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The former Australian coach Bob Simpson should change with the times and understand the role of the modern-day coach, according to John Buchanan. Simpson, 70, who was inducted into Cricket Australia’s Hall of Fame on Monday, has criticised contemporary coaches’ methods and said they should spend less time behind the laptop analysing statistics and more time developing players’ ability.Simpson was appointed Australia’s first full-time coach two decades ago and his ability to transform a struggling cricket nation to a World-Cup winning side within a couple of years was credited as the start of Australia’s resurgence as a power. Although a fan of using video analysis for reviewing players’ techniques, Simpson questioned the effectiveness of computer analysis.”We’ve got all the computers and we’ve got everything like that and you’d think that you’d get your fielding positions perfect wouldn’t you?,” Simpson said. “You should know where the ball is. Why do we have two men behind square leg? Why do we have no one at third man for so long when something like 25-30% of all runs are scored at third man?”But Buchanan, a former university lecturer who guided Australia to a successful World Cup defence in 2003 and kept the side on top of the Test rankings, hit back at Simpson’s criticism.”I think sometimes people make comments out of ignorance,” Buchanan told AAP. “I really just think people don’t understand what the role of the coach is now. It’s evolving with new technology. It doesn’t mean what was done before was wrong.”For those people who choose to criticise they should spend some time with the team and try to come to terms with what’s required.” Buchanan, 52, said the Australian Cricket Board (now Cricket Australia) desperately needed a mentor to put Allan Border’s young side “back on the right path” in the mid-1980s. “They found in Bobby Simpson the right person to do that,” he said. “He was Australia’s first coach and basically got Australian cricket back on track and I think that was a major achievement. He should be praised because he established the role.”

ScorecardVictoria kept their Pura Cup final chances alive when they won the David Hookes Memorial Trophy with a convincing display against South Australia at the MCG. Mick Lewis ripped through the Redbacks, who have struggled throughout the season, with 5 for 46 as Ryan Harris did his best to hold on with 47.Resuming at 1 for 41, South Australia were quickly 4 for 40 as Shane Harwood picked up Greg Blewett and Daniel Harris. A minor recovery was staged by Nathan Adcock and Ryan Harris, but Lewis helped clean up after lunch with the final four wickets.The innings-and-57 run victory moves Victoria to 18 points, but the defending champions must win their remaining matches to stay in contention. However, they sealed their first silverware of the year with the Hookes award, an annual trophy contested over Pura and ING Cup matches between the sides.

The pressure on Vikram Solanki grows by the day, and his five-ball duck in England’s loosener on Saturday has only added to the weight on his shoulders.His wretched form of late has been well documented – his three one-day innings against Bangladesh produced 11 runs – and despite bullish comments to the contrary, as he sloped around the team hotel on Sunday he had the air of a man who knows that the noose is tightening around his neck. Duncan Fletcher, the coach, has continued to publicly support Solanki, but even his belief that players should have a good run in the side might not save him.What Fletcher has to decide is whether Solanki is a capable player going through a rough patch or simply not quite good enough to play international cricket. In 21 ODIs Solanki has passed fifty only twice, and worryingly the nature of his dismissals have often raised doubts regarding his tendency to play loose shots early on.Solanki’s team-mates were quick to offer words of support. “He [Solanki] has only played three games, or four including yesterday, where he has not scored too many runs," Marcus Trescothick said. “I am not sure how it will pan out over the next couple of weeks. We have three one-day games left, and I hope he will get some form back pretty quickly. I have tried to help a little bit, but there is only so much you can do.”Luck plays a crucial part in a player’s career, and it was hard not to feel for Solanki after he received what was generally considered a harsh leg-before decision at Moratuwa on Saturday. But as the door came closer to closing on him, it opened for Andrew Strauss, who made the most of his chance with an impressive 83.Whereas Solanki is a hitter, Strauss is happy to accumulate. “I’ll never be a blaster of a cricket ball," he admitted. "My game is based around trying to work the ball around and keep the scoreboard ticking. We have enough players in our squad here who can hit the ball over the ropes. So, hopefully, at some stage there will be a role there for a nudger and nurdler like me. It’s not a glamorous role, but it is there.”Strauss’s chance could come as soon as tomorrow.

Dion Nash, named in the CLEAR Black Caps one-day team yesterday returns to the Auckland side for tomorrow’s State Shield match with Otago at Molyneux Park in Alexandra.Otago lost their first round game with Wellington by three runs earlier in the week and Auckland have lost both their games in the last over.Also returning to the team is Nick Horsley while Rob Nicol, the New Zealand Under-19 representative, was not available due to a broken finger and he will be unable to play for at least 10 days.Auckland coach and selection convener Tony Sail said: “We are very disappointed not to have won our first two matches, when the result was there for the taking.”The players know they have played in two hard fought cricket matches and are disappointed not to have rewarded the very vocal and supportive Auckland crowd with victories.”Also appearing in the game will be Nash’s fellow Black Caps Andre Adams, Kyle Mills and Mark Richardson.The full team is: Brooke Walker (captain), Andre Adams, Aaron Barnes, Tama Canning, Chris Drum, Mark Haslam, Matt Horne, Nick Horsley, Kyle Mills, Dion Nash, Mark Richardson, Reece Young.

Punjab comfortably earned an honourable draw against Baroda in theirRanji Trophy Super League group B match at the PCA stadium in Mohalion Sunday. In arrears by 139 runs on the first innings, Punjab whowere 84 for one at stumps on Saturday, were 274 for four when stumpswere finally drawn. Baroda got five points and Punjab three.Punjab suffered an early setback when skipper Vikram Rathour fellwithout adding to his overnight score of 46. But Reetinder Singh Sodhiand Pankaj Dharmani made matters safe by adding 122 runs for the thirdwicket off 56.4 overs. The two batted patiently, avoiding risks andwhen finally Dharmani was out for 67, Punjab were virtually assured ofa draw. Dharmani faced 175 balls and hit nine fours.Dinesh Mongia fell in the following over for a duck but Sodhi andYuvraj Singh then added 60 runs off 21.2 overs for the unbroken fifthwicket before the match was called off. Sodhi, showing deepconcentration, batted 448 minutes, faced 325 balls and hit 14 foursand a six for his unbeaten 114. Yuvraj faced 68 balls for his unbeaten31, hitting five fours.

Ricky Ponting has used the strong public reaction to his side over the past week to pin-point areas Australia need to improve. However, he said there were no “glaring issues” to address after the heated Sydney Test.”But when they are all added together in the heat of such a tense and dramatic final day, they caused a reaction, so we need to tighten up on how we play,” he wrote in his column in the Australian. “We are very keen to ensure we get the balance of how we play the game right so we can focus clearly on another very big match coming up.”Australia held a team meeting in Perth on Sunday to discuss their Spirit of Cricket pledge, which was developed under Steve Waugh in 2003, and talked about areas where things didn’t go as planned in Sydney. The Test contained problems over racism, umpiring, sportsmanship, catching and walking and both teams face alterations in their outlook before the four-match series resumes on Wednesday.”I have been surprised by the reaction of some in the broader community who believe we did not play that amazing Sydney Test in the spirit of the game,” he said. “We take the spirit of cricket very seriously and are determined to ensure we are not only remembered as a good team, but one that is respected throughout the cricket world for the way we play.”He said he was prepared for negative comments about the side because “we are not going to keep everyone happy 100% of the time”. “I am always happy to cop that sort of criticism and go away and find ways and means of how we can make things better, as we all are,” he said. “We are certainly not brushing off the criticism because if there is a public reaction like there has been, there are some areas we need to improve.”Ponting said it was sad the controversy had taken the spotlight away from the match, which Australia secured with seven balls remaining to take the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. “To be 6 for 130 and win a Test with eight or nine minutes to go on the last day, you have obviously played some great cricket, but it hasn’t been mentioned very much,” he said. “However, that’s out of our control. All I remember from the game is playing and winning one of the all-time great Tests.”

Cricket Kenya has confirmed that Kennedy Otieno and Hitesh Modi will not be considered for selection for the World Cup, as reported last week by Cricinfo.There was some confusion last week after senior officials appeared to contradict each other over the pair’s availability, but David Waters, the head of selection, told Cricinfo that the situation was unambiguous.”Just to clarify the position regarding selection,” he said, “only players who participated in training and the practice matches held in Nairobi up to January 11 will be considered.Players based overseas were given a deadline by which to return to participate in the training and practice matches. Therefore Kennedy and Hitesh will not be considered for the World Cup.”All players were written to on December 8 informing them that they had to be with the training squad by January 3. It is reported that although Otieno did try to return from Australia, where he has a club contract, he was unable to get back to Kenya before the deadline.

Derbyshire have named Graeme Welch as their new captain for the 2006 season. Welch replaces Luke Sutton, who left the club at the end of last season to join Lancashire.Welch, 33, takes over the reins of a club whose fortunes last season could hardly have been worse, finishing bottom of the Championship. Welch, though, remains optimistic for the team’s prospects in 2006.”I am very proud to have been asked to lead the side in what we see as a new era for the club,” he said. “While we struggled last season we also showed some signs of promise for the future. With the young players we have coming through and the excellent signings we have made, we are confident of making real progress in 2006.”Derbyshire had hoped to sign Justin Langer, but the Australian batsman turned down the offer in November. However, Welch will have the services of two experienced Test batsmen after Mohammad Yousuf and Jacques Rudolph signed deals for 2006. The Tasmanian batsman, Michael di Venuto, will be Welch’s deputy.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details

Tatenda Taibu’s maiden Test hundred gave Zimbabwe a great chance of winning the second Test and leveling the series after four days of the second Test at Dhaka. But Bangladesh’s openers launched a brave fightback in the final session and were in a good position to save the game, and maybe even post an unlikely win. At the close, Bangladesh were 98 for 0, needing another 276 for victory.Taibu’s 153, which could yet prove be a match-winning one, spanned 292 balls and included 19 fours and two glorious sixes and put Zimbabwe in a position to win the match. It was particularly special as he rescued the team from a dangerous position – they were struggling at 37 for 4 on the third day – and displayed a wonderful range of strokes once he reached his hundred. It was fitting he reached his century with a sweep, his most productive stroke of the innings, before cutting loose. He swept and pulled Enamul for two sixes and lofted effortlessly over the infield. Bangladesh were handicapped by the availability of only three frontline bowlers with Mashrafe Mortaza picking up a hamstring injury.Douglas Hondo contributed only 3 in a 65-run stand for the ninth wicket but it was a valuable knock as Taibu toyed with the bowlers and regularly jumped out of the crease while facing the medium pacers. In the last over before lunch, Enamul had Hondo caught at short leg but by then Zimbabwe had a healthy lead. Enamul, the star in the series for Bangladesh, then snapped up Taibu’s wicket to finish with 12 in the match and a third successive five-wicket haul.

Set 374 – only three sides have scored more to win a Test – Javed Omar and Nafis Iqbal set them on their way with an unbeaten 98-run opening stand, a Bangladesh record. They were helped by the superb state of the pitch which has got better for batting throughout – few balls kept low and the batsmen were free to play off the back foot. And Omar and Nafis easily negotiated the turn that the spinners extracted thanks to the slowness of the pitch.Both openers dug in deep as runs came at an dreadfully slow rate. Nafis, playing the best innings of his short career, dealt with every ball on merit. Both negotiated a tricky 23-over phase before tea, when they added 36, and Omar survived a lucky reprieve when he was on 5 when Hamilton Masakadza grassed a straightforward chance at first slip off Chris Mpofu. Soon after he survived two extremely close lbw shouts and escaped a close run-out chance.Taibu shuffled his seamers after tea but the batsmen were up to the challenge. Nafis grew in confidence as his innings progresses and soon opened up as he pierced the cover region with a couple of wonderful drives. Graeme Cremer and Stuart Matsikenyeri, the two spinners, didn’t make too much of an impact with the batsmen taking no risks and Nafis soon brought up his third fifty in Tests by lofting one over widish long-on.Taibu grew increasingly desperate, trying eight bowlers to break the partnership but for the first time in this Test, Bangladesh dominated an entire session. Both batsmen played out 57 overs either side of tea and any one of four results is possible on what should be a fascinating final day.

South Africa’s one-day squad got down to work this afternoon when they practised at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore ahead of Wednesday’s floodlit match against the City Nazim XI. After a 36-hour journey from Johannesburg and the effects of jet-lag, it was a deliberately low-key session.”They were probably between 70 and 80% of optimum capacity, which is fine at this early stage of the trip,” said Eric Simons, the coach. “But it’s going to be a really tough tour, so we will be winding up the pace over the next few days.”For some, like Boeta Dippenaar, the session offered a first taste of the conditions so peculiar to these parts. “The nets were superb, flat and a decent pace, the ball came on to the bat very nicely, I hope they are the same in the middle.”The bowlers all had brief spells of target bowling as they eased themselves back into the different lines and lengths demanded on pitches of such benign nature. Alan Dawson, who won the Man of the Series award in the ODI series in Bangladesh in April, enjoyed his first outdoor net since playing against England in July.”The winter in Cape Town is good for business, but not great for outdoor practice,” said Dawson, who is a professional landscape gardener. But with pace variation a prime weapon on the subcontinent, Dawson was pleased with his control. “Yes, it came out really well today – particularly the slower ball, which is good news.”Simons is hoping to get the go-ahead to use all 14 players on a rotation basis in the warm-up match. “It’s not the best way to prepare for a major international game, but time and circumstances mean that we need to give everyone a fair crack in the middle so that they can all make the necessary adjustments in batting and bowling disciplines. These are very different conditions from those we experienced in England.”The City Nazim XI is made up of Lahore-based players with a sprinkling of international experience. Misbah-ul-Haq will captain the team, although the batsman Faisal Iqbal is the only member of the current Pakistan ODI squad who will play tomorrow. The opening match of the series is on Friday under the lights at the Gaddafi Stadium.