Moeen Ali has denied rumours that he is off to Worcestershire at the end of the season when his contract with Warwickshire expires. There had been suggestions that he was frustrated at a lack of first-team opportunities and was off to New Road to join his cousin Kabir, but he says nothing has been agreed as yet.”It’s just a rumour at the moment,” he told Cricinfo. “I think Worcestershire have approached but I don’t know anything about it.”Ali made 68 against Nottinghamshire in May during his first outing for the firsts this year, but he was then dropped to make way for Alex Loudon’s return. He has played just one match since. Worcestershire have made a formal approach for Ali, the England Under-19 vice-captain, regarded as a future England batting star.Although he says he’s happy to bide his time in the second XI, and even though he denies a move is imminent, Ali does say that he, Kabir and his older brother Kadeer of Gloucestershire, have ambitions to represent the same county team. “We’re all hoping that me, my brother and my cousin can play one day together. It would be nice.”But he refused to say which county they would like that to be. “I don’t know,” he says. “It’s too early to say.”

While the Stanford 20/20 continues to roll merrily along, Bermuda have returned home with their tails between their legs after a humiliating nine-wicket defeat against Jamaica.Gus Logie, the Bermuda coach, initially declined to answer questions but he later spoke candidly. “Let’s start off by saying that we were playing against a very, very good Jamaican side with a lot of Test players in it,” he said. “But we didn’t execute the way we should have and it is very disappointing for us to lose like that. The players are capable of a lot more and let themselves down badly.”There has to be a quantum leap in improvement. We got a lesson from a very good team but it showed the gap between some of the best players in the world and ourselves. And it reinforced what I have said all along, which is that without the time to work with the team, it is going to be hard to make the improvements we need.”I was impressed by the youngsters and the way they played. They did the right sort of things, rotated the players and did the things we talked about. They were never going to provide the big hits and the fast runs but they showed promise. It was a shame they were let down by their senior colleagues.”Perhaps the most stinging condemnation came with post-match jibes about the fitness of the side, and the size of some players was noted by TV commentators. “We can’t lock the guys down for weeks and tell them what to do, and when and what to eat,” Logie shrugged. “We are working with the nutritionists and the players have to take the responsibility to look after themselves and work on their fitness. That is not something we can do for them.”When I took over this team, I saw the size of the players and that is something we have to work with. I do not expect these players to shrink overnight and be able to run like gazelles but we have to make the most of what we have. If our mobility isn’t going to be superb then we have to look at ways round that, like the Indians have had to do in the past. You then have to look at technique and have to look at better awareness in the field.”Bermuda’s public expect more in the light of the government’s $11 million investment in the side ahead of the World Cup. But performances have continued to disappoint and the pressure is starting to mount on players and backroom staff.

Imran Khan, Pakistan’s legendary captain
Inzi should have reacted far sooner than he did. Had I been in Inzi’s place I would taken a stand right there and then when Hair decided to change the ball and accused the Pakistanis of ball tampering. I would have insisted on the managers of both teams and match referee coming out to register my protest. I would never have meekly accepted Hair’s judgement the way Inzamam did. Hair’s brash and provocative manner makes him the main culprit in letting things go out of hand. During my career I have seen such umpires who go out of their way to make their authority felt. They are umpiring fundamentalists. Such characters court controversy. Intikhab Alam, former captain and coach
I feel Inzamam should have taken the decision of leaving the ground at that very moment when the umpires decided to change the ball or he should have kept on playing as Pakistan were in a winning position. Rameez Raja, former captain and former PCB CEO
The star of the show definitely was umpire Darrell Hair, but as the villain of the piece. With a lot of negative background, and serious protests by the India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka boards on earlier occasions, it was really flabbergasting to see the ICC installing him once again in a Pakistan game. Grossly aggrieved, the Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq and the team were in their right to protest. The pride of an entire people has been tarnished by his ludicrous and highly insensitive decision. I’m sure the Pakistan captain would not have changed his stance and entered the field again had he not been bulldozed by diplomatic pressure. Pakistan’s bold stance has certainly exposed Hair. Will it be the end of the road for him? If it is it would not be a day too soon.Jalauddin, former fast bowler
Inzamam did the right thing by not coming out after tea. But the only mistake he made was to get on the field after the ECB and PCB’s intervention. Hair has accused the Pakistan team of cheating and it’s a serious allegation.Moin Khan, former captain
Had I been in the place of Inzamam, I would have immediately led the team off and would not have returned until the umpires had explained their decision. Pakistan team is a victim of circumstances and I think people who have something between their ears would understand Inzamam’s actions. It’s a testing time for the ICC because they now need to come out with something otherwise international cricket would turn on its head.

Brett Lee has pledged to put country ahead of family and will take the field for Australia in the first Ashes Test at Brisbane next month, even though his wife Liz is due to give birth to their first child on the eve of the match.”We’ve said right from the start, which is credit to the person that Liz is, I will definitely be playing,” said Lee. “I’m hoping and praying that it either comes early or late. To me, cricket is important, but family is the most important thing in my life. Hopefully I can be there for both.”Lee, who married Liz Kemp in June, turned down $A50,000 (£19,400) for exclusive photographs of his wedding and baby.

Scorecard

James Hopes’ first limited-overs century and some outstanding new-ball bowling from Andy Bichel were the catalysts for a Queensland victory against New South Wales at the Gabba. The Blues were all out for 197 and the 65-run win earned the Bulls a valuable bonus point, easing their initial concerns that the 7 for 262 would not be enough on a good batting pitch.New South Wales slumped to 3 for 12 within six overs after Bichel, who picked up 2 for 21, claimed the vital early breakthrough when Phil Jaques got a thin under-edge to the wicketkeeper Chris Hartley. Bichel also had the New South Wales captain Brad Haddin caught behind in the third over after Craig Simmons was bowled by Scott Brant.The offspinner Chris Simpson (2 for 30) tied down the middle order before Aaron O’Brien (55) and Dominic Thornely (47) gradually rebuilt the innings. In the 35th over New South Wales scored 24 from the debutant Michael Buchanan to give them a glimmer of hope. Daniel Christian (32), playing his second one-day match, hit two fours and two consecutive sixes off Buchanan but after that the batsmen offered little resistance. Hopes claimed 3 for 40 to close the innings and earn a bonus point.Hopes had set up the win after he was promoted to open in the absence of Matthew Hayden, making 102 from 108 balls, including 11 fours and two sixes over midwicket. However, his dismissal sparked a mini-collapse with the Bulls losing 3 for 2 before Buchanan, the son of Australia’s national coach John Buchanan, showed some spirit with an unbeaten 40 from 38 balls.Stuart Clark made a dream start to his first match back after a thigh injury by taking the key wicket of Jimmy Maher, who was caught at slip, with his first ball. But things went downhill for Clark and he finished with 1 for 65 after some costly final overs.Haddin said his side would not dwell on the loss in the lead-up to the Pura Cup clash with the Bulls on Friday. “We had no enthusiasm and there’s really no excuse,” he said after the game. “The wicket was outstanding and the outfield was outstanding as well, we were just very poor.”

The sporadic downpours that have made the skies over Johannesburg greyremained the main concern for both teams as they headed into the openinggame of the five-match one-day series on Sunday. With rain lashing thecity in the morning, practice plans had to be altered, with South Africagoing up the road to SuperSport Park in Centurion and India opting for theindoor nets in the basement at the Wanderers.India, who have won only three matches here from 16 encounters againstSouth Africa dating back to 1992-93, go into the game on the back of adefeat against Rest of South Africa, but as Rahul Dravid pointed out atthe pre-match press conference, they aren’t the first team to start anaway tour indifferently.The fact that Virender Sehwag has recovered from his hand injury wellenough to come through a full batting session will no doubt encourage theside. Sehwag’s recent form hasn’t been the best, but he if needs anyinspiration he need only to replay tapes of that breakthrough innings onTest debut at Bloemfontein.Dravid suggested that India needed to be brave, and the team is almostcertain to play three pace bowlers and Irfan Pathan in addition toHarbhajan Singh. With Mahendra Singh Dhoni expected to move into the No.5slot vacated by Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina and Dinesh Mongia will tusslefor the last batting place. Despite a catalogue of woe that dates back tothe West Indies tour, Raina is likely to be given fresh licence to go outand express himself.For Graeme Smith, there are few selection issues to deal with. LootsBosman did little wrong in his one Champions Trophy outing, and theinclement weather conditions should mean that either Charl Langeveldt orAndrew Hall get the nod ahead of Robin Peterson. Smith will be the loneslow-bowling option, though his offspin is hardly likely to terrorise theIndians.The surface to be used for Sunday’s game bears more than a littleresemblance to that on which South Africa and Australia combined for anincredible 872 runs in March, but with thunderstorms forecast for the day,the cloud cover should ensure that no bowler meets with the fate thatbefell Mick Lewis, whose 10 overs that day went for the small matter of113.The last time India played here, Ricky Ponting and Damien Martyneviscerated their World Cup dream with some of the finest batting everseen on the limited-overs stage. For some of the old boys, it was a red-letterday that went horribly wrong. The new ones, many of whom weren’t even inthe selection picture three years ago, have no such trauma to deal with,and it could be their ability to adapt, or not, that decides the fate ofthis series.South Africa (likely): 1 Graeme Smith (capt), 2 Loots Bosman, 3Herschelle Gibbs, 4 Jacques Kallis, 5 AB de Villiers, 6 Mark Boucher (wk),7 Justin Kemp, 8 Shaun Pollock, 9 Andre Nel, 10 Charl Langeveldt, 11Makhaya Ntini.India (likely): 1 Virender Sehwag, 2 Sachin Tendulkar, 3 MohammadKaif, 4 Rahul Dravid (capt), 5 Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wk), 6 Suresh Raina, 7 IrfanPathan, 8 Ajit Agarkar, 9 Harbhajan Singh, 10 Zaheer Khan, 11 Munaf Patel.

John Buchanan feels no sympathy for his opposite number Duncan Fletcher after England’s second consecutive Test loss. “That’s a difficult thing to do in my position,” Buchanan said in the . “He would not have felt that way towards me when the shoe was on the other foot last year.”In 2005 it was Buchanan who was under pressure as the series wore on while Fletcher was sitting comfortably on the way to winning the Ashes. “When all is said and done, they are your opposition,” Buchanan said. “He and I respect that, and realise that we have jobs to do. You understand what other teams go through, but it’s your job to find weaknesses to exploit. To a certain degree, you have to be emotionless in your approach.”One of the off-field problems for Fletcher over the past week has been his role as coach and selector. However, Buchanan, who has no official say on the make-up of the squad, told the paper the approach has merit.”If you look around other countries, and not just England, the coach has a very significant role in team selections,” Buchanan said. “In many ways, they set the agenda and direction for the team. Right the way through, they have an active involvement in the way those teams perform. That role is still evolving in Australia.”Buchanan will walk away from the side after the World Cup and has only three more Tests in the inner sanctum. “We have not won the series yet, but should we achieve that, I think there will be a hint of personal satisfaction,” he said. “It’s probably in the recesses of our minds.”

Shane Warne has usually registered his major wicket-taking achievements on overseas tours, but on Boxing Day he will have the chance to raise his 700th Test victim on his home ground in Melbourne. Warne passed Dennis Lillee’s 355 wickets in New Zealand, his 500 was reached in Sri Lanka and the 600 came up in England last year.After his 4 for 115, which pushed Australia to a 206-run win and earned them the Ashes, he will be cheered on by a crowd of close to 100,000 at the MCG as he attempts the one dismissal needed to become the first man to the mark. “What an amazing, remarkable milestone that will be,” Ricky Ponting said. “Shane could not have scripted the thing any better. I’m pretty sure he won’t be looking to do any training whatsoever in the lead-up in case he gets injured.”Warne started England’s final-day fall by bowling Andrew Flintoff, who played over and outside a full delivery, and he was on track for 700 until Ponting ran out Geraint Jones with a sharp underarm and Stuart Clark trapped Sajid Mahmood. As the WACA was only half full the scene was not appropriate for such a Warne occasion, but he made sure it would almost certainly occur in Melbourne as he dismissed Steve Harmison and Monty Panesar. After sealing the final wicket and the Ashes Warne was held in the air by Andrew Symonds for what seemed like minutes as the team huddled.Michael Hussey, the Man of the Match, was also consumed by the mass of bodies before the players spread around the ground to thank the supporters. A Western Australian who returned 74 not out and 105, Hussey received a lot of attention.”It’s pretty special, especially on my home ground and with my family watching,” Hussey said. What is also special is Hussey’s incredible average of 86.33 after 14 Tests, which has been boosted by four half-centuries and a hundred in this series. “What a great player he’s been and will continue to be,” Ponting said. “His preparation and his love of representing his country are second to none.”Coming into the one-day side he was remarkable and since he’s been in the Test side he’s been even better. I checked his figures the other day and he was averaging 85 so that would indicate he’s not doing too much wrong.”

England’s slump is being worsened by their poor attitude and their selection of ageing debutants, according to Glenn McGrath. Mal Loye and Paul Nixon were doing nothing to move England forward and the team seemed to be waiting for an individual to lift them out of their doldrums, McGrath said.Writing in his column in the , McGrath rubbished Paul Collingwood’s comments that England needed “a bit of luck or someone to have a great game for us to turn it around”. “I disagree,” McGrath wrote. “Winning happens when you operate as a whole team. Cricket is not decided by one guy.”I find it hard to understand England talking about rediscovering their fight, because Australia wouldn’t lose it in the first place. We pride ourselves on putting up a fight in every single game we play.”McGrath said England had erred by not including players like Vikram Solanki and Owais Shah, who at 30 and 28, should still be considered long-term contenders. “When you look at the two guys they have brought in – Mal Loye and Paul Nixon – you have to wonder what they are trying to achieve,” he said.”They are both pretty old. Loye seems to have just one good shot, the slog-sweep, but he’s played three games and got out to the same shot. With Nixon, bringing in a guy who is 36 just doesn’t make sense when you have Chris Read and Geraint Jones around and both younger, more long-term prospects.”McGrath’s criticisms came as Stuart Law also hit out at England’s attitude and their selection of players like “that timid little creature Ian Bell”. But Law told the that Loye, his team-mate at Lancashire, should have been in the team right through the tour. “England have got it all wrong,” Law said. “They need to pick some blokes who will have a go.”At least if they are going to get beaten they should go down swinging. Mal is known for the freakish slog-sweep but there’s a lot more to him than that. I think he’s the best player of horizontal bat shots in England. He should have been picked from the start of the summer. At least he’s got some heart and he’s not afraid of the Australians like some of the other blokes.”

Queensland have made two changes to their batting line-up ahead of their Pura Cup match against South Australia at Brisbane starting next Friday, promoting Ryan Broad and the uncapped Greg Moller. The team was humiliated by an innings and 45 runs in their game against Western Australia this week and now sit second-last on the Pura Cup table.Lachlan Stevens, the opener who averages 22 from his five games this season, has been dropped from the 12-man squad along with Grant Sullivan, the fast bowler who did not play the Western Australia match. Broad’s one-and-only outing in 2006-07 yielded scores of 1 and 2 but he was preferred to Stevens as an opening partner for Jimmy Maher for next week’s clash.Moller, 24, impressed the selectors with 120 and 97 for the Queensland Academy of Sport against the ACT last month. The season has got better and better for Moller, a right-hand batsman, after he missed the first four matches of Brisbane’s grade competition due to knee surgery. He will warm up for his potential first-class debut by playing alongside Shane Watson for Redlands in club cricket on Saturday.Pura Cup squad Jimmy Maher (capt), Ryan Broad, Shane Watson, Clinton Perren, Craig Philipson, James Hopes, Greg Moller, Chris Hartley (wk), Andy Bichel, Ashley Noffke, Daniel Doran, Nathan Rimmington.