The match played at Hyderabad, a commercial cum industrial centre of the province of Sindh was a one sided affair. Pakistan having won all its matches was rather too strong for Bahrain who had lost all with zero points on the table.Having won the toss and electing to bat, Bahrain was all out for 87 in 34.3 overs. They lost the first wicket at 7 and then kept losing them at regular intervals. Opener Haroon Naseer (15) Roshan Cherian Alex (10) Anand Mahendra (11) and Asif Siddique 12 not out were the batsmen who reached double figure. Mr. EXTRAS (24) was the highest contributor of runs.There were four ducks as against only 3 hits to the boundary. The batsmen were not able to face Munir Ansari who wrecked the team clinching 4 wickets for 9 runs. Altaf Hussain and Zaheer Maqsood claimed 2 wickets each.Pakistan inningsThe inevitable happened when Pakistan defeated Bahrain by 9 wickets in 13.5 overs only. Facing an easy target of 88 runs against the bowling as soft as cream and butter, Pakistan had no problem in brushing aside the babes from Bahrain.Suleman Butt and Khalid Latif opened the innings. While Suleman Butt (5) was out at the score of 14; Khalid Latif and Khurram Ibrahim joined hands in spanking the bowlers. In his 48 not out scored in 39 balls, Khalid smashed 9 fours, the highest number of boundaries hit by a batsman in a match in this tournament. Khurram provided his partner admirable support by remaining not out with 21 scored in 31 balls, with 2 fours. They ended the innings at 89 for 1.With a prolific victory over Bahrain by 9 wickets, Pakistan emerges as the leader of Group “A” and cruises into the semi finals. With this defeat Bahrain ends up without a point in this tournament.

The KSCA Coca Cola Under 25 encounter between hosts Karnataka andAndhra at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore was evenly poised atstumps on the second day. Andhra were leading by 222 runs with onesecond innings wicket in hand as the match looks to be heading for anoutright result on the third and final day tomorrow.Earlier in the morning Karnataka collapsed to just 167 in their firstinnings after resuming at their overnight score of 97/1. The bulk ofthe damage was done by seamer Balasaraswathi Reddy who claimed 6/61 tohelp Andhra to a first innings lead of 53. Karnataka opener ShyamPonnappa failed to add to his overnight score of 58, giving BalajiKrishna his sole wicket of the innings.The other not out batsman AR Mahesh did manage to advance his scorefrom 23 to 38 before Reddy had him caught behind. Of the rest only SSudhindra showed some inclination to stay at the wicket, making 23 inone and a quarter hours stay at the crease. MN Vikram complementedReddy’s efforts with a three wicket bag of his own.In reply Andhra got off to a dreadful start losing their first fivewickets with just 19 runs on the board, opening bowlers NC Ayyappa andSunil Kumar scalping all five wickets between them. Middle order batArjun Kumar in association with the tail sparked a recovery thatlifted Andhra to 169/9 at stumps. Arjun was undefeated on a priceless56 (87 balls, 5 fours) while Ayyappa returned figures of 5/44 as thematch heads to an interesting climax.

Fifteen wickets fell on the third day of the North Zone Ranji Trophyclash between Jammu & Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh at the Maulana AzadStadium in Jammu, with the visitors emerging with the better of theexchanges. Resuming their first innings at 289/8, Himachal declarednine overs into the day at 316/9. J&K were then shot out for 176,marginally avoiding the follow-on by just ten runs. But they struckback swiftly, knocking over four Himachal wickets for 55 before thedraw of stumps.After Himachal skipper Rajiv Nayyar’s declaration, J&K never reallygot going, losing their first five wickets for 69. Needing 167 tostave off the follow-on, the lower order manfully attempted to redressthe balance and succeeded to the extent of lifting the score to 176 in58.4 overs. Vijay Sharma topscored with 33 while for Himachal,Rajinder Thakur snapped up 3/65.In the 86 minutes batting available, Himachal limped to 55/4. Firstinnings centurion Nischal Gaur was removed by Qayoom for a tenth ballduck. Rahul Panta followed up his 46 not out in the first essay withanother unbeaten effort of 31 as the visitors closed the day 195 runsin front with six wickets in hand.

Delhi U-16 failed to capitalise on a fine 159 run opening stand to endthe second day at 206 for 4 in their quarterfinal match against MumbaiU-16 at the East Calcutta District Sports Council Ground in Kolkata onSunday in the Vijay Merchant Trophy.Replying to Mumbai’s 328, Delhi were given a solid start by openersPritpal Singh (77) and Shikar Dhawan (68) adding 159 runs in 48.2overs. Pritpal was the first to reach his half century in 103 balls.He was also the first to be dismissed, trapped leg before by G Yadav.During a 202 minute stay at the crease, Pritpal faced 120 balls andhit eleven fours. Then the new batsman H Khullar returned to thepavilion the very next ball bowled by G Yadav.With only fifteen more runs being added to the total, S Dhawan was runout. Dhawan in his 215 minute stay at the centre, faced 148 balls andfound the boundary ropes nine times. G Yadav then came back to dismissA Bali (5), stumped by PC Mayekar, to restrict Delhi to 170 for 4. Atstumps, H Mehta (19) and K Rawat (20) were at the crease.Earlier in the morning, resuming at the overnight score of 278 for 8,Mumbai were all out for 328. Yadav who remained unbeaten the previousevening was caught by A Nag off A Jain. The last basman V Yelligattiwas unable to open his account and after facing nine balls was bowledby Sumit Kapoor.

The Management Board of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) decidedtoday to engage with Sport England and the Lawn Tennis Association (LTA) inan informal consortium to seek planning permission for the redevelopment offacilities at the Bisham Abbey Sports Centre to enable it to become aCentre of Excellence for both sports.Welcoming the decision, Des Wilson, Chairman of the Sport England LotteryPanel, who has been leading discussions, said: “For some time, we have been exploring ways whereby both major sports can base excellence programmes at Bisham Abbey.”We have now received a major report on some relatively complex planning issues and it’s clear that, for a variety of reasons, this will take longer than we had hoped. Nevertheless, we are advised that there is a reasonable chance of achieving our objectives.”We believe this is best done by working in partnership to develop the project and then promoting the case for it in the national interest. It remains our determination to succeed with the Bisham Abbey project because all three organisations recognise it is the best solution.””In the meantime, Sport England has assured the LTA that their tenancy willcontinue in any event, and we have agreed with the ECB that they undertake afeasibility study into alternative sites in parallel with our planningapplication in order to save time in the possible event that planningpermission is refused.”Savings arising from the delay caused by the planning complexities will help pay the cost of both that study and alternative temporary arrangements for the National Academy, and Sport England will underwrite any reasonable costs.”Hugh Morris, the ECB’s Performance Director, commented: “We still very much hope that the ECB’s National Academy will be set up at Bisham Abbey and believe the combined resources of the three organisations will help overcome the planning difficulties.”But it’s sensible to make contingency plans, and this is why we welcome Sport England’s decision to fund fully a feasibility study into possible alternatives.”In the meantime, we are looking forward enormously to opening the National Academy in Australia this autumn and giving our best young players some top-quality coaching and tremendous all-round experience.”

Jamie Cox will be out for at least three weeks after breaking his thumb while fielding in the game against Yorkshire at Bath.It is obviously a major blow for Somerset who have been plagued by injuries this season.The Tasmanian and Somerset skipper enjoyed a successful winter Down Under and was running into form in this country, hitting 95 in the CricInfo Championship game against Yorkshire.Meanwhile Matthew Wood, who made such an impressive debut in the four-day match against the Tykes, is retained in the squad for Sunday’s Norwich Union match against Yorkshire, which also sees the return of Peter Bowler after having time off to sit his law exams.Matt Bulbeck is still missing as a precaution but is likely to return for the four-day second team match against Gloucestershire on Tuesday.Coach Kevin Shine was in no doubt about what he expected from his team tomorrow. “We want to win. Even though we only played ten overs a side last week the boys are very keen to take the attack to Yorkshire and get the result we want.”The full Sabres squad for the match against Yorkshire Phoenix is:Holloway, Bowler, Wood, Lathwell, Burns, Turner, Dutch, Blackwell, Trego, Johnson, Kerr, Grove, Jones.

* CAB to appoint outstation coach for Ranji teamThe Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) has decided to obtain theservices of an outstation coach for its senior team for theforthcoming domestic season. The decision, taken by the workingcommittee, is aimed at bringing more accountability andprofessionalism into the approach of Bengal cricketers who havestruggled to make a mark at the national level for the past few years.Though no names have been finalised yet, former Indian all roundersKarsan Ghavri, Madan Lal and Roger Binny were shortlisted for thepost, according to CAB sources.The working committee has decided to retain MP Parmar as the CAB’sdirector of coaching. Vece Paes has been appointed physical trainer tolook after the physical conditioning of the senior side. The CAB hasdecided to shortlist 25 players for the conditioning camp to beginearly next month.* Cuttack venue for East Zone Ranji Trophy one day gamesThe East Zone Ranji Trophy one day matches will be held at Cuttack.This was decided at a meeting of the East Zone fixtures committeerecently.The following is Bengal’s Ranji Trophy schedule for the 2001-02season: Bengal vs Assam (Nov 30 to Dec 3 at Assam). Bengal vs Tripura(Dec 21 to 24 at Tripura), Bengal vs Bihar (Dec 29 to Jan 1 at Bihar),Bengal vs Orissa (Jan 5 to 8 at Kolkata).* TNCA plans to set up academy in ChennaiThe Tamil Nadu Cricket Association has plans to establish a cricketacademy at Chennai on the lines of the national and regionalacademies, according to Ashok Kumbat, secretary of the TNCA. Theproposal would crystalise before the end of this year or early nextyear, he added.Speaking to PTI in Tiruchirappalli on Tuesday, Kumbhat said the TNCAwas very keen to promote the sport by imparting right training tobudding cricketers, adding the proposed academy would be a permanentcoaching centre.On the funding for the project, he expressed the hope that the TNCAwould be able to generate the necessary amount and ruled outsponsorships.* Bal Mahaddalkar passes awayMumbai Cricket Association’s long serving and tireless administratorBal Mahaddalkar passed away in Mumbai on Tuesday following a cardiacarrest. He was 62.Mahaddalkar was associated with Mumbai cricket for nearly threedecades and has served as its joint secretary for two terms (eightyears) and vice president (from 1998 to 2000). He was the firstcricket administrator to be awarded the Maharashtra State’sChatrapathi Shivaji Award in 1993-94. He also served on variouscommittees of the Board of Control for Cricket in India and was onceappointed observer for a home series.

To compete with Australia, England’s best side needed to play to their full potential but with injuries blighting selections, the best of the rest were unable to lift their games and Australia were clinical in completing an innings and 118 run victory.England’s last seven wickets fell for 22 runs with Jason Gillespie and Shane Warne causing the most problems but the worse scenario of any, from England’s perspective, occurred at around midday when captain Nasser Hussain was hit on the finger by Gillespie.He faced one more ball but was unable to grip the bat properly and left the field forlornly headed for the hospital where X-rays revealed he had a fracture at the base of his little finger, the fourth break in three years.”I will see the specialist tomorrow and will see what he says but a fractured finger means at least a couple of weeks out,” said Hussain who now looks doubtful for the Lord’s Test starting on Thursday July 19th.”It’s getting me down, especially on top of the injury to the groin and thigh in Sri Lanka but I am England captain and have to be strong enough to pick myself up. Today was a very low point and mentally it affects you.”I am disappointed to lose heavily but you have to give credit to theAustralians. They have won 16 out of their last 18 Tests and play cricket exactly as it is supposed to be played. They are a very fine side and we have to learn from them.”England resumed this morning on 48 for one with left-handers MarcusTrescothick and Mark Butcher playing with resolve and attractive flair.Against Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne, their confidence increased with every boundary with Butcher driving two consecutive deliveries from McGrath for four and Trescothick hooking the same bowler for six over mid-wicket.But Brett Lee, coming in for Warne at the City End, produced a ‘snorter’ that Butcher had little chance of fending off. Adam Gilchrist made no mistake in taking the catch and Butcher’s enjoyable innings ended on 41 from 74 balls.The drama over Hussain was the next setback to afflict the home side and from that point on England never recovered, a series of soft dismissals resulting in a premature end at 2.01pm, with nearly five scheduled sessions of play still remaining.From 99 for one, England crumbled to 164 all out with only Trescothick and Butcher making double figures and seven batsmen making five or less. The Somerset batsman, who ran into some poor form during the recent NatWest Series, made certain of his immediate future with his classy innings of 76 from 113 balls.He struck 11 boundaries and two huge sixes and despite the assistance from the pitch and cloud cover which swung the ball for Gillespie and turned it for Warne, Trescothick looked mainly comfortable though it was the leg spinner who eventually lulled him into a false shot, the edge flying to Mark Waugh at first slip.”It was a pretty clinical performance, professional,” Steve Waugh said afterwards. “We put the ball in the right place and took our catches. We played aggressive cricket and backed ourselves, we had a good time out there.”England missed some opportunities in this match. If they have taken the chances it would have been a close Test match. We are certainly not going to get carried away by the margin of victory. We can play better, but overall I’m pretty pleased.”He also had words of sympathy for Nasser Hussain. “It’s a big blow for Nasser, it’s unfortunate,” he commented. “We certainly want to play England at their best.”

There has never been a better time to watch county cricket. With the CricInfo Championship now in full swing and the sunshine making a belated entrance down the order, how better to enjoy the summer than visiting a county ground for a day of quality cricket?CricInfo have looked into the prices around the country for a day of CricInfo Championship action. The results prove there to be excellent cricket all around the country at very good value for money.The AMP Oval, and the reigning Champions, Surrey, offers a particularly attractive day out. £7 for an adult and £3 for concessions to see Alec Stewart, Saqlain Mushtaq, Graham Thorpe, Mark Ramprakash, and the Hollioakes et al. represents fantastic value.Lancashire are another top club charging just £8 for adults to see their Test stars in action. With Andrew Flintoff, John Crawley, Mike Atherton and Muralitharan all on show this season and compares favourably to £35 for 90 minutes of football at an equivalent level. Warwickshire go one better, with a gate price of £6 and £3 for concessions.But best of all are Durham. They charge just £5 to watch the likes of Steve Harmison (perhaps the quickest bowler in the CricInfo Championship) and Paul Collingwood – one of the most exciting prospects in the country.£9 is the average price for clubs (Gloucestershire, Essex, Derbyshire, Middlesex and Worcestershire), with all offering a variety of concessions to juniors, OAPs and even dogs (Derby £2). Some clubs, such as Derby, even offer free entry to accompanied children, while a typical concession represents 50% of the full gate price.£10 is the upper limit of what you can expect to pay (Yorkshire, Somerset, Leicestershire, Hampshire, Notts and Northants – though all offer concessions) and if you can’t spare the time off work, or just fancy pooping into the ground on your way home, many clubs operate a policy whereby spectators will be allowed in for free for the final hour, or even session, of play.Full List

• Essex: £9 concessions: £5
• Derbyshire: £9 concessions: £7, free
• Durham: £5
• Glamorgan: £8 concessions: £4
• Gloucestershire: £9 concessions: £7
• Hampshire: £10 concessions: £7, £4
• Kent: £8 concessions: £4
• Lancashire: £8 concessions: £4, £2
• Leicestershire: £10 concessions: £5
• Middlesex: £9 concessions: £5
• Northants: £10 concessions: £6
• Notts: £10 concessions: £7, £5
• Somerset: £10, concessions: £10, £7, £5
• Surrey: £7 concessions: £3
• Sussex: £8 concessions: £5
• Warwickshire: £6 concessions: £3
• Worcestershire: £9 concessions: £5
• Yorkshire: £10 concessions: £5

nb: Figures are correct on date of publication but are subject to change.

Gloucestershire had to suffer an anxious wait before they secured an inningsand 120-run victory over Nottinghamshire in the CricInfo ChampionshipDivision Two match at Bristol.Needing just one wicket to secure their fourth win of the campaign, itlooked as Gloucestershire might have to settle for a draw as rain fellsteadily throughout the morning.Umpires Allan Donald and David Constant made a 2pm inspection and, despite avery damp outfield, decided that the pitch was dry enough to make a 2.20pmstart.That was put back 15 minutes by more rain, and there was further frustrationfor Gloucestershire when the wet weather returned after 3.3 overs from JamesAveris and Alastair Bressington.Play did not resume until 4.40pm and Gloucestershire had a maximum of 14.3overs in which to remove the last wicket pair of Steve Randall and NadeemMalik.They needed five of them before Averis dug in a short-pitched delivery toRandall, who popped up a catch to Dominic Hewson at short leg.It was Gloucestershire’s second successive maximum points victory and MarkAlleyne’s side must now be regarded as serious promotion challengers.They miss out on the next round of Championship games before ending theirseason with a home match against Derbyshire and a trip to leaders Sussex inSeptember.Nottinghamshire now look destined to finish in the lower half of the tableafter registering just two wins from 14 games.