Ravinder Bopara, the Essex batsman, has been called up to the England squad for the Commonwealth Bank Series as a replacement for the injured Kevin Pietersen.Pietersen broke a rib while batting during England’s eight-wicket defeat in the first ODI of the CB series against Australia at the MCG. He was on 73 when he advanced down the wicket to a short ball from Glenn McGrath and missed his attempted pull. The ball cannoned into his ribs and after a couple of minutes of regaining his breath and attention from the physiotherapist, he batted on to reach 82. The injury was expected to sideline him for five to six weeks.Ed Joyce was tipped to take Pietersen’s spot in the XI.Bopara, who averaged 38 in first-class cricket and 42 in the 50-over C&G Trophy during 2006, was preferred ahead of Alastair Cook, Owais Shah, Vikram Solanki and Michael Yardy who have all played ODIs over the past 12 months.”Ravi has been brought in because he is a middle-order batsman who impressed in his time with the Academy in Perth earlier in the winter,” David Graveney, England’s chairman of selectors, told Reuters. “He has also been a regular with Essex during their one-day successes in recent years and we decided that he was the best option available.”We are happy with the top order of Strauss, Vaughan and Bell and we also see the injury to Kevin Pietersen, while unfortunate, as offering a great chance for Ed Joyce to stake his claim for a place in the ICC World Cup.”Joyce, meanwhile, said that he would play with his own style. “I’m not going to try to be KP,” he told the BBC. “I can’t do that – very few people can. I’m not as experienced as he is either so I’ve got to try and grow up pretty quickly and get runs for the team.”.

The Warriors batsman HD Ackerman has been suspended for the final Supersport Series match as well as the first two Pro20 games after breaching Cricket South Africa’s code of conduct.Ackerman was found guilty by Advocate Michael Kuper SC for breaking clauses 1.2 and 1.5 – which relate to dissent and conduct which could bring the game into disrepute – following the Warriors’ Supersport series match against the Titans at Port Elizabeth on February 1.He will now miss the four-day match against the Eagles starting on February 15 and the opening two Pro20 matches on February 21 and 23 against the Eagles and the Dolphins.

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Chris Rogers became Western Australia’s highest run-scorer in a season and drove his side to a 63-run lead as they tried to sneak from fourth place into the Pura Cup final. Ryan Harris did his best to limit the damage for South Australia with four wickets but at the close, the Warriors were 8 for 323.With New South Wales facing a probable loss at Hobart and Victoria set a testing target at Brisbane, the Warriors’ stable effort at Adelaide suddenly put them in a promising position. To have any chance of reaching the final against Tasmania, the Warriors must beat the Redbacks and fittingly it was Rogers, the star of 2006-07, who put them on track.He made 95, passing 1200 runs this season and eclipsing Murray Goodwin’s record of 1183 runs in 2003-04. Rogers had good support from a string of middle-order batsmen: Shaun Marsh made 49, Marcus North contributed 48, and Adam Voges guided the team to first-innings points with his 69.A lead was no certainty after the visitors resumed at 2 for 23 but the Redbacks could not keep up the pressure. Harris had Voges and Luke Ronchi both caught in the same over late in the day, however David Bandy continued Western Australia’s steady climb and was 34 not out at stumps.

Brian Belle, who played for Oxford University and Essex in the years immediately before the Second World War as a top-order batsman, has died at the age of 92. At the time of his death he was the oldest surviving Essex player.He appeared in one Varsity match, in 1936, where he made 48 and 26, although he finished on the losing side. Between 1935 and 1937 he played regularly for Essex as an amateur before his teaching duties led to him to pack in full-time cricket – he was to become headmaster of Orwell Park after the war.Perhaps his most memorable moment came a week after his county debut in 1935 when he cracked 63 in a sixth-wicket stand of 174 with Morris Nichols as Essex routed Yorkshire, the leading side of the decade, by an innings and 204 runs.After serving in the Royal Artillery during the war, he continued to play Minor County cricket for Suffolk, who had made his debut for in 1939, helping them to their first title in 1946 and captaining them between 1949 and 1953. He was subsequently county chairman.Belle was also a more than able footballer, representing Corinthians, the top amateur team of the time, as a full-back. He also won a Blue at football in 1935-36.

Australia have again seized the No. 1 ODI ranking after seven weeks of sitting in second place behind South Africa. Bangladesh’s upset victory over South Africa combined with Australia’s comfortable defeat of England restored Ricky Ponting’s men to top spot.However, Australia have 128 points and are only three clear of Graeme Smith’s side, meaning the standings could change a number of times before the World Cup ends. South Africa timed their brief period at the head of the table to perfection – as the No. 1-ranked country at the end of the ICC year on April 1 they pocketed US$175,000.Australia stumbled from the top position after their 3-0 Chappell-Hadlee Trophy loss in February and it was the first time since the ODI rankings were introduced in October 2002 they were not No. 1.Sri Lanka have jumped Pakistan to take the No. 4 place, meaning the four favourites to make the semi-finals – Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and Sri Lanka – are officially the four best teams in the world. England’s loss to Australia kept them in seventh position but a poor finish in the Caribbean could yet see West Indies leapfrog them.

Mike Brearley, the former England captain, will serve as the next president of MCC. His one-year term of office will begin on October 1 and he will replace Doug Insole, who made the announcement during MCC’s AGM on Wednesday afternoon at Lord’s.Brearley captained England in 31 of his 39 Tests, including the 1981 Ashes series, and overall won 18 matches while in charge. He also played 25 ODIs and led England in the 1979 World Cup final at Lord’s.His first spell leading England was between 1977 and 1979-80 when he won acclaim for his captaincy even though his batting was often criticised, and his Test average of 22.88 showed that he was not good enough to hold his own as a batsman. But after Ian Botham failed as his successor, he returned in 1981 with England trailing to Australia and guided his side to a remarkable 3-1 series win before retiring again.His first-class career spanned two decades and he led Middlesex for 12 seasons – at county level he was far more effective, as an average of almost 38 shows. He turned Middlesex from perennial underachievers into the best team in the land, leading them to three Championships (plus one that was shared) and two Gillette Cups.Brearley wrote three books about Ashes series he played in, and on retiring penned The Art of Captaincy, considered the definite work on the subject. He was named one of Wisden’s Cricketers of the Year in 1977 and a year later was awarded an OBE for his services to cricket. In 1983 he became an Honorary Life Member of MCC.

A report in today’s London Times has backed claims at the weekend that a Home Office pathologist has concluded Bob Woolmer died of natural causes and was not murdered.Reports from the post-mortem, photographs and other material have been examined by Dr Nat Carey, the pathologist who examined the bodies in the Soham murder case.The original post-mortem, carried out in Jamaica, decided that strangulation was possible because a bone on Woolmer’s neck had been broken.Police are reported to be waiting for the results of a toxicology report after traces of a herbicide were found in Woolmer’s body. The chemical is sometimes used on cricket pitches as a weedkiller, and one theory is that he might have accidentally ingested it. The report will show if the level of the toxin were suspiciously high or whether they could have built up over a period of time.The Times noted that the herbicide can cause sickness and diarrhea, both of which Woolmer suffered on the night he died. The broken bone could have been the result of a fall as he collapsed in his hotel bathroom.The report also claimed that the possibility that he was attacked by a disgruntled fan or player have been ruled out.There were also criticisms of the handling of the investigation by the Jamaica police, with delays in retrieving and examining the CCTV, a failure to take swabs from Woolmer’s hands and body, and the fact that the body was embalmed within hours of the post mortem.The Jamaica Gleaner published a hard-hitting editorial on Tuesday in which the local police were openly slammed. “The now-it-is-now-it-isn’t spectacle being played out in the international media over Woolmer’s death must be particularly upsetting to his family and makes Jamaica’s constabulary appear a bunch of incompetent boobs. It couldn’t hurt the investigation, we feel, to publish the pathology report so as to clear the air. There should also be some official statement why the scheduled coroner’s inquest appears to have been postponed indefinitely.”

Confusion over the West Indies A tour of Zimbabwe remains more than a week after Cricinfo revealed that the players’ association (WIPA) had said that it was against the trip going ahead.In the six days since then, little progress appears to have been made. The West Indies board (WICB) has requested documentary evidence from WIPA to back up claims that it had been told that the players’ safety was a major concern.WIPA, in turn, has declined to provide this as much of the evidence it has gathered has been given on the condition of anonymity, especially from sources within Zimbabwe. Cricinfo has seen one mail from a senior politician which said: “While I personally would love to watch the West Indies A team play in Zimbabwe you will do more for the game of cricket generally and in Zimbabwe if you decide to decline the invitation.”The two sides remain firmly entrenched. WIPA is adamant that is has the full backing of players, and Cricinfo is aware of several who have already said they are not prepared to make the trip, although The Nation reported that it has spoken to others who were keen to go. The WICB has assurances from Zimbabwe Cricket that safety is not an issue.The relationship between WIPA and the board is almost non existent, as commented on in yesterday’s arbitration ruling, and this is hampering progress.Tony Deyal, the board’s corporate services manager, told The Nation that a decision was imminent. “Whatever decision is taken will be taken seriously and in the best interest of all the players,” he said. “We are waiting for [WIPA chief executive Dinanath] Ramnarine to get back to us. If he doesn’t, we have to make a decision and we hope to make it by tomorrow [Thursday].”We’ve asked WIPA for the sources of their information. This is not a competition. We are dealing with an issue where we are very concerned,” Deyal said. “There are not two sides in this thing. There is only one side. The question of safety of the players. What we are trying to ascertain is what information WIPA has that we don’t have. We have all the assurances of support and safety.”WIPA is also unhappy that despite claims from the WICB that a squad has been picked, it has not been named less than nine days before the side is due to land in Harare.”It is very unfortunate that the board will go to everybody else and then come to us last,” Ramnarine said. “We are the most critical people … the players, their safety. It really shows not just disrespect to the agreement, but a certain level of disrespect to the players and their own welfare. That is something that WIPA feels strongly about. We have a role and a responsibility to protect our members and we will continue to do so.”In Zimbabwe, Lovemore Banda, the board’s media manager, said that he was still optimistic. “We are just waiting to hear from them,” he said, “but we are hopeful the team will be traveling.”The Zimbabwe squad has been training for a few days in Harare. Brendan Taylor is a notable absentee – he is reported to be in London – while Elton Chigumbura is in South Africa on personal business and expected to arrive soon. A local source reported that a number of the players were waiting on the decision by West Indies before deciding what to do in the longer term.

Bangladesh can expect no respite from a charged up Sri Lanka when they confront them in a series of three Tests starting Monday at the SSC grounds.”One thing we’ve realized is that whether we play Australia or Bangladesh whoever it is, even Zimbabwe we are going to treat every game as top priority for us,” said Mahela Jayawardene.”That’s the attitude we’ve been having and its part of our success we’ve had in the last 2-3 years. We treat each and every game very seriously and make sure we put in more than 100 percent on every game. Attitude-wise, the enthusiasm, the aggression everything will be the same. The only thing we have to switch would be from one day cricket to Test cricket,” he stated.Sri Lanka will be greatly strengthened by the return of Kumar Sangakkara, Chaminda Vaas and Muttiah Muralitharan. All three have been playing county cricket in England and will return after the series against Bangladesh. “They are all keen to get back into playing Test cricket.”Sri Lanka will be playing a home Test after nearly 12 months. The last Test played at the SSC against South Africa in July 2006 was a memorable one for Jayawardene and Sangakkara. The pair shared a world record partnership of 624 runs for any wicket in Test cricket. Jayawardene went onto compile Sri Lanka’s highest score in Test cricket, a monumental 374, while Sangakkara hit a career best 287. Sri Lanka piled up 756 runs and beat South Africa by an innings.Bangladesh is keeping a close eye on experienced opener Javed Omar after he was laid ill with a virus. “Omar is coming through well and we hope he will be fit for the Test. Mehrab Hossain has been named as standby in the twelve just in case Omar fails to pull through,” said Bangladesh coach Shaun Williams.Williams who is standby coach until Bangladesh finds a successor to Dav Whatmore said that playing a full Test series of three matches would benefit Bangladesh a lot. “We are happy to have a three-Test series. It will give this young group in terms of experience a chance to educate themselves to get better at this level,” said Williams.”It’s a learning curve for every player in the side as they strive to achieve success. I wouldn’t at this stage set any goals for winning and losing. The more we face strong opposition the better it is for us to get to know how well we can play,” he said.

Although there has been a lot of rain in the past few days the pitch looked firm and Jayawardene assessed that it would be a great wicket to bat on. “The ground staff has done a brilliant job to keep it dry. It looks a very good wicket. There will definitely be something for the fast bowlers and the spinners will have bounce and probably turn in the latter part of the Test. It will be a great wicket to bat on because the ball will definitely be coming on,” said Jayawardene.Sri Lanka will go into the Test with seven batters and four bowlers. Jayawardene said there will be a toss up between Dilhara Fernando and Farveez Maharoof. “Both of them are bowling really well, absolutely brilliantly. It’s unfortunate that we have to keep one of the guys out. That’s the choice we have to make. Whoever gets left out here will get an opportunity to come back and play one of the other Test matches,” Jayawardene said.”One of the reasons we are going with seven batsmen is that the line up we have is a bit inexperienced,” he said. Sri Lanka are without experienced openers Sanath Jayasuriya (rested), Marvan Atapattu (unavailable) and Upul Tharanga (injured). They go into the Test with left-handers Michael Vandort who’s played in six Tests and Malinda Warnapura who will be making his Test debut at the age of 28.Jayawardene insisted that there would be no complacency on his team’s part. “We will not take it easy. It’s going to be 100 percent from the first ball. Bangladesh do show a lot of weaknesses in Test cricket. But then you’ll never know. They keep improving and they could be a surprise package. You shouldn’t leave them any room to come back at you. From the first ball onwards whether we are batting or bowling we are going to go after them and make sure we put them under pressure,” he said. Bangladesh has lost all seven Tests played between the two countries.Sri Lanka (from): Mahela Jayawardene (captain), Michael Vandort, Malinda Warnapura, Kumar Sangakkara, Chamara Silva, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Prasanna Jayawardene, Chaminda Vaas, Lasith Malinga, Muttiah Muralitharan, Dilhara Fernando, Farveez Maharoof, Malinga Bandara, Sajeewa de Silva.Bangladesh (from): Mohammed Ashraful (captain), Mashrafa Mortaza, Abdur Razzak, Habibul Bashar, Javed Omar, Khaled Mashud, Mohammad Rafique, Rajin Saleh, Shahadat Hossain, Shahriar Nafees, Shakib Al Hasan, Mehrab Hossain.

After the one-day series defeat against West Indies, England’s attentions turn back to Test cricket with India the second visitors of the season. It promises to be a fascinating contest with Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar and Anil Kumble going head-to-head with Michael Vaughan, Kevin Pietersen and Monty Panesar.And the even better news is that it’s time for another Cricinfo competition and there are some terrific prizes on offer. To mark the release of , featuring Pietersen on the box, there is a Citizen Eco-Drive watch and a host of Woodworm goodies to give away thanks to our friends at Empire Interactive.All you have to do is answer this question:Which England player is featured on the box of International Cricket Captain III and how many runs did he score in the recent Test series against West Indies?The winner will receive the Citizen watch and four runners-up will get the Woodworm gear consisting of a cap, backpack and training shirt.THIS COMPETITION HAS NOW CLOSED