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James Anderson, the England fast bowler, has admitted the pressure that comes with defending their No. 1 Test status is something the team is still “coming to terms with”.England lost by an innings at The Oval in the first Test of their series against South Africa, which will decide the top ranking. After overtaking India during last summer’s 4-0 whitewashing, England have now lost five of their last nine Tests and although a draw against South Africa will keep them at No. 1, their tenure has been far from convincing.England only managed to take two wickets in 189 overs at The Oval, whilst being bowled out twice, with the difference between runs per wicket for each side the biggest in Test history. South Africa can seal the series with victory in the second Test at Headingley, starting on August 2, but Anderson said England will strive to make sure their performance matches up to what is expected of the top team in Tests.”When you’re trying to become number one in the world, you’re trying to chase everyone else down and now we’re the ones being chased,” Anderson told the . “So it’s a different position we’re in and maybe we’ve not quite come to terms with that yet.”It’s a different challenge that comes with different pressures. People expect you to win and to play well every week and, in reality, that’s not going to happen. You’re going to have days or weeks where you’re not quite on top of your game and unfortunately, this was one of those weeks. We’ll just have to make sure we come back strongly.”It was our goal for a number of years to get to the top of the rankings and when you get there, you want to stay there. We know if we lose the series, we won’t stay there. People expect you to play as the number one team in the world and we didn’t do that this week.”Anderson said that England’s batsmen could learn from the performances of Jacques Kallies, who scored an unbeaten 182, and Hashim Amla, whose triple-hundred was the first in Tests by a South African. The bowlers would also attempt to replicate the “intent and aggression” shown by South Africa’s attack.”We’re a very good unit when we’re aggressive and in batsmen’s faces and we probably didn’t do that as well as we could, even if it’s hard to be aggressive when you’re bowling at two guys who have scored hundreds,” Anderson said.Ian Bell has spoken of the need for England’s players to discuss what went wrong during the first Test and Anderson reiterated that the squad would be frank with each other in trying to improve their showing in Leeds.”We’re an open and honest dressing room and we’re critical of each other, constructively,” he said. “After a game like that, everyone is encouraged to speak their mind and there is no bullshit.”It’s something Andy Flower brought in when he became coach and it’s something that’s helped us improve. Andy encourages everyone to speak, whether they have played one Test or 100. When I started playing, that wasn’t the case. There would be a few senior voices in the dressing room and that would be it, and maybe that’s why we weren’t as successful then.”Now the honesty we have and the respect we have for each other means that when someone speaks, everyone listens, no matter who they are. We don’t sit there for hours talking drivel. It could be 10 minutes, it could be half an hour but then it’s done. You move on and you focus on what you can do better at Headingley.”England have announced ahead of the second Test that the fast bowlers Steven Finn and Graham Onions will be available for Middlesex and Durham, respectively, in their Championship matches starting on Friday. Ravi Bopara, the current incumbent at No. 6, can play for Essex against Worcestershire in the CB40 on Sunday, the same day that England will name their squad for Headingley.

It wasn’t with an emphatic six or a fierce stroke to the boundary that West Indies reached their target. It was a simple little nudge by Assad Fudadin, in his second Test, to square leg for a single, which Chris Gayle was happy to observe from the other end. It showed the side of West Indies that is consciously choosing substance over style and it was also reflected in the absence of any over-the-top celebrations, even though it was the team’s first win in ten Tests.Even as the win became all but certain, the West Indies coach Ottis Gibson was seen still sitting with his arms crossed across his chest, keen to have the job completed. There was no whooping or hollering. Just calm handshakes, quiet high-fives and broad smiles that indicated that their hard labour of the past five days had borne fruit. It was all about keeping the eyes on the prize.”Having not won in a long time and having not beaten New Zealand since 1996, we cherish [this victory] and we look forward to Jamaica,” Gibson said after the match. “We came here wanting to win and we are very pleased we have been able to do that.”For a team that has shown that it has players in its ranks with the ability and skill to compete with the best, the past couple of years have been disheartening for West Indies. They played competitive cricket against Australia despite losing 2-0. They have run India close at home and away. They didn’t handle the key moments in those matches well and inexperience in their top order contributed significantly. Even in England, Gibson believes they had their opportunities.”I think we would have won some of those games, if we had the experience,” he said. “There is no substitute for experience. Having the experience of Chris [Gayle] at the top of the order makes a huge difference. When we play teams that are around us [in ICC rankings], we believe we can compete and win. We have competed with the best.”But Gibson was quick to indicate that the result was not based solely on Gayle’s performance but that the whole team contributed to the win. “I just think it was an outstanding performance,” Gibson said. “The way [Kieran] Powell batted so well with so much maturity in the first innings, of course with Chris [Gayle] being so dominating, and all the way down the line, with young Fudadin getting his first test fifty, Narsingh [Deonarine] continuing with his good form, then [Darren] Sammy coming in at the back end and scoring some runs.”I thought Kemar Roach bowled a spell at the back end of the first innings that was a very aggressive spell that got us some key wickets. Ravi Rampaul was very aggressive today. Kemar was very accurate. [Man of the Match] Sunil Narine made contributions. So, it’s a whole team effort and the whole team is very happy with their work.”A victory margin of nine wickets may indicate a relatively one-sided contest but it was far from that. On a wicket that just wouldn’t break, Narine was not going to be the key factor on day five. West Indies were patient when they had to be and showed aggression when required. When rain interrupted play 40 minutes in to the morning, West Indies had not been able to break the overnight partnership of Ross Taylor and night-watchman Neil Wagner. Gibson said the delay gave West Indies “an opportunity to reassess, to plan again. Kemar Roach came back and he had a clear idea of what he wanted to do.”Two quick wickets after the resumption, those of Taylor and Kane Williamson, who had to be the pillars on which any resistance from New Zealand would be built on, put West Indies on an irreversible path to victory. However, New Zealand had already played right in to West Indies’ hands by not scoring enough during the first session, only 26 runs in 26 overs.”If they [New Zealand] were scoring, that would have put us under a little bit more pressure,” Gibson said. “[The lack of early wickets] didn’t change the match really. Once we started to get a few wickets – which was always going to happen – the target we were going to have to chase wasn’t going to be so much. If they were scoring, then, it would have been a different story.”Gibson said he was also pleased with the way the side found runs even without significant contributions from Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Marlon Samuels.”I can’t remember the last time West Indies made 600 runs in a Test match and Chanderpaul didn’t feature in the scorecard,” he said. “The team is moving in the right direction. It has been moving in the right direction for a while. The players are starting to form the right sort of habits and the right attitudes. Everybody has got the sort of feel good factor about themselves. We need a few wins, here and there, to confirm what we are doing is the right thing. This win gives us that confirmation and the belief to keep doing what we are doing and keep trying to move [our] cricket forward.”In all this, the role of the captain, Sammy, cannot be understated. Gibson said Sammy’s influence on the team as its leader was vital to the success of the side. “He does his job every day in day out,” he said. “He plays his part in the team whether it is with the bat or the ball or whether he is taking catches or whatever. And he is the sort of leader we need right now for this team. I believe he is doing a good job and the players believe he is doing a good job too.”When asked about his personal feelings as the victory was within sight, having endured a rollercoaster ride in the past 18 months, Gibson instead focused on the side’s new mantra and approach. “My personal feelings hardly ever come in to the team stuff,” he said. “We came here as a team of 13 players and eight support staff. Whatever we do, we do it as a team. If we win, it is not an individual thing. It’s a team win.”

William Porterfield never learned to write a bike as a child – he was too busy playing cricket – but he is saddling up alongside his Ireland team mate Gary Wilson for a charity cycle ride the length of Ireland.Wilson, none too experienced on two wheels himself, although slightly less wobbly, devised the ride in memory of his mother, Iris, who died earlier this year. All funds raised will go to Cancer Research UK.Wilson and Porterfield plan to cycle 380 miles in five days, beginning at Mardyke CC in Cork and heading north through Kilkenny, Malahide, Armagh and Derry before finishing, assuming all goes well, in Wilson’s home city of Belfast. There will be a charity dinner at Stormont on the final evening..Both have until October to perfect their cycling skills as well as praying that the incessant wind and rain which has brought one of Ireland’s wettest springs on record will by then be a distant memory.”I was just one of those things that I never really rode a bicycle when I was young”, Porterfield said. “I guess it’s not the most difficult thing to do but I will be putting in a few miles between now and the off.”Wilson said: “It will be tough going. Cricket has, of course, kept us pretty fit but I think we’ll have to put in a lot more training before we set off.”Relatives and friends have been invited to accompany them on route and members of the public are also welcome to tag along..”It will be a long haul and I think we will be tested to the limit. But we have organised it that way in the hope that people will support us given the toughness of the task.”Route:October 9: Mardyke CC to Kilkenny.October 10: Kilkenny to Malahide CC.October 11: Malahide CC to Armagh.October 12: Armagh to Bready CC.October 13: Bready CC to Stormont.

Sri Lanka coach Graham Ford has said allrounder Thisara Perera could establish himself in the Test side, if he can replicate the bowling form he showed in Saturday’s ODI against Pakistan with more consistency.”With the talent he has got and the way he bowled [on Saturday], there’s no doubt he can be a regular Test player,” Ford said. “His work ethic is good and he knows the areas he has to improve on. I am sure, with the many years he has got ahead of him, he will become a very effective Test player.”He is a still a young man and hits the ball extremely hard. He is working harder on his ball-striking ability. [Here] he showed the best control he has shown with the ball since I have been involved with the team. That’s something the bowling coach has worked hard with him upon, and he has got better and better.”If it was Perera’s 6 for 44 that won the match for Sri Lanka, it was Dilshan’s unbeaten 119 off 139 balls that set up the total that allowed Perera to apply pressure on Pakistan. That, Ford said, was a well-paced innings. “What he [Dilshan] did was to work hard through the new ball [phase], and then he was able to capitalise in the later stages of the game.”He worked extremely hard on that knock and that laid the foundation for us to get the total we eventually got. He had to work hard as the Pakistan attack one of the best in world cricket. This one is going to be rated as a special knock in his career.”Sri Lanka had lost the first ODI by six wickets, after scoring 135 for 8 in the rain-affected, shortened game. Following that performance, Ford said, Saturday’s show was commendable.”The cricket that we played was superb. We were obviously down and disappointed with what happened the other day. There was lot of chatting and thinking done during the last two days, and the hats off to the guys for the character they have shown.”

The BCCI has roped in Ravi Sawani, the former head of the ICC’s anti-corruption and security unit (ACSU), to head their new domestic anti-corruption bureau. India will be the fourth country after Pakistan, Australia and England to have an independent ACU unit.”We want our own ACU unit because at the moment, for tournaments like the IPL, we need to hire people from the ICC and then there is also a lot more domestic cricket played in India,” Rajiv Shukla, the BCCI vice-president, told ESPNcricinfo. “So the BCCI felt we should have our own watchdog.”Sawani moved on to become a consultant at the ICC after retiring as ACSU head last year, but his term comes to an end at the end of May this year. The terms and conditions, the exact nature of his job, the kind of structure the BCCI’s ACU will have and other details are yet to be worked out. It is understood that Sawani would be given complete authority to set up the unit. It is expected that Sawani will hand pick his team and it will probably comprise of very few people.The BCCI, an official pointed out, was only following the rule laid down by the ICC executive board, which made it mandatory that all member boards must have a domestic anti-corruption code of their own. “But to enforce the code, you need an agency to do that. That is what the BCCI are doing now,” the board official said.Sawani was not available for comments but a BCCI official said its ACU would keep a close eye on the exhaustive domestic set-up, which was also in the eye-line of the illegal betting industry and made players “vulnerable”. “We have a large number of domestic tournaments in India that attract an equal number of bets, which are unknown to the outside world. So players are vulnerable in these tournaments.”In addition to their domestic and IPL duties, Sawani and his team will also educate young players at the various BCCI state academies about the anti-corruption code, and largely extend the work done by the ACSU for the international players.Asked specifically about the IPL, whether there was any hint of corruption so far in the league, the BCCI official said nothing of that nature had been established. He said that having an exclusive ACU wing would only tighten the existing cracks in the anti-corruption programme, with the IPL in focus because it “needs more eyes than any other team in the world today”. “It is not that anything wrong is going on [in the IPL], but because the vulnerability is so much,” he said.In the past the BCCI has turned a deaf ear towards putting a security mechanism in place, typified by its response to security in the first two editions of the IPL. In its inaugural year, 2008, the IPL gave the ACSU a very short notice – just about a week – to come on board. When the IPL was played in South Africa the following year, the Indian board did not have ACSU services for the entire tournament, saying the cost of $1.2m charged by the ICC for the services of their ASCU was too high. In the last three years though the ACSU has been given free reign during the IPL, even though some sections of the board were defensive about paying big money to retain them.The BCCI official said that by having its own ACU wing in place, they could now breathe easy. The official said that board president N Srinivasan had been very keen to have a domestic ACU. This new anti-corruption venture, the official said was the “initiative of N Srinivasan” because “India is a too big a country to risk anything”.

Preliminary finals

The Afghanistan players celebrate after securing qualification for the 2012 World Twenty20•Getty Images

Afghanistan ensured they will appear at the ICC World Twenty20 for the second competition running with a comprehensive win over previously unbeaten Namibia in Dubai. Victory by 47 runs booked Afghanistan a place in the final of the qualifying tournament, where they could meet Namibia again; they will play either Ireland or Netherlands – who both won their first play-off games earlier in the day – for the second berth on offer for the 2012 World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka.Having chosen to bat, Afghanistan were dismissed off the final ball of their innings for 146. Against big-scoring Namibia, other sides may have felt that score was barely enough – but Afghanistan have swept all before them in the last week and the bowlers blew away their opponents’ dangerous top order, effectively ending Namibia’s hopes at 18 for 4 after four overs. Dawlat Zadran was the destroyer-in-chief, taking 3 for 1 in his opening two-over spell, including the wicket of Raymond van Schoor, the tournament’s leading runscorer, for a first-ball duck. Gerrie Snyman was also dismissed for 0 in the same over, before Dawlat had Craig Williams caught behind and Aftab Alam – who went on to claim 4 for 25 – removed Louis van der Westhuizen, ensuring that none of the top four made double figures.After that opening blitz, Namibia’s hopes were in tatters and they were eventually bundled out for 99. Their struggles put into perspective Afghanistan’s score, with several batsmen getting in and then out. Karim Sadiq and Javid Ahmadi put on 57 for the opening wicket in 6.3 overs but they both fell in quick succession as Sarel Burger claimed three for 16 from his four overs. With boundaries drying up – Afghanistan managed 10 fours and no sixes – Asghar Stanikzai and Mohammad Nabi chipped away lower down the order. In the end, their efforts proved more than enough.Ireland swept past Canada in the first play-off stage, winning by 10 wickets at the Dubai International Stadium. Read the full report here.Netherlands edged out Scotland by three wickets at the ICC Global Cricket Academy to set up a meeting with Ireland in the next stage. Chasing 167 to win, Netherlands looked in control thanks to a steady hand from Tom Cooper, but his dismissal for 60 left them requiring 15 from the last two overs, with seven wickets down. The tension was broken swiftly, however, as Tim Gruijters smashed his second ball for six, with 11 runs coming off the penultimate over bowled by Kyle Coetzer, before Tom de Grooth’s top-edged four sealed victory with five balls to spare. Scotland, coming off a surprise group-stage defeat to USA, had earlier given themselves a chance of an upset thanks to another impressive opening stand between Richie Berrington and Calum MacLeod. They put on 59 in 6.3 overs before Berrington’s departure for 37, with MacLeod – a former bowler – going on to pass 50 for the third time in the tournament. Netherlands’ spinners slowed the scoring in the later stages though, with Mudassar Bukhari, Pieter Seelaar and Peter Borren each picking up two wickets as the Dutch kept the target down.

Play-offs

Nepal beat Kenya by five wickets and two balls to spare to win a semi-final for the seventh place play-off in Dubai. After choosing to bat, Kenya were restricted to 139 for 4. Their captain Collins Obuya top scored with 52 off 42 balls. Basanta Regmi took 3 for 23 for Nepal, while Shakti Gauchan conceded only 19 in four overs. Nepal’s openers gave the chase a steady start, adding 64 in ten overs and their captain Paras Khadka remained unbeaten on 26 to secure the victory. Nepal’s chase was aided by 17 extras.Papua New Guinea (PNG) defended a modest total of 118 for 9 against Italy to win the other semi-final for the seventh place play-off in Dubai. Damian Crowley took 4 for 18 to limit PNG after they chose to bat, while Carl Sandri claimed 2 for 18. Opener Tony Ura (37) was the only PNG batsman to make it past 20 and the innings was floundering at 69 for 6 before the tail propped the total past 100. PNG’s bowlers, however, bowled economically and struck regularly to hinder the Italy chase. Hitolo Areni took 3 for 9 in four overs, and had support from the new-ball attack, Willie Gavera and Rarva Dikana. Italy slipped from the comfortable position of 81 for 3 in 14.4 overs and were restricted to 106 for 7 in 20 overs.Hong Kong beat Uganda by five wickets to win one 11th place play-off semi-final in Sharjah. After putting Uganda in, Hong Kong restricted them to 130 for 8. Apart from the openers, Roger Mukasa and Arthur Kyobe, no Uganda batsman made more than 20. Irfan Ahmed to 3 for 32 for Hong Kong, while Roy Lamsam took 1 for 15 in four overs. Ahmed then scored an unbeaten 55 to lead the chase, while Waqas Barkat and Jamie Atkinson made 31 and 30. Hong Kong slipped in the later part of the innings, losing four wickets for eight runs, but still reached the target with four balls to spare.USA beat Bermuda by 34 runs after a powerful batting performance to win the second semi-final for the 11th place play-off in Sharjah. They amassed 193 for 5 after choosing to bat; Steven Taylor made 38 off 22 balls, Sushil Nadkarni 48 off 30 and Orlando Baker 39 off 32 deliveries. The least expensive Bermuda bowler was Joshua Gilbert, who conceded 8.33 an over. During Bermuda’s chase, Lionel Cann struck three sixes and four fours in his 73 off 47 balls but got poor support from his team-mates. Muhammad Ghous took 2 for 20 for USA, while Abhimanyu Rajp and Almore Hutchinson also took two wickets apiece. Bermuda were restricted to 159 for 8 in 20 overs.After losing all seven of their Group B matches, Oman beat Denmark by 17 runs in the 15th place play-off. Oman chose to bat and their openers, Zeeshan Siddiqui and Jatinder Singh, made half-centuries in first-wicket partnership of 113. After that stand was broken in the 14th over, though, Oman’s momentum slipped and they finished on 155 for 5. Denmark were well placed in their chase, having reached 109 for 2 in the 15th over, but then lost frequent wickets to finish on 138 for 6. Hemal Mehta was Oman’s most successful bowler, taking 3 for 29 in four overs, while Amir Kaleem took 1 for 11 in three.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsJames Anderson took three early wickets before Sri Lanka fought back, led by a century from Mahela Jayawardene•Getty Images

Mahela Jayawardene, an understated batsman in a world that long ago surrendered to overstatement, treated England to another gentle batting masterclass with a second successive Test century to ensure Sri Lanka maintained a position close to equilibrium at the close of the first day of the second Test.Jayawardene exuded calm, recapturing the mood that brought him 180 in the first Test in Galle, with 105 stealthily assembled in more than five hours before Graeme Swann, straightening one from around the wicket, had him lbw, a decision upheld on review, and the slightest rustle of disbelief arose around the P Sara Oval at a rare misjudgement in an unblemished innings.England dismissed Jayawardene with the second new ball imminent. They took it for the last nine overs and plucked out a sixth wicket when Steven Finn had Mahela’s namesake, Prasanna Jayawardene, caught at the wicket.It was a reward for another disciplined bowling display, in which an increasingly resilient Finn proved he can now share, but the pitch already has a mosaic of cracks and, even allowing for its stultifying lack of pace, there is already ample evidence of uneven bounce and turn for the spinners. That will be enough to keep England’s sense of well-being in check.Four successive Test defeats in Asia have encouraged ever-more defiant noises from England about how they must maintain their energy and trust their attacking instincts. Jayawardene showed them a different route, cajoling the Test gently towards him, displaying the virtues of patience and delicacy as his innings murmured along. He survived a drinks break on 99, removed his helmet to reveal his distinctive black head-covering and then clipped Samit Patel wristily wide of mid-on for his 31st Test century.James Anderson gave England a flying start with three new-ball wickets in his first five overs, dismissing Tillakaratne Dilshan and Kumar Sangakkara in successive balls, but Jayawardene flicked the hat-trick ball to the fine leg boundary to get off the mark and, as determinedly as England tried to stem the flow of runs off his legs, settled in for the duration.It was a sweltering day in Colombo with not as much relief from the gentle sea breezes that had been apparent in Galle; April, the month before the Yala monsoon finally breaks, when wealthier Colombo families head to the hills in search of relief and when to commit to any physical exertion was once regarded as akin to madness.

Smart stats

• Mahela Jayawardene’s 105 is his 22nd Test century at home. Only Ricky Ponting, with 23, has more home hundreds.

• Thilan Samaraweera and Mahela Jayawardene have become only the third Sri Lankan pair to add more than 3000 partnership runs in Tests. Among the 32 pairs from all teams who’ve achieved this, Jayawardene and Samaraweera have the fifth-best average.

• In 11 home Tests against England, Jayawardene has scored six centuries and averages 90.66. In ten Tests in England, he averages 34.11.

• Jayawardene has now scored eight Test hundreds against England, which equals the record for a Sri Lankan batsman against an opposition – Aravinda de Silva has eight against Pakistan.

• In his last ten away Tests, James Anderson has taken 41 wickets at an average of 24.97. In his previous 19 away Tests, Anderson had taken 52 wickets at 43.84.

• Kumar Sangakkara has failed to score seven times in Tests, but Sri Lanka have won their last four Tests when Sangakkara hasn’t scored. The last time Sangakkara got a duck and Sri Lanka lost the match was against Australia in Darwin in 2004.

There was a time in his career when Anderson would have melted into insignificance in such conditions, cursing a slow pitch and the hot, viscous air, but these days he is a connoisseur of fast bowling and once again he rhythmically dismantled Sri Lanka’s top order. There was enough inconsistent bounce to sustain him and he caressed the new ball with the recognition that once it softened life would become much more onerous.England had taken three Sri Lanka wickets for 15 and fewer in Galle and still lost, a statistic that it has been suggested is unique in Test history. It has been the same all winter for England: skilful, disciplined bowling followed by comedic batting. Anderson took his wickets with the air of a bowler who had come to understand that it guaranteed nothing.Dilshan briefly flared, driving Anderson for successive offside boundaries. But Anderson compensated, yanked his length back a touch, Dilshan dabbled outside off stump and Matt Prior took a neat catch.Sangakkara fell first ball, just as he had in the first innings in Galle, Anderson producing a perfect line and the edge flying to first slip where Strauss fumbled by his midriff but clawed the rebound back with his left hand. Strauss has entered the Test under the most pressure since he was appointed England’s captain three years ago: it was not the day to drop it.Anderson’s third wicket, an ungainly leave-alone from Lahiru Thirimanne, with the decision, this time by the Australian Bruce Oxenford, again upheld on review, fleetingly took his average in his 68th Test below 30 for the first time since his debut summer nine years ago. By the close, it had crept beyond 30 once more, but it was a statistical reminder of his development.Jayawardene peacefully rebuilt the innings, in partnership with Thilan Samaraweera, but England had a lucky mascot to sustain them. Tim Bresnan, playing his first Test of the winter after England omitted Monty Panesar, has been on the winning side in ten previous Tests and he found a hint of reverse swing to have Samaraweera lbw.England made good use of the bouncer against Samaraweera, on a lifeless but uneven pitch. He was struck on the side of the helmet by Finn as he ducked a short ball that failed to get up. He looked briefly disorientated and England might have benefited from one of several ill-judged singles when Finn’s shy from mid-on could have run him out.But tension at the end of an unsuccessful winter had been evident in the response of Andy Flower, England’s team director, when Samaraweera, on 34, survived a DRS appeal for a catch at short leg as a short ball from Steve Finn struck his thigh pad and found its way to Alastair Cook.The not-out decision by umpire Asad Rauf was upheld after a lengthy delay, and innumerable replays, by the third umpire, Rod Tucker. There was no concrete evidence to overrule Rauf’s decision, however much there might have been suspicions of a hint of glove, but that did not stop Flower visiting the TV umpire’s room for an explanation and the cameras caught that, too, with his ill grace apparent.Flower is not averse to a visit to the umpire’s room during play to press his case, although perhaps not as blatantly as his predecessor, Duncan Fletcher, whose psychological gambits can occasionally be of a style that would even make Sir Alex Ferguson take note.

Craig White, the former Yorkshire and England allrounder, is to join Hampshire’s coaching set-up ahead of the new season. White had been expected to pursue a career as an umpire after leaving his position as coach of Yorkshire’s second XI in November of last year, but he will now take up his new role on March 1.White left Yorkshire after more than two decades as a player and coach, with the club bringing in Jason Gilliespie and Paul Farbrace as part of a backroom shake-up. He retired as a player in 2008, having made more than 12,000 runs and taken 395 wickets in first-class cricket, with 30 Test appearances for England and another 51 in ODIs.”This is a very exciting new challenge for me,” White said. “I’ve been at Yorkshire for 22 years but I now feel it would be interesting to see how things are at a new county. I’ve always admired the way things are done at Hampshire – it seems a very focused but relaxed place so it should be exactly my kind of atmosphere. They’ve got some great young cricketers there so I’m looking forward to working with them.”Hampshire finished bottom of Division One in last season’s County Championship and were subsequently relegated. It has been a winter of change at the Rose Bowl, with players such as Dominic Cork, Nic Pothas and Michael Lumb all departing. Simon Katich has been signed as the county’s overseas player, while Jimmy Adams will continue as captain after taking up the role at the end of last season.Giles White, the Hampshire manager, said: “The players and staff are excited about this appointment. We all look forward to working with Craig and tapping into his experience. We are delighted to have him at Hampshire.”

The Sri Lankan captaincy has changed hands, and the upcoming series will be crucial for both men concerned•AFP

Matthew Wade
Every innings Wade contributes to, either with the bat or behind the stumps, takes him closer to usurping Brad Haddin as Australia’s No. 1 gloveman. Over the years, the national selectors have often taken a long time to be convinced of the credentials of the next in line, Adam Gilchrist waiting more than four years between his ODI debut and a baggy green cap, while Haddin endured a similarly long spell in in waiting. Wade’s position is further complicated by Tim Paine’s uncertain recovery from a badly fractured finger, an injury that has clouded over the Tasmanian wicketkeeper’s previously firm grip on the Haddin succession. Guaranteed a start for the first three matches of the series, Wade can make life very difficult for Haddin, Paine and the selectors by making runs and pouching chances.Peter Forrest
Ostensibly the reserve batsman for the start of the series, Peter Forrest is actually on the first of what may be several Ashes auditions. Never sure of his place in New South Wales, Forrest ventured north to Queensland this summer, and has emulated the opening batsman Ed Cowan by making runs on a challenging, adopted surface to attract the interest of the selectors. In doing so he has edged ahead of the contracted Callum Ferguson, among others. Possessing a sound technique and solid temperament, Forrest’s potential currently outstrips his record of performance, but should he get a chance to bat against India and Sri Lanka, he can make the first step towards an England trip in 2013. Depending on the fates that befall Ricky Ponting and Michael Hussey, his role could either be as the reserve batsman or as a member of the top six. Either way, Forrest’s hopeful journey begins here.Rohit Sharma
Last time Rohit Sharma was in Australia for a triangular ODI series, he was a young player with infinite promise and a chance to make his name with a string of savvy innings on bouncy surfaces. Five summers later, he returns in much the same position, having tread uncertain waters in the interim to still be without a Test cap. The reasons Rohit has not gone on from the sturdy start he made in 2007-08 are many and varied, but he now has another chance to show he is ready for longer-form assignments. The difference is that next time, there should be a vacancy for him in India’s middle order that had, until the Australia Tests, been considered infallible. That will add to Rohit’s motivation, but so should the memory that his last trip down under did not provide the final word on his future, though he played well. At 24, he must do it all again.Umesh Yadav
An unbridled aggressor during the Test series, Umesh Yadav showed he had the speed, swing and attitude to dismiss the best batsmen. In between times, however, he was taken for plenty of runs by opponents who knew they could sweat on his errors in line and length. Another contributor to his wickets was the strong, silent work of an unrewarded Ishant Sharma at the other end. If Yadav is to develop his undoubted promise, he must learn discretion as well as valour, and in that sense a few ODIs in Australia may be helpful. The return of Praveen Kumar and the continued fitness of Zaheer Khan provides Yadav with a pair of more measured practitioners to work alongside, and MS dhoni will be hoping to see him make steps towards becoming complete, and not merely fast.Mahela Jayawardene
Exhaustion pushed Mahela Jayawardene away from the Sri Lankan captaincy, but duty has drawn him back. At the end of a year of interim boards, upheaval and no fewer than four national coaches, leadership has returned to the hands of the man who led the team to the 2007 World Cup final. Through the recent unsteady period Jayawardene’s batting has dipped – he averages 24.61 in Tests in 2011 – though his ODI output has remained steady. At 34 he is not a long-term solution, but may at least be able to lead Sri Lanka back into a vein of consistency until the heir-apparent Angelo Mathews is ready for the job. In confronting Australia and India, Jayawardene has the chance to once again stamp himself as leader, while also identifying the players he wants to take with him to the assignments beyond.Tillakaratne Dilshan
Having lost the captaincy to Jayawardene, Tillakaratne Dilshan may again be cast as the batting maverick and fielding action man that made him one of the more watchable players in world cricket. It was in Australia, during the 2006 triangular series finals, that Dilshan stunned Australia by engineering four run-outs and taking a catch at Adelaide Oval in a matchless fielding display. It is that sort of energy that went missing from Dilshan’s game under the burden of leadership, a role he never quite seemed ready for or suited to. Having returned to the ranks at the age of 35, Dilshan must make an impression this series, or he may soon be counting down the days to the end of his international career.

The Sri Lankan first-class season will begin on January 20, a Sri Lanka Cricket official has said. The first-class Premier Tier A and B league matches had been postponed indefinitely last month, in part because of a lack of funds to run the tournament. Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) then had to wait until a new committee was in place, following the elections on January 3, to resolve the situation.”Most of the tournaments had been stopped because the elections were on and the committee was changing,” K Mathivanan, the newly elected vice-president, told ESPNcricinfo. “From January 20 we are starting the Premier League tournament. Funding is there. That assurance we will give the clubs.”Mathivanan said that getting the first-class season off the ground was the first priority for the new president, Upali Dharmadasa. The decision is expected to be ratified by the executive committee today.One casualty of the delay is the provincial four-day tournament – an irregularly scheduled tournament to begin with, it will not be held this season. However, the one-day and Twenty20 tournaments will go ahead in light of Sri Lanka hosting the ICC World Twenty20 in September 2012, Mathivanan said.SLC are facing a financial crisis in the aftermath of building two new stadiums for the 2011 World Cup and renovating a third. The shortage of funds has affected their operations across the board, with the players still owed roughly half their dues since the World Cup final in April. Dharmadasa has said that it will take the board four or five years to get back to a sound financial footing.The SLC pays 2.7 million Sri Lankan rupees to each of the 11 Tier A clubs and 2.3 million to each of the 10 Tier B clubs per season. The clubs utilise this money to pay the players, ground fees, fund practice sessions and food, among other things. The clubs were paid 30% of their dues for the Premier limited-overs tournament that concluded in December 2011, and had said that unless at least 60% of the balance is paid, they would find it difficult to play the first-class matches.