Back injury - Sreesanth

Sreesanth fears he has entered the most difficult phase of his career after he was told four days ago by doctors in Sydney that a stress fracture of his lower back had ruled him out of international cricket for the next three months.

The Indian fast bowler, who has not played international cricket for the last 11 months due to various injuries, has been ruled out of the IPL next month and is now almost certain to miss the ICC Twenty20 World Cup in England in June.

"I have never been through anything like this in my life before," Sreesanth said from Sydney. "It's been a year now since I have been hit by a series of injuries and it's just too bizarre. But I don't want to think about anything else just now except to focus on my recovery. Tournaments come and go, and I am not going to sit in a corner and worry about missing them. All I need to focus on is to get fit again."

Sreesanth, who had established himself as one of India's leading strike bowlers within a year of his Test debut in 2006, first suffered a left side strain during the last IPL in May 2008. Subsequently, he developed a second injury that was initially diagnosed as a "stiff back".

He was cleared to play domestic cricket in December, after undergoing a rehabilitation stint at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bangalore, and carried on till the Duleep Trophy final in February - however, he looked far from his best, unable at times to execute his full, natural action or his run-up.

"It was devastating to be told that I had been carrying this injury for almost five months," Sreesanth said. "But in a way, I am happy too that the injury has been diagnosed. There was always this niggling pain down in the back even after I was cleared to play last year. But I was told by experts in India that I was perfectly alright and was just not mentally tough enough to play again. They questioned my mental strength and commitment and even I started doubting myself. But now, I have my answer."

Sreesanth says the first step to recovery happened when he got in touch with Patrick Farhart, the physio of his IPL team (Kings XI Punjab). "He asked me to come to Sydney for assessment and then took me through an exhaustive check-up, including a bone scan and an MRI scan," he said. "Clearly, there was a stress fracture in the lower back (L2). Now I am following Patrick's recovery schedule."

Sreesanth now hopes that his "faith in god" and "amazing support" from friends, including Brett Lee, his IPL bowling partner, will see him through the present crisis. "Lee and Mitchell Johnson are the two guys who have come back from similar injuries and still done extremely well," he said. "So that's an inspiration. Brett has always been a good friend, and he has been particularly helpful here. He has worked out with me, and spoken to me a lot, mostly about keeping the faith and believing in oneself during such situations."

Sreesanth says he has been told that his international career - stuck since last April at 14 Tests and 50 wickets - hinges on how well he manages the recovery, and not how quickly he does it. "That's why I am going to play safe now," he said. "I am not going to rush back like I have done before and spoil it all again. But I will be back because I know my best is yet to come."

Jayawardene quits as Sri Lanka cricket captain

Mahela Jayawardene on Wednesday decided to step down as Sri Lanka's cricket captain after the upcoming Tests in Pakistan, saying he was doing it "in the best interests" of the team.

"This is something I have been considering for some time as it has been my long-held belief that my successor should have at least 18 months in the job to imprint his vision on the team for the 2011 World Cup," Jayawardene, 31, said in a statement.

Jayawardene's decision to quit came after India completed a 4-1 rout of Sri Lanka in a recent one-day series, although he did not mention this as a factor.

The middle-order batsman, who led Sri Lanka for the first time in April 2004, did not play in Tuesday's Twenty20 international here, which India won by three wickets.

"After much thought, I have concluded that the right time has now come for fresh leadership to takeover," said Jayawardene, who was named the International Cricket Council's captain of the year in 2006.

"It was not an easy decision to make because being the Sri Lanka captain has been the source of enormous pride. I am very grateful to have been granted the honour of leading the team."

Jayawardene however made it clear he was not quitting the team altogether.

"I look forward now to extending my full support to my successor and hope to play a major part in the team's success during coming years as a batsman," he added.

Sri Lanka Cricket chief executive Duleep Mendis said Jayawardene's resignation had been accepted, but no decision had been taken on the new captain.

Kumar Sangakkara, the current vice-captain and Jayawardene's close friend, was likely to take over as skipper, local media speculated.

Jayawardene, in an interview with Cricinfo last year, said Sangakkara would make a good captain.

"Kumar is definitely a suitable person to lead Sri Lanka," he said in the interview.

"His knowledge of the game and his approach is brilliant. He has been a brilliant deputy too. We talk a lot about planning and strategising, so there is not much difference in our thinking, which is very important.

"If I suddenly lose the hunger to lead then ideally Kumar should take over."

Jayawardene guided Sri Lanka to the World Cup final in the West Indies in 2007, where they lost to Australia.

He captained Sri Lanka in 26 Tests, winning 15, losing seven with four draws.

In 94 one-day internationals under him, Sri Lanka won 54 and lost 35 while the rest ended in no-results.

The first Test in Pakistan will be played in Karachi from February 21-25, while the second and final match will be played in Lahore from March 1-5.

Jayawardene to quit as Sri Lanka captain

Mahela Jayawardene is to stand down as Sri Lanka captain after the Pakistan tour. Jayawardene, who has led Sri Lanka since February 2006, announced his decision after a meeting with the national cricket selectors.

He presided over a 4-1 loss to India in a one-day series that ended last week and told selectors the time was right to hand over the captaincy so his successor would have time to prepare the team for the 2011 World Cup.

"In the best interests of the Sri Lanka team, I have decided to stand down as Sri Lanka captain after this Pakistan tour," Jayawardene said. "This is something I have been considering for some time as it has been my long-held belief that my successor should have at least 18 months in the job to imprint his vision on the team for the 2011 World Cup."

He led Sri Lanka in 26 Test matches and 97 one-dayers and was Sri Lanka's most successful captain with a win percentage of 62.50% in Tests and 57% in one-day internationals.

"After much thought, I have concluded that the right time has now come for fresh leadership to take over," he said. "It was not an easy decision to make because being Sri Lanka national captain has been the source of enormous pride. I am very grateful to have been granted the honour of leading the team during the last three years.

"I look forward now to extending my full support to my successor and hope to play a major part in the team's success during the coming years as a batsman," he said.

Sri Lanka play two Tests against Pakistan with the first beginning in Karachi on 21 February. The second is slated to be held in Lahore from 1 March.

India seal dramatic win

India completed a victorious tour with a three-wicket win against Sri Lanka in a Twenty20 international on Wednesday. Set 172 for victory in 20 overs, India overcame a mid-innings collapse to secure a dramatic win thanks to a brilliant eighth stand between brothers Yusuf and Irfan Pathan. With India slumping to 115 for seven as leg spinner Malinga Bandara claimed 3 for 32, the two Pathan's rescued India with an unbroken 59-run stand in just 25 balls. Irfan Pathan smashed 33 from 16 deliveries with two sixes and Yusuf stroked 22 in 10 balls with two sixes and one four. India, who also won the one-day series 4-1, clinched victory with four balls to spare with Irfan swinging a huge six over mid-wicket. Sri Lanka's stand-in captain Tillakaratne Dilshan top-scored for the hosts with 61 from 47 balls, an innings that included seven fours and one six. Dilshan was provided early support from fellow opener Sanath Jayasuriya, who crashed 33 from just 17 balls with two sixes, helping add 59 for the first wicket in 5.5 overs. Off spinner Yusuf Pathan was India's best bowler, taking two for 23 from four economical overs in the middle of the innings. India started their run chase badly, slumping to 14 for two, but Yuvraj Singh (32) and Suresh Raina (35) regained the initiative with a 67-run stand. Part-time off spinner Jehan Mubarak dragged Sri Lanka back into the game dismissing Yuvraj. Sri Lanka looked to be heading for victory as Jayasuriya bowled a miserly spell, taking 1 for 10 from three overs, as India crashed from 81 for 2 to 115 for 7. However, the Pathan brothers finished off the match with a thrilling partnership.

The Pathan brothers fired India to victory

India needed 57 runs from 29 deliveries when Irfan Pathan joined his brother Yusuf in the middle. Yusuf, the big hitter who bowls a bit of useful offspin, is not yet a permanent fixture in India's one-day side. Plenty has been said about Irfan - critics cite his ineffective bowling on subcontinent pitches - and it appears he is struggling to identify his predominant vocation.

What followed was stirring stuff. Irfan and Yusuf plundered 59 runs off 25 balls and India posted a rousing three-wicket win with four balls to spare.

Throughout this tour, Muttiah Muralitharan has been taunting Yusuf on and off the field. "Why don't you hit me?" has often been the central jibe. Yusuf reminded him about the IPL final, when he took on Murali but was told that the pitch didn't turn. Tonight, there was no Murali and more importantly, the team situation demanded Yusuf to hit out. And he did.

"The ball had suddenly started to turn and rotating the strike was difficult," Mahendra Singh Dhoni said about the pitch at the R Premadasa Stadium. Yusuf got a little help from Tillakaratne Dilshan who threw the ball to legspinner Malinga Bandara. Cue two sixes and a four in the 16th over, and equation had quickly changed to 40 from 24 balls.

When quizzed about those monster hits at the post-match ceremony, Yusuf said they had all been in his slot. It was as if he had no excuse. He just had to hit the cover off the ball, with no offence to Bandara. As Dhoni said, Yusuf has licence to hit: "We really don't want him to rotate the strike; we want him to look for the big shots."

It wasn't all just brute force, however. Yusuf showed that behind that expressionless exterior, there was a smart brain clicking. After that expensive over from Bandara, Dilshan didn't turn back to spin, and Yusuf coolly picked singles to hand the strike over to his younger brother. Responding to the pressure admirably, Irfan unfurled some gems of his own against Dilhara Fernando and Lasith Malinga. Irfan is a better player of seam bowling and Yusuf can murder spin. It was a perfect tango.

Since the ICC World Twenty20 in 2007, Dhoni has looked at Yusuf as a long-term prospect for the No. 7 slot in ODI cricket. "Even if he had not scored in this game," said Dhoni, "we believe in his talent and will give him chances."

In the field, Yusuf had starred with the ball too, chipping in with a tidy four overs for 2 for 23. It wasn't mesmerising bowling - Yusuf's brand of offspin isn't going to inspire a young boy to turn his arm over - but it was effective. As Dhoni said, "He is not a talented bowler in the sense that he doesn't have 100 variations. He will be a tight bowler who can be useful for four to five overs."

Yusuf does indeed fit perfectly into the new Indian way of bowling a slew of slow bowlers in the middle overs between the bowling and batting Powerplays.

If this series has been a show of trust in Yusuf by the captain, this game could be the beginning of Irfan's second innings. His batting was never in doubt; it's his bowling that has to improve, though Dhoni defended his bowler. "It gets difficult for [the] one-change bowler," he said. "The ball doesn't do anything by then on these flat tracks. There is tremendous pressure. You have to take wickets and not give too many runs."

According to Dhoni, a rate of six-an-over for a bowler is reasonable in an age of powerplays. "What Irfan does is add stability when it comes to batting. Without Harbhajan Singh, we have a long tail." On this tour, including this game, Irfan has given away 149 runs from 120 balls at 7.45 runs per over. Clearly, if he has to cement a spot, his bowling will have to improve.

It will be interesting to see how the two brothers go from here. Yusuf will find pressure from Ravindra Jadeja, who is a good batsman and can bowl tidy spin; he was the highest wicket-taker this past Ranji season. Irfan is the preferred allrounder in conditions assisting seam but has been unable to find a regular place otherwise. Both brothers have been working hard in the nets, slogging it out to improve their respective arts. But as Dhoni said, the talent has to be tempered - "International cricket is not just about talent. It's what you do with it."

ICC confirms notification of IPL ban on Asif

The ICC on Wednesday confirmed that it had been notified of the Indian Premier League drugs tribunal’s decision to impose a one-year ban on Pakistan pacer Mohammad Asif for failing a dope test but refused comment, saying it still had to consider the “reasons” for the move.

The 26-year-old was banned for a year on Wednesday, months after testing positive for nandrolone during the IPL semifinals.

“The ICC has yet to consider the written reasons for the decision in the matter and will make no further comment at this stage other than to confirm its expectation that all Member Boards will adopt the ban and as such the player will not be available for official cricket until the ban has been completed,” the governing body said in a statement.

Chief Executive Haroon Lorgat reiterated the ICC’s zero tolerance policy toward dope offenders.

“As an international governing body, the ICC maintains a zero tolerance in the area of doping. We are proud of the fact that we have been testing at our events since 2002 and in that time we are yet to have an adverse analytical finding,” Lorgat said.

New Zealand vs Sri Lanka 1st Test - Christchurch - 1st day

Upul Tharanga led a charmed life, playing and missing often during his innings of 33
Chris Martin beat the bat a dozen times but was extremely unlucky during the morning session
Shane Bond rattled Sri Lanka with three early wickets

India drop to third in ODI rankings

India's 68-run defeat to Sri Lanka on Sunday cost them their second place in the latest ICC ODI rankings as they were overtaken by Australia after the World champions pulled off a thrilling win over New Zealand.

India lost two rating points to reduce to 120 while Australia (122) gained one point to their tally to overtake India, who are now back to third place after their brief stay at second spot behind top-ranker South Africa.

If Australia, who are on decline in the last few months, win their next two matches they will be tied at top spot with South Africa, although they will be still second if the rankings are calculated beyond decimal points.

India, who won the series 4-1 against Sri Lanka, will have the chance to regain their best-ever rankings of second spot during their tour of New Zealand, beginning later this month.

England's implosion is one for the books

West Indies' players celebrating after England's Andrew Strauss was caught out on the fourht of their test match at Sabina Park in Kingston. West Indies won by an innings and 32 runs

England suffered a historic humiliation over the weekend, as it was bowled out for only 51 runs by West Indies at Kingston, Jamaica - a collapse that turned a match that had been well balanced over its first three days into a massacre, with West Indies winning by an innings and 23 runs.

It was the third-lowest completed innings score by England in 880 test matches spread over 132 years. There is a strong case for arguing that it was its worst-ever batting performance.

Its lowest score ever, 45, was against Australia at Sydney in 1887, before touring teams were fully representative. While regarded retrospectively as a full England team, it was in reality a privately organized touring XI, and in any case went on to win the match by 13 runs.

When England was bowled out for 46 by West Indies in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad, in 1994, the damage was done by two great fast bowlers, Courtney Walsh and the 6-foot-7 inch, or 2.01-meter, Curtly Ambrose, operating in conditions strongly in their favor.

Saturday was different. Batting was never easy on the first three days, but both teams topped 300 in their first innings. In the first part of the fourth day, Brendan Nash, playing only his third test, extended his innings for West Indies to 55 runs scored over four hours.

Nor is there anything apparently terribly formidable about the West Indies' bowling. Jerome Taylor's career average was nearly 35 runs per test wicket. Fidel Edwards averaged nearly 39. Left-arm spinner Suleiman Benn, playing only his fourth test, was well over 40. Taylor and Edwards were both valued at $150,000 in the Indian Premier League auction of players last week. Two England players, Andrew Flintoff and Kevin Pietersen, were sold for more than ten times that amount.

Yet Taylor produced the most devastating bowling of his career. He took five wickets for 11 runs, bowling Pietersen for one run, to slice through England's top order. At one stage England had lost six wickets for 23 runs and was in danger of setting a new record for the lowest score in test history, the 26 scored by New Zealand against England at Wellington in 1955.

It was saved, at least, from that crowning ignominy by Flintoff, who battled for 24 runs before he was ninth out, bowled by Edwards. Nobody else reached double figures.

The victory gave West Indies a 1-0 lead, with three of a series of four five-day test matches still to come.

England's was the 18th lowest score in test history. Only three lower scores, though, have been made in the past 50 years, a period that has seen three-quarters of all the tests ever played.

It was the lowest since England last visited Kingston in 2004. Then, it was West Indies that collapsed for 47. Fast bowler Steve Harmison, last man out on Saturday evening, produced the spell of his life to take seven wickets for 12 runs.

That rout was part of a run of 13 England victories in 16 matches against West Indies. That spell of West Indian futility is now ended, but it remains to be seen whether it can fully reverse its fortunes.

The victory Saturday gave it a 1-0 lead, with three of a series of four five-day test matches still to come.

West Indies has a habit of producing occasional superb performances - such as a victory over South Africa last year and a world-record run chase against Australia in 2003 - but failing to sustain that form.

There is, though, serious promise in the calmly relaxed captaincy of Chris Gayle (not to mention the sense of responsibility it has induced in his batting), in the obduracy of Nash and in Benn's spin-bowling. Taylor's spell may represent a breakthrough, just as Harmison's did in 2004, signaling a run of form that took the Englishman to the top of the world bowling rankings.

England will certainly consider changes. Batsman Owais Shah must surely get his chance, probably at the expense of Ian Bell. Spinner Monty Panesar failed to get anything like the response extracted from the Kingston pitch by the much less experienced Benn.

At least it has three matches in which to recover. And the next two, in Antigua and Barbados, are on islands where it can expect huge support from travelling England fans.