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A move to No. 3 may help end Lahiru Thirimanne’s lean trot, Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews has said ahead of the first Test against West Indies in Galle. Thirimanne has been groomed for that role over the past two years and is now free to come in at first drop, following the axing of Upul Tharanga from the Test squad, as well as the retirements of high-profile batsmen.He has continued to be effective in the limited-overs formats despite his Test-match woes. Thirimanne averages 47.81 at No. 3 in ODIs, and Mathews said the team trusts his Test returns will begin to improve as well.”Because of Kumar Sangakkara batting at No. 3 we couldn’t really accommodate Lahiru in the top three,” Mathews said. “Your best batter always has to bat at No. 3. Now that Sangakkara has gone, Lahiru is pretty much the candidate to bat at No. 3.”Thirimanne’s poor Test form has been particularly apparent in Sri Lanka’s recent home Tests. He averaged 21.09 across the six Tests against Pakistan and India, hitting only one fifty in that period.”Lahiru’s form was a bit of a concern in the recent past, but we continue to have faith in him,” Mathews said. “We know he’s a very good player. He’s played the game for quite a long time, so we’re pretty much sure he’ll come good and deliver for us in this series.”Thirimanne’s form had been only one of the several top-order problems Sri Lanka faced, against India in August. The hosts failed to cross 210 in half of their innings that tour, and found themselves battling a first-innings deficit in each of the three games. Mathews suggested a more positive approach with the bat could see his side to bigger totals.”We need to adjust the mindset with our batting,” Mathews said. “It’s all about trying to score runs – and that’s been the talking point for our batters over the last two months. It’s just that any given day you get a good ball and you tend to get out, and that’s the fate of the batsman. But I think you need to just try and score runs all the time and grab opportunities that the bowlers give you – try and score off the loose balls. Hopefully we can get everything right this series.”Sri Lanka’s bowlers have largely done well in the home series this year, but they have also been occasionally guilty of letting the opposition tail score cheap runs. In the most recent Test at the SSC, Amit Mishra and R Ashwin both hit fifties from No. 9. In the previous series, Zulfiqar Babar had hit a fifty in Galle from No. 10.”We’ve talked about getting lower-order wickets a lot in our meetings,” Mathews said. “It’s just that we have to bowl at them thinking they are batters. The batters play a lot different than the bowlers – the bowlers throw their bats around and get a few runs, and a few nicks. When that happens, in the next minute the whole scenario changes. Hopefully we can rectify that this series.”Mathews also all but confirmed that Tharindu Kaushal will play in Galle, ahead of Dilruwan Perera, despite Kaushal’s doosra having been recently banned by the ICC. “We trust that PHT Kaushal will be someone who serves Sri Lanka for a long time, given the way he’s bowled in the past. As a team, and as a captain, I can give him that trust and play him. I have no issues with playing him in this match.”

Ric Charlesworth has quit as New Zealand Cricket’s high performance manager after two years in the job. Charlesworth, who played 47 first-class matches for his native Western Australia, has decided to pursue other opportunities outside of New Zealand.”This has been a difficult decision because I have greatly enjoyed living in New Zealand and working with NZC,” he said. “I am optimistic that NZC has the people and structure in place in high performance to challenge the world’s best during the next decade.”Justin Vaughan, the chief executive of NZC said Charlesworth had been a vital member of the team’s off-field staff since his arrival in August 2005. “I am certain that many of Ric’s changes will be long-lasting both from a structural aspect but also, and more importantly, from a cultural perspective,” Vaughan said.”He has impressed upon the organisation that we must aspire to be truly world-class in all that we do. We cannot attempt to consistently win on the international stage without the highest standards and frameworks underpinning our premier teams.”Charlesworth has had a wide and varied career, nearly earning a Test call-up for Australia as an opening batsman, appearing in four Olympics as a hockey player, coaching the Australian women’s hockey team to two Olympic gold medals, working as a doctor and serving as an MP for nearly a decade. In April he turned down overtures from the South Australia cricket team, who were looking for a coach, but said he did not know what his future held.

Bangladesh intends including cricket as a new event when it hosts the 11th South Asian Games in 2008. Eight nations – Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka – are expected to participate in the biennial meeting.”We have four test playing nations among us. So we could easily include the cricket in the SA Games,” Ishtiaq Ahmed, a senior official of the Bangladesh Olympic Association, told Reuters.”We understand it will be difficult for the test playing nations to send a full-strength side in the SA Games. In that case we would happily accept age-level teams,” he said.The events will be finalised at a meeting of representatives from participating nations in Dhaka next February. “As the host, we primarily underlined 15 disciplines including cricket for the meet,” Ishtiaq explained.Cricket was last included at a major international tournament in the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpar. It also featured in the Olympics once, when a side from Britain beat France in Paris in 1900.

As expected, the levels of security around the National Stadium in Karachi ahead of Thursday’s one-day international are more akin to a presidential visit than a cricket match. But given the will-they, won’t-they discussions over the viability of the game going ahead which have been doing the rounds for months, it is almost a miracle – but a welcome one – that the match is happening at all.About 3000 police and paramilitary forces will guard the National Stadium and the teams’ hotel over the next two days. Both sides will have a security blanket protecting them on trips between the hotel and ground.Stringent security measures are in place for a sell-out crowd of 33,000, with all spectators having to prove their identities before being allowed entry to the ground. The gates will open three hours before the 11am start to allow police to carry out stringent searches.”We have made extremely tight security arrangements for the match,” Major General Javed Zia, director-general of the paramilitary forces, told reporters. “We know this is a very important match for the city and we want to ensure nothing is left to chance.”England will be the first non-Asian side to play in Karachi since they won the final Test in December 2000. Since then, unrest and bomb blasts have meant that Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and West Indies have all refused to include the city on tour itineraries.England will arrive on Wednesday afternoon and leave on Friday, spending less than 48 hours in the city. A bomb blast last month about 200m from the five-star hotel where the England team will stay had threatened to lead to the match being rearranged, but the authorities persuaded the England management to adhere to the agreed itinerary.The Pakistan Cricket Board and the government will be determined that the game passes off without a hitch. If it does, then it will be far easier to re-establish Karachi as a vital venue on any tour.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball commentary

A good day for Bangladesh became even better towards the close as they tightened the noose around Zimbabwe by taking four wickets, to leave them struggling to save the follow-on. The key man today was Mohammad Rafique, who followed an aggressive 69 with two cheap wickets when Zimbabwe went in after tea.It’s an unprecedented situation for Bangladesh, who have not won any of their previous 34 Test matches. At Chittagong they are emphatically in charge, against an admittedly modest Zimbabwe side, after making their highest Test total of 488. Zimbabwe require another 205 just to make Bangladesh bat again, and that will be a daunting prospect if Rafique settles into the same groove with his left-arm spin that he found in the final session today.He came on at first change after Mashrafe Mortaza had gone for a few runs, trying to blast out the batsmen with some short stuff. And Rafique needed just a couple of overs to weave his magic, when Vusi Sibanda made the fatal error of staying back to one that pitched in line, and was leg-before (48 for 2).Rafique then removed the 18-year-old Graeme Cremer, who was rather unwisely sent in as nightwatchman as the shadows lengthened. The unfortunate Cremer had no clue about his third ball, which was a little fuller and trapped him in front for a debut duck (59 for 4).Before that Tapash Baisya had made the first breakthrough. Stuart Matsikenyeri had made a pugnacious start, taking the attack to the new-ball bowlers despite being rattled on the helmet by a Mortaza bouncer. There were some feisty back-foot strokes, against Mortaza in particular, and then he square-cut Tapash for four to reach 28, from 29 deliveries. But the next ball drew Matsikenyeri forward, and the resultant edge flew low to first slip where Habibul Bashar held on to it in his fingertips (31 for 1).The other opener, Barney Rogers, took 28 balls to get off the mark on his debut, but was then out in unfortunate circumstances. A powerful drive by Hamilton Masakadza ricocheted off Enamul Haque’s hand onto the stumps at the non-striker’s end with Rogers, who was backing up, short of his crease (59 for 3).Masakadza, who was playing his first Test for three years, had reached a well-organised 28 not out by stumps, but it will be a case of pressure, pressure and more pressure on the third day as Bangladesh try to get closer to their dream of a Test victory.Earlier it had been Rafique and Mortaza with the bat who had tamed the Zimbabwean bowlers. By tea, the Tigers had gone way past their previous highest Test total of 416, which they made against West Indies in St Lucia last year. More importantly, they had made their runs quickly in a session that produced 134 from 28 overs – the pre-lunch session had produced only 68. In that time Bangladesh lost Aftab Ahmed, without adding to his overnight score, and Rajin Saleh for 89 – he gave a return catch to Matsikenyeri after a stand of 58 with Mashud (341 for 6).Rafique made his intentions clear in the first over after lunch, smashing a four off Elton Chigumbura, and then pulling the offspinner Matsikenyeri for a massive six over widish long-on. And then, amid a pulsating beat of drums from the crowd, Rafique dismissed Douglas Hondo for a straight six to bring up Bangladesh’s 400. Rafique was now fully in his stride, but at the other end Khaled Mashud was finding it difficult to come to terms with the legspin of Cremer, who was not introduced until the 42nd over of the day. It was no great surprise that Cremer eventually claimed his first Test wicket when Mashud pushed at one, and was caught at slip one short of a deserved half-century (410 for 7). That ended a 69-run stand that had kept Bangladesh on top after the loss of Aftab Ahmed in the third over of the day.But there was no respite for Zimbabwe as Mortaza joined Rafique, and scored a quickfire 48, from only 44 balls and containing eight fours and a six. Matsikenyeri and Cremer were treated with disdain. Rafique motored to his half-century with his fourth six, to post the fifty partnership for the eighth wicket from just 49 balls. But finally Rafique, who also hit six fours, edged the gangling Chris Mpofu through to Tatenda Taibu (472 for 8). Mortaza pulled and drove a flurry of boundaries before he was the last man out just short of a maiden Test fifty. He was helped along the way by dropped catches by Hondo and Sibanda.The pitch hasn’t changed dramatically in character, although there are some cracks opening up. With the spinners Rafique and Enamul exploiting the odd trick or two in the track, Zimbabwe will have their work cut out tomorrow.

The Cheltenham & Gloucester Trophy has lost some of its prestige in recent seasons. It is no longer the one-day showcase of the English summer – that honour now goes to the NatWest Series final – while the stunning success of the Twenty20 Cup means that it might not even be the highlight of the domestic one-day season. Nevertheless, a Lord’s final is a unique occasion whatever the backdrop, and Saturday’s encounter between Gloucestershire and Worcestershire is sure to be a keenly contested affair.Quite apart from being local rivals, there is likely to be an underlying current of animosity to keep the teams competitive to the bitter end. Last week at New Road, Gloucester emerged victorious in a close encounter of the National League kind, but it is the memory of their C&G fourth-round clash of three years ago that will be the biggest incentive for both sides.In the 2000 competition, Worcestershire appeared to have won the tie and progressed to the quarter-finals. However, it soon came to light that they had fielded an ineligible player – none other than Kabir Ali, England’s latest fast-bowling recruit, who had turned out for Worcestershire’s Cricket Board XI earlier in the tournament. This was against the tournament rules, so Gloucester lodged an appeal, earned the right to a replay, and duly went on to retain their title in the final.Kabir, however, insists that all that was in the past. “There is no tension between the two counties,” he said. “The players have forgotten about what happened in 2000 and it wasn’t anyone’s fault. There was a bit of a misunderstanding. There are no grudges between the players. It is just another game – a big game of course – but it could be Lancashire or Surrey or anyone else that we are playing, because to us the important thing is to try and win the trophy irrespective of the opposition.”Of that there is no doubt, and to boost their prospects, Worcestershire have called once again on the services of their South African overseas player, Andrew Hall. Hall, who was not an original member of South Africa’s Test squad, had been given special permission to play in the semi-final against Lancashire, and it was his nerveless final-over maiden – which included three wickets – that inched Worcestershire through by six runs. He has since played a huge role in South Africa’s victory over England at Headingley, where he took four wickets and made 99 not out in the second innings. Quite simply, he is in the form of his life.Worcestershire’s second trump card is, funnily enough, another South African. After years on the fringes of the national team, Nantie Hayward opted out of selection for this summer’s tour, and instead committed himself to Worcestershire for the entire season. The decision has paid dividends, if at the expense of his international ambitions. He is bowling as quickly as at any stage of his career, and is picking up regular wickets in all competitions. Now, having shaken off a virus, he will form a part of a potent seam attack that includes Kabir and the Australian-born but European-passported pair of Matt Mason and Mark Harrity. The England prospect Gareth Batty is on hand to provide the spin option, plus a handy supply of lower-order runs.But with Worcestershire rooted to the bottom of the first division of the National League, it is Gloucestershire who will go into the final as favourites. They have been the undisputed kings of one-day cricket in recent years, having won both the C&G Trophy and the Benson & Hedges Cup in consecutive years in 1999 and 2000. And with Ian Harvey and Craig Spearman in superlative form, they were also the early pacesetters in this year’s Twenty20 Cup, only to lose to Surrey in a tight semi-final at Trent Bridge.Gloucestershire’s linchpin is their veteran wicketkeeper Jack Russell, who turned 40 last week but is still far and away the finest gloveman in the English game. He is, however, suffering from a back injury, and is only rated 75% fit. If he is forced to pull out, the wicketkeeping duties will pass to Chris Taylor. A decision will be made on Saturday morning between the seamers Jon Lewis and James Averis.Worcestershire (from) Ben Smith (capt), Stephen Peters, Vikram Solanki, Anurag Singh, Graeme Hick, Andrew Hall, Steven Rhodes (wk), David Leatherdale, Gareth Batty, Kabir Ali, Matt Mason, Mark Harrity, Nantie Hayward.Gloucestershire (from) Mark Alleyne (capt), Chris Taylor, Craig Spearman, Phil Weston, Ian Harvey, Jonty Rhodes, Jack Russell (wk), Matt Windows, Alex Gidman, Tim Hancock, Martyn Ball, James Averis, Mike Smith

A scintillating knock from Craig Wishart saw Zimbabwe home against Bangladesh in the first one-day in the Coca-Cola series held in M A Aziz stadium today. The tourists won by five wickets after a shaky start in this low-scoring match.Earlier Bangladesh made a disastrous start in a batting-friendly track against Travis Friend. Mohammed Ashraful, who was looking comfortable, got himself run out from a horrible mix up. The debutant Tushar Imran (6) slammed a boundary off Friend but was clean bowled in the following. In his next over Friend got the wicket of Al-Sahariar, who offered a catch to Andy Flower. That was the start.Bashar was playing his natural to score runs amidst the damage. Except he and Khaled Masud no batsman could handle the Zimbabwean bowlers comfortably and wickets were falling at regular intervals. Garry Brent with his gentle medium pace took over the charge to mop up Bangladeshi middle order.It was Friend to dispatch Bashar; yorked the batsman at block hole to uproot the stumps. Bashar contributed with highest 44. The next good score came off the bat of the skipper himself, who gave hi hearts out to make his debut day as a captain unforgettable. He chipped in with singles and twos and occasional boundaries. He made 40 before Friend’s direct throw broke his stumps.Bangladesh were all out for a paltry 157 after 47.4 overs. Friend and Brent captured 3 wickets each giving away 25 and 29 runs respectively.Though the target was easy, Mashrafe’s first spell made it hard. The lanky fast bowler shuddered the Zimbabwean top-order by removing Flower brothers. He pulled up Grant’s middle stump and forced Andy to offer a catch to Fahim Muntasir. Gripper got himself run out by then. At that stage Zimbabwe were staggering at 20 for 3.A cool-headed Craig Wishart with his skipper Carlisle started forming a partnership when Mashrafe was taken off the attack. The spinners were brought in and runs began to come with ease, chiefly from Wishart’s bat. The robust Zimbabwean drove and smashed the bowlers all around his stumps. Their fourth wicket stand gathered 105 runs.When Carlisle (46) was run out at last, Zimbabweans were in a firm position. Craig hammered a few more boundaries and hit Mashrafe over his head for a six to score the winning run. He remained unbeaten at 79 including 11 fours and 2 sixes.Mashrafe captured 2 wickets for 26 in his 8.2 overs. Wishart was adjudged the man-of-the-match.

ScorecardHyderabad’s CV Milind claimed three wickets•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Shadab Jakati starred with the ball as Goa crushed Tripura by nine wickets inside three days in Porvorim to earn their first win of the season. They achieved the 50-run target for the loss of Swapnil Asnodkar, which meant they were denied a bonus point.Tripura, who still had to wipe out 56 runs to make Goa bat again, started the day at 140 for 6. Manisankar Murasingh, overnight on 36, completed his maiden first-class century to keep the Goa bowlers at bay in the first session. He found good support from Rana Dutta (29) as the duo shared an 87-run stand for the seventh wicket.Jakati, the left-arm spinner, broke the stand and then cleaned up the tail to finish with figures of 5 for 54 to take his match tally to seven wickets. Goa then took 25.1 overs to achieve their modest target, with Amogh Desai and Sagun Kamath crossing the finish line.
ScorecardAnkush Bains struck a career-best 161 to put Himachal Pradesh within touching distance of a first-innings lead against Hyderabad in Dharamsala. HP, who resumed on 84 for 0, ended the day at 402 for 5, trailing by only 32 runs.Bains was well complemented by Robin Bist (91* off 154 balls) during the course of their 132-run fourth-wicket stand. There were brought together by left-arm seamer CV Milind taking two wickets in two balls to take the score from 195 for 1 to 195 for 3.The see-saw nature of proceedings did not stop there. Hyderabad removed the well-set Bains and Nikhil Gangta in successive overs. But Rishi Dhawan, who needed 76 runs to achieve the double of 2000 runs and 200 first-class wickets, then resisted with an unbeaten 48 in the company of Bist to give HP a chance to press for three points.
ScorecardKerala were faced with a mountain to climb in order to secure their first win of the season, after Jharkhand set them an imposing target of 317. They ended the day at 71 for 1, with Akshay Kodoth and Rohan Prem at the crease.Kerala, who conceded a 54-run lead, hit back courtesy KS Monish, the left-arm spinner, who took 5 for 66 to trigger a lower order collapse. As a result, Jharkhand slipped from a comfortable 199 for 4 to 262 all out. Ishan Kishan, the 17-year old wicketkeeper-batsman, made 58 while Saurabh Tiwary and Kaushal Singh contributed 46 and 44 not out respectively.

Jacques Rudolph, the South Africa batsman, has signed a two-year extension to his current contract with Yorkshire, keeping him at the club until 2011 and leaving the door open for him to qualify for England.Rudolph, 26, had a deal until the 2009 season but after scoring 1078 runs in the Championship – the only Yorkshire batsman to reach four figures – he has committed his long-term future to county cricket.”I have thoroughly enjoyed my first season with Yorkshire, both on and off the pitch,” said Rudolph, who has recently started the South African domestic season with the Eagles. “The quality of coaches, players and facilities is superb and there are exciting times ahead. I’m really pleased to have signed the new contract and look forward to seeing the Yorkshire lads again in March next year for pre-season training.”Chief executive Stewart Regan added: “We’re all delighted that Jacques has confirmed his long-term commitment to Yorkshire. He is bringing his wife, Elna, to Yorkshire next spring and is keen to buy a house and put down roots in the county.”The longer deal allows Jacques the potential opportunity to qualify for and go on to represent England in the future. This is a significant development in Jacques’ career.”Rudolph has played 35 Tests for South Africa, the last against Sri Lanka in Colombo during August 2006, and averages 36, but is one of a number of players to turn their back in the country.

The person hoping most that Shane Watson’s injured hamstring will prevent him from playing in the third Test is Damien Martyn. A slow start to the series has put his place in doubt for a home-ground appearance in Perth if Australia insist on picking an allrounder or five frontline bowlers.Watson’s all-purpose skills have been highlighted by the Australia selectors as essential to this Ashes campaign and they are desperate to trial him, but his leg problem flared before the first Test and he was ruled out of a Queensland one-day match on Wednesday. Martyn was the side’s best batsman during the Champions Trophy triumph in India last month but since returning home he has failed to contribute in the opening two Tests.Dropped after the 2005 Ashes series, he has again struggled with scores of 29, 11 and 5 and all three dismissals have come from catches behind the wicket. His fourth-ball departure as the Adelaide game closed – it followed a thumping, lofted off-drive – may have been his last moment as one of the country’s most gifted Test players.The re-emergence of Michael Clarke, who struck a sensible 124 in the first innings and was 21 not out as Australia took a 2-0 lead, means he will almost certainly hold his place for Perth. “We’ll keep our fingers cross and hope Watson’s okay, which he should be,” Ricky Ponting said in Adelaide. “Then it will be a tough call for the selectors.”Michael has played brilliantly in this game, his hundred in the first innings, at a difficult time, was full of class. He looked a million dollars throughout the innings. If Watson does come up fit there will be a tough call to be made.”Martyn returned to the Test outfit in South Africa and added a nerveless century in the final match to seal a 3-0 series win, but he has been unable to muster anything of note in the current campaign. In Brisbane he glided Ashley Giles to slip and in Adelaide he was twice caught at gully, edging Matthew Hoggard in the first innings and stepping away and slicing Andrew Flintoff in the second.Australia needed to keep the run-rate rattling as they chased 168 in 36 overs, but Martyn’s swift dismissal was a sad way to end the innings, and perhaps his career. The squad will have a couple of days off before heading to Perth to prepare to face England at the WACA from December 14.