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Ranjan Madugalle, the ICC match referee who has been appointed as a mediator to ensure good on-field relations between Australia and India, is confident he will succeed in his brief.Speaking to the , Madugalle said rival captains Ricky Ponting and Anil Kumble will be keen to sort out their differences. “Each one realises cricket is everyone’s passion and they will stretch that little bit extra to uphold the spirit of the game.”Madugalle has a tough task at hand as the relationship between the teams plummeted after the Sydney Test, with Harbhajan Singh being banned for three Tests by Mike Procter, the match referee, for alleged racial abuse. Following the ban, the Indian board filed an appeal, and the team management charged Brad Hogg with making an abusive remark to Kumble and Mahendra Singh Dhoni.”I have an open briefing to get things back on track,” said Madugalle. “I will try and go about things quietly and do as much as I can without making too much noise about it. We’ll see at the end of the five days [of the Perth Test] if it has worked. But I am optimistic that everyone wants to do the right thing by the game.”Madugalle, who will arrive in Perth on Saturday will meet officials from Cricket Australia to set a date and time for a meeting with Kumble and Ponting. “It is important we work through this, and I am sure they understand that.”Harbhajan’s appeal will be heard by New Zealand High Court judge John Hansen, while the date for the preliminary hearing for Hogg, who was charged with committing a Level 3 offence [which invites a ban of between two and four Test matches] as part of the ICC’s Code of Conduct regulations, has been set for January 14.

Harbhajan Singh expressed his happiness at Surrey having chosen him as their overseas player for the 2005 season. Speaking after the first day’s play against South Africa at Kanpur, Harbhajan said that he was looking forward to playing at The Oval, one of his favourite hunting grounds.In his only Test there, the fourth and final game of the 2002 series, Harbhajan picked up 5 for 115 in the first innings of the high-scoring encounter which was finally drawn with Michael Vaughan falling five short of his double century after Rahul Dravid had compiled 217.His last match at the ground was during the NatWest Challenge against England where he finished with 2 for 14, one of his most economical spells, in a match where England scored 307. Harbhajan suggested that his display that day might have impressed the Surrey bigwigs. “I have fond memories of the ground where one of my best figures have come,” he said, adding that Surrey had approached him with an offer during the ICC Champions Trophy that followed.”I was keen and had to wait for the Indian Board’s approval, which has finally come now,” he said. This is not the first time that Harbhajan has agreed to a contract with an English county. In 2003, he agreed terms with Lancashire, only to skip the entire campaign after he was advised to rest the troublesome finger which subsequently needed surgery in Australia last winter.

Frizzell County Championship Division OneDay 4 ReportSussex 385 and 383 for 7 dec. beat Lancashire by 377 and 139 by 252 runs
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He left it late, but Mushtaq Ahmed spun Sussex to another victory which puts them five points behind the leaders Surrey. Mushtaq took eleven wickets in the match as Lancashire crashed to 139 in just over 73 overs. Chris Adams declared on 383 for 7 twenty minutes before lunch after making 190. Billy Taylor was only playing because James Kirtley and Jason Lewry were not available, but he made his mark in style. He took the first four wickets, including Stuart Law (7) and Carl Hooper (1), as Lancashire spluttered to 64 for 4. Then the more well-known figure of Mushtaq added to his galaxy of wickets this season. Chris Schofield (18) and Warren Hegg (25) held up Sussex’s charge, but Mushtaq twirled away the last four wickets for 11 runs with the last man, Hegg, falling with only ten balls remaining in the day.Frizzell County Championship Division TwoSomerset 476 and 292 for 4 drew with Northamptonshire 681 for 5
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Somerset cruised to 292 for 4 on a lifeless pitch at Taunton as their game with Northants petered out to a bore draw. Only 19 wickets fell in all four days of the match, and Northants used ten bowlers, including Toby Bailey, the wicketkeeper, in Somerset’s second innings. Matthew Wood scored 100, Jamie Cox 64 before he retired hurt, and Ian Blackwell smacked 38 from 35 balls.Yesterday’s matchesFrizzell County Championship Division One Kent 477 and 96 for 2 beat Middlesex 407 and 165 by eight wickets at Lord’s
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Muttiah Muralitharan spun Middlesex to their first defeat of the season, by picking three of their last four wickets to complete match figures of 9 for 141. Middlesex, who had resumed on 141 for 6, were bundled out for 165, with Jamie Dalrymple and Simon Cook falling in successive deliveries to the sweep shot. Kent needed just 96 in their second innings, and though David Fulton and Michael Carberry fell cheaply, Robert Key and Andrew Symonds breezed to victory inside 25 overs.Warwickshire 277 and 267 for 2 beat Leicestershire 346 and 195 by eight wickets
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Nick Knight led Warwickshire to an emphatic eight-wicket win against Leicestershire at Edgbaston. He belted 20 boundaries in his 122 not out, and shared put on 140 with Jim Troughton, who smashed an unbeaten 55 off 44 balls, as Warwickshire cruised past their potentially tricky target of 265. Mark Wagh also chipped in with 58, and that was after he had wrapped up the Leicestershire tail to finish with 4 for 20. Resuming on 121 for 6, Leicestershire added 74 more runs, thanks mainly to a sensible 37 from Philip DeFreitas. Waqar Younis was also in the wickets, taking 4 for 37, to help set up Warwickshire’s second win of the season.Frizzell County Championship Division TwoGlamorgan 444 and 86 for 2 beat Durham 355 and 174 by eight wickets at Cardiff
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Glamorgan needed just 2.1 overs on the fourth morning to wrap up an eight-wicket win over Durham. Mike Kasprowicz had flagellated Durham’s batsmen on the third afternoon with career-best figures of 9 for 36, and Glamorgan trailed by a mere 12 runs at stumps. It had been an even contest until Kasprowicz had embarked on his second spell on Friday afternoon. Bowling fast and full, he skittled Durham’s last nine wickets for the addition of 55 runs, with all but two bowled or lbw.Other matchEngland U19 229 v South Africa U19 48 for 1 at Chelmsford
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Francois du Plessis scored 177 and put South Africa firmly in control against England at Chelmsford. He hit 26 fours and three sixes and added 138 with East Springer, who scored 77. Daryn Smit (52) and Heinrich Le Roux (49) weighed in with some more runs down the order as South Africa finished a good day’s work on 463 for 8 with a lead of 234 runs.

The second day of India A’s tour game against Nottinghamshire has been rained off. This left Nottinghamshire on a commanding position of 265 for 3, with Usman Afzaal unbeaten on 114. With just one day left in the game, there was clearly no prospect of a result – the Indians, though, would be hoping for some batting practice.Click here for day 1 Bulletin.

Glenn McGrath has been given the ultimate accolade as he prepares for his return to international cricket. None other than the legendary Dennis Lillee reckons he is possibly the greatest fast bowler in history.McGrath, who has been out of action all season with an ankle injury, asked Lillee to oversee his final preparations. Lillee approved of what he saw, and even believes that McGrath’s best years could be ahead of him. “He is probably the best quick we’ve seen for a long time – if not the best ever,” Lillee told Australia’s Sunday Telegraph.” You can’t write anyone off who has been that good over the years. You’d be stupid to. I have absolutely no doubt he’ll be back – and he’ll be as good, if not better.”Even before his injury crept in, McGrath had been aware of a flaw that was creeping into his effortlessly smooth action, and under the supervision of Lillee, he has made best use of his time off the treadmill of international cricket. “Glenn has never really had any problems with his action,”said Lillee, “but a couple of times over the years he has had a minor glitch which we have discussed and straight away he fixes it. He is very aware of what works for him and what doesn’t.”McGrath, for his part, has scotched all talks that his career is drawing to a close. “I’ve looked at all my goals and I want to play the 2007 World Cup,” he said. “I’ll be 37 then and I believe right at my peak as a fast bowler. I’m definitely not thinking retirement. Combined with my strength and increased fitness levels, I reckon I’ve added 10km of pace, and I’m confident I can go around 140kph consistently now. It is all just coming together for me.””You can never write anyone like Glenn off. There is more than just an injury there, it’s what goes on in here,” added Lillee, pointing to his heart. “You can lose fitness, you can lose confidence, but you don’t lose a talent – and he has a talent. Like Imran Khan, there is no reason why Glenn can’t go on until he is 39 or 40. “

Phil Russell will begin a second stint at KwaZulu-Natal’s coach in2004-05, it was announced today.Russell, who played 170 matches for Derbyshire and also coached them,takes over from the West Indian Eldine Baptiste, who became anincreasingly unpopular figure with the players over the course of histhree seasons in charge. Baptiste’s tenure was preceded by Russell’sfirst – two-season – period as coach, in which he led the Dolphins fromeighth place in the first-class SuperSport Series in 1998-99 to theone-day Standard Bank Cup title in 2000-01. Russell was widely creditedwith laying the foundations for KwaZulu-Natal’s triumph in both theone-day and first-class competitions in 2001-02.Graham Ford,the former South African national coach, was widely tippedto get the job, but his insistence on continuing to run his privatecoaching academy was unacceptable to the KwaZulu-Natal Cricket Union(KZNCU). “We were willing for him to retain ownership of his academy,with a manager in place,” said Sathie Govender, the KZNCU president, whoadmitted that Ford had been the union’s first choice. “Unfortunately heneeded this to be a part-time position. The coach of the Dolphins is animportant position, and we can’t afford for it to be a part-time one.”Russell spent most of June in England on holiday, and returned homethis week to a pleasant surprise. “I’m quite excited, actually,” Russellsaid. “They’ve given me a new lease on life. When I went on holiday toEngland, it seemed that Fordie was going to get it. When I came back,circumstances had changed.”The president [Govender] asked me if I would do it, and I thoughtabout it for half a second.”Russell, who has served KwaZulu-Natal cricket as groundsman, directorof playing affairs and academy manager, has signed a two-year deal, andwill bring a far lighter touch than Baptiste, whose perceivedinflexibility cost him his job. KwaZulu-Natal reached the SuperSportSeries final in 2003-04, but were thrashed by 108 runs by WesternProvince. They finished eighth in the Standard Bank Cup, and fifth inthe inaugural Standard Bank Pro20 Series.That record prompted Dale Benkenstein to resign the captaincy aftereight years in charge. He has been replaced by 21-year-old Hashim Amla.”I’m ecstatic about that,” Amla said of Russell’s appointment. “He hasso much experience, and I’m really looking forward to working with him.I have the highest admiration and respect for him, and I’m quite surehe’ll do a great job.”

Australians 321 for 4 (Hayden 107, Symonds 92*, Martyn 85) beat Leicestershire 226 for 8 (Hogg 3-56, Gibson 50) by 95 runs
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England’s bowlers may have stolen the show at the Rose Bowl today, but up at Grace Road, Australia’s batsmen served up a timely reminder that stiffer tasks lie ahead. Led by a thumping 107 from Matthew Hayden and iced with a thrilling 59-ball 92 not out from Andrew Symonds, the Aussies ran riot, racking up a massive 321 for 4 in their 50 overs against Leicestershire, to ensure an overwhelming 95-run victory in their warm-up for the NatWest Series.Leicestershire did at least save face with the bat, batting out their full quota of overs, but victory never entered the equation. Tom New and Darren Maddy were pinned down from the start by Brett Lee and Glenn McGrath, and when Brad Hogg ripped out the middle-order with a three-wicket burst, Leicestershire had slumped to 120 for 6 and a rout beckoned.But Otis Gibson and Paul Nixon combined with a face-saving 94-run stand for the ninth wicket. Gibson’s 50 came from just 49 balls, including six fours and a six, and was only ended when McGrath returned for his second spell. All of Australia’s frontline bowlers claimed at least one wicket, with McGrath’s 2 for 33 from 10 overs the pick.Australia’s performance in the field was merely steady – but their batting had been spectacular. Hayden led the charge with 107 from 96 balls, and his example rubbed off on his team-mates. Damien Martyn anchored the performance with a solid and typically stylish 85, but it was left to Symonds to apply the coup de grace. He belted 10 fours and three sixes in a 59-ball onslaught, and was left just eight short of his hundred when the overs ran out.Following on from their Twenty20 victory over the Professional Cricketers’ Association at Arundel, the Australians proved once again that they are fully focused ahead of a tough tour. They won the toss and chose to bat first, and though Adam Gilchrist and Ricky Ponting both fell cheaply, the Leicestershire attack was unable to stem the runs.Charl Willoughby, with figures of 0 for 37 from seven overs, was the best of the bowlers, but the spinners Jeremy Snape and Claude Henderson were taken apart, with 17 runs coming off one Henderson over. With England’s top-order faltering at The Rose Bowl, Australia have just ramped up the pressure another notch.

Former NSW team mates Greg Matthews and Adrian Tucker will compete in this weekends one-day final when Sydney University clash with Eastern Suburbs. It will be a different scenario for both men, who are more adept to bowling in tandem with each other. Mathews and Tucker were both members of the 1989/90 NSW Sheffield Shield sides victory mesmerizing opposition teams with their off spin and leg breaks. They will use all their experience in helping their respective teams when the Dolphins host the Student’s this Sunday at Waverly Oval.Adrian Tucker returned to Eastern Suburb’s Cricket Club after a two-year absence working the futures market in Hong Kong. The 34 year-old’s return has helped a revamped Dolphin’s team to the one-day final. In a twist of fate, former Dolphin and NSW teammate Greg Matthews will oppose Tucker when he takes the field for Sydney University. "Greg was the reason I originally came to East’s, back in 94. He never let up and convinced me to join the Club after we bowled so well in tandem for the Blues" Tucker said. "I learnt a lot of my trade off Greg and it will be different lining up against him this weekend."Eastern Suburbs earnt a place in the final after a crushing victory over competition leader’s Bankstown last weekend. Unfortunately they will miss Brad Haddin as he flies out to Sri Lanka with the Australian team tomorrow. Haddin scored a scintillating century against the Bulldogs and will be difficult to replace. Fortunately the Dolphin’s top batsmen are in devastating form, as Jeff Cook (201), Andrew Jeffrey and Mark Patterson have all scored recent centuries.Sydney University will be looking to add the one-day competition trophy to their cabinet, after securing last season’s premiership. The Student’s lose Matthew Phelps who has been recalled to the Speedblitz Blues team. They will look to the consistent form of Ed Cowan and the experience of Test Veteran Greg Matthews this weekend. Matthews has made an immense psychological impact on his young side, providing a newfound belief and determination that was evident in last season’s premiership success. He will no doubt get a different response from his former teammates when he walks through the gates at Waverly Oval this Sunday.

The first 20 over-a-side international club tournament is set to go ahead at Grace Road, the home ground of Leicestershire, after the ECB gave clearance for the event. Despite being knocked out in the semi-finals of the Twenty20 on Saturday, Leicestershire are expected to be one of the sides taking part. has reported that one other English county will take part along with a South African side, a World XI as well as Indian and Pakistani teams. The Professional Cricketer’s Association would also produce a Master’s XI.An ECB spokesman told BBC Sport: “It’s not an official ECB competition but we have no objection at all to it going ahead.” The ECB hold the rights to the “Twenty20” branding so a small change of title will be required for this new tournament.The venture is being organised by Investors in Cricket (IIC), the consortium which is now in charge of running Leicestershire. They are keen to tap into the huge Asian market in the area and also aim to take this club version of the game to other countries in the near future.

All reigning domestic Twenty20 champions from around the world will take part in a six-team tournament at Leicester between September 15 and 17. Pakistan’s Faisalabad Wolves and Sri Lanka’s Chilaw Marians will both participate in the inaugural International Club ChampionshipOrganisers are pleased with the levels of interest in the event, and the aim of getting all the major club sides appears to have been fulfilled. In addition to the Pakistan and Sri Lankan sides, two other domestic champions – Somerset (England) and Titans (South Africa) – will be taking part.The number will be made up by Leicestershire and a PCA Masters XI which will feature a number of England players, both past and present.In the first round group stage teams will be awarded two points for a win and one for a tie with the top two teams in each group going through to the semi-finals.