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Yuvraj Singh has never been to Ireland but he’s confident that it’s where India can set the tone for a successful summer and where he can secure a permanent spot in the batting order. India play three one-day internationals against South Africa in Stormont before taking on England in three Tests and seven ODIs.”How the tour progresses is very important, so if we can do well against South Africa in Ireland I’m sure we’ll play good cricket,” he said at the end of day three of a four-day conditioning camp at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bangalore. “For the last six or seven years I’ve been batting in the middle order, but it’s been tough finding my place, especially in Tests. It depends where I come to bat. If I come lower down then I have to go for my shots. If I get sent up the order then I can settle in and open up later.”Current form can’t be assessed in one or two series. At the World Cup I was in form but unfortunately we didn’t go far and in Bangladesh I couldn’t get started. In the Afro-Asia Cup I came in lower down, so if I can get a run for a five or six-match series at one spot then you can see how I perform. It’s going to be a tough tour so we have to focus on being mentally and physically fit, but I’m confident of doing well.”With his left knee still in a brace after he tore his anterior cruciate ligament before the Champions Trophy, Yuvraj said he didn’t feel uncomfortable on the field. “I’ve been working on it [the knee] three or four times a week, and obviously the brace is a precaution so I have to keep it on until I get properly fit. But when I’m playing a game I go 100% all out.”The focus of the day at the NCA was batting in pairs. Two batsmen went in at a time and had to chase 45 runs in eight overs. Robin Uthappa and Gautam Gambhir failed, losing Uthappa in the process. Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid chased it down with ease and made 53 before Ganguly got out. Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Rohit Sharma, batting against the spin of Piyush Chawla and Ramesh Powar, also succeeded as did Yuvraj and Dinesh Karthik.Sharma, a promising young Mumbai batsman who was included in the 30-member probables list for the 2006 Champions Trophy, used his chance to bat with the seniors. He was impressive against the spinners and hustled to make singles into doubles and once lofted Powar to long on where Sreesanth dropped a sitter. “Keep it up!” yelled a jaded spectator sitting alone in the stands.Yuvraj wasn’t confident against spin, often lunging forward and playing around his pad. Was it a worry, given that Monty Panesar, in fantastic form, would bowl a lot against India over the summer? “All of our batsmen play spin well, so I don’t see him as a threat. Obviously he’s doing very well so we have to look out for him.”Gregory King, the physical trainer, and physio John Gloster were overseeing the camp, the last of three conducted ahead of India’s tour of Ireland and England. Venkatesh Prasad, the bowling coach, stood at square leg and took notes for most of the time.”It’s going well, after just two days. Today we had some match practice which went well for all the batsmen and bowlers,” said Yuvraj. “We didn’t really feel the absence of a coach, as there was a bowling coach and a fielding coach [Robin Singh] and the team is looking really good. Everyone’s quite happy with the coaching camp.”

While few in the international community believe that Zimbabwe will be in a state to resume playing Test cricket when their self-imposed one-year suspension ends in January, until now the Zimbabwe board has bullishly maintained that they will be back.But in an interview with the local Independent newspaper, Ozias Bvute, Zimbabwe Cricket’s controversial managing director, gave the first indications that January might be too soon.”We have a road map of intensive tours for both the senior and Zimbabwe A teams to gain exposure and experience,” he told the paper. “We also have five standing squads formed on the basis of strength versus strength that will be playing against each other locally in between tours. Add to that all the activity in the 10 provinces, the school games and tertiary institutions programme we have initiated and you will see that we have the basis for continued growth and we will continue to re-evaluate ourselves to see if we are ready to resume Test cricket.”We are under no illusion about our quality and capability hence the decision to suspend Test commitments,” he continued. “Quality … we have what it takes. Experience … that is what we are looking for now in all these matches we are playing. It will not come easy but it has to come through performance and we appreciate that in the immediate future results may not come our way.”Critics are quick to point out that Zimbabwe’s cause is hardly helped by the fact that last season the Logan Cup, the country’s first-class competition, was shelved by the board. They also note that the provincial reorganisation has left the domestic set-up in chaos and claim it was only undertaken to ensure that the ruling board could not be toppled.Bvute, unsurprisingly, looked to shift the blame for the side’s form which has seen them lose their last 15 ODIs against Full Member countries. “We are mandated to run the game on behalf of the nation,” he explained. “However, the issue of poor Zimbabwe performances should be seen in context. When we are saddled with a situation of a narrow selection base that does not allow for competitive selection for national assignments should we be held responsible for the actions of previous administrators who failed to ensure continued throughput because they ran the sport along elitist lines as a preserve of the few?”Although Bvute was quick to blame previous administrators, that rather overlooks the fact that Peter Chingoka, the ZC chairman, has been in office for more than a decade. It is during his tenure that the mass exodus of players has taken place and that the fortunes of the national side have gone into freefall.Bvute ended on an optimistic note, insisting: “Since taking over we are redressing the imbalance and are up to the challenge of ensuring that the future is bright.”Zimbabwe take on Bangladesh in five ODIs over the next ten days and much will depend on their performances in those as, aside from the preliminary round of the Champions Trophy, they have no more matches scheduled until December. If they can acquit themselves well against Bangladesh then perhaps Bvute’s assertion that the future is bright might seem less hollow.

Phil Simmons, Zimbabwe’s coach, is on the verge of being fired, according to sources close to the national side.Simmons was already under pressure before the recent two-day humiliation by New Zealand. He had been publicly criticised by a selector following the Test and ODI series losses in Bangladesh earlier in the year.A report in today’s Zimbabwe Independent suggested that the Zimbabwe board had already sounded out possible replacements, with Sandeep Patil, who took Kenya to the semi-finals of the 2003 World Cup, among the frontrunners, although Ozias Bvute, the board’s managing director, denied the claims.Bvute did, however, admit that there was a thorough review of the performance in the Harare Test being undertaken. “It’s obviously important that we introspect to enable us to do better,” he told the paper. “Our intention is never to go into a match with the desire to lose.”We shall look into consulting widely to ensure all our structures are adequately improved so that our performance reaches the expectations of our fans and spectators alike.”But an unnamed source said that Simmons’ time had run out. “Phil is finding it difficult to get the message across to the players,” the source said. “He has not added any value to the team at all and, actually, the young players have got worse since he took over. We need someone with good work ethics, and we certainly need to find a better coach from somewhere. Phil is a good coach, but Zimbabwe Cricket overrated his ability, and he has been found wanting at this level of cricket. It seems that he cannot identify the problem with the team. “In Simmons’ defence, coaching the Zimbabwe national side is an unenviable job with most of the decent players either having retired or moved abroad, and the majority of the remainder just not being good enough. It is hard to see who would want the role. The best prospect would be a former player, but most of those with the credentials are abroad with little desire to return under the current political regime.Dean du Plessis, a local commentator, said that Simmons was just too nice. “He doesn’t have hardness to coach at Test level,” he told the Independent. “He’s a happy sort of guy, a gentle giant. He likes to socialise with everyone. There is nothing wrong with that, but that is one of his major weaknesses. He lacks the ability to discipline his players. He has simply not adjusted well as a Test coach.”That view was supported by an editorial in the same paper. “Phil Simmons is not good enough to coach a nascent Test side like Zimbabwe,” it said. “The gentle giant is not only too soft for the job but has clearly failed to inspire confidence into the players.”While the dissonance between players in camp may be a result of the rebel saga as well as age and social differences, Simmons has failed to harmonise relations and to instil discipline among the cricketers.”And it warned that it was not just Simmons in the firing line. “The whole technical set-up should be reviewed – from provincial to national level.” Zimbabwe cricket desperately needs to turn round it fortunes, but in the meantime it also needs a scapegoat. Simmons is likely to be that person.

West Indies have called up Omari Banks for their second Test against Bangladesh that begins on June 4 at Kingston, Jamaica. Dave Mohammed, the left-arm spinner who was in the squad for the first Test but did not make the playing XI, has been left out.Banks missed West Indies’ tour of South Africa after suffering a stress fracture to his back. He proved his match-fitness with a four-wicket haul against Bangladesh in a first class game at St. Vincent a week ago, and has been captaining Anguilla in the ongoing Leeward Islands championship.Squad Chris Gayle, Devon Smith, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Brian Lara (capt), Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Dwayne Smith, Ridley Jacobs (wk), Tino Best, Pedro Collins, Jermaine Lawson, Fidel Edwards, Ravi Rampaul, Omari Banks.

In stark contrast to the fine weather on the first day of the match between Sussex and the Zimbabwe at Hove, the second day provided almost unrelieved drizzle. The weather did briefly look like clearing up after lunch, but more rain led to the abandonment of the day’s play just after four o’clock. Zimbabwe remained on 317 for 4, with Mark Vermeulen unbeaten on 194.

The selection of the Indian team for the Asian Test Championship (ATC)to be played in Pakistan next month, will take place after thegovernment’s permission is obtained, BCCI secretary JY Lele said inBaroda on Saturday.The BCCI president AC Muthiah met the Union Sports Minister Uma Bhartiin New Delhi on Friday and discussed this matter among other things,Lele told reporters. Bharti said it was for the External AffairsMinistry to take a decision on the Indian team’s participation in theATC, Lele added.

Northamptonshire has moved back to the top of Division Two of the CountyChampionship after completing a resounding home victory over Worcestershiretoday with more than two sessions still remaining.For the second week in a row, it was off spinners Jason Brown (5/55) andGraeme Swann (4/88) who proved the matchwinners. After taking seventeenwickets together in the last round, the tandem slow bowling combinationadded another sixteen to their rapidly swelling collective tally withanother superb exhibition.Worcestershire had entered the final day at a score of 102/6 in its secondinnings – and still facing a massive overall deficit of 168 runs. Matterssoon became even worse as Brown tempted Steve Rhodes (4) into drivingextravagantly at, but alas over the top of, a conventional off break.Stuart Lampitt (56*) and, to a lesser extent, Paul Pollard (9), summonedenough defiance to see out eighteen overs together before the latter’swicket fell but, from there, the end came quickly.There was both good and bad news for the visitors in Lampitt’s attainmentof a well-deserved half century – for he gained appropriate reward for apositive innings and yet illustrated, in scoring it, the thoroughinadequacy of his team’s match totals of 249 and 198 on what was by nomeans an awkward pitch on which to bat.Following this result, the rampant Northamptonshire now finds itself threepoints clear of Sussex at the head of the divisional standings. It seemslikely that its fate will be determined in its two meetings with thatparticular rival over the course of the next fortnight – the first of whichbegins at Northampton on Wednesday.

Dave Langford-Smith, the Ireland opening bowler, has announced his retirement from international cricket. Langford-Smith played in 22 one-dayers, picking up 25 wickets at 31.88, and represented Ireland on their recent tour of Bangladesh.”It has been a tough decision for me, but one I had to make,” Langford-Smith said. “On returning from the latest tour, I have realised that my workload [outside cricket] has built up so much that I will find it hard to do anything else. I’ve reached a stage in my life where I have to think about my family, and it’s difficult when you are away from home so much.””Playing for the Irish team has been the greatest sporting experience I could have ever wished for, and I am proud to have been a part of such a successful team, both on and off the field.”Like most Associate cricketers, Langford-Smith has had to juggle cricket with a full-time job, and has recently formed his own painting and decorating business. His departure follows last week’s news that the Ireland captain, Trent Johnston, is to take an indefinite break from the game.Langford-Smith leaves international cricket as Ireland’s leading wicket-taker in ODIs.

ScorecardUAE’s Saqib Ali and Khurram Khan defied Scotland’s bowlers with a dogged century partnership on the first day of their Intercontinental Cup match at Ayr.After a five-hour delay due to heavy rain – play getting underway at 4pm – Scotland picked up three quick wickets, making the most of helpful and seamer friendly conditions. Craig Wright was first to strike, trapping Arshad Ali, UAE’s captain, in front for a duck. Five overs later, Wright broke through in identical fashion to remove Gayan Silva, before John Blain found the edge of Amjad Javed’s bat, Ryan Watson pulling off a fine catch at second slip.At 18 for 3, UAE were up against it but Khurramm and Saqib were let off the hook by Scotland and soon the pair capitalised. They put on 153 for the fourth wicket, before Khurram fell to Majid Haq for a composed 74. However, with poor weather forecast for the remaining three days, both sides have plenty to do if they’re to force a win.

The International Cricket Council has written to the Pakistan board expressing concerns over the facilities at Peshawar’s Arbab Niaz Stadium.Abbas Zaidi, the PCB director board operations, said that the ICC was unhappy with the fracas that occurred during the first ODI between Pakistan and India earlier this year. “Actually, it was Chris Broad [ICC match referee from England] who was dismayed at the facilities and arrangements provided for that limited overs game in Peshawar,” Zaidi told , a Karachi-based daily. “The referee had expressed his unhappiness at the lack of security arrangements and related facilities for the teams and the officials after a large number of spectators managed to barge into the ground. But despite the unfortunate fiasco, the match was played in good spirit with no untoward incident taking place.”Zaidi reiterated though that the ICC had not prohibited Peshawar from staging international fictures. “Peshawar remains one of our venues for international matches in the future. But we have asked the Peshawar administration to rectify the situation before we review the centre for staging international matches.”We are keen to take administrative charge of the Peshawar centre from a cricketing point of view. The PCB had already sought control of stadiums at Faisalabad and Rawalpindi, which like Peshawar, are under the control of local administration.”