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If Rahul Dravid strutted his stuff on the first day, then it wasthe turn of Younis Khan and Yousuf Youhana to show just what theywere capable of on the second. Dravid was rarely troubled duringhis knock, and today it was the same story with Youhana andYounis ­ both achieved in-control percentages of more than 80,with Youhana¹s (86) being marginally higher than Younis¹s(82.24).They complemented each other wonderfully too ­ if Younis favouredthe off side, getting 77 of his runs on that side of the wicket,then Youhana¹s preferred zone was the leg side, which fetched him67 out of his 101 runs. Both picked on a region behind the stumpsto score the majority of their runs ­ for Younis it was thirdman, while Youhana chose fine leg.Running them ragged
The other feature of their stand was theiroutstanding running between the wickets ­ 62 out of their 203runs were scored in singles, and 18 of them came in the arcbetween backward point and extra cover, most of them the resultof soft hands, excellent placement and fine judgement. A wicketearly on the third day, and the Indians can at least be sure thatthe next pair will be unlikely to steal these cheeky singles.

ScorecardA blistering century by Justin Langer, along with an unbeaten 117 from Chris Rogers, steered Western Australia to a record win over Queensland in the day-night ING Cup match at the WACA.Langer reached his hundred in 75 deliveries, just one ball more than the record jointly held Stuart Law and Brad Haddin. Meanwhile, WA’s seven-wicket win went down in history as the highest run-chase at the WACA.The victory means WA are now two games clear at the top of the table, while Queensland slipped to fifth after South Australia’s defeat of Tasmania.Martin Love appeared to have given Queensland the upper hand after he struck 110 off 97 deliveries with eight boundaries and a six. Love, batting at No. 3, was the rock around which the innings was built. James Hopes provided some big hitting towards the end with 46 off 37 balls.WA’s chase started slowly, but Ryan Campbell, who snared three catches in the Queensland innings, soon got the score ticking over. But he was dismissed for 23 in the seventh over, and John Taylor, promoted to No. 3, followed him back to the pavilion in the next over.Langer came to the crease with the score on 42 for 2 and he raced to a half-century from 46 deliveries, and needed only 29 more balls to reach three figures.However, the reintroduction of Michael Kasprowicz to the attack resulted in Langer’s dismissal, and that slowed the innings dramatically.Only 41 runs were scored off the next 11 overs as Chris Rogers continued to play the sheet-anchor role and Murray Goodwin took time to find his feet. The pair picked up the rate in the 40th over with 11 runs, and followed that with 10 to reduce the asking rate down to under five an over with nine overs remaining.Rogers brought up his 100 in the 43rd over with a crashing square-drive and Goodwin finished on 43 not out as they completed the chase in the 47th over.

New Zealand’s stature on the world cricket stage continues to rise after Daryl Tuffey broke into the top 10 on the PricewaterhouseCoopers rankings after the second Test victory in Hamilton.Having twice dismissed Sachin Tendulkar in the Test and ending with eight for 53, he shot ahead of Shane Bond into ninth position on the ladder.Bond slipped down to 12th, two ahead of injured all-rounder Chris Cairns.Since the PwC rankings, or the Deloittes rating as they were originally known when developed in the late-1980s, this represents one of the more encouraging developments in the New Zealand game.Sir Richard Hadlee was always a top-ranked bowler, and in his prime he had close support from Ewen Chatfield and John Bracewell. But with New Zealand holding its third placing on the International Cricket Council Test Championship ladder, it is growing confirmation of the improved health and resources of the New Zealand game.Not since Hadlee, and several players who had been a vital part of the New Zealand game, retired in 1990 has there been the strength and depth to the national side that is reflected at the moment.

Debutatant Arijit Bose’s century and a swashbuckling innings of 128 byskipper Devang Gandhi placed Bengal in a commanding position in theirRanji Trophy tie against Tripura at the Eden Gardens today. Bengalfinsihed the day at 333 for the loss of three wickets in reply toTripura’s first innings score of 170. The aim of the Bengal team is topile on another 150 runs by lunch tomorrow and then put Tripura intobat again.However, Devang Gandhi played a more cavalier knock, the talk of theday was Bose’s innings. The 22 -year cricketer, who started playingthe game quite late is incidentally the son of the former India openerGopal Bose. Gopal Bose had played a couple of unofficial Tests for thecountry. Arijit, however, is quite different from his father in thesense that he is a left hander. More than the runs he scored it wasthe way he played the innings. The Tripura bowling had nothing reallyto offer. But even then Arijit Bose played with a lot of composure.The hallmark of his innings was the amount of time that he had to playhis shots. His innings of 101 was marked with lovely drives throughthe cover. At times, he showed that he was ready even to hit the ballover the fielders. He finally fell, caught at point by Gourpada Banikof the bowling off medium pacer Rajiv DevBurman. He tried to drive aball away from his body and as a result spooned it to point. But bythen he had scored 101 in 184 balls with 15 fours. After the end ofthe day’s play Bose said, “On Sunday, when I first went down to bat, Idid not feel any pressure. Today however, pressure got to me. As Idesperately wanted to reach three figures.”Gandhi’s innings on the other hand was expected. He has changed hisstance and now does not straighten up as he used to do last year.Against a mediocre Tripura bowling, it was expected that he wouldscore runs. He reached his 100 cutting off-spinner Sujit Roy to thepoint boundary. At the end of the day he was unbeaten on 128 with 16boundaries and three sixes. The last one was the best as he hit ChetanSachdev for huge blow over mid wicket.Rohan Gavaskar however, disappointed. He looked very patchy. Maybe,the slowness of the pitch affected his batting as he has been used tobatting on harder tracks in Mumbai. He holed out at cover after beingbogged down for quite sometime off Sachdev. At the end of the day,Saba karim, was keeping Devang company on 11.

Jack Pitt-Brooke has revealed that Tottenham Hotspur are now eyeing four major signings this summer.

The Lowdown: Champions League uncertainty

Spurs are not guaranteed to finish in the UEFA Champions League places this season, given that they are currently three points behind fourth-placed Arsenal, who have a game in hand on their North London rivals.

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It would be more difficult to attract the calibre of player that they would want should they miss out, and they could also potentially lose some of their best players, with the likes of Harry Kane now being linked to big-spenders Newcastle United.

The Latest: Four signings eyed

Writing in his latest piece for The Athletic, Lilywhites journalist Pitt-Brooke has revealed that Antonio Conte’s team are now looking to make four major signings in the summer.

They reportedly want to bring in a new left-sided central defender, two wing-backs, and a back-up to Kane.

The Verdict: Exciting

It is certainly exciting for THFC fans that they seem to be looking to go on a spending spree this summer.

The likes of Omar Marmoush and Lautaro Martinez have been linked as striker options, while Ben Davies could become more of a squad member next season, meaning that a more natural centre-back will likely take his position on the left of a three-man defence.

Djed Spence has been strongly linked with filling in the right wing-back position at Tottenham, while at left wing-back, Sergio Reguilon has not always been in favour under Conte.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

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Nonetheless, it could be a new-look Spurs side built in Conte’s image by the end of the summer transfer window, which should surely excite the Lilywhites faithful.

In other news, find out who THFC have now held talks over signing here!

	Not gone yet: Adam Gilchrist will still be thrashing the ball in April during the IPL © Getty Images

Adam Gilchrist’s retirement from international cricket will be short-lived after he confirmed he would appear in the Indian Premier League in India during April. Gilchrist will step down from Australian duties in March, but will be back in action for the lucrative Twenty20 series.”I’m signed up like most of our players have,” he said. “I see that as an amazing entertainment package.”Eleven players contracted to Cricket Australia have IPL deals, but the Test team is due to be in Pakistan when the tournament begins. The crowded schedule no longer bothers Gilchrist and he will be free to take part alongside Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath, his fellow retirees.The new format has grown on Gilchrist, who was a reluctant Twenty20 participant when it was first played internationally four years ago. “I was a bit of a traditionalist,” he said, “and wasn’t so sure about this short version of the game.”But over time, and having played more of it and seen the way it works, I’ve realised it’s an important part of the cricket structure now. It is entertainment and I feel like I’ve tried to be entertaining all through my career, but I’ve done the real serious hard yards and enjoyed that and loved all the sweat and the tears and the laughter.”While the huge sums of money being reported will add to Gilchrist’s retirement package, he is also excited to be involved in the innovative concept. “I hear guys talk about World Series Cricket and how exciting it was to be a part of that,” he said. “I see this IPL situation being very similar to that. Who knows where it could grow to? To be part of that founding group would be a huge thrill.”

John Buchanan: ‘I’d rather us find that out now than some time in the West Indies’ © Getty Images

After asking for his team to be tested during the CB Series, John Buchanan’s words came back to bite him when England secured a 2-0 success in the finals. However, he has no regrets over the comments, still insisting the loss will have long term benefits for the Australians.”It’s important that’s happened because I think it’s important to find out where there are some deficiencies, where we do lack some consistency and so on,” he said. “I’d rather us find that out now than some time in the West Indies.”Buchanan said he did not believe Australia’s three losses constituted a slump in form and felt it would have little effect on how selectors would approach Tuesday’s choice of a 15-man squad for the World Cup.”I don’t think two games in the course of the season, and going back to the ICC Champions Trophy, changes a heck of a lot,” he said, referring to the finals. “It’s just that we haven’t played as consistently as we would have liked over a short period of time.”Certainly, over the last few games we have been tested by England and haven’t consistently responded to that. I think the selectors would have the same questions on their mind that they had prior to the finals.”However, Buchanan, who will coach Australia for the last time at the World Cup before standing down, does have concerns over the workload of some of his squad, especially Adam Gilchrist. Even when Gilchrist returns to the squad after the birth of his third child, Buchanan would like Brad Haddin available as a stand-by.”We’ve been exceptionally fortunate with Adam in his career that he hasn’t sustained any major injury, touch wood,” he said. “But it’s such an important tournament that my leaning is to take a second specialist wicketkeeper, but that second specialist wicketkeeper has to offer us more than just wicketkeeping.Haddin, picked for this week’s three-match Chappell-Hadlee Trophy series in New Zealand with Gilchrist being rested, is the leading run-scorer in the domestic one-day competition with 406 runs at 67 and has batted in all positions in the top seven during his 18-match Australian career.Buchanan also defended the timing of allrounder Shane Watson’s return to the Australian side after his pace bowling was shown to be underdone in both finals. Watson had just 27 overs in state and club cricket but the selectors did not believe the Chappell-Hadlee series would give him enough time to get back into the one-day groove after being a key player as a bowler and opening batsman at last year’s Champions Trophy.”He bowled exceptionally well at the Champions Trophy and in the lead-up to that and batted well so he’s on his way back and the quicker we can give him game time, and finals time as that was, the better,” Buchanan said. “Certainly he hasn’t got the bowling under his belt and the general bowling fitness, but it was important to inject him into the tournament.”Buchanan added Watson was a “frontrunner” to open with Matthew Hayden in New Zealand but indicated he would have to bat well further down at the World Cup. He listed Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke, Brad Hodge and Michael Hussey as virtual certainties to remain in their positions despite Watson’s game suiting a move higher up the order.

Kenya’s one-day series in Zimbabwe has been cut from five matches to three for reasons as yet unclear.The itinerary for the series was only confirmed last week, and the change has been made eight days before the Kenyans are due to arrive in Harare. While ZC did not offer any explanation for the decision, sources close to the board indicate that it was for financial reasons.A spokesman for Cricket Kenya said that they had not been advised of the alteration. “As of last night, we have had no notification and it surprises me – but we will wait and see.”In a separate development, it seems likely that Zimbabwe will not be taking part in the tri-series in Bangladesh in March which also involves Kenya. Kenya will play three ODIs against Bangladesh instead.

Lions 165 for 6 (McKenzie 35) beat Dolphins 164 for 4 (H Amla 56, Pollock 44, Bacher 3-14) by 4 wickets
ScorecardSome poor cricket from the Dolphins at Kingsmead in Durban allowed theLions to snatch a last-ball win and top the Pro20 Series table. Set to make 165, the Lions struggled upto a point where 54 were required in four overs. Two wayward bouncers from Lance Klusener decided the fate of the game. It was an unexpected mistake from an experienced campaigner.After scoring 80 runs in nine overs, the Dolphins threw away a golden opportunity to post a large total and finished on 164 for 4. Hashim Amla (56 off 39) and Kylie Smit (27 off 24) gave the Dolphins the platform to launch from with only Shaun Pollock taking advantage as he smashed 44 off 22 balls. Ahmed Amla managed 24 off 26 while Klusener could only score six as the Dolphins limped through the final five overs. Then David Terbrugge, Garnett Kruger and Adam Bacher pulled it back for the Lions, with Bacher finishing with the amazing figures of 3 for 14 in his four overs.Bacher and Matthew Harris gave the Lions a steady start after some tightbowling from Klusener and Russell Symcox. Neil McKenzie then struck 35 off 31 as the Lions clawed back into the game, leaving it to Marthinus Otto (30 off 14) to see the Lions home off the last ball of the innings.

Steve Bucknor has rejected criticism of his umpiring during the first Test between Australia and India at Brisbane, especially his controversial leg-before decision against Sachin Tendulkar in India’s first innings.And Bucknor, long regarded as one of the best umpires in the world, dismissed suggestions that his form was on the wane. “Just recently I was umpiring the World Cup final so I don’t understand what is happening, but at the moment I am pretty comfortable with my form,” he told the Australian Associated Press. “The criticism doesn’t bother me. Mistakes are going to be made. I know that. Everyone makes mistakes including myself.”The plethora of television replays indicated the ball which trapped Tendulkar would have sailed over the top of the stumps. But Bucknor delivered his verdict – described by the media in terms such as “a disgrace” and “an insult” – after his customary long deliberation.”I give myself enough time to think about my decision, to replay just about everything about that delivery, and by so doing I should in the end be able to make that [correct] decision,” he explained. While refusing to discuss the Tendulkar decision itself, he added, “Sometimes it doesn’t go that way … it’s not because my brain is working slowly. Once the hit is made I have a fair idea of what my decision is it’s a matter of seeing whether something else could have happened.”Although the Tendulkar dismissal was the one which grabbed the headlines, Bucknor was also criticised for other decisions during the match. He gave Australia’s batsmen the benefit of the doubt on three well-justified appeals, and also appeared to mistakenly reprieve Akash Chopra for what looked like a good bat-pad catch shortly after Tendulkar’s wicket.