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John Buchanan’s desire for innovation will result in the Australian players preparing for the Champions Trophy and the Ashes with a challenging three-day camp in the Queensland bush. According to the exercise is designed by the coach, whose contract expires after the World Cup in April, as a back-to-basics experience and it is expected to be approved by Cricket Australia’s Board on Friday.”Buchanan wants to keep it all a bit close to his chest because he wants it all to be a bit of a surprise for them and a challenge when it happens,” the paper quoted an unidentified Cricket Australia director as saying. After the outback camp the Australians are expected to reconvene on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast for more pre-Ashes training.Throughout his seven-year tenure Buchanan has pushed the players to think outside the game and his experiments have included trips to French and Turkish battlefields, writing poetry, introducing the players to by Sun Tzu and hiring a baseball coach. The Champions Trophy in October begins a hectic summer for the team, which also has the five-Test series against England, the VB and Chappell-Hadlee series and the World Cup in the West Indies.

Following England’s eight-wicket win at Trent Bridge the final match of a long international summer has plenty riding on it at Edgbaston. A shared series for England would represent a fine comeback, while being an equal disappointment for Pakistan.For one England player the match will have added significance, as Paul Collingwood’s international career comes full circle with his 100th ODI cap on the ground where he debuted, against Australia, in 2001.”I really don’t think I’ll really appreciate what it’s all about until I finish my career and look back at it all,” Collingwood said on the eve of the match. “You don’t realise what sort of company you’re in until you look at it properly. When you mention names like Gooch, Gower and Botham it makes you very proud to be in that sort of company.”It was a far from easy start for Collingwood as his four appearances in the 2001 Natwest series resulted in 20 runs and 7.1 overs costing 49. In subsequent years Steve Waugh, who was then captain of Australia, said he’d seen some qualities he liked in Collingwood, but the player himself admits he had major doubts.”It took me a hell of a long time to get used to international cricket. It was a shock to the system and I’ll always remember it. At the end of that first series I had a realisation that I probably wasn’t good enough and it was a massive dent of confidence to believe that.”It was a very hard series to go into against Pakistan and Australia, but I still wondered whether I was good enough – to do well after that meant a lot to me because I’m sure there were a few doubters about my ability.”However, since then he has established himself as a key member of England’s often changing one-day outfit. His highlights include hitting an unbeaten 112 and taking 6 for 31 against Bangladesh, at Trent Bridge, last year – the first player to score a century and take five wickets in an ODI since Viv Richards in 1987.Even though England have broken their one-day duck for the summer, they may still tweak with their side for the final match. Abdul Razzaq laid into the closing overs with devastating effect at Trent Bridge and Graham Onions could win his first ODI cap at the expense of Sajid Mahmood.Bob Woolmer, the Pakistan coach, is backing his team to finish the tour on a high despite signs in the last couple of matches that they have lost their edge.”I would be very disappointed if they didn’t have the energy and enthusiasm,” he said. “When you lose you tend to learn more than when you win and after what has happened here we would like to win.”This [the defeat at Trent Bridge] might be a way of reminding them: we bowled badly, both sides of the wicket, either too full or too short and we didn’t bat as well as we should have done.”Woolmer also played down the controversial incident from Friday night when Andrew Strauss stood his ground following a low edge to slip. Inzamam-ul-Haq believed he’d caught the ball, but Strauss gained the benefit after TV replays.”Inzamam thought he caught it and Strauss thought it bounced and there’s always going to be an impasse in that situation. Someone has to make a decision and that is why the umpire is there.”If they are not sure they have to ask and the benefit goes to the batsman. I think Strauss, if he thought it hit the ground, had every right to stay there, quite frankly.”England (probable) 1 Andrew Strauss (capt), 2 Ed Joyce, 3 Ian Bell, 4 Kevin Pietersen, 5 Paul Collingwood, 6 Jamie Dalrymple, 7 Michael Yardy, 8 Chris Read (wk), 9 Jon Lewis, 10 Stuart Broad, 11 Graham OnionsPakistan (probable) 1 Mohammad Hafeez, 2 Shahid Afridi, 3 Younis Khan, 4 Mohammad Yousuf, 5 Inzamam-ul-Haq (capt), 6 Shoaib Malik, 7 Abdul Razzaq, 8 Kamran Akmal (wk), 9 Rana Naved-ul-Hasan, 10 Shoaib Akhtar, 11 Mohammad Asif

Tatenda Taibu, the former Zimbabwe captain, has made his debut for Namibia in the SAA Provincial Cup match against Limpopo in Windhoek.In recent weeks there has been speculation about Taibu’s playing future after an attempt to forge a career in South Africa hit problems. Discussions with Namibia have been ongoing for a couple of weeks and a few days ago the final parts of the agreement were confirmed.Francoise Erasmus, a spokesman for the team, told Cricinfo: “He will be with our squad for the remainder of the season. It is something we have been discussing for a while and Tatenda seems very excited by the situation.”His wife is moving over the join him next week and we are keen to make it a long term arrangement. It would be terrific to have someone of his quality.”However, any thoughts of an international return will still have to wait. Erasmus confirmed there are a number of ways Taibu could try and qualify, but it would take five years of living in Namibia for him to qualify to play international tournaments.Namibia are part of the SAA provincial Cup as an invitational side so the same qualification rules don’t apply meaning Taibu is eligible to slot straight into the team, a situation that has been agreed by Cricket South Africa. Taibu started with 21, batting at No.3, as Namibia eased to a 168-run win.

Having to name one “great” batsman from among three contemporary favourites is a tricky task at any time. Yet a high-profile panel of former greats stuck its collective neck out and picked Brian Lara over Ricky Ponting and Sachin Tendulkar for his ability to dominate attacks consistently and over a period of time.The panel – John Wright, Ian Chappell, Tony Greig and Ravi Shastri – had gathered for Cricinfo’s fortnightly discussion The Round Table, hosted by Sanjay Manjrekar. Saturday’s discussion, part of the new audio service, Cricinfo Talk, was debating the question, How good is the modern batsman?The issue was discussed under the canvas of four trends: One, the fact that the 2006 Champions Trophy has served up only one score in excess of 300; two, that perhaps this was the golden age of batting pitches; three, that techniques were not being tested enough; and four, that averages belied sheer batting talent.All four panelists immediately identified the change in the nature ofIndian pitches during the Champions Trophy. While the prolonged monsoonyielded an under-prepared pitch in the earlier games at Mumbai’s BrabourneStadium, the last few matches at the other venues had ball dominate batfor an altogether un-Indian reason – bounce and carry.Wright, the former New Zealand opener and India coach, noted howpitches today were marketed differently, and how curators were attemptingto suit various conditions. Chappell and Shastri singled out Daljit Singh,the curator of the PCA Stadium in Mohali, for praise for his effective work on apitch that “produced an even contest, and good matches” and was “the best”in India.Shastri highlighted how the Mohali pitch had exposed India’s batsmen – withbounce and carry, and some lateral movement – against Australia and how, as a result of a lack of sixes, India were forced to push for the ones and twos but failedto do so in the manner that Australia did.Another factor raised was that of the one bouncer per over rule, whichShastri favoured. “It’s a good rule, because it gives the bowler a chanceto dictate terms and leave that doubt in the batsman’s mind,” he said.Noted Wright, “The front-foot play was diminished considerably. Batsmenneeded to rely more on technical expertise, such as balance and shotcontrol. Survival on flatter pitches is easier, but we saw with the bounceand movement than many batsmen struggled. It was quite unlike Indianconditions.”

Greig summed it up – “It’s simple: the pitches play up, thebatsmen struggle” – while commenting on how batsmen weaned on flat pitcheswere suddenly finding unpredictable surfaces tough to handle. All fourexperts agreed that the Champions Trophy had exposed certain modern daybatsmen.In 2006, there have been 12 batsmen who averaged over 50, around three times the number of even a decade ago. So how does this square with the notion of declining quality? The consensus was that batsmen in the contemporary era were up againstweaker bowling as against batsmen till the mid-1990s. Chappell was quick to point out that he would have includedMark Taylor and Michael Slater as the opening pair in an all-time Australian XI over Matthew Hayden and Justin Langer, for their ability to dominate quality bowling attacks.He gave the example of Hayden, whose average soon after he debuted at the international level was in the 20s and who couldn’tprogress beyond a certain level. On his phenomenal return, notably in theseries against India in 2001, Hayden averaged in the 60s and Chappell notedhow this could have been because of the difference in bowling quality.”Teams like Zimbabwe and Bangladesh have diluted the bowling,” saidChappell. “If you look back at the ’90s, you had a more formidable bowlingattack going up against batsmen. You had Wasim Akram and Waqar Younisoperating in tandem, Allan Donald was there, Australia, as they’ve almostalways done, had a formidable attack, and even West Indies had CurtleyAmbrose and Courtney Walsh. Today, that’s not the case, as the pace justisn’t there.”Pace brought up the issue of helmets. It was argued that today’sbatsmen relied too much on safety precautions. Wright, having playedjust a small amount of his cricket without a helmet, pointed tosuccessful batsman like Gary Sobers, Greg Chappell and Viv Richards, whonot only scored runs against very fast bowlers while batting without helmets, but alsodominated attacks.

Chappell was emphatic: “I didn’t ever honestly thinkthat a bowler was going to bowl to hit me. We backed our instincts and ourskills. The only way I ever thought I’d get hit on the head was by my ownmistake, if I’d top-edge a hook back onto my skull.” Greig stressed on how the batsman’s courage was not being tested enough,and that certain aspects of batting had gone astray.So how does one identify greatness? It’s a feel that one gets from watching a batsman, was the consensus, and the statistics usually back it up. Shastri pointed out that while technique and ability were definite criteria, what mattered most was consistency.The panelists were asked to name their greats, and the common names from the past included the two Richards, Garry Sobers, Graeme Pollock, for their ability to score consistently throughout their careers.And so to Tendulkar, Lara and Ponting. The panel’s choice was clear, Lara over Ponting. Sunday’s face-off just got more interesting.The entire Round Table will be webcast live on November 14.

It’s okay when the touring side’s lead fast bowler criticises the pitch for being too flat and offering no assistance. That is often the way, especially on the subcontinent (where Dennis Lillee was once disheartened enough to famously call Faisalabad a graveyard for fast bowlers). Increasingly it is also becoming the case around the world, where pitches are good if they produce runs and substandard if they don’t.But when the home side’s leading batsman, fresh from his 20th century, sixth of the calendar year, and seventh in his last ten Tests, echoes that very sentiment, almost downplaying his effort, you start to wonder.Before the start of this series, sceptics sensed that the Pakistani batsmen would score comfortably only because pitches would be as unlike the ones they faced in Mohali and Old Trafford this year and Perth two years ago, as is possible. Accordingly, having been humiliated for 89 in their last international outing, they moved serenely to 265 for 4 here, a position of considerable strength.Mohammad Hafeez compiled a neat third fifty, a willing student performing quietly what is expected of him in a high-pressure role. His test, no one should kid themselves, will come on South African pitches. Shoaib Malik joined him, following up a Test century as opener last time with a fifty from number six. Soon, he may well become the only batsman to score a Test fifty from every position. Yousuf’s hundred was blessed with fortune, but also with the usual beauty and new-found common sense he has combined so effectively this year.But what can you really gauge from performances on this surface when even Yousuf criticises it for being too flat? “Yes it is flat but we’ve been playing cricket around the world on such pitches for the last 10-12 years. Even in South Africa, that 434 ODI match, there are pitches like this everywhere,” he said later, as agitated as a mild nature allows him to be.”I don’t support this at all. Wickets should be tougher, there should be enough in them for everyone. Batsmen are too dominant. The ideal pitch should have bounce at least, like there is in Brisbane which is one the best pitches.” Mohali, he argued, was different altogether. “No batsmen can play well on pitches with too much grass, like there was at Mohali. Even Jacques Kallis said he hadn’t seen a pitch like that before.”But it hadn’t played so flat yesterday, or this morning, when heavy clouds, moisture in the pitch and fine bowling combined to take 11 wickets. True, as the sun peeped out this afternoon, inertia crept into the surface but both Inzamam and Lara reckon it will deteriorate gradually. That suggests the surface may yet turn out to be a sporting one, thus casting a different light on Pakistan’s efforts today.Maybe there should just be relief that Pakistan applied themselves studiously enough, turning a slippery 140 for four into a sturdy advantage. They were up against committed bowling too as Yousuf pointed out, before adding, crucially, the proviso, “but on these pitches…” They are now in a position to win this Test. If surfaces are similar, you would back them to take the series as well.But one good day doesn’t erase memories of a few very bad ones in recent time. It doesn’t answer the questions that have been asked of Pakistan’s batting. And few will forget that a tour to South Africa beckons soon after, a destination like Australia, where their batting has rarely looked safe let alone thrived. Relief, but tinged with some caution.

Darren Lehmann has told of his desire to coach England, less than a week after his Yorkshire team-mate Darren Gough said Lehmann was the man for the job. While Duncan Fletcher has not announced plans to step aside, there has been recent debate over whether the time has come for him to move on after seven years in the role.Lehmann said he would jump at the chance if he was offered the position. “It’s something I’d love to do,” Lehmann told . “If the opportunity came up to coach England, I’d certainly want to do it.”To be perfectly honest, you never say never, do you? I know the England players quite well. At the moment, I’ve got a lot of things on and I’m still playing cricket, which makes it difficult to coach anyone. But I’ve always had coaching ambitions.”I’d like to think I know the game well enough and I can work with players well enough. If you can do that, you can do some coaching at various levels. I can’t imagine a better stage than to do it at an international level.”Lehmann was evasive when asked if the ECB had already approached him through Gough. “That’s between Goughie and I,” he said. “If it hasn’t happened it hasn’t, if it has, it has. Although I have played a lot of cricket with Darren and he knows what’s going on in English cricket.”While speaking at last week’s Adelaide Oval Test Dinner, Gough said there was a groundswell of support for Lehmann to take over from Fletcher. “It’s a very strong rumour in England that Darren could be the next coach,” Gough was reported as saying in the .”He would be a very popular choice with the England players. He teaches enjoyment to the players, his knowledge is second-to-none, especially of the England players after playing in the country for so long [since 1997]. He has some amazing theories on how the game should be played, new thoughts.”

Scorecard

Aiden Blizzard marked his Twenty20 debut with a ferocious 38-ball 89 as Victoria began their campaign with a comprehensive 34-run win against South Australia. The Bushrangers’ imposing 7 for 203 was built on a second-wicket stand of 140 off 74 balls between Blizzard and Brad Hodge and despite Ken Skewes’ 78 the Redbacks’ chase fell away as four late wickets fell in four balls.Victoria raced out of the blocks thanks to the efforts of Blizzard and Hodge after the fifth-ball loss of Jon Moss. Blizzard’s fifty arrived off 23 balls and he finished with eight sixes and five fours when he was caught off Nathan Adcock with a memorable century in sight. Hodge, who has had plenty of Twenty20 experience in county cricket, and holds a strike rate of 146, played second fiddle although his 76 took just 51 deliveries.South Australia couldn’t maintain the same early momentum, but a third-wicket stand of 86 between Skewes and Darren Lehmann kept them in the hunt. However, when Lehmann was removed by Cameron White the innings went into a nosedive. In a frenzied four-ball period in the 19th over four batsmen came and went; Daniel Harris was run out off a wide, Adcock heaved into the deep, Graham Manou was caught short coming back for a second and finally Skewes’ 56-ball effort ended as he missed a straight one.

David Morgan, the chairman of the ECB, has leant his backing to England’s beleaguered coach, Duncan Fletcher, by insisting – as David Graveney, the chairman of selectors did yesterday – that his job is not under immediate threat despite the wave of defeats that the team is currently being subjected to in Australia.Fletcher’s one-day record against the top eight Test-playing nations is poor but, with the World Cup in the West Indies looming, Morgan is aware that a change of personnel in the short-term could be even more destabilising for the team. “What we decided to do is not have any final decisions about what his [Fletcher’s] aspirations are until the end of this tour,” Morgan told BBC Radio Five Live. “I don’t anticipate him going. That is my assessment of the position.”Graveney, meanwhile is convinced Fletcher retains the full confidence of the ailing England dressing-room, and insists the players are desperate to claim a much-needed victory over New Zealand on Tuesday to ease the pressure on their coach. He told the BBC: “Duncan is hurting the same as everyone else – and when I say everyone else I mean the players, the management and every England cricket fan.”He is trying to do the job on a day-to-day basis with the same intensity and I am sure the players know if there is one thing they want to do on Tuesday it is to win for Duncan Fletcher. [He] is still the England coach and he retains the support of everyone close to the team and the team in particular. Our main objective is to start winning some games on this tour.”Rather than using Fletcher as a convenient scapegoat for an Ashes tour rated by many experts as the worst in England cricket history, Graveney insists the players must shoulder much of the blame for the sorry displays.”They have to assess their performances each day by looking at themselves and saying, ‘have I done everything I possibly can for this team?’ The two performances in Adelaide were way off the standards we expect from this national team.”I don’t want to make excuses because I don’t think that is particularly appropriate at this stage.”Michael Vaughan has also come out in support of Fletcher, but the debate rages on about who would the favourite to replace him as coach.

Matthew Hayden is in danger of missing Australia’s two World Cup warm-up matches in the Caribbean with a broken toe, but he expects to be fit for the first serious game of the tournament. Hayden had both feet bandaged in Brisbane on Wednesday after being hit twice by Mark Gillespie yorkers during his national-record 181 in the third Chappell-Hadlee Trophy loss at Hamilton.The broken big toe on his right foot was the major worry and it will need up to three weeks to heal. Australia has practice games against Zimbabwe and England in St Kitts on March 6 and 9 before they play Scotland in their first match of the World Cup on March 14.”I’m looking to be right on the money for that game,” Hayden said in The Australian. “There is nothing structurally wrong except for the fracture. We will review things on Monday, but in terms of a break it’s as good as you can have.”The diagnosis is bright news for a squad struggling with injuries ahead of its trophy defence. Brett Lee is in doubt with an ankle injury, Andrew Symonds hopes his arm will heal in time for a mid-series arrival and Michael Clarke has a hip problem.

Rahul Dravid, the Indian captain, is wary that two easy wins in his side’s pre-World Cup campaign may backfire on them when they face tougher competition. India brushed aside the Netherlands by 182 runs and West Indies by nine wickets, and while happy with the confidence India gained, Dravid felt there were disadvantages as well.”With a performance like this, it meant that some of our batsmen did not get a chance to bat, and our spin bowlers did not get a chance to bowl,” he told reporters in Montego Bay. “I think the advantages some times outweigh the disadvantages when you beat a top team like West Indies so convincingly. I think what it does to the spirit of the team can be very important as well.”No one should discount the plus points you gain from momentum, the plus points you gain from the confidence that it gives in winning over a team like West Indies who had the upper hand over us a lot over the last year.”India play their first World Cup match against Bangladesh in Trinidad on Saturday, and Dravid was keen to keep his side grounded. “They [the warm-up games] would give you a pointer as to where you are with your preparations and your readiness.The games were 13 players against 13 players, and teams were trying different things. I think the big event is the big event.”We have won both our games, but we will keep our feet firmly planted on the ground knowing full well that the real tournament starts for us on March 17. We can take some confidence from the matches, and we can learn some lessons from them, but the real cricket for us starts on March 17.”Dravid also chose not to comment about the West Indian pitches, as India had other issues to think about. “We do not talk about them too much in our team meetings because what we are focusing on is the performance of our team,” he said. “We are focusing on the flexibility we can build in our squad, the depth we can build in our squad, and we are pretty confident that we have the team that can perform on any type of pitch. It’s not really going to be an issue because it’s going to be the same for both teams on any given day, and it will come down to the team that performs better on the day, and the team which does this will win.”