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Mark Vermeulen has been charged by the police in connection with two arson attacks earlier this week which destroyed buildings at the Zimbabwe Cricket Academy and damaged an office at the headquarters of Zimbabwe Cricket. He is expected to appear in court in the next few days.A source said that Vermeulen, who played eight Tests between 2002 and 2004, had been due to fly to Johannesburg on Wednesday.”He’s been detained since yesterday on charges of arson,” Vermeulen’s father Roland said. “We don’t know at the moment where they are holding him … but we are trying our best to get him out and sort matters while he is outside.”He flew back to Zimbabwe in September ostensibly to try to win back his place in the national side. But he was not picked in the provisional squad for the forthcoming tour of Zimbabwe and his chances of a recall appeared almost non existent.His summer in England ended in controversy when he was banned – initially for ten years but that was reduced on appeal – following an altercation during a Lancashire League match.

Shane Warne is not concerned by the outburst of Kim Hughes this week as the former Australia captain is “not someone I respect”. Hughes told an English newspaper Warne would have been an “embarrassment” as the national team’s leader and he showed a “complete disregard” for the coach John Buchanan.Warne was disappointed with the comments but “didn’t take them to heart”. “If it was someone I respected and really liked, I would be pretty annoyed and would take it up with them,” he said in . “If it was a Richie Benaud or an Ian Chappell, who has been the biggest influence on my career, I would be on the phone and disappointed and upset by it.”Warne maintained that his comments about Buchanan during the launch of a book had been misconstrued. “It was never a personal attack on John Buchanan,” he told the paper. “All I said was some of his methods and some of the ways he goes about things I thought lacked a bit of commonsense – not him as a person.”It was never with malice or an intent of having a go at the coach. I don’t know what the fuss and kerfuffle was about – as [the Cricket Australia chief executive] James Sutherland said the other day.” Warne is due to open his season when Victoria play Western Australia in the Pura Cup match at the WACA on Sunday.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsThe Titans recovered from the precarious overnight position of 70 for 4 to post a handy 93-run first-innings lead, but the Dolphins soon chased it down as the second day of the SuperSport Series final ended with the game intriguingly poised.Justin Kemp and Geoffrey Toyana posted a vital fifth-wicket partnership of 107 with Kemp uncharacteristically becalmed; his 50 came from 113 balls. The aggressor was Toyana who raced to his half-century from 69 balls.However, both batsmen fell while settled and it was left to Albie Morkel to play the innings of the day. He struck 15 fours and a six in his 93-ball innings to help give Titans a very useful first-innings lead. Ugasen Govender, the 22-year-old fast bowler, was the pick for the Dolphins; although expensive, he captured the key wickets of Morkel today and Martin van Jaarsveld yesterday.The Titans bowlers were unable to capitalise on the efforts of their batsmen, though, and the Dolphins calmly reached 99 without loss, trailing by just six runs.

The Canadian board has announced that the quadrangular Twenty20 tournament this September has been postponed. Canada had hoped for West Indies and two other full-member ICC countries to play a competition in Toronto ahead of the World Championships the same month.The board says there was not enough time to obtain TV rights for such an event, but will continue to look at possibilities in 2008 and afterwards. A Canada spokesperson told Cricinfo: “Unfortunately, due to the difficulties of securing global media support in such a short timeframe, the CCA reports that it has proved impossible to bring the project to fruition in 2007.”The West Indies board apparently remains committed to working with the CCA to expand cricket in Canada, particularly through exposure to the Twenty20 version of the game, which is ideal for the North American cricket public.

The BCCI has decided that from October Indian players will have to seek the board’s permission before they sign endorsement deals. The players’ contracts come up for renewal on October 1 and the board, through a clause in the contracts, will ensure that there is no conflict of interest between the board’s sponsors and those of individual players.”We have decided to ask the players to give us advance information about the endorsement contracts they will sign in future to avoid clash of sponsors’ interests,” said Niranjan Shah, the board secretary.Shah explained that there was already a clause in the contract which required the players to send a copy of every signed endorsement deal to the board. As per the altered clause, the board will insist that the players intimate it about endorsement deals they were interested in and get its approval before going ahead and signing on the dotted line.Asked whether the players would get a chance to look at the deals which the BCCI has signed vis-a-vis the team, Shah said, “we are an open book and everyone knows who are our team sponsors”.Commenting on the new developments, Virender Sehwag said the players had no issue with the BCCI signing up various companies as team sponsors as long as it did not trample on their individual sponsorship contracts.”I don’t think it is a problem. We can do whatever they [the team sponsors] demand as long as it is for the team. As long as it is not an individual demand, it is fine,” said Sehwag.The BCCI has signed a contract worth $ 43 million (Rs190 crore) with Nike that allows the Nike label to be displayed on the non-leading arm of the players’ jerseys and on their trousers.The Nike contract would be in conflict with some of the players who have individual contracts with rival companies, Adidas and Reebok.

Graham Thorpe spent some welcome time in the middle as Surrey overcame a spirted Scotland effort at The Grange. Thorpe hit 69 from 89 balls as Surrey reached their target of 253 with 6.3 overs left.But Scotland made them work harder than that. Jonathan Beukes, their South African batsman, blasted 91 from 86 balls as Scotland racked up their highest score of the season. Colin Smith added 41 from 42 deliveries and when Surrey slumped to 90 for 3 an upset was on the cards.However, Scotland’s bowlers had no answer to Thorpe’s experience and Alistair Brown’s power. Brown smashed 65 from 45 balls with seven fours and four sixes as Surrey, ultimately, cruised home.

Listening to Brian Lara during this series, one’s left wondering if he is indeed the captain playing at home. He’s not got the pitches he’s wanted, and more, worryingly, he’s not got the team he wanted. At the end of the drawn encounter at St Kitts, Lara didn’t comment too much on the pitch but dropped many hints about wanting the extra fast bowler.”My only concern is the combination for the final Test,” he said while analysing his team’s performance. “We played an extra batsman here but if you want to get 20 wickets, we need to put players there to get us those wickets. It’s left upto the selectors, let’s see what happens … Guys who’ve been here have done a tremendous job throughout this series, performing on surfaces that really haven’t helped them. Two days rest between Tests and to go back to the reserves and pick fast bowlers would be showing a weakness. Very confident with the likes of Corey Collymore, [Pedro] Collins, [Jerome] Taylor – coming into his own – and Bradshaw has been good. Maybe an addition would be a good choice and we will have the final decision a day before the match.”Lara’s problem was reflected in his decision to not enforce the follow-on. Collins had hobbled off with a cramp while the rest appeared a bit bushwhacked after running in hard in torrid conditions. “My team relies on fast bowlers, they run 25 yards and need that kind of rest. If I had [Anil] Kumble and Harbhajan [Singh] who are running in from 3-4 steps it’s easy to tell them to come back out and bowl again. It’s a choice that you have to make. I’m quite happy to put myself back to bat, setting a total that is beyond them so that we can attack them.”Considering all factors, is he happy with the scoreline? “No. Simply because of the fact that we’re playing at home. The last time India were here, we won the series. Our one-day performance shows that we are a better playing team than the Indians. Having said that, at the end of the day – I’m quite happy the way it’s gone. Both sides have fought really, really hard. There’s been some intriguing cricket, unfortunately the scoreline doesn’t show it. It will be a huge disappointment if all four Tests end in draw. We hope to get some good cricket in the final Test. If you spend a month-and-a-half playing Test cricket, you’d like to see a result.”A drawn series, after four Tests, would no doubt be an unfortunate result but Lara spoke about how West Indies needed to use this as a launching pad for success. If you exclude games against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe, West Indies’ last series win came way back in July 2003. “The guys are coming of age – people like Chris Gayle, [Ramnaresh] Sarwan, [Daren] Ganga, and Shivnarine Chanderpaul. The only problem is probably myself. We’re playing at home but it’s a step forward. We’ve been beaten badly of late, and it’s happened in quick time. It’s good that we’re being able to fight it out to the opposition – putting ourselves in winning positions, getting out of losing positions and maybe the next step is to win Test matches. I’m seeing some sort of credibility in the way the guys have performed. We’re making strides moving forward. It’s going to take some time but the players are now proving their worth.”

Shaun Udal, the 36-year-old Hampshire spinner recalled to the England squad, has said he will be happy not to play a significant role in this winter’s tour to Pakistan.”Hopefully I can go there and do a job for them in whatever capacity I’m needed,” Udal told . “In a way, hopefully I won’t be selected to play because that will mean England are winning and Ashley Giles is fit and everything is going swimmingly well.”I possibly thought the chance had gone but one of my strengths is that I believe in myself. I’m probably a better cricketer than I was when I last played, with experience comes the nous and the knowhow.”Udal was born in 1969, at a time when England possessed the dangerous and aptly nicknamed “Deadly” Derek Underwood. Indeed, Underwood was named Wisden Cricketer of the Year for 1969. Udal’s recall has increased the debate of England’s decades-long dearth of quality spinners and, while he is the form spinner in the country, his selection came ahead of younger rivals such as Gareth Batty and Graeme Swann. Udal, while delighted with his recall, readily admits that he is coming to the end of his career:”I know my career’s coming into its last five years, so what’s the point in standing still? I love my cricket, it means as much to me as anything in the world. To get this chance now is one that I’ll try to take with both hands – if it’s only for this tour or the next six months or two years.”Udal was grateful to his Hampshire team-mate Shane Warne for the assistance. “Operating as a second spinner is what I’ve done for the last two years at Hampshire with Warney at the other end,” he told reporters. “He brings more than just his bowling: his cricket brain, his enthusiasm, his passion – it’s rubbed off on me.”Warney is just from a different planet, he sees things other people don’t see as a captain and has helped me with my bowling. He is not just a good friend, he’s been an enormous help to me. He teaches people to respect the game, respect the opposition and never fear them.”

Babar Azam hit a maiden BBL half-century, and combined superbly with in-form Josh Philippe, as Sixers overwhelmed Thunder to claim the bragging rights in the Sydney Smash.Sixers produced a vintage performance on a very good batting surface, which notably contrasted to sluggish pitches often seen at Engie Stadium.Sixers have long dominated the crosstown rivalry, but entered the match under pressure after consecutive defeats to start the season. The spotlight was firmly on Babar, who made scores of just 2 and 9 in a tough initiation to his BBL career.Babar Azam made his first substantial score of the season•Getty Images

But Babar effectively anchored Sixers’ innings with 58 off 42 balls, and shared a 140-run second-wicket partnership with Philippe, who was dismissed in the final over for a 57-ball 96.Needing to complete a record chase on the ground, Thunder crashed to 17 for 3 after the early wickets of Matthew Gilkes, Sam Konstas and a returning David Warner, who batted at No. 3, having previously opened in all 23 innings in his BBL career.Konstas and Warner – who had missed Thunder’s opening loss to Hurricanes due to a side injury sustained while playing with his children – both made just 2. They also holed out in almost identical fashion to short deliveries from Jack Edwards, who starred with 5-26 from 4 overs.Sam Billings clubbed 51 off 28 balls and Shadab Khan made 41 but Thunder never threatened. While Sixers got their season back on track, Thunder – last season’s finalists – are winless from two games.After Warner elected to bowl, all eyes were on Babar, who had not been able to get through the powerplay in Sixers’ first two games. He played watchfully and focused on rotating the strike, to allow Dan Hughes to get Sixers rolling.Josh Philippe provided Sydney Sixers some impetus•Getty Images

While Hughes took the aerial route, Babar was orthodox and hit a gorgeous cover drive on his eighth delivery, in what to that point was clearly the best shot of his fledgling BBL career. Hughes dominated the scoring, making 21 of 29 runs in the powerplay, until his off stump was rattled by left-arm quick Reece Topley.Babar flicked nicely through deep backward square to reach double figures for the first time in the BBL. But he was overshadowed by Philippe, who accelerated once spinners Shadab and Tanveer Sangha entered the attack.Philippe showed why he has been Sixers’ standout batter, having entered the season with confidence after playing in the recent ODI and T20I series against India.He launched Sangha down the ground in the eighth over to register the first six of the innings – a contrast to the record 36 sixes that were hit 24 hours earlier in the astonishing Heat-Scorchers game.Philippe took a particular liking to Shadab, smashing him for two sixes. A third was all but certain, if not for a spectacular high-flying save at long-off from Konstas, who had initially caught the ball before throwing it back into the field of play.Babar got into the act by top-edging Daniel Sams to register his first six in the BBL as he followed Philippe in notching up a half-century. Babar had his sights set on batting through the innings, until falling in the 18th over, after being caught behind off the glove in an overturned decision.Sixers’ momentum fell away at the death. Philippe agonisingly missed out on a first BBL century after hitting straight to deep backward point, where Sams caught the ball centimetres from the grass.

Sourav Ganguly and Shane Warne have been fined 10% of their match fees, while Pratap Kumar, the on-field umpire, has been suspended for a game following the catch controversy during Thursday’s IPL match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals. Ganguly asked Kumar to refer a decision to the third umpire after he wasn’t convinced about a take by Rajasthan’s Graeme Smith at the deep-midwicket boundary.Asad Rauf, the third umpire, ruled in favour of the batsman after replays weren’t entirely conclusive. In his post-match comments, Warne, the Rajasthan captain, hit out at Ganguly’s behaviour and condemned his attitude towards the IPL’s spirit of cricket agreement.Farokh Engineer, the match referee, ruled that Ganguly’s act of asking the umpire to refer a decision constituted a level 1 offence according to the ICC’s code of conduct. Warne was found guilty of violating section 1.7 of the code, which deals with “public criticism of, or inappropriate comment on, a match-related incident or official”.Engineer also found there was no reason for Kumar to accede to the plea to refer the decision, and ruled him out for a game. Kumar is the second umpire to be suspended in the IPL. Amiesh Saheba was dropped for two matches following his comments about Sreesanth’s behaviour to the tabloid newspaper.