Sports Minister MS Gill, on Monday, opposed the BCCI stance on the “whereabout” clause of the World Anti-Doping Agency and said the cricketers should fall in line without cribbing.

Dismissing the claim that the clause, which requires players to inform their whereabouts three months in advance for out-of-competition testing, was an infringement on their privacy, Gill said that was not the case.

“We have accepted WADA regulatory testing and we adhere to it. Sportsperson should be clear in one thing that it is not getting into someone’s life,” Gill told reporters after the state sports ministers’ conference here.

The voice of dissent among the cricketers seemed to have surprised the Minister who pointed out that most of the sportspersons across the world have already signed it.

“All sportsperson should adhere to it and happily follow it as so many sports federations and players are following it,” Gill said.

The “whereabout” clause of the WADA code has ruffled many feathers here with the BCCI convening an emergency working committee meeting in Mumbai, on Sunday, attended by India captain MS Dhoni and senior players Harbhajan Singh and Yuvraj Singh.

After the meeting, BCCI President Shashank Manohar said the Board had no issues with out-of-competition testing of the 11 cricketers in the WADA pool but the “whereabout” clause was not only an infringement of their privacy but also posed security risks.

The BCCI has asked ICC, a WADA signatory, to explore the possibilities of having a separate anti-doping mechanism of its own.

Gill, however, felt that WADA was championing a good cause and every one should support its bid for a dope-free world.

“We should support WADA in its cause. The world is concerned about doping and we should support WADA,” Gill said.

The Sports Minister said India was serious about it and it was an achievement in itself to have a WADA-accredited National Dope Testing Laboratory in the capital.

“Last year, we got the accreditation from WADA after so much effort and we are proud to be associated with it.

“We have set up a dope testing laboratory next to Nehru Stadium and now Sweden is also sending samples of their players for testing. We should be proud of it,” Gill added.

Leading West Indian cricketers, including captain Chris Gayle, might have to sit out of the Champions Trophy in September as the country’s board has decided to stick to the original 30-man provisional squad which didn’t have their names.

The West Indies Cricket Board said the 30 players announced earlier for the Champions Trophy would remain, despite the end of the West Indies Players’ Association (WIPA) strike which had resulted in the top players missing the ongoing Bangladesh series in protest.

This would mean that top players like Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Ramnaresh Sarwan and Dwayne Bravo, besides Gayle, who were the leading lights of the pay dispute strike could miss the September 22 to October 5 tournament.

Fast bowler Fidel Edwards and Darren Powell, who also took part in the strike, however, made the cut to the 30-man preliminary squad made up of inexperienced players.

“This squad was chosen from among those players who declared themselves available for selection for the tournament within the deadline date for finalisation of the 30,” a WICB media release said.

“Selection of players by the selection committee of the WICB will at all times be made from the pool of players who make themselves available for selection and based on performance, conduct and demonstrated commitment to West Indies cricket.”

None of the striking players were included in the ODI squad against Bangladesh, which will be captained by 36-year-old Barbadian Floyd Reifer with Darren Sammy as his deputy.

Gayle and some players had made themselves unavailable for the Bangladesh series over pay and contract issues and resulted in a makeshift Windies side being hastily assembled for the two-Test series against Bangladesh.

Following a meeting between the WICB, WIPA and CARICOM chairman, Guyana’s president Bharrat Jagdeo on Tuesday, it was agreed that the players would make themselves available for selection while the outstanding issues were taken to arbitration.

Former Commonwealth Secretary General Shridath Ramphal was appointed as an arbitrator.

Following the end of strike it was expected that leading players would return for Sunday’s first One-dayer against Bangladesh after a weakened squad lost both matches of the two-Test series but the WICB did otherwise.

“They (are) not picking us for the first two games; so I guess that sums up the situation,” said Gayle.

“They are the boss playing hard ball,” he added. The bulk of the 30-man provisional Champions Trophy squad comprises inexperienced players who contested the Bangladesh series, many of whom have precious little international or first-class experience.

September onwards, it’s going to be non-stop cricket for the Indian cricket team. Starting with the Sri Lankan tri-series to the 2010 
 
Twenty20 World Cup in the West Indies, it’s going to be one long journey. And keeping in mind the heavy workload the players are going to be subjected to, the selectors are chalking out plans to make optimum use of about 25 core players in the scheme of things.

To start with, thought is being given to the pace-bowling department which will be under the maximum stress. With only two genuine strike bowlers in the squad – Zaheer Khan and Ishant Sharma – the likes of Praveen Kumar, Ashish Nehra and others need nurturing too so that a healthy pool of pacers is maintained.

“Eighty five per cent of the core team will remain unchanged in the course of the season ahead of us. But some new faces will also be inducted to expose them to international challenges,” a source informed.

Former fast bowlers who spoke on Sunday had mixed opinions on the issue. “We have to use the fast bowlers intelligently. Ideally, we should have a camp for the bowlers separately and work on their technique. This is something which hasn’t happened,” former swing bowler Manoj Prabhakar said.

Talking about Ishant, Prabakhar pointed out: “Ishant has some problem with his action. He doesn’t know how to control his front arm. His wrist position is also affected by it. The team management should look into it.”

Another former pacer, Roger Binny had this observation: “If you are not fit then it will show in your bowling. Breaking down is part of the game. Fortunately, we are not short of fast bowlers,” Binny said.

He also made a point about Ishant: “In 2004, when I first saw him in a Ranji match, I was impressed with the way he swung the ball. But last year, when I saw him again in the Asia Cup in Pakistan, I thought he was bowling very quickly, but wasn’t swinging the ball. Zaheer is so effective because he swings the ball. He also uses his experiences very well.”

According to Madan Lal, former medium-pacer, the decision to rest bowlers should be left to the players themselves. “Players know their body best. In India, the problem is that no one is willing to sit out and take rest. Everyone wants to play and that is something which is next to impossible.”

“Nehra is the perfect example. While there was always a question mark over his fitness, I had faith on his ability. Now that he has made a comeback into the Indian team, it’s his fitness that has made all the difference,” Lal added.

The crisis is West Indies cricket is getting deeper every day with the West Indies Players’ Association (WIPA) demanding an apology from the country’s board.

Thirteen leading West Indies players, including captain Chris Gayle, have gone on strike and boycotted the first Test against Bangladesh over pending contract issues. The West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) struggled to get a second string side that lost the match.

The WICB has asked the rebel players to apologies or face non-selection for the Champions Trophy in South Africa in September.

In retaliation, the WIPA has send a strongly worded letter to the WICB and demanded apology for mismanagement in the affairs of the board, reports the Trinidad Guardian.

The letter was laced with sarcasm and said: “We apologies for demanding that our members play with a contract clearly outlining the terms and conditions.

“For insisting that all contracts be negotiated by WIPA prior to their being offered to the players.

“For asking the WICB to honour the agreement and pay the medical treatment when players sustain injuries.

“For asking that the WICB honour the 2007-2008 agreement and compensate the players who have been injured.

“For asking the WICB to deposit funds it had deducted from the players’ salaries and which it failed to pay to the Players Provident Fund Account (Pension Plan) for almost a year.

“For asking the WICB to reimburse players who sometimes have to purchase their own airline tickets while on duty for the West Indies.

“For not having training camps and specialist camps for the preparation of the team.

“For accepting to play in a series against England at a time of year when no other team has ever played.

“For asking that the WICB not sell players’ intellectual property and image rights without permission.”

The Players, the association said, “would be willing to apologies if the players had:

“Lost Five (5) million US Dollars in the sanctioning of a one-off international 20/20.

“Lost three (3) million US Dollars as a result of breach of agreement.

“Spent one (1) million US Dollars in the courts in London unsuccessfully defending a legal action.

“Had to defend several other claims for breach of contract, including one where the estimated loss of revenue is $500,000.00 US Dollars per year.

“Lost almost US $10 million dollars in almost one year for breach of agreements with third parties.”

“A perusal of the above should indicate from where the apology should come,” it added.

WIPA chief executive Dinanath Ramnarine said the striking players are united in their stance.

“Although they want to play, they’re not going to back down under this pressure,” he said.

WICB vice-president Dave Cameron said he was not aware of the latest development, but made it clear that any player who wanted to make himself available for the second Test would be considered for selection in the Champions Trophy.

“I cannot say if any of the players changed their minds they would be back into the team for the second Test,, but I think that they should be given a look at,” Cameron said.

The presence of just three Indian cricketers in International Cricket Council’s Hall of Fame may have generated controversy in the country but the game’s governing body made it clear on Friday that more Indians will be added to the elite list.

The ICC said the list would be updated annually and have adequate Indian representation.

“This is not the final list. I do believe that a number of magnificent Indian cricketers deserve to be in the Hall of Fame. We will soon develop a mechanism and have plans to add more players to the list on an annual basis,” ICC president David Morgan said in a telephonic interview from London.

Former captains Bishan Singh Bedi, Sunil Gavaskar and Kapil Dev are only Indians in the 55-strong list that includes 22 Englishmen, 11 Australians, 13 West Indians, three from Pakistan, two South Africans and a lone New Zealander.

Strangely, not a single Sri Lankan made it to the list.

Morgan said when updated the list will look balanced.

“There would be balance among nations, on merit,” he added.

The list does not contain cricketers who retired post-1995.

Eminent Indians missing from the list include C K Nayudu, Lala Amarnath, Vijay Merchant, Vijay Hazare, Vinoo Mankad, Polly Umrigar, Subash Gupte, Erapalli Prasanna, Bhagwat Chandrasekhar and Gundappa Viswanath.

Among Englishmen, W G Grace, one of the pioneers of the game, has been included but not Ranjitsinhji, who invented the leg glance and scored close to 1000 runs for England.

Morgan also took the opportunity to rubbish the notion that India has been a bully in the ICC, arm-twisting the governing body because of its financial clout.

“I have never regarded India as a bully at the ICC. I refer to my experience with India at the ICC under the leadership of Mr Dalmiya, Mr Pawar and now Mr Shashank Manohar. I do not accept that India acts in a bullying fashion,” Morgan said.

He also sought to dispel the fear of an Indian takeover of the ICC when Sharad Pawar succeeds him as the ICC president.

“I have another year in office and have every confidence in Sharad Pawar that he would be a good leader when he takes over in a year’s time,” Morgan added.

The England cricket team is all set to chug along to Belgium on the Eurostar to get battle hardened for the first Ashes Test starting July 8 in Cardiff.

For any team, preparation for the Ashes is incomplete without a visit to the battlegrounds of Westeren Europe. Australia did it by visting Gallipolli (Turkey) in 2001 and Somme (France) in 2005 and now the England team is ready to embark on a secret trip to Belgium this weekend, The Daily Telegraph reported.

The daily said that England players were kept in dark about this trip but were asked to bring their passports to their Ashes training camp.

The team is expected to be in Belgium for two nights and the trip coincides with Armed Forces Day as a convenient bonus.

The outing marks the beginning of England’s 12-day build-up to the first Ashes Test.

As England head off for the trip, the good news for the fans is that key batsman Kevin Pietersen and charismatic all-rounder Andrew Flintoff have recovered from their injuries and are raring to go.

“My Achilles is OK. I’m waking up every single morning now absolutely fine and able to do all my exercises and routines and drills pain-free. I can use a skipping rope now but three weeks ago, on the morning of the Holland game, I couldn’t get down the stairs at my house,” said Pietersen.

Pietersen said that he had worked hard on his rehabilitation programme in an effort to overcome the injury before the first Test.

“I have seen too many players going into big series injured and coming out the other end worse. The improvements have been huge and from the mental side of things that is important,” he said.

The visitors may be short on star power but West Indies will do well not to underestimate the lesser known Indian cricketers, coach of the home side John Dyson said.

The visiting Indian team is without their star players Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag and Zaheer Khan. Instead, the team under Mahendra Singh Dhoni has the likes of Abhishek Nayar, S Badrinath and Murali Vijay in the ranks — players who are virtually unknown to the West Indies.

Dyson said the hosts would make a mistake if they take the Indian rookies lightly in the four-match ODI series starting at Sabina Park on Friday.

“We don’t know how they’re going to perform and that’s something we have to monitor as the series progresses,” Dyson said.

Dyson arrived in Jamaica on Tuesday with six other West Indies players, including Trinidadian Darren Bravo, Dwayne’s brother and the coach felt the youngster stood a good chance in the series.

“If you look at the possible side that could walk out on the field, we have an extra batsman, we have an all-rounder who is also a very good batsman, normal pace and reserved pace which is good and spinner. Hopefully, (Chris) Gayle will be providing back-up spin to him,” he said.

New Zealand Prime Minister John Key on Thursday hosted an official dinner for the visiting Indian team which was also attended by Daniel Vettori-led national side at the parliament here.

Welcoming Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s men and the Kiwis, John Key quipped that the tight finishes in the matches between the two teams had made for some sleepless nights in his household.

“I have a 13-year-old son (Max), who is the cricket follower in our household. These tight late games are playing havoc with the schedule in our house because every time I return from a function late in the night, my son is watching cricket. So these tight finishes have made for some sleepless nights in our household,” said Key.

“I told him that I was going to meet the cricketers from the Indian and New Zealand teams and he gave me a list of names from both sides whose autographs he wanted. So Dhoni and Daniel, if I come up and ask for some autographs, it is not for me, it is for my son Max,” he added.

Talking about the attacks on the Sri Lankan cricketers in Lahore on Tuesday, Key said, “I would like to say quite simply it was a despicable act and the government, like everyone, was shocked and condemns what took place.”

“It must be very upsetting for many of the players who are here this evening. Our hearts go out to the players and to the families of those who were killed in the attacks,” Key said.

“It is the intention of the New Zealand government to send a message to the Sri Lankan cricket team. Also, cricket is a gentleman game and when you start seeing terrorism translating into attacks on international teams, you know the world is taking a very unsafe step and one that we must all stand up and condemn,” he added.

Key also recalled the feats two greats of India and New Zealand cricket, Kapil Dev and Sir Richard Hadlee. “The history of cricket between New Zealand and India is one that goes back a long way. Those of us who play a bit of backyard cricket are just as likely to be belting out the names of Sachin Tendulkar or Bishan Bedi as we do the names of a New Zealand player.

“I fondly remember that back in 1990, when Sir Richard Hadlee took his 400th wicket, Sanjay Manjrekar and the Indian cricket team responded by presenting him with 400 roses. A few years later, Kapil Dev set the record for the most Test wickets by bowling out Blair Hartland to equal the mark of 431 wickets,” he recalled.

He also commended former New Zealand batsman John Wright for his notable performance as India coach. “We must also acknowledge John Wright who has been a very successful coach with the Indian team.”

While wishing both teams success, Key said, “The real winners will be the New Zealand public who will get to watch some fabulous cricket.”

Responding to Key’s address, Indian captain Dhoni said, “For most of us, the youngsters who are part of this Indian team, it is our first trip to New Zealand. In the last 10 days that we have spent over here, we have found out whatever we have heard about New Zealand, it is exactly the same. It is a beautiful country and has wonderful people.

“We as the Indian cricket team acknowledge the fact that we are here to entertain you throughout this summer.

“Hopefully, we will make your good summer even better. As far as Mr Prime Minister is concerned, me and Daniel will talk to our respective teams and tell them not to take the game till the last over or the last few overs so that we can take a bit of tension away from you (Mr Key),” Dhoni said.

Thirteen of the 28 players, who have been offered central contracts by the Pakistan Cricket Board, are reluctant to sign the deal in the backdrop of the ban on them from playing in the cash-rich Indian Premier League.

The players, many of them seniors, want to have a meeting with PCB Chairman Ejaz Butt on the financial terms offered to the players because of the changed circumstances.

“Among the leading players, Shoaib Akhar and Shoaib Malik have signed their contracts the rest are junior players or not regular members of the national side. But 13 of the players are reluctant to sign the contracts now,” one source said.

The source said the feeling among senior players including Younis Khan, Misbah-ul Haq, Shahid Afridi and Umar Gul was that the Board needed to support the players who would lose a lot financially because of the IPL ban.

“Some of the players also want the clauses dealing with players going abroad to play to be reviewed.”

The source said the players wanted the Board to offer a better contract in view of the changed scenario on the IPL.

When the contracts were offered to the players, Shoaib Malik was the captain and was consulted in the finalisation of the clauses but he has since been sacked and replaced by senior batsman Younis Khan.

The source said the players were now looking towards English county cricket and Australian Sheffield shield contracts after the ban on playing in the IPL to recover something financially.

“But they want the Board to remove any caps or conditions on players who are offered contracts by foreign teams.”

The Board has also formed a committee to review the contracts and see if any deserving players have been left out.

Pakistan’s chief selector Abdul Qadir has hinted that some of the under-performing senior players could be rested for the two-match Test series that begins in Karachi next month.

A former leg-spinner, Qadir, said Pakistani cricketers showed lack of spirit and commitment in their shocking 234-run defeat in the in the last match of the One-day series against Sri Lanka in Lahore last week.

As a result, national selectors are considering several changes in the team, he said, without naming the players likely to be axed.

Senior players like comeback fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar, all-rounder Shahid Afridi and wicket-keeper Kamran Akmal were among the biggest failures in the series against Sri Lanka.

Pakistani officials are giving the two-match Test series against Sri Lanka a lot of importance as it would serve as a dress rehearsal for Pakistan’s tour of Sri Lanka this July. Pakistan will play three-Tests and five One-dayers during the tour.

Qadir said all the leading players will be provided ample opportunities to prove their form and fitness ahead of the Test. He said the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) will stage two five-day selection matches in Karachi and Lahore.

Karachi will host the first Test from Feb 22 and the second in Lahore.