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Surrey have ended their search for a replacement for Keith Medlycott with the announcement that Steve Rixon has signed a two-year deal to be the county’s manager.Rixon, 49, who played 13 Tests for Australia between 1977 and 1985, is currently coaching New South Wales and will move to England in late March when his current contract expires.”Having been offered roles in English cricket before, I feel this is the opportunity and challenge that really excites me the most," Rixon said. "Working for what I see as the premier county, I’ve been very impressed with what I’ve seen of Surrey so far. It’s clearly a squad with high quality players who I am looking forward to working with. I believe we will continue to build on the winning ways of the past few years.””We have searched the world of cricket to find the best person for this crucial position within the club," Paul Sheldon, Surrey’s chief executive, explained. "Having spent time with him last week in Australia I am convinced that we have found the right man to lead the team into a new era."

Sri Lanka have banked on pace for the CB Series in Australia after naming six fast bowlers in their 15-man squad for next month’s tournament which also features India.Chaminda Vaas, with 387 one-day wickets, heads the pack which also includes Lasith Malinga, Farveez Maharoof, Nuwan Kulasekera, Chanaka Welegedara and Ishara Amerasinghe.Left-armer Welegedara made his Test debut in the recent England series and has taken the place of Dilhara Fernando who is recuperating after undergoing an ankle operation. By naming six quicks the Sri Lankan selectors have only one genuine spinner in the squad – Muttiah Muralitharan.During Sri Lanka’s last triangular tournament in Australia, the 2005-06 VB Series, legspinner Malinga Bandara played a pivotal role supporting Muralitharan. He ended up as the second highest wicket-taker with 14 scalps and helped Sri Lanka finish runner-up to Australia, losing the best of three finals 2-1.”Bandara was not considered because he played all his matches of the 2005-06 tournament only as a super-sub. He was actually not part of the final XI,” a selection committee sourcerevealed. “If Sri Lanka need more spin options they have Tillakaratne Dilshan and Dilruwan Perera, who both bowl off-breaks.”Bandara’s place has gone to the Amerasinghe who, like Perera, has appeared in only one ODI. Perera will also play the role of third opener alongside Sanath Jayasuriya and Upul Tharanga.Selection sources also said that Dilshan was picked as a middle-order batsman and will not open despite scoring heavily in the domestic limited-overs tournament from that position.Chamara Kapugedera earns a recall while Kumar Sangakkara will resume wicketkeeping duties after playing as a specialist batsman in recent Tests against Australia and England.Sri Lanka leave for Australia on January 24 and play two warm-up games against a Prime Minister’s XI at the Manuka Oval on January 30 and against Tasmania in Hobart on February 2. They then meet India in their opening match of the CB Series in Brisbane on February 5.Sri Lanka squad
Mahela Jayawardene (capt), Kumar Sangakkara (wk), Sanath Jayasuriya, Upul Tharanga, Dilruwan Perera, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Chamara Silva, Chamara Kapugedera, Chanaka Welegedara, Chaminda Vaas, Lasith Malinga, Nuwan Kulasekera, Muttiah Muralitharan, Farveez Maharoof, Ishara Amerasinghe.

Darrell Hair will stand in his first official match since his employment tribunal against the ICC ended when he umpires the UAE-Kenya Intercontinental Cup match in Sharjah, starting on January 18.Hair withdrew his claim for racial discrimination against the ICC – in relation to The Oval Test forfeiture involving England and Pakistan in August 2006 – during early October, shortly after the trial entered its second week in London.At the time Malcolm Speed said Hair’s immediate future would revolve around the lower-level matches, before a decision would be taken on his long-term future. “For the next six months he will umpire matches at Associate level. I can’t speculate as to whether he will return to umpiring Full-Member matches or not,” said Speed.Following the four-day match in Sharjah, Hair will stand in a one-day international, at the same venue, between UAE and Kenya before another Intercontinental Cup match involving UAE and Namibia, again at Sharjah, starting on January 23.

Mohammad Asif’s rehabilitation from elbow injury could rule him out for another three months, which means he may face a race against time to be ready for the home series against Australia in March.Asif missed four ODIs out of five against South Africa in October and also the entire tour to India because of his right elbow. The problem is a long-standing one, having forced him to miss three Tests last year against England as well.He has just undergone successful keyhole surgery on the elbow in Sydney, Australia. The surgery was carried out by a prominent specialist on Monday. “The initial reports are that it was not a major operation and it has been successful,” Shafqat Naghmi, Chief Operating Officer of the PCB, told .”But Asif’s recovery could take up to three months before he resumes playing,” Naghmi said. A specialist will soon determine how long the full rehabilitation period will be.”We fear he would require a three-month rest, which means he is certainly out of next month’s home series against Zimbabwe,” he stated.Naghmi also said that Asif might then face a race against time to be completely fit for the home series against Australia, tentatively scheduled to begin from March 9.

Mark Cosgrove, who was dropped for the Pura Cup match against Victoria, has been dumped from South Australia’s ING Cup side for the game against Western Australia at the WACA on Friday. Daniel Harris replaced Cosgrove in both teams and is the only change to the squad that beat New South Wales on January 23.South Australia Graham Manou (capt, wk), Ryan Harris, Nathan Adcock, Mark Higgs, Greg Blewett, Trent Kelly, Daniel Cullen, Paul Rofe, Callum Ferguson, Shaun Tait, Daniel Harris, Shannon Tubb.

Australian captain Cameron White thought his side were going to be chasing 500 the way New Zealand started in their Super League match at the ICC Under-19 World Cup at Bert Sutcliffe Oval at Lincoln University today.But in a classy display of control, White used his slower bowlers to contain New Zealand, and after he had done that he played a key role in a 139-run stand for the third wicket that ended New Zealand’s tournament with a seven-wicket loss.For all their early bluster, the New Zealanders could not bat out their 50 overs, being dismissed for 194 in 46.3 overs.White said the early assault took the Australians by surprise but he decided to go with his spin bowlers.”We picked a team with a few spinners and we tried to slow it down with them. I hadn’t seen any of the New Zealanders before and [Jesse] Ryder hit the ball well,” he said.But if his leadership in the field was outstanding, White was even more emphatic with the bat in hand. He was 80 not out off 107 balls at the end as Australia romped home in 39.3 overs for the victory.New Zealand, not blessed with the same playing assets as the Australians, opted for innovation, and while it was working well it was a successful ploy.New Zealand opened the bowling with two spinners in a bid to break up the Australian assault, aiming especially at the preponderance of left-handers in the opposition order.They got two wickets, for 21 runs, but the Australians kept ploughing ahead.White said the New Zealand ploy with the bowling had been surprising but he understood they had to try something.But joining Shaun Marsh with the score on 21/1, he knew that three and four were key batting spots in the side and he wanted to set a batting example to other players in his side.Marsh and White batted superbly and really put the New Zealand attack through the mill. There were no openings, and there were to be none of the fairytales that surrounded the last trans-Tasman match on the ground when the CLEAR White Ferns beat Australia to win the CricInfo Women’s World Cup.They added 139 runs for the third wicket before Marsh was run out for 70 off 97 balls. His 50 had come up off 73 balls while White hit his off 80, bringing it up with successive boundaries.Sadly for New Zealand, however, it didn’t have sufficient resources to ensure the absolutely maximum effort it was going to take to beat this talented Australian team.Its greatest hopes lay in hard-hitting batsman Ryder getting a big score, preferably a three-figure score which has so far eluded the Super League sides.He provided every opportunity for himself by scoring 70 off 62 balls, including six fours and three sixes. When he was dismissed to a soft caught and bowled chance by left-arm spinner Jarrad Burke, New Zealand were 107/2 in the 18th over.The chance was provided for an all-out assault for a genuinely big total but it depended on two things – the skill of the remaining batsmen and the approach taken by the Australian skipper White in marshalling his bowlers.There was only one winner – Australia.White had a fine response from his attack and shut New Zealand out of the game.Firstly, it was Burke who put the brakes on and after coming on for the fifth over, he bowled his 10 overs through to end with the outstanding figures, under the circumstances of one for 35.When he finished Aaron Bird came back after his first two overs at the top of the innings had gone for 21. His last eight cost 29 but he claimed three wickets to leave the New Zealand middle-order gutted.

The Victorian Cricket Association today announced the position of State Coach will be advertised nationally this weekend. The move to advertise the position is in accordance with the agreement reached with current coach Michael O’Sullivan in October.”With the timing of John Scholes resignation prior to the start of the season, we felt that it was not appropriate to advertise the position at that time and entered into an agreement with Michael O’Sullivan for this season accordingly. We would however expect that Michael will be an applicant for the position”, VCA Chief Executive Officer Ken Jacobs said.With the ACB/State player contracting process beginning immediately after the completion of the 2001/02 season, the VCA believe it to be imperative that the State Coach be appointed prior to this process and contribute significantly to the development of the Bushrangers 2002/03 playing list.

David Christmas marked his return to the Minor Counties three-day game with a barnstorming innings which gained Lincolnshire maximum batting points in their first innings at Barrow-in-Furness.Christmas, sidelined from county cricket by injury for much of last season, powered his way to an unbeaten 73 off 72 balls as Lincs were bowled out by Cumberland for 365 in 94 overs.Skipper Mark Fell returned to his long-held tradition of losing the toss and saw his side put in to bat on a lively pitch with plenty in it for batsmen and bowlers. The opening partnership of James Clarke and Paul Pollard got Lincs off to an excellent start as they put together a steady stand of 134.Clarke made 71 off 123 balls, including 10 fours, but was first to go, falling lbw to spinner Horne and Pollard followed shortly afterwards, caught behind off Marcus Sharp for 63, in which he hit eight fours.Lincs then lost Mat Dowman for 17, lbw Jason Quint to a ball which kept low, and the same bowler dismissed Jon Trower, clean bowled for 10.Martyn Dobson and Fell both made 28 and Oliver Burford 18, but it was the arrival of Christmas at the crease which got the scoreboard ticking over rapidly once again.Christmas came out at number nine after Burford became Horne’s third victim, caught by Ashley Metcalfe to make it 244 for seven. And when Bob Chapman was caught by Graeme Lloyd off Horne with the total on 265, Christmas and Jonathan Davies added 31, of which Davis hit 12.Last man Elliot Wilson then joined Christmas as Lincs battled to gain maximum points by making 325 off 90 overs. After the 89th , the total had reached 314 and when five runs had come off the first five balls, Wilson made sure that of valuable extra point with a huge six which cleared the sightscreen behind the bowler.But from here, it was Christmas all the way as the last wicket stand grew to 69, bowler Jason Quint going for five fours and a six off one over.The innings finally ended with Wilson run out, having contributed just nine runs to the partnership and Cumberland went out to bat with just 13 overs remaining.But this was long enough for Davies to ensure that Lincs went into the second day in a good position, the former Cleethorpes bowler taking an early wicket as the home side finished on 26 for one.Lincs main concern at the end of the first day was an injury to wicketkeeper Burford who was hit in the face and had to leave the field for the last few overs, but it is hoped he will be fit to return for the rest of the Cumberland innings.

How do you fancy controlling the Southern Electric Premier League purse strings and being League Treasurer? It’s an important, enjoyable and rewarding role, but far from time consuming and onerous.What’s involved :-
1) controlling the actual League and Development Fund bank accounts (along with other signatories)
2) accounting for receipts and payments
3) preparation of Annual Budget for assessment of charges to clubs and arranging them
4) settlement of League expenses and collection of monies due
5) preparation of annual accounts for both the League and the Development Fund and submission for audit
6) presentation of accounts to Annual Meetings and reporting to the monthly Management meetings
It’s a role that would probably be ideal for a cricketer, or club member, embarking on a career in the banking or accountancy world and who would relish the opportunity of practical experience in treasurership.A responsible approach to handling third party funds is required, but the volume of book-keeping is not onerous.If you are interested, then have a word with our retiring treasurer Brian Funnell (01264 889793) who will be pleased to provide more information.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details

After India built a 105-run lead, the spinners got to work on South Africa’s inexperienced line-up and made an Indian victory a more likely proposition as the day wore on. Barring Graeme Smith, the top order struggled to smother the considerable assistance that Harbhajan Singh and Anil Kumble extracted from the pitch. They reduced South Africa to 147 for 5, of which Harbhajan had four wickets. However, Jacques Kallis applied himself and was unbeaten on 52, and his presence will give his team comfort as the game enters its final day. At the close, South Africa were 172 for 5, only 66 in front.A positive start by Smith and Andrew Hall preceded a spate of dismissals engineered by Harbhajan. He cleverly mixed the doosra with offbreaks, and the batsmen failed to read him. Hall attempted a sweep and gloved one to the wicketkeeper after a valuable opening stand of 77. Runs had come quickly till then, as South Africa aimed to wipe out India’s lead as quickly as possible. In his next over, Harbhajan fooled Jacques Rudolph with one that turned in from outside off, leaving him bemused. The other end held no respite. Kumble landed plenty of deliveries in the rough, from where they shot off at troublesome angles. After several unsuccessful shouts for leg-before, he finally induced an edge from Boeta Dippenaar and watched it rebound off Dinesh Karthik’s knee to Virender Sehwag at second slip.Smith had been bothered by Kumble, but fell to Harbhajan, edging an offbreak to first slip after an aggressive 71. He used the sweep well and looked to play both spinners to leg – an approach the others used extensively after his departure. Against the fast bowlers Smith was more commanding. He flicked Irfan Pathan to the boundary disdainfully, and was equally comfortable against Zaheer Khan. His stand with Kallis was just reaching worrying proportions for the Indians when Harbhajan struck.

With Smith gone, the Indians sensed more easy pickings. The fielders came in, the crowd was on edge, and the pitch was affording plenty of turn. Under these conditions, the debutant Hashim Amla entered … and left soon afterwards, when a bat-pad appeal was erroneously upheld. Kallis – fortunate to be there himself after a similar bat-pad went undetected when he had 2 – and Zander de Bruyn played cautiously after that, and stuck to nudging the ball around for ones and twos. They realised, as India had in the morning, that every run could make a difference on this pitch.Karthik and Pathan and the rest of the lower order had frustrated the South Africans earlier. Shaun Pollock and Makhaya Ntini bowled spiritedly for almost the entire session and prised out three wickets, including Karthik for 46, but it used up a lot of time. Karthik had led India’s campaign to extend the lead on the third day, and this morning expectations lay on his and Pathan’s shoulders. But both fell in quick succession.Then Harbhajan and Zaheer prolonged South Africa’s agony in the field, adding 24 in 51 balls, with Harbhajan often resorting to wild swipes and other befuddling strokes. It all ended when Justin Ontong pitched his first ball well outside leg stump, and Harbhajan reverse-swept it to Dippenaar at point.After three days of largely tepid cricket, this Test has finally sprung to life. Much of this action had to do with the pitch, which provided increasing assistance to spinners. With India having far superior firepower in that department, they will be favourites to wrap up the match, and the series, tomorrow.