Today, the drama finally unfolded. It’s now confirmed. The Zimbabwe government has finally taken over Zimbabwe Cricket in a shattering move that will almost certainly usher the ultimate demise of the game in the country.In an address to the media in Harare this afternoon, Gibson Mashingaidze, an army brigadier and chairman of the government’s Sports and Recreation Commission, announced the reinstatement of Peter Chingoka as chairman of an interim board to run ZC. The new board consists of government officials and four retainees – Cyprian Mandenge, Tavengwa Mukuhlani, Ntokozo Ncube and Wilson Manase.The white and Asian directors were left out for “their racial connotations and saving their own agendas and not government policy.” The brigadier, addressing the meeting on behalf of the sports minister, said the government was prepared for any repercussions, even the country losing Test status. “We are prepared to be chucked out of the Test status. The government is saying we are starting afresh. We are not bothered.”Those who want to stay in can stay, but those who want to go are free to go. They can go to India, Canada or wherever. We are not bothered. The government will not be held at ransome by individuals.”The ICC have confirmed that they have received notification from the Sports and Recreation Commission that an interim committee has been set up for the next six months. However, they were unable to offer any further comment until they had gained more information.On a bleak day for Zimbabwe cricket, the government’s decision might as well have closed the door on the players, who this week were considering leaving Zimbabwe to start new lives abroad.Commenting on the players’ grievances and demands for Chingoka and ZC managing director Ozias Bvute to resign, Mashingaidze said the players’ action was “Indiscipline of the highest magnitude”. He added: “They have no reason to do that. It’s not their role.”The decision today has been made with the blessings of President Mugabe, it was confirmed by Mashingaidze. “The head of the state is aware of this.”Chingoka and Bvute were seen with government officials this week, and it is believed that today’s announcement was just a delayed episode of a well-orchestrated and planned move.It also seems that Bvute might have survived. As an employee of ZC, his tenure would be down to the board, and as a close friend of Chingoka – and someone who stands accused of many of the same allegations – he may well retain his position, unless his behaviour has been too much even for the government and the trade-off is that he goes.The position of Ahmed Ebrahim, the vice-chairman who led the move to oust Chingoka, is less certain, although it seems he might well have been removed. That would be a bold move as Ebrahim has many friends within the ICC.

Shaharyar Khan, the PCB chief, revealed that measures have been taken to curb the overdose of India-Pakistan cricket, saying that the two boards have reached an understanding to have the series only once every two years. “We are playing each other too much now. We don’t want the edge to go out,” he told .He was confident that the proposed Twenty20 charity match to raise funds for the earthquake victims would take place in the current tour. He said: “It is now just a question of working out the date once Mr. Sharad Pawar (BCCI president) arrives here next week.”Khan watched Pakistan A take on the Indians on the second day of the three-day practice match at the Bagh-e-Jinnah ground in Lahore. He said that although the two sides, India and Pakistan, were evenly matched, the Pakistan bowlers might just have the upper hand. He said, “Always remember that bowlers win matches. You got wonderful batsmen. But if we can find a chink in the armour, then that will be the decisive factor in my opinion.”He also expressed his satisfaction over his team’s performance in the recently concluded series against a strong England side. He said, “Our team spirit and discipline have optimised our potential. And the fact that we have a captain (Inzamam-ul-Haq) who is such a wonderful man, such a great cricketer, and such a great leader, you don’t have to be upfront all the time to be a great leader, has helped immensely. Inzamam and Bob Woolmer (the coach) have done a tremendous job.”Khan added the Pakistan public had shown a lot of maturity of late, taking victories and defeats in its stride, marking the transition from seeing cricket as a `pitched battle’ to just a game between two sides.

Around three months back, Rahul Dravid led India to a one-day series triumph, thumping Sri Lanka, then the second-best side, by an overwhelming 6-1 margin. Captaining a young side that was still reeling from the Greg Chappell-Sourav Ganguly episode, Dravid appeared to be blessed with a golden touch – averaging 156 with the bat and seeing almost every tacticcome off spectacularly.A drawn series against South Africa followed but it’s from tomorrow that he will embark on his stiffest captaincy test to date. The team will still be smarting from the thumping defeat at Karachi and a couple of players, who had a lean time in the Tests, are bound to be under pressure to bounce back. There have also been whispers circulating about dissension inthe ranks and victory, as Dravid will know, is the best antidote to silence all.Player watchA bruise to his spinning finger meant that Harbhajan Singh didn’t bowl on the eve of the game and Dravid admitted that the team wouldn’t risk playing him if he wasn’t fully fit in the morning. India were likely to go in with Murali Kartik as the lone spinner with Ajit Agarkar, Irfan Pathanand S Sreesanth making up the medium-pace trio. RP Singh and Zaheer Khan had some impressive bursts in the Test series but India may leave them out for want of more variety in their attack. The batting had a settled look about it with either Gautam Gambhir or Suresh Raina tipped to occupy the Supersub role.Pitch full of runs
Inzamam-ul-Haq had no qualms in admitting that the surface at the Arbab Niaz Stadium, along with the rough nature of the outfield, could produce a “high-scoring game”. India may be tempted to go in with five specialist bowlers but they may just prefer to place some faith in their part-timers, hoping they can share ten overs around and limit the damage.Open-field strategiesThe Indian side preferred to train in the adjacent Gymkhana Ground, simulating match conditions and Dravid spoke about the benefits of such methods. “We thought we’ll give a chance for the bowlers to try out specific lines and set fields accordingly. We can’t do such things at the nets. It adds a bit of realism to the whole practice session. We get a clearer idea of where the ball is going on impact and where to set fields. It’s good to try it out once in a while.”The highlight of the session was the innovative field settings that one observed with Mahendra Singh Dhoni shifting from wicketkeeping to first slip to short square leg. Other fielders were also shuffled around with each bowler sticking to a particular line.A royal comeback?Ever since his superb hundred against Pakistan at Ahmedabad in April last year, Sachin Tendulkar has struggled. Barring the dazzling half-centuries against Sri Lanka in October – when he cracked 93 and 67 in successive matches – Tendulkar hasn’t crossed 40 in 10 of the last 12 games. A failure in each of his three innings in the recently concluded Test series – when he didn’t come to terms with Shoaib Akhtar’s pace – intensified the pressure and even emboldened headline writers to ask ‘Endulkar?’. The next five games may give the answers but one needs to be mighty brave, or mighty foolish to write off his highness, especially at the start of aseries that means so much.India (probable) 1 Sachin Tendulkar, 2 Virender Sehwag, 3 Rahul Dravid (capt), 4 Yuvraj Singh, 5 Mohammad Kaif, 6 Suresh Raina, 7 Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wk), 8 Irfan Pathan, 9 Ajit Agarkar, 10 Murali Kartik, 11 Sreesanth, Supersub: Gautam Gambhir.

England A 341 for 8 and 116 for 1 (Solanki 62*, Joyce 50) lead Antigua and Barbuda 157 (Richards 71, Batty 7-23) by 300 runs
ScorecardGareth Batty took 7 for 23 to put England A in a seemingly impregnable position at the end of the second day of the three-day match against Antigua and Barbuda at St John’s. By the close England A had reached 116 for 1, a lead of 300.England A declared on their overnight 341 for 8, and Austin Richards and Amwaa Prince, both local police officers, gave the home side an excellent start with a first-wicket stand of 101. But the introduction of Batty triggered a remarkable collapse in which all ten wickets fell for 56 in the afternoon session.England A then reshuffled their batting order to give those who had missed out first time a chance to find some form. The move paid off as Ed Joyce and Vikram Solanki posted 108 for the first wicket, Joyce falling for 50 shortly before the close.

Graeme Smith, the South Africa captain, hasn’t yet fully recovered from the finger injury which kept him out of the final Test against Australia last week and might miss the first Test against New Zealand next week.Haroon Lorgat, the national convenor of selectors, announced a 16-man squad on Saturday for the three-Test series which gets underway on April 15 at Centurion.”We have retained the same squad of players following the tough Castle Test Series against the world’s number one team,” Lorgat said.”We believe that the experience will stand them in good stead, and they deserve another opportunity against New Zealand. We will, however, monitor performances carefully as we seek to build a successful Test team”.Smith is due to see a specialist in Johannesburg on Tuesday; his chances of playing are rated “50-50”.South Africa squad to face New Zealand
Graeme Smith (capt), Jacques Kallis, AB de Villiers, Herschelle Gibbs, Ashwell Prince, Jacques Rudolph, Mark Boucher (wk), Shaun Pollock, Nicky Boje, Andre Nel, Makhaya Ntini, Boeta Dippenaar, Andrew Hall, Garnett Kruger, Hashim Amla and Dale Steyn

In the meticulous fashion that we have come to expect from such a metronomic great, Glenn McGrath has chalked out his comeback plan into the Australian side. McGrath has revealed that he intends to make his comeback in the Champions Trophy in India in October, play a few domestic matches and then immerse himself fully in the task of regaining the Ashes.McGrath, Test cricket’s most successful fast bowler with 542 wickets, has not played a game of cricket since his wife, Jane, was re-diagnosed with cancer on February 3. He missed Australia’s tours of South Africa and Bangladesh recently but with his wife’s health steadily improving, he is aiming to be fully fit to lead his side’s attack by the time the Ashes roll along in November.McGrath’s plans ostensibly ignore the advice his captain, Ricky Ponting, gave him recently, urging him to bypass the Champions Trophy altogether and instead arrange a county stint in England to enable him to have some long and repeated bowling spells and regain match fitness.But McGrath told that he is eager to play in India. “Personally, I feel that it would be perfect for me to [play in the Champions Trophy] and have a couple of games in the Pura Cup [domestic competition]. That’s my plan. But if they [selectors] would prefer me to look at county cricket, I would look at that.”Ponting’s advice was based on the belief that McGrath traditionally takes longer to settle into a rhythm and he was keen therefore to avoid having to ease McGrath into the Ashes, which are due to begin from November 23. Andrew Hilditch, chairman of selectors, also confirmed this week that McGrath was “gearing himself up” to be ready for the tournament. McGrath, who has begun pre-season training, added: “I’ve got no doubts at all that I will be definitely ready to go. Now we’ve got to see what the best preparation is.”Jane McGrath was diagnosed with cancer for a third time earlier this year and although she’s not yet out of the woods, McGrath said his wife seemed to be winning the fight. “She’s still going through treatment [but] it’s only once every three weeks at the moment, so it’s not too arduous and she’s coping really well. He said it was a “little too early” to say his wife had turned the corner but added: “there’s still ongoing stuff and over the next few months we’ll see hopefully a big change there.”

Richie Richardson, the former West Indies captain, says he disagrees with Brian Lara’s appointment to the job for a third time and would prefer to see Ramnaresh Sarwan given the job.Speaking to the , Richardson, who led West Indies between 1992 and 1996 when Lara was at the start of his career, said the current vice-captain would have made a better option. “If you’re investing in the future and you’re thinking beyond World Cup, you would have given it [captaincy] to a younger player,” he said. “I thought that Sarwan would have got it [captaincy]…I don’t see the point of having him as vice-captain if you’re not going to give him the job at some stage. But at the end of the day, whoever is given the job, we’ve got to support the team.”Richardson said that Lara’s appointment was not a solution to West Indies’ problems. “I have no problem with Brian Lara as captain but he’s coming to the end of his career,” he said. “West Indies cricket is at the bottom and looking to come up. You’ve got to think about the future. You’ve got to invest in younger players and give them a chance. We seem to want to get instant results. We’ve got to forget about that. We’ve got to realise that our cricket is in disarray. We need to create a solid foundation and build from that.”Lara, who turns 37 on Tuesday, previously led the side between 1998 and 2000 and again between 2003 and 2005, but enjoyed modest results with ten wins and 23 defeats in 40 Tests.Sarwan, the vice-captain for the better part of the last three years, was believed to be a contender for the captaincy, as was Sylvester Joseph, who successfully led the A team against England recently. “He [Joseph] is highly respected as a captain throughout the region. I would have loved to see Joseph doing it, but he’s not in the team and it’s just hard to bring somebody from outside just as captain,” Richardson said. “It would have been nice if he was scoring a lot more runs and in the team. Naturally he’d be the one.”The West Indies host Zimbabwe for a seven-ODI series starting in Antigua today.

It’s quite intriguing that despite having played 15 one-dayers in the West Indies, India are yet to play a game at Sabina Park. The two games that were scheduled on their previous tour, in 2001-02 were both washed out and a spate of showers on match eve, and forecast for thunder showers, threatened to ruin a much-anticipated clash. The locals, though, were confident that the match would carry on uninterrupted and spells of bright sunshine added weight to the same.Now to the 22 yards that usually receives most of the attention. Charlie, the groundsman who’s been around since 1959, delivers an obituary on the bounce at Sabina Park. “It’s the clay you know, they change it sometime in the early ’90s. Then they relaid it and it lost its main quality. Now it’s slowly coming back. The pitch for the one-day games will have decent bounce, but the ball comes on to the bat. The Test match pitch will be different. More bounce, more pace.”Jeffrey Dujon, the legendary wicketkeeper who grew up playing on this ground, thought similarly. “This pitch will be different compared to what the Indians encounter at the other venues,” he told Cricinfo. “It can get a bit lively out here and bowlers will definitely have a say.” Would he pick a favourite? “For the sake of the series, I’d like to see it 1-1 after two games.”For that to materialise, Brian Lara’s boys may need to pull out a special performance. “One must remember,” Dujon points out, “and that’s the bottom line – it’s going to be No.3 against No.8. West Indies’ might have comprehensively beaten Zimbabwe but they weren’t up to the mark in all departments.” India, on the other hand, were coming off a sizzling run. In case he’s a numbers man, and is aware of India’s recent chasing record, Lara wouldn’t like to be fielding second. Dravid might not mind it either way and the game at Montego Bay would have given them a good workout while batting first.In all probability, this series might turn into a battle of flexibility with Dwayne Bravo, Dwyane Smith, Marlon Samuels and Chris Gayle on one side pitted against Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Irfan Pathan, Virender Sehwag and Yuvraj Singh on the other. Barring a minor miracle, Ramesh Powar will not play and Dravid hinted that Sreesanth would be allowed time to recuperate as well.Yet, none of these players’ performance may matter if one man decides to take matters into his own magical hands. Lara remains the talisman and has often made a mockery of plans and strategies. He’s back as captain and this series provides him a chance to assert himself and to inspire through personal performance.Kingston is abuzz. Most haven’t seen too many players in this side and there’s an anticipation to watch Irfan Pathan bowl, to watch Yuvraj Singh blast. But the real excitement surrounds Dhoni, especially because of his instinct to dominate, his audacity to invent new strokes, and his attacking methods even when under pressure. “This boy born in the West Indies maan,” said one spectator when Dhoni spanked a six outside Jarrett Park in Montego Bay. “You stole him away from us.” It’s that kind of endearment.There’s a small matter of the Indian coach as well. Greg Chappell, Dujon felt, wouldn’t have forgotten the hammering that Australia took against the mighty West Indian side of the ’80s. “He had a terrible time against us in the only series I played against him. He could not score a run and people keep such things in mind. He would surely try to get back at us.”India (probable)
1 Virender Sehwag, 2 Rahul Dravid (capt), 3 Yuvraj Singh, 4 Suresh Raina, 5 Mohammad Kaif, 6 Venugopal Rao, 7 Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wk), 8 Irfan Pathan, 9 Ajit Agarkar, 10 Rudra Pratap Singh, 11 Munaf PatelWest Indies (probable)
1 Chris Gayle, 2 Runako Morton, 3 Brian Lara (capt), 4 Ramnaresh Sarwan, 5 Shivnarine Chanderpaul, 6 Dwayne Bravo, 7 Dwayne Smith, 8 Carlton Baugh (wk), 9 Jerome Taylor, 10 Fidel Edwards, 11 Corey Collymore.

Pakistan are considering calling up Mushtaq Ahmed, the veteran legspinner, for the forthcoming Test series in England. Hit with a spate of injuries – Shoaib Akhtar’s participation in the series is uncertain with an ankle injury and Rana Naved-ul-Hasan may require surgery and a six-week rest – Pakistan have shown a renewed interest in the Sussex spinner.Inzamam-ul-Haq disclosed to Reuters that Mushtaq, who has maintained good form for Sussex, was definitely an option. “The injuries to our main bowlers Shoaib Akhtar and Rana Naved are a bit unsettling and we are thinking along the lines of balancing the attack by turning to Mushtaq for the Tests,” he said. “His form for them has been outstanding and he clearly relishes bowling in English conditions. His experience could be invaluable for us.”Mushtaq, 35, has not played for Pakistan since October 2003 against South Africa. He was included in the Test squad for a home series against England in late 2005 but did not play. He was subsequently appointed as a bowling consultant.Inzamam also revealed that Samiullah Niazi and Wasim Khan had been called to the training camp in Lahore, as back-up pace cover for Shoaib and Rana. “We are trying them out to see if they can fit into the squad in case of emergency,” he said.More importantly, with Rana’s injury, Pakistan seem to have suddenly found hope where none existed that Shoaib will play a part in the Test series. “We have also asked our doctors to have another scan of Shoaib’s ankle which he has rested now for a while and see if he can bowl again before June 25,” said Inzamam.”If he can bowl we are thinking of taking him along with the squad and allowing him to make a slow recovery even if he does miss the first Test.”Pakistan are due to play four tests, the first of which starts on July 13 at Lord’s, and five one-day internationals in England.

Scorecard

Shoaib Akhtar continued to ease his way back towards fitness with 11 promising overs against West Indies A at Shenley. The match was originally scheduled as a two-day game, but was switched to two separate one-day matches. However, following interruptions for rain and bad light it will go down as a limited overs game that ended in a draw.A decision on Shoaib’s fitness will be taken after he has bowled in tomorrow’s second one-day match although he remains more likely to feature in the one-day series than the final Test at The Oval.”It is less necessary to field such players after we have lost the Test series,” Bob Woolmer, the Pakistan coach said, “but that doesn’t mean we don’t want to win the Oval Test. We want to win the last Test to prove our critics wrong. I don’t think we have done badly, England played better.”Asked if Shoaib could be risked, Woolmer said it was still possible. “If it’s necessary,” he said. “I wonder if it is necessary, just for the sake of winning a Test then why can’t others who are match fit and doing well not do that?”Shoaib had a stress fracture and what he has to do is to play little bit of cricket, and the perfect scenario I see for him is to get fit for the five one day internationals, the ICC Trophy then the home series against the West Indies. That is really the sort of path I want for him.”I don’t want to make this judgement before talking to him. If he bowls 15-20 overs by Sunday then I will ask him because he will be in a better position to tell. Today he looked trim and slim but he hasn’t bowled for six months,”Shoaib started in style by bowling Devon Smith with the fifth ball of the day, but couldn’t add to his tally as Lendl Simmons struck a fine 106 off 122. Simmons and Runako Morton added 86 for the second wicket and both batsmen hooked Shoaib for six. Dwayne Smith then added 116 with Simmons to turn the West Indies innings around from 99 for 4. Samiullah Khan picked up three figures during a lively spell.Richard Kelly then struck with the new ball and Dwayne Smith removed Salman Butt as Pakistan slipped to 51 for 3. However, Imran Farhat enhanced his prospects of a Test recall with an unbeaten 43-ball 62 before the light closed in and the teams agreed to a one-day draw.