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There have been troubled tours in the history of Indian cricket,but it is safe to assume that when it comes to seamy incidents,internal rivalry, petty jealousy, gross mismanagement and a poorrecord, the 1936 tour of England is the yardstick by whichunhappy tours are judged. Everything that could go wrong with ateam on tour took place, and the largely self-created problemsengulfed the team and affected the morale of the players. Whichwas a pity for, man to man, there is little doubt that the 1936Indian team is one of the strongest to have gone on tour.It would seem unbelievable to today’s generation that a sideincluding the likes of CK Nayudu, Amar Singh, Mohammad Nissar,Wazir Ali, Lala Amarnath, Syed Mushtaq Ali and Vijay Merchantshould end up with a dismal record of having just four victoriesin 28 first-class matches on the tour, losing 12 and drawing 12.Or that the three-match series should have been lost 0-2 with thevisitors going down by nine wickets in both the first and thirdTests, England having the better of the drawn second Test.For starters, the side was badly led by the Maharajah ofVizianagaram and managed by Maj Brittain-Jones. Four years ago,the prince appointed captain had graciously stepped down infavour of CK Nayudu. But ‘Vizzy,’ as he was popularly known,refused to do the same. Not only was he a passenger as a batsmanand fielder ­ his average for the three Tests was 8.25 – he alsohad very strong likes and dislikes, and allowed personal enmityto often get the better of him.Mushtaq Ali being offered a gold watch to run out Merchant, BaqaJilani getting his Test cap because he insulted CK Nayudu at thebreakfast table – these were the kind of incidents that marredthe tour. A bit of a dictator, Vizzy had in Brittain-Jones amartinet sidekick. The two ruled with an iron hand, and themanager was at his worst in the Lala Amarnath incident, when thestar all-rounder was sent packing home midway through the tour asa disciplinary measure.The inquiry that went into the seamy happenings of the tourtermed the action as ‘stern’ and exonerated Amarnath, but thedamage had been done. Under such circumstances, the players couldnot be expected to perform at their best. Also, some of thejealousy and distrust among the players that were evident fouryears ago continued ­ only this time more vehemently.With the atmosphere marred by suspicion, the dice was heavilyloaded against the visitors almost every time they stepped on tothe field ­ and particularly so in the Tests. The batting andbowling came under severe pressure under which both crumbled.England helped themselves to scores of 571 for eight declared inthe second Test at Manchester and 471 for eight declared in thethird Test at the Oval. They also dismissed India for scores of147, 93, 203 and 222. India, thanks to a deadly spell by AmarSingh, who took six for 35, took the first-innings lead in thefirst Test at Lord’s ­ the only time India did so till 1971 ­ butthe second-innings collapse meant that England could coast tovictory.But there were the proverbial silver linings. Predominant amongthese was the record 203-run opening stand between Mushtaq Aliand Merchant at Manchester. India were 368 runs behind on thefirst innings, but in dazzling fashion, they scored the runs injust two-and-a-half hours. It was ethereal batting that had thecritics groping for adjectives. Both openers got hundreds, withMushtaq’s being the first Test hundred by an Indian abroad.Then of course there was Nayudu’s courageous knock of 81 in thethird Test; incidentally it proved to be his last Test innings.Hit on the heart by an ultra-fast ball from the England captain’Gubby’ Allen, Nayudu not only stayed his ground after receivingmedical treatment for a brief while but counter-attacked in amanner that brought back memories of the Golden Age for oldtimers. Amar Singh’s spell of six for 35 that saw Englanddismissed for 134 was another highlight of the tour. Both Nissarand Amar Singh in fact lived up to their reputation, but they hadlittle support. The two shared 22 wickets in the three Tests,while all the other bowlers accounted for just six.Amar Singh had impressed Walter Hammond four years ago, and onthis tour he left a lasting impression on Len Hutton, then anestablished Yorkshire star and on the verge of getting hisEngland cap. Thirty-four years later, in an interview in Madras,Hutton recalled, “There is no better bowler in the world todaythan Amar Singh.”In first-class matches, Merchant was head and shoulders above histeammates. He scored 1,745 runs at an average of 51.32. Thisincluded 282 runs in the Tests. So classy and correct was hisbatting that Neville Cardus hailed him as the “Indians’ goodEuropean” and suggested that to solve their opening battingproblems in Australia during the winter, the England team take aphotograph of Merchant for inspiration. Nayudu (1,102) andMushtaq Ali (1,078) were the others to cross the 1,000-run mark.Among the bowlers, Nissar headed the averages, taking 66 wicketsat 25.13 apiece. Amar Singh by now was a popular and well-paidLancashire league professional and was released only for ahandful of matches, besides the three Tests.But England generally had things their own way. Hammond hadsuccessive knocks of 167 and 217, while Allen picked up 20wickets in the series. On the second day of the second Test, 588runs were scored ­ still the most runs scored in a day of Testcricket. Of these, England scored 398 runs for the loss of sixwickets while India replied with 190 for none.

Adrian Barath and Darren Bravo, two West Indies Under-19 players, have been drafted into Trinidad and Tobago’s squad for their Carib Beer Series sixth-round match against the Combined Campuses and Colleges in Barbados this weekend.The young pair replace another Bravo, senior international Dwayne, who is ruled out with a back injury, and the out-of-form Jason Mohammed. Both Barath and Bravo were part of the West Indies U-19 side that placed ninth in the recently-concluded junior World Cup.Kelvin Williams, the former T&T allrounder, has been appointed coach in place of David Williams. David, the former T&T and West Indies wicketkeeper, has been requested by the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) to join the West Indies team’s coaching staff. Williams was recently named as an assistant coach to John Dyson, the former Australian player who took over as West Indies coach last year.T&T beat Windward Islands by three wickets to stat alive in the tournament and are third in the standings with 31 points, behind Jamaica on 46 and Barbados 42.Leewards Islands have made three changes to their squad to face Guyana in St Thomas. Adam Sanford, the former West Indies fast bowler, opener Javier Liburd and teenage wicketkeeper Jamal Hamilton make way for uncapped fast bowler Brent Defreitas, experienced left-hander Shane Jeffers, back from injury, and West Indies U-19 wicketkeeper Devon Thomas.Sanford has been struggling to take wickets consistently and Liburd has been favoured for a batsman who would have been a certainty had he been fit.In other news, young lespinner Davendra Bishoo has been ruled out of Guyana’s game this weekend because of visa trouble. After taking seven wickets on debut for Guyana against CCC last weekend, Bishoo was expected to play a crucial role against the Leeward Islands; however, he was denied a United States visa which is required to enter St Thomas in the United States Virgin Islands (USVI) and his place in the team has been taken by 20-year-old Gajanand Singh.Bishoo, 22, was the only member of the touring squad denied a visa by the USEmbassy in Guyana. Chetram Singh, president of the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB), said that Bishoo was denied a visa because of discrepancies on visa application form. “I believe the letter from the St Thomas government went a long way in enabling the players to get their visa. Bishoo’s Visa was not granted due to discrepancies on his application form,” Singh said, adding that he intends to pursue this concern at the WICB level.

Anil Kumble believes Australia’s behaviour will play a big role in the continuation of the catching agreement he had with Ricky Ponting. Before the series the two captains said they would take the word of the fielder in relation to low takes, but after Sydney Kumble felt it would have to be reviewed.”At this point, a few days before the big Test at Perth, I can tell you that that behaviour will play a big role in my decision on the continuation of the agreement,” he wrote in his column. “We had decided that in the case of a disputed catch, we would take the word of the fielder concerned, if he was certain.”But that agreement was based on the premise that come what may, whatever the situation, the fielder concerned would be completely straight on what happened. Now, there will obviously be a big question mark moving forward on that.”The Test was filled with on- and off-field incidents over umpiring, race, sportsmanship, catching and walking. “I’d like to point out that someone [Michael Clarke] edged the ball to slips in the second innings of the Sydney Test, and stood there even when there was not an iota of doubt over the dismissal,” Kumble wrote. “He then claimed a catch that showed more than reasonable doubt and said he was 100% certain it was clean.”Kumble said he hadn’t spoken to Ponting about the agreement and would discuss the issue once he reached Perth. The third Test starts there on January 16.

Technology is not the answer to improving umpiring standards because the science behind several innovations is not 100% accurate, according to a senior sports executive with Australia’s . Poor decisions from the on-field officials in the Sydney Test between Australia and India have led to suggestions that the third umpire should have access to extra assistance on top of straight replays. uses its snickometer to demonstrate the sound of edges behind, Hawk-Eye and the strike-zone to judge lbw decisions and the infra-red Hot Spot camera to display whether the ball has hit the bat. However, Steve Crawley, an executive sports producer with the network, said some of the innovations could not be entirely relied upon.”I’d hate us to be involved in the judicial system of cricket,” Crawley told the . “We’ve only got one thing 100% backed up by science and that’s Hot Spot; the others aren’t 100%.”Snicko is very well informed but it’s not 100%, and Hawk-Eye’s not 100%. And also there’s the time-frame. Yesterday, with one of the decisions, Snicko, like all computer systems, went down and it had to be rebooted and it was four minutes before we got it up. Mostly, it’s only a couple of deliveries but those sorts of things can happen.”Crawley said assisting umpires with side-on angles for run-outs was one thing but the lengthy process of using extra devices would provide too many interruptions to the game. “It’s a long, dour game as it is but, from our point of view, we don’t want that power,” Crawley said. “But, if the ICC decides to go down that path, we’ll co-operate.”Crawley’s comments came as Sunil Gavaskar, the chairman of the ICC’s Cricket Committee, said there was little chance the neutral-umpire rule would be removed any time soon. Steve Waugh wrote in his newspaper column that there was no reason the world’s top official, Simon Taufel, should not stand in matches involving his own country, Australia.”The reason the ICC and the world cricket community accepted third-country umpires was to eliminate the element of bias, or any suspicion that might have been pointed at umpires,” Gavaskar told the . “That will be there for a while.”I know there is some talk about having only the best umpires come in, but rather than have any controversy regarding decisions I think that [the current system] is probably a lot better. If a third-country umpire makes a [questionable] decision, it won’t be as acrimonious as if a home umpire made that decision.”

Glamorgan are in talks to sign Shahid Afridi, the Pakistan allrounder, for their Twenty20 campaign this summer.”We want a top-class player who will win us matches and also drag people through the gate and Afridi is someone who fits the bill,” Matthew Maynard, Glamorgan’s cricket manager, said. “It’s up to the Pakistan board to agree to release him for that period of his contract.”There were rumours last week that Glamorgan were trying to sign Brian Lara, but the club denied the suggestion vehemently. Whether they sign Afridi or another big name from overseas, Glamorgan desperately need to improve on a poor performance last year in which they finished bottom of their division, with just one win in eight matches.”Afridi is one of only half a dozen players in the world who would help the team progress in the competition but also benefit us commercially by filling our magnificent new stadium. That’s the purpose,” said Maynard. “I’m keen to sign a big name player for the Twenty 20 window and there are only a small pool of big names still available.”Virander Sehwag and Yurvaj Singh are also possibilities. Sachin Tendulkar was another option. But he’s not been a great Twenty 20 player. We need a player who contributes in all aspects.”The PCB, however, have yet to release Afridi or Danish Kaneria who is due to play for Essex. A executive board meeting will be held on March 8, when more strict guidelines on the use of Pakistan players in country cricket are expected to be unveiled.

Ere Sheshiah, the pathologist who conducted the autopsy of the Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer, has told an inquest in Jamaica that he stands by his finding that Woolmer’s death was because of poisoning and strangulation.”In my opinion, Woolmer died from asphyxia due to manual strangulation associated with cypermethrin poisoning,” Sheshiah said, adding the chemical was used widely in many countries where cotton was cultivated such as Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh and Pakistan. “I stand by my findings that Woolmer was strangled and, based upon additional information which I received, he was also poisoned.”Sheshiah said cypermethrin could cause symptoms including “salivation, vomiting, diarrhea and muscular incoordination”, which might have accounted for the mess that was found in Woolmer’s room. He said police pressed him to offer a conclusion in the case before he received the results of the toxicology report.His procedures in the post mortem were criticised by three other pathologists asked to review the case. All testified Woolmer appeared to have died of natural causes, probably related to heart disease.The inquest is expected to end on November 9.

Shaun Tait has tested out his injured elbow in a novel way by joining an Indian chef in the kitchen. Experiencing heat of a different kind, Tait briefly added cooking chicken korma and fish curry to his rehabilitation programme in Melbourne, where he rated himself a “decent chance” of making the tour to South Africa.After having surgery in June, Tait has recovered well enough to be named in the Twenty20 World Championship squad, but he is still a few weeks away from his first bowl at the Centre of Excellence in Brisbane. “I’ll see how the elbow goes in the next couple of weeks to see whether I can get up for it or not,” Tait told .”It feels fine but obviously with bowling a fair bit of stress goes on it. I’m a decent chance but we’ll see how it goes.” He has no plans to tinker with his technique despite regular injuries since playing his first Test in 2005.If fit for the tournament in September, Tait will use the series to prove he is ready for regular action in the following seven-match one-day tour of India before focussing on adding to his two Test appearances. He played his first season of one-day internationals last summer and his 23 World Cup wickets were crucial to Australia’s overall success.”There’s going to be some pretty big opportunities coming up,” Tait said. “With Glenn McGrath stepping down I suppose there’s a new door that could be opened and if I get the opportunity hopefully I’ll do well.” Tait is also excited by the prospect of bowling with Brett Lee, who is due to return in South Africa from ankle surgery.Tait was in the kitchen to launch the general release of tickets for the upcoming Australian summer. Australia will face India in four Tests starting on Boxing Day after playing two matches against Sri Lanka in November. The three sides will also take part in the CB Series while Australia will attempt to regain the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy in December.Tickets go on sale in Sydney, Adelaide, Hobart and Perth on Wednesday while seats in Brisbane will be offered on Thursday and in Melbourne on Friday. “The team has had a great record in Australia for the past decade,” Tait said, “and a big part of that success is the encouragement we receive from our green-and-gold army of supporters.”

New Zealand have ensured there will be extra focus on Shaun Tait if he plays on his home ground on Friday after refusing to clear his action. The coach John Bracewell would not comment on Tait, who stunned New Zealand in the Twenty20 on Tuesday, after Daniel Vettori said there would be speculation over the validity of his deliveries because of their extreme paceTait’s shoulder-strong technique, low delivery position and flexible wrist are behind the power that has pushed him to 160kph, but when asked whether he was happy with Tait’s action Vettori said: “You ask Braces (John Bracewell) that one.”I haven’t looked at it in-depthly enough. I think people are going to speculate on it whenever someone bowls fast, it’s always the first thing people look at. It’s up to people that are on a position to comment on it to comment on it.”Bracewell, the New Zealand coach, has made a regular habit of stirring the Australians in previous series and was not talking. A team spokesman said it was a matter for Roshan Mahanama, the ICC match referee.Mahanama said New Zealand had not approached him. “It has not come up for discussion at all,” he said, “so there is no special comment on that.”Cricket Australia’s chief executive, James Sutherland, was not alarmed. “This is the first time I’ve heard Shaun’s action called into question and don’t regard it as an issue that he needs to worry about,” he told . “I’ve always subscribed to the theory that you shouldn’t make a fast bowler angrier than he already is.”If Vettori was tight-lipped on Tait, he did admit that New Zealand had carried over their problem of dealing with pace from South Africa, where they recently lost both Test and one-day series, but suggested it was merely a dip in form. “We have had some problems with it, how we played Dale Steyn,” he said. “I can also cite times when we’ve played pace very well so we’ve got to find a balance between the two.”It’s almost the case of now we know how Australia are going to attack us, although we did before that first game, we’ve got a clear vision of what they’re going to do. It’s up to the guys to counter that.”Vettori said his side was out to prove a point, as well as retain the trophy which they won with a thumping 3-0 result last time. “We have to show them that we can play,” he said. “There are some guys in the team that feel they can.”Jacob Oram is one in particular, the batsman taking the attack back to Australia in the Twenty20, although it was too late to affect the result. “It’s a nice confident boost for the rest of the team,” Vettori said. “Now we’ve got to make sure we give a guy like him a chance when we’re 200 for 3 or 4, where we can come in the last ten overs and make the most of his hitting ability.”He’s set at seven because we fit the extra batsman, in Mathew Sinclair, in there. If we’re going really well, he can bat as high as three. If we’re going well he could easily go up the order.”Vettori denied the players were losing interest in either one-dayers or the Chappell-Hadlee Series. “In the team we still enjoy the game and in spots around the world you still get very good crowds.”

Mark Ramprakash has turned down an offer to be on standby for England’s upcoming tour of Sri Lanka, reports the .Ramprakash was told he would be called up for the tour in case a senior batsman was injured. “I really don’t understand that,” Ramprakash said at a Surrey educational open day at The Oval. “I said ‘No’ given that wording because there’s so much ambiguity about it. I don’t understand the logic of saying I would only go if a senior batsman was injured. What constitutes a senior batsman? It’s not as if England have an ageing side. I felt it was an unfair offer.”The 38-year-old Ramprakash was overlooked for the tour despite being the leading run-scorer in the Championship in the last two seasons at an average of over 100.However, Ramprakash indicated that he was still eager to play for England. “I hope my opinion is understood, reported back to whoever needs to hear it and is treated fairly,” he said. “If England want to pick me for the New Zealand tour in the New Year or next summer I am available, motivated, committed and ready, but it would not be the be-all and end-all for me.

“I can’t see why we can’t just pick our best seven batsmen and get on with trying to win matches because with that comes momentum, but if in the opinion of the selectors I am not one of the best seven batsmen I can accept that.”Ramprakash said he wasn’t perturbed by not earning an England call-up. “I thought my chances of going would be improved when they decided not to take Andrew Strauss. But it’s fine, it’s not my burning ambition to play for England again.”I am totally committed to Surrey, have two years left on my contract and will continue to enjoy playing for them. I don’t touch alcohol, my fitness tests are as good as ever and I’ve lost no hunger for playing as I approach my testimonial year.”

Former England coach Duncan Fletcher has slammed the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) for organising an independent review of England’s 5-0 Ashes defeat in 2006-07. The ECB had commissioned former European golf director Ken Schofield to provide a report on the state of English cricket after the Ashes loss.In the latest extract in the from his autobiography, Behind the Shades, Fletcher defended England’s Test record during his tenure and questioned the need for a review after “one very poor series against one of the best teams in the history”.He was also unhappy about not being informed of the setting up of the review. “But nothing had prepared me for the thunderbolt with which Mike Atherton struck me after we had lost the final Test in Sydney. Doing an interview for Sky Sports he had asked me about an independent review which he had learnt was to be conducted into our defeat.”I knew nothing about it. This was a terrible way to find out. Nobody had the decency to tell me,” he said. “I can honestly say that was the lowest point of my cricketing career. I felt completely isolated.”Fletcher said he first contemplated retiring after a meeting with then ECB chairman David Morgan and ECB chief executive David Collier about the scope of the Schofield Report.”In Australia, a couple of days after the review’s announcement, I even had to phone Morgan and ECB chief executive David Collier for a meeting about it. When I questioned them they allowed me to look through their terms of reference. Some of them did not exactly give me a confidence boost. My mood sank a little lower.”I was a depressed man as I walked away from that meeting in Sydney with Morgan and Collier. For the first time resignation thoughts entered my mind. ‘Hold on, what’s going on here?’ I thought. ‘Is it really worth carrying on?'”Fletcher also said his perceived lack of communication was a result of the lack of confidentiality in his dealings with the ECB. “I would communicate a lot more if there was more confidentiality. I know there is none so I keep things to myself. Why talk if people are going to blab?”