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South African fast bowler Monde Zondeki has decided to retire from all forms of cricket following persistent back-injury problems. He was advised that even a major back surgery wouldn’t be enough to help him get back to play competitive cricket. Zondeki, who is one of the five black cricketers to have represented South Africa in Tests, played six Tests, 13 ODIs and one T20I.”The prognosis by his doctors is that Monde has multiple level degenerative changes in his lumbar spine and that it is highly unlikely that his back would stand up to sustained fast bowling,” Andre Odendaal, the chief executive of Cobras, said.Zondeki last played an international match in 2008 and has remained out of action since October 2012. “It’s been a good innings for me, though at times frustrating because of the injuries, and I look forward to remaining involved and giving back to the game in future,” Zondeki said. “I owe the different provinces I have played for and my team mates over the years a special word of thanks.”

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Dwayne Smith scored 62 off 44•BCCI

Half-volleys hit straight to hand. A fielder found perfectly with a long hop. Crazy wide balls. A dropped catch to finally lose the match. Another night in the life of IPL. After which Mumbai Indians made it to the finals. Chennai Super Kings have already made it to the final. Chasing 166, which was thanks to Lasith Malinga’s profligate last over, Mumbai were on their way with Dwayne Smith and Aditya Tare strolling through, but a spate of poor shots made for some late drama.Mumbai were 70 for 0 after nine overs when Tare played a chip straight down long-on’s throat. It was not an attempt at hitting a six. It was not an attempt to keep the ball along the ground. Nor was it a mis-hit. He was caught comfortably at long-on. While Smith continued to bat solidly, Dinesh Karthik cut a short and wide delivery straight to point. Mumbai were now 125 for 2 at the start of the 15th over, and Rohit Shamra was soon to make it 128 for 3 with a slog down the wrong line.In the 17th over, Smith timed a half-volley a bit too well and found deep midwicket to fall for 62 off 44. In the next over, the 18th, Pollard did the same, and this walk had now become treacherous. Ambati Rayudu was the last of the recognised batsmen, and he responded with a six to cow corner to make it 16 off 10 balls. Two balls later, keeping with the spirit of the match, Rayudu mis-hit a full toss, Brad Hodge ran in from deep square leg, got under it, but dropped it.In the last over, Shane Watson, who had had an ordinary time with the ball thus far, produced a moment of inspiration, an accurate legcutter to knock back Rayudu’s off stump. With six required off four balls, and two new batsmen at the wicket, it was game on again. Rishi Dhawan, the young Himachal Pradesh allrounder, produced the other moment of inspiration, ramping a length ball over short fine leg. Game over.Dhawan was one of the inspirational men for Mumbai with the ball. Brought in to replace Munaf Patel, who was ordinary when replacing the injured Dhawal Kulkarni, bowled ahead of Malinga, and kept it quiet. Harbhajan Singh came on and broke the sizeable but slowish opening stand when he bowled Ajinkya Rahane behind his legs. Harbhajan found a way to stay in the match. Of the six wickets that fell, he either took or caught five.The biggest of those wickets was Watson, who top-edged him to square leg. Royals kept losing wickets until Dishant Yagnik gave them a total to defend with an innovative 31 off 17. Unsettled by that, Malinga bowled two sets of big wides and conceded 18 runs in the last over. That wasn’t to be the last bit of ordinary cricket on the night.

West Indies squad for the Champions Trophy

Dwayne Bravo (capt.), Denesh Ramdin (wk & vice-capt), Tino Best, Darren Bravo, Johnson Charles, Chris Gayle, Jason Holder, Sunil Narine, Kieron Pollard, Ravi Rampaul, Kemar Roach, Darren Sammy, Marlon Samuels, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Devon Smith

Dwayne Bravo has replaced Darren Sammy as the West Indies ODI captain for the Champions Trophy. Sammy, who retains his place in the side, will continue to lead them in Tests and Twenty20 internationals. Under Sammy, West Indies won the World Twenty20, but have won only three ODI series over the last three years, two of them against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe.”Our results in Tests and T20s have been showing consistent improvement, and Sammy deserves every kudos for the work he has done in leading and moulding the team in these formats,” chairman of the selection panel, Clyde Butts, said. “We remain confident in his leadership in these formats, and will recommend that he continues as the captain for Test and T20 cricket.”However, our ODI results have not been as strong, and we believe that it is best that we freshen the leadership of the team in this format.”West Indies have won 19 and lost 30 ODIs under Sammy, who first captained them in April 2010. Sammy averages 21 with the bat and 42 with the ball in the format. He has often been criticised for batting too low – usually No. 8 – to justify his place as primarily a bowler of limited penetration. However, that criticism hasn’t been limited to just one format.I’ll take it from here: Dwayne Bravo replaces Darren Sammy as ODI captain•AFP

Bravo, who averages 24 with the bat and 30 with the ball, was thrilled at the news. “I must say congratulations to Sammy in his leadership of the team, and I am very happy to be taking over from him,” he said. “I am even happier that he remains in the team, and I am looking forward to working with him along with the team management and all the players, especially vice-captain Denesh Ramdin, Chris Gayle, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Kieron Pollard and Marlon Samuels.”Sammy pledged support to the new captain. “I congratulate Dwayne Bravo,” he said, “and give him my full support as he leads the ODI team. He can be assured of my unwavering commitment to the team and our plans to be champions of one-day cricket.”Bravo did captain West Indies in February when Sammy was rested during the home ODIs against Zimbabwe.For the Champions Trophy, Andre Russell, Narsingh Deonarine, Veerasammy Permaul and Kieran Powell were left out from the 13-man squad that faced Zimbabwe. Sammy, Ravi Rampaul, Samuels, Gayle, Devon Smith and youngster Jason Holder made comebacks.”We have shown confidence in the players who have served well in both the batting and bowling departments, and have identified some young players such as Jason Holder and Johnson Charles who add quality to the squad,” Butts said.Among those left out, only Powell was injured. Darren Bravo, who has undergone a minor eye surgery, was picked although he is yet to resume playing for Trinidad & Tobago.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsDinesh Karthik made 86, his highest score in the IPL•BCCI

Dinesh Karthik’s explosive innings blindsided Delhi Daredevils and turned Mumbai Indians’ horrific start into the first 200-plus total of the season, one large enough to secure a 44-run win in their first home game. Rohit Sharma gave Karthik support at the start of their 132-run partnership, before turning it on himself at the end to help his team secure their second victory in three games.Mumbai had lost their openers in the first nine balls of the innings – Ricky Ponting caught by Mahela Jayawardene for a duck, Sachin Tendulkar run out by Jayawardene for one – but Karthik played like a batsman who has had solid scores in his first two games of the season.After seeing out three overs quietly, Karthik took 15 runs off an Ashish Nehra over. He dominated the third-wicket partnership with Rohit, reaching 50 off 29 balls. Rohit was on 12 at the time. Mumbai reached 80 for 2 in 10 overs, and made it to the 100 mark in 12 overs.Karthik went ballistic after reaching his fifty. He raced to 86 off 48 balls, taking his last 36 runs off 19 balls. He pulled the ball with glee, and his on-side play was entertaining. Karthik was perhaps the least likely among the Mumbai top four to get the orange cap, but he is now the first this season.Rohit batted at the right pace, letting Karthik take more strike during their stand. Later he played second fiddle to Kieron Pollard and Ambati Rayudu, who blasted two fours and two sixes in his eight-ball 24. Rayudu helped Mumbai take 22 runs off the penultimate over from Irfan Pathan, who had begun the evening with a maiden over, and Rohit’s final-over treatment of Nehra – 20 runs – took his team to 209 for 5.Mumbai got off to a stunning start when they began defence of their 209 runs. Off the first ball of the innings, Ponting dived quite a distance to his right at cover to take a stunning catch to dismiss Unmukt Chand. It was the opener’s second first-ball duck in the tournament, but it was also the most unlikely bowler-fielder combination. The bowler was Harbhajan Singh, who had a history of run-ins with Ponting, but now they were hugging in joy.David Warner hit boundaries with regularity at the other end, swiftly moving to 50 off 34 balls, but frequent wickets didn’t allow Daredevils to settle into a rhythm. Warner fell for 61 off 37 deliveries, and Manprit Juneja’s 49 was the only other sizeable score. Rishi Dhawan’s direct hit from midwicket to run out Juneja was the final act in Mumbai’s impressive fielding performance.

Imran Tahir appears to be back into limited-overs contention for South Africa after he was included in the Invitation XI to play Pakistan in a fifty-over warm-up match next Wednesday. The team will be led by Lions’ captain Stephen Cook and consists largely of players from the Lions and Dolphins franchises as the rest will be busy playing domestic twenty-over matches.Tahir appeared in 5 ODIs during the 2011 World Cup and was South Africa’s second-most successful bowler with 14 wickets, but he has not played since. Instead, Johan Botha and Robin Peterson tussled over the premier spinners’ role that eventually went Peterson’s way when Botha relocated to Australia last September.Peterson has since shared the role with Lions’ left-armer Aaron Phangiso who excelled at the Champions League T20. Tahir’s role has been limited to Tests but even there, he has lost out to Peterson.After playing 11 Tests for South Africa including tours of New Zealand, England and Australia, Tahir was dropped following a drubbing in Adelaide. He was taken for 260 runs and went wicketless. He has since been playing the domestic game to regain form and confidence.At the Lions’ franchise, Tahir plays an important senior role, which was evident in the way he made his comeback in the domestic one-day cup final. Although it was washed out, Tahir took two wickets in two overs and has been a regular in the T20 campaign as well. He may see this as another chance to stake a claim for a comeback especially as both his List A and Twenty20 averages are lower than his first-class average.Other notable names in the XI are the IPL’s latest rich-kid Chris Morris who will also feature in South Africa’s T20 squad and wicket-keeper batsman Quinton de Kock who was dropped from the ODI squad but remains part of the plans.”This match provides opportunities for players to show what they can do at a higher level and also to enjoy the special experience of playing against an international team. We have seen a number of players taking advantage of matches both for South Africa A and the Invitation sides to earn places in the national set-up,” Vincent Barnes, coach of the Invitation side and manager of the High Performance Programme said.”You don’t have to look further than Kyle Abbott for a good example of this. It is really heartening to see the excited feedback I get from players when they are offered this opportunity.” Abbott played against Pakistan in their four-day warm-up match and took seven wickets that earned him a Test call up.SA Invitation XI: Stephen Cook (capt), Craig Alexander, Temba Bavuma, Cody Chetty, Quinton de Kock, Imran Tahir, Chris Morris, Jean Symes, Jonathan Vandiar, Vaughn van Jaarsveld, Hardus Viljoen Lizaad Williams

Sri Lanka Cricket has appointed Chaminda Vaas as national fast bowling coach for two years, after weeks of negotiations with the former left-arm fast bowler. Muttiah Muralitharan has also come on board with the Sri Lanka coaching staff in an advisory capacity, and has already been working with the spin bowlers in the side, in the lead up to the upcoming home series against Bangladesh.Vaas had expressed an interest in taking the role when SLC approached him in January, but was underwhelmed with the pay the board had offered him. The parties eventually reached an agreement late on Wednesday evening.”We concluded successful negotiations with Vaas, where we discussed things like pay and his role in the coaching unit,” SLC chief executive Ajit Jayasekara said. “He will be the head fast bowling coach, with the present coaches Champaka Ramanayake and Anusha Samaranayake working under him. He has taken so many wickets for Sri Lanka, and we are very happy to have concluded our talks to get him into the job. Vaas will also oversee the country’s pace bowling academies.”SLC had hoped to sign Muralitharan as a full-time coach as well, but as he still plays in various domestic Twenty20 leagues, he could not commit to that position. Muralitharan is the most successful bowler in the history of the game, leading the Test and ODI wicket-takers lists, with 800 and 534 scalps respectively. Vaas is Sri Lanka’s most successful fast bowler, with 355 Test wickets and 400 ODI wickets.In addition to the coaching appointments, SLC also appointed Michael de Zoysa as the new team manager for one year, filling the position vacated by Charith Senanayake, whose deteriorating relationship with the board in recent weeks led to his replacement and resignation. De Zoysa has been involved in cricket administration with Sri Lanka’s premier clubs, most notably Sinhalese Sports Club, has been a radio and TV commentator, and was also a tea industry executive.This latest round of appointments came amid a slew of personnel changes at SLC, who also appointed two new captains and a new selection panel in the last month. A new cief executive will also come on board in April, and the positions of president, secretary and treasurer will be contested in the SLC elections late in March.

The Enforcement Directorate of India’s finance ministry has levied a penalty of approximately Rs 100 crore ($18.77 million) against IPL franchise Rajasthan Royals for violating India’s foreign exchange laws. According to the order, the Royals’ owners have a 45-day deadline to pay the fine but can appeal the order.The ED issued three separate notices to the various owners, PTI reported, after two years of investigations under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA). Jaipur IPL Cricket Private Limited (JIPL) was hit with a Rs 50 crore penalty, EM Sporting Holding, Mauritius with Rs 34 crore and a notice of Rs 14.5 crore against Ms ND Investments, United Kingdom.The ED has been investigating financial and foreign exchange irregularities against all franchises and this is the first big order against a team. The order said the ED found that foreign investment in JIPL was made in “flagrant contravention of FEMA” and the investment made in this regard was made “much prior to the incorporation of JIPL”.A statement issued by Royals said acknowledged receiving an order in respect of alleged breaches of FEMA. “We are discussing the contents of the order with our lawyers and intend to launch a full appeal against the order,” it said.The penalty was issued after investigations pointed out that funds in the firm had been remitted in an irregular manner and shares were allegedly issued in violation of forex rules stipulated and framed by the Reserve Bank of India, the country’s topmost bank.The ED issued the first penalty order against Rajasthan Royals in mid-2011 and it recently moved the FEMA Adjudicating Authority in Delhi to vet its investigation in this case and issue final orders. The agency, during its probe, relied on bank documents and statements made by the directors and investors of Rajasthan Royals.The ED has issued almost 24 show cause notices, amounting Rs 2000 crore, under FEMA against various IPL franchises and the BCCI.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsChris Lynn’s unbeaten half-century helped stage a comfortable chase for Brisbane Heat against Sydney Thunder•Getty Images

Brisbane Heat have kept their finals hopes alive with a convincing win over the hapless Sydney Thunder.Yet again it was Thunder’s batting that failed them. The injection of Matt Prior and Usman Khawaja into the line-up did little to help their cause as Daniel Christian, who had been wicketless throughout the first four games of the tournament, took 5 for 26 to help bowl the Sydney side out for just 126.The drop-in pitch at ANZ Stadium also played its part. Chris Rogers won the toss but his side found it exceptionally hard to score. Chris Gayle could not break out of his slump. He was just 5 from 14 balls at one stage before finally breaking the shackles when he slugged his West Indies teammate Kemar Roach into the stands.Prior, understandably, struggled to give Gayle any support. Having arrived from a Test series in India he battled to adjust to the conditions. Both men fell to soft shots in the tenth over, Christian’s first of the innings. Gayle guided a long hop straight to point. Prior failed to clear mid-off in a desperate search for a boundary.Thunder were 3 for 60 at the halfway stage when they decided to turn on themselves.Sean Abbott fell to a clever slower ball from James Hopes. But Ryan Carters and Khawaja were both run out in terrible fashion. Carters and Khawaja ended up at the same end, Khawaja put his head down for an achievable two and ignored Carters call.Khawaja, having made his ground safely on that occasion, was caught short two overs later when Hopes produced a direct hit in his follow-through as Simon Keen called for an ambitious leg bye.Christian then cleaned up the tail to finish with a somewhat innocuous five-wicket haul.The chase was never a fait accompli. Luke Pomersbach struck the ball beautifully at the top of the order for Heat but a steady flow of wickets kept things interesting. Dirk Nannes continued his outstanding form nicking out Hopes and Joe Burns in a double wicket maiden with the score anchored at 26. Prior’s low catch of Hopes at slip did have an element of doubt to it.But it did not stop Pomersbach or Christian from cracking five boundaries in the next two overs. But neither man lasted much longer and Heat slumped to 4 for 57 to give Thunder hope.Chris Lynn entered to snuff out any belief the home side might have had. It was not the controlled innings one might have expected given the situation stipulated less than a run-a-ball. Rather than work the ball into gaps Lynn hit them over the fence. He struck four sixes, all of them to the short straight boundary, and three off the leg-spin of Adam Zampa. The young spinner could have claimed Lynn, deceiving him in flight but Carters missed a tough stumping chance.From there the result was never in doubt. Lynn finished with 51 not out from just 38 deliveries to steer his side home with 20 balls to spare.Thunder are now simply playing for pride when they meet cross-town rivals Sixers on Sunday night. Heat have to wait for the New Year to arrive before they host Stars at the Gabba.

Batsman Lahiru Thirimanne and right-arm fast bowler Suranga Lakmal have been called up to Sri Lanka’s squad for the third Test in Sydney, after two players suffered series-ending injuries and two more remain in doubt after the Boxing Day Test. Kumar Sangakkara’s fractured hand and Chanaka Welegedara’s torn hamstring have ruled them out for the remainder of Sri Lanka’s tour of Australia, while Prasanna Jayawardene and Nuwan Kulasekara’s fitness will be reassessed in the lead-up to the third Test, though it is unlikely that Kulasekara will play.Thirimanne had been on Sri Lanka’s stand-by list for the tour, and as such had already secured visa clearance to enter Australia, and will arrive on January 1, two days before the match. Lakmal, though, had not been on standby, and will have to wait for his visa to be approved on December 31. He will likely arrive in Australia on the eve of the Test.Thisara Perera is the only fast bowler who was named on the standby list, and is already in Australia competing in the Big Bash League, but he was not considered as his bowling form was deemed inadequate for Test selection. Perera had suffered a side strain during the Sri Lanka Premier League in August, and though he has been bowling in limited-overs cricket, the captain Mahela Jayawardene said he was yet to build up the number of overs required to come into Test contention in the lead up to the Melbourne Test.Lakmal is also coming back into the international team after an injury layoff, having undergone surgery on his ankle. His last Test appearance was against England in April, but he has been in good form in Sri Lanka’s domestic one-day tournament in December, having taken 13 wickets at 20.46 in six matches. He is unlikely to play in Sydney however, as the fast bowler Nuwan Pradeep has been with the team throughout the tour and is next in line for a game. Sri Lanka may also decide to field two spinners, depending on the surface, in which case Suraj Randiv will play.Thirimanne meanwhile, will only play if Prasanna Jayawardene is deemed unfit. Sri Lanka next train on December 31, and a decision will be made on his participation after that session. Dinesh Chandimal will take the gloves in his place.Kulasekara is not expected to be fit to play in Sydney, but will stay with the team for the ODI series, which begins on January 11.

Match facts

December 5, 2012
Start time 1430 (0830 GMT)Darren Bravo is due for a big score•Associated Press

Big Picture

A 2-0 lead for the home side was a scenario few would have predicted last Tuesday when Bangladesh had gone down by five wickets to the BCB XI in the practice match. A week on from that evening in Khulna, the series scoreline stands that way, explaining how Bangladesh and West Indies are not just unpredictable, but not very different in terms of their progress this year.But given the potential of the visitors, Bangladesh should brace themselves for a fightback. West Indies were World Twenty20 winners a few months ago – their first major trophy in 33 years – and have won four Tests in a row for the first time since 1993, so their reputation as a growing powerhouse in international cricket could take a beating if they don’t win the third game.Darren Sammy has been beaten on tactics and execution by Bangladesh. He won both tosses, but both decisions backfired. His batsmen have either given away their wickets or played spin poorly while his mystery spinner Sunil Narine has been deciphered easily by the home batsmen.Bangladesh will look to press home the momentum they have gathered in the last few days of their stay in Khulna. They have managed to keep the West Indian batsmen quiet. The emergence of four newcomers in the side has helped, though Abul Hasan is out injured. However, it would be wise not to expect much more from the likes of Anamul Haque, Sohag Gazi and Mominul Haque, so it would fall on the shoulders of the seniors to pull this one through.

Form guide

(Most recent first)
Bangladesh WWLWW
West Indies LLWWL

In the spotlight

…will be Mushfiqur Rahim, as he looks to win his first bilateral ODI series as captain. He was at the crease when his side took a 1-0 lead and in the second game, he made an assertive 79. The two wins and runs will take a lot of pressure off him, so it will be interesting to see how he continues in Mirpur for the rest of the series.West Indies will be hoping that Darren Bravo converts his starts to bigger scores. He hasn’t scored an ODI fifty this year, and as a result his average has dropped below 30. His ability against spin is a plus so his team will be counting on him for better returns.

Team news

Abul Hasan’s side strain has forced Bangladesh to break their winning combination but the back-up isn’t half as bad. Rubel Hossain and Shafiul Islam are both capable seamers in one-day cricket and are more experienced, with the former slightly ahead in terms of current international form.Bangladesh (possible): 1 Tamim Iqbal, 2 Anamul Haque, 3 Naeem Islam, 4 Nasir Hossain, 5 Mahmudullah, 6 Mushfiqur Rahim (capt & wk), 7 Mominul Haque, 8 Mashrafe Mortaza, 9 Sohag Gazi, 10 Abdur Razzak, 11 Rubel Hossain/Shafiul IslamThe visitors have a selection headache, mainly because their one-day specialists have underperformed. Kieran Powell could replace Lendl Simmons at the top, and it will be interesting to see whether they persist with Dwayne Smith. Narine’s position is also under threat, with Veerasammy Permaul’s left-arm spin offering more control.West Indies (possible): 1 Chris Gayle, 2 Kieran Powell/Lendl Simmons, 3 Darren Bravo, 4 Marlon Samuels, 5 Kieron Pollard, 6 Dwayne Smith, 7 Darren Sammy (capt), 8 Devon Thomas (wk), 9 Andre Russell, 10 Ravi Rampaul, 11 Sunil Narine/Veerasammy Permaul

Pitch and conditions

The Mirpur pitch is slow, offering sporadic turn, and the pace bowlers may not get much assistance either. Curator Gamini de Silva was praised for his pitches in the Asia Cup so he will be expected to prepare similar tracks for the three remaining ODIs. There is also considerable dew in Mirpur after sunset.

Stats and trivia