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	Vikramjeet Malik took five wickets as South Zone were bundled out for 157 © Cricinfo Ltd

A whirlwind century from Yusuf Pathan took West Zone to a strong 349 for 7 at stumps on the first day against Central Zone in Rajkot. Opting to bat first, West were off to a confident start as the Mumbai pair of Ajinkya Rahane (50) and Sahil Kukreja (72) forged a 124-run partnership. Central then fought their way back into the match as Sanjib Sanyal removed both of them before Sanjay Bangar dismissed captain Parthiv Patel. Pathan walked in at the fall of the fourth wicket on 174 and blitzed a 66-ball 107 to give West the upper hand. He carted 13 boundaries and five sixes during his 88-minute stay and made all his runs in a 136-run stand with Chetheswar Pujara, who made a sedate 44. For Central, Bangar and Sanyal finished with three wickets each, but Sanyal was expensive conceding five runs an over.
Scorecard
Fifteen wickets tumbled on a dramatic first day as North Zone seized the advantage in their encounter against South Zone in Ahmedabad. Medium-pacer Vikramjeet Malik tore through the top order while Delhi’s Rajat Bhatia cleaned up the tail as South were bundled out for 157. After being put in to bat, South were off to a solid start with openers Ravi Teja (41) and Swapnil Asnodkar putting on 37, before Malik snared five wickets, including the big one of captain S Badrinath, in a five-over burst, to leave them tottering at 69 for 5. South lost three more quick wickets before a 68-run partnership between Vinay Kumar (41*) and Kalyankrishna (31) brought in a semblance of respectability to their scorecard.North’s reply started with a 58-run opening stand before they had a collapse of their own: they lost four wickets for seven runs to Karnataka’s duo of Vinay Kumar and NC Aiyappa and lost Bhatia shortly before the close to finish the day on 104 for 5.

Shoaib and Asif must pass a drugs test if they are to take part in the World Cup © Getty Images

Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Asif will not travel to the Caribbean for the World Cup if they fail to take a dope test, according to Pakistan cricket officials. The Pakistan Cricket Board completed tests on 13 of its 15-man squad and five reserves this week but Shoaib and Asif have yet to feature, raising media speculation they might be forced out of the event starting on March 13.”PCB chairman Naseem Ashraf has a zero tolerance on the use of banned substances so any member of the team going for the World Cup has to pass the screening, the in-house dope testing,” Salim Altaf, the PCB’s director of operations, told AFP. “The chairman has directed that nobody can go on the tour if this screening is not done.”Shoaib was banned for two years and Asif for one year in November after they tested positive for the steroid nandrolone. But the new-ball pair’s bans were controversially overturned by a PCB appellate committee in December, on the grounds they did not take the banned substance knowingly. Experts have warned that Shoaib and Asif may still have banned substances in their systems after testing positive last year and face life bans if they test positive again.Altaf, however, brushed aside speculation over the dope tests on Shoaib and Asif. “Everybody will feature otherwise nobody can go and that is the instruction of the chairman and we hope all speculations die down after this,” said Altaf, a former fast bowler. He also rejected suggestions the PCB was risking life bans for the pair if they test positive a second time. “If they failed tests which took place in September 2006 and this is now February 2007, the process is the same for everybody.”Shoaib said he still hopes to be fit for World Cup despite battling to recover from knee and hamstring problems. “I am going for another reassessment of my knee and hamstring injury in England later this week and only after that I am able to know about my chances of playing in the World Cup,” he told AFP. Asked when he was due to appear for testing, Shoaib refused to comment and said his first priority was to get over his injury.”Right now I want my injury to heal and only after that I am going to think about anything else,” said Shoaib, who joined Pakistan’s pre-tour camp in Lahore on Friday but only took part in exercises. “My chances of playing in the World Cup are 50-50 and I will take a final decision only after having a reassessment of the knee. The doctor has stopped me from bowling until February 27.”Asif meanwhile also had an assessment in England last week after a recurrence of an elbow injury before returning home on Wednesday. “Both Shoaib and Asif are consulting the specialist over their injuries and once these problems are overcome they will feature in the tests,” said Altaf. Another paceman, Umar Gul, featured in the training camp and said on Friday that he “felt great” after recovering from an ankle injury sustained on Pakistan’s tour of South Africa last month.Altaf said all the squad members will have to pass fitness tests as well. “Before the departure of the team to the Caribbean all 15 players are going to subjected to a fitness test by a medical panel of the PCB,” he said. Pakistan has until March 2 to replace any injured player in their squad. After the deadline only the International Cricket Council’s technical committee is entitled to allow an injury replacement. Pakistan also has ICC permission to replace any player who tests positive.

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

Ricky Ponting completes his second hundred of the match© Getty Images

Ricky Ponting added to his impressive collection of individual records in the second Test as Australia targeted a series victory by setting South Africa 410. With his twin centuries Ponting became only the second player alongside Sunil Gavaskar to achieve the mark in three matches, and he also stepped ahead of Don Bradman’s 29 hundreds to sit two behind Steve Waugh, the leading Australian.While his batting was superb, Ponting’s tactics of delaying the declaration, despite last-session problems with the light throughout the match and today’s murky weather, will be questioned as South Africa escaped to 29 for 0 in 7.1 overs before the players went off. Ponting closed the second innings half an hour before tea at 307 for 4 and Graeme Smith and AB de Villiers were not troubled in the first five overs.The conditions deteriorated during and after the break, and Andrew Symonds, who was bowling medium pace, and Shane Warne had delivered 13 balls when the batsmen were offered the light after a couple of umpiring conferences. Symonds’s offspin was not tried as de Villiers, who played an aggressive hook shot off Brett Lee, reached 17 and Smith 10.Australia’s chances of sealing the series now rely on them taking ten wickets on day five, but their main threats are a combination of a South African rearguard and more poor weather. Ponting experienced a selection of the possible conditions when he batted with blue sky, rain, wind and gloom, but the chances of a reduction in match time did not seem to affect his declaration plans.Starting the day with a 227-run advantage, Ponting set the pace of Australia’s target-setting next to Matthew Hayden as they both reached three figures in a 201-run stand. Play began with the lights on but they didn’t dim the batsmen’s outlook. Pulling was again a productive shot for Ponting, who slapped Shaun Pollock for six over midwicket, and Hayden was driving strongly as he overtook his captain and beat him to 100.Hayden, who picked off 12 boundaries in 102, replaced his stolid performance of day three with one of more power as Australia kept ticking off their goals. With a single to point Hayden moved to his 26th hundred and for two overs was within three of Ponting, who restored his four-century lead by picking up a one to mid-on from his 166th ball.South Africa’s fast men struggled for spark as they watched the total grow and they finally had a moment to cheer when Hayden nicked Makhaya Ntini to Mark Boucher with the score on 250. As the closure approached Ponting departed to a big heave to deep midwicket and Adam Gilchrist smashed Andre Nel for 22 in an over including five fours. Not that it shut the bowler up.There was regular talk on the field and Ponting ensured they would be more about his decisions and his batting records. He opened the Test series against West Indies in November with a couple of hundreds at the Gabba – the first time he reached the milestone – and he matched the feat in his 100th Test at the SCG in January to earn a 2-0 win against South Africa. In the first innings he sweated for 103 and today’s smoother 116 was his seventh hundred in a 2005-06 season of 1238 runs in nine matches.Ponting is in the middle of a remarkable batting streak and his side is now stuck in an intriguing race of ball, bat and weather. If the conditions allow expect an absorbing final day.

Australia
Justin Langer c Pollock b Boje 37 (49 for 1)
Matthew Hayden c Boucher b Ntini 102 (250 for 2)
Ricky Ponting c Boje b Pollock 116 (278 for 3)
Adam Gilchrist c Nel b Boje 24 (307 for 4)

Worcestershire have received assurances from the PCB that Shoaib Akhtar will be available for the entire second half of the season. But, given the PCB’s current relationship with their mercurial fast bowler, what this really means is anybody’s guess.Shoaib is due to arrive at New Road on July 1 to begin life with his second English county, after a previous stint with Durham where he enjoyed limited success. If any one-day tournaments spring up during the second part of the English summer, Shoaib is committed to Worcestershire’s cause – and Tom Moody, their former captain, coach and now director of cricket, is earmarking him for the role of finishing teams off.”He is keen to prove a point in county cricket and I think playing in a better side, with more experienced bowling and batting, will help him and he will be used purely as an impact bowler,” Moody told the . “That is what we need, someone who can knock over wickets early on and finish teams off, something that Nantie Hayward did for us a couple of years ago. We tend not to have trouble knocking over the first four or five wickets but someone who can also knock over numbers nine, 10 and 11 is also so beneficial.”Shoaib has had something of a controversial winter with questions raised over his commitment to the Pakistan cause and his fitness an ongoing topic of debate. He has been ruled out of the Test series against India with a hamstring injury, but hopes to be fit for the one-day internationals. Given his recent record Worcestershire may believe it when they see it as far as Shoaib on a cricket field is concerned.

The International Cricket Council is looking to hold discussions with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) with a view to implementing a world-wide code for the sport. Whether that involves adoption of WADA’s world policy, or a special version for cricket is likely to be the main point of discussion.Malcolm Speed, the chief executive of the ICC, said in Christchurch today during a whistlestop visit with ICC chairman Ehsan Mani, that he hoped a meeting could be set up by next month.Cricket does not have a world-wide drug protocol, and major cricket events have so far adopted the code applicable in the country where the event is being hosted. In last summer’s World Cup, the South African drug code applied to the tournament.Speed said a number of countries, including New Zealand, were tied to their government’s sports protocol which was part of the WADA policy. The ICC has sought a meeting with WADA because it had some issues with the WADA code and it was hoped that it might be possible to have a policy that was a little more specific to cricket. “We hope to meet over the next six months and make some progress on that.”He also said that it was up to individual cricket boards to decide whether they should play two, three or four Tests in a series. Two was the minimum requirement under the ICC Test Championship. “In an ideal world we would like to see more than two Tests and it may be that we see three and four Tests in a series as the competition evolves. That would give a better indication and be a better competition.”The problem of too little Test-match play for some countries had meant that India scheduled only five Tests this year. Speed said the ICC could go to the executive meetings with recommendations on the number of Tests they would prefer but it was for the boards to decide what suited them best. One of the negatives of the scheme was that there were some countries that would not wish to play more than two Tests against some other countries.Mani explained that the purpose of his and Speed’s visit to New Zealand was to get a better understanding of the way the board runs cricket in the country. He added that he hoped to have completed visits to all countries by next year.Speaking about his trip to New Zealand, Mani said: “There have been huge changes in New Zealand Cricket since the Hood Report which was not that long ago.” Those changes were reflected in the way the New Zealand team was performing and he said he and Speed would take a lot back from their trip here. Their visit has coincided with the latest brush experienced by New Zealand with security issues as the squad prepared to leave for their delayed tour of Pakistan tomorrow.”New Zealand has borne the brunt of security issues. They have been in the wrong place at the wrong time,” he said in reference to the three bomb blasts that have affected New Zealand tours, twice in Sri Lanka and once in Pakistan.”We are pleased the Pakistan tour is going ahead and we have been pleased with the spirit in which the boards involved are approaching this issue,” Speed said. One of the problems in defining a common approach to the security problem was deciding what was safe and what wasn’t.Mani had no problem with NZC giving players the right to withdraw from the tour. “You can’t force a player to go. The player has to be happy to go and New Zealand Cricket has handled it well.”Speed added that when professional cricketers made their career choice, they needed to remember that many of the cities in the world in which cricket is played are dangerous places. He said that he was very impressed with Stephen Fleming’s statement that he was happy to leave the matter of the Pakistan tour to the NZC management. “That is not a viewpoint we see very often.”Speed also spoke about the extension of his contract till 2005, something that Mani said had always been intended to happen. “There has been a good deal of stress but I didn’t think it would be a pleasant holiday. The only way to deal with that is to have the best people around you and not to be influenced by outside influences.”Speed said that he felt with all that had gone on in international cricket in the last few years, the organisation, with all the changes that had been implemented, was now better placed to handle crises than had been the case before.

Ravindu Shah and Hitesh Modi, two players of Indian origin held the Kenyanbatting together with constrasting half-centuries on opening day of thefirst four-day unofficial cricket Test against Sri Lanka ‘A’ at theSaravanamuttu Stadium yesterday.Choosing to bat first after winning the toss, Kenya finished on 282 foreight with Shah scoring a handsome 94 spiced with 20 fours and Modi, apatient 52 in 208 minutes.All in all their total was an exceptionally good one considering the factthat their three key players, Kennedy Otieno, Steve Tikolo and skipperMaurice Odumbe made only 20 runs amongst them.The Kenyan batsmen were not afraid to punish the loose balls on a fast andbouncy pitch that gave both batsmen and bowlers equal opportunities. Thatmore than 60 percent of the runs (43 fours) Kenya scored during the day camefrom boundaries is a true reflection of how well the ball came onto thebat – pity that such pitches are seldom prepared in Test matches here.The arrival of the second new ball after 81 overs, not only gave Sri Lanka’A’ the wicket of Collin Obuyo when he was trapped lbw by Ruchira Perera for16, but also produced 40 runs off nine overs. Obuyo and Otieno Suji added 45for the ninth wicket in 52 minutes.The day however belonged to Nairobi-born 29-year-old Shah who held thecentre stage for the best part of the morning and into the afternooncompiling 94 off 135 balls. The tall right-hander with an upright stanceplayed stylishly, batting for 195 minutes before he fell at 137 when hemistimed a drive and gave leg-spinner Upul Chandana a low return catch.He held the Kenyan top order together after they had lost the key wickets ofOtieno (13), Tikolo (0) and Odumbe (7) to Perera and Prabath Nissanka. Shahhad a reprieve at 51 when Chamara Silva dropped a simple catch at square legoff Perera.”It was difficult playing under these conditions. It was quite hot outthere. The first 20 overs were testing because the ball was bouncing alittle bit,” said Shah who got a couple of first-class hundreds againststate sides on the tour to India recently.”It would have been nice if we had lost only three or four wickets at theend of the day, but it is a good first day total,” said Shah.Left-handed Modi an experienced campaigner at 30 scored his secondhalf-century against Sri Lanka hitting five fours in his 138-ball innings.He scored an unbeaten 78 against Sri Lanka in 1996, which is the highest ofhis four one-day fifties.Modi shared in stands of 59 and 47 with Shah and Thomas Odoyo who struckseven fours in a quickfire 34 off 39 balls.Perera was the pick of the Sri Lankan ‘A’ bowlers finishing the day withthree for 63.The other two quicks, Prabath Nissanka and Kaushalya Weeraratne, paid thepenalty for over pitching; each being struck for three fours in an over byShah and Modi respectively.Weeraratne was playing only his second first-class match after beingsidelined by injury since January last year and looked rather ordinary.Nissanka bowled with pace and bounce but lacked direction. When he was online he looked dangerous and had the batsmen ducking for cover.Chandana picked up the wickets of Kenya’s two main runs scorers Shah andModi to end the day with figures of two for 58.

Test captain Nasser Hussain opted to turn out for Essex in the Division Two game at Bristol because he needs runs. His hopes for a long stay in the middle were shattered though as he was out for three as Essex totalled 263.Gloucestershire’s second line seamer Mike Cawdron found a ball to keep low off a length and won an LBW shout. The 23 year old was in a purple patch of 25 deliveries which were to bring him three wickets for seven runs, the other victims being Paul Grayson who prodded a catch to extra cover for 19 and Stuart Law who fished wide outside the off to be caught at the wicket for four.Early moisture gave the home side the advantage in the morning as skipper Mark Alleyne believed it would when he won the toss. But the surface became more friendly by the hour and after losing their first five wickets in 46 overs for 161 the rearguard were able to put on 102 in 56 overs.Gloucestershire were to some extent the makers of their own misfortune for with the Benson and Hedges Cup final coming up against Glamorgan on Saturday they decided to rest four of their leading players.A win over Essex carried the promise of taking over at the top of the division but they have given their Australian Ian Harvey the match off along with Jack Russell, Kim Barnett and opening bowler Mike Smith.While the wickets were falling Gloucestershire covered well for the absentees but the lack of penetration became more evident as the day wore on.Paul Prichard had set the tone for the batting as he waited for the right ball to hit reaching his 50 with seven fours and sharing his most productive stand of 86 with Ronnie Irani for the fourth wicket.With three wickets gone Irani set out to rattle the bowling, Jon Lewis in particular, and he crashed 16 runs in one over off Lewis who began the day with more first-class wickets than anyone else this season.Alleyne had to cover for him and although Lewis came back to bowl a total of 17 overs there were no wickets for him and he went for 64. While Irani was making 52 of their 86 runs Prichard was accumulating steadily and looked certain to reach his 100 for he had never looked in trouble but he fell four runs short.Facing his 170th ball he drove it straight towards Tim Hancock at mid-off. There could have been a hotly scampered single there in a tight finish but there was no need to look for one.Prichard though called and was well out of his ground when Hancock threw down his wicket.Prichard had hit 13 fours and Essex were needing a stabiliser. They found him in wicket keeper Mark Hyam who led a sturdy tail end fight which brought in a second batting point. A third half century of the day saw him to 53 with five fours until he was picked up in the slips by Rob Cunliffe off his 169th ball.Essex could be pleased with the first day, it was a case not of getting out of jail but of not getting into trouble. For Gloucestershire there must have been regrets at the way they had weakened their side – in football it would have attracted an inquiry and a large fine – but at least their deputy wicket keeper Reggie Williams had something to celebrate.In 11 summers with the county this is only his 38th first-class game for he has been kept in the background by Russell but he showed with three brilliant catches he is as sharp as anyone around. Stuart Law chased a wideish ball to find his right glove at full stretch for 4, Darren Robinson fell to a leg side spectacular without scoring and finally Tim Mason saw one fly off the handle into the gloves.That last dismissal gave Williams his 100th first-class catch which showed what Glamorgan and Notts missed when Gloucestershire offered him to either of them so he could have the chance of regular cricket his talents deserve.Facing one over before the close Gloucestershire were five without loss.

A new report has hinted that Rodrigo’s future could lie away from Leeds United, following the sacking of manager Marcelo Bielsa.

The Lowdown: Bielsa sacked as manager

The Argentine lost his job on Sunday, following a dreadful run of form that saw the Whites ship 14 goals in the space of three matches against Manchester United, Liverpool and Tottenham.

It was an extremely sad day at Leeds, however, given the manner in which Bielsa transformed the club in 2018 and guided his team back into the Premier League.

Jesse Marsch has been named as his replacement and the hope is of course that he can enjoy similar levels of success in the coming years, though you have to wonder if any replacement could motivate the fan base quite the way Bielsa did.

[freshpress-quiz id=“383507″]

The Latest: Rodrigo unsettled

According to Las Provincias [via Sport Witness], Rodrigo has suffered a big blow because of Bielsa’s sacking, with the 66-year-old ‘one of the main reasons’ he joined Leeds.

It is stated that the striker is now ‘facing his toughest time’ at the club, potentially suggesting that he could move on in the near future.

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The Verdict: Blow for Marsch

Hailed as a ‘phenomenon’ by former teammate Neto, there is no denying that Rodrigo has been a disappointment at Leeds despite some flashes of his talent, coming in as the club’s record signing in 2020 but scoring just 10 goals in 50 appearances.

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Should his form continue to be hit-and-miss, it is easy to envisage a scenario where he moves on at the end of the season, perhaps being replaced in the number ten role by Brenden Aaronson.

Either way, it is an immediate blow for the new boss at Elland Road if he already has unsettled players just 24 hours after arriving. It is absolutely crucial that he gets the players on side with every passing fixture becoming increasingly important given their position in the table.

In other news, Leeds have been backed to sign one player this summer. Find out who it is here.

Sunderland manager Steve Bruce has stated that he won’t quit his post, despite being lambasted by his own fans in the side’s 2-1 home defeat to Wigan on Saturday.

The loss sees The Black Cats in 16th place and only two points above the relegation zone, in what has been a poor start to the season for the Wearside club.

Despite being singled out for abuse by the Stadium of Light faithful, Bruce will not walk away from the club.

“If I thought that by me going, it would help everybody, then I would consider it. But I don’t think that right now. I just want to get it right,” he told Mirror Football.

“Whatever abuse is thrown at me, I would never walk away – never. It’s not in my nature at all.

“But if I thought it would help, then I would certainly have a think about that,” he stated.

Part of the Sunderland fans’ grievances were the fact that Bruce was born in the Newcastle area, and the coach admits that the chants were the worst they have been in his time in management.

“I cannot help where I was born unfortunately.

“Can I turn the ­relationship around? I don’t know. It’s going to be very, very difficult. Hopefully, it’s bottomed out now. I don’t think it’s ever been as bad as that.

“If the players went out there and I thought they weren’t trying or I’d lost them, then you do start to take a look at the bigger picture. But every one of them did their best in ­difficult circumstances.

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“For me, we absolutely battered Wigan, but it doesn’t make any ­difference, we got beat. We are judged on results and unfortunately they have not been good enough. It ended up being a horror show,” he concluded.

By Gareth McKnight

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FIFA president Sepp Blatter says he has unfinished business as the head of soccer’s world governing body and that he is still full of energy.The Swiss, who is vying for a fourth term as FIFA president, was in Kuala Lumpur to meet the head of the Malaysian FA, Sultan Ahmad Shah, as he continues to canvas support for the upcoming June elections.”I feel still full of energy and I’ve not yet finished my work in FIFA,” Blatter said.Blatter, 75, is currently the only candidate for the role, however reports suggest Asian Football Confederation head Mohamed Bin Hammam is due to announce his intention to challenge Blatter.However in his 13th year as FIFA president, Blatter was not concerned by the competition. “I have support from different Asian associations, but I must have the support from the whole family of FIFA,” Blatter said.Blatter also hinted that FIFA are more likely to award a World Cup finals to a single nation.His comments came after the Association of South-East Asian Nations’ (ASEAN) announced their intention to make a joint bid to host the tournament in 2030.”The idea is a very good one but the realisation is not easy,” he said. “The principal of the World Cup which has been admitted – and especially after the World Cup 2002 – when we had two organising committees.””If there’s a single country able to organise the World Cup, preference shall be given to these single countries.”