Pak batsman Azhar Ali keen to play in all three cricket formats

"If given a chance I will definitely try to perform well in the twenty over and fifty over formats too", quoted Ali, as saying.

Ali admitted that the match conditions in the United Arab Emirates would be beneficial to Pakistan in the upcoming series.

"We have a slight edge over England when it comes to the conditions, but the England team is also preparing very hard for the series and will be very well prepared too when the matches begin," Ali said.

Ali has so far featured regularly in Tests as a batsman at the number 3 spot, and scored 12 half centuries and one century at an average of 42.

"I bat in accordance with my own style, I don't try to do things at the crease that are not my strengths, but the importance of my batting at the number three position adds more responsibility to my role," Ali said

Gavaskar blasts Team India ethic of skipping practice sessions for sightseeing

Gavaskar blasted India's work ethic following the innings and 68-run defeat in the second Test at Sydney.

"Christmas is big in Australia and it's understandable for Australian players taking off after first Test, but what were our players doing? Why were not they doing practice? Have they gone there for sightseeing or to play cricket?" Fox News quoted Gavaskar, as saying.

"The first Test ended on the fourth day and it's OK if they took off on the fifth day but why don't they do practice after that? I don't know what is the attitude of the players.
While on tour they should practice, practice and practice to have in proper frame of mind to be competitive. Why nobody is asking questions? These questions should be asked," he added.

Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni stressed that his side have got sufficient practice for the Test, and has advised them to switch to recreational activities to help them de- stress.

"You don't want to over-do it. There may be a few individuals who want to spend a bit more time on the field but I feel it's always important to switch off in cricket," Dhoni said.

"It helps you de-stress a bit and helps you to come back in a positive state of mind. I feel that rather than spending more and more time on the field practicing, we need to spend some time off the field in recreational activities and get some time off," he added

Conditions in UAE will favour Pakistan: Misbah

Talking to media Saturday after the conclusion of the team's week-long training session in eastern city Lahore, Misbah said Pakistan would have an advantage in the series against England, ranked No.1. The two teams will also play four ODIs and three Twenty20s after the Test series.

"We know the conditions in the UAE as we have played a lot of cricket there so we have become used to the venues so that will definitely be an advantage for us," Misbah said.

While replying to the criticism over his defensive style of batting and captaincy Misbah defended his strategy and said: "It is better to win by playing defensively, instead of losing by playing aggressively. It's all about the situation; what you are required to do or not do."

Talking about the conditions in the UAE, Misbah said that it would be challenging for both teams because taking wickets and scoring runs are difficult in slow pitches.

Pakistan's 14-member besides officials and team staff will leave for the UAE Monday and Pakistan will play its first Test match against England Jan 17 in Dubai.

Pakistani team officials and captain also hoped that they would go for the game while forgetting the 2010 tragedy of spot fixing allegation on Pakistani players during their visit to England.

The Pakistan Cricket Board has already given specific and strict instructions to the players to focus only the game and avoid any kind of controversy during the series against English team.

In 2011, Pakistan had an impressive record as they did not lose any of the Test series they played and qualified for the semi-finals of the World Cup in India.

Pakistan is scheduled to play three Test matches, four One-Day International and two Twenty20 matches against England

Injured Pattinson hopeful of return to ODI squad

The lanky seamer picked up the foot injury during the second Test at the SCG, where the hosts won by an innings and 68 runs.

"It's not as bad as first thought. I'll probably miss two Test matches and then I will probably look to play the One-dayers, so it's not all bad," Pattinson was quoted as saying by 'Fox Sports'.

Pattinson admitted that he was not hundred per cent fit during India's second innings because he had experienced similar pain in the foot before.

"I reported a bit of pain to (physiotherapist) Alex (Kountouris) during the second innings and it was just sort of getting worse and worse," he said.

"I have had a stress fracture in my foot before and I know the feeling, so I just reported that and said it felt similar. So he just got me to get a scan and it showed there was a hot spot," he added

Sachin, Dravid and VVS slip in ICC Test rankings; Clarke jumps to 8th

While batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar's inability to reach the elusive 100th international ton made him slip two places to the sixth position, Dravid falling four spots to 15th and Laxman slipping one place to the 18th spot.

Sehwag has fallen out of the top 20, in 22nd position, after conceding four places.

Meanwhile, after notching an unbeaten triple ton in the second Test against India at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG), Aussie skipper Michael Clarke has rocketed his way into the top 10 of the ICC Player Rankings for Test batsmen for the first time in 15 months.

This is Clarke's best ranking since his eighth position which he had achieved after the Mohali Test against India in October 2010. The charismatic skipper has also become his side's highest-ranked batsman after leapfrogging veteran southpaw Michael Hussey.

While, Hussey has moved up four places to 12th position after scoring an unconquered 150, former captain Ricky Ponting, who was the third centurion in the SCG Test, has also gained a place and is now in 23rd spot.

The other batters who have improved their rankings are veteran Protea all-rounder Jacques Kallis and his teammates AB de Villiers and Alviro Petersen.

For Sri Lanka, Thilan Samaraweera is the only batsman to make an upward movement.

Meanwhile, in the ICC Player Rankings for Test bowlers, Aussie pacer Ben Hilfenhaus has continued his impressive form and has broken into the top 20 for the maiden time in his career.

Hilfenhaus, who had figures of 3-51 and 5-106, has jumped 11 places to claim 11th position. The 28-year-old Tasmanian is just two ratings points behind 10th-ranked Daniel Vettori of New Zealand.

South Africa's Vernon Philander has also gained seven places to claim a career-best ranking of 21st after match figures of six for 100.

Meanwhile, after wrapping up its three-Test series against Sri Lanka on Friday with a crushing win in Cape Town, South Africa gained one ratings point, keeping it in the third position in the ICC Test Team Championship table.

Nevertheless, the good news for Graeme Smith's side is that it will will be ranked second when the Test Championship table is next updated after the Adelaide Test.

This is because India's successive defeats in Australia means the best Mahendra Singh Dhoni's side can now achieve is a two-all draw which will not be enough to keep it ahead of South Africa on the Championship table.

If the series in Australia ends in a draw, then India and South Africa will be locked at 117 ratings points but the Proteas will be ranked ahead of India when the ratings are calculated beyond the decimal point.

However, if Australia makes a clean sweep of the series, then both sides will be locked at 111 ratings points, but India will still be ranked above Australia by a fraction of a point.

Meanwhile, in the ICC Player Rankings for Test all-rounders, Kallis has returned to second position, which he had conceded after a disappointing Durban Test.

Kallis backed up his double-century with second innings figures of three for 35 which have helped him sit just nine ratings points behind Shakib Al Hasan of Bangladesh - the man who ended his reign of three thousand, six hundred and ninety-six days at the top of the all-rounders' ranking by becoming the first Bangladesh player to score a century and take five wickets in the same innings of a Test against Pakistan last month.

Cricket Australia in no hurry to rush injured pacers for comeback

Cummins still cannot put the weight of his body through the foot he injured in South Africa and is running on a machine used by Sydney Swans footballers to reduce the load as he continues his slow recovery.

“The injury is healing slowly. It’s frustrating not to be playing. It’s going to take some time before I can get back out there, so I can’t put a date on it,” Cummins said.

Pattinson, who showed the first signs of a stress reaction in his foot towards the end of the second Test against India, wants to return for the one-day series against India and Sri Lanka but CA’s team performance manager, Pat Howard, suggested a comeback towards the end of that tournament was more realistic, The Sydney Morning Herald reports.

He suffered a similar injury, to a different bone in the same foot, two years ago but medical staff believes early detection this time has saved him from a worse injury.

“We won’t rush him back. We’ll look to bring him back later in the [one-day] series depending on what players are available and where we are at that stage,” Howard said of Pattinson.

With three fast bowlers aged 21 or younger developing foot stress injuries - Josh Hazlewood also broke down last week - Howard said CA was gathering as much data as possible and initiated a review of its injury-management practices.

CA keeps data on each bowler going back several years. Pattinson’s recent workload meant he was due to be rested for the second or third Test against India anyway, despite being one of Australia''s most dangerous bowlers

Akram fears another 0-4 drubbing for India

India are trailing 0-2 in the four-match Border-Gavasakar Trophy series after suffering massive losses in Melbourne and Sydney. The innings defeat at Sydney was India's sixth successive Test loss.

"Winning matters, but to win overseas is the real thing. India does well in their backyard but are found wanting when they play on foreign pitches. When I was playing, Pakistan had won in New Zealand, Australia, West Indies and England and that made us a top side," Akram was quoted as saying by espnstar.com.

Akram feels there is something seriously wrong in India's planning and execution.

"India are seriously looking out of sorts. There seems to be no planning in the team. Players are just looking like individuals and not gelling as a unit. This is surprising, considering the fact that almost the same team were world No. 1 just a few months back," he said.

Referring to India's humiliating loss in Sydney, Akram said: "India lost the plot on the second day itself. It was disheartening to see the fielders lose hope as the Aussie batsmen piled on the runs. The lack of coordination between players made me feel that India are going to field for another two days."

"The seniors were not talking with their young bowlers. It was only Sachin Tendulkar whom I saw chatting with Ishant Sharma. Such body language was very unlike Dhoni and company."

Akram said India failed to capitalise the opportunity when Australia were reduced to three for 37 in the first innings.

"Australia were three down for 37 on Day 2 and it was the opportune time for India to strike hard. But as soon as Ponting and Clarke took control, the complexion of the Indian attack changed for the worse in just six or seven overs. The shoulders drooped and the fielding became dull. So, the overall body language was very negative," he said.

Finally, a cricket reality show on Indian TV

The show is being launched in association with New Delhi-based Indraprastha All India Sports Foundation. Cricketers like Irfan Pathan, Yusuf Pathan, Keerti Aazad and Piyush Chawla among others will be mentors on the show.

"There is a definite attraction for such a show on cricket. Our main target audience at UTV Bindass is the youth, who will be happy to see revered icons like Irfan Pathan mentoring young cricket enthusiasts on how to play professionally," Keith Alphonso, the channel's business head, told IANS over phone from Mumbai.

The basic concept of the show is to choose players, who have the talent but not the opportunity.

The markets in which "Cricket Champs" will hunt for the players will be Mumbai, Kolkata, New Delhi, Chandigarh, Jaipur, Chennai, Bangalore and Patna. It will also travel to other states - Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh.

The cricketers will be chosen in two categories -- Under-16 and Under-22, and the on-ground hunt for the show will begin Jan 17, 2012, in the capital.

The selected candidates will be divided into eight teams.

The winner of "Cricket Champs" will win a cash prize of Rs.1 million, while the top 10 players will be given a chance to be coached by some renowned names in Indian cricket.

"Cricket is a religion in India. So after music and dance reality shows, it was time do a reality show on cricket. Like the 'Indian Idol', this is a version of 'cricket idol'," Rohini Rajdev, chairperson, Indraprastha All India Sports Foundation, told IANS.

"Through the show, we are not promising a place in the Indian cricket team. But it will prove to be a worthy platform where they can show their talent, learn new things and prove themselves," added Rajdev. 

Dravid's wicked off no ball fired up Peter Siddle

The Victorian’s extra efforts helped him get through Sachin Tendulkar’s defences, dismissing him for 73 just 11 runs later in India’s first innings.

Siddle also claimed Tendulkar’s wicket in second innings, caught at gully for 32.

“It’s just the emotion out on the field. It’s something that just happens,” Siddle, who boosted his career tally to 97 wickets at an average of 30.78 in 28 Tests, said today.

“I had the disappointment of the no-ball which caused me to get a bit fired-up and get into it. It has never spilled over too far. We know how far we can go. It’s nothing silly. It’s a good Test battle out on the field,” he said.

Siddle admitted that being in and out of the side had been tough. “With the disappointment of missing the first two Tests in Sri Lanka (in August-September), I knew I had to change a few things,” he said. 

Jesse Ryder faces fitness problem

Wright admitted all was not well with Ryder’s fitness, and New Zealand’s strength and conditioning coach, Chris Donaldson, and physiotherapist, Paul Close, were working overtime on a plan to help Ryder shed some weight. 

“We’ve worked hard with him, but obviously there’s an issue there and we’ve got to get to the bottom of it,” Wright told The Dominion Post.

The 27-year-old is currently recovering from a grade two right calf strain, suffered during an innocuous canter in the field for Wellington on Tuesday. 

It means up to a month on the sidelines, and was almost identical to the left calf strain he suffered while bowling in the lead-up to the November test in Zimbabwe. 

“We want to work with Jesse and get him fit and get him right. We’ll work out in the next few days how long that’s going to take,” said Wright. 

Wright said Ryder would have to prove his fitness in domestic cricket before being considered for selection. 

“He will have to play some cricket and show he can get through the rigours of a game,” he said.  

Misbah fears losing captaincy: Mohsin

"You have to understand that at his age, he worries about the fact that if he fails in one or two matches, the critics will be after him and he could be dropped," Mohsin was quoted as saying by the 'Express Tribune'.

"That's why he, at times, tends to play it safe. But he has gained confidence as captain and I have been telling him to forget about these things and focus on doing what he’s best at: leading the team by example," he added.

Mohsin also lauded the 37-year-old Misbah's captaincy and said he has developed an ideal working relationship with him.

"Misbah's an intelligent and composed captain and communicates well with the players. He has also quickly picked up the confidence to push for victories. In the last Test against Bangladesh, both of us decided on the spur of moment that even if we get 10 overs, we will go for victory and not settle for a draw," he said.

The former opener also hit back at critics who have accused him of being an armchair coach, not being physically active and holding long team meetings to the frustration of the players.

"People need to understand that the job of a coach is to make his players mentally strong and just guide and discuss strategies with them. You can not teach anything more to people like Misbah or Younus Khan at this stage," he said. 

We have to play above our level of ability: Taufeeq

"England have been performing very well and have a strong combination. We saw last summer, when India toured England, just what a powerful team they have. This series will be very competitive and tough for us and if we have to beat them, we will have to play above our level of ability," Taufeeq was quoted as saying by the 'Express Tribune'.

Taufeeq expects bowlers to hold the key in the series, which will be played on batting-friendly tracks in the UAE, conditions that England are not very used to.

"A world-class bowler will perform well on any surface. England have a world-class bowling attack and they know how to bowl in the conditions they will encounter in the UAE. However, we have done well against South Africa and Sri Lanka there and we can give England a hard time too," he said.

Meanwhile, heaping praises on the captaincy of Misbahul Haq, the southpaw said the 37-year-old Misbah has been leading the side from the front since taking over the reins of the side.

"Misbah sets the right example for the rest of us to follow and the team's success is down to his efforts. His attitude is very professional and friendly, and all the boys feel very comfortable with him," Taufeeq said. 

A scream that reaped a score

By indulging in a spot of impromptu primal scream therapy following his Boxing Day dismissal in Melbourne, Michael Hussey betrayed the frustrations of a dire run of scores. Having yelled to the heavens for a little more good fortune as he marched off the field, Hussey duly received it in the second innings, making a pivotal 89 with the help of a dropped catch and an edge behind that was not detected by the umpires.

That performance, in a partnership of great value with Ricky Ponting, shored up Hussey's place in Australia's immediate plans, after a sequence of innings in which he had been getting out at all the wrong times. As perplexing for Hussey were the ways in which technology had conspired against him. InHobart he was lbw first ball on referral, then at the MCG he was given out for another golden duck without having recourse to refer due to India's reluctance to employ the DRS.

"I said something like 'give us a break'," Hussey said of his scream. "I just felt like I'd been preparing so well, I felt really good in my mind, I felt like I'd been hitting the ball really well in the last couple of months but I hadn't felt like I'd got any reward for the hard work that I'd been putting in. I was almost just yelling at the cricket gods really to give me a break here, you know? I probably got a bit of a break in the second innings so it's amazing how the game works."

The DRS shall remain a point of conjecture throughout the series, and Hussey maintained Australia's support of it, while offering some reservations about the veracity of ball-tracking technology.

"I'm a fan of the DRS just to give the umpires a helping hand there for one, but also just because we want to get more correct decisions in the match," he said. "I do still think that the technology can be improved, I'm not 100% convinced that there's complete accuracy with the tracking system of the ball. Which is, I believe, one of the reasons the Indians don't want to use it and that's fair enough.

"I'd have to say that I think the umpires did an outstanding job. They've got to make a decision within a split second on what they see and they don't have the benefit of doing the slow-mo replays, having the technology to make their decision. Generally speaking, the umpires down in Melbourne did a great job."

As fortunate as Hussey was at times in the second innings, he also made his own luck by pursuing runs purposefully and aggressively from a position where Australia might easily have been bowled out for their third score of less than 100 within 12 months. Hussey's first 20 balls, the subject of a dressing room placard urging focus at the start of an innings, reaped 23 runs, and India's grip on the second innings slackened greatly thereafter.

"I didn't come out with any pre-conceived idea," Hussey said. "I felt in really good touch in my own mind ... it's just a case of being able to get away with a bit of a start. I was lucky enough to get a ball on my pads to start with and just by getting away early it can sometimes give you that confidence and impetus to continue playing positively.

"They were attacking obviously, because they had us in a lot of trouble. That opened up scoring opportunities for us and enabled Ricky and I to get a little partnership together and quite a positive one. It was really tough. I think Ishant Sharma was bowling up around 150km/h and it's what Test cricket is all about."

From that base Australia built up to one of the team's most satisfying Test victories of 2011, causing Hussey's duties as leader of the team chant to be played out with particular gusto in the middle of the MCG some hours after the win was completed.

"A very, very satisfying innings and partnership with Ricky," Hussey said. "There's no greater feeling to come in with your team under pressure and to be able to get a partnership to where your team can win the match. When you do go on and win the match you can sit back and after that game and really remember such great feelings. That's where you get your respect from your peers, just going out and doing the business in a real pressure situation. Just a fantastic win by the boys."