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A century from opener Jai P Yadav and handy contributions from Harvinder Singh, Zakir Hussain and Shreyas Khanolkar helped Railways secure the vital first innings lead on the third day of the Irani Trophy. The Ranji Trophy champions made 316, which gained them a lead of 50 runs. The Rest of India openers, however, made a strong start, wiping out the lead while putting on 84 runs for the unbroken first wicket before stumps were drawn.Railways made a poor start to the day when Jacob Martin was dismissed after having added just one run to his overnight score of 25. Yohannan, who dismissed the veteran batsman, went on to strike another vital blow when he removed No. 6 Raja Ali with the next ball. Khanolkar, who replaced Ali, managed to prevent the hat-trick, but by the time Yohannan had completed his over, Rest of India were on top with Railways being reduced to 136-5.Khanolkar’s confident outing with the bat against the West Indies, though, helped him to provide Yadav with the support he needed to resuscitate the Railways innings. The duo put on a vital 68 runs for the sixth wicket before Khanolkar was dismissed for 36.Yadav, for his part, went on to complete a well-deserved ton before he was eighth man out with the score on 209. At that stage, Railways were once again in danger of conceding a lead, but a hard-hitting 59 off 83 balls by Harvinder, an innings that included as many as five sixes, propelled them to 316 all out.Openers Akash Chopra and Wasim Jaffer, who had put on 90 runs for the opening wicket in the first innnings, continued the good work when Rest batted for the second time. The duo put on 84 runs before play ended. Chopra was batting on 41 while Jaffer was on 38.

Sri Lanka’s confidence ahead of the final npower Test against England will hardly have been boosted by their performance in the rain-affected match against an MCC side full of England hopefuls, which ended today in a draw.Sri Lanka were bowled out for just 127 in reply to the MCC’s first innings 326 for seven declared. MCC captain David Fulton and Middlesex’s Andrew Strauss then batted out 17 overs, declaring at 93 for no wicket to end the game early.MCC resumed this morning on 270 for six, and batted for a further 15 oversbefore Fulton declared. Usman Afzaal, 25 tomorrow, completed a celebratory hundred, finishing on 111 not out with 11 fours and three sixes. The one wicket to fall was that of Richard Dawson, caught by Russel Arnold for 15 off Ruchira Perera, who finished with four for 66 off 20 overs.James Kirtley and Kevin Dean then reduced the tourists to an embarassing 30 for five. Skipper Sanath Jayasuriya tried to hook Kirtley and top-edged a catch to wicket-keeper Chris Read. Kumar Sangakkara, in need of runs, was lbw padding up to Kirtley. Hashan Tillekeratne got a perfect Dean yorker before he had scored, and Arnold edged Dean to Afzaal at second slip. Upul Chandana was run out by a direct hit from Strauss attempting to get off the mark. Dean then accounted for Prasanna Jayawardene, who edged a straightforward catch to Read.Simon Jones, included in England’s 13-man squad for the Old Trafford Test, struck in his third over when Thilan Samaraweera was caught at short leg by Dawson. The tourists slipped to 57 for eight when Eric Upashantha, on eight, was caught behind cutting at Jones.Only Aravinda de Silva, with an unbeaten 54 (49 balls, three sixes, five fours), provided real resistance. He put on 59 with Dilhara Fernando before the latter was caught behind, and off-spinner Dawson finished the innings by having last man Perera caught by Jones at deep backward point.On the upside for the tourists, Sri Lanka manager Chandra Schaffter says their star bowler, Muttiah Muralitharan, is continuing to recover from his shoulder injury.”He’s much better than he was, but he’s a long way from being 100% fit, and the final decision depends on him,” Schaffter said. “I cannot say he will definitely play. If the Test was tomorrow he’d certainly be very keen to play.”Asked whether Sri Lanka would raise their game at Manchester, Schaffter said: “I think it will be difficult to perform much worse than we did atEdgbaston. I’m very confident we can do much better and I’m looking to contain England a little bit more than we did at Edgbaston.”Players sometimes relax and don’t take these matches too seriously. We didnot do too well in any of the county games, by and large, and we can’t take theresults of these matches as a serious indication as to how we will perform.”

While only just over ten overs were possible on the first day, the second made up for lost time with the loss of 14 wickets, and Hampshire on the receiving end of a dismal batting collapse to boot.The home side crashed to a close-of-play 88-6, still requiring nine to avoid the follow-on, a target which seemed a long way off when half the side were back in the pavilion with only 46 on the board.It followed a rearguard from Sussex, led by Robin Martin-Jenkins, whose undefeated 80 and three wickets has put his side in command.His innings, coupled with Tim Ambrose (49) and Michael Yardy (34), steadied the Sussex ship when the wickets tumbled, almost exclusively to spinner Shaun Udal, who claimed his best figures of the season in a match he was due to miss through ankle surgery.Sussex were comfortably moving along, although slowly, at 158-4 when he, in harness with Alan Mullally began to make inroads.Udal claimed Yardy while Mullally picked up Ambrose to release the lower order and the spinner got to work by knocking over four of the last five wickets, finishing with 5-56 from 24.4 overs.However, Martin-Jenkins stood firm to shepherd the tail to 246 all out, adding small but, what could prove, significant partnerships with the lower order.And he cut through the Hampshire batting order when he turned his hand to bowling, ripping out three of the six wickets to fall in the after-tea session.Derek Kenway was trapped in front, John Crawley shouldered arms and was bowled while Neil Johnson cut a wide delivery to point where Kevin Innes comfortably accepted the catch.Hampshire’s wretched run of opening partnerships, which has yielded a best this season of just 43, was not improved this time around either. Will Kendall received the finger from umpire George Sharp when Jason Lewry had him leg before.Billy Taylor, who plays his club cricket for Winchester squeezed one through Robin Smith’s defences, leaving Hampshire on a precarious 46-5 and when Taylor induced an edge from Nic Pothas’ bat to keeper Matt Prior, it left the home side 60-6.However, some sensible batting from Giles White and a more typically attacking 19 not out from Dimitri Mascarenhas saved the situation and edged Hampshire towards respectability at 88-6.But the weather, which is forecast to be poor for the next couple of days, may have the final say in the proceedings.

Almost 180 people attended the Launch Lunch for Rob Turner’s Benefit Year which was held in the Colin Atkinson Pavilion at Taunton earlier today.As guests made their way to the pavilion they couldn’t help feeling that the new season was just around the corner with the smell of new mown grass in the air and the square and outfield looking almost dry enough to play upon.Master of Ceremonies Malcolm Kennedy greeted guests and said that he felt it was entirely appropriate that the Queen’s Golden Jubilee should coincide with Rob Turner’s Benefit, and that the large number who had attended the lunch had got his year off to a flying start.Amanda Barrie, who for many years played the part of Alma Baldwin in television’s longest running soap Coronation Street, told all those present that until last season she had always been a football fan, supporting Manchester City.However Amanda had been converted to cricket after going to the Lord’s final in September 2001 and watching Rob Turner take the skied catch that put the Cidermen on the road to victory.”From that time I was hooked, totally hooked, and now I’m a Somerset supporter,” she told everybody present.The main speaker at the lunch was Lord King of Bridgwater, who paid tribute to the contribution that Rob had made to cricket and to his dedication to Somerset.”It is a pleasure to support a Somerset stalwart and a very talented cricketer,” King said.Lord King recalled that the first match that he had seen was between Somerset and Gloucestershire and had involved Arthur Wellard, Harold Gimblett and Horace Hazell and Wally Hammond.The former Bridgwater MP said that over the years he had seen a number of wicket-keepers play for the county, and that Rob was following in the great tradition of Somerset keepers. He was certainly the tallest and probably one of the best that Somerset had ever produced.In reply, Rob Turner said that he felt that his time at the club had flown by. He too recalled the Lord’s final of 2001 and said that he had a dream that he would one day win silverware with Somerset and last year that dream had come true.He concluded by thanking everybody for their support and saying that the mood in the camp was very postive and that “the victory last season was just the start of things to come.”The luncheon concluded with an auction of cricketing memorabilia, including a stump from the 2001 Cheltenham and Gloucester final that sold for £700, and a raffle.The next event in Rob’b Benefit Year is a Golf Day at Teignmouth Golf Club on April 18th, details of which can be obtained from Doreen Barnes on 01455 230489.

The wet weather has wrecked the first round stage of the Premier League’s Southern Electric Contracting Cup, with only two ties surviving the rain.Old Tauntonians & Romsey and Winchester KS won their matches against New Milton and Flamingo, respectively.With Ian Tulk (64) and Mike Trodd (57 not out) to the fore, OTs put the New Milton attack to the sword at Ashley.OTs totalled 177-4 before restricting New Milton to 135-9 (Jeremy Ord 3-15).Jimmy Taylor cracked 90 as WKS ran up a formidable 175-4 before reducing Flamingo to 87-5.Eight first round ties are still to be played : Alton v St Cross Symondians, BAT Sports v Sparsholt, Burridge v Waterlooville, Calmore Sports v Hursley Park, Paultons v Easton & Martyr Worthy, Portsmouth v United Services, Purbrook v Liphook & Ripsley, South Wilts v Leckford.

Durham’s Paul Collingwood made 59 not out to leave his side 276 in front with four wickets standing going into the final day of their match against Gloucestershire at Chester-le-Street.Whether Durham will consider that enough for a declaration will depend partly on the weather after they were unable to start today until 2.15 because of the lightest of drizzle.Resuming on 104 for two in their second innings, Durham lost three wickets in mid-afternoon and added only 46 runs in 33 overs during the session against some tight bowling.Having reached 63 with the minimum of fuss on Saturday, Queenslander Martin Love repeatedly hit the fielders with well-struck shots and added only four before he was out in the day’s 14th over.He lobbed a catch to extra cover off fellow Australian Ian Harvey, then Jimmy Daley, who shared a third wicket stand of 66, perished without addition, edging Jon Lewis to Mark Alleyne behind the stumps.When Nick Speak steered James Averis straight to second slip it was left to Danny Law to prevent a collapse.Following his first innings duck he played himself in carefully and contributed 24 to a stand of 50 before offering Mike Smith a return catch.Wicketkeeper Andrew Pratt helped Collingwood forge another half-century partnership, with the latter reaching his 50 by driving Harvey through the covers for his fifth four.

Former Test opener Michael Slater today vowed to return to the highest level of cricket after his recall to captain New South Wales.Seven weeks after being dumped from the side, Slater will lead the Blues for the first time in their final Pura Cup match of the season against Tasmania in Hobart starting on Wednesday.Slater said he had benefitted from the on and off field dramas that had plagued him this season.”I’m a much stronger person for everything I’ve gone through,” Slater said.”It’s a case of getting back to the basics. I’ve known all along that I’m a good person.”I’ve played cricket with passion and a sheer love of the game and going through these tough periods, I’ve realised that I’m certainly not finished with playing cricket at the top level.”I’m going to do everything I possibly can to get back there and get back there smartly so I can fulfil the remainder of my goals in this game.”Slater was brought back to lead the NSW side in the absence of regular captain Shane Lee who was ruled out with a knee injury.The other obvious captaincy candidate, Michael Bevan, was unavailable as he’s preparing to join the Australian one-day side in South Africa.The other changes to the Blues from the team which drew with Queensland at the SCG last week saw batsmen Phil Jaques and Vaughan Williams come in andbatting allrounder Mark Higgs dropped.The Blues are in last place in the Pura Cup competition.

A team led by former Sri Lankan captain Sanath Jayasuriya and managed by former West Indian batsman Alvin Kallicharan has arrived in Karachi on Thursday afternoon. The international XI team will play two exhibition Twenty20 matches against a Pakistan Stars XI at National Stadium in Karachi this weekend, ending a near four-year drought of international cricket in the country.Several other players including batsman Ricardo Powell, fast bowlers Jermaine Lawson and Adam Sanford from West Indies, and Andre Nel and Nantie Hayward from South Africa landed earlier in the morning. South Africa allrounder Justin Kemp has withdrawn due to his domestic cricket commitments while two Afghanistan players – Shapoor Zadran and Mohammad Shahzad – will reach Karachi tomorrow from Kabul.”I am happy to be part of these matches,” Jayasuriya said on his arrival. “It depends on country to country [whether teams tour Pakistan] but in my opinion Pakistan is a safe country. The incidents of Lahore [attacks on the Sri Lanka team in 2009] were not the best thing to have happened and the suspension of cricket in Pakistan is very unfortunate because the people love the game here.”The games are unofficial and are arranged by the Sindh sports minister Dr Mohammad Ali Shah. The PCB has issued No Objection Certificates to the contracted players due to participate and has allowed the use of the National Stadium, but all the logistic arrangements, broadcasting deals and security arrangements were made by Shah with the support of the local government in Karachi.Since the terror attack on the Sri Lanka team bus during a Test match in Lahore in March 2009, Pakistan have been forced to hold its international matches away from home and also lost hosting rights of the 2009 Champions Trophy and 2011 World Cup. A move to stage a tournament with international faces might prove a small stepping stone for the revival of international cricket in the country.Kallicharan was enthusiastic about cricket returning to Pakistan. “I came here way back in 1972 to raise funds for flood victims and this time it’s another noble cause: promotion of cricket in Pakistan,” he said. “I think they [other countries] will have to have a look. With the success of these matches a good message will go out. Pakistan is a part of world cricket and we are here to show that Pakistan is a place to play cricket.”The plan isn’t entirely sanctioned by the PCB and the ICC ,and the organiser was forced to change the name of the teams to remove any association with the two boards as the matches hold no official status.Powell, who has played 109 ODIs, hoped the series would change perceptions about Pakistan. “Its feel good [to be here in Pakistan],” he said. “Its a great opportunity for the players to come here and really exhibit their skills, I think its about time that world cricket returns to Pakistan.”Twenty20 is the most exciting form of the game that you have right now and the teams are here to really enjoy themselves. Lots of good players are here, lots of guys from South Africa as well and lots of other players from other parts of the world, and I’m sure it will be a great weekend and we will see some good cricket.”The teams are staying at the Sheraton hotel, with extensive security of around 5000 policemen, claimed the provisional sports minister. The team will have a practice session on Friday at Karachi Gymkhana Ground.

The expected keen tussle for the all important first innings fizzled out and North Zone ultimately took the Vijay Hazare Trophy (under-16) title with a degree of comfort on the third and final day at the RSI ground in Bangalore on Saturday.When East Zone resumed their first innings on 219 for three in reply to North Zone’s 491, the stage seemed set for a battle royal for the first innings lead which would almost certainly decide the fate of the trophy. Much of course depended on Ajay Garai who was batting on 66. He and the other overnight batsman A Iqbal took the score to 286 and things were hotting up. But then Iqbal was out for 47. He faced 106 balls and hit five of them to the ropes.The fourth wicket partnership between Garai and Iqbal was worth 97 runs off33.4 overs.Iqbal’s dismissal triggered a collapse as A Sharma and A Juno brought the innings to a swift end. Garai was fifth out for 89. He faced 252 balls and hit 12 fours. Thereafter Ajith Kumar Singh scored a valuable 30 off 71 balls with four hits to the fence. But Sharma and Judo cut through the tail. East Zone lost their last five wickets for the addition of only five runs as theyslid dramatically from 324 for five to 329 all out. Sharma finished with four for 87 overs while Juno took three for 46.With the trophy in their pocket, North Zone stretched their lead of 90 runs to an overall 356 by scoring 266 for four wickets off just 47.1 overs in the second innings. Openers V Bhalla (67) and R Arora (71) put on 129 runs off 22.5 overs and D Soni (54) and P Dogra (45) also batted with gay abandon before the match was called off after 9.1 mandatory overs had been bowled.

After finding out belatedly that they were playing at the Reliance Stadium – and not at the usual first-class venue, the Moti Bagh Stadium – in their semi-final against Baroda, Karnataka appeared to have been dealt a blow when captain Vinay Kumar did not bowl a single delivery during a three-hour plus morning practice session. Vinay was having a fever and a cold, but his team expected him to be available for the game starting tomorrow.”The good thing about Vinay is that mentally, he is very strong. You can always back him to pick himself up and perform when it is required, and I am more than confident that he will play tomorrow,” Sanath Kumar, the Karnataka coach, said.While Vinay’s fitness is a slight worry on the eve of the match, what has bothered Karnataka throughout the season is the tendency of their talented batsmen to fritter away starts. Amit Verma, currently fourth in the list of top run-getters for the tournament, is a case in point, having scored seven half-centuries and only one century. Sanath was optimistic that the time spent in nets would translate into big runs in the middle. “We have had issues with the batting throughout the season. But we have worked very hard recently on overcoming them, and hopefully should be able to do well.”The opening combination has been steady at best, has struggled to provide substantial starts, and averages under 30 in the crucial first innings. However, since Robin Uthappa moved to the top of the order, the returns have improved. “Robin is now opening regularly, and will continue to do that,” Sanath said.The form of middle-order batsman Ganesh Satish, though, has been a concern. He averages 27.36 in seven games, which includes an unbeaten 100, and also a pair in the quarter-final against Madhya Pradesh. Sanath hinted Satish might be replaced. “We are considering an additional spin option, either in Udit Patel or Sunil Raju.” Both are offspinners who can bat, but Sanath didn’t think this would weaken the batting line-up.Sanath also did not think that the absence of Yusuf Pathan and Munaf Patel in the Baroda camp makes much of a difference. Both players are part of India’s limited-overs squad, and will miss the game as they have to leave for South Africa. “See, we cannot be concerned about who is or is not playing for the opposition. And in the semi-finals, you have to play well against whatever opposition you come up with. If Yusuf and Munaf had played, would we have had any choice but to go out and give our best? It remains the same in their absence.”Karnataka bear a more settled look, both in batting and in bowling, and Sanath was confident that his attack of Vinay, Abhimanyu Mithun, S Aravind and Sunil Joshi could do the trick on a surface expected to favour the batsmen. “It looks to be a dry wicket. We have confidence in our bowling attack; it has worked for us throughout the season.”The side had a prolonged nets session, which continued well after Baroda had finished practice. All the batsmen got decent stints, and Manish Pandey even sent a couple of reporters – including this one – scurrying for cover as he lofted the spinners out of the nets, over the low-lying spectators’ stand, and into the playing arena.