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The end of a long and successful season is drawing nigh for England, with India’s cricketers having finally made it home, hotly pursued by Leicestershire and Somerset, county cricket’s representatives at the Champions League. In barely a fortnight, the England team will also be in India, preparing for their return series of five ODIs, but right at this moment, they are down at The Oval, dodging autumnal showers and preparing for a pair of Twenty20 fixtures that serve only as a reminder of previous administrative folly.The Allen Stanford Memorial Series (as these matches are not officially known) has come about as a result of the collapse of the Stanford Super Series after a single ill-conceived incarnation in November 2008. The ECB had sold the rights to four years’ worth of such events, a quadrangular tournament at home and a “20/20 for 20″ cash bonanza in Antigua, and then promptly spent all the broadcasting cash they had received from Sky. The upshot has been this fudged bid to fulfil their contractual obligations, an unsatisfactory compromise involving two skeleton international teams, one of which will be led by England’s sixth captain of the calendar year, Graeme Swann.Nevertheless there is, from England’s point of view, an undoubted value to the exercise that is about to take place. In exactly 12 months’ time the squad will be in Sri Lanka launching the defence of their World Twenty20 crown, with India once again lined up as their principal opponent in the group stages. Given how infrequently the format is played at international level, any opportunity to practise competitively between now and then has to be welcomed by the reigning champions.England have a further fixture against India in Kolkata looming on October 29, and then probably no more than four bilateral matches scheduled home and away ahead of the squad selection for the 2012 tournament. Therefore, this double-header could make or break the claims of more than just a handful of contenders, both those playing and those missing out.Although the regular Twenty20 captain Stuart Broad is missing out through injury, the balance of England’s squad is still geared towards the not-so-distant future. The telling decision not to hand the captaincy to the one-day leader, Alastair Cook, confirms the impression that England intend to make the best of a bad situation, and use these fixtures to gauge their Twenty20 development.Alex Hales and Craig Kieswetter can be expected to open in both fixtures with a licence to clear the ropes, closely followed by a middle order that is likely to include three players – Jonny Bairstow, Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes – who have not yet celebrated their 22nd birthdays. Even in this new-look outfit, however, the decision to bring Surrey’s Stuart Meaker into the squad as a net bowler provides a reminder that pressure for places is paramount.”Any opportunity I can get to pull an England shirt on, I’m going to grab with both hands, regardless of what time of year it is,” said Jade Dernbach, one of the players who, at this stage, would appear certain of taking part in the title defence. “With the World Twenty20 coming up next year, any games we can get will be vitally important. There are only five or six games before then, so these two games form quite an integral part of the plans and processes for that tournament.”Dernbach’s maiden season of international cricket has been eventful, to say the least. He was called up to the World Cup squad in Sri Lanka back in March, having impressed the selectors on the England Lions tour of the Caribbean. Though he didn’t play in what turned out to be England’s final match of that competition, a ten-wicket elimination in the quarter-finals, he has since featured 10 of their 11 ODIs this summer, as well as two Twenty20s against Sri Lanka at Bristol and India at Old Trafford, where he was named Man of the Match following a matchwinning spell of 4 for 22.”I set myself some goals at the start of the year, but did I know all of this was going to happen? Probably not,” said Dernbach. “You take it as it comes and I’m overjoyed to have played so much cricket for England this summer.”A similar story applies for West Indies, although in their case, the new-look nature of their squad is more through necessity than choice. Many of their key players are absent either through contractual disputes, in the case of Chris Gayle, and or through the demands of the Champions League, in which Kieron Pollard is playing for Mumbai Indians, and in which Trinidad and Tobago have first dibs on several players who might otherwise be featuring here – including Darren Bravo, Ravi Rampaul and Adrian Barath.Either way, Ottis Gibson, West Indies’ coach, was seeking to put the matches in a positive light. “We don’t have a lot of games leading up to the World Cup, so these two come along at a very good time for us,” he said. “We’ve got a newish looking squad, but it gives our guys a good chance to see where they are in terms of international cricket. England are still the world champions don’t forget, so we are taking these games very seriously in our build-up.”England start the series as favourites, partly because of their familiarity with the conditions, but also because of the deep well of confidence that the chosen players have inherited in the course of the summer. As Dernbach explained, the knowledge of what the team has achieved in all formats this summer couldn’t help but rub off on newcomers to the squad – not least Bairstow, who produced a matchwinning 41 not out from 21 balls on debut in Cardiff last week.”I think in one-day cricket you want to be able to go and express yourself and what’s made you successful is what you want to continue to do,” said Dernbach. “People will back you 100% in the decisions you make, and that’s what happened for Jonny. For him to come in and look so at home was an outstanding achievement. That’s a testament to the feeling we have got in the dressing room. We made him feel very welcome, he felt at home, and he was able to produce his best cricket which is what we want.”

ScorecardWorcestershire will end the season peering over their shoulder with the nervousness of Dr Crippen’s paperboy as they struggle to retain their Division One status. While it will still take a remarkable series of results for Worcestershire to suffer relegation, they are stumbling to the finishing line in a manner that increasingly resembles Devon Loch.Sussex, meanwhile, have safety within their sights. Barring a most unlikely series of results, a draw here will almost certainly guarantee them another season in Division One. It may be that Sussex’s priorities benefit Worcestershire. Had the visitors desperately required a victory from this game, they would surely have declared already or enforced the follow-on early on the third morning.As it is, however, Sussex already lead by 420 and, despite poor weather and somewhat over-protective umpiring curtailing the day by 16 overs, claim they will bat on for a while on the fourth morning. Worcestershire, with their eyes on the three points they would earn from a draw, won’t mind that at all. Only one side – Nottinghamshire in 2001 – has ever scored more to win in the fourth innings on this ground. That won’t change on the final day here.That Sussex had the option of enforcing the follow-on was due to some fine bowling and some bewilderingly intemperate batting. Resuming on the third morning with just 27 more runs required to avoid the follow-on, Worcestershire fell just four runs short.While tailenders Richard Jones and Alan Richardson could hardly be blamed as they were beaten for pace, the shot selection of Alexei Kervezee was much harder to justify. With just six needed to avert the follow-on, Kervezee skipped down the pitch in an attempt to deposit Monty Panesar over long-on. The resultant leading edge to extra-cover soured an otherwise impressive innings.Perhaps that’s harsh. Kervezee had just deposited Panesar for six with a similar shot and there is something to be said for allowing his naturally positive instincts to flow. There is a distinction between positive and reckless, however, and Kervezee – just about as talented a young batsman as anyone in the county game – would surely score the runs his ability warrants if he placed a greater value on his wicket.Still, his wicket was fair reward for Panesar. It completed his third five-wicket haul this season and left him with 63 Championship wickets; just four behind the division’s leading wicket-taker, Alan Richardson. If Sussex’s close catching – distinctly fallible as it is – had been better, Panesar would surely have at least a dozen more wickets.As it was Sussex, reluctant to bat fourth on a pitch that will only deteriorate, declined to enforce the follow-on. While they lost Chris Nash early, beaten by a beauty that bounced and left him from the wonderfully reliable Richardson, Ed Joyce and Joe Gatting built on a first innings lead of 155 with a stand of 120.Joyce batted beautifully. While he has always had the ability to time the ball sweetly, Joyce has also learned which balls to leave outside the off stump. His is a far more rounded player as a result and only two men – Marcus Trescothick and Dale Benkenstein – have more Division One runs this year. He also played Moeen Ali’s offspin with ease, pulling one dismissive six.At the other end, Gatting recorded an increasingly dominant maiden Championship century. Patient initially – his first 50 took 114 balls – he grew in confidence and produced some outstanding drives off the front and, in particular, the back foot. His second 50 took just 69 balls and he has so far scored 186 runs in the game.Worcestershire picked up another three wickets as Sussex’s batsmen fell in attempting to set a declaration, but the burden upon Richardson remained immense. With Daryl Mitchell understandably unwilling to trust the rest of his attack, Richardson has been obliged to deliver more than his fair share of overs this summer. He looks jaded now but, if his team survive, he can look back on a job well done. Worcestershire owe him plenty.How will Sussex reflect on the season? Well, many teams would be quite satisfied with a year in which they reached a quarter-final (in the FLtT20), a semi-final (in the CB40) and remained in the top division of the Championship. But not Sussex. This is the first season since 2004 they will have not won some silverware (including lower division honours) and expectations have grown. Perhaps unrealistically. For a small county, Sussex continue to punch well above their weight.

The lawyer of former Pakistan captain and defendant Salman Butt suggested to the jury during the alleged spot-fixing trial that there might have been a “criminal conspiracy” between tainted agent Mazhar Majeed and fast bowler Mohammad Amir – but any wrongdoing would not have included his client.On the ninth day of the trial at Southwark Crown Court, after the prosecution closed its case, before Butt said a word his lawyer Ali Bajwa QC outlined “strong evidence” against Amir and how he allegedly colluded with Majeed and when he did bowl his now infamous no-balls “he overstepped by a considerable distance”.”There was, at the very minimum, a criminal conspiracy between Majeed and Amir,” Bajwa told the jury. “Just consider the evidence. Majeed told (the undercover journalist Mazhar) Mahmood when Amir would bowl his no-balls. Then Majeed calls Amir and said we’ve spoken about everything before. Then the next day Amir duly bowled one of the two no-balls that had been promised. Rain prevented the other.”On August 26 (the next day) he sent Mohammad Amir a text saying after you finish your first over, then in your third over. Mohammad Amir then in the next day bowled a no-ball off the third ball of his third over. We concede that there is strong evidence against Majeed and Amir and we also concede that there has been no sensible explanation for it.”But he asked the jury “if you do decide there was a criminal conspiracy to bowl no-balls, was Salman Butt party to that criminal conspiracy?’ He added: “Salman Butt did not know of any conspiracy to bowl no-balls at Lord’s.”Are we sure there was a criminal conspiracy about the no-balls at Lord’s? If so are we sure Salman Butt was party to that criminal conspiracy and are we sure Mohammad Asif was party to that crimninal conspiracy?”Before Butt was cross-examined, Bajwa went on with his preamble, further questioning the integrity of Majeed.”We say Salman Butt only finds himself here on trial because of words of his friend and former agent Mazhar Majeed,” Bajwa told the jury. “We say Mazhar Majeed has grossly abused the trust Mr Butt showed in him.”Butt and his former team-mate 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 Majeed, teenage fast bowler Amir and other people unknown to bowl pre-planned no-balls. Butt and Asif deny the charges.The case continues.

Victoria
ScorecardMatthew Wade’s excellent batting form continued at the MCG•Getty Images

Marcus North and Adam Voges were injured in Victoria’s 59-run limited overs victory over Western Australia, neither able to play an effective role with the bat as the Warriors fell short of a handsome total bankrolled by a Matthew Wade century.Wade’s 120, which will further enhance his claims to play in Australia’s first home Test against New Zealand in December, was augmented by 78 to Brad Hodge and a well-struck 52 to David Hussey. Together they took the Bushrangers to 5 for 317, too many for WA minus their two most experienced batsmen.North suffered from back spasms in the field and did not bat at all, while Voges suffered a groin strain and hobbled out to bat at No. 10, merely to ensure the Bushrangers did not take a bonus point. Once that goal had been achieved, he retired hurt, thus ending the match.Ben Edmondson claimed three wickets at great cost for the Warriors, while James Pattinson nabbed a far more striking 3-31 when the Bushrangers took to the field.

Anil Kumble, the former India captain, has resigned as chairman of the National Cricket Academy (NCA) over what he says was a lack of “alignment” between his vision for the NCA and the rest of the committee’s.An official statement from the BCCI for the reasons for Kumble’s decision is awaited. He is tipped to be replaced, at least on an interim basis, by MP Pandove, the chairman of the BCCI’s specialised academies committee and a member of the IPL governing council.”I had a three-year vision, a holistic approach for the NCA that was not in alignment with that of the rest of the committee,” Kumble told ESPNcricinfo. “It didn’t make sense to me to just be a figurehead in this kind of a situation. So I thought it was better that somebody else take over.” In his role as chairman, Kumble told , he had made 10 presentations to the committee about his vision for the NCA.The NCA committee, as listed on website, is made up of 14 members including Kumble. The other committee members are BCCI president N Srinivasan, joint secretaries Sanjay Jagdale and Anurag Thakur, treasurer Ajay Shirke, chief-administrative officer Ratnakar Shetty, vice-chairman Ranjib Biswal, NCA Board members Anirudh Chaudhry, TC Mathew, Rakesh Parikh, Bikash Baruah and Gyanendra Pandey, director, NCA cricket operations Sandeep Patil and administration manager AK Jha.Kumble is president of the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) and chief mentor of the Royal Challengers Bangalore IPL team. The post of NCA chairman, an honorary post, was Kumble’s first official BCCI position since being elected KSCA president last year. He denied that his decision to quit a day after an NCA meeting in Chennai was due to arguments in Monday’s BCCI working committee meeting over apparent conflict of interest issues concerning him. Board rules require that any resignation must be tabled before a working committee.Two months ago, controversy arose over Kumble’s co-ownership of a talent management firm called Tenvic that has on its books several young players including R Vinay Kumar and S Aravind, both of whom have been part of recent India squads and also play for the Royal Challengers. Tenvic – named after Kumble’s ten-wicket haul against Pakistan in 1999 – looks after the commercial interests of the players but Kumble has consistently denied any conflict of interest between his administrative and mentoring roles.He said at the time that “less than 2%” of Tenvic’s business was related to “mentoring cricketers”, and that too without any commercial benefit.Anil Kumble’s resignation from the post of NCA chairman has only strengthened Indian cricket’s status quo. By suggesting changes to the NCA structures, Kumble walked into no-man’s land. There is little doubt that Indian cricket needs to alter, streamline and professionalise its injury-management system, a fact reflected by repeated selectoral faux pas. BCCI posts are largely figurehead positions; power and decision-making rest in the hands of very few. For the BCCI to accept what Kumble was offering, even in theory and irrespective of cost, required humility and recognition that their status quo required changing.
Kumble could have been the best man for this job, based on his experience, work ethic and empathy of player hardship. In an ideal world, Kumble should have been the NCA’s fully-paid professional CEO. It would, however, have made his KSCA position untenable and shrunk his real influence. As much contempt as he may have for the BCCI’s functionaries today, it is only by working with them that he will wrestle change out of the status quo. A seasoned policy wonk would have told Kumble that in this high-profile BCCI post the wickets do not fall easily. Patience and persistence, his strengths as a bowler, needed buffeting by new skills of negotiation, diplomacy and an acceptance that progress will come not in sessions or in days but in years. It would seem both sides have lost this one. – Sharda Ugra

Rod Marsh, the Australia selector, will “coach the coaches” in a newly created Cricket Australia role designed to ensure a unified approach to mentoring players across the states.In a mild divergence from the Argus review, Marsh will have the oversight originally intended for the head coach, Mickey Arthur.However the duo will work closely on the formulation of strategies to ensure that players emerge through the states with messages about their development that are consistent with those of the national team.”I’ve basically taken one page out from the Argus review in terms of the national coaching system, effectively to say we need to make sure our coaching pathway, or accreditation, and how the coaching philosophy and how it is drilled out throughout the country, is done well,” Pat Howard, the team performance manager, told ESPNcricinfo.”Part of that involves someone that could engage former players and mentoring capacities and where appropriate coaching capacities. There weren’t many blokes I could think of that could do that better than Rod Marsh. His ability to engage with players at all levels is pretty high.”Marsh’s role will also allow him to call in consultants from far and wide when needed, as befits a man with one of the deepest contact books in world cricket. He will work closely with the Centre of Excellence, the subject of much criticism from the states in the interviews that led to the Argus review.”He’s verymuch engaged with trying to connect that, working with Troy Cooley who he’s worked with before at the England academy,” Howard said. “He will work closely with Mickey, he will work closely with Troy Cooley, and hopefully supplementing that his coaching guys with those former players.”The coaching overseer’s position follows on from similar roles Marsh held at the Cricket Academy in Australia in the 1990s, then with England from 2002-05 and more recently with the ICC global academy in Dubai.”I’m looking forward to this role and believe that it will be a nice fit with my position on the National Selection Panel,” Marsh said. “I’ve been coaching cricket for more than 20 years and this is a great opportunity to work with the elite coaches around the country.”It’s important that we develop our coaches as well as our players and this role will include developing a clear coaching pathway from junior teams, to representative teams, right through to the national team level.”

The Central Districts v Auckland HRV Cup match in New Plymouth was abandoned without a ball being bowled. This was the second day running that rain ruined the cricket. The wash-out has prevented either side from claiming bragging rights – Auckland and Central Districts sit at the top of the points table at No. 1 and No. 2 respectively.

Snehal Pradhan, the India women medium-pacer, can resume bowling at international level after undergoing remedial work on an illegal action, the ICC has said.”A comprehensive analysis revealed that her mean elbow extension was now within the 15-degree level of tolerance permitted under the relevant regulations,” the ICC said, “But she has been advised to be conscious of ensuring her elbow flexion levels are minimised at upper arm horizontal to ensure she remains well within the extension tolerance threshold.”Pradhan’s action was reported in July 2011 after a one-day international against England in Derby. She was tested later that month in Perth and suspended from bowling after results proved that her action was illegal because all her deliveries exceeded the 15-degree level of tolerance by an average of two degrees.Pradhan’s action will continue to be scrutinised by match officials to ensure it remains legal, the ICC said.

Gloucestershire have one last chance to secure their future in Bristol. They have drawn up revised plans for the development of their long-time headquarters at Nevil Road and their chief executive Tom Richardson has warned that if this fails the club will leave the city.The club’s original plans were rejected by Bristol City Council in January. The main objection behind the 6-4 vote against was the height of the apartment block at the Ashley Down end of the ground – the development that will fund the £10 million project.The design has now been reduced by a storey but will maintain 147 apartments – the number necessary to make the apartment block financially viable – by lengthening the building.The club have held positive talks with planning officers and will hold a consultation period with local residents before submitting the revised plans. They still hope to begin developing the ground at the end of this season.”We’re very committed to make our plans work here at Nevil Road,” Richardson told ESPNcricinfo. “We’ve been at this a long time. We sought to take into account a number of things that were said about why the planning application was turned down and we’re going back to talk to our neighbours and all other stakeholders and take their views on it.”The development of Nevil Road is essential for Gloucestershire’s ambitions to keep international cricket in Bristol. The club hopes plans to raise the capacity to 17,000 and build a new media centre and conferencing facilities will secure a least one ODI per season, a match which brings £1 million to Bristol.But if these revised plans are rejected again, it could mean the end for Gloucestershire in Bristol. The club have already sounded out alternative venues. Tuffley Avenue in Gloucester is one potential new site and a 20,000 international stadium at Filton Airfield has emerged as another option as the county’s new home.Gloucestershire have already been stripped of next year’s ODI against New Zealand and Richardson admitted the club are in the last chance saloon to keep Bristol as an international venue. He said: “I think we’ll run out of time if we fail again and international cricket will be a thing of the past.”

New Zealand opening batsman Martin Guptill fired Derbyshire into a strong position at the end of the third day against Northamptonshire. With so little to choose between the two sides at the end of the first innings, Guptill set Derbyshire off to the perfect start in their second innings with an authoritative 131 not out as he and partner Paul Borrington put on an unbroken 213 for the first wicket.Northants did not help their own cause by dropping three catches off the pair and, at the close, Derbyshire had an overall lead of 235, having earlier bowled the visitors out for 264.Borrington’s share of the opening stand was 66 not out in an admirably defiant effort. He has faced 226 balls so far and has hit six boundaries, content to allow Guptill to be the more free-flowing stroke-player but both players had to be exceptionally cautious at the beginning of their innings.With plenty of swing for the seamers in the overcast conditions, the first 20 overs from Northants allowed only 20 runs and the Derbyshire pair had to ride their luck at times as the ball regularly beat the outside edge.But the batsmen began to feel more comfortable shortly after lunch, with Guptill leading the way. He was given a life on 43 when Alex Wakely dropped him at first slip and the same fielder also later spilled another chance in the same position when Borrington was 42.Guptill brought up his century with a steered single to third man off the last ball of the 51st over. It was his sixth in first-class cricket and his second for Derbyshire, coming off 135 balls with 11 fours and a six.On 108, Guptill was dropped again as substitute fielder Con de Lange put down a steepling chance at deep mid-wicket and, when bad light brought an early close with 15 overs to go, he was edging towards his highest score for the county, which is 143.Derbyshire earlier earned their first-innings lead of 22 when they claimed the last three Northants wickets for 23 runs in the first 10 overs of the morning. James Middlebrook added only five more to his overnight score of 40 when he attempted to force Mark Footitt away off the back foot and was caught by wicketkeeper Tom Poynton to make it 252 for 8 in the fifth over of the day.There were seven fours and a six in Middlebrook’s valuable innings and with him went Northants’ chance of nudging into a lead. Tony Palladino finished them off as Lee Daggett edged to second slip and Jack Brooks to first slip.