The seven-week long World Cup in the West Indies courted sharp criticism from the Marylebone Cricket Club, which said that the quadrennial event should be played within a month's time. Offering several recommendations for better conduct of the show-piece event, MCC World Cricket Committee,

Pakistan Cricket Board is looking for a tech-savvy and modern coach to fit into the shoes of slain Bob Woolmer. "We are in search of a qualified coach and we will be selecting the most suitable candidate with the help of our search committee and the process will be completed by July 1

After flexing its muscles over the players' contracts, the Cricket Board today made a tame climb down and said the Bangladesh-bound team members can sign the contract even after returning from the tour if they were not happy with some of the clauses. "I don't have a feed back yet from

Simon Katich's surprise omission from the Cricket Australia's list of 25 contracted players has prompted outrage from his state with a senior New South Wales official questioning the credibility of the selection process. "Simon Katich continues to be one of the best performed batsmen

With the World Cup disaster behind them, the Indian team think-tank assembled here today to begin a new innings with a five-day conditioning camp from Wednesday before embarking on the Bangladesh tour. Newly-appointed cricket manager Ravi Shastri and skipper Rahul Dravid flew in here to w

Seasoned middle order batsman Ramnaresh Sarwan has been appointed the new West Indies captain, succeeding Brian Lara who quit international cricket after the World Cup. According to a CMC report, Sarwan was the unanimous choice during the West Indies Cricket Board's special board meeting y

England's Mr reliable Kevin Pietersen soured Brian Lara's last international match as England survived an edge-of-the-seat thriller to beat West Indies by one wicket in the final Super Eight match of the Cricket World Cup here. According to the sources, Kevin Pietersen's superb 100 help

England captain Michael Vaughan won the toss and elected to bowl against the West Indies in the inconsequential, final World Cup Super Eights cricket one-dayer here today. Both teams are out of the reckoning but the match will be of significance for the hosts captain Brian Lara, the world

Australia cricket skipper Ricky Ponting became the seventh batsman in One Day International cricket history to join the 10,000 run-club. Ponting achieved the milestone while scoring 91 runs against South Africa in St. Kitts on Saturday in a World Cup match. The dashing Aussie batsman n

Antigua has been Brian Lara's happy hunting ground and the West Indies captain hopes to be lucky again when his team crosses sword with Australia in the World Cup Super Eights opener here tomorrow. Australia have been in menacing form, amassing 300-plus score in each of the three group ma

The Australia can once again be termed mighty after their World Cup win over South Africa on Saturday which erased the bad memories of their consecutive defeats against New Zealand recently. Australia need to win this week's Super Eights World Cup matches against the West Indies and Bangl

Thanks to their disastrous Caribbean campaign, Team India can slump to as low as eighth position in the ICC ODI Championship ladder after the cricket World Cup. Rahul Dravid's men cut a sorry figure in the West Indies, managing their lone win against a lowly Bermuda and losing to Sri Lank

Pakistani middle order batsman Inzamam ul Haq today quit as Pakistan test captain and retired from one day internationals. With his side still mourning the sudden death of coach Bob Woolmer hours earlier, Inzamam told a news conference he was cutting back on his international commitment

Sri Lanka will take on debutante Bermuda in their opening World Cup Group B clash of on Friday. The 1996 winners have served a warning after deciding to field both their strike bowlers, off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan and left-arm paceman Chaminda Vaas. Vaas, 33, would be buoyant

The International Cricket Council has asked the Pakistan team management to avoid holding press conferences in the Urdu language as it consumes a lot of time.A source in the Pakistan team based in Kingston disclosed that media manager Pervez Mir and manager Talat Ali had been told to hold thei

Pakistan pacer Rana Naved ul Hasan and Umar Gul were summoned by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for random dope test after their opening World Cup match against the West Indies.ICC had summoned Umer Gul and Rana Naved-ul-Hasan for a random dope test after the World Cup opening match

Indian team coach Greg Chappell has allayed fears on Sourav Ganguly's ankle injury, saying the brief break gave the side a chance to be fully fit before their opening game in the cricket World Cup scheduled against Bangladesh on Saturday."We're prepared for it, and we are ready to go. Mos

The West Indies team lifted the mood in the Caribbean when they registered a 54-run win over Pakistan in the first World Cup match here. All rounder Dwayne Smith dominated with bat and ball to ensure the World Cup hosts opened the competition with a victory. West Indies made 241 for nine and

The West Indies rediscovered their winning form in time to register a comprehensive 54-run victory over former champions Pakistan in the cricket World Cup opening one-dayer here on Tuesday.The hosts, coming off a series loss in India and an uninspiring performance in the warm-up games, produce

Has Bob Woolmer finally decided to call it quits with the Pakistan Cricket Board? This question is making the rounds in cricket circles of the country ever since Woolmer vacated his room at the National Cricket Academy in Lahore before leaving with the Pakistan team for the World Cup in the We

Pakistan and West Indies were today forced to scrap plans to practice at Sabina Park in Kingston, Jamaica, which hosts Tuesday's World Cup opener between the sides, because the net facilities were not ready. They instead trained at the nearby Kensington Oval in Kingston. There was never a

Sourav Ganguly's sour right ankle will be tested by team physio John Gloster during the nets today. Ganguly reported of soreness in his ankle on the eve of their warm-up match against the West Indies last week and took part for only 11 overs in the practice game. Although Captain R

Two time World champions West Indies will today take on 1992 champions Pakistan in the opening match of the ninth ICC Cricket World Cup. The Windies face pressure as no host country has ever won the title since the World Cup was launched in 1975 in England. Brian Lara and his men woul

Impressed by the nagging discipline shown by the pacemen in their final warm-up game against the West Indies, Indian captain Rahul Dravid said it had given them an idea about their bowling attack for the World Cup matches.He said even though the pitches in the Caribbean were expected to suit t

Virender Sehwag came a cropper again but India sent a strong warning to their rivals with a thumping nine-wicket win against hosts West Indies in the final warm-up match before the World Cup.While Sehwag's prolonged bad patch was a worry for the Indian think-tank, Irfan Pathan's three-wicket h

Captain Rahul Dravid today said that the key players in his team where coming into top form and fitness which augured well for India's chances at the cricket World Cup. "Most key players are finding form and fitness which is a good sign for us," Dravid said after a convincing ni

Hours before the start of the World Cup, Indian cricket team dealt with a blow as opener Sourav Ganguly injured his ankle during net practice today to be doubtful for the warm-up match against the West Indies. Indian team sources said Ganguly hurt his ankle during the practice session and

Unfazed by the controversy surrounding his conversation with an alleged Indian bookie, West Indies middle order batsman Marlon Samuels insists he is not bothered by the "distraction" and is preparing to live up to captain Brian Lara's expectations. Samuels has had a good run in r

Refusing to part with his hard-earned money for an expensive passage to the West Indies, the average Indian cricket fan has given a firm thumbs down to the World Cup. While tour operators blame it on Men in Blue's late peaking, the average crowd find the packages beyond their reach. Prem

Middle-order batsman Mohammad Kaif, bewildered by his omission from the Indian team, today said he was not told by the authorities concerned which aspects of the game he needs to address. "I have not been told which areas of my game I need to improve upon," Kaif, here to guide