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Ashes-winning captain Andrew Strauss, Australian fast bowler Mitchell Johnson and Indian opener Gautam Gambhir have all been shortlisted for both the ICC Cricketer of the Year and the Test Player of the Year awards. MS Dhoni rounds out the Cricketer of the Year nominees and is also in line for retaining the ODI Player of the Year title.Indian batsmen dominated the race for best ODI player, with Virender Sehwag and Yuvraj Singh also being nominated. West Indian batsman Shivnarine Chanderpaul is the other contender for the award.Sri Lankan batsman Thilan Samaraweera, who made 1067 runs at 82.07 during the period considered for the awards (August 13, 2008 and August 24, 2009), completes the line-up for Test Player of the Year.His team-mate Tillakaratne Dilshan didn’t make the cut for either Test player or ICC Cricketer awards but was nominated for his blistering 96 against West Indies in the semi-final of the World Twenty20. Another match-winning semi-final performance in that tournament, Shahid Afridi’s 51 off 34 balls and two wickets against South Africa, was also shortlisted.While Johnson, the spearhead of Australia’s bowling attack, is line for two major prizes, his support cast during the Ashes, Peter Siddle and Ben Hilfenhaus, are both in the running for the best Emerging player title.England’s all-conquering women’s side cornered two of the three slots for the Women’s Cricketer of the Year, with captain Charlotte Edwards and their leading batsman Claire Taylor making the cut.Netherlands allrounder Ryan ten Doeschate got his third straight nomination for the Best Associate and Affiliate Player of the Year, an award he won in 2008.Another familiar name in the nominees list is the Australian Simon Taufel, who has taken home the Umpire of the Year award for the past five years.The shortlist for the ICC’s sixth annual awards set for October 1 in Johannesburg, were chosen by a 25-member panel from the nominations announced earlier this month. The panel consists of former players, journalists and ICC officials.This year’s awards include eight individual prizes, as well as the Spirit of Cricket award for a team. Apart from this, the Test and ODI teams of the year will also be announced.

Uganda’s sporting authorities have confirmed rumours that six of the Under-19 side which participated in the World Cup Qualifier in Toronto are unaccounted for. The players were due to return home with the rest of the squad on Tuesday but it has emerged they have been missing for more than 72 hours.Latimer Mukasa, speaking on behalf of the Ugandan board, said the six – Ahmed Yakub, who is the captain, Emmanuel Nakaana, Geoffrey Nyero, Moses Okwera, Andrew Ochan and Ahmad Sangau – were reported missing by the team’s manager on Saturday.”We were informed that these players had run away,” Mukasa told Uganda’s New Vision newspaper. “[The manager] said the last he had seen them was on Friday night, around 11.30pm. When he woke up the following morning, the players were gone. At this moment, we don’t want to speculate about why they left. It could be all sorts of things – it is possible they were up to some mischief and they’ll be found.”However, despite Mukasa stating they “could turn up at any minute”, the revelation will draw parallels with the situation two years ago when two members of the Uganda side which had been competing in the World Cricket League in Australia absconded and subsequently claimed asylum. The pair have never returned home.The Canadian authorities were criticised in some quarters after Sierra Leone were unable to participate in the Qualifers as a result of their team’s visa applications not being able to be processed in time. With hindsight, their caution appears to have been justified.If it does turn out the six Uganda players have disappeared with the aim of avoiding returning home, they will have dealt a major blow to the dream of many young cricketers from developing countries to play abroad. Their actions can only increase the difficulties facing players from Associate and Affiliate countries in obtaining the necessary visas to enable them to participate in ICC events.

Ashish Bagai, the Canada captain, has signed a central contract with the national board and given up his banking job in Europe. Bagai was not part of the initial list of six players who signed contracts in June after failing to resolve compensation issues with Cricket Canada.The board formalised a deal with him on August 1 and now will have his services up to the 2011 World Cup. The 27-year-old Bagai, a wicketkeeper-batsman, has scored 1197 runs at 32.35 in 43 ODIs over the last six years.Canada’s next assignments are the Intercontinental Cup and three ODIs against Kenya later this month.

Ashes cricket will be heading to the North-East for the first time in 2013, after the England & Wales Cricket Board accepted the recommendation of the independent Major Match Group, and awarded Durham their first chance to host a Test match against Australia.The MMG, chaired by Lord Morris of Handsworth, also confirmed that The Oval would host Australia in four years’ time, as part of their long-term staging agreement, leaving the venues for the three other Ashes Tests, including Lord’s, still to be confirmed.Durham first staged Test cricket at Chester-le-Street in 2003, when Zimbabwe were the visitors, and England have never yet lost any of the four matches at the venue. Planning permission has recently been granted to complete the stadium which will have a capacity of 20,000 plus an on-site hotel and additional conference and banqueting facilities. As reigning County Champions, the decision is final recognition of the progress the county has made since gaining first-class status in 1992.”As well as producing a winning team it has also been a goal to bring an AshesTest match to the region and we’re delighted that North-East sports fanswill have the opportunity to watch the ultimate clash between Englandand Australia on their doorstep,” said David Harker, Durham’s chief executive. “Riverside has a renowned reputation for successfully hosting international fixtures and we can’t wait tobegin our preparations for our biggest game to date.”Durham’s chairman, Clive Leach, said: “There has been a great deal of work behind the scenes to ensure that Riverside continues to develop in order to maintain its position as a leading international cricket venue. For an Ashes Test match to be played at the Riverside will be a huge milestone for Durham County CricketClub and this achievement is testament to the hard work of all involved.”The MMG, which was deciding match allocations for the period 2010 to 2016, also awarded Durham a Test against Sri Lanka in 2016, while Hampshire’s Rose Bowl, which has been angling for recognition in recent years after being leapfrogged by Cardiff, has been given a high-profile Test against India in 2014, as part of a seven-match package including five ODIs and a T20I.”We are absolutely delighted with the decision from the MMG which we see as a ringing endorsement of our plans to become one of the best international cricket venues in world cricket,” said Hampshire’s chairman, Rod Bransgrove. “The package we received was our No. 1 choice and it leaves us in a very strong position to bid for other available matches in this period.”The allocations (not in match order)2010Bangladesh Tests Headingley
Bangladesh ODIs Bristol, Edgbaston, Trent BridgePakistan Tests Edgbaston, Lord’s, The Oval and Trent Bridge
Pakistan ODIs Chester-le-Street, Headingley, Lord’s, Rose Bowl, The OvalAustralia ODIs Cardiff, Old Trafford, Lord’s, Rose Bowl, The OvalDomestic Twenty20 finals Rose BowlTo allocate: Pakistan v Australia (2 Tests, 2 T20s); England v Bangladesh (1 Test), Pakistan (2 T20s)2011Sri Lanka Tests Cardiff, Lord’s, Rose Bowl
Sri Lanka ODIs Edgbaston, Headingley, Old Trafford, The Oval, Trent BridgeIndia Tests Edgbaston, Lord’s, The Oval, Trent Bridge
India ODIs Cardiff, Chester-le-Street, Lord’s, Rose Bowl, The OvalDomestic Twenty20 finals Chester-le-StreetTo allocate: T20 v Sri Lanka; T20 v India2012West Indies Tests Edgbaston, Trent Bridge
West Indies ODIs Cardiff, Headingley, The OvalSouth Africa Tests Headingley, The Oval
South Africa ODIs Cardiff, Rose Bowl, Trent BridgeSouth Africa T20 Old TraffordDomestic Twenty20 finals Lord’sTo allocate: Test and one T20 v West Indies; One Test v South Africa; five ODIs v Australia2013New Zealand Tests Headingley, Lord’s
New Zealand ODIs Rose Bowl, The OvalAustralia Tests Chester-le-Street, The Oval
Australia ODI Cardiff, Edgbaston, Headingley, Rose Bowl
Australia T20 Trent Bridge x 2To allocate: Three Tests and three ODIs v Australia; domestic T20 finals day.2014Sri Lanka Tests Cardiff, Headingley
Sri Lanka ODIs The Oval
Sri Lanka T20 Rose BowlIndia Tests Old Trafford, Rose Bowl, The Oval
India ODIs Cardiff, Edgbaston, Headingley, Trent BridgeDomestic Twenty20 finals EdgbastonTo allocate: One ODI v Sri Lanka; one Test, three ODIs and one T20 v India.2015New Zealand Tests Headingley
New Zealand ODIs Cardiff, Edgbaston, The OvalPakistan Tests Old Trafford, The Oval
Pakistan ODIs Edgbaston, Headingley, Rose Bowl, Trent BridgeDomestic Twenty20 finals DurhamTo allocate: One Test matches, two ODIs and one T20 v NZ; one T20 v Pakistan2016Sri Lanka Tests Chester-le-Street
Sri Lanka ODIs Rose Bowl, The OvalAustralia Tests Lord’s, The Oval
Australia T20 Cardiff , Trent BridgeDomestic Twenty20 finals EdgbastonTo allocate: One ODI v Sri Lanka; three Tests, four ODIs v Australia

Alfonso Thomas claimed 5 for 53 as Sussex suffered a poor day at Hove to give Somerset a great chance of consecutive Championship victories. Thomas demolished the top order as Sussex crashed to 9 for 3 when Michael Yardy drove to short mid-on. Matt Prior (58) and Ed Joyce (45) staged a recovery as they added 97 for the fourth wicket before Prior was brilliantly caught in the gully to give Thomas his fourth. Ed Joyce and Luke Wright both fell to loose shots – Wright becoming Thomas’ fifth wicket when he sliced to point – and despite some resistance from the lower Sussex conceded a lead of 170 although Justin Langer opted to bat again. Somerset had momentum from the start of the day when Peter Trego and Charl Willoughby flayed 53 in 5.2 overs as the final wicket added 69. Trego was left unbeaten on a season-best 92 when Willoughby was run out.Steven Davies hit a century on a rain hit second day between Worcestershire and Yorkshire at New Road. John Ward watched the actionMark Stoneman battled through an injury as Durham took on Warwickshire at Edgbaston. Click here for a full report.1st dayThere was no play on the opening day between Lancashire and Hampshireat Liverpool due to rain.

Graham Napier’s impressive return to county action continued as he and David Masters shared eight wickets to put Essex in full control against Kent at Tunbridge Wells. They already had one apiece overnight and it was Masters, against his former club, who made the early impression with the first three wickets to fall. The third of those, Darren Stevens, was bemused by a slower ball and spooned to cover. Napier then had Martin van Jaarsveld caught behind as the home side slumped to 50 for 6. Justin Kemp and James Tredwell managed to add 56 before Napier returned to shift both and the innings folded for 123. Despite a lead of 157, Essex declined to enforce the follow-on – no doubt after Kent came from behind to win the corresponding fixture in early May – and increased their advantage to 266 by the close. Alastair Cook fell for 30, but Varun Chopra was unbeaten on 38.Surrey strengthened their position further against Leicestershire in the 36 overs allowed by the weather building a lead of 52 with eight wickets still in hand at Grace Road. Michael Brown, dropped on 75, and Mark Ramprakash carried their second-wicket stand to 148 before the home side made a breakthrough when Harry Gurney shifted Ramprakash.Rain limited play to 15.2 overs at Cardiff, but Glamorgan made good use of the short period of action as they took three Northamptonshire wickets. James Harris claimed two, spilt by a strike for David Harrison when Stephen Peters edged to second slip.

Confrontation of the day
There’s something about seeing James Anderson at the crease that fires up Fidel Edwards. It all started in the Caribbean when Edwards gave Anderson a working over in Antigua when he was nightwatchman. The scenario was repeated here and a day’s break for rain did nothing to dim Edwards’ desire to pummel Anderson. The bowler was close to bursting when Denesh Ramdin missed a chance down the leg side, but only had himself to blame when a no-ball was edged to third slip. Edwards had plenty to say, while Anderson just stared back, but eventually he got his man when the ball cannoned off pad into the stumps. Edwards’ wrestling-style celebration was extravagant, while Anderson bit his lip as he walked off.Wicket of the day
Kevin Pietersen came into his innings on the back of a first-ball duck at Lord’s and for a while looked set to put that behind him in grand style as he made a blistering start. However, he was cut short on 49 when he skewed a wild drive to backward point against Sulieman Benn. That his demise came against a left-arm spinner shouldn’t come as a surprise – KP has real issues with them. Remember his battles against Yuvraj Singh in the winter and last year against Daniel Vettori? This was the third time in Tests that Benn had snared Pietersen and even before taking his wicket, Benn had caused problems with sharp turn. It’s hard to know why Pietersen struggles so much, but maybe he needs to show a little more respect. Australia don’t have a frontline left-arm twirler, but Michael Clarke could yet get plenty of overs.Give-aways of the day
It’s nice to get something for nothing. When Matt Prior firmly drove a delivery back at Lionel Baker, he was more concerned about getting out of the way of Baker’s firm throw at the stumps. Baker had seen Prior out of his ground for a moment and his shy was on target as he clipped the top of leg stump. But that contact was enough to carry the ball over Ramdin’s head and away to the boundary for four runs. All Baker could do was smile, while Prior happily took the unexpected bonus.Cheer of the day
The third day provided easily the best crowd of the match (not that there has been much competition) and they certainly enjoyed England’s dominance. The biggest cheer came when Graham Onions entered the attack on his home ground, but it was a close run thing: the nPower girls received similar acclaim as they made their way around the boundary shortly before the tea interval. A number of fans rose to their feet to give them a standing ovation which they tried to look embarrassed about, but probably secretly loved. That one of those cheering was dressed as a big yellow chick only added to the moment.Record of the day
When the Riverside ground first came into existence batsmen dreaded their trips north, while the fast bowlers looked forward to lowering their averages. Times have changed now that the surface has settled down and it’s usually a fairly even contest between bat and ball. This pitch has looked full of runs – although that’s had plenty to do with West Indies’ bowling – and the England batsmen have cashed in to the tune of the highest total ever made at the venue. That, though, is where they’ll want the batting records to stop as they aim to force a victory over the final two days.

First, the good news. The shorter the format the more competitive New Zealand become. Despite slumping to eighth on the Test rankings they have been World Cup semi-finalists in two of the past three tournaments and matched that achievement at the inaugural World Twenty20, where they were denied a place in the decider by Pakistan.Now the bad news. Their leading performers two years ago included Craig McMillan, Shane Bond and Mark Gillespie, none of whom are there this time around. But there is an upside: since 2007 they have added a couple of more than handy names to their team with Jesse Ryder and Martin Guptill proving dangerous at international level.And the other plus is that New Zealand have found themselves in a group with Scotland, meaning along with South Africa they should have no trouble progressing past the opening stage. Then things become less clear-cut. Will a few powerful hitters and an economical A-grade slow-bowler be enough for them to move past more imposing line-ups? Only time will tell. But it’s a fool who writes off New Zealand when the 50- or 20-over tournaments arrive.Strengths
Crafty, high-quality spin is a major weapon in Twenty20 and slow bowlers don’t come any cannier than Daniel Vettori. New Zealand can all but guarantee that he will deliver four thrifty overs each match; he has done that in every one of his 14 Twenty20 internationals and the most he has ever gone for is 6.75 an over. Of men who have played ten Twenty20s for their country, only Umar Gul has a better economy rate than Vettori’s 5.35.Weaknesses
While Vettori contains at one end, the fast men will be required to keep things tight at the other. And that is New Zealand’s biggest challenge. Bond, Gillespie and Chris Martin did adequately in 2007 but none is in this squad. A pace attack based around the likes of Kyle Mills, Iain O’Brien, James Franklin, Ian Butler and Jacob Oram won’t strike fear into many Twenty20 batting line-ups. To compensate for a lack of firepower they’ll need to bowl smart – changes of pace, yorkers, cutters – or else risk an early exit.X-factor
According to the online Wiktionary, an x-factor is that which has “unknown or unforeseeable consequences”. That’s pretty much how New Zealand Cricket would define Jesse Ryder. Despite having had behavioural issues in the past and being one of the big flops of the recent IPL, Ryder hasn’t often let his country down with the bat. A Twenty20 strike-rate of 137.61 shows his power and if he and the equally dangerous Brendon McCullum can get their side off to a couple of quick starts, it could be the difference between an early departure and a place in the finals.Key players
Vettori is the most important with the ball, Ryder and McCullum could destroy attacks and Oram has the ability to finish an innings in style. But it’s hard to argue that any of those men are more important to New Zealand’s chances than Ross Taylor. No. 4 is a key position in Twenty20. If the openers have failed he must be steady without stalling; if they have thrived he needs to maintain or increase the momentum immediately. Taylor has the game to fill that role. He had a good IPL and his barely believable 81 off 33 balls against Kolkata Knight Riders was a highlight.Twenty20 form guide
Warm-up wins against Bangladesh and Ireland don’t reveal much, although the form of Taylor and Guptill in those games was a pleasing sign. More of a positive was New Zealand winning their two most recent Twenty20s, against the reigning champions India in February. Since then it has been an up-and-down time for their squad members. Taylor thrived at Royal Challengers Bangalore, McCullum played a couple of strong innings as captain of Kolkata Knight Riders but was in the firing line as his team failed, while Ryder, Oram and Scott Styris had largely forgettable tournaments. In the meantime, Franklin has enjoyed a productive stint with Gloucestershire and O’Brien has been acclimatising with Leicestershire.Squad: Daniel Vettori (capt), Neil Broom, Ian Butler, Brendon Diamanti, James Franklin, Martin Guptill, Brendon McCullum (wk), Nathan McCullum, Peter McGlashan (wk), Kyle Mills, Iain O’Brien, Jacob Oram, Jesse Ryder, Scott Styris, Ross Taylor.

Jesse Ryder’s manager has termed as “grossly exaggerated and inaccurate” reports of the New Zealand batsman being restrained by security guards in South Africa. Aaron Klee admitted that Ryder had broken his vow not to touch alcohol, but said there was no altercation with security guards. and reported earlier today that Ryder, who plays for IPL franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore, had to be controlled during an off-field incident. “It’s disappointing that these false and unverified rumours are being reported as fact by the media,” Klee said in a statement. “Let’s be fair to Jesse – this is not a big issue. Jesse rang me and explained what happened several nights ago. He is disappointed that he drank after being off all alcohol for over 100 days.”But there was no security incident. We have already taken steps to make sure he has additional support during his time in the IPL.”Ryder’s Bangalore coach Ray Jennings also concurred. “It is over exaggerated,” Jennings told Cricinfo. “There is no issue.”Ryder had sworn off alcohol after an incident resulted in him missing a match for his country. His mentor Murray Deaker released a statement reinforcing the need for the batsman to stay sober. “Jesse’s had over a hundred days of sobriety and has made enormous progress during that time, on and off the field,” he said. “Now for that to continue he needs support and moves have already been made to assist him to get back on top.”A New Zealand Cricket spokesman said the board would not comment until full details of the supposed incident were available.In February 2008 Ryder had put his hand through a window while trying to gain access to a toilet area that had been accidentally locked. Ryder was then fined for missing a team meeting and a training session after a late night of drinking and was left out of the XI for an ODI against West Indies in early 2009. He was subsequently reported to have given up alcohol.Ryder has been a major disappointment in the IPL. In four games he has scored just 34 runs, including two scores of 0. Ryder was purchased for $160,000 at this year’s IPL auction.

Kevin Pietersen has been named captain of the Bangalore Royal Challengers, ending the uncertainty over who would lead the side in the IPL’s second season. Jacques Kallis, the South African allrounder, will take over when Pietersen leaves for England’s home series against West Indies, which begins in the first week of May.Vijay Mallya, the franchise chairman, said the decision was taken after extensive consultations with Rahul Dravid, the captain in the first season. The team performed poorly last season, finishing second from bottom with four wins from 14 games, and Dravid, also its “icon” player, came in for some flak for the composition of the squad.However, Dravid could miss the tournament as he is expecting the birth of his second child. “It was a very practical decision, and he [Dravid] is himself very relaxed about it,” Mallya said.Pietersen was widely expected to be named the team captain after Mallya pursued, and netted, him in the auction last month for $1.55 million. The only doubt was his relatively short period of availability because of international commitments – which then raised the question of who would deputise for him.”We had six international captains to choose from,” Mallya said. “The decision on captaincy was taken keeping in mind three considerations: player’s availability, flexibility in the squad selection during the phases and the fact that Dravid may not be available for the entire tournament.”Pietersen, while agreeing to captain Bangalore, had recently told Sky Sports that he would turn down any offer to lead England in the World Twenty20 in June. When asked by former England captain Nasser Hussain: “What about the ICC World Twenty20 in England, if they say, ‘Kevin, look, we desperately need you to captain’?” Pietersen replied: “No.”Bangalore was referred to as a “Test team” last season as a result of their disappointing performance but Mallya was confident his team would perform far better. “We were not balanced last year and had a weak batting line-up,” he said. “We have Pietersen, who some reporters have referred to as the ‘world’s finest batsman’, and Jesse Ryder, who is doing well. We have a quality bowling line-up with the likes of Dale Steyn and Nathan Bracken. We are no longer a Test team but one qualified for Twenty20 cricket.”Mallya also felt his team would not be weakened by the absence of Zaheer Khan, who was traded for Robin Uthappa with the Mumbai Indians franchise.The IPL’s second season is currently in considerable doubt itself over security issues but Mallya sounded bullish about the outcome. “I don’t believe the IPL will be cancelled,” he said. “Too many stakeholders will be disappointed if it is cancelled. I think a solution will be found.”When asked how badly the current recession had affected the franchises, he said the scale of bids in the IPL auctions in Goa in February were an indication of how little an impact the economic crisis had had on the tournament.

The BCCI is working with various national boards to create an unofficial window for the IPL in March 2010 that would enable almost all Test-playing countries to release their top players for the Twenty20 tournament. The tweak in the IPL calendar — instead of the current April-May schedule – will also ensure that the tournament doesn’t clash with the World Twenty20 in the West Indies from April 23-May 9.Lalit Modi, the IPL commissioner, told Cricinfo that all the national boards are working together for a clear window next March. “The dates are still not firm, but we are working on this,” he said. Modi said that next year’s IPL is likely to be held almost immediately after India’s tour of South Africa in February, 2010.Apart from India’s tour, almost all the other Test-playing countries are scheduled to be engaged in various series during February-March according to the ICC’s FTP – Pakistan v England, Australia v New Zealand and West Indies v Zimbabwe. But many of these engagements are now expected to wind up by early March to give the IPL an open run.The upcoming IPL season, which kicks off from April 10, has been hit by a scheduling clash that leaves most Australian players available only for the last two weeks of the tournament. England stars like Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff, who are expected to make their IPL debut next month, are also free only for the first three weeks. Among the national boards that are keen to see the IPL take the March slot is the ECB, which can then let its players take part in the tournament for a longer period as the English county season usually starts in mid-April.”I believe we are close to a settlement,” Giles Clarke, the ECB chairman, told the . “We are pleased with where things are going and would like to see the IPL have a clear season [free of a clash with international fixtures].” The ECB have already committed to letting their Test players take part in the next IPL for three weeks.