Sanath Jayasuriya has been named in Sri Lanka’s 12-man squad for the third Test at Trent Bridge, which gets underway on Friday morning, and has a “very good chance” of making the final 11, according to his captain, Mahela Jayawardene.Jayasuriya, 36, retired from Test cricket after Sri Lanka’s last home series against Pakistan earlier this year, but was persuaded to come out of retirement by the new chairman of selectors, Asantha de Mel. He was overlooked for the six-wicket defeat at Edgbaston, as Sri Lanka’s think-tank opted to invest in youth, but now – in a must-win match – he seems set for a recall.”If we have Sanath it gives us more depth and experience, as well as another bowling option,” Jayawardene explained to BBC Sport. And on a pitch that looks dry and is expected to turn, that final factor may well be the clincher, as his left-arm spin has been an underrated weapon in the course of his 102-Test career, accounting for 92 wickets at 33.18.Chamara Kapugedera, the 19-year-old middle-order batsman, could be the man to miss out. England will name their final 11 later, with Gloucestershire’s Jon Lewis once again expected to be overlooked.Sri Lanka (from) 1 Upul Tharanga, 2 Michael Vandort, 3 Kumar Sangakkara (wk), 4 Mahela Jayawardene (capt), 5 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 6 Chamara Kapugedera, 7 Farvez Maharoof, 8 Chaminda Vaas, 9 Muttiah Muralitharan, 10 Lasith Malinga, 11 Nuwan Zoysa, 12 Sanath Jayasuriya.

Hamilton Masakadza will miss Zimbabwe’s first two matches on Friday and Sunday on their whistlestop tour of South Africa.Masakadza did not travel with the team from Harare on Wednesday, and is said to bealready in South Africa, where he is studying. He is now expected to join the team on Monday in Pretoria.That brings to three the number of players in the side who have not joined the rest ofthe squad. Wicketeeper/ batsman Tino Mawoyo and pace bowler Admire Manyumwa were left behind in Harare after failing to get visas in time. Neither were named in the original squad and their applications for visas were left too late as a result. They wereexpected to arrive in Pretoria on Thursday afternoon.

England’s injured captain, Michael Vaughan, has backed his side to retain the Ashes this winter, whether or not he is deemed fit enough to take part in the series.Vaughan, who hasn’t played for England since undergoing knee surgery in December, has not yet given up hope of a role against Australia. But, he told Sky Sports: “I’m very confident in whoever leads the team to produce a fantastic winter ahead and make sure we retain the Ashes.”England’s results this year have been patchy, and Vaughan admitted: “There is always a slight worry it will take time to adjust to international cricket but the guys who have come in have done really well. You need that bit of luck but if you work hard you get that. The team will do everything in their power to try to emulate last summer.””It is going to be a fantastic series,” he added, having last summer guided England to their first Ashes victory in 18 barren years. “If we can emulate anything like the series last year it should be a great spectacle.”Vaughan is likely to have missed a whole year of international cricket by the time his knee is strong enough to resume playing, but he remained determined to come through the hard times. “I am determined to get back on a cricket pitch sooner rather than later,” he said. “If that is December or January, or if not, I’ve got to be patient.”But I’m determined to make sure that does happen. I’m training for a number of hours each week to make sure that does happen.”

Matthew Elliott, the South Australia batsman, has spoken of his desire to return to Glamorgan as a player, and, in the longer term, to become a member of their coaching staff.Elliott, who has fully recovered from the troublesome knee injury which ruined his county campaign last season, telephoned the Glamorgan chief executive Mike Fatkin earlier this week to discuss the possibility of returning to Sophia Gardens in 2007.”I had a very positive discussion with Mike and it was really good of him to say that Glamorgan would talk to me first before signing any overseas players for next year,” Elliott told the South Wales Evening Post.The 34-year-old Elliott is half way through his coaching qualifications in Australia, and sees coaching as the ideal progression from playing: ”When I am qualified, and after retiring, I would be very interested in joining Glamorgan’s coaching staff as a batting coach”.For the moment though, he is focused on playing, which he hopes will include a spell with Glamorgan next summer: ”I want to keep playing for a few years yet and it would be nice to return to Sophia Gardens and help the development of the clubs younger players”.

Greg Chappell, India’s coach, has confirmed that Sachin Tendulkar is “fully fit and in good spirits” ahead of the DLF Cup in Malaysia, a tri-series involving West Indies and Australia that’s set to begin on September 12.”The time spent in the middle was excellent for Tendulkar,” said Chappell after a practice game between Virender Sehwag XI and Harbhajan Singh XI. Tendulkar got himself into form ahead of the tri-series with a fluent 83-ball 101, including 12 fours and three sixes, while opening the innings for Sehwag XI at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.Tendulkar added 164 in an opening partnership with Rahul Dravid (44), someone who he has opened with just three times in one-day internationals. “We know each other well,” said Dravid while commenting on the stand. “I have come a slot up or down, and then we have batted together on a lot of occasions over the last 10 years. It’s the same when we are opening.” He added that the opening combination for the DLF Cup would depend on the conditions and the match situation.The faster bowlers didn’t enjoy a great time in the practice games but Dravid wasn’t too harsh while judging their performance. “The conditions were pretty flat. It wasn’t easy for them. But there were lessons to be learnt for the bowlers.”Chappell was pleased with the commitment shown by Suresh Raina, who played in Saturday’s game braving an injury to his jaw. “He was desperate to get back into the middle. You always want to see that in a young cricketer. He is talented, also has character.”He was happy with the efforts of VRV Singh, the young fast bowler, and added that left-armer Rudra Pratap Singh had bounced back well in the second game. Dravid spoke about the tough challenge ahead: “These two teams [West Indies and Australia] have a good record against us in recent times. We are determined to reverse that.”He confirmed that Yuvraj Singh, recovering from a viral fever, would join the team in Kuala Lumpur.

A right-wing Hindu group has threatened to prevent Pakistan from playing in India in the Champions Trophy scheduled to start this week, officials have announced. The Shiv Sena, which has a powerful presence in the western Indian state of Maharashtra, said the step was to protest against the bombings of trains in the state’s capital Mumbai in July that killed 186 people.”How can they allow Pakistan to play matches in our country when the Mumbai police have evidence of its [Pakistan’s] involvement in the July 11 terror attack?” Udhav Thackeray , the Shiv Sena’s executive president, said in comments published Wednesday.Last weekend, Mumbai police chief AN Roy publicly accused Pakistan’s spy agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), of orchestrating the attacks on trains that left 800 people wounded.Thackeray did not elaborate on the Shiv Sena’s plans to obstruct the Champions Trophy’s Mumbai fixtures, which also includes the final on November 5.Pakistan will fly to Mumbai only if they reach the final. Two of their three league matches are in the northern city of Mohali and the third in Jaipur. The semi-finals will be held in Mohali and Jaipur.Maharashtra authorities said they would not allow any disruptions if Pakistan reach the final. “Right now it is a hypothetical question but we are duty-bound to maintain law and order in the state,” Home Secretary AP Sinha, who handle’s the state’s internal security, told AFP. “We have the warning but I will not issue comments on the remarks of a political leader.”A senior official in India’s home ministry added that the Shiv Sena’s threat has been passed on to Jaipur and Mohali: “Stadiums in these cities will be sanitised and extra security will be provided in view of this development”.The Shiv Sena had dug up the pitch in New Delhi’s Feroze Shah Kotla ground in 1999, eight years after damaging the ground of Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium to protest the Pakistani cricket team’s presence in India.

Former South Africa coach Graham Ford has asked to be released from his contract as head coach of the Nashua Dolphins for personal reasons.Ford, 45, who also coaches Kent in the English County Championship, had only recently returned to the domestic scene.Cassim Docrat, CEO of the KZN Cricket Union, said: ‘ It is very sad to lose Graham Ford as Head Coach of the Nashua Dolphins. We are in a rebuilding phase, and Graham has a proven track record in bringing young players through, however we have to respect his personal wishes and wish him well. Our doors are always open to Graham in which ever capacity he wishes to contribute to KZN Cricket’.Provincial team coach Yashin Ebrahim will succeed him as head coach with immediate effect.

ScorecardLeft-arm spinners Sunil Joshi, with Test and ODI experience, and rookie KP Appanna, playing his second first-class game, spun Haryana out for 112 to hand Karnataka a 253-run victory at Mysore. Resuming the final day on 34 for 5, Haryana were always under the gun, and Joshi (4 for 22) and Appanna (3 for 33) never allowed them the room to breathe. Only Shafiq Khan (18), Joginder Sharma (20) and Amit Mishra (22) made it to double figures as both spinners kept plugging away. Karnataka took away four points from this outright win, and take on Uttar Pradesh from Saturday, December 9, at Kanpur.
ScorecardRajesh Pawar, Baroda’s left-arm spinner, backed his first-innings four wickets with three in the second as Saurashtra, forced to follow on, were bowled out for 132 to stumble to an innings-and-19-run loss against Baroda at Rajkot. Pawar received good support from Rakesh Patel (3 for 59), Irfan Safi Pathan (2 for 21) and Ajit Bhoite (2 for 3) as Baroda swept five points from their victory. Saurashtra failed to better their first-innings 255, where three batsmen crossed fifty, with a dismal showing on the final day.
ScorecardAn unbeaten 105 by Venugopal Rao saved Andhra Pradesh the blushes as they managed to hang on a force a draw against Tamil Nadu at Chennai. Trailing 319 in the first innings, Andhra were forced to follow on, but Venugopal’s century and a useful 55 by Chandramouli Prasad helped Andhra end the day on 327 for 8. Andhra were in dire trouble when they lost half their side with only 152 on the board, but Venugopal and Prasad then added 102 for the sixth wicket. Tamil Nadu continued to nail crucial blows at the other end, but they couldn’t remove Venugopal, who got excellent support from Doddapaneni Kalyankrishna, the No.10 batsman. Kalyankrishna made only 1, but he played out 39 deliveries and survived more than 14 overs, as Tamil Nadu had to finally settle for first-innings points.
ScorecardRanadeb Bose, the right-arm fast bowler, turned in an inspired bowling performance as Bengal took the first-innings points in a drawn game against Mumbai at Eden Gardens. Resuming at 206 for 2, Mumbai were bundled out for 372, with Bose returning superb figures of 5 for 69 from 34.1 overs. Bhavin Thakkar had led the way for Mumbai on the third day with an unbeaten 108, but he fell for 157 while Amol Muzumdar, the captain, made 39. Both were dismissed by Bose, who then went on to finish off the tail as none of the other Mumbai batsmen managed to go past 30. Mumbai finally fell 206 runs short of Bengal’s 578, and, following on, were 23 without loss when play was called off.
ScorecardA seven-wicket haul from Pragyan Ojha, the chinaman bowler, enabled Hyderabad togain a first-innings lead before Ambati Rayudu and Ravi Teja gained some battingpractice as the match at Jaipur petered out to a draw. Ojha picked up the last twoRajasthan wickets early this morning, ensuring two points for Hyderabad, and thebatsmen cashed in on a dead match. Teja missed out on a hundred for the second timein as many games but Rayudu stayed unbeaten on a fine 110, composed of 13 fours andone six. It capped a good start to the season for Hyderabad with four points fromtwo games.
Scorecard
Bad light at Mohali meant only 11.3 overs of play was possible as Punjab werethwarted in their bid for an outright win. Instead Gujarat moved from 86 for 1 to125 for 2, with Nilesh Modi bringing up a half-century. Punjab, who racked up amammoth 503 for 9 in their first innings, had to settle for two points from theencounter. Having lost the first game to Bengal, Punjab have a lot of work to do intheir next few games.
ScorecardHeavy fog and bad light ensured that not a single ball was bowled on the last day of the match between Delhi and Uttar Pradesh at the Feroz Shah Kotla. Delhi thus took home two points after managing a slender 12-run first innings lead, with the match being an especially memorable one for Aakash Chopra, the former Test opener, whose match aggregate of 218 was nearly half the total runs scored by Delhi.

Shane Watson is due to make his domestic return against South Australia on Friday after a series of injury setbacks. After being hopeful of taking part in the Ashes, Watson was ruled out of each of the first three Tests with a hamstring injury suffered in the lead-up to Brisbane last month.However, Watson has travelled with Queensland for their one-day and four-day games in Adelaide and has been named in the Pura Cup squad. While Watson’s international prospects have improved with his recovery, Greg Blewett, the South Australia batsman, has dropped further in the minds of his state’s selectors after he was cut from the limited-overs squad for the clash on Wednesday.”It was very disappointing to leave Greg out,” Paul Nobes, the chairman of selectors, said. “Unfortunately, Greg’s performances in the first three matches of the one-day competition have not been enough to warrant his selection.” Daniel Harris is Blewett’s replacement in the 13-man squad while Gary Putland has retained his spot.Queensland have called Scott Brant back into their outfit alongside Nathan Rimmington and Craig Philipson as they replace Mitchell Johnson, Andrew Symonds and Matthew Hayden. Either Johnson or Symonds could be squeezed back in if they are not chosen in the Test side at Perth.Jimmy Maher, the captain, has been picked in both squads despite a minor groin strain that prevented him from fielding in the win over Victoria on Friday. Rimmington is in line to make the Pura Cup XI after the Queensland selectors decided not to push for Michael Kasprowicz, who picked up three wickets for his grade club at the weekend as he regains fitness following back and groin problems. South Australia have made no changes to their Pura Cup outfit.Queensland FR Cup squad Jimmy Maher (capt), James Hopes, Clinton Perren, Craig Philipson, Lachlan Stevens, Chris Simpson, Michael Buchanan, Chris Hartley (wk), Andrew Bichel, Scott Brant, Ashley Noffke, Nathan Rimmington.South Australia FR Cup squad Matthew Elliott, Daniel Harris, Mark Cosgrove, Callum Ferguson, Cameron Borgas, Darren Lehmann (capt), Graham Manou (wk), Ryan Harris, Jason Gillespie, Mark Cleary, Dan Cullen, Shaun Tait, Gary Putland.Queensland Pura Cup squad Jimmy Maher (capt), Lachlan Stevens, Martin Love, Shane Watson, Clinton Perren, Craig Philipson, James Hopes, Chris Hartley (wk), Andrew Bichel, Daniel Doran, Ashley Noffke, Nathan Rimmington.South Australia Pura Cup squad Matthew Elliott, Daniel Harris, Mark Cosgrove, Callum Ferguson, Cameron Borgas, Darren Lehmann (capt), Shane Deitz (wk), Jason Gillespie, Dan Cullen, Cullen Bailey, Paul Rofe, Shaun Tait.

September 13, 1969 – Born in Melbourne.1990 – Released from Australian Cricket Academy in Adelaide for disciplinary reasons.January 1992 – Makes Test debut as a 22-year-old against India. In two Tests against India his overall figures were 1 for 228, and the gamble by the Australian selectors on the young Warne looked to have backfired. Rod Marsh invites him to return to the Academy and his career is transformed after linking up with the coach Terry Jenner, who becomes his mentor.
August 1992 – Picked for short tour of Sri Lanka. After quiet start to first Test in Colombo, takes 3 for 11 from 5.1 overs in the second innings as Australia conjure a dramatic victory against the odds. This first significant success at Test level sounds a warning to the rest of the world.June 1993 – After bagging 17 wickets in three Tests against New Zealand, he bamboozles Mike Gatting with his first ball in an Ashes Test at Old Trafford. It’s labelled the “Ball of the Century” and a superstar has arrived, with a Warne-inspired Australia completing an emphatic Ashes victory.December 1993 – Takes 7 for 52 against West Indies in Melbourne.

January 1994 – Fined by the ICC after he lets rip at the departing Darryl Cullinan in a match against South Africa.1994 – Leading wicket-taker in all three series he played in, rounding off the campaign with a hat-trick against England in Melbourne to help Australia retain the Ashes. Also takes 8 for 71 at Brisbane to ensure victory after Mark Taylor had decided not to enforce the follow-on. He is named Cricketer of the Year for 1994.1995 – Mark Waugh and Warne were fined by the then ACB, now Cricket Australia, after admitting they supplied match information to an Indian bookmaker. The ACB covered up the scandal, but the media exposed it three years later.1996 – Plagued by injury, and after receiving treatment on his shoulder, he requires surgery on his major spinning finger, causing him to miss a short tour of India. Worries surface – will he be the same on his return?

August 1997 – …Yes he will. He takes 24 wickets and scores 188 useful runs while Australia come back from the disappointment of losing the first Test to retain the Ashes in England. Shows his delight with his famous victory dance at Trent Bridge, wiggling his hips and brandishing a stump on the dressing room balcony.July 1998 – Told by surgeons he might never play cricket again after an operation on his troublesome shoulder.April 1999 – After returning from a broken finger in the final Ashes Test of 1998-99, he is dropped for the last game in West Indies as the selectors prefer Stuart MacGill. It was the only time they felt that way.June 1999 – Named Man of the Match in Australia’s World Cup final victory over Pakistan at Lord’s. He considered retiring during the tournament but stays on and on.