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England have named an unchanged squad for the third Test at Old Trafford following their two-win at Edgbaston to level the series at 1-1. Chris Tremlett retains his place and England resisted the urge to call-up a second spinner despite the likelihood that the Old Trafford pitch will turn.David Graveney, the chairman of selectors, said: “Yesterday’s result was fantastic not only for everyone connected with the England team but for the game of Test cricket as a whole. Both teams will be tired after Edgbaston and it will be important for us to ensure that we recover properly and prepare well for Old Trafford.”In the past we have included two spinners in our squad for an Old Trafford Test, but on this occasion, we feel that reverse swing is likely to be as important a factor as spin and we have that option available to us within our twelve.”The pitch can also provide extra bounce for the quicker bowlers at Old Trafford, and again, we feel that we do have a number of bowlers within our party who can exploit that if required.”England squad Marcus Trescothick, Andrew Strauss, Michael Vaughan (capt), Ian Bell, Kevin Pietersen, Andrew Flintoff, Geraint Jones (wk), Ashley Giles, Matthew Hoggard, Steve Harmison, Simon Jones, Chris Tremlett

Gerald Majola, the chief executive of the United Cricket Board, faces a commission of inquiry as the fall-out from the Diteko Modise fraud scandal gathers pace. Modise, the former financial manager, was alleged to have stolen at least R7.2 million from the UCB, and it has been suggested in the South African media that Majola might have been expected to pick up on his behaviour.The UCB held their AGM at Johannesburg International Airport on Saturday and the general council, made up of the presidents of the provincial unions, decided to institute the inquiry. Their treasurer, John Blair, who has stepped down after four years in the post, was exonerated by the general council at an extraordinary meeting. "John Blair, as an honorary, non-executive office bearer," read a UCB statement, "was not and could not have been aware of the alleged theft committed by Mr Modise.”Advocate Norman Arendse SC, a UCB General Council member, will lead the commission of inquiry, and its terms of reference will be “to inquire into and report on the alleged misconduct of the CEO and members of his staff” and “to make findings and recommendations including, but not limited to, the taking of disciplinary action if necessary.”In other business at the AGM, Blair, who was replaced as treasurer by Haroon Lorgat, warned the UCB that it and its affiliates must “conform to strict financial disciplines” after a “very poor financial year”, due in the main to income from the sale of TV rights dropping from R50 million to just R14.6 million.Vuyisile Mgadle, the newly appointed Border president and Arendse, the head of Western Province cricket, took their places for the first time in the general council, with Eastern Province’s Xolani Boqwana, North-West’s Oupa Nkagiseng and Free State’s Tim Khumalo voted in as the three black African representatives.The general council will return tomorrow to discuss the new officebearers of Cricket SA (Pty) Ltd, with the heads of the six newprofessional franchises expected to be given the posts.

Sourav Ganguly may consider India the second-best team in world cricket today, but he nevertheless expects a difficult tour of Australia, and said as much to the press at Kolkata yesterday.”To be honest, it’s going to be a tough series,” Ganguly said. “It is going to be a real test of our abilities in Australia. They are a very good side and in great form. We have to lift our game to compete with them on their soil.””The Aussies are the only side ahead of us. To be honest, we are the second best team after them,” he added. “I’m pretty confident about that. My boys are experienced and have travelled throughout the world.”Ganguly also stated that India would have to “get the bowling department sorted out” but did not elaborate. He was also optimistic about his own prospects. “I’m pretty hopeful of doing well both in the Tests and one-dayers in the coming season. My hope springs from the way my team has shaped up in the last few years. I’m confident of carrying forward our success,” he said. “Winning does not depend solely on me but on the entire team. For that we have to really play well … plan well and get fit, which we are trying to do.”Reports surfaced yesterday that Ganguly had sought out Greg Chappell as a batting coach during the preparatory camp in Bangalore, but Ganguly denied them. “I have read these reports, and they are not true,” he said. “We already have John Wright who himself is a batsman.”

The AGM of the Board of Control for Cricket in India has alwaysattracted considerable attention all over the country. Weeks before themeeting, the battle lines are drawn and strategies and counterstrategies are planned in a manner that would be the envy of an armygeneral.

A lot of glamour has always been associated with the plum posts, giventhe power and prestige the game enjoys in the country and that is whysome of the leading politicians have contested for the post of thepresident. Why, in the last two decades, we have had such prominentpersonalities from this field as SK Wankhede, NKP Salve and MadhavraoScindia as board chiefs.But even given this background, the interest in the weekend’s meeting ofthe BCCI at Chennai was perhaps at an all time high. Chief attentioncentered around the high profile contest between the incumbent ACMuthiah and the challenger Jagmohan Dalmiya, a former president of theInternational Cricket Council, who interestingly had served earlier asthe BCCI secretary. Muthiah had been elected to the post in 1999 and wasexpected to win a third term, given his impressive record in tacklingamong other problems, the match fixing issue. But Dalmiya, a shrewdadministrator with a strong base, pulled off an upset by winning theelection by 17 votes to 13. Muthiah thus joined two others in recenttimes, Wankhede and BN Dutt who could not complete three years inoffice.There will be more than a few tears shed for Muthiah. His was adifficult two year period but he weathered the storm in his calm,assured, even dynamic manner, bringing to the post some of his businessacumen as a Chennai based industrialist. He had the image of a players’president and some of the projects like the graded payments scheme, thestarting of the National Cricket Academy, the rotation policy of hostinginternational matches, the appointment of a professional coach andphysio, the enhanced fee for players, and increased match fees and prizemoney for domestic tournaments were certainly positive developments. Inhis own inimitable manner, he emulated his father MA Chidambaram, whowas a popular president from 1960 to 1963.While there is cause to feel bad about Muthiah’s defeat, the positiveaspect is that the top post is now held by a person who has the image ofa dynamic, action oriented administrator.Dalmiya, a Kolkata based businessman, has already proved his skill invarious important posts during the conduct of the Reliance Cup in 1987,the Wills World Cup in 1996 and the Hero Cup in 1993. Perhaps hisbiggest contribution has been the aggressive manner in which the gamehas been marketed. He has been instrumental in selling TV rights andgetting sponsorship fees hiked many times over. Given the fact that thegame had been woefully undersold for years, Dalmiya’s bold approach waswidely welcomed and he brought into administration a refreshinglycontemporary air. The fact that he has been the ICC president is boundto have a positive impact on India’s image internationally.A well known figure in cricketing circles for over two decades now,Dalmiya, like Muthiah, is a suave gentleman who is media savvy and hasthe ability to get things done. He has certainly started his tenure onan encouraging note if his comments at the press conference at theconclusion of the meeting are any indication. One particularly liked theway he described match fixing as the “most heinous crime against one’scountry” while making it clear that there was no question of anyrelaxation of the ban on ‘guilty’ players.There will be few tears shed however for Jaywant Lele’s departure. Knownfor putting his foot in the mouth all too often, Lele lost out narrowlyon getting a fifth term as secretary. But the problem here is that hissuccessor Niranjan Shah was aligned with Muthiah and was none too happywith the latter’s defeat. But as Shah himself said “I will sit with thenew president and work in a cordial atmosphere.” That is the waydemocracy functions and it is good to see the board observe certaindemocratic norms. The picture of a smiling Muthiah congratulatingDalmiya said it all and one only hopes it points to encouraging timesahead for Indian cricket.

ScorecardSteven Finn enjoyed a Middlesex outing ahead of joining up with the England squad next week•PA Photos

Surrey’s late charge for the quarter-finals of the NatWest T20 Blast stalled at Lord’s as they lost to Middlesex by 43 runs.Surrey had gone into the game with four wins out of their last five at a venue where they had won on their previous six visits.But chasing 186 in front of a crowd of 26,000, they never recovered from losing four wickets for 33 during the six-over Powerplay.Kumar Sangakkara top-scored with 32 but Surrey now need to beat Sussex at The Oval on Friday to have any chance of qualifying as they will be relying on results elsewhere.Steven Finn picked up the key wicket of Jason Roy in the first over when the England one-day player mistimed a pull to short fine leg. Finn also had Ben Foakes held at mid-off for six and was well backed up at the other end by Mitchell McClenaghan.The New Zealander removed Steven Davies and then bowled well outside off stump and tempted Rory Burns to drive to wide mid-off.Sangakkara was Surrey’s only remaining hope and the Sri Lankan seemed to be getting into his stride when he struck off-spinner Ollie Rayner for six.But when he holed out to long-on off Neil Dexter for 32 in the 11th over and Rayner took a tumbling catch in his follow through to remove the dangerous Azhar Mahmood there was no way back for Surrey.Finn finished with 3 for 17 while Dexter’s mix of cutters and slower balls proved highly effective on a slow pitch as he took 3 for 12.Middlesex’s total of 185 for 5 was built around a third half-century in this season’s Blast for John Simpson, who top-scored with 53, and a punishing fourth wicket stand of 77 from 39 balls between Eoin Morgan and James Franklin, who plundered 40 off the 18th and 19th overs.Nick Gubbins dragged a ball onto his stumps from Jade Dernbach in the fifth over but Simpson and Dawid Malan regrouped by adding 73 from 53 balls for the second wicket.Simpson swatted the first of six sixes in the innings over mid-wicket in Dernbach’s first over and then belted three fours in a row off Sam Curran as Middlesex took 57 during the Powerplay.Zafar Ansari broke the stand when Malan failed to clear the longest boundary at long-off and Middlesex were 97 for 3 when Simpson was held at deep midwicket off Sam Curran for 53 from 43 balls with seven fours and a six.However, Middlesex maintained the momentum in the second half of their innings as Morgan and Franklin played with increasing freedom.Franklin hit four successive boundaries off Sam Curran in the 18th over before Morgan cut loose in the next, striking two sixes off Dernbach through midwicket before Franklin belted two more boundaries.The veteran Mahmood picked up both in the final over as Morgan drove to long off and Franklin was caught at deep midwicket.

Cricket Australia will push to increase the attractiveness of cricket to women following a survey showing only 36% of females watch the game “always or occasionally” on television. While cricket was the most popular sport for both sexes in the Roy Morgan poll – 50,000 Australians were surveyed – James Sutherland, the Cricket Australia chief executive, said the state and national bodies had to increase their efforts.”Drilling into the Morgan data shows that cricket, and indeed all sports, needs to do more work to win female support,” Sutherland said. AFL was the next most popular with 34% watching it while 33% voted for tennis. The overall results showed 47% of the Australians surveyed enjoyed cricket on television, 41% chose AFL and 33% picked tennis.While record numbers of people are playing the game formally in Australia, Sutherland wants to make it more accessible for women. He said Cricket Australia would look to develop Twenty20 with an eye to catching the attention of new female fans, review event presentation at venues and try to understand their specific needs. Ladies’ days have been held during the MCG Tests over the past couple of years as a way to make more people feel welcome at the game.Australia will defend the Women’s World Cup when they host the tournament in March 2009. They won the 2005 event in South Africa under the leadership of Belinda Clark, who is now the manager of the Centre of Excellence in Brisbane.

The West Indies Cricket Board is reportedly attempting to salvage the A-team tour to Zimbabwe despite being faced with players refusing to tour and confusion over the safety advice given regarding the wisdom of the trip even happening.Cricinfo has learned that Sylvester Joseph, who was originally named as captain last week, has declined the invitation to lead the side or take part. It now emerges that Daren Ganga was offered the role on Thursday and also turned it down. The latest name in the frame is Rawl Lewis.There is also increasing speculation that the West Indies Cricket Board is struggling to find enough players of a decent standard to fill the squad without it losing credibility. They are due to leave in a week and yet nobody has been named, despite daily assurances that an announcement is imminent.What is certain is that if the tour does happen, once again, as happened with the senior side before their tour of England, a West Indies team will set out with little preparation.Meanwhile, assurances from the West Indies board that CARICOM had given its blessing on player safety have been denied by Eddie Green, CARICOM’s assistant secretary general. He said that Tony Deyal, the WICB’s corporate services manager, had been told that “the Bureau of Heads the opinions were split and we need to send out a formal request to all Heads which we did two weeks ago. I have not spoken to him since and the official decison will be made on June 30.”Yesterday, Deyal told reporters that the WICB had “received a no-objection letter from … Greene”. That now seems to be incorrect, even though Bruce Aanensen, the WICB’s chief executive officer, said last weekend that a response from CARICOM had been delivered on June 13.The other documentation relied on by the WICB is from Zimbabwe Cricket and the Zimbabwe Republic Police. A source inside Zimbabwe told Cricinfo that any assurance from the police “was not only worthless but was a sick joke”. He added: “The police are the people to be afraid of, and the Zimbabwe board might not be the most objective party.”Deyal told Cricinfo that player safety was of paramount importance to the WICB and that nothing would ever be done to threaten that. He earlier said that unless WIPA passed over their documentary evidence that it would be unsafe to travel to Zimbabwe, then the tour would go ahead.”We want WIPA to send us what they have so we can make the best decision in the circumstances and that both parties can agree to it,” he said. “WIPA never sent us anything. We are anxious to get information. We have sought information from a variety of sources.”However, WIPA officials have told Cricinfo that much of the evidence they have has come from sources who do not wish to be identified as many of them fear for their own safety. In view of that, it will not be passed to the WICB for fear that it will find its way into the hands of the Zimbabwe authorities.”We are not in agreement with the tour as stated before because of concerns over players’ safety and the volatile situation in Zimbabwe,” Dinanath Ramnarine told The Nation. “That’s still our position. As far as we are concerned, the players’ safety is of paramount importance to us. We are a responsible organisation and we want to look after the interest of our members. We don’t see the benefits of the tour.””We are left to interpret the actions of WIPA to be nothing more than a play for power,” Deyal countered. That the two sides are again at loggerheads less than 24 hours after an arbitration panel, which yet again found in WIPA’s favour in a dispute with the board, stressed the need for the two parties to work together, does not bode well.

Charlie Robertson, one of Zimbabwe’s senior administrators and the head of the group of provincial chairman, has called on the ICC to send in a group of neutral observers to see for themselves what he described as “the complete joke” that cricket has become in Zimbabwe.Robertson has made several approaches to the ICC on behalf of stakeholders opposed to the board run by Peter Chingoka, but to date all have been rebuffed.”We are amazed that no representative of the ICC has been sent here on a fact-finding mission, with a mandate to meet with the cricket stakeholders, both players and administrators,” he told Cricinfo. “The ICC seems hell-bent on dealing only with the current ZC administration – which has in effect been put in place by the government’s Sports and Recreational ministry – to the exclusion of all other stakeholders. The current constitution is null and void in terms of recent developments under the guise of this ministry.”Do we now bypass the ICC? What recourse do we have? Perhaps we need to get some real cricketers here …Barry Richards, Ian Botham, Michael Holding and Sunil Gavaskar to name a few … on a fact finding mission to report back to the whole of the cricket fraternity, and the ICC.”Surely the ICC is answerable to the stakeholders and not a self-imposed hierarchy. We need to muster support from the other Test-playing nations to lobby the ICC and galvanise it into making a principled stand, without political considerations, before all our players and administrators are forever lost to the game here.””The ICC’s procedures mean we deal with one administration for each of our members, hence in this case we are dealing with ZC as they look to resolve ongoing organisational and operational issues,” an ICC spokesman explained. “This position is consistent with our processes in dealing with all our members. Another point of consistency is that we do not seek to become involved in the running of the game within individual members unless invited to do so by that member. We have made offers to go to Zimbabwe in the past, the last of them in January when Ehsan Mani [ the ICC president] wrote to Chingoka, but our policy has always been to let members run their own affairs.”Robertson countered that while the ICC continued to refuse to acknowledge the seriousness of the situation and accepted what it was being told by Zimbabwe Cricket, the game was dying.”Our cricket is a complete joke and the standards are shocking,” he shrugged. “The bottom line is we do not have anything that resembles first-class cricket. In the Mashonaland Country Districts, all 24 grounds that we have been using and maintaining are totally derelict, including Harare South, a first-class venue where we have hosted England, South Africa, West Indies and New Zealand.”And unsurprisingly, Robertson, who has publicly rowed with board chairman Peter Chingoka, slammed Zimbabwe Cricket’s leadership and claimed that morale within the board was “at an all time low”. He added: “Most people with cricketing knowledge have either resigned or been pushed out.”

On the verge of an embarassing three-day defeat, Western Province Boland’s lower order came to the rescue and put up enough runs to take a minor lead, though a heavy loss still looked likely on the fourth day.The Titans enforced the follow-on after dismissing WPBOL for 233, where Con de Lange top-scored with 87 and Alfonso Thomas mopped up the tail. Following on, WPBOL started terribly. They were soon 106 for 6 before Thami Tsolekile (77 not out) and Rory Kleinveldt (92) put on 148. Kleinveldt had bettered his high score by a long way; his previous best was 27. Quentin Friend, coming in at number nine, also passed his previous best to end the day on 42 not out. The tail had put on 219 between them and allowed WPBOL a lead of 34 going into the final day.A tough match lead to what could be a riveting final day in Blomfontein. The Lions, set a target of 291, eased themselves to 142 for 1 with Adam Bacher on 63 and Justin Ontong on 58.The Eagles had extended their overnight lead to 185 when Boeta Dippenaar was the first to go on 71. Nicky Boje was then dismissed for 51, and Free State ended on 330. The Lions then lost Steven Cook (17) early before Bacher and Ontong took control, putting their team on the road to victory. The pitch had had lost its venom and allowed Free State back into the game.The Dolphins could only add 22 runs to their overnight total of 201 for 7 as Mornantau Hayward cleaned up the tail. With a deficit of 126, the Dolphins fought back strongly, as the pace attack of Johann Louw (3 wickets), Lance Klusener (3 wickets) and Andrew Tweedie (4 wickets) demolished the Warriors. A 54 from Mark Boucher and 46 from Robin Peterson hauled the Warriors out of serious trouble. They were eventually bowled out for 165, setting the Dolphins a target of 292 runs. At close the Dolphins had moved to 28 for 1.

Bob Woolmer is looking forward to the match between India and Pakistan, who will meet in the second round of the Asia Cup, and despite describing the match as a "needle" encounter, has played down the rivalry between the two sides.”I don’t think the Pakistan players are seeking any revenge against India in the match,” said Woolmer, “But yes, they remain stunned by their home series defeat recently to the Indians and it will be a needle encounter. Obviously every time these two teams play it is a big match with a lot of emotions to it. But I think the players are looking beyond the India match in this tournament.”Pakistan and India resumed cricketing ties earlier this year after a three-year break over tensions in the disputed Himalayan state of Kashmir. India won both the one-day and the Test series.Woolmer, in his third week as Pakistan’s coach, refused to give any hints of his strategy for the second round match against India. “I can’t share the plans I have for the team with the media," he insisted, "But yes, I have set some goals for myself and the team in this tournament. Hopefully this team will get better and be more competitive.”