Bangladesh win toss, opt to field against Zimbabwe

HARARE: Bangladesh captain Shakib al Hassan won the toss and elected to field in the one off Test against Zimbabwe at the Harare Sports Club on Thursday.Zimbabwe are making their return to test cricket after a six year absence forced on them after their best players quit in a dispute in 2005.Teams Zimbabwe Brendan Taylor (capt), Hamilton Masakadza, Vusi Sibanda, Craif Ervine Elton Chigumbura, Tatenda Taibu, Kyle Jarvis, Tinotenda Mawoyo Raymond Price, Brian Vitori, Chris MpofuBangladesh Shakib al Hassan cap Tamim Iqbal Imrul Kayes Mohammad Ashraful Mahmudullah, Mushfiqur Rahim, Abdur Razzak, Shafiul Islam, Rubel Hossain, Shahriar Nafeez, Robiul IslamUmpires Kumar Dharmasina SRI Bruce Oxenford AUSTV umpire: Jeremiah Matibirir ZIM Match referee  Roshan Mahanama SRI

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Celebrating a unique century

ICC Umpires and Referees Manager Vince van der Bijl shares his personal memories of Norman Gordon, who will become the first Test Match player to reach his 100th birthday on Saturday. Norman's energy, generosity, humility and strength of character are his hallmarks, culminating in him being the first ever Test cricketer to reach the real century on Saturday.He and my father, Pieter, played in the South Africa-England 1938/9 Test series which finished with the drawn Timeless Test in Durban. These were the only Tests Norman and Dad played - after the war, Norman was considered a little old and Dad had been injured and could not play competitive cricket again. Norman shared with me the stories of that great series and with humour always related his 1 for 256 bowling performance in the Timeless Test whenever we met. I initially had to look up the scorecards to realize that he had taken 19 wickets in the previous four Tests, (that he never mentioned) which included two five wicket hauls - no mean feat in your first international outing. He was a fine bowler and the highest wicket taker in that series from either team with 20 wickets.He shared with me the joy of his two five-wicket hauls in his first two TestsHe was tireless in that series, and the conversation invariably went to the Time less Test A milestone for my father who scored 125 and 97He spoke about the endless bowling and that he was very relieved on the 8th day when rain washed out play, so that he could gather strength and have a day off!. However he was concerned as the wicket, which had at last had started to deteriorate with cracks appearing, was then rolled with the heavy roller to good effect and became as flat as a road! Batting became easier and the England side started to take control He played a crucial role in the "final" day when England needing 200 runs to win, and had to catch the train to Cape Town, so they would not miss the mail ship, need to be curtailed. In the first session he crucially kept the runs down and bowled yet again without luck. Rain at tea in the afternoon produced a drawn match I treasure my conversations with Norman as he would share stories of my father and their relationship in that series, in my Dad's heyday, long before I was born. Those memories are indelibly printed within me  a special gift that Norman has given me.Bless you Norman and thank you. Have a glorious day

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Lord Woolf to chair Independent Governance Review of ICC

The Right Honourable Lord Woolf of Barnes has agreed to chair the Independent Governance Review of the ICC and he will be supported in his work by PricewaterhouseCoopers, the renowned global professional services firm.Lord Woolf is one of the most respected figures in the legal world having been the Lord Chief Justice in England and Wales until 2005. Before then, he was Master of the Rolls between 1996 and 2000, the second most senior judge in England and Wales. He was also the first Lord Chief Justice to be the President of the Courts in England and Wales and in addition to his work in the United Kingdom, he has been on the Court of Final Appeal in Hong Kong since 2003 as well as the President of the Qatar Financial Centre Civil and Commercial Court since 2007 The ICC had identified the need for an independent governance review as one of the key initiatives in its new strategic plan 2011-2015 and it will commence immediately with a scope that includes the following Clarifying the role and structure of the ICC and its committees to ensure that strategic goals are met effectively and that decision-making is made in the best interests of the game, dealing appropriately with any potential conflicts of interest. This would include consideration of independent committee members and directors

  The ICC President nomination and election process · The Membership categories and criteria for membership The effectiveness of the regulatory environment The Constitutional framework and documents to ensure they are 'fit for purpose A review of the ICC Code of Ethics and the process for dealing with investigations into corruption and breaches of ethics by the ICC Ethics Officer.Making recommendations to establish the ICC as a well governed and leading global sporting organisation Haroon Lorgat, the ICC Chief Executive, said: "We truly aspire to be a well managed and leading global governing body and we are privileged to have Lord Woolf leading this most important governance review.There can be no doubt that, in Lord Woolf, the ICC Board has appointed a personality with enormous experience and reputation and by adding in the capability of PwC, it shows how seriously we are taking this exercise."Lord Woolf added: "It is a privilege to be invited to undertake this important review that has implications for the whole sport of cricket. I intend to conduct the independent review in a thorough and transparent manner that will draw on experiences and good practices from within and outside cricket.I will seek to deliver a report across the wide brief that I have been set as soon as is practicable, noting - of course - the need for effective consultation and the consideration of various viewpoints before any recommendations can be finalised."The review will commence with immediate effect and Lord Woolf will be working with PwC to determine a timeframe for the delivery of his report and recommendations. There will be no further public comment from ICC, PwC or Lord Woolf at this time.

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Getting to No.1 isn't enough for England: Swann

Off-spinner Graeme Swann says that getting the number one spot won't be enough for England, at least for the current group of players.We want to create a dynasty, a long-term era of success and to be remembered as one of the best England teams ever. Reaching No 1 in the world is not the end of the journey. It will be only the beginning. We are not there yet, of course, and our prime objective at the moment is making sure we are fully focused for the Third Test at Edgbaston next Wednesday," Swann writes in his column for the Sun."Yet, we make no bones about wanting to be the top team and the exciting thing is the guys who are performing right now will be around for many years The likes of Tim Bresnan, Stuart Broad and Ian Bell - who all played brilliantly in our win at Trent Bridge are well under the age of 30. It gives England the chance to be a top-side for a long time to come," adds Swann."We want to lay the foundation for a prolonged period at the summit. People talk all the time about the Australian team of the 1990s and the West Indies team of the 80s. I want people in future to talk about the England team of the teenies - or whatever this decade is called!""I do know we have huge self-belief and an incredible team spirit. That is key - there might have been England teams with better individuals but not many play better as a team. Even when we're in trouble, one or two players usually bail us out, he said

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Australia Tour To Srilanka 2011

::..T20 INTERNATIONAL MATCHES..::
Date	Day	MATCH	Venue
06 August 2011	Sat	Australia v Sri Lanka, 1st T20	Pallekele
08 August 2011	Mon	Australia v Sri Lanka, 2nd T20	Pallekele

..::ONE DAY INTERNATIONAL MATCHES::..
Date	Day	Match	Venue
10 August 2011	Wed	Australia v Sri Lanka, 1st ODI	Pallekele
14 August 2011	Sun	Australia v Sri Lanka, 2nd ODI	Hambantota
16 August 2011	Tue	Australia v Sri Lanka, 3rd ODI	Hambantota
20 August 2011	Sat	Australia v Sri Lanka, 4th ODI	Colombo, RPS
22 August 2011	Mon	Australia v Sri Lanka, 5th ODI	Colombo, RPS

::...::...TEST MATCHES...::...::
Date	Day	MATCH	Venue
31-4Aug Sep 2011	Sat	Australia v Sri Lanka, 1st TEST	Galle
8-12 Sep,2011	Tue	Australia v Sri Lanka, 2nd TEST	Pallekele
16-20Sep,2011	Fri	Australia v Sri Lanka, 3rd TEST	Colombo, SSC

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Taylor To Captain England Lions Against Sri Lankans

Leicestershire batsman James Taylor will captain England Lions when they play Sri Lanka 'A' in a four-day game in Scarborough which begins on 2nd August.The England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has named a 12-man squad for the match with Taylor captaining for the first time, although he has led Leicestershire with distinction this summer when offered the opportunity.Five players - Joe Root, Alex Hales, Scott Borthwick, Stuart Meaker and Jack Brooks have been called up to the Lions squad for the first time while there is a core of experience including Ravi Bopara, Steven Finn and Chris Woakes, who have all represented England."The England Lions series against Sri Lanka A is an important opportunity for those younger players to gain valuable experience against international opposition and push for further involvement in England programmes this winter," national selector Geoff Miller said."The series will also give players a chance to press for inclusion in the upcoming NatWest Series against India."All players will return to their counties on conclusion of the 4 day match ahead of the Friends Life t20 quarter finals and the one day squad will meet on 10 August ahead of first match on 12 August.England Lions four-day squad: James Taylor (captain), Jonathan Bairstow, Ravi Bopara, Danny Briggs, Jade Dernbach, Alex Hales, James Harris, Craig Kieswetter, Stuart Meaker, Samit Patel, Joe Root Engalnd Lions one-day squad: James Taylor (captain), Jonathan Bairstow, Ravi Bopara, Scott Borthwick, Danny Briggs, Steven Finn, Alex Hales, James Harris, Stuart Meaker, Chris Nash, Ben Stokes, Chris Woakes

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England To Tour India, Sri Lanka, UAE This Winter

The England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has revealed that England will tour India, Sri Lanka and the United Arab Emirates - where they will play Pakistan this winter.They will travel to India to play five One-Day Internationals and a Twenty20 International, they will play three Tests, four ODIs and three T20Is against Pakistan in Abu Dhabi and Dubai before two Tests in Sri Lanka in March and April.The limited overs leg of the Sri Lanka tour will be held in late 2014 while the final itinerary for the series against Pakistan in the UAE has yet to be finalised.We are very pleased to have agreed an itinerary with BCCI for the forthcoming one-day series which includes matches in India's major cities and will suit the needs of both the England team and our travelling supporters," David Collier, chief executive of the ECB said."With India due to play a NatWest Series here in September, there is bound to be intesse interest in the return contest in India this October and we look forward to what should be a fascinating series of one-day encounters between the two teams The remainder of the winter programme will see England travel to UAE early in the New Year to play Pakistan in all three formats of the game followed by a short break in the UK before the team takes on Sri Lanka in a two-match Test series India v England

8th October: Warm-up game, Hyderabad

11th October: Warm-up game, Hyderabad

14th October: 1st ODI, Hyderabad

17th October: 2nd ODI, Delhi

20th October: 3rd ODI, Mohali

23rd October: 4th ODI, Mumbai

26th October: 5th ODI, Kolkata

29th October: T20I, Kolkata

Sri Lanka v England

26th-30th March 2012: 1st Test, Galle,

3rd-7th April: 2nd Test, Colombo

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England-West Indies T20 Details Confirmed

The Kia Oval will host two Twenty20 Internationals between England and the West Indies on 23rd and 25th September, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) have confirmed.The matches will take place a week after the conclusion of India's tour of England and will bring down the curtain on England's international summer.Surrey are delighted with the extra two international matches they get to host and they are keen to encourage as many people as possible to come and watch England - the reigning world champions - take on the West Indies."Surrey CCC is really pleased to be able to host these games at the Kia Oval in what will be a colourful and exciting end to the international summer," Richard Gould, Surrey chief executive said."T20 cricket is very popular at the Kia Oval, as we have seen this year, with record breaking crowds coming to see the Surrey Lions."We want both games to be played in a friendly party atmosphere with a large turnout from local residents in Lambeth and London, which is why tickets have been priced from only £25, with U16 tickets on sale for £1.

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Harbhajan And Yuvraj Out Of Final Two Tests

Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh and left-hand batsman Yuvraj Singh have both been ruled out of the remainder of the Test series in England.

Harbhajan has suffered a stomach muscle tear and Yuvraj a fractured finger and have been replaced by left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha and right-hand batsman Virat Kohli respectively.Harbhajan bowled just 13.4 overs during the 319-run defeat at Trent Bridge that leaves India 2-0 down with two games to play after he suffered a grade one lower abdominal tear while Yuvraj fractured his finger when he was hit by Tim Bresnan.While Yuvraj Singh’s injury may take around 4 weeks to recover, Harbhajan Singh is likely to recover in 3 weeks’ time," a statement from the Indian board (BCCI) said The All-India Senior Selection Committee has picked Virat Kohli and Pragyan Ojha as their replacements. Both players will join the Indian team at the earliest.India's tour has been beset by injuries with Gautam Gambhir (elbow) and Zaheer Khan (hamstring) missing the Trent Bridge Test.Gambhir has been cleared to play at Edgbaston and Virender Sehwag, who missed the start of the tour following a shoulder operation, has recently joined up with his team-mates.Before the Test match, India will play Northamptonshire in a two-day game which begins on Friday, 5th August.

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Karachi Ramazan night cricket galore

KARACHI: The fresh wave of violence has not deterred the youth of the metropolis from playing night cricket during Ramzan. Miscreants in the city have managed to throw trade and industry in disarray, but they have not dampened the sporting spirit of the youth.Night cricket matches are being played all across the city which has become a tradition during the holy month of Ramzan. National cricketers are also participating in the inaugural Ramzan Night Cricket Tournament at the Asghar Ali Shah Stadium which proves that fear can be overcome by sports.Member of the Sindh Assembly and tournament organizer, Dr.Muhammed Ali Shah said that cricket could play a vital role in bringing people of different nationalities together. The traditional rush at the stadium during the inaugural match of the tournament was lackluster, however the fans present at the stadium were hopeful that as time passed things would improve.Other night cricket tournaments have been arranged during the month of Ramzan, where participation of star cricketers will help draw in crowds, notwithstanding the mayhem in the city

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1st CorporateT20 Night Tournament

1ST CORPORATE T20 NIGHT TOURNAMENT
Sr. No	Match			Day	Date	Time	Status	Venue	Result
1	PIA	vs	NBP	Sat	Aug,6, 2011	10:00 PM		DHA Sports Club Moin Khan
2	HBL	vs	Port Qasim	Sun	Aug,7, 2011	10:00 PM		DHA Sports Club Moin Khan
3	Omer Associates	vs	Sayid Paper Mills	Mon	Aug,8, 2011	10:00 PM		DHA Sports Club Moin Khan
4	WAPDA	vs	KESC	Tue	Aug,9, 2011	10:00 PM		DHA Sports Club Moin Khan
5	NBP	vs	Sayid Paper Mills	Wed	Aug.10, 2011	10:00 PM		DHA Sports Club Moin Khan
6	HBL	vs	KESC	Thu	Aug,11, 2011	10:00 PM		DHA Sports Club Moin Khan
7	PIA	vs	Sayid Paper Mills	Fri	Aug,12, 2011	10:00 PM		DHA Sports Club Moin Khan
8	WAPDA	vs	Port Qasim	Sat	Aug,13, 2011	10:00 PM		DHA Sports Club Moin Khan
9	NBP	vs	Omer Associates	Sun	Aug,14, 2011	10:00 PM		DHA Sports Club Moin Khan
10	HBL	vs	WAPDA	Mon	Aug,15, 2011	10:00 PM		DHA Sports Club Moin Khan
11	PIA	vs	Omer Associates	Tue	Aug,16, 2011	10:00 PM		DHA Sports Club Moin Khan
12	Port Qasim	vs	KESC	Wed	Aug.17, 2011	10:00 PM		DHA Sports Club Moin Khan
13	1st Semi-Final			Thu	Aug,18, 2011	10:00 PM		DHA Sports Club Moin Khan
14	2nd Semi-Final			Fri	Aug,19, 2011	10:00 PM		DHA Sports Club Moin Khan
15	FINAL			Sat	Aug,20, 2011	10:00 PM		DHA Sports Club Moin Khan

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Hamid puts Afghanistan on top with devastating spell

A brilliant spell of fast bowling from Afghanistan’s Hamid Hassan ensured that there was a dramatic finish to the opening day's play of the ICC Intercontinental Cup match against Canada in Toronto.Replying to Afghanistan's 293 all out, Hamid destroyed Canada's top order with four wickets before the close of play, leaving him with impressive figures of 4-12 off just six overs.All top four of Canada's batting order were dismissed with Gunasekera, Patel, Gordon and Surkari all out before the end of play.Earlier in the day's play, the defending champions had recovered from 24-2 and 151-6 to record a respectable 293 all out.Samiullah Shenwari once again rescued Afghanistan's top order with an excellent display of middle-order batting, cracking 12 boundaries in his innings of 70. Mirwais Ashraf, with whom Samiullah added 74 for the seventh wicket, made an excellent 48, as Canada's attack shared the wickets around their four main bowlers

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England's domination becoming almost predictable

Once a word used to deride England's cricketers, "predictable" is fast becoming a badge of honour that captain Andrew Strauss and his squad can wear with pride.Two crushing test victories over India, the second coming in a rush of wickets at Trent Bridge on Monday, have put England on the brink of the top ranking in the five-day format of the game and talk of "domination" is in the air.While there have been many false dawns, the momentous 2005 Ashes win over Australia being one of them, the riches available to Strauss and manager Andy Flower suggest the D word is not out of place.In fast bowlers James Anderson, Stuart Broad and Chris Tremlett and off-spinner Graeme Swann, England have an attack full of potency while Tim Bresnan showed in taking five wickets to skittle India for 158 that Strauss has the kind of back-up options that are the envy of the world.What India would have done for a bowler of Bresnan's quality as they toiled in the heat with the game slipping away from them on Sunday afternoon.Wicketkeeper Matt Prior has improved beyond measure with the gloves and his batting is now approaching the heights reached by great Australian Adam Gilchrist in the all-conquering sides captained by Steve Waugh and Ricky Ponting.Although openers Strauss and Alastair Cook are struggling for runs, the batting order rarely collapses like a house of cards these days and the tailenders regularly score heavily.Bresnan and Broad contributed 209 runs to England's cause at Trent Bridge, a key factor in the 319-run victory which left the hosts 2-0 up and top-ranked India staring at a demoralising rout. COMMON CAUSE Kevin Pietersen has put his ego to one side and emerged as a batsman who can dig in for the common cause while Ian Bell, with a test average of 47, is world class.Comparisons with the swaggering Australian teams for whom victory was almost a pre-requisite are not misplaced, especially when considering the fringe players who have proved consistently that they can come in and feed off the confidence within the ranks.England have won seven of their last eight test series. That should soon become eight from nine and although matching the domination of Australia, who between 2000 and 2008 lost just two series, is unlikely, they certainly look like the team to be measured against for the forseeable future.It is all a far cry from the days of tortoise-like scoring rates followed by rapid collapses, scatter-gun bowling and sloppy fielding which drew scorn from Down Under.Shane Warne, once the tormentor of England's batsman, sees many similarities with the Australian sides he played in."When Australia were on top and dominating world cricket, the things we wanted to do were score fast, take the game away from the opposition and intimidate the tail," Warne wrote in the Daily Telegraph on Tuesday. "England are doing all those things and showing the qualities that will make them No. 1."Warne said there were no obvious weaknesses in England's squad and like Australia of old, someone would make runs or take wickets at the important moments."England are not carrying anyone," he said. "When you become No.1 side in the world it is all about depth.Former England captain Nasser Hussain heaped praise on Strauss's team. "There is just no weak link," he said. "They are the best England team I have ever seen. They are an amazing set of players I think England are now realising that they are embarking on what might become a very special journey.

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Fifa 2011Pc Game Free Download

Fifa 2011 Pc Game

Game informations:
-Type: Sport
-Date: 27.09.2010
-Language: ENG Maybe more
-Format : ISO
-Parts Size: 5.55 GB
-Size after decompression: 6.32 GB
-Release: Reloaded

DOWNLOAD Fifa 2011 Pc Game

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Sehwag to bolster Indian squad in England

Virender Sehwag will be leaving for England Wednesday morning to join the struggling Indian team which is 0-2 down in the four-match Test series.India got a 319-run hammering by England in the second Test at Trent Bridge after losing the first Test at Lord's by 196 runs.Sehwag's presence will certainly bolster the team grappling with injuries to its senior players. Sehwag missed the first two Tests because he had to undergo a shoulder surgery while pace spearhead and experienced batsman Gautam Gambhir suffered hamstring injuries during the first Test at Lord's.'Virender Sehwag will fly to England early tomorrow morning to join the Indian cricket team,' said BCCI secretary N. Srinivasan in a statement Tuesday.India next play a two-day tour game against Northants from Friday, followed by the third Test starting at Edgbaston Wednesday

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Kenya names squad for friendly fixture

The Cricket Kenya selection panel has named a 16-man squad to play Indian Ranji Trophy team Andhra in the first four matches of their three week tour to Kenya The matches include two three day games and two Twenty 20 matches starting at Simba Union on Wednesday 3rd August.
Chairman of Selectors Alpesh Vader said: 'We have a lot of cricket over the next three weeks against Andhra which is a great opportunity for new coach Mike Hesson and the new selection panel to have a look at a variety of players in the coming weeks.'This squad will take part in the first four games and we will review the squad as the matches progress and look at giving other players, including some of our Under 19 squad, an opportunity in the later fixtures.'Already last week we have seen some new players come in and do very well and we are looking to build a wider group of players that compete for places in the national squad.

The squad is as follows:
Collins Obuya (captain)

Rakep Patel
Alex Obanda
Runish Gudhka
Hiren Varaiya
Lucas Oluoch
Dominic Wesonga
Karen Kaul
David Obuya
Morris Ouma
Nehemiah Odhiambo
Nelson Odhiambo
James Ngoche
Shem Obado
Elijah Otieno
Alfred Luseno

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England stars enjoy rankings rise after Trent Bridge victory

England's Ian Bell has broken into the top five in the Reliance ICC Test Rankings after recording a career-high batting rating following his brilliant 159 against India at Trent Bridge.And Stuart Broad's all-round heroics have seen him climb to third in the all-rounder rankings, while he has also jumped to seventh place in the bowling table following match figures of 8-76.Bell, who recorded his fourth century in the space of six Test Matches, has recorded a new career-high rating and is just 16 rating points behind England and county teammate Jonathan Trott, who has slipped two places in the rankings to fourth position Matt Prior (21st), Stuart Broad (44th) and Tim Bresnan (joint 75th) have also achieved new career-high ratings following England's 319-run victory which gave it a 2-0 lead in the four-match series.However, it is not all good news for England's batters, as Alastair Cook has slipped six places to 11th position following a disappointing series in which he has made just 20 runs in four innings.Rahul Dravid, who made his second consecutive Test match hundred of the series, has continued his climb up the rankings, rising four places to joint 11th, and is on the verge of breaking back into the top 10, with his best batting rating since India's last Test series in England in 2007. There are already three India batters in the top 10, with Sachin Tendulkar (third), VVS Laxman (ninth) and Virender Sehwag (10th) just ahead of Dravid.Tim Bresnan has risen 14 places in the bowling rankings, following his first five-wicket Test haul, to put him 25th on the list, while his innings of 90 in the second innings has helped him rise to 13th in the all-rounder standings.England is now on course to take top spot on the Reliance ICC Test Championship table. A series win of two clear Tests in the four-match series (2-0 or 3-1) will see Andrew Strauss's men topple India as the number-one Test side in the world. The table is updated only at the end of each series.Elsewhere, some of Bangladesh's star players will be eyeing the opportunity to climb the rankings when they face Zimbabwe in the one-off Test match which begins in Harare on Thursday.Shakib Al Hasan will be looking to regain ground on Stuart Broad in the all-rounder rankings, having lost his third position as a result of the Trent Bridge Test, and he will also be looking to improve his ninth-place bowling ranking and close the 12-point rating gap on eighth ranked Ishant Sharma.Bangladesh's top-ranked batsman is Tamim Iqbal in 19th position and, with just 44 points separating the 10th-placed and 20th-placed players, this is a clear opportunity for him to improve his position

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ICC joins forces with broadcasters to hold third-umpire technology training

The International Cricket Council is partnering with Ten Sports and Sri Lanka Cricket to deliver the first simulated TV umpire technology training course at Galle, Sri Lanka, on 30 August 2011The course will be run by the highly respected Australian umpire and member of the Emirates ICC Elite Umpires panel Simon Taufel, who has been named Umpire of the Year at the LG ICC Awards on five occasions.Mr Taufel said: "This is a great initiative which will benefit the elite panel umpires and also the international panel umpires from Sri Lanka. The decision-making module will involve training on run out, stumping, clean catches, bump ball, lbw (Decision Review System), caught (DRS), boundaries and front-foot no-balls. While working through the various decision-making elements, there will also be a focus on effective communication skills.ICC Referees' and Umpires' Manager Vince van der Bijl said: "We would like to thank our partners, Sri Lanka Cricket and Ten Sports, in helping us develop this TV umpire simulation programme, that will be run by Simon. This is the first simulated training course we have run and we are delighted with the extension of our training programme aimed at developing the world's best match officials.Chief Executive of Taj TV Ten Sports Atul Pande added: "Taj TV (Ten Sports) is delighted to partner with the ICC for the launch of this third-umpire technology simulation training programme with the aim of developing world-class umpires."The occasion is all the more significant for us as this pilot program involves Sri Lanka Cricket – a long standing partner of Ten Sports. We have no doubt that this project will be a great success and will pave the way for both the ICC and Ten Sports to work in close partnership to replicate projects of this nature in other member countries in the near future. We wish everyone involved in this project the very best.Chairman of the interim committee of Sri Lanka Cricket Upali Dharmadasa added: "Sri Lanka Cricket is grateful to both ICC and Ten Sports for taking the initiative and developing this unique training programme. We are confident that the local umpires will benefit from this programme and we are grateful to ICC for choosing Sri Lanka as the location to run the pilot programme just prior to the first Test between Sri Lanka and Australia. SLC is committed to work with ICC and Ten Sports to find ways to improve the quality of umpiring among the local umpires by encouraging such programmes and trying to make it a regular feature.

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Strauss expects more from England after India rout

England captain Andrew Strauss insisted his team could become a better side after thrashing India by the huge margin of 319 runs in the second Test at Trent Bridge. Victory, achieved with more than a day to spare, was a record in terms of runs in all 101 England-India Tests and left Strauss's side 2-0 up in this four-match series It also left England on course to replace India at the top of the ICC's Test Championship table - something they will achieve if they win the third Test at Edgbaston starting on August 10. England, however, did not have things all their own way after losing the toss at Trent Bridge and being inserted in seamer-friendly conditionsThey were 124 for eight in their first innings before man-of-the-match Stuart Broad made 64 to boost the total to 221. And with India threatening a big first innings lead fast-medium bowler Broad, on his Nottinghamshire home ground, took a hat-trick on his way to Test-best figures of six for 46.Ian Bell then produced a sublime 159, an innings whose quality threatened to be overshadowed by a lapse of concentration that saw him run out, then sportingly reinstated by India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, after he carelessly left his crease off the last ball before tea on Sunday.England's imposing second innings 544 also saw Tim Bresnan, in for the injured Chris Tremlett, contribute 90 down the order before the seamer took a Test-best five for 48 as India, chasing a record 478 to win, were skittled out for 158 on Monday.We had to dig very deep - we were twice in a position where India looked very much like favourites to win the game - and we dragged it round," Strauss said.There were some outstanding individual performances. "There was Stuart, both with the ball and the bat in the first innings - to rescue our innings, and then turn the match on its head with the second new ball. But also Ian Bell and Tim Bresnan with the second-innings batting gave us breathing space. One of the real measures of a good side is whether they are able to come back from difficult circumstances.In the last two Test matches we've had to dig pretty deep, and it gives me a lot of pride to see guys putting their hands up and delivering when it matters," said Strauss, who also led England to a 196-run series-opening win at his Lord's home ground. It also fills me with a lot of confidence for the future that we can go on and become a better side said the Ashes-winning skipper.Meanwhile an elated Broad, whose place had been called into question before the first Test, said: "It helps getting a hat-trick on your home ground which is something I will look back on with a lot of pleasure.""I have looked to bowl a fuller length and the ball has swung for me. It's nice when cricket is going your way for a little while but it makes it even more special when you have had a pretty tough time over the last couple of months.Broad, the son of ex-England opener Chris, added: "We try to take the game by the scruff of the neck and we'll be looking to do the same at Edgbaston."As well as Tremlett (hamstring), England also have fitness concerns over batsman Jonathan Trott, who injured his shoulder fielding at Trent Bridge."We are not too sure on the injuries to both Trott and Tremlett at this stage but it's fantastic to see Stuart scoring runs as well as taking wickets and Tim Bresnan showing his all-round capabilities as well,said Strauss.

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New manager to be appointed for Zimbabwe series

LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) will appoint a new manager for the national cricket team and Intikhab Alam has been dropped as the manager for the upcoming tour of Zimbabwe According to sources, Naveed Akram Cheema is the frontrunner to replace Alam as team manager. Cheema is currently a member of the PCB governing board.

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