Sri Lanka players may be paid after Pakistan series

Upali Dharmadasa, the chairman of Sri Lanka Cricket's interim committee, has said he is hopeful that his country's national cricketers will be paid their salaries when they return home after the series against Pakistan currently being played in the UAE. SLC is expecting to receive the remaining payments of around US$ 4.3 million from the ICC for hosting the 2011 World Cup shortly.

"We are awaiting the money from the ICC soon after they have finalized their audit of the World Cup which we believe have been completed," Dharmadasa told ESPNcricinfo.

Dharmadasa stated that SLC requires around 32 million Sri Lankan rupees (approx $290,540) a month to pay the salaries of its 230 employees and 100 contracted cricketers. He admitted to BBC Sinhala that the national cricketers had not been paid their salaries since the World Cup which ended in April because of SLC exceeded their budget building cricket stadiums for the tournament.

Dharmadasa was critical of the previous interim committee, headed by former Sri Lanka leg-spinner DS de Silva, for spending SLC money expansively to build a new stadium at Hambantota, renovating the Pallakele Stadium in Kandy and the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo for the World Cup.

"We are struggling financially today because of such unnecessary expenditure," Dharmadasa said.

Katich to face CA hearing for Clarke comments

Simon Katich has continued to speak his mind
about being left out of the Australia side

Simon Katich, the Australia batsman, will face a Cricket Australia (CA) hearing over the recent comments he made about Australia captain Michael Clarke having a hand in keeping him out of the national side. Katich was reported under the CA code of behaviour provisions covering detrimental public comment.

Details of the hearing will be released in the next few days, but arrangements will be similar to those of past instances of CA reports for detrimental public comment, including Matthew Hayden's 2008 criticism of Harbhajan Singh and Adam Gilchrist's query of Muttiah Muralitharan's bowling action in 2002. It is expected to be held in Melbourne and presided over by CA's senior code of conduct commissioner Gordon Lewis.

James Sutherland, the chief executive of CA, said he was surprised and disappointed with Katich's comments, especially considering that new full-time national selector John Inverarity had said the selection door was still open for him. Katich had said on Friday that he took little joy in Inverarity's appointment because Clarke would not countenance his recall to the team.

"CA emphatically refutes any suggestion that Michael Clarke influenced the independent selection panel's recommendations for the 2011-12 CA contract players' list, a list that did not include Katich," Sutherland said in a statement.

"The National Selection Panel made its recommendations based on its independent assessment of Australian cricket's player needs for the next 12 months and the suggestions made by Katich are completely erroneous, inappropriate and unfair to Clarke, the selectors and to CA.

"Without compromising my confidential understanding of the selectors' confidential thinking, I can state their recommendations were completely independent of outside influence. I was particularly disappointed at the comments yesterday after the discussions we had with Katich in mid-2011 on inappropriate public comments he had made then."

Sutherland said that CA had followed its normal process when someone is dropped in Katich's case. The process involves the chairman of selectors talking with the player, for the player's state association to be advised before a public announcement so it can provide support if needed, and a subsequent CA follow up. In Katich's case, this included a follow-up discussion with Michael Brown, according to the statement.

Katich is expected to dispute the view that his axing was dealt with adequately by CA, though he is understood to have engaged in two conversations with the then chairman of selectors Andrew Hilditch at the time of his removal, followed by a lengthier dialogue with Brown.

Having led Australia to an ODI series win in South Africa, Clarke responded to Katich's words by saying they had been hurtful to the team's morale. Clarke said Katich's words would not help him get back into the team, and may also affect team morale.

"Look when Simon wasn't selected I wasn't a selector at the time," Clarke said. "Since becoming a selector I've made it clear in plenty of press conferences that I've done that the door's certainly not closed on anyone, but in saying that I don't think his comments are certainly helping him get back into this team at the moment.

"The team morale is such an important part of having success and it's been a great thing for the Australian team in both forms of the game of late. I think the team morale is outstanding and we're enjoying seeing a bit of success as well."

Sri Lankan players unpaid since World Cup - reports

About 100 cricketers contracted to Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), including national players, have not been paid their salaries since the 2011 World Cup, co-hosted by Sri Lanka, India and Bangladesh, BBC Sinhala has reported.

There were also doubts over whether the SLC would be able to pay salaries in the next two months. "There is a truth in those media reports to a certain extent," SLC chairman Upali Dharmadasa was quoted as telling BBC Sinhala.

Dharmadasa said efforts were being made to pay the players as soon as the SLC received the remaining payments from the ICC for staging the World Cup. "The ICC still owes us $4-5 million," he said.

The board had revamped the Premadasa Stadium in Colombo and built two new grounds in Pallekele and Hambantota for the tournament in February and March, and the capital expenditure incurred is reported to have left it in debt.

Rudolph recalled to Test side after five years

Jacques Rudolph's recall was widely expected
following his impressive run of recent form

Opening batsman Jacques Rudolph, who played the last of his 35 Tests in August 2006, has been recalled to the South Africa Test squad for the two-match series against Australia. Legspinner Imran Tahir and allrounder Vernon Philander also got their first call-ups to the Test squad.

Rudolph came in for opener Alviro Petersen. Also missing were seaming allrounders Wayne Parnell and Ryan McLaren who were both in the squad for South Africa's last Test, in January against India. Graeme Smith will lead the 14-member squad, and AB de Villiers, who missed the limited-overs leg of the series with a hand fracture sustained during the Champions League, will be his deputy if he clears a fitness examination ahead of the first Test from November 9.

Rudolph went into a self-imposed exile in 2007 when he signed a Kolpak contract with Yorkshire with the aim of developing himself into a more complete cricketer. His recall was widely expected following an impressive return to South African domestic cricket. He scored four centuries and made more than 900 first-class runs last season, before leading a successful South Africa A tour to Zimbabwe. This year, he came into the South African season after scoring centuries for Yorkshire in the Clydesdale Bank 40 and the County Championship. He has since been prolific in the SuperSport Series, where he leads the run-charts with 568 runs from six innings, including a match tally of 297 against Lions in his most recent outing.

"Jacques [Rudolph] will open the batting with Graeme Smith," selection convener Andrew Hudson said. "His experience and current form make him an asset to South Africa and at the age of 30 he has plenty of good years of cricket ahead of him. Jacques has underlined once again the importance of good domestic form and the fact that it is the gateway to national selection."

Petersen might consider his axing harsh, as the Lions captain also started the season well. In four matches so far, he has scored 369 runs, including a knock of 186 against the Dolphins in the first match of the SuperSport Series campaign. He spent the winter at Glamorgam, where he passed the 2000 runs mark and felt he had done enough to keep his place in the Test side. He will get a chance to stake his claim for a recall when he leads the South Africa A side in a four-day tour game against the Australians from November 1. JP Duminy and Philander feature in both squads, while Parnell and McLaren were also included in the A team.

"The A side must be seen as a mix of players challenging for places in the South Africa squad as well as others we have identified as having the potential for the future and whom we now need to test at a higher level than franchise cricket," Hudson said. "We have to explore our options for the future."

Philander previously played for South Africa in seven ODIs and the same number of T20s between 2007 and 2008. He has performed consistently in the first-class competition for the last two seasons. In the 2010-11 season, he was the fourth highest wicket-taker with 35 wickets at an average of 16.11. He is unlikely to play, with Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel and Lonwabo Tsotsobe in the squad, but has been earmarked as a possibility for the future. While he is not an express paceman, he has become noted for his variations, much like Tsotsobe.

Someone who is expected to play is Tahir. The Pakistani-born legspinner became eligible for South Africa in January and was immediately selected for their ODI squad to play India. He made his debut at the World Cup but was initially selected for South Africa's Test squad to play England in the 2009-10 season, when he had not yet qualified. He has been talked up as the missing piece in South Africa's attack, which has not had an attacking spinner since Paul Adams.

Tahir's anticipated inclusion was thought to be the final nail in Harris' coffin, after the left-arm spinner was labelled nothing more than a holding bowler. However, Harris has fought back with impressive showings in his first two SuperSport Series games. His 13 wickets have come at an average of 15.38. On a spin-friendly Newlands pitch, South Africa could field two frontline spinners in a Test match - a rarity for the country that traditionally relies on pace.

South Africa squad: Graeme Smith (capt), AB de Villiers (vice-capt), Hashim Amla, Mark Boucher (wk), JP Duminy, Paul Harris, Imran Tahir, Jacques Kallis, Morne Morkel, Vernon Philander, Ashwell Prince, Jacques Rudolph, Dale Steyn, Lonwabo Tsotsobe

South Africa A squad: Alviro Petersen (capt), Farhaan Behardien, Marchant de Lange, JP Duminy, Dean Elgar, Heino Kuhn, Pumelela Matshikwe, Ryan McLaren, Wayne Parnell, Robin Peterson, Vernon Philander, Stiaan van Zyl

Butt has 'been caught' court told

Salman Butt ended a long spell in the witness
box with further tough questioning

Salman Butt, in an often fraught exchange with the prosecution headed by Aftab Jafferjee QC, was told he had "been caught" and was "controlling" the players through the no-balls. Butt's three-day vigil in the witness box ended on Wednesday - the eleventh day of the trial in London - with Butt accepting no part in the alleged spot-fixing.

Former Pakistan captain Butt and fast bowler Mohammad Asif are facing charges of conspiracy to cheat, and conspiracy to obtain and accept corrupt payments, following the Lord's Test last year when they allegedly conspired with agent Mazhar Majeed, teenage pace bowler Mohammad Amir and other people unknown to bowl pre-planned no-balls. Butt and Asif deny the charges.

The jury was walked through the detail of the frantic phone traffic between Butt, Majeed, Asif and Amir on the night before the Lord's Test commenced, after Majeed had been caught on a secret camera pocketing £140,000 for pre-planned no-balls to be bowled plus future fixes. A previous amount of £10,000 had already been paid.

There were 20 calls or texts between Butt and Majeed, 25 between Amir and Majeed and four between Butt, Asif and Amir. Some of these calls or text messages were made in the early hours.

"The Lord's fix was on, Mr Butt, in the early hours of the morning and you know it don't you," Jafferjee said.

Butt replied: "No."

"It's all going on behind your back, is it?" Jafferjee asked sarcastically.

Butt: "Yes."

"It's the three of you who are all (planning) the no-balls, Mr Butt," Jafferjee continued. "You are all saying what is going to go on, isn't it?

Butt: "I'm not part of it."

"But we agree, don't we, Mr Butt," Jafferjee went on, "that if Amir and Asif were involved they would have to have spoken to you?"

Butt: "Okay, I'll take that from you." (with a wry grin)

"Everything suggests that Amir was in on the fix, doesn't it Mr Butt?"

Butt: "Yes."

Jafferjee then talked about what he has repeatedly called "the performance" that followed Amir's first no-ball, as Amir checked his spikes, examined the crease and Butt then arrived to sprinkle sawdust on the crease.

Jafferjee: "You would agree it was a performance wouldn't you Mr Butt?"

Butt: "I didn't bring the sawdust with me from the hotel. It is always there on the ground when the weather is damp."

"Yes no-balls are bowled accidentally, sawdust is there out on the ground and batsmen do tap the pitch," Jafferjee hit back. "But what you and Majeed and Amir and Asif did was exploit things what normally happen out on the cricket pitch."

The prosecutor then reminded the jury of the text message that Majeed sent to the undercover News of the World reporter just before the third pre-planned no-ball was delivered. Because Amir was bowling beautifully and eventually reduced England to 47 for 5 in that first innings, Majeed texted to warn the journalist that the captain might tell Amir not to bowl that no-ball now because of the form he was in.

Jafferjee concluded: "He (Majeed) was talking about you because you are in there controlling the players and particularly the youngest player out there - the impressionable Amir, Mr Butt. And you have been caught."

Although Butt defended himself consistently and stoically, he was forced to concede on several occasions that Majeed's fixing-related messages to him were "annoying". Jafferjee pressed him hard on why he never - in the messages before the court anyway - told Majeed that he would not tolerate it anymore.

The night before he allegedly agreed to bat out a maiden at The Oval in the third Test - the night before they eventually won the match - was such an episode that Jafferjee focused on. On how when Majeed called him, unknowingly on speakerphone so the journalist could hear, to say: 'You know the maiden over yeah?' To which Butt went 'Yeah'. Majeed continued, 'Do one more'. It was then that Butt said, 'No mate, just leave it.' Butt did not bat out the maiden. Majeed contacted Butt again on the same subject the following morning, a Saturday, before Butt left for the ground.

Jafferjee continually pressed Butt on why he did not respond more angrily to Majeed. "You were on the verge of a great win and you didn't tell Majeed how annoyed you were by these messages?" Butt reasoned that he was focusing on the game and didn't want to get into an awkward conversation at that time. Butt also said in the subsequent celebration dinner that Majeed attended along with "seven or eight" of the players he never mentioned the messages.

Jafferjee was unimpressed by the answers he was receiving on the issue and at one point said: "You are lying your head off to this jury aren't you Mr Butt?"

Before the day ended, Butt's lawyer Ali Bajwa QC told the court that some Pakistan numbers in the phone records during this time corresponded to calls Butt made to family, friends and former players including Imran Khan, who Butt admitted he would call for advice.

The case continues.

Afridi withdraws retirement

Shahid Afridi is ready to return to international cricket

Shahid Afridi has withdrawn his international retirement and says he is available for selection for Pakistan in the limited-over formats. Afridi had announced a 'conditional' retirement from international cricket in May, after having been stripped of the ODI captaincy, saying he would return if there were changes in the PCB and the team management.

Since then, Waqar Younis has quit as coach of the national team, and Ijaz Butt has been replaced as PCB chairman by Zaka Ashraf. Afridi said he had not really retired but had only said he wouldn't play under the previous (Ijaz Butt-led) board.

"I didn't as such retire," Afridi told reporters in Karachi. "I only said I will not play under the previous board but now people are changed - exactly what I wanted - so I am available for selection for the country."

His return to the team may not be immediate though, as Pakistan's interim chief selector Mohammad Illyas said there would be protocols to follow for the PCB to clear Afridi for selection. "He [Afridi] is good enough to play for Pakistan," Illyas told ESPNcricinfo. "But there are protocols to follow as he needs to have clearance from the PCB before being available for selection. Once the PCB clears him then we will seriously consider his selection for the team.

"I can't say that he is an automatic selection for the team but at the same time we never questioned his abilities as he has played an ample amount of cricket for Pakistan. We know that he still has cricket left in him. For the PCB, he was a retired player and wasn't available for selection. Today I learned through the media that he has withdrawn his retirement but as a selector I will have to check his status."

Pakistan will select their ODI squad for the series against Sri Lanka in the UAE after the second Test.

Afridi made the announcement at the Karachi University Sports ceremony, where he was the chief guest, and was in a pleasant mood. He said he had remained match-fit, and was ready to return under whoever was captain. "I am fit and have continued my individual practice to maintain both the form and fitness required for international cricket. As far as captaincy is concerned I never ran after it and I am ready to play under any captain."

Zaka Ashraf, the new PCB chairman, is a reputed banker in Pakistan, and Afridi said he was looking forward to a professional regime. "I took the decision not to play under the previous board on principle and still stand by it. Now, the management has changed. I learned that the new PCB chairman is very professional and I believe he can handle the PCB's functioning in a similar fashion to the way he has worked in the cooperate sector."

Afridi's issues with the previous board began during Pakistan's tour of the West Indies in May when he was involved in a spat with then coach Waqar Younis. Afridi spoke publicly about the feud, and was charged with a violation of the code of conduct by the PCB. Subsequently, Afridi was replaced as captain in the limited-over formats by Test captain Misbah-ul-haq, with Ijaz Butt saying the board had "solid reasons" to sack Afridi, which he would reveal when the time was right.

Afridi quit international cricket but played for Hampshire in the Friends Life t20 in England. He had maintained throughout that he wanted to play for Pakistan and would make himself available should there be changes in the board.

Marsh to replace Lee

Allrounder Mitchell Marsh will remain in South
Africa for the one-day leg of the tour

Cricket Australia has named allrounder Mitchell Marsh as a replacement for Brett Lee in Australia's ODI squad for the series against South Africa. Marsh is a part of Australia's Twenty20 squad in South Africa and will remain with the team for the one-day leg of the tour, as Lee underwent a surgery for appendicitis on Monday that ruled him out of the tour's limited-overs games.

The one-day squad, even without Lee, has four fast bowlers, so chairman of selectors Andrew Hilditch said it was not necessary to pick another quick. "The one-day squad already has four specialist fast bowlers in Doug Bollinger, Mitchell Johnson, James Pattinson and Patrick Cummins, so the national selection panel did not consider it necessary to replace Brett with a specialist fast bowler.

"Mitchell was very close to selection in the one-day squad when it was initially picked. He played extremely well during the recent Australia A tour of Zimbabwe and is a pace bowler who has the ability to bat in the top six, providing great balance and flexibility to the squad."

Marsh picked up 12 wickets in six matches on the Australia A tour, and contributed with the bat as well in the one-dayers. In 19 List A matches, he has claimed 13 wickets at 25.00 apiece and has four half-centuries with a highest score of 92.

Court hears million-dollar plan to fix Oval Test

Salman Butt's name was again mentioned
in recordings played to the jury

Mazhar Majeed, the agent of several Pakistan players, was offered US$1 million by an Indian bookmaker to ensure the team lost the third Test at The Oval against England, which they eventually won, a court heard in London on Tuesday.

On the fifth morning of the alleged spot-fixing trial involving former Pakistan captain Salman Butt and fast bowler Mohammad Asif, the jury was played recordings captured by undercover journalist and the prosecution's key witness Mazhar Mahmood, who stood behind a screen in the witness box at Southwark Crown Court.

It was Mahmood's covert sting operation, while working then for the News of the World, which that sparked one of cricket's biggest controversies. Butt and Asif are facing charges of conspiracy to cheat, and conspiracy to obtain and accept corrupt payments, following that Lord's Test in August last year when they allegedly conspired with agent Mazhar Majeed, teenage fast bowler Amir and other people unknown to bowl pre-determined no-balls. Butt and Asif deny the charges.

One of the recordings related to the match at The Oval and was actually taken before the fourth day of that match started, when England were 221 for 9 overnight in their second innings. On that Saturday morning they subsequently lost their tenth wicket and Pakistan went on to reach their target of 148 with six wickets down to secure victory.

But that result might have been different had Majeed taken up the huge offer from his unnamed contact in India. The undercover journalist was sitting in the lounge of Majeed's luxurious house in Croydon, while watching footage of Pakistan matches, Majeed was explaining how 'brackets' - a fixed segment in a match - work. Then Majeed called a number in India.

The conversation proceeded as follows, according to the transcript that was played to the court from an audio visual recording:

(Majeed): "Boss, you know what we spoke about last night, what offer can you give me for today's game? Tell me, just give me a figure now, we haven't got long.

(an Asian male) "For the game?

(Majeed) "Yeah exactly.

(Asian) "If you tell me what you want.

(Majeed) "Okay there's a possibility, I'm just telling you now yeah?

(Asian) "Yeah

(Majeed) "But they're talking, they're talking at least 1.2, at least.

(Asian) "1.2, that's 1.2 dollars.

(Majeed) "In dollars yeah.

(Asian) inaudible

(Majeed) "Boss you know how many we've got, you know that they do it, so of course that's not a problem. But you just give me the figure and I'm gonna get back to you. Then I, we haven't got much time.

(Asian) "I give you one.

(Majeed) "One million yeah?

(Asian) "One, one I give you, but has to be a definite game score.

(Majeed) "Okay, okay fine, okay boss I'll call you back. Let me get, give me ten minutes and I'll call you back?

(Asian) "Okay, okay."

After the phone rings off, Majeed said to the undercover journalist: "See what I mean?" He added: "There's big, big money in results boss I tell you. You can see that."

The journalist went on to quiz Majeed at how he would collect his million dollars, to which Majeed explained that he would be given the money in cash from Pakistan, and "some in Dubai"…"some in England".

Journalist Mahmood asked Majeed how he moved the money for the players and he said, 'the only reason I bought the football club (Croydon Athletic) was to move the money'. Majeed had earlier boasted in that conversation, relating to general fixing, that "the three boys who are very, very clever at this (were)…Salman (Butt), Kamran (Akmal) and xxx (a name that was blanked out from transcript)."

Majeed added, when the journalist pointed at the replays on television, that they were investigated for the defeats in Australia in 2010: "Boss they get bloody investigated, they have been talking about investigating the players for the last 50 years."

Within the recording played to the court, Mahmood urged Majeed to phone Kamran Akmal, though why he was calling him was not made clear from the transcript. Majeed did, though, call Akmal first on his mobile, getting his voicemail and then tried him unsuccessfully at the team hotel room at the Royal Garden Hotel in Kensington.

The case continues.

No evidence of Australia fixing, says ACSU officer

The court heard there was no evidence to back up
Mazhar Majeed's claims about Australia

A senior anti-corruption officer for the ICC told a court on Tuesday that his department had no evidence of any match-fixing carried out by the Australia team.

Alan Peacock, who has been with the ICC's anti-corruption and security unit since its inception in September 2000, was asked a question by Salman Butt's legal team as to whether he had evidence that Australia fix matches or parts of matches. "We have no evidence," he replied.

The line of questioning came from Butt's lawyers as they were seeking to discredit agent Mazhar Majeed, who is at the centre of spot-fixing allegations involving Butt and who claimed in secret recordings played in Southwark Crown Court that Australia are the biggest match-fixers and fix ten "brackets" a day. The claim caused an angry backlash in Australia overnight as players and officials leapt to the defence of the team.

That allegation by Majeed was one of several outlandish ones heard in court on Monday that included being "very good friends" with Hollywood actor Brad Pitt and tennis champion Roger Federer.

Ali Bajwa QC attacked the credibility of Majeed as Butt sat in the dock next to former team-mate Mohammed Asif.

Both face charges of conspiracy to cheat, and conspiracy to obtain and accept corrupt payments, following the Lord's Test in August last year when they allegedly conspired with Majeed, teenage fast bowler Mohammad Amir and other people unknown to bowl pre-determined no-balls. Butt and Asif deny the charges.

Huge odds of exact no-balls - expert

The court was shown footage of Mohammad
Asif's no-ball at Lord's

The likelihood of three no-balls occurring at pre-determined times in a Test match had a "one in a 1.5 million chance" of happening, a court was told on Monday during the alleged spot-fixing trial of two Pakistan cricketers.


Sky Sports statistician Benedict Bermange, appearing as a prosecution witness late in the afternoon, made the claim at Southwark Crown Court where former Pakistan captain Salman Butt and fast bowler Mohammad Asif are defending themselves against allegations of conspiring to bowl pre-planned no-balls in the Lord's Test last year. Both players deny the charges.


The jury has already heard the background of how two no-balls from Mohammad Amir and one from Mohammad Asif were bowled at exactly the same time in the match that had been predicted on a secretly-filmed tape by agent Mazhar Majeed, who was exposed in a sting operation by an undercover News of the World journalist.


"According to my calculations, there is a one in a million chance (of three no-balls being bowled at pre-determined times)," Bermange said, "but for these two bowlers that becomes a one in a 1.5 million chance," presumably because of their expertise and usual accuracy at not overstepping.


In Bermange's statement he revealed that Pakistan bowl 23 percent more no-balls than any other country, but also said that Asif's 58 career no-balls - or just under two per Test - was low in comparison to his contemporaries. That number included 24 in one match against South Africa.


Asif's legal representative Alexander Milne questioned Bermange on his results and agreed the rate for bowling pre-determined no-balls without corrupt intervention would be "far-fetched" but did also gain a valuable concession from Bermange as to his client.


When Milne pointed to a printed graphic illustrating Asif's front foot for his no-ball and suggested to Bermange it was a no-ball by just a fraction, the Sky Sports statistician replied: "Yes".


Although Bermange was revealed to have a science degree at Durham University, he did admit to having a maths 'A' level and had taken a statistics course. He also stated that by some quirk (maybe to do with the slope), Lord's has a 20 percent higher no-ball rate than any other ground around the world.


But that was of little consolation for the teenage Amir who, according to Bermange, overstepped by some distance.


"I have attended 50 Test matches within my current position and these two (bowled by Amir) were the largest no-balls in terms of the front foot being over the crease that I have seen."


Reporter Mazhar Mahmood will again appear in the witness stand on Tuesday and there will soon be an appearance from statistician David Kendix, who devised the world rankings for the ICC. The case continues.

SLC gets official warning for Galle pitch

"Whilst we do not wish to see a pitch that is too heavily weighted in
favour of the batsmen, in this instance, the balance was
just too much in favour of the bowler"

Sri Lanka Cricket has been given an official ICC warning for preparing a "poor" pitch in Galle for the first Test against Australia that was played from August 31-September 3. The ICC's pitch consultant Andy Atkinson will inspect the pitch at the end of this month and make recommendations about any corrective action required. SLC, for its part, will need to submit a report confirming the recommended corrective action, if any, has been taken prior to staging its next international match in Galle.

The Galle Test, won by Australia, lasted four days, with the home team being dismissed for 105 and 253 in its 125-run defeat. The match referee for the game Chris Broad had expressed his concern about the pitch to the ICC. Richardson and the ICC's chief match referee Ranjan Madugalle, relying on Broad's report, the SLC's response and video footage from the game, then made their decision.

"We have come to a decision that the pitch prepared for the match should be rated as 'poor'," David Richardson, the ICC's general manager for cricket, said in a statement. "It was clear from the video footage of the match that the amount of turn, especially early in the match, was excessive and there were occasions (even on the first day) where the ball went through the surface of the pitch, bouncing unusually steeply from a good length.

"Whilst it is understandable and acceptable for a pitch to deteriorate over the course of the match, for a pitch to exhibit this type of behavior at relatively early stages of the match was not acceptable. Whilst we do not wish to see a pitch that is too heavily weighted in favour of the batsmen, in this instance, the balance was just too much in favour of the bowler."

Richardson said that since this is the first time the Galle pitch has come up for such scrutiny, the penalty was confined to a warning. "Taking into account that it was the first time that a pitch at Galle has been rated as "poor" and given the intention of the curator to prepare a pitch that provided a fair balance between bat and ball, we have decided to impose a warning as the sanction," he said.

"We have also directed that ICC's pitch consultant Any Atkinson carry out an inspection of the square with a view to making recommendations to ensure that in future the manner of preparation is in line with what is required to ensure that a better balance between bat and ball is achieved."

The ICC has imposed harsher penalties in the past. The Ferozshah Kotla ground in Delhi was banned from hosting any international matches in 2010 after an India-Sri Lanka ODI in January that year had to be abandoned due to a "dangerous" pitch.

We haven't tampered with the ball - Cook

Alastair Cook came out in defence of his bowlers at Heathrow

England's one-day captain Alastair Cook has rubbished claims by Pakistan fast bowler Umar Gul that James Anderson and Stuart Broad were involved in ball tampering. Cook said if Gul did have any concerns he should have gone through the proper channels.

Gul hit the headlines after giving an interview in Karachi, where he suggested he had seen examples of ball tampering and mentioned seeing Anderson and Broad using various techniques. However, he later tried to step back from controversy by saying he was only talking about the England pair in relation to natural wear that develops on a ball by throwing it across the outfield.

"We certainly haven't tampered with the ball and if he did have any complaints he should have gone to the ICC over that," Cook said at Heathrow airport ahead of England's departure for their one-day series in India. "I think he has almost said himself that it has been a bit of a mountain out of a molehill."

In a statement to Pakpassion.net, where Gul's original comments first appeared, he clarified his remarks. "I was explaining that the ball gets scratched when it is thrown against the rough surface or hits the advertisement boards along the boundary rope. In this manner, I said, every bowler can be accused of doing it."

Gul made his earlier comments in an interview where he talked about the art of reverse swing and how various elements of ball tampering shouldn't be included with the laws. "Leave cricket with its traditional ways rather than making changes that would take all the charm out of it," he said.

The recent change to using a separate ball from either end during one-day internationals, which will be implemented for the first time when Bangladesh play West Indies, could impact the role of reverse swing during 50-over matches. Under the previous regulations the ball was changed after 34 overs and the period shortly before the switch was when the fast bowlers would sometimes start to get the ball to reverse. However, with neither ball having no more than 25 overs of wear it will be harder for the natural deterioration to take place.

Spot-fixing trial set to begin

Mohammad Asif will appear in court
with Salman Butt on Tuesday 

Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif begin their trial at a criminal court in London on Tuesday, more than a year on from the spot-fixing allegations that engulfed the cricket world during Pakistan's troubled tour of England.

The former Pakistan Test captain Butt, 27 on Friday, and fast bowler Asif, 28, will appear at Southwark Crown Court with the possibility of a custodial sentence awaiting them if deemed guilty. Both players are pleading not guilty. Reporting restrictions are in place on this event.

The players are facing charges of conspiracy to cheat, and conspiracy to obtain and accept corrupt payments, following the Lord's Test in August last year when they allegedly conspired to bowl pre-determined no-balls.

Butt and Asif, along with teenage fast bowler Mohammad Amir, were exposed by the now defunct British tabloid the News of the World in an undercover sting operation. Their former agent Mazher Majeed was recorded by a secret camera, saying when no-balls would be delivered by the bowlers.

The fact the case is being heard at a crown court shows the seriousness of the allegations facing the defendants, with crown court being the more senior of the criminal courts.

One of the complexities of this trial surrounds its high-profile nature. Because the issue was so well reported globally at the time, after it was revealed in the News of the World, it is likely to be difficult to find a jury that has not in some way heard of the case or information about it and therefore inherited some amount of bias.

A re-trial could therefore occur, though how any future jury would also have no previous knowledge of the story is also difficult to quantify.

The players have already been punished by the ICC after a disciplinary hearing in Doha, Qatar. There, the three players were each banned from the sport for at least five years. Butt received a further suspended five-year ban and Asif was handed a further two-year suspended sanction.

All three players have filed appeals against their bans at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in Lausanne, Switzerland.

The Pakistan team has admirably set about recovering from a controversy that shocked the sport, after the key players were suspended. Asif, the right-arm swing bowler, and left-armer Amir quickly became one of the most potent new-ball attacks in world cricket. Butt, meanwhile, was a respected opening batsman and was seen as an articulate, diplomatic captain by the British media on that tour last year, prior to the allegations.

The most important aspect at stake during the trial is for cricket as a whole and its integrity, honesty and transparency, according to sports lawyer Max Eppel of McFadden's LLP, who has worked on cases involving cricket and football among others.

"The most important thing for any fan of sports is to know the teams are going out there on a level playing field," he said. "If there is any hint of corruption, the sport could be destroyed. Ultimately, any kind of hype about a criminal court trial is bad publicity for a sport, but if there are good things to come out of it, it is that the sport will get a chance to see any ramifications there are for ever getting involved in this sort of stuff."

Umar Akmal dropped from Test squad

Umar Akmal was dropped from the Test squad
and asked to work on playing long innings

Umar Akmal has been dropped from the Pakistan Test squad for their series against Sri Lanka in the UAE starting later this month. Shoaib Malik, who was on Pakistan's tour of Zimbabwe after gaining clearance from the PCB, finds a place in the 15-man squad.

Several of the first-choice bowlers who were rested for the Zimbabwe tour return. Umar Gul and Wahab Riaz come back and are joined by Aizaz Cheema and Junaid Khan in the fast-bowling department, with no place for Sohail Tanvir or Tanvir Ahmed. Left-arm spinner Abdur Rehman is also back in the squad while Imran Farhat has been retained as a third opener along with Mohammad Hafeez and Taufeeq Umar.

Umar Akmal has not scored a Test century since his hugely impressive debut in 2009. After a poor year in 2010, when he averaged just 24.33, he was left out of the XI for the two Tests in New Zealand. He returned to the side for the Tests in the West Indies, but after scoring just one Test half-century this year, and struggling to play long innings in ODIs as well, he has been left out of the Test squad.

"Umar is a talented cricketer but he was not justifying his place in Test cricket," Mohsin Khan, Pakistan's chief selector, said explaining the decision. "This was the reason our middle order was facing problems during the recent tour [of Zimbabwe]. He may be good in limited-over cricket but Tests and ODIs are contrasting games.

"In Tests, Umar is required to play long innings so we have advised him to play domestic cricket and learn to bat for long."

Umar Akmal's exclusion means Asad Shafiq and Shoaib Malik will be fighting for a middle-order spot. After a year out of the Pakistan setup, Malik gained clearance from the PCB's integrity committee just in time to go to Zimbabwe. He did not play the Test there and did not make an impact in the ODIs and Twenty20 internationals. He has been consistently performing on the domestic circuit, finishing as the second-highest run-getter in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Division One last season, with 799 runs at an average of 73.57. Shafiq, meanwhile, has struggled in Tests since getting half-centuries in each of his first two innings.

Malik's inclusion in the squad comes on the same day he led Sialkot to a win in the final of the Faysal Bank T20 Cup, after getting them there with an unbeaten 88 in the semi-final. Mohsin, though, said his Twenty20 performances were not a factor when deciding the Test squad. "Shoaib is not selected on the basis of the ongoing Twenty20 Cup but what inspired us was his fitness and the form he is currently in."

The other notable exclusion from the squad is Tanvir Ahmed, who has taken 16 wickets in the four Tests he has played since debuting against South Africa in November last year. He was not on the tour of Zimbabwe, though, and Cheema, who took eight wickets on debut in the Bulawayo Test and another eight wickets in the three-match one-day series, keeps his place.

Cheema was one of several fringe players given a chance on the Zimbabwe tour, but not all have retained their places. "There might be players dropped following the recent Zimbabwe tour but that was a chance taken on youngsters," Mohsin said. "We actually had to try new players and now we have a picture of who stands where."

Junaid Khan also made his Test debut in Bulawayo, and though he was not as successful as Cheema, he was selected, Mohsin said, because of his ability to bowl fast. "If Junaid was retained despite his unimpressive form it is because we need to have a genuine fast bowler."

The first of three Tests starts on October 18 in Abu Dhabi.

Squad: Mohammad Hafeez, Taufeeq Umar, Imran Farhat, Azhar Ali, Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-haq (capt), Asad Shafiq, Adnan Akmal (wk), Shoaib Malik, Saeed Ajmal, Abdur Rehman, Aizaz Cheema, Wahab Raiz, Umar Gul, Junaid Khan

Standby players: Tanvir Ahmed, Mohammad Talha, Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), Yasir Shah

Gul opposed to legalising ball tampering

Umar Gul is against legalising ball tampering

Umar Gul, the Pakistan fast bowler, has claimed ball tampering is not new to cricket and that there are legal and illegal methods to change the condition of the ball. He was also opposed to legalising ball tampering, in contrast to Shoaib Akhtar, who wrote in his recent autobiography that it wasn't a bad idea to "set rules" for tampering.

"The claims [of ball tampering] have always emerged against Pakistan but have never been proved," Gul told reporters at National Cricket Stadium in Karachi. "There are many ways to tamper with the ball that are illegal, like using your nail, but there are other ways to change the condition that are legal. A player can throw the ball on the bounce to make it rough or the ball can be damaged when it hits the advertising boards on the boundary."

During the ICC World Twenty20 in 2009, Gul's ability to reverse-swing the ball early had drawn concern from the New Zealand camp but he shrugged it off. Gul did not think ball tampering should be made legal, though, saying it would make it too easy to bowl reverse swing, which is an art, and some of the beauty of the game would be lost if the practice was legalised. "I don't think the way is to legalise it. Leave cricket with its traditional ways rather than making changes that would take all the charm out of it."

Gul also responded to comments in Akhtar's autobiography about Sachin Tendulkar being afraid of the former Pakistan fast bowler. "I can't say specifically that I saw Tendulkar running away from Shoaib, but no one can deny that when Shoaib was at his fastest and best the world's best batsmen were nervous against him and there is no batsmen who is not nervous or ruffled when facing a pure fast bowler," Gul said. "Even Brian Lara, who I rate as the world's best batsman, admitted to feeling ruffled when he was hit on the helmet by a bouncer from Shoaib."

Pakistan leave for the UAE on October 15 to take on Sri Lanka in two Tests, three ODIs and two Twenty20s, and Gul, who was rested for the tour of Zimbabwe, is likely to be back in the squad. "I am all fit but need a flow for which I have to have lengthy bowling spells," Gul said. "I am bowling regularly and will be playing first-class cricket. If selected, I will train in the nets to quickly get back my form."

Powerplay tweaks and end of runners

Three's a crowd: there will be no more
runners allowed in international cricket

West Indies' tour of Bangladesh, which begins with a Twenty20 on October 11, will be the first international series under the ICC's revised playing conditions, which are effective from October 1. The amendments are only applicable to international cricket.

The ICC's cricket committee had made the recommendations after its meeting in London in May and they were passed by the executive board at the annual general meeting in Hong Kong in June.

Powerplays (ODIs only)
In a full ODI, the teams can take the bowling and batting Powerplays (five overs each) at the start of an over after 15 overs of an innings have been bowled. They must complete the Powerplays by the 40th over, which means the last block of fielding restrictions must begin in the 36th over. The first ten overs will comprise the mandatory Powerplay. This condition will not apply to innings reduced to fewer than 40 overs.

Under the previous playing conditions, teams were allowed to take the bowling and batting Powerplays at any time after the completion of the tenth over of the innings.

Runners (All formats)
A batsman will not be allowed a runner under any circumstances. The batsman can retire hurt and return to bat at a later stage in the innings.

Two new balls per innings (ODIs only)
Each fielding team will be given two new balls to be used in alternate overs, one at each end. The mandatory change of the ball after the 34th over of an innings will not take place anymore.

Obstructing the field (All formats)
If a fielding team appeals and the umpire feels the batsman has significantly changed his direction without probable cause, while running between the wickets, and obstructed an attempt to run him out, the umpire can give the batsman out for obstructing the field. It is not relevant whether a run out would have been affected or not. The on-field umpires are allowed to consult the third umpire in making the decision. The other circumstances in which a batsman can be out obstructing the field are still applicable.

Penalty time (All formats)
This amendment refers to the calculation of the time for which a player cannot bat or bowl because he or she was off the field.

If a player, who still has some unexpired penalty time remaining from a previous absence, is on the field when play is interrupted by bad weather, light or other reasons, the duration of the stoppage will be deducted from the remaining penalty time.

Bowler attempting to run out a non-striker before delivery (All formats)
Previously, the bowler could run out a non-striker backing up only if he did so before entering his delivery stride. This meant that as the bowler's back foot landed, the non-striker could move down the pitch before the bowler delivered the ball.

According to a new playing condition, 42.11, "The bowler is permitted, before releasing the ball and provided he has not completed his usual delivery swing, to attempt to run out the non-striker. Whether the attempt is successful or not, the ball shall not count as one of the over. If the bowler fails in an attempt to run out the non-striker, the umpire shall call and signal dead ball as soon as possible."

The umpires shall deem the bowler to have completed his delivery swing once his bowling arm passes the normal point of ball release.

Extra time to complete a match (Tests only)
According to clause 16.2.2 of the Test match playing conditions: "The umpires may decide to play 15 minutes (a minimum of four overs) extra time at the scheduled lunch or tea interval of any day if requested by either captain if, in the umpires' opinion, it would bring about a definite result in that session. If the umpires do not believe a result can be achieved no extra time shall be allowed.

"If it is decided to play such extra time, the whole period shall be played out even though the possibility of finishing the match may have disappeared before the full period has expired.

"Only the actual amount of playing time up to the maximum 15 minutes extra time by which play is extended on any day shall be deducted from the total number of hours of play remaining, and the following session of play shall be reduced by the amount of time by which play was previously extended under this clause."

Delay of lunch interval when nine wickets down (Tests only)
If a team is nine wickets down at the time of the lunch interval, the break will be delayed by a maximum of 30 minutes. Previously, only tea was delay-able, while lunch was taken even if a team was nine down.

Duration of interval between innings (ODIs only)
The minimum interval for an uninterrupted ODI match has been increased from 20 minutes to 30 minutes.