Oram boost for New Zealand in must-win game

South Africa will look to continue their successful run against New Zealand with a win in the second ODI in Port Elizabeth. The hosts almost faltered during their run-chase in the first ODI in Durban but a win on Friday will give them an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.

Going by current form, South Africa are clear favourites and this is even without considering their record in day-night encounters at St. George's Park - eights win out of ten ODIs, with one no result.

The hosts will be boosted by the return of Herschelle Gibbs, who had missed the Twenty20 international and the first ODI with a knee injury. Gibbs' standby Morne van Wyk has been released from the squad to play for the Eagles in the SuperSport series.

The other dilemma facing the South African selectors surrounds their pace attack. New Zealand's batsmen were blown away by Dale Steyn during the two-Test series, and his inclusion in the playing XI could dent the tourists' confidence ahead of a must-win game.

Smith's opposition counterpart Daniel Vettori must be wondering what his team needs to do to beat this South African side. New Zealand's main worry through the Tests was the form of their batsmen, but after the Durban ODI, the team would be concerned over its bowling options as well, besides their poor catching, which Vettori highlighted as the main reason for the last-ball loss at Kingsmead.

Kyle Mills' 5 for 25 in Durban would have done Shane Bond proud but New Zealand could have done with some firepower at the other end - Mark Gillespie, Chris Martin, Scott Styris and Vettori conceded 220 runs and picked up three wickets.

Allrounder Jacob Oram will be a handy addition to the bowling department. Oram suffered a hamstring strain in the first Test, and Vettori indicated the team would play six bowlers.

"Jacob's probably the most important member of our team purely from the roles he fills, batting at number six and able to bowl 10 overs," Vettori told SuperCricket. "It's a luxury not many teams have and having him back means I can take six bowlers and we get a nice balance when he's playing."

Delhi Jets field in ICL opener

About 15 years ago Kiran Powar was a bigger name in Mumbai cricket than his brother Ramesh. A left-hand batsman with a wide array of strokes, Kiran struggled to break into a powerful Mumbai batting order and switched allegiance to other states. He spent a number of seasons in Assam and Goa, during which time he made many long journeys by bus, and often, considering hotels were too much of a luxury, even spent nights in one. Frequently, with reimbursement hard to come by, he paid his own travel expenses. He even wasn't compensated when he was hospitalised once.

Today Powar enjoys the comfort of the Taj hotel in Chandigarh. He shares the same dressing room as Brian Lara and Nathan Astle. When I speak to him, he's having lunch with Vikram Solanki, Johan van der Wath and Danny Redrup, a South African physio who is "showing me the sort of fitness a cricketer needs". For the first time in Powar's life he has a sense of security. "Tell me one reason why I shouldn't join the ICL" he challenges.

Powar's isn't an isolated case. The general mood among the Indian domestic players who have joined the ICL is one of disgruntlement. "Until today none of us had an option," says a player who was picked for India a couple of years ago. "Now we have someone to take care of us. Wait for some time and players will just rush in."

The BCCI's apathy is a sore point. A domestic veteran talks about a prominent state association. "They made a big din about introducing central contracts for players," he says. "Finally, we said, we've got some security. And they give us an annual contract of Rs 25,000 [US$ 500 approximately]. Is that any sort of money for a year?"

Even more frustrating has been the handling of injuries. Shalabh Srivatsava, an Under-19 star who went on to do well consistently for Uttar Pradesh, travelled to South Africa for an expensive surgery. He is still waiting to be reimbursed. Rakesh Patel, the Baroda fast bowler who was selected for the Indian one-day side recently, underwent a similar fate. "The biggest problem is we can't play when we're injured," says Powar. "It means no reimbursement and no match fees. How do you survive?"

Redrup chips in: "This is exactly how rugby used to be conducted in South Africa during the amateur days. But things changed with professionalism."

The situation with the coaching staff who have signed up with the ICL isn't too different. Erapalli Prasanna, the former India offspinner, who was with the BCCI's ill-fated spin wing had had enough of being ignored. "By sending me to Nagpur and to Kolkata for short periods, the NCA [National Cricket Academy] sent a clear message that I was not required. The other signal I got was that the BCCI wanted to get rid of me. The spin wing is finished."

Sandeep Patil, who is currently coaching the Mumbai Champs, echoes those views. ""I waited for the BCCI to give me a suitable job to serve Indian cricket. Twice I had written to the BCCI president, Sharad Pawar, expressing my interest to be a coach of the India A side. I was assured a two-year contract, but after waiting for almost one and a half years, nothing came of it."

Mohammad Yousuf to face arbitration hearing

Mohammad Yousuf, the Pakistan batsman who recently pulled out of the Indian Cricket League (ICL), is set to face an arbitration hearing in Mumbai on December 15. Yousuf had signed with the ICL in the wake of his omission from Pakistan's squad for the ICC World Twenty20 before cancelling his contract after talks with the Pakistan board.

Yousuf then signed a national contract as well as signing up to play in the India Premier League (IPL), a recognised league that is run by four different national boards and is approved by the ICC.

The organisers of the ICL insist he can't join the rival league (IPL). "It's an open and shut case as far as we're concerned," said Ashish Kaul, the executive vice-president of the Essel Group who are organisng the tournament, told Cricinfo. "The contract clearly says he can't play in any other professional league."

Meanwhile the Pakistan board, who convinced Yousuf to cancel his contract, have assured their full support. "We will fully defend Yousuf, if he is taken to court using all legal means," said Nasim Ashraf, the chairman of the PCB.

Besides Yousuf, all of the ICL's other Pakistani recruits have decided to honour their commitments with the league. The most prominent among them is the now retired Inzamam-ul-Haq, who despite having signed on with the ICL, was given an opportunity to make his exit from international cricket in the second Test against South Africa. The others in the ICL mix are Abdur Razzaq, Azhar Mahmood, Taufeeq Umar, Imran Farhat, and Shabbir Ahmed.

Vaughan keeps his cards close

England's team selection remains a closely guarded secret ahead of the first Test at Kandy, as Michael Vaughan weighs up his options on a wicket that, with 24 hours to go until the start of the match, already looks barer and drier than either of the captains had envisaged. Although Vaughan said that he was pretty clear in his own mind as to what the final composition would be, he refused to rule out any options, not even the inclusion of a second spinner in Graeme Swann.

"It's been a difficult decision," said Vaughan. "We came to the ground yesterday to see a wicket that's very green, and we've come to the ground today and found it's changed a fair bit. We've had a couple of long meetings about the final eleven, which proves we've got players in the squad who are pushing for places. It's been a hard decision but we're clearer about it now."

Kandy has long been earmarked as England's best opportunity for a victory in this series, given the cooler hilly conditions and the propensity for swing and seam, and Vaughan insisted that England were committed to selecting a side that would give them the best chance of taking 20 wickets in the match. On the subject of Swann's inclusion, he offered an enigmatic "maybe", and made light of the fact that he barely featured in England's two warm-ups.

"I think you can make too much of the warm-ups," said Vaughan. "A lot of the guys have just been on the one-day [tour], and so we all feel mentally ready and in good touch. It's just a matter of trying to groove those skills and make sure our mentality is right for Test match cricket. We need to work on our plans and strategies against all their unorthodox players."

The one man who does seem likely to sit out, despite another whole-hearted net session, is Steve Harmison, whose prospects have been in jeopardy ever since he suffered a back spasm during England's warm-up in Colombo last week. "He's available, and he bowled a hell of a lot yesterday," said Vaughan. "But it would be a slight risk as we saw him walk off having bowled ten or eleven overs in the last game.

"I think the pitch offered a bit more for the quicks yesterday," said Vaughan, as he added a further reason for Harmison's probable omission. "If you bowl well on any wicket, as a good seam bowler you can get something out of it. But I think looking at that pitch you're going to have to have all your skills available, and be very controlled. I guess that's one of the reasons why we've come to the eleven we have."

James Anderson, who was again lively in practice, has pushed his way up the pecking order since recovering from a bruised left ankle, and is the favourite to join Matthew Hoggard, Ryan Sidebottom and Monty Panesar in a four-man attack. There is a chance of a fifth bowling option if Ravi Bopara is handed a chance to make his debut at No. 6, but England seem wary of his inexperience in a top-order that - given the weakness of the lower order - simply has to fire first-time.

Zimbabwe strike after scoring 274

Fluent half-centuries by Chamu Chibhabha and Stuart Matsikenyeri, coupled with plenty of useful contributions down the order, lifted Zimbabwe to a challenging 274 for 8 in the first ODI of the five-match series at the Harare Sports Club.

Chris Gayle won the toss and put Zimbabwe in to bat in conditions that should have been favourable for fast bowling - the pitch had some moisture and offered seam movement and bounce. However, most of the bowlers struggled with their direction, spraying it wide of the stumps and often erring in length as well. Brendan Taylor started the onslaught with a 30-ball 27 and Matsikenyeri took charge at the death, smashing the bowlers to all parts as 81 runs came off the last nine overs.

The platform for that late charge was laid by a 90-run fourth-wicket partnership between Chibhabha and Hamilton Masakadza. Taylor's early blows ensured Zimbabwe had early runs on the board but his run-out, courtesy a direct hit from Shivnarine Chanderpaul, and the cheap dismissals of Vusi Sibanda and Tatenda Taibu saw Zimbabwe slump to 78 for 3.

Chibhabha rescued the innings with some sensible batting, knocking the ball into the gaps and crashing fours through cover and point whenever offered the width. Masakadza was a fine support act till he played across the line off Gayle and was trapped in front. Chibhabha had fallen attempting the sweep in Gayle's previous over but the presence of two new batsmen towards the end of the innings did little to halt the momentum, as Matsikenyeri and Chigumbura turned it on in style.

Both started by placing the ball away from fielders and running hard between the wickets. Gayle had conceded only 17 in his first four overs, but his last two went for 19, as each batsman clouted a six on the leg side.

There was no respite from the fast bowlers either, as Taylor repeatedly strayed down the leg side, allowing Matsikenyeri to strike successive fours in the 47th over. A stunning hit between his legs to the fine-leg boundary brought him his seventh ODI half-century, and though he fell soon after, he had done enough to ensure Zimbabwe had a challenging total on the board.

Majestic Jaffer puts India in command

Wasim Jaffer's bat sparkled brightest on a day of total dominance for India's batsmen, as they ground Pakistan into the Kolkata dust on the opening day of the second Test at Eden Gardens. Jaffer was undefeated on 192 when bad light ended play six overs early, but his fifth hundred was his most joyous yet. With support from Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar, he took India to 352 for 3.

For an ailing Pakistan, without their injured captain Shoaib Malik and hampered by a seriously unwell Shoaib Akhtar, it was, by some distance, one of their most dispiriting days in recent memory. Kamran Akmal led the way in the field with an untidy, fumble-ridden performance that included another dropped catch as their chances of winning this series ebbed away under a barrage of boundaries.

But their woes should not take away from a day that was lit up by the beauty of Jaffer. He is compact even on his worse days, and has real grace in his shots, but rarely has he put it all together at such pace. His back-foot punches through covers, the pulls and clips are well-appreciated, but rarely have they come in such quick succession, in such sustained bursts of boundary-hitting. If ever a batsman was in the zone, it was Jaffer at Eden Gardens on Friday.

He was gold from the very start, the early loss of his opening partner as much an inconvenience as a fly is to an elephant. No particular area of the ground was favoured over others and no particular shot over another: pulls, drives, punches, cut and clips were all played with that seductive upright elegance, elbows high, bat straight.

But if he favoured one bowler over another, it was probably Sohail Tanvir, to whom he showed no mercy. Having driven him arrow-straight early in the piece, he struck him for four fours in an over a little before lunch. Later in the afternoon, as India raced to their 200, he hit him for a hat-trick of fours. As the day neared its end, Jaffer continued doing so, mostly through the leg side as Tanvir's inexperience came out of the closet.

He was no less imposing, or elegant, against the legspin of Danish Kaneria, never more so than in the day's 49th over. In it, he reached his hundred with a push through the covers, before celebrating by clipping him twice in a row through midwicket for four.

So commanding did the shy-looking Jaffer become that his support - Dravid and Tendulkar - were mostly overshadowed in stands of 134 and 175 respectively. Dravid was more than willing to go unnoticed, putting together a studied fifty. He was brisk enough to begin, particularly against Kaneria, as he got caught in Jaffer's slipstream. But just as he was bedding himself in post-lunch, Billy Doctrove sent him back for a phantom edge: replays couldn't tell whether Akmal's take was worse or Doctrove's decision.

England secure warm-up win

Kevin Pietersen produced his first half-century of the tour and Alastair Cook continued his recent good form, as England wrapped up a morale-boosting victory over the Sri Lanka Board President's XI at Colombo. The pair combined in a third-wicket stand of 55, making 59 and 58 respectively, before Owais Shah and Matt Prior sealed the victory with a flurry of boundaries shortly after tea.

After their first-innings aberration, in which they lost three top-order wickets in six overs, England's batsmen seemed keen to make amends. Michael Vaughan, who fell for a duck first time around, made a brisk and stylish start, cracking four fours in his 32-ball 28, as England added 50 for the first wicket in only ten overs.

But Vaughan then suffered a lapse in concentration when the part-time medium-pacer Jehan Mubarak entered the attack - he steered his first delivery to Tillakaratne Dilshan in the gully. Ian Bell followed soon afterwards, completing a poor match by scooping Dilshan to deep mid-on for 6, and at 74 for 2 England were in danger of squandering a good start.

Cook, however, remained composed and was joined in the middle by Pietersen, who was unbeaten on 10 from 22 balls at lunch. After the interval, he began to find his timing and moments after Cook had brought up his half-century from 96 balls, Pietersen went down on one knee to reverse-sweep Dilshan for six.

Cook fell lbw to Mubarak as he missed a sweep for the second time in the match, and Pietersen didn't last much longer. He reached for a cut off Chamara Kapugedera and snicked a thin under-edge through to the keeper. That left Bopara and Shah in tandem, and each man produced some polished strokeplay - including a straight six for Bopara off Mubarak - as they attempted to force their way into the Test reckoning.

BCCI zeroes in on Gary Kirsten for coach

Gary Kirsten, the former South African opener, is the surprise front-runner to be India's next coach. While the Indian board said Kirsten was interviewed by the coach selection committee on Monday and a formal announcement on the new coach would be made in a week's time, senior officials were saying off the record that the appointment was a formality.

"It has been finalised," a senior board official told Cricinfo. "We just need some time to complete the formalities."

Kirsten told Cricinfo the matter was still at the discussion phase and he was yet to receive a formal contract. "But things should get sorted out relatively quickly either way."

One of the issues to be resolved, he said, was when he would be able to take charge. "Probably early next year. We are actually negotiating if I can join sometime during the Australia series."

There was some speculation that he would join the team for the Bangalore Test against Pakistan next week but he ruled that out. "That won't be possible," he said. "I have some long-standing commitments in South Africa that I need to honour. So, it's the question of when I'm going to begin at the moment"

Another key issue, Kirsten said, was his family's opinion. "The most important thing is family. As we are aware in international cricketing world you spend a lot of time away from home; I've got two young kids and it's a question of seeing them enough and to do the job the properly. That'll be the biggest issue and if we can get around that we can certainly move forward in the discussions. I've had a chat with with my wife already and we will take stock when I get back tomorrow, look at it from all avenues."

He said he was encouraged by the fact that the board took the initiative to approach him. "The most important thing was they approached me," Kirsten said. "I didn't approach them, so I suppose from that point of view one can be encouraged that they felt that there's something I could offer this team. And that gives me a tremendous sense of confidence to know that I've been backed to that amount or level."