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Shaminda Eranga has been ruled out of Sri Lanka’s Test series against Pakistan in the UAE with an injury, and will be replaced in the squad by uncapped seamer Kosala Kulasekara

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Oct-2011Shaminda Eranga has been ruled out of Sri Lanka’s Test series against Pakistan in the UAE with a shoulder injury to his right arm, and will be replaced in the squad by uncapped seamer Kosala Kulasekara. Eranga had looked dangerous on Test debut, picking up four first-innings wickets against Australia in Colombo and his absence is a blow to Sri Lanka.Kulasekara, a tall 26-year-old, has been a regular member of the Sri Lanka A squad over the summer, and impressed with a five-wicket haul in Leicester. He was also part of the Sri Lanka Board XI that played Australia during their recent tour, and took two wickets. He plays for Nondescripts Cricket Club in Sri Lanka’s domestic competitions and has 148 wickets in 72 first-class matches.”I have developed and matured quite a lot as a fast bowler,” Kulasekara said. “Former national fast bowling coach Anusha Samaranayake has helped me to improve on my technique, pace and ball release.” He also said he had worked hard on his batting. “I love playing the lofted on-drives and off-drives and I have made a lot of runs by just hitting straight. I have learnt to be more patient and to wait for the bad balls to hit.”Sri Lankan team physio Steve Mount said that Eranga had damaged his cartilege on his right shoulder while fielding (throwing) during the one-day international series against Australia and is presently under treatment. “He will be fit in a few weeks. We are trying to get him ready for the South African tour later this year,” Mount said.Sri Lanka do have cover in the fast-bowling department with Chanaka Welegedara, Dhammika Prasad, Suranga Lakmal and Nuwan Pradeep all in the squad.The first Test of the series starts on October 18 in Abu Dhabi.

The USA Cricket Association has announced that it is delaying regional and national elections by at least three more months to allow member leagues to meet eligibility requirements

Peter Della Penna05-Dec-2011The USA Cricket Association has announced that it is delaying regional and national elections by at least three more months based on a recommendation made by attorney Robert Chance, who is conducting the controversial compliance review audit of all USACA member leagues.USACA had posted a notice last month after a November 17 conference call in which Chance requested that leagues be given an additional week to turn in requested documents for his compliance review in order to help make a recommendation as to which leagues were valid and in turn eligible to vote in elections. However, the latest release on the USACA website says that at a board meeting conference call held on December 3, the board voted by a “large majority” to take up Chance’s proposal to “provide help and assistance to the leagues wanting to comply with the USACA constitution and run the elections when a majority of leagues, ideally at least 66%, are compliant. This could be done in around three months or less.”According to the release, if the elections were held now, few leagues could participate because most have been unable to provide all of the requested documentation to show that they are fully compliant. The release says that Chance “suggested that USACA should work to assist those member leagues who may prove deficient in areas such as the implementation of development programs, financial controls and written constitutions. The additional ninety days would, therefore, also allow USACA to put mechanisms in place that will allow leagues to request and receive such assistance in meeting their eligibility requirements.”After yet another delay to elections, which were constitutionally mandated to take place no later than November 30, the possibility increases that USACA could face another ICC suspension. USACA was suspended twice in the last decade after internal disputes relating to governance issues. The last suspension occurred in March of 2007 after USACA failed to meet an ICC imposed deadline to approve a constitution and hold elections. USACA did not wind up ratifying a constitution until the following January with elections taking place more than a year later in March of 2008, after which the suspension was finally lifted.As a result of the last suspension, USA was not allowed to participate in the inaugural ICC World Cricket League Division Three tournament in Darwin, Australia in 2007 and were ultimately dropped down to Division Five upon being readmitted into the ICC fold. They were also removed from the 2005 Intercontinental Cup during their first suspension. USA qualified in July to take part in the 2012 ICC World Twenty20 Qualifier in the UAE next March and are supposed to participate in ICC World Cricket League Division Four, which is due to be held next summer.According to USACA general manager Manaf Mohamed, the ICC had been in contact with him about hosting Division Four and officials had informed him that they expected to make a final decision on the matter in November. When contacted on Sunday night, Mohamed said he had not heard from the ICC for several weeks but said he did not see any reason why USA’s spot in either tournament would be in jeopardy.

Australia have intimidated India’s batsmen with the quality of their bowling, capitalising on the visitors’ haste to get started with a relentless line and full length, James Pattinson has said

Daniel Brettig at the SCG03-Jan-2012Australia have intimidated India’s batsmen with the quality of their bowling, capitalising on the visitors’ haste to get started with a relentless line and full length, James Pattinson has said. Pattinson, the fast bowler, maintained a compelling start to his Test career with 4 for 43, including four of the top five, on day one of the second Test in Sydney.Each of Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag, VVS Laxman and Sachin Tendulkar were defeated by full deliveries moving away from them, the first three edging into the cordon before Tendulkar dragged an attempted drive onto the stumps. Pattinson said he, Peter Siddle and Ben Hilfenhaus had hounded India into error with their discipline.”I think they’re probably intimidated about the way we’re bowling, the areas we’re bowling, we’re not giving them any loose balls,” Pattinson said. “For them they’ve probably got it in their mind ‘where are we going to score’, because they’re not getting any loose balls at the moment. Intimidation comes with us bowling really well.”Laxman has been the chief example of Australia’s intelligent and hostile bowling, having made only five runs in three innings. This from the man who has tormented Australian teams for more than a decade with a string of sparkling and match-turning displays. This success had been discussed in the team room, Pattinson said.”He’s had great success against Australia in the past and that’s something we’ve looked at, but if you bowl good balls it doesn’t matter how good they are,” he said. “On your day you can get them out, and I think early on they’re coming pretty hard at us, looks like they want to score.”That’s even better from a bowlers’ point of view to have them trying to score early on, try to drive you through the covers to a ball that probably wasn’t quite there today. So it is great for us to see them wanting to do that, and if we can keep doing the right thing we’ll keep going with success.”The bubble around our bowling attack is amazing for the fact we’re playing against such high-class opposition. We’re just up for the challenge even more. If you come out on the day and don’t bowl so well they can put you right on the back foot, therefore the day travels away from you a little bit.”Short stuff from Australia’s seamers has given India’s lower order a tough time•Getty ImagesIn contrast to the full deliveries aimed at the batsmen, India’s tail-enders have been peppered around the head with short stuff. It is not a pretty method, but has so far been quite effective.”If you bowl a good enough short ball I think most tail-enders are pretty suspect. To be honest I don’t like the short ball at my head,” Pattinson said. “But it’s just a credit to our bowlers, we’re bowling really well. If you pitch the ball up [or short], you’ve still got to bowl in the right areas, you’ve got to bowl nice and straight. It is something the bowlers have done really well over the last month or two months that we’ve been playing.”Reflecting on his remarkable first three Tests and one innings, Pattinson said he had surpassed all his own expectations, and gave credit for that to his grounding with Australia’s bowling coach Craig McDermott over the preceding six months.”I don’t think anyone would have thought [I’d have such a good start],” he said. “You hope for it, but saying that, if you do all the right things, you bowl well, then you never know what might come your way. It has been a credit to Craig McDermott over the last six months that I’ve worked with him day in, day out, it is great I can work hard with him and see the results.”My expectations were just to perform well. If I could go out there and take wickets, that’s what I was trying to do, and try to get a regular spot in the Australian cricket team.”

Kevin O’Brien is hopeful that the bidders at the IPL auction on February 4 remember his blitz against England in the World Cup

Nagraj Gollapudi31-Jan-2012After Kevin O’Brien returned home from the 2011 World Cup, a tournament that featured his heroic 50-ball hundred (the fastest in World Cup history) that shocked England on a balmy evening in Bangalore, one of the first calls he received was from the Cricket Ireland bosses. They wanted to let him know that one of the IPL teams, Kochi Tuskers Kerala, had asked if O’Brien could be signed up as a reserve player. “Unfortunately, since I was not part of the initial auction last year, I could not sign up. That was a little disappointing,” O’Brien told ESPNcricinfo. This year, when the IPL opened the window for players to register on the auction list, he did not think twice.What makes O’Brien’s case unique is that among the 144 names on the final list, he is one of only three players representing the Associate countries at the auction. His elder brother, Niall, and Tom Cooper, who plays for Netherlands, are the other Associate players in the auction that will be held on February 4 in Bangalore.”That last year’s performance against England would be hopefully high up on the mind of the bidders come Saturday,” O’Brien said of what he hoped for at the auction. That knock would not be looked upon as a freak innings was made certain by O’Brien: he was signed up by Gloucestershire soon after the World Cup and, last June, playing in the Friends Life t20 match against Middlesex in Uxbridge, O’Brien slammed a 44-ball century, the fastest in domestic Twenty20.The few thousands who were present on the day were in for a double treat. O’Brien had walked in to open with former New Zealand batsman Hamish Marshall (who now represents Ireland) and built a record opening partnership of 192 runs, with both batsmen scoring centuries. “It was a great day for me. I was opening the batting and I really enjoyed it,” O’Brien said. “So now I can not only open, but also play down in the middle order. It is good to have two strings to the bow.”His 113 against England had instantly turned O’Brien, 27, into a national hero. The man from Dublin, who plays for the local Railway Union Cricket Club, became a symbol of pride. A week after returning from the World Cup, O’Brien was dropping his mother off at work when he realised just how popular he had become. “I had a hood on and the [car’s] windows were up,” O’Brien said. We were at a traffic signal. Suddenly I noticed a cab driver jump out of his car, tap on my window and congratulate me on my performance.”Now, O’Brien felt, he could use that popularity to attract more fans for the IPL in Ireland, if he is bought by any of the nine franchises. “If either myself or Niall were to be bought at the auction, it will certainly raise the profile of the game in Ireland. The public will surely have a huge interest in the IPL, if one of us is playing in it.”Cricket, O’Brien said, has been getting bigger in the country since 2007, when Ireland beat Pakistan in the World Cup. Last year’s victory over England has raised the popularity levels of the sport even further. “A lot more people are talking about cricket on the streets,” he said. “A lot more people are coming to our games.”In the four previous IPL seasons, there had been only one player from the Associates to play in the IPL: Ryan ten Doeschate, who plays for Netherlands. Despite not having played regularly with the top-bracket teams, O’Brian felt that all three Associate players in the reckoning this year had played enough competitive cricket to stand up to anyone on the international stage. “Niall has been playing county cricket for twelve years now; Tom Cooper plays first-class cricket in Australia; I have played country cricket for Gloucestershire and previously with Nottinghamshire. So we all have got experience.”O’Brien, who was recently appointed the vice-captain of the Ireland team, decided to skip the Bangladesh Premier League [BPL], even if there was healthy interest in him from the franchises. In fact, Niall was signed by Khulna Royal Bengal for US $80,000. “Unfortunately it [the BPL] clashes with the 2015 World Cup qualifying matches in Kenya, and then qualifiers for the World Twenty20 in March,” O’Brien said. “Hopefully I will be there next year. My contract with Cricket Ireland comes first and everything else next.”As far as the franchises’ interest in him goes, O’Brien could remain optimistic. “He is a good pick. A value for money one, in the way ten Doeschate was for Kolkata Knight Riders,” a franchise official said. ten Doeschate, the 2011 ICC Associate and Affiliate Player of the Year (he picked up the award three times in the last four years) was bought by Knight Riders for $150,000, after having his base price set at $50,000.”Unfortunately, there are quite a lot of players with his [O’Brien’] type of skills. [But] There is no doubt he is a quality player,” said a coach from another franchise. “He and his brother are good players and franchises will definitely consider them during the bidding.” Asked if O’Brien had catapulted himself into the minds of the potential bidders solely on the back of his match-winning performance against England, the coach did not agree. “He is a good hitter of the ball and we have seen it for a while now,” he said.Small wonder then, the O’Brien brothers have planned to spend this weekend together, waiting to see whether either or both of them have earned their IPL ticket. “Niall is coming over on the weekend and we are going to follow the auction on the internet,” O’Brien said. “It is going to be a nervous morning.”

ESPNcricinfo previews the one-dayer between India and Sri Lanka in Brisbane

The Preview by Siddarth Ravindran20-Feb-2012Match factsFebruary 21, Brisbane
Start time 1320 (0320 GMT)Big PictureIt’s been a topsy-turvy few days for the CB series. Halfway through the tournament, India were table-toppers but the two matches in Brisbane could completely change the standings. Not only were India comprehensively beaten by Australia on Sunday, they have also lost their captain, and easily their best batsman of the series, MS Dhoni, for Tuesday’s game.The most intensely debated topic this series has been India’s rotation of their three experienced openers. With the middle order missing the assurance of Dhoni, India will be tempted to abandon the policy and pick all three. There are question marks over the fitness of two of them, though both are expected to pull through – Virender Sehwag sat out the previous two matches due to a back spasm, while Sachin Tendulkar went for a precautionary MRI scan after being hit on the helmet by a Brett Lee bouncer.The Indian media has gone to town over Dhoni’s remarks that playing all three of Sehwag, Tendulkar and Gambhir – who aren’t the most athletic of fielders – could result in 20 more runs being conceded in the field, but that isn’t likely to dissuade the team management from selecting all three.With the four-man pace attack also not working for India on Sunday, they also need to rethink the bowling combination. R Ashwin has excelled in both games against Sri Lanka so far, and given how effective Xavier Doherty was on Sunday at the Gabba, India will have to find a way to accommodate Ashwin in the line-up.In contrast to India’s several conundrums, Sri Lanka seem more settled, despite currently being at the bottom of the table. They have been getting better in every game – getting close to a victory in their early matches before pulling off a tie against India and then a morale-boosting bonus-point win over Australia.Form guideIndia LTWWL (Most recent first)
Sri Lanka WTLLWIn the spotlightIn his second coming as captain, Mahela Jayawardene has impressed observers with his leadership and on-field strategies. Sri Lanka needed him to end his lean run as a batsman, something he did with the half-century against Australia after pushing himself up to the top of the order. In his 11 innings as opener, he averages 67.90 which is twice his career mean. Sri Lanka have made stuttering starts in recent matches – 20 or less for the first wicket in 12 of their past 16 ODIs. Jayawardene wants to correct that by taking over at the top.Virat Kohli has established himself as the best of the next generation of Indian batsmen, moving ahead of the likes of Rohit Sharma and Suresh Raina. He had an outstanding 2011, scoring more runs than anyone else in ODIs, but hasn’t hit those heights in this series. With Dhoni missing and much of the batting line-up struggling for form, he needs to make the runs befitting his new-found status.Team newsIndia have several questions to ponder. Either Rohit Sharma or Suresh Raina will probably have to make way for Parthiv Patel. The bowling combination will also have changes, with the four-quicks policy likely to be abandoned.India: (probable) 1 Sachin Tendulkar, 2 Virender Sehwag (capt), 3 Gautam Gambhir, 4 Virat Kohli, 5 Rohit Sharma/Suresh Raina, 6 Parthiv Patel (wk), 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 R Ashwin, 9 Irfan Pathan, 10 Vinay Kumar/Zaheer Khan, 11 Umesh YadavSri Lanka have no reason to make too many changes. The only batsman with a question over his place is Lahiru Thirimanne and he didn’t get to bat in the previous match. Lasith Malinga and Nuwan Kulasekara are Sri Lanka’s first-choice fast bowlers. With Thisara Perera turning in a Man-of-the-Match performance in Sydney and Farveez Maharoof making a superb comeback, Sri Lanka could again go in with a pace-heavy attack.Sri Lanka: (probable) 1 Mahela Jayawardene (capt), 2 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 3 Kumar Sangakkara (wk), 4 Dinesh Chandimal, 5 Lahiru Thirimanne, 6 Angelo Mathews, 7 Thisara Perera, 8 Farveez Maharoof, 9 Nuwan Kulasekara, 10 Lasith Malinga, 11 Rangana HerathPitch and conditionsThe Australian fast bowlers thrived at the Gabba, and the same surface will be used for Tuesday’s game. There isn’t good news on the weather front – thundershowers are predicted in the afternoon and evening.Stats and triviaSri Lanka have lost nine of their 11 ODIs at the Gabba. Their only win came against South Africa in 2006Quotes”MS Dhoni is a match winner by himself … still, we are playing India, they have got some really big players and we can’t be complacent.”

Craig McMillan, the former New Zealand batsman, has blamed New Zealand’s surprise defeat in the third and final Twenty20 at Eden Park on Jesse Ryder for slowing down the scoring so he could get his half-century

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Feb-2012Craig McMillan, the former New Zealand batsman, has blamed New Zealand’s defeat in the third and final Twenty20 at Eden Park on Jesse Ryder for slowing down the scoring so he could get his half-century. New Zealand were coasting towards their target of 166, needing 17 off the last four overs, but lost by three runs and conceded the series 2-1 to South Africa.McMillian, now a television commentator, said Ryder was guilty of putting himself before the team’s needs. However, Ryder found support from his team-mate James Franklin, who said it would be unfair to single out one player for the defeat.”The reason New Zealand lost their momentum in those last four overs is because Jesse Ryder was trying to get one run for his 50, it took nine (sic. 7) deliveries to get that one run. It’s always dangerous when you put yourself ahead of the team and I think that’s what Jesse Ryder did last night,” McMillan told . “I’ve gone through it last night, the reasons why I thought we lost, and when you need 16 runs (sic. 17) off four overs, which is 24 deliveries, you do it in a canter. You basically get bat on ball and you win easily.”Ryder, who returned to the team following a calf injury, had raced to 48 off 29 balls before slowing down. He added only four more runs to his score, off 13 balls, and then scooped Johan Botha to Morne Morkel on the leg side, increasing the pressure on New Zealand. They needed 8 off seven balls after Ryder’s dismissal.McMillan said the other batsmen were also culpable, but Ryder had to accept responsibility for putting New Zealand in that position.”Yes, the others had opportunities to win the game in terms of Franklin, [Tim] Southee, [Doug] Bracewell, Nathan McCullum, will all be disappointed they didn’t bring New Zealand home,” McMillan said. “But the reason that New Zealand were put in that position last night was because of Jesse Ryder’s selfishness in trying to get to 50.”He changed the way he was batting. He actually took about six (balls) trying to get a single and then he hit to the fielder and thought ‘Well I better hit one out of the park because this just isn’t working for me’. There were a couple of swings and misses and all of a sudden New Zealand are under pressure where they need seven off the last over.”This defeat falls squarely on his shoulders and he has to wear it.”Franklin, who remained unbeaten on 9 off eight balls, backed Ryder and said the team should take the blame.”He [Ryder] played brilliantly last night,” Franklin told NZN. “It’s very much a team game, and there were other guys that came in after that had the chance to win the game. None of us did that, so to pin it on any individual I think is very much unfair.”Edited by Kanishkaa Balachandran

A round-up of Wednesday’s matches in the MiWAY T20 Challenge

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Mar-2012The Lions secured their place at the top of the points table after seven matches, with a seven-wicket win against the Knights in a rain-hit game in Potchefstroom. The Knights were asked to bat, and got to 136 for 9 in 18 overs. Pace bowler Chris Morris and left-arm spinner Aaron Phangiso did most of the damage, claiming the top-six Knights batsmen between them. Chasing a revised target of 90 in 12 overs, the Lions were steered by a quick 40 from their opener Gulam Bodi. He struck 40 off 34 balls before being run out, and that was enough to set up the win. The Lions eventually got home with four balls and plenty of wickets to spare.The Dolphins were denied valuable points in a rained-out match against Impiin Benoni. Had Dolphins produced a win, the resultant four points would have put them at No. 4 in what is turning out to be a tight competition – teams two to six are separated by five points. For the new franchise, Impi, it was the first points of the season in nine matches.

Ajinkya Rahane purred his way to 98 off 66 deliveries and carried Rajasthan Royals to a comfortable win in their opening match of the season

The Report by Abhishek Purohit06-Apr-2012
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsAjinkya Rahane seemed to have the right stroke for almost every delivery•AFPAjinkya Rahane purred his way to 98 off 66 deliveries and carried Rajasthan Royals to a comfortable win in their opening match of the season. Faced with a stiff target of 192 after choosing to bowl, the fight went out of Kings XI Punjab as soon as they lost Adam Gilchrist in the fifth over. Trinidad & Tobago’s Kevon Cooper accounted for four wickets with his slow-mediums on IPL debut as Kings XI meandered along without threatening to challenge Royals.The damage had already been done at the start by Rahane who played an innings full of strokes that would not have been out of place in the longer formats of the game. He didn’t use power or swagger – he didn’t need to – but still hurt Kings XI. Their patchy attack could not bother Rahane at all, as he picked gaps at will with precision.An opening partnership of 77 inside ten overs set Royals on their way with their captain Rahul Dravid not having to do much apart from supporting Rahane. Rahane has a lower Twenty20 strike-rate than Dravid, not among the swiftest himself, but today, he batted with a serene assurance that eluded his senior partner and idol.While Dravid and Brad Hodge went too hard at the bowling and mistimed their shots, Rahane seemed to have the right stroke for almost every delivery. The orthodoxy of his batting was evident from the fact that he hit 16 fours, and only one six. There was no slog-sweep over midwicket, there was no scoop over short fine leg.There were punches on the up through cover, there were deft guides past point, and inside-out lofts over extra cover. Kings XI were put under pressure early on when James Faulkner’s first over went for 11. Rahane tore into Praveen Kumar in the third over, a drive, two flicks and a straight push bringing him four fours in five deliveries.The introduction of spin slowed the scoring a bit but Rahane soon found a way. He was beaten in the flight by a Piyush Chawla delivery, but quickly recovered to go back and punch it over the bowler’s head for four. He was soon stepping out repeatedly to negate the spinners.Gilchrist tried Paul Valthaty’s slow-mediums but Rahane took 16 more off that over, his third boundary of the over threading the gap between two point fielders.Royals lost Dravid and Ashok Menaria in consecutive overs, the 10th and the 11th, but that made no difference to the flow of the innings. Rahane raced towards a century with three consecutive fours off Chawla but was bowled on 98 by Faulker as he tried to make room outside leg, typically, not to slog, but to go through extra cover.Owais Shah and Cooper launched Royals past 190. Cooper, who caught attention with his performances in the Champions League Twenty20 last year, had an IPL debut to remember. He had a role to play in seven of the nine Kings XI wickets to fall.Gilchrist began with a series of pulls but was caught by Cooper at mid-on for 27. Paul Valthaty slashed Cooper to gully and Shaun Marsh and Abhishek Nayar succumbed to his lack of pace. The ball seemed to follow Cooper everywhere.He soon caught David Hussey at long-on off Siddharth Trivedi as Kings XI slipped to 86 for 5. There was to be another wicket, of Piyush Chawla, to give Cooper figures of 4-0-26-4. Not done yet, he ran out Praveen in the last over. Kings XI, though, had already run out of steam after Rahane’s elegant display.

Ireland will play their first international game at Malahide Cricket Club against England on September 3, 2013

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Jun-2012Ireland will play their first international game at Malahide Cricket Club against England on September 3, 2013, subject to clearance from the ICC. The Malahide ground in Dublin has been developed to a capacity of 11,500, making it Ireland’s biggest cricket venue, and will be officially opened at the planned ODI fixture next year.England have won four of the five ODIs between the sides but famously lost to Ireland at Bangalore in the 2011 World Cup. The match could also be of significance to Eoin Morgan, England’s captain on their last visit to Dublin in August 2011, who played for Malahide as a teenager between 2000 and 2002.Ireland coach Phil Simmons said: “I live just around the corner from the ground so it’s fantastic for the club and the area to be hosting a game of this magnitude. It’s going to be a super venue for cricket, and the fact that it’s England coming will give the whole day that extra edge that contests between the countries in all sports seem to inspire.”Alan Hughes, president of Malahide Cricket Club, said “Malahide are delighted to be able to stage this match and look forward to hosting the largest ever crowd at a cricket international in Ireland. It’s certain to be a memorable occasion, and hopefully the first of many top-class matches at the ground.”Ireland’s regular venues for international cricket include Clontarf in Dublin and the Civil Service ground at Stormont. Malahide has also been confirmed as the stage for two Twenty20 games against the touring South Africa A side later this year.

Shahid Afridi, the Pakistan allrounder, will now not join Hampshire for the Friend Life t20 due to ongoing problems in obtaining a visa.

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Jun-2012Shahid Afridi, the Pakistan allrounder, will now not join Hampshire for the Friend Life t20 due to ongoing problems in obtaining a visa. He was delayed in arriving for the start of the competition but Hampshire will not be without him for the final three matches of their campaign.Afridi had planned to fly direct from Pakistan’s one-day tour of Sri Lanka to the UK but problems in completing his visa application while on tour meant he was forced to fly back to Pakistan. Further complications have ended his chance of joining up with Hampshire.”Although Shahid will not be returning this time around, the door is still open for him to return to Hampshire in future years should circumstances suit both parties,” Giles White, Hampshire manager, said. “He obviously had a huge impact for us last year and has been missed. However, we are now deep into the 2012 competition and the side is settled so we don’t feel it is right to change that now.”Afridi enjoyed a highly successful stay with Hampshire in 2011, taking 17 wickets in 10 matches at an average of 11.17. His replacement this season has been little-known Australian batsman Glenn Maxwell. He has been successful producing two hard-hitting half-centuries against Kent and Essex.