Pakistan to follow Javed example: Latif

Pakistan captain Rashid Latif has told his batsmen to make Javed Miandad their role model during their forthcoming one-day series against England.

Javed is coaching the team again after their first round exit at the World Cup and Latif said: "We want to play the same as our coach, Javed Miandad, used to by building an innings."

Speaking after Pakistan's final warm-up match, a five wicket win over Leicestershire on Saturday, the wicket-keeper added: "Here we did well in the first 15 overs but we want to keep wickets in hand and score heavily in the last 10 overs."

Pakistan, who start a three-match one-day series against England with a day/night match at Old Trafford on Tuesday, will field a much-changed side from the World Cup.

Squads

England: Michael Vaughan (capt), Kabir Ali, James Anderson, Rikki Clarke, Andrew Flintoff, Ashley Giles, Darren Gough, Stephen Harmison, James Kirtley, Robert Key, Anthony McGrath , Chris Read, Vikram Solanki, Marcus Trescothick, James Troughton .

Pakistan: Rashid Latif (capt), Yousuf Youhana, Mohammad Hafeez, Imran Nazir, Yasir Hameed, Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq, Shoaib Malik, Bilal Asad, Azhar Mahmood, Shoaib Akhtar, Mohd Sami, Shabbir Ahmad, Umar Gul, Danish Kaneria, Abdul Razzaq.

Kapil sees nothing wrong in accepting car

Former India captain Kapil Dev feels he did nothing wrong by accepting Mercedes car from Zahir Rana of Reemo markting.

While inaugurating a showroom in Ambala he said that when someone had been awarded as the cricketer of the country award to a sports person how can it be questionable.

He said that if somebody had presented him an award and later he got involved in some criminal case then how could the prior person be guilty.

Drop-in pitches installed this week for Bangladesh Test

The drop-in pitches for the Test match and one-day games in Darwin next month against Bangladesh will be lowered in place later this week, the Australian Cricket Board said.

Melbourne Cricket Ground head groundsman Tony Ware is supervising work on the Marrara Oval ground, which will stage the first-ever July 18-22 Test match against Bangladesh.

Ware, who is the leading turf and drop-in wicket expert in Australia, began the first major works on the playing surface today with the removal of top soil to accommodate the Test match and one-day international wicket.

An additional area adjacent to the international strip will also be removed for the installation of the tour wicket to be used during the Bangladesh-Chief Minister's XI match from July 10-13.

"Barring any unforeseen events, we should be ready to move the wickets in on Thursday, and hopefully have the rollers out sometime Friday afternoon," Ware said in an ACB statement.

"Both pitches are in really good shape at the moment. We've kept them under tropical conditions at a local nursery and they're expected to be well-matured in time for the matches. Ware will create history when the drop-in wickets are installed on Thursday, using his pioneering portable pitch technology for the first time in Australia.

Streak's return sparks Zimbabwe victory

Captain Heath Streak returned to the Zimbabwe side on Monday and inspired his under-fire side to a confidence-boosting eight-wicket win over Ireland at the Eglinton ground.

Streak, who was rested for Zimbabwe's embarrassing 10-wicket defeat in Belfast on Friday, bowled a devastating spell to rip the heart out of the Irish top order.

Skipper Jason Molins, who scored an unbeaten century in the first match, won the toss and decided to bat but his decision backfired as his side were reduced to 36 for five.

All-rounder Andy Blignaut took 2-32 before Peter Gillespie and Paul Mooney put on 62 for the eighth wicket before Gillespie was dismissed for 56 as the Irish limped to a total of 196.

Streak finished with 3-29 while Hondo had 3-53.

In reply, Dion Ebrahim and Doug Marillier put on 52 for the first wicket Stuart Carlisle made 49 in a second-wicket partnership of 82 with the opener.

Ebrahim, who finished unbeaten on 81, and the experienced Grant Flower (31) guided Zimbabwe home to victory with more than nine overs to spare.

Smith sets eyes on maiden series win in England

South Africa's new national cricket captain Graeme Smith has set his eyes on the team's first ever series win on England soil since the country's readmission to international cricket.

"We want to ensure that we win this time around," Smith, who took over from Shaun Pollock after the World Cup, told SABC Radio on Tuesday before jetting off on a three-month tour of England.

South Africa drew their three-Test series 1-1 in 1994, the first time they toured England under Kepler Wessels after being re-admitted to Test fold following the end of apartheid regime.

In 1998, when they played a full-fledged five-Test series, the Proteas led by the late Hansie Cronje suffered a 1-2 reverse.

South Africa are again scheduled to play five Tests besides a triangular one-day international series featuring Zimbabwe as the third team.

Taylor new cap in West Indies Test squad

Teenage fast bowler Jerome Taylor was the only new player in the 14-man West Indies squad named for the first Test against Sri Lanka starting Friday in St. Lucia.

Taylor made his international debut in the third one-day match against Sri Lanka last week at St. Vincent, taking two for 39 in a six-wicket win.

On Monday, he finished with 2-22 for a West Indies President's XI against Sri Lanka.

The 18-year-old Taylor had an impressive debut season in the regional first-class series this year, collecting 21 wickets in six matches.

The second Test starts June 27 at Jamaica.

Squad:

West Indies: Brian Lara (captain), Ramnaresh Sarwan, Omari Banks, Carlton Baugh Jr., Corey Collymore, Mervyn Dillon, Vasbert Drakes, Daren Ganga, Chris Gayle, Wavell Hinds, Ridley Jacobs, Marlon Samuels, Devon Smith, Jerome Taylor.