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Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) have confirmed the dates for the first edition of the Sri Lanka Premier League will be from July 19 to August 4, 2011. The seven provinces will play 24 matches over the 18 days, all of which will be telecast live globally. That suggests a format in which all the teams will play each other once in a league stage, before two semi-finals and a final.Each team will only be allowed five overseas players in their squad, of which only four can be named in the XI. Several foreign players including Chris Gayle, Kieron Pollard, Shahid Afridi and Herschelle Gibbs have already been signed for the tournament.SLC also unveiled the team names for the provinces. The seven teams will be: Basnahira Bears, Kandurata Kites, Nagenahira Nagas, Ruhuna Rhinos, Uthura Oryxes, Uva Unicorns and Wayamba Wolves. The board plans to add two more provinces to the tournament within three years.

Scorecard
Chris Dent and Jon Lewis put on an unbroken 101 for the ninth wicket to ensure a draw for Gloucestershire in their Division Two match with Essex at Bristol. The home side looked in danger of defeat when they were 209 for 8 in mid-afternoon and only 143 ahead overall.But young batsman Dent, with 70, and long-serving seamer Lewis, with a run-a-ball 50, frustrated Essex with a partnership that spanned 19 overs. Essex’s cause was hampered from the 46th over onwards by the bowling absence of Ryan ten Doeschate, who was ordered from the attack by umpire Steve Garrett for delivering two beamers in an over.Gloucestershire had begun the day on 37 for 2 and Essex struck twice in the first 10 overs to raise their hopes of victory. New Zealander Kane Williamson was caught behind off Chris Wright for 31, and Chris Taylor edged David Masters to Matthew Walker at second slip.The Gidman brothers, Alex and Will, revived the innings with a fifth-wicket stand of 70 in 15 overs, which ended when the former was lbw to Ten Doeschate for 42. The Netherlands allrounder was ordered from the attack in his next over, but it was still looking good for Essex when Will Gidman played across a delivery from Reece Topley just after lunch and was lbw for 32.Dent and Ed Young frustrated the visitors for 15 overs before Young’s attempted cut at Ravi Bopara only resulted in an edge to James Foster behind the stumps. It became 209 for 8 when Walker took a one-handed, low catch at second slip off Bopara to dismiss Ian Saxelby for six.But that was Essex’s last success of the day as Dent and Lewis played some fine attacking strokeplay to rescue a draw for Gloucestershire. The second new ball was taken just after tea, but there were few alarms for either batsman.Dent, in his first Championship outing since he fractured a finger against Glamorgan in mid-April, reached his 110-ball half-century by cutting Topley to the cover boundary.Topley conceded three boundaries in his next over, as Lewis hit him for four to long-on and fine leg and Dent cut him to the third-man rope. Lewis drove Masters for a straight six and, soon after, brought up his third half-century of the season with a single to deep square leg off Bopara. It came from 50 balls and included six fours as well the six.Alex Gidman immediately declared the Gloucestershire innings and the players shook hands on a draw.

England’s winter touring schedule has been confirmed with England playing five ODIs and a Twenty20 in India, a Test, one-day and Twenty20 series against Pakistan in the UAE and a two-Test series in Sri Lanka.There had been some confusion over the schedule when Giles Clarke announced on during the Rose Bowl Test against Sri Lanka earlier this month that England would play their Pakistan Test fixtures in Sri Lanka, rather than the UAE. However, that was quickly retracted by John Carr, the ECB’s director of cricket operations.Though the itinerary for the UAE-leg of the winter’s travels has not been confirmed it will consist of three Tests, four ODIs and three Twenty20s. The Sri Lanka tour is limited to just two Tests with the promise of a limited-overs tour in November-December 2014.”We are very pleased to have agreed an itinerary with BCCI for the forthcoming one-day series which includes matches in India’s major cities and will suit the needs of both the England team and our travelling supporters,” ECB chief executive David Collier said. “With India due to play a NatWest Series here in September, there is bound to be intense interest in the return contest in India this October and we look forward to what should be a fascinating series of one-day encounters between the two teams.”The remainder of the winter programme will see England travel to the UAE early in the New Year to play Pakistan in all three formats of the game, followed by a short break in the UK before the team takes on Sri Lanka in a two-match Test series.”England in India

October 4 – England arrive in Hyderabad
October 8 – 50-over warm-up match, Gymkhana, Hyderabad
October 11 – 50-over warm-up match, Gymkhana, Hyderabad
October 14 – 1st ODI (D/N), Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad
October 17 – 2nd ODI (D/N), Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi
October 20 – 3rd ODI (D/N), Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali
October 23 – 4th ODI (D/N), Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai
October 25 – 5th ODI (D/N), Eden Gardens, Kolkata
October 29 – lone Twenty20 international (D/N), Eden Gardens, Kolkata
England v Pakistan, UAE

The ECB and PCB have agreed that the tour will comprise three Test matches, four ODIs and three T20s to be played in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. A detailed itinerary will be announced in due course.England in Sri Lanka

The programme of warm-up matches leading into the Test series will be confirmed in due course but the two Test matches are scheduled as follows:March 26-30 – 1st Test, Galle
April 3-7 – 2nd Test, Colombo (venue tbc)

Johan Botha, the South Africa allrounder, has admitted to being “disappointed but prepared” after being stripped of the national Twenty20 captaincy earlier this year. Botha was announced as Graeme Smith’s successor to lead the Twenty20 team in August last year and was widely tipped to become ODI captain as well, but lost out on both jobs when AB de Villiers was named captain in June.”The captain must be the first pick in the team and with all the spinners around at the moment it’s difficult to say who the No.1 is, so I knew it was unlikely I would become captain,” Botha told ESPNCricinfo. Botha’s ascendency was forced backward during the 2011 World Cup, when the emergence of Pakistan-born legspinner Imran Tahir and the form of left-arm spinner Robin Peterson left him fighting for his place in the starting XI.Botha’s suspicions that he would not be the next captain were confirmed when Andrew Hudson, convenor of selectors, hinted that the appointment would aim to promote continuity. “I thought they would look for someone who would be able to take over from Graeme [Smith] as Test captain one day and so that would mean looking for someone who plays all three formats, so I knew it couldn’t be me – I don’t play all formats,” he said. Botha has only played in five Tests in his career, as a second-spinner behind Paul Harris.de Villiers’ was unveiled as captain in June, when Botha was overseas, contracted as a Twenty20 professional in the United Kingdom by county side Northamptonshire. Having almost expected it, Botha was able to deal with his emotions maturely. “I was busy playing and so I got over the disappointment quickly,” he said.He is able to acknowledge the credentials of his colleague with no malice and is even hoping he will be able to play a part in assisting de Villiers. “He is a great player and he will do a good job. I think it this will really lift his game,” Botha said. “I will give him as much as he can take. It’s not every day that you ask for something of the senior players but sometimes you do need them in a match situation and I will contribute then.”More pressing in Botha’s mind is wresting back his berth in the side. “I didn’t get as many wickets as Imran or Robin in the World Cup but I did my job, which was to contain at one end so guys got wickets at the other end.” Botha has been hailed for his ability to boss over the middle overs of the match with the ball and squeeze the opposition for runs. He thinks there is still room for him to play that role in that future. “Morne [Morkel], Dale [Steyn] and Imran are all attacking bowlers and you can’t only have that. Even though Lopsy [Lonwabo Tsotsobe] can play a containing role, he bowls with the new ball so batsmen will take him on.”Botha’s edge may lie in his all-round ability. “I think my batting will help me stay in contention,” he said. During this year’s IPL, Botha was promoted to number three in the batting line-up for Rajasthan Royals by Shane Warne and played some match-winning knocks. “I don’t think I will be able to bat that high up the order for South Africa, because of the quality of players we have here, like JP Duminy and Colin Ingram, but hopefully my performances [in the IPL] put something into someone’s mind.” With the lower middle-order exposed for being brittle at the World Cup, the least it could have done was give the selectors an idea of how to strengthen it.South Africa’s first task of the summer will be to take on Australia, a rivalry that has always attracted interest. The last time the two teams played a series, Botha captained South Africa to victory in the Twenty20-leg. Botha is looking forwarded to playing the Australians again, especially because they are likely to have his Royals’ team-mate Shane Watson in the mix. “He wasn’t in the side the last time we played them and I’ve seen what he can do; he can win games single-handedly.”Botha marvelled at Watson’s solo efforts during the IPL from up-close and is now back home and about to embark on an extreme solo performance of his own. This weekend, Botha will spend 24 hours cycling at St George’s Park in Port Elizabeth to raise money for three educational charities. It’s Botha’s fourth appearance in the gruelling event. How does he plan to combat the inevitable exhaustion that will creep in? “When you’re scared of falling off, that’s what keeps you on.”

The contentious run-out of Ian Bell at the stroke of tea on the third day, which threatened to erupt into the biggest controversy of the series, was overturned during the break after MS Dhoni withdrew the appeal.At the stroke of tea, Bell’s run-out on 137, after having left the crease before the ball was dead, was on the verge of becoming a major point of dispute between the two sides. During the break, England captain Andrew Strauss and coach Andy Flower went to the Indian dressing room to ask MS Dhoni if the run-out decision could be overturned. The Indians agreed to withdraw the appeal.At the resumption after tea, Bell and Eoin Morgan walked out to cheers from a surprised and appreciative crowd, which just a few minutes earlier had booed the two umpires – a small section of the crowd even chanting, the word ‘cheat’ – and then the Indian team as it made its way out, with Strauss and his men standing on the balcony of their pavilion clapping the Indians onto the field.It all began when Morgan flicked the last ball of the 66th over, from Ishant Sharma, to deep square leg where Praveen Kumar tumbled over trying to field. The batsmen, having taken the third, appeared to be unsure whether the ball had reached the boundary. Morgan held up his arm to Bell, who jogged halfway down the pitch and then continued walking down. The throw from Praveen eventually came in to Abhinav Mukund, who took off the bails and appealed for a run-out. By that time, Bell had punched gloves with his partner and was heading towards the pavilion.The umpires checked again with the Indians as to whether they had appealed. When the Indians said they had, the third umpire was asked to establish whether the ball had crossed the boundary. The two batsmen, who had reached the edge of the field, were asked not to leave the ground. It was learnt that during the incident the Indians had been asked three times whether they were sure whether they wanted to persist with the appeal or whether they wanted to change their mind.

Other recalls

You’ll struggle to find an identical incident, but Tony Greig and Alvin Kallicharran came pretty close. It was the last ball of the day’s play at Port of Spain in 1973-74. Bernard Julien defended just past Tony Greig at silly point, and Kallicharan walked off assuming it was stumps. Greig ran Kallicharan out, and after crowd trouble, and a meeting between the umpires, the captains and the board representatives, the appeal was withdrawn. Kallicharan added 16 to reach 158, West Indies won by seven wickets.
For a change, not a run-out. In the Golden Jubilee Test, in 1979-80, Gundappa Viswanath was convinced Bob Taylor was not out when ruled caught-behind, and insisted he be called back. Taylor’s match-turning partnership of 171 with Ian Botham was worth only 85 when Viswanath made the gesture that earned him a lot of respect. India lost by 10 wickets
Keen not to repeat a much-regretted similar decision by Paul Collingwood, Andrew Strauss did what his team’s coach Andy Flower thought was too generous. In a Champions Trophy game against Sri Lanka, he called back Angelo Mathews who was given run out after a collision with Graham Onions, who was not in the wrong at all. Mathews added only one to his 51, and England went on to win by six wickets.

There was a delay of eight minutes as the third umpire reviewed the replay and decided that the ball had not crossed the boundary. The decision of “out” flashed up on the screen, and the Indians left the field to heavy booing from the crowd. The Sky TV coverage showed during the incident as well on its nightly news, a clipping of Bell walking towards fourth umpire Tim Robinson and saying what sounded like, “He called over.” In his media conference, however Bell said he did not hear any umpire calling ‘over.’ The Sky TV audio track also has no sound of the umpire calling over. The only time the word “over” is heard on that piece of video tape, comes from Ishant who, after the bails are dislodged, is heard asking in Hindi if the over had ended and whether it was time for tea.Just over an hour after the incident, an announcement was made on the stadium’s public address system, explaining the incident to the full house at Trent Bridge. The crowd heard that after Strauss and Flower asked Dhoni to withdraw the appeal, he went across to his team-mates and sought their view. The team agreed to recall Bell to the crease and the decision was made known to the England camp. The announcement stated that the ECB thanked the Indian team’s gesture to withdraw the appeal against Bell and asked the crowd to show its appreciation. Once the announcement ended, applause rang out all around Trent Bridge.Speaking after the day’s play, Bell was appreciative of India’s decision to reinstate him, and admitted that it was naive on his part to leave the crease with the ball still in play. “From Praveen’s body language, it looked like that had gone for four,” Bell told the channel. “Probably naïve on my behalf, but taking into account the spirit of cricket and everything, this was probably the right decision. It wasn’t until we [Bell and Morgan] reached the boundary rope, when the umpires asked us to wait, that I knew something was on. It’s fantastic the way India have gone about this. The captains and coaches got together, and were asked if the decision would stand. Duncan Fletcher and MS Dhoni went back to discuss it with the team and came back to us, and I got the nod.”Rahul Dravid said the Indian team was in unanimous agreement that the decision had to be reversed. “In the laws of the game, if you follow them strictly, that was out, but it didn’t feel right in the spirit of the game,” he said. “There was a team discussion during the tea interval, Dhoni and Fletcher convened the meeting, and Dhoni led it. There was a feeling of unanimity that we should reinstate Bell because the spirit of the game was important, and that getting him out in that way would contravened the spirit … If this had happened to our guys we would not have been happy about it. So all of that was discussed.”There was appreciation from the ECB chief executive David Collier and the ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat, both of whom acknowledged the appeal for the run-out was a valid one. “The withdrawal of a valid appeal at the tea interval was made in the spirit of cricket by the India team and demonstrates the true spirit in which the game of cricket should be played and the excellent relationship between the ECB and BCCI,” Collier said in a statement. “On behalf of the ECB I wish to express the England and Wales Cricket Board’s grateful thanks the BCCI and the India team.”Lorgat said the withdrawal of the appeal showed great maturity on the part of India. “The initial appeal and umpire decision may have been acceptable to the letter of the law, the decision by India captain MS Dhoni and his team – as well as the Team India coaching staff – to withdraw the appeal shows great maturity. To see players and officials uphold the great spirit of cricket, which has underpinned the game for more than a century, is very special.”

ScorecardRyan Sidebottom produced a four-wicket burst before Yorkshire were frustrated by Somerset’s 10th-wicket pair on day two of the rain-hit County Championship match at Headingley.Former England paceman Sidebottom reduced the visitors to 215 for 9 with a lively spell of four for 14 in eight overs, but Alfonso Thomas and Steve Kirby then added 50 for the last wicket as Somerset were all out for 265. The partnership would not have got going if Thomas’ edge off Ajmal Shahzad had been taken by wicketkeeper Jonny Bairstow, but neither he nor Adam Lyth at first slip moved, the ball bisecting them on its way to the boundary.Somerset were finally all out in 74 overs, leaving lowly Yorkshire to negotiate nine overs. They reached the close on 20 without loss. For the second day running, rain prevented any play during the morning session and it was 1.45pm before Somerset were able to resume their first innings on 140 for three. Further interruptions for bad weather meant that a total of 52 overs in the day were lost.Alex Barrow was on 55 overnight and Jos Buttler 43, and Buttler showed the same aggressive intent of the first day by slamming two balls in Moin Ashraf’s opening over to the cover boundary to complete his half-century from 42 deliveries with 11 boundaries. But Buttler had added only one more run, reaching 52, when his middle stump was lifted out of the ground by Richard Pyrah to end a 63-run stand in 11 overs with opener Barrow.It was after more heavy rain and an early tea interval that Sidebottom began to scythe his way through Somerset’s batting. He began by having Barrow superbly caught one-handed low to his right at first slip by Anthony McGrath for a steady 69 from 143 balls with eight fours, and in the same over Craig Meschede was caught behind without scoring.Peter Trego batted aggressively and leaned back to hammer Shahzad through the covers to bring Somerset a first batting bonus point at 202 for six, but the next ball was a perfect yorker which removed his middle stump.Wickets continued to tumble as Sidebottom gained lbw verdicts against Adam Dibble and Murali Kartik, but the late resistance from Thomas and Kirby denied him a five-wicket haul. Yorkshire lost some of their poise after Thomas’ escape and both batsmen appeared to survive low chances to Lyth at first slip before Adil Rashid came on for the first time to bowl Thomas round his legs for 49 off 68 balls with six fours, Kirby being quite content to survive on 15 against his former county.Kirby and Thomas were in action again with the new ball but Joe Root and Yorkshire captain Joe Sayers played out the remaining overs without any cause for alarm.

Mohammad Kaif has stepped down as captain of Uttar Pradesh [UP] after six years in the role. He would like to remain a part of the side, he said, as a batsman.”I am happy with my stint as captain of the UP side. In the last six years, we reached four finals and once won the [Ranji] title,” Kaif told in Bangalore, where he is with Royal Challengers Bangalore for the Champions League T20. “But now I want to play just as a batsman. I informed him [UP Cricket Association secretary Rajiv Shukla] about this after the Challenger Trophy. There is no dearth of talent in the state. Whoever is chosen [as the next captain], I will support him.”India batsman Suresh Raina has been named captain, while RP Singh will be his deputy.Kaif was named captain for the 2005-06 domestic season, leading UP to their maiden Ranji title that year, as well as the final of the domestic one-day tournament, which they lost to Railways. UP has made two Ranji finals under Kaif since, losing to Delhi in 2007-08 and Mumbai in 2008-09.UP play their first Ranji fixture of the 2011-12 season against Punjab from November 3.

ScorecardMitchell Marsh returned from South Africa to cut through the Bulls’ batting•Getty Images

Newly arrived from his Australia debut in South Africa, Mitchell Marsh plucked 6 for 84 for Western Australia to help bowl out Queensland for 273 on day one of the Sheffield Shield match at the WACA ground. On a lively pitch that aided swing and seam across the day, the Warriors’ reply was wobbly, reaching 3 for 71 at the close as Matthew Gale grabbed two wickets on debut.Marcus North was unbeaten on 30 and Adam Voges was on 9, and Western Australia still trailed by 202 runs. However, it was Marsh’s haul, aided by his employment of a full length, that dominated the day, demonstrating his potential as a strike bowler in addition to his batting talents.Twice Marsh was on a hat-trick, dismissing Nathan Reardon and Chris Hartley with consecutive full, swinging balls then later repeating the feat against Cameron Gannon and Gale.Marsh was taken for a few runs late in the innings, as Steve Paulsen made a fluent unbeaten 90 in his second Shield match, the major Bulls contribution besides 55 for Joe Burns.