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Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

Brian Lara scored his second Test century against India, his second slowest innings ever for a score of 50 or more, and though it was not typically brilliant and free-flowing, it was an innings that typified his character and showed just how good a batsman he is under any circumstance. He gave up the big drive for failsafe defence, blunted rather than bludgeoned the bowling into submission and ensured that West Indies pulled off a rousing draw as the tail hung on at the death. They finished on 293 for 7, and garnered a result that they can well be proud of.Lara’s acumen was apparent early on when he decided to bat more than a foot out of his crease to the fast bowlers. This not only cut out any swing that the bowlers might be able to get, but also ensured that the umpires could barely consider giving an lbw decision in the favour of the bowler. What’s more, the bowlers were forced to alter the length they operated on, and this meant that it was Lara who controlled the proceedings.But if Lara was the epitome of control, some of his less illustrious colleagues were quite the opposite. Daren Ganga failed to pick a googly and shouldered arms, losing his off stump. Then Munaf Patel, bowling a superb line and length, pitched one up for the drive and got it to deviate just enough to take the outside edge of Ramnaresh Sarwan’s bat. Sarwan, who faced 10 nervous balls including two close lbw shouts, made just 1, completing a forgettable match where he picked up a first-ball duck in the first innings. At 52 for 3 West Indies were in deep trouble, when Lara was joined by Shivnarine Chanderpaul.Lara looked far from his best, on at least two occasions attempting to play forcing drives through the off side but only managing an inside edge past his stumps, but was skilful enough to tough it out and bring up his half-century. Just occasionally, though, the Lara magic was there for all to see – a couple of crunching cover-drives left fielders dead in their tracks, but those were exceptions in an innings characterised by watchful defence. Chanderpaul, who has been a thorn in India’s flesh on so many occasions in the past, placed a high premium on his wicket, batting with good sense and care.About an hour into the second session India finally separated Lara and Chanderpaul. The two had added 129 and were together for almost three hours, seeing off 43.4 overs. Ironically it was a rank bad ball that did the trick. Anil Kumble, who had doggedly run in over after over, sent down a full-toss outside the off stump and Chanderpaul’s eyes lit up. He attempted to smash the ball over midwicket but only managed a mis-hit that Irfan Pathan caught well at wide mid-on. Chanderpaul had made 54, and Dwayne Bravo walked out to join Lara.But Lara had made his mind up about what he wanted to do, and his powers of concentration in playing long innings are second to none in world cricket. India’s bowlers did their best to mix things up but there was simply no beating Lara’s broad bat. When the final session began, with Lara past a 100 it seemed as though he had done enough to seal the fate of this Test. But, in a late twist, Sehwag got a ball to drift in and pitch on off, and went past Lara’s sweeping bat and struck pad. Asad Rauf, the umpire, upheld an impassioned appeal and suddenly India were back in the game.Bravo had got his eye in and despite the fall of Lara’s wicket batted with authority and even a touch of panache. His down-the-wicket six over long off against Kumble was a bold stroke, coming as it did, so late in the day, when West Indies were desperately trying to hang on for a draw. But with only 10 overs left in the day Kumble struck, having Bravo caught off his pad by Yuvraj Singh at backward short-leg. Bravo’s 47 had ensured that the tail was left with only nine overs to survive.Kumble (42 overs) and Sehwag (30 overs) came in and despite weary arms and shoulders, made Denesh Ramdin and Ian Bradshaw play virtually every ball. There were plenty of shouts for lbws and close catches, and the umpires were tested as much as the batsmen, but in the end, India were left high and dry. The ball was tossed to Patel who bowled a probing over to Ramdin, and induced an outside edge only to see Dravid spill a catch that should have been taken. With barely five minutes left in the day Patel had his man, trapping Bradshaw in front of the stumps.If the rain that washed out the fourth day began the West Indian revival in this match, it was a Lara special that sealed the deal.

Daren Ganga lbw b Kumble 26 (51 for 2)
Ramnaresh Sarwan c Dhoni b Patel 1 (32 for 3)
Shivnarine Chanderpaul c Pathan b Kumble 54 (181 for 4)
Brian Lara lbw b Sehwag 120 (252 for 5)
Dwayne Bravo c Yuvraj b Kumble 47 (277 for 6)
Ian Bradshaw lbw b Patel 1 (291 for 7)

It has emerged that Worcestershire have joined the list of counties looking to sign Glamorgan’s injury-hit fast bowler Simon Jones.Jones, whose contract expires at the end of the month, has already been linked with a move to Hampshire and has held preliminary discussions with them. Glamorgan are also keen to keep him.However, Steve Rhodes, Worcestershire’s director of cricket, revealed that he had met with Jones as well. “We were given permission to speak to Simon and that is what we have done,” he told the Press Association. “We are interested in him and we wouldn’t have spoken to him if we weren’t.””Simon met with Steve on Sunday,” Worcestershire chief executive Mark Newton said. “It was an exploratory meeting and I believe it was very positive. But we have not offered Simon anything yet. We are expecting some feedback from him shortly and then we will move on from there.”It is no secret that we need quality seam bowlers and Simon is certainly one of those. But his medical history will mean that there must be an air of caution.”Jones has played little cricket since his Ashes-wining exploits in 2005. In two seasons he has managed only five Championship appearances in which he has taken two wickets at 193.00. He has continued to be dogged by knee and calf injuries and when he has played, he has not come close to being able to bowl flat out.The other factor is that Jones is no longer on an ECB central contract and so any county signing him would have to be prepared to pay all his salary, and he won’t come cheap despite his fitness record.

Queensland 0 for 8 trail South Australia 237 (Cleary 57, R Harris 55*) by 229 runs
Scorecard

South Australia relied on reviving half-centuries from the lower-order pair of Mark Cleary and Ryan Harris to take them to 237 against Queensland. The Bulls, who were 0 for 8, are trying to lift from the foot of the table and Ashley Noffke and Scott Brant gave them a chance with three wickets each.Until Cleary’s 57 and Harris’ 55 not out, the home team seemed destined to be dismissed for less than 200, but the tail-enders pushed them forward after another disappointing performance from the specialist batsmen. Graham Manou won the toss and batted and three of his batsmen went by lunch, with another four following in the second session as they limped to 7 for 100.A 76-run partnership between Cleary and Harris added some respect and Harris continued to build the total until Dan Cullen, the No. 11, went for 27. It was a strong fightback, but Queensland’s bowlers should have been happy, with Noffke taking 3 for 43 and Brant 3 for 53. Jason Gillespie, who announced his retirement during the lunch break, was one of Brant’s victims when caught by Martin Love for 1.

England received an eve-of-Test boost with the appearance of Kevin Pietersen at their practice session on Wednesday. He had been confined to his hotel room yesterday with a high temperature and was put on antibiotics.”He’s alright,” said England’s captain, Michael Vaughan. “He had a net but didn’t take part in the run-around fielding drill, but he’ll be fine to go into tomorrow’s game.”It was just a virus,” said Vaughan. “It was slightly worrying yesterday but the doctor said so long as he got his tablets down he’d be okay. Obviously it’s better for seeing him here having a bat, and a big relief for the team because he’s such a big player.”Pietersen is England’s second-highest run scorer in the series with 203 runs at an average of 50.75. He won the Man-of-the-Match award for his 134 in the second innings at Lord’s which gave England the upper hand in a drawn Test. At Trent Bridge, Pietersen was the fielder at whom Zaheer Khan waved his bat angrily during the jelly bean controversy. He was dismissed lbw by RP Singh for 13 in the first innings and 19 in the second, a short while after he evaded a head-high beamer from Sreesanth.In Pietersen’s absence, England’s penultimate practice session involved just 10 players, because the reserve seamer, Stuart Broad, had been released to play for Leicestershire in a Pro40 match at Derby. No reserve was summoned to cover for Pietersen.

Ricky Ponting scoffed at the idea that there would be any element ofcomplacency in Australia’s approach to the game against Ireland, andpredicted that the stars of the Irish team would need to perform like theynever had before to even get a whiff of an upset.”There’s no such thing as complacency in the World Cup, it is just a mediaterm,” he said. “I’ve played a lot of international cricket, I have playedalongside a lot of very good players, and I have never seen that. I lookat [Friday] as another opportunity to impose ourselves on this event andshow everyone how good a cricket team we are. We will seek to go in forthe kill.”Three of Ireland’s starting XI have roots in New South Wales – “It willmake them look forward to doing well against us” – but Ponting was certainthat little would stand between his side and the victory that willguarantee a place in the last four.”They need five or six players to play cricket like they’ve never donebefore,” he said. “Stranger things have happened. Favourites don’t alwayswin, but if they do the things that they normally do to even 85% oftheir potential, they always come off best in these situations.”Australia brushed aside Scotland and The Netherlands with contemptuousease in the group stage, and Ponting expected a similarly emphatic displayagainst a side that have been the Cinderella story of the competition. Theonly thing in Ireland’s favour is the element of surprise, with theAustralians not having a great deal of footage to review to pinpointstrengths and frailties.For Trent Johnston, the Irish captain who watched as a fan when Australiastumbled on home soil in 1992, it will be a match to savour. “If you can’tget yourselves up for a game against Australia, then you should not beplaying in the World Cup,” he said. “We need to play at least ten to 15% better than we did against Pakistan. We have to bring our A gameto the park in every department and if even that’s not good enough at theend of the day, it is after all Australia against Ireland – professionalsagainst amateurs.”Having pitched his tent in Ireland years ago, Johnston initially workedfor a clothing label owned by U2’s Bono and took citizenship in 2003. Hehas few regrets about what might have been. “I did dream of playing forAustralia in the World Cup, but unfortunately, that didn’t happen. Irelandgave me the chance to play in the World Cup, and I am grateful for that.”

For Adrian Birrell, the coach, just being here is achievement in itself.”I had planned a holiday in Mexico,” he said with a smile. “I had tocancel that after we got to the Super Eights! I told the boys that bygetting through to this stage, they’ve given me the greatest present ever.There’s a great deal of satisfaction and a sense of accomplishment, thisis the result of the hard work of five years.”Having acquitted themselves with credit in previous games before the blipagainst New Zealand, Ireland’s main aim on Friday will be damage control.”We are under no illusion what awaits us tomorrow,” Birrell said.”Australia will come out trying to annihilate us. This is the toughestgame in the history of Irish cricket, but we’ve got to stick to our gameplans, to our processes and be disciplined. I’ve told the boys to just goout and enjoy the day. To play Australia in this awesome stadium will bean experience of a lifetime. We’ve had just one bad game in thecompetition, and even there, there were a lot of pluses.”Ireland will be hoping that Andrè Botha, the allrounder who is so centralto their plans, is fit to play after a hamstring strain, while Australiacould give Glenn McGrath a day off with Mitchell Johnson stepping in. BradHaddin might also get a game with Adam Gilchrist sitting out. Whatever the playing XI is though, they should be far too strong for an Irish sidethat must hope that their indefatigable spirit can bridge the massivechasm that separates the teams in terms of ability.

Shane Warne will join Brian Lara in the Indian Cricket League if his conditions are met, however Warne’s manager conceded that such an agreement was still a long way off. Glenn McGrath has not ruled out his involvement and his manager said negotiations could progress in the next week.The ICL on Monday announced Lara as its first big signing, two months after his name was initially linked with the group. Warne’s manager James Erskine said he had been in talks with ICL officials including Tony Greig.”They haven’t offered what we have asked for, so negotiations are proceeding,” Erskine told the . “Provided the terms and conditions are right, Shane Warne will play, but it’s a long way off before we get the contract signed.” The paper reported that Warne’s proposed pay package was worth up to $2 million.McGrath’s manager, Warren Craig, said he had met with ICL officials some time ago and although there had been few developments since then, this week’s events were likely to speed the process up. “We certainly haven’t ruled it out,” Craig said.”Now Lara has signed, things might start to hot up a bit. Things could start to move over the next week or so.” However, Craig said the ICL had given no indication what salary it would offer to lure McGrath out of retirement six months after his final ODI appearance. The league wants to run its first Twenty20 tournament this October and November with six teams, each of which would ideally feature four international players and two Indian stars, with the rest made up of younger players.

So where do West Indies go from here?To say 300 kilometres south-west to Multan is the obvious answer, but may not be the one most are looking for in the aftermath of the heavy defeat at Lahore. The deeper, more analytical response, is just as self-evident, except that too many people are seeking solace from umpiring errors and an assortment of other excuses so as not to face up to a fundamental reality.As well as the Caribbean cricketers have progressed as a unit in one-day internationals during the course of this year, too many of them still don’t know how to play Test cricket. It’s not just about the results, which are damning enough, but the repetitive manner in which they tend to subside, at home and abroad, which underscore that reality.They are all capable of individual brilliance, and we have seen several of those flashes in the very recent past from batsmen and bowlers alike. But a Test match, like a cricket team, is the sum of its parts. It’s no use dominating opponents for a session if the effort can’t be sustained, day in day out, until victory is achieved.We like to highlight turning points in a match – a key wicket, a brilliant catch or a straight six off the most threatening bowler-because it is easy to hinge a result on one or two incidents. However, in a contest as protracted as this, these are essentially just points along a graph, and the overall effort must be anchored in a solid base of discipline and perseverance, qualities that demand a high level of concentration.Talking about bowling a consistent line or going back and across is the easy part compared to developing those intangible elements in players, the vast majority of whom are the products of a popular culture of instant gratification.Just look at what happened yesterday at the Gaddafi Stadium.Another masterful hundred from Brian Lara, superbly supported by Shivnarine Chanderpaul, finally put some real backbone in the West Indies effort and threatened to give the home team a few worries heading into the final day. Yet from the moment of Lara’s demise, the fight went out of the side (Chanderpaul’s wild swipe at Danish Kaneria shortly after was immediate confirmation) and the last six wickets tumbled for 53 runs.Anything new in that? Close your eyes and call a cricket venue anywhere in the world and there is a very good chance that almost the exact scene would have been played out in that arena at some time over the past 11 years.

For Lara, it must be an increasingly deflating experience, never mind the usual empty platitudes about learning from this latest setback and staying positive and focused ahead of the next match. What else can he say at a post-match ceremony, that we should forfeit the remaining Tests and play 12 ODIs instead so that everyone can return to preparing for the World Cup?Maybe I’m reading too much into it, especially from this distance, but a little exchange with Dwayne Bravo while both were standing in the slips during the formalities of Pakistan’s second innings appeared much more revealing of Lara’s true feelings. Bravo, who 29 months after his Test debut has not yet experienced what it is like to be in a winning Test team, seemed in the mood for some playful old talk with his fellow countryman, except that Lara wasn’t particularly accommodating and at one point in the brief exchange looked as if he was uttering a few stern words.Again, it may have been nothing, but you never know. It must be galling for Lara to have now scored 5226 runs in vain for West Indies. Vain in the context of at least not losing Test matches (something he has been talking about more and more over the last few months), though clearly not futile in terms of the sheer delight he has brought to fans of the game around the world for the incomparable elegance and style with which he embellishes an insatiable appetite for runs.Some of Lara’s greatest performances – the 688 runs with a double-century and two other hundreds in three Tests in Sri Lanka in 2001 stand out-have come in the midst of comprehensive defeats. In the single-mindedness of youth and the desire to rack up more and more runs and records, the legacy of being a champion batsman in a woeful Test team isn’t all that relevant, because the mind says there is still time to make a difference in the winning column.But time is running out, and even if the evidence of his 33rd Test hundred and third in as many matches against the Pakistanis reaffirms his pre-eminence among contemporary batsmen worldwide, Lara is increasingly haunted by the stark reality that too many of his runs are only of personal statistical value.Like millions of Indian cricket fans and their obsession with Sachin Tendulkar, many Trinis now don’t seem to mind too much that the West Indies have been beaten again, so long as their hero has gotten another hundred.Those indulging in that short-sighted consolation would do well to appreciate, as Lara certainly does, that his Test career has, maybe, another couple years to run and that the game, and the team, are always bigger than the player, never mind how great that player is.Click here to send us your thoughts.

Mohammad Ali, a left-arm fast-medium bowler from Pakistan, has signed for Middlesex. Ali, 31, formerly of Derbyshire, has taken 264 first-class wickets at an average of 32.60.Middlesex’s coach John Emburey told the BBC: “We have to strengthen up in the seam bowling area and hopefully there will be a couple more signings this winter.”Ali recently qualified for England, and played for Herefordshire in 2005.

Mickey Arthur, the South Africa coach, has said that it is important to be No. 1 in the one-day rankings after blanking Bangladesh but added that what his team really wants is to beat India in the three-Test series starting in Chennai on March 26.”We have achieved one of the goals we had set out for the team. And being No. 1 is absolutely great. But it will be better still if we are No. 1 next year too because that would mean we would have beaten Australia in two series,” Arthur told Cricinfo.”We will go all out to win the series in India,” Arthur said. “The Bangladesh win has set us up nicely for the India series. Frankly, we always saw this (Bangladesh) tour as pre-India tour preparation where we got our game and gameplans right for the big one. It’s going to be a fantastic Test series simply because India is a huge team to beat in their own country, and we are not prepared to be just another ordinary rival.”Arthur also spoke of setting high standards for the team, which he admitted will be tested in India. “Not many teams go to India and win, so that’s one of our main goals for the year.”Arthur also said that he has appealed to fast bowler Andre Nel, who was replaced for the India tour by Charl Langeveldt under Cricket South Africa’s transformation policy, to play on for the country. “We have spent a lot of time with him because we believe strongly that he is a vital cog as we go forward, especially against England and Australia who are on our calendar this year. So I hope he decides to stay on with South Africa. But ultimately, it’s his decision because only he knows what’s best for himself.”Nel is believed to be in talks with the unofficial Indian Cricket League (ICL) after being dropped in tune with a CSA selection policy that mandates at least six players of colour in a 14-man squad.South Africa swept the two-Test series against Bangladesh and wrapped up the one-day series 3-0 with a seven-wicket win in Mirpur on Friday. The team will leave Bangladesh on Saturday and is scheduled to fly out from Johannesburg for Chennai on March 21.

Ian Bell, the Warwickshire batsman, has earned a recall to the England squad for the first Test against Pakistan at Lord’s on Thursday. Steve Harmison has also been named in a 13-man squad announced this morning which includes five fast bowlers and one spinner, Monty Panesar.”We have included five pace bowlers in the squad, because we need cover for Matthew Hoggard following the hand injury he sustained while with England A yesterday,” David Graveney, England’s chairman of selectors, told BBC Radio Five Live.”Matthew’s injury will be reassessed by our medical staff on Tuesday, and we will give him the maximum time he needs to prove his fitness because he is the most experienced member of our attack,” he added.There was no place for Jamie Dalrymple, however. Dalrymple was the sole bright light for England during their calamitous one-day 5-0 whitewash in the one-day series against Sri Lanka and was their second highest run-scorer. He further enhanced his credentials with a slick performance for England A yesterday where he took 4 for 61 to help dismiss Pakistan for 242, but the selectors have instead opted to attack Pakistan with pace.Bell last played for England against India at Mumbai. Although he was arguably England’s most solid batsmen in the preceding tour of Pakistan, he struggled in India with just one fifty in six innings.Regardless of Hoggard’s availability, there is added pressure on Harmison to return to something resembling his best. He missed the third and final Test against India in the winter, and the Test series against Sri Lanka this summer. Though he returned for the one-day series, his radar was sadly lacking and a worrying 24 wides were sent down.”Yes, without [Andrew Flintoff], there’s a great responsibility on our bowlers,” Graveney said, “so the likes of Harmison and Hoggard, if available, [have a lot of responsibility]. We had a difficult time against Sri Lanka, but we’re looking to change that for Thursday.”England squad:
Andrew Strauss (capt), Marcus Trescothick, Alastair Cook, Kevin Pietersen, Paul Collingwood, Ian Bell, Geraint Jones (wk), Liam Plunkett, Matthew Hoggard, Sajid Mahmood, Steve Harmison, Jon Lewis, Monty Panesar.