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Victoria 271 and 6 for 184 (White 48*) defeated Western Australia 142 and 312 by four wickets
Scorecard

Victoria recovered from the danger of losing two early wickets and narrowly missed a thunderstorm to secure a first-up victory over Western Australia at the WACA. Resuming on 4 for 86, the Bushrangers suffered a horror start when David Hussey hit the first ball of the day for four and top-edged the second, an attempted pull off Brad Williams, to the wicketkeeper Ryan Campbell.Nick Jewell fell shortly after to Brett Dorey, but Cameron White, who made 48, and Jon Moss steered their side to safety with a 71-run stand that finished moments before a heavy shower hit the ground. Moss, the Man of the Match due to his eight wickets and first-innings 58, attempted to thrash a four from the first three balls of the final over and eventually struck a two to finish on 25.”I was probably the most nervous for the whole match when ‘Mossy’ played and missed those first three balls,” White, the Victoria captain, told . “I just knew it was the last over.” Victoria claimed six points for the outright victory and White said it was “a nice way to start the season”.Mike Hussey, the brother of David and the Western Australia captain, was disappointed with the result but pleased the side had a chance to win on the final day. “We know we need to improve,” he said, “but I know we can.”

Derbyshire have signed Charl Langeveldt, the South African fast bowler, on a two-year Kolpak contract. Langeveldt could be in action for Derbyshire as early as Sunday’s Friends Provident Trophy match against Yorkshire at Headingley.”Charl is an excellent addition to our squad and brings real quality and experience to our side,” John Morris, the head of cricket at Derbyshire, said. “He has proven ability at the highest level of the game and just as importantly is exactly the sort of character we are looking for.”We have managed to bring him to Derbyshire ahead of several other options he had and we are delighted to have him on board.”Langeveldt, who has played 59 ODIs and six Tests, last turned out for South Africa in the one-day series against Bangladesh last month. He pulled out of the subsequent tour of India after being picked ahead of Andre Nel in a move many perceived to be driven by Cricket South Africa’s transformation policy.He was in sensational form for the Cape Cobras in the recently-concluded Standard Bank Pro20 series, taking 18 wickets in six matches, including a five-wicket haul and a hat-trick. His previous county experience includes short stints with Somerset in 2005 and Leicestershire in 2007.

Cricket Kenya has secured a sponsorship deal worth Sh7 million (US$105,000) with East African Breweries Limited.The four-year deal, which runs to 2011, will mean the national side wearing shirts with the Tusker branding. In anticipation of this tie-up, Kenya’s players have been using Tusker-logos on kit since before the ICC World Twenty20.Although the official launch of the contract is not expected until next month, Tom Tikolo, the board’s CEO, told The Standard that some of the income from the deal would be used to pay players and the remainder for development, including an ambitious schools’ programme.Kenyan cricket has been without a major sponsor since before the 2003 World Cup.

Scorecard
How they were out

India Blue rode on a batting masterclass by Sachin Tendulkar to thrash the Greens by a massive 266 runs and assure themselves of a place in the final of the Challenger Trophy. Tendulkar set the Blues up for a massive total, blazing his way to a 100-ball 139, while Irfan Pathan, Rahul Dravid and Mahendra Singh Dhoni all chipped in with half-centuries in quick time. Chasing an improbable 382, the Greens were never in the hunt and crumbled to a measly 115 in less than 27 overs, in the process handing India Blue victory with the all-important bonus point.The story of the day was Tendulkar. He has already notched up four Test hundreds at this ground, and today he continued his love affair with the MA Chidambaram Stadium, toying with the bowling and charming the crowd with a quite dazzling display of strokes all round the park, creaming 20 fours and four sixes, almost all of them struck with a precision, timing and authority that had the holiday crowd in raptures. In fact, the Blues got 236 runs in boundaries alone (35 fours and 16 sixes), far more than the opposition managed in all.The fall of an early wicket – Tanmay Srivastava, a 16-year-old left-hander drafted in from the Green squad, fell third ball – prompted Tendulkar to exercise caution up front, with his first 14 coming off 24 balls. Pathan did most of the damage at that stage, but once Tendulkar wassatisfied that he had got his eye in, there was no doubt who held centrestage. On an excellent batting strip which offered no seam or spin, there was little that India Green’s modest attack could do.The fun started in the 11th over of the day, when Lakshmipathy Balaji, attempting a comeback into the national team and buoyed by his first-over success here, bowled one perfectly in the corridor on a good length, only to see Tendulkar caress the ball on the up through cover. That over produced a couple more fours, and thereafter it was mayhem, as Tendulkar unfurled his entire range. Nehra was driven on the up with minimum effort, and then gently caressed past point, while Praveen Kumar’s modest pace gave Tendulkar plenty of time to either shuffle across his stumps and flick to leg, or make room and drive through off. The one bowler who felt it the most, though, was Piyush Chawla.In the last edition of the tournament, Chawla had nailed Tendulkar with a googly. But here it was revenge time. Chawla wasn’t helped by some reckless captaincy by Mohammad Kaif, who brought him into the attack at the start of the third Powerplay. Tendulkar deposited a six over long-on to get to his fifty, and then got 14 more in the next three balls, including a glorious inside-out cover-drive and another down-the-pitch hoick over long-on. As if that wasn’t enough, Chawla was then slog-swept and reverse-swept off consecutive deliveries as Tendulkar went into overdrive. Kaif was soon forced to turn to his part-timers, which for Tendulkar meant more opportunities to find the boundaries, by conventional and unconventional means. He finally fell to Saurasish Lahiri, the Bengal offspinner, but by then India Blue were going at more than seven an over.

While Tendulkar played the key knock, the rest of the batting all chipped in. Pathan played a crucial role at the start, tonking a couple of huge sixes over long-on and third man and playing the No.3 role to perfection; Rahul Dravid settled in while Tendulkar blazed, and then spanked Lahiri for three sixes en route to a run-a-ball 62, while Dhoni applied the finishing touches to perfection, being chiefly instrumental in ensuring that 109 came off the last ten. Praveen, the birthday boy, and Balaji were carted for boundaries almost at will as India Blue finished with the third-highest total ever made in a one-day match in India.The only hope for India Green was a blazing start, but both Sourav Ganguly and Wasim Jaffer fell before they got into their stride. Ganguly, in need of a big knock to stake his claim for a national berth, began with three glorious silken drives through the off side, while Jaffer played a coupleof pleasing drives, but the runs still only came at around five an over. With the asking-rate mounting, the batsmen attempted more strokes, and fell in the process.Jaffer led the procession, falling in a manner that has been his undoing in international cricket too, square-driving a delivery which bounced more than he anticipated. Ganguly, who had been cheered enthusiastically throughout in the field earlier this afternoon, perished next for a 30-ball 24, cutting tamely to backward point. Suresh Raina and Mohammad Kaif, who both fell for ducks, played strokes they wouldn’t want to see the replays of. In fact it was the forgettable day for the five Uttar Pradesh batsmen, who combined a total of four runs. Parthiv Patel battled it out with a fluent 43, driving and cutting with panache before tamely tickling one to the keeper. The rest of the batting was a complete shambles, allowing Harbhajan Singh to help himself to flattering figures of 4 for 10.

India Blue
Tanmay Srivastava c Jaffer b Balaji 0 (2 for 1)
Irfan Pathan c Lahiri b Chawla 54 (132 for 2)
Sachin Tendulkar c Kaif b Lahiri 139 (226 for 3)
Rahul Dravid c Ganguly b Nehra 62 (286 for 4)
Yuvraj Singh c Chawla b Kumar 19 (326 for 5)
Dinesh Mongia c Kaif b Balaji 1 (328 for 6)
India Green
Wasim Jaffer c sub (Jadeja) b Munaf 12 (31 for 1)
Sourav Ganguly c sub (Jadeja) b Munaf 24 (48 for 2)
Suresh Raina c Harbhajan b Pathan 0 (52 for 3)
Mohammad Kaif c Mongia b Pathan 0 (55 for 4)
Parthiv Patel c Dhoni b Harbhajan 43 (88 for 5)
Praveen Kumar st Dhoni b Harbhajan 0 (88 for 6)
Saurasish Lahiri run out (Pathan/ Dhoni) 2 (91 for 7)
Piyush Chawla c Patel b Harbhajan 2 (100 for 8)
Hemang Badani c Agarkar b Mongia 16 (109 for 9)
Ashish Nehra c Yuvraj b Harbhajan 0 (113 all out)

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

For the second time in five days, New Zealand’s well-oiled bowling attack turned in a clinical bowling display, beating Bangladesh by nine wickets, and giving their team a foothold in the semi-finals of the World Cup. A target of 175 was never going to pose too many problems, not with Stephen Fleming sealing the nine-wicket win with an assertive century, his second in World Cups and eighth overall.Carrying on from where they had left off against West Indies, New Zealand’s varied pace attack refused to let up. Shane Bond’s incisiveness was complemented by Jacob Oram’s awkward lift and Scott Styris’s dibbly-dobblies as they snaffled ten wickets between them. Bangladesh’s batsmen came unstuck for the second match in a row – a frenzied collapse against Australia was followed by a lacklustre capitulation today – despite enjoying their best opening stand of the tournament. None of the top four converted their starts, giving it away when set, and left the underbelly exposed to the incisive New Zealand attack.Javed Omar, making his World Cup debut 11 years after his first ODI, and Tamim Iqbal, the youngster, provided Bangladesh the unhurried start they required, adding 55 in 16.4 overs. But Oram’s double-strike instigated a steep slide. Oram stuck to a back of a length, extracted uncomfortable bounce and hardly gave the batsmen room to maneuver. Tamim was once struck on the chest, being followed by a short one after trying to charge down the track, and, barring one aggressive crack across the line, couldn’t break free that often. He fell trying an overambitious scoop-paddle, dragging his back foot out of the crease and watching Brendon McCullum, standing up, whip off the bails in quick time. Omar edged a short one a couple of overs later and all their good work began to come apart.Bond opened up the floodgates with a couple of wickets on returning for his second spell before Styris, who bowled Mason’s quota of overs after he was injured, mopped up the tail with his nagging seamers. Aftab Ahmed’s dismissal typified Bangladesh’s day: mistiming a loft off Styris when well set, and holing out to long-off. Habibul Bashar joined in operation surrender, attempting a non-existent second run and being beaten by a direct hit from Oram, a sharp flat hit from deep third man.Saqibul and Mushfiqur had no answer to Bond detonators, losing their stumps by playing around full deliveries, before Mohammad Ashraful and Mashrafe Mortaza fell to Styris. It took a 34-run tenth wicket stand between Mohammad Rafique and Syed Rasel to lend the total some respectability.A target of 175 was always going to be within New Zealand’s range and they went about hunting it down with the ease associated with a stroll in the park. Fleming went about his business in a composed manner, putting away the wayward deliveries, clipping effortlessly off his pads and handling the left-arm spinners with ease. He shimmied down the track towards the latter part of his innings, lofting three sixes with minimum fuss.Giving him support was Hamish Marshall, in the side for the injured Lou Vincent. He took some time to get into his stride, especially against the fastish left-arm spin of Abdur Razzak, but finished with a flurry of fours. He grew in confidence as his innings went on and completed the match with a big six off part-time legspinner Ashraful .Their 134-run partnership had taken just 20 overs and was similar to the hammering Bangladesh received at the hands of Australia just a few days ago.

ScorecardKenya dominated the first day of their ICC Intercontinental Cup tie against Bermuda, bowling them out for 133, and then finishing on 119 for 3. Thomas Odoyo got his third five-wicket haul in first-class cricket as he ripped through the Bermuda batting line-up.In the first seven overs Bermuda lost three wickets, all courtesy Odoyo, with just 16 runs on the board. A 32-run partnership between Clay Smith and Saleem Mukkudem seemed to steady things a bit but two more wickets fell by the time the score reached 50. Wickets continued to fall at regular intervals and another brief attempt to revive the innings was thwarted by Odoyo when he got Dean Minors, the top-scorer for Bermuda, trapped leg before for 28. Nehemiah Odhiambo and Hiren Varaiya, a slow-left arm bowler, chipped in with a couple of wickets each, and though the last two wickets hung on to add 39, Bermuda were bowled out in just 59 overs.Kenya slumped 61 for 3, with Mukkudem taking all three wickets, but Steve Tikolo scored an unbeaten 45 and added 63 for the fourth wicket withTanmay Mishra to steady the innings as Kenya ended the day just 14 short of Bermuda’s total.

It’s becoming a familiar, sorry tale. Simon Jones has suffered yet another injury setback – this time it’s his calf. He has hardly played this season with his knee injury and, after 11 overs at Colwyn Bay, has broken down againHe won’t play any further part in Glamorgan’s Championship game against Northamptonshire and will miss the Pro40 with Somerset on Sunday.Jones was out for most of last season following a knee operation, and the same knee flared up again this year. His contract is up at the end of the season, but Glamorgan are keen to retain him.The latest match was only his third Championship match since mid-May, when he suffered another knee problem. His comeback for Glamorgan during the 2006 season, following his aborted return on England’s tour of India, lasted four matches before he broke down against Ireland in the C&G Trophy.

Scorecard
How they were out

England’s bowlers, Simon Jones in particular, cranked up the pace andspectacularly turned an impending draw into a 238-run victory by routingCCI President’s XI in only 26.2 overs on the final day at the BrabourneStadium in Mumbai. Their effort came after Marcus Trescothick and IanBlackwell notched up fifties to boost England’s second-innings score to265.After playing most of the game with a practice-match attitude, Englandwere confident that 36 overs were enough to wrap up a win and bowled withdefinite intent. Jones, who in the first innings bowled with a MarkEalham-esque run up and pace, shared the new ball with Matthew Hoggard,bowled at a much faster clip and extracted appreciable bounce. He struckin his first over, trapping Robin Uthappa on the crease and snared VinitIndulkar with one that rose, to finish with 2 for 9 from five overs.Andrew Flintoff induced an edge off Sahil Kukreja’s half-hearted prod andat one stage bowled with four slips and two gullies. Hiken Shah took threeboundaries off Liam Plunkett before he played down the wrong line and losthis off stump.The President’s XI folded without a fight, losing their lastfive wickets for eight runs. They were no match for Stephen Harmison’ssteep bounce. Both Wilkin Mota and Kshemal Waingankar edged deliveriesthat got big on them from just short off a length to slip to 71 for 8.Monty Panesar and Ian Blackwell chipped in with two wickets apiece asEngland completed a very satisfactory victory after getting all thebatting practice they were looking for.The early-morning atmosphere was relaxed and the intensity was almost zeroas the batsmen approached the game with little more purpose than a netsession. Having missed the first innings due to illness, MarcusTrescothick made his recovery count. He had signed off in style on thesecond day, carting Aniket Redkar for four consecutive fours off the finalover, and he carried on in the same vein on the third day, lookingcompletely at ease against the fast bowlers. He pulled Abid Nabi forconsecutive fours to get going and followed up with crisp back-foot punches off Waingankar.On 44, he had a stroke of luck when Vinayak Samant dropped an edge offWaingankar but Trescothick didn’t let it faze him. He had a couple ofuncertain moments against Hitshu Bachani – surviving a bat-pad appeal andmissing a couple of sweeps – but replied with authority by lofting himover long-on for six and following up with a sweep for the same result.Blackwell followed up his four-wicket haul on the second day with ahalf-century and if he didn’t have a foot in the Test eleven before, hecertainly has one now. Blackwell treated Swapnil Hazare with disdain,slapping him to the point and midwicket fence and not bothering withanything wide. Hazare had a lot of aggression in his body language but waswoefully short of it in his bowling and was soon taken off. Blackwellswept the spinners powerfully to and over the midwicket boundary andshowed that he could hit straight as well with three hoicks that cleared theropes comfortably. But he tried one too many and holed out to long-on offHitshu Bachani on 59.Apart from Trescothick, Blackwell and Geraint Jones, who scored 30, none of the others got going. Kevin Pietersen, Michael Vaughan and Flintoff were all out to soft dismissals. Jones was stumped trying to charge down the track to Redkar in the first over after lunch and Trescothick holed out soon after. Blackwell and Plunkett, who made 26, posted 65 runs forthe ninth wicket and pushed the score to 265.How they were outCCI President’s XI
Robin Uthappa lbw Simon Jones 4 (6 for 1)
Vinit Indulkar c Andrew Flintoff b Simon Jones 0 (6 for 2)Sahil Kukreja c Geraint Jones b Andrew Flintoff 12 (35 for3)
Hiken Shah b Liam Plunkett 21 (38 for 4)Hrishikesh Shende c Marcus Trescothick b Monty Panesar 8 (59 for5)
Wilkin Mota c Geraint Jones b Stephen Harmison 17 (67 for 6)
Vinayak Samanth c Shaun Udal b Monty Panesar 6 (71 for 7)
Kshemal Waingankar c Geraint Jones b Stephen Harmison 0 (71 for8)
Abid Nabi c Marcus Trescothick b Ian Blackwell 0 (75 for 9)
Swapnil Hazare c Shaun Udal b Ian Blackwell 0 (75)
England
Kevin Pietersen run out Munish Ansari 10 (36 for 2)
Michael Vaughan c Vinit Indulkar b Kshemal Waingankar 13 (67 for3)
Andrew Flintoff c Samant b Munish Ansari 5 (79 for 4)
Geraint Jones st Vinayak Samant b Aniket Redkar 30 (147 for 5)
Marcus Trescothick c Hitshu Bachani b Aniket Redkar 88 (162 for 6)
Ian Bell c Robin Uthappa b Nilesh Kulkarni 15 (194 for 7)
Shaun Udal lbw Aniket Redkar 0 (199 for 8)
Ian Blackwell c Wilkin Mota b Hitshu Bachani 59 (264 for 9)
Liam Plunkett c Wilkin Mota b Hitshu Bachani 26 (265)

Gamini Lokuge, the sports minister, has expanded the interim committee of Sri Lanka Cricket from its present size of five members to seven. Sidath Wettimuny, the former Test opener, Premasara Epasinghe, a commentator, and Dion Gomes, president of the boxing association, have been added to the committee along with Lalith Wickremasinghe, a representative of the ministry.Prakash Schaafter and Damien Fernando, a representative of Jeevan Kumaratunga, the former sports minister, have been replaced. The replacement of Fernando was expected following the appointment of Lokuge, who replaced Kumaratunga as sports minister during a cabinet reshuffle in March.The top three members in the interim committee however remain unchanged, with Jayantha Dharmadasa as chairman, Kanganan Mathivanan as secretary and Sujeewa Rajapakse as treasurer. The new-look committee is due to have its first meeting on July 11. Sri Lanka cricket has been under interim administration since April 2005, after the elected body was accused of misappropriation of funds by Kumaratunga.

Duncan Fletcher has been granted British citizenship after 15 years of trying after Charles Clarke, the Home Secretary, stepped in to review his application. All it took was an Ashes series victory, although the Home Office are saying it is just a “happy coincidence” that it occured the day after England’s 2-1 series triumph.The cries for Fletcher to be given a British passport had grown increasingly vocal during the summer as England got closer and closer to regaining the Ashes. However, his application was rejected because he spends more than three months of the year outside the UK.Fletcher, 56, qualifies for British citizenship as both his parents and all four grandparents were born in the UK. But he had been caught out by the small print which says those applying must have lived in Britain for five years, with no more than 450 days outside of the county, including 90 within the past year.But Home Office sources confirmed that it was discovered at least half of his time outside the UK was spent touring overseas with England. A spokesman said: “It is right to say the home secretary used his discretionary powers and it was decided Mr Fletcher deserved to be granted citizenship.” Fletcher must now attend a citizenship ceremony to confirm his new status.