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Reports of IPL matches being moved out of Hyderabad have set off a controversy with a senior government official in Andhra Pradesh, of which Hyderabad is the state capital, asking the home side, Deccan Chargers, to boycott the tournament altogether in that eventuality.The state has seen political unrest and violence for the past few weeks in the wake of a separatist movement; Deccan’s first game, the tournament opener, was shifted to Mumbai on the grounds that it needed extra preparation, but four other games are still officially scheduled at Hyderabad.A story published in Wednesday’s , owned by the same group as the cricket franchise, quoted a letter from Andhra Pradesh sports minister Komatireddy Venkat Reddy to Sharad Pawar, the former BCCI president, guaranteeing maximum security during the tournament and peaceful conduct of the matches.Later in the day, Reddy took a stronger line. “We have requested Deccan Chargers not to play in the IPL if the inaugural match and the remaining four matches are shifted out of Hyderabad,” he told .K Rosaiah, the Andhra Pradesh chief minister, also assured “all necessary support” for the peaceful staging of matches and urged Pawar to convincing the IPL organisers to stick to the tournament’s original schedule.”The decision of the IPL governing council to shift the inaugural match to another part of the country has left the cricket-lovers in the state totally disappointed,” Rosaiah wrote in his letter to Pawar. “I request you to intervene personally and use your good offices for organising the IPL 3 matches in Hyderabad in the larger interest of the fans.”When contacted by Cricinfo, PK Iyer, one of the franchise owners, said he had no comments to offer.Concerns over the political situation in Andhra Pradesh have already resulted in the shifting of an ODI between India and Sri Lanka from Visakhapatnam last December, and two ODIS scheduled for Hyderabad, during England women’s tour of India in February-March, have now been split between Bangalore and Mumbai. Also, spectators were barred from entering the stadium for the first two days of the Duleep Trophy final between West Zone and South Zone in Hyderabad because of a perceived security threat.Hyderabad will still be hosting four of Deccan’s home matches, while the other two have been allotted to Visakhapatnam. Deccan are the defending champions, having beaten Royal Challengers Bangalore in the final in South Africa last year. The result was a massive improvement from their last-placed finish in the inaugural edition in 2008.

Peter Siddle is confident the mental scars inflicted on Pakistan after their shattering loss in Sydney will give Australia a distinct advantage for the final Test in Hobart. Australia are searching for a 3-0 series victory, which would give them their most wins in a home summer since the 2006-07 Ashes clean-sweep.On the fourth morning at the SCG they looked almost certain to lose, until Siddle and Michael Hussey staged a tail-end fightback and Pakistan crumbled 36 runs short of their small target. Siddle said he had no doubt the incredible turnaround would affect the thinking of the Pakistan players when the third Test begins next Thursday.”Coming from a stage where they were in the first innings 200 runs in front, it’s a big lead and obviously it’s a good opportunity for them to beat a side like Australia,” Siddle said in Melbourne on Friday. “For us to fight back and put a lot of pressure on them, with bat at the end there and obviously with the ball, the way Hauritz and Mitchell Johnson especially attacked them … it’s definitely going to hurt them and definitely going to play on their minds a lot coming in to Hobart.”In the wash-up from Sydney, the PCB expressed its “utmost concern” over the team’s effort and rushed the wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed to Hobart to take the gloves from Kamran Akmal. His performance at the SCG was poor; he dropped four catches and missed a run-out and his spilled opportunities were instrumental in allowing Australia back in the game.Although Pakistan’s slipshod fielding and defensive tactics on the fourth morning contributed to their defeat, their batsmen have also come under fire for falling to overly aggressive shots in their chase of 176. Siddle said the Australian bowlers knew opportunities would come against Pakistan due to their attacking approach.”They’ve done well in the short form of the game with the way they’ve played their cricket,” he said. “I think that’s their downfall in Test cricket, they play a bit aggressively and do come at you. At times it does pay off for them. Umar Akmal has come at us a few times and scored quickly and scored well, so it is something that does help them but is a massive weakness for them as well.”While Pakistan must improve in Hobart, Siddle himself is also keen to lift his output. He has struggled for impact with the ball this summer and has taken six wickets in four Tests at an average of 68.33, which looks especially stark compared to the record of his peers.In the same period, Mitchell Johnson has collected 28 wickets, Doug Bollinger has 24, Nathan Hauritz has 23 and Shane Watson has taken 11. The ongoing absence of Ben Hilfenhaus due to a knee problem has given Siddle some breathing space but he said he did not feel any added pressure in order to keep his place whenever Hilfenhaus returns.”If I keep worrying about the wickets, that’s when they definitely won’t come,” Siddle said. “It’s coming out well. I’m confident that it will turn around. I’ve just got to keep going out there and doing the right things from my end and hopefully in the next game or so it can be my turn to take that bag.”At least he’s in good touch with the bat. Siddle’s three-and-a-half-hour innings of 38 in Sydney was a major factor in Australia’s comeback as he and Hussey put on 123 for the ninth wicket. He said he always enjoyed his batting and relished the chance to spend so long at the crease.”It was good fun the other day, being out there with Mike, just with what we could do and how we could help win that Test match was very pleasing,” he said. “I probably get more nervous going out there to bowl when I should be getting nervous to bat. I enjoy going out there and having a hit around and to get the opportunity to spend that much time out in the middle and to have a lot of fun at the same time, it was a great time.”

Australia 3 for 305 (Katich 98, Watson 93, Ponting 57) v Pakistan
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsNot again: Shane Watson falls in sight of a hundred, reaching 93 before being run-out in a messy exit•Getty Images

Australia’s century drought entered its 125th and most eventful day, but the ongoing failure to convert did not cost the hosts the early initiative in the Boxing Day Test. Simon Katich and Shane Watson added to their mounting collection of unusual dismissals in the 90s, although both might have expected earlier return trips to the pavilion had Pakistan held onto their chances in the field.The highlight of the first day’s play was unquestionably the run-out of Watson, which saw both batsmen stranded at the strikers’ end while Imran Farhat merrily removed the bails at the other. Katich’s tendancy to call while advancing down the wicket coaxed his partner into the run, and Watson’s refusal to turn back led to an awkward situation in which the two openers stood their ground for more than a minute awaiting the verdict as to who should leave the field.The decision narrowly went against Watson (93), and his dejection was plain for all to see. The converted opener has been dismissed three times this summer between scores of 89 and 96; a maiden Test century proving elusive as ever. He will, however, take solace from his imperious driving against Mohammad Aamer early in his innings, which went far to sealing a sixth half-century from 11 innings since assuming the opener’s post from Phillip Hughes at Edgbaston. Only once in that time has he registered a total less than 30. Centuries may make for nice window dressing, but consistency remains batting’s ultimate goal.Katich looked set to compensate for his running gaffe – his timing and fluency steadily returned over the afternoon following a scratchy start – only for composure to again elude him in the 90s. Having narrowly avoided disaster at the hands of Saeed Ajmal the previous over, a nervous Katich cut uppishly at a Mohammad Asif (2 for 69) delivery on 98 that flew directly to Salman Butt at point. The dismissal was his third in the 90s this summer, and second in as many matches, following his 99 against Went Indies in Perth.Ricky Ponting showed few ill effects from the elbow injury that threatened his participation in the match, racing to a half-century from just 55 balls, but his innings also fell short of triple-figures. When he was dismissed attempting to drive Asif and the second new ball, Australia’s run of unconverted half-centuries reached 18, dating back to the Ashes finale at The Oval in August.Michael Hussey (38 not out from 43 balls) batted with an air of aggression and authority not witnessed in many a month and, along with nightwatchman Nathan Hauritz (5 not out) ensured no further Australian casualties before stumps. They will resume on Sunday hoping to capitalise on an MCG wicket well suited to batsmen, albeit one that Ajmal extracted appreciable turn from.Pakistan had ample opportunity to capitalise on the Australians’ shortcomings, but three dropped catches and a missed run-out ensured the day went the way of the hosts. The most costly was the life granted to Watson who, after failing to read an Ajmal doosra, was turfed at first slip by a lunging Misbah-ul-Haq. The other reprieves were bestowed upon Simon Katich – dropped in the gully by Umar Akmal and spared a run-out by Mohammad Yousuf – and Ponting, who was grassed by Kamran Akmal.Pakistan’s ground fielding also left much to be desired, and made life difficult for the tourists’ bowlers on a true MCG wicket. Ajmal, called in for the injured Danish Kaneria, and Aamer were the most consistently probing of the Pakistanis, while Asif threatened only late when the old ball began to reverse.The least menacing member of the Pakistani attack was Abdur Rauf, a surprise selection at the coin toss. The right-armer was called in to replace the more seasoned and versatile Umar Gul on form grounds, however his 15 overs (0 for 61) on Saturday did little to justify the move. The tourists will need more from Rauf on the second day if they hope to restrict Australia to a retrievable first-innings total.

Chris Gayle may not have been preparing to dance on the grave of Test cricket, as was the case in England earlier this year, but neither was he moved to defend it. Speaking on the eve of the first Test against Australia – a match that is expected to draw a relatively meagre 40,000 spectators over the five days – Gayle said the recent decline in attendance figures showed many supporters concurred with his infamous assertion that he “wouldn’t be so sad” if Test cricket were to perish.”If you look at what’s happening now, it’s no secret,” Gayle said. “At the same time we’re always going to be committed to whatever cricket we play. I can’t say ‘Test cricket is going to die’ and it just happens like that. It’s just how things have been progressing the last couple of months. Spectators haven’t turned out. They’re more drawn to the coloured clothing at this point in time.”Concern for cricket’s traditional format is widespread, with dead pitches, an uneven distribution of playing talent and an increasingly time-poor society eroding the five-day game’s supporter base. At present, India and Sri Lanka are contesting another batsman-dominated match in Kanpur (an alarming 2,306 runs have been scored over the first seven days of the series at a cost of 72.06 per wicket), Pakistan are conducting a “home” series to low turn-outs in New Zealand and Australia are preparing to play a West Indian side ranked 17-1 outsiders by local bookmakers.Administrators hope a Test championship model from 2012 will help affix more context and meaning to the game, but with just 7% of recently surveyed Indian supporters counting the five-day game as their favourite format, Gayle is looking more prophet than profit-driven by the day.His Australian counterpart, Ricky Ponting, spoke more sentimentally about the issues confronting Test cricket this week, and repeated his call for the world’s groundsmen to prepare more sporting wickets to rekindle interest in the game. “Test cricket, when it was at its most exciting, was all about three or four fast bowlers and lots of bouncers being bowled and lots of hook shots being played,” Ponting said.”The hostility between bat and ball, I think, was the most attractive thing. Now a lot of wickets around the world are very, very similar. Scoring rates are very high, probably too high, and there’s not that real tough contest between fast bowler and batsman.”Ineffective regional governance, and a general failure to adapt to the challenges posed by lucrative domestic Twenty20 leagues, are among the many issues facing Test teams at present, not least the West Indians. A damaging and protracted industrial dispute resulted in a third-string XI turning out for a home Test series against Bangladesh in July, while Fidel Edwards, the Caribbean’s most feared fast bowler, was ruled out of the tour of Australia after ignoring his board’s medical advice and re-injuring himself at the Champions League Twenty20 tournament. His contract has been withheld by the WICB.The Gabba Test will mark the first time Gayle has represented West Indies since the home limited-overs series against India in July, having missed the disastrous Bangladesh campaign and the ensuing Champions Trophy due to strike action. He will lead the Windies onto the Gabba on Thursday barely 24 hours after stepping off a flight from Jamaica – the second time this year he has arrived for a series on Test eve – but holds out hope that the tour of Australia will go some way towards mending relations within West Indies cricket.”This is a situation that we look at as a rebuild,” he said. “We’re trying to get back together. A lot has happned the last couple of months. We’re trying to put our best foot forward, go out as one unit and try to put the past behind us. We’ll give Australia a good fight.”

Having taken back his resignation from the captaincy, Younis Khan has said he is ready to take on more responsibility for Pakistan. Younis had earlier said he was overwhelmed with the support he had received in the week after he handed in his papers at a National Assembly committee hearing in Islamabad, and promised to reward his backers’ faith in him.”It [his resignation and subsequent agreement to continue to be at the helm] has put more responsibility on me,” he said in his first public appearance since resuming the captaincy. “And if I used to play 100%, now I have to play 200%. I have played eight, nine years now … but yes, this time around the support from the public, media and former players has put more responsibility on me and I am ready to take it.”Younis resigned as captain earlier this month following match-fixing accusations during the ICC Champions Trophy semi-final against New Zealand. PCB chairman Ijaz Butt, though, refused to accept the decision.After a lull in international assignments over the last two years, Pakistan suddenly find themselves embarking on a schedule that will keep them in action until February next year. They first play three ODIs in Abu Dhabi starting November 3, followed by two Twenty20s in Dubai before heading off to New Zealand for a three-Test series. “New Zealand is like Sri Lanka and Australia as they also play as a unit, so when we play such a team we have to play as a unit to beat them,” said Younis. “I hope that it will be a good series.”Pakistan’s ODI vice-captain Shahid Afridi, who recently quashed rumours about an ongoing rift with Younis, said: “We need to win the one-day series first, so that we have more confidence in the Twenty20 series . We need to iron out any differences in the team which usually surfaced because of lack of communication. If someone has any complaints he must come forward.”Following the Tests in New Zealand, Pakistan move to Australia where they have another three-Test series and a series of five ODIs as well as a Twenty20.

Andy Moles has resigned as New Zealand’s coach but New Zealand Cricket (NZC) has denied he was forced out by player power after less than a year in the job. NZC’s chief executive Justin Vaughan said the coach’s departure three days before the side flies to the UAE to play Pakistan would be unsettling but he was confident Daniel Vettori could ably lead the squad.However, there is no guarantee that New Zealand will have a new coach in place by the time they host Pakistan for three Tests starting in late November. Vaughan said NZC would aim to have found Moles’ replacement prior to the home series against Bangladesh in February.Moles and Vaughan took part in mediation talks on Friday, following reports that the senior players were unhappy with a lack of technical and tactical support being provided by Moles. The pair came to an agreement that Moles would step down, after a review of the team’s performance in Sri Lanka and at the Champions Trophy suggested that changes should be made.”I can categorically say this is not an issue of a group of players coming to me and saying ‘get rid of the coach’,” Vaughan said. “That did not happen. We sought the feedback of leading players, as I think is appropriate when they come back from their tour. We also sought the input from a number of other areas including support staff and management of that Black Caps team. This was not a case of player power.”The review that we performed was comprehensive. We sought input from a wide variety of sources. The outputs of that review meant it was in the best interests that he resign.”The squad departs for the UAE early this week and while Moles will not be part of the touring party, the remainder of the support staff will travel with the players as planned. The team manager Dave Currie is expected to take more management responsibility over the support staff in Moles’ absence.Vaughan said the timing of Moles’ resignation was less than ideal but he believed the players could cope without a coach in the short term. He cited the example of India, who performed well without a senior mentor for nearly a year until the appointment of Gary Kirsten.”This will be unsettling, no question about it, having the coach resign three days before they leave,” Vaughan said. “No question there will be some anxiety, some uncertainty, but the morale in the team is very strong. Daniel has shown he is leading the team very strongly at the moment and the team are right in behind him.”The departure of Moles less than a year after he replaced John Bracewell has also raised questions about whether NZC erred their interview and recruitment process at the time. Moles, who was contracted until the 2011 World Cup, beat other contenders including Matthew Mott and Dipak Patel for the role and Vaughan defended NZC’s decision.”He certainly was the best candidate at the time,” he said. “He had come off a very strong record with Northern Districts and we made the best decision that we felt was available to us at that period of time and Andy has done some good things for this team.”Although the public nature of the lead-up to Moles’ exit was embarrassing for the coach and the board, Moles has left the team after some on-field success. He helped guide New Zealand to the final of the Champions Trophy in South Africa earlier this month, an achievement that has turned into his parting legacy.

Former ICL players Abbas Ali, TP Sudhindra and Shridhar Iyer have taken their first steps to getting back in the official fold, after being included in the 15-member Madhya Pradesh squad for the upcoming Ranji Trophy season. Madhya Pradesh, who will be featuring in the Plate League, will be captained by Hrishikesh Kanitkar, while Jalaj Saxena has been named his deputy.While both the allrounders Abbas Ali and Sudhindra played for the Delhi Jets in the unofficial league, Iyer turned out for the Mumbai Champs. They made their return to the domestic fray after the BCCI granted amnesty to 79 Indian players who had ended their association with the ICL.Madhya Pradesh will be hoping to go one better than last season when they qualified for the Plate League semi-finals but lost to eventual winners Himachal Pradesh, who gained promotion to the Super League along with Bengal. They will have their task cut out when they take on Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Services, Assam and Haryana in Group B this season.Madhya Pradesh squad: Hrishikesh Kanitkar (capt), Naman Ojha (wk), Jalaj Saxena, Abbas Ali, Devendra Bundela, Mohnish Mishra, Harpreet Singh Bhatia, Murtaza Ali, Sanjay Pandey, TP Sudhindra, Anand Rajan, Santanu Pitre, Shridhar Iyer, Ankit Sharma, Zafar Ali; Mukesh Sahni (coach), Rajeev Dua (manager)

MS Dhoni and Tillakaratne Dilshan lead the list of nominations at the sixth ICC Awards. Both have been shortlisted in three categories for their performances between August 13, 2008 and August 24, 2009.Eighteen players have received at least two nominations for their performances during this period, which includes the 2009 World Twenty20 in England, the 2009 Women’s World Cup in Australia, and the 2009 World Cup Qualifiers in South Africa, in addition to the various bilateral Test and ODI series.Dilshan scored 848 runs in the eight Tests during that period at 70.66 and was also named Player of the Tournament during the World Twenty20 held in England. He was instrumental in Sri Lanka’s successful run to the final. His unbeaten 96 off 57 balls against West Indies in the second semi-final, and his quickfire 74 against the same opponents in the league phase are the two performances he has been nominated for in the Twenty20 International Performance of the Year category. He is also in line for the ICC Cricketer of the Year and Test Player of the Year awards.Dhoni, who was the ODI Player of the Year in 2008, has been nominated for the Cricketer of the Year, Test Player of the Year and ODI Player of the Year. A hugely successful phase resulted in 544 runs from eight Tests at 54.40 and 967 runs in 24 ODIs at 60.43. Among the players nominated for two prizes is Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan, who is in contention for the Cricketer of the Year and the Test Player of the Year awards.This year’s awards include eight individual prizes, as well as the Spirit of Cricket award for a team. Apart from this, the Test and ODI teams of the year will also be announced, and one man who could be in the frame for the five-day version is England’s captain, Andrew Strauss, who capped a remarkable run of form by leading England to victory in the Ashes, and is one of the 14 players in the frame for the Player of the Year.”I’ve really enjoyed the challenge of playing for England over the past 12 months and to be nominated for two ICC Awards is a huge honour,” he told ecb.co.uk. “I’ve been pleased with my form during that time and I’ve particularly relished the role of England captain more recently. We don’t play the game for awards but to be nominated alongside some of the best cricketers in the world is very humbling.”The Emerging Player of the Year nominees include three Australians – Philip Hughes, Ben Hilfenhaus and Peter Siddle – along with the New Zealand duo of Martin Guptill and Jesse Ryder. Indian legspinner Amit Mishra, West Indian fast bowler Kemar Roach and England bowler Graham Onions are the other nominees in the category.Ireland boasts the most number of nominees in the Associate and Affiliate Player of the Year award with seven names on the list, followed by Netherlands with three. Canada have two names while Kenya and Scotland have one player each.”The LG ICC Awards are an opportunity for the ICC and FICA to acknowledge and celebrate the remarkable performances of the world’s top players,” said ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat while announcing the list of nominations in Mumbai.”It is also a chance for followers of our great sport to reflect on some of the great cricketing feats they have witnessed over the past year. This will be the sixth time the awards have been handed out and yet again there are so many great performances to recall. Selecting the winners will no doubt test our selectors and voting academy.”The lists were compiled by a five-man ICC selection panel chaired by former West Indies captain and current chairman of the ICC cricket committee, Clive Lloyd. The panel also includes former players such as India’s Anil Kumble, Mudassar Nazar of Pakistan, Bob Taylor of England and New Zealand’s Stephen Fleming.The ceremony will take place in Johannesburg on October 1, to coincide with the ICC Champions Trophy 2009. The previous editions were held in London (2004), Sydney (2005), Mumbai (2006), Johannesburg (2007) and Dubai (2008).

Any lingering hope that Marcus Trescothick might make a shock return for the fifth Ashes Test has been further quashed, with the former England batsman revealing that the speculation over his return provoked a vivid dream that had him waking up “in a cold sweat”.Trescothick has been one of several former England batsmen named in the past week to revive England’s fledgling middle-order in a bid to regain the Ashes. Yet, both he and England’s national selector, Geoff Miller, have given strong indications that he will not be considered for next week’s Test, despite having played a crucial role in England’s 2005 success against Australia.”It has been very flattering to see my name mentioned in so many circles since Australia’s crushing win at Headingley and I’d be a liar if I said the prospect of playing at The Oval hadn’t occupied my mind a lot,” he told the .”In fact, that has been the case to such an extent that the other day I woke up at 6.30am from a terrible dream. There is a nightmare a lot of cricketers experience that they can’t get their pads on when they are due in to bat.”My dream was a variation of that. I couldn’t get my England kit out of my bag! The other players were waiting for me on the pitch to do a team photo so I was in a right panic. I woke up in a cold sweat.”Perhaps that told me something. It gives me a massive kick that I am still thought good enough to come back and play at international level, but I’ve gone too far down the line in battling my stress problems to change my mind about now ending my England career.”Trescothick yesterday said that he and his wife, Hayley, had discussed his possible return to England colours, before admitting he didn’t “want it enough”.He announced his retirement from international cricket in March 2008, having battled with stress in the latter part of his England career. He remains prolific in county cricket, however, and tops the run charts this season in the Championship with 1330 runs at 78.23.

The Indian board has rejected a request from its Karnataka state association to allow players from outside that state to participate in the proposed Twenty20 Karnataka Premier League (KPL). The BCCI’s decision to restrict KPL to an intra-state event – potentially a big spoke in the state league’s wheel – is to prevent the possibility of such tournaments diluting the concept of its cash-rich IPL.N Srinivasan, the BCCI secretary, said the decision that was taken during the Indian board’s working committee meeting in Mumbai on Thursday. “They [Karnataka] asked for the permission about KPL but we told them that as long as they do not include players from outside Karnataka we have no problem,” he said.Ratnakar Shetty, the BCCI’s chief administrative officer, said the decision was taken due to two reasons. “Primarily, the BCCI wants to ensure that the concept of the IPL, a hugely successful property, is not diluted,” Shetty told Cricinfo. “Besides, the board wants to avoid a situation where other state associations come up with similar demands and players end up playing for states other than their own. In the long term, this will affect the game’s development at the local level.”Brijesh Patel, secretary of the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA), indicated that the decision was on expected lines and said the tournament would go ahead as planned with an auction of 40 state cricketers in Bangalore on Friday. “It is a local tournament and to hire outstation players we need BCCI permission, and they have said no to that,” Patel told Cricinfo. “We are fine with that, and this won’t affect the tournament. We had already made it clear to the franchises that this proposal was subject to BCCI approval.”Charu Sharma, who represents the Frontier Group, KPL’s partner, also said the BCCI decision would not affect the popularity of the tournament. “It was only an opportunity for the development of players to display their Twenty20 skills but if the [Indian] board in their wisdom feel outstation players shouldn’t be included we will abide by it,” Sharma said.The KSCA had launched the league last month to expand the game to rural areas in the state, and bidding for eight franchises in the tournament had fetched Rs 35 crore. The concept of the tournament, however, has been questioned by Anil Kumble and Javagal Srinath, both of whom hail from Karnataka. Srinath and Kumble, who was captain of IPL’s Bangalore Royal Challengers this season, raised concerns over the franchise model that would allow people not associated with the game to play a significant role in the tournament and asked the KSCA to organise KPL with its own funds. Rahul Dravid, Kumble’s IPL teammate, will also not be part of KPL.