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Mahendra Nagamootoo: the leading wicket-taker in West Indies regional cricket© Getty Images

Mahendra Nagamootoo, the West Indies leg spinner, has been honoured by the Guyana Cricket Board for becoming the leading regional wicket-taker. Nagamootoo, who surpassed the record of 270 wickets, previously held by Clyde Butts,the Guyanese offspinner, in the fifth round of Carib Beer Series against Barbados, was presented with a trophy and the ball used to break the record, by Chetram Singh, the president of the GCB.Butts was also present to congratulate Nagamootoo on his achievement. Nagamootoo has represented West Indies in 5 Tests taking 12 wickets at 53. His regional first-class tally now stands at 284 wickets.

Ray Mali has been elected President of the United Cricket Board of South Africa. He was elected unopposed at yesterday’s annual meeting in Pretoria, and he becomes the fifth president since the boards were unified in 1992. Mali, aged 66, is currently president of Border, his native province, and has been a member of the UCB’s general council since 2000.Mali, the first-ever black African president, will have a two-year stint in the job and his election signals the end of Percy Sonn’s term in charge. Sonn, who attracted controversy by once pulling a player out of a Test at the last minute due to his colour, and allegedly being drunk during a World Cup match, now becomes vice-president of the ICC.On the new appointment, Graeme Smith, the South Africa captain, said: “We have great confidence in Mr. Mali and look forward to working closely with him. We believe this is a new era in the game and are fully committed to being actively involved in moving the game forward under Mr. Mali’s guidance.” He added: “It would be a great to be able to celebrate Mr. Mali’s appointment with a Test series win over England.”Along with Mali, three other black African administrators were elected to serve on the national council of the UCB: Peter Bacela, Tim Khumalo and Oupa Nkagisang.

It’s a fair assumption umpire Robinson will not be invited to the Black Caps’ Christmas party. New Zealand had made most of the running in the drawn third Test, and had it not been for the two umpiring errors they would have walked away with a series win. Unfortunately, rain and some sub-standard umpiring marred the whole series. To cap it all, Brett Lee was fined 75% of his wages for behaving badly. I wonder what Virender Sehwag has to say about this punishment? He had to miss out on two matches (one an unofficial Test and the other a ‘real’ one) after a show of mild resentment. I think it is high time ICC takes control of the situation and ensures that referees mete out fair and even punishment to players.

Mudassar Nazar Photo © CricInfo

While the New Zealanders came very close to clinching the series, they also showed the rest of the world that the mighty Australians are vulnerable in their own backyard. Australia did not play as well as they were expected to. Glenn McGrath seemed out of sorts all along and looked increasingly frustrated in the last game. Jason Gillespie seemed tired after the first Test. Maybe it was because the Australian Team has not had to endure too much hard work recently. It must feel strange to them to field for two consecutive days in a Test match. Brett Lee too has not performed as well as was expected of him in the last six months. A year ago he looked likely to beat the 100 mph barrier, but instead his pace has dropped, which must be worrying for Steve Waugh as he prepares to take on the South Africans. Shane Warne, who often bails his team out, was handled extremely well by the Black Cap batsmen. If Chris Cairns had bowled well in the last game, New Zealand would have won the series irrespective of the poor umpiring.

Allan Donald Photo © CricInfo

I have been watching Pura Cup (previously Sheffield Shield) games for the last two years, and can safely say that Australia’s dominance of the cricket world will come to an end within a year or so. The standard of play in the Pura Cup these days is not as high as it used to be. Being Australians, the players are still aggressive but the competition is not as strong and seems devoid of fast bowlers. Once the likes of McGrath, Warne and Waugh brothers leave Australian cricket it will be very hard for them to be replaced. In the past, Australia has comfortably overcome the loss of players like Lillee, the Chappells, Marsh and Border because enough class players were competing in their domestic tournaments. I guess Australia will be looking to their Cricket Academy for some talent. It will not be easy since their best coach, Rodney Marsh has already moved on.

Jacques Kallis Photo © CricInfo

South Africa, who arrived in Australia last week will give Australia a much tougher time. They are a class above the rest and have their best fast bowler, Alan Donald, fit and eager for a final assault on the Aussies. I know for a fact that Alan Donald would love to beat Australia in Australia and then happily retire from Test cricket. South Africa also possesses the finest all-rounder in the game today, Jacques Kallis, who is set to become one of the best all-rounders of his country, if not the world. His batting is a class act with only Inzamam, Tendulkar, Lara, Steve Waugh and Mahela Jaywardene to match him. He can also bowl quicker than Allan Donald and maintains a nagging off stump line. To top it all, he is brilliant in the slips and if he has a decent series in Australia, I can see his team returning triumphant. In either case, Australian players will have to raise their game to beat South Africa.After our trip to Bangladesh in January, the Pakistan team will be taking on West Indies at home. While it was heartening to see Brain Lara back in form it is also a warning to our bowlers to start planning and getting ready for the maestro. In prime form, Lara is the most exciting batsman in the world. As he showed against Australia a few years ago, he can win a Test match all on his own. West Indies are clearly rebuilding their team and rest assured will be very keen to do well in Pakistan after their dismal showing in Sri Lanka. They have some very promising players in their squad and it’s only a matter of time before they start performing. Apart from Lara, Hooper, Gayle, Sarwan and King, others too will have to play a major part if West Indies are to win in Pakistan.

Virender Sehwag Photo © CricInfo

Pakistan have an excellent chance to try out some young players on their tour of Bangladesh and then give them an extended run in the home series against West Indies so that they have enough time to establish themselves in the team. It will be very difficult for us to try new players against Australia in September and apart from anything else, it’ll be too close to the World Cup. The key to winning the World Cup would be to have a settled and well-knit team.I was relieved when the impasse between India and ICC was over as I feel it was unnecessary and rather silly. While Mike Denness might have been a bit harsh, it was India’s duty to accept it and get on with the rest of the tour. They could easily have played under protest. The only person who lost out in this affair is young Sehwag who had to sit out an extra game.

International batsmen Aaron Finch and Cameron White have both been left out of Victoria’s squad for the opening round of the Sheffield Shield season, starting on Wednesday. Opener Travis Dean has been included for a likely debut in Victoria’s match against Queensland at the MCG, which like all games in this round will be a day-night fixture using pink balls.White was dropped towards the end of last summer and Finch played only two Shield matches due to his ODI commitments. After the retirements of Chris Rogers and David Hussey, they might have been considered likely inclusions for this season’s opener, but instead Finch’s fellow World Cup-winner Glenn Maxwell took one of the spots made vacant after the Shield final and Dean was preferred for the other.Dean, 23, has grabbed every opportunity handed to him by the Victorian selectors this year, and is coming off 217 not out and 63 in the Futures League match against Western Australia last week. He played two Futures League games late last summer and scored centuries in both of those as well, 187 not out against Tasmania and 116 against Queensland.”We contracted him after a big year he had in Premier Cricket and at the next level in Futures League,” Victoria’s chairman of selectors Andrew Lynch said. “He’s obviously in good form in and he really deserves a shot in the top order where we think he can do well for us.””Cam is a bit unlucky but with our full complement of players to choose from there just wasn’t a spot for him. If Finch had been selected it would have been as an opener and on this occasion Dean has been selected ahead of him.”White’s immediate future in the Victoria outfit is now unclear, after he was also dropped from the one-day side towards the end of the recent Matador Cup campaign. He was part of Australia’s ODI side as recently as January. Finch remains a key man for Australia in the shorter formats but is yet to transfer his skill to the first-class arena, where he averages 29.92 from 49 games.Legspinner Fawad Ahmed has been included after failing to make Victoria’s squad for the Matador Cup, where left-arm spinner Jon Holland was their preferred slow bowler. Holland ended the tournament with a sore shoulder and is expected to be available for selection again in a fortnight, giving Fawad an opportunity in the Shield after he topped the competition wicket tally last season.In other squad announcements on Tuesday, Tasmania named 18-year-old batsman Jake Doran for a possible first-class debut against Western Australia in Hobart, while there was no room for opener Jordan Silk after he had a quiet Shield season last year. Mark Cosgrove and Kelvin Smith were named in South Australia’s side to take on New South Wales in Adelaide after both missed selection for the recent Matador Cup.New South Wales, Queensland and Western Australia all named their squads on Monday.Victoria squad Matthew Wade (capt), Fawad Ahmed, Scott Boland, Daniel Christian, Travis Dean, Peter Handscomb, John Hastings, Glenn Maxwell, James Pattinson, Rob Quiney, Peter Siddle, Marcus Stoinis.Tasmania squad George Bailey (capt), Alex Doolan, Jackson Bird, Xavier Doherty, Jake Doran, Ben Dunk, James Faulkner, Andrew Fekete, Evan Gulbis, Dom Michael, Tim Paine, Sam Rainbird.South Australia squad Travis Head (capt), Tom Cooper, Mark Cosgrove, Callum Ferguson, Jake Lehmann, Tim Ludeman, Joe Mennie, Kane Richardson, Alex Ross, Kelvin Smith, Daniel Worrall, Adam Zampa.New South Wales squad Steven Smith (capt), Sean Abbott, Doug Bollinger, Ed Cowan, Josh Hazlewood, Moises Henriques, Nathan Lyon, Nic Maddinson, Peter Nevill, Steve O’Keefe, Mitchell Starc, David Warner.Queensland squad Usman Khawaja (capt), Cameron Boyce, Joe Burns, Ben Cutting, Peter George, Chris Hartley, Scott Henry, James Hopes, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Reardon, Mark Steketee, Jack Wildermuth.Western Australia squad Adam Voges (capt), Ashton Agar, Cameron Bancroft, Jason Behrendorff, Marcus Harris, Michael Hogan, Mitchell Johnson, Michael Klinger, Simon Mackin, Mitchell Marsh, Shaun Marsh, Joel Paris, Sam Whiteman.

Liam Keen has given his reaction to some news that has now emerged involving Wolves’ upcoming FA Youth Cup semi-final tie against Manchester United.

The Lowdown: Semi-final booked

The Midlands club advanced to the semi-final of the Cup thanks to a 3-1 win at home to Brighton and Hove Albion, in what will be the first time that the youngsters have reached this stage since 2005.

Fans will now be able to watch the game for free, while there will also be subsidised coach travel, with the £3 paid donated to the Feed Our Pack project (The Express & Star).

The Latest: Keen reacts

Taking to Twitter, journalist Keen has now given his reaction to the news, claiming that it is an ‘excellent’ idea from the Molineux faithful:

“An excellent idea to get as many fans down as possible to Old Trafford next Wednesday.

“A big day for an exciting group of young players.”

The Verdict: Thinking about the fans

This initiative from the Wanderers shows that they are clearly thinking about the supporters, which they should be appreciative of.

It gives them a chance to see who exactly is excelling from the Academy, and who has a chance of being promoted to the first team under Bruno Lage – perhaps one or two of those participating in Manchester will follow the path set by Luke Cundle in recent months.

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Nonetheless, it presents a chance to get to the final of the competition and boast some silverware for the club, and so the team will need all of the support that they can get on the day in order to help them push through.

In other news, find out what WWFC update has left Tim Spiers delighted here!

Victoria return to the scene of their recent Twenty20 triumph this Saturday with the chance to steal a march on the FR Cup table. They have three games left in the competition – more than any other team – and victory against bottom-placed Western Australia would push them to second.Brad Hodge and David Hussey will catch an early flight to Perth on Saturday morning after Friday’s Twenty20 international at the MCG, while right-hander Aaron Finch has been added to the squad.Paul Davis, the left-arm fast bowler who plays for Mount Lawley, could make his Warriors debut. He has taken 26 wickets in the grade competition, at an average of 21.85 in 12 matches. He has also been a regular member of the WA Second XI this summer.Davis, Justin Langer and Matt Johnston come into the team that played New South Wales in last Wednesday’s Ford Ranger Cup encounter at the SCG. Brett Dorey and Sean Ervine have been left out.Johnston is in line to play his first State game since breaking his jaw in the FR Cup match against South Australia at the Adelaide Oval last November.Western Australia Justin Langer, Luke Ronchi (wk), Shaun Marsh, Luke Pomersbach, Adam Voges, Marcus North (capt), Theo Doropoulos, Aaron Heal, Steve Magoffin, Matt Johnston, Paul Davis, Ben Edmondson.Victoria Aiden Blizzard, Michael Klinger, Brad Hodge, Rob Quiney, David Hussey, Cameron White (capt), Andrew McDonald, Adam Crosthwaite (wk), Aaron Finch, Bryce McGain, Clint McKay, Darren Pattinson, Peter Siddle.

Centuries from Otago’s Aaron Redmond (121) and Neil Broom (101) negated the follow-on and a five-wicket haul by Northern Districts’ Graeme Aldridge, the right-arm fast-medium bowler, to help their side to 408 for 8 on the third day at Hamilton’s Seddon Park. Aldridge’s 5 for 75 assured State Championship leaders ND first-innings points, but a declaration put them back in to bat before stumps. When bad light ended the day’s play early – already delayed by rain – ND were 47 for 0, an overall lead of 162, with one day to play.Richard Jones, Auckland’s captain, hit his second hundred of the match but rain halted his team’s follow-up innings against Central Districts at the Eden Park Outer Oval. Jones hit 120 as Auckland made 274 for 4 before rain intervened for the final time on an interrupted third day’s play. Rob Nicol (51 not-out) was at the crease with Auckland 364 runs ahead going into the final day of the match.Grant Elliott and Stu Mills added 118 for the sixth wicket to give Wellington an outside chance to clinch first-innings points on day three of their match against Canterbury at Christchurch. In reply to Canterbury’s 613 for 7, Elliot hit an unbeaten 73 and Mills and unbeaten 54 as Wellington recovered from 193 for 5 to 316 without further loss. Hamish Bennett, the right-arm fast bowler, and Todd Astle, a part-time legspinner, picked up two wickets to slow Auckland’s process from an overnight 55 for no loss.

Namibia are looking to the future in next month’s Under-19 World Cup. They earned a place in Sri Lanka by winning the Africa/East Asia-Pacific tournament last August and have five 17 year-olds in their squad.And that concentration on very young players is all part of a long-term strategy according to coach Andy Waller. “For us as a team this tournament is definitely a learning curve which we can use later on in our cricketing careers,” he said.”By taking so many very young players it bodes well for the future of Namibia cricket as all the players should be able to absorb and enjoy the experience of a World Cup.”The players can learn from it to prepare for bigger international cricket in Namibia and as a lot of them are young enough to play in the 2008 tournament they can really put their experiences [in Sri Lanka] to good use in future,” added the former Zimbabwe batsman.The side may be young but they are also talented as their success in the qualifying event in Benoni, South Africa, illustrates. They lost just one match, to fellow World Cup qualifiers Uganda, but got their revenge over their fellow African side by beating them in a closely-fought final by three wickets.Namibia have the misfortune of being drawn in one of the toughest groups, Group C, and will face tournament favourites India and hosts Sri Lanka, as well as fellow associate country Scotland. However they still have several players who appear capable of making an impact.Chief among them is the allrounder Louis van der Westhuizen, who was one of Namibia’s stand-out performers in Benoni. His left-arm spin proved consistently effective with nine wickets in five matches including 3 for 10 against Fiji and 3 for 21 against Tanzania, and in two matches against Uganda he conceded just 37 runs in 20 overs.And as if that was not enough he also scored 113 from 136 balls as an opening batsman against Papua New Guinea (PNG) in the semi-final win that confirmed their trip to Sri Lanka as one of the two qualifiers.Vice-captain Nicolaas Scholtz also impressed as a left-arm spinner in the Benoni tournament with seven wickets in five matches and that means Namibia have two bowlers capable of exploiting what are traditionally spin-friendly conditions.Their pace-bowling resources include Henno Prinsloo, Floris Marx – highly regarded for his abilities at the end of the innings – and the left-armer Marc Olivier, who took 3 for 27 in the final of the qualifying tournament against Uganda.With the bat, Namibia will be looking to their captain, ST Ackermann, who made crucial contributions in the two matches against Uganda, and opener Dawid Botha, who made 66 against PNG.Waller is realistic about his side’s chances but is also hopeful they can win at least one of their matches in the group stage. “We don’t expect to win the tournament,” he said. “But we have targeted our game against Scotland as a must-win game.”That would mean we should be third in the group and we would end up in the Plate section and from there we would be happy if we achieved the semi-final.”That is not an unrealistic aim given that Namibia did exactly that when they last played in this tournament, in New Zealand in 2002, beating Sri Lanka, Scotland and Canada to reach that stage before losing to Zimbabwe.Ahead of what is bound to be a voyage of discovery for Namibia’s young players, Ackermann summed up their philosophy when he said: “Our first goal is to do our best in every match and perform to our best both on and off the field but most of all to enjoy the experience and learn from it.”Nambia squad ST Ackermann (capt), Nicolaas Scholtz, Jason Bandlow, Dawid Botha, Morne Engelbrecht, Pieter Grove, Andrew Louw, Hendrik Marx, Floris Marx, Marc Olivier, Henno Prinsloo, Ewald Steenkamp, Keady Strauss and Louis van der Westhuizen.

Richards maintains that Sachin should not be compared with him, for Sachin “is a giant in his own right”© Getty Images

Sir Viv Richards, the West Indian legend, has named Sachin Tendulkar as his favourite overseas player and Brian Lara as his best in the Caribbean. Writing in a newspaper column, Richards stated that Tendulkar had invited less controversy than his counterpart Lara, though Rahul Dravid was the most stylish batsman around."They are different people…because of the different culture they come from. Lara, being a left-hander, is flashy and elegant," Richards was quoted in The Press Trust Of India. "There is a certain panache about his batting – his bat comes down on the ball with a high backlift. Tendulkar stands still at the crease but loves to attack and is very positive."Tendulkar, who is currently nursing a tennis elbow, is expected to be fit for the Pakistan series. But in recent times his career has been wracked by frequent injury. But Richards reckoned that while Tendulkar’s passions still ran high, if he could maintain his fitness level, he could continue playing for another four years.Richards recalled the first time he had heard of Tendulkar. In 1990, on India’s tour of England, Tendulkar had smote Ian Bishop over his head for six in a game against Derbyshire – an experience the bowler shared with Richards later, adding that the little man [Tendulkar] was dangerous. The comment surprised Richards, for Bishop was not one who praised easily.Richards wrote that Tendulkar was a batsman of rare ability and has become an icon over the years. He acknowledged that Tendulkar’s knock of 241 against Australia in Sydney was resilient and full of character. If you could score against Australia, Richards reckoned, you could score anywhere. “This kid has been brought up on pressure. Ever since he was young, he shouldered responsibility. When he was captain, I always thought a big burden had been placed on somebody so young.”Many people over the years have drawn comparisons between the two greats, but Richards wrote that it was misleading to place them beside one another. "If he was to walk off the field today, without ever lifting a bat again, he would still be one of the icons, a true legend. Let’s not confuse things by comparing him with Viv or anyone else. He is a giant in his own right."

Bedford: Bedfordshire v NorthumberlandBedfordshire 168 and 195 v Northumberland 127 and 104
Bedfordshire won by 132 runs
Bedfordshire 20, Northumberland 4Reading: Berkshire v ShropshireBerkshire 368-8 and 228-6d v Shropshire 325-7d and 90-1
Match drawn
Berkshire 10, Shropshire 11Beaconsfield: Buckinghamshire v LincolnshireBuckinghamshire 151 and 260 v Lincolnshire 347-8d and 66-0
Lincolnshire won by 10 wickets
Lincolnshire 24, Buckinghamshire 3Chester: Cheshire v HerefordshireCheshire 158 and 52-0. Herefordshire 84
Match drawn
Cheshire 8, Herefordshire 8Camborne: Cornwall v WiltshireCornwall 168-5d v Wiltshire 153
Match drawn
Cornwall 8, Wiltshire 6Carlisle: Cumberland v HertfordshireCumberland 235 v Hertfordshire 261 and 172-4
Match drawn
Cumberland 8, Hertfordshire 8Manor Park: Norfolk v CambridgeshireNorfolk 310-6d and 210-1d v Cambridgeshire 281-8d and 241-7
Cambridgeshire won by three wickets
Cambridgeshire 20, Norfolk 6Bicester: Oxfordshire v DorsetOxfordshire 192-6d v Dorset 190-6d and 3-0
Match drawn
Oxfordshire 7, Dorset 7Walsall: Staffordshire v SuffolkStaffordshire 427-6 v Suffolk 275 and 197
Match drawn
Staffordshire 12, Suffolk 9