The denizens of Lord’s are all set to let their hair down for the first time in history tonight, when the Twenty20 Cup takes place in front of a 21,000 full house. But for all the banners, flags and fancy-dress on show, the party will not be allowed to get too far out of hand. Westminster Council’s sound engineers will be on standby to ensure there is no breach of the peace in St John’s Wood.Musical interludes will accompany the key moments of tonight’s seminal clash between Middlesex and Surrey, but the volume will be kept to a reasonable limit, and once again there will be no musical instruments permitted in the ground. The match promises to be the most eagerly supported non-final county match at Lord’s for more than 50 years, when the two teams met in the Championship in 1953.On that occasion, however, the match petered away to a dull draw, and of the final day, Wisden wrote: "the cricket certainly did not provide the entertainment the large crowd deserved." It can only be assumed that this evening’s bash will be rather a more spectacular affair.Though the ECB has noticeably done away with the blazer-and-tie look for this competition, the usual dress codes will apply in the Lord’s pavilion, although not, presumably, at the Nursery end of the ground, where an amusement arcade has been set up in the indoor school. The previous record attendance for a Twenty20 match was 14,862 for last year’s Roses match at Old Trafford, although that record ought to be smashed this evening.John Emburey, Middlesex’s coach, and a man who experienced Lord’s crowds of all shapes and sizes in his playing career, has warned his players not to be overawed at the turn-out this evening, although, with Surrey on a roll and unbeaten in all ten of their matches since the competition’s inception, they have a tough task ahead of them.

Mike Hussey, the prolific Western Australian left-hander, is to join Durham next season. Hussey, 28, has already played county cricket for Northants – for whom he struck three triple-centuries – and Gloucestershire, who he joined for the second half of the current season.Hussey, who averages 51 in all first-class cricket, has captained Australia A, and has also played one one-day international – against India on his home pitch at Perth in 2003-04, scoring 17 not out.Durham faced stiff competition is signing Hussey, but he explained: “It is flattering that there has been a lot of interest from various counties – however, when I visited Durham I saw for myself what an ambitious and progressive club it is. There is no doubt in my mind that this is where I want to be playing cricket.”I am hugely excited about my move to Durham. As well as offering me a personal challenge it gives me the opportunity to help nurture and offer advice to the outstanding young talent that is emerging from within this team.”Martyn Moxon, the former England batsman who is now Durham’s coach, added: “Mike embodies the type of player we needed to bring into the team. He is a top-order batsman who will be a real asset. His experience will offer great leadership to the younger members of the squad. We expect him to be available for selection throughout the year, which will also give us continuity in the dressing-room.”

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Ten wickets in the match and career-best figures of 6 for 85 for leg breakbowler Warwick Hinkel was enough to see Border convincingly beat FreeState in Bloemfontein.Having declared overnight, Border had set Free State a target of 381 runsfrom 104 overs. With Hinkel mesmerising the batsmen the game was over in the early afternoon, after 65 overs and a winning margin of 209 runs.Pool B: Eastern Province 178 and 300 (Homani 83, Nel 59, Howell 55,Alexander 3-48, Behardien 3-48) drew with Western Province 228 and 142for 6 (Munnik 55*, Willemse 4-61).
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Eastern Province were not prepared to take a gamble at St George’s Park,and in the end they had to be content with sharing the spoils with WesternProvince. Batting out their second innings, they set a target of 251 runsin 52 overs after scoring 300. Bob Homani could only add 11 to hisovernight 72 while Ruan Nel (59) and Grant Howell (55), the son ofumpire Ian Howell, both made fifties on debut. Craig Alexander and FahaanBehardien each took three wickets.After a collapse from Western Province, engineered by Darryl Willmese (4-61),they were rescued by Rennier Munnik (55*) and Mark de Stadler (21) who had taken the score from 79 for 6 to 142 for 6 when time ran out.Pool B: Griqualand West 414 for 5 dec and 250 for 8 dec (McLaren 57,Stroh 6-84) beat North West 350 for 8 dec and 203 (Rosenberg 86, Arthur4-54, Coetzee 3-39) by 111 runs.
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Griqualand West walked away with a massive 21.28 points as they beatNorth West at Sedgars Park by 111 runs. Griquas had continued batting untillunch, as Adrian McLaren scoring 57 which allowed them to declare at 250 for 8and a lead of 314 runs. Richard Stroh, on his debut for North West,started off his career well as he took 6 for 84.In reply, North West could not hold out being bowled out for 203 as theyattempted to go after the target. Marc Rosenberg nearly helped to pulloff the miracle by smashing 86 off 62 balls, but with no-one lending a hand,it was all in vain. Nathan Arthur (4-54) and Werner Coetzee (3-39) were themain wicket takers.

“I hope to be going to Bangladesh.” The words hit you in the gut. They signified a passing of time; a marker between eras. A flurry of statements is to be expected. Of course John Wright will go to Bangladesh, they will announce. But Wright’s thoughts betrayed an uncertain future. These are uncertain times in our game, and furtive glances have been cast at the men who were chosen to give Indian cricket new direction only a presidential term ago.After a long while, there is intrigue again. It says much about Wright and Sourav Ganguly. Dark shadows poised over Indian cricket showed no signs of receding four years ago when the task fell on them. Tough words were satisfyingly followed by tough deeds. India had turned an invisible corner and stepped out of the shadows into light that only became brighter. But blinded by the limelight of the last season, they seemed to have stumbled into another dark alley.If a man’s darkest moments are the sternest test of his character, these have not been glorious days for Indian cricket. The word `greenwicketitis’ was invented after Ganguly was declared unfit for the last two Tests against Australia. A victory on a morbid pitch followed. It served no one’s purpose besides giving fleeting cheer to a victory-sapped public. Then more turners were asked for. Now the coach is vague about his future. There’s something very wrong here.It’s too familiar for comfort. Wright’s reign was supposed to end with a ceremony, where he crowned the next-in-line, a worthy who carried on his good work – a bit like Australia, where succession has been more or less smooth. Instead, the murky future has hit home hard because it’s a feature of Indian cricket that we believed was dead and buried, at least when it came to national team. India were to have moved ahead when the coach changed, not taken a step back. Wright went all the way…nearly.It was only spring when India beat Pakistan. So what changed so drastically? Nothing. It was pure bad timing that India went into a collective slump this season. After two years of persistence, a quality Wright imbued in the side, India simply derailed. It went against his commitment to see the team move forward, and he recently admitted that each time India lost, he wondered if he was good enough. Not many people think that way and admit it. India took more catches under him, were fitter, ran harder, and even began smiling again. It was the `love and care’ approach before Ray Jennings put it in words. It’s exactly what India needed.His quiet steel and Ganguly’s temperament came together at the right time. Some would call it fate. Others will claim it was a calculated move. Whatever, it worked. Out went the dainty Indian image, replaced by the sight of a miffed Steve Waugh waiting at the pitch for the toss. It was rude and tough. The approach was so unIndian, it was shocking at first, but the acceptance came. The players were not only expected to give it back, but to sledge some as well. In a sense, the approach applied by Wright and Ganguly appealed to India as a country. It was a happy turn of events.He demanded intensity from every member of the side. He understood the pitfalls of success in India, and asked the team to keep themselves motivated even when they weren’t playing. No namby-pambying for superstars here. That he and Ganguly changed India in such a short span of time is a wonder. Having exceptionally talented players helped, but then you could say that the early 90s team with Tendulkar, Azhar and Kambli was just as talented. It’s just that one team was more driven.When the camera turns to him, he’s mostly behind a laptop. Not the most unique thing, but before Wright, which Indian coach would rely on technology to help? Pre-Wright, you had the Javed Miandad-ish `fergit technology, I’ll teach ya what to do’ approach. Wright pulled India out of a comfort zone and got them to work on their game. It was the clearest indication of direction in a long time.It is tragic that this season will be added as an afterthought, an asterisk, when Wright is spoken about. But it comes with the territory, and Wright is already mentioned fondly. He will be recalled as one of the architects of a tougher India where a work ethic was applied and the value of the team was emphasised. He’ll be reminisced about for being there when India and Australia played two great series. He’ll also be remembered as the one man who made Ganguly hurry between wickets.

According to Glenn McGrath, Shoaib Akhtar’s king-size run-up has more to do with his love of playing to the gallery than a desire to bowl fast. McGrath weighed in to the issue after Bob Woolmer, Pakistan’s coach, had earlier pleaded with Shoaib to cut down on his approach, which slowed the game down and also drastically reduced the chances of him bowling long spells.And while McGrath accepted the fact that Shoaib, on his good days, could run through a side, he pointedly suggested that he was also capable of bowling “a heap of rubbish”. McGrath took 8 for 24 in the second innings at the WACA in Perth, demolishing Pakistan with the steepling bounce and accuracy that has underpinned his charge to 472 wickets in just 104 Tests.And while Shoaib laughed off suggestions that he pare down a run-up that starts in the shadow of the sightscreen – “Can a plane take off without a run-up?” he asked enigmatically – McGrath told the that the response was typical of Pakistan’s premier bowler. “He’s a showman, and that’s what he loves,” said McGrath. “Cutting that run-up down might take a bit away from that and take a bit away from who he is. Maybe that’s why he’s holding on.”I don’t know what I can say I am, a jump-jet or a helicopter or something. I think he could bowl just as quick off a shorter run. They say it’s [Akhtar’s run-up] 33 metres. Mine’s 23 metres and he looks a good 17 or 20 metres behind me, so I’d say it’s 40-plus. When you’re bowling six-minute overs it puts pressure on the other guys to get through their overs, plus you can only get through three or four overs at top pace before you really start feeling the pinch.”McGrath also reckoned that Shoaib needed to take fresh stock of his priorities, given how much the team relied on him. “From a personal point of view, my goal was always to be the best bowler, not so much the quickest, whereas I’m sure Shoaib’s major and only goal is to be the quickest bowler in the world, if not of all time,” he said. “He’s the type of bowler that can just rip through sides. He’s got that potential there but then he’s got the potential to bowl a heap of rubbish as well.”But having got in a none-too-subtle sledge ahead of the Boxing Day Test,McGrath admitted that, ultimately, run-ups were dictated by a bowler’s sense of well-being. “At the end of the day, a run-up has got to feel good for the bowler. I shortened my run-up and it felt ordinary, so I had to go back to my old one. Shoaib might be the same.”

Darren Lehmann’s international career is almost certainly over after he was dropped for the five-match one-day series against New Zealand. While Lehmann, who missed Australia’s last Test against Pakistan and struggled during the VB Series, was dumped after 117 ODIs, Matthew Hayden was retained in the 14-man squad despite being overlooked for the finals against Pakistan.Trevor Hohns, the chairman of selectors, said Lehmann, who was 35 on Saturday, had been a fine team man in a tribute that read like a last goodbye. “Darren has been a wonderful player for Australia over a long period of time,” he said. “Throughout his career, his performances have been first class, which has been a telling factor in the team’s terrific run of success.”However, Lehmann was told by Hohns last night that he was still a chance of regaining a Test place. Hohns said Lehmann’s recent form, including 89 runs in six VB Series innings, was a concern and it was time to start looking to the future. “Unfortunately it’s one of those tough calls, but it is time for us to move forward,” he said. “His unofficial role as a leader amongst the squad has been outstanding. He has been a fine team man.”Mike Hussey, the Western Australia batsman, has earned a recall after playing one match against India last summer while James Hopes, the Queensland allrounder, replaced the injured Shane Watson. Watson suffered a side strain in the second VB Series final and is also a doubtful starter for the Test squad, which will be named later this month. It is Lehmann’s final hope for an international reprieve.Lehmann said Hohns told him it was time to move on as Australia look towards the 2007 World Cup. “I really understand that,” Lehmann said. “If [my international career is] over, it’s over – there is nothing I can do about it.”The end for Lehmann, a dual World Cup winner, began on the tour of India last year when he offered his Test place to Michael Clarke, and continued with a hamstring injury that ruled him out of the fourth Test at Mumbai. On his return to Australia the glare intensified on and off the field as he gave evidence in the David Hookes manslaughter trial, released his biography and stuttered with the bat.An 81 against New Zealand on his home ground at Adelaide was the brightest innings of a Test summer where he was twice shocked by Shoaib Akhtar – he was bowled behind his legs at Perth and popped a catch to short leg at the MCG – and dropped for Sydney. Teammates and supporters offered him the respect of someone who had reached 100 Tests instead of a talented batsman who had played 27 matches and only sealed a regular spot on the 2003 West Indies tour.Desperate for a first Ashes Tour, Lehmann needed a strong VB Series to remind selectors of his stock, but he was again troubled by owning too many shots. Two fifties against New Zealand in December held up his season of struggle and his worst dismissal was to a first-ball reverse sweep in the opening final against Pakistan.Hussey has been rewarded for seasons of consistency, although he has been at his most prolific in English county cricket, and has scored 362 runs at 40.22 in the 2004-05 ING Cup. “We feel that if given the opportunity he could do a very good job for Australia, particularly in the middle order,” Hohns said. “He impressed us when making his one-day debut in Perth last summer and we said at the time that he had certainly put his case forward for future selections.”Hohns said Hopes, the 26-year-old Australia A player, was an exciting prospect who he had kept his eyes on. “Like Watson, he can perform a variety of roles for us,” Hohns said. “He has put some excellent performances on the board for Queensland throughout the year and we feel that this opportunity will fast-track his development.” The opening one-day match is at Wellington on February 19, but the teams will play the first international Twenty20 game at Auckland next Thursday.Australia Ricky Ponting (capt), Adam Gilchrist (wk), Michael Clarke, Jason Gillespie, Matthew Hayden, Brad Hogg, James Hopes, Michael Hussey, Michael Kasprowicz, Simon Katich, Brett Lee, Damien Martyn, Glenn McGrath, Andrew Symonds.

Glenn McGrath has lifted his sights to 600 Test wickets as he prepares to become the first Australia bowler to play a Test aged 35 since Ray Lindwall. The quirky record is a huge compliment to McGrath’s ironman durability and his ability to recover from injuries, such as the ankle problem that almost ended his career last year.While his pace partners were waiting to see who would join him in the first Test at Christchurch on Thursday, McGrath was resetting his goals. "I’ve always focused on 500 wickets but with the way I feel now, I’ve probably moved that up another 100,” McGrath told the Courier-Mail. “I don’t think I’ve ever felt as good as I have the last three months. I don’t even feel the ankle any more and my confidence has never been higher.”McGrath currently has 481 wickets and the newspaper reported Sir Richard Hadlee saying he was a chance of passing 500 during the three-Test series. Hadlee played until he was 39, taking 431 Test wickets, and Courtney Walsh (519) and Curtly Ambrose (405) bowled well into middle-age.Australia have to look back to Lindwall (228) and Keith Miller (170) for such longevity. Lindwall’s final Test was against India at Eden Gardens in January 1960.

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New South Wales strengthened their chances of making it to the Pura Cup final as they dismissed Victoria for a paltry 169 after they won the toss and batted at the SCG. By close of play, the Blues were trailing by just 37 runs, with nine first-innings wickets still in hand.The Bushrangers managed 4 for 40 by lunch, and without Nick Jewell’s 80, his first half-century in his fifth match, the situation would have been dire. Stuart MacGill added three wickets while Stuart Clark, Nathan Bracken and Matthew Nicholson each grabbed two.Then, Greg Mail and Phil Jaques led the run-fest for NSW, adding 131 for the opening wicket before Mail was dismissed for 55 just seven balls before the close of play. However, Jaques was still going strong, unbeaten on 73 off just 112 balls, and with plenty of batting still to follow, the Blues had an excellent opportunity to take a huge lead and gun for an outright victory. Depending on the result at the Gabba, where Queensland are playing Western Australia, New South Wales, currently in third place, could host the final if they secure a win here.

If Zimbabwe’s authorities thought the problems of sides touring were over after England’s visit last November, they would have been disappointed by the announcement by New Zealand’s Green party that they had written to all the NZ team urging them to pull out of the August tour of Zimbabwe on moral grounds.Rod Donald, the joint leader of the Green party, told reporters that he had written to all 25 squad members asking them to consider their positions. The move follows comments earlier in the week by Martin Snedden, New Zealand Cricket’s CEO, that any individuals who objected to touring on moral grounds would be free to stay home without facing adverse consequences to their future playing prospects.”The Black Caps are role models with considerable power to task a strong stand against the brutality of the Zimbabwean regime,” Donald said. “Ideally, theGovernment and NZ Cricket would get together and decide to call off the tour. However, the players now have the power to force the hands of the authorities.”Sneddon has said that players’ playing careers will be unaffected if they decide to pull out of the Zimbabwe tour. That leaves players quite free to pull out of the tour without fear of it hurting their prospects of future selection. Realistically, if enough players exercised their consciences, the tour would have to be called off.”Donald went on to compare the situation in Zimbabwe to that in South Africa during the apartheid years. “Actions speak louder than words. In the 1970s and 80s, hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders stood up for black South Africans by urging their sporting teams to cut all contacts with South Africa. Now, it’s time to utilise the same tactics against Zimbabwe.”The Mugabe Government is a brutal, illegitimate dictatorship that has just rigged what it claimed were free and fair elections. It has no respect for human rights, and intimidates and brutalises its enemies, including cricketers Henry Olonga and Andy Flower. Our cricketers should take the brave step of showing solidarity with Henry and Andy and the Zimbabwean people by refusing to give the Mugabe regime the respectabilityof welcoming international supporting teams.”Cricket is an important part of Zimbabwean culture, and not being able to welcome international cricketing sides would be a blow to the regime’s claims to legitimacy.”

Michael Beloff QC, the ICC appeals commissioner, has indicated that he is likely to hear Sourav Ganguly’s appeal against his six-match ban based on the extensive written submissions from Ganguly and statements of the match officials. Ganguly had sought to have the matter heard at a second personal hearing via a telephone call but Beloff felt that a hearing based on the written submissions was the appropriate way to proceed.Beloff has sought Ganguly’s final comments as to why a personal hearing is required as a matter of urgency. Ganguly was handed a six-match ban after being found guilty of slow over-rates yet again in the fourth one-dayer against Pakistan at Ahmedabad. The Indian board then appealed the ban, but chose to rest him for the last two matches at Kanpur and Delhi.Under the ICC Code of Conduct, the way in which an appeal is heard is at the discretion of the appointed appeals commissioner. There have been instances, including the previous case involving Ganguly, of commissioners who have elected to have the hearing via a telephone hook-up. In this case, though, Ganguly has provided Beloff with two written submissions detailing the grounds for his appeal and the reasons why he believes the suspension should be overturned.A decision on the merits of the appeal is expected to be made within the next 48 hours.