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The ICC has announced that the winner of the India-Pakistan series, to be decided in the fifth one-dayer on March 24, will be ranked higher than the other in the ICC ODI championship table.At present, Pakistan is ranked fifth with 107 points, and India and England are just behind on 106 points. If India win the series, they will climb to fifth, with 107 points, and Pakistan will go down to 106. If Pakistan win, they will go to 108, with India slipping to 105. If the series – and the final match, of course – is tied, then the status quo will be maintained.Australia, of course, head the table, with a mammoth 135 points.

Scorecard

Kevin Pietersen continued his good form on England A’s tour of India with his third century, against South Zone at Gurgaon. He added 143 with Matt Prior, who scored a valuable 66, to help England A to close the opening day at 308 for 7.Pietersen scored 104 and went some way to rescuing England after they made a stumbling start. After being put in, they lost Scott Newman, Michael Lumb and Ed Smith before lunch.Newman and Smith made a solid start, putting on 50 before Newman was run out for 31. Lumb did not last long before he was caught off Sunil Joshi for 1, and Smith followed with the total on 98 when he was bowled by Narender Singh for 27.England A were 99 for 3 at lunch, but dominated the afternoon as Pietersen and Prior looked to attack. Pietersen, however, was caught off the final ball before tea.Prior followed for 66 soon after the break as three wickets went down for only two runs. England’s innings was in danger of a spectacular collapse, but Graham Napier put things back on track with 43 not out.

The decision to launch ProCricket in America last year was a bold and commendable move, given that US audiences already have a glut of options: there are World Series in baseball, basketball and football. To say that ProCricket was an instant success would be a bit premature but, on the other hand, it can’t be written off as a total failure. These are early days.The game has had to be modified for American audiences. Innings are 100 balls long (comprising 20 five-ball overs), which makes matches last three hours, in line with the duration for all major American sports. Matches start at 7:00pm, so it is easier to draw audiences after work. Two professionals play in each side, which certainly lifted the standard and encouraged the local players to step up to the plate.The international players who added a lot of excitement in 2004 included six West Indies players: Wavell Hinds, Corey Collymore, Mervyn Dillon, Franklyn Rose, Ricardo Powell, Marlon Samuels. Robin Singh from India, and Colin Miller and Richard Che Que from Australia also participated. The allround capabilities of Marlon Samuels made him stand out among all players, with his hard-hitting batting, he became the first player to score a century in ProCricket.Amongst the locals, Nadeem Younis, a former first-class cricketer from Pakistan, toyed with all bowlers and scored a century in less than 45 deliveries. He was particularly severe on the former Windies pacer, Franklyn Rose: smashing him for one of the longest straight sixes I have ever witnessed. However, it was sad to see former Indian captain Ajay Jadeja and the off-spinner Nikhil Chopra sitting on the sidelines without taking part because of the Indian Cricket Board’s reluctance to grant them permission to play in ProCricket.For me, personally, ProCricket produced both bitter and sweet memories. Bitter, because I was dropped from the USA team that played in the ICC Trophy in England, supposedly because of my participation in ProCricket. Sweet, because I had the privilege of representing and captaining one of the eight teams in the first ever ProCricket competition in America.Under my captaincy, New York Storm did well to win two, lose two and tie one. The New York Storm failed to reach the semi-final in the Eastern Conference because of a misunderstanding between the New York Storm management and ProCricket people. As a result, New York Storm ended up conceding their last game against the Florida Thunder, a victory in which would have given us a berth in the semis.However – more than winning – just participating in the ProCricket competition in 2004 was enough to make me look forward to another exciting and productive season in 2005. It’s a tremendous experience to play in such fast-paced games where results were decided off the last ball in two of the five games I participated in. I also played in the first ever tied game in ProCricket when New York Storm ended DC Forward’s challenge off the last ball; one of the most exciting games in the competition.I invited a few of my co-workers – typical white Americans – to watch the first game between New York Storm and New Jersey Fire in the New York Yankees minor league stadium on Staten Island. They were thrilled, and one said he would come back to see it again in a heart beat. Another remarked that he ‘just loved it’ and that the entire experience was ‘awesome’. I already have requests from several co-workers to invite them to the 2005 games.I believe that the short, sharp 20-over format adopted by ProCricket is the best way to introduce cricket to Americans, who regularly complain about baseball lasting too long. The non-stop excitement in the 20-over format is overwhelming, since there is no consolidation period. Also, the innovative field restrictions – only two fielders can be placed outside the 30-yard circle during the last six overs – creates more opportunities for run scoring.But, having played the game, here are some thoughts I have to make ProCricket more attractive and viable event:Media coverage Media will need to play a very crucial role. According to ProCricket folks, a South Asian channel, American Desi will be launched in the US shortly which will carry ProCricket games live. In addition, other channels (Sony, Zee TV, PTV, Geo, BBC, etc.) will need to step up as well.Playing Facilities One of the main complaints from the players revolved around the pitches and the grounds. Given that the games were played in minor league baseball stadiums, the pitches were definitely not up to standard, with make-shift matting wickets being placed over wooden planks or dirt. To improve standard and to encourage strokeplay, hard and true pitches are a pre-requisite.Professional Player Assignment Some players ended up playing for different sides to bridge the shortfall after certain cricket boards were reluctant to release their players. One day Marlon Samuels would be playing for New York Storm against New Jersey Fire, the next he would turn up for New Jersey Fire against Florida Thunder. I would like to see each professional assigned to a specific team – so that there is a sense of loyalty.Higher Incentives There was a huge disparity between the match fees paid to local players compared with the international players. Local players should receive more money to incentivise them. Handing out Man of the Match awards at the end of each game and an MVP at the end of the tournament will generate higher interest amongst the players and bring out the best in them.Sign-off from USACA/ICC If USACA and/or the ICC embrace ProCricket, they would give a big boost to cricket in America. Not only would it lend legitimacy to the event, but it will also allow bigger stars from leading nations to take part in the competition. Everyone’s goal should be to advance cricket in America and not work to individual agendas.All Star Game Based on individual performances, an All Star US ProCricket XI should be selected to play against, for example, a West Indies `A’ or England `A’ team. This would give global media coverage to the games and enhance the popularity of the game.

Matt Nicholson, the Australian fast bowler, will deputise for Mohammad Asif at Surrey for the first half of the season – and possibly the entire summer.Nicholson took 44 wickets for Surrey last season in the Championship, but with uncertainty over Asif’s involvement, he could play a fuller role than was first anticipated. Asif, the Pakistan fast bowler, will be unavailable until June at the earliest, and his board have also expressed concerns about his workload.”The Pakistan board have said they are not going to allow their quick bowlers to play county cricket, which is understandable as most of their first-choice bowlers are on the sidelines at the moment,” Alan Butcher, the Surrey manager, said.”So while we have a contract, it must be said it’s far from certain that he’ll be able to take up that contract. At the end of last season Matt made it very plain that he’d be delighted to come back and play for us, and I know that everyone in the dressing room is really delighted he will be with us for at least the first part of the season.”I would have no qualms at all if it turned into a full season’s contract.”

Greg Chappell, India’s coach, has once again said that the spat between him and Sourav Ganguly was “blown out of proportion” and added for good measure that the two had “moved on”, suggesting there was no reason why the two could not work together. “The drama that surrounded the episode was much greater than actually was the case,” Chappell said in an interview to . “He almost needed to go through this catharsis for his other side to come out, and for him to take stock of what he needed to do.”The problems he had in Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe were due to the fact that his mind was in the wrong place,” Chappell continued. “Sourav has come back. He has indicated that he understands what he needs to do to be a part of this team, what his role is. One thing I have learnt about life is that forget the past, but do not forget the lesson you learn from it.”Chappell added that both he and Ganguly were professionals, and keen on doing a job for the Indian team. “He wants to play cricket for India. I want to be a good coach. And I want to be the coach of a good Indian team. But for that to happen, you need to have the group that blends well.”Chappell also refused to respond in kind to the allegations made against him by Yashpal Sharma, who was recently removed from the national selection panel. “They don’t know me very well,” he said. “All I can say is that the individual at the moment doesn’t really understand what is going on,” Chappell said. “I don’t want to get sidetracked. I don’t want to get involved in a slanging match. He is frustrated that he lost a job which he obviously wanted to keep. I had no part in him losing his job, but he had to take it out on someone. One thing I have learnt in life is that you cannot please everyone all the time. It’s all a part of the fabric of life.”

Ricky Ponting
On the match
It has been a huge turnaround for us. We almost ambled through the first two days, not playing anywhere near our best, and then played two of the best days of cricket that you’re ever likely to see. It reminded us how we can play, and how we should play.Whether the first two days were a hangover from India
Maybe, I don’t know. On the first two sessions of the first day we played well, we might have run out of steam at the end of the day. We had a bit of a think about our tactics and we changed the way we bowled in the second innings.On New Zealand’s performance
They were very competitive for the first two days. Jacob Oram turned the game around in their favour on day two, and I thought they bowled well. But quite often our best qualities come out when our backs are to the wall. Adam and Michael [Clarke] changed the game for us, then Jason and Glenn [McGrath] drove a few nails in.On the final partnership “killing them off”
That had a lot to do with it. You could see their body language change. Tailenders scoring runs can be pretty demoralising. What it gave us was momentum to play well for the rest of the game.On batting on this morning
I was happy for them to bat as long as they could and keep New Zealand in the field a bit longer.On the clash between Gilchrist and Craig McMillan
It was just a spur-of-the-moment five-second thing over the course of a four-day game – a slight difference of opinions. We were pretty confident that he nicked that ball, and he was telling us that he might not have.On the argument continuing after the game
They just had a bit of a chat, it’s all part of the game. It’s all done and dusted.On what happened when McMillan stood his ground
Generally when there’s one that we think might be out and a batsman is standing his ground, quite often you are going to receive words. It happened in our innings with Justin Langer, and there’s no big deal being made of that.On there being animosity between the teams
No, not at all. I thought the game was played in an extremely good spirit.

On walking
That’s not our philosophy at all. We’ve got one player on our side that walks. I think the whole walking thing has been blown completely out of proportion. Adam doesn’t expect that of anyone else, he doesn’t expect anyone else to walk. It’s pretty simple. The whole thing seems very complicated.On accepting the word of the fieldsman
It’s something I’ve tried to do in all my series as captain and I brought it up at the referee’s meeting before the series. Flem [Stephen Fleming] and I had some discussion before the game and on the morning of day two: he made it clear that most of his players were happy to go along and a few weren’t.Jason Gillespie
On his wacky half-century celebration
I was just having a bit of a laugh. I told a few clubmates at the mighty Adelaide Buffalos that if I ever got a Test fifty I’d ride my bat like the little person did in Happy Gilmore.On getting a Test fifty
It’s a good laugh – but I probably got more pleasure out of Glenn getting his than mine, because it was totally unexpected.On sensing if New Zealand would capitulate
When talking to Glenn we thought the wicket was playing well because we were getting runs, and we thought it would be a pretty hard slog. Glenn got a couple of early ones and the momentum was with us, we got a few wickets and that was the end of it.

Gauteng prospered against Free State while heavy rain fell in Johannesburg and Durban and prevented play from getting under way in the other two SAA Provincial Challenge matches. A the Wanderers Gauteng scored 316 for 4 in the 70 overs of play that were possible. Having been put in by Free State, Gauteng made the most of the fair-weather conditions with William Motaung scoring 101, Diaan van Wyk not out on 76 and Douglas Gain adding 71 not out. At the close the two had put on 127 for the fifth wicket.The game in Benoni has every chance of getting underway on day two, while the chances of any play in Durban looks very slim. Rain is predicted for the second day and with the outfield waterlogged day the third day may also be washed out.

Group A
Faisalabad Wolves, one of the favourites for the title, got themselvesup and running in the competition with a 24-run win over Lahore Eagles. And as in their two-run loss in their opening game, it was skipperMisbah-ul-Haq once again leading the way. He followed his 53 withanother cultured innings, an unbeaten 60 that led the Wolves to a parscore of 162. The Eagles never soared, losing Ashfaq Ahmed off thesecond ball of the innings. No one scored more than 29 as Shahid Nazir(two for 26) led a strong Wolves attack to consign the Eagles to theirfirst defeat.Group B
Farce, controversy, Duckworth and Lewis conspired to produce a two-runwin for defending champions Sialkot Stallions against the KarachiZebras. Being bundled out for 106 was no way for champions to starttheir defense, with only Rana Naved-ul-Hasan’s 28 denying Malik Aftab (4for 17) and Danish Kaneria (3 for 11). But when the Zebras came out tobat, Mohammad Asif and Naved-ul-Hasan reminded everyone just why theStallions remain favourites this year. Together they reduced the Zebrasto 69 for five, despite a clever partnership between Faisal Iqbal andHasan Raza that ended with both batsmen throwing their wickets away. Atthat stage, 69 for five, the match was wide open but a floodlightfailure meant that no further progress could be made. The umpires chosenot to wait too long for a potentially exciting climax, whereuponentered Duckworth and Lewis.Group C
In a match studded with superstar comebacks, it was the unheraldedleg-spin of Imranullah Aslam that led the Multan Tigers to a 21-run winover the Islamabad Leopards. Aslam took five for 17 as the Leopardscrashed chasing 148, only Bazid Khan making an impression, with 53.Shabbir Ahmed did his continuing rehabilitation no harm, supportingAslam with three wickets. But the one player all eyes were on didn’tdistinguish himself: Shoaib Akhtar, leading the Leopards, ended withnone for 30 from his four overs, including 20 off the last. Instead, itwas team-mate Azhar Mahmood, whispered off as a potential returnee forthe World Cup, with three for 17, who did much of the damage.Group D
Mohammad Wasim did as all good openers do, carrying his bat through 20overs for Rawalpindi Rams, as he led them to a comfortable 20-run winover Quetta Bears. Wasim, a former Pakistan Test opener, made 86 but itwas only a sixth-wicket partnership with the feisty Yasir Arafat, whomade 43, that led the Rams to 172. No one could replicate Wasim’scontribution for the Bears, a number of batsmen like Shoaib Khan (44)getting off to a good start but not finishing. Emblematic, ultimately,of the Bears finishing close, but not close enough.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball commentary
How they were out

In an enthralling contest which ebbed and flowed throughout, Nathan Astle’s unbeaten 115 proved to be the crucial difference as New Zealand clinched the Videocon Cup with a six-wicket win at Harare. Set a challenging 277 for victory, New Zealand got off to a stunning start, as Stephen Fleming (61) and Astle put together 121 in 18.1 overs, and then rode on that momentum despite a few wobbles against the spinners.Astle’s matchwinning effort overshadowed a couple of fine Indian batting performances – Mohammad Kaif played the outstanding hand for the second time in three games with a beautifully paced unbeaten 93, while Virender Sehwag finally got some batting form back with his first half-century in 16 ODIs.The last time the two sides met in a final, Chris Cairns had struck a magnificent century to make light of a stiff target. This time, he was the supersub, sitting in the pavilion and ready to walk out if the need arose, but as it turned out, his contribution wasn’t even needed, thanks primarily to an astonishing onslaught at the start of the run-chase.India’s bowlers have often stumbled in finals, but it appeared they might have finally got their act together when Irfan Pathan started off with a maiden. The next five overs went for 62, however, as Fleming and Astle rocked the Harare Sports Club with strokes all around the park, taking full toll of the bowlers’ proclivity to bowl on both sides of the wicket. Fleming was especially severe on Pathan, spanking him for five fours in his third over. Astle hammered boundaries square of the wicket on both sides, and Sourav Ganguly was forced to run for cover, spreading the field out after two power plays.India’s seamers leaked 137 from 18.1 overs, but the introduction of spin staunched the runs immediately. Sehwag nailed two wickets in one over, Harbhajan Singh bowled a tidy line and length, and even Astle found run-scoring far more difficult than he had earlier.However, India had one power-play still to use, and when it was finally taken in the 24th over, New Zealand made use of it to get back their momentum – Jai Prakash Yadav was tonked for 14 in his only over. India fought back with their spinners – Yuvraj Singh was almost as effective as Daniel Vettori had been for New Zealand earlier – and the asking rate even climbed to 6.4 in the last ten overs. However, with wickets in hand, and Astle around to provide the steadying hand, the result wasn’t in much doubt.India’s start had been pretty impressive too, but from 155 for 1 the batsmen, save Kaif, lost their way, finally being all out four balls short of 50 overs. After missing New Zealand’s last match, Shane Bond and Vettori both returned to the line-up, and as expected, they were the two class acts in the attack: Vettori bowled with guile, varied his flight and pace cleverly, and deserved his returns of 2 for 35. Bond bowled an incisive first spell, but was clearly below par when he returned, finally hobbling off three balls short of his complete spell.Sehwag provided the early impetus to the innings, but the crucial steadying hand in the middle and the late charge came from Kaif, who batted with all the fluency he showed in Friday’s match, but was even more impressive for the manner in which he read the situation and played according to its demands. When Sehwag was firing away, Kaif played second fiddle sensibly, When Sehwag fell, Kaif took on the mantle of batting through to the end, and when wickets fell in a heap towards the end, he took on the role of main striker, belting three fours in a four-ball sequence off Styris and Bond to help the innings get the momentum it was quickly losing.Kaif’s innings ensured that the early contributions of the openers, especially Sehwag, wasn’t wasted. Struggling for form before this match, Sehwag got into groove early, slashing a couple of fours off Bond, and then carried on from there, taking full toll of the width on offer. Ganguly was all at sea against Bond, but found the lesser pace of Kyle Mills much more to his liking. He fell against the run of play after an innings played in two halves – his first 22 balls fetched him a single, his last 22 got him 30 – but Kaif joined Sehwag in what was the best passage of the innings for India. The 81-run stand came in less than 12 overs as both batsmen made full use of Fleming’s decision to use all the power-plays at a stretch.After 24 overs, India were 153 for 1, a run-rate of 6.37, with Sehwag on course for a hundred. Vettori then stepped in, taking two wickets in an over, including that for Rahul Dravid for a second-ball duck, to peg India back. India continued to lose their way thereafter. Kaif kept his cool to guide the team to a competitive total, but that wasn’t enough to prevent India from sliding to their 12th defeat in their last 16 finals.Speaking of his side’s victory, Fleming said: “It was a great match, a great win and a great series. The all-round strength of our team was what mattered in the end.”Ganguly highlighted his team’s fielding as the weak part of their performance: “We got off to a good start, but couldn’t sustain it. Virender Sehwag put us back in the game for a while with three wickets but our fielding was not up to scratch.”India now face Zimbabwe in a two-Test series, with the first starting on September 13.

IndiaSourav Ganguly c Marshall b Oram 31 (44) (72 for 1)
Virender Sehwag c Vincent b Vettori 75 (65) (155 for 2)
Rahul Dravid lbw b Vettori 0 (2) (155 for 3)
Yuvraj Singh c Bond b Mills 20 (32) (185 for 4)
Venugopal Rao c McMillan b Oram 8 (16) (203 for 5)
Mahendra Singh Dhoni lbw b Styris 11 (16) (230 for 6)
Jai Prakash Yadav c McCullum b Oram 0 (2) (231 for 7)
Ajit Agarkar c Mills b Bond 6 (5) (255 for 8)
Irfan Pathan c Vincent b Oram 10 (7) (272 for 9)
Ashish Nehra c Oram b Mills 0 (2) (276 all out)
New ZealandStephen Fleming c & b Sehwag 61 (66) (121 for 1)
Hamish Marshall lbw b Sehwag 3 (3) (125 for 2)
Scott Styris st Dhoni b Sehwag 37 (41) (183 for 3)
Craig McMillan c Dhoni b Yuvraj 13 (14) (206 for 4)

Andrew Flintoff has been named as the Leading Cricketer in the World for 2005, as the 143rd edition of Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack prepares to hit the bookshops tomorrow.The award, which was instituted two years ago and has previously been won by the Australian duo of Ricky Ponting and Shane Warne, was a reflection of Flintoff’s towering performance in last summer’s Ashes, a series that the editor, Matthew Engel, unequivocally describes as “the greatest”.”We took soundings from writers and commentators in all the cricketing countries, and there were only two people in it, Flintoff and Warne,” said Engel. “Our cover picture sums up the year as we saw it. Flintoff and Warne are shown embracing after the Ashes series – but the one is just a fraction above the other. We felt in the end that 2005 was the year when Freddie touched greatness.”Both men were ineligible for Wisden’s more traditional honours list: the Five Cricketers of the Year, which dates back to 1889 and is the oldest honour in cricket. By ancient custom, no-one can be chosen twice for this list, but each of the five recipients did nonetheless play their part in the Ashes: three for England, Matthew Hoggard, Simon Jones and Kevin Pietersen and two from Australia, Brett Lee and the captain, Ponting.’The Five’ invariably stir a debate among the cricket-watchers of the world, but as Engel points out, the criteria for selection is steeped in Wisden’s traditions of editorial independence. “The Five have never been the world’s top five,” he explained in The Times this week. “The choice is based on their influence on the English season, and successive editors have cut themselves enough slack to pick players who just happen to appeal to them. It has always been accepted that there is room for whimsy, idiosyncrasy or downright eccentricity. Cricket followers like that.”Cricket followers also liked the events of last summer, when England regained the Ashes after an 18-and-a-half-year gap, in a cliffhanger of a series that will echo down the ages. “It was a triumph for the real thing,” Engel wrote in his typically hard-hitting Notes by the Editor. “Five five-day Test matches between two gifted, well-matched teams playing fantastic cricket at high velocity and high pressure with the perfect mix of chivalry and venom. Here was the best game in the world, at its best.”To mark the occasion, Wisden has revved up its traditional coverage and introduced a special 72-page Ashes section – plus 12 colour plates. The coverage includes “Notes and Quotes” from each Test, reviews of the media by Quentin Letts and Malcolm Knox, afterthoughts by John Woodcock, Simon Hughes and the former Australian captain, Mark Taylor – and even an analysis of how the Ashes changed the English language.And several of the articles in the Comment section also derive directly from the Ashes: