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Sanath Jayasuriya, whose 107 made him the oldest centurion in one-day internationals, says he is happy to be scoring runs for Sri Lanka but sidestepped discussion over his future. Asked whether he would continue till the 2011 World Cup, he said: “I don’t know, let’s see how it goes.”Jayasuriya, now 39 years and 212 days old, broke Geoffrey Boycott’s record with his 28th century. Boycott was 39 years and 51 days when he scored a hundred against Australia in Sydney in 1979. Jayasuriya was unaware about the record, but nonetheless pleased to continue performing at the highest level.”Although I am getting old, if I can get more runs on the board that’s the key thing,” he said. “I always want to play for my country and perform. Sometimes you don’t play that well and when you play well you need to get more runs on the board. That’s the goal I always think of whenever I get the opportunity.”Jayasuriya, named the Man of the Match, battled the hot conditions during the innings to record the second century at the venue. “I was struggling a bit today because it was very hot outside. What I wanted to do was bat for the first 10-15 overs and then carry on for a longer period which I did,” he said. “The others batted around me and put some runs on the board.”His performance, though, was the only bright spot in a disappointing start for the hosts to the five-ODI series. “India bowled really well in the morning. We knew it would seam around. Our experience was that the wicket would do a lot but it was not the case today. It would have been ideal had we got some more runs on the board. We need to field well and take those catches also.”During his innings, Jayasuriya went past 13,000 ODI runs, the first to reach the mark after Sachin Tendulkar. “You cannot think of records and play cricket, it is difficult. I am happy to have achieved the milestone. Had we won this contest I would have been happier.”It is seldom Sri Lanka finish on the losing side when Jayasuriya scores a century – only three have come in defeats. “It is sad that we couldn’t win the match despite my scoring a century. We performed very well in the recent series leading up to today’s match,” he said. “We have four more matches to go and we should be able to turn it around in the next few games.”

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details

A composed innings from Lee Carseldine led Queensland to a comfortable seven-wicket victory over South Australia in the Twenty20 Big Bash clash at the Gabba.Carseldine provided one half of a powerful pairing as he and Nathan Reardon combined for a third-wicket stand of 85 from just 49 balls to swing the match in the Bulls’ favour.The game hinged on two key moments. Redbacks debutant Kane Richardson dropped a relatively simple offering from Reardon on 2, and earlier, second-gamer Wade Townsend plucked a screamer to remove Redbacks run-machine Michael Klinger as his innings of 42 was beginning to blossom.The Bulls looked in trouble chasing a modest 164 when Townsend exited with the total at 43, but Carseldine and Reardon in particular made the Redbacks pay for missed opportunities. Reardon clubbed five sixes in his 23-ball 46 which changed the game. Carseldine continued his exceptional form anchoring the chase with 67 from 47 deliveries, to ensure the Bulls cruised to victory with 12 balls to spare.The Bulls could have been chasing plenty more after the Redbacks got away to a blistering start thanks to Daniel Harris and Klinger, who posted 50 in the first five overs. But the innings ground to a halt with good spells from Chris Simpson and Ben Laughlin, plus some superb fielding, reining the visitors in.Graham Manou and Sohail Tanvir salvaged the innings with a good late-order stand but similar to their clash with the Blues, the Redbacks came up at least 20 runs short.The loss ends the Redbacks’ campaign while the Bulls, with one game remaining, sit third on the Big Bash table, still in contention for the final.

Lindsay Crocker will remain as team manager for the Test series against West Indies, New Zealand Cricket has confirmed, ending much speculation over his role. Justin Vaughan, the NZC chief executive, said it was essential to provide stability through the ongoing series, though he confirmed that long-term candidates were being looked at.”We considered the possibility of an early handover in the event the recruitment process was concluded,” Vaughan said. “However with the team about to start an important series and the process ongoing, it was decided that the timing wasn’t right.New Zealand’s support staff is under a review process and former Rowing New Zealand chief executive Craig Ross has been one of the candidates to replace Crocker, whose contract runs until the end of the 2008-09 season.Some reports said Crocker felt his job was in jeopardy when he found out Ross was being prepped for the role and, anticipating a change, was given a farewell by the team on Sunday night. Vaughan conceded there had been confusion over the appointment. “I acknowledge the timing hasn’t been ideal, and the process has been unsettling,” he said.NZC, he said, would continue to appraise prospective long-term candidates, including Ross and Crocker, and that a decision will be taken later in the season. “It’s important we make a good decision on this key role, and we are working through a comprehensive process, as we are for other positions.”Crocker had been New Zealand’s general manager since 2003 and was part of the management system, including coach John Bracewell, employed by previous chief executive Martin Snedden. He was replaced in 2007 by Vaughan.Ross, 52, resigned from his post with Rowing New Zealand in September 2007 amid allegations of funding application indiscretions.

The Pakistan board has sent a show-cause notice to Mohammad Yousuf, formally banned him from all forms of cricket in Pakistan and demanded he pay them more than Rs10 million (US$ 125,000 approx) as costs incurred on litigation with the ICL. Yousuf signed with the unauthorised league earlier this week, a year after the PCB lured him away from it with the promise of a lucrative IPL contract.”We have sent him [Yousuf] a show-cause notice and if he doesn’t return the money, we will file a lawsuit in a civil court to recover money,” Shan Gul, the PCB’s legal advisor, said.Yousuf initially signed with the ICL in September 2007 but the board managed to get him back in to their fold even as the league took the matter up in an arbitration court. A stay order was passed on Yousuf’s participation in the IPL, though an appeal was later filed by the PCB on Yousuf’s behalf in the Bombay High Court.The notice accused Yousuf of misconduct and of deceiving the PCB. “In view of your misconduct the PCB acting in term of clause 13.1 read with 1.4.2 has decided to terminate your contract with immediate effect. The contract, therefore, stands terminated as of today. Furthermore, the PCB hereby bans, forbids and stops you from playing any form of representative cricket [department, association, club] in Pakistan. This ban also applies in the case of teams under PCB’s jurisdiction but playing outside Pakistan.”Separately, the PCB is entitled to recover from you costs [in the form of expenses] incurred by the PCB on your long drawn out litigation with the ICL. Since you by your conduct and action have deceived the PCB and compromised the very stance for which Rs one crore sixty eight thousand were spent by the PCB for your benefit all payments [if any] to you by the PCB are immediately stopped so as to offset PCB’s aforementioned expenses.”

Upul Tharanga, the Sri Lankan opening batsman, has been appointed captain of the 14-member Sri Lanka A side for the tour of India from October 10 to 30. The squad comprises six others who toured South Africa recently: Tharanga Paranavitana, Kaushal Silva, Kanchana Gunawardene, Angelo Mathews, Chanaka Welagedera and Isuru Udana.The team will play three-day matches against Karnataka (October 14-16), Hyderabad (October 18-20), and two games against Andhra Pradesh (October 22-24 and October 26-28). The matches are being organised by Andhra Pradesh Cricket Association.Tharanga, who last played for Sri Lanka in April, has been in and out of the team owing to his inconsistent form. But the South Africa tour saw him regain his touch, scoring 250 runs in four one-day games at 83.33. In a match in East London, he smashed an unbeaten 173 to guide his side to victory in a high-scoring game. His impressive form continued after the tour as he scored 147 off 123 balls to steer his club, Nondescripts Cricket Club, to a four-wicket win over rivals SSC in their annual JR Jayawardene Memorial Trophy one-day encounter on Sunday.

Several of Pakistan’s international players will take part in the Pentangular Cup which kicks off the first-class season on Saturday.Defending champions Sind, captained by Shahid Afridi, will be meeting last season’s runners-up Federal Areas in their four-day tournament opener, at the National Stadium. The other match starting simultaneously today is between Baluchistan and North West Frontier Province (NWFP) in Quetta.The five teams in the competition includes 75 of Pakistan’s leading players, with the exception of Younis Khan, who is playing for South Australia.The players from Sind, chosen from the Karachi and Hyderabad regions, includes upcoming batsmen Khalid Latif and Khurram Manzoor, allrounder Fawad Alam, wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed and pace bowlers Sohail Khan and Anwar Ali, who earned national call-ups earlier this year.Also in the line-up are Test batsman Faisal Iqbal, Naumanullah, Faisal Ather, Rizwan Ahmed and legspinner Danish Kaneria.Federal Areas, including players from Islamabad and Rawalpindi, will have fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar as their star attraction. Rao Iftikhar, the captain, Sohail Tanvir, Yasir Arafat and Yasir Ali will back him up in the fast-bowling department.Ashar Zaidi, recently hospitalised suffering from serious heart and kidney problems, has been replaced in the team by allrounder Fayyaz Ahmed. Batsmen Raheel Majeed, Afaq Rahim, Umair Khan, experienced hands Bazid Khan and Naved Ashraf, and youngsters Usman Saeed and Umar Amin complete a very potent squad. Wicketkeeper Naeem Anjum and slow left-armer Imad Wasim, the Pakistan Under-19 captain until recently, will hope to catch the selectors’ eye during the tournament.In Younis’ absence, NWFP will be led by fast bowler Umar Gul. Also in the team are batsman Yasir Hameed, legspinner Yasir Shah and emerging left-arm fast bowler Junaid Khan.Like last season, Baluchistan includes only a handful of local players. Misbah-ul-Haq, the Test middle-order batsman, borrowed from Faisalabad, will captain the side.Punjab team, who were placed fourth last season, will play their first game on October 31, led by Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik. Mohammad Yousuf, Nasir Jamshed, Salman Butt, Mohammad Hafeez, Kamran Akmal, Mansoor Amjad, Abdul Rehman, Saeed Ajmal and Wahab Riaz make up Punjab’s star line-up.When the Pentangular was introduced in to Pakistan’s domestic first-class circuit back in 1973-74, it was a five-team competition. When six teams competed in 1974-75 and a total of eight in 1976-77, it still continued to be known as the Pentangular.It was played off and on through the years and following a ten-year gap since 1995, it was revived in 2005-06 and the new season will be its fourth consecutive one.While Baluchistan, NWFP and the Federal Areas appeared as separate entities in a Pentangular Cup competition for the first time in 2007-08, Punjab and Sind had played a few seasons in the past.In the 2007-08 Pentangular Cup championship, which was played only in February-March earlier this year, the PCB had included what they believed were the 75 top players of the country in the five teams. Then, added to that roster, were names of 25 further players who were considered ‘promising young’ cricketers. This time round, for the time being at least, each team comprises 15 players only, in addition to two standbys.

Tatenda Taibu’s fractious relationship with Zimbabwe Cricket took another twist after he was allegedly involved in a row with Esther Lupepe, the board’s general manager (finance and administration).Taibu clashed with officials in 2005 and after he claimed that his family had been threatened, he turned his back of the national team. But after struggling to establish himself in a number of other countries, he made his peace in 2007 and resumed playing.The latest incident took place as a result of Taibu attempting to claim money he maintains is owed as a result of his wife and son accompanying him on the tour to Pakistan earlier this year. ZC insists that to pay him would be giving him preferential treatment and so it has refused.Lupepe and Taibu were seen embroilled in a heated argument in a Harare travel agent, although the incident surprised many as the former Zimbabwe captain is generally regarded as a placid individual.”There was such an incident and it is being investigated and attended to in accordance with our procedure,” said Lovemore Banda, the board’s media manager.It seems unlikely that anything will happen before the team leaves for the tour of Canada and Kenya next week, partly because of the time factor and partly because an already weakened squad desperately needs the experience that Taibu brings.

Lance Klusener won’t be offered a new contract by Northamptonshire after the club said they want to increase the number of England qualified players on the staff.Klusener, 37, joined as a Kolpak signing in 2006 and has been a consistent performer, especially with the bat. This season he has scored 1095 runs at 73, after his first-innings duck against Essex, including a career-best 202 not out.”Lance has had another excellent Championship season and no one can doubt his determination and application for the team,” chief executive, Mark Tagg, said. “The club, however, has to look forward to the future. With the game going through significant changes over the next couple of years it is important that Northamptonshire are positioned to play a full role both developing talent for the county and hopefully full international duty.”We have consistently stated our desire to increase the number of England qualified players beyond this season and especially provide real opportunity for the talent that the academy is producing”.Offspinner Jason Brown has also been released after 12 years with the club. His success in Championship cricket has diminished since his best return of 66 wickets at 23.71 in 2006. This season he has taken just nine wickets in nine Championship matches.After a haul of 61 wickets in the 2000 season he was named in the England squad to tour Sri Lanka in 2000-01, but couldn’t force his way past Ashley Giles and Robert Croft into the starting XI. It was the closest he came to international recognition.”This was a difficult decision for the club to make given Jason’s commitment and dedication to the club over many years,” Tagg said. “However, it was felt that this was the right time for both parties and gives Jason an opportunity of potentially continuing his career elsewhere while enabling younger players to develop at Northamptonshire.”

The fanatical India optimist will lose sleep harbouring visions of another Kolkata turnaround, but the truth is Sri Lanka have put this match beyond India. They have played more sensibly and professionally, showing an indication to hold back instead of accelerating, and while it hasn’t been the most authoritative of performances, it has put them on course for an emphatic series victory.Sri Lanka had much the better of proceedings on the third day. Inspired by Kumar Sangakkara’s 144 they edged past India’s first-innings 249 before the bowlers ran through India’s top order to leave themselves five wickets to win the game. Sri Lanka started the day with a two-run lead and Sangakkara resumed on 107, in the company Prasanna Jayawardene. Sangakkara’s determination revived memories of his unbeaten 157 against West Indies at Kandy in 2005, where he was forced to dig deep and shun his natural aggressive instincts. Like that innings, this could prove match-winning as well.”It just depends on how I made the approach,” said Sangakkara. “Sometimes I have made the wrong decisions, sometimes I have not been up to the task. You get those periods [but] the key is to keep focus and keep your confidence up.”Like yesterday, he was decisive about when to leave and when to play his shots. Harbhajan Singh again invited the drive but Sangakkara waited until he thought the time was ripe, and then fluent shots followed. He appeared untroubled at the crease but was cut off when he nibbled Kumble to Parthiv Patel, who managed to hold on. “My attitude is it doesn’t matter what you have done before but what really comes,” Sangakkara said.Instead of wilting, Sri Lanka’s lower order pressed on, led by Prasanna, who made a crucial 49. Prasanna’s skills as a wicketkeeper were never in doubt but Sangakkara’s stock as a matchwinner meant he had to wait his turn. He has evolved tremendously and made a niche for himself as a street fighter, always up for a scrap. His batting had a calmness about it but his instinct for singles was lethal. His soft-handed steers evaded cemented close-in catchers, and he cut and swept with precision. Only 101 runs were scored in the first session but the pendulum had swung Sri Lanka’s way.Dammika Prasad, in his first innings, combined with Prasanna and Ajantha Mendis to inject life into the tail and get Sri Lanka’s lead close to 150. Every run counted, and the tail went about it manfully.”The way Prasanna, Prasad and Mendis scored runs really swayed the tempo to our camp when we walked into the field,” said Sangakkara. That was all the confidence Sri Lanka needed on a third day track, and they maintained it despite a blazing Indian reply.In nine overs between the last Sri Lankan wicket and tea, India’s openers pummelled 57 runs. Virender Sehwag came out after the interval like a man possessed and drilled Prasad for a fierce straight driven four. Then, in the space of five deliveries from Prasad, India’s openers were gone – victims of needless shots. As he had in the first innings, Prasad delivered what his fast-bowling predecessors could not. He didn’t waver, kept attacking, and took his match tally to what Chaminda Vaas and Nuwan Kulasekara took in two matches.If Prasad’s success was unexpected, Mendis’ was customary. Muttiah Muralitharan removed Sourav Ganguly and then it was over to Mendis, who trapped Parthiv with a skidder. Mendis’ mastery over India continued with off breaks, skidders and two-fingered googlies, which kept the batsmen guessing. His 25th wicket, surpassing Alec Bedser’s record for a three-match debut series, was the man he had failed to dislodge so far in this series. Sachin Tendulkar did come out to bat, but made no impact, fatally opting to pad up to Mendis.”Now his [Mendis’] challenge is to get better everyday,” said Sangakkara. “He’s got a great bunch of senior bowlers he can talk to, whether it’s fast bowlers or spinners. The character and intelligence he’s shown … I am sure as the years go by he’ll get better and better.”This match has swung one way, then the other, only to be further elbowed and nudged to and fro, but thanks to efficient batting and rejuvenated bowling, it has now been wrested Sri Lanka’s way. The disconsolate looks from Galle were replaced with smiles, back-slaps and a massive step towards clinching a series that has been thoroughly engrossing.

Omer Hussain, the 23-year-old left-hander, has been called up to Scotland’s squad for their Intercontinental Cup matches against Bermuda and Canada.Hussain, the cousin of Majid Haq, adds youth to the squad and he arrives in good form after averaging 62 for his local club, Ferguslie. His stand-in captain, Ryan Watts, is insistent that the presence of some younger faces is by no means for show.”The lads who have come in aren’t just being given an opportunity for the sake of it – they’re the ones who have been producing the goods at club-level and for Scotland A as opposed to being in on potential this time,” Watts told the . “Form has played a big part in selecting the 13-man squad and the likes of Gordon Goudie [West], Qasim Sheikh [Clydesdale] and Richie Berrington [Greenock] all represent the new wave of talent.”Scotland are still reeling from their thrashing by New Zealand, when they were hopelessly outclassed by eight wickets.”New Zealand are ranked No. 3 in the world and for Scotland to have had a chance of winning meant everything going our way,” Watts said. “Instead, right at the outset they won the toss and put us in on a wicket where we’d have fancied our chances of applying some pressure early on if roles had been reversed.”It wasn’t to be, but there were positives from the tri-series, particularly the win over Ireland, where Gavin Hamilton hit fifty and then kept going on and on, past his century mark.”Scotland’s match against Bermuda begins on July 10.