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Brenton Parchment, West Indies’ debutant opener, has been charged with a Level 2 breach of the ICC’s Code of Conduct regulations for running into Dale Steyn while batting during the second day of the third Test in DurbanParchment, if found guilty, could face a 50% fine on his match fee and/or a one Test or two ODI ban for his offence, which falls under article 2.4 of the ICC’s Code of Conduct regulations which refers to “inappropriate and deliberate physical contact between players in the course of play.”The on-field umpires, Simon Taufel and Aleem Dar, third umpire Brian Jerling and reserve umpire Zed Ndamane, reported to match referee Roshan Mahanama that Parchment had run into Steyn in the eighth over of West Indies’ second innings.Mahanama has scheduled a hearing on the matter, which will take place at the end of the third day’s play.

Former New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming has spoken out against the idea of playing Test cricket under lights to cater to a bigger television audience, fearing that Tests would lose their appeal and character. Fleming felt it wasn’t time for the game to undergo another makeover, with one-dayers and Twenty20 games drawing enough crowds.”For me Test cricket has created its own niche,” Fleming told New Zealand’s Radio Sport. “Its popularity comes and goes but I don’t think we need to tamper with it too much. I understand TV rights, the audiences, and what they may be but I think Test cricket should be left as it is.”Twenty20 is popular, one-day cricket still draws crowds. I don’t know what more you have to do to put cricket at the forefront of people’s minds. If we put Tests in the same category as Twenty20 or one-dayers we risk diminishing it further.”Fleming is the latest – after Daniel Vettori, Ricky Ponting and Ian Chappell – to join the chorus against Cricket Australia’s proposal to experiment with the traditional format of the game. All three stated that the biggest issue would be the colour of the balls used, given that batsmen have found it difficult to pick the red ball under lights. The innovation was trialled during Australia’s domestic season from 1994-95 to 1998-99 but had to be scrapped after the batsmen struggled for runs.Fleming also questioned how practical, in terms of timing, the idea would be for players and fans. James Sutherland, Cricket Australia’s chief executive, proposed that matches could be played from 3pm-10pm instead of the current schedule of 11am-6pm. “It’s cold, there’s a dew factor. We’re unsure about what ball can be used. It is a little bit hard to pick up under lights.”

Chandrakant Pandit, the former India wicketkeeper, has resigned as Maharashtra coach after three years in charge. Pandit sent a mail to Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) president Ajay Shirke conveying his decision.”His [Pandit’s] contract was to expire at the end of the season anyway,” Shirke told the . “By resigning, he has effectively told us his unavailability for renewal of contract.”However, Pandit has agreed to be in charge till the conclusion of the current season, but it remains unclear whether he will do so for the Ranji Trophy one-dayers.”This assignment warrants him to be away from home 10 months a year and that seems to be a major reason behind the decision,” Shirke said. Interestingly, Pandit’s request that he be allowed to perform his duties as India A coach after he went on their tours to Kenya and Zimbabwe earlier this year, had be rejected by the MCA as they wanted him to focus on the state team instead.Pandit had a successful stint as coach, presiding over the team’s shock away win against Mumbai in the 2005-06 season as well as their Ramakant Desai Trophy triumph in 2006-07. Under him, Maharastra Under-19 had clinched the Cooch Behar Trophy for the first time last season.Maharashtra, who lost their way after having led the Group A table of the Ranji Trophy Super League for a while still have a mathematical chance of qualifying for the Ranji Trophy semi-finals.

Easterns allowed what should have been a comfortable victory over Border intheir first Standard Bank Cup match of the campaign to turn into somethingof a sweat before eventually triumphing by 15 runs.The Border last-wicket pair of Dumisa Makalima and Geoff Love managed to add42 before paceman Andre Nel wrapped up proceedings by bowling Makalima, whohad made 21 off just 29 balls, with the first ball of the 44th over.That gave Nel an analysis of three for 35 and made him, along with AlbieMorkel, who took three for 27 after coming on first change, the mainarchitect of his team’s success from a bowling point of view.Ironically, though, the Easterns attack, including Nel and Morkel, werepartly responsible themselves for Border getting so close to their victorytarget of 190, as they managed to send down 14 wides and five no-balls, oneof the latter for what umpire Mike Gajjar, standing at square leg, ruled a”chuck” by medium-pacer Pierre de Bruyn.Easterns also gave away eight byes in an extras tally of 32, which was 25more than Border had allowed them as they compiled their total of 189 forsix.Border lost too many early wickets to be in with a serious chance ofvictory, with the first six batsmen falling for just 72 to the pace trio ofMorkel, Nel and Kenny Benjamin, before offspinner Derek Crookes, who wouldlater be named man of the match, chipped in with two wickets later on.When Makalima and Love came together at 132 for nine, 58 runs were stillrequired and their task seemed impossible, but with three overs left, therequired number of runs had been reduced to just 21. Five were scored in the43rd over, bowled by left-armer Mike Rindel, leaving them 16 to make off thelast two overs. But the fiery Nel, who had thrown the ball down infrustration at the end of his previous over after a driving Makalima was putdown by substitute fielder Anthony Pollock, steamed in and spreadeagled hisstumps with the next delivery to dismiss Border for 174.Easterns, whose skipper, Deon Jordaan, had won the toss and elected to bat,found themselves in trouble at 65 for four in the 16th over, withwicketkeeper Ian Mitchell having claimed two catches, off opening bowlersVasbert Drakes and Piet Botha, and two stumpings off the bowling ofoffspinner Love.But Jordaan helped redeem his own decision as he and allrounder Crookes setabout fashioning a partnership of 112 for the fifth wicket. Itwas slow but steady as both batsmen reached half-centuries to give the homeside a defendable total. Jordaan eventually perished for 72, bowledby Tyron Henderson, but Crookes stuck around until the end for an unbeaten58.Love was the pick of the visiting bowlers, claiming two for 29 in his nineovers, while Drakes, Botha and Henderson each managed to collect one scalp.

New Zealand will be represented at the Hong Kong Sixes this year, and a strong team has been named. For those players on the fringe of selection for the tour of India and Pakistan, it gives them an early taste of the international scene, albeit in a restricted form of the game.Andre Adams, one of the surprise omissions from the one-day team for the tour, is included while Matthew Horne, the discarded opening batsman, will open the innings. Another player included is Aaron Barnes, who at the end of last season said he was severing his ties with New Zealand cricket to live in England. However, he decided to return after a successful season of league cricket. He has experience in the shorter versions of the game for New Zealand having earlier been a member of the New Zealand Super Max international side.Chris Nevin, who was dropped from the opening batting position for the tour, has also been included. Well-performed domestic players Matthew Walker, from Wellington, and Joseph Yovich from Northern Districts have also been included. The team leaves New Zealand on October 30 and returns on November 4.The team is: Matthew Horne (captain-Auckland), Tama Canning (Auckland). Andre Adams (Auckland), Aaron Barnes (Auckland), Chris Nevin (Wellington), Matthew Walker (Wellington), Joseph Yovich (Northern Districts).

West Indies board officials will meet with officials from the West Indies Cricket Umpires Association (WICUA) president today in an effort to settle the issues that led to the WICUA’s boycott of Carib Beer Cup matches last month.”We’ve sought this meeting for some time but had to put it off once at our request,” Hartley Reid, the WICUA president said. “It’s a welcome opportunity to have this specific matter resolved and to discuss the general relationship between the WICB and the WICUA”. Reid will meet Donald Peters, the WICB chief executive, and Tony Howard, its chief cricket operations officer.The WICB was caught in the middle of a stand-off triggered by differences between two umpiring bodies in Trinidad and Tobago, only one of which is recognised by the Trinidad and Tobago board.WICUA decided on the boycott when two of its members, Hayden Bruce and Kaso Dowlath, were replaced after being originally assigned matches during the regional season by the WICB. Bruce and Dowlath belong to the Association of Cricket Umpires of Trinidad and Tobago (ACUTT). But the T&T board recognises the Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Umpires and Scorers Council (TTCUSC) which did not put forward Bruce and Dowlath on its recommended list. “This was noticed by the T&T board, which informed the WICB, pointing out the perceived error, and the WICB then removed those two names,” Lalman Kowlessar, a T&T board executive said. Umpires from the TTCUSC filled in for those who adhered to the WICUA call and the matches all went ahead.Kowlessar described the boycott as a “total failure” but WICUA secretary Vivian Johnson of Jamaica pointed out that it was not a situation that could be allowed to continue “in perpetuity”. In a television interview in Guyana last week, Peters said he hoped “to come to some amicable agreement” at today’s meeting.”The larger issue is all these factions in the umpires’ fraternity,” he said. “What I would like to see is one group and the WICB would contract an elite panel and three levels of umpires. That’s the way I’d like to go.”We’re not involved in the struggle but we have a responsibility to ensure that umpires work closely together so that, in the final analysis, we can get the best umpires to stand in our matches,” he added.The impasse led to an e-mailed threat from WICB corporate secretary Tony Deyal to WICUA area vice-president Billy Doctrove, one of two West Indians on the ICC Elite Panel of umpires, informing him that if he did not umpire the match between the Leeward Islands and Guyana as directed that the WICB would “refer the matter to the ICC”.Deyal warned that it would point out that “your actions have sought to bring the WICB and the game of cricket in the Caribbean into disrepute and that you, and any other persons from the region who have behaved in a similar fashion, should not be considered for further employment by the ICC now or at any future time”.ICC Communications Officer James Fitzgerald said that although the ICC was aware of the issue “it is really a domestic matter and so we have no direct part to play.”However, if there is a way that we can assist all sides coming to a satisfactory agreement on this, then we will be happy to help,” he added.The ICC has subsequently assigned Doctrove to the last two Tests of the current series between India and South Africa in India.

Mumbai v Baroda Mumbai 278 for 6 (Kambli 108*, Morris 51*) lead Baroda 213 all out (Mongia 74, Salvi 5-42) by 65 runs
Vinod Kambli (108 not out) scripted a memorable rescue act as Mumbai overcame some jittery moments to finish the second day 65 runs ahead of Baroda at the Wankhede stadium. At 142 for 6 Mumbai were in serious strife, but Robin Morris and Kambli added an priceless 136 runs together to wrest back the initiative. Vinayak Mane(50) was also among the runs with an elegant half-century. Shekar Joshi derailed the innings with three wickets as all the batsmen fell to irresponsible shots. But just when the scene looked bleak, Kambli stood up to be counted.
ScorecardUttar Pradesh v Delhi Delhi 478 (Gambhir 147, Oberoi 80, Gupta 5-143) lead Uttar Pradesh 19 for 0 by 459 runs
Slow left-arm spinner Praveen Gupta bowled a marathon spell to finish with a five-wicket haul, but Delhi finished the first innings on an imposing 478 at Kanpur. The much-hyped return of Ajay Jadeja had an abrupt end as he was bowled by Gynandra Pandey for just 13. After suffering a batting mauling yesterday, Pradeshhad done a great job to reduce Delhi to 416 for 8, but a fine 51 by Sarandeep Singh ensured that the visitors finished the second day on a high note.
ScorecardGujarat v Hyderabad Hyderabad 27 for 1 and 245 (Lalit Patel 5-58) lead Gujarat 119 (NP Singh 6-33) by 153 runs
After bowling Hyderabad out for 245 and sitting pretty at 113 for 3, Gujarat were tightening their grip on the match. That was when Narender Pal Singh decided to take matters into his own hands and along with Venkatapathy Raju triggered a batting fiasco. The last seven Gujarat batsmen made a grand total of 11 runs as the home team were reduced to their knees and effectively shut out of the contest. L. Pawar (40) top scored for Gujarat, an innings that may well be forgotten in the face of Singh’s six wicket effort.
ScorecardKerala v Punjab Punjab 541 for 7 (Mongia 151, Ricky 125)
Punjab continued to flog the hapless Kerala attack as they piled on 541 at the end of the second day at Palakkad. The highlights of the day were solid half centuries by Chandan Madan (67) and Reetinder Singh Sodhi (57*). Dinesh Mongia and Ravneet Ricky had stroked fine centuries yesterday and set up a perfect launching pad for the middle-order. Sreekumar Nair manfully toiled all day and was the most successful bowler with three wickets in the innings. The last session was washed out due to rain and Kerala were given some respite by the forces of nature.
ScorecardRajasthan v Bengal Rajasthan 32 for 1 and 205 for 6 (Khoda 86, Paul 6-68) lead Bengal 118 (Sharma 6-18) by 119 runs
Sanjeev Sharma demolished Bengal with a six-wicket haul and Rajasthan held all the aces at the end of the second day’s play at Jaipur. Shib Shankar Paul cleaned up the Rajasthan tail and finished with an impressive six-wicket haul. On a difficult pitch, Gagan Khoda’s 86 on the first day may prove priceless as Sharma ripped through the underbelly of the Bengal batting with devastating effect and conceded only 18 runs in his 16.5 overs. None of the batsmen had a clue against his seam movement as the visitors were bundled out for a paltry 118. Rajasthan were 32 for 1 in their second innings as Bengal tried to recover from the shock dealt by Sharma earlier in the day.
ScorecardKarnataka v Tamil Nadu Karnataka 23 for 1 and 208 all out (Balaji 4-51, Ramkumar 4-42) lead Tamil Nadu 184 (Prasad 6-51) by 47 runs
Venkatesh Prasad`s inspired bowling ripped through the heart of the Tamil Nadu batting as they collapsed to 184 all out on the second day at Bangalore. Having seen his batsmen play irresponsibly yesterday, Prasad made a powerful statement by probing in the corridor and troubled arguably the best batting line-up in domestic cricket. The two Sridhiran’s, Sriram and Sharath, prevented a batting debacle and on a pitch offering assistance to the seamers, gave the visitors some sort of a chance. The home side will hope for a disciplined batting approach tomorrow and carry on the momentum that Prasad so effectively gained.
ScorecardRailways v Andhra Pradesh Railways 192 for 1 (Bangar 72*, Pagnis 58) trail Andhra 262 (MSK Prasad 61) by 70 runs
Sanjay Bangar propelled the innings with an unbeaten 72 as Railways were comfortably placed at the end of the second day’s play in Delhi. The Andhra innings finished with a slight flourish as left handed Shankara Rao hit a valuable 53 to nudge the score past 250. But the Railways reply was the antithesis of the Andhra batting and had all the attributes of application and patience. Amit Pagnis was in fine fettle as he helped himself to 58 and Sanjay Bangar staked his claim for the Australian tour with a characteristically dour 72. He was ably supported by Tejindar Pal Singh, who finished with a strokefilled 52. None of the Andhra bowlers posed any sort of threat and that may well be the story tomorrow also.
ScorecardSiddhartha Vaidyanathan is on the staff of Wisden Cricinfo.

Dhaka 302 for 7 (Halim 89*, Niamur 62) lead Barisal 193 (Hossain 55, Rafique 4-60) by 209
ScorecardKhaled Mahmud, fighting for his place in the national side, made a dought half-century in a rearguard action for for Dhaka. In reply to Barisal’s 193, Mahmud’s side were struggling at 54 for 4 when Mahmud and Halim Shah came together. They added 89 runs before Mahmud was out for 51, but Halim went on to remain not out on 89 at the close of the second day, as Dhaka finished on 302 for 7. Naimur Rashid hit a fiesty 62, while Fahim Muntasir made 34 not out.Khulna 160 and 129 for 8 (Parvez 48) lead Sylhet 80 (Razzaq 7-11) by 209 runs
ScorecardKhulna were well on top in a low-scoring match, getting Sylhet out for 80 after making 160 in their first innings. The star of the match was Abdur Razzaq, a left-arm spinner, who took 7 for 11 in just 16.1 overs. Only Imtiaz Hossain, with a gritty 30, provided any resistance, as the Sylhet innings lasted 50 overs and one ball. In their second innings, Khulna extended their lead to 209, as Raju Parvez made 48 of the 129 runs they scored for the loss of eight wickets.Rajshahi 234 (Nuruzzaman 39, Arafat 7-62) lead Chittagong 191 for 7 (Hakim 53, Saifullah 4-54) by 43 runs
ScorecardYasin Arafat’s 7 for 62 was largely responsible for Rajshahi being all out for 234, but Saifullah Khan’s 4 for 54 in 32 overs kept the game on a tight edge, as Chittagong were 43 runs behind at the end of the second day, with just three wickets in hand. Faisal Hossain, whose 21 not out occupied all of 76 balls, was Chittagong’s best hope.

Australia will be especially wary of Daniel Vettori after his left-arm spin wrecked their chances of posting a huge total in the opening game of the Chappell-Hadlee one-day series. New Zealand went on to win that match after Vettori had induced a mid-innings wobble with three wickets in next to no time.Speaking on the eve of the second game at the Sydney Cricket Ground, Australian captain Ricky Ponting was quick to identity the main threat to his side. “He’s a quality bowler in both forms of the game and he certainly bowled beautifully the other night – he’s bowled well right through this tour so far,” said Ponting. “He varies his pace well and he turns the ball just enough – that SCG wicket will suit him so it’s up to us to make sure we don’t give him our wickets.”If we can get through his 10 overs without being too aggressive and without giving him too many wickets we should score freely off the other guys.”Australia will leave their selection to the last minute, with one eye on the weather forecasts predicting rain. “Bowling spin with a wet ball is very difficult so if it does rain Hoggy [Brad Hogg] may miss out,” said Ponting.He also expected New Zealand to have a punt on Chris Harris, whose dibbly-dobbly medium pace and cutters might have an impact on the slow SCG pitch. “Harris may come in on that wicket,” he said. “He’s a great fielder and a handy lower order batsman as well but I’m not sure where he’ll fit into their side, I think the side they had the other night was pretty well balanced.”