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Lancashire handed the National League title they have won for the last two years to Gloucestershire by beating Somerset in a thrilling day-night match at Old Trafford.Somerset were the only team who could overhaul Gloucestershire but they fell 10 runs short of Lancashire’s 236 for four despite a brilliant century from their Australian captain Jamie Cox – with Gloucestershire’s players watching nervously in a Brighton hotel.Lancashire are still virtually certain to be relegated but at least they salvaged some pride despite the absence of four England players – Mike Atherton, Andy Flintoff and the injured John Crawley and Peter Martin.Sourav Ganguly was their hero, scoring his third one-day century of the season after stand-in skipper Warren Hegg had won the toss and chosen to bat.Ganguly, who has failed to score a century in the Championship, made 102 from 137 balls with eight boundaries, sharing stands of 82 with Mark Chilton and 115 in 19 overs with Neil Fairbrother.It took the Indian left-hander’s tally in 11 National League games to 532 runs at an average of almost 60, in addition to 262 runs from four NatWest Trophy innings.Fairbrother also played a key role with another one-day masterclass, scoring 62 from 56 balls with six fours and a pair of sixes over long on.Mark Lathwell gave Somerset’s reply the perfect start with 53 from 83 balls including six stylish boundaries.He was bowled by Gary Keedy but as long as Cox was in, Somerset’s title hopes were very much alive.The Tasmanian cruised to three figures in only 98 balls despite only hitting five boundaries, including a straight six off Chris Schofield.But Schofield played a vital part in Lancashire’s victory, claiming the wickets of Michael Burns and Ian Blackwell and also running out Keith Parsons with a direct hit from backward point.But as so often for Lancashire, it was Ian Austin who applied the finishing touches.Somerset needed 23 from three overs when Austin returned to the attack and he put Somerset under so much pressure that Cox was run out by Glen Chapple.Austin then polished off two wickets in the last over as Lancashire enjoyed only their fifth win of the season.But they will hardly have enjoyed handing the title to Gloucestershire, who virtually condemned them to relegation at Bristol on Monday after beating them at the semi final stage of both the NatWest Trophy and Benson and Hedges Cup earlier this season.

The annual central contracts for Indian cricketers were announced today, with the Board of Control for Cricket in India announcing a three-tier structure for 15 players.As expected Irfan Pathan was the only addition to the premier Group A category while Zaheer Khan, selected for the Pakistan tour, was demoted from Group B to Group C. Mahendra Singh Dhoni was given a central contract and was slotted in Group B while Parthiv Patel’s contract was not renewed. Ashish Nehra and Lakshmipathy Balaji, the former contracted players, were also ignored while Murali Kartik, who was not picked for the Pakistan tour, was retained in Group C. Gautam Gambhir was included in Group C, replacing Aakash Chopra from last year’s contract.At the moment the BCCI has allocated 26% of total profits towards payment of players’ salaries. Of this, 13% goes towards payments to the national team, while 13% goes to payments of domestic cricketers, cricketers who go on A-tours etc. It is expected that the premier slab A will fetch Rs 80 lakh to 1 crore (previously Rs 50 lakh), the second slab Rs 60-70 lakh (previously 35 lakh) and the last slab Rs 30-40 lakh (previously 20 lakh).Player contract detailsGroup A:Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Anil Kumble, VVS Laxman, Virender Sehwag, Harbhajan Singh, Irfan PathanGroup B:Yuvraj Singh, Mohammad Kaif, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Ajit AgarkarGroup C:Murali Kartik, Gautam Gambhir, Zaheer khanLast season’s contractsGroup A:Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Anil Kumble, VVS Laxman, Virender Sehwag, Harbhajan Singh.Group B:Yuvraj Singh, Mohammad Kaif, Zaheer Khan, Irfan Pathan, Ashish Nehra, Ajit Agarkar, Lakshmipathy Balaji.Group C:Parthiv Patel, Aakash Chopra, Murali Kartik.

New Zealanders 246 for 5 (Marshall 111) beat Essex (Irani 72*) 243 for 3 by five wickets
ScorecardHamish Marshall got New Zealand back into winning ways with a blistering 111 from 97 balls, to see off a spirited Essex side by five wickets at Chelmsford. After their defeat against Derbyshire earlier this week, it was a timely tonic.After winning the toss, Stephen Fleming opted to bowl first, but his seamers once again lacked penetration as Essex racked up 243 for 3 in their 50 overs. Ronnie Irani was the star of the show, finishing on an unbeaten 72 from 92 balls, with Ravinder Bopara, Paul Grayson and Aftab Habib all chipping in with important innings.In reply, New Zealand made a terrible start as Stephen Fleming fell in Scott Brant’s first over, but Marshall and Nathan Astle picked up the pace in a second-wicket stand of 93. Craig McMillan then broke the back of the run-chase with a 58-ball half-century, before Chris Cairns waded in with a typically destructive 19 from 8 balls, including a four and two sixes, the last of which was smacked over the Tom Pearce Stand to win the match.New Zealand wrapped up the match with more than 11 overs to spare, and can now approach next week’s NatWest Series with a timely injection of confidence.

Bangladesh, Pakistan and Kenya will get in their final bit of practice ahead of the Twenty20 World Championship in a four-nation tournament beginning in Nairobi tomorrow. Uganda will relish the opportunity to play against higher opposition and dip their fingers into the slam-bang form of the game that has grown in popularity.The tournament begins with Kenya taking on Bangladesh and Pakistan playing Uganda. The most anticipated match, between Bangladesh and Pakistan, is on September 2.Geoff Lawson, the former Australian fast bowler and current coach of Pakistan, sees the tournament as an opportunity to practice. “We can prepare strategies, try and find the right balances, work out plans and play any number of practice games but that can only take you so far,” Lawson said. “Until the first match happens, we won’t really know what to expect.”Pakistan, with big names that can attract the crowds in Nairobi, are easy favourites to lift the tournament because of their Twenty20 experience. Shoaib Malik, who recently said that the captaincy has made him stronger, Imran Nazir and Shahid Afridi are all big hitters of the cricket ball, and Mohammad Asif and Shoaib Akhtar are two exciting fast bowlers who form a lethal opening combination.Bangladesh, who have not played international cricket since late July, warmed up for the Twenty20 World Championship with a number of practice matches in Mirpur, near Dhaka. Mohammad Ashraful, the captain, hoped this tournament would offer much-needed exposure ahead of the bigger prize in South Africa.”It is good for us to play in this tournament since we expect the Kenyan conditions to be the same as in South Africa,” he told AFP. “We have not played many Twenty20 matches and this tournament will help gauge the playing abilities of the players.”Kenya struggled recently against the A sides of India and Sri Lanka and have little experience of the Twenty20 game. Uganda, led by Joel Olweny, have four Under-19 players – Roger Mukasa, Arthur Kyobe, Charles Waiswa and Ronald Ssemanda – and three new faces in Martin Ondeko, Kebba Nicholas and Jeremy Kibuuka-Musoke.The four-day competition will be completed when Pakistan face Kenya on September 4; two days later the teams – barring Uganda – fly to Johannesburg for the inaugural Twenty20 World Championship.

Shane Warne, the Australia legspinner, has quashed rumours of a ODI return by confirming his retirement. He said he is more intent on preserving himself rather than touring the West Indies for the 2007 World Cup.In an interview with Warne said: “At this stage, I’m retired. I’m 37 later this year and I think I know my game pretty well. I know I can’t bowl for hours in the nets like I used to because when I wake-up I won’t be able to move the next day.”Warne took a three-week break from the game, spending part of it in Thailand and Fiji, before returning to represent Victoria for a Pura Cup match against South Australia starting February 2. “I needed three weeks off,” he said. “I could probably have done with a few more weeks to be honest, but I really wanted to play the last few games for Victoria. I wanted to get back in the groove. I’ve missed the game. It’s always nice to have a few games, especially with Victoria.”In 2003 Warne announced that he would retire from ODIs after the World Cup, but he failed a drugs test before the tournament started, and has focussed on Tests ever since.

In a dramatic break with tradition, New Zealand and the World XI – who are to play a three-match series after Sri Lanka cut short their tour following the tsunami disaster – will be allowed to practise on the match surfaces ahead of the games.According to the , organisers hoped that such a measure would take some of the early juice out of the pitches, thereby neutralising the early advantage which has been known to settle matches in New Zealand. Each team is likely to be allowed an hour of practice on the pitch the day before the game, whereas traditionally the playing surface has been the groundsman’s preserve until the start of play.The experiment has been made possible by the ICC deciding not to give the matches full one-day international status, and Stephen Fleming, New Zealand’s captain, was interested in finding out how the new provisions would alter the balance between bat and ball.”People are obviously working hard on solutions, and if this is going to make a better contest I’m all for it,” he said. Fleming added that no-one would be taking the games lightly, with the funds raised providing even more aid to the tsunami victims.”The importance of the series is very clear to us – we need tough matchplay before Australia arrive, so we’ll be working very hard,” he said. “It’s crucial we keep our structure and shape and treat these games like fully fledged ODIs.”

Although the expected test of the MLC teams did not materialize at the California Cup, the tournament itself provided some enjoyable cricket after an unseasonably rainy start. Southern California easily retained the Cup with decisive victories over the North Texas and Northern California Cricket Associations (NTCA and NCCA).As it turned out, the MLC Texas team did not make an appearance at the Cup, although its appearance had been widely anticipated. The majority of the MLC Texas team were from Houston, and prior commitments kept them from participating in the tournament as a team. Instead, the North Texas Cricket Association (NTCA) ended up representing Texas–in itself, it was a strong league but only three of its players had participated in the MLC Interstate tournament. The Northwest Cricket League (NWCL) had played in the MLC Interstate tournament, but the California Cup was California’s show and remained that way.Because the first day of the tournament had been a washout, the remaining two days saw SCCA take on NWCL, while NCCA squared off against NTCA. Both California teams won on the second day, SCCA by a decisive margin and NCCA also with a decisive victory. This set things up for the final day as a match-up between the two California teams for the top spots, while the non-California teams fought it out for the third and fourth spots. Once again, the host team re-asserted its superiority with an emphatic victory, but the non-California joust was a squeaker with the fewest of runs separating the two teams. It was perhaps the most exciting match of the tournament, even though it did not count towards the final standings.The California Cup proved that Southern California remains the stronghold of cricket in Western USA, although other Western leagues are mounting good challenges to its predominance. If a full schedule of matches had been played, this might have been more evident; as it was, there were good performances by players from all the other teams, and they have nothing to be ashamed of.According to the reports published on the SCCA Web site, the batting of Captain Aditya Thyagarajan and the bowling of former West Indian International Franklyn Rose proved too strong for the competition. Aditya scored two impressive knocks of 95 and 62, while Rose blew away the opposition with some hostile pace bowling capturing six wickets at an average of less than 9.Former Pakistan captain and wicketkeeper Rashid Latif, who is on a month-long fund-raising trip on behalf of Islamic Relief for earthquake victims in South Asia, visited Woodley to watch the SCCA stars in action. SCCA President, Mr. Veman Reddy presented Rashid with a plaque commemorating his first visit to Woodley, and also presented the SCCA team the winners trophy. Aditya Thyagarajan was declared man of the tournament for his outstanding performance with the bat.Tournament Scorecards
SCCA 226 (47.4 overs – A. Thyagaranjan 95*, R. Zia 33, F. Rose 33, A. Rajp 20, Z. Bilal 3-46, M.Gautham 2-28, S. Vinod 2-28).
North Texas 158 (40.4 0vers – B. Zahid 33 in 23 balls, K. Patel 16 in 19 balls, A. Thyagarajan 2-11, F. Rose 2-29, Nisarg Patel 2-30). SCCA won by 68 runs.NWCL 192 (S.Srikanth 33, R,Ganeshan 40, N. Panchal 25, V.Beniwal 23, M. Dave 23, A.Z.Shah 3-30, S. Ganesh 3-30, A. Fahad 2-30)
NCCA 193.5 (46.2 overs – Chandrapattu 90, S. Gunawardena 45, J. Kashadikar 26). NCCA won by 5 wickets.NTCA 216 (50 0vers – V Shankar 53, A Vittala 39, R Rao 28, G Morab 23, K Patel 20, B.Chalise 2-22, Shital 2-32, Nikhil 2-42, V. Beniwal 2-50)
NWCL was set to make 202 in 48.4 overs, made target in 42.4 overs (Mehul Dave 69, Sanjay Rana 51, S. Srikanth 30, V. Shankar 3-43). This should have ensured NWCL the victory, but they were still recorded as losing by 14 runs. The match was close, inconclusive, and disputedSCCA 238 for 7 (50 0vers – A Thagarajan 62, T Bhommireddy 50, Abhishek Owar 57, Mrunal Patel 20,S. Ganesh 2-31)
NCCA 174 in 48 overs (U Kelkar 26, Jay 25, S Chandrapatlu 90, Nauman Mustafa 25, S.Gunawardhane 37) SCCA won by 64 runs.

Scorecard
Bengal’s disciplined bowling attack defended a relatively low total of 156 to bowl Tripura out for 133 at Bhubaneshwar. The three-pronged pace attack of Ranadeb Bose, Shib Paul and Laxmi Ratan Shukla left Tripura reeling at 39 for 6, and only Timir Chanda (43) managed any decent score as Bengal affected three run outs. Choosing to bat first, Bengal had been in similar trouble after Chanda (4 for 28) and Manoj Singh (3 for 27) bowled excellent spells, but Kamal Mondal (69) helped them to what would prove a winning total.
Scorecard
Orissa opener Bikas Pati’s 84-ball 80 made most of the difference as his side clinched a four-wicket win over Jharkhand at Cuttack. Set 195 to win, Pati forged small yet crucial partnerships for the first and second wickets, and though he departed with 56 to get, Orissa managed to get home with 32 deliveries remaining. Batting first, Jharkhand slumped to 30 for 3 before Rajiv Kumar (49) and Keshav Kumar (56) chipped in. Preetamjit Das, the left-arm medium-pacer, had the best figures of 32.

A dramatic day at Newlands witnessed 18 wickets fall, but the bat finally dominated during the final session as the Cape Cobras took a firm grip against the Titans. The day began with Alfonso Thomas tearing through the Cape Cobras with a career-best 7 for 54 as the last six wickets fell for 40 runs. However, the Titans then collapsed in more spectacular fashion as they crumbled for 103 with Vernon Philander rushing through the tail with 4 for 6. But sanity prevailed as the Cape Cobras built on their first innings lead with Andrew Puttick striking a measured half-century and Herschelle Gibbs a boundary-studded 56.Matthew Harris hit his second hundred in two matches as the Lions gained a 104-run lead over the Warriors. The wicketkeeper came in at 161 for 4 and was last-man out after facing 143 balls. His hundred built on the solid work from Justin Ontong and Neil McKenzie, who added 130 for the third wicket, but it would not have been possible without the obdurate support of Gerhard de Bruin who made 16 in almost two hours. Harris and de Bruin added 90 after the Lions slipped to 226 for 8. Johan Botha, the offspinner, enhanced his international claims with four wickets as South Africa considers their spin bowling options for the tour of India.An impressive performance from the Dolphins’ top order put them on course for a sizeable lead against the Eagles. They already hold a 74 run advantage following Imraan Khan’s 118. His century was the major contribution while Hashim Amla and Dale Benkenstein also passed fifty. Benkenstein will aim to build on today’s work, ending the day unbeaten on 71. Nicky Boje kept a semblance of control on the scoring rate, toiling through 26 overs and claiming 2 for 55.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out – Ireland
How they were out – Australia

With the ruthlessness that everyone has come to expect from the Australians, they overwhelmed Ireland by nine wickets at Bridgetown after demolishing them for 91. The pace and bounce of Glenn McGrath and Shaun Tait proved too much for the Irish top order, as they removed the top four inside five overs, and only three batsmen reached double figures. The result confirms Australia as the first team in the semi-finals.Australia could have decided to use this match to hone their all-round game: have a bat, rack up 300-plus then bowl when the track was slower. But they are a team with one focus: winning as quickly and effectively as possible. Apart from 15 wides – mainly from Tait – and one tough chance dropped by Ricky Ponting it was seamless performance. Even Michael Hussey, who had 20 runs in four innings before today, managed useful time in the middle, although he never looked in top form. Adam Gilchrist and Andrew Symonds added the brief fireworks as the chase was completed in 12.2 overs.The systematic removal of Ireland’s batsman began with the final ball of the opening over when McGrath collected Jeremy Bray with a full inswinger which clipped off stump. But McGrath was only the start of Ireland’s problems. The pace, never mind unorthodox action, of Tait was something they had never encountered and it showed. After negotiating a maiden over, Tait’s second began in dramatic fashion. The first ball was too quick for William Porterfield, who was trapped plumb in front, and with the next Niall O’Brien could only drag a fast, low full toss into his stumps. Somehow Kevin O’Brien survived the hat-trick and responded with a couple of solid flicks through square-leg.McGrath added his second scalp in regulation style as Eoin Morgan edged to first slip in a manner so many left-handers have fallen to the bowler throughout his career. The record pages were quickly being thumbed to find the lowest World Cup total. That ignominy faded with Tait’s direction. His third over took 11 balls and included the missed catch by Ponting at second slip off O’Brien.

Andrew White took a painful blow on the helmet from McGrath and he was still unsteady when he chipped a slower ball from same bowler towards mid-off. McGrath was pulling out all his tricks as his final World Cup continues as a tour de force. He was rested after seven overs, but wickets continued to tumble, with O’Brien’s determined stay ending with a poor clip to square-leg. Stuart Clark got his first wicket of the tournament and a useful run-out in case he is called upon in the next few weeks.Not surprisingly for a fellow Australian, Trent Johnston refused to go down without a fight. However, Ponting was in no mood to offer his rival captain any favours and returned to Tait, who again served up his liquorish allsorts. Even the ball to shift Johnston, wide and full, was nothing special but his pace brings the added dimension. John Mooney showed his team-mates resistance was possible until Tait’s direct hit from mid-off ended the innings in emphatic style.Without having much of a target to aim for, Hussey was straight up to open in place of Matthew Hayden. Gilchrist was quickly into his stride and the fifty came up in the seventh over. Ireland, though, did have one moment to celebrate as their never-say-die captain swung one to get Gilchrist. Symonds was handed a brief outing in the middle, thumping one ferocious straight six, before Hussey completed the formalities with his first maximum of the World Cup.The match lasted less than the length of one innings and was over on the stroke of the lunch interval. Ireland’s fans never stopped singing, despite their team’s predicament, and they’ll continue to party into the afternoon. They just won’t have any cricket to watch.