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A little-known fact about Indian cricket is that the country’s youngtalents in various age groups have really proved their mettle at theinternational level. Aside from the under-19 team winning the World Cuptwo years ago in Sri Lanka, the under-15 team lifted the World Cup inEngland in 1996. The under-17 team won the Asian Championship last year.Somehow, though, this supremacy is lost during the transition to thesenior ranks. But the juniors have certainly covered themselves withglory in bringing laurels to the nation.

Indeed, the combination of Vengsarkar and Sandhu, bothmembers of the victorious World Cup squad in 1983, forms a think-tankthat would be hard to beat. Sandhu is head coach at the NCA, andVengsarkar has spent a lot of time with the boys, giving them the fulladvantage of his considerable experience.

These thoughts come to mind as the Indian lads are now in New Zealand totake part in the under-19 World Cup competition. As the well-knownsporting adage goes, it is hard to get to the top, but harder to staythere. Indian cricket authorities are well aware of the truth behindthis adage and have left no stone unturned in preparing their squad todefend a title that they won in Sri Lanka in January 2000.For one thing, the training sessions for the 26 probables were long andsystematic. For example, coach Balwinder Singh Sandhu was well awarethat the lads would encounter considerable lateral movement in NewZealand, where the World Cup is to be staged between January 19 andFebruary 10. So this was among the specifics that went into thetraining. Then, after a long stint at the National Cricket Academy inBangalore, the squad travelled to Chennai to play three practicematches.Unfortunately this aspect of the training was hit by rain, but theenthusiastic lads made the best of the truncated opportunities. Further,the selected squad of 14 first went to Australia for a nine-day tour,during which they played – and lost – two practice games before leavingfor New Zealand. But most important of all, the authorities, underliningthe importance of defending the title, have done well in appointingformer Indian captain Dilip Vengsarkar as consultant.Indeed, the combination of Vengsarkar and Sandhu, both members of thevictorious World Cup squad in 1983, forms a think-tank that would behard to beat. Sandhu is head coach at the NCA, and Vengsarkar has spenta lot of time with the boys, giving them the full advantage of hisconsiderable experience. The boys certainly do not have to look too farfor inspiration.The squad, led by Parthiv Patel of Gujarat, is nicely balanced, but onlytime will tell whether it is good enough to retain the Cup it won twoyears ago. Vengsarkar, however, is in no doubt that the team is strongenough to retain the title. “The confidence level of the squad is prettyhigh, and they have trained strenuously. We have a couple of fine allrounders and a good attack, both spin and medium pace,” Vengsarkar saidin Chennai recently. He was of the view that the under-19 age group heldthe key to the future of Indian cricket. This viewpoint is difficult todisagree with, especially when one considers that players like YuvrajSingh, Mohammad Kaif and Reetinder Singh Sodhi, all members of thatvictorious squad in Sri Lanka, went on to play for India within a shortperiod.Vengsarkar said that the youngsters should be nurtured to fill the gapsin the Indian side and for this, the proper exposure would be to makethem play in Australia, South Africa, New Zealand and England. Whiletalking with confidence about the Indian team’s chances in New Zealand,the former star batsman, who scored 6,868 runs in 116 Test matches andis also the only non-Englishman to score three Test hundreds at Lord’s,felt that Australia and South Africa would be the teams to beat. Thingsare not very different even at the junior levels, are they?

Moors Sports Club made up for a disappointing display against Tamil Union yesterday with a morale boosting victory over Antonians today at Braybrooke Place.When play finally got underway at 12pm there was only time for 37.4 overs per side. Moors Sports Club won the toss and had no hesitation in asking Antonians to bat first. However, the Antonians openers started well and added 66 runs for the first wicket. Charles Silva led the way with 43 from 42 balls. He hit four fours and two sixes in the run-a-ball innings before he was stumped off Chandika Haturasinghe.The Antonians innings then ran into difficulties as number two batsman, Lahiru Chaturanga, was dismissed in the next over. 34 runs were then added fro the third wicket before Rangana Herath plucked out the middle order. The left arm spinner finished with three wickets for 23 runs.The Moors reply started disastrously as three wickets were lost for nine runs. However, Bhatiya Perera (28)continued his good form of the previous rounds and put on 50 runs in partnership with Roshan Cooray (43). When Perera was dismissed Iroshan De Silva came to the crease and scored an unbeaten 35 runs to guide Moors to victory. He was ably assisted by Mahesh Palihakkara who scored an unbeaten 30. Moors Sports Club eventually overhauled the victory target with just 11 balls to spare.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsNicholas Standford smashed five fours and a six in his second consecutive unbeaten 40•Peter Della Penna

Fahad Babar and Akeem Dodson’s 65-run opening stand in 48 balls – their best partnership of the tournament – followed by an unbeaten 40 by Nicholas Standford knocked off Papua New Guinea by 18 runs in the last Group A match at Malahide. PNG’s second straight loss denied them an automatic berth reserved for the first-placed team in the group and they slipped down to fourth after Hong Kong’s victory over Namibia, while Ireland secured their spot in the 2016 World T20.PNG captain Jack Vare sent USA in to bat, but a tired bowling attack – playing their third match in as many days – did not respond to the decision, and USA reached 56 in the Powerplay, setting a platform for their score of 147. Babar crunched three boundaries off Norman Vanua in the fifth over and Dodson pulled two boundaries past fine leg and a six over square leg in the sixth, bowled by Willie Gavera.Playing just his second match of the tournament, Chad Soper finally broke the stand in the eighth over, getting Babar to spoon a catch to Assad Vala at cover for 30. Dodson was lbw for 38 three overs later playing down the wrong line to Mahuru Dai’s offspin.The innings slowed down as PNG’s spinners tied down Alex Amsterdam. With pressure building, Japen Patel tried to increase the run rate but was bowled by Charles Amini for 20. Adil Bhatti, promoted ahead of Standford, was dismissed for 1, leaving USA at 102 for 4 in the 17th over.Standford – who was awarded Man of the Match against Hong Kong on Saturday for an unbeaten 40 – faced 17 of the 23 deliveries left in the innings but was fortunate to survive two chances in a chaotic 18th over. A skied chance on 11 was spilled by a diving Vala running from cover to mid-off. Amsterdam fell on the next ball for 13 caught at short third man after slicing a drive.The following delivery, Standford got a waist high full toss from the legspinner Amini which he pulled to long-on for an easy catch but a no-ball was signaled for height. Standford blasted the free-hit over extra cover, then followed it up with two more fours over square leg and point to end an 18-run over.Naseer Jamali sacrificed himself after a calamitous mix-up at the end of the 19th over, allowing Standford to remain at the crease for the final over. He struck two more fours, a thin edge past the keeper and a scoop over fine-leg, to take USA to a defendable total.During the innings break, the public address announcer at Malahide had announced that Hong Kong made 197 at Clontarf against Namibia, effectively killing any hopes USA had of going through to the knockout stage. Despite this information, USA produced a spirited effort in the field. Jamali struck the first blow, getting Tony Ura to slash to Hammad Shahid at third man.USA captain Muhammad Ghous produced his best bowling performance of the tournament, beating Lega Siaka in flight off his second delivery. Two overs later, he had Vala splicing a tame drive to Timil Patel at cover to leave PNG struggling at 21 for 3 in the fourth over. Shahid continued to apply pressure and snared Vare with a yorker to leave PNG at 42 for 4.Bhatti had Sese Bau caught at long-off in the 12th over before Timil claimed the next two wickets. Kila Pala was bowled attempting a heave while Dai picked out Shahid at long-on to make it 115 for 7 after 17.Two run outs accounted for wickets eight and nine and PNG went into the last over needing 27. Shahid gave away only eight runs, clinching the win for his side.Timil finished the group stage as USA’s leading wicket-taker and tied for third overall with 10 wickets. USA’s back-to-back wins against a pair of top-six ODI Associate nations showed the abundance of talent available in the country but unfortunately, it was too little too late.

Patrick Vieira’s first season at Crystal Palace has been an encouraging one, which has seen the likes of loanee Conor Gallagher, homegrown star Tyrick Mitchell and summer-signing Marc Guehi develop into England senior squad members – having all received call-ups this international break.

With the likes of Jesurun Rak-Sakyi and Tayo Adaramola on the verge of a first-team breakthrough after showing impressive development at U23 level, the French manager could maintain his reputation for developing youth through next campaign too.

However, without European football, developing youth often comes with a cost – top teams with continental reputation circling around their talent – and this summer could spell disaster if Chelsea re-sign former prospect Guehi.

What’s the news?

According to The Daily Express, Chelsea have a ‘hidden clause’ to re-sign the Ivory Coast-born centre-back this summer, and will be allowed to match any bid that comes in which is accepted.

With Cesar Azpilicueta, Andreas Christensen and Antonio Rudiger all currently set to see their contracts expire with the current Champions League holders, it would make sense for them to go back in for their youth academy graduate, who has become a Premier League level defender across London with Palace.

A monumental loss for Vieira

Former England U21 teammate Joe Bursik and current teammate Gallagher heaped praise on the centre-back a year ago, describing him as “an absolute tank” who is “like having a brick wall in front of you, he’s massive.”

Guehi has certainly backed that up this season in the Premier League, averaging a 7.02 match rating according to SofaScore, The second highest out of the entire Palace team – with just Gallagher averaging higher with a match rating of 7.24.

James Tomkins and Joachim Andersen are the next best performing centre-backs at the South-London club, but neither of them have been able to replicate the England international’s form this campaign, and Vieira will be desperate to centre his backline around him for the foreseeable future.

Guehi, now rated at £27m by Transfermarkt, has become one of the world’s most exciting young talents, ranking among central defenders across Europe’s top five leagues and continental competitions in the top 2% for least times dribbled past per 90 (0.18), top 5% for least fouls committed per 90 (0.50), and top 16% for successful pressure percentage per 90 (40.1%).

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It wouldn’t come as a surprise to Palace fans to find out one of their club’s most prized possessions is already the subject of transfer gossip – but Vieira will surely pull out all the stops in order to convince their star defender to stay at the club for the foreseeable.

However, if he does walk away after just a year, it will no doubt represent a huge summer disaster; he is far too important to the Eagles.

In other news: “There is a feeling..” – CPFC dealt big injury setback that will leave Vieira worried

Saurashtra captain Jaydev Shah slammed a 80-ball 100 to lead his side to a comfortable seven-wicket victory over Karnataka in the quarter-finals of the Vijay Hazare Trophy. After being asked to bat, Karnataka could only muster 234 as Robin Uthappa top scored with a measured 50. Left-arm medium-pacer Balkrishna Jadeja, playing his second List A game, took three wickets for Saurashtra but was expensive, giving away 68 runs. The Saurashtra chase was given a solid platform with openers Chirag Pathak (64) and Sagar Jogiyani adding 87. Shah then propelled them to victory, crunching 10 fours and five sixes in his second List A hundred.The day’s other quarter-final also saw a captain’s century set up a win. Bengal cruised to a 48-run triumph over Delhi on the back of a commanding batting performance, led by captain Laxmi Ratan Shukla’s 95-ball 124 in Visakhapatnam. Bengal got off to a good start as their openers forged a 74-run stand but stumbled as three wickets fell for the addition of five runs. They got back on track thanks to an express 120-run partnership between Shukla and Anustup Majumdar, who contributed less than a third of the runs in the stand. Debabrata Das chipped in with a quick 40 as Bengal finished on 295. Delhi’s batsmen had to score briskly to chase down the big target and perished in the attempt. Though they reached 139 by the 25th over, they had lost five wickets and despite Under-19 World Cup-winning captain Virat Kohli’s efforts, they were bowled out for 247.

Inzamam-ul-Haq will not go down without a fight © AFP

Inzamam-ul-Haq, the former Pakistan captain, struck out at the findings of an official board report that found him to be a “dictator” and blamed him almost entirely for the World Cup debacle.Responding to claims in a PCB committee report that his attitude was “haughty and that of a dictator,” Inzamam responded by arguing that this was the way of Pakistan cricket. Speaking to the Urdu daily , Inzamam said, “I was blamed for being very lenient during my whole captaincy career and now I am turned into a dictator. That could only be accepted if players had complained that I acted like one.”This is nothing new in Pakistan cricket. When the team loses, all the blame is put on others, and I was ready for that because it happened in the past,” he said, referring to Pakistan’s equally dismal 2003 World Cup.”Inzamam defended himself from charges that he took all selection matters into his own hands, marginalising on-tour selectors and calling up his own preferred players without consultation. “If I had power as captain it was simply because I was a successful captain and whenever I wanted certain player I convinced selectors to get that player and not through dictatorship.”The committee included two paid employees of the board, Salahuddin Ahmed, chief selector and Salim Altaf, director special projects, leading Inzamam to question the neutrality of their findings.”I know it will sound bitter to them but the presence of two paid members in the probe committee raises doubts over the impartiality of the report,” Inzamam told the BBC’s Urdu service.”How can a member, who was the director of operations, say this now and didn’t realise it before the World Cup?” asked Inzamam of Altaf.Inzamam, who resigned as captain and retired from ODIs after the tournament, maintained the report would have no bearing on his future. “It will be up to the selectors to select me. I will feature in domestic cricket and have been training to play Tests. This committee cannot decide my future,” he said. Given that the current chief selector was party to the committee’s findings, it seems improbable that Inzamam will be selected again for Pakistan.

Nottinghamshire won the County Championship in 2005, but face a tough task to defend it this summer © Getty Images

Ice delaying the start of play at Old Trafford and Derbyshire having to move their opening fixture because their ground is underwater – sure signs that the new domestic season is here. As England complete a tough winter in the 45-degree heat of Indore, county players the length and breadth of the country have been shivering their way through pre-season nets. The real action starts today as MCC take on Nottinghamshire in the traditional curtain-raiser at Lord’s.For all the hype that surrounds the never-ending cycle of international cricket there is something special about the anticipation of a new season. Everything is possible, places are up for grabs, names to be made and the thought of those long, warm summer days soaking up the action (but probably not until about August).County cricket always faces a tough fight with the summer now so packed with Tests and one-day internationals. Last year it had to battle for attention against the extraordinary Ashes and while the exploits of Andrew Flintoff and Co. will again, understandably, take centre stage for most of the summer the domestic game has much going for it. In many ways, the team fielded by England on their tour of India showed county cricket in its best light for a number of years.Shaun Udal was the most uplifting story; a player who has consistently tried his hardest for Hampshire year in, year out and suddenly he helped England pull off one of their greatest victories. Owais Shah was another who showed that county cricket can produce Test match batsmen, while if the game was as ‘soft’ as it is sometimes described then Alastair Cook and Monty Panesar would not have been as comfortable on the international stage.With Duncan Fletcher adding his voice to those fearing player burn-out the chances of England’s main players making county appearances once the internationals start is very slim – save a one-day final in the C&G Trophy or Twenty20. But that, in no way, means that there will be a shortage of talented players and exciting matches to enjoy.The main target, for those nine teams in the first Division, will be the Championship title, which currently resides with Nottinghamshire following their superb allround performances from 2005. They have a mature squad, but as the Australians have shown, if results continue to go your way age is only a number. However, they are far from sure of retaining their title and, if anything, don’t actually start the season as favourites.

Shane Warne will be back to lead Hampshire © Getty Images

Some bookmakers have Lancashire, fresh from promotion, as odds-on to claim the title that has proved elusive since 1934. But they start without any overseas players – Brad Hodge will join in early May after his wife gives birth – and are so far settling for just the one, although don’t be surprised to see Andrew Symonds arrive for a late-season stint. Expect a strong charge from Sussex, who have the services of Mushtaq Ahmed and a strong top-order with Chris Adams, Murray Goodwin, Matt Prior and Michael Yardy, while Warwickshire are stronger this season with two established overseas names in Heath Streak and Daniel Vettori.Hampshire will again rest heavily on Shane Warne, so long as his shoulder stands up to even more bowling, but he has the ability to bring the best out in younger players and keep an eye out for Chris Tremlett who will want to remind the selectors he is still around. Kent have never suffered Championship relegation and shouldn’t be pulled down in 2006, even if they struggle to bowl sides out twice, while Middlesex are also likely to be more troubled by the search for wickets than runs. Durham and Yorkshire will have to fight hard to hold onto their hard-earned top division slots with squads that are set to be pushed to the limit.In the second division, Worcestershire and Surrey are best placed to secure the two promotion slots as their squads have reasonable depth and experience. Essex have an exciting bunch of young players balanced with the experience of Andy Bichel and Darren Gough. Northamptonshire and Gloucestershire will need to battle against limited squads and Glamorgan have been dealt a tough blow with the loss of Matthew Elliott and Michael Kasprowicz. Watch out for the Aussie spin-twins, Cameron White and Dan Cullen, who could spring a surprise at Somerset, but it is hard to see beyond another season of struggle for Derbyshire and Leicestershire.As always at this time of the season there is a wealth of possibilities. All teams feel that it will be their season while players are dreaming of runs, wickets, catches and greater honours. It is sometimes hard to see through the mass of Tests and ODIs and realise what is happening at the level below, but if you have a moment take a glance at the county scorecards. There are six fascinating months of cricket ahead and you may just catch a glimpse of the next Cook, Panesar or Udal.

Noel David, the former Indian offspinner, has announced his retirement from all forms of the game. David, 34, who played four one-dayers for India in 1997, planned to quit the game to concentrate more on his coaching career.David was picked as the offspinning allrounder to replace Javagal Srinath on India’s tour to West Indies in 1997. His selection was shrouded in controversy, allegedly prompting members of the team-management to react, Noel “Who?”, but David impressed on his debut game and finished with 3 for 21 and helped India record a comfortable ten-wicket win. However, his fastish offbreaks produced only one wicket in the next three games and he was eventually dropped after the Asia Cup in Sri Lanka.David managed only 9 runs in his four matches, but he started off as a promising allrounder for Hyderabad when he cracked an unbeaten 207 in his third first-class game. However, he managed only one more hundred in his 35 games and finished with an average just short of 30. He played his last first-class game in October 1998 and is currently involved in coaching youngsters at the St. John’s Cricket Coaching Foundation in Secunderabad.

The XXXX Queensland Bulls will field a near full-strength ING Cup team against the Southern Redbacks on Wednesday at the Gabba.Australia `A’ players Martin Love and Wade Seccombe will play in the day/nighter and travel to Hobart on Thursday morning to prepare for the three-day tour match against India starting on Friday.Redbacks pace duo Shaun Tait and Paul Rofe will do likewise, enabling both teams to field their first choice line-ups.Bulls captain Jimmy Maher, Australian One Day star Andrew Symonds and pace spearhead Michael Kasprowicz will play their first domestic one-day games this season for Queensland.Former Queensland allrounder Mick Miller will play his first match for his adopted State this season, joining a powerful line-up that includes former Test batsmen Greg Blewett and Zimbabwean Andy Flower.Wednesday’s game starts at 2.30pm with gates opening at 1.30pm. Tickets are available at the gate.Both teams will also meet in the Pura Cup match at the Gabba starting on Friday. Queensland will name its Pura Cup team on Wednesday.XXXX Queensland Bulls: Jimmy Maher (c), Stuart Law, Martin Love, Andrew Symonds, Clinton Perren, Lee Carseldine, Wade Seccombe, James Hopes, Nathan Hauritz, Ashley Noffke, Michael Kasprowicz, Damien MacKenzieSouthern Redbacks: Greg Blewett (captain), Mark Cleary, Mark Cosgrove, John Davison, Shane Deitz, Andy Flower, Mark Higgs, Ben Johnson, Graham Manou, Mick Miller, Paul Rofe, Shaun Tait

The tour match between New South Wales and South Africa appears headed for an exciting finish tomorrow after Michael Bevan and HerschelleGibbs again laid waste to the bowling for their respective teams on the third day of the contest here in Sydney.After Bevan (183*) had cut short a magnificent innings of his own to throw the game open, Gibbs dominated the day’s closing session to lead theProteas to a second innings score of 1/112 and an overall advantage of 225.Bevan had earlier been within 17 runs of scoring his second successive first-class double century on the SCG when he decided to effect a tea timedeclaration, ending the New South Wales first innings at a healthy 6/385.Though he was very slow to begin, even to the point that his score did not move for 50 minutes at one point, his innings was an outstanding one. Hiscapacity to transform a vigilant hand into an explosive one upon reaching three figures also appealed.”I hit them alright and was pretty happy,” said Bevan.Over the last two years, the experienced left hander has enjoyed a love affair with this ground, producing a remarkable average of 125.85 from hislast seven matches – and ten innings – here.His career record at the SCG is also quite remarkable; from 50 matches, he has scored 4850 runs at the mammoth average of 79.50.”It’s where I’ve played most of my career – at the SCG. You obviously get enough chance to see how it plays.”Early on I thought they bowled pretty well, pretty tight. And, at the end, we had to score a bit quicker in the hope of setting up a (good finish tothe) match,” Bevan acknowledged.”At tea I thought it was the right time [to declare]. It gave us a chance to get a few wickets in that session and gave them a chance to get a few runsso it was more to do with the match situation than anything else.”Young spinner Justin Ontong (0/47) endured especially spectacular punishment, battered for 18 runs in his fifth over before conceding another 17from his sixth as Bevan initiated an assault that delivered 97 runs from the last 71 balls of his innings.It was a tough day for all of the tourists’ bowlers, though. And the mindset of veteran paceman Allan Donald (0/64) – who bowled excellently attimes today – wasn’t helped by criticism that had appeared overnight from former rebel wicketkeeper Ray Jennings.Jennings argued that Donald shouldn’t have been included in the tour party in a statement that appeared in the Daily Telegraph newspaper here inSydney today.”Maybe we should ask Ray Jennings if it’s alright with him if I play,” said Donald after play.”It’s very uncalled for, the comments he made,” the quick said.Donald’s teammate, Gibbs (75), soothed the Proteas’ concerns as the day closed, with another sparkling innings that laid the platform for anotherlikely declaration at some stage early tomorrow.Though leg spinner Stuart MacGill (1/27) again found a way to remove Gibbs just as he was close to the height of his powers – receiving an lbwverdict in his favour after two such appeals had been turned down by umpire Bob Parry – the South African openers performed well. Left handerGary Kirsten (34*) played in sound fashion, and will be back to resume with Jacques Rudolph (2*) in the morning.