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ScorecardCameron Gannon’s six wickets helped Queensland wrap up an innings and 123-run hiding of Tasmania in the Sheffield Shield match in Hobart.The Tigers were rushed out for 142 after the Bulls’ first innings concluded at 360, Aiden Blizzard’s 49 providing the only semblance of resistance as Gannon plucked the first five wicket haul of his first-class career.Queensland were indebted to their No. 3 batsman Usman Khawaja for a first innings 138 that towered over every other innings, and he was a clear choice for the match award.Tasmania, meanwhile, have a few questions to ponder, having suffered their second consecutive outright loss at home on a Bellerive Oval surface that has been treacherous for batting this season after being relaid.

Lancashire open their summer in the CricInfo Championship at Taunton today,with names and numbers on the backs of their shirts. They have been givenpermission to do so from the ECB after the move was tried successfully onthe club’s pre-season tour to South Africa.All counties have names and numbers on the back of their National Leagueshirts, but this is a break with tradition in the Championship designed,according to Old Trafford cricket secretary Dave Edmundson, to make cricketmore user friendly.”The new kit has already been a success,” said Edmundson. “When theplayers are wearing hats in the heat of the sun it is very difficult foreven an avid fan to identify who’s who, never mind someone new to the game.”If the move is successful, other counties may follow suit.

England all-rounder Andy Flintoff is in doubt for the NatWest Series against Pakistan and Australia after injuring himself today.Flintoff, who has been dogged by a troublesome back for some time and who has altered his bowling action in a bid to alleviate the problem, has now suffered a new blow.He hurt himself when he delivered the ball which dismissed Yorkshire’s Australian star Darren Lehmann in the Benson & Hedges match at Liverpool.Lancashire coach Bob Simpson said: “He has torn a side muscle and willprobably be out for at least two weeks.”But there must be a question mark over whether he will regain full fitness in time for the NatWest Series.The torn muscle was a new injury, not thought to be connected with his back orwith his new bowling action.

Thanks to David Leatherdale, who fell seven short of what would have been a well-deserved century, Worcestershire recovered strongly enough from their afternoon’s collapse to declare at 301 for eight, having got their third batting point.In 17 overs that remained of the day, Middlesex’s openers, Andy Strauss and Mike Roseberry collected 62 without being separated.After losing the company of his captain, Graeme Hick, whom Phil Tufnell had caught at silly mid-off for 81, made off 180 balls, with eight fours, Leatherdale lost two more partners in the space of eight runs and five overs, setbacks which reduced Worcestershire to 212 for six.Paul Pollard fell lbw to his off-spinning namesake, Weekes, while stumper Steve Rhodes, whose best innings have been played in crisis such as Worcestershire now faced, was run out brilliantly by Strauss, from deep cover.Rhodes, however, was unfortunate to be out because he had grounded his bat in completion of a second run. But he strayed out of his crease to avoid Strauss’s bullet of a throw which hit the stumps direct. Rhodes remonstrated with umpire Roy Palmer on his way to the pavilion.Leatherdale, on 49 at this stage, was helped by Worcestershire’s Australian fast bowler, Andy Bichel, from Queensland, who played in the same forthright manner as his partner while the pair added 73.Middlesex had to endure their resistance till the new ball became due. When it was taken, Angus Fraser bowled Leatherdale to increase his tally of wickets to three. He had removed Anurag Singh and Vikram Solanki in his opening spell in the morning.

Despite the life bans on prominent cricketers and stringent new constraints, the scourge of match-fixing in international cricket was still on and recent matches involving Pakistan are being investigated, media reported in London on Saturday.”Matches played by Pakistan and New Zealand in Sharjah and by Pakistan in New Zealand this year have been under particular scrutiny,” ‘The Times’ newspaper said.It stated that a report by Sir Paul Condon, Chief of ICC’s anti-corruption unit “will say next week that cricket cannot be given a clean bill of health.”The report will suggest that, despite the life bans imposed on former captains Hansie Cronje of South Africa, Md Azharuddin of India and Salim Malik of Pakistan, “attempts to manipulate results for money may not have been wiped out.”Betting syndicates are known to have made large amounts not only out of the results of matches and series, many involving India and Pakistan, but also out of many different aspects of the game,” the daily said. They have been known to bet on such things as who would bat first, who would open the bowling and whether certain batsmen would score more or less than a certain figure.According to the report, Sir Paul who was recently made “people’s peer” has admitted that cricket will never be rid of dishonesty. But he has set himself the target of reducing the problem to an “irreducible minimum” before the next World Cup in South Africa in 2002-03.Sir Paul disclosed in February that “sadly there are still things to come out” and his report next week, to be released on the Internet, will indicate that there is still a long way to go before his objective can be met. No allegations against individuals will be made but the Condon report is expected to be highly critical of the way the ICC handled previous cases of suspected bribery in the sport.The Australian Cricket Board, whose former chairman Malcolm Gray, is the ICC chairman, will share the blame with the world’s governing body for failing to dig deeper when in 1995 they fined two Australian Test cricketers Mark Waugh and Shane Warne for taking money from bookmakers in return for information about teams, pitches and weather.Rumours of widespread corruption in international cricket came to light last year when Cronje was accidentally picked up discussing the manipulation of matches on a mobile telephone in India by Delhi Police, prompting the ICC to introduce stringent penalties for all cricketers found guilty of any involvement with betting interests.Cronje, Azharuddin and Malik have been banned for life. Alec Stewart, who is playing for England in the current Lord’s Test against Pakistan, was interviewed by Sir Paul during his investigation, providing information about the England tour of India in 1992-93 when he was vice-captain.

Former West Indies fast bowler Michael Holding has denied accusing Sri Lanka spinner Muttiah Muralitharan of having an illegal bowling action.Holding, an International Cricket Council (ICC) appointed bowling advisor, was quoted in Wisden Asia Cricket Monthly as saying that he was in "110 per cent agreement" with Bishen Bedi, who accused Muralitharan of having an illegal action.His support for Bedi raised a furore in Sri Lanka, forcing the Board of Control for Cricket in Sri Lanka (BCCSL) to make a formal complaint to the ICC.But Holding, who is currently in South Africa working as a television commentator in the ongoing series between Australia and South Africa, has denied questioning the legitimacy of Muralitharan’s bowling action, claiming he has been misquoted in a letter to BCCSL chief executive Anura Tennekoon.Vijaya Malasekera, chairman of the Sri Lankan Board, is expected to take up the matter of Muralitharan’s action at the ICC executive meeting in Cape Town.The Board is perplexed that, despite three separate scientific analyses between 1996 and 1999, all of which concluded that his arm did not straighten at the point of delivery, and being cleared by the ICC twice, there are still allegations being made that his action is illegal.Comments made by Bob Woolmer, the ICC’s high performance manager, who said he uses "excessive wrist action which is only possible with a straightening of the arm" in same edition of the magazine has also annoyed the Sri Lankan Cricket Board.

Uncork the bubbly, have a ball, and go on a splurge. And then get backto work. That is my message for the Indian cricket team.Victories abroad are such rare events in Indian cricket that it seemsnatural to go overboard, praise the heroes to the sky, and hail thevictory at Port of Spain as a great triumph. It will certainly takeits place in history as a notable win, even after taking into accountthe fact that the Indians, by and large, started as favourites againsta West Indian side palpably on the decline.

The fact remains, however, that India’s record of two victoriesagainst 14 losses in the Caribbean compares most unfavourably and, asis well known, the Indians do not travel well abroad. Under thecircumstances, it is difficult not to get excited by the victorynotched up at the Queen’s Park Oval on Tuesday. Certainly the groundhas got to be the Indians’ favourite overseas venue, simply for thefact that nowhere else have India registered three victories abroad.Given the events of the disappointing rain-affected drawn Test atGuyana, there seemed little indication of things being different atPort of Spain. As I pointed out in my earlier column, this looked setto be a contest between two mediocre and evenly balanced sides, strongin batting and short on bowling. But the wicket and weather conditionswere very different in Trinidad. Given very little interference fromthe weather and a newly laid pitch that encouraged pace even as itfeatured some uneven bounce, there was something in it for thebowlers.Relishing such conditions, the eight principal bowlers on both sidesmade things that much more difficult for the batsmen, and the resultwas a cracker of a match, marked by fluctuating fortunes that couldhave gone either way until almost the very end. The connoisseur of thegame could not have asked for anything more.As I mentioned earlier, though, these are two sides with inherentweaknesses, and that was apparent during the five days. The suspectbatting at the top of the order, the long tail, and the lack ofvariety in the bowling ­ the problems still exist. It was just thatthe one strong point in both sides ­ the middle-order batting ­ wasable to cover up for these lapses. How long one admirable aspect cancover up for three weak areas is a moot point.But then, one should not linger too long on the flaws alone. Indeed,the Indians deserve kudos for the manner in which they clearlyperformed above themselves. The most encouraging aspect was the waythe pace trio of Javagal Srinath, Zaheer Khan and Ashish Nehra cameoff. True, the pitch was an ally, but they utilised the conditionscommendably. Playing without their ace strike bowler over the lastdecade was a gamble, and it paid off in spades – proof that sometimesbold decisions have to be taken if the side is to succeed.

Next to the pace trio, it was the batting of the big four that playeda notable role in the triumph. Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, SouravGanguly and VVS Laxman have all played up to their reputations in thetwo Tests thus far, and this has helped plug the loopholes at the topof the order. How long they can do so is open to debate, and perhapsthe time has come to replace Sanjay Bangar with Wasim Jaffer. Gangulycan always don the role of a fifth bowler, and it is about time arecognised opening batsman is given his due.Ajay Ratra, as was expected, was a vast improvement over DeepDasgupta. Now is the time to stop the wicket-keeping musical chairs,which has been an unfortunate episode over the last couple of years,and all encouragement should be given to this talented youngster.The Port of Spain victory could well mark a turning point in Ganguly’scaptaincy. He has had his critics, his share of ups and downs duringhis two-year stint at the helm. But I for one have always felt that heremains the best person for the high-pressure job. If anything, theevents at the Queen’s Park Oval should give him the confidence tosharpen his tactical skills.Some of these skills were in evidence even during the Test. His bowlingchanges were imaginative, and his tight field placings wereresponsible for bottling up even such natural stroke-players likeBrian Lara and Carl Hooper. Gone was the diffidence, the defensivestrategy, the 7-2 and 8-1 off-side fields that one saw at Georgetown.Ganguly’s aggressive tactics hustled the batsmen into errors, andcertainly his captaincy was as much a contributory factor in theultimate result as the middle-order batting or the bowling of the pacetrio.I must end on a word of caution. It is very easy to sit back on one’slaurels, to be lulled into a feeling of overconfidence. The Indianshave it in them to wrap up their first series in the Caribbean for 31years, and if they are to achieve it, they would do well to take aleaf out of their predecessors’ book. On that occasion too, India wonthe second Test at Port of Spain to take the lead in the five-matchseries. Then, led by the superhuman feats of new boy Sunil Gavaskar,who got four hundreds in three matches, and helped by invaluablecontributions at vital stages from other players, India were able tokeep that lead and emerge triumphant.The Indians would do well to remember that the next three Tests are atBridgetown, Kingston and Antigua – venues where they have not exactlycovered themselves with glory in the past. Just for the record, in 17Test matches at these venues, the Indians have lost 11 and drawn six.So there is still a lot of hard work ahead. As the cliché goes, theIndians have won the battle. Now they have to make sure they do notlose the war.

Disciplined batting and rain helped Sri Lanka A draw their first unofficial Test against India A at the Sinhalese Sports Club Ground, Colombo. After a wet ground prevented play from starting before 12:30 p.m., the home side, chasing an improbable victory target of 418 runs in the fourth innings, settled for a draw, making 291 for five before play was called off.Earlier, India A, as was expected, declared at their overnight second innings score of 302 for four. This left them with 80 overs in which to bowl out the home team and go 1-0 up in the three-`Test’ series.If the Sri Lanka A start was anything to go by, it seemed that they too harboured visions of an improbable victory. Hard-hitting opener Avishka Gunawardene, in particular, seemed a man on a mission. Opening his broad and strong shoulders to good effect, he pummeled the visiting bowlers into submission.Seeing the mood his partner was in, the other opener, GI Daniel, sensibly dropped anchor. The duo put on an impressive 138 run partnership in just 30.4 overs before Gunawardene was unfortunately run-out by Akash Chopra. The left-hander’s belligerent 82 off 94 balls contained 10 fours and one hefty six.With more than 49 overs left to play, India A must suddenly have caught a faint scent of victory. But sadly it was to prove but a chimera. Sri Lanka A No. 3 Mohamed Nawaz, who strode out to the middle next, proved a worthy replacement for Gunawardene.Showing commendable caution, he helped Daniel add another 77 runs for the second wicket before the latter was stumped by Parthiv Patel off leg-spinner Sairaj Bahatule. Daniel’s sedate 84 off 171 balls with just six fours came to an end with 23 overs remaining to be bowled.Nawaz propping one end up meant that the home team was able to brush aside the loss of the next three batsmen for poor scores and ensure that the honours were shared at the end of the day. The Sri Lanka A No. 3 remained not out on 84 off 149 balls with eight fours.For India A, left-arm quick Irfan Pathan Jnr claimed two wickets while leg-spinners Bahatule and Amit Mishra shared the remaining two.

Somerset Sabres lost their opening NUL match of the season against Yorkshire Phoenix this afternoon at the County Ground in Taunton by the narrowest of margins.The large crowds who turned out to support the special Golden Jubilee Match were not disappointed and were treated to some exciting batting from both sides that kept them on the edge of their seats right up until the last ball was bowled.In a high scoring game, chasing the Yorkshire Phoenix total of 307 for 4 Somerset Sabres ended on 306 for 8 at the close of their innings.After the match Somerset coach Kevin Shine told me: " This was a fantastic game and cricket was the winner,but to go so far and then lose by just one run is bitterly disappointing for us."He continued: "We lost the game in the first half when we didn’t field and bowl as well as we should and we probably gave away 20 runs, but we must look at the positives that have come out of the day. We have chased over 300 runs and come very close, which is a lot better than in the Benson and Hedges games when we didn’t even get close."The Somerset coach concluded: "There was some fantastic batting on display today out there from us, Ian Blackwell, Jamie Cox and Peter Bowler all played high class knocks, but at the end of it all we lost and the boys are feeling pretty down at the moment."

Flaming June has not quite arrived at The Rose Bowl, as incessant rain over the past week, and a further downpour this afternoon, put paid to Hampshire Hawks v Derbyshire Scorpions NUL Division 2 match.Umpires Roy Palmer and Jeremy Lloyds made a short visit under umbrellas to the middle, and their return to the dry did not need the question.Derbyshire return up the wet motorway as both sides receive 2 points each.