Enver Baig, member of Senate’s Standing Committee on Sports, has requested the chairman of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) to order an audit into the accounts of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB).Baig, who recently had a lawsuit filed against him by Nasim Ashraf, chairman PCB, for using indecent remarks against him, sent a letter to the PAC chairman detailing his request. “There are numerous voices accusing the PCB of misusing funds to the detriment of the improvement of cricket in Pakistan,” Baig wrote in the letter.”If the present trend continues, the PCB coffers will be depleted to nil. It is therefore requested that the accounts of the PCB since July 1999 to date be scrutinised and audited by the Auditor General of Pakistan,” he added.In an interview earlier, Baig had announced plans to go on a hunger-strike to protest against ‘false promises’ made by the chairman with regards to the implementation of the constitution. He also termed Ashraf “the most incompetent official in the PCB”.”Seeing an incompetent and dishonest man like Nasim Ashraf running cricket, which is our national passion, makes my heart weep,” Baig had told .It was in response to Baig’s comments that the PCB decided to file a lawsuit which, in turn, prompted Baig to file a privilege motion against Ashraf for labeling him a ‘sick mind’.Baig has in the past grilled the previous board administration, under Shaharyar Khan, over similar issues in the Senate, including the continual non-implementation of the constitution.
This wouldn’t happen in the Premiership. Lancashire, newly promoted from the second division, set the pace on the opening day of their encounter with last season’s runners-up, Hampshire, at Old Trafford. By the close, Hampshire were clinging to the wreckage of their innings on 139 for 7, with Sean Ervine and Shaun Udal the not-out batsmen. Lancashire’s pacemen were the stars of the day, even without the services of their England pair, James Anderson and Sajid Mahmood. Glenn Chapple took two wickets and the England Under-19 medium-pacer, Tom Smith, picked up 3 for 29 in his second first-class outing, as Hampshire shipped wickets at regular intervals all day. Dominick Thorneley top-scored with 31.Second DivisionSomerset were made to struggle for their wickets after winning the toss and choosing to bowl, as Craig Spearman racked up the first Championship century of the season for Gloucestershire at Bristol. Spearman and his opening partner, Phil Weston, added 135 for the first wicket, before Peter Trego made his first breakthrough of the season. At 196 for 1, Gloucestershire were cruising, but a collapse of three wickets for 15 runs redressed the balance somewhat, with the old England team-mates, Marcus Trescothick and Andrew Caddick, combining to dismiss Matt Windows for 20. By the close, however, Gloucestershire were back on course, with Alex Gidman and Ian Harvey well set in an unbeaten 53-run stand for the fifth wicket.
On how it felt to finally be in India It feels good. I’m delighted to be here. The last two weeks were spent getting organised to come here. So to come to the stadium [Chinnaswamy] this morning, it felt like the cricket was not far away.On how he viewed the task that lay ahead I’ve got the opportunity of working with some of the best cricketers in the world. I’ve got some ideas which I talked about in my presentation to the board. The contents have been widely discussed, and you probably know more about it than I do now [laughs].On whether he felt that the coach should have a say in selection I have an open mind on the subject. At some point, I’d like to sit down with the selection panel and find out what their views are, and discuss some philosophies that I have. Having worked as a selector for Australia, and interacted with the players, I know that what we want is not very different most of the time.On whether the lack of form of certain players worried him I’m not overly concerned. You don’t lose the talent at this level. And I’ve found that the best learning experiences are when you’re going through tough times.On how he saw the captain’s role, in contrast to the coach I’ve always maintained that the captain is the most important individual in a cricket team. He’s the one out in the middle with the players, the one who knows what’s going on. The coach needs to have a good working relationship with him. But the coach’s job is about preparation and planning. On game days, the captain’s the main man. Yes, there will be times when you may have to go to the captain with a suggestion or two, but by and large, your role is to support the team.On whether a non-performing captain should be retained You have to understand that not many players have what it takes to succeed at this level. I’d much rather give someone a game too many or a tour too many than one too few. Such players are not easy to find. And it’s up to the rest of the team to cover for someone who’s out of form. It will happen. No matter how good you are, there will be periods when you’re out of form. My views on captaincy are pretty strong. I believe that you pick the best team, and then pick the best person to captain it. If the man is charge is not the best man, then someone else should get it.On whether the Indians played too much cricket The busy schedule is part of international cricket now. To deal with that, you need a good squad. There will be injuries, and there will be loss of form, so you have to deal with that. We have to work on mental and physical preparation and the management of injuries.On whether he would ask for a bowling coach Discussions are going on with the board as far as support staff are concerned. If we need one, I’m happy to have a bowling coach, but it’s not a top priority at the moment. In different times and conditions, we might call upon experts to help us, and not just with the bowling.On how he planned to deal with the media attention It’s part of the job profile, as it is in most countries. It’s just that this is a bigger country. The scrutiny is quite strong, as is the love of the game. Emotions tend to run high here, and it sometimes seems that the well-being of the country rides on the performance of the cricket team [smiles]. Anyhow, I can’t read what you write [referring to the vernacular media].On whether an Australian approach is needed here Every culture is different, and so is each individual. I’ll just make sure we focus on executing the basic skills extraordinarily well. You can’t transplant a format that works in one country and expect it to work just as well in another. Sometimes I feel we try to complicate what’s actually very simple. No matter what the culture, the team that performs the basics well most consistently is the team that will win most of the time. And that’s what we’ve got to aim for.On tough love, which characterised his playing days, and whether it was needed with this Indian team I think you need 15 to 20 guys who are focussed on the job. There are some guys who just aren’t capable of that. We just have to identify those that are.On whether he felt that the players were distracted by too many endorsements It’s probably not my job to decide that. They’re entitled to their endorsements as long as they deal with them in their own time.On how he planned to deal with “difficult” individuals I’ve been involved with some fairly strong-willed characters right from my playing days, guys like Dennis Lillee and Jeff Thomson. All they want is to perform well. It’s up to you to create an environment where they can express themselves as individuals while still being part of a team framework.His views on the preparation of pitches in India I believe that cricket needs a range of conditions to give everyone a chance to shine. My view is that wherever you play, whether it be England, Australia or India, the conditions should be the best possible at that arena.How he defines excellence It’s a commitment to doing the things that are necessary. One bad session can make a difference. We have to apply ourselves the whole time that we’re on the field. I read years ago that concentration is the ability to focus on what is important at that moment.On whether Sachin Tendulkar’s injury bothered him I’d imagine that it’s more of a concern for Sachin. But we have to make do with the talent available. It’s an opportunity for someone else, and who knows, you might just unearth the next Indian cricketing champion. In that sense, it could be a blessing in disguise. Now, don’t twist my words because I’m not for a minute suggesting that it suits Indian cricket to have Sachin injured [smile].
Those fine Australians are still the best Test side and are world-beaters in limited-overs cricket. But there is one important aspect of modern cricketing life they have yet to master: writing books.It is possible for the contemporary cricketer to write well. Mike Atherton’s is a good example. It fulfilled most of the criteria readers want when they hand over a few pounds for such a book: dressing-room gossip, forthright opinion and insight into the way the game is played at its best. But with these two books Australian Captain Past and Australian Captain Future show they are not there yet.
There is, of course, an argument that we should expect little from sportsmen who write and, if we buy their books, we get what we deserve. After all, they are cricketers not authors and it would be surprising if Vikram Seth or Terry Pratchett was a master of the slash drive for six over point. But, professionally, they do at least stick to what they are good at.Steve Waugh’s slim effort is the better. Most of it recalls his hundred against England at the SCG last winter, when he believed he was batting to save his career. Remember the Richard Dawson off-break he belted through extra cover to bring up his ton from the last ball of the day? He was already breathing the rarefied air of a man who had scored 10,000 Test runs and on 98, as the shadows from the stand touched the square, he hit the boundary that meant he had equalled Don Bradman’s total of 29 Test centuries.Apart from Waugh’s own thoughts analysis of the innings comes from his team-mates Justin Langer and Adam Gilchrist. Nasser Hussain was also asked to comment. He reveals that, as he congratulated Waugh, he wanted to tell him how much he was admired and respected by the England side. But all that came out was “well batted”.
Gilchrist and Langer provide the “mateship” that seems inescapable in books written about Australia’s cricket team. In Ricky Ponting’s World Cup Diary the “mateship” is served up in bucketfuls. Everyone in the squad has a nickname, so the air is thick with mention of Bing, Brute and Buck, Boof, Mabo and Marto, TJ and Tugga. But, despite the hours spent together and even though much of Ponting’s book is set in the dressing room and team bus and on the practice ground, his portraits of the Australian squad are rarely more than superficial.The momentum in his diary comes from Australia getting to the final and winning the World Cup. He was fortunate that the competition gave him two other outstanding talking points: whether to boycott the game in Zimbabwe (“not a place I’d like to go on my holidays”) and the implications of Shane Warne’s failed drugs test.Like Kim Hughes and the former Prime Minister Bob Hawke before him Warney kept up a fine Australian tradition when he wept in public while confessing to his team-mates that he had been popping his mum’s slimming pills. An embarrassed silence followed and Ponting, perhaps inappropriately in the circumstances, suggested they should break for something to eat before discussing the consequences.Between matches Ponting likes life low-key. He relaxes by playing golf or browsing the equipment in golfing stores. If the shops are closed, he will go out for a quiet meal with his law student wife, Rianna. Sadly her nickname remains a secret.Waugh has now written 11 books and the publishers are wrong to say this is his most important. That will be the book he inevitably writes now that he has retired. To do his career justice it needs to be as shrewd and spicy as the recollections of his one-time rival, Atherton.As for Waugh’s successor, the idea of another 10 books is sobering. With luck the seven iron will prove a mightier distraction than the pen.
Queenslander Martin Love compiled a stylish century against South Australia as the Pura Cup leaders dominated the opening day of the top of the table clash here today.Love’s elegant unbeaten 120 steered the Bulls to a commanding 2-257 at stumps.The right hander was in complete control of the Redbacks from the moment he stepped on to a sweltering Adelaide Oval today – after just one ball of the match.Love strode to the crease after Redbacks paceman Mark Harrity trapped Bulls opener Jerry Cassell lbw for a golden duck with the initial delivery of the match.But SA had to wait more than three hours before experiencing success again as Love joined acting captain Jimmy Maher to thwart the home bowlers.Maher, assuming the leadership in the absence of Stuart Law (broken finger) and playing his 100th first-class match for Queensland, also appeared set for a biginnings before being dismissed for 66 from the bowling of emerging quick Paul Rofe.Inexperienced right hander Brendan Nash then joined the veteran Love and combined in an unbroken 119-run partnership for the third wicket.Love, who displayed immaculate placement and concentration during a patient innings, registered his century from 243 deliveries which included nine fours.He remained not out 120 at stumps with Nash unbeaten on 59.Rofe toiled manfully in hot conditions, sending down 21 overs for a return of 1-54 while Harrity claimed 1-57 from 17 overs.Queensland took a two-point lead over SA into this fixture at the top of the cup table.
Resuming the day on 310/6, Hyderabad succumbed to 349 all out andconceded the first innings lead to Andhra in their Ranji Trophyencounter at the Kurnool Stadium on Saturday. At the end of the day,the match ended in a draw and Andhra bagged five points to Hyderabad’sthree by virtue of having secured the first innings lead. Hyderabadfinished with 25 points to their credit and are in second place in theSouth Zone standings. Tamil Nadu with 26 points finished on top whileKarnataka with 24 points took third place.Overnight, Vinay Kumar was unbeaten on 83 and JS Yadav kept himcompany with 21. Unable to reach what would have been a memorablecentury, Vinay Kumar fell at 332 and his the first wicket to fall onthe fourth day. Falling just three runs short of his century, VinayKumar spent a shade less than five hours at the crease. In his carefulessay, he struck eleven boundaries. After Vinay Kumar departed, theHyderabad team added just 27 runs before being all out. This gaveAndhra a 37-run lead.Coming in to bat the second time around, Andhra found the going tough.GN Srinivas at the top of the innings played a lone hand of 88 (172minutes, 130 balls, 14 fours) while all other batsmen failed to makean impact. Shivaji Yadav was the wrecker-in-chief for Hyderabadclaiming seven of the nine wickets to fall on the day. The 24-year-oldoffspinner bowled a majority of the overs, ending up with 7/70 off his28 overs. Ghouse Baba picked up the other two wickets to fall andAndhra were 193/9 when time ran out.
Manchester United have responded to claims from Owen Hargreaves that they mismanaged his knee injury during his time at Old Trafford, stating their disappointment at their former player’s comments.
The England midfielder had an injury plagued time at the Premier League champions, and following his free transfer move to Manchester City has blamed United for his time on the sidelines.
Sir Alex Ferguson’s team had initially declined to comment, but have defended themselves against the player’s criticism.
“Manchester Unitedis disappointed with Owen’s remarks after the game on Wednesday. The club gave him the best possible care for three years and is as disappointed as anyone he was not able to play a part in the team’s success at that time,” a statement on the club’s official website read.
“It has shared all the medical records with Manchester City and is comfortable with the actions taken by its medical staff at each step of his many attempts at rehabilitation.
“United does not acknowledge any validity in the comments Owen is alleged to have made. Manchester United has some of the best sports medical staff in world sport, who have made a significant contribution to United’s on-pitch success in recent seasons,” it concluded.
Hargreaves returned to first team football for City in the Carling Cup in midweek, scoring the first goal in a 2-0 victory over Birmingham in a man of the match performance.
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By all accounts, we had a fairly successful January window. We moved on a few players who, for a number of reasons, needed to be moved out of the club and brought in a substantial amount in return (moving Paul Konchesky on alone feels like we gained an extra £50 million). In return, we got our money’s worth and what – I believe – will be a great strike partnership to last us for many years. In many ways though, the summer window could prove to be pivotal for both the club and for the Kenny (let’s be honest, it’s the worst kept secret). In the summer, the club needs to show it is ready to take the next step and invest again in the squad. But given our activity in January, the indications are positive, so let’s look at areas that need to be looked at when the time comes.
Starting with the area touted as Liverpool’s weakest by so-called football experts this season: defence. Many have claimed that the Red’s back 3/4/5 has been poor because of the personnel; that the likes of Agger, Kyrgiakos, Johnson and Skrtel are simply not good enough and that Carragher is a fading force. And while the latter is true, to a certain extent, Jamie is not finished just yet; nor are our defenders individually lacking. For proof of this, you only have to look at the last four games: 4 clean sheets. Kenny has played about with our back line (stop sniggering at the back), given the likes of Agger and Kelly another chance and we haven’t let a goal in for 360 minutes or 6 hours. By anyone’s margins, that’s an impressive feat. The facts are simple: we have good defensive players, they showed on Sunday that they’re capable of shackling a frontline that included Anelka, Drogba and Torres – three of the best there is and not only that, they made it look easy. So you may be wondering why, if I’m so impressed with our defenders, have I even mentioned it. Well, we still need cover. We have good young central defenders waiting in the wings, in Wilson and Kelly but given that Kelly appears to have made right back his own now (and the sad reality that Carragher is a fading force)means we need at least one new CB. We also need a first choice left back. Aurelio is a top-quality footballer but his fitness cannot be guaranteed. Once Konchesky moves on permanently, there will be a hole that needs filling and that must be a top priority.
Into midfield, and you have to say that there’s a handful of players that need to be moved on, either for our sake or their own. Namely: Joe Cole, Christian Poulsen and Jay Spearing. Poulsen was unlucky in that he joined the club too late in his career; when a change in pace was too much for him. He is not a bad player, despite what some will have you believe.
As for Cole and Spearing, sadly, they’re just not as good as we hoped they were. Cole mixes the odd moment of brilliance with total mediocrity. As for Spearing, he has effort and willingness to spare but that alone is not enough. Moving these three on could see us recoup about 10 million, potentially. Which we can put toward an area we are most lacking in going forward: out wide. We need cover for Lucas and probably another squad player that can fill in in midfield – adequately – when needed but if we only strengthen one position in midfield over the summer months then it has to be a wide player. We have enough creativity going forward to cope during this ‘transitional’ period and Suarez can fill in as an attacking midfielder if we were to get totally desperate but we must see the acquisition of a winger as being high on our list of priorities. If for no other reason than to give us something different in attack; to give us an alternative to plan A. Whoever the player is he doesn’t need to cost 30 million. As long as he can beat a man, can cross a decent ball in and is quite fond of the touchline, then our radar should be picking him up.
As for the other two key areas – goalkeeper and up front – we’re not exactly lacking. The January window saw one great striker replaced by two very good (albeit potentially great) strikers. We also have David Ngog who, despite barely playing at all lately, is still one of our top scorers and has oodles of potential. I believe that promoting Dani Pacheco to the first team squad permanently next season would see us quite adequately covered going forward. As for goalkeepers, it is hard to see past Pepe Reina. Should he – God help us – succumb to injury then we’ll need cover. Peter Gulacsi looks a top prospect and I’d be more than happy for him to be number two. The fact that Kenny prefers him as such to Brad Jones speaks highly of the regard the Hungarian youngster is held in. However, two backup keepers are usually required so we might need to bring in a decent, experienced third choice.
We’re in a period of what can only be referred to as ‘transition’, at the moment so sweeping and all-encompassing changes aren’t going to happen overnight. Should we bring in a left back, a wide player and some stronger cover in goal before next season though, that will have marked a successful second step, as far as I’m concerned.
Article courtesy of the excellent Live4Liverpool
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Liverpool recorded a comfortable 3-0 victory over FC Gomel in the Europa League qualifiers on Thursday night.
First-half goals from Fabio Borini, Steven Gerrard and a second-half Glen Johnson strike made it an easy night at Anfield in Brendan Rodgers’ first competitive home fixture.
The Northern Irish manager picked Luis Suarez and Fabio Borini for specific praise after the victory.
“Luis is an incredible player. He has come back to us and looked great in training,” Rodgers confessed to Sky Sports.
“He is so creative in the box but he also presses very well when he doesn’t have the ball.
“He is the type of player I love. He is in love with football. He has such passion for the game.
“His combination work with Steven Gerrard and Fabio Borini was excellent.
“It is important for any striker to score because they are judged on their goals. But I brought Fabio here because I know he can score.
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“He is only 21 and has a lot of improvement left in him. But with his work-rate and his ability on the ball I think he will fit in very well to our team,” he concluded.
Manchester City laid down their title credentials smashing five goals past Tottenham at White Hart Lane with Edin Dzeko scoring four to maintain their 100% start to the new campaign.
The Citizens stormed back to the top of the Premier League after another rampant performance and have now scored 17 goals in their first three games.
£27 million striker Dzeko was the stand out performer as he put the Spurs defence to the sword scoring four and proving to be a nuisance throughout. Samir Nasri, making his City debut, was also bang in form whilst David Silva and Sergio Aguero kept up their fine starts to the new campaign.
Despite the scoreline the first 25 minutes was rather close with the home side having several good opportunities to break he deadlock. Rafael Van der Vaart had a free kick saved by Joe Hart before Gareth Bale should have at least hit the target only to blaze a volley over from 10 yards.
Those scares kicked the visitors into gear and Dzeko opened the scoring in the 34th minute tapping in Nasri’s cross from the left before the same two players combined again six minutes later with the Bosnian looping a header across goal and into the bottom corner leaving Brad Friedel motionless.
The second half saw City continue in the same vein scoring two goals in quick succession. Dzeko completed his hat trick in the 54th minute tapping in from Yaya Toure’s ball before Aguero smashed home from inside the box after a mazy run through the Spurs defence.
Younes Kaboul pulled a goal back with 23 minutes to go but Dzeko wasn’t going to let the hosts have the last laugh curling in a sublime effort from the edge of the area two minutes into added on time.
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