Sonn extends ICC presidency stint

David Morgan (right) still hopes to win the nomination

Percy Sonn is to stay on as president of the International Cricket Council until 2009 after failure to reach agreement over who should succeed him.

At a meeting in Cape Town, officials were unable to decide between England's David Morgan and Sharad Pawar of India.

They were due to put forward a single name for consideration at the ICC's annual conference in June.

Sonn, who has agreed to extend his term of office for a year, described the situation as "unfortunate".

But the South African said: "The positive aspect of the situation is that it illustrates that both Mr Pawar and Mr Morgan had strong support to take over as ICC president and that is a fortunate position for any organization to find itself."

Pawar took over the reins of the Board of Control for Cricket in India in 2005 and has the backing of the influential sub-continent vote.

Morgan, now in his fourth year as England and Wales Cricket Board chairman, is understood to have attracted support from Australia and New Zealand.

But to become president elect, a candidate must win two thirds of the votes among the 10 full members of the ICC.

In a statement about his own position, Sonn said: "I have had a busy but immensely enjoyable first year in the role that has seen many plusses for our great game.

"Chief among those have been the adoption of our new strategic plan and the Wada [anti-doping] code, a successful ICC Champions Trophy in India and our new broadcasting agreement with ESPN STAR Sports which will play a major role in promoting cricket and safeguarding its future by offering all of our members financial certainty.

"Now, on the verge of a historic first-ever ICC Cricket World Cup in the Caribbean and with the inaugural ICC Twenty20 World Championships to come in September, I look forward to continuing as president for another two years as we seek to ensure our strong sport continues to grow stronger."

Umpire powers could be curtailed

Cricket bosses will consider taking the power to end matches away from umpires in the wake of last year's Oval Test.

Umpires Darrell Hair and Billy Doctrove ended the match between England and Pakistan, although all other parties wanted to play on.

National chief executives will discuss handing power to the referee instead.

"It is suggested that while the umpires shall not be undermined, the referee should have the final say," said ICC general manager David Richardson.

"It is often perceived that the referee is an official of a type used in many other sports.

"In reality he is the 'chief executive' of an international cricket match who is responsible for liaising with the teams, the boards, the venue and other stakeholders to ensure the smooth running of a match."

The ICC Chief Executives' Committee, including England's David Collier, meets in Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates on Thursday and Friday.

Events at The Oval last August, when Pakistan staged a sit-in protest at being penalised for ball-tampering, were discussed at an ICC board meeting in November.

Officials asked for a review of the role of the match referee, which is likely to be approved at this meeting but must be rubber-stamped by the full board in March.

Pakistan were subsequently found not guilty of ball-tampering but captain Inzamam-ul-Haq was punished for leading the protest.

Umpire Hair was prevented from officiating in future matches involving Test-playing nations, although he umpired a tournament for associate nations in Kenya this week.

Also on the agenda for the chief executives' meeting are commercial issues for forthcoming ICC events and an update on anti-doping measures in international cricket.

‘Let umpires seek more assistance of technology’

KARACHI: Unhappy with some decisions during the first cricket Test against South Africa in Centurion, Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq has urged the International Cricket Council (ICC) to allow the umpires seek the assistance of modern technology more often. “Why should assistance from modern technology just be restricted to stumping or run-out line decisions? Why can’t it be applied to other dismissals as well,” Inzamam was quoted as saying in a TV interview. Pakistan were at the rough end of some poor umpiring decisions, but Inzamam did not blame it for the defeat. Inzamam urged the ICC to allow the umpires to seek the assistance of modern technology while reaching at a conclusion on doubtful decisions. “Modern technology can be used by umpires to rule on any close decisions including caught behind or leg before ones,” he added. The ICC experimented with the option of allowing the batting teams to appeal against any disputed decision to the third umpire last year in one tournament, but soon afterwards dropped the idea.

Leading ICC umpires face burn-out issue

LONDON: Former Test umpire David Shepherd has warned that leading umpires face burn-out unless the ICC tackles the issue and appoints more officials to its Elite Panel.

Shepherd’s comments came after Mark Benson was forced from the field with heart palpitations on the third day of the Durban Test between South Africa and India. He spent the night under observation in a local hospital.

Speaking to The Daily Telegraph, Shepherd, who stood in 92 Tests, said that the number of umpires should be increased. At the moment there are nine elite officials - Darrell Hair has yet to be replaced - who have to stand in an increasing number of Tests and One-day Internationals (ODIs).

While the ICC recently produced figures intended to show that umpires were not being asked to stand too many times, there is an increasing argument that they, like the players, are facing burnout.

“With independent umpires you are always away from home,” Shepherd said. “The players at least get to play in Test matches at home but umpires are travelling all the time,” he added. It was a refusal to spend so much time away from his family that led to Peter Willey, one of the leading officials, to refuse to join the panel.

“It is tough for the players because they are playing high grade cricket all the time and careers will not last as long as they did,” Shepherd continued. “I can see the same thing happening with umpires. There will be umpire burn-out. The guys are under so much scrutiny. Television is so good these days and so intrusive,” he said.

Australians dominate the year in cricket

Australians were at the heart of two of the biggest cricketing stories of 2006.

Controversial umpire Darrell Hair was banned after Pakistan blamed him squarely for their forfeiture of the Oval Test against England in August.

And Australia's world champion team proved the strongest of the year, winning eight out of eight Tests (so far) and clinching the Champions Trophy, the only one-day title to have previously eluded it.

Pakistan became the first country in Test history to forfeit a match after refusing to take the field after tea on the fourth day against England.

Hair, no stranger to controversy, and fellow umpire Billy Doctrove had penalised Pakistan for alleged ball tampering, docking them five runs and changing the ball.

In a move which divided world cricket, Hair was sacked from the International Cricket Council's (ICC) elite panel of umpires.

Pakistan captain Inzaman-ul-Haq was cleared of ball tampering although the ICC banned him for four one-day internationals for bringing the game into disrepute.

In a difficult year for Pakistan, their fast bowlers Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammed Asif became the first international cricketers to test positive for performance-enhancing drugs.

Shoaib and Asif were banned from cricket in November after testing positive for nandrolone but were cleared a month later when a Pakistan tribunal ruled they had not received sufficient warning that supplements they were taking could be contaminated by the banned steroid.

English umpire in intensive care

Umpire Mark Benson will spend the night under observation in intensive care after suffering heart problems in the Test between South Africa and India.

The former Kent and England batsman left the field in the fourth over on day three of the second Test.

He was replaced in the middle at Kingsmead by South African Ian Howell.

A Cricket South Africa spokesman said the 48-year-old had been taken to hospital for an electrocardiogram as a precautionary measure.

Benson, who played in one Test for England, was appointed to the International Cricket Council's elite panel in April 2006. He was standing in his 12th Test match.

English umpire taken to hospital

Umpire Mark Benson was taken to hospital after suffering heart palpitations during the second Test between South Africa and India.

The former Kent and England batsman left the field after one ball of the fourth over of the third day.

He was replaced in the middle at Kingsmead by South African Ian Howell.

A Cricket South Africa spokesman said the 48-year-old had been taken to hospital for an electrocardiogram as a precautionary measure.

Benson, who played in one Test for England, was appointed to the International Cricket Council's elite panel in April 2006.

Crowe calls for Murali action review

WELLINGTON: Martin Crowe, the former New Zealand captain, has called for the International Cricket Council (ICC) to review Muttiah Muralitharan’s bowling action, specifically the doosra - the delivery that leaves the right-handed batsman.

Crowe suggested that Muralitharan needed to be monitored more often to ensure his arm was not flexing more than permitted.

According to Mahela Jayawardene, the Sri Lankan board (SLC) has prepared a full-bodied defence should the ICC hold an inquiry into the matter.

During Sri Lanka’s recent 217-run Test win at Wellington, Crowe, currently a television commentator, claimed Murali’s action deteriorated during a matchwinning spell on day four and needed to be reassessed.

Following the match, Crowe sent an e-mail detailing his concerns to the ICC. It was reported that he planned to include video footage.

“I have no worries over his off-spinner whatsoever,” Crowe told The Dominion Post, a New Zealand daily. “It’s the doosra which he now bowls more and more, often up to 50% in a given spell, which needs further clarification. His doosra was banned two years ago and I believe it needs consistent monitoring.”

Jayawardene came to Muralitharan’s defence. “It’s quite sad it’s gone this far. From a cricket point of view this is something that has to stop,” he said.

“It’s a ridiculous situation. Murali shouldn’t be penalised every time he takes 10 wickets. They (the SLC) will do a presentation to the ICC as well. If he (Crowe) wants to take it higher up ... depending on the outcome we will also react.”

Jayawardene added that Muralitharan would remain impervious to the latest round of criticism: “He’s fine, he has no problems and is just concentrating on cricket”.

John Reid, the former New Zealand captain who stood on the ICC illegal delivery panel that cleared Muralitharan six years ago, disagreed with his compatriot.

“He (Crowe) won’t believe these so-called experts who are the ICC illegal delivery panel. Murali’s also been passed by the biomechanists,” Reid said.

“Everyone thinks he has a bent elbow. He hasn’t, he can’t straighten his elbow. He’s got a double-jointed wrist like you wouldn’t believe.”

Gayle slips to third place in ICC ODI rankings

DUBAI: West Indian all-rounder Chris Gayle has slipped to third place in the latest ICC Player Rankings for ODI batsmen after a disappointing one-day cricket series against Pakistan. He had moved up to second off the back of an excellent ICC Champions Trophy in India in October/November but the series in Pakistan was less fruitful for him. In four innings he scored 57 runs at average of 14.25, much below his usual high standards.
Gayle’s loss is Kevin Pietersen’s gain, however, as the England batsman moves up to second position as a result of Gayle’s demotion, while Michael Hussey remains firm in the top spot.
Other big movers in the top 20 include West Indies batsman Shivnarine Chanderpaul who, despite being on losing team, had a good series personally and has moved up eight places to the 20th position.
Meanwhile, Shahriar Nafees has become the fifth batsman in the world to score 1000 runs in 2006, along with Gayle and the Sri Lankan trio of Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene and Sanath Jayasuriya.
Nafees is the first Bangladesh player ever to achieve that feat and has managed to retain his place in the 19th spot in the ICC Player Rankings for ODI batsmen in the process. One player to slip down the list is Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq. He has fallen three places to 18th spot on the ICC Player Rankings for ODI batsmen. Pakistan paceman Rana Naved-ul-Hasan has moved up seven places to 12th position in the Player Rankings for ODI bowlers following the series against Brian Lara’s side. In four ODIs, he took 11 wickets at an average of 11.81, economy rate of 3.76 runs per over and a strike rate better than a wicket every 19 balls.
Despite winning the series, Pakistan slipped one place on the ICC ODI Championship. It now sits in fourth spot, below New Zealand. The Black Caps begin a five-match ODI series at home to Sri Lanka on 28 December.
South Africa’s Shaun Pollock still tops ICC Player Rankings for ODI all-rounders, clear of Gayle in second and Jayasuriya in third.