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Australia have returned to the No. 1 Test ranking for the first time in nearly five years, after the ICC’s annual rankings update

Brydon Coverdale and Daniel Brettig01-May-2014On a day Michael Clarke called the most satisfying of his career, Australia returned to the No. 1 Test ranking for the first time in nearly five years, after the ICC’s annual rankings update. Despite not having played a Test since their series win over South Africa in the first week of March, the Australians have edged ahead of South Africa because the rolling nature of the rankings system means results from 2010-11 have now been dropped.Michael Clarke’s men also hold the top position in the one-day rankings, meaning it is the first time since December 2008 that Australia have been No. 1 in both the Test and ODI formats. It is the first time since August 2009 that they have sat at the top of the Test rankings, having originally been displaced following their unsuccessful Ashes tour of England that year.In Twenty20s, meanwhile, Sri Lanka, who were crowned World T20 champions just last month, lose the No. 1 ranking to India.The annual update means results from 2012-13 are reduced to a 50% weighting, so Australia’s home Ashes fiasco in 2010-11 and their six Test losses across two tours of India have now either disappeared entirely from the rankings or been devalued. Their home Ashes clean-sweep over the past summer and their 2-1 win in South Africa allowed them to move ahead of South Africa, who had been No. 1 since August 2012, by a fraction of a point.India have suffered a significant fall, slipping from third down to fifth, while England and Pakistan have each gained a place, up to third and fourth respectively. New Zealand and Sri Lanka switched places, with New Zealand now ranked sixth in Tests and Sri Lanka down to seventh, while West Indies, Zimbabwe and Bangladesh remain unchanged at the bottom of the table.However, Australia’s immediate reign at No. 1 could be short-lived, with South Africa facing two Tests in Sri Lanka and one in Zimbabwe before Australia’s next Test series, which is against Pakistan in the UAE in October. Still, the return to the top is a significant achievement after Australia slipped as low as fifth on the Test rankings in 2010 and 2011, and then went nine consecutive Tests without a win during 2013.”The last two years have been extremely positive in some ways and there’s been a number of tough times, and for a team that makes days like these even more special,” Clarke said in Sydney. “As captain of this team over the last couple of years and what we’ve been through, I don’t think I’ve had a more satisfying day or feeling in my career.”It’s so satisfying because of where we’ve come from. The fact two years ago we were ranked No. 5 in the world, as captain of the team I remember, it’s still in the front of my mind what was written and said about us once we came back from India, we were named the worst Australian team to ever tour India and as captain that’s the last thing you want to hear, that breaks your heart. To enjoy today and see the other side in a pretty quick turnaround from No. 5 in the world, I’m extremely proud of that.”Clarke and the coach Darren Lehmann have often said that Australia’s goal was to achieve the No. 1 ranking in all three formats and while there is a significant way to go in T20, where they currently sit sixth, sitting on top in Test and ODIs is a considerable accomplishment.’We’re not true No. 1 yet’ – Lehmann

Australia’s coach Darren Lehmann does not believe Australia have yet earned the right to call themselves world No. 1 – even if the ICC rankings say so. In Adelaide to speak at a corporate function, Lehmann told he wanted the team to prove their quality by sustaining the success of the past six months. “I don’t think we’re No. 1 until we win a lot of series away from home and at home,” he said. “Once we start doing that and spread the gap between No. 1 and No. 2, then you can start calling yourself the genuine No. 1. “We’ve got to win against Pakistan, the Ashes in England, win at home, win in the West Indies. If we tick off those, then you can pretty much say, ‘Yeah, we’re No. 1’. But until you do that we’re No. 1 in rankings only, if that makes sense. The players understand that. They enjoy being No. 1 but now the challenge is to spread it from one to two. The way you do that is to not lose a game, for starters. Making sure that when we’re under the pump in games that we fight hard to get out of it. Almost unbeatable — that would be the ultimate goal.”
Lehmann’s sentiments were echoed by Test opener Chris Rogers, who told Cricket Australia’s website the team still had some “unfinished business”.
“I don’t know, personally,” Rogers said. “Obviously, there’s still some unfinished business. Losing 4-0 in India – you can’t do that if you’re number one – but I think to beat South Africa in South Africa meant a lot. They were number one and to go beat them in their place; I think that is a big achievement.”

“The players deserve a lot of credit. Our senior players have stood up and led the way over the past couple of years to turn things around. I’ve had a lot of help from [support] staff,” Clarke said. “I think Darren Lehmann coming in in the last eight months has played a big part as well, his support has been fantastic. The power of within has been outstanding, to deal with what we went through in India and the Ashes and turn that around is a great feeling. And I think the public that watch us play see how close a group we are inside the camp.”We’ve worked exceptionally hard to get here, we have to work even harder to stay here. The great teams have done that, the Australian team I walked into stayed at No. 1 for a long period of time and that was a sign of greatness. South Africa deserve a lot of credit for how long they’ve been No. 1 in the world, and we look up to teams like that so hopefully we can do exactly the same, find a way to perform at home and away from home as well.”James Sutherland, the Cricket Australia chief executive, said Clarke and Lehmann deserved plenty of credit for the results. “Everyone involved with the Australian team – players, coaches and support staff – should be incredibly proud of this achievement,” Sutherland said. “There has been a huge amount of hard work and effort on and off the field to get to this point and it’s something that those involved with the side should take time to savour.”Australian cricket’s team performance programme led by Pat Howard deserves considerable credit for this outcome. High praise needs to go to Michael Clarke and Darren Lehmann for their excellent leadership.”In the ODI rankings, the only change to result from the annual update was that England and South Africa switched positions, with England up from fifth to fourth and South Africa down from fourth to fifth. Australia, India and Sri Lanka still occupy the top three spots in the one-day list.Australia’s success has had a considerable financial benefit for the players in addition to the prestige of their recent results. Performance bonuses tied to ICC rankings for the past 12 months and also overall in Tests and ODIs have delivered a total windfall of about $1.6 million to the team.ICC Test Championship

1 May 2014 Team Matches Points Rating

1. Australia (+1) 32 3950 123 2. South Africa (-1) 23 2831 123 3. England (+1) 30 3131 104 4. Pakistan (+1) 20 2064 103 5. India (-2) 23 2343 102 6. New Zealand (+1) 26 2383 92 7. Sri Lanka (-1) 22 1986 90 8. West Indies 19 1442 76 9. Zimbabwe 8 322 40 10. Bangladesh 14 287 21ICC ODI Championship

1 May 2014 Team Matches Points Rating

1. Australia 35 4020 115 2. India 53 5923 112 3. Sri Lanka 53 5890 111 4. England (+1) 36 3947 110 5. South Africa (-1) 32 3486 109 6. Pakistan 47 4716 100 7. New Zealand 31 3031 98 8. West Indies 40 3744 94 9. Bangladesh 23 1683 73 10. Zimbabwe 20 1228 61 11. Ireland 8 273 34 12. Afghanistan 9 304 34

ICC Twenty20 Championship

1 May 2014 Team Matches Points Rating

India 15 1963 131 Sri Lanka 22 2859 130 Pakistan 26 3194 123 South Africa 23 2785 121 Australia 22 2454 112 New Zealand 20 2196 110 West Indies 23 2520 110 England 23 2220 97 Ireland 12 1046 87 Bangladesh 16 1147 72 Netherlands 14 951 68 Afghanistan 12 743 62 Zimbabwe 11 573 52 Scotland 10 512 51

Albie Morkel has said RCB were “not playing too well as a team yet,” and put their struggles down to top-order wobbles and the bowlers conceding too many extras

ESPNcricinfo staff10-May-20142:58

RCB just need to turn on the switch – Albie Morkel

Albie Morkel, the Royal Challengers Bangalore allrounder, has said RCB were “not playing too well as a team yet,” and put their struggles in IPL 2014 down to top-order wobbles and the bowlers conceding too many extras.Royal Challengers’ 32-run defeat at home to Kings XI Punjab on May 9 was their fifth loss in six games, after they had begun the season with two wins. They are presently sixth in the points table.”It just hasn’t clicked; I don’t know why,” Morkel told when asked about RCB’s batting. “In five out of the seven games we have played, we have lost too many wickets up front. We are not playing too well as a team yet. There are six more games left and we have to win all of them to have a chance at the playoffs.”Before the season began, Royal Challengers were touted to have the most destructive line-up, with Yuvraj Singh and Morkel adding to the existing firepower of Chris Gayle, Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers. However, only de Villiers averages more than 23, and before scoring two half-centuries in his last three innings, he too was having an indifferent season. Gayle averages 22 in four innings, striking at 156, and Yuvraj and Kohli average 20 in eight each, striking at 102 and 113 respectively.The upshot of RCB’s poor top-order form is that Morkel, who is batting higher up the order than he did at his previous team Chennai Super Kings, has had to come into match situations where a rescue act is needed, and not the powerful cameos he is known for. Morkel hasn’t found his groove either, making only 44 runs in four innings.”What has changed here is that I bat a bit higher – at No.6 or 7 – whereas at CSK, I came in at No.8,” Morkel said when asked about the difference in his roles at Super Kings and Royal Challengers. “So, there’s more chance for me with the bat here. However, since we haven’t fired as a batting unit yet, it makes the drill quite difficult for someone coming in later in the order.”I am not talking about me in particular, but anyone coming in at that position. When the number in the wickets column is low, it is nice to come in with the platform already set and then to build on it. Having said that, I have always wanted a bigger batting role, which I have been getting here, and from a personal point of view, I am very disappointed that I haven’t made it count with big scores. But I am not beating myself up yet.”Royal Challengers’ bowling was considered their weak suit but in the early stages of the tournament the attack acquitted itself well. However, in their last two games against Mumbai Indians and Kings XI, RCB conceded 40 runs in extras – 26 of those in wides and no-balls.”Yes, we did bowl too many leg-side wides, and honestly, they weren’t the result of us trying to do something,” Morkel said after the loss against Kings XI. “It was just the lack of discipline. From the bowling unit’s perspective, we did so well in the first five matches, but in the last two, we’ve given away far too many extras. Against MI, we gave away 25 extras, which is way too many if you want to win T20 games. We will try and correct that in the coming matches; we will have to.”

Some of Pakistan’s top players, including Shahid Afridi and Shoaib Akhtar, have expressed hope that the issue of bilateral cricket ties with India was discussed by Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif, on his flying visit to the country

PTI29-May-2014Some of Pakistan’s top players, including Shahid Afridi and Shoaib Akhtar, have expressed hope that the issue of bilateral cricket ties with India was discussed by Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif, on his flying visit to the country.Former Pakistan quick Akhtar pointed out that cricket had always played a big role in bringing the people of the two countries closer. “I am happy that our prime minister is in India and I hope cricket ties are discussed in these big meetings,” Akhtar told . “Because it is necessary to have bilateral cricket ties between the two countries.”It is particularly important for Pakistan, as whenever Pakistan and India play against each other these matches bring financial rewards for both boards and the PCB in particular needs a financial boost.”Akhtar said that he would also like to see the issue of Pakistan players in the IPL being resolved soon. “If things continue the way they are, I have a feeling by end of this year the Indians will take a decision on allowing our players in the IPL,” he said.Allrounder Afridi also wanted to see more India-Pakistan series’ in future. “I hope with our prime minister also going to India, the Indian board responds positively and we see bilateral matches soon,” he said.Former Pakistan captain Younis Khan also backed the restoration of bilateral cricket ties. “Our prime minister himself has played cricket and is a keen student and follower of cricket, so I am sure this subject would have been discussed by him in these meetings,” Younis said in Lahore.

It has not been the smoothest of fortnights for Chris Rushworth who received Twitter abuse after a recent T20 match, but he was Durham’s hero against Lancashire

Graham Hardcastle at Chester-le-Street18-Jun-2014
ScorecardJos Buttler nearly carried Lancashire to a memorable chase•Getty ImagesIt has not been the smoothest of fortnights for Chris Rushworth. Durham’s new-ball seamer was the victim of some abusive tweets after conceding 16 runs in the final over of their T20 Blast defeat to Worcestershire at New Road a week ago last Saturday but, today, he responded in the perfect way by helping his county to their first Championship win of the season.Rushworth played a significant part in an enthralling final day at Chester-le-Street as he completed a haul 4 for 45 from 20.4 overs as the reigning champions defended their target of 340 to win by 27 runs half an hour after tea. It meant that Jos Buttler’s first century in a Lancashire shirt came in vain.Having removed both openers late on the third day, Rushworth returned to get Usman Khawaja caught behind two overs into the morning before wrapping things up by trapping Simon Kerrigan lbw with the second new ball, leaving Buttler stranded on 100 having kept Lancashire alive during the last day.This win gave Durham significant breathing space at the wrong end of Division One, much to their relief. “It was nice to silence a few critics,” said Rushworth before his captain Paul Collingwood sang his praises.”Chris was outstanding throughout the match,” Collingwood said. “He’s been outstanding in all three forms of the game. I know there has been one game at Worcester where he didn’t quite get it right but the roles he plays, he’s on the money all the time. He’s a great asset to have.”Lancashire so nearly pulled this game out of the fire from 74 for 4 following the early losses of Khawaja and Ashwell Prince. That owed much to Buttler’s fine hundred, his fourth in Championship cricket.He shared a counter-attacking fifth-wicket partnership of 129 with Steven Croft, who made 72, and showed that he can unite flair with the composure needed to be a success in Test cricket. He reached his century off 131 balls in what turned out to be the final over of the match and did not face another delivery.”I know I don’t have a perfect and traditional technique, so the most important thing for me is the mindset and accepting that I’ll hit the ball in different areas to other players,” Buttler said. “It’s about getting the balance of always looking to score. I think I play better technically when I’m looking to be aggressive.”After the Buttler-Croft alliance, Durham picked up wickets at just the right time. They took three for 24 just before tea to leave Lancahsire 269 for 8, two of them going to the impressive John Hastings, who finished with 3 for 58.They then broke a dangerous ninth-wicket stand of 40 in 7.3 overs between Buttler and Kabir Ali after they had added 26 in the first four overs after tea in taking the target down to 31 with two wickets in hand.Lancashire, now 15 points adrift in eighth place having played once more match than Durham, had the game by the scruff of the neck twice across the four days. They had reduced Durham to 184 for 8 in the first innings before letting them get 338 and then had reached 205 for 2 in reply before losing their last eight wickets for 61.They now face a crucial home match against Northamptonshire, starting on Sunday.

Batsman Andrew Poynter will captain Ireland for the first time, in the upcoming home series against Sri Lanka A which gets underway in Belfast next week

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Jul-2014Batsman Andrew Poynter will captain Ireland for the first time, in the upcoming home series against Sri Lanka A which begins in Belfast next week.Andrew Poynter, who captained Ireland A to a 10-wicket win against the MCC last week, will lead a 14-man squad which includes four uncapped players in seamer Peter Chase, allrounder Barry McCarthy and batsmen Nick Larkin and Chris Dougherty.Thirty-four-year-old allrounder Andrew White, who last made an international appearance in the Intercontinental Cup in December, has also been picked, and is one game away from becoming Ireland’s most capped player, ahead of Kyle McCallan.Andrew Poynter’s brother Stuart will keep wicket for the team, but fast bowler Graeme McCarter will be available only for the first game before returning to his county Gloucestershire.”The selectors have taken the opportunity to get a look at some new faces against quality opposition,” Ireland coach Phil Simmons said. “It’s a great chance for these guys to show their abilities against a very strong Sri Lanka A side.”There are obviously World Cup places up for grabs, so it’s an important series for the players to state their case and grab their chance. They’ve all been performing well with their clubs, but need to show us they can do it at the higher level.”Ireland take on Sri Lanka in Stormont on July 23 and July 25, before finishing the three-match one-day series in Coleraine on July 27.Squad: Andrew Poynter (capt), John Anderson, Andrew Balbirnie, Peter Chase, Chris Dougherty, Nick Larkin, Andrew McBrine, Graeme McCarter, Barry McCarthy, Stuart Poynter, Eddie Richardson, Stuart Thompson, Andrew White, Craig Young

Luke Wood set England Under-19s up for a clean sweep of their five match one-day series with South Africa after they breezed to a six-wicket win in the fourth rubber at Grace Road.

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Aug-2014
ScorecardLuke Wood’s 4 for 16 set up England’s simple target•Getty ImagesLuke Wood set England Under-19s up for a clean sweep of their five-match one-day series with South Africa after they breezed to a six-wicket win in the fourth game at Grace Road.Nottinghamshire’s Wood, a left-arm seamer, took 4 for 16, top and tailing England’s smart performance with the ball as the tourists were bowled out far too cheaply and could not even last their full allocation of overs.Wood nipped out both South African openers within the first seven overs and thereafter England chipped away, ensuring South Africa did not develop a partnership significant enough to make progress.The tourists gained half-centuries from No. 3 Janneman Malan and No. 5 Marques Ackerman but neither found a partner for long and when the latter was run out by Tom Alsop, it brought about a hasty end to the innings with the last four wickets going down for just 14 runs.Wood took the final wicket to finish with an impressive 4 for 16 from 7.2 overs.England effectively killed the chase with an opening stand of 86, captain Will Rhodes steadily marshalling progress with a half-century and although the victory was only completed with little over five overs remaining, it was still a comprehensive success.

Only 25 overs were possible on the second day, due to a combination of rain and bad light, but Surrey made the best of the limited window of opportunity

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Sep-2014
ScorecardRory Burns navigated his way to the close on a truncated day•PA PhotosOnly 25 overs were possible on the second day, due to a combination of rain and bad light, but Surrey made the best of the limited window of opportunity by cleaning up the New Zealand A tail and then wiping out two thirds of the deficit.They lost three wickets in the process, though that was an improvement on their first innings, when they made just 101. Rory Burns led the way with an unbeaten 31, after New Zealand A’s three seamers, Matt Henry, Hamish Bennett and Scott Kuggeleijn took a wicket apiece.New Zealand A had gained a lead of 110 despite losing their last three wickets for the addition of just nine runs to the overnight score. Jade Dernbach, Surrey’s captain in this match, removed Todd Astle in the second over of the morning, before a break for rain.Dernbach and Matt Dunn then shared the final two wickets when play resumed in the afternoon, giving the latter a four-wicket haul, before play was eventually curtailed by poor light.

A round-up of the Haier T20 Cup matches played on September 26, 2014

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Sep-2014Group DLahore Lions capitalised on a middling batting performance from Abbottabad Falcons to march to a seven-wicket win that helped them climb to the top of Group D and set up a semi-final clash with Multan Tigers. Lions ended on four points from three games – similar to Falcons – but progressed due to a better net run-rate.Put in to bat, Falcons were dismissed for 131 and were in danger of being bowled out for a smaller total before a 10-ball 24-run partnership between Adnan Raees and Ahmed Jamal for the eighth wicket propelled them at the end. Both batsmen were the only ones in the line-up to score more than 20 as the Lions bowlers kept chipping away at the wickets.Emmad Ali and Qaiser Ashraf struck twice each while Mohammad Aftab, Mohammad Irfan and Azhar Ali took one apiece. Hamza Paracha did not take a wicket but was the most economical Lions bowler, conceding only nine off three overs.Kamran Akmal’s boundary-filled 39 helped Lions tide over the early dismissal of Muntazir Mehdi, while Azhar’s unbeaten 28-ball 32 steered the chase to a a close in the 18th over.Group CFast bowler Mohammad Talha’s 5 for 23 wrecked Islamabad Leopards’ innings and set up a 37-run win for Faisalabad Wolves, as they finished second in the group.Talha struck three times in two successive overs at the start of the Leopards’ 172-run chase leave them at 32 for 3 and the side failed to rebuild after the early blows. Quick wickets offset a couple of brisk partnerships between the middle and lower order batsmen as the side finished at 134 for 9.Earlier, a fifty from Asif Ali and an unbeaten 41 off 31 balls from Misbah-ul-Haq helped Wolves post a strong total of 171 for 5. The 68-run partnership between the two batsmen took just 44 balls and helped steady the innings after early wickets. Once Asif fell, Misbah opened up and played a few big shots, helping the side accumulate 42 runs off the last three overs.Lahore Eagles’ bowlers set the team up for their first win of the season, after they beat AJK Jaguars by seven wickets in Karachi. Five of Eagles’ bowlers went at under six an over, as they struck at regular intervals to restrict Jaguars to 105 for 6.Jaguars’ captain Raheel Majeed top-scored with a 46-ball 53, but none of the other batsmen could produce more than 18, as the lack of a big partnership hurt the team. Legspinner Usman Qadir was the pick of Eagles’ bowlers and ended with figures of 4-0-18-2.Eagles began the chase brightly, as the openers Sami Aslam (42) and Mohammad Naeem (34) raced to 79 in 8.1 overs. The team lost three wickets in quick succession, but Hussain Talat slammed a run-a-ball 15 to guide Eagles home with 33 balls to spare.

The West Indies players have said the WICB was responsible for the decision to pullout of their ongoing tour of India because of a dispute over the payment structure

Nagraj Gollapudi17-Oct-2014The West Indies players have said the WICB was responsible for the decision to pull out of their ongoing tour of India because of a dispute over the payment structure. In a letter to WICB president Dave Cameron, West Indies captain Dwayne Bravo wrote the players were “disheartened and extremely disappointed” that the board had decided to engage with the West Indies Players Association (WIPA) despite the players’ instruction not to do so with regard to discussions on their behalf.The failure to heed the players’ appeal and to find a resolution to the payment-structure dispute, which the players felt left them disadvantaged, was a “grave injustice,” according to Bravo and had left to the decision to abandon the tour after the fourth ODI in Dharamsala.West Indies’ participation in the tour of India had been in doubt before the first ODI in Kochi, when the players expressed concerns about the new memorandum of understanding (MoU) and combined business agreement signed by WICB and WIPA in September. The players felt that under the new structure their payments would be affected adversely by as much as 90%.Acting as the players’ representative, Bravo sought answers from WIPA chief executive and president Wavell Hinds to questions over the MoU, which the captain said the players had not seen to date. Bravo asked Hinds to step down, a demand that was refused. Bravo then sought WICB’s help to resolve the matter, but Cameron responded on saying the board would communicate only with WIPA as the players representative. That step from WICB, Bravo said, forced the players to take the extreme measure of pulling out of the tour.”We were truly hoping that the WICB together with WIPA and/or the players would do everything in their power to seriously address the concerns of the players. Regrettably, this has not happened,” Bravo wrote in an email to Cameron before the fourth ODI.”Mr. President, having taken the field in good faith, [we] appealed to WIPA to address our concerns to no avail and asked the WICB to demonstrate with action, what is often bandied about in words, namely that they are interested in player welfare and partnership, it seems to us that there has been no reciprocal action”As a consequence and as a matter of principle, we cannot be party to this grave injustice. The players regretfully wish to advise that they can no longer accept this situation, which has affected each and every player in a very negative way. The players are under tremendous stress and undue pressure. We have informed the Manager and Coach of our decision to return home with the hope that these issues will be addressed to the satisfaction of all.”In the letter to Bravo where he said the WICB would only deal with the WIPA as the players representative, Cameron had asked the team to focus on the task at hand: “complete the series successfully.” Bravo, however, told Cameron the players had only played the first four ODIs “in good faith” but that stance could not be misinterpreted as their acceptance of the MoU. “Our decision to play in India was in no way intended to convey an acceptance by the players of the unreasonable terms and conditions put forward to us by WICB nor was it intended as an expression of our acceptance of the purported new Memorandum of Understanding.”In his communication to Cameron and Hinds, Bravo had said that until the dispute was resolved, the players should be paid under the old structure, which would benefit all parties. Cameron did not agree and argued in the favour of the new MoU. “For the record, I would point out to you our view that the new MOU/CBA creates a clear, sustainable, long-term compensation structure, so that we avoid the uncertainties and confusion associated with previous one – off negotiations on a case-by-case basis and the loose, informal arrangements of the past.”Cameron also had indicated the WICB would be happy “mediating the apparent issues between yourselves and WIPA – and are willing if invited, to do so” but only under the new guidelines set under the September MoU. Bravo, however, asked how the WICB could play a mediating role when it was party to the agreement players did not accept.”We note your offer to mediate since in your view this is a matter between WIPA and its members. We wish to state that while you may have been well intended, the offer to mediate on a document that the WICB is a party to cannot be entertained,” Bravo said.The players have been angered by Hinds’ claim that a resolution was passed approving the new pay structure at a WIPA AGM, which was attended by senior West Indies players Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Bravo and Ramnaresh Sarwan, on February 1. Bravo has been adamant in his exchanges with Hinds that no vote was taken and no resolution passed.Bravo told Cameron the players were not against reform and would support WICB as long as they were brought on board. “The players’ issue is that there has been no resolution, no mandate, no consultation, no prior Board approval as far as WIPA is concerned and yet there is an agreement of unreasonable terms and conditions. In addition to the issue of deficient representation there is a case that the purported MOU may be wholly unjust and unfair and the new salary structure is untenable. In these circumstances the players feel there is sufficient basis to ask for its termination and its renegotiation.”The fourth ODI in Dharamsala began with the West Indies players standing beside Bravo at the toss while their captain said, “Time to make a decision,” and news of the pullout broke during the first innings.

Elton Chigumbura was disappointed by his team committing the same mistakes every match to lose the ODI series 3-0, with two matches still left

Mohammad Isam in Mirpur26-Nov-2014Elton Chigumbura had very little to say after conceding the series in the third ODI, and he has two more matches and potentially two more early press conferences to attend.The only positive from a 124-run defeat is that they will have two months before the World Cup to shed away the memories and regroup. But for now, they have been unable to reach the 200-mark in any of the three ODIs, despite good batting conditions.Their bowling did not have the best tour either and conceded 103 runs in the last 10 overs in Mirpur. Bangladesh benefited from their lack of threat as Tamim Iqbal and Anamul Haque added 120 runs for the opening stand in 25.5 overs that provided a perfect foundation for the lower order to spring from.Chigumbura lamented the bowling effort and said losing early wickets dented their chances. “It was another disappointment,” he said. “Same old stuff, same old mistakes. I guess if we keep repeating the same thing we keep getting the same result. We changed the team, but we repeated the same mistakes.”Today it was disappointing on the bowling side. We didn’t bowl as well as we wanted. So obviously, any team chasing 290 is always in a tough fight. We didn’t help ourselves by losing early wickets again, it could have been better if we’d had wickets in hand.”There was a suggestion that perhaps the tour has been too long for Zimbabwe. Chigumbura said that it was not an excuse, but he was hopeful that he can leave the worries of Bangladesh behind and prepare for the World Cup in February.”I can’t say it [tour] is long because the guys who played Test cricket, some of them are not the same guys [in the ODI squad]. So I can’t say it’s been long tour, that’s not why we are playing like this. It’s just that we are repeating the same old mistakes of losing wickets.”These are different conditions than the one we will face in the World Cup,” Chigumbura said. “The worry is just here and not in the World Cup, because we are kind of used to more similar wickets to the ones that we are going to be facing in the World Cup. It’s not really a worry looking at the World Cup; it is just a worry in this series.”Chigumbura added that the visitors’ concentration moves to avoiding a second whitewash on the tour. “We just have to redeem ourselves and make sure losing 3-2 is better than losing 5-0. We are still playing for the win and we are going to come hard in the last two games.”