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Wicketkeeper-batsman Ashish Bagai will lead Canada for their last two matches of the World Cricket League Championships against Netherlands

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Aug-2013Wicketkeeper-batsman Ashish Bagai will lead Canada for their last two matches of the World Cricket League Championships against Netherlands. Bagai was recalled to the squad in May this year, after spending some time away from the game pursuing an academic degree.The two matches will be held in King City on August 27 and 28. While Canada, who are placed last on the table with three points, will look to salvage some pride, Netherlands will look to strengthen their case for direct qualification into the 2015 World Cup. The top two teams in the WCL Championship gain direct entry into the World Cup and Ireland have already sealed their place with an unassailable lead. Netherlands, second on the table with 15 points, will look to win both matches to open up a lead ahead of Scotland and Afghanistan, who are also on 15 points. Teams that finish between the third and seventh places will play a second qualifying tournament in 2014The two teams will also play their final league match of the Intercontinental Cup on August 22-25. Canada are placed last with 23 points in six matches, while Netherlands are second from last with 36 points from six matches. Canada’s squad for the Intercontinental Cup match will be led by Amarbir Hansra.Squads for the WCL Championship games
Canada Ashish Bagai (capt), Harvir Baidwan, Damodar Daesrath, Jeremy Gordon, Ruvindu Gunasekera, Amarbir Hansra, Kenneth Kamyuka, Nitish Kumar, Usman Limbada, Salman Nazar, Henry Osinde, Hiral Patel, Raza Rehman, Junaid SiddiquiNetherlands Peter Borren (capt), Wesley Barresi, Mudassar Bukhari, Daan Van Bunge, Ben Cooper, Tim Gruijters, Timm Van Der Gugten, Ahsan Malik, Stephan Myburgh, Michael Rippon, Edgar Schiferli, Pieter Seelaar, Michael Swart, Eric SzwarczynskiSquads for the Intercontinental Cup match
Canada Amarbir Hansra (capt), Ashish Bagai, Harvir Baidwan, Damodar Daesrath, Jeremy Gordon, Ruvindu Gunasekera, Nitish Kumar, Usman Limbada, Salman Nazar, Henry Osinde, Hiral Patel, Cecil Pervez, Raza Rehman, Junaid SiddiquiNetherlands Peter Borren (capt), Wesley Barresi, Mudassar Bukhari, Daan Van Bunge, Tim Gruijters, Tom Heggelman, Vivian Kingma, Ahsan Malik, Paul Van Meekeren, Stephan Myburgh, Michael Rippon, Pieter Seelaar, Michael Swart, Eric Szwarczynski

The BCCI’s plan to regulate player agents, announced on Sunday, will begin with the centrally contracted players being asked to submit the names of their agents for the accreditation process

Amol Karhadkar19-May-2013The BCCI’s plan to regulate player agents, announced on Sunday, will begin with the centrally contracted players being asked to submit the names of their agents for the accreditation process. Sunday’s announcement, three days after the arrest of three Rajasthan Royals players on allegations of spot-fixing during the IPL, marks the first time the board has officially recognised the existence of player’ agents.The BCCI believes accrediting player agents will help them distinguish between genuine agents and others, and its change of stance is said to have been prompted by the presence of close friends of Sreesanth, one of the arrested cricketers, in Royals’ team hotel through much of the tournament.Jiju Janardhan, an alleged bookie who was arrested, is believed to be Sreesanth’s friend since their stint at the MRF Pace Academy almost a decade ago. Janardhan has been staying regularly in Royals’ hotel, and has been allegedly posing as Sreesanth’s agent with the betting mafia.While Jiju’s case has been exposed, many “close friends” and “agents” of regular India cricketers constantly accompany them, and are booked in the team hotel wherever the Indian team travels.”We will ask all the players to let us know who their agents are so that it would be easier for the ACSU officials to bifurcate between those who are in touch with cricketers constantly,” a BCCI official said.They hope to soon expand it and get all affiliated units to do the same when it comes to domestic circuit first, before filtering it down to age-group cricket as player agents have started playing a major role in junior cricket, especially since the advent of IPL.”There’s a need to regulate that aspect,” the official said. “We’ve to collect information about all the player agents so that the BCCI is aware of who are the people that are involved, and it would be easier to track the involvement of players with those who also stay in the same hotel where the team is put up.”The BCCI has always shared a topsy-turvy relationship with player agents. Agents are alleged to have played an influential role in national team’s selection in the past. In 2007, the BCCI had barred then chief selector Dilip Vengsarkar from writing syndicated columns for newspapers. The columns were syndicated by a sport management company owned by one of the major player agents.The BCCI contemplated cracking the whip on player agents in the wake of India’s disastrous 2007 World Cup by announcing a cap on a player’s endorsements before backtracking on it. Even then, all of BCCI’s official media releases used to be regularly copied to a few player agents.Soon after the conclusion of the inaugural IPL edition, the BCCI warned junior cricketers against some player management firms who were trying to lure talent into signing for them with an assurance of getting an IPL contract. One of the clauses in the contracts that were being offered maintained that the players had to pay the agency 20% of all earnings “including match fees”.The board’s announcement comes three years after the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) put in place a new anti-corruption mechanism in the wake of the spot-fixing scandal that resulted in the imprisonment of three Pakistan cricketers.One of the first rules instituted was the agents’ registration system, which was drafted by the PCB legal head Taffazul Rizvi. Under the new rule every PCB contracted player, both international and domestic, must be represented by a registered agent.The PCB also put a cap on the number of players an agent could represent. In addition, Zaka Ashraf, the tech savvy PCB head, pushed for a security and vigilance department to provide cover to the players. In fact a vigilance officer is currently travelling with the Pakistan squad on their trip to the United Kingdom.One of the main requirements that the PCB has placed on the agent is that they cannot have any prior criminal record. If it is an overseas agent, they need to get clearance from the Pakistan High Commission.Cricket Australia, in fact, has one of the most sound agent accreditation systems around. The Australian Cricketers’ Association (ACA) and CA have “agreed to introduce a compulsory scheme for the accreditation and regulation of player agents representing professional cricketers in Australia.”Under the memorandum of understanding, the ACA and CA have agreed that, as from April 1, 2013 (with only limited exceptions), CA, state associations, BBL teams and the ACA will only deal with accredited agents in player contract discussions,” the CA website says. As of now, 26 agents have been accredited under this scheme.

Chris Rogers and Sam Robson set a new record for the highest ever first-wicket stand for Middlesex against Surrey

Vithushan Ehantharajah at Lord's04-May-2013
ScorecardSam Robson’s impressive start to the season continued•Getty ImagesChris Rogers and Sam Robson set a new record for the highest ever first-wicket stand for Middlesex against Surrey on a day that saw the home side wrestle back the initiative from their south of the river rivals. It was in the 69th over that the record set by Pelham Warner and James Douglas in 1907 at The Oval was passed, and owed as much to the openers’ pro-active start as it did to a pitch that became much easier to bat on.In an elongated afternoon session, Rogers and Robson compiled 161 runs in 48 overs, in a determined yet comfortable manner. They continued on their merry way in the evening with such nonchalance that the passing of Surrey’s total was met with nothing more than a cursory glance at the scorecard from the spectators. While their hundreds were reached at the same pace – both took 185 balls – the nature of their innings bore the imprint of their respective personalities.Robson displayed his aptitude for driving before bringing out his dabs behind square on both sides of the wicket. If you’ll allow the typecasting, he is the evolving opener; growing into his innings through a well-rounded attacking game rather than bitty accumulation. Obviously that comes with its own pitfalls – his conversion rate of fifties to hundreds may never get above the one-third it stands at now – but he is an exciting prospect who should be encouraged to play his game. His decision to try and hook Zander de Bruyn cost him his wicket, but he had played a fine hand.”Been there – done that – did it again” would be the pithy 1990s subtext to Rogers’ first century for Middlesex against Surrey. The majority of his runs against the seamers came through third-man with a deliberateness that Jade Dernbach couldn’t quite believe; anything on his legs was greatly received. Even when he was driving crisply yet straight to the fielders at the end of the day, he would wryly walk away from his crease, before returning to push the next ball around the corner for a couple. It was his career in a nutshell; trial and error – hold the error.The day started with Surrey taking the one remaining wicket before Tim Murtagh and Corey Collymore could add the 28 runs needed to avoid the follow-on. Unsurprisingly, with his bowlers well rested and rain predicted for Sunday, Graeme Smith put Middlesex back in. There was rain in the air; a light drizzle greeted spectators upon their arrival before the start of play and a bigger, longer downpour came with Middlesex 29 without loss.A 40-minute delay and an early lunch later, in muggier conditions, Dernbach drew the first false shot with Rogers edging a difficult chance to Wilson at second slip, which had the Irishman diving to his right and slightly forward, but failing to hold on.At the other end, Chris Tremlett looked strong and quick, bringing his length forward and hitting the bat hard. Watching him the previous day from square of the wicket, the 6ft 7 inch bowler had a notable stop after delivery; an unusual hop, seemingly dissipating any kind of forward momentum. Today he bustled through the crease with greater fluency – the hop making way for a couple of ferocious strides. However, Rogers used this extra pace to slap a couple of fours behind point as he and Robson took Middlesex past fifty with minimal fuss.The springiness of the surface on the opening was a faint memory as the pitch played with more conventional bounce which Robson in particular thrived on. He didn’t have to force the issue, instead timing the ball well on the front foot and, as he moved into the 30s, working the ball through cover-point and in front of square leg off Tim Linley and Dernbach.He moved past fifty for the fourth time this season with his ninth boundary and Rogers soon joined him in the fifties, though not before a little scare when he edged again to second slip, this time well short, off the bowling of Linley. Save that moment, Linley was ineffectual and at times looked like he was returning a favour to Robson.As both players motored on in the evening session, Smith got creative in the field. When Robson was startled by a short-ball from Dernbach, Smith encouraged his bowler to persist and supported him with five men on the leg-side; a wide mid-on, midwicket, deep square leg and two behind square – one of whom was a leg-slip.Considering the circumstances and the protagonists – an Australian batsman in the process of qualifying for England and a South African-born English bowler obeying the orders of his pugnacious yet affable skipper – it was very much Bodyline-lite, and when Dernbach was slightly wide with his short-ball, Robson gleefully moved to 96, and past 3,000 first-class runs.Rogers was not keen to play the short ball, choosing to duck and dive, which only infuriated Dernbach further; he thought he might have had Robson caught off an inside edge but it wasn’t given. The 200 partnership came up with both batsmen on 98 and the only question was who would get there first. In the end it was Rogers with a punch through cover, before Robson followed with a scampered single to midwicket.With an overnight lead of 111, Middlesex’s middle order have the chance to make amends for their earlier misdemeanours and give their bowlers enough runs and – importantly – time to push for a win. The corresponding fixture, albeit on a less accommodating pitch, produced a thrilling finish in Middlesex’s favour, and history suggests it may not just dribble to a draw.If the Sunday of a long weekend has you at a loose end, look no further than Lord’s – where adult tickets £5 and it’s free for over-65s and under-16s – for the finale of what has been a compelling encounter.

A round-up of the HRV Cup matches on January 1, 2012

ESPNcricinfo staff01-Jan-2013
ScorecardA 165-run opening partnership between Anton Devcich and Brad Wilson, the highest stand for any wicket in the HRV Cup this season, helped Northern Districts chase down a stiff target of 198, for a nine-wicket victory against Wellington. The win ensured a top spot for Northern Districts in the points table.The openers were in control of their chase throughout, and by the halfway mark, had knocked off 110 runs. Wilson regularly played through the gaps in the field, and scored his half-century in just 32 deliveries. He was out, though, in the 16th over, but by then his team was in control of the chase. His partner, Devcich, scored an unbeaten 92 off 57 deliveries, with the help of 11 fours and two sixes. Three bowlers gave away runs at more than 10 per over.The stand was the second-highest opening stand in the HRV Cup, behind that of 201 by Jamie How and Peter Ingram in January last year, and the 12th highest in all Twenty20 cricket.It overshadowed a decent batting performance by Wellington, led by their Bangladesh-import Tamim Iqbal and Jesse Ryder. The duo put on 90 runs, also for the first wicket, in ten overs before Ryder, the highest run-getter in the HRV Cup this season, departed after scoring 62 off 37 deliveries, which featured five sixes. Quick wickets fell thereafter, but the boundaries kept coming, and at 197 for 4 at the end of 20 overs, Wellington looked in control. However, Northern Districts made up for their ineffective bowling through the record opening stand.
ScorecardGareth Andrew’s aggressive half-century helped Canterbury achieve a four-wicket win, their first in five games. Chasing 153, Andrew struck four fours and four sixes in an unbeaten 25-ball 53 after he came out to bat at the score of 63 for 4 in the eleventh over.Central Districts chose to bat after winning the toss and Mathew Sinclair and captain Kieran Noema-Barnett put on 54 off 34 balls for the third wicket. They looked set for a big total but regular fall of wickets, including two in an over from Mitchell Claydon towards the end of the innings, restricted Central Districts to 152.Canterbury got off to a stable start led by the No. 3 George Worker but once he and Tom Latham were dismissed, they were in trouble and were soon 72 for 5. But this was followed by a counter-attacking partnership between Andrew and Todd Astle, who added 77 from six overs. This took the momentum away from Central Districts and Canterbury won the match with seven balls to spare.

There’s nothing big at stake but for a subcontinental cricket fan, especially in a small town like Cuttack, an India-Pakistan match is a major event

Amol Karhadkar in Cuttack06-Feb-2013Minutes after India’s humiliating exit from the Women’s World Cup, following a shock defeat to Sri Lanka in Mumbai, their captain Mithali Raj was asked during the media briefing about Thursday’s “big match” against Pakistan. Despite being teary-eyed, Raj managed a smile and said, “I am not in a state of mind to think about it right now.”There’s nothing big at stake in the match at the Barabati Stadium – it’s a playoff for seventh place and the loser will finish last in the World Cup – but for a subcontinental cricket fan, especially in a small town like Cuttack, an India-Pakistan match is a major event.After Pakistan’s loss to South Africa had put them out of the tournament hours before India’s exit, a policeman said to his colleague that it was only two more days until the neighbouring women left. But after India were upset at the Brabourne Stadium, and were going to travel to Cuttack to play Pakistan, the security personnel were taking all sorts of precautionary measures for the game to go off smoothly.”An India-Pakistan match is always an interesting affair. Even if it’s a seventh place playoff, it has generated excitement in town,” Odisha Cricket Association president Ranjib Biswal. “I am sure there will be a sizeable crowd in the stands tomorrow.”Regardless of their number, the people who come to watch will not be cheering the team they had adopted over the last week. A crowd of about 500-1000 was neutral during Pakistan’s opening game against Australia, and then cheered their good shots against New Zealand. By the time Pakistan played their must-win encounter against South Africa on Tuesday, the crowd had started cheering them on.”It was really a nice feeling to see the crowd cheering for us,” Pakistan captain Sana Mir said after their loss to South Africa. “This shows that when it comes to cricket, the rest of the problems are set aside. We have been taken care of very well and would love to come back to Odisha and explore the state, something that we couldn’t do this time around.”After a disappointing week, neither India nor Pakistan trained ahead of their final match of the World Cup. Pakistan will hope their batsmen improve on their best total of the tournament so far – 104 – while India will be desperate to avoid finishing last in a World cup they are hosting.

Mahela Jayawardene has led Sri Lanka into the fourth major limited-overs final of his career – now all he has to do is win one

David Hopps in Colombo04-Oct-2012Mahela Jayawardene has led Sri Lanka into the fourth major limited-overs final of his career – now all he has to do is win one. He calls himself “blessed,” and he is, but he knows that only victory in Colombo on Sunday will silence complaints that Sri Lanka always fail at the final hurdle.Sri Lanka had to battle for their 16-run win against Pakistan after setting them a target of 140, which was distinctly vulnerable even on a slow, turning pitch at the Premadasa Stadium. The manner in which they did it deepened Jayawardene’s faith that this time their experience in the final will be different.Kumar Sangakkara, Tillakaratne Dilshan and Lasith Malinga have all joined their captain in suffering defeat in three previous finals, the worst of them coming last year when Sri Lanka were routed by India in the 2011 World Cup final in Mumbai, following defeats against Australia in Barbados in the 2007 World Cup, and a World Twenty20 loss against Pakistan at Lord’s in 2009.There was no time for Jayawardene to savour victory against Pakistan before he had to make light of talk of rising tension. “We are all really happy to be part of a very successful group over a period of time,” he said. “We have been blessed with four now – although I know we haven’t won anything. But four finals, it’s amazing. In one’s career you are lucky enough to play in one final.”They have all had to be approached in different ways. One final was in Barbados, one in England, one was in Mumbai. Now we are playing in Premadasa, so we will approach it differently.”I think experience-wise we are much better: Angelo Mathews, Ajantha Mendis were all pretty new when we lost against Pakistan and we have played a lot of Twenty20 since then. We play with a very positive mindset. We spoke at the start of the tournament that we would have to play on three different surfaces in Hambantota, Pallakele and now Colombo. We had to adapt. It is about handling tough situations better.”Jayawardene tonight was a captain who actually captained. There were none of the high jinks that entailed in the final Super Eights game against England in Pallakele he officially handed the captaincy to Sangakkara, so as to protect himself from a potential suspension for a second transgression for slow overrates, but then ran the show unofficially much as he always would.The likelihood is that the authorities – Sri Lanka Cricket, the ICC or most probably a bit of both – let it be known that further mischief would be frowned upon. That is the thing about a good trick – it is best not repeated.Mohammad Hafeez, Pakistan’s captain, felt around 150 was par on this pitch and repeatedly blamed his team’s defeat on a middle-order collapse. Jayawardene, by contrast, felt 140 was around par – “a score where we could challenge.” “The way we started, we probably fell short by about 15 or 20 runs, but Umar Gul bowled well and pulled us back.”Pakistan brought in an extra bowler so we had to adjust ourselves up front. Sohail Tanvir usually picks up wickets for them so we changed our game plan and tried to hold out for six overs and then we knew we could attack their spinners. Today it worked for us. Sometimes you may lose calls and it doesn’t work, but I think our situation has been pretty good in this tournament.”Chasing down runs is always going to be a tough call in a semi-final. Hafeez batted really well and guided them through the first 10 or so overs, but we knew they were a batter short today and we kept pressure on them.”

CSA’s restructuring process has been finalised, with decisions made “close to the Nicholson Committee recommendations”

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Aug-2012CSA’s restructuring process, which had been set in motion by the Nicholson Committee report – that looked into bringing about changes in the South African board after the bonus scandal involving now suspended CSA chief executive Gerald Majola – has been finalised, with decisions made “close to the Nicholson Committee recommendations”.As per the recommendations, the board has been cut down to 11 members from 24, following a meeting of the CSA’s board of directors and the steering committee (which was constituted to review the feasibility of following the Nicholson Committee report) on Saturday. This comes four months after the administration agreed to accept all the recommendations in principle.Acting CSA president Willie Basson, who called the restructure a “matter of urgency” and hoped for the restructuring plans to be put in place in the annual board meeting, said after the meeting that they have largely followed the Nicholson Committee recommendations.”I believe we have stayed close to the Nicholson recommendations and, where we have deviated, it is easily defendable.”We will now take the Board decisions to all our relevant stakeholders, and I’m confident that we are on target to implement all our decisions in time for our annual general meeting in October this year.”Meanwhile, the disciplinary hearing of Majola, who had been among the 40 CSA staff who received R4.7million ($ 671,428) as bonuses after successfully hosting the IPL and the Champions Trophy in 2009, is set to be completed by mid-October.”The legal process is also well on track and the disciplinary hearing of Gerald Majola should be completed by mid-October,” Basson said. The bonuses scandal came to light in July 2010 and various bureaucratic delays extended the final hearing, which was initially scheduled to be completed by May 31 this year.

Tamim Iqbal has been added to Bangladesh’s squad for the Asia Cup, after having initially been excluded and listed only as a reserve

Mohammad Isam08-Mar-2012Tamim Iqbal has been added to Bangladesh’s squad for the Asia Cup, three days and much drama after having initially been excluded and listed only as a reserve. The BCB have now issued a release saying Tamim has been added to the squad, making it a 15-man squad for the Asia Cup, which starts with a match between Bangladesh and Pakistan in Mirpur on March 11.His name was in the original 15-man list the selectors had drawn up but was removed after the list was given to BCB president Mustafa Kamal for approval. Tamim’s removal from the squad led chief selector Akram Khan to announce his resignation, citing interference in selection from directors and the board president.On Tuesday and Wednesday, Tamim underwent fitness tests to prove that he had fully recovered from typhoid. Confirmation of his fitness came from captain Mushfiqur Rahim and coach Stuart Law as well as the cricket operations committee, but the drama was not over.ESPNcricinfo has learned that on Thursday afternoon Kamal informed the board’s cricket operations committee to continue with the 14-man squad, without Tamim. After several hours of discussions, Tamim was informed late on Thursday of his inclusion and had to rush to the team hotel and join the rest of the squad.Edited by Dustin Silgardo

India Under-19s captain Unmukt Chand led his side to the title with an unbeaten century as the visitors overhauled Australia Under-19s’ 194 with seven wickets to spare in the final in Townsville

ESPNcricinfo staff15-Apr-2012
ScorecardIndia Under-19s celebrate with the trophy•Getty ImagesIndia Under-19s captain Unmukt Chand led his side to the title with an unbeaten century as the visitors overhauled Australia Under-19s’ 194 with seven wickets to spare in the final in Townsville. India had lost all their three league games but got an even chance for the title with the tournament format featuring semi-finals. Their bowlers justified their captain’s decision to field , with medium-pacer Sandeep Sharma taking four wickets as Australia were kept to 194 for 9. Only opener Meyrick Buchanan and No. 7 Sam Hain were able to resist the India bowlers, all but one of whom were among the wickets.Pat Cummins removed the India openers within seven overs but Chand single-handedly led the visitors to victory with a breezy hundred. Facing 127 deliveries for his 112, Chand hit nine fours and six sixes as India motored to victory in the 43rd over. Chand had made 75 runs in the three league games, but rose to the occasion in the knockout stages, his century in the final following a 94 against England Under-19s in the semi-finals. Chand plays for Delhi Daredevils in the IPL, but missed the first quarter of the Twenty20 league, choosing to lead his country in this tournament.

A monumental innings by Azhar Ali, a dutiful and occasionally becalmed affair spanning nearly nine hours, has left England requiring a daunting 324 for victory in the third Test

The Report by David Hopps05-Feb-2012Stumps
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsAzhar Ali faced more balls in one innings than any batsman other than Misbah-ul-Haq had managed in the entire series•Associated PressA monumental innings by Azhar Ali, a dutiful and occasionally becalmed affair spanning nearly nine hours, has left England requiring a daunting 324 for victory in the third Test. Azhar’s highest first-class score, 157 from 442 balls, was an impressive feat of patience and skill and presented England with a final batting examination against Pakistan’s spinners, a task they have flunked throughout the series.England at least survived their initial reconnaissance. There were few devils in the 20 overs up to the close, although Alastair Cook was badly dropped in Umar Gul’s second over by Taufeeq Umar at third slip. Pakistan also lost a review after Mohammad Hafeez’s lbw appeal against Andrew Strauss was turned down.For much of the third day, this was a drowsy Dubai Sunday. When the Test suddenly sprung into life before tea, with England’s spinners taking the last seven wickets for 34 runs in 22.2 overs, England did not know whether to laugh or cry. As the ball began to turn and spit on a worn, dry surface, each wicket felt like the harbinger of the batting challenges to come.Without Azhar’s marathon effort, England might have had realistic ambitions of salvaging a consolation victory. Graeme Swann, who dropped him low down at first slip on 84 off James Anderson, will have felt more disconsolate than most. Azhar finally fell to Swann at short leg. Cook has stood there throughout the series without so much as a sniff, but he held a low catch to end an innings that had pronounced Azhar as a young batsman of high calibre.Smart stats

Azhar Ali’s century is his second in Tests and first against England. It is the 16th instance of a Pakistan batsman scoring over 150 in a Test against England. It is also the fourth-highest score made in a Test in the UAE.

Azhar’s innings lasted 442 balls. It is fifth on the list of most deliveries faced by a Pakistan batsman in an innings against England.

The third-wicket stand between Younis and Azhar is also the second-highest for the third wicket for Pakistan against England. It is also the highest partnership for Pakistan in Tests played in the UAE.

Pakistan’s score of 365 is their second-highest in the second innings in Tests against England.

If England successfully chase down the target of 324, it will be the fourth occasion that a team has chased a 300-plus target against Pakistan. The highest target chased is 369 by Australia in Hobart in 1999.

England will also be aiming to avoid their first whitewash in a series of three or more matches since their 5-0 loss in Australia in 2006-07.

Monty Panesar’s five-wicket haul is his second of the series after the 6 for 62 in Abu Dhabi. Overall, it is the 14th instance of an England bowler picking up a five-wicket haul against Pakistan in away/neutral Tests.

Younis Khan added only 12 to his overnight 115 before he fell lbw to the deserving Stuart Broad, but Azhar followed up Younis’ hundred with one of his own. He resumed on 75 and pressed on doggedly. His first boundary of the morning, a delicate sweep against Graeme Swann took him to 98 before he unleashed a resounding square cut against Monty Panesar to reach his second Test century.As the lead crept ahead, so did the lbws. Five Pakistan batsmen fell to leg before decisions, four to Panesar. That took the total to 41 in the series and counting. It is a record for a three-Test series and only two below the overall record.Panesar finished with another five wickets, aching limbs and his reputation rebuilt . Much of the afternoon had been a stalemate as Panesar persevered into the rough outside Misbah-ul-Haq’s leg stump, and Misbah appeared immovable. England tossed away their second review in desperation as Misbah survived Panesar’s lbw appeal by virtue of a thin inside edge. But he fell that way eventually, as he has five times in the series, his own review failing to spare him.Panesar then prospered. Asad Shafiq was lbw on the back leg, sweeping, and Adnan Akmal was bowled for nought by one that turned. Panesar’s celebrations, once so excitable, are now so strangely matter-of-fact that perhaps it is time to take a look in the doctor’s medical bag.When Swann removed Abdur Rehman and Saeed Ajmal courtesy of slip catches by James Anderson – the second one a cracking effort, a steer to his right from Ajmal that he anticipated brilliantly – it brought Swann rare satisfaction and served only to deepen England’s sense of foreboding.It has been a tough series for Swann. He has a great career record against Pakistan left-handers, but there are only two of them in this series and Taufeeq has often been dismissed before he has come on. Swann has been largely overshadowed as he has remained loyal to the methods that have served him well, flight and a line outside off stump, while other spinners have bowled straighter and quicker in a rewarding search for lbws.Pakistan were threatening to defy cricket history. No side in 105 years has won after making fewer than 100 in the first innings of a Test, a feat last achieved by England against South Africa at Headingley in 1907.Even that achievement required assistance from the elements. Colin Blythe, the revered Kent left-arm spinner, loved nothing better than a wet pitch and he took 15 wickets as Leeds drizzled loyally upon him. There was little point in Panesar and Swann gazing to the heavens in the hope of a sudden downpour, not in these parts.Early in the day, umpire Steve Davis’ lbw decision against Younis was upheld on review, but it was the most marginal of calls, as was Kevin Pietersen’s on the opening day, and emphasised that the umpires in this series have been emboldened by DRS into giving borderline decisions that they might normally have turned down. The umpires’ margin of error that is built into DRS meant that on both occasions the umpire would have been right whatever he ruled. Both Younis and Pietersen were adjudged to be out when Hawk-Eye predicted that the ball would have shaved the stumps so lightly that the bail might not even have fallen. The umpires have all become outers.The best umpires throughout the years tended before the advent of DRS to allow a small margin of error in favour of the batsman, judging that a not-out decision was the safest if there was an element of doubt. Hawk-Eye has not only removed that doubt, and the inbuilt margin of error, intended to protect the umpire’s authority, has meant in this series that batsmen have, in effect, defended bigger stumps – taller by the width of a ball, and wider by the width of a ball on both stumps. It is a concern, but it is no reason to abandon the system.