India's tour of West Indies

Wavell Hinds hit an unbeaten 140 and Devon Smith added 91 as the Busta XI reached 250-2 on the first day of a three-day tour match against India in St Lucia.

The two left-handers put forward their claims for a Test place with a 215-run stand for the second wicket.

Hinds hit three sixes and 19 fours, while Smith hit 13 boundaries before being bowled by off-spinner Sarandeep Singh in the last over of the day.

________________

West Indies leg-spinner Mahendra Nagamootoo has been taken to Sinclair Medical Centre in Trinidad after being hurt in a car crash in Guyana.

Chetram Singh, president of the Guyana Cricket Board said: "He is conscious and I don't think it's that serious but then again you don't know about internal injuries.

"There are some cuts on his face which required about 15 stitches."

Nagamootoo has already been ruled out of the third Test against India, and Singh said his absence "would be a great loss".

It is a bitter blow for the player currently rated the best spinner in the Caribbean as he was unable to play in the second Test match due to a hamstring injury.

New Zealand's tour of Pakistan

Pakistani skipper Waqar Younis has indicated that it is now time to give one of two youngsters their chance. Batsman Misbah-ul-Haq, all-rounders Yasir Arafat and Shoaib Malik and fast bowler Mohammad Sami are all waiting in the wings. "I hope a couple of youngsters will be given a chance to play in Lahore since we have already won the series," said Waqar.

________________

Injury-hit New Zealand are considering a gamble on left-arm spin bowler Daniel Vettori for the final one-day international against Pakistan in Lahore.

Vettori, who has been suffering with back trouble, has joined the squad for the two Tests, but the tourists are considering the possibility of giving him some match practice on Saturday.

"Daniel may come into contention, but we have to be cautious with him before the Test matches," said skipper Stephen Fleming.

One player who will definitely miss the match is all-rounder Jacob Oram. He has a side strain and will be joining Nathan Astle (knee) on the plane home.

Sri Lanka in England

Sri Lanka suffered a setback in their build-up towards the first Test against England with no play possible at the St Lawrence Ground because of rain.

Intermittent showers kept the players off the field and the umpires decided to abandon play for the day shortly before 4.00pm.

Sri Lanka will now hope for clearer skies on Saturday as they need as much time as possible to adjust to English conditions before the first Test at Lord's on 16 May.

Miscellaneous

Bob Smalley and Bruce Ewan from the ACU will link up with members of the World Cup Security Directorate as they undertake inspections of all host grounds in South Africa and Kenya over the next three weeks.

"These inspections are an important part of the ACU's build up to next year's World Cup. The visits will identify what is needed for each ground to meet minimum security standards for the tournament" said Lord Condon, director of the ACU.

________________

Test players face hefty bans as the result of an International Cricket Council purge on obscene language, sledging and racial abuse on the field of play.

In the most extreme examples of offensive behaviour, umpires will be called upon to administer a minimum ban of five Tests.

ICC chief executive officer Malcolm Speed said: "We want international cricket to be tough and competitive but we also want to improve its image with the public.

Yesterday's News .........................  News Roll archive