Eagles 334 and 121 for 3 (van Wyk 61*, Beukes 42*, Symcox3-25) trail Dolphins 612 for 8 decl (Amla 249, Kent 120, Mall 66)by 157 runs
ScorecardThe Dolphins played themselves firmly into a commanding position on dayfour of the SuperSport Series final against the Eagles at Goodyear Parkin Bloemfontein.A maiden double-century from Hashim Amla and a first century of theseason for Jon Kent allowed the Dolphins to declare on 612 for 8, the16th-highest first-class total in South African cricket. The Dolphins kept the Eagles in the field for 14 hours before striking three times,Russell Symcox claiming the top three batsmen.Amla’s innings came to an end on 249 when he was run out after a mix-upwith Russell Symcox. His innings lasted five minutes short of 11 hours.Kent and Amla put on 296 for the fifth wicket, before Kent was caughtbehind off Cliff Deacon for 120. Symcox (9), Lance Klusener (13) andDuncan Brown (27*) found runs difficult to come by as the Eagles bowlersstruggled on, notching three runs an over. At the end, Andrew Tweedie flayeda quick 14 before the declaration came.The Eagles were left with a deficit of 278 to overhaul and four sessions to survive bat – and they started their reply in disastrous fashion, losing three wickets to Symcox in the space of 10 overs. Davey Jacobs was bowled withoutscoring, while Boeta Dippenaar (9) and Loots Bosman (0) edged to thekeeper.Jonathan Beukes (42) and Morne van Wyk (61) steered the innings back ontrack with an unbroken partnership of 92 as the Eagles finished on 121for 3, still 157 behind.A tense final day waits.

South Africa 525 for 4 (Kallis 127*, Prince 114*) v West Indies
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

Jacques Kallis: cashing in on Antigua’s featherbed © Getty Images

On the first day in Antigua, South Africa owed their ascendancy to their captain, Graeme Smith, and their most junior batsman, AB de Villiers, who exploited a typical Recreation Ground featherbed to produce a double-century partnership that left West Indies ruing their first lost toss of the series. Aside from an uncharacteristic wobble in the morning session, the second day followed an identical pattern, as South Africa’s senior batsman, Jacques Kallis, combined with the relative rookie, Ashwell Prince, to carry their side pass 500 for the second innings in succession.Antigua is, quite justifiably, regarded as Brian Lara’s spiritual home – the venue at which he has twice claimed the individual batting world record. Today, however, it belonged to another giant of the modern era, albeit one whose place in the pantheon will be begrudgingly granted via the tradesman’s entrance. Kallis is not a player who aims to please. His 22nd Test hundred, from 212 balls with 11 fours and a six, carried him clear of his old team-mate, Gary Kirsten, at the top of South Africa’s all-time list of centurymakers and run-scorers. It was not an innings to stir the soul. But it was mighty effective nonetheless.And it was mighty timely as well. Kallis began his innings amid an improbable panic in the South African ranks. After their stately progress on the first day, Smith and de Villiers had been parted in the space of four balls, and when Boeta Dippenaar was needlessly run out soon afterwards, three wickets had tumbled in 21 balls. Herschelle Gibbs’s dismissal on the stroke of lunch made it four wickets for 50 runs in the session, and at 295 for 4, West Indies were a quick strike or two from parity.But no situation could have been better laid out for Kallis. All three of his favourite factors – time to build an innings, a pitch on which to do so, and most pertinently of all, a West Indian attack to get stuck into – were in place and he set his stall out for two sessions of inevitable accumulation. In 12 consecutive innings against West Indies, dating back to the beginning of the home series in 2003-04, Kallis has compiled an astonishing run of scores: 158, 44, 177, 73, 130*, 130*, 0, 109*, 39, 19*, 78 and now 127*. That is a total of 1084 runs at an average of 154.86. Not even Lara’s Antiguan love-in (19 innings at 90.44) can match that.

Tino Best: made the breakthrough for West Indies © Getty Images

It wasn’t a one-man show, however, and Kallis had to share top billing with a man at the opposite end of the career ladder. In the second Test against Zimbabwe earlier this year, Prince had registered his maiden Test century but was omitted for the early part of this series to accommodate an extra bowler. Today, that slight was writ large across this performance, not least in the understated manner in which he celebrated his first overseas hundred for South Africa. By the close, Prince had done his utmost to ensure that he will never again be the fall guy in the batting order.He had one stroke of luck early in his innings. At 313 for 4, South Africa had still not recovered from their morning wobble when Prince, on 9, appeared to have been caught behind off Chris Gayle. The West Indians were certainly convinced but umpire Billy Bowden was unmoved. After that, the fight appeared to go out of West Indies, as Chanderpaul delayed the introduction of the new ball to allow the part-timers, Wavell Hinds and Narsingh Deonarine, an extended spell. It seemed excessively negative, but as soon as he switched his strategy, Kallis and Prince climbed into the bowling, and ensured that Antigua lived up to its reputation as a batsman’s paradise.A fifth wicket in quick succession might have made the difference for West Indies, for South Africa’s collapse had come quite out of the blue. Both Smith and de Villiers began the day by tucking into some generous bowling and fielding, but when Tino Best decided to come around the wicket to de Villiers, he immediately induced a leg-side tickle off an attempted bouncer. Smith mistimed a drive to mid-on, Dippenaar was run out, and Gibbs squeezed a bat-pad chance to short leg. It was not panic stations, but the tremors were plain to see. Kallis and Prince, however, could not be deflected from their task, as South Africa moved inexorably towards their third overseas victory in a row.

How they were out

AB de Villiers c Browne b Best 114 (245 for 1)
Round the wicket, gloved short ball to keeperGraeme Smith c Washington b Powell 126 (245 for 2)
Mistimed drive, lobbed to mid-onBoeta Dippenaar run out 5 (251 for 3)
Ran two to midwicket, thought about a third, sent back by KallisHerschelle Gibbs c Deonarine b Gayle 23 (295 for 4)
Regulation bat-pad chance to short leg

Bennett King: has a reason to smile © Getty Images

Bennett King, the West Indies coach, has warned the team against complacency after their much-needed victory in the first Test against Pakistan in Barbados. West Indies’ win by 276 runs was their first Test win since June 2004 against Bangladesh, and also their first victory over a team ranked above them in the ICC rankings since they beat Sri Lanka in 2003 in Jamaica.”I don’t think you can read a lot into one win,” King was quoted as saying by The Trinidad Express, “but certainly it’s something for our boys to gain some confidence and momentum from, and hopefully play a bit better come Jamaica.”King also remarked that the victory was a result of their hard work. “You look back over the South African series … the public may not have felt it, but I felt we’ve been steadily improving. We’ve got a long way to go.”However, King accepted that the win was against a weaker Pakistan side, who were without their captain, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Shoaib Malik and Yousuf Youhana. “I certainly think that the group if they keep improving with their bowling can put Pakistan under pressure. On any given day you’re just not sure what you’re going to get from Pakistan, that’s one of their characteristics as well.”West Indies will be without Fidel Edwards in the second Test in Jamaica, which starts on Friday, June 3. Edwards was the the main wicket-taker in Pakistan’s first innings – he scalped 5 for 38 but bowled only eight balls in the second innings due to a hamstring injury.

Jagmohan Dalmiya: burying the hatchet © Getty Images

In a significant development for Indian cricket, Jagmohan Dalmiya and Inderjit Singh Bindra, once close collaborators, and later sworn enemies, have begun to reconcile their differences – or at least put them on the backburner – as manifested in the board’s decision to appoint Bindra to the marketing committee.In the recent working committee meeting of the board held in Trivandum in early June, Ranbir Singh Mahendra, the board president, was authorised to reconstitute the all-important marketing committee. And Bindra has been named as part of this committee, while interestingly N Srinivasan, who was the chairman of the marketing committee and also on the TV rights committee, has been dropped.Srinivasan has recently come under fire for the role the TNCA played when court cases against the board were being filed by cricket clubs from Chennai. A slew of angry letters and faxes, containing strong words, has been exchanged between Mahendra and Srinivasan.The marketing committee is one of the most high-powered organs of the board, and deals directly on all matters of revenue, including television rights, team sponsorship and individual series sponsorships.Bindra is no stranger to the workings of this committee. He was the board president from 1993 to 1996, but had already dealt with television rights and the like, first during the Reliance World Cup held in India and Pakistan in 1987 and later on the board of PILCOM, the joint management committee of the Indian, Pakistani and Sri Lankan boards. He was also at the centre of the action during the Hero Cup in 1993, when the Indian board won a landmark case forcing Doordarshan to pay access fees for the rights to cricket played in IndiaHowever, in 1996, a tussle between Dalmiya and Bindra for the post of International Cricket Council precipitated a falling-out that had been brewing for some time. As a fall-out Bindra, who was president of the Punjab Cricket Association, was banned from attending any meeting of the board for a period of two years when he casted aspersions on the integrity of board officials at the height of the matchfixing scandal. Bindra’s latest appointment marks a return to an active role in the board after a gap of almost 10 years.But it is learned that all this has been set aside at the moment. In the recent working committee meeting Dalmiya made special mention of Bindra’s knowledge of the workings of television rights and similar issues, and for his part Bindra too stated that he was happy to work for the board in any capacity. He stressed that he was always ready to do service for Indian cricket, and cited his decision not to contest his earlier ban as proof of this, according to a top board source.Marketing committee Ranbir Singh Mahendra (Chairman), Rajiv Shukla, Chirayu Amin, Ranga Reddy, C.K. Khanna, Kamal Morarka (BCCI vice-presidents), Gautam Dasgupta (joint secretary), Jyoti Bajpai (treasurer), Jagmohan Dalmiya (immediate BCCI past President), Inder Singh Bindra and Arun Jaitley. As per convention the committee is convened by the BCCI secretary, SK Nair.

Danish Kaneria, Pakistan’s 22-year-old legspinner, has been offered a contract for the 2004 season by Essex.Kaneria has taken 51 wickets in 12 Tests, although 34 of those have come in five outings against Bangladesh. His Test-best is 12 for 94 in the opening game of the Asian Test Championship in 2001.”It will be a good learning experience for me,” Kaneria said, “and hopefully make me a better bowler.”Essex were able to recruit another overseas player because Andy Flower is now considered to be a domestic registration as he has a British passport.

Tasmania 7 for 197 (Dighton 58, Krejza 3-45) beat New South Wales 9 for 193 (Bradstreet 45, Griffith 3-43) by three wickets
Scorecard

Roaring Tigers: George Bailey and Xavier Doherty celebrate steering Tasmania to a three-wicket win© Getty Images

Tasmania clawed their way to a three-wicket victory over New South Wales in the ING Cup match at Newcastle on Sunday. The Tigers reached their target of 194 with 11 balls to spare, despite the best efforts of the debutant spinner Jason Krejza and Stuart MacGill.George Bailey showed a cool head as he came in at No. 6 to lift the visitors over the line. after the openers Michael Dighton and Michael DiVenuto had cruised to 0 for 74 off 14 overs before MacGill was introduced.Dighton looked like he would lead the Tigers to a bonus point, but he holed out, trying to loft MacGill over the fence just once too often. Then a rash shot soon after by the promising wicketkeeper-batsman David Dawson handed the Blues a glimmer of hope.Krejza, the youngest member of the side, then dismissed one of the finest players to wear the sky blue. Michael Bevan’s first knock against his old state ended on 15 when he mis-hit a full toss straight to midwicket for Krejza’s first wicket in the domestic competition.

Shawn Bradstreet: lone stand helped New South Wales gain some respectability© Getty Images

After Luke Butterworth’s departure for 6, Tasmania edged within 14 runs of the target before Krejza struck again, dismissing Damien Wright. But the visitors survived the pouring rain to register their second win from two outings.The Tasmania quick Adam Griffith was Man of the Match for his devastating three-wicket opening spell, and it was only Shawn Bradstreet’s resistance (45) in the middle order that stopped New South Wales from registering a paltry total.

Rahul Dravid and Greg Chappell: looking to make their first partnership a successful one © AFP

India have a lot on their plate as they move to Sri Lanka for the triangular series. They have a new coach and a new captain; Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly are missing and a few seniors have been asked to prove themselves all over again. Merely winning will not satisfy them. They seek a few critical answers with the 2007 World Cup in mind.It amuses me to see so much of a build up in India over Greg Chappell, the new coach. Everyone expects him to conjure up miracles. Unfortunately, cricket does not work that way. A good team wins because it has worked out a good combination, its wheels are running on a good piston and engine. Just one factor is not decisive. I have seen good teams win even when they have had a bad coach, as bad teams have lost even when a super coach has worked tirelessly. It’s a combination in the park which does the trick.Similarly, Rahul Dravid as a new captain cannot provide all the answers straightaway. He is an experienced guy who has constantly striven to improve himself. But he will miss the experience of Tendulkar and Ganguly, two guys who not very long ago appeared to have a 99-year lease at the batting crease in the one-day context. Dravid is expecting the seniors to show the freshness of youngsters, and the rookies to play with a mature head.It is important for India to find most of these answers in Sri Lanka for two reasons. One, they face Sri Lanka in their own group in the 2007 World Cup. Two, conditions in the Caribbean are largely similar to what exist in Sri Lanka. A good performance will show them they are on the right path.Unfortunately, it will not be easy. Sri Lanka has lost only one of their last nine games at home. In the last five years, India has won just three and lost six one-day matches in Sri Lanka. Most of Sri Lanka’s top forces remain unmoved. Sanath Jayasuriya recently has not been in good touch in one-dayers but the sight of Indian bowlers nearly always gets him going. Chaminda Vaas and Muttiah Muralitharan, as they have showed against an admittedly weak West Indies side, still retain a voracious appetite. These three will ask a few technical questions of the Indian players. Jayasuriya, with all the talk about cramping him up, still finds room to play his on-side strokes or leans back to crunch it through point. Vaas disguises his indippers beautifully and does not need much support from his close-in fielders. A few full-throated appeals for lbw nearly always find the umpire’s approval. As for Murali, it is some wonder that a ‘How-To-Play-Murali’ guide has not attracted a writer or a publisher. They would be assured all the batsmen of the world will queue up to pounce on the offering.I have not seen many young Indian batsmen, or for that matter batsmen worldwide, do a particularly good job of picking up Murali’s wrong’uns. Once you commit yourself, it becomes very difficult to counter him. Vaas too is brilliant in confounding batsmen with movement either way without any discernible change in action. Not to forget Nuwan Zoysa who is as stingy as they come. Zoysa has worked in the shadow of superstars butwithin the Sri Lankan team we know his worth. Jayasuriya as a bowler is not an insignificant force either. All these years, Sri Lanka have been indebted to these four bowling aces. What is the best way to play them? It is something which Dravid and Chappell, and all those young and not-so-young Indian batsmen will have to find out themselves. Should they take them on or simply try to play out the quota of overs from Murali and Vaas? It would be dangerous to go with a pre-conceived notion.A lot depends on the wicket, surface, conditions and the field setting. A good coach and captain should not lose sight of the abetting factors. It was only last year when I predicted that India could win the 2007 World Cup. Since then they have slipped up dramatically. Their consistency is missing and I also believe they are ageing a bit. Look at Australia – advancing years are asking them a few tough questions too. Not that there should be question-marks about VVS Laxman and Anil Kumble’s presence in a one-day side. Without them India would have been too light on experience in Sri Lanka.Sri Lanka are nearly impregnable at home because the conditions suit their composition to the hilt. At the moment, their batsmen are a little untidy but the Tests against West Indies would ease them into a good rhythm for the triangular series. They are a good unit which would look to play to their potential against India. Somehow, they never fail to getinspired at the sight of an Indian team.

Ireland 172 and 196 (Joyce 61) beat Scotland 234 for 9 dec and 131 (McCoubrey 4-17) by three runs
Scorecard

Neil MacRae bowls Adrian McCoubrey during his devastating four-wicket opening burst © Cricket Europe

Scotland’s hopes of successfully defending their Intercontinental Cup title disappeared as they slid to a three-run defeat by Ireland at Aberdeen. The result, which will give Ireland satisfaction after their loss in last month’s ICC Trophy final, means that they are left needing a draw from their match Holland at Stormont later this month to progress to the semi-finals.Scotland’s bowlers had given them a chance of victory by bowling Ireland out for 196, leaving a modest target of 135 in 39 overs. But some poor batting, one or two dubious umpiring decisions, and a devastating four-wicket opening spell from Adrian McCoubrey which reduced Scotland to 34 for 4 proved too much to overcome.The home side were further hampered when Craig Wright was found to have suffered a broken finger, which will rule him out of Thursday’s match against Australia. Coming in at No. 9 with the score on 78 for 7, he hammered a brave 31, including two huge 6s on the trot, to take Scotland to the brink of victory only for Dewald Nel to be run out off the next delivery.Ireland resumed on 46 for 2, but for a second time their batsmen could not master the bowling, with only Dom Joyce (61) and Andre Botha (46) showing any real definace. Gregor Maiden (3 for 24), Ryan Watson (3 for 64) and Johan Nel (3 for 30) shared the spoils.”It was lots of wee things throughout the three days that did for us, not the final chase,” said Andy Moles, Scotland’s coach. “We let Ireland’s lower order get far too many runs on the first day, then we didn’t get enough ourselves in reply. And, crucially, after Craig Wright broke his finger, he didn’t bowl much. I am certain his absence from the attack cost us wickets at important times.”

The Scotsman reported that there was a bizarre start to the day when Colin Smith, Scotland’s wicketkeeper, missed the first 40 minutes of play. Smith, a policeman, was summoned to Aberdeen Sheriff Court as a witness but, fortunately for him, the hearing was abandoned as the accused overslept.

Alastair Cook, the left-handed opener from Essex, has been voted Young Cricketer of the Year by the Cricket Writers’ Club. Cook, 20, has had an excellent season for Essex so far, scoring 1216 at an average of of 55.27, including four hundreds and five fifties.Ian Bell and James Anderson have received the award in previous years, which members of the Cricket Writers’ Club have voted for every year since 1950.

Melbourne’s Telstra Dome: it will be a dead ball in the unlikely event it hits the roof © Getty Images

If the teams fail to comply with the prescribed over-rates in the ICC Super Series, the match referee is likely to take a closer look at the umpires than the bowling captain. The matches between Australia and the World XI will serve as trial ground for on-field umpires to refer all decisions, barring catches close to the ground, to the television umpire thus leading to frequent stoppages.Not only can Aleem Dar and Simon Taufel, who will umpire the first one-day-international at the Telstra Dome at Melbourne on Wednesday, seek the opinion of Rudy Koertzen, the television umpire, in decisions involving nicks and the line and the height of the ball in case of lbws, they can also, if in doubt, ask the third umpire to adjudicate no-balls.In principle, this could mean every dismissal, including bowled and clear catches, can be referred to the third umpire. “In case of the no-balls,” said a ICC spokesperson, “field umpires will go to the television umpire only if a no-ball is in the realm of possibility. In most cases, umpires are quite clear about the no-ball.” However, going by the evidence of how reluctant most umpires are to rule on the clearest of run-outs and stumpings, it is not unlikely that umpires will choose to play safe and leave the decision to the television camera.In case of lbws, umpires can not only seek a ruling on where the ball pitched, but also obtain valuable feedback in determining the height of the ball and if there was a nick. However, the third umpire will have to make up his mind by watching only the television replay and not by using Hawkeye, the ball-tracking technology that is widely used by television channels.However, even though the third umpire will acquire a critical role in the Super Series, he will still not have the powers to reverse a wrong decision or give unsolicited advice. “The umpires in the middle will continue to be supreme,” the ICC spokesperson said. “The new regulations will only empower them to make more accurate decisions.”The matter was discussed at length at a meeting between the match officials and the two captains on Tuesday. “There were quite a few issues to discuss,” said Shaun Pollock, the captain of the World XI. “We had to make sure we understood where the players stood. We need to be able to tell our players what they can expect when they take the field tomorrow.”Ricky Ponting, the Australian captain was concerned that the frequent referrals could slow down the game considerably. He said, “Potentially every decision can be referred. We will have to see how it works out. The match referee will have to take these delays into account while ruling the over-rates.”All the three one-day matches will be played under a roof which, though retractable, will stay in place for the entire duration of the match. And this raises the possibility of a new regulation in the unlikely event of the ball hitting the metal roof. In which case, it will be a dead ball.