Hayden warns Pietersen to expect long recovery
Matthew Hayden has warned Kevin Pietersen that his comeback from an Achilles injury could be the toughest battle of his career, after it was confirmed the England batsman was admitted to a central London hospital for treatment on an infection in the stitching of his surgically-repaired right ankle.

Pietersen, who underwent the operation two-and-a-half weeks ago after England's victory in the second Test at Lord's, is expected to be discharged on Wednesday after spending two nights in hospital. He has been placed on a course of antibiotics and will be reassessed later in the week before resuming his rehabilitation programme, but Hayden, who also sustained a high-profile Achilles problem during the first season of IPL, said that it was a problem that was unlikely to go away.

Hayden's own Achilles problem did not require surgery, but it nevertheless curtailed his international career. He missed Australia's 2008 tour of the Caribbean and averaged just 23.93 in nine Tests thereafter. Despite harbouring ambitions to play through to the end of the current Ashes series, Hayden announced his retirement from international cricket in January.

Frankly, the hardest thing I ever had to do was come back from that, Hayden told Cricinfo's Switch-Hit podcast. My path was one of very gradual improvement over a long period of time. That was under very strict guidelines and rehabilitation programmes, and it's to a point now thankfully, touch wood, it's brilliant, but it's [an issue] of constant maintenance. What I do know about any kind of tendinopathies, having suffered them right the way through my career, is that they are often a degenerative injury.

It's not like a hamstring where you go out and pull it, and you spend a number of weeks getting back in through rehab. These are degenerative tendons, so ever since Kevin Pietersen has been running around on the plains of Africa, he would have been wearing out his Achilles tendon. Being such a big bloke, as is often the case with very long levers, it tends to increase the degree of injury. He's got a long road to go, there's no question about that.

Pietersen's setback in his road to recovery was confirmed on Tuesday afternoon in a statement from the ECB. He was seen by a wound care specialist yesterday and will receive a course of antibiotics in order to exclude infection, read the statement.

Medical advice is that a complication can occur post surgery and in this case resulted despite Kevin closely following specialist advice on management of the wound. He will be reassessed by the specialist later this week and will return to his planned programme of rehabilitation once the wound has fully healed.

Pietersen's operation was conducted by a leading Swedish specialist, who was flown in at the ECB's behest, and an initial estimate was that he would be out of cricket for six weeks.

That may now have to be revised. The operation, which Pietersen underwent after labouring to twin scores of 32 and 44 in the Lord's Test, involved a small incision and t of the blood vessels and nerves around the inflamed tendon and was considered, in a statement from Nick Peirce, the ECB's chief medical officer, to have been routine.

Kevin will look to undertake a comprehensive rehabilitation programme to ensure there is no risk of recurrence, said Peirce at the time. This is expected to be approximately six weeks but will be taken at an appropriate pace following constant review.

Pietersen was never in contention to be fit for the remainder of the Australia tour, and his initial target was the tour of South Africa which gets underway with the Champions Trophy on September 22.

However, England's national selector, Geoff Miller, admitted to Cricinfo that there were already concerns about his long-term fitness. I'm hopeful he will be fit [for South Africa], said Miller. I wouldn't say I'm confident, but I'm very, very hopeful, because he's an integral part of the side.

In Pietersen's absence, England's middle order has struggled to match his authoritative style of batting, and at Headingley this week, Nos 3, 4 and 5 - Ravi Bopara, Ian Bell and Paul Collingwood - mustered 16 runs for six dismissals, the lowest combined tally in Test history.

I hate missing matches for England and especially during an Ashes summer but now that the decision has been made to undergo surgery I'm confident I can return to the England team injury-free following a course of rehabilitation, said Pietersen at the time of his injury.

Pakistan beat Srilanka by 52 runs in t20

Younus said that as skipper, he accepted responsibility for the dismal showing. I accept the responsibility of defeat, but will not apologise to anyone nor will I resign as captain because it's part of the game to lose and win, he was quoted as saying. Younus, 31, is not part of the team playing the only Twenty20 match against Sri Lanka in Colombo on Wednesday, having resigned from the newest form of the game after guiding Pakistan to the World T20 title in England in June. Younus rounded on the campaign to oust him as captain. I am trying my level best to lead the team and achieve the best results but some people want me to relinquish the captaincy, which I won't. Am I not a good captain, or do I lack leadership qualities? he said. Former Pakistan players have launched a scathing attack on Younus, also demanding the head of coach Intikhab Alam, manager Yawar Saeed and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) officials. Pakistan, needing 97 runs with eight wickets intact, lost the first Test at Galle by 50 runs. They were also well set at 285-1 in the second innings of the second Test in Colombo, before losing the match by seven wickets. Resignations should come from top to bottom after the humiliating defeats, former chief selector and international spinner Abdul Qadir said. Younus told Jang that the team's success in the last two one-day matches showed it was able to win in Sri Lanka. We won the last two one-day matches by huge margins, and it proved that the team had the capacity and the talent to win the Tests and one-day matches. But due to the batsmen's inconsistency, we failed to finish properly, he said. Younus defended team unity after criticism from former players and the media. There were no differences in the team. In fact I can say that the team was never as united as it was during the Sri Lanka tour, Younus said, rejecting match-fixing allegations levelled against the team. Baseless allegations are affecting the team's performances, he said, after reports emerged of bookmakers trying to contact Pakistani players in their Colombo hotel during the Tests last month. No one should doubt my integrity. I can never resort to any wrongdoing.

Pakistan pace bowler Saeed Ajmal has been fined 15% of his match fee in the Twenty20 international in Colombo.

Ajmal was charged under Level 1.6 of the ICC's code of conduct after pointing to the pavilion and exchanging words with Sangakkara following the home captain's dismissal.

The incident was reported by on-field umpires Asoka de Silva and Tyron Wijewardene as well as third umpire Gamini Silva and fourth official Gamini Dissanayake.

Elite panel match referee Alan Hurst said of the incident: In coming to my decision I took into account the fact the player immediately recognised his error of judgement and apologised to both umpires. He also did so to Kumar Sangakkara after the game.

The player had no previous instances of this type of behaviour but it was pointed out to him during the hearing that his actions were a clear breach of the ICC Code of Conduct and something seen not only on the replay screen at the ground but also by the many millions of people watching on television around the world.

This type of action cannot be tolerated as it does not promote the playing of the game in the expected positive spirit.

Gul, who picked up the back strain in Sri Lanka during training, said he would recover in time for next month's Champions Trophy in South Africa.

The doctors have told me to take complete rest for 15 days and then resume light training. I am confident that I will be 100 per cent fit for the Champions trophy, Gul told reporters at the National Stadium here.

Gul said he had overcome fitness problems earlier in his career including a career threatening back stress fracture.

I know what to do and how to recover from this injury so I am not concerned or worried that I might not be fit in time for the Champions trophy, said Gul, who was Pakistan's star performer in their Twenty20 World Cup victory.

He said his 15-day rest could be a blessing in disguise as he would get a complete break from cricket for two weeks.



It would allow us to go into the Champions Trophy fresh.

Because in a big tournament like this you need to be in your best shape in every match as one bad day or spell can cost you a shot at the title, he said.

Gul and other members of the Pakistan's T20 World Cup winning squad took part in a friendly Twenty20 match last night in Karachi to celebrate the country's Independence Day although he didn't bowl. Younus made it clear that he had no issues with the senior players in the team and would give them a fair chance even if they were struggling.

Whether it is Misbah-ul-Haq, Shoaib Malik, Mohammad Yousuf I don't believe in dropping them just on the basis of few bad performances, he said.

I believe if a player is to be dropped or rested he must be given a fair chance to prove himself, said Younus who will be leaving for England on a charity drive for the displaced people of Swat.

I was asked to take back retirement decision: Younus
KARACHI : Captain Younus Khan revealed turning down a request from the cricket board Chairman Ejaz b*tt to lead the team in the Twenty20 International in Sri Lanka.
Younus, who announced his retirement from Twenty20 cricket after winning the World Cup in England in June, confirmed during a talk show in private channel that b*tt had spoken to him about the captaincy issue when he visited Colombo.
b*tt told me I should lead the team in the Twenty20 match as well and take back my decision to retire, Younus said.
But I told the Chairman that if I take back my retirement decision, people will laugh at me. I don't fancy such a situation and my decision not to play Twenty20 cricket is final, he said.
Eventually the board named Shahid Afridi to lead Pakistan in the one off Twenty20 match in Sri Lanka which Pakistan won comfortably and Afridi is now tipped to continue as captain until the next World Twenty20 in the West Indies in mid 2010.
Younus also maintained there were no difference within the team but if any player had any problem with him, he was willing to sit down and talk over things.

Trott confirmed for Oval debut
Warwickshire's Jonathan Trott will make his Test debut in the Ashes decider at The Oval on Thursday, after being confirmed as Ravi Bopara's replacement in a 14-man squad for the crucial fifth Test. Trott is expected to slot into the middle order, with his county team-mate, Ian Bell, promoted to No. 3. Monty Panesar also returns to the reckoning as a potential partner for Graeme Swann if England choose to go in with two spinners.

It's been a good few days for me, and I've picked a good one [to make my debut], Trott told Sky Sports. I went into the changing room last week [at Headingley] and I felt really welcome and comfortable, so I've just got to make sure my own mind and game is in order, and make sure I take my opportunity.

England's four-man selection panel - Geoff Miller, James Whitaker, Ashley Giles and Andy Flower, plus the captain, Andrew Strauss - met for five hours on Friday at Trent Bridge, where both Bell and Trott scored second-innings hundreds to secure a draw for Warwickshire against Nottinghamshire. Those performances were enough to convince them that wholesale changes were not required, despite the humiliation of England's innings-and-80-run defeat in the fourth Test at Headingley, meaning that the prospects of recalls for Mark Ramprakash and Robert Key receded.

The final Test match is an absolutely vital game for the team with so much at stake and we have had to make some difficult selection decisions in choosing our squad for The Oval, said the national selector, Geoff Miller. Jonathan Trott will make his Test debut. Having been part of the squad at Headingley, he was the next batsman in line in our view and this rewards him for the excellent form he has shown in county cricket both this summer and with England Lions over the winter.

Ian Bell will bat at No. 3 next week which is a position he has occupied for England before and we were delighted to see both him and Jonathan make centuries for Warwickshire this week.

The selectors have shown an admirable determination not to be hustled into panic measures after a week of intense media speculation. Strauss and Flower were understood to be particularly keen not to jettison their entire Ashes strategy after one poor game. Nevertheless, the decision to pitch a Test debutant into England's most eagerly anti ted fixture for four years, alongside Bell, who bagged a pair in the corresponding match in 2005 and whose temperament in pressure situations has often been shown to be suspect, will undoubtedly leave them open to further scrutiny.

Bell's average at No. 3 is a lowly 31.00, set against an overall figure of 39.84, suggesting he is a player who prefers to react to events on the pitch rather than set the agenda. Trott, meanwhile, was withdrawn from the England Lions team to face the Australians in a two-day match at Canterbury on Sa ay, a sign that the selectors didn't want to give the tourists an early look at him. Either way, both men undoubtedly benefited from the presence on the selection panel of Giles, who serves a dual role as Warwickshire's director of cricket.

Trott's century on Thursday was his fourth of a season in which he currently averages more than 80 in the County Championship, and at the age of 28 and after a decade in first-class cricket, he is clearly as ready as he could ever be to play in such a high-profile fixture. However, as his Australian counterpart, Mike Hussey, warned at Canterbury on Sa ay: It is a huge step-up from first-class to Test.

I look forward to finding out, said Trott. It should be a little bit [of a step-up], because that's why Test cricket is the ultimate. But I mustn't worry about that, I'll just worry about my game. When I go out to bat I'm a lot calmer than I am before I bat, so I'm sure I'll be fine. I felt pretty good against Nottinghamshire. It was a tough situation as we were following on, but it was very pleasing [to make a hundred] and I'll take a lot of confidence from that game, so will Bell.

The Headingley fall guy is Bopara, who has managed 105 runs in seven innings this series, having recorded three Test centuries in succession against West Indies earlier in the year. The selectors took soundings from within the Ess*x dressing-room to assess Bopara's frame of mind, and a morale-boosting 52 not out for Ess*x at Lord's on Friday wasn't enough to earn a reprieve.

And, now, the selection headache. Australia turned in a clinical and collaborative bowling performance against the England Lions on Sunday, but with no individual radically advancing his cause, the make-up of the tourists' line-up for the fifth Test will remain a mystery for several days yet. Brett Lee was statistically the best of the Australian bowlers in Canterbury, removing both openers and skittling Liam Plunkett later in the day for figures of 3 for 37 from 16 overs. It seems highly unlikely, however, that his performance will be enough to convince selectors to part ways with one of the four incumbent fast bowlers who propelled Australia to victory inside three days at Headingley last week. Lee, in his first competitive outing in six weeks, began inauspiciously on Sa ay evening but increased in pace and intensity on the second morning. His endeavours were rewarded with the wickets of Joe Sayers and Stephen Moore before lunch - the latter to a brilliant, diving catch from Simon Katich at point - but Lee reserved his highlight-reel moment for Plunkett. Unleashing a fast, full delivery, Lee scythed through Plunkett's defences to splay the stumps, then watched on as one of the bails was pilfered by a souvenir-seeking seagull and flown to a nearby roof. We were trying to see if he was going to eat it, Nathan Hauritz said. I've never seen anything like it. Australia's main selection battle ahead of the Oval Test - that which pitches Hauritz against Stuart Clark for the final bowling berth - remained unresolved on Sunday, with both proving more probing than prolific. Hauritz dismissed Andrew Gale and Steve Davies in consecutive deliveries after the lunch break, and Clark accounted for James Harris, Glamorgan's teenage allrounder, later in the day, but neither could manage a definitive knockout blow in their bid to impress Andrew Hilditch's panel. Hilditch intimated last week the Australians would lean towards their preferred three-quicks-one-spinner formation for the Ashes decider, although the final decision will be largely influenced by conditions. Clark could feel justifiably aggrieved if overlooked for the fifth Test given his major contribution to Australia's innings-and-80-run victory at Headingley, and his solid outing in Canterbury. Steven Kirby incurred his wrath with three bouncers to the helmet, but Harris would be his only victim of the day, caught by Chris Hartley, Australia's replacement wicketkeeper, in the 76th over of the innings. Potentially working in Clark's favour ahead of the fifth Test were the performances of the part-time spinners, Katich and Marcus North, both of whom claimed a wicket and reaffirmed themselves as legitimate bowling options. Hauritz, though, remains Australia's preferred choice, and did his selection chances no harm with 16 controlled overs. Selection will come down to how the wicket is and what they think the best mix is, Hauritz said. It will just come down to how the conditions are. The wicket may still be dry and they might want to take four quicks. If picked, I know I'll do my role well. Every time I've had the opportunity I've done that. Every Test you play you learn more about yourself and what you can or can't do. Before I came out I was labelled a defensive bowler who didn't spin the ball. But I think I've shown on a spinning wicket what I can do. That defensive tag was weird but I can't change people's perception. I suppose that came about because I didn't spin it that much when I first started. It doesn't really faze me. I can also play a role even if it's not spinning. I think I've done okay.Charles Coventry made the joint highest individual score in an ODI but his effort was outweighed by a sparkling, cool-headed century from Tamim Iqbal, who broke the record for the most runs in an innings by a Bangladesh batsman. Coventry's blockbuster innings pushed Zimbabwe beyond 300, far more than Bangladesh have chased before, but the visitors were rarely troubled as they hunted down the target to take their third consecutive series. Two things which stood out in Tamim's innings were the calmness he displayed, even when the required-rate started to soar, and the clean straight hitting - each of his six sixes were in the arc between long-on and long-off. Bangladesh needed a solid opening stand after Coventry inspired Zimbabwe to 312, and Junaid Siddique and Tamim provided them that. Both openers were particularly harsh on Elton Chigumbura, who pitched the ball too short right through his opening spell. Junaid was the aggressor, hammering his way to a 27-ball 38 before, as has so often been the case, he threw away the start with a loose shot. Junaid's dismissal, and the introduction of Zimbabwe's spinners, s*cked the momentum out of the chase. Mohammad Ashraful took his time to settle, and Tamim cut out the big hits for a while, which made the asking-rate make a steady slide upwards. Tamim was generally content to knock the ball around, but had short bursts when he hit out to keep Bangladesh in touch. One such was in the 22nd over; Malcolm Waller was blasted over long-on and long-off off consecutive deliveries, followed by a powerful cut for four. He also come down the track and cracked Price over long-on to push Bangladesh's run-rate up to six. There was a similar volley of brutal hitting in the 36th over, Hamilton Mazakadza being taken for a couple of big sixes. Raqibul Hasan was also a calming influence, nudging the ball around for comfortable singles to keep the strike rotating. He added 119 with Tamim at nearly a run-a-ball before falling in the 37th over. Soon after, Chigumbura dropped a dolly at long-on, Tamim getting a reprieve on 118. Two new batsman and Zimbabwe could have applied more pressure. However, Bangladesh's best batsman, Shakib Al Hasan, made a 12-ball 19 and Tamim also opened out to slam the door shut on Zimbabwe. By the time Tamim was dismissed the target was only 34 away, which Bangladesh knocked off with 13 deliveries to spare. It was the flattest of tracks, and Zimbabwe could have piled on even more than 312 had Coventry got a little more support. It was a superbly paced innings from him; Coventry provided the impetus after the early dismissal of Mark Vermeulen, then tempered his aggression when wickets tumbled around him in the middle overs, before finishing off with an awesome display of power hitting. What made it even more astonishing was that the next highest score in the innings was 37, 157 less than Coventry. It was also his first ODI century, and he had never before crossed 106 in any form of senior cricket.Sehwag is not sure if he could be ready in time for the Champions Trophy to be held next month in South Africa. It takes time to recover from any surgery Sehwag had injured his shoulder during the semi-final of the second edition of the Indian Premier League in South Africa after which he had to undergo a surgery for the Grade II lesion at a Nottingham hospital in June. My shoulder is better than before. It takes time to recover from any surgery. But if it (recovery) takes time, I can't help it. I can just wait and watch, Sehwag told reporters on Friday when asked about the recovery. The Delhi batsman has been following a rehabilitation programme since going under knife, which has almost ruled him out for the September 8-14 tri-series in Sri Lanka and has now also cast a shadow over his availability for the Champions Trophy as well. Sehwag also welcomed International Olympic Council's move to include women boxing in 2012 London Olympics. It's a great thing to happen. I am associated with women's empowerment from my university days so I think men and women should get equal representation in every field, Sehwag, who is also the chief patron of Shikhar, an NGO working for social development said on the occasion of the organisation's launch of a new initiative -- 'Support Centre for Women Empowerment'. He also wished the countrymen on the eve of India's 63rd Independence Day.