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Younis Khan, the Pakistan vice-captain, and Shahid Afridi, the Pakistani allrounder, have been given pay raises by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). They join Inzamam-ul-Haq, Yousuf Youhana, Shoaib Akhtar and Abdul Razzaq as the highest-paid contracted cricketers in Pakistan.The PCB had offered one-year contratcs to 20 players and the highest monthly salary is 200,000 Rupees ($3,352) in addition to match and tour fees. “Younis [Khan] and Afridi have performed outstandingly since last winter and deserved this promotion,” Shaharyar Khan, the PCB chairman, told . He also said that other consistent players had been given new contracts with increases in pay. The second tier group receive a monthly salary of 125,000 Rupees and those in the third get category 75,000 Rupees. Pakistan started the contract system in order to maintain a close watch on the fitness levels of its players and to discourage them from playing abroad in the off-season.Younis has played 37 Test matches and has scored three centuries in his last four Tests. He has performed very impressively in 2005, scoring 778 runs in 12 innings and averaging 70.72. Afridi, who has the distinction of scoring the two fastest centuries in one-day cricket, has also shown much improvement with impressive performances with both bat and ball in 2005.

ScorecardEngland’s dominance of this match continued on day three of the second Test, as they extended their lead to a daunting 328 runs against Sri Lanka. Despite scoring turgidly for most of the day, their lead is almost certainly enough.England had a first-innings advantage of 67 when they bowled Sri Lanka out yesterday. Starting on 16 without loss this morning, they were disappointed to lose Joe Denly, cheaply, for the second time in the match. However, his fellow opener, Varun Chopra compiled a very patient knock of 64, to cement his side’s innings together. Chopra, from Essex, only struck four 4s, but his stickability was invaluable as he spent over three hours at the crease.The most aggressive partnership of the day came between Chris Thompson and Nicholas James, who put on 91. James’s half century came briskly, from 63 balls, and his seven boundaries, including three sixes, helped drive the momentum of England’s innings forward.Sri Lanka’s bowlers were reasonably tidy, but only Chathupama Gunasinghe, a medium pacer from Galle, looked penetrative. His figures of 4 for 61 helped stem England’s run-rate to under three per over; although they didn’t collapse, the continual tumble of wickets prevented them from truly dominating Sri Lanka’s attack. Despite this, their lead of 328 ought to prove more than enough – but they will need to leave themselves enough time to bowl Sri Lanka out tomorrow.

Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath have set their sights on Stephen Fleming and Nathan Astle for the two-Test series against New Zealand, starting on Thursday. The two batsmen have given the touring squad a boost by saying they are almost certain to play alongside Daniel Vettori, the side’s other injury concern.In what has become a traditional pre-match ritual, McGrath trumpeted Astle as his new target in a career list that has included Brian Lara, Michael Atherton and Michael Vaughan. “He’s a big key to their batting line-up and it’s probably 50-50 between us at the moment,” McGrath, who has dismissed Astle once, told the Courier-Mail. Astle is carrying a back injury but should be fit while Fleming expects to feel 100% by Thursday. Vettori is also confident his shoulder will be ready.Warne returns from a broken thumb, which restricts his ability to bowl the flipper, and quickly joined in the game with McGrath. “Stephen Fleming is the man I am nailing,” Warne said. “He is my mate and I am going to nail him. No more Mr Nice Guy to him. I want to really test him out. We will enjoy a beer after it, but I really want his wicket.”Warne said Fleming, who has struggled with a mystery illness since the Bangladesh tour ended, was crucial to New Zealand, but he found it difficult to read his bowling. “He will be one of their most important players because he will either open or bat three and if he gets through the new ball he can hold the whole innings together,” he said. “I will try and nail him because I am not sure he picks exactly what I bowl.”

Duncan Fletcher, the England coach, has flayed Sunil Gavaskar for his “derogatory” remarks about England’s performance during their last tour of India, saying he had lost respect for Gavaskar after those comments.In his book ‘, Fletcher said that Gavaskar had not appreciated how well England played in India, “especially as we were missing so many key players.” He quotes Gavaskar as saying: “Why our cricket board is keen on having a five-Test series when England visit India next is beyond comprehension for, without the slightest doubt, they are the most unattractive and boring side to have played cricket in India.””After these comments, I lost respect [for Gavaskar],” Fletcher said. He said the comments might have been made because “he had a problem with the English press rather than the cricket team.”Fletcher made the reference about Gavaskar after recalling remarks of Malcolm Speed, the ICC chief executive, about England’s use of substitutes during the recent Ashes series. Speed reportedly told Radio Five Live: “I think Ricky Ponting has a point there. We need to be careful that we keep it under control, define what is acceptable and that the captains buy into that.””This was not the first time I had been perturbed by remarks made by an ICC official,” Fletcher said. “In 2003, Gavaskar made some particularly derogatory comments about the England team’s performances in the recently finished series in India. He had described our approach as only being ‘good for people suffering from insomnia’.”Fletcher goes on to quote Gavaskar as saying: “Thank God it was a three-Test series and not a five-Test one, for Indian cricket would have lost a great number of spectators seeing the fare dished out.””This was strong stuff from Gavaskar,” Fletcher said. “Completely unjust and out of order, though. I thought that we had done well in that three-Test series in India, which we had lost 1-0 with an under-strength side. So when I was asked for a comment about these remarks, I said just two things: `First, it’s very important to realise that he is on the ICC panel and should have an unbiased opinion; and second, it is very sad when a good wine goes sour. I was very disappointed with Gavaskar.”However, Fletcher was full of praise for Gavaskar the player. “Often I would be asked who was the greatest player I had played against, andwhile I never thought I could answer that, I always said that Gavaskar was the one for whom I had the greatest amount of respect.”As well as in India, he had scored hundreds away from home, and especially in the West Indies, where a lot of players who have been termed ‘great’ have struggled,” Fletcher writes in his book. “He also scored all his runs without a seam attack to back him up, because it is all very well doing it when you have some quick men to bully the opposition.”

Matthew Hayden believes his stunning back-to-form surge of four centuries in consecutive Tests is due to the work he did in England to escape a career-threatening slump. As Hayden races towards 1000 runs in the calendar year – he currently has 978 – he has found the settled mindset that has been a crucial aspect of his global domination.West Indies again felt the brunt of Hayden’s blade as he struck 110 from 167 balls and with Michael Hussey, who is 113 not out, they battered an already frail line-up. Hayden was in danger of being dropped before the fifth Test in England, but he has thrived with the drop in opposition bowling intensity and became the third player alongside Don Bradman and Ken Barrington to score hundreds in four Tests in a row more than twice.”In any of the games I’ve played this summer I’ve been strong,” Hayden said. “It was great to refocus and refresh in England because I wasn’t batting badly but I was caught all the time in the 30s. I didn’t have the right strategy to push on with good balance and patience. What’s happening now is from the hard work through the Ashes series and I’m feeling really set at the crease.”Hayden’s 11-fours and one-six display contained bouts of powerful aggression and solid defence, although he admitted he was not yet as intimidating as during his pre-slump heavy-hitting. “I’m still swimming between the flags at this stage,” he said. “Sometimes today I drifted out a bit for a while and Huss wanted to know what I was doing.”Australia’s new and temporary opening combination posted a 231-run stand and while the partners clicked successfully their understanding cannot match the level Hayden has attained with the rib-injured Justin Langer. When Hayden threatened to move out of control Hussey approached his team-mate like the office junior to ask: “Can I talk to you? Is there anything you need me to say?”Hayden was just happy to be watching Hussey reach his first Test century and gave him a huge hug when he passed three figures with a leg glance and celebratory leap. “Mike scoring a hundred was really special and it’s so nice to see the reaction,” he said. “My hundred was definitely second to this experience.”The wait for an opening showed in Hussey’s nervy opening match at Brisbane but he was more relaxed preparing for this match and it showed. “I’m elated,” Hussey said. “It’s really nice to play at this level but it’s also important to succeed and I’m really content.” He knows he will be replaced by Langer when he regains fitness and spoke to him before the Test to congratulate his state team-mate on the birth of his fourth daughter.Only Corey Collymore restricted the Australians’ run flow as his fast-bowling partners sprayed the ball, and he dismissed Hayden to claim figures of 1 for 34 off 17 overs. At the Gabba Ricky Ponting called him a “mini-McGrath” and today Hayden said he was like Malcolm Marshall. “He’s bowled well for two Tests and he can swing the ball around,” Hayden said. “It was a bit hard for him today as the ball was wet and there were two guys in nick.”Despite a rain delay of almost three hours, Australia’s lead stands at 107 with nine wickets remaining and Hayden said the plan was to push it towards 300. “I think you’ll see us bat all day tomorrow and maybe have a crack at them late in the day.”

At exactly 16:44:19, in fading light on the first day of the second Test against Sri Lanka, at the Feroz Shah Kotla Sachin Tendulkar became Test cricket’s most prolific century scorer. With a flick through square-leg off Chaminda Vaas he reached his 35th Test century, going past Sunil Gavaskar’s record of 34 Test centuries. Gavaskar’s record had stood for 22 years. Gavaskar became the scorer of the highest number of Test centuries in 1983, and scored his last century in December 1986, against Sri Lanka.As soon as Tendulkar reached his century, which included 13 fours and one straight six, and came off 177 balls, play was stopped for bad light with the score on 245 for 3 off 75.4 overs. Tendulkar was not out on an even 100, and had spent 279 minutes at the crease. Sourav Ganguly was the non-striker, on 39, and the partnership was worth 112 runs.On reaching his hundred Tendulkar celebrated with uncharacteristic abandon, raising his bat to the skies, looking up and holding the pose for a long moment before touching his chest with the bat. He then acknowledged the cheers of the crowd before turning to the dressing-room and raising his bat in the direction of his team.The Indian team was already out on the balcony, in a state of readiness for the moment: Anil Kumble had his camera out, ready to capture the moment, while Rahul Dravid, Greg Chappell and others watched in rapt attention.

Jesse Ryder, the promising Wellington batsman, is drawing further attention to his claims for a national call-up as two members of the national selection panel will be watching him bat at the Basin Reserve this week.Ryder, 21, has been in the news following a superb start to the domestic season. Three days after John Bracewell, New Zealand’s coach, reposed his trust in the struggling Craig McMillan, Vaughn Johnson, the Wellington coach, seemed to support this opinion by saying that Ryder was too raw to make the jump to international cricket. However, Bracewell and Glenn Turner, the former New Zealand great now acting as the team’s batting specialist, are set to watch Wellington host Central Districts over the next four days. Their focus, it is believed, will solely be on Ryder.With McMillan and Hamish Marshall woefully out of form, the selectors need to be on the look out for exciting talent, and Ryder apart, this match is set to throw up a few other questions for the future.The Central District duo of Mathew Sinclair, who has represented his country, and Ross Taylor are two players who will look to impress Bracewell and Turner. James Franklin, the left-arm fast bowler, and Jacob Oram, New Zealand’s allrounder, need to perform well with the ball. Franklin, with 35 one-day matches under his belt, will be looking to keep his name in the minds of the selectors, while Oram must reestablish his claims at being a successful bowler following a dismal run of late.With scores of 133 against Canterbury and 79 against Otago, a good performance from Ryder at Wellington may effectively secure his prospects as far as the selectors are concerned. New Zealand host Sri Lanka for a five-match one-day series beginning December 31, and the selectors are to announce the 13-man squad on Friday.

Zimbabwe’s players have decided to end their indefinite strike, less than 24 hours after the government appointed an interim board to run the game.Clive Field, the players’ representative, said that they had made the move in the hope that outstanding contractual and financial issues would be addressed by the new board. “The players have committed themselves to continuing until at least the end of the month in the light of what was made clear at the meeting yesterday that they should expect their contracts to be resolved by then. The guys don’t feel for a second that it will be, but the feeling is that this is better way of keeping the pressure on than by just walking away.”They’ve put their pockets in front of their principles in the hope that they can persevere and preserve their income.”Field also said that they were deeply disturbed by the comments made by the government’s representative, Brigadier General Gibson Mashingaidze, that they would not mourn the loss of Zimbabwe’s Test status were that to happen.”We did not want to be drawn into his comments, but they are extremely disturbed that people could be willing to sacrifice the fabric of Zimbabwe cricket. The issue of Test status is a paramount one. They are keen to make it known that we have to preserve that status.”The players are now waiting to see if they can salvage something from this new board,” Field added. “We no longer have issues of government interference, because it’s now the case that the government is in charge.”Click here for the full players’ statement

After the setback of hearing the news that his wife has suffered a recurrence of cancer, Glenn McGrath could yet continue to play in the VB Series, and might return to the side which faces South Africa at Sydney on Sunday.”I know he is quite keen to play, so that’s what they [the family] will have to work out,” Adam Gilchrist, Australia’s vice-captain, said on Saturday. “Longer term, I don’t know. We just have to let the dust settle a little bit and really give them a chance to work out what’s best for them and then secondary to that is what’s best for the team.”I have just spoken with Pigeon [McGrath] this morning [and he is] very optimistic and very positive,” Gilchrist added. “If anyone knows how to deal with it, those guys do.”Australia have already booked their berth in the finals of the VB Series. Meanwhile, South Africa must beat Australia on Sunday or else face “live” final qualifying match against Sri Lanka on Tuesday. Graeme Smith, South Africa’s out-of-form captain, was dismissed for a second-ball duck against Australia on Saturday; he has yet to make a fifty this series.Herschelle Gibbs – who, on 33, played a rash slog and was bowled by James Hopes – was criticised by his coach, Mickey Arthur. “It was an irresponsible shot,” Arthur said, “bearing in mind that we had got Botha in to take the pressure off him.”

Yorkshire have made a loss of £1.2million for the financial year, the club has announced. The loss stemmed from Headingley being overlooked as one of the Ashes Tests venues in 2005, as well as the late conclusion of the ground deal, which was finally sorted in December.Despite the shortfall, the club are confident that they will be able to turn in a profit of around £300,000 for the current year, owing to buying the ground, and hosting a Test.A statement on the club’s website said: “The situation is much healthier now – thanks to the ground purchase and agreement with the ECB to stage international matches at Headingley until 2019.”But the finance director Brian Bouttell admitted that after buying Headingley, finances would be tight at Yorkshire for some time to come. Bouttell said: “As with any first-time mortgage, things will be tight for the first five years, reasonable for the next five and then much easier.”In order to ease the financial burden, Yorkshire plan to hold a ground appeal, which they hope could bring in £3million, and to hold a club benefit, which they believe could raise £1million.