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Paul Harris was a completely different bowler today. In Nagpur his sole aim, especially in the second innings, was to clamp down on India’s batsmen. He went about doing so by pitching consistently on leg stump or outside and turning the ball into the right-handers from the rough. The Indian batsmen played him conservatively from the crease. They played into Harris’s hands and he succeeded in stemming the run flow. His attempt today had drastically different results.On a harder pitch, which didn’t take much turn from the rough, Harris tried to apply the same leg-side suffocation but was punished by Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar, as well as umpire Ian Gould.Umpires have taken flak for not taking a firmer stand on the indiscretions of the players but Gould exercised his power and penalised Harris each time he bowled a straighter delivery behind the batsman’s legs. Harris, however, refused to change his line and forced Gould into calling the ball wide on 12 occasions.Corrie van Zyl, the South African coach, accepted Gould’s decision but said his spinner suffered only because the ball was not turning. “You can see it as a negative line and the umpire did think so, too, and obviously those were called wides,” he said.About five years ago, the standard playing regulations for Test matches were amended in an effort to prevent negative leg-side bowling. Law 25.1 – Judging a Wide – states: “For bowlers whom umpires consider to be bowling down the leg side as a negative tactic, the strict limited-over wide interpretation shall be applied.”An ICC spokesperson admitted that in order to prevent bowlers from easily adopting leg-theory to stem the run-flow, the law needed to be updated. “Some bowlers like Shane Warne used leg-side bowling as an attacking option, while some have used it negatively to frustrate batsmen and stem scoring-rates. It’s usually pretty obvious when it is attacking because there is a short-leg in place and the ball is turning, so it becomes difficult for batsmen to survive, let alone score runs.”Another factor that thwarted Harris’ plan was the way Sehwag and Tendulkar dealt with him. They were happy to deflect him to the on side whenever there was no fielder at short leg. Otherwise they let the straighter ones go, confident the ball would not turn. Sehwag even slog-swept for a six over deep midwicket and then reverse swept when Harris tried to cram him.van Zyl said Harris could have been more diligent in his approach. “Some of them did turn out of the rough and some of them didn’t. But Harry [Harris] did a good job for the team, but it was a lot tougher than it was in Nagpur, where there was some assistance.”

The PCB has hit out at the IPL’s organisers after none of the Pakistan players were sold in the auction held in Mumbai on Tuesday. There were 11 players, including proven Twenty20 performers like Shahid Afridi and Umar Gul, up for grabs but the eight franchises stayed clear of any bids.Ijaz Butt, the PCB chairman, said, “We are highly disappointed because we were hoping they (Pakistan’s players) would play.”Having figured prominently in the inaugural edition, the Pakistan players were absent from the second season in in South Africa, after their government did not allow them to travel to India – where the tournament was originally to be held – for security reasons. Though the players got the go-ahead from their government and the board for the third season of the IPL, franchises were said to be wary over whether the strained relations with India would affect their ability to get visas.However, the inclusion of Pakistani players in the IPL’s final auction list, released on January 6, was on the basis of specific requests received from the franchises – every player on that list had to be officially sought by at least one franchise.”The IPL had given us the mandate to get permission from our foreign office, to obtain other clearances and to finalise visas,” Butt said. “We did all this, but it is a surprise that none of them have been taken at the auction.”We have been trying to get in touch with the concerned authorities but with no avail. I have asked the sports minister to speak to his counterpart in India about this.”The snub has drawn criticism in Pakistan and Butt said he was aggrieved by the manner in which the players were treated. “I agree this is a private event, but to be excluded without giving any reason and without looking at the background is unfair. If they had told us we would have told the boys not to apply at all.”Butt’s comments were a stark contrast to his relatively unfazed stance on Tuesday soon after the auction. “It really does not bother us; what difference does it make to us if our players don’t play in the IPL this season? They didn’t play in the last season as well,” he had said.

Zimbabwe Cricket has begun the process of making a long-term appointment as national coach which becomes vacant when Walter Chawaguta’s contract expires at the end of the year.The job was advertised a year ago but Chawaguta was one of four applicants, none being particularly inspiring, and so he had his contract extended almost by default. In recent months it was rumoured that Heath Streak was almost certain to replace him, but now it seems that is no longer guaranteed.While a year ago there was little to appeal to coaches of any calibre, the progress made in the last 12 months means it is now again becoming a tempting international post.Local newspapers have reported former international Grant Flower, brother of England coach Andy, is one of those at the top of the pile. Although he was one of the rebels back in 2004, many have since returned after a softening of the party line by ZC.Chawaguta, meanwhile, said that he understood the post would be advertised back in October, and while he had been told he could apply, he had not done so. It is hard not to feel a degree of sympathy for a man who has been in charge during some very difficult times and yet has never really had the support of those running the game.

SuperSport Series

After a brief interlude by the MTN40, the longer version of the game, the SuperSport Series, returned and brought with it two draws from three matches. The only result came from Port Elizabeth, where the Titans beat the Warriors by 10 wickets to stay at the top of the table.Pieter Malan scored a century for the Titans and there were half centuries from Pierre Joubert and Morne Morkel as the visitors were bowled out for 403. Lonwabo Tsotsobe, who was not in the national Twenty20 side, took 3 for 113. Jon-Jon Smuts also took three wickets and Makhaya Ntini chipped in with one. The Titans bowlers made light work of the Warriors with Paul Harris taking 5 for 49 and Morne Morkel 4 for 63. The only resistance the Warriors offered was Michael Smith’s 62 upfront as they were bowled out for 214 and made to follow on.In their second innings, the Warriors slumped to 21 for 4 and were only saved from an innings defeat by Davy Jacobs’ captain knock of 80. Morkel took his match tally to seven with 3 for 32 in the second innings. The Titans needed just 41 runs in their second innings to win, and they did so comfortably. Despite the loss, the Warriors lie second in the table.Matters were far less cut and dry in Cape Town. The Cobras were left languishing at the bottom of the table after the Lions finally managed to do more than just meow like kittens. There were runs all round for their batsmen in their 416-run first-innings total. Vaughn van Jaarsveld scored 123 while Stephen Cook, Jonathan Vandiar and Thami Tsolekile all notched up half-centuries. Five wickets for 32 from Andre Nel helped bowl out the Cobras for 332, a deficit of 84.Alviro Petersen scored 122 in the Lions’ second innings as the visitors set the Cobras a target of 279 to win. Monty Panesar ripped through the Cobras middle order, leaving them slithering dangerously close to defeat on 92 for 7. Rory Kleinveldt scored 20 off 61 balls and Ryan Canning 20 off 86 balls as the pair hung in for the draw.In Pietermaritzburg, the Dolphins may have been eyeing a result when they bowled the Eagles out for 178. Wicketkeeper-and-legspinner, Daryn Smit did the bulk of the damage with 4 for 50, including the wickets of Morne van Wyk and Johan van der Wath. In reply, Ahmed Amla, scored 134 before being dismissed by CJ de Villiers. The Dolphins took a 197-run lead after scoring 375. Dean Elgar scored a century as the Eagles reached 203 for 3 at the close of the match.

Provincial three-day challenge

This round of the competition had one no result as the match between Boland and Kwa-Zulu Natal Inland in Paarl was called off without a ball being bowled. Further up the coast, in East London, Wendell Bossenger celebrated his announcement as one of the Mutual and Federal Cricketers of the Year by scoring 168 in Griqualand West’s 407. Charl Pietersen chipped in with 91. Border began well in their reply, with Shaun de Kock and Bryn Thomas putting on a first-wicket stand of 139. Granville de Wee then stepped up and his 5 for 15 in 11 overs tore through the hosts.Border were bowled out for 182 and forced to follow on. Pietersen starred with the ball in Griquas second stint, taking 5 for 51. The hosts were bowled out for 270, setting Griquas a target of 46 to win. Although they lost the wicket of Aloysius Seleka with no score on board, Griquas won comfortably by nine wickets.In Port Elizabeth, Eastern Province (EP) and South Western Districts (SWD) played out a draw. Gerhard Strydom and William Hanton both scored centuries in SWD’s total of 324 for 7 declared. Warren Bell was the centurion in EP’s innings as they responded with 325 for 7 declared, just one run ahead. Then, the game got away from the hosts. Rudi Hillerman’s 140 and half-centuries from Burton de Wett, Strydom and Hanton led SWD to 447 for 9. The only notable wicket-taker was Corbyn Dolley who took 5 for 151.Moving inland, Easterns recorded a massive-innings-and-96-run win over North West at Port Elizabeth. Five wickets from Imran Tahir had North West bowled out for 177 with the highest score being 38 by Jimmy Kgamadi. Easterns only batted once and despite none of their batsmen getting to three figures, they put on 373. Vusumusi Mazibuko took 6 for 108 and Jaco Booysen top scored with 99. Then, it was Tahir who did the damage again. He took his match tally to 10 wickets with another five-wicket haul in the second innings. It was a miserly 5 for 10 as North West crumbled to 100 all out.In Windhoek, Gauteng must have felt right at home at the Wanderers cricket ground, which has the same name as their home ground in Johannesburg. Aaron Phangiso and Tabriaz Shamsi took eight wickets between them to bowl Namibia out for 252. Shane Burger scored 94 and Dane Vilas and Robert Frylink both chipped in with half centuries to take Gauteng to 332 for 9 declared. Louis Klazinga limited the damage to the home side with 6 for 70. The Gauteng bowlers were made to toil in Namibia’s second innings with ten bowlers in action. Gerrit Rudolph led the resistance with 118 and Namibia closed on 397 for 7. Gauteng now lie second on the table, 6.36 points behind EP.

Provincial one-day challenge

There was a thriller in Paarl, where Boland beat KZN-Inland by 10 runs. Godfrey Stevens scored 77 as wickets dropped like flies around him and Boland were bowled out for 183. Narvaar Harridave was the pick of the bowlers with 4 for 22. In reply, the Inland team found themselves on 35 for 2 but recovered to 168 for 7. They lost three wickets on that score before adding five runs. Then, Hillroy Paulse took the last wicket to end with figures of 3 for 17 and win the match for Boland.Griquas relied on middle order contributions of 79 from Seleka and 62 from Bradley Lemmetjies to reach 248 against Border in East London. In reply, Border had only one batsman of intent – Thomas. He scored 80 while none of the other batsmen got past 27. Pietersen and Anthony Mabuya claimed three wickets a piece and the hosts were bowled out for 203, handing Griquas victory by 45 runs.In Port Elizabeth, Reece Williams took three early wickets as SWD crashed to 7 for 4 in the fourth over of their match against EP. Hillermann and Hantam both scored half-centuries to rescue their ailing team. They ended on 159 for 8, a total that EP may have felt comfortable chasing.SWD’s bowlers got in on the act and the home side was reduced to 29 for 3. The middle order was called on to perform another survival act and although none of the batsman reached half-centuries, EP looked set for victory on 155 for 6 in the 34th over. Just over runs were needed to win off the last over, and SWD managed to confine EP to only four producing the first tie of the competition.Easterns couldn’t complete the double over North West this weekend as they lost by six wickets in the one day game at Benoni. Tumelo Bodibe scored 88 in Eastern’s total of 232 and all the North West bowlers were pulverised. But the total didn’t scare the North West batsman. Andrea Agathagelou and Jimmy Kgamadi shared a stand of 186 to lead their side to victory. Kgamadi ended on 99 not out.Gauteng lost early wickets against Namibia in Windhoek and found themselves sin trouble at 25 for 3. Dane Vilas scored 120 and Temba Bavuma 79 as they reached a respectable 277 for 8. Klazinga and Louis van der Westhuizen took four wickets apiece for Namibia. In reply, the hosts fared no better. Namibia were 26 for 3 before slumping to 90 for 8 and being bowled out for 119. Richard das Neves was the chief destroyer with four for 28.Batsman of the week
Dean Elgar is becoming a regular for this award. He’s ranked second on the SuperSport Series list, 125 runs behind record-breaking Stephen Cook. Elgar has the highest average of the competition so far, an astounding 139.00. He has also scored the most hundreds in the competition thus far, with three centuries to his name.Bowler of the week
He was once thought of as the leading spin bowler in the country, but while he was waiting to qualify to play for South Africa, his Titans team-mate Roelof van der Merwe leapt into the spotlight. Imran Tahir is now the leading wicket-taker in the three-day challenge. He has 18 wickets form just two matches at an average of 11.61. Ten of those wickets came in the match against the North West. His five-for in the second innings was instrumental in Easterns’ innings win.

New Zealand allrounder Grant Elliott has expressed his keenness to make a bigger contribution with the ball in the second Test against Pakistan in Wellington. Elliott bowled just two overs in New Zealand’s 32-run win in Dunedin due to his knee injury, leaving Shane Bond, Daniel Vettori, Iain O’Brien and Chris Martin with an additional responsibility to fill in for the fifth bowler.Vettori had admitted the extent of the workload the four bowlers had to bear, in having to bowl out Pakistan twice, was huge. New Zealand can expect the physical demands of winning the next Test to be greater, especially as their bowlers are recovering from injuries. Bond is missing the big toe-nail on his left foot, Vettori is nursing an injured shoulder and O’Brien is awaiting scans on his dislocated finger.”It definitely hurts me not being able to do that (bowl) because you saw how hard the bowlers toiled,” Elliot told . “It’s tendonitis. I’ve just been battling with that a bit. I had it in Wellington but hopefully I can take a load off the bowlers. It’s about (bowling) loads and how the inflammation is at the time. It has good days and bad days.”Eliott has managed just two wickets at an average of 66 in Tests but has bowled more often, and has had more success, in the ODI format, taking 17 wickets at 22.11. While establishing himself as a solid middle-order batsman in limited-overs cricket, Elliott is still fighting for a long-term slot in Tests. “It’s runs and wickets at the end of the day,” he said. “For me, every Test innings I play I’m looking to establish my position and stamp my authority on the game. Hopefully it will be in this Test.”The second Test begins on December 3.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsEoin Morgan peppered the boundary with some mighty blows in a thrilling display•Getty Images

England’s new fearless batting approach, led by an audacious 45-ball 85 from Eoin Morgan, got their international winter off to a winning start, but it required an accurate over from James Anderson to secure England the opening Twenty20 international. After posting 202 for 6, their highest score in Twenty20s, England turned the D/L equation into their favour after South Africa had been in the winning position an over before and when a thunderstorm arrived at the Wanderers the home side needed to be 129 after 13 overs, but Anderson had conceded just six from his third over to put England ahead of the rate.Although England will happily take the result it was an unfulfilling end to a match packed with powerful hitting as Morgan led the way, with England’s highest individual Twenty20 score, adding 98 in nine overs with Paul Collingwood who clubbed 57 off 32 deliveries in a full-blooded batting performance. They certainly lived up to the promise of not taking a backward step after coming out of their shells during the Champions Trophy.South Africa responded through Loots Bosman as he cracked 58 off 31 balls, adding 97 for the first wicket with Graeme Smith in 8.3 overs, before England claimed crucial wickets. Collingwood deserves credit for making the right call in recalling Anderson to the attack, after South Africa moved ahead of the D/L target when Albie Morkel swung Graeme Swann for six.Alastair Cook pulled off a vital diving save at backward point to prevent a certain boundary from Anderson’s second ball back and after conceding a wide he responded by going for two off the next three balls. When AB de Villiers could only club a single to midwicket England were ahead and the heavens opened.When Bosman and Smith were together South Africa were making rapid progress towards the target in a similar manner to how they chased down 206 to beat West Indies here during the opening match of the 2007 World Twenty20. England’s quicks tried to mix up their deliveries but overdid the variety; Tim Bresnan’s second over went for 14 and Sajid Mahmood’s second cost 19 as South Africa had 67 on the board after six overs. Bosman’s 26-ball fifty was the second fastest for South Africa, but when Smith carved to deep cover England started to claw back. Collingwood held a steepler to end Bosman’s charge and Mahmood trapped JP Duminy lbw for 6.Following the bowler-friendly conditions of the Champions Trophy, this was the Wanderers back in more familiar form as boundaries flowed across and over the boundary with regularity. Even though the game lost seven overs, 17 sixes were hit which is enough to make the bowlers question their vocation.The first-ball dismissal of Joe Denly (his second in two Twenty20 internationals) meant an early arrival to the middle for Jonathan Trott for the most hyped homecoming since Kevin Pietersen. After a predictable first-ball bouncer he made England’s first statement of the tour with four consecutive boundaries off Dale Steyn’s first over.Collingwood made his intent clear when he launched Morkel for a leg-side six and despite the two early wickets England’s fifty was up inside the six-over Powerplay. The team was certainly living up to the new positive approach instilled by Andy Flower and the absent Andrew Strauss. It wasn’t dull.Trott’s contribution was ended when he chanced a single to backward point and was beaten by a sharp return even though the bowler, Roelof van der Merwe, almost messed up his attempt at breaking the stumps. However, it brought in another in-form batsman.Morgan has provided the middle-order with the power for so long lacking in England’s limited-overs side and this display was another demonstration of his awesome striking ability. One six over the leg-side went out of the ground, off Steyn no less, leaving gasps of amazement from those watching. Yes, the Wanderers is at altitude. Yes, the pitch had the pace and bounce batsmen enjoy. But it was a monumental blow nonetheless.He followed up by dispatching the struggling Morkel for 14 off three balls before Collingwood made it 21 from the 14th over with a thumping six over long on. Smith made regular bowling changes, moved his field around all over the place, but was powerless to stop the onslaught.Both Collingwood (27 balls) and Morgan (29 balls) reached their half-centuries in the 15th over and by the time Collingwood carved to deep cover the pair had added 98 in 9.1 overs. Briefly South Africa slowed the charge with three wickets in 15 balls, but Morgan kept his head to regain the momentum and took 29 off his last seven balls with his full array of drives, deflections and mighty blows. In terms of whetting the appetite for the tour ahead, this certainly wasn’t a bad start.

George Bailey is being taught to play He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands on his new ukulele. This summer he will also learn about holding a state in his palms after succeeding Dan Marsh to become Tasmania’s captain.It is a job he has been groomed for during three years as deputy and he has started by telling the side’s core group of mid-20s players it is time to step up. Their campaign begins on Tuesday when they walk out in Adelaide to face South Australia in the Sheffield Shield.Bailey, 27, is casual, thoughtful and fun, but is starting to understand the range of responsibilities required as a leader in such an important post. He won’t distance himself from the group, like some captains do, and hopes the tough decisions don’t change the relationship with his mates.”It will certainly be a big change,” he said. He enjoys leading the team meetings and will speak more to the men than Marsh, who is playing on and will continue to offer tactical advice. “He’s certainly a massive mentor of mine over the years and still is,” Bailey said. “I think I’ll be more vocal. Dan was one to lead from the front with the way he played but wasn’t a huge speaker in front of the group. I’m more comfortable doing that. My style will develop over the next couple of years.”Bailey is most excited by the young players coming through, such as the wicketkeeper Brady Jones, who makes his debut in Adelaide, Tom Triffett and James Faulkner. He thinks the hardest part of the role will be helping his players – and himself – push for Australian selection. In the past year Ben Hilfenhaus, Brett Geeves and Tim Paine have been promoted and now Bailey wants the next rung of players to fulfil their potential.”I keep going back to the people who have played quite a number of Shield games, it’s time that they stepped up and were counted,” he said. “People have said these guys have potential, but at some point the group has got to deliver. I’m included, along with Travis Birt, Rhett Lockyear, Luke Butterworth, Brendan Drew, Brett Geeves, Jason Krejza, Xavier Doherty. It’s time that we started performing week-in, week out.” If the team is consistent he believes they will contend in all three competitions.

Bailey has been part of the Australia A set-up for the past two years without having the sort of summer that convinces everyone he can go further. In 46 first-class contests for Tasmania over five seasons he has 2996 runs at 38.41, although half his games are at Bellerive Oval, where batting has become much trickier. Last summer he recovered from a slow start to post 673 Shield runs at 37.38, including two centuries as the campaign wound down and the Tigers finished fourth.”When the season kicked off, I felt like I was on the wrong foot the whole time,” he said. “I sat down at Christmas and went back to the drawing board, to the basics of how I wanted to bat, and what I wanted to feel when I was batting, then finished the season really well. I tried to build on that in the off-season and am really happy with what I’ve done. With the extra onus of leading from the front with the bat, hopefully that will all come together and make for a pretty fruitful season.”He doesn’t want the captaincy to hinder his run-scoring and is already looking forward to the peace of the middle where he has only one thing to worry about. Another change as captain is he has been told he has to watch more cricket. That’s where the ukulele comes in. “I’m not a very good cricket watcher,” he said. “So I thought if I could sit there and strum away with the ukulele and watch a bit, the time would pass quicker.”Jason Krejza, the offspinner, is his teacher and Bailey’s team-mates say he’s not very good yet. He will persevere for two reasons: he promised his parents he would play a couple of songs at Christmas and he has always wanted to learn an instrument. “It’s all a bit awkward, but it’s a nice little instrument, and it fits in your suitcase.”

Ishant Sharma’s struggles in limited-overs cricket in the last year are part of his growth as a cricketer, says former India fast bowler Javagal Srinath. Ishant has impressed in Tests but struggled with his lengths in ODIs and has been average recently in that format on the slow pitches in India, West Indies and Sri Lanka.”These tough times are the best for him to learn about himself, about his bowling craft and develop,” Srinath told Cricinfo.Ishant averaged 31.48 and picked up 27 wickets in his first 20 ODIs. In 13 games in 2009, he has picked up 19 wickets at 31.42. The economy rate, though, has shot up from 5.34 to 6.19. On Sunday, in a ICC Champions Trophy warm-up game, he leaked 49 runs off seven overs and picked up a wicket.There is a school of thought that Ishant should be given adequate breaks from ODIs to allow him to concentrate on Tests so that India don’t risk losing a potent strike force in the longer version of the game. However, Srinath doesn’t share that view.”This is part and parcel of the development of a bowler. The second season is always going to be tougher for a cricketer. He has the basics right and he will go on to become a very good bowler for India. These tough times are the best for him to learn about himself, about his bowling craft and develop. From what I hear, he has a great attitude to learn and if he remains hungry, he will come out a better ODI bowler and as a result, a better bowler overall.”Srinath, however, is worried about the effects of too much criticism on such a young bowler. “It all depends on his attitude I guess but too much criticism can hurt. This is a very crucial stage. At this developmental stage, you can only develop the more you bowl and more you learn about yourself.”There are concerns that Ishant, who has a fragile body and not a smooth post-release routine where he almost stumbles a bit, can get injured with playing too many ODIs but Srinath believes that’s a risk that he has to take at this stage. “That’s the risk that you have to weigh against the results and only he can know about his body.”TA Sekhar, who ran the MRF Pace Academy with Dennis Lillee, shared the same view. “His strength is the pace and the bounce he gets from length and back of a length. That is his USP. I see no reason, for example, why should he cut down pace just to bowl a fuller length as some people have been suggesting.”What’s the use of him bowling like [Glenn] McGrath? People say cut down pace, concentrate on lengths … No way. I am sure he is in good hands with Venkatesh Prasad (the India bowling coach) who would get the best out of him. Obviously, Ishant has to tinker with a few things like lengths but he doesn’t have to change anything drastically. He is just 19-20. This is the time to play more and improve. He has what we call the fast-twitch muscles. The body will grow stronger and importantly, he will be much the wiser for going through this phase.”

Andrew Hilditch’s future with Cricket Australia (CA) could be determined next month, with moves afoot to create a position for a full-time selector on the national panel. Hilditch, who runs a law firm in Adelaide in addition to his role as chairman of selectors, is tipped to relinquish his cricketing duties if his role is upgraded to full-time. However, CA is also considering the possibility of employing one of the remaining three selectors in a permanent capacity; a move that would allow Hilditch to continue to chair the panel part-time.The uncertainty surrounding Hilditch’s future comes as part of a planned overhaul of Australia’s selection process recommended by an internal Player Pathway Review Committee, as revealed by Cricinfo in May. The committee has recommended a five-point plan to professionalise the selection process, including the appointment of a “talent manager/selector” in each state to report to the four-man national panel. The recommendations pre-date Australia’s Ashes defeat, however given the current zeitgeist, and with a meeting of the CA board and an annual general meeting scheduled for September, it is anticipated the proposed changes will be in effect before the next Australian summer.Calls for a selection overhaul in the wake of Australia’s defeat at The Oval have been vociferous. But CA sources insist that changes, if they are made, will not be in response to the underwhelming performances of the national team. Rumours are already circulating that Hilditch and one other selector will stand down from their posts in the coming months, although a CA spokesman last night insisted no decision had been made.James Sutherland this week spoke out in defence of Hilditch and his panel, despite the general acknowledgment that their decision to omit Nathan Hauritz for the Ashes decider on a turning pitch was flawed. Hilditch admitted the error in a press conference immediately after Australia’s 2-1 defeat, but gave no indication he would step down from his position with the national panel.Speaking to Cricinfo prior to the first Test, Hilditch hinted that his future with CA would be determined by whether his view is determined to be full-time in the future. Should one of the remaining three selectors be upgraded to full-time status, Hilditch is likely to continue chairing the panel.”There are lots of recommendations, all of which I’m fully in support of,” Hilditch said of the pathways document. “The one that seems to be highlighted is are we going to have a full-time selector or a full-time chairman, but the more important part of the review was what we should be doing at state level, Australia A and future tours. I’ll be interested to see where it goes.”I’ve done most of my time voluntarily and I enjoyed that process. It’s wonderful to be able to do those sort of things. If it continues that’s great, because I’m very fortunate, but I’ll see what happens. Unfortunately there’s some perception at the moment that I should have been at the first (Ashes warm-up) game, but that’s got nothing to do with whether I’m a full-time chairman. If there’s a fulltime selector he’s not going to be at every game.”CA’s directors have already endorsed the recommendations of the Player Pathway Review Committee “subject to the CA Board approving the 2009-10 budget.” The review also recommended a refocussing of “state cricket to produce Australian players” and a restructuring of both men’s and women’s pathway programmes.

Mark Butcher, the Surrey club captain, has announced his retirement because of a persistent knee injury.Although Butcher has managed five Championship matches this season he had further surgery two weeks ago with the hope of returning before the end of the current campaign. However, he has now conceded defeat to his long-standing problem and ends a 19-year professional career.He has been with Surrey throughout and his retirement brought to an end a great family playing tradition at The Oval. Mark followed his father, Alan, into the team and they joined forces as captain and coach before Alan left following relegation last season.”It was a very tough decision to walk away from the club that I have called home since I was a boy and the game that has given me so many great memories,” Butcher said. “But I feel that it is the right time to move onto the next chapter in my life.”I look back very fondly on my twenty years as a player at Surrey, in my opinion the best place to play cricket in the land, and am also very proud to have represented my country. I would like to thank all the coaches, players, supporters and administrative staff that have helped me along the way and made the last twenty years incredibly special.”Butcher played 71 Tests for England, the last of which came against South Africa, in Durban, in 2004 and his career-best was the unbeaten 173 he hit against Australia, at Headingley, in 2001. He later enjoyed a period at No. 3 when he was a key part to England’s success under Duncan Fletcher and Michael Vaughan.In his first-class career Butcher amassed 17,870 runs at 40.70 with a career-best 259. He was also a very useful medium-pace bowler – until his knees started playing up – and captured 125 first-class wickets at 33.89. In one-day cricket he averaged 31.85 but never won an ODI cap for England.”I had the privilege of touring with Mark in 1999-2000 and I got to see first-hand what a fine batsman he really was,” cricket manager Chris Adams said. “I also got a glimpse of the man, and that told me that here was a talented cricketer for sure but a cricketer whose attitude and work ethic were of the highest order.”In the short time that we have had working together I would like to thank Mark for his contribution in what we are trying to achieve in this new era at Surrey . He has never once let his personal anguish and frustrations with the injury affect his decision making with regards to team affairs and has 100% endorsed the vision and journey that has only just begun.”Butcher’s is the second high-profile county retirement in recent days following Andy Caddick’s decision to halt his career at the end of the season.