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Yuvraj Singh has expressed delight at the prospect of wearing the India jersey again during the three Twenty20 Internationals in Australia, but felt there was a personal sense of disappointment for not making the cut for the ODIs.”A fresh start or a new beginning is the way I’d put it. I wouldn’t say my India career is going to start all over again. It began 15 years ago,” Yuvraj told . “To be honest, I’m a bit disappointed that I am back only in the T20I squad, not for the ODIs. However, there’s happiness that I’m back after quite a while. The disappointment is personal and I hope I’m not misunderstood and that nothing at all is taken out of context.”Yuvraj, who last played for India in the final of the 2014 World T20, said the time spent away from the team was extremely difficult, but the itch to regain his berth in the national team kept driving him. However, he admitted comebacks were never easy, especially due to the “compressed nature of T20s.””Yes, conditions in Australia are challenging and the T20 format is even more demanding. It’s such a compressed affair that there’s little time to adjust,” he said. “The 20-over game isn’t easy. That said, I’m positive, for that’s the way I am. I have the confidence to try and do my best in the opportunities I get. The dressing room needs to have belief in me. I’m sure I’ll get the support I need.”With scores of 93, 36, 36, 78 not out and 98 in his five outings, Yuvraj is Punjab’s highest run-getter in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy, where his team have won five out of their six matches to secure a quarter-final berth. Yuvraj underlined his domestic form as the key factor in his comeback.”I’ve been out of cricket for more than one-and-half years and it’s difficult to motivate yourself to play domestic cricket but that was the only way forward. I’ve been playing first-class cricket from 1996-97 and first played for India in 2000.”But, yes, I knew I needed a good tournament. I needed to give off my best. I’ve always valued domestic cricket. Certainly now, I hope I can continue in this form (for Punjab) in the knockout stage. Besides getting the runs, I also feel good from within.”India play three T20Is in Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney before returning home for a three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka. That will be followed by the Asia Cup T20 in the build up to the World T20 in March-April.

Holders Ireland will be eyeing maximum points when they take on United Arab Emirates in the ICC Intercontinental Cup tie at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi starting on Thursday.A win will see Ireland, currently on 29 points from two games, jump to second spot in the table. Kenya are leading with 66 points, but have already played two additional games, so have second-placed Namibia, who have 48 points from four matches.Although UAE are out of reckoning for a spot in the final, Trent Johnston, the Ireland captain, says his team won’t be taking their opponents lightly. “It will not be a walk in the park for us and we will have to play really well to collect maximum points which is our main objective,” he said. “UAE have been unlucky in the last few games and they have a pretty experienced side.”It will not be easy and we will have to grab every opportunity that comes our way. The best way of winning the game will be to dominate the proceedings from the very first session and that is what we plan to do.”Johnston was confident of the squad overcoming any obstacles. “Obviously, change of weather conditions is one while the other is that we are playing a first-class game as a unit for the first time in almost nine months though most of the boys have been playing competitive cricket in South Africa recently.”But we are experienced enough to cope with these challenges and as I said earlier, we know what it requires to win a tournament. Adaptability and adjustment to different conditions is part of that package.”Boyd Rankin, the tall pace bowler, is out of action after suffering a stress fracture in the foot last December. Rankin, who has signed for Warwickshire, is currently remodelling his action under the supervision of Allan Donald, the county’s bowling coach.”Rankin’s absence is a blow because he gets you key wickets,” Johnston said. “But on the other side of the coin, it is a good opportunity for a youngster to step up and try to avail the chance by putting up a good performance.”Greg Thompson, the Ireland Under-19 captain at the recently-concluded World Cup in Malaysia, and his team-mate Paul Stirling have been included in the squad.UAE, on the other hand, are looking to salvage some confidence after a disappointing campaign so far. “If we put up good performances and manage to pull a victory in one of our last two matches, we will be able to restore some of our battered pride and confidence,” Saqib Ali, the UAE captain, said. “Ireland are the reigning champion and it will not be easy for us but at this level, you can’t expect easy games.”We are in a developing and rebuilding phases and every match that we play has a lot of value in terms of players’ development.”Squads
UAE Saqib Ali (capt), Arshad Ali, Khurram Khan, Nizel Fernandes, Shadeep Silva, Fahad Alhashmi, Shoaib Sarwar, Sameer Zia, Zahid Shah, Naeemuddin Aslam, Ahmed Raza, Muhammed Aman Ali, Obaid Hameed, Amjad Ali, Amjad Javed, Rashid Khan, Qasim Zubair and Abdul Rehman.Ireland Trent Johnston (capt), William Porterfield, Andre Botha, Alex Cusack, Philip Eaglestone, Thinus Fourie, Gary Kidd, Dave Langford-Smith, Kyle McCallan, Eoin Morgon, Kevin O’Brien, Niall O’Brien, Paul Stirling, Reinhardt Strydom, Greg Thompson.

The ICC will pay seven full-member boards $10 million over the next eight years, as part of the Test Cricket Fund announced during last year’s Big Three takeover of cricket’s governing body. Other than the BCCI, ECB and CA, the remaining full-member boards will each receive $1.25 million annually, beginning January 2016.The latest figures indicate that each member receiving the Test Match Fund stands to gain $10 million over eight years. This is less than the figure of $12.5 million over eight years announced by ECB president and ICC executive committee member Giles Clarke in February 2014 as each nation’s Test Cricket Fund package.The ICC plans to make its first Test Cricket Fund payment of $600,000 in early January, before disbursing another $650,000 to the ‘small seven’ member boards in July. Payments are expected to follow this biannual pattern until 2023.The ICC had originally announced that the Test Cricket Fund aimed to “encourage and support Test match cricket” outside the Big Three nations. As Boards have already entered bilateral touring agreements until 2023, there appears to be limited scope to enhance their Test schedules using the Test Cricket Fund payments.It appears more likely that the money will be used to underwrite loss-making tours. For example, Sri Lanka Cricket loses money on Test tours featuring all nations except the Big Three and Pakistan. The Test Cricket Fund would help it recover losses from home tours such as the recent visit by West Indies, which is estimated to have cost SLC about $648,000.The Test Cricket Fund had been among the chief incentives offered to the smaller boards, as the BCCI, ECB and CA sought support for their takeover of the ICC in January and February last year. During that time, Clarke, then ECB’s chairman, had said in an interview with : “The ICC has agreed to establish a Test Match Fund of $12.5 million per country over eight years – available to all except England, India and Australia – which will allow those countries which find Test cricket difficult to sustain economically the opportunity to continue to stage Test matches.”The ICC has not yet announced the funds’ terms of usage, or how it will hold boards accountable to the objective of encouraging Test cricket.

Omar Khan, West Indies’ manager, is confident that his team will stand up to be counted when they take on the visiting Australians in the first of three Tests starting on May 22 in Kingston.”What I have noticed about the players is that they are maturing and this gives me confidence going into such a tough series,” Khan said. “We are cognisant of the fact that we are coming up against the world champions, Australia. We know our position in the rankings and theirs, and the players know what is expected of them.”West Indies go into the series on the back of an impressive performance against Sri Lanka – they drew the two-Test series 1-1 before claiming the three-match ODI series 2-0, with one match being abandoned due to rain.An 18-man West Indies squad is currently engaged in a six-day training camp which began on May 12. “The players have been put under intense training,” Khan said. “They have done a lot of physicals and are now moving on to some nets work.””They understand that they need to be at their very best to compete against Australia and have accepted that,” he said. “The guys have also been very interactive in the team-building sessions, and this is good for us. What we are trying to achieve is a strong, united bunch and we are well on our way to achieving this.”Following a two-day practice match against an Antiguan XI which brings the camp to a close, the national selectors will choose a 14-man squad that will fly to Kingston on Sunday to prepare for the first Test.

Fast bowler Adam Milne has joined the influx of New Zealand players to English county cricket after agreeing a deal with Essex for a stint in the NatWest T20 Blast.Subject to his visa being approved, Milne will be at Essex for seven matches in the second half of the T20 campaign. He will join fellow countrymen Jesse Ryder and Matt Quinn, the latter who has a British passport, to make it a trio of New Zealanders at the club.

New Zealand internationals in county cricket

Matt Henry and Mitchell Santner (Worcestershire)
Brendon McCullum and Mitchell McClenaghan (Middlesex)
Hamish Rutherford (Derbyshire)
Jesse Ryder, Adam Milne (Essex)
Ross Taylor (Sussex)
Neil Wagner (Lancashire)
Kane Williamson (Yorkshire)

Chris Silverwood, the Essex head coach, said. “Adam is a young bowler with plenty of international experience already. He is exactly what we were looking for from an overseas player, with his real pace offering something different to our attack.”Milne said: “I’m extremely excited to have the opportunity to join Essex and help contribute to a successful NatWest T20 Blast. Essex is a club with such a fantastic history and I look forward to wearing the Eagles logo with pride and making an impact to help bring the T20 Blast silverware to Chelmsford”Milne, who is capable of pushing the speedgun over 90mph but has had an injury-hit career so far, has played 14 T20s for New Zealand, talking 18 wickets at 20.83 with an economy rate of 7.35. He was also part of the New Zealand squad at last year’s World Cup, playing until the quarter-final stage when he picked up a heel injury.New Zealand are now not far off providing a full playing XI in county cricket following a rush of recent signings, including the marquee signature of Brendon McCullum with Middlesex.

Australia’s tour of Pakistan may have hit another roadblock with word that Darren Lehmann, the Australian Cricketers Association (ACA) president, will not send a delegate on a pre-tour security inspection of Pakistan due to safety concerns.Australia’s scheduled tour has already been shortened and, if it goes ahead, will begin later this month, but further bombings in Pakistan over the weekend have heightened safety fears.ACA chief executive Paul Marsh had been scheduled to join Cricket Australia representatives in Pakistan this month to decide if its players can visit safely, but Lehmann has said that would not happen. “We’re not sending Paul Marsh on the pre-tour visit and that’s basically because we as a board don’t feel comfortable sending one of our employees there at the moment,” Lehmann said.”At the moment our advice is not to, and I don’t feel comfortable sending anybody to be perfectly honest, and the [players’] board doesn’t.”There’s been a lot of things going on in Pakistan. Hopefully it settles down, but only time will tell.”Lehmann believed CA would go ahead with plans for the tour unless it is made clear the trip cannot proceed, and said the players would require plenty of assurances to change their minds. “On Wednesday we’ll meet with the government departments and see what is really out there,” he said. “We’ll get our advice from them, security issues, any other problems we have with Pakistan. I think they’d need a lot of assurances along the way.”CA will meet with officials from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Canberra on Wednesday to receive advice on the current security situation in Pakistan.CA’s spokesman Peter Young said it was too early to tell if the latest bombings would affect the tour. “We will sit down with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and take a formal briefing from them on the situation in Pakistan and the likely situation in the coming weeks,” Young said. “We’ll continue to move through that formal process. We’re not going to pre-empt the outcome of that process until we have gone through the whole thing.”

LAHORE – In a repeat of the Asian Test Championship final two years ago at Dhaka, Pakistan and Sri Lanka are to commence the fight for continental supremacy here at the Gaddafi Stadium. In this second version of the ATC, the Lankans, tamed in 1999 by a whopping innings and 175 runs, are keen to make amends this time round and inscribe their name on the trophy. But the Pakistanis are equally resolute in not letting the Asian title out of their grasp.Despite watertight security, which both Waqar Younis and Sanath Jayasuriya said they weren’t really concerned about, Pakistan and Sri Lanka are arguably the two form teams of the sub-continent. And that reflects in the demeanour of Waqar and Jayasuriya. They sounded coolly confident of having resources to outgun the other. Both had reasons to be upbeat, their confidence stemming from the string of victories each of the sides had notched.After an unsteady spell, the Lankans are going through a purple patch, They have won eight back to back Tests, and by heavy margins to boot. At home, they’ve not just beaten their opponents, they’ve indeed humiliated them, none able to negotiate with Muttiah Muralitharan with any measure of confidence. And when rarely Murali didn’t get amongst the wickets in a big way, it was Chaminda Vaas or Dilhara Fernando who did the opposition in.It’s not just Murali’s bowling that has alone spelt doom on the opponents. It is the Lankan stroke makers who have made 500 or more in the first innings of almost every encounter in this remarkable winning sequence. And the Lankan stroke makers haven’t just been piling up runs, they made them at a brisk rate too and then to let loose their bowlers on the opposition with plenty of time at their disposal.

However, venturing out, this is going to be a real Test for the Lankans. And the Pakistanis aren’t making things easier for them. To ‘defang’ Muralitharan, the chief architect of many a Lankan win (and also as part of an effort to make wickets at home which afford seam, pace and bounce), the wicket here is green and is certain to assist Pakistan’s pace attack, which despite Akram’s absence remains potent enough.Pakistan is thus likely to go into the match with a pace battery of four, in skipper Younis, Shoaib Akhtar, Mohammad Sami and Abdul Razzaq, the all-rounder who is in equally fine fettle with the bat these days. In the circumstances, off-spinning ace Saqlain Mushtaq may be left out, with his understudy Shoaib Malik edging his way in. Somehow the Pakistani think tank is enthused with the idea that Malik can bolster the upper order, where there is a vacancy with Anwar still nursing his injured right wrist.So in all probability, Malik would accompany Taufeeq Umar to open the innings with Shahid Afridi batting down the order.Despite Saqlain not playing, Pakistan’s bowling attack is really good enough to probe the Lankans with pace and venom, with Malik and Afridi providing variety in spin.Actually it is not the Pakistan bowling which remains a cause for concern to the team management. It is the batting, which has a tendency to be brittle. Yet, while the bowlers deserve all credit for the revival in their fortunes, the batting too has tried to pull its weight by contributing well over 400 runs in each of the first innings of the last six Tests, all of which were won by Pakistan, five of them quite convincingly.Pakistan would be looking up to their mainstay in batting, vice-captain Inzamam-ul-Haq to rediscover his touch. Not having fired for a couple of series, he indeed is overdue for runs.Even otherwise, Pakistan’s batting doesn’t lack much in terms of talent and class; it is the application that has been a gray area.All said and done, with both sides fiercely determined to maintain their respective winning sprees, and both having enough resources at their disposal to follow their dream, this Asian final is likely to be a highly absorbing contest.Teams (from):
Pakistan TeamSri Lanka Team

The ICC’s search for a new CEO has been dealt an embarrassing blow with the news that Imtiaz Patel, who was offered the job two weeks ago, has “withdrawn his interest” in the position. The decision was conveyed by Patel, currently CEO of the South African media organisation SuperSport, to the ICC’s president-elect David Morgan on Sunday and announced on Monday.The development means the ICC will have to once again cast its net to find a successor to Malcolm Speed, the incumbent since 2001 who steps down from the role after this year’s ICC Annual Conference, which will take place between June 29 and July 4. An ICC statement said the committee charged with identifying a successor – comprising Morgan, ICC president Ray Mali, vice-president Sharad Pawar and the chairman of Cricket Australia, Creagh O’Connor – will now reconvene.”My family and I have reflected deeply on the wonderful opportunity which the ICC presented to me to fulfill such an important role in a sport which is in my blood,” Patel said. “After considering my position carefully, I have, however, resolved to remain in my beloved country, South Africa, and continue in my challenging and fulfilling role as chief executive officer of SuperSport International.”Patel was announced Speed’s successor on March 17, though the ICC failed to seek Patel’s consent for the post. The next day, Patel said he would be “considering my position very carefully during the coming weeks” and a spokesman for SuperSport told Cricinfo he had been offered the job but was weighing his options.”We are obviously disappointed that Imtiaz has chosen to withdraw his interest, having regarded him highly,” Morgan said. “However, the fact that Imtiaz has withdrawn does not mean that, by default, we will be left with a candidate who is, in any way, inferior to him.”In fact, we have been fortunate to have several high calibre candidates on the shortlist, all of whom bring something slightly different to the table,” Morgan said. “The role of ICC CEO, while challenging, represents a huge opportunity for the successful candidate. It is an opportunity for that person to help forge the future of our great game at a time of huge innovation and excitement.”We remain committed to securing the services of the right candidate and we anticipate being able to complete that task in the very near future.”

The USA Cricket Association elections are on hold, although this does not appear to have been conveyed to those involved in the process.Chris Dehring, the independent third party appointed by the ICC to try to find a resolution to the ongoing struggle for control of the USACA, managed to get a new constitution approved but the elections that were meant to follow within 30 days have already become embroiled in controversy.It is believed that Dehring will appoint an external independent auditor to oversee the elections and this means that they not take place until March at the earliest.Since the announcement of the yes vote for the new constitution, the USACA has yet again not uttered a word in public. Some regions have held their elections while others appear to be uncertain how to proceed.New York Region and Central West have already announced their regional board and their representatives to USACA.

Shane Warne has called the return match between the Rajasthan Royals and the Delhi Daredevils a “sweet revenge”. Last time the two sides met, Delhi had walloped Rajasthan by nine wickets. That match was the first for both teams in the tournament.”I am happy with the team’s victory, sitting on top of the table,” Warne said.Warne also praised the all-round efforts of compatriot Shane Watson, who took two wickets and scored 74 off 40 balls in Rajasthan’s three-wicket win against Delhi in Jaipur.Watson’s innings, according to Warne, was the turning point of the match. “His innings was perhaps the best in the tournament,” Warne said. “It was most valuable and brilliant innings.” Rajasthan were 15 for 2 in five overs when Watson came out to bat. He added 71 with Graeme Smith and fell when Rajasthan needed only seven more to get their seventh IPL win and maintain their 100% record at home.Warne also apologised for his final over which went for 27 runs. Delhi were at 122 for 6 when Warne came on to bowl the 19th over. Farveez Maharoof and Tillakaratne Dilshan had taken Siddharth Trivedi for 13 runs in the previous over and they continued the onslaught against Warne. Maharoof hit him for four sixes to take Delhi to a competitive total. “Things went according to our plan till 19th over,” Warne said. “I apologise for that over. I was hit for 27 runs. We gave 20-25 runs extra to them.”But he was happy with the way his side executed the game-plan earlier in the innings. “We bowled well. Field placing was good and we were able to contain them. We had plans for [Virender] Sehwag. We bowled slow to him. Dimitri [Mascarenhas], Watson Siddharth [Trivedi] and Munaf [Patel] intentionally kept the ball slow.”Rajasthan now have a five-day break before they play the Bangalore Royal Challengers in Jaipur on Saturday.