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Somerset Cricket Board Development Officer Andrew Moulding has been out and about on his travels this week putting the finishing touches to a scheme that will see grass practice wickets in place across the county for the coming season.When I caught up with him at the Centre of Excellence at the County Ground he told me that he had just come back from visiting Weston Super Mare Cricket Club along with Tony Davies, who is the vice chairman of the Somerset CCC Board, and chairman of the Cricket Development committee where they had been in discussion with club officials.Mr Moulding told me: "We are looking to provide top quality grass practice nets in conjunction with artificial net facilities in all parts of the county, and we have been to Weston super Mare Cricket Club to put the final piece of the jigsaw into place."He continued: "For the last few years the ECB have been saying that players practice on artificial wickets indoors all winter, and very often on artificial wickets again in the summer, but what they also need is to have grass practice wickets to complete their match preparation particularly in early season."The new facility at Weston super Mare Cricket Club means that grass practice wickets will be available in all of the four `corners’ of the countyat Glastonbury C.C.in the south east, at Taunton C.C. in the south west, at Writhlington School in the north east and now in the north west at Weston.The Somerset Cricket Development Officer concluded: "Somerset is very much in agreement with the E.C.B. thinking and we are absolutely delighted that high quality grass wickets are now available throughout the county and will be able to play a significant part of cricketers early season practice."

Leicestershire took total command of their CricInfo Championship clash in Canterbury courtesy of Kent old-boy Vince Wells.Born just nine miles away in Whitstable and weaned on Kent League cricket, Wells was released by his home county ten years ago and made them pay for that decision yesterday by scoring 138 in his side’s mammoth total of 612 for eight declared.Kent’s bad day turned worse soon after tea when, after reaching 55 without loss, they lost seven wickets for 100 runs inside 29 overs.Rob Key, Ed Smith and Matthew Walker, all enjoying purple patches and with 500-plus runs to their names, were all guilty of getting out when well set against Leicestershire’s veteran new ball attack of Phil DeFreitas and Devon Malcolm.By the close Kent had limped to 155 for seven, still 457 in arrears and 308 short of avoiding the follow-on at 463.It was all a far cry from the first four sessions of the match when Leicestershire’s under-achieving batsmen made hay on a good pitch.Making the most of short boundaries and a bland home attack, five Foxes’ batsmen passed 50 while Ben Smith and Wells reached deserved hundreds as they posted their highest total against Kent and the highest of the Championship season to date.Indeed Wells was on course for the fastest century of the summer in reaching 99 in 95 balls, but needed another nine deliveries to reach his landmark that included 17 fours and a six.Enjoying his return to his former home ground, Wells played powerful drives and pulls, but revealed deft touches with occasional late glances and three successive fours against off-spinner James Hockley, all from reverse sweeps.It was Leicestershire’s day and Kent will need a minor miracle now to prevent them from securing their second Championship win on the trot.

Alasdair Gold has dropped a worrying injury update concerning Tottenham Hotspur left-back Sergio Reguilon.

What’s the latest?

In a recent post on Twitter, the football.london journalist relayed the comments made by Antonio Conte following Spurs’ 5-1 victory over Newcastle United on Sunday, in which the 52-year-old revealed that the defender was left out of his matchday squad as a result of picking up a knee injury in training on Friday.

Regarding the Spain international’s knock, Gold tweeted: “Conte: ‘On Friday we lost Reguilon for an injury in his knee and we have found a solution to play with Matthew [Doherty] on the left and Emerson [Royal] on the right. It means there is great work behind the tactical and physical aspect.'”

Conte will be fuming

Considering that Tottenham’s only other natural left-back, Ryan Sessegnon, is currently sidelined due to injury, the fact that Reguilon has now also sustained a knock is sure to have left Conte fuming.

Indeed, while neither the Englishman nor the Spaniard have been in the best form of their careers so far this season – with Sessegnon averaging a SofaScore match rating of 6.56 over his nine Premier League appearances and Reguilon averaging a SofaScore match rating of 6.92 over his 23 league outings – both players being unavailable will undoubtedly come as a huge blow to the Italian’s hopes of securing a top-four finish come the end of the campaign.

As such, while the seriousness of the 25-year-old’s knock has not yet been revealed, Conte will certainly be hoping that the left-back will not be ruled out for the remainder of the season, as Reguilon could yet go on to play an important role in helping his side secure Champions League football next term.

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AND in other news: Conte can axe “unacceptable” Spurs flop by landing the “biggest signing of the window”

	Imtiaz Patel will continue with his present role as CEO of the South African media organisation SuperSport © International Cricket Council

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 Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) Working Committee is to meet on June 12 to discuss various issues. The meeting is expected to discuss and rafity the decisions taken at the Technical Committee meeting of the board, scheduled for June 4 in Bangalore.”The Working Committee will meet on June 12 in Delhi,” said Niranjan Shah, the BCCI secretary, from Rajkot. The meeting of the national selection committee, fixed for the same day at Bangalore, is likely to be put off by a day. The selection committee will pick the team for the forthcoming tours of Ireland, Scotland and England.Importantly, the Working Committee is expected to ratify the decision taken by the Coach Selection Committee, who are also due to meet on June 4 in Bangalore. However, Prof. Ratnakar Shetty, the BCCI’s chief administrative officer, said the agenda for the meeting had not yet been fixed.The seven-member committee to appoint a new coach, is headed by Sharad Pawar, the BCCI president, and includes three former India captains – S Venkataraghavan, Sunil Gavaskar and Ravi Shastri.This would be the first meeting of the Working Committee since it last met in Mumbai in April to review India’s dismal performance in the World Cup.

Brian Lara in action in the first ODI © The Nation

Look out for a stand-in West Indies captain very soon. That’s because Brian Lara doesn’t plan to play the entire seven-match ODI series against Zimbabwe.Lara, who turns 37 today, made the revelation when pressed on the thinking that led to the West Indies going into the first two matches without an appointed vice-captain, a move which he tried to downplay.”I sense that you’re going to see a [deputy] captain on the field before the series is over because I don’t think I have intentions of playing all seven [matches],” Lara said. “By then you would know who the vice-captain is. If you just hold strain a bit . . . it should not be a great topic at this present time. It will solve itself.”Lara, the multiple world record holder who is in his third reign as West Indies captain, compared the situation to when he first came into the team in 1991 when he said there was no appointed second-in-command. In the circumstances that currently exist, if Lara has to leave the field, he will appoint someone to take over.His decision to skip a few matches is a continuation of recent trends in which he has cut back on his appearances in the more physically demanding limited-overs game.”I’m 37 years of age. I want to play both forms of the game. I want to play in the World Cup, but I would also like to play Test cricket against India, Pakistan and whoever else,” he said. “The main thing is if we can rotate a bit and not necessarily before a series is decided. If we play against India and we happened to be three up, you are going to see a chance where guys are given a rest.”Lara also defended his decision to bat at No. 6 in both matches over the weekend at the Antigua Recreation Ground. “Even if we are playing against Australia, the top four should dominate any batting line-up,” he said. “I want to see the likes of Ramdin, Bravo, Smith, Samuels get the opportunity. It is about making sure that everybody gets a couple hits and no one is hogging the batting.”This West Indies team is not going to play names anymore. We’re going to play to a plan. We’re going to have positions, we’re going to have requirements for those positions it doesn’t matter who it is.”Asked how he would respond to those who feel that as the leading batsman in the team, his place in the order should be among the top four, Lara said it was time others in the team took on more responsibility.”I’m going to have my responsibility, if it’s batting, at whatever position in the order,” Lara said. “But I still feel we are playing with 11 guys. You might have one player who is supposed to be the premier batsman in the team but one of the main things this team is lacking is in-house competition.”Whoever we consider to be the best batsman, I want to see people competing with him. In my early days in the 1990s, there was Desmond Haynes, Richie Richardson, but at the end of any series I wanted to be counted as the top batsman in that series. That’s what has to be created here.”

India had reached a World Cup final for the first time since 1983. Quirky statisticians were quick to point out that India had never lost after making it this far. From the quirky to the ridiculous, there were others who put forth more compelling reasons for India to win the World Cup. For every tournament since 1979, the Cup has been held aloft alternatively by leftand right-handed captains, they proposed. In 1979, it was Clive Lloyd, a left-hander; in 1983 – Kapil Dev, the right-hander; in 1987 – Allan Border; in 1992 – Imran Khan; in 1996 – Arjuna Ranatunga; in 1999 – Steve Waugh. Hence it only followed that this was the year of Ganguly, they insisted.There were others, even more scientific, who believed that India would win because Australia came into the final with a 16-match winning streak in one-dayers. When the all-conquering Aussies achieved the same landmark in Tests, India stopped them dead in their tracks in Kolkata and went on to win the series. On that occasion – and I was lucky enough to watch every ball amidst the booing and baying of Kolkata fans at Eden Gardens – VVS Laxman played a flawless 281, an innings of a lifetime, stealing the match and soon after the series away from the Australians.When Indian fans congregated at the Wanderers in Johannesburg, they were about to witness yet another once-in-a-lifetime innings. Amidst the flag-waving, emotion-swelling, partisan Indian crowd, Ricky Ponting played his very own version of the ‘innings-of-a-lifetime’ theme song. The man who once threatened to throw all his talent away being the lovable rogue; the drunkard who got into a brawl at the Bourbon and Beefsteak in Sydney’s King’s Cross, now reformed and re-invented, showed why Australia can afford to let go of Stephen Waugh.An innings that will serve as a perfect illustration of one of cricket’s favourite terms – ‘a captain’s innings’ – saw Ponting bludgeon an unbeaten 140 off 121 balls, taking Australia to a mammoth 359/2 in 50 overs.Out walked Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar.Just 5′ 3″ in his socks, the little man would have been further weighed down by the burden of expectation that a country of more than a billion placed on its heroes.There’s simply no way you can be expected to chase 360 against Australia in a World Cup final. Even with over 12,000 one-day runs and 34 centuries behind you, you’ll be hard pressed to live up to expectations.All India clung on to hope.If only more of India had read that evocative poem that Ernest Lawrence Thayer wrote as far back as 1888. While baseball might be a far cry from cricket, it’s worth visiting ‘Casey at the Bat.’

Forget McGrath, write off Lee, there’s always Tendulkar, thought the Indian fans.India just need Sehwag to fire, Kaif to run, Dravid to steady and Ganguly to persevere. But first and foremost, Tendulkar, for he will deliver the knock out punch.

So goes the poem that will tell you that there was as much expected of men before as there is of Tendulkar now.With mean McGrath standing at the top of his run, Tendulkar took watchful guard, establishing exactly where his off stump was and where the gaps in the field were.

Just as Sachin was forced to wait for the loose ball, the legendary Casey bided his time. Tendulkar managed an awkward pull off the fourth ball of the game. Not quite like Casey, though, who had haughtily watched two strikes go by, waiting for the right pitch to strike glory with.Soon the time for Tendulkar to stamp his authority on the game arrived.

At the same time that Mumbai mourned, Kolkata cussed and Delhi despaired, you could be sure that the celebrations went over the top from the Darling Harbour in Sydney’s harbour foreshore and Southbank in Melbourne, from little Byron Bay in New South Wales to King’s Park in Perth.A mere miscued pull was all it took, for Tendulkar’s World Cup final to land in McGrath’s waiting hands. While other batsmen may have tried hard, India’s dream ended then and there.Spare a thought for the man himself. After scoring 673 runs in the tournament and fuelling India’s efforts, he might still be remembered for failing in the final. And cruelly enough, If India don’t reach a World Cup final for the rest of Tendulkar’s career, he will have to live with four runs in a major loss as his best effort in a World Cup final.Spare a thought for Casey, spare two for Sachin.

Queensland Cricket (QC) will call for more international games to be played at The Gabba stadium when the redevelopment there is completed early in 2005.Peter Beattie, Queensland’s prime minister, announced that the final segment of the stadium was on course to be finished early next year, adding 5000 seats and boosting the ground’s capacity to 42,000.Damien Mullins, Queensland Cricket’s chairman, welcomed the announcement, saying it should pave the way for more international matches. “In light of this decision, QC looks forward to building a persuasive case for more international cricket to be played at the venue in the future,” he said. “The new capacity of 42,000 puts The Gabba on a par with the Sydney Cricket Ground and ensures that Brisbane more than holds its own with the established major cricket venues in Sydney and Melbourne.”Cricket Australia controls the scheduling of international matches, but we believe there will be strong arguments in The Gabba’s favour to increase the number of international games played here.”Mullins said he hoped The Gabba would see more international action, with the stadium due to be completed in time for South Africa’s scheduled tour of Australia in 2005-06. The ground usually hosts one Test and two limited-overs internationals each year.The record attendance for a one-day match at The Gabba is 35,761, for the game between Australia and South Africa on January 20, 2002.Construction is due to begin in September and is expected to be completed in time for the start of the next Australian Rugby League season. In the redevelopment, the social club in the south-eastern corner of the ground will be demolished, allowing the last segment of the stand to be built, completing the stadium’s full circle. Additional corporate suites and dining facilities, better team-bus access, and automated turnstiles will also be built.

Replica West Indies kits are not on sale at the Cricket World Cup 2003 in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Kenya because of the licensing arrangements in place for the event.Acting chief executive officer of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB), Roger Brathwaite, said that Admiral, the British manufacturers of the West Indies’ kit for the tournament, had an agreement through the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) licensing agent to supply replica West Indies kits to the British market, but could not export to South Africa."The WICB, through Admiral, submitted and received approval on the kit design from the ICC, but if the South African licensee has decided not to market a replica of the West Indies kit then there is very little we can do," remarked Brathwaite."A South African company, Picto Busby, has the exclusive replica kit licence for the territory of South Africa for all participating teams at the tournament, but the licence our manufacturers hold from the ICC does not permit them to sell replica West Indies kit in South Africa."Brathwaite was glad to hear that the West Indies replica kit was the most sought after next to the hosts’, but greatly disappointed that cricket fans attending the tournament have had no luck purchasing the gear."We have spoken to our manufacturers about the challenge and they will contact their South African licensee, who also kits out the South African team, to see if there is anything that could be done," said Brathwaite, whose substantive post is chief marketing executive."Unfortunately, they have told us that it is too late for any fresh manufacturing and the decision concerning any stock risk for the territory of South Africa is down to Picto Busby and beyond their and, possibly, our control."Brathwaite noted the WICB was investigating the possibility of providing the 2003 replica kit through its website, www.windiescricket.com , and for the Cable & Wireless 2003 Series between West Indies and Australia.

Mudassar Nazar Photo © CricInfo

Full marks to the Pakistanis and to the authorities. Pakistanis – for keeping the mighty Australians at bay and the authorities – for keeping the even mightier Pakistani fans under better control.However, I can’t help but admire the Australians, whose sheer tenacity saw them coming back at Pakistan again and again. Such was their determination that Pakistan, despite scoring a mammoth 290, could not sit back and relax even for a moment.

Wasim Akram clubs a four off Symonds bowling Photo © CricInfo

Equally, though not laudable, was the Pakistani fans’ determination, which didn’t allow the security people to sit back and watch the thrilling events taking place out in the middle. They probed and probed, succeeding once during the Pakistan innings to have their presence felt, yet that was all they were going to get. For the security people at last realised they needed to handle the fans firmly.For me, that part of the match was really crucial – the one during which the mob tried to dictate terms. Pakistan were cruising along at 250 for 5 in the 45th over and could’ve gone on, but they lost their concentration after that unwarranted break after a firecracker was thrown on.Had it not been for Wasim Akram, with his little cameo, I am sure the score would have been much less, and with the Aussies always as determined as they are, the outcome of the match might have been what these very Pakistani fans surely would not have wanted.

Saleem Elahi sweeps the ball towards the boundary on the way to scoring his fifty Photo © AFP

Quite amazingly, Saleem Elahi, despite all his past failings with moving balls, top scored for Pakistan. Although not the best in terms of style and elegance, his was an innings of concentration and focus and one that may have thrown the team management into a dilemma. I wonder what Pakistan’s playing XI for the final will be, with Inzamam fully fit and Afridi also around?I think, after today’s knock, it would be unfair to leave Elahi out, and, with Inzamam coming in for Faisal Iqbal, we might have to swallow the bitter pill of not playing Afridi. However, the final decision lies with the management, while I sort out my problems here in Sri Lanka.Back to the game: I think everyone contributed in this excellent victory. The only worry I have is Saeed Anwar’s form. I wonder, how many more times he’ll throw his wicket away after getting good starts. Instead of learning from his mistakes, he seems to be repeating them. He really needs to consider how the team’s going to be affected by his recklessness. Come on Saeed, its time to wake up!I had always an inkling these Australians would fight till the very end, and that’s exactly what they did. Despite losing wickets, at more or less regular intervals, they kept coming back and it wasn’t over till the ‘fat lady sang’.Waqar Younis proved yet again how tough he is. Three wickets in his first 4-over spell and if that wasn’t enough, three more in the second, six in all and 13 in two back-to-back matches is amazing stuff. I don’t find words to describe his devotion to the cause of the team. He was just brilliant. Well done Waqar, keep it up!

Saqlain Mushtaq and Rashid Latif are overjoyed at the dismissal of Gilchrist Photo © CricInfo

The Australians, on their part, proved more than worthy opponents. Gilchrist played one of the greatest of knocks I have seen for some time and that too despite the fact that wickets were tumbling at the other end. I do believe, had he stayed there for five or six more overs, the match would have been over within 40 and in Australia’s favour. Believe me, I let out a great sigh of relief when Saqlain cut him short at 70.Now for the final, it will be an entirely new game. Toss would yet again be crucial but we must not lose heart in case luck deserts Waqar after a series of consecutive toss wins. For batting first at Lord’s is not always as rewarding as one might think. The example of WC’99 is there to ponder over. What did Wasim Akram gain after winning the toss and batting first?The key thing is, we must make an all out team effort at Lord’s and especially field well. And, at least I wouldn’t mind if our team prays for an England win in the last league match at the Oval, so that the Aussie morale takes one more dip. I don’t think it’s a bad idea or is it?

Ed:Mudassar Nazar is a veteran of 76 tests and 122 ODIs. He is currently the chief coach of Pakistan’s National and Regional Cricket Academies. In view of the overwhelming interest of users in CricInfo’s articles, we have invited him to write for us.