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With the seven-match series tied at 3-3, West Indies are playing an unchanged 11 for the last and deciding limited-overs international against India on Sunday.West Indies won the first international by four wickets at Jamshedpur and followed up with a seven-wicket triumph at Nagpur in the second match.India then captured the next two matches. They won the third match at Rajkot by 81 runs on the Duckworth-Lewis method after crowd trouble brought a premature end, and then won the only day/night fixture of the series at Ahmedabad by five wickets in the fourth match.The two teams then shared the next two matches of the series, with West Indies winning by five wickets at Baroda and India bouncing back by taking the sixth and penultimate contest by three wickets.West Indies are presently ranked sixth on the International Cricket Council’s limited-overs championship table and a win will move them a little closer to overtaking fifth ranked India.Squad: Carl Hooper (captain), Chris Gayle, Wavell Hinds, Marlon Samuels, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Ricardo Powell, Ridley Jacobs, Vasbert Drakes, Pedro Collins, Corey Collymore.

When Sachin Tendulkar takes the field at the Oval in the fourthTest against England he will join an elite club – that made upby Indians who have played a 100 Tests. There are currently threeother members – Kapil Dev, the greatest all-rounder India hasproduced, and two batsmen who dominated the bowling completely attheir peak, the stylish Dilip Vengsarkar (116 Tests) and thepeerless Sunil Gavaskar (125 Tests).And yet, it is already amply clear that Tendulkar will go pastthese greats, not just in terms of Test matches for India butalso in achievements on the field. Perhaps statistics are not thebest way to judge a cricketer of Tendulkar’s prodigious talent.However, a quick look at the numbers is revealing.Kapil Dev being an all-rounder, it’s difficult to make a head-tohead analysis, but the other two Mumbai batsmen can certainly beviewed through the same prism. After 99 Tests, Vengsarkar hadscored 6356 runs at an average of 45.72 with 17 centuries.Gavaskar did better with 8479 runs at 52.33 with 30 tons.And now have a look at Tendulkar at the end of 99 Tests – 8351runs have flowed off his broad bat at an average of 57.99 and SirDon Bradman’s tally of 29 tons has been surpassed. On reachingthe mark at Headingley, Tendulkar was humble enough to say,”Statistically, I have passed Don Bradman, but I can’t becompared with him. He’s not a normal person. You can only dreamof scoring a hundred every three innings.” Quite a characteristicstatement from the man; modest to the core, he still strives hardto attain perfection despite his many achievements down theyears.Being Tendulkar is no walk in the park. Make no mistake aboutthat. While fans hear mostly of the millions he makes insponsorship and the adulation he sparks off, few understand howstressful life can be for India’s favourite son. Unable to go outanywhere in public without being mobbed, Tendulkar has in thepast resorted to wearing disguises when going out for a drive. Ifhe wants to take his son Arjun to a movie or meet at his daughterSara’s teacher at school it would be nigh impossible.It is the kind of adulation that could have destroyed lesser men.The list of minor geniuses who have fallen prey to such heroworship would be too long to enumerate. Tendulkar, though, likethe Don before him has taken it all in his stride – he remainscricket’s finest ambassador both on and off the field.This ability to absorb pressure stood Tendulkar in good steadthis year. After the West Indies series and during the early partof the England series, Tendulkar was under the microscope forwhat according to some experts was a perceived lack of form. EvenSunil Gavaskar, one of Tendulkar’s greatest supporters, began towonder whether Tendulkar was had fallen prey to under-performingabroad.A fallacious argument from the beginning, it fell apart at theseams after Tendulkar’s second innings 92 at Nottingham and thebig hundred at Headingley. In fact in the calendar year,Tendulkar has rattled off 932 runs at an average of 58.25 in the10 Tests that he has played ahead of the Oval Test – thisincludes three hundreds and as many fifties. Now, exactly howdoes that constitute a lean patch? Most batsmen don’t do as wellat the peak of their powers.With another Test against England, two more against West Indiesand New Zealand later this year, 2002 might, ironically, work outto be a bumper year for Tendulkar. A look at the list of mostruns scored in a year by Indians tells a tale. In 1979, whenIndia played a record 17 Tests, Gavaskar made 1407 runs andGundappa Viswanath added 1388 runs to their tally whileVengsarkar managed 1044 runs in the same year. Another Indian toscore 1000 Test runs in a calendar year was Mohinder Amarnath,who in fact remains the fastest to the landmark. Tendulkar, mightnot have emulated Amarnath yet , but he has managed the feat morethan once.And he will again this year. It might be too early to predictit, but this might even be Tendulkar’s most productive year andhe could go past Gavaskar’s record of 1407 runs, despite playingtwo Tests less.It is interesting, however, that experts, mediamen and fans fromall over the have expended so much time and energy wondering whyTendulkar is doing so badly off late. Bishan Bedi, outspoken asever, said, “It must be hoped that this lean patch will makeTendulkar pick himself up, brush away a few cobwebs in histechnique and concentrate on playing like Tendulkar. No oneelse.”Why, even the great Sir Viv Richards joined the debate andopined, “I have seen this problem with Sachin these days, andespecially in Antigua; he doesn’t look as relaxed as he used toat the crease. That I feel, in my mind, is because, maybe, he isgetting close to some milestones. The freedom he used to playwith is not there anymore.”Perhaps, then, it is just a matter of how Tendulkar is playingrather than how well he is playing that has caused this alarm.It’s no secret that the little man has worked hard on tighteningup his technique and scoring runs, rather than dazzling everyonewith his formidable array of strokes. Take note though, thatthese strokes have merely been shelved for the moment notforever.In the course for his 193 at Leeds, Tendulkar began slowly yetfirmly, lifted his pitch to a more frenetic yet no less solidmiddle essay, and ended in an explosive crescendo that left youbreathless. Offering almost no chances until India were firmly inthe driver’s seat, he straight-drove with pedigree, pulled withthe power normally associated with four-wheel drives, and ranbetween the wickets like a hare with its tail on fire. Amatchwinning innings abroad, just when the team needed it most.Isn’t that what the critics said Tendulkar never did?

Kabir Ali’s excellent form has earned the talented all rounder a double boost with him securing his second Hewett Recruitment Player of the Month Award and a place in the initial 20 strong ECB Academy shortlist.The 21-year-old has maintained his fine form throughout June after scooping the first award of the season. Last month he bagged another 20 wickets at an average of 19.35 and played a major part in the County’s quest for honours.Overall this season he has claimed 43 first class wickets at an average of 20.16 and is averaging 28 with the bat. His limited overs form has been just as impressive with 13 victims in the Norwich Union League Division One at just 16.07 with a strike rate of a wicket every 19 balls.This form has brought him to the attention of the ECB’s Academy Director and former Australian wicket-keeper Rod Marsh. Kabir and County colleague Gareth Batty have been selected for the provisional shortlist for this winter’s Academy programme.The Hewett Recruitment Player of the Month Award’s are judged by members of the media who cover both the County’s four day and one day matches. The leading player in the match receives five points, second three and third one point with the monthly winner being the player with the highest total.There will be five monthly awards for April/May, June, July, August and September with the overall winner being presented with the Hewett Recruitment Player of the Year Award at the end of the season.Kabir took the June award just ahead of David Leatherdale, Ben Smith and Vikram Solanki who are all pushing him for the overall player of the year award.

The Bourda Oval at Guyana, possibly the most picturesque groundin the West Indies, is looking as pretty as it usually does aheadof the first Test between India and the West Indies due to starton Thursday. The outfield, which resembles a billiard top,assures value for money to any shot-maker.But it is as you walk further down the ground to gaze at thevital 22 yards of strip that doubts begin to surface. The pitch,which was one of the best batting surfaces in the Caribbean, hasnow degenerated into an unpredictable surface. If knowledgeableobservers are to believed, variable bounce will come increasinglyinto play as the match progresses.It could, however, prove a boon in disguise for Sourav Gangulyand his side, who are hoping to win a series in the Caribbean foronly the second time in their country’s cricketing history. For, Anil Kumble, who has proved to be their biggest match-winner inrecent times, is at his most destructive in such conditions.Kumble and Harbhajan Singh, if he recovers in time, will beexpected to play a vital role in ensuring that the Indiancampaign gets off to a happy start. The duo have already struckform, claiming 12 wickets in their team’s victorious tour openeragainst the Guyana Board President’s XI. If they bowl at anywherenear their best, they might succeed in running through a WestIndies line-up that has very few established players in itsranks.India, though, are not wholly dependent on their spin twins. WithJavagal Srinath, Zaheer Khan and Ashish Nehra and Tinu Yohannanalso in the squad, they have the enough firepower in their fastbowling arsenal too. With the bowling looking relatively healthy,it is the batting that is suddenly looking suspect.The batsmen, despite their much-touted abilities, have failed topull their collective weight during away tours. Even the lowlyZimbabwe, led by unheralded medium-pacer Andy Blignaut, managedto drive holes in the much-feted line-up at Harare in one ofIndia’s recent away tours.Disturbingly, then, most of the willow-wielders struggled againsta weak Guyana Board President’s XI attack in the tour opener.Coach John Wright has probably taken the first step in addressingthe problem by voicing it.”We have the potential to beat any side in the world. What werequire is self-belief that we are capable of winning away fromhome. It’s a very important factor,” he said, adding, “We havequite a few brilliant players but have yet to click as a team.What we need is a collective effort.”Evidence of new-found self-belief was found recently when ShivSunder Das, the stocky Indian opener, professed the desire toscore big hundreds in the Caribbean, thereby following in thefootsteps of the legendary Sunil Gavaskar. If Das and the middle-order, consisting of Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman and Sourav Gangulyamong others, manage to support the ever-consistent SachinTendulkar, the tourists might manage to draw first blood inGuyana itself, fair weather permitting.Usually the rain almost unfailingly makes an appearance, and thepossibility of it doing so again cannot be ruled out. Anotheradversary as far as the Indians would be concerned will be afully fit Brian Lara.The West Indian master, who seemed to have regained his best formin the recent series against Sri Lanka, has recovered from hiselbow injury and would, for his part, be hoping to lead his teamto an upset win over the Indians. Carl Hooper and ShivnarineChanderpaul, who scored tons of runs against the Indians in theprevious series between the two sides, are also capable ofleading the home team’s batting.As for the West Indies bowling, Hooper has decided to place hisreliance on his pace bowlers. “Since we don’t have world-classspinners like India have in Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh,we’ll go for pace. India have very good batsmen in Tendulkar,Dravid and Ganguly, but most of their guys are making their firsttrip to the West Indies. We’d like to take advantage of that,”the West Indies captain said in a recent interview to a privatetelevision channel.Talking to ahead of newspersons of the match, he showed everysign of sticking to his plan, saying, “It’s not easy to replaceCourtney Walsh and Curtly Ambrose, but we will be relying (on)Merv Dillon, Cameron Cuffy, Marlon Black and Adam Sanford todeliver the goods.” The last named is rated highly by fastbowling great Colin Croft, who feels that Sanford may be thesurprise packet.All said, the stage is set for a battle of attrition between thetwo sides. Both teams will be eager to gain the early advantage -West Indies to revive the flagging morale of their side, andIndia to assert the supremacy that is already theirs on paper.With fans of both sides expected, for 42 percent of Guyana’spopulation is of Indian descent, to troop out to the ground, theleast that can be promised is a carnival start to the series.Squads: India: Sourav Ganguly (captain), Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar,Wasim Jaffer, Deep Dasgupta, Shiv Sundar Das, VVS Laxman, DineshMongia, Ajay Ratra, Sanjay Bangar, Javagal Srinath, Anil Kumble,Harbhajan Singh, Sarandeep Singh, Tinu Yohannan, Zaheer Khan,Ashish Nehra.West Indies: Carl Hooper (captain), Chris Gayle, Stuart Williams,Ramnaresh Sarwan, Brian Lara, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Ryan Hinds,Junior Murray, Mervyn Dillon, Cameron Cuffy, Marlon Black, AdamStanford, Mahendra Nagamootoo

Two more matches were decided in the Baqai Inter-Academies Ramazan Festival tournament played Saturday.At the UBL ground UBL B beat PIA Blues by 31 runs after scoring 136 all out in 21.5 overs and then dismissing their opponents for 105 runs in 19.4 overs.For UBL B, Umer Shahzad (37) and Farrukh Hussain (36), were associated in 66-run partnership for the opening wicket and with Salman Hussain (34) joining the fray, the scoreboard read 108 for one wicket. But with the introduction of slow left-arm Anil Iqbal, the last nine wickets crashed out for 38 runs. Anil finished with the figures of five for 21. PIA Blues were bundled out for 105 in 19.4 overs.In another encounter, PIA Whites beat UBL D by 70 runs. Batting first PIA Whites reached 131 for five in their 20 overs thanks to Sabz Ali Bangash (43), Ali Rehman (39).UBL D in reply were dismissed for 103 in 23 overs, with Jaffer Hussain top scoring with 50 runs. Shahid Hameed ended up with return of five for 11.

SYDNEY, Dec 13 AAP – It was Friday the 13th but Marcus Trescothick and Nick Knight rode their luck as England set Australia 252 runs for victory in the limited overs tri-series match at a sold-out SCG tonight.In the process England did allrounder Shane Watson’s World Cup chances a whole lot of damage, ensuring calls are renewed for Australian Test skipper Steve Waugh to come under consideration for the 15-man squad that travels to Africa in February.England reached 8-251 from 50 overs as Australia dropped four catches, with Knight hitting 111 not out and opening partner Trescothick 60 from 57 balls. Brett Lee was on a hat-trick in the final over when he rattled the stumps of Craig White (15) and Gareth Batty (nought).Watson was pulled from the attack after a costly opening spell of three overs for 25 runs as Trescothick and Knight skipped away in a run-a-ball opening stand of 101.Part-timers Darren Lehmann and Damien Martyn (0-26) were preferred by captain Ricky Ponting ahead of Watson for the remainder of England’s innings.Lehmann took 3-1 off six balls to finish his ten-over stint with 3-32, giving further reason to believe Australia could do without Watson – or any specialist allrounder – at the World Cup.Lehmann, Martyn, Michael Bevan, Ponting and even Matthew Hayden could cobble together the final ten overs in support of Australia’s main four bowlers, allowing the luxury of an extra batsman.Wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist denied Lehmann a fourth wicket when he missed a stumping chance off Knight on 91.The tourists needed a dramatic change of fortune to be competitive against a highly confident Australian side and they received it first ball when an edge from Trescothick off the bowling of Glenn McGrath flew between Ponting and Martyn at second and third slips.It went for four.Trescothick and Knight adopted a plan to attack the Australian fast bowlers, giving themselves room outside off stump, regularly advancing down the crease and slashing wildly at any balls with a bit of width.The fourth ball of McGrath’s first over flew from the top edge of Trescothick’s blade over Martyn’s head, while any number of other edges evaded diving Australians.McGrath’s new ball partner Jason Gillespie didn’t get a hand to a hot caught-and-bowled chance when Trescothick was nine. Lehmann spilled a similar chance off Hussain on 26, then Ponting let Hussain off the hook again on 36.Trescothick finally fell to Brett Lee, caught at first slip by Shane Warne for 60 off 57 balls. He hit eight fours and a six.England lost 2-2 in five balls when Ronnie Irani was trapped lbw for a duck by Warne’s second ball but Knight and captain Nasser Hussain (52 off 81 balls) regained the momentum.Another late hiccup of 4-18 in five overs prevented England from amassing an even bigger total.Knight grinned broadly after an ambitions reverse-sweep off Warne made it all the way to the third-man fence. Warne was far less impressed, scowling. Knight played a similar stroke for three runs a few overs later as he and Hussain guided England to 205.Warne (1-42 off ten) and Lehmann succeeded in bogging down Hussain, whose reverse smacked of desperation. The Poms hit 31 straight singles from the 25th over to the 36th over but shortly afterwards Hussain broke the shackles with a six off Martyn over mid-wicket.Shortly after that he was gone, caught in the deep.Lee finished with 4-47 from eight overs.

Worcestershire Royals extended their lead at the top of Division One of the Norwich Union League, but only by two points when they could reasonably have expected that their total of 230 for eight from 45 overs might have been enough to give them four points. Vikram Solanki was again the batsman in form as he took 81 off the Nottinghamshire Outlaws’ attack. The main support came from newcomer to New Road, Shane Lee with 36 from 31 balls with a four and three sixes. However, the rains then came and the match was abandoned before the Outlaws could get to the middle.Meanwhile in Division Two at Hove, Sussex Sharks batted first reaching 194 for seven in their 45 overs. Top scorer was Chris Adams with 60, but there was an enterprising stand of 84 for the eighth wicket between Kevin Innes with 50 and Mark Davis who was on 27 when the innings closed. There were four wickets for Ed Giddins against his old county.After the Surrey Lions had fallen to nine for two when Ali Brown and Ian Ward went to James Kirtley, Mark Ramprakash steadied the innings with 60 and Nadeem Shahid helped him add 131 for the fourth wicket. Shahid went on to 74 not out in company with his captain Adam Hollioake (26 not out) as the Lions won by six wickets with more than five overs to spare.

Hampshire seamer Chris Tremlett sets off for the England Academy in Adelaide, Austraila on Sunday, with the main brief to retain his fitness after missing much of the latter part of the season with a stress fracture of the metatarsal bone in his left foot.Tremlett (21) is still a month away from serious fitness training, but it will give the tall cricketer a chance to work on his batting. A clean hitter of the ball he is hoping that an improvement in that department will turn him into an all-rounder.He will not be able to bowl till after the Christmas break.Tremlett speaking to the Daily Echo reporter said: “I know I’ve got the talent to be an all-rounder, it’s just a question of working on certain aspects of my game.”Rod March, the Academy director visited the Rose Bowl in August to discuss his fitness programme with Hampshire’s director of Cricket Tim Tremlett (his father) and physio Pat Farhart. Farhart will also be looking in on the Academy to check his progress.Tremlett will not be fit enough to tour Sri Lanka with the rest of the Academy boys in February.Tremlett will return home for Christmas, and will return to Adelaide for the last year there, it will be based at the art centre of excellence at Loughborough University next year.

While Glamorgan Dragons were outwitting Leicestershire Foxes in our featured match, it was appropriate that Worcestershire Royals were crowning the Golden Jubilee with an emphatic win over Yorkshire Phoenix at Headingley. Kabir Ali continued a remarkable run of success, with five for 36 as Phoenix crumbled to 128 all out. Allan Donald marked his first appearance for the Royals with two wickets. Ben Smith then made an unbeaten 38 and Anurag Singh 33 as the Royals coasted home with more than seven overs to spare.Elsewhere in Division One, Neil Carter (five for 31) and Shaun Pollock (three for 10) flattened Durham Dynamos for just 72. It took Warwickshire Bears just 11 overs and one ball to overhaul that, with Carter and Pollock the batsmen to the fore.At Tunbridge Wells, Kent Spitfires flew comfortably over Notts Outlaws with a five-wicket win. James Golding (three for 25) was the Spitfires’ main gunner as the Outlaws were shot down for 191, and an opening partnership of 82 between Robert Key (68*) and Matthew Fleming (64 off just 44 balls) provided rocket fuel for the Spitfires’ reply.In Division Two, Hampshire Hawks won a tense encounter with Middlesex Crusaders at Lord’s. The South African wicket-keeper Nic Pothas was the Hawks’ top scorer with an unbeaten 39 as they reached 183 for eight. The Crusaders were given a solid start by Andy Strauss (35) and Sven Koenig (24), but uniformly tight bowling from the Hawks left the Crusaders just three runs short of victory.There was another tight finish at Northampton, where the Steelbacks overcame Surrey Lions by just five runs. Mal Loye (86) and Mike Hussey (69) laid the foundations for the Steelbacks’ win, setting up their eventual total of 229. Although Ally Brown roared to 55 off just 47 balls, there was always a little too much for the Lions to do, and Ricky Anderson (three for 30) helped to draw their teeth.Sussex Sharks endured no such impediment at Horsham, as the high-flying Essex Eagles fell to earth with a thud. After a waterlogged start, the Sharks were re-floated by wicket-keeper Matthew Prior, who made 73 from just 67 balls. An unbeaten 41 from Kevin Innes pushed the total to 240. A double strike from James Kirtley then reduced the Eagles to four for two, and despite contributions from Graham Napier (50) Andy Flower (49) and Ronnie Irani (51), the Eagles ultimately subsided to 208 all out.In the other Division Two match, played under floodlights at Old Trafford, Gloucestershire Gladiators won the toss and batted first. Despite the fact that Lancashire Lightening’s John Wood took five for 49, the men from Bristol managed to total an impressive 269 for eight in their 45 overs. There were useful contributions all down the order, but top-scorer was the evergreen Kim Barnett with 66. In reply, several batsmen from the home county got a start, but they were undone by some typically persistent and miserly bowling from the Gladiators’ attack and they were shot out at regular intervals. In the end, Lightening could not even survive for the full over allocation and were bowled out for 190 to lose by 79 runs.

March:
Staffordshire 224 & 77-2
Cambridgeshire 278-8d (SA Kellett 110, A Freear 55, Mutucumarana 50).Falmouth:
Wales Minor Counties 123 & 179
Cornwall 273 (A Sharp 76, J Sylvester 5-91) 31-1
Cornwall 22pts beat Wales 4pts by 9 wickets.Sidmouth:
Cheshire 251-8 and 80-6
Devon 159 all out (C Lamb 5-65)Bournemouth:
Dorset 178 all out & 141 all out
Oxford 125 & 2-1Jesmond:
Northumberland 426-8 and 80-1
Lincolnshire 298 (J Trower 86, RWJ Howitt 75)Shifnal:
Shropshire 284-9d & 138-4 (MJ Marvell 55*)
Herefordshire 245-8d (CW Burroughs 66)Barrow:
Buckinghamshire 250-9d (PD Atkins 112*)
Cumberland 58-2