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Greg Chappell, India’s coach, will not attend Friday’s selection committee meeting in Mumbai, which will choose the captain for the forthcoming tour of Zimbabwe. “Chappell would not attend the meeting tomorrow to choose the captain, but he would be present at the selectors’ meeting the next day to pick the rest of the squad members,” said SK Nair, the board secretary.Nair also said that the BCCI was awaiting an update on the fitness of Sachin Tendulkar. “We have asked team physiotherapist John Gloster to give an update on Tendulkar’s fitness and his progress,” he said. “We would be talking to Tendulkar tooon the matter before selecting the team.”Tendulkar underwent surgery in London for an elbow injury at the end of May and was ruled out of cricket for 12 to 16 weeks. Asked about the injury sustained by Irfan Pathan which has ruled him out of the forthcoming Afro-Asian one-day international series, Nair saidhis report too was awaited.Pathan apparently suffered the injury on his right shoulder when he fell while fielding the ball on the boundary during India’s tri-series final against Sri Lanka on Tuesday. BCCI sources said that Gloster had Pathan’s MRI scan report with him and would intimate the Board about the extent of the injury before the meeting.

England’s cricket fans are still pinching themselves, after the class and ease with which their team has romped through the first two Tests of the summer. But that astonishment is nothing compared to the shock and awe in the New Zealand camp. The Kiwis have had just two days to recover from their bruising nine-wicket defeat at Headingley, and now face a massive task if they are to avoid one of the least predicted whitewashes of all time.As Brian Lara proved to England back in April, nothing can be taken for granted where clean sweeps are concerned, but New Zealand’s litany of injuries has stretched their 14-man squad way beyond its means. Their two most potent bowlers, Shane Bond and Daniel Vettori, are out of contention, while their batting has been severely dented by hand injuries to Michael Papps and Craig McMillan.As a result, Mathew Sinclair and the left-arm seamer James Franklin have been called into the squad, although quite how the Kiwis intend to replace Vettori is another question. There has not been enough time to fly a replacement all the way over from New Zealand, and on Monday, Stephen Fleming hinted that they may resort to blooding some youngsters as an emergency measure.Another, less probable solution, would be a last hurrah for that most combative of souls, New Zealand’s coach John Bracewell. He is only 46, after all, and his inclusion as a spinning option would bolster the batting as well – he scored his one and only Test century at Trent Bridge back in 1986.More likely, however, is that New Zealand will seek to draw their inspiration from another man with fond memories of Nottingham. Tomorrow, Chris Cairns begins his 62nd and final Test, at the ground that became his second home throughout the 1990s. He, of all people, has the capacity to raise New Zealand’s game when it is most needed.But it is far from the homecoming that Cairns had envisaged at the start of the tour. "To say we’re down is an understatement," he admitted. "There are a lot of disappointed guys, and we have to pick ourselves up and play like we know we can. A victory is all I want. For me it’s always been about winning. I find individual performance is shallow if it doesn’t lead to a victory."Cairns had no doubt about the difference between the sides. "Purely Steve Harmison," he said. "Overall the teams are pretty similar, but Harmison has spearheaded their attack. Unfortunately we haven’t had someone to do the same thing." Harmison’s 15 wickets have taken his tally for 2004 to 38 in six games – second only to Muttiah Muralitharan, whom he also trails in the world rankings.

He is currently the hottest property in world cricket, and with that in mind, Duncan Fletcher has warned that he may be rested for much of the NatWest Series against New Zealand and West Indies later this month. But one man who needs all the bowling he can get is James Anderson. He has recovered from a bruised heel and is expected to start his first Test since England’s innings defeat in Colombo last December.That’s tough luck on Martin Saggers, who let nobody down at Headingley and even celebrated his recall with a first-ball wicket. But Anderson is in desperate need of a run-out, after a frustrating winter on the sidelines in Sri Lanka and the Caribbean.”The way the lads bowled in the West Indies and in these Tests has made me more determined to squeeze back into the team," said Anderson, adding that his heel was not a massive problem. "I’ve got a little bit of the old pace back from when I first started with England, and hopefully I’ll have the same sort of success."That would certainly be a bonus for England – Anderson shot to stardom with his matchwinning four-wicket haul against Pakistan in the World Cup, and followed up with five wickets on his Test debut at Lord’s. And given Trent Bridge’s seamer-friendly reputation – James Kirtley took six wickets in last year’s victory over South Africa – it is the ideal ground on which to launch a comeback.And the ideal time as well, for everything is currently rosy in England’s garden. Confidence is soaring, and the general belief is that things can only better. After all, the Headingley Test was made memorable by the contributions of England’s youth brigade, but it was the old guard who starred in the Caribbean triumph. However, Graham Thorpe and, especially, Mark Butcher have been peripheral characters in this series so far, while Michael Vaughan is due some big runs as he beds down in the No. 4 position.It is a long time – three years, in fact – since an England team has exuded such an air of confidence. But we all remember what happened on that occasion. At Old Trafford in 2001, they were seemingly all set for a fifth series win in a row, only to squander eight wickets in the final session, as Pakistan tied the 2001 series at 1-1. Shortly afterwards, England were steamrollered by the Australians.Somehow, it is hard to envisage a similar failure of nerve at Trent Bridge, but with England, you can never quite be sure. For the moment, it is probably best to keep pinching yourself, just in case.England (probable) 1 Marcus Trescothick, 2 Andrew Strauss, 3 Mark Butcher, 4 Michael Vaughan (capt), 5 Graham Thorpe, 6 Andrew Flintoff, 7 Geraint Jones (wk), 8 Ashley Giles, 9 Matthew Hoggard, 10 Steve Harmison, 11 James Anderson.New Zealand (probable) 1 Mark Richardson, 2 Stephen Fleming (capt), 3 Nathan Astle, 4 Mathew Sinclair, 5 Scott Styris, 6 Chris Cairns, 7 Jacob Oram, 8 Brendon McCullum, 9 Daryl Tuffey, 10 Kyle Mills, 11 James Franklin.

Ricky Ponting could yet play in the final Australia-West Indies Test starting in Antigua tomorrow.The Australian vice-captain, who did not play the last day of the third Test in Bridgetown due to a virus-like illness, has rested since arriving in Antigua.He hasn’t trained at all but was at a team meeting to discuss the match tactical options and his condition will be assessed before the game.

* Tendulkar not sure that he can make an early returnLittle master Sachin Tendulkar is not sure if he can be fit in time for the South African tour.Tendulkar, who has an injured toe, was talking to mediapersons after his return following check-ups by South African surgeon, Dr Mark Fergussen.”My injury does not need treatment as such. But the toe has to be rested for some more time,” he told the Press Trust of India in Mumbai. “I don’t want to predict the time it will take for me to start playing again,” he added.Dr Fergussen had prescribed special inner soles for Tendulkar’s shoes which he says will have to be worn for some time. The critical area is the ball of his right foot which has not healed completely after a hairline fracture suffered during India’s tour of Zimbabwe.”I know that injury is part and parcel of the game but it has been a bit disheartening knowing that the injury has not healed properly. I was very relieved to hear that I do not need surgery. I am now keeping my fingers crossed that I will be fit for the South African tour and I promise that I will be trying very hard to be ready,” Tendulkar said.* Indian captain for South Africa to be named on September 6The Indian selectors will meet on September 6 to name the captain for the tour of South Africa. Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Jaywant Lele also told cricketnext.com that the rest of the team would be named the next day.The indications are that Ganguly will retain his job despite the now certain prospect of India losing the Test series in Sri Lanka. The five wise men reportedly feel that South Africa will be far too demanding an assignment for a new captain. The big news on September 7 will concern the availability of Sachin Tendulkar. India will desperately need the little master to be fit and playing if they are to put up any fight on the hard and bouncy wickets in springbok country.The day would also bring us further news about VVS Laxman, Anil Kumble and Javagal Srinath. The twenty players who will be offered contracts could also be named by then.The cricketnext.com report says that the Indian squad will now leave for South Africa four days earlier. They are expected to land in Johannesburg on September 24. This follows a request from the Indian team management that they be given a week to ten days to come to grips with the pitches and conditions in South Africa.India will play their first practice match against a Nicky Oppenheimer XI at Randjesfontein. On October 5 they would feature in a one-dayer against South Africa in Johannesburg. That match will be the curtain-raiser for the one-day tri-series that will feature Kenya as the third team. The Test series starts on November 3. You can get the most comprehensive coverage of the matches here at cricinfo.com.

A powerful collective batting performance from Canterbury set up a 65-run victory against Auckland in Timaru. After winning the toss, Canterbury made a fast start, with their openers adding 48 inside six overs. Henry Nicholls and Neil Broom then put on 103 for the second wicket, laying the foundation for a large score. Auckland fought back through Tarun Nethula, though, the legspinner taking three wickets to reduce the opponents to 166 for 5. Canterbury were lifted once again by Andrew Ellis and Todd Astle, who struck aggressive half-centuries to post 335 for 6.Auckland’s chase suffered because a lot of their batsmen got starts but no one made even a half-century. Opener Anaru Kitchen’s 47 was the top score. They slumped to 205 for 9 at on stage before Michael Bates struck 44 off 29 balls at No. 10 to lift them to 270 in 50 overs. Ellis and Astle took two wickets apiece for Canterbury to go with their scores of 66 not out and 83.Half-centuries from Jamie How, Ben Smith and Will Young spurred Central Districts to a six-wicket win against Wellington in Nelson. Chasing 256, How blasted 53 off 27 balls, Smith contributed 75, and Young was unbeaten on 97 as the target was achieved in 44.1 overs. Brent Arnel took all four Central Districts that fell.The Wellington batting had fallen away after their top three made useful contributions. Michael Pollard made 55, Michael Papps scored 35 and Stephen Murdoch contributed 61 but the innings slumped from 86 for 0 to 123 for 4. They collapsed again from 167 for 4 to 211 for 8, before finishing on 255. Adam Milne and George Worker took three wickets each for Central Districts.

Titans fast bowler Marchant de Lange has been called up to South Africa’s squad for the last two Tests in India as cover for Dale Steyn, who is doubtful for the Nagpur fixture beginning on November 25 because of a groin injury.De Lange has played two Tests for South Africa, the last of which was in Wellington in 2012. He was part of the T20 squad that won the series in India earlier in the tour.”At the moment we only have three fit seamers in Morne Morkel, Kagiso Rabada and Kyle Abbott, so with Dale still struggling with a groin injury we decided to bring Marchant in as cover so we are prepared in case one of the three breaks down,” South Africa coach Russell Domingo said. “Marchant’s biggest strength is pace, if the ball does start to reverse swing his pace through the air brings him into the contest.Marchant de Lange last played a Test for South Africa in 2012•Getty Images

“Even though his performances back home have been a bit inconsistent, we do know that as an impact player he is a guy that can turn the game with a good spell. Guys that can bowl at 150 km per hour will always be good value.”South Africa trail 1-0 in the series, after losing heavily in Mohali and then watching rain washout the Bangalore Test. Domingo, however, was confident his team could turn it around.”We’ve done it before,” he said. “We know that we are still in the contest with two matches to play, the wickets are definitely going to produce results. We are 1-0 down so we have every chance of turning it around in Nagpur. We have a lot of inexperienced players who haven’t played in India before so hopefully they will have learnt a lot of lessons from these first two matches.”

Trinidad & Tobago Under-17 side pulled off a good 64-run win against Bermuda. T&T chose to bat and made a useful 173 all out. The opener Whitney Cudjoe made an excellent 47 from 64 balls. Important contributions also came from middle-order batters Alison Collins, with 22, and captain Jerveena Pollucksingh, who made 28.Offspinner Brittney Marshall took 3 for 20 for Bermuda, including a stunning return catch to dismiss Pollucksingh. Linda Mienzer also bowled well for 2 for 33 off her 8 overs.The Bermuda reply was highlighted by a lack of meaningful partnerships, with wickets falling at regular intervals, despite a brief threat when player-of-the-match Marshall struck a quick 25 off 31 balls with five powerful fours. Of the rest of the Bermudan batters, only skipper Chevonne Furbert reached double figures, making a late 15 in 18 balls with 2 fours.The other highlight was three brilliant run-outs, all with direct hits; two by Amanda Samaroo and another by Melissa Sandy. In the end, Bermuda were all out for 109 in 33.1 overs, 64 runs short.The T&T coach Brenda Solozano, was understandably pleased with the performance of her young team. “They were excellent today, achieving a good win against a good team, and we will continue to strive for excellence in the games ahead.”In the other game, Canada encountered little resistance from Argentina in their Americas Women’s Championship match in Toronto, winning by a comfortable eight wickets and they will now play Bermuda on Wednesday to be crowned winners as T&T, despite being unbeaten, are ineligible for the title.Allrounder Joanna White starred with both bat and ball, helping to bowl out Argentina for 108 in 34.1 overs, with 3 for 14. Then, with Canada’s reply at a crossroad at 31 for 2, she struck a superb unbeaten 34 from only 33 balls to help steer Canada home in the 17th over. She and opener Shoba Singh (35*) shared an unbeaten 81-run stand.A young and inexperienced Argentina can be proud of another spirited performance. At one point they were well placed at 82 for 3 after 24 overs, with fine contributions coming from Marcela Rojas, with 27, and Veronica Vasquez, with 18. However, White and Helene Gaffney (2 for 18) helped to dismiss the last seven Argentine wickets for 26 – and 108 was never going to be enough.Tournament organisers have brought Thursday’s fixtures forward to Wednesday, because thunderstorms have been predicted for Thursday and Friday.

Darrell Hair expects to officiate in the Champions Trophy next month despite the unresolved issues from his decisions at the Oval Test. Hair told he was planning to stand in the tournament and an ICC source confirmed to the it was a “safe bet” Hair would be in India.”Yes, I am down to umpire in the Champions Trophy and I expect to fulfill that appointment,” Hair told from the Newmarket races in England. “I’m not sure what matches I’ll be doing but I’m looking forward to it.”‘Hair’s future has been under threat since he docked Pakistan five runs for ball tampering last month, a decision which resulted in the abandonment of The Oval Test when Inzamam-ul-Haq’s team refused to return to the field. Inzamam will face charges of ball tampering and bringing the game into disrepute in London during a two-day hearing starting on September 27.The ICC will unveil its officials for the Champions Trophy in the next 24 hours and an ICC source told the Herald Hair was “still regarded as one of our best umpires”. “It’s a safe bet that he’ll be there [for the Champions Trophy].”The Pakistan Cricket Board has so far not said anything on this latest development. When contacted, a senior PCB official told Cricinfo, “We can’t make any comments about this whole matter as it is considered sub judice. “Last week though, Reuters quoted a board source warning the ICC that Pakistan would consider taking strong action if Hair was to stand as umpire in any matches or tournaments involving them. The source said that the ICC had been informed in writing that if Hair was put on the umpires panel for the Champions Trophy, it would consider a number of options, including pulling out. “Pakistan is very clear on Hair’s future appointments. It does not want him appointed either in the Champions Trophy or any other series in which is Pakistan is playing,” the source said.For The Surfer blog go here.

Disturbed about his exclusion from the one-day side after playing two games in the Indian Oil Cup in Sri Lanka, Anil Kumble has asked if different standards are used to measure different players.Aggrieved enough to refer to himself in the third person, Kumble said to the , “It’s a bit strange this happens only to a few players like Laxman, Anil. People expect me to take five wickets every time I bowl. That’s not possible. As long as there is the same scale for everyone, it’s fine, but…”While Kumble’s Test form has improved dramatically, his one-day record has not been as noteworthy. In his last 30 games, Kumble has claimed 28 wickets at 42.10. But the 30 have been scattered, with instances of hurried selections and hasty rests, followed by calls for his retirement from one-dayers. “For the last one-and-a-half years people have been asking me this question,” he said. “Do they mean to say that I should stop playing one-dayers? Isn’t it my prerogative to decide?”The secretary of the Indian board, SK Nair, explained the dropping of Kumble and VVS Laxman: “The selectors felt they would be more useful in the Tests. Their recent record in one-day matches was also considered before selecting the side.” He attributed Zaheer Khan’s exclusion to the same reason. As for Lakshmipathy Balaji, who had done little wrong, Nair said that he had been rested to give others a chance on what he hinted was an ideal tour to experiment.Sourav Ganguly, assigned the captaincy for only the tour of Zimbabwe after what was reported to be a narrow selection vote in his favour, said that the two separate teams chosen for the one-day and Test series were the board’s decision. He refused to speak about the high-profile exclusions, telling the (HT) that it “doesn’t matter who is [in] the team and who isn’t. The team has to deliver.” Asked specifically about Kumble, he replied, “That’s for the selectors to answer. I’m happy with the selection.”Meanwhile, asked about Ganguly’s return as captain, Virender Sehwag said, “I think he is the best choice. It is not easy to comment on the issue. However, I think whatever the selectors have decided is based on past performance and while taking into account what is best for the team. Ganguly has been the most successful skipper for India, this speaks for itself.”Also satisfied with the team selection was Ajit Agarkar, who made his seventh return to the Indian team. “I was always hopeful of a recall to the Indian team,” he said to and later told the that “not being picked [for the Indian Oil Cup] did hurt a lot.”

Nasser Hussain announced his retirement from all cricket at Lord’s at lunchtime today. In an emotional press conference, Hussain confirmed what all were expecting, that he is to call it a day. He revealed that he decided the time had come on Sunday, during the Lord’s Test, and that he wanted to go out on a high and not stand in the way of younger players coming through.Hussain opened up by thanking the assembled media for coming, and followed that by confirming his retirement from all forms of the game. “It’s a decision I’ve not taken lightly, I’ve been thinking about it for a number of months.” He added, “I had made my mind up on Sunday night, it was the right time to go.”He continued, “Age was catching up with me in my body and my mind, and the fire in my stomach was deteriorating. I was willing to fight that and the opposition, but not to fight against youth, in the form of Andrew Strauss and others like [Robert] Key, [Ian] Bell, [Ian] Ward and [Scott] Newman. They warrant consideration for selection.”On his last emotional and memorable day as a Test player, he said: “Monday was an incredible day, and it made my thoughts clearer. I’m proud to have come to my decision and be appreciated for all my efforts from when I was a young boy – a lot of good things have happened to me. To hit the winning runs through the covers with my favourite shot, to be batting with my close friend Graham Thorpe at the end, and to walk through the Long Room were great memories.”He also said that his decision could be called a selfish one. “Some of the criticism was close to the truth. Younger players should be pushing for a place. In some ways you could call it a selfish decision. I don’t like to go in the middle of a series, but I fear things will get messy in the future. At the moment, I feel clear and clean cut – I’m a happy person, and those around me are happy.”Hussain revealed he had spent the last couple of days talking to people close to him before finally making the decision to call it a day. “They said I deserved to go out on a high, and that I deserved to be happy. My decision was a gut feeling. I wanted to go on my terms, and I don’t want to hold up any young player, just because I’m a former England captain.

“I was looking for some reward for my hard work, and Monday gave me that. I’m emotional because it’s a big day in my life to give up the game of cricket, but it’s not because I am sad.”He added, “I spoke to Duncan Fletcher. He was adamant that I should go out in the way I deserved. He did not say ‘No Nasser I want you to stay,’ none of the selectors did that, nor did the captain.” He ended by calling Fletcher “an absolutely great man”, and by thanking his father, Joe. He said, “I hope he’s proud of me.”Regarding his future, it was later revealed that Hussain has joined Sky Sports as a commentator, but he insisted he would be taking a few weeks off and go away for a few rounds of golf before he starts his new life in the media.Hussain, 36, played 96 Tests for England, scoring 5764 runs at an average of 37.18. He also appeared in 88 one-day internationals. He was captain in 45 Tests between 1999 and 2003.