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The state of Australia’s bowling is shown through Mitchell Johnson being the leading wicket-taker with eight victims, double that of Brett Lee, Cameron White and Peter Siddle, in the opening two Tests. By the tourists’ standards Johnson has been a revelation, but by a more traditional measure his overall contribution has been solid.In the first Test in Bangalore he performed strongly before tailing off in Mohali when the bowlers were under heavy fire. He tried to operate in one-day mode when India were on the way to a lead of 515, but it didn’t work and Australia eventually lost by 320 runs.”I’m not feeling too bad, I was a little bit disappointed in the second innings,” he said. “Other than that, I’m pretty happy with where things are at.”The mood is not shared by the bowling line-up as a whole, which has taken 27 wickets in the opening two matches. Lee has been below-par while the fresh men of Siddle, White and Shane Watson have performed to expectations. Stuart Clark, who has an elbow injury, will add some experience in Delhi from Wednesday if he can recover in time.Australia’s fast men have been behind Zaheer Khan and Ishant Sharma when it comes to reverse-swing and are exploring ways to catch up. Bowling cross seam is one possibility to achieve quicker deterioration of the ball, but not all the tourists are comfortable with the unconventional grip.”I don’t feel too bad with it,” Johnson said. “Sometimes with my bowling technique and wrist position I don’t need to bowl too many with a cross seam because I tend to hit the rough side anyway. That’s something we’ve tried to do. I might be brought on to really roughen up one side.”Australia have been gaining reverse shortly before the new ball is due while India have managed it within the first 15 overs. Johnson believes variation is essential to breaking up the rhythm of India’s batsmen and he has been particularly successful with a slower off-cutter. His main victim with the ball in the first Test was Sachin Tendulkar, who pushed the delivery to cover.”Variety is key over here, definitely on the wickets we play on,” he said. “There’s not much in it for the quicks, so you need the off-cutters and the slower balls and changes of pace. Also, short balls can come into it a bit, especially if the wickets are staying a bit low.”Johnson showed a glimpse into the current Australian mindset when he said “a lot of the guys – most of the guys – are confident” when discussing the team’s prospects of overcoming the 1-0 deficit. “We can put a lot of pressure on the Indians,” he said. “They’re going to feel it, going 1-0 up. All the pressure is on them now. There is disappointment in losing, but we’ll get back on track.”Johnson had a run-in with Harbhajan Singh during the final day of the second Test, but unlike in the 2007-08 series, there has been no lingering resentment from a handful of minor issues. “I thought I was going to get run out so I basically put my head down and ran straight and ended up running into him,” Johnson said. “Harbhajan said: why did you push me?”I apologised. It was an accident. I basically ran my line and he was in my line. It was all over and done with out there.”

Australia, New Zealand and South Africa have confirmed they are planning a multi-nation franchise-owned Twenty20 tournament based on the IPL, which they hope to launch by 2011. Although the competition is still in the planning stages, the idea is to have city-based teams and schedule it at a time that would allow Indian stars to take part.The concept will involve two separate conferences – an eastern division based in Africa and a western division in Australasia – and the top sides from each will progress to the finals. It will not replace the existing domestic Twenty20 competitions; instead it is most likely to be held in October with each nation free to also retain their state- or provincial-based tournaments.The organisers want the competition to feed teams into the Champions League Twenty20. The southern hemisphere-based tournament, which as yet has no name, is another indication of the growing dominance of Twenty20.The first season of the IPL was massively popular this year in India, where there is also the unsanctioned ICL competition, while England will soon be playing for US$20 million in the Stanford Super Series. Peter Young, Cricket Australia’s spokesman, conceded it will be a challenge to squeeze the new tournament in but the organisers were confident it could be achieved.”It’ll be short, sharp and very focused but the exact number of games is yet to be determined,” Young said. “Strategically we see that there’s a finite amount of Twenty20 cricket that’s likely to be ideal, with a number of major global blocks.”There is still a way to go before the finer details can be finalised, including the number of teams. There is also potential for the African conference to feature sides not based in South Africa and for the Australasian division to have teams from outside Australia and New Zealand. Domestic players are likely to feature heavily but the three boards are keen to ensure international stars, from India or England, for example, take part.”Gathering a large number of the world’s marquee players into a single competition over a compressed time-frame can capture the public imagination and create new audiences for cricket,” Justin Vaughan, New Zealand Cricket’s chief executive, said. “The challenge for the three southern-hemisphere boards is to create the stage for that opportunity to be captured in a way which complements international cricket.”Cricket Australia has been considering a franchise-based Twenty20 system for some time. James Sutherland, the chief executive of Cricket Australia, said it had become clear that to reach a critical mass, a regional approach was needed.”The idea developed out of blue-sky Twenty20 thinking over the past 18 months,” Sutherland said. “Regional-level Twenty20 cricket played at the level immediately below international cricket has shown it can capture the public imagination and create new audiences for cricket.”But as we have seen in India, it needs critical mass to generate major public excitement. The regional concept we have been charged with developing provides that critical mass.”Cricket Australia is also keen to increase the international focus of its state-based Twenty20 tournament. From 2009-10 it will encourage the six state teams to recruit star players from overseas.Cricket South Africa has shown a strong interest in the concept. “Cricket South Africa is keen to forge strong partnerships with boards around the world to ensure the continued growth of the game at various levels,” said its chief executive, Gerald Majola. “While details of this new competition still need to be finalized, we are confident it will give cricket in South Africa a major boost, and will ultimately change the cricket landscape in our country.”

Australia’s relative inexperience has been the focus ahead of the Tests against India but Brett Lee, the fast bowler, believes a demanding tour could be the perfect platform for newer players to make an impression. Only four members of Australia’s squad have played Tests in India and the team has sought the help of Greg Chappell, the former India coach, for the tour.”Yeah, we’ve lost the likes of Glenn [McGrath], Shane Warne, Damien Martyn, Justin Langer and Adam Gilchrist,” Lee said. “But it’s a new era for Australian cricket.”The younger guys have to start somewhere and what better stage than to play here in India? It’s a wonderful place to tour – the country, the people, the culture, the cricket’s pretty hard work so we have to make sure our plans are in place.”There are four uncapped bowlers in the squad, including spinners Jason Krejza and Bryce McGain. Another man with limited Test experience is Shane Watson, who is likely to replace Andrew Symonds in the starting XI, but Lee believes his time in the IPL will be a huge advantage.”If you look at the Man of the Series in Shane Watson, I think it’s definitely going to help his cause over here,” Lee said. “He’s had the experience of playing over here for 14-15 weeks.”Lee, who hasn’t played a Test in India either, bears the mantle of Australia’s strike bowler and has taken 58 wickets at an average of 21.55 in nine Tests since the retirement of McGrath and Warne. He is looking forward to his biggest challenge on Indian soil.”I know there is going to be a lot of pressure on me as a bowler to lead an Australian attack but that’s what I enjoy,” he said. “I look at this as being a massive challenge and a great opportunity that I know myself and the rest of the guys are looking forward to.”Lee was on the 2004-05 tour but did not get a chance to play as Australia won the Tests 2-1, their first series victory in India for 35 years. “The reason why the team has done pretty well over the past couple of decades is because everyone gets along on and off the field and gels as a group – [and there is] no difference here to 2004.”Lee believed the fact that several Australians had spent time in the IPL would help relations between the two sides and he was not expecting any grudges to be carried into the upcoming series. Relations between the two teams were strained during India’s recent tour of Australia, especially after the Sydney Test.”The controversy is behind us,” he said. “That’s happened, we’ve dealt with that pretty well. It’s a new leaf. We’re turning over a new page in our book, and that is coming over here to play tough, fair, hard, aggressive cricket.”

Australia will stage a women’s and men’s Twenty20 international double-header again this season after successfully trialling the concept last summer. This year’s version will feature a pair of Australia-New Zealand games at the SCG on February 15, the final day of the home international campaign for Ricky Ponting’s men.In February, the Australia and England women played a Twenty20 match at the MCG as a curtain-raiser for the men’s Australia-India game, which attracted an enormous crowd of 84,041. This season’s game will be the last international match for Australia’s women before they defend their World Cup title in Sydney.Richard McInnes, the Australia women’s coach, said the SCG encounter would be the ideal preparation. “The match will give the team a valuable opportunity to play on a big stage in a high pressure environment ahead of the World Cup and World Twenty20 which will be played in June next year,” McInnes said.”After the reception they received at the MCG earlier this year, the players are excited at the prospect of playing in front of a large crowd in Sydney. However we have a lot of hard work to do before then, starting with a tough series against India, a team we expect will be one of the main dangers at the World Cup.”The Australia women begin their international season with a six-match series against India in Sydney and Canberra starting on October 28. Following the domestic season, the team heads to New Zealand for the Rose Bowl Series, before the Twenty20 international at the SCG.

Ill health has forced David Green to stand down as Sussex chairman after six years. He will be replaced by Jim May, who held the position of treasurer and who takes over with immediate effect.”It has been an honour and mostly a pleasure to chair SCCC through the most successful years in its long history,” said Green. “In recent months I have had to take a health-induced sabbatical due to having three major operations in a ten-week period. I am now recovering, but will not be fully fit to resume my duties for some months to come. I have therefore decided it is in the club’s best interest that I stand down as chairman. I will stay on as a main board director both of Sussex and the ECB for as long as I am required.”May paid tribute to Green, saying: “Under David’s leadership, Sussex achieved unprecedented success – winning three County Championships in five years. This will stand in the history books. In addition, David worked tirelessly behind the scenes. In particular his drive to create the youth ground at Blackstone near Henfield, the new Indoor School at Hove and ensuring we maximised the Spen Cama [their benefactor] inheritance are evidence of his contribution to Sussex cricket.”May added: “I am honoured to be elected by the board. There is no doubt that county cricket faces an exciting, but challenging future. Uncertainty at international level coupled with domestic restructuring in 2010 means that at Sussex we will have to be smart to remain a top county. Off the field, the challenge of redeveloping the ground at Hove and improving the trading performance are two topics high on the agenda.”May has significant connections in Sussex. He is deputy chairman of Shoreham Port Authority and a non-executive director of Brighton & Hove PCT. He was a banker for 35 years, latterly managing director, South, Royal Bank of Scotland, where he was responsible for the RBS and NatWest commercial business.Gus Mackay, Sussex’s chief executive, said: “It is with regret to learn that David will be stepping down. He has been a great asset to the club. I am delighted that he is to remain on the board.”But he welcomed May’s appointment: “Jim brings with him a wealth of experience and business knowledge,” he said, “which can only be a benefit to the club. I am looking forward to working closely with Jim on some of the exciting projects ahead of us.”

Dirk Nannes is the only certain Australian player through to the Twenty20 semi-finals after Stuart Law’s Lancashire were knocked out and Michael Di Venuto’s quarter-final for Durham against Yorkshire was cancelled amid farcical scenes over an ineligible player. Yorkshire’s failure to register Azeem Rafiq, a 17-year-old with a Pakistan passport, led to their eventual dumping so Durham will have to replay their quarter-final – this time against Glamorgan on an as-yet undisclosed date.Even the installation of Glamorgan was not without its hiccups: at one point Nottinghamshire were awarded the match where Rafiq had played against them and those two points meant they would progress to the quarters. But Adam Voges and Darren Pattinson were denied a chance for further practice for the Twenty20 Champions’ League when Yorkshire’s appeal, although unsuccessful for Yorkshire, led to Nottinghamshire not receiving the points.Glamorgan eventually went through on superior run-rate, but won’t necessarily be represented by an Australian; Jason Gillespie was replaced by Herschelle Gibbs as their overseas player for the Twenty20 competition.As for Law, he travelled to the Oval for Middlesex’s home tie and was made to field, eventually looking at a chase of a mighty 176. Lancashire lost wickets at key times in the chase – Law himself making 11 – and were always behind the last-eight ball.The Twenty20 fracas largely overshadowed another Championship week where Law led Lancashire to another win. Law may have been the shining star the previous week, with 158 against Sussex, but his contributions of 43 and 36 were enough to help bring up a six-wicket win against Hampshire at the Rose Bowl. Sean Ervine’s 2 and 19 and one wicket were barely worth writing home about.With rain spreading across the country, this was one of only two wins from eight Championship matches this week. Matt Nicholson was back for Surrey who had a good chance of bringing up their first Championship win, but they ended with a draw against Nottinghamshire at Trent Bridge. His 38 helped lift his side to 403 – despite Pattinson’s 5 for 72 – and then his three wickets helped to force Notts to follow on. But with Notts six down in the second innings, they just ran out of time, having only fitted in 30 overs on the opening day, while Samit Patel’s century also played a part in thwarthing them.Justin Langer made a bold declaration for Somerset who drew against Durham at Taunton. He had a positive approach, declaring Somerset’s first innings once they’d passed 350 – he himself bagged a duck – and did not bat second time round. But Somerset were barely into their second innings, and Durham didn’t have time for theirs before stumps. For the record, Di Venuto made 40 and took three catches in Somerset’s second innings. In the same week, Langer extended his deal at Somerset for 2009.It was draws all the way in Division Two, but there were some quite exciting ones in there. Chris Rogers made a fifty and 20 on return for Derbyshire, nearly helping them to kill off Leicestershire at Derby but with the visitors eight down, yet requiring only 18 runs, the draw seemed a fair result.Marcus North’s Gloucestershire just about staved off defeat at Middlesex’s hands at Bristol. They were nine down with 200 runs still required at the close, North having made 7 and 21. Rain wiped out so much of Glamorgan’s match against Essex at Cardiff that even though they were skittled for 132 in the first innings they were able to escape with the draw – a better second innings also helped. Gillespie’s contributions were muted: 4 with the bat and 18 wicketless overs for 58.

The BCCI is unlikely to support any stringent action against Zimbabwe at the ICC’s annual meeting in Dubai next week, a top Indian board official has indicated.”We have always supported Zimbabwe cricket and have nothing to do with the political situation there,” a senior BCCI official told Cricinfo. “In fact, we are a bit surprised that the issue has been brought up once again since the ICC board had discussed this last year and decided clearly that politics and cricket can’t be mixed. The BCCI believes that a country’s politics and its cricket don’t go together. There is no reason to change our stand now.”On Monday, Cricket South Africa announced it was suspending its bilateral agreement with Zimbabwe Cricket, citing the worsening “general situation” there. That was quickly followed by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) scrapping a proposed tour by Zimbabwe in 2009 after the British government advised them it would support such action.Speaking to Sky Sports on Wednesday, David Morgan, who will take over from Ray Mali as ICC president at the end of the annual meeting next week, welcomed action against Zimbabwe but warned: “It will be a very difficult discussion. India and Zimbabwe are close and India’s position is crucial in all this, for sure.”

Bangladesh will try to have different types of batters together in the middle, and focus on having a better powerplay against Oman, according to coach Russell Domingo. This is the reaction after their six-run defeat against Scotland on Sunday, a result that puts their progress into the main draw in jeopardy, and has drawn the ire of the public and the Bangladesh Cricket Board.Domingo however put on a sunny disposition during the press conference, brushing aside emotionally loaded questions, and focusing mainly on the cricketing part of his job.”I am always a fan of having a left-hander and a right-hander in the wicket,” Domingo said. “We want to have different types of batters batting at the same time, not similar types of players. We have discussed it in depth. There might not be major changes, but there might be one or two tweaks in the line-up.”As you have seen in the series against Australia and New Zealand, we have been flexible. It will depend on the situation and the bowlers that are bowling at the time.”Domingo said that that they will make one change against Oman, which will most likely be Mohammad Naim returning in place of Soumya Sarkar. The initial swap, when Soumya replaced Naim, came as a big surprise as Naim had opened in Bangladesh’s last 17 T20Is. Soumya was picked because he offered a sixth bowling option, according to Domingo.But Bangladesh have struggled with their opening pair regardless of whether it is Naim, Soumya or Liton Das, for the majority of the last 12 games. Domingo said that they have to approach the powerplays with greater balance in their strokeplay.”If you get 35-45 in the first six, it allows you to launch at the backend. We have to address the powerplay a bit better now. We have made a few mistakes, played shots we shouldn’t have played, stopped playing those shots we should be playing. So we have to find the right balance between attack and defence in the first six overs,” he said.Domingo said that Bangladesh took Scotland seriously and will take on Oman with a similar mentality too. “We didn’t take Scotland lightly. They beat Bangladesh in their last T20I encounter. There was no complacency in yesterday’s game. We have to show Oman great respect.”They are confident. They are playing at home. They have come off a good win. But we can’t focus on them. We have to focus on our particular performance, skills and goals.”Domingo urged his players to embrace the pressure of playing in World Cup, even if it means there’s extra scrutiny on everything that they do on and off the field.”There’s always massive pressure in World Cups, particularly for a cricket-loving nation like Bangladesh. Every performance is scrutinised, every mistake gets magnified, so players are under pressure. But that’s why they play for their country. They have to embrace that pressure, and hopefully it brings the best out of the boys.”

ScorecardDinesh Chandimal ended a poor run of form with a century•AFP

Dinesh Chandimal has made a strong return to runs, while Bangladesh seam bowlers Taskin Ahmed and Mustafizur Rahman made promising starts to their tour of Sri Lanka as well, in the two-day practice match in Moratuwa.Chandimal’s 190 not out off 253 balls followed a chastening tour of South Africa in which his highest score in 12 international innings was 36. He had been omitted from the ODI XI towards the end of that tour, and was later told by chief selector Sanath Jayasuriya that he should “go back to club cricket” in order to “work his game out”.Though there was little doubt he would feature in the Test XI – especially in a series with Bangladesh, whom he averages 128.33 against – this long occupation of the crease will have Sri Lanka feeling much happier about what remains an inexperienced top order. Chandimal struck seven sixes and 21 fours in the innings, after he had kept wicket the previous day. Despite Niroshan Dickwella’s presence in the Test squad, Chandimal is likely to bat at No. 6 and keep wickets in the first Test as well.Mustafizur was the most economical of the Bangladesh bowlers, conceding only 28 runs from his 12 overs, while claiming the scalps of opener Ron Chandraguptha and Leo Fransisco. Taskin was more penetrative: he took two new-ball wickets in his second over of the day, then returned later on to dismiss the highly-rated Roshen Silva. He finished with figures of 3 for 41 from 11 overs.Twenty-year-old Tamil Union allrounder Chamika Karunaratne also hit an unbeaten fifty late in match, after he had claimed three wickets on day one. The SLC President’s XI ended the day on 403 for 7 compared to Bangladesh’s 391 for 7 declared.Both teams scored their runs at more than four an over – an indication that this had been a particularly batting-friendly track. The surfaces awaiting Sri Lanka and Bangladesh at Galle and the P Sara Oval are almost certain to be more treacherous.