known broadcasters, was the first player to complete the all-round double of 2,000 Test runs and 200 Test wickets. He led Australia in 28 of his 63 Tests and never lost a series as captain.

Scorecard

The heat is most definitely on this summer. Just ask Australia, who have been learning what it’s like to play in a pressure cooker. Down at Beckenham, in Kent, the heat was no less intense as a cruel summer for Kent got crueller when Surrey inflicted a painful victory on the opening night of this year’s Twenty20. They had nowhere to hide – much like the fans, who sweltered under a scorching evening sun.The marquees providing corporate and public hospitality offered refreshments but not cool. The makeshift shop sweltered under air conditioning that did nothing but pump hot air around. Those lucky enough to own one of the spanking new flats at long leg were rare beneficiaries of shade. Supping G & Ts, while munching strawberries, and all from the comfort of their own balconies, they were the coolest cats in town.In the ground itself, the question on all fans’ parched lips was: just where was the jacuzzi they had come to expect? Twenty20 marketing men, with your previous innovations, you have been spoiling us. There wasn’t much in the way of innovation for this, the third year of shortened fare – the mandatory burger and ice-cream vans notwithstanding – but Beckenham did its best.This may be the fourth choice venue for Kent, but the ground is easy on the eye and easily accessible from London – quite visibly, too. Behind the greenery which runs around the ground, the NatWest Tower and the Gherkin (or Swiss Re building, to give it its Sunday name) dot the distant skyline. Many had raced down from the sweltering smog-lined City, only to find themselves in baking tree-lined suburbia, and many got caught out in the heat. Peter, an IT consultant in town, had forgotten his shorts and had to make do, instead, with his black work trousers. “I’m frying”, he announced, while reaching for another cooling beer.Others adopted improvised means. One man pressed into a hedge, his 99 Flake icecream in hand, while more scrabbled to find a rare spot of shade in front of the media tent, or the designer flats.But for the unlucky exposed – in this case, Kent – there was no cream to soothe the pain. Harbhajan Singh, Surrey’s own Mr Whippy, appeared to have picked up the idea of the game pretty quickly. He was expensive in his first outing – when Asia lost to the International XI on Monday – but here, in front of a sell-out crowd approaching 7000, he bowled tighter; his four overs cost 22. Nayan Doshi also impressed, with 3 for 24 from his four overs. Kent wilted to 140 for 8.Martin van Jaarsveld, though, showed he was at ease – he posted 51. But the much-awaited arrival of the big-hitting Justin Kemp disappointed. This format could have been dreamed up for him, at least in theory: in practice, he struck a turgid 10 from 16 balls. He needs to adapt – and fast, as a jam-packed fortnight lies ahead. In all, Kent managed just 13 fours and two sixes and, in this format, that was never enough. Surrey kept their cool and, within just 16 overs of their reply, they had the game licked.Even without two of their Twenty20 stars – the retired allrounder Adam Hollioake and their captain Mark Ramprakash – Surrey showed how to strangle a team. James Benning took them home at a canter, striking 66 from 37 balls under the dying sun. Hollioake had revealed earlier this week that, despite a hat-trick cameo in the tsunami Twenty20 match, he wouldn’t return to the format he has mastered. These days, extreme fighting Down Under is much more his style. Ramprakash’s excuse was a little more prosaic – he is still recovering from a broken finger.Despite the heat, and the one-sidedness of the result, the crowd – as always in such an evening romp – had a great time. A fair smattering of first-timers had waltzed on down, with some unsure where their allegiances lay. But in cheering both sides, they were guaranteed not to be disappointed. The same can’t be said for Kent purists, while Surrey’s fans could take this, smilingly, as a sign of things to come.

Northerns 316 for 6 (Smith 97, Paleker 51, Dros 57, Almeida 3-35) beat Easterns 236 for 9 (Bodi 76, van Woerkom 3-43) by 80 runs
Northerns made the best possible start against Easterns at SuperSport Park as Aldin Smith (97) and Allahudien Paleker got away to a flier scoring 77 runs for the first wicket, with Paleker’s 50 coming off 31 balls.Nic van Woerkom then smashed a quick 49 off 45 opening the door for Gerald Dros to race to 57 off 40. Not to be outdone Justin Kemp then fired 26 off 10 balls for Northerns to end on 316. Easterns had struggled in the field with only Renato Almeida featuring by taking a creditable 3 for 35 in his nine overs.Easterns made a good start with their first fifty coming up in 10 overs as Andre Seymore tried to accelerate the innings. He edged an expansive drive into his stumps to be bowled for 40 while Goolam Bodi tried to emulate the Northerns tactics. His 50 came up in 35 balls after sending eight fours and two sixes to the ropes.But maintaining an run-rate of seven or eight an over proved to be just too much as Bodi swung across the line once to often to be trapped in front for 76. With wickets falling at regular intervals Northerns ran out worthy winners by 80 runs.KwaZulu-Natal 190 for 4 (Smit 74, Lazarus 52*) beat Free State 187 (Summers 50, Africa 4-48) by six wicketsFree State made the cardinal mistake of getting bowled out by KwaZulu-Natal inside their 45 overs at Kingsmead. Shane Summers, batting at No. 9, gave Free State a glimmer of hope by scoring a half-century, but with no-one able to stay with him the innings closed on 187.Keegan Africa, the young Under-19 KwaZulu-Natal pace bowler, was the main wicket-taker as he walked off with four scalps. Kyle Smit, the hard-hitting Natal opener, gave the home team the start they needed, stroking eight fours and a six in his 74. Fabian Lazarus then made sure that Natal won by carrying his bat for 52.

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Scorecard

Matthew Hayden continued from where he had left off in the 2001 series, muscling his way to 67, as the Australians gained some valuable batting practice on the first day of their tour opener in Mumbai. After overnight showers had delayed play by more than four hours, all the batsmen in the Australian top order used the chance to get into their groove. Mumbai did manage to pick up three wickets in the final session, and the Australians finished on 159 for 3.Hayden was like a bulldog on a leash – always threatening, and at times ferocious. He took an excessively long time preparing himself to face the first delivery, with Ramesh Powar surprisingly sharing the new ball, as he cleared huge amounts of dust from the pitch, squatted several times and checked the field placement twice. Powar got away unscathed in his first spell but suffered when he returned in the 11th over, being clattered for 16 runs, including a six that crashed into the sight-screen.Ajit Agarkar and Avishkar Salvi were also carted around – one four off Salvi was close to the mid-off fielder, but it screamed past so fast that he didn’t move. The only bowler who he wasn’t taken apart by Hayden was Sairaj Bahutule, the legspinner. Though Hayden lofted him over long-off for six, and came down the track almost every ball, Bahutule induced a few iffy moments. He finally got his wicket in the 33rd over, as Hayden converted a full-length ball into a low full-toss and patted it back to give Bahutule a simple return catch (108 for 2).Hayden and Justin Langer had given Australia a confident start, and added 69 in the ninety minutes before the tea-break. Langer’s innings was characterised by a number of balls that he drove straight to the fielders. He preferred to rotate the strike and watch the show at the other end, but just before the tea break he capitalised on some wayward bowling, and helped himself to a few fours as well. However, he fell to the second ball after the break as he tried to drive Agarkar through the off side, but edged through to Vinayak Samant, the wicketkeeper (69 for 1).Simon Katich (30) was promoted to No. 3, which is where he will probably bat in the first Test, and milked the bowling around in his 80-ball innings. He survived a run-out chance when he was on 3 as he danced down the track and played a shot straight to the short-leg fielder, who failed to hit the stumps with a return throw. Damien Martyn (28 not out) then gave a sneak preview of his silken touch, and there was a gentler ending to the day’s play after Hayden had torn everyone apart earlier.Due to heavy showers last night, the first half of the day was spent waiting for the field to dry up. Polly Umrigar, the chief curator, was in the centre of all the action, enthusiastically handing out instructions to the ground staff while constantly muttering: “It’s all OK”. Fittingly, it was Umrigar who walked out to the toss with Ian Johnson way back in October 1956, when Australia played their first-ever Test match on Indian soil.

Trevor Bayliss, the New South Wales coach, wants Brett Lee to return from India if he is not picked for the final Test on Wednesday.Lee has not played in a Test since January and Bayliss said it would be better for him to fly home and play for the Blues. “I would have thought there are two or three other young guys over there who could do a decent job running around,” Bayliss told the .New South Wales start their Pura Cup match against Western Australia at the SCG tomorrow and will play New Zealand in a first-class game on November 11.Western Australia will not call for another bowler despite Michael Clark having scans today to determine whether a screw has loosened in his back. Clark, who missed last seasosn with stress fractures of the spine and had a pin inserted into the L4 vertebrae, complained of soreness after fielding in the ING Cup match against New South Wales yesterday.Adam Voges, who scored the fastest century in the competition yesterday with his 62-ball hundred, is likely to be dropped as Scott Meuleman returns from a dislocated shoulder.New South Wales Brad Haddin (c), Nathan Bracken, Stuart Clark, Phil Jaques, Jason Krejza, Greg Mail, Stuart MacGill, Matthew Nicholson, Aaron O’Brien, Matthew Phelps, Dominic Thornely, Damian Wallace.Western Australia Michael Hussey (c), Murray Goodwin, Ryan Campbell, Beau Casson, Kade Harvey, Brad Hogg, Steve Magoffin, Scott Meuleman, Marcus North, Adam Voges, Darren Wates, Shaun Marsh.

Richard Done, the former head coach of the Queensland Cricket Academy, has been appointed by the International Cricket Council as their new High Performance Manager.Done, a former New South Wales fast bowler, has been involved in Australian cricket for 25 years, and takes over the ICC role from Bob Woolmer, who is now in charge of Pakistan.Done’s task is to help to bridge the gap between the leading Associate nations of the ICC and the full members through such tournaments as the inaugural three-day Intercontinental Cup, the semi-finals of which take place in the United Arab Emirates from November 17.”This is a vital role in the development of the sport outside its traditional heartlands,” said Malcolm Speed, the chief executive of the ICC, who added that Done had been selected after an extensive search for Woolmer’s replacement.”After an interview process involving high-calibre applicants from eight of our Full Member countries, Richard emerged as the outstanding candidate with the skills and experience to help these nations develop,” Speed added. “I wish him every success in this challenging role.”Done, who has undertaken coaching assignments in India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and the UAE, was senior coach at the Australian Cricket Academy for nine years, where he oversaw the development of several of the current Australian squad, including the entire pace attack of Glenn McGrath, Jason Gillespie, Brett Lee and Michael Kasprowicz. He has also coached the Australian Under-19 squad on several occasions.Done’s first role will be to attend the finals of the Intercontinental Cup. After that, he will concentrate on preparations for the ICC Trophy in Ireland in July 2005, where the top five teams from the 12-team event will qualify for the 2007 World Cup in the West Indies. The countries currently on the High Performance Programme are Kenya, Namibia, Holland, Scotland and Canada.”Over recent years the ICC has demonstrated a genuine commitment to developing the sport around the world and I am excited about the opportunity to help contribute to this goal,” said Done. “I am looking forward to working with coaches and players to help these nations improve.”

Kamran Akmal and all-rounder Yasir Arafat helped Pakistan ‘A’ complete a clean sweep in the one-day series against Sri Lanka ‘A’ at Gaddafi Stadium Thursday. Kamran hammered a scintillating 72 and Yasir claimed five for 28 as the home side won by 34 runs. Pakistan ‘A’ had already sealed the three-match rubber by winning the two first ties at Multan and Faisalabad, respectively.Sri Lanka ‘A’ made a partial recovery from 75 for six before being dismissed for 210 in 47.2 overs. Skipper Thilan Samaraweera and Khaushal Lokuarachchi saved face for the visitors by putting on 112 for the seventh wicket.Samaraweera struck seven fours in making 74 off 101 deliveries before being last out while Lokuarachchi hit 63 off 75 balls with six fours and one six.Yasir, who claimed three wickets in his opening burst, was adjudged Man-of-the-Match. He got excellent support from off-spinner Irfanuddin with three for 51.Earlier, Pakistan ‘A’ made another fine start when wicket-keeper Kamran Akmal and Salman Butt shared an opening partnership of 108.Salman departed after stroking 44 off 62 balls. His knock included six boundaries. Kamran’s 93-ball knock of 72 was laced with seven hits to the fence.Stand-in captain Naved Latif contributed 25. Saeed bin Nasir made full use of an extended opportunity in the middle by remaining unconquered on 43, which were scored off only 41 balls with the aid of three fours and one six.