PCB slapped with legal notice by Cricket Council USA over 'illegal' remarks

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is facing another controversy, with the Cricket Council of the United States of America (CCUSA) sending it legal notice following insult by chairman Ijaz Butt.

Butt had in a press release described the CCUSA as an 'illegal' institution, and blamed PCB director general Javed Miandad for wanting to take an illegitimate cricket team to China.he CCUSA's legal notice demanded an immediate retraction of statement and an apology from Butt.

"Your defamatory statements expressed in the widely-popular fixed print medium of the 'Jang' represent false and unprivileged expressions of negligence and malice. Your actions have directly insulted the wonderful cricket constituents of the venerable PCB," the notice said.

"Your reference to Mr Miandad working with a non-sanctioned American organisation to try and take an illegal cricket team to compete in China is totally false. Never has CCUSA assembled a cricket team for such purpose. My client demands the retraction of these falsehoods," the notice, which was through Attorney David Rubin, said.

Meanwhile, PCB's Chief Operating Officer (COO) Wasim Bari said the board would reply to the notice after consulting its legal experts.

"The CCUSA is not an International Cricket Council (ICC) recognised member as earlier cricket's governing body had written to the PCB, objecting to any association with CCUSA. The PCB had informed Miandad of ICC's protest and he had clarified not to have any dealings with the CCUSA in an official capacity," The Daily Times quoted Bari, as saying.

He said the United States of America Cricket Association (USACA) was the only officially recognised ICC member.

According to sources, a number of former Pakistani cricketers, who have now settled America, are allegedly supporting the CCUSA and are currently camping in Dubai from where they wanted to take a team to China.t may be mentioned that the ICC had officially conducted elections of USACA after large scale bungling was alleged by those involved in the running of the USACA in the past.

Galdstone Dainty was elected as the USACA president in the election held six months back. The ICC had also appointed a CEO of the USACA to run the sport in that country

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Cricket India v South Africa first test scoreboard - lunch

Scoreboard at lunch on the fourth day of the first test between India and South Africa at the VCA Stadium in Nagpur, India, on Tuesday.

South Africa first innings 558-6 declared (H. Amla 253 n.o., J.Kallis 173, AB de Villiers 53).

India first innings 233 (V. Sehwag 109, S. Badrinath 56, D.Steyn 7-51).

India second innings (overnight 66-2)

G. Gambhir b Morkel 1
V. Sehwag c Smith b Steyn 16
M. Vijay c Morkel b Harris 32
S. Tendulkar not out 77
S. Badrinath c Boucher b Parnell 6
M. Dhoni not out 9
Extras (b-10 lb-5 w-5 nb-1) 21
Total: (for four wickets; 49 overs) 162
Fall of wickets: 1-1 2-24 3-96 4-122.

To bat: W. Saha, H. Singh, Z. Khan, A. Mishra, I. Sharma.

Bowling (to date): Steyn 10-0-36-1, Morkel 12-4-36-1 (w-5),
Parnell 6-0-38-1, Harris 14-5-21-1, Kallis 6-2-11-0, Duminy
1-0-5-0 (nb-1).
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Bangladesh take cricket gold at South Asian Games

Hosts Bangladesh snatched a narrow six-run victory over Sri Lanka to clinch the Twenty20 Under-21 cricket title for the gold medal in 11th South Asian Games on Sunday.

Elected to bat, Bangladesh rode on Anamul Haque's 43 to score 157 for seven in the stipulated 20 overs and then restricted Sri Lanka to 151.

For the hosts, leg-spinner Shabbir Rahman scalped four wickets for 31 runs and played the wrecker-in-chief.

With one wicket remaining, Sri Lanka needed six runs from the last two balls as the match headed to a close finish. But Rahman scalped Naveen Kavikara for his fourth wicket in the penultimate ball of the match to clinch the issue.

Bangladesh got the gold, while Sri Lanka had to settle for the silver in the T20 format that was introduced for the first time in the SAG.

Pakistan won the silver after overcoming Nepal in the bronze medal play-off match.

India did not participate in the cricket competition.

Brief score:

Bangladesh: 157/7 in 20 overs (Anamul Haque 43, MD Mithun 37; Thisara Perera 2/35, Sachith Pathirana 2/22).

Sri Lanka: 151 all out in 19.5 overs (Lahiru Thirimanne 39; Shabbir Rahman 4/31).
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Cricket Australia fears ban on WACA following drunken ground invasion

Cricket Australia (CA) is apprehensive over the Western Australia Cricket Association (WACA) losing the right to host international cricket matches in Perth, as the International Cricket Council (ICC) has asked it to submit a 'rapid report' over the ground invasion by a drunken spectator during the fifth ODI against Pakistan.

CA has also proposed imposing a fine of 20,000 dollars on ground invaders.

"The ICC has power to strip grounds of their status and it was discussed at the MCG a few years ago," The Dawn quoted CA spokesman Peter Young, as saying.

"It (the WACA Ground) could lose it, like New Delhi lost it recently," Young added.

It may be noted that a drunken spectator dodged security officials and jumped on to Pakistani fielder Khalid Latif during the last ODI match of the series on Sunday.

The ICC has the power to strip troublesome venues of their international status, and has expressed disappointment over the WACA incident, wanting to know why security protocols were not in place ahead of the event.

Australian cricket bosses have implored the West Australian Government to increase penalties for ground invaders drastically.

The fine for ground invasion at the WACA is only 500 dollars, compared to 7000 dollars at the MCG, 5500 dollars at the SCG and 4000 dollars at the Gabba.

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Players won't pay for clash

CRICKET Australia yesterday said there was no cause for alarm among the Indian Premier League contracted players.

CA's legal and business affairs department confirmed Indian cricket officials, the IPL and CA had agreed that this year's "one-off" clash of dates was unfortunate and that the players involved were not under threat of heavy penalties.

"I can assure you it is very clear to all parties the players will perform their domestic duties and nobody will be getting their contracts torn up," CA's general manager for legal and business affairs Dean Kino said yesterday.

The worst the players would endure is pro-rata reduction in payments for the early games missed.

Despite assurances from the official body, the players remained nervous about the attitudes of the individual franchises.

Victorian captain Cameron White, who will play for Australia in tomorrow night's Twenty20 blockbuster against world champion Pakistan at the MCG, yesterday said all players caught in the Sheffield Shield-IPL dates clash hoped they wouldn't have to choose between the two.

"There's a lot of money up for grabs ... if it came back to the individual players' choice, personally I could understand whichever way someone wanted to go," White said.

The six-week, 60-match IPL season starts on March 12, on day three of the last Shield game of the season and five days before the start of the Shield final.

Victoria is the defending Shield champion and, with a 10-point buffer from third-placed Western Australia, is on track to reach the final again.

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Cricket: Black Caps punish ill-disciplined visitors

New Zealand made light work of Bangladesh to win their Twenty20 cricket international by 10 wickets in Hamilton tonight.

The result was a foregone conclusion once the tourists were rolled for just 78 in 17.3 overs at Seddon Park.

The home side had no need to rush but still passed their target in 36 minutes without losing a wicket in 8.2 overs after dangerous opener Brendon McCullum made Bangladesh pay heavily for an early fielding blemish.

McCullum smacked 56 not out off 27 balls while his partner Peter Ingram marked his international debut with a supportive 20 not out off 23 deliveries.

The tourists did not help themselves with some ragged fielding, dropping catches in the deep off McCullum, on eight, and Ingram when the newcomer was on 11.

Bangladesh batted as if they had just got off the plane, which they did three days ago to begin a short tour also featuring three one-day internationals and a one-off test.

They were guilty of taking the freedom given them by the abbreviated format to the extreme and did not allow themselves any time to settle before seeking the boundary.

What followed was largely a series of mishits and airshots against a disciplined bowling attack, superbly led by New Zealand captain Dan Vettori, honed to the Twenty20 format after a month playing for their provinces.

The early overs were uneventful save for some hopeful hitting by opener Tamim Iqbal, who reached 14 before gloving a catch to wicketkeeper Brendon McCullum.

The die was cast as early as the seventh over as Bangladesh self destructed to be 42 for five after losing four wickets for five runs in nine balls.

Canny bowling changes by Vettori saw himself, seamer James Franklin and offspinner Nathan McCullum pick up wickets in their very first overs.

Left-arm spinner Vettori toyed with the batsmen and ended with the exceptional figures of three for six off four overs, while McCullum, seamer Jacob Oram and fast bowler Daryl Tuffey all picked up two wickets apiece at cheap cost.

None of the Bangladeshis impressed with the bat, with all of them struggling to time the ball.

Raqibil Hasan, at No 8, topscored with 18 off 13 balls but the damage had been done well before then.

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Indian cricket tour, a hot job, opines South African bowling coach

Vincent Barnes, the bowling coach of South African cricket team contended that although the Indian tour is hectic, the players are a focussed lot.

conference after the draw of the stumps on the first day of the two-day practice match against India's Board President's XI here on Tuesday, Barnes said: "We are quite focussed. We have come here and it is a big job ahead for us...playing against the number one team in the world.

We knew that coming Test would be a big job, all the management and we have spoken in-length about it. We come here to do a job and that is what we have to do. It is no exception to any other tour and it is going to be a hot job."

He also hinted to include two spinners in the first Test against India commencing on February 6 at Nagpur.

"It is good to get two spinners in our team that to me is the most important...because the Test is coming up and we know that we have to step it up and we would definitely step it up once the Test started," he added.

The first Test starts in Nagpur on Saturday (February 6) after South Africa opened their tour with a two-day match against a Board President's XI.

India displaced South Africa as world number one in December after securing a 2-0 series victory over Sri Lanka.

South Africa had come close to winning a series in India two years ago when they took a 1-0 lead before the home side squared the three-match series on an unpredictable pitch of Green Park in Kanpur.

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