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. 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 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 , 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 and iar with and hopefully we can show the of the order led by the impressive Kane a that’s got a bit of pace and three months after testing positive dur- took 22 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: 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 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 and 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, , 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, , , grass roots level, the report said. (BCCI), BCCI honorary secretary Anurag Thakur (R) and chair- “If we continue to make good progress, we , , , 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 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 , led career. The performance lifted him to second sponsorship. “This speaks to the endur- by India’s World Cup-winning 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. 2011 and finishing runners-up on four consistently both home and away and South New Rising have agreed to pay occasions. Rajasthan Royals won the Africa had not lost an overseas Test series around $3.4 million annually for the inaugural event in 2008 under the cap- since 2006. But that proud record ended Pune franchise for the next two years taincy of Australian spin legend Shane with the defeat on Indian soil. Hashim Amla’s and Intex will pay around $1.5 million Warne, but have failed to make the final Proteas still remain the top-ranked side, but for the Rajkot team. since then. the lead over new number two India is just The auction followed the decision by Since its launch in 2008, the IPL has India’s cricket board to ban the Chennai become hugely popular by paying four rating points. South Africa face England Super Kings and the Rajasthan Royals mega salaries to big-name internation- at home later this month with another from the glitzy tournament for two als who perform against a glamorous defeat meaning they would be knocked off years on the recommendation of a backdrop of dancing girls and their perch. Supreme Court-appointed panel. The Bollywood stars, who part-own the 2013 IPL season was mired in controver- teams. But despite attracting big audi- WERE DUST BOWLS SPORTING PITCHES? sy after police launched legal proceed- ences, it has been dogged by scandal, As India’s spinners made South African ings against several officials from the including allegations of corruption, batsmen hop and jump, a debate raged over two teams and three Rajasthan Royals’ spot-fixing and crooked umpires. — AFP the underprepared pitches that were laid out for the series. Two of the first three Tests ended in less than three days. India team director Ravi Shastri said there was no rule that prohibited spinning pitches, just as there was no rule against the seaming or bouncy wickets that his team encounters overseas. South Africa refused to blame the wickets, saying it was their batsmen’s inabili- ty to tackle the turning ball that cost them the series.

TOUR TO FORGET FOR AMLA It is rare for Hashim Amla to fail, especially so for an entire tour. Amla, one of the finest batsmen of his generation, averaged just 17.80 in the five-match one-day series that preceded the Tests. The right-hander fared worse in seven Test innings, making just 118 runs at an average of 16.85. Amla’s lack of form was a huge surprise and disappoint- ment given that in six previous Tests on Indian soil he had amassed 823 runs at an average of 102.87 with four centuries.

HOME COMFORTS India made the most of their first Test series at home in two years after being bat- tered and bruised overseas. They had lost just one of their last 17 series on home soil since 2004 and five of their last six home Test wins have come inside three days. With India TAUNTON: In this photograph taken on September 1, 2010, Pakistan cricketers due to play a majority of their series over the Mohammad Aamer, (L) Mohammad Asif (Back C) and captain Salman Butt (R) leave next three years at home, a return to num- the team hotel in Taunton, in south-west England. Former Pakistan captain Salman ber one is a real possibility. India were last Butt and Mohammad Asif will be allowed to return to Pakistan’s domestic cricket in the top-ranked Test team between 2009 and January, three months after their spot-fixing bans ended, officials announced on Sunday. — AFP 2011. —AFP Ravichandran Ashwin