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Lasith Malinga’s ability to take early wickets has not surprised the Sri Lankan side as Tom Moody, the Sri Lanka coach, said that Malinga, the right-arm fast bowler, had been doing so in recent one-day games and Test matches.Malinga picked up six wickets – three each – in Sri Lanka’s two games at the World Cup so far. All three of his wickets against Bermuda came in the first eight overs – two off consecutive balls. Against Bangladesh he picked up his first two wickets inside the first eight overs and the third in the 36th over. Overall he has 45 wickets from his 30 ODIs at 24.20.”He complements our attack and gives it a different dimension,” Moody told AFP. “Up front, he has the ability to take wickets with the new ball. With the old ball, he is very good at executing it right up in the block-hole. He’s an important part of our unit.”When they first encountered him, batsmen found Malinga’s side-arm action very tough to pick as the ball would appear from right in front of the umpire. Stephen Fleming, the New Zealand captain, had asked the umpires to change their (black) trousers when Sri Lanka toured New Zealand in 2004-05. “We can’t see him when it’s a bit overcast and late in the evening,” Fleming had said. “There’s a period there when he’s delivering when it gets lost in the trousers.” Malinga took 11 wickets at 30.36 in the two Tests that tour.Malinga is part of Sri Lanka’s three-pronged pace attack which includes opening bowler Chaminda Vaas and the right-arm fast medium bowler Farveez Maharoof. “The quality of Vaas with the new ball is invaluable,” Moody said. “The variations of Malinga are a great asset and Maharoof is well-suited to these conditions when the ball seams around a bit.”His hairstyle, currently bleached blond, and pierced eyebrow add colour to Malinga’s unpredictable bowling. “He has had many hairstyles over the past 12 months and you never know what it will be tomorrow,” Moody added.

Craig McMillan feels a hectic cricket schedule is taking a toll on his body, and admits that retirement may not be far away. He said he was enjoying the West Indies, especially because six months ago he was not expecting to be there, but conceded he was unlikely to add to his three World Cup trips.”It can be a rollercoaster at times,” he told . “I’m not going to put a time on anything but there is a good chance this could be my last World Cup. I’ve been going since I was 20 so that’s close to ten years and it has been a long time. I would love to finish on a high at this World Cup with a very good side.”McMillan, 30, feared that too much cricket could shorten the careers of top-class athletes. “There is a lot more cricket played these days,” he said. “It’s something they [the cricket boards and the ICC] need to look at because combined with the Test tours it can get very tough.”Maybe you will get guys just playing one form of the game. That might be a way to sustain yourself and stay involved for the last two or three years of your career, maybe forgoing one-dayers so they can play Test cricket for the last two or three years.”McMillan said a maiden World Cup title for New Zealand would be incredible. “From a personal point of view I’ve really enjoyed this World Cup,” he said. “So I’m hoping to contribute to what will hopefully be a special tournament for New Zealand.”New Zealand have been tipped by many, not least including Ian Chappell and Sir Viv Richards, to make it to the final of the tournament. McMillan looked at the side’s success so far as a “very satisfying” experience and was confident they would go all the way.”One of our strengths is that we bat low down and we’re strong in the last ten overs and I think that will become prevalent in the last few games of the tournament,” he said. “The thing about our game so far is that we haven’t relied on one person. Some teams rely on one or two players and you know that if you put them under pressure then the rest of the side is under pressure. The strength for New Zealand is that we have guys from one to 11 who can, on his day, win a game.”A look at New Zealand’s recent chases in a 3-0 sweep of Australia in the Chappell-Hadlee Series is testament to McMillan’s words. New Zealand’s next match is against Ireland on Monday.

Ric Charlesworth, the former Western Australia batsman, has rejected an approach to coach South Australia and believes a return to his former state is blocked by the imminent appointment of Tom Moody. Charlesworth, who guided the Australian women’s hockey team to two Olympic gold medals, is currently New Zealand Cricket’s high performance manager, but he has plenty of domestic and international vacancies to consider.Charlesworth told the West Australian he was approached by Rod Marsh, the South Australia high performance manager, last week but was not interested “at the moment”. “There are a range of options,” he said. “I’m not sure what I’m going to do.”While Moody has said he would not make a decision on his future until he spoke to the Sri Lankan board, Charlesworth said he talked to Western Australia officials and “Tom is going to do that job”. “That would have been the better option for me as it’s closer to home,” he said. “I think Tom is the right choice. They have done very well to get him.”The paper reported Moody was due to announce his plans to head back to Perth last week, but he delayed the decision when Sri Lanka made the final. It said he was likely to wait until after a welcome home reception in Colombo on Thursday.Greg Chappell, Dav Whatmore, John Buchanan and Bennett King stepped down after the World Cup to open up three international vacancies while the Australian Centre of Excellence also has a post available after Tim Nielsen’s promotion to the senior set-up. Wayne Phillips resigned from the South Australia job at the end of the Australian season and Wayne Clark stepped down from Western Australia.

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Division One

Three wickets apiece for Ryan McLaren and James Tredwell wrapped up Kent’s innings-and-79-run win against Surrey at Whitgift School. Mark Ramprakash hit 108, but it was always going to be in a losing cause as wickets fell regularly at the other end, and he was last out to Tredwell. Surrey had begun the final day showing some fight as Ramprakash and Ali Brown extended their fourth-wicket stand to 129 before Brown was bowled by Tredwell for 68. McLaren struck twice in two balls to remove Ian Salisbury and the injured Rikki Clarke, leaving the tail to support Ramprakash to his latest hundred – his fifth in the Championship this season. Surrey, though, soon fell to their fourth defeat and remain rooted in the bottom two.Sussex negotiated two sessions of Muttiah Muralitharan to secure a draw against Lancashire at Hove, although late wickets kept the day alive. Chris Nash and Richard Montgomerie opened with 93, but Muralitharan was a constant threat and removed Nash and Michael Yardy in three balls. James Anderson shifted Montgomerie and Muralitharan then claimed Chris Adams and Murray Goodwin to leave Sussex five down. They’d never entertained a target of 302 after Lancashire batted through the first session. Steven Croft’s first Championship half century was the mainstay and Mark Chilton was able to resume his innings, as x-rays ruled out any breaks to his elbow, after he was hit on the third evening.Nic Pothas’ unbeaten 126 guided Hampshire to a draw against Warwickshire at Edgbaston after they’d wobbled to 85 for 4. The seamers made early inroads before Pothas and John Crawley (73) combined to add 121 and put Hampshire on course for safety. Darren Maddy had Crawley caught behind and Naqqash Tahir claimed two in three balls to keep Warwickshire in the hunt for a late dash at a target. But Pothas, who’d brought up three figures off 135 balls, remained steadfast, while Chris Tremlett provided some late shots when the pressure was off.

Division Two

Ed Joyce guided Middlesex to a seven-wicket victory against Somerset at Lord’s with a run-a-ball 45. Despite the early loss of Nick Compton they needed less than an hour to reach their target of 138 following Chris Silverwood’s 6 for 49 yesterday which bowled out Somerset for 339.There was a thrilling final day at Oakham School, although Nottinghamshire will be rueing a victory chance which they let slip against Leicestershire. Set 377 to win they were on course following an opening stand of 123 between Jason Gallian and Bilal Shafayat and a continuation of David Hussey’s prolific form as he hit 79 off 65 balls. Hussey and Mark Wagh (78) had added 126 for the fourth wicket, leaving Nottinghamshire 66 short of their target when both players fell within a run of each other. Nick Walker then struck three times to remove a trio of allrounders who had the hitting power to finish the game and, with two wickets remaining, Nottinghamshire brought down the shutters.England’s batting stocks are extremely healthy, but Ravi Bopara provided further evidence of his ability with an expertly paced, unbeaten 147 as Essex completed a four-wicket win against Glamorgan in the final over at Swansea. David Hemp set Essex 323 in 78 overs, expecting his spinners to be a major threat, but Robert Croft went wicketless and Dean Cosker only collected two. A second-wicket stand of 169 between Bopara and Mark Pettini (79) laid the foundation for the run chase, then James Foster provided another valuable partner in a stand of 61. Bopara’s ton came off 153 balls and he remained to the end, sealing the result alongside James Middlebrook, bringing Essex their second win of the season.Gloucestershire took a strong hold against Northamptonshire on the second day of their match at Gloucester although their batting failed to build on an impressive position. From 352 for 4 the last six wickets fell for 42 once Alex Gidman had been trapped by Lance Klusener for 130. Monty Panesar finally found some success with two late wickets as he put in 35 overs of hard work. The bowler-dominated day continued with Northamptonshire crashing to 91 for 7, promising left-arm spinner Vikram Banerjee claiming three. Panesar showed how his batting has improved by halting the collapse, supporting Klusener for an hour and a half, as the eighth wicket added 51, but the visitors are still facing the follow-on.Division One

Division Two

* Not including the match still in progress

The ECB have announced two squads to take part in a spin bowling masterclass, spread over three days, starting on June 25 at the academy in Loughborough.”Following last year’s success we are pleased to be able to repeat the event,” David Parsons, England’s official spin bowling coach said. “The format provides the opportunity for many of the most promising young batsmen and spinners to test themselves against one another, to learn more about the game and to develop their own games technically and tactically.”The event will also include advice and training from John Childs, Jack Birkenshaw, Ashley Giles and Mike Gatting. A number of match scenarios will be designed to test batsman, bowlers and wicketkeepers the art of spin bowling and how to bat (and keep wicket) to spinners.Parsons was named England’s spin bowling coach in January 2006 and introduced the first “spin match” last September.Batsmen:
Varun Chopra (Essex), Andrew Gale, Joe Sayers (both Yorks), Billy Godleman (Middlesex), Ben Wright (Glamorgan), Karl Brown (Lancashire), Alex Wakely (Northamptonshire), Samit Patel (Nottinghamshire), Moeen Ali (Worcestershire), Billy Godleman (Middlesex)Wicketkeepers:
Ben Brown (Sussex), Paul Dixey (Kent),Spinners:
Vikram Banerjee (Gloucestershire), Graeme White (Northamptonshire), Christopher Morgan (Hampshire), Adil Rashid (Yorkshire), Azeem Rafiq (Yorkshire), Sachin Vaja (Essex), Thomas Winslade (Surrey), Moneeb Iqbal (Durham)

The UAE wound up a woeful trip to the Greater Toronto Area with a six-wicket win against Ontario on Wednesday. Ontario made 228 for 7 from their 50 overs, with UAE reaching the target with nine overs to spare.Saqib Ali starred for the UAE with 64, including seven fours and three sixes, while Nayeem Aslam sealed victory with a drive for six. Khuram Khan took 3 for 27.Earlier, Saad bin Zafar made 64 for Ontario and the captain Zahir Haniff hit a breezy 51 not out from 42 balls.This was a consolation win for the UAE after losing the Intercontinental Cup match to Canada by an innings. Canada top the standings in this competition where the top two of the eight competing countries will play off for the title.

Derbyshire have announced that the Chesterfield festival, which was due to take place this week but had to be cancelled because of continuing poor weather, has been rescheduled for early September.The re-arranged festival will begin with a Pro40 match against Durham on Tuesday, September 4 and will continue with the County Championship match against Nottinghamshire from September 6 to 9.”We are delighted that we have been able to reschedule the Chesterfield festival so quickly to give everyone the chance to make arrangements for later in the season,” Tom Sears, the county’s chief executive, said. “I would like to thank Chesterfield Borough Council, Chesterfield Cricket Club, Durham, Nottinghamshire and the ECB for their understanding and cooperation and we now look forward to a very successful festival week, albeit slightly later that planned.”

Mohammad Yousuf is expected to sign his central contract with the Pakistan Cricket Board over the next few days, though uncertainty remains over the future of Abdul Razzaq, another player yet to sign the contract.The two were surprisingly omitted from Pakistan’s Twenty20 World Championship squad and coupled with the delays in signing their contracts have stirred speculation about the future of both players.It had been suggested that the two were refusing to sign up as protest at their exclusion and even that both may take up lucrative offers with the Indian Cricket League (ICL) instead. Yousuf, however, clarified to Cricinfo that the delay on his part had only been because he received the contract late.”I only saw the contract yesterday [Thursday]. My lawyer is going through it now and I see no problem in signing it once the lawyer has seen it, which should take a day or two,” Yousuf said.The PCB had set a deadline for August 10 as the last day for all players to sign their contracts but an official said that the deadline would be extended for Yousuf. “He had been away for the last few days and there was no communication but now he has informed us that his lawyer is going over the contract. There should not be a problem in giving him a couple of extra days to go over it and inform us of his decision,” the official told Cricinfo.The situation for Razzaq is not so straightforward. Despite repeated attempts, the board has not been able to contact him to get an answer. Additionally, Razzaq’s comments on a TV show recently, where he attacked the board and the selectors for his exclusion, have strained relations.”We have heard nothing from Razzaq at all. Today is officially the last day for signing up but in cases, as with Yousuf, we can extend it. But that is only if there is some communication,” said the official.When asked what that meant for Razzaq’s future, the official said, “In light of his comments on a TV show recently and his refusal to get in touch, despite repeated attempts from our side, it could be a tough situation. You can draw your own conclusions about his future from that.”However, in what appeared to be a late climbdown, the board issued a statement saying the four players had been given an extended deadline – until August 15 – to sign their contracts. “Abdul Razzaq and Mohammad Yousuf received the contracts only a day before due to their unavailability. PCB has extended the date for signing the contracts for these four players {including Younis and Kaneria} in order to give them enough time to review before signing. They can now sign their contracts by August 15, 2007.”Razzaq, unavailable for comment, was said to be one of seven Pakistan players approached by the ICL; if he doesn’t sign up with Pakistan, it will only increase speculation that he may sign up with the ICL.Younis Khan and Danish Kaneria are the only others who haven’t officially signed the contracts but they have informed the board that they have accepted the terms and conditions. Both are currently playing county cricket in England and are expected to sign the contracts soon.

Mahela Jayawardene, the Sri Lanka captain, has said that despite losing to Pakistan, chasing 190, his side would prefer to bat second against Bangladesh.On winning the toss against Pakistan, Jayawardene chose to field thinking the dew factor would favour the side chasing. “We thought it would be quite easy to chase because it would be hard for the spinners to grip the ball [later in the day],” Jayawardene said at the post-match press conference.”Even though we lost those early wickets we managed to get up to the required run-rate quite quickly but Shahid Afridi bowled very well and he took wickets in the middle.” Afridi took 3 for 18, including Jayawardene’s wicket for 28.Jayawardene said Bangladesh would not pose as much of a challenge as Pakistan.”Pakistan is always a good side, it has some brilliant individuals. But the Pakistan bowling is altogether different to Bangladesh’s, it is very skilled,” he said.Sri Lanka made a positive start to the game when they reduced Pakistan to 33 for 3 in the first six overs. But then they were unable to break a 101-run partnership between Younis Khan and Shoaib Malik which got Pakistan to a competitive total.The two Group F matches will be played at the Wanderers today. Pakistan will face Australia, after which Sri Lanka will take on Bangladesh.

Lou Vincent is determined to make the most of his late call-up into New Zealand’s Test squad but he knows breaking into the middle order will be difficult. Vincent understood the selectors’ decision to initially leave him out of the 15-man group to visit South Africa before adding him as a replacement for Peter Fulton, who requires knee surgery.”I sat down with the selectors to say ‘Hey, what are the reasons?'” Vincent told the . “What came out of it was the answers, where for the last 12 months I hadn’t really done well for Auckland in the four-day stuff and that’s pretty obvious. I hadn’t actually deserved my spot in the Test team.”Vincent’s four first-class outings for Auckland last summer brought him 142 runs at 23.66. However, the CB Series in Australia began a string of excellent one-day performances from Vincent, who has averaged 52.66 in his past ten ODIs.He has two opportunities to regain his form in the longer version of the game with warm-up matches before the first Test starts at Johannesburg on November 8. “I’m looking forward to the practice games and if I get an opportunity to score runs then it’s up to the selectors on where they want to bat me,” he said.Vincent’s last exposure to Test cricket was as an opener in 2005 and since then he has been working on re-establishing his place in the middle order. However, he knows the competition for spots in the batting line-up will be intense.”It’s quite strong and I look at the depth of what we have with [Stephen] Fleming and [Scott] Styris, who have done well for so many years, and Fulton, who’s shown he’s consistent and quite a good player, and Ross Taylor, who’s coming through as a pretty exciting future for New Zealand,” Vincent said. “If I get an opportunity, I will do everything I can to try to take it.”