On Wednesday it appeared as if the dispute between the Kenya Cricket Association and the striking players had been resolved. But following talks yesterday, it looks as if it is more of a ceasefire than an armistice.The two stumbling blocks remain salaries and contracts. “We want all our oustanding allowances and the salaries from last month to be paid in full before we start everything on a clean sheet,” Steve Tikolo said. “We don’t want the same scenario to repeat itself in the future.”Tikolo estimated that each player is owed around $4000, and this includes bonus money still owed from the World Cup. Kenya were not expected to progress very far and so the board offered to let the players keep any prize money. As it was, they reached the semi-final. Almost all that money remains outstanding, even though it was paid to the KCA shortly after the event. The board maintains that there are tax issues which need resolving before it can pay out.This raises questions as to whether the KCA, which is known to be financially strained, can afford to meet this demand.Tikolo also said that the players wanted one-year extensions to their contacts which expired on September 30 – the board offered two-month extensions, explaining that it did not have sufficient funds to make any longer commitment.

West Indies bowler Jermaine Lawson has been reported for a suspect bowling action, the ICC confirmed on Sunday. Lawson’s action was called into question by the match officials after the first Test against Sri Lanka in Colombo, and they immediately reported him.The report was submitted by the umpires Simon Taufel, Nadeem Ghauri, third umpire Peter Manuel and fourth official Ranmore Martinez who were concerned about the angle of Lawson’s elbow.”The match officials had concerns with potential elbow flexation when viewing the bowler’s action with the naked eye,” explained the ICC match referee, Mike Procter. “This assessment has led the team of officials to request the ICC to commission a biomechanical report into the bowler’s action in accordance with the new process introduced earlier this year.”In accordance with the ICC’s recently revised bowling review process, Lawson’s action will now be analysed by a human movement specialist at the ICC within the next three weeks. Video tapes of the match will also be submitted for analysis. After the analysis is completed, the biomechanical expert will report back to the ICC, confirming if the action is legal. Lawson will be free to play international cricket in the meantime.

Ricky Ponting arrived in Mumbai after missing the first two Tests of the series with a broken thumb. He will not be fit in time to play the third Test which starts in Nagpur on October 26, but hopes to play a part in the final Test at Mumbai. Ponting addressed his first press conference of this tour, and as usual, had plenty to say.

On Sachin Tendulkar’s absence
I guess his absence has been disappointing for the spectators. And as players, we want to be judged against the best. Probably we have not played the best Indian team so far. I am notsure. Some of the Indian players will regain their confidence now that he’s back. How well he is prepared is a different story. I am not sure how much batting he has been doing behind the scenes. There is pressure on him to come back and play because of the way the series is placed at the moment.On his own preparation
I don’t want to rush into things. I will be working hard, probably harder than anybody. First and foremost I have to see how my thumb reacts after a couple of batting sessions. I was actually wondering if I would be able to take part in the series at all. I had a pretty ordinary series here in 2001. I wanted to play a big part in this series as a batsman and captain as well. That’s the hardest thing to do. Even harder was to sit back and see Australia win. I know what it means to me and the rest of the team to win a Test match in India. The cricket played so far has been outstanding. We are in a good position. It’s frustrating that I will just have two innings to prove myself in India.On the fuss about Australia’s batsmen “walking”
It’s blown out of proportion. I think all batsmen walk at some stage in their career. Some times it’s just a reaction thing. Sometimes you really don’t have control over it and some times it’s like what Adam Gilchrist does. He’s made up his mind to walk all the time. I have not heard that from the other Australian players. Well, I read the other day that Damien Martyn is now a walker, because he was caught at first slip!On Australia’s approach to playing in India
In Sri Lanka we played tough, disciplined and patient cricket. That’s the way we have to play in this part of the world. Things can change very fast if you move away from your game plan. What has been pleasing to me so far is that the guys have been very disciplined in executing their plans. Even the field placements have been different from the past.

Neil Carter has signed a new one-year contract with Warwickshire, thus ending speculation about his future. Michael Powell is also expected to extend his contract with the county until 2006.Northamptonshire and Derbyshire had both expressed an interest in signing South-African born Carter, 29, who eventually chose to remain with the county who he has played for four years since leaving Boland.But claims in the suggest that Carter, a seamer, was only offered the new contract after Warwickshire failed in their bid to sign another seamer, Jon Lewis, who plays for Gloucestershire.However, Carter’s position would have been strengthened by the loss of his team-mate, the 21-year-old Graham Wagg, who was banned earlier this month from playing for Warwickshire until 2006 after failing a drugs test. And, to further bolster his claims for a new contract, Carter was his county’s second-highest wicket-taker after Dougie Brown in 2004, taking 27 wickets at just over 44.

Eagles 312 and 156 for 6 (Henderson 54) lead Dolphins 300 (Klusener 108*, Benkenstein 70, Mpitsang 4-39, Kruis 3-71) by 168 runs
ScorecardAt Kingsmead, an undefeated 108 from Lance Klusener and 70 from Dale Benkenstein allowed Dolphins to come within 12 runs of Eagles’ first-innings total of 312. After scoring 300, Dolphins fought back in the field as well, reducing the eagles to 156 for 6 at close of play on the second day, a lead of only 168. James Henderson (54) worked hard at keeping the innings together while Loots Bosman scored a determined 39. Nicky Boje was still at the crease and a lot would depend on him for Free State to post a reasonable target.Titans 204 and 336 for 5 (Petersen 139, de Villiers 56, Cullinan 51, Coetsee 3-102) lead Lions 190 by 350 runs
ScorecardAt Sedgars Park in Potchefstroom, Titans extended their slender overnight lead over Lions to 350, thanks to Alviro Petersen’s five-and-a-half hour 139. Peterson and AB de Villiers put on 130 before de Villiers was caught for 51. Maurice Aronstam ran himself out for 45 after he had put on 101 with Peterson. Daryl Cullinan scored his second fifty of the match as Titans continued piling on the runs. Petersen was finally dismissed just short of his career-best first-class score of 150. Geoffrey Toyana gave Werner Coetsee his third wicket of the innings, with Justin Kemp not out on 26 when bad light once again intervened.Western Province-Boland 206 and 355 for 7 dec (Puttick 80, Strydom 78, Gibbs 52, Johnson 57*, Henderson 3-84) lead Warriors 189 and 54 for 1 by 318 runs
ScorecardAt Newlands, the Warriors had an uphill battle as they worked towards the target of 373 after Western Province-Boland declared at 355 for 7. Andrew Puttick, who scored 80, formed the anchor around which the others piled on the runs for Western Province. Gerhard Strydom made 78, while Herschelle Gibbs showed why he would be missed in India, making an entertaining 52. Neil Johnson, gaining confidence from the others, batted with authority as he regained some form and scored 57 not out. At stumps the Warriors had moved to 54 for 1, requiring 318 more to win.

Inzamam-ul-Haq has refused to represent the World XI in next month’s Super Test against Australia, after an apparent mix-up in communication with the Pakistan board.”The Pakistan Cricket Board had given me an understanding that I would be in both the World XIs (ODI and Test),” the Pakistan captain told the Press Trust of India on Monday from Lahore, “but till today, they have not conveyed to me about my selection. I have already read about my selection in the newspapers.”The Pakistan board announced that Inzamam would be in both teams on Wednesday, but two days later the ICC said that he would feature in the six-day Super Test squad only, and as a replacement for Sachin Tendulkar at that. He was omitted from the one-dayers, with the ICC instead naming Chris Gayle and Rahul Dravid as replacements for Sachin Tendulkar and Herschelle Gibbs.”At this stage of my career, I deserve respect and nothing else,” said Inzamam. “I am not pleased at all with whatever has happened. Having played cricket with respect and distinction, I don’t deserve this at the fag end of my career.”He added that if he was not representing the World XI in the Test match, there was no question of his participating in the Captains Conference and 2nd ICC Annual Awards. “I will not go to Australia for just one match. I have not conveyed my decision to the cricket board and there is no need for this because they have not yet communicated to me about my selection.”

Given the tough opposition and their recent divisive problems, the West Indies will suffer for the lack of “a father figure” to lead them on their forthcoming tour of Australia, Ian Chappell, the former Australian captain, cautioned on Thursday.”They really need someone like Clive Lloyd at this time, a father figure who can hold the team together and get the best out of them,” Chappell said. Based on what he saw of the West Indies team on the tour of Sri Lanka in July and August, Chappell did not believe Shivnarine Chanderpaul, the West Indies captain, could provide that kind of leadership. “Chanderpaul was predictable and reactive in Sri Lanka,” he said. “The only time you felt there would be a wicket was if there was a good ball or the pitch did something, not from anything creative from the captain.”Chappell noted the difference when Sylvester Joseph took over in Chanderpaul’s absence in the one-day series. “Things started to happen because Joseph was proactive,” he said. “The players aren’t stupid. They know when the captain has ideas and is confident enough to put them into practice. It’s a pity he isn’t a good enough batsman to be in the team because he was always looking to make something happen.”Chanderpaul, who was played 88 Tests, took over as captain when Brian Lara opted out of the team before the first Test of the home series against South Africa last April in solidarity with six players who were omitted because they held personal endorsement contracts with former sponsors Cable & Wireless, direct competitors of the new sponsors, Digicel.He led a team of mainly replacement players when ten of the originally chosen 13 refused to tour Sri Lanka because of the ongoing row over tour contracts between the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) and the West Indies Players Association (WIPA). The return of most of those players, Lara and Ramnaresh Sarwan, the reappointed vice-captain, among them, is a potential flashpoint that would test Chanderpaul’s leadership qualities.Chappell acknowledged that the reunification of the West Indies team after the split caused by Kerry Packer’s World Series Cricket (WICB) almost 30 years ago was different to the present case in many respects. But he maintained that Lloyd’s captaincy was a major factor in ensuring that there were no residual problems and that the team developed into one of the strongest the game has known.”The West Indies at present don’t have that kind of experience and class and they’re coming up against an Australian team that has regained its confidence after the defeat in the Ashes series and haven’t lost a series at home in ages,” Chappell said. “They need strong leadership more than ever.”

Tom Moody, Sri Lanka’s Australian-born coach, has said that the tour of India will be the start of a series of challenges that lies ahead. Since Moody took over as coach four months ago, Sri Lanka have had an easy run at home beating West Indies and Bangladesh in Tests and one-day internationals and winning the tri-series final against India.”It is an important tour for us. We’ve got some challenging cricket going ahead and this is the first stage of it,” said Moody. “It is important that we continue the positive momentum we had at home.”The IndianOil Cup final was a good test for us where we played well. In Test cricket, we played a depleted West Indies side and Bangladesh who are an emerging side. This tour is going to be a tough one, like any country touring India finds it difficult. Sri Lanka’s hasn’t had Test success there before but only one-day success. I am looking forward to it.”There’s a lot of cricket coming up which obviously involves a lot of travel. Those two things combined can be tiring. We might have to be mindful of maybe rotating a couple of players at certain stages. Overall, it’s got a lot of disadvantages when you are playing challenging cricket.”Moody said that the conditions in India were similar to Sri Lanka. “Batting is a little bit freer over there. We stuck to the same squad because it is important that we keep some continuity. The selectors have felt that we’ve got the right balance at the moment. Hopefully at the end of the seven matches everyone agrees with that.”He added that Sri Lanka was fortunate to have a team with a lot of experience playing in India and that he hoped to draw on that experience. “We hope to tap their knowledge on the grounds at the various venues. We have done a little bit of research and seen what’s happened there in the past in previous ODI games,” he said. “What average totals there are at each ground and what percentage of pace and spin had been used throughout the games in the past. We are going there with a fair amount of knowledge with what we are going to be facing.”Moody said that if Sri Lanka concentrate on what they do best and they play to their strengths and achieve all the things that they aim to do, whether training or in a match, they could overcome the obstacles. “There is no question about that.” He rated Upul Tharanga as ‘a fine young player and a bright prospect’. “He has been given the opportunity to establish himself as an international player. He is a natural striker of the ball and a free-flowing batsman.”On the role Thilan Samaraweera will play, Moody said: “His role is to add to the depth of the middle order. We felt that we needed another middle-order player. Given that we have four players who can open the batting Marvan, Sangakkara, Jayasuriya and Tharanga, we felt that we needed to get an extra batsman in the middle. Sammy is a player who is in form and given that he is playing in the Test series straight after the one-dayers, it seems to make logical sense.”Moody said that Dilhara Lokuhettige was learning about the game as a young player. “He had a poor series against Bangladesh. I am sure he is looking forward to try and bounce back. It is going to be tough work for him because conditions in India are quite harsh on bowlers. He has got to draw much on the experience of others and learn from his experience and continue to develop as an all-round cricketer. He is one of the allrounders who plays the role in all three aspects of the game, batting, bowling and fielding.”

On the team’s batting
To get just 196 on this wicket was unacceptable. We had three good games with the bat before this but today wasn’t a day for us. It’s just a matter of being consistent. All our batsmen have the experience to get big scores but we let ourselves down today.On Murali’s absence
Murali had a hamstring strain when he was fielding in the Ahmedabad game and we decided to leave him out in the last minute. With the amount the pitch was turning in the morning, Murali’s presence could have been crucial with a total of 230 or 240. But 196 was just not enough.On the pitch
The new ball was coming on a bit but slowly a bit of dust began to come up and it got slower. I wouldn’t say it was the best pitch for batting, compared to the rest of the pitches in this series. But I’m not making any excuses for our poor display.On what has gone wrong
It’s all about getting some momentum early in the series. When you are down in a long series, and when things are not going your way it becomes very difficult to come back. We should approach it game by game and try and perform.On the positives from this series
I think throughout the series Dilhara Fernando has done well. The way he has come back from injury, and the amount of work he has put is in great. Dilshan has also done well. He gets a bit overconfident and takes some unnecessary risks but we need to send messages to him sometimes.On the reaction back home
The CEO of Sri Lanka Cricket [Duleep Mendis] met the team in Pune and given us his full support. We have their backing despite the defeats.On trying to experiment with a few youngsters
Sooner rather than later we may have to try out a few youngsters.On plans for the next few weeks
We’d like to end the tour on a winning note and then take our minds off the results. We hope to refresh ourselves back home, think about the positives from this series and then come back prepared for the Tests.

Haroon Lorgat, the South Africa selection convenor, plans to “look beyond colour” when picking the team for the crucial second Test against Australia at Melbourne on Monday. South Africa chose four black or coloured players for the opening match at Perth, but the places of Ashwell Prince and Charl Langeveldt appear in doubt with the expected returns of Jaques Kallis and Nicky Boje.The United Cricket Board’s constitution says South Africa must be a “team of colour”, with an unofficial component of at least two non-white representatives in each side. However, Lorgat said in Sydney’s the second Test squad would be “a pure cricket selection”.”We have to look beyond colour with this,” Lorgat said. “That won’t be an issue in our deliberations. Of course one of our duties and responsibilities is to provide opportunities for black players but cricket is doing enough at all levels.”Makhaya Ntini and Herschelle Gibbs would cover the “target” system’s requirements, but halving the team’s non-white representation could attract large amounts of political criticism from South Africa. Boje, the left-arm spinner, appears to be a certain selection while a top-order batsman will make way for Kallis if he recovers from an elbow injury. Prince has said the quota or target systems are wrong because they “mess with the minds of both white and black players”.