Australian batsman Simon Katich will not be returning to Derbyshire next season after turning down a new offer with the club. He doesn’t feel he can commit to another 12-month cycle of cricket and wants to put his efforts into playing for New South Wales and aiming for an Australia recall.During the 2007 season Katich has already scored 1780 runs in all cricket, while also leading the side during another tough season where success has been hard to find and David Houghton, the director of cricket, left midway through the summer.”I have thought long and hard about this decision and it has been a difficult one for me to make,” said Katich. “I have never played two back-to-back full seasons of county cricket and being captain of both sides would make it very difficult because you can’t keep going at 100% the whole time.”Derbyshire’s new head of cricket John Morris said: “I am obviously disappointed that Simon feels unable to come back next year due to the fact that he still has ambitions to play for Australia. As I have said before, I would have loved the opportunity to work with Simon next year as I know how good a player he is.”He has never returned to England for a back-to-back second term with any of the other counties that he has represented in the past. Simon feels that if he is to achieve his ambition to one day play for Australia again, he needs to commit his future to New South Wales.”However, the club has agreed new two-year deals with Graham Wagg and Tom Lungley. Both players have passed 50 wickets for the first time in 2007, while Wagg has also provided useful late-order runs.Wagg was one-year into his current deal, but 51 wickets and 431 runs has persuaded the club to offer him a longer and improved deal.

Derek Shackleton, who played seven Tests for England and took a record 2669 wickets for Hampshire, has died at the age of 83. Only six men have taken more wickets than his total first-class haul of 2857, and none of those operated entirely in the post-war period.Shackleton was a seamer – not fast but metronomic in his accuracy – who was desperately unlucky not to have be called on more by England. Unfortunately for him, he played in an era when Alec Bedser, Fred Trueman and others dominated. “Shrewdly varied, and utterly accurate,” wrote John Arlott, “beating down as unremittingly as February rain”. He was also economical, conceding under two runs an over. Initially he relied on late outswing, but he later developed an equally late inswinger, and he could also cut the ball either way off the pitch.His seven Tests came in two bursts separated by almost 12 years, but he was not as penetrative at the highest level. He played once in 1950 and 1951 and then toured India in 1951-52, finishing with the most wickets but only one more Test. He had to wait until 1963 for a recall, taking 14 wickets at 34.53 against West Indies, including 3 for 93 and a best 4 for 92 at Lord’s.

He made his debut for Hampshire, who spotted him while he was playing services cricket, in 1948 and was taken on as a batsman who bowled occasional legspin. Bereft of quick bowlers, Hampshire asked him to give it a try. He took 21 wickets in his first season and a hundred in his second. In a career which lasted until 1969 he took 100 wickets in a season 20 times consecutively, his haul of 172 in 1962, a year after he had helped the county to their first Championship, being the best. Few bowlers have got through so many overs, and those that have have been spinners.In 1955 he took match figures of 14 for 29 against Somerset (including 8 for 4 in their first innings) and five years earlier took five wickets in nine balls for no runs, but not including a hat-trick; that was about the only achievement that eluded him.In all Shackleton took 2857 first-class wickets at 18.65; his 18 Test wickets cost him 42.66.After retiring he coached and acted as groundsman at Canford School in Dorset and had a brief spell as an umpire in 1979. He was one of Wisden’s Five Cricketers of the Year in 1959.

Gareth Hopkins could slot into the No. 6 position with Brendon McCullum likely to open and keep wickets in the ODI series in South Africa, according to the selection manager Richard Hadlee. That might leave Jamie How on the sidelines after he was recalled to the limited-overs squad for the first time in 18 months.Hadlee said Hopkins was good enough to justify his selection as a batsman, despite his List A average of 23.62 and highest score of 82. “We regard him as specialist batsman so we feel he can hold his place in the top six,” Hadlee told the . “We also see him as someone who can close an innings in much the same manner as Brendon McCullum has done for us.”He’s got there on merit. His decision-making and shot execution were very good on the recent A tours and on that basis he came into contention. His attitude to the game is also magnificent so it is good reward for him.”The departures of Stephen Fleming and Craig McMillan from the one-day squad, combined with Peter Fulton’s knee injury, leaves New Zealand with a different-looking top order. They have reportedly slated McCullum to open with Lou Vincent, to be followed by Ross Taylor, Scott Styris, Jacob Oram and Hopkins.How said he was not sure what his role would be in South Africa but was hopeful of getting a chance after the disappointment of being overlooked for the Test portion of the tour. “It’s always good news to hear your name read out, especially since it had been a while, but I was a little disappointed not to make the Test side,” How told .”I know the selectors had their reasons, but it doesn’t stop you being disappointed. I’d like to think that my game suits both [formats] and proving that is definitely the aim. It just so happens that my opportunity to prove that has come in the one-dayers and I have to make the most of it.”

Sri Lanka have landed in Australia in a buoyant mood and are confident of posting their first Test win in the country during the two-match series. Despite losing a one-day contest to England already this month, Mahela Jayawardene, the captain, believes the squad is good enough to compete with the new-look hosts.”We’re confident we can play good cricket and if we play good cricket we will be in with a very good chance of winning some matches,” he said shortly after the team flew into Adelaide. “If I can finish 1-0, I will take that. If I can finish 2-0, I will take that, too. But the most important thing for us is how we compete. To beat Australia you need to be with them for four days. You can’t compete for one-and-a-half sessions and expect to win.”Sri Lanka have arrived during a debate in Australia about crowd behaviour and Jayawardene hoped racism would not overshadow the Test series, which begins in Brisbane on November 8. However, Trevor Bayliss, who coached New South Wales before accepting the Sri Lanka job, expected at least some racist taunts during the tour.”There are idiots in any crowd,” he said. “I don’t know whether you’re going to stop that 100%, but the majority of the crowd realise it’s the wrong thing to do. I think there will be one or two idiots, put it that way.” Sri Lanka had crowd problems in Adelaide the last time they toured and Muttiah Muralitharan is expected to be targeted by the home crowds as he looks for the nine wickets to overhaul Shane Warne’s record of 708.”Murali has not played here for ten years in a Test match and he’s geared up,” Jayawardene said. “He sees Australia as one of the places he has to challenge himself. For him to prove himself that he’s taken so many wickets around the world, he’s looking forward to the challenge.”Muralitharan will play in the tour-opener on Saturday, which is a hastily-arranged three-day warm-up against a Chairman’s XI at Adelaide. It is one of two practice matches before the first Test and Sri Lankan officials requested the extra game having learned from previous tourists who had come unstuck in Australia through insufficient practice.Sri Lanka certainly need the preparation after surprisingly losing at home to England. They recovered to win the last match of a close series, which finished 3-2, and gain some momentum heading to Australia. “The main positive thing was our bowling attack,” Jayawardene said. “All four fast bowlers bowled well.”But the disappointing factor was how we batted throughout that series. We learned a lot, we needed to brush up. But the guys have been working very hard. It was a very good series. We just couldn’t turn it around.”They won’t be underestimating Australia, even though they have lost Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath and Justin Langer. “They probably lack a bit of experience and that’s an area we can look forward to,” Jayawardene said. “But we can’t take them lightly at all. They’ve got a very good batting side as well.”We have to be very aggressive against Australia. We want to concentrate to our strengths. We will be aggressive but not to the extent that we will get involved with any silly incidents.”Sri Lanka have been criticised for being unable to deal with the faster surfaces in Australia, but Jayawardene insisted this was in the past and they had shown they could compete here, in the one-dayers at least. “We’ve proved we can handle pace and bounce against quality opposition and it’s a good testing ground for us to see how far we’ve come.”He also warned that teams should not underestimate Sri Lanka as a Test side. “We’ve competed well in the last 18 months – beating New Zealand in New Zealand and England in England. This is another place for us to challenge ourselves and see how far we’ve come as a Test team. That’s a goal we set ourselves three years ago. We’re pretty strong at home but for us to compete away from home we have to be very strong.”

Women’s cricket is again at the forefront of innovation with the announcement that the first trial match for the new pink balls will be a state game in January. Women’s cricket paved the way for overarm bowling; it introduced the World Cup, and held the first international Twenty20 and now it is to help in important test situations.The first match will be Queensland and Western Australia on January 10, a curtain-raiser for the men’s Twenty20 between Queensland and Tasmania at the Gabba.The MCC is considering introducing fluorescent pink balls to county one-day cricket if trials are successful, according to a report in . The logic is that a pink ball may be seen more easily, and a fraction earlier, by a batsman than a white one.The new balls, made by Kookaburra, will also be tested at Lord’s indoor school this winter and will be used in university and 2nd XI matches next year. If scientists at Imperial College, London, can get the balls to keep their colour, they could be used in one-day county cricket next year and even eventually in one-day internationals.The MCC, which is responsible for the laws of cricket, has been testing different colours for the last year. Its head of cricket, John Stephenson, is responsible for the innovation and he told : “Paint tends to flake off white balls and we have asked Kookaburra to produce a batch of pink ones because these show up so much better.”The challenge is to produce a ball which retains its colour – I doubt it will be any more expensive to produce or buy. I have asked Mike Gatting, the ECB’s managing director of cricket partnerships, to use them in county second XI one-day matches, but we shall start by trying them in fixtures such as MCC v Europe and in the university matches we sponsor.”My aim would be to use the pink ball in Twenty20 cricket in 2009 and thereafter in one-day international cricket, but this will be dependent on trials and what the ECB thinks.”

It’s been a rare good week for Zimbabwe cricket with their victory over West Indies in the opening ODI at Harare, but off the field things are not so rosy.A report by Malcolm Conn in today’s Australian newspaper claims that Peter Chingoka, the Zimbabwe cricket chairman, and Ozias Bvute, the board’s controversial managing director, could face charges under the ICC’s code of ethics next year.In the summer the ZC executive was slammed in a leaked private report from Malcolm Speed, the ICC’s chief executive, although publicly the ICC maintained the same hands-off approach that it has for several years. However, Speed’s comments regarding the accounts were damning, concluding: “It is clear that the accounts of ZC have been deliberately falsified to mask various illegal transactions from the auditors and the government of Zimbabwe.”In June the ICC appointed KPMG to carry out an independent forensic audit, which has recently finished, and which Conn claims to have seen. It reveals “alarming but unsurprising irregularities in ZC’s finances, including millions of dollars in ICC dividends that remain unaccounted for,” the paper said. “There has been a lack of co-operation and documentation from ZC, with Chingoka and Bvute constantly changing their explanations for transactions. This includes numerous transactions involving UK bank accounts that have not been adequately justified.”Stakeholders inside Zimbabwe, almost all of whom have been removed from office in recent purges instigated by Chingoka, have long maintained there were glaring irregularities in the accounts but the board has steadfastly refused to address their concerns. The board’s recent AGM, the one forum where such matters could be raised, was by invitation only and ZC even struck off life vice-presidents to avoid them being able to attend.The ICC’s code of ethics states that “each director shall act in an honest and ethical manner. In order to facilitate the transparent operation of the ICC, conduct that gives the appearance of impropriety will also be unacceptable.”The ICC won’t comment other than to say the report will be considered when the ICC executive meets again in February, but the Australian suggests that there is enough evidence to have Bvute and Chingoka removed from their ICC positions.Chingoka has been ZC chairman since 1992 and as the senior member of the ICC’s executive has used his contacts and experience to deflect much of the criticism aimed at the running of the sport in the country. Bvute was brought in by Chingoka in 2002 and many critics maintain the rapid decline of the game can be traced to his arrival.

Martin Crowe, the former New Zealand captain, has launched a stinging attack on the current leadership of New Zealand cricket. Unimpressed by Daniel Vettori’s captaincy Crowe, arguably his country’s greatest batsman ever, says it’s high time the left-arm spinner showed why he was selected to lead in place of Stephen Fleming.”Daniel Vettori, Jacob Oram, Brendon McCullum and Scott Styris have all got to put their big money where their busy mouths are – Vettori in particular,” Crowe told stuff.co.nz. “He [Vettori] has to get up to speed ASAP and remind us every day why the selectors felt he’s a better option than Fleming.After inspiring New Zealand to the semi-finals of the ICC World Twenty20, Vettori has had a torrid time at the helm, his side losing both the Test and ODI series away in South Africa, and relinquishing the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy after a 2-0 loss to Australia.Crowe also targeted coach John Bracewell, though he suggested that criticism needs to focus on the players as Bracewell, with renewed backing from the New Zealand board, is not going anywhere.Crowe had called for Bracewell to step down right after the World Cup in April, following New Zealand’s exit at the semi-final stage. He now says that he is tired of Bracewell’s astounding interviews and selections during the short tour to Australia. “Braces this, Braces that – I’m sick of the talk and the headlines about the coach which have dominated for weeks and weeks,” he said. “When I was asked what I thought after we lost the World Cup semi, I said ‘it’s time for a change to keep evolving’ but now we need to forget it.””(NZ Cricket CEO) Justin Vaughan has made his call – his first big one. So have the players. Braces is very lucky to have two years to show NZ he can coach. Not be a smart arse, but be a very good coach.”During the winter all but one player wanted Braces to continue, so the onus is now on them.”They are the ones under pressure. They have what they wanted so now it’s all their heads on the line, series in-series out. Braces isn’t going anywhere I promise you.”Bracewell was handed a two-year extension in July this year, and has been in charge of the side since 2003. And despite the recent losses against South Africa and Australia, Vaughan believes the right man is in charge.”He’s under no more pressure than when he started [four years ago],” Vaughan told the Dominion Post. “But we’ve just played two difficult sides. The results were disappointing but we expect that to improve now. He’s got two home series against Bangladesh and England now, which we should win.”

Rewind to December 2006 at the Adelaide Oval and you have a scenario eerily similar to this one: England rattle up 550-plus, Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke smash hundreds to help Australia match it, England end the fourth day on 59 for 1, and few are looking beyond a draw.While England were 97 ahead then, India lead by 8. A draw still remains the most likely possibility but Australia, it seems, are the only team capable of winning from here. With the series almost sealed, they’re unlikely to hold back punches. Michael Clarke has said his side will want to “win it for Gilly” and 3-1 has a more resounding ring to it than 2-1. The Sydney Test showed India’s second-innings vulnerability and a fifth-day pitch would be expected to throw up some surprises.”It will be a perfect farewell for Gilly to go out with a win,” said Clarke hoping for an escape-act as sensational as the six-wicket win against England last season. “Fingers crossed and hope it goes the same as last year. It’s going to be hard work but we’re hoping to win the game. Once the ball gets softer it will become difficult to score. Hopefully Hogg, Symmo and myself will come into play. I certainly know Australia wants to win. And if we bowl in the right areas we could achieve that. It’s a big day tomorrow.”An Indian win would require Harry Houdini-esque intervention. A team trailing the series would be expected to go all out for victory but India might have just fallen too far behind. Unlike Graeme Smith, who was tempted into a bold declaration in the Sydney Test of 2006, Anil Kumble doesn’t have the luxury of runs behind him. After 350 overs of the Test, the score is effectively 0 for 8 with 19 wickets standing. That sounds more like a score you would hear in the bowls arena adjacent to the Oval.There’s could be a temptation to go all out for the win – with some suggestion that 3-1 is as bad as 2-1 – but getting the better of a draw will be some consolation. They got a life-line too, when Clarke fluffed a straightforward chance off Virender Sehwag at second slip, but got through a tough period till stumps to settle nerves.They did themselves no favours by asking Irfan Pathan to open, especially after he bowled 36 overs in the innings and 12 in the day. Test match situations demand flexibility and the team would have been perfectly served if Rahul Dravid had been shifted up. Brett Lee was in a hostile mood and India could have been in a serious spot if the top-order was rattled. Pathan himself admitted it was difficult to open in the second innings and the team could have afforded to float him down the order.He retained his sangfroid, though, on a day he had picked up his 100th Test wicket. It was on this very ground where the journey began and he remained optimistic about levelling the series. “Anything can happen on the last day,” he said. “We need to bat well and if we put runs on the board, you never know. Australia have to bat last and nobody can say what’s going to happen. The pitch will spin more on the final day and so many such matches have changed at the end.”

Stephen Fleming could end his Test career earlier than expected with the home series against England looming as a possible farewell for the former captain. Fleming had been tipped to continue until the return tour of England, which finishes in June, however a report in the said that now seemed unlikely.The paper said Fleming’s wife was expecting their second baby in June, which might contribute to an early call. That would leave the selectors with more headaches ahead of the England trip, with their Test line-up already losing Nathan Astle, Scott Styris, Shane Bond and the fringe players Craig McMillan and Hamish Marshall in the past 13 months.John Bracewell, the coach, said it he was not bothered if Fleming chose to say goodbye in the third Test against England in Napier in late March. “My understanding was that Stephen wanted to go on and play the England series in England,” Bracewell told Monday’s . “But it doesn’t surprise me and doesn’t particularly concern me.”It’s always disappointing to lose experience, but it’s also an exciting time for selectors to pick and see the development of youngsters. The young men we’ve selected in this particular round so far have shown some great attributes for the international game. There are kids out there who want a crack.”Fleming’s departure would mark the end of a significant era in New Zealand Test cricket, as he is the country’s most capped player, highest run scorer, longest serving captain and leading catcher. He held a similar swag of records in one-day internationals when he ended his career in that format last year.

Matthew Sinclair had his first bat against England’s Steve Harmison in a tour match in Dunedin last week, and said he’s not sure what to make of him going into the first Test. Harmison, who took 5 for 100 against New Zealand Select XI, was, according to Sinclair, “a little bit erratic”.”If someone is spraying it everywhere you never really get a feel for where he’s trying to put the ball – I couldn’t get a feel for what he was trying to do,” he told the . “I felt it was quite hard to get some consistency from him from a batting point of view. I hadn’t faced Harmison before so I’ll be speaking a lot with Flem [Stephen Fleming] over the next two days in terms of what he tries to do.”Sinclair hasn’t played against England at the international level but was confident based on what he saw of their attack. He faced all of the main bowlers except the injured Ryan Sidebottom. “This week has been really good as it’s given me a really good idea of how they’re trying to bowl, and also from a batting point of view what I need to get out of it – it was a good little trial period really,” he said. “It was disappointing not to go on with it after scoring 47, but Monty [Panesar] beat me on the day so fair play to him. It would have been good to post another hour out there but it’s given me a really good idea about what the bowlers are doing.”Sinclair, 32, has yet to cement his place in the side despite scoring 214 on Test debut in 1999 and 204 the following summer. In nine years at the international level he has just 29 Test appearances.Sinclair failed to register when Bangladesh toured recently, scoring 76 runs in two innings, and knows how big the three-Test series against England is. “The yo-yo ride continues,” he said. “I’ve put a lot of hard work in over the winter and I was lucky enough to play against Bangladesh and I’ve been presented with an opportunity to hopefully try and do well against the English.”If you look at the batting side of things there wasn’t a heck of a lot of good things coming out of that Bangladesh series other than Matt Bell with his 100 and Flem with his 80, there were a lot of in-betweens really. I’ve moved on from there now and I’m looking forward to spending a lot of time in the middle.”