WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 9, 2015 SPORTS S Lanka rocked by drug shock ahead of NZ Test WELLINGTON: Wicketkeeper Kusal ing the 2011 World Cup. The loss of the Black Caps completed a 2-0 series white- last couple of years,” said Southee yester- the past 12 months. Perera’s shock suspension after failing a three-Test keeper follows the back injury wash. day. Ross Taylor has averaged 52 in the drugs test has left Sri Lanka reeling suffered by leading fast bowler Prasad in Mathews’ side return a year later, still “It’s typical Dunedin weather. We find same period including a 290 against ahead of the two-Test series against New a warm-up match against a modest New in a rebuilding phase, to face a settled it cold so I’m sure the Sri Lankans will Australia while McCullum, as he showed Zealand starting in Dunedin tomorrow. Zealand Board President’s XI. New Zealand line-up looking for a confi- find it even worse.” In Australia, only with his 195 in the first Test against Sri After Dhammika Prasad’s series-end- It was not the hit-out the tourists dence boost after losing their recent opener Martin Guptill and off-spinner Lanka a year ago, can destroy any attack ing back injury, it was the second dam- were hoping for with Dimuth away series defeat to Australia. Mark Craig failed to shine but Hesson is once he gets going. aging blow for Angelo Mathews’ new- Karunaratne’s 93 in the first innings, prepared to keep faith with the out-of- With New Zealand’s two leading all- look side in what was always going to be backed by 63 from Udara Jayasundara ‘PACE AND BOUNCE’ form pair. rounders, Corey Anderson and Jimmy an uphill battle in testing New Zealand and 61 from Kithuruwan Vithanage in The Brendon McCullum-led New “Mark and Martin didn’t perform to Neesham, sidelined by injury, left-arm conditions. the second, the only scores of note. Zealanders are brimming with confi- the level they would have liked over in seamer Neil Wagner, who was not Perera, 25, one of Sri Lanka’s new The Sri Lankan batsmen can expect dence in home conditions where they Australia, but both have shown in the required in the Australia Tests, has had brigade following the retirements of sev- no mercy when the first Test starts at have not lost a Test nor a series since past what they’re capable of and we’re his chances of a start boosted by eral stars including Kumar Sangakkara, Dunedin’s University Oval on Thursday going down 0-1 when South Africa visit- confident they’ll make valuable contri- Hesson’s call for green tops. was sent home on Monday after return- with New Zealand coach Mike Hesson ed in 2011-12. butions in the upcoming series,” he said. “I think our pitches need to be green ing a positive result to a banned steroid ordering green, seaming pitches to suit They are also a team that played bet- “We think it’s a strong squad, but to keep pace in them with the clay we from a random test during their recent his pace attack. ter than the 0-2 scoreline in Australia last equally we’ve got a group of players on use,” Hesson said. “If we go in with some- series against Pakistan. New Zealand are at their best playing month would indicate. the fringe of selection who are ready to thing that looks a bit dry then it tends to He is the second Sri Lankan interna- at home, which Sri Lanka learned the “We are back in conditions we are be called upon if necessary.” Guptill turn into a bit of a dead duck. We cer- tional to fail a dope test following bats- hard way 12 months ago when bowling familiar with and grounds we are famil- aside, New Zealand are strong at the top tainly like to keep the game moving with man Upul Tharanga’s suspension for spearheads Tim Southee and Trent Boult iar with and hopefully we can show the of the order led by the impressive Kane a wicket that’s got a bit of pace and three months after testing positive dur- took 22 wickets between them as the high standards we have shown over the Williamson who has averaged 89.90 in bounce.” — AFP ICC targets World Twenty20 on US soil SYDNEY: Cricket chiefs hope to stage a per pointing to 2024 as the likely date. “We “In the shorter term, our full members are Twenty20 World Cup in the United States with- think that’d be a great concept. Other sports keen to play some big cricket in the USA. I in a decade as the game ramps up efforts to have done that, not just football, but rugby think that’d be a fantastic way to take cricket crack the huge American sports market, a are doing that with major events as well so we to a new heartland for the game,” said report said yesterday. The International Cricket see that as a medium-term goal.” Anderson. Council’s head of global development Tim India are scheduled to hold the next “There’s already an ODI-accredited venue in Anderson said the world governing body had Twenty20 World Cup in 2016 with Australia Florida (and another potential site in ambitions to further popularise the sport in a hosting the event in 2020. Cricket greats Indianapolis) but, within the next 12-18 country more used to baseball, basketball and Shane Warne and Sachin Tendulkar recently months, you could potentially have full mem- gridiron. While still alien to many Americans, took a number of former international stars to bers playing cricket (one-day internationals) in thousands travelled from the United States to the US for a three-match ICC-sanctioned T20 the USA.” To strengthen its bid to establish this year’s 50-over one-day World Cup in series, attracting large crowds. itself in the American market, the ICC is also Australia and New Zealand, while a lucrative Among the throng of big-name retirees looking at trying to enter the country’s college broadcast deal with the United States is playing were Brian Lara, Courtney Walsh, Curtly sport programme to boost participation at a NEW DELHI: Shashank Manohar (C), head of the Board of Control for Cricket in India already worth big money to ICC. Ambrose, Muttiah Muralitharan, Wasim Akram, grass roots level, the report said. (BCCI), BCCI honorary secretary Anurag Thakur (R) and Indian Premier League chair- “If we continue to make good progress, we Jacques Kallis, Ricky Ponting, Matthew Hayden, The ICC’s full members are Australia, man Rajeev Shukla (L) attend a press conference in New Delhi yesterday. The IPL gov- would (hope to) see a World Twenty20 in the Glenn McGrath and Brad Haddin. Some of the Bangladesh, England, India, New Zealand, erning council met to decide which two new teams would play in the league over the USA in the next rights cycle,” Anderson told world’s biggest active players could also be Pakistan, South Africa, Sri Lanka, West Indies next two years. — AFP the Sydney Daily Telegraph, with the newspa- padding up in the United States soon. and Zimbabwe. — AFP New IPL teams unveiled after fixing scandal Talking points from NEW DELHI: Teams from the western players for illegal betting and spot-fix- cities of Pune and Rajkot won an auc- ing. Five players from each of the tion yesterday to compete in cricket’s Chennai and Rajasthan franchises will India-S Africa Tests Indian Premier League, replacing two be drafted into the new teams on franchises that were banned over a cor- December 15, while the rest will feature NEW DELHI: Five talking points after India ruption scandal. The Twenty20 tourna- in an auction in Bangalore on February won the four-Test series against South Africa: ment’s chairman Rajiv Shukla said that 6, Shukla said. Both Chennai and New Rising, a subsidiary of the Sanjeev Rajasthan are expected to return to the UNPLAYABLE ASHWIN Goenka group, bagged the Pune fran- IPL after their bans end following the Yet again Ravichandran Ashwin master- chise, while Delhi-based Intex Mobiles 2017 edition. minded a series win for India, this time an picked up the Rajkot team in open bid- The new buyers have ensured the IPL impressive 3-0 scoreline over the world’s ding. Shukla said the owners had not will remain an eight-team event for at paid the usual franchise fees to tourna- least the next two years. “We are very top-ranked Test side. The prolific off-spin- ment organisers for the right to field excited to be associated with a popular ner’s 31 wickets in seven innings at an aver- teams, but would instead forgo pay- brand like the IPL,” said Intex director age of 11.12 earned him a man of the series ments from a central pool of money Keshav Bansal. award for the fifth time in his four-year Test made up of cash from TV rights and The barred Chennai Super Kings, led career. The performance lifted him to second sponsorship. “This speaks to the endur- by India’s World Cup-winning captain place in the ICC Test bowling rankings. ing popularity of the tournament, that Mahendra Singh Dhoni, are the most instead of us paying them money they successful team in the IPL’s history, hav- SOUTH AFRICA FLAIL AWAY are going to pay us,” Shukla told ing won the tournament in 2010 and A great cricket team is one which wins reporters after the auction in New Delhi.