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The South Australian Cricket Association (SACA) has declared it will release the burley pace-man from the remaining year of his current contract with the South Australian Redbacks, creating the opportunity to move West.The SACA’s decision to release Wilson was made after Damien Fleming announced today that he had accepted their offer to play for the Southern Redbacks.While the WACA is disappointed at not having secured the services of 32 year old Fleming, it is excited at having gained the services of 30 year old Wilson for the Western Warriors.WACA CEO Kath White said, “The WACA has no doubt that WA Cricket will benefit from having Paul Wilson. He brings his experience to the Western Warriors squad and adds depth to our bowling stocks”.

Had the Champions Trophy gone ahead as scheduled, the A team triangular series, which starts in Hyderabad tomorrow, would have been pushed into relative obscurity. However, the postponement of the event could well be the best thing to happen to a bunch of hopefuls from three countries, India, Australia and New Zealand. The series serves as a warm-up for their respective domestic seasons as well as an opportunity to impress the selectors for the forthcoming international fixtures. For Australia, this series gives a couple of fast bowlers the luxury of more time to acclimatise to Indian conditions before the Test tour of India starting next month. India have players at the fringes of selection for both the Test and limited-overs squads and a handful will be playing for places in the home Tests. The New Zealand senior team is on a rebuilding phase, so this series assumes greater significance for future selections.Poor weather in Hyderabad washed out two whole days in the recent three-day match between the A teams of Australia and India. The normally sound drainage facilities at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium weren’t enough to counter the showers, and only 23.1 overs were possible in the entire match. However, the good news is that the opening match tomorrow between Australia and New Zealand looks a certain starter, with the ground apparently in good condition. The pitch, according to the head groundsman, should have plenty of bounce. The city has been hit by overnight showers over the last few days, so it’s fingers crossed for the three one-dayers scheduled at this venue. The teams then head to Chennai for the four remaining games.

The New Zealand squad has three players from their victorious Emerging Players tournament campaign in Australia – Trent Boult, BJ Watling and Martin Guptill. The squad stopped over in Australia, playing three warm-up games against Queensland before setting foot in India. The opening three-day fixture was washed out, but the New Zealand top order enjoyed a good workout nevertheless. They ended the short tour on a high, winning the first one-dayer by 36 runs and the second by a much narrower margin of four runs.Players to watchPeter Fulton: Fulton made a comeback to the New Zealand senior team following an injury lay-off but he’s yet to firmly establish his place. He found his touch against Queensland earlier this month, scoring a run-a-ball hundred in the second one-dayer, as well as an 83 in the three-day game. Left out of the squads for the Bangladesh tour, Fulton’s target will be the tour of Australia in November.Martin Guptill: A right-hand opening batsman, Guptill was the top run-scorer in New Zealand’s State Shield with 596 runs at 59.60. His efforts took Auckland to the final, which they eventually lost to Otago. He carried his purple patch into the Emerging Players tournament, where he led the run charts for New Zealand with 280 runs. He may have missed out on selection for the one-day squad to Bangladesh, but age is certainly on his side – he’s pushing 22 – making him a prospect for the near future.Squad: Peter Fulton (capt), Brent Arnel, Neil Broom, Grant Elliott, Mark Gillespie, Martin Guptill, Greg Hay, Nathan McCullum, James Marshall, Michael Mason, Jeetan Patel, Aaron Redmond, Bradley Scott, Reece Young (wk), BJ Watling

Australia have had the luxury of acclimatising to the conditions, with their three-day games scheduled before the one-dayers. Unfortunately, the weather in Bangalore and Hyderabad hasn’t allowed for much match practice. The team, led by Cameron White, has six players with very limited international experience, with Shaun Tait being the only one to have played Tests for Australia.Players to watchShaun Tait: Tait’s making his first serious comeback into the international reckoning after taking a break from the game in January, citing physical and mental exhaustion, and not surprisingly, his inclusion instantly hit the headlines. He joined the squad just before the second game in Hyderabad and opted for light training. Finding a place in the Australian squad isn’t guaranteed, but a stint in the subcontinent will give him the opportunity to convince himself and everybody that he’s ready for national selection.Doug Bollinger: A left-arm seamer, Bollinger’s 45 wickets in the Pura Cup – the highest in the competition – helped New South Wales progress to the final. His efforts earned a selection for the tour of the West Indies and for the Test tour of India. The Indians would want to keep an eye on him in particular if he eventually plays next month.Squad Cameron White (capt), Phillip Hughes, Adam Voges, Marcus North, George Bailey, Peter Forrest, Luke Ronchi (wk), Ashley Noffke, Xavier Doherty, Ryan Harris, Brett Geeves, Peter Siddle, Doug Bollinger, Shaun Tait

The time’s ripe for budding Indian cricketers to impress the selection committee, with the home series against Australia and England coming up. S Badrinath leads arguably the strongest outfit in the competition, with as many as nine players having international experience. Irfan Pathan, fighting to reclaim his place in the national squad, leads a seam attack not very heavy on pace, with the likes of Praveen Kumar and Dhawal Kulkarni to partner him. The middle order has two explosive batsmen in Abhishek Nayar and Yusuf Pathan. Piyush Chawla is the lone specialist spinner.Players to watchRobin Uthappa: Indifferent form in the last few months led to Uthappa being dropped for the one-day series in Sri Lanka. Given another chance with the A squad, he will be scrutinised during these one-dayers and it can be gauged from his responses to the media that he’s very particular about letting his performances in the field do all the talking.Swapnil Asnodkar: Asnodkar was among several unknowns in the domestic circuit who grabbed everybody’s attention in the IPL. After a prolific season with Goa, a state not known for its cricketing talent, he aggregated 311 runs from nine matches for the Rajasthan Royals and his flamboyant starts as an opener won the praise of his captain Shane Warne. While his Twenty20 abilities aren’t in doubt, his suitability to the one-day format will be tested.Squad: S Badrinath(capt), Suresh Raina, Robin Uthappa, Swapnil Asnodkar, Rohit Sharma, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Abhishek Nayar, Irfan Pathan, Praveen Kumar, Dhawal Kulkarni, Piyush Chawla, Ravi Teja, Yusuf Pathan, Jaydev Shah, Wriddhiman Saha (wk)

Brendan Nash, the Australian-born batsman, has capped off a remarkable year by being named in West Indies’ 14-man squad for next week’s ODI tri-series in Canada. As expected, the side will be led by Chris Gayle after he withdrew his resignation as captain.The squad also includes the uncapped Guyana middle-order batsman Leon Johnson, while the wicketkeeper Carlton Baugh is set for his first international action in nearly two years having replaced Denesh Ramdin. The most fascinating selection is that of Nash, 30, who relocated to the Caribbean a year ago.Nash was born in Western Australia and played first-class cricket for Queensland for seven seasons before losing his state contract last June. He decided to try his luck in Jamaica, which his father Paul had represented in swimming at the Olympic Games, and had a successful first campaign that ended with a century in Jamaica’s final victory.Johnson, 21, also had a productive Carib Beer Series and despite failing to make a century, he was consistent enough to average 42.70 from six games. Nash and Johnson could be competing for a middle-order place with Shawn Findlay, who was rewarded after making a strong start to his international career against Australia.Shivnarine Chanderpaul was rested and will rejoin the squad for the Champions Trophy, while Dwayne Bravo was unavailable due to an ankle injury. West Indies play Bermuda next Wednesday and Canada two days later, with the tri-series final to be held on August 24.West Indies squad Chris Gayle (capt), Xavier Marshall, Sewnarine Chattergoon, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Brendan Nash, Shawn Findlay, Leon Johnson, Carlton Baugh (wk), Dave Mohammed, Nikita Miller, Jerome Taylor, Daren Powell, Kemar Roach, Fidel Edwards.

Is India a better one-day side or a Test side? Going by thelatest ICC tables, one can hardly get a conclusive reply to thatquery. The Test rankings have India sixth in the table, while theODI ratings have India in fifth place.

The fact remains that the team has had mixed results in bothforms of the game. The triumph in the NatWest Trophy in Englandand the joint-champions tag in the ICC Champions Trophy in SriLanka are notable achievements. But they have been reverses invarious competitions, especially abroad. Besides, the irritatinghabit of faltering at the final hurdle continues, with theNatWest Trophy being an exception. On the Test front, India hashad five victories abroad in the last two years, but a seriestriumph outside the subcontinent continues to be elusive aftermore than 16 years, even as the home record continues to beimpressive.The debate about whether India is a better one-day or Test sidemay continue, but there is little doubt that with the World Cup alittle over three months away, the emphasis these days is, notunexpectedly, more on the team’s performance in the limited-oversversion. Seven one-day internationals against the West Indiesfollowed by another similar round in New Zealand is perhaps thebest way to prepare for the big event. The Indians have just twomore Test matches against New Zealand to be played before theWorld Cup, and the focus will increasingly be on the one-dayteam.Perhaps then the time is ripe to try out a few experimentswithout damaging the basic team structure, and it was good to seesome steps being taken towards this direction in the first matchagainst the West Indies at Jamshedpur, in the absence of ZaheerKhan and Sachin Tendulkar. The promotion of Ajit Agarkar tonumber three and the inclusion of Jai P Yadav in place of DineshMongia are to be welcomed. The search for a genuine all-roundercontinues, and if the selectors, backed by the team management,succeed in finding one before the World Cup, such experimentshave to be carried out. Nothing ventured, nothing gained, goesthe saying, and bold and adventurous steps need to be taken. Suchan approach is bound to pay off in the long term.At the moment, the best man to fill the all-rounder slot wouldseem to be Virender Sehwag. The manner in which he bowled in thevital tension-packed overs towards the end of the ChampionsTrophy semifinal against South Africa marked him out as one toback for that role. His off-spinners, low in trajectory and slowthrough the air, are difficult to hit, much as batsmen found ithard to play slog-shots against Kris Srikkanth’s slow spinnerssome 15 years ago. The immense value of Sehwag’s bowling wasagain proved against the West Indies at Jamshedpur on Wednesday,and it was only when he erred in giving the ball air that he washit.I still remember the venturesome West Indian batsmen, eager toget on with their strokes, getting impatient with Bishen Bedi’sultra-slow spinners at Chepauk in January 1967. There are timeswhen slow bowling can prove to be a tricky proposition, even onefraught with danger, especially in limited-overs cricket. Can oneforget Tendulkar, with his deadly spin cocktail, restricting theSouth Africans to just three runs in the last over of the HeroCup semifinal at Calcutta in 1993, with the visitors requiringjust six to win? Under the circumstances, then, Sehwag should beencouraged to bowl more than just a few overs, and it was good tosee him get a full quota on Wednesday ­ the only Indian bowler tosend down 10 overs, and deservedly so, one might add.With the selectors having decided that Rahul Dravid will keepwickets in the mega-event, the nucleus of the World Cup side isalready in place, and it only remains to try out variouscombinations and permutations from among the players already inthe fray. Promoting Yuveraj Singh and Mohammad Kaif in the order,keeping alive the search for an all-rounder by giving Sehwag morebowling, the captain also keeping the options open for turninghis arm over more than he is doing these days – all these arepossible experiments.The issue of Tendulkar coming back to the opening slot may not bea closed chapter, and this is one more idea that could be givenserious thought, if the team management is so inclined. Also, onSouth African pitches, the accent will have to be on pacebowling, and a decision has to be taken as to whether there willbe place for only one specialist spinner in the final 11. Adecision will also have to be taken about Javagal Srinath, andwhether he will continue to be useful to the squad in SouthAfrica. It is interesting to note that even with Zaheer absent,Srinath was not played at Jamshedpur on Wednesday.Brijesh Patel and his co-selectors, as well as John Wright andSourav Ganguly, will have a lot of analysing to do over the nextcouple of months. Fortunately, they have enough opportunities tocollect relevant data and reach a consensus on what would be bestfor an Indian team that is making a serious challenge to regainthe trophy after 20 years.

Fleming returns to New Zealand
Stephen Fleming, the Chennai Super Kings opener, will not be available for his team’s remaining matches as he is heading back to New Zealand for the birth of his child. Chennai have qualified for the IPL semi-finals and will now have to find a replacement opener for Fleming before Saturday.Jayaprakash retires
Indian umpire AV Jayaprakash has retired from all forms of the game after standing in the IPL match between the Bangalore Royal Challengers and the Mumbai Indians in Bangalore on Wednesday. Jayaprakash, 58, said he had come to a point where he was not enjoying umpiring matches and was mentally tired.Dravid not keen on two IPL’s a year
Rahul Dravid, the Bangalore Royal Challengers captain, said IPL commissioner Lalit Modi’s idea of having two editions of IPL from 2011 would be a “difficult” proposition. “It would be difficult considering the way the future tours are structured and the way matches are scheduled,” Dravid said. “I, personally, would hate any dilution of Test cricket to fit in another season of Twenty20. Test cricket has history and has a lot of value and I hope it is never tampered with.”IPL performances not to influence Pakistan selectors
Pakistan selectors will not consider IPL performances while naming the squad for the triangular series in Bangladesh, according to the chief selector Salahuddin Ahmed. “We are not going to consider the players’ showing in the IPL,” Ahmed said. “We believe that twenty20 is a different ball game and you can’t compare it to proper one-day internationals where you have to play 50-over games.”

Gloucestershire County Cricket Club and Ben Gannon have agreed that he can leave the Club at the end of the 2002 season.Ben has been with the Club for six years and has taken 85 wickets since his First Class debut in 1999. However, his First Team opportunities have beenlimited.GCCC wish him well for the future and hope that he is successful in securinganother First Class contract.

SYDNEY, Nov 10 AAP – New South Wales speedster Brett Lee again proved the destroyer, taking a second five wicket haul to lead his side to a convincing victory over Tasmania in the Pura Cup cricket match at the SCG today.Lee did nothing wrong in his bid for a Test re-call after his axing last week.He added 5-86 to a first innings 5-63 to snare his first bag of 10 first class wickets in a match as the Blues trounced their opponents by an innings and eight runs late on the third day.He was well supported by fellow Test discard Stuart MacGill, who added three wickets to his four from the first innings as the Tigers crumbled to be all out for 258 in their second innings.The visitors always faced a tough task after managing just 171 in their first innings and the Blues posted an impressive 8(dec)-437 in reply on the back of a flawless unbeaten 201 by Michael Bevan.Lee and fellow paceman Stuart Clark bowled soundly early in the first session for no reward after the Tigers resumed at 1-30.It was not until Nathan Bracken replaced Lee late in the first hour to that the breakthrough came, the 25-year-old bowling Michael Dighton (25) with just his fourth ball of the innings.Lee then claimed the vital wicket of Tasmanian opener and captain Jamie Cox (39) in the fourth over after lunch.The Tigers narrowly avoided losing another wicket at 3-152 when Graeme Cunningham struck a MacGill delivery just behind point and set off for an ambitious single.Michael Clarke gathered the ball and fired a throw into wicketkeeper Brad Haddin, who removed the bails with Marsh narrowly making his ground.But his reprieve was short lived as Clark was re-introduced to the attack with immediate effect, having Marsh caught by Michael Slater for 44.Lee then struck again, trapping Shane Watson lbw for eight.MacGill toiled courageously and perhaps deserved a greater return from his 31 overs on the trot in a tough head wind.He had to wait until the last ball of his 28th over to claim his first wicket when Cunningham (40) played the ball onto his stumps.Lee bowled Damien Wright (19) in the third over with the new ball and the Tigers looked shaken at 7-217.MacGill’s relentless work ethic paid off later when he returned to the fray to bowl the eighth over with the new ball and, with his first delivery, trapped Shannon Tubb lbw for three.Two balls later, he dismissed Shane Jurgensen (six) the same way to finally walk away with a fitting 3-86 from 36 overs after 4-42 in the first innings.Just as Sean Clingeleffer looked like steering the visitors past the target of 266, Lee, intent on claiming his 10th scalp, had his wish, bowling the left-hander for 43.Gerard Denton remained not out one.

Martyn Moxon and Jon Lewis today welcomed the newest addition to the team -Pro for a Day competition winner, Alastair Gibson.Alastair, from Morpeth, won Durham County Cricket Club’s unique competitionto play in the Durham side against Lashings World XI next Wednesday. He will play a full and active part in the match by bowling, batting and fielding.As part of his prize, Alastair will be able to take part in a training session the day before his big day and he will be put up in style in an Executive Suite at the Holiday Inn, Washington the night before and after the match. He has been given his very own training and playing kit with his own squad number – 38.Alastair is looking forward to experiencing a day as a professional cricketer. He said: “I entered the competition because I thought it would be a good opportunity to experience a day as a professional cricketer. I’m really looking forward to experiencing the whole atmosphere of the day and playing against some cricket legends.”Captain, Jon Lewis said: “It will be a day remember for him as he will be sharing a world class ground with world class opposition. The team is looking forward to the new addition to the dressing room. I’m sure he will have a great day.”Durham play Lashings World XI on Wednesday 7 August 2002, starting at 1.00pm. Tickets cost £10 for adults and £5 for juniors (in advance). A Family Ticket (two adults and three children) costs £25 (in advance). Ticket Hotline: 0191 387 1717.Lashings Team is expected to be as follows:
Stuart Williams (West Indies), Sherwin Campbell (West Indies), Grant Flower(Zimbabwe), Richie Richardson (West Indies), Jimmy Adams (West Indies),Chris Harris (New Zealand), Viv Richards (West Indies), Junior Murray (WestIndies), Shoaib Akthar (Pakistan), Mohamed Akram (Pakistan), Stuart Carlisle(Zimbabwe)

Profile:Name: Alastair GibsonLives: Morpeth, NorthumberlandBorn: 28/11/59Family: Married with three childrenJob: Regional Sales Manager for Tyne Tees Television

Worcestershire County Cricket Club’s overseas Player, Shane Lee, is returning home to Australia as a result of a knee injury picked up during the NUL match against Warwickshire at Edgbaston.Lee’s injury has caused his knee to become unstable and it will require several weeks of intensive treatment before he is able to train and play. Both the Club and Player have agreed that Lee should return home for this treatment so that Lee can gain full fitness before the start of the Australian domestic season.ECB regulations do not allow for a replacement at this stage of the season so the County will play their remaining games without an overseas Player.Despite this latest injury blow to affect the team, Director of Cricket, Tom Moody, remains upbeat about the forthcoming month. "We are at the business end of the season and every game is vital. We will miss Shane’s ability with both bat and ball but I am confident the depth of strength we have in the squad will see us through."Shane Lee says "I am very disappointed to be returning home so soon after arriving and I appreciate the Club’s understanding of the situation but it makes more sense to receive the necessary treatment back in Sydney. I wish the team well in their final push for success this season."

Carl Hooper yesterday set out an upbeat and clearcut objective for his West Indies team on the eve of the first Test of the Cable & Wireless Series against India.Whether it is achievable is another matter but it certainly reflects a refreshing new approach.Emphasis must be placed on winning, the West Indies captain said in explaining the recall after three years of two over-30s: Stuart Williams and Junior Murray.I don’t think you can continue to rebuild, rebuild, rebuild if you’re losing.And he made it clear that bowling would be the key to turning around a record of seven defeats against two victories and three draws since he controversially replaced Jimmy Adams as skipper last season.We certainly don’t want to be negative, he said. You want to give yourself a chance to win Test matches and, to do that, you must have at least four front-line bowlers.The four here will be three fast Merv Dillon, Cameron Cuffy and the newcomer Adam Sanford and the leg-spinner Mahendra Nagamootoo, just off his Busta tournament record 51 wickets.It is a change from what has been a generally defensive attitude, best exemplified only two Tests ago when the West Indies took the field against Pakistan in Sharjah with only three main bowlers.Given the inexperience of his bowlers and the strength of opposition batting led by the most prolific batsman of the modern era, Sachin Tendulkar, Hooper’s policy seems over-optimistic. But he needs to stick by it.His assessment that the bowlers will decide the series also appeared at variance with the evidence, especially since India’s key off-spinner Harbhajan Singh was ruled out of the match because of a shoulder injury.Since the retirement of Courtney Walsh a year ago, the West Indies have conceded one total in excess of 600, two of over 500 and two more over 470, in Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka and Sharjah. In their last six Tests, the opposition has averaged 480 against them.Hooper, himself, an occasional off-spinner, is the only bowler with more than 100 wickets and only Merv Dillon of the others, now the spearhead of the attack, has more than 20 Tests to his name.Sanford, the burly, 25-year-old Antiguan policeman born in Dominica, has been chosen to make his debut, the only newcomer in the XI.He becomes not only the first descendant of the Caribs to represent the West Indies but the 11th fast bowler tried in the continuing search for the successors to Walsh, Curtly Ambrose and the host of greats from the past.His captain described him variously as exciting, quick, with a big heart, eager and enthusiastic. He will need all those attributes in what will only be his eighth first-class match.In Harbhajan’s absence, India will depend for wickets even more heavily on their veteran leg-spinner Anil Kumble who, along with Shane Warne, is the only contemporary spin bowler with over 300 wickets to his name.Fine bowler that he is, most of his success has been on helpful home pitches.He and the worthy fast bowler Javagal Srinath (214 Test wickets) present the main threat, but there is no Muttiah Muralitheran, Chamina Vaas, Shaoib Ahktar or Abdul Razzaq to harass them here as was the case in Sri Lanka and Sharjah.