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Hampshire’s first century of the season was a long time coming – but Will Kendall ensured it will be long remembered. His superb 161 against Somerset at Taunton transformed a County Championship match that had been heavily one-sided for most of the first two days.And it restored some pride to the Hampshire batting ranks, for whom the summer had previously been one to forget.When the rain relented to allow the third day’s play to start at 3.15pm, the visitors resumed on 140-2 in their second innings, 86 runs behind.An innings defeat still appeared a possibility, particularly when skipper Robin Smith fell to the opening ball of the second over, having added only a single to his overnight 35.Smith pushed forward defensively in textbook fashion to Steffan Jones, but left a chink of light between bat and pad, which the ball located to clean bowl him.The scoreboard read 144-3 when Derek Kenway came out to join Kendall, who was unbeaten on 77. By the time the pair were parted 160 runs had been added in rapid time and Hampshire were right back in the game.Two late wickets restored Somerset’s advantage. But at the close Hampshire were 319-5 and had a lead of 93 to take into the final day.Despite the early breakthrough, Somerset’s bowling was wayward and lacked penetration. Kendall and Kenway allowed virtually nothing loose to go unpunished and were soon scoring at five an over.Teenaged seamer Peter Trego came in for especially fierce treatment as his three overs cost 29 runs. But the more experienced seamers also suffered as they failed to maintain line and length.Kenway was given a life on 11 when edging Jones to second slip. Keith Parsons normally fields there, but he was bowling at the other end and given a break from slip duty so it was Piran Holloway who failed to accept the sharp chanceto his left.It proved an expensive mistake as Kenway went on to offer solid support for Kendall, who blossomed after reaching his century off 199 balls, with 15 fours.His next 50 runs took only 61 deliveries as he added seven more boundaries, dealing particularly severely with anything short as he square cut with great power and timing.It was a magnificent effort, which ended after Kendall had faced 273 balls and collected his 23rd four. Holloway atoned for his earlier miss by holding a fine catch diving forward at cover off the bowling of medium-pacer Mike Burns.Kenway reached his half century off 88 deliveries, with 7 fours, but he also fell to Burns in the closing overs, lbw on the front foot for 54 to a full length ball he appeared to think he had hit.Adrian Aymes and Peter Hartley added a further ten runs before the close as Dimitri Mascarenhas and Shane Warne were held back to try and boost Hampshire’s advantage in the morning.Warne will also fancy his chances of doing some damage with the ball in the final innings as the visitors bid to complete a determined fightback.

With the help of two valuable partnerships, Gloucestershire, having decided to make first use of a slow pitch at Lord’s, were able to end the rain-affected first day’s play, in which 44 overs were lost, on an impressive 198 for two.Dominic Hewson’s chanceless innings of 77 in just over three hours contained a full range of strokes which brought him 11 boundaries from the 156 balls that he faced.Along with the veteran Kim Barnett he put on 88 and then for the second wicket he featured in an 82-run stand with Matt Windows. The two stands were similarly paced with the first taking 23.1 overs and the second 24.1.Having suffered their first Cricinfo Championship defeat of the season last week at the hands of Sussex at Hove, Middlesex were made to struggle for most of the day.The first of the two wickets that they claimed came in the penultimate over of the morning session which was shortened by 34 minutes owing to rain.Tim Bloomfield, whose first spell of three overs cost 24, struck with his first ball when he was brought back into the attack. Barnett, 38, driving firmly to mid-wicket, was held low by Robin Weston.At lunch Gloucestershire were 94 for one with Hewson 45 not out. He reached his third Championship half-century of the season flicking Angus Fraser for four to backward square leg and in the next over he pulled Bloomfield to the mid-wicket boundary.In partnership with Windows he batted more fluently, having taken 13 off an over from Bloomfield, he followed it with ten off Phil Tufnell. It contained a stylish cover drive, off the book foot, and then a lofted straight drive for four which took him to 67.After Hewson’s unfortunate run out, from a deflection by bowler Tufnell, Windows reached his fifty from 95 balls shortly after the 150 had come up with him hitting two boundaries, to cover, in an over from Chad Keegan.At stumps he was unbeaten on 52 and Ian Harvey was on 14.

ScorecardParthiv Patel struck his third score of 50 of more in three innings•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Parthiv Patel recorded a second century for Gujarat in the match. Venugopal Rao could have upped that count, but his 95 was part of six scores of fifty or more in Mohali. Punjab legspinner Sarabjit Ladda did his best to restore parity though with 5 for 138 and forced the visitors from 432 for 4 to 467 all out.Much of that vast total was the result of the 188-run partnership between Parthiv and Venugopal. They were together for almost 50 overs even as Punjab dipped into every resource they had. Including the part-time spin of their opening batsman Jiwanjot Singh. And the tactic worked. Venugopal was stumped after 187 balls, 12 of which were hit to the boundary. Parthiv, however, went on to make 113 to add to his 122 and 50* from the last match against Andhra.Just when it looked like Punjab captain Yuvraj Singh was running out of options, Ladda had Parthiv caught for his first wicket of the match, and proceeded to demolish the tail with his third five-wicket haul in first-class cricket, completing it in his 43rd over. That runs remained on the pitch was made clear when Punjab batted. Jiwanjot cracked 51 off 75 balls, with six fours, but was dismissed in the 27th over. His partner at the top, Manan Vohra is not out on 50 off 112 balls as Punjab negotiated the remaining 11 overs without any further trouble.
ScorecardSwapnil Singh had finished five runs shy of his half-century at stumps in Vizianagaram. Baroda were 234 for 7 as Andhra kept true to their pre-season plan of giving their seamers the best chance of picking wickets. CV Stephen, one of four specialist seamers, led the way with 4 for 72. Notably there have been 147.2 overs of play, spin was used for only 13 of them and has not yielded a single wicket yet.Part of the reason might be down to the Baroda tail’s resilience. Swapnil made 74, led an eighth-wicket stand of 78 – the visitors’ best – and was the final wicket to fall with the score on 302. He struck four fours and three sixes. But Andhra’s openers Srikar Bharat (50 off 127) and DB Prashanth (38 off 102) provided a very solid start, taking their team to 96 for 0 in 38 overs.
ScorecardA collapse that began in the wee hours of play yesterday continued for Railways. They were 304 for 3 with just under five overs till stumps on Thursday, which had been enough for Uttar Pradesh to snag two wickets. On Friday, Railways resumed today on 316 for 5 and finished on 375.Praveen Kumar, the UP captain, struck the first blow in the sixth over of the day and 89th of the innings to have his opposite number Mahesh Rawat lbw for 7. Karn Sharma was caught behind in the 94th over off Ankit Rajpoot. Nine balls later, the specialist batsman Arindam Ghosh was dismissed for 50 and Railways finally succumbed in the 102nd over. Their first five wickets had given them 305 runs. The last five only 70 more.The lift provided by the UP bowlers – all five specialists used were among the wickets with left-arm chinaman bowler Kuldeep Yadav taking 3 for 64 – seeped into the batting as well. Opener Tanmay Srivastava has recorded his third fifty-plus score in as many matches and is not out on 75. His partner Almas Shaukat cracked 10 fours and two sixes in his 76 and UP finished the day at 169 for 2 in 71 overs.Mumbai v Tamil Nadu – Dinesh Karthik 167 deflates Mumbai

David Morgan, the ICC president-elect, confirmed that the decision to put Malcolm Speed on gardening leave for the last two months of his contract as CEO was as a result of a “fundamental breakdown” in the relationship between him, Ray Mali, the president, and some of the executive board and not, as widely suggested, Speed’s handling of issues relating to the ICL.Speaking at Lord’s, Morgan said that the breakdown had come about over a number of issues, and insisted that they pre-dated the executive board meeting in Dubai in March when Speed declined to attend the press conference in protest over the ICC’s decision to take no action against Zimbabwe.”It’s not been [a problem] for years but, yes, for some months,” Morgan said. “It pre-dates the March meeting but it doesn’t pre-date the death of Percy Sonn [in June 2007]. Matters take some time to come to the surface.”Zimbabwe is an issue where the president and the chief executive have disagreed, there is no doubt about that,” he said. “You know what the board decision was in relation with the KPMG report … Speed was clearly uncomfortable with that.”But he refused to specify which members of the executive were involved and how many. “I’m not prepared to reveal the names of the other board members. I’m unprepared to go into the details of the other issues, but I’m very ready to say that contrary to that has been gossiped on a widespread basis, it is nothing to do with the ICL or the IPL.”Morgan said the agreement for Speed to go had “not been imposed on him” but had followed discussion between him, Mali and Speed. “It’s a very unfortunate ending to what has been a very successful term of office,” he added.However, Morgan accepted that the image of the ICC was “not good” and it was “something we need to address”. He went on: “The ICC has achieved a huge amount in Malcolm’s time. I do not believe at all times that we govern in the optimum way, but govern we certainly do”In the statement yesterday the ICC said that David Richardson, the ICC general manager – cricket, will serve as interim CEO until Speed’s replacement, Haroon Lorgat, assumes the role at the ICC’s annual conference at the beginning of July.

A first-innings six-wicket haul by Azam Hussain followed by an all-round team effort helped Karachi Blues demolish Islamabad by an innings and 33 runs at the Diamond Club Ground, Islamabad. Islamabad ended their league stage on 18 points and although they have qualified for the super-eight along with Karachi Blues, their final position in the table will depend on the result of other group matches.Islamabad, after being put in to bat, had collapsed to 73 for 7, but recovered to finish on 197 in their first innings. Hussain, with his left-arm spin, picked up the 11th five-wicket haul of his career. The Blues responded with 345 in their first innings, with Khurram Manzoor’ 79 being the highest score. Three other batsmen scored half-centuries in the innings to give the Blues a 148-run lead. Islamabad’s batting collapsed a second time in the match, with their innings lasting 42.2 overs, and the team failed to clear the deficit. Akbar-ur-Rehman was the most successful bowler for the Blues, picking up three wickets for 63 runs.Lahore Shalimar collected nine points for their innings win against Hyderabad at the Gaddafi Stadium and went to the top of Group II. Second-placed Rawalpindi are just three points behind with the result of their match pending. Shalimar chose to field and their bowlers justified the decision by bowling out Hyderabad in the 44th over for 103. Aizaz Cheema was the pick of the bowlers with five wickets.Shalimar’s response was led by an unbeaten century by Usman Salahuddin who helped the team take a 243-run first-innings lead. Fast bowler Rehan Riaz took five wickets in the innings. But the lead turned out to be enough for Shalimar’s bowlers as they dismissed Hyderabad for 218 in the second innings. Wahab Riaz, who had three wickets in the first innings, picked up four in the second. Hyderabad, who ended the league stage on 18 points, have also qualified for super-eight stage.Centuries from Sohaib Maqsood and Naved Yasin gave Multan three points against Sialkot at the Multan Cricket Stadium, but Multan couldn’t convert it to victory, which would have given them a Super-Eights spot. After being put in to bat, Sialkot lost wickets regularly – spinner Zulfiqar Babar took seven wickets – and no one besides Majid Jahangir, who scored a century, provided any resistance. Babar’s bowling was backed up by a commanding batting performance, led by a 150-run stand between Maqsood and Yasin. Ultimately, though, Sialkot’s No. 3 and 4 consumed time on the final day to force a draw.After bowling their opponents out for 189, Multan lost two early wickets to be reduced to 33 for 2. However, the next three batsmen in the line-up – Saeed Anwar, Maqsood and Yasin – rescued them, and Multan were strong at 289 for 4. No. 7 Maqbool Ahmed scored an unbeaten half-century to help his team cross 400. But time prevented them to get more than three points out of the game, and in the final standing, they were three points behind their opponents, at the fifth spot.Spinner Atif Maqbool and seamer Adeel Malik took nine wickets between them to help Karachi Whites cement their spot in the Super Eights, as they drew their match against Faisalabad at the Mirpur Cricket Stadium. However, they were bowled out for 207 in their second dig as medium-fast bowler Samiullah Khan took six wickets, and Faisalabad needed 357 runs to win the contest. At 213 for 6 on the final day, with Faislabad having no chances of qualifying for the next stage, both sides agreed to a draw.After choosing to field, Faisalabad were pegged back right from the outset, as the openers put on 103 runs. The Whites’ dominant innings was based on knocks of 90 and 83 from Daniyal Ahsan and Khalid Latif. The last six wickets fell for 44 runs, as seamer Asad Ali took seven wickets, to leave them three short of 300. In reply, Zeeshan Butt scored an unbeaten half-century, but didn’t find valuable support from any other batsman, and Faisalabad were bowled out for 148. Although the Whites were dismissed for 207 in their second dig, rescued by Khald Latif’s century, Faisalabad still faced a daunting task of chasing 357. Their batsmen put up a decent performance, but the match was drawn on the final day.In Lahore, Imran Farhat’s triple-century in the first innings led Lahore Ravi to three points in a drawn match against Peshawar. Farhat struck 50 fours in his knock of 308, off 429 deliveries, as Ravi declared their innings at 512 for 6 on the second day. Their spinners Adnan Rasool and Jahangir Mirza shared seven wickets between them to bowl Peshawar out for 209. However, the match was drawn when Peshawar reached 59 for 3 off 37 overs, on the final day. Peshawar finished the league stage at the bottom of the points table, and Ravi took the third spot.Choosing to field, they were dominated by Ravi from the outset as Farhat built a huge total. In reply, they were in trouble at 42 for 3, and a half-century from Naved Khan and a knock of 40 from Mohammad Rizwan took them past 200, but they couldn’t avoid the follow-on. But having secured three points, and with less time, Ravi couldn’t push for victory.Rawalpindi secured their spot behind Lahore Shalimar at the top of the points table by taking three points off their drawn contest against Bahawalpur. Umar Amin’s century, and half-centuries from Umar Amin and Hammad Azam took them to a commanding total of 404 for 7. Although Bahawalpur’s captain and opener Usman Tariq also scored a century, they fell 88 short of their opponents’ total, thereby conceding three points. Eventually, both sides agreed to draw the game.Bahawalpur finished the league stage positioned second from bottom in Group II.

David Warner is contemplating the end of one partnership while pondering the start of another one.Barring a late change of heart by Chris Rogers, the Oval Test will be his last in the company of an opening batsman Warner’s senior in terms of years and the opening batsman’s art. Barring a left-field call by the national selectors, the tour of Bangladesh will be Warner’s first as Test vice-captain to Steven Smith.These are jarring thoughts for those with memories stretching back a couple of years, when Warner was the subject of enormous fascination, given his questionable disciplinary record and tendency to shoot his mouth off. He had also been demoted, if briefly, in the Australian batting order, and seemed to be facing the most uncertain of futures.In their own distinct ways, Rogers and Smith have been influential in helping Warner to see more to his life and game than power and pugilism. In Rogers, Warner found a counterpoint he could work successfully alongside, as eight century opening partnerships and seven of better than 50 attest. In Smith, Warner saw how a fellow NSW brat-packer could evolve as both batsman and man, emerging as the outstanding leadership candidate to replace Michael Clarke.”We’ve played a lot of cricket together – I’ve played under Smudge,” Warner said. “He’s got great ideas and I feel that I definitely can work with him. But at the end of the day it’s up to the board and selectors to move forward with that. Go back two years my life probably wasn’t in the right direction. I was playing cricket for Australia. It’s a boyhood dream. But I needed to be put back in my place a little bit.”Since then I think I’ve turned a lot around. I’ve got a lot of hundreds and I’m playing a good brand of cricket. There’s been a little bit of a hiccup with the Rohit Sharma stuff but at the end of the day that was on the field and I’ve learnt to bite my tongue a little bit now. And I’ve got to keep moving forward and that’s my job is to score runs. And if I can keep doing that the rest will take care of itself.”How he goes about scoring runs appears to be changing and evolving, partly in response to English conditions but also as a nod to the longer term demands likely to be placed on Warner by Australian cricket. As Clarke, Shane Watson, Brad Haddin and Rogers look set to exit the stage, Warner will have less licence to attack without any thought about the remainder of the innings. In this Ashes series he has shown more application than others considered more likely to possess it. Rogers can be viewed as one reason for that.”We’ve come a long way and we’ve shared a great bond together out in the middle,” Warner said. “I’ve loved every single minute batting together out there. I think we have eight opening hundred stands now and it’s something we’re very proud of as a – I won’t say couple – as a duo out there.”He leaves this international game and I hope he goes another year or two either in either county cricket or back home because 24,000 first-class runs, 73 hundreds is an amazing achievement by anyone and I don’t think he gets as much credit as he deserves.”I think there’s a few names that are going to be brought up. You heard Ricky Ponting mention the other day Usman Khawaja, Cameron Bancroft scored a great hundred the other day in Indian conditions. Joe Burns scored a great hundred the other day in the one-day stuff.”Warner has looked like going on to a hundred three times this series, such has been his command of the bowling, but in contriving to get out he has shown there is still plenty of improvement to be made. In particular a shovel shot used to good effect in Australia and on the subcontinent has had Warner skying catches twice. He does not expect to repeat the mistake at the Oval.”In one-day cricket, I’m probably looking to hit that over the fence and I think I have to replicate that in Test match cricket,” Warner said. “It’s more like a half-hearted shot, I see two people go back and I look for the one. I think with the ball moving around over here I’ve really got to work hard on trying to play with a straight bat.”I think that’s what I really have to work hard on. In Australia I can probably definitely get away with that. But it’s something in my game I have to work on and that’s something me and Michael Di Venuto will address.”Warner spoke in the West Indies about also re-adjusting his persona, and in this Ashes series he has been notably absent from any obvious confrontations in the middle. There was one brief collusion with Nathan Lyon to goad Ben Stokes in Cardiff, but nothing to attract the attention of the match referee. Warner acknowledges this will be even more a case of necessity winning out as he thinks more about how to get batsmen out and less about provoking them into open conflict.”I don’t think it’s so much it gets easier [not to sledge], it’s more you’re trying to work out ways of getting batsmen out that are in and going back to the notes that you talk about before the game,” he said, “making sure they’re still in your mind and making sure you’re concentrating on the ball ahead.”The way someone like Joe Root has been batting exceptionally he’s been scoring a lot of runs square of the wicket, nothing down the ground. So it’s obviously something we as players in general we should be addressing as well. In respects to biting your tongue, it’s easy at times. But sometimes it can get frustrating when you’re getting walloped around the park.”Warner can remember being walloped around the park during a brief stint as vice-captain of the ODI team in February 2012. “I think that game we were all out for 150, so it wasn’t a great game,” he said. “I think Ricky at the end of the game put his arm over my shoulder and said welcome to international cricket mate, this is what happens. It can be a good day or a bad day.”A couple of months from now and it might be Warner doing the same for a young turk beside him. Things have changed.

Having offloaded as many as 13 players, including their star player and captain Kevin Pietersen, Delhi Daredevils will be on the lookout for a leader. A man who can be the face of the team. ESPNcricinfo picks five men who have the potential to become the Daredevils captain.Will Yuvraj Singh lead a third IPL franchise?•BCCI

Yuvraj Singh

Base Price: Rs 2 crore (approx $0.33 million)
2014 Price: Rs 14 crore (approx $2.33 million)
Perhaps it is only good for Yuvraj Singh that Royal Challengers Bangalore decided to release him. Being the most expensive buy in the 2014 auction, at Rs 14 crore, proved to be a burden more than anything else.Yuvraj was the Player of the tournament in the 2011 World Cup. He was the elusive allrounder MS Dhoni has been crying out loud for and has not lost that status despite being out of the Indian team. He started off the Ranji season with three successive centuries and importantly has remained fit.Man. Personality. Brand. Matchwinner. Mr Chutzpah.Individually and all together, those labels fit Yuvraj nicely. Among the capped Indian players, there is no one who comes close to Yuvraj in terms of potential, brand value and value for money. Unfortunately, not much is spoken about Yuvraj’s leadership skills. In his role as captain at Kings XI Punjab (2008 and 2009) and then at Pune Warriors (2011), Yuvraj won 21 matches and lost as many. Yet, his batting remained consistent. He can lead by example, roll his arm over, not lose his intensity and inspire his team-mates.Yuvraj also shares a good rapport with the Daredevils head coach Gary Kirsten. The South African was blunt in his assessment of Yuvraj’s work ethic during his stint as India coach. That Yuvraj continues to be competitive, is proof enough that he had not ignored Kirsten’s words.

Kevin Pietersen

Base Price: Rs 2 crore (approx $0.33 million)
2014 price: Rs 9 crore (approx $1.5 million) It is such a paradox: with bat or mic in hand, Pietersen inspires. On field, with his captaincy hat on, he is equally supportive of his team-mates, constantly cajoling and chatting at all times. Yet, despite all his motivational skills, Pietersen the captain has never succeeded as Pietersen the batsman. Incidentally, in the 17 matches he has been captain in the IPL (RCB and Daredevils), Pietersen has ended up on the winning side only three times.Paid handsome money and appointed captain last year, Pietersen and a revamped Daredevils failed miserably finishing at the bottom of the points table with just two wins in 14 matches.But Pietersen remains a contender again. When he turned up at the IPL last season, he had not played active cricket for a significant period after being axed from the England team. This season he has form: he was the bulwark for the Melbourne Stars’ batting in the recently concluded Big Bash League where he finished as the tournament’s second-highest run-scorer.Despite Cameron White leading the Stars, it was Pietersen who was the face of the team, dynamic with the bat and the mouth. His brand potential has never been in question and controversial autobiography has only generated more interest.

Kumar Sangakkara

Base Price: Rs 1 crore (approx $0.17 million)Before the pedigree, let’s get form out of the way. Since the start of 2014, until the start of the World Cup, Sangakkara had 29 fifty-plus scores in 64 innings across all three formats in international cricket, and he scored 2868 runs in 2014, a record tally by a batsman in a calendar year. So the argument that the Sri Lankan is 37 years and too old should fall flat.Suave, articulate, statesman-like, Sangakkara is one of the brightest minds of the modern generation. Unfortunately for him, numbers betray his struggles as a leader in the IPL. The former Sri Lanka captain has lead three different franchises in the IPL: Kings XI Punjab, Deccan Chargers and Sunrisers Hyderabad. In 47 matches, he managed to win only 15 times including a dismal season in 2013 with Sunrisers where he failed to lead by example in the batting department. He opted to sit out the auction last year, but a successful World Twenty20 with Sri Lanka, followed by a phenomenal 2014 is likely to put Sangakkara back in the spotlight. In addition to being a leader and leading batsman, Sangakkara can also fill in another vacancy for Daredevils: the wicketkeeping position which is empty after the franchise relieved Indian wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik.

Darren Sammy

Base Price: Rs 1 crore (approx $0.17 million)
2014 Price: Rs 3.5 crore (approx $0.58 million) A World Twenty20 winning captain. An energetic allrounder. An explosive hitter. An athletic fielder. Darren Sammy is all that, and not too old, thus making him a dark horse for the captain’s role. Sammy’s biggest strength is communication: he speaks clearly, loudly, passionately. He makes you listen. He makes sense. He makes you laugh. During his reign as West Indies captain in all three formats (he now only the T20 captain) Sammy remained transparent and honest.His win-loss ration as T20 captain is 1.10 in 92 matches, domestic and international put together; Sammy has won 46 and lost 42. In the IPL, he led Sunrisers in four matches, winning two and losing two. Sammy is also a hard worker and one of the fittest cricketers around the world, the kind Kirsten has always sought. Sammy can bring experience, skills, tactics to the table.

Eoin Morgan

Base Price: Rs 1.5 crore (approx $0.25 million)Curiously, last year Morgan opted out two days before the auction, saying he wanted to reinvent his Test prospects. Having found little satisfaction on that path, curiously again, Morgan declared last month that he would not bother to focus on Tests. Thus, the recently-appointed England ODI captain made his intentions clear that he is going to place his bets where his strengths lie: limited-overs cricket. One of the most flexible and adaptable batsmen, Morgan can play the anchor man before switching to explosive strokeplay with his envious range of shots.A cool head, the England captaincy has come at the right time for Morgan, who is 28 years old, and is highly regarded for his tactical acumen. He could have an outside chance, considering he has never entirely flourished in the IPL having played just one full season, with Kolkata Knight Riders in 2013.

ScorecardFile photo – Rajat Paliwal’s eighth first-class century held Services together in their first innings but the side failed to avoid the follow-on•BCCI

Despite not bowling particularly well for most part, Kerala’s spinners feasted on variable bounce to pick up 13 wickets on day three and leave their side eyeing their first win of the season. Despite a counterattacking 157 from Rajat Paliwal and his 197-run fourth-wicket stand with Yashpal Singh, Services were unable to avoid the follow-on. Sent in again, they slipped to 122 for 6 by stumps. They were 53 for 6 at one stage, before Nakul Verma and the aggressive Saurabh Kumar dragged the score into three figures and the match into the final day.Akshay Chandran, the debutant left-arm spinner, took plenty of punishment from Paliwal and Yashpal in the first innings but came back with five wickets in no time in the second. Legspinner Amit Verma took two wickets on the second evening and three at the end of Services’ first-innings to claim his second five-for on the bounce, after his 5-61 against Tripura.The extent of the task ahead of Services, who resumed three down and 398 behind, was clear from the first over of the morning, when Paliwal shaped to sweep Vinoop Manoharan and saw the ball bounce over him and the keeper and run away for four byes. Scoring opportunities, though, were plentiful. With the ball misbehaving routinely, the spinners had plenty of men around the bat, but that meant little protection in the deep to cover for the frequent boundary balls.On 45 overnight, Paliwal went to his half-century by swinging Vinoop into the grassy banks beyond the midwicket boundary, and used the sweep and pull to pick up three fours off Chandran and Verma in the next six overs. At the other end, Yashpal came down the track to Verma and eased him past a sprawling mid-on fielder, before smacking the sightscreen with a straight six off Chandran.Kerala spread their fields when Paliwal entered the 70s, but this slowed the scoring only briefly, and Paliwal soon reached his century with a powerful sweep off Chandran. The Services dressing room erupted in cheers and applause, but Paliwal barely acknowledged the landmark, only stopping to take his helmet off and shake the sweat out of it.Paliwal reverse-swept Vinoop for another four three overs later to move Services past 200, and Yashpal pulled Verma for six in the next over. When Kerala brought back their only frontline seamer, PU Anthaf, Paliwal pulled and whipped him off his legs for two fours in one over.Neither batsman looked in any trouble, but it would only take one oddly behaving ball to break the partnership. Rohan Prem, the part-time offspiner, delivered that ball, which leaped off the pitch as Yashpal stretched forward to defend and popped up off his gloves, towards the vacant silly-point region. Wicketkeeper Nikhilesh Surendran darted from his spot and scooped up the catch with his right glove, millimeters off the ground.The partnership had come off 250 balls, at 4.73 runs per over. These numbers were evidence of a dominant morning, but Services were still 241 behind. They had only added two more runs to their score when Rohan struck again, getting one to keep low to trap Hardik Sethi on the back foot, with two balls to go for lunch.Paliwal was out soon after lunch, popping a catch to silly point off Verma, and he was batting again with two overs left for tea. In between, Verma looked unplayable, getting a couple of his legbreaks to rear at the keeper’s head, and the Services lower order didn’t really have the tools to combat him. Chandran then took out both openers after Kerala enforced the follow-on, Sumit Singh scooping a catch to mid-on and Soumik Chatterjee bowled through the gate.After tea, Services’ middle order crumbled so quickly that a three-day finish looked possible at one point. Anshul Gupta nicked Chandran to slip, Sethi trod on his stumps while looking to pull, and Yashpal heaved across the line to give Vinoop his first wicket of the match. Having watched this procession from the other end, Paliwal soon joined it, as Chandran got another ball to scoot low and trap him on the crease. Even he could defy the conditions for only so long.

Bangladesh left-arm spinner Enamul Haque Jr and Sri Lankan medium-pacer Sujeewa de Silva will join the Maharashtra squad for the 2008-09 season. Haque and de Silva will replace Sairaj Bahutule and Munaf Patel who have not renewed their contracts. The selectors were keen on choosing international professionals since other states could be interested in domestic players, Maharashtra Cricket Association president Ajay Shirke, has said.”Since the board allows only three professionals in a squad of 25, we decided to go for two players that other states will not be thinking of,” Shirke told Cricinfo. Maharashtra also recently hired Shaun Williams as coach and are looking to improve their position in the Elite group. Williams was Bangladesh’s assistant coach and he could have had a role in Haque’s selection.Haque has played three one-day internationals and 12 Tests for Bangladesh and took 6 for 45 in his country’s maiden Test victory against Zimbabwe in 2005. He has been a consistent performer in Bangladesh’s domestic competitions which has impressed Shirke. “He has 15 five-wicket hauls in Bangladesh domestic cricket and it speaks highly of him,” Shirke said. “Even Sujeewa has had the experience of playing at the highest level, so we are happy with the duo’s selection.”The primary reason, according to Shirke, for picking Haque and de Silva was Maharashtra inexperienced bowling attack, especially after Patel’s departure. “Our bowling department needs to be strengthened while the new bowlers are still young. So we thought of going for experienced bowlers who can help us achieve better results”, Shirke said.Meanwhile Hrishikesh Kanitkar, Maharashtra’s former captain and senior most player, has asked for a no objection certificate from the state. “He has asked for an NoC as he wants to play elsewhere”, Shirke said.

Midlands Division

The game of the day was Nottinghamshire versus Ireland at Trent Bridge by a big margin, given the narrowness of the win – Nottinghamshire triumphing by one run to go top of the table. Ireland may have been the wooden spoons but they were certainly prepared to stir Nottinghamshire, albeit in agonising pursuit of 241. Kevin O’Brien shone with an unbeaten 93, building on Reinhardt Strydom’s 49. Nottinghamshire had their middle order to thank for rescuing them from 22 for 3, with Adam Voges, Samit Patel and Chris Read each making fifties.Warwickshire emerged winners of a game against Leicestershire made lopsided by intermittent – and interfering – rain showers at Oakham. Batting first Warwickshire made 187 for 8 from 49 overs, having lost one over after the players departed the field, then returned, in the 46th over. Leicestershire set off in pursuit but at 19.3 overs, when on 53 for 2, the rain came again, leaving them eight runs short when Duckworth-Lewis was calculated. Having restricted Warwickshire, to lose in such a manner was a big blow for Leicestershire who are still not through: they need a point in their final game on Wednesday.

North Division

Durham made it two wins in two this weekend, their big 117-run win at Chester-le-Streetpushing Derbyshire down to third after Yorkshire also won. Durham posted a mighty 297 for 7 after choosing to bat, Michael di Venuto weighing in with a century and Will Smith a fifty, which proved far too daunting for the visitors. Gareth Breese shot them down with 5 for 41, while Steve Harmison’s economy helped; his five overs went for 18.For John Ward’s account of how Yorkshire overcame Scotland at Headingley, click here.

South East Division

Tabletoppers Kent are in the quarter-finals, even after torrential overnight rain left the outfield under water, washing out their game against Middlesex at Tunbridge Wells. Middlesex can no longer qualify. Essex also made the last eight after picking up a point from a would-be fixture with Sussex – who were already out of the competition – that was abandoned after the third inspection at 2pm. It was to have been Hastings’ first match in eight years.

South West Division

Hampshire were denied a final stab at glory when rained washed out their tussle with Glamorgan at the Rose Bowl 45 minutes before the scheduled noon start. Hampshire needed a win to keep their quarter-final hopes kindled while Glamorgan were already out, with only one win. Gloucestershire are guaranteed a home quarter-final after rain washed out proceedings in Bath half an hour before the start and Somerset are still in the hunt for a place in the last eight.