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This is not an issue worth agonising over. At a time when Caribbean societies are grappling with matters affecting the quality of life in our very small countries, engaging in heated arguments over the captaincy of the West Indies cricket team is both irrelevant, unnecessary and a complete waste of time and energy that should instead be devoted to finding solutions for the real problems of crime, violence, the rising cost of living and entrenched social inequalities.To cut a long story short, Chris Gayle, once fully recovered from his injuries sustained in southern Africa, should be confirmed to lead West Indies in the upcoming home series against Sri Lanka and Australia. Full stop. We don’t even need to have one of those bigging up-type letters of congratulation from the West Indies Cricket Board president.Just send out the press release confirming the appointment and spare us the mamaguile lyrics. Yes, there is a process to be followed, but if the selectors choose not to recommend Gayle after considering the manager’s and coach’s reports from the just-concluded tour, then Gordon Greenidge and his colleagues better just go and find something else to do.Likewise, should the WICB directors or executive or whichever relevant arm of this complicated organisation decide not to ratify that recommendation, it will merely confirm long-held suspicions that horse trading and settling scores are higher on their list of priorities than the best interests of West Indies cricket.None of this should be misconstrued as an attempt to elevate the 28-year-old Jamaican to the status of a Sir Frank Worrell (apologies to Julian Hunte, who, in one of his buttering up specials to Clive Lloyd, described the current team manager as the greatest West Indian captain ever). It’s just that the evidence in South Africa was blindingly obvious that Gayle, for whatever reason, has been capable of uniting the team and getting them to play with a greater level of commitment and consistency than has been seen in recent times.Of course, as with most issues in the public domain, merit and performance don’t count for much. It’s just about like or don’t like, based almost entirely on prejudices and perceived injustices.So the pretentious debate implies that some heinous injustice will be meted out to Ramnaresh Sarwan should he be overlooked for the captaincy in favour of this troublemaking Jamaican with no manners. To claim that race (we just can’t get away from it, can we?) has nothing to do with the issue is a blatant, unadulterated lie. As we see in our politics, we are still some distance away from reaching the level of societal maturity where the majority view is influenced primarily by performance on the job.But then we are not alone in that regard. Just wait until either Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton is confirmed as the Democratic Party’s candidate for the office of President of the United States and watch how all the colour or gender biases will come to the surface in the land of the free and the home of the brave.

There are also those who try to mask their true feelings with the disingenuous claim that Sarwan is the incumbent as captain and only missed out on the tour of Zimbabwe and South Africa because of injury.Again, this ignores the reality that the WICB has always made such appointments on a tour-by-tour or series-by-series basis, at least since those bad old days when leadership was based on which territory the Test match was being played.In any case, what is the big hasikara about acknowledging that Gayle, for all of his many failings and occasional brushes with authority, has exceeded expectations as a leader? Is it so unbearable to concede that the hard-hitting left-handed opener, who always seems to be in a world of his own on the field, is actually well respected by his team-mates and therefore able to get his message across very effectively?As for the contention that this is tantamount to rewarding bad behaviour, just keep in mind that the very same was said at certain times during the careers of Worrell, Lloyd, Lara and almost every captain of note we have ever had. One man’s insubordination is another man’s refusal to accept stupidness, and it’s only with the passage of time that the true picture emerges.The point is that no decision is ever made in West Indies cricket with the benefit of universal acceptability. You do this, and one group feels slighted. You do that, and another segment starts to kick brass.So it’s up to the people in the decision-making positions to have the strength of their convictions, whatever the consequences, and be guided by the fundamental principle of seeking the best interests of the regional game.The perpetual state of flux that is the WICB suggests that such people are in critically short supply. Then again, the same can be said of most of our parliaments.Chris Gayle may ultimately prove to be a complete failure as captain, widening already existing divisions within the ranks and maybe even accelerating the decline into irrelevance. Yet all of that is speculation and supposition. What is fact is the noticeably different attitude and determination of the entire team (not just the Jamaicans) when he is at the helm.Just confirm the man as captain and let’s move on to the real issues of the day.

The Delhi & Districts Cricket Association (DDCA), during an internal meeting today, has formed 10 sub-committees that will work under court-appointed observer, former Justice Mukul Mudgal, in regards to the organisation of the fourth Test between India and South Africa. Justice Mudgal will be going to the Feroz Shah Kotla at 11am on Saturday morning for his first meeting with senior DDCA officials.”Today we have formed the 10 sub-committees that will be working for the smooth conduct of the Test match. Each committee will have a chairman and also have three-four members,” DDCA treasurer Ravinder Manchanda told PTI. “Tomorrow Justice Mudgal will be coming to Kotla for inspection and first meeting with the officials. We have asked all our executive committee members to be present.”However Manchanda said that they are yet to finalise the names of the members in each committee. “We will fill up the names by tomorrow. We will need tosee what Justice Mudgal advises,” he said. “We will certainly obey and follow his instructions.”

Double impact
One of Sreesanth’s gifts as a fast bowler is his ability to move the ball both ways and he showed off his skill with great effect in the first over of the match. He seamed the first two balls away from Wasim Jaffer, brought the third back into the right-hander, and then took the fourth away once again. The mixture left Jaffer addled and he poked inside the line at the fifth delivery, which moved away from him and took the outside edge to the wicketkeeper. Cameron White was perhaps expecting an outswinger the very next ball and drove away from his body, Sreesanth threaded the bat-pad gap with the inswinger and uprooted middle stump.Not quite Jonty
Both teams were abject in the field today with several lapses resulting in boundaries but there was one offender who stood out prominently. Punjab’s VRV Singh began the match with two poor throws from the deep, one of which conceded overthrows, but his fielding was about to get much worse. Later on he let a cut from Dravid slip past him at short third man, a lapse which prompted Yuvraj Singh to move him to short fine leg. Later in the over a leg side delivery slipped past the wicketkeeper and VRV was unable to run quickly enough to save the boundary.Communication breakdown
A seaming pitch and two early wickets meant that the situation was tailor-made for the steady styles of Jacques Kallis and Rahul Dravid. While Dravid responded with a gritty innings, Kallis was a victim of an awful mix-up. He was sent back to the non-striker’s end by Virat Kohli after he had nearly completed the single and was hopelessly stranded.Duck hunting
There were as many as five zeroes in Bangalore’s innings. The first three wickets were all ducks – Jaffer and White falling off successive deliveries before Kallis was also run out before he could score. Praveen Kumar was the next duck, edging his second ball off Piyush Chawla to Uday Kaul while Zaheer Khan lasted one delivery, getting bowled through the gate a Chawla googly.Many times bitten, never shy
Ramnaresh Sarwan has lost his wicket several times in the past – in Tests and ODIs – to the miscued hook or pull. Today he resisted the urge when Praveen Kumar bounced him the first time and just about managed to sway out of the way. When faced with a second bouncer the very next ball, Sarwan went for it, aiming for the deep-square leg boundary. He didn’t get on top of the bounce and edged a catch to the wicketkeeper.A fitting end
One run to win, several balls remaining and Anil Kumble ends Bangalore’s misery with a wayward delivery down leg side. It summed up his, and Bangalore’s, night. Kumble had begun well, conceding three off his first over but finished with 0 for 36 off 3.2. Bangalore were shoddy in all departments: they failed to assess the conditions quickly while batting, ran shoddily between the wickets, and bowled and fielded poorly while defending a below-par total.

Scorecard

Aaron Redmond completed an impressive build-up to the first Test against England with 64 to go alongside his first-innings 146 as the New Zealanders secured a draw against England Lions at The Rose Bowl. Redmond added 150 with Jamie How before Adil Rashid caused a brief flutter with three quick wickets.Robert Key declared to leave a target of 368 off 75 overs, but that was never really in the equation. Unlike in the first innings the Lions attack couldn’t make any inroads with the new ball as Matthew Hoggard went wicketless in a six-over spell the day he was recalled to the England squad.Redmond and How made steady progress on an easy-paced pitch and the Lions quickly turned to the spin pair of Rashid and Graeme Swann. How’s 74 was an important innings after a duck in the first innings and two single-figure scores against Essex last week. Redmond, however, is striking form at just the right time with New Zealand’s top order set for a testing time at Lord’s.He reached his fifty with a slog-swept six off Swann and had time to complete a second century when he lofted Rashid to Hoggard. His wicket prompted a small stumble by the New Zealanders as Rashid enjoyed his most productive spell of the match. Rashid had How stumped before trapping Ross Taylor for a fourth-ball duck; Taylor’s four innings since arriving for the tour from the IPL have been 17, 4, 5 and 0.Despite the flurry of wickets there wasn’t time for the Lions to make a serious charge at victory, even though Chris Tremlett trapped James Marshall lbw shortly before the match ended. Key could have given his bowlers a few more overs to dismiss the tourists on a surface where runs only flowed quickly when Luke Wright was at the crease on the first day, and briefly on the final day when the Lions flung the bat. However, except when New Zealand took five wickets between lunch and tea on the opening day, wickets hadn’t fallen in a rush. With the England squad already named, the pace bowlers won’t have wanted to over-exert themselves with more Championship matches next week for their counties.Michael Carberry was able to resume his century following the early departure of Rashid in the morning session. He had to retire hurt on the third day after pulling up with severe cramp during the celebrations for his hundred, but he only added a further eight before being caught behind off Tim Southee. Swann flung the bat with good effect in his 41-ball 51 while Tremlett also added quick runs.The major positive to come out of the match for the New Zealanders is the performance of Redmond. The opening position has been a long-standing problem, but Redmond’s resilience suggests he won’t be pushover come the first Test and he has a good chance of surpassing his father’s one cap. Chris Martin also found some useful rhythm in both innings, but some of the other batsmen, notably Taylor, Daniel Flynn and Jacob Oram are short of time in the middle. There are also lingering concerns over Daniel Vettori’s finger, although the motivation of leading his team at Lord’s should allow him to overcome the pain barrier.

Mark Ramprakash has turned down an offer to join the Indian Premier League, according to a report in The Times.Ramprakash, whose contract with Surrey expires at the end of the 2009 season, was approached by the Rajasthan Royals to plug a two-week gap left by the late arrival of Graeme Smith but the move was rejected after consultation with county officials.”There are bound to be other approaches and not just to Mark,” Paul Sheldon, Surrey’s chief executive, told the newspaper. “We are looking at the possibility of 12-month contracts but we don’t want to prevent any of our players from extending their earnings out of season provided that offers come from officially sanctioned leagues and the dates do not conflict with commitments to Surrey.”We have to be open-minded. We are hoping that the IPL might take place in future in March or October, in which case the opportunities would obviously increase.”

England depart on Saturday for a two-month tour of New Zealand with their coach, Peter Moores, under pressure to reverse a recent run of poor results in Tests which has brought consecutive defeats against India and Sri Lanka. However, the first challenge is in the one-day format where England’s fortunes have taken a significant upturn during the last six months.Paul Collingwood, after an uncertain start to his captaincy tenure against West Indies, has presided over a 4-3 success against India and an even more impressive 3-2 victory in Sri Lanka and is a forming a promising team alongside Moores. The relationship appears to have settled more quickly than the Moores-Michael Vaughan axis in Tests.”I never saw myself having a honeymoon period as such because you are always under pressure to deliver when you are working with England,” Moores said. “To me, you work as hard as you can with the players at your disposal and you will be judged accordingly at the end of whatever time you’re given in the role.”To me the aim is always to try to build towards something that’s sustainable and that you can pass on to the next guy. Every time England plays is a challenge and we have to try to win, build momentum and keep moving forward.”On paper it’s the one-day side who have the tougher task on England’s second winter trip. New Zealand are in an even more uncertain phase than the visitors with doubts surrounding the future of Shane Bond. Despite this they remain a competitive one-day unit and on England’s last visit in 2001-02 took the series 3-2 in the final match.”New Zealand are a very competitive side who get stuck in and generally make the most of what they have,” added Moores. “On their own patch they can be pretty tough to play but if you didn’t expect to win there would be no point in playing and we expect to win both the one-day and Test series.”Although England’s one-day record is improving the team is still not entirely settled and two new faces are making this tour, James Tredwell, the Kent offspinning allrounder, and Tim Ambrose, the Warwickshire wicketkeeper. Tredwell replaces Monty Panesar who has been sent off to India to re-learn the art of flight and guile while Ambrose’s situation is an odd one.When he was named in both the one-day and Test squads, David Graveney – the now former chairman of selectors – said Ambrose was almost certain to start as the Test keeper, but will have to play second fiddle in the one-dayers to Phil Mustard who kept in all five ODIs against Sri Lanka. Graveney then added that if Mustard has an outstanding series he could stake his Test claims, so an unclear situation could be muddied further over the next month.The core of England’s team, though, remains the same and the quick bowlers – James Anderson, Ryan Sidebottom and Stuart Broad – will enjoy the conditions in New Zealand. The batsmen, too, who struggled on the sluggish surfaces of Sri Lanka, should find opportunities to cash in more accessible.England arrive in New Zealand on Monday before two warm-up matches against Canterbury on February 2 and 3. The first Twenty20 international is in Auckland on February 5 with the first ODI is in Wellington on the 9th.

Twice, the captain Mehedi Hasan Miraz got Bangladesh Under-19s back into the semi-final against West Indies Under-19s. But when he came to bowl his last over, with West Indies needing just eight runs off 18 balls, he was tasked with scripting a miracle. There was not to be any, as he gave away one run in his over, took the cap from the umpire and slowly walked towards Mohammad Saifuddin, who eventually conceded the winning runs.Mehedi was one of those Bangladesh players who did not sit down on the floor after Shamar Springer hit the match-winning four. Instead, he pulled a few of his team-mates to their feet, and when all of them were slowly walking towards the on-coming West Indies players to shake hands, the Shere Bangla National Stadium gave them a standing ovation.Mehedi had been the face of Bangladesh Under-19s side all tournament. His calmness under pressure, and his ability to bring the team out of trouble had touched one and all.From 88 for 4 with the set batsman Joyraz Sheik just dismissed, Bangladesh could have folded quickly, but Mehedi held on, adding 85 runs for the sixth wicket with Saifuddin. He rode out the pressure period and found a boundary whenever the West Indies bowlers tried to put together a cluster of dot balls. With the ball, Mehedi bore the brunt of Gidron Paul’s early bashing but kept himself on until he removed Pope in the seventh over.Bangladesh were still in the game at that stage, but it was not to be their day. Despite Mehedi’s 60 off 74 balls and the two early wickets, Bangladesh could not really find a way to beat West Indies. The crux of the trouble was not the West Indies fast bowlers’ early verve, but the way the hosts only made 30 runs in the last five overs and lost four wickets, including those of Mehedi and Saifuddin, before the pair could start the final assault.Mehedi later said that 20 more runs towards the end of their innings would have made the difference, though he stood by the decision to bat first.”The wicket was slow. We don’t play under pressure at this level of cricket,” he said. “We thought if we score 240-250, it would be difficult for any opposition. We were short by 20 runs. When Saifuddin and I got out at that time, the runs dropped down. That’s where it went wrong for us. If I was there till the end, we could have reached 250. We had to take risk as we had six wickets in hand in the last five overs. We went behind the eight-ball as soon as Saifuddin got out the next ball to my dismissal.”Mehedi rued the extra runs mainly because of the way Saifuddin kept bowling those yorkers. He was proud of how Saifuddin kept Bangladesh in the game with his yorkers but realised that unless the West Indies batsmen went after him, they would not be effective. “He does bowl good yorkers but since we were defending a low total, it wasn’t working because they were not trying to go after him.”Their attacking start reduced the pressure that was on them at the start of the chase. Had the spinners bowled better, we would have stopped them,” he said.Mehedi said that his team learned how to handle pressure at a young age, particularly playing in front of a large crowd and handling expectations. “As much as we say there’s no pressure, there is some at the U19 level. We never played in front of such a big crowd.”We had the pressure from the expectation that we have to win the semi-final. We are still very young. We have to manage all this, and now that we have seen such situations, played in front big crowds, we will manage it well next time.”Mehedi’s side may have been the first from Bangladesh to reach the last four of the competition, but he hoped that the team would improve even further in the next World Cup.”The third-place match is also important as it would mean we would be among the top five Test-playing nations in this competition. Mushfiq bhai’s team were fifth, and after us, the next generation can better our result.”

Scorecard

New Zealand need only one victory from the remaining two matches of the Rose Bowl after Nicola Browne’s unbeaten 59 guided them to a five-wicket win and a 2-1 lead over Australia. In a contest where both top orders struggled on the Lincoln surface, it was the home team’s fine recovery that sealed the success in the 43rd over and put them in sight of their first triumph in the series since 1999.In trouble at 36 for 3 chasing the visitors’ 170, New Zealand relied on the rescue act from Sara McGlashan and Browne, whose partnership of 100 eliminated any doubts of defeat. McGlashan left on 41 when she became Shelley Nitschke’s second victim, but Browne stayed till the end, hitting five boundaries during her 93-ball innings.Australia won the toss, batted and soon wished they had bowled after dropping to 24 for 5, including two run-outs in the first five balls. Ellyse Perry, the 17-year-old allrounder, picked the perfect time to score her maiden international half-century and combined in important stands of 40 with Jodie Purves (21) and 80 with the wicketkeeper Leonie Coleman. They were the only Australians to reach double figures, with Coleman’s career-high 44 off 42 balls and Perry’s 51 allowing them to reach a useful but below-par total.”Our batting let us down again and losing five early wickets was obviously not ideal,” Karen Rolton, the Australia captain, said. “However, Jodie and Ellyse did really well to get the innings going and Leonie was great.”When we had them at 3 for 36 we were in with a chance, but they batted too well. We’re having a bit of trouble getting Nicola Browne out at the moment. Down 2-1 in the series, we know exactly what we need to do in the last two matches, so we’ll be looking to improve the batting on Saturday to give ourselves a chance.”New Zealand also benefited from strong fielding and the confusion of their opponents as they gathered five run-outs in Australia’s innings, which ended when Perry was bowled by Sophie Devine. Devine finished with 2 for 33 while Helen Watson, who gave up 11 runs from her ten overs, Rachel Candy and Sarah Tsukigawa each collected a wicket.

Min Patel, the former England left-arm spinner, has announced his retirement from first-class cricket after an 19-year career with Kent.Patel made his debut in 1989 and finishes with 630 first-class wickets and 3945 runs alongside 88 one-day scalps. His two England caps came against India in 1996 at Edgbaston and Trent Bridge but he struggled to make an impact and claimed one wicket. He also toured India with England A in 1995 but was troubled by a series of injuries and he played just a single Championship match in 2007.”It has been an honour to represent Kent for the best part of 20 years,” said Patel. “While I feel mentally capable of carrying on, the body has said that ‘enough is enough’.”I would like to thank the whole of the organisation for their support. I wish Rob Key and his team continued success on the field and hope they build on a terrific 2007, and to Graham Johnson and his team on their goal of taking Kent to new heights off the field.”Key paid tribute to Patel’s efforts over the years: “Min has been ever present in the Kent side since I joined the club,” he said. “He has been an inspiration to others throughout his career and there are many cricketers within Kent and beyond who have benefited from his knowledge and advice.”Graham Johnson, Kent’s chairman of cricket, added: “I would like to pay tribute on behalf of everyone who supports Kent cricket to the contribution Min Patel has made over his career. He has been a top-class spinner, very handy batsman and a shrewd tactician who has played at the highest level.”But for some serious injuries I am sure he would have had more opportunities to play for his country. The way he overcame his injuries and his approach to the game are testament to his character and his love of the game.”

Match facts

January 15, 2016
Start time 1900 local (0600 GMT)1:42

Pakistan’s well-rounded pace attack could pose New Zealand with a sterner test as both teams would look to fine-tune their preparations for the World T20

Big Picture

New Zealand have batsmen in a record-breaking mood. Pakistan are hoping reignite their T20 game after losses against England. There is a World T20 in two months. But none of this is as compelling as the return of one of cricket’s exiles. Friday will mark a major step in Mohammad Amir’s quest for redemption.Every no-ball he delivers over the next few years will probably bring to mind that infamous second day at Lord’s, in 2010. But he seems a little more mature now. In this recent interview, Amir spoke of having a fast bowler’s anger “in the blood”, yet of having accepted the fact that even his team-mates have a right to express displeasure at his inclusion. He spoke of “learning about life” during tough times, and of wanting to convince his critics, and win over fans.Most of all, he spoke of having changed, only, let us hope that does not extend to his bowling. He had been one of the world’s most absorbing talents during his brief pre-fixing career. Pakistan fans will remember sublime Test spells in England, in Leeds against Australia, and at The Oval against England. Or his superb use of the short ball in the first over of the 2009 World T20 final, where tournament top-scorer Tillakaratne Dilshan was first subdued, then overcome. In a brush with top-level T20 cricket at the Bangladesh Premier League in November, the skill in Amir’s wrist, and the rhythm in his legs seemed not to have deserted him. Unlike the many volcanoes in Auckland’s city limits, Amir’s dormant days are finally over.There are trials to come, beyond the fast bowler’s usual plight of having to stay fit and take wickets. A major tour of England in the middle of the year promises to be a media circus, and on that front at least, New Zealand has been a relatively relaxed place in which to begin his reintegration. Maybe when he starts to bowl again, if he bowls just like he used to, cricket may find it easier to forgive him.

Form guide

(last five matches, most recent first)

 New Zealand: WWWLW
Pakistan: LLLWW

In the spotlight

Corey Anderson is still playing as a specialist batsman as he continues to recover from back injury, but he has been handed a new role with the bat. Moved up to no. 4 in the order, he is now charged with batting freely, and maintaining the top order’s momentum, as Ross Taylor – when he plays – is expected to provide insurance at no. 5 . Anderson is an increasingly versatile player, but his progress in an unfamiliar role in this series may determine whether New Zealand stick with this top order combination for the World T20.With Umar Gul having had injury problems, and played only one T20 in the past year, Wahab Riaz appears the de-facto leader of the Pakistan attack. He had had a southern summer of resurgence last time he was in these climes, taking 16 wickets at 23 at the World Cup. One of his better spells had come at Eden Park, during Pakistan’s fervent defence of 232 against South Africa. It may be up to Wahab to set the example in bowling those slightly shorter lengths that are generally more successful at the venue.

Teams news

Legspinner Todd Astle would prefer to make his T20 debut in a larger ground, but he may play in the team over Mitchell Santner, whom New Zealand have already had a look at. Matt Henry, Adam Milne, Mitchell McClenaghan and Trent Boult are also playing for three spots between them. Tom Latham may play for the rested Ross Taylor.New Zealand (probable): 1 Kane Williamson (capt), 2 Martin Guptill, 3 Colin Munro 4 Corey Anderson, 5 Tom Latham, 6 Grant Elliott, 7 Luke Ronchi (wk), 8 Todd Astle, 9 Matt Henry, 10 Mitchell McClenaghan, 11 Trent BoultAnwar Ali and Gul are likely competing for one place. If Pakistan prefer experience, there’s little doubt as to who they would choose. Sohaib Maqsood was hit in the neck at training, but is expected to be fit to play.Pakistan (probable): 1 Ahmed Shehzad, 2 Mohammad Hafeez, 3 Sohaib Maqsood, 4 Shoaib Malik, 5 Umar Akmal, 6 Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), 7 Shahid Afridi (capt), 8 Imad Wasim, 9 Anwar Ali/Umar Gul, 10 Wahab Riaz, 11 Mohammad Amir

Pitch and conditions

The drop-in pitch at Eden Park is usually full of runs, but can turn, at times. The weather is expected to be dry, if a little cloudy, with temperatures around 20 degrees Celsius.

Stats and trivia

• Amir took 14 wickets at an average of 12.64 and an economy rate of 5.56 in the Bangladesh Premier League in November-December last year. He has 23 wickets in 18 T20 internationals.
• The first T20 at Mount Maunganui is the only occasion in which Corey Anderson has batted in the top four in 11 T20 innings.
• New Zealand have played 11 T20s at Eden Park, and won six of those games.

Quotes

“I would say you’d like 100-metre boundaries, but I guess that presents its own challenges. If you restrict you can create chances to take wickets. In this format you know anything is possible.”
“Before coming here we had a fitness camp as well, for a couple of weeks. Everybody worked really hard. If you have a hard fitness training camp, what it does is bring us all together. That’s important for any side. It helps to understand each other more. All the juniors and the seniors – it’s no different at the moment. We’re all pumped up and trying to give 100 per cent.”