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Bangladesh’s anti-corruption tribunal’s preliminary hearing to look into allegations of match-fixing and spot-fixing in the Bangladesh Premier League will begin on November 24. Justice Mohammad Abdur Rashid, chairman of BCB’s disciplinary panel, has appointed three members to conduct the hearing.Former Supreme Court judge Khademul Islam Chowdhury will convene the panel that includes Ajmalul Hossain QC and former cricketer Shakil Kasem. Rashid won’t be present during these hearings, but he will be available if someone appeals against punishment.”We formed the tribunal because the ICC sent us some information,” Rashid told the Dhaka-based . “The tribunal members have called the accused for a preliminary hearing. It [the decision to conduct full hearing] will only be understood after the hearing.”According to clause 5.1.3 of the BCB’s anti-corruption code, “the convener of the anti-corruption tribunal may convene a preliminary hearing with the designated anti-corruption official together with the relevant participant. If a preliminary hearing is to be convened, it should take place as soon as reasonably practicable and be by telephone conference call (unless the convener determines otherwise).”The ICC will be notified and invited to participate in any such preliminary hearing. The non-participation, without compelling justification, of the participant after proper notice of the preliminary hearing has been provided, shall not prevent the convener of the anti-corruption tribunal from proceeding with any such preliminary hearing whether or not any written submissions are made on behalf of the participant.”

Australia’s captain Michael Clarke must improve as a leader off the field and redouble his efforts to create a happier team environment during the forthcoming Ashes series, Shane Warne has said. In a significant departure from usually glowing support of his “best friend”, Warne has conceded the national team lapsed into an insular mode that recalled the doomed England teams of the 1990s under Clarke’s leadership, before improving later in the previous Ashes encounter.Warne made his critique of Clarke in a column for the that also suggested England’s captain Alastair Cook should be replaced by Kevin Pietersen or Graeme Swann if the tourists are to seriously challenge for the position of undisputed world No. 1. The floating of such a concept was not surprising considering Warne’s earlier attack on Cook in an interview with English media, but his words about Clarke were more telling.Clarke and Warne have had a close relationship ever since the younger man’s early days in the Australian Test team. Always Clarke’s strongest defender, Warne has very seldom offered any criticism of a cricketer he has mentored, most recently attacking Ricky Ponting for his quite balanced and detailed observations of Clarke in his autobiography. So his admission that Clarke must be more focused on the welfare of his team is notable.”Clarke has Cook covered on tactics but where he must improve is in creating a happier team environment,” Warne wrote. “The Australian team were noticeably happier at the end of the English summer and, as Clarke and Lehmann’s partnership started to take hold, Australia played better. If we look back over the years to when England lost eight Ashes series in a row there were a lot of people in their side playing for themselves and their own positions. It was a selfish environment. This is what Clarke has to avoid at all costs.”If you look at the last three Tests in the Ashes, and the recent one-day series in India, there were a lot more Australian players smiling and in form. It looks a happier team than during the ICC Champions Trophy in June and the first couple of Test matches in England but the work has to continue. To me Australia have to improve in more areas than England if they are to regain the Ashes. But if England want to be the best Test side in the world, then Cook has to be more aggressive and proactive.”While he pushed the point about Cook’s lack of tactical flair and aggression, Warne said that he had been more critical of Clarke in private conversations between the pair than anything he had previously said publicly. He also offered the view that Australia’s results over the years had reflected the standard of the captains who commanded the teams.”This week I have been critical of Cook as a captain, maybe a bit harshly, as he has a great record,” Warne wrote. “For your information, I am not paid by Cricket Australia and have no official role with them. Sure, Clarke is one of my best friends but ask him and he will tell you I am one of his harshest critics. I honestly believe that Cook has to improve tactically if England are to become the No. 1 team in the world again and I do not think too many people would disagree with me.”I am also speaking from the experience of playing under some great captains – and some who were not so great. If you look at the leaders Australia had when we did well and when we struggled, it generally reflected the standard of the captains. If I had to choose a captain out of the England side it would be Kevin Pietersen or Graeme Swann. That may sound like an unbelievable thing to say after all the controversy of last year but I think KP has the best cricket brain in the team.”Graeme Swann is good too, as we have seen from his Twenty20 captaincy of England. They are both imaginative, good readers of the game and take the aggressive option first, whereas Cook retreats too quickly. He goes very defensive when he should be stamping his authority on the match.”Warne has often said that Allan Border and Mark Taylor were the best two captains he played under, while being far more critical of Ponting and Steve Waugh. Border’s record was poor for many years as the national team regenerated under his guidance, before Taylor took over and lifted the team to No. 1 in the world. Waugh and Ponting carried on the era of success, and both finished with better overall records than either Border or Taylor.

The long-awaited BCB elections were held in Dhaka on Thursday, with two former Bangladesh captains, Naimur Rahman and Khaled Mahmud, being elected directors from their respective categories.Nineteen directors were already elected unopposed last Friday and Monday after Saber Hossain Chowdhury’s panel pulled out of the election, citing irregularities. That left incumbent BCB president, Nazmul Hasan’s panel, to sweep the election.In addition, Hasan and incumbent ad-hoc committee members Ahmed Sajjadul Alam and Ismail Haider Mallick are automatic BCB directors in the National Sports Council’s quota.The BCB president will be elected by 25 directors on Friday afternoon. As a result, and since Hasan is set to be the only presidential candidate, his position will be filled by someone else at a later time.Meanwhile, with only three posts to be contested, it left a rather empty feeling on election day at the National Sports Council headquarters.Mahmud, who captained nine Tests and 15 ODIs in 2003, defeated Gazi Ashraf Hossain in category 3 by a margin of 25-18 votes. In this category, former cricketers, education boards, the BKSP (sports institute), different armed forces, and some other institutions are councillors eligible to vote.Ashraf is also a former Bangladesh captain and had been a board director between 2009 and 2012 as well as an ad-hoc committee member since November last year.Mahmud was elated with the victory but said he would not give up his coaching career. He had earlier quit as member of the BCB ad-hoc committee to coach BPL side Chittagong Kings, but while he may not hold this position, he will continue to coach Dhaka Premier league side Prime Bank Cricket Club.”I was confident that I would win,” Mahmud told reporters. “I would be inclined to work in the development of the game. I am ready to give up BPL coaching but have to stay with Prime Bank in the domestic competition as that is my profession. I think if you are honest, you can do both.”Naimur, Bangladesh’s captain in their inaugural Test, won as a director from category 1 alongside Manzur Kader and Saiful Alam.

ScorecardMoeen Ali added a second century in the match•PA Photos

Lancashire look poised to take another step towards promotion from the Division Two, despite the best efforts of Worcestershire batsman Moeen Ali on day three at New Road.The England Lions left-hander became the first batsman to score two hundreds in a match for Worcestershire for three years as they limped to 166 for 5, a slender lead of 12 after Lancashire had made 441 in their first innings. With one day of the match remaining, it would appear Worcestershire’s hopes rest solely on Moeen’s shoulders.The home side were quickly in trouble, with Kyle Hogg having Matt Pardoe caught behind, while Lancashire captain Glen Chapple had his opposite number Daryl Mitchell lbw inside the first eight overs.Moeen shrugged off the double blow and looked a class apart as he accelerated to a half-century while taking 18 runs from an over by rookie offspinner Arron Lilley. Although more conservative at the beginning of his second 50, he picked up the tempo again in reaching the close on 101 not out with 11 fours and three sixes from 142 balls.Thilan Samaraweera, Tom Fell and Ross Whiteley gave him some support but further wickets for Tom Smith, Chapple and Lilley edged Lancashire closer to a seventh win in 12 games.Earlier they secured maximum batting points for the first time in the campaign as Smith brought his injury-hit season to life with 84 from 125 balls and Luke Procter reeled off a fourth consecutive half-century. Worcestershire’s bowlers failed to maintain any level of intensity when Smith and Procter added 136 in 35 overs.It proved to be no advantage at all when Simon Katich, having raced to a century in 86 balls on the previous afternoon, steered Jack Shantry’s first delivery of the day straight to Samaraweera at gully. With the Australian gone for 105, there was not much between the teams on the scoreboard but the game quickly ran away from Worcestershire as Smith, in particular, found his range against some wayward bowling.The allrounder’s first half-century of the summer came up in only 75 balls and by lunch Lancashire were in the driving seat with a lead of 116. Procter’s rich run of form took him to 76 before a miscontrolled shot off his legs sparked a quick wrap-up with the new ball, Alan Richardson and Graeme Cessford taking the last four wickets in 45 minutes after lunch.Shantry did well to hold a low chance from Procter at wide mid-on off Richardson and wicketkeeper Ben Cox picked up three catches, the best when he stretched to his right to reach Smith’s leg-side deflection off Cessford (4 for 73).Richardson had to bowl 33 overs – twice as many as Cessford – for a return of 4 for 102 which put him on 49 Championship wickets for the season.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsChris Gayle smashed 51 off 25 balls•Getty Images

Chris Gayle’s all-round efforts helped Jamaica Tallawahs to a three-wicket victory over Trinidad & Tobago Red Steel and secured their position as second in the group, tied on 10 points with Guyana Amazon Warriors.Red Steel will play Guyana Amazon Warriors in the first semi-final on August 22, while Tallawahs will play Barbados Tridents in the second semi-final on August 23. Red Steel were put into bat, but were unable to build significant partnerships through the disciplined bowling and fielding performance of the Tallawahs.David Bernard and Andrew Richardson were miserly with the new ball upfront, while Gayle chipped in with 2 for 24. There were three run outs effected in the first innings, with only Ross Taylor, Darren Bravo and Dwayne Bravo being able to score 20 or more. Red Steel eventually finished on 133 for 8 at the end of their 20 overs.Tallawahs started more assuredly in their innings, with Gayle and Chadwick Walton putting on 66 in just under seven overs. Gayle smashed 51 of those runs, off just 25 balls which included five sixes. Tallawahs were well on their way to the target, but lost four wickets in the space of 23 balls to even up the contest. However, Danza Hyatt anchored the innings with his run-a-ball 25 to see Tallawahs home on the last ball of the innings, and with three wickets in hand.

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Kevin Pietersen angered by links to Hot Spot crisis

The ECB will demand an “explanation and apology” from Australian TV station Channel Nine following claims that players have been using silicone tape on the edges of their bats to fool Hot Spot during the current Ashes series.The ICC has dismissed the reports that the ICC’s general manager of cricket operations, Geoff Allardice, would discuss the issue ahead of the fourth Test at Chester-le-Street as “totally incorrect.” During the series, several edges have failed to show up on Hot Spot, and the Channel Nine report made particular reference to Kevin Pietersen’s second innings dismissal at Old Trafford, which appears to have been the main driving force behind the ECB’s complaint.”These media reports are totally incorrect,” David Richardson, the ICC chief executive, said. “Geoff Allardice is meeting with both teams and umpires to see how we can best use the DRS and the available technology going forward in the next two Test matches. It has nothing to do with any players.”Pietersen himself reacted angrily on Twitter after his name was linked to using tape. “My name brought up in Hot Spot crisis suggesting I use silicon to prevent nicks showing! Such hurtful lies. I am never afraid of getting out! If I nick it, I’ll walk. To suggest I cheat by covering my bat with silicon infuriates me. How stupid would I be to try and hide a nick when it could save me on an lbw appeal, like in the first innings where Hot Spot showed I nicked it.”Both teams have been frustrated by decision reviews during the series, especially regarding edges behind. Batsmen sometimes use fibreglass tape to help with the longevity of their bats, but the Australia captain Michael Clarke said he did not know of any Australian batsman using silicone-tape or any other method of attempting to reduce the effect of Hot Spot.”It’s hard for me to talk for other players, but I’ve never heard any type of conversation like that in the Australian change room,” Clarke said. “I didn’t know there was such a thing you could do to hide nicking the ball on Hot Spot. I wouldn’t have thought that a bit of tape would have made any difference anyway.”I think I would know. I’m a bat nuffy, I pick up everyone’s bats. I go through everyone’s cricket bats. I find the accusation quite funny, to be honest. I can’t talk for everyone but if that’s the case and we’re talking about cheating, I can guarantee you there’s not one person in the Australian change room who will cheat. It’s not the way we play cricket.”During this series, several edges have failed to appear on Hot Spot, but have shown up on the Snickometer, which is not part of the technology used by the third umpire.Graham Onions, the England seamer, was equalling damning about the claims. “It’s a huge accusation, and it’s outrageous really,” he said. “It seems completely blown out of proportion really; it doesn’t seem right.”I know the England players would never put anything on their bats. Tape has been used to mend cracks or to get our favourite bats to last as long as possible, but it sounds completely silly to even think that people are putting things on their bat to try and help them to cover up decisions.”I can say that we don’t put anything on our bats. We play the game as fair as you can, as I’m sure the Australians do as well.”

Graeme Smith, South Africa’s injured Test captain, is aiming for a return to action in the team’s next Test series, against Pakistan in October. Smith suffered a recurrence of an ankle injury that has plagued him throughout his career in May and was ruled out of cricket for at least five months.At the time, Smith was playing for Surrey and had to return home for surgery. He missed the Champions Trophy and will sit out of the upcoming limited-overs tour to Sri Lanka in order to make a full recovery. As matters stand, that looks set to be earlier than initial estimates with the trip to the UAE a definite possibility for Smith to make his return.Smith has made “steady progress” according to South Africa’s team manager and doctor Mohammed Moosajee and the management team are “aiming to have him for the Pakistan series”. His cast came off two-and-half-weeks ago and he has been walking on crutches since the last week of June. He is expected to use them until the first week in August, when he should be able to walk on his own.Smith’s wife, Morgan, is due to give birth to the couple’s second child this week. She wrote on a blog for magazine that Smith has “just started rehab on his ankle so he is going to be mobile again pretty soon, which will be perfect timing for when the new baby arrives”.Although Smith is not captain in the shorter formats, his absence has been noticeable. South Africa have struggled to find a suitable partner for Hashim Amla in the 50-overs format and will head to Sri Lanka with that as one of their major concerns.Their options are between Smith’s Test opening partner Alviro Petersen, who was drafted into the Champions Trophy squad but did not play a game, and young wicketkeeper-batsman Quinton de Kock. Colin Ingram, who filled the role during the Champions Trophy, is not expected to continue in it.While South Africa would value Smith’s presence in the one-day team, it is far more important to them to have him for Test matches. Not only has he been the leader of the Test side for a decade but he led them to No. 1 in the world last year and has spoken about his ambitions to keep them there.South Africa have not played a Test since defeating Pakistan 3-0 in a series at home in March and will make a return to the format after eight months in October. They play two Tests in the UAE, which will be new coach Russell Domingo’s first longer-format assignment and Smith’s presence would be a huge boost.Moosajee confirmed the support staff are working toward that. “He has three months to go and we will have to take a call closer to the time but we are hopeful he will be able to play in that series,” he said. “He is doing well so far and we will continue to monitor him.”

Sri Lankan fast bowler Chanaka Welegedara is unlikely to travel to England for the Champions Trophy, after failing to recover sufficiently from an ankle injury he sustained on May 18. Welegedara failed a fitness test on Wednesday morning, and Sri Lanka Cricket have since named seam bowler Dilhara Lokuhettige as a replacement. The selection was cleared by the sports minister, but has not yet been approved by the ICC.Lokuhettige, 32, played eight ODIs for Sri Lanka in 2005, and two Twenty20 internationals in 2008. He has six ODI wickets at 36.83. He has largely been picked on his form in the recently concluded List A tri-series in Pallekele, where he was the joint highest wicket-taker: nine scalps at an average of 17.66. If approved, he will be one of four pace specialists on tour, with Lasith Malinga, Shaminda Eranga and Nuwan Kulasekara also traveling. Allrounders Thisara Perera and Angelo Mathews are part of the squad as well.”SLC have written to the ICC Event Technical Committee regarding this replacement,” an SLC statement said. “The replacement of a player requires the approval of the Event Technical Committee before the replacement player can be officially added to the squad.”Welegedara had picked up the injury during the penultimate match of the tri-series, which he left, in pain, during his third over. His chances of traveling to England had looked promising on Tuesday after scans revealed no breaks or fractures, but inflammation persisted and he was unable to put sufficient weight on his landing foot.Welegedara, also 32, was the leader of Sri Lanka’s Test pace attack, but has been plagued by injury in the last 12 months, in which he only completed one Test match. He strained his groin playing England in March last year, before tearing a shoulder muscle before the Pakistan series in July. He recovered in time to travel to Australia at the end of the year, but tore a hamstring early in the second Test in Melbourne, and has not played any international cricket since. Largely regarded a Test specialist, Welegedara has not played limited-overs international cricket since June 2010.The Sri Lanka squad leaves for England in the early hours of Monday morning.

ScorecardLuke Wells scored his third century in as many matches against Surrey•PA Photos

Luke Wells likes batting against Surrey. In both matches last season he made centuries and having taken guard for a third time against the Prince of Wales’s feathers, he played another stern innings with identical results to lead a solid Sussex response.Wells, 22, is unique among his peer group in being a red-ball specialist and is seldom used in the one-day arena. There are plenty of young cricketers with dashing, attractive strokeplay but few who set their stall out to ball all day and do so.For a third consecutive match Wells batted out a day to frustrate Surrey. Last year at The Oval he merely delayed his side’s defeat but here his efforts have put Sussex in a healthy position. Their progress was slow as Surrey bowled a consistent line, particularly in the afternoon where 82 runs were scored, and the wicket is on the slow side, but Wells knuckled down and made his sixth first-class hundred in 324 balls.There was a nice moment when, on 70 not out, he guided Tim Linley from back of a length into the gully, playing only slightly away from his body. Wells was annoyed with his stroke and took three strides towards square leg before slapping his pad with his bat. Like a race horse getting a reminder on the second circuit, it was Wells sharpening himself up.Only this season, with Ed Joyce wishing to fill Murray Goodwin’s slot at No. 4, has he regularly opened the batting but he is a natural and has filled the role for most of his career outside the first XI. He was given the chance to open against Yorkshire at Hove in 2011 and made a first-class best 174.He is a real grinder and tailor-made for a wicket where it is difficult to time the ball. But he and first Michael Yardy, then Joyce, sat tight and worked hard for their runs. The afternoon session was everything that is wonderful about red-ball cricket, with an intense battle between bat and ball, but Sussex triumphed in the skirmish and managed to progress at above three-an-over after tea.Surrey had nudged ahead with a wicket on the stroke of lunch after their tail had wagged. Chris Tremlett hoisted a six over midwicket to bring up a fourth batting point but was bowled next ball by Chris Jordan, who claimed a second five-wicket haul in England. His first came in the opening match against Yorkshire.And like the season-opener at Headingley, the new Sussex opening partnership of Wells and Chris Nash failed. They managed 11 on debut and could only double the tally here before Nash was adjudged lbw when he might have got outside the line playing forward to Linley.But also like at Headingley, the opener that survived went on to make runs and Wells kept his focus during a tricky period after lunch, where Tremlett found some rare movement from the Vauxhall End and Jade Dernbach caused problems from the Pavilion End and was convinced that Wells had edged behind.The reprieve gave further ammunition for Surrey to aim at Wells, who described himself as the most-sledged county cricketer. “It’s a bit of an in-house joke,” he said. “I’m used to the pressure and in some ways it helps me get up for the battle and to keep going.”He survived another very close call, this time for lbw from a Gareth Batty arm ball, and pressed on, with the aid of painkillers for a sore knee. His last dose came with eight overs left in the day and needing four for a century. But medication or not, he would have felt no discomfort in rocking back to Vikram Solanki’s first ball and slashing it through cover to get to three figures.

Adam Gilchrist, the Kings XI Punjab captain, believed the team had a defendable total on a sluggish pitch, but credited Eoin Morgan for turning the match in Kolkata Knight Riders’ favour. Kings XI picked up the wickets of Gautam Gambhir and Yusuf Pathan early in the innings, but Manvider Bisla and Jacques Kallis built a 66-run stand, before Morgan smashed a quickfire 42 off 26 balls to help Knight Riders complete the chase with 10 balls to spare.”Great breakthroughs early and we were right in the hunt all the way through,” Gilchrist said. “Jacques and Manvinder Bisla did very well to steady the ship. Bisla took his early let-off and played a nice and controlled innings. Morgan was the difference in the end in their batting and obviously Jacques had a great game with both bat and ball. I must say if I were to believe you guys [media], Jacques wasn’t even turning up today.””I thought 150 was pretty competitive,” he added. “If you get greedy, you might get 10 more. In the end, it wouldn’t have mattered with the way Morgan played.”Kings XI got an ideal start when Azhar Mahmood struck twice off consecutive balls in his first over, but the bowlers struggled to pick up wickets after that. Harmeet Singh, who had picked up three wickets against Delhi Daredevils, was introduced in the 11th over and immediately picked up Kallis’ wicket, but made no impact after that.”He bowled beautifully in Delhi the other night,” Gilchrist said. “He started well early today, but he would be disappointed with how he executed a couple of deliveries. But it was very sweaty and moist out there. He relies on those variations, the back spinners, the leg spinners. It was, in his defense, difficult to grip. But he is a welcome addition.”Gilchrist said he was satisfied with his form too after scoring 27, his best innings this year, and hoped to continue improvement in his game.”I did more practice leading into this tournament than any other ones. Nice to get some from the middle of the bat. Obviously, the trouble is you fail fail fail, then you get 20-odd, and start to feel good, then you get disappointed and frustrated that you get out. So you are never really happy as a batsman. I have got to keep trying to lift my game and contributing.”Eveything felt really good today up until I played that shot (the one that got him out). It was just slow off the wicket a little bit. I am not hitting the balls that I used to hit in the prime of my career. I understand that and I am not shattered by that. I am thrilled to be playing and enjoying it. It is not life and death. The great thing about knowledge and maturity is that there are more serious things going out there.”Kings XI are placed fifth in the table after four wins in eight matches.