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Ben Brocklehurst, who briefly captained Somerset but went on to play a big role in the establishment of The Cricketer Cup and the National Village Knockout, as well as being a long-time proprietor of The Cricketer, has died at the age of 85.He had a brief county career, an amateur drafted in to lead a Somerset side that had finished bottom of the Championship in 1952 and who was one of the last amateur captains. The move failed and Wisden noted that “inexperienced amateurs could not solve their problems”. Somerset finished bottom by some way under his leadership in 1953 and 1954, losing 37 of the 56 games they played. Brocklehurst could lead by example either, struggling with the bat. “None tried harder than Brocklehurst,” observed Wisden, “but the county really needed a more experienced and talented leader.”But his lasting legacy came off the field. In 1967, he helped to set up The Cricketer Cup, a competition for the leading 32 public schools, and in 1972 the National Village Knockout, for village sides the length and breadth of the country. Brocklehurst and his family were hands-on organisers, and both competitions still flourish today. The village final at Lord’s every September is one of the highlights of the club-cricket season.A farmer by trade, he moved into publishing and took over The Cricketer in 1970 at a time the magazine was on the verge of closing. Through sheer hard work he kept it going, merging with Playfair Cricket Monthly in 1973 and subsequently adding a travel arm to the business. In 2003 it was sold to the John Wisden Group and The Cricketer was merged with Wisden Cricket Monthly to form The Wisden Cricketer.Brocklehurst’s daughter Charmaine married Richard Hutton and their eldest son, Ben, currently plays for Middlesex.

Kamran Akmal has had a forgettable Test match © Getty Images

It’s quite lucky that Inzamam-ul-Haq, Bob Woolmer and Wasim Bari are men blessed with a plentiful mop of hair. After the performances of Kamran Akmal and Mohammad Sami on this tour and in this match, you suspect they’re likely to be pulling some of it out. Not in anger, mind – none are prone to exploding – just mere exasperation.Take Akmal first. Until this series began, Akmal had barely put even a toe wrong since cementing his place late in 2004; as a keeper, despite the odd blemish, he has been outstanding. And because of his extraordinary run with the bat, even those mistakes have been swept aside. But in this series, he has dropped catches regularly, been consistently untidy and to compound matters, the runs have dried up.Two more catches were dropped this morning, both crucial in the context of a tight Test, and takes were fluffed with alarming regularity through the day. All of which prompted one Pakistani reader to write in, desperately pleading the PCB to “SEND BACK KAMRAN AKMAL as soon as possible as we are sure any other alternative would be better than him.”This is where the hair-pulling comes in. Does the management drop Akmal after three very poor Tests? Or do they persist with him, in the hope that it is just a blip which he will soon overcome? Evidence from the last year suggests that dropping him might be folly. And, of course, if he is axed who replaces him? There is no obvious understudy; both Zulqernain Haider and Akmal’s younger brother Adnan are next in line, in theory, but untested in practice.There is the merest echo of England’s predicament before this Test with Geraint Jones, though they at least had Chris Read as an experienced back-up. It’s difficult to pinpoint what has gone wrong – Bari can surely provide clues – but with each passing error, his confidence has dipped. Whatever they do, it is clear an understudy needs to be groomed, sooner rather than later.The three will need to save some hair though, for the question of Mohammad Sami still floats. He has been abominable for much of the series. Very occasionally, he has riled himself but with the return of two frontline bowlers for the Oval likely, his dropping would have found unanimous backing. Yet he turns up today a different creature entirely to what we have seen thus far.His morning spell was threatening but the real eye-opener came during an 11-over burst either side of tea. There was bounce and purpose in his run-up and words and attitude in his follow through; in between wasn’t bad either, as he suddenly and mysteriously, located both reverse and serious pace, the two attributes which sprung him into the limelight to begin with. Above all, he was visibly more confident. Now for a man whose problems with morale are famously notorious, axing him just as he seems to be locating it is likely to be debilitating in the long-term. Paradoxically, it is justified; Mohammad Sami in a nutshell really.At least the three have a little time before the next Test; for the rest of us, the hair-pulling begins now at the prospect of a truly delicious final day. Sami and Pakistan battled fantastically hard and their best day in the field came – if I’m allowed to be devil’s advocate briefly – under Younis Khan. In truth, each member of the attack bowled with palpably more energy than they have at any stage so far.Ironically, tomorrow Pakistan will need to dip into Inzamam’s vast reservoir of calm if they are to chase down a score they haven’t ever done before. But it isn’t just the target they deal with. The new ball on a still indeterminate pitch brings it own issues but Danish Kaneria showed in a little passage of play that loopy spin might also play a part (his googly to Kevin Pietersen and the celebration thereafter are deserving of a separate piece altogether). Coincidentally, in another part of the world, another 300-plus target is being hunted down; there, a captain is already keeping at bay a left-arm spinner. What odds a similar scenario tomorrow?

ScorecardHalf centuries from Mluleki Nkala, Matabeleand’s captain, and opener Terrence Duffin were in vain as Mashonaland remained in control on the second day of the Logan Cup match at Bulawayo Athletic Club. At the close, Mashonaland were 142 for 3 in their second innings, a lead of 253, after bowling Matabeleand out for 220.Matabeleand resumed on 16 for 2, and Duffin and Tawanda Mupariwa took the score to 60 before Mupariwa was caught behind by Tatenda Taibu off Chamunorwa Chibhabha for 26. Mark Vermeulen followed almost immediately for 6, cutting Chibhabha to extra cover where Tafadzwa Mufambisi dived to his right to take a brilliant low catch (68 for 4).Duffin was joined by hard-hitting Gregory Strydom who cracked two sixes and three fours on his way to a brisk 31 before he fell to Waddington Mwayenga, caught at mid-off by Kudakwashe Samunderu (103 for 5).Nkala and Duffin stabilized the innings, with Duffin reaching his half century off 128 balls in 188 minutes. Nkala’s fifty came off 62 balls and included ten fours. But when Duffin and Nkala were dismissed, the rest of the innings folded meekly.Chigumbura was the pick of Mashonaland’s bowlers with 4 for 38 from 9.3 overs. Chibhabha was close behind with three wickets while Mwayenga claimed two. Douglas Hondo finished with remarkable figures of 1 for 8 from 15 overs – including seven maidens.With a lead of 108, Mashonaland’s opening pair of Brendan Taylor and Bernard Mlambo started confidently before Taylor fell leg-before to Nkala for 24. gavin Ewing claimed his second wicket of the match when he dismissed Barney Rogers for 35, driving hard and low and Ewing took a difficult low return-catch (127 for 2). Mlambo fell the same way to left-arm spinner Keith Dabengwa for 48 (133 for 3).Shortly after the umpires offered the batsmen the light, heavy rain pounded Bulawayo and continued into the evening.

Yuvraj Singh’s 11th-hour inclusion in the North Zone squad for the Duleep Trophy final has led to speculations and rumours with Yuvraj making it clear that he had been forced to play the match despite a bad shoulder.Yuvraj had pulled out of the previous match for North Zone, citing a stiff shoulder, and was all set to sit out the final as well, until the selectors ordered him to turn up for the game. Talking to , Yuvraj made it clear that he wasn’t too happy playing. “My shoulder was stiff and I did not want to play. I had told my team I won’t [play], but the selectors asked me to,” he said.After scoring a cracking 106, without apparent discomfort, Yuvraj was run out due to a mix-up with Dinesh Mongia.Yuvraj’s name was not on the team sheet released to the media on the eve of the match and Mongia, North Zone’s captain, came to know of Yuvraj’s inclusion through the selectors and he had no hesitation about including him in the playing XI.”Yes, Yuvraj’s name was not there,” Mongia said. “But when we came to know [through the selectors] he is playing, we included him in the side because he is too good a player to be left out. Unfortunately, Pankaj [Dharmani], who is doing well, had to sit out.”Ashwini Kumar, who doubles up as North Zone’s manager and coach, said he was aware of Yuvraj’s impending arrival. “I knew on Wednesday that he [Yuvraj] was coming,” Kumar said. “So I included him in the squad.”But Kumar was less forthcoming about the reasons for Yuvraj’s inclusion after his name was left out of the 15-man team sheet circulated on Wednesday. “You are asking me something for which I am not the authority to answer”.Interestingly, while Syed Kirmani, who heads the selection committee, claimed he did not know what was happening, a board official said, “It’s time the players are pulled up for skipping domestic matches.”

HOBART, Jan 18 AAP – A former junior basketball star who’s become Tasmanian cricket’s find of the year, today bowled the Tigers to their first Pura Cup win of the season.Adam Griffith, exploiting his six foot six inch frame, took the key wickets as Tasmania dismissed Victoria for 255 to win by 87 runs on the final afternoon at Bellerive Oval.But Tasmania almost fumbled victory into defeat as they dropped three catches that were costly enough and could have been fatal.The result extends Victoria’s winless Hobart hoodoo to 18 years and dents its hopes of hosting the final, although it did take two points for the first innings lead.Relieved Tasmanian captain Jamie Cox praised Griffith, who took eight wickets in the match, and Scott Mason, whose second innings 174 was the one really big innings of the match.He said they’d both produced “career defining” performances.Victorian captain Darren Berry said he was disappointed to lose the match after bowling Tasmania out for 120 in the first innings.The Bushrangers started the last day at 4-82 in their second innings and needing an unlikely 262 more runs to win.Their hopes should have been extinguished in the first half hour. But Jon Moss, on 11, and three balls later Ian Harvey, on 13, were dropped.The pair, batting positively, proceeded to put on exactly 100 runs until Damien Wright had Moss caught behind for 45.At lunch Victoria was 5-197 and still a chance. And the fumbles continued when, shortly afterwards, Cameron White was dropped on 28.But then Griffith, with his ability to make the ball rear off a good length from his great height, took over with the second new ball.Harvey, on 74, left a ball that seamed back and hit his off stump. Shortly afterwards Griffith bowled White for 41 and that was effectively that.With Andrew Downton mopping up the tail, Victoria lost 5-58 after lunch to subside to a decisive defeat.Griffith, 24, is a former Tasmanian under 18 basketball representative who moved from Launceston to Hobart to try to break into first class cricket several years ago.There were doubts whether he had the stamina to bowl at pace over a four day game, but he’s worked hard on his fitness and been helped by Tasmania’s boom allrounder Shane Watson, whom he lives with.He was given his chance mid-way through Tasmania’s season and in his last two matches has impressed with his control and ability to exploit his height.

Chetan Sharma scored 148 off 355 deliveries to help Delhi gain thefirst innngs lead against Haryana in the North Zone U-22 tournamentmatch at Gurgaon on Sunday. Delhi gained five points and Haryana tookthree.Batting first, Delhi scored 320 off 127.5 overs, opener Sharmasmashing 16 boundaries and one six. He was well supported by halfcenturies by Sandeep Rana (55) and Sonu Vaid (62). Saurabh Virmanibagged four for 94 and Deepak Sain picked up three for 75.In reply, Haryana were bowled out for 261 in 117 overs. Puru Singh andAmit Suman picked up three wickets each for 43 and 71 runsrespectively. Opener Praveen Sharma (48) played a patient 90-ballinnings. Anuj Sharma (56) and Pradeep Sahu (55) made valiant halfcenturies but could not prevent Delhi from taking the first inningslead. Delhi batted out the second innings for 22 overs scoring 95 forthree.

Sky Sports co-commentator Ally McCoist hit out at Celtic right-back Josip Juranovic during the Hoops’ 2-1 win over Rangers on Sunday lunchtime. 

The Lowdown: Juranovic’s display

Juranovic got the nod by Ange Postecoglou ahead of Anthony Ralston to make his 33rd appearance in a Celtic shirt.

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The 26-year-old, who was praised for his performance in the previous Glasgow Derby at Celtic Park, struggled this time around.

As per SofaScore, Juranovic lost possession on 21 occasions, was unsuccessful in seven of his eight attempted long balls and failed to put in a successful cross, ending with a 6.5/10 match rating – only Greg Taylor ended with a lower score for the Hoops.

The Latest: McCoist’s comments

McCoist was on Juranovic’s back early on at Ibrox during Sky Sports’ live coverage of the game, labelling his role in Aaron Ramsey’s opener for the hosts as ‘really poor’.

Minutes later, the Croatian almost got caught again, with McCoist hitting out at the defender, describing him as being ‘all over the place’.

The Verdict: Huge

Even with Juranovic’s worrying display and McCoist’s brutally honest comments, the victory at Ibrox could well be season-defining and is all that really matters.

The Hoops are now six points clear of their rivals with seven games remaining thanks to goals from Tom Rogic and Cameron Carter-Vickers in the 2-1 win, and Juranovic has played a key part in the club’s impressive campaign.

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He’s been a regular and has also weighed in with some big performances and goals, so we can forgive the versatile full-back for being slightly under par this afternoon.

In other news: Sky Sports say Celtic set to sign two-footed attacker who shares agent with Jose Mourinho. 

	Old rivalries have been shelved for the moment (file photo) © Getty Images

Where’s the anthem?
It’s all very well having pop stars beltingout hits at inaugural functions, but if the teams are serious aboutbuilding up a fanatical following along the lines of English football orAmerican football’s legendary Cheeseheads, a team anthem would go a longway. The PA system blaring out or Fields of Anfield Road can send shivers down thespine.Not made to measure
While Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid walk outfor the toss, Zaheer Khan assesses his run-up with the help of a tapemeasure. But after more than three months out of the game, thecalculations aren’t quite what they should be. Brendon McCullum takes himfor 18 in his first over, with three heaves over midwicket and an edgedsix over third man. Ashley Noffke replaces him right away, and concedes 23in his first over. Hmmm.George Lucas, where are you?
With their golden helmets, theKnight Riders look like they’ve just stepped off a Star Wars set.Just imagine R2D2 in black clothes, and you get the idea. Mind you, as anAustralian journalist watching from London said: “You’ve got to love thosegolden pads.” No worries with a team song for this lot. , whichwas a massive hit in the mid-90s for Babylon Zoo, whose lead singer, JasMann, has roots in the Punjab.New day, new team
Ishant Sharma’s status as the most expensive bowler in the IPL owed everything to that remarkable spell he bowled to Ricky Ponting at the WACA in January. Three months on, after an over when the batsmen couldn’t put bat to ball, Ponting ran up and patted Ishant, his Knight Riders team-mate, on the back. Old rivalries have been shelved for the moment.The Duck and the Rocket
He may never live down that nickname of Bombay Duck, but there’s much more to Ajit Agarkar than those seven noughts on the trot in Tests against Australia. A superb spell of 3 for 25 would have pleased anyone, but there was also a tremendous throw from deep square leg to send back Ashley Noffke.Lack of force
Next to the sightscreen at the BEML end, you couldsee a Force India Formula One car. The team that Vijay Mallya owns hasmade a poor start to the racing season, and tonight he saw his cricketteam lapped in a metaphorical sense. Some would say that they even forgotto turn on the ignition.

Uganda will be confident of putting the seal on the latest stage of their much-publicised progress up the world rankings when they meet Argentina in the final of the World Cricket League Division Three in Darwin on Saturday.While Uganda were expected to make the final, Argentina have proved the surprise package, especially considering that they lost their opening game to outsiders Italy. They squeezed through the group stages and then beat the fancied Cayman Islands in the semi-finals.Joel Olweny, Uganda’s captain, said that, despite his side’s unbeaten record in the tournament, his team remained wary of Argentina’s capabilities. “We respect Argentina as opponents because by qualifying for the final they’ve proved that they deserve to be where they are,” he said. “And we’re aware about their progress to the final so we won’t take them lightly and will try to be as clinical as possible.”Uganda go into the game as the favourites, and they have far more experience. Six of their squad played in the 2006 Under-19 World Cup, and the team also participated in the 2005 ICC Trophy”It’s all about clicking together and producing a match-winning performance as we are neither short of experience at this level nor quality,” said Olweny. “I’m hoping that the batsmen will rise to the occasion and carry forward the good work done by the bowlers and fielders.”Argentina’s strength has been its bowling, with three of their team – Estaban MacDermott, Gary Savage and Diego Lord – in the top ten wicket takers.MacDermott said he hoped his bowlers will try to exploit any potential weaknesses in Uganda’s batting line up. “Our bowlers are in form and their batsmen are struggling. So it’s a straightforward strategy, I guess. But they have the experience of playing in big tournaments and have the ability to bounce back anytime,” he said. “We’ll give it our best shot in the final as we have nothing to lose. We have qualified for Division 2 and if we manage to win the final, it would be a perfect icing on the cake.”

The three-match one-day international series between Kenya and Bangladesh, originally set for Nairobi later this month, has been postponed by a further three weeks due to difficulty in raising funds to cover the costs of the trip.Cricket Kenya (CK) chief executive Tom Tikolo said they required about 13 million shillings (US$176,000) to host the Bangladeshi side, with half of the amount raised through television rights and the rest through sponsorship or Cricket Kenya.”We don’t have the money. But we are talking to a few sponsors,” said Tikolo. “We are still discussing with them and hopeful we will reach a deal within the next two weeks.”The series was initially scheduled for July 19, 21 and 23, but the matches will now be played on August 12, 13 and 15, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has since announced.Tikolo said CK had reached an agreement with the BCB to play the series in mid-August after Bangladesh complete their tour of Zimbabwe.However, he added Bangladesh would arrive in Kenya as scheduled on July 15 to hold their training and acclimatise for the five-match series against Zimbabwe which starts at Harare on July 29.