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ONE, TWO, three . . . 18. It just keeps getting bigger and bigger.Unstoppable Barbados, the most decorated team in the history of regional first-class cricket, added yet another title to their vast collection yesterday by establishing a record of sorts on the way to winning the 2003 Carib Beer Cup.In moving to an unassailable 60 points with a match still remaining, Courtney Browne’s red-hot men competed a fourth victory in six matches with a day to spare by demolishing the Leeward Islands by seven wickets, 22 minutes before lunch at Kensington Oval.It was their 18th regional first-class championship since 1966, their fifth in the last nine seasons, and continued a trend of winning the title in every other season since 1995.Champion Barbados teams under Sir Garfield Sobers, David Holford, Vanburn Holder, Albert Padmore, Carlisle Best, Joel Garner and Desmond Haynes in the ’60s, ’70s, ’80s and early ’90s would have created records of their own, but none would have won as many as four matches well inside the distance.So many wins with loads of time in reserve emphasised that this Barbados team, with a core of experienced players and a promising bunch of young talent, was clearly in a class of its own, especially with the absence of the region’s leading players on West Indies duties at the World Cup."Barbados is a superior team when the other players are away playing for West Indies," said skipper Browne."Our experience over the other teams was great. Our commitment was something that we tried to drill in the guys every day. In the end, that pulled us through."Barbados opened the season by defeating the Windward Islands in three days and followed up with just as convincing wins against India "A" and Trinidad ad Tobago before taking care of the Leewards yesterday.Had rain not affected matches against Jamaica and Guyana, it might have very well been a 100 per cent winning record."Team work did it for us. We were well prepared. We played very well this year," Browne said."You have the likes of Philo [Wallace], Sherwin [Campbell], Floyd [Reifer], [Ian] Bradshaw and myself – we were around for a while. The fact that we have been playing long – we would always perform at this level because we know how and what to do."Barbados, the reigning Red Stripe Bowl regional champions, can still look forward to more.After next weekend’s final Cup match against West Indies "B" at Kensington, they have the chance to complete a unique double by adding the International Challenge to the Cup.The semifinalists of the International Challenge are determined by the top four places in the Cup, and Barbados are guaranteed of hosting one semifinal and also the final if they advance."The season is not over. We have another three games left – West Indies `B’, semifinals and final. That is our goal. That is what we are focusing on," Browne said.

Somerset made the most of Kent stage fright to canter through to next month’s Cheltenham and Gloucester Trophy semi-finals with a 52-run quarter-final win in steamy Canterbury.Kent followed their slipshod performance in the field with a naive batting display that saw them dismissed for 211 as they chased Somerset’s 50-over total of 263 for eight.Only Rob Key’s stoic 106-ball innings of 58 and David Fulton with 31 put in the required performance with the bat as Somerset’s military-medium seamer Keith Parsons bagged three for 38 and Andrew Caddick two for 35.Once Caddick bowled out his 10 overs the hosts attempted to paper over the cracks with some lusty late hitting from Kent skipper Matthew Fleming and Min Patel (27 not out), but it was all too little too late and failed to make up for a generally nervous and slapdash performance.The final nail in Kent’s coffin came five overs from the end when Fleming, having scored 40 from 41 balls, lost his leg stump in trying to paddle a full-length ball from Richard Johnson into the gaps in the leg-side field.The end for Kent followed within five balls with a missed slog by Martin Saggers and the run-out of last man Ben Trott as he attempted a ridiculous single to see Somerset through to a home semi-final tie with Warwickshire.Kent’s quarter-final nerves were clear for supporters and the television cameras to see as they put in their worst fielding display of the summer.The hosts dropped vital catches, notably Marcus Trescothick when on eight, missed a run-out and then two stumpings which, coupled with numerous misfields and over-throws, helped boost the Somerset total beyond a par-for-the-course total.Bowling in overcast conditions after Somerset elected to bat, Kent were given a good start through Saggers who sent back Peter Bowler and visiting skipper Jamie Cox to perfectly pitched out-swingers.Trescothick scratched around for eight runs from 27 balls before Trott found his outside edge only to see Patel down a waist-high chance at second slip.After the let-off Trescothick clubbed three of the next four balls to the boundary on his way to 43 from 54 balls, before England colleague Mark Ealham squeezed one through the left-hander’s gate to make it 84 for three.With Kent appearing edgy, Somerset took full toll of numerous fielding slips to up their run rate through man-of-the-match Michael Burns (71) and all-rounder Ian Blackwell, who hit 50 from 49-balls, to post a respectable 50-over total.Saggers and Ealham each claimed two wickets apiece, as did Andrew Symonds who sent back Blackwell and Johnson in the penultimate over of the innings.

Mike Smethurst and Peter Martin hit back for Lancashire after Kent’s MartinSaggers had plunged them into trouble as bowlers dominated the first day atOld Trafford.Lancashire looked set for a big score on a good pitch after John Crawley won the toss, chose to bat and steered them to 94 for one.But they then slumped to 236 all out with Saggers claiming four for 54 and Min Patel picking up three wickets, although many of the Lancashire batsmen had only themselves to blame.They were rescued, not for the first time this season, by their bowlers. Martin, playing his first Championship match since breaking his thumb onMay 31, had Rob Key lbw and David Fulton caught at second slip by AndyFlintoff.And Smethurst trapped Rahul Dravid lbw and had Ed Smith caught behind withconsecutive balls to leave Kent on 14 for four before Matthew Walker deniedhim a hat-trick and linked up with Alan Wells to steer Kent to 41 for fourat the close.Wells was leading Kent with Matthew Fleming ruled out by a calf injury,leaving them missing no fewer than eight seam bowlers. They looked set for a long hard day, especially when Flintoff was racing to 29 with five powerful boundaries including a straight six off Patel.But he was the first of Saggers’ four victims and with Sourav Ganguly goingfor a duck, only Crawley and Neil Fairbrother of the recognised Lancashirebatsmen threatened to make a half century.Crawley was a bat-pad victim for Patel in the last over before lunch for apatient 42, and Fairbrother, who was dropped on one, batted for most of theafternoon session until edging Saggers to first slip, where Fulton took thelast of his three catches.

Match facts

Saturday, July 11, 2015
Start time 1000 local (0430 GMT)A young Sri Lanka side will be boosted by the presence of Lasith Malinga and Tillakaratne Dilshan•Getty Images

Big picture

Pakistan have recently been whitewashed in Bangladesh. Sri Lanka’s last ODI outing was that traumatic Sydney World Cup quarterfinal against South Africa. Both teams have lost key men. Misbah-ul-Haq and Shahid Afridi have stepped off the one-day planet. Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene have disappeared over the horizon. These teams are not so much waging high-octane battle in the five-ODI series, as conducting experiments. Is Kusal Perera a viable long-term opener, for example? Or can Sarfraz Ahmed learn to transplant his knack of playing vital Test innings, into his ODI game, and where should he bat? What is each team’s top attack? Which batsmen will take the middle order into the future.The stakes are much higher for Pakistan, though. Presently ninth in the ODI rankings, they must defeat Sri Lanka to displace West Indies, and move up a spot. A proposed ODI triangular in Zimbabwe has added uncertainty to Champions Trophy qualifications, but a healthy margin of victory in this series would put a small buffer between them and the next team.The hosts are coming off a dispiriting Test series, but have often rebounded in the limited-overs formats. Lest we forget, Tillakaratne Dilshan still plays one-dayers, and Lasith Malinga leads the attack. Along with Angelo Mathews, they are capable of rallying a young team to at least present a challenge to transitional Pakistan.

Form guide

(last five completed matches, most recent first)Sri Lanka: LWLWWPakistan: WWLLL

In the spotlight

With Rangana Herath omitted from the squad, Mathews said Sachithra Senanayake was Sri Lanka’s premier limited-overs spinner. Senanayake appeared to have returned successfully following the remodeling of his action, in the series against England at home last year. His returns in Australia and New Zealand, however, were less encouraging. With Nuwan Kulasekara’s experience also overlooked for this squad, pressure mounts on Senanayake to prove he remains a high-quality one-day bowler.Who else but Yasir Shah? They tried to attack him in the Tests, and Yasir took wickets. They tried to block him in the Tests, and Yasir still took wickets. They tried a mix of both, Yasir’s wickets still came. In the end, Sri Lanka only succeeded by tiring him out, at Pallekele. They will not be able to do that in an ODI. Even the batsmen who made big scores in the Test series didn’t have him worked out. He is the hosts’ top threat.

Team news

With Tillakaratne Dilshan back at the top, Upul Tharanga and Lahiru Thirimanne are likely to slot in at No. 3 and 4.Sri Lanka (probable): 1 Kusal Perera, 2 Tillakaratne Dilshan, 3 Upul Tharanga, 4 Lahiru Thirimanne, 5 Dinesh Chandimal (wk), 6 Angelo Mathews (capt.), 7 Thisara Perera, 8 Seekkuge Prasanna, 9 Sachithra Senanayake, 10 Lasith Malinga, 11 Suranga LakmalAsad Shafiq suffered a groin strain in the third Test, but has now recovered. He will likely face off with Babar Azam for his middle-order spot however.Pakistan (likely): 1 Ahmed Shehzad, 2 Azhar Ali (capt.), 3 Mohammad Hafeez, 4 Mukhtar Ahmed, 5 Shoaib Malik, 6 Babar Azam/Asad Shafiq, 7 Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), 8 Yasir Shah, 9 Anwar Ali, 10 Mohammad Irfan, 11 Rahat Ali

Pitch and conditions

With a little bit of rain around all across the island, there is likely to be a little seam movement at Dambulla. This doesn’t mean the spinners are out of it either. The weather is expected to be fine.

Stats and trivia

• Sarfraz Ahmed’s average as opener is 43. This is roughly twice his average in the middle order.
• Pakistan were blasted out for 102 the last time they played in Dambulla, in August last year.
• Angelo Mathews averages 53.69 from 42 innings at no. 5. This is again much higher than his average in other positions.

Peter Drinnen has stood down as Scotland’s coach, ending a fortnight of speculation over his job. Cricinfo understands that Andy Tennant and Pete Steindl will be in charge until the end of the season.On June 27 it emerged that Drinnen’s position was under threat following a whispering campaign by senior players. “I always try to deal with people in an open, honest and respectful manner,” he said. “It appears that some of my players – and I stress it is only a few – haven’t been able to pay me the same courtesy.”He then called for the backing of Cricket Scotland, but today it was announced that the board had decided to appoint caretaker coaches for the national team until the end of the Twenty20 World Championship in September 2007. Officially, Drinnen will continue to work with the A team and Under-23s.News of his departure had been circulating for a few days with one insider saying that the delay in making the announcement had been caused by the two parties having to thrash out contractual details.Roddy Smith, chief executive of Cricket Scotland, said that “given Peter’s wider remit, it is felt that a change of personnel is required with the national team”.Smith is likely to face awkward questions in the coming days as Drinnen is the second coach seemingly forced out by player power. In January 2006 Andy Moles quit in similar circumstances and he too failed to get backing from the board.

Sachin Tendulkar will make his much-awaited return to cricket through a series of charity matches in England beginning this week. He has been sidelined since March after undergoing shoulder surgery, but will appear for Lashings against Cambridge University Cricket Club at Fenners on Wednesday.Tendulkar, 33, will then face Reigate CC on Sunday, June 25, before taking on Middleton CC in West Sussex the next weekend. He will conclude his stint with Lashings against Sutton Valence School in Kent on July 6.”This is a great opportunity for me to get back into cricket, to get some batting practice, and to play matches that will help raise money for charity,” he told BBC Sport. “I get the chance to play alongside international players, but not in games where every run counts.”His last international appearance was the third and final Test against England at his home ground of Wankhede in March. He made himself unavailable for the one-day series against England and the entire tour of the West Indies but now he hopes to be fit for a tri-series in Sri Lanka in August.

Pakistan today announced their squad for the opening Test against South Africa, which starts at Lahore on Friday (Oct 14). Yousuf Youhana takes over the captaincy from the injured Inzamam-ul-Haq, but the major surprise was the recall of the former captain Moin Khan.Moin, 32, has not played international cricket since March 2001, when he was replaced as captain after a string of poor results, culminating in the series defeat by England in December 2000. He led the side in the following series in New Zealand, but was forced out of the team with a knee injury, was replaced by Waqar Younis as captain, and then cast into the wilderness. However, with Rashid Latif refusing to play in this series after his sudden resignation, Moin has another chance.Also recalled were Taufeeq Umar, Imran Farhat and Misbah-ul-Haq, but there was no place for Younis Khan or Abdul Razzaq. Mushtaq Ahmed’s inclusion was subject to his recovery from a stomach-muscle injury, while Umar Gul is on standby. The 16-man squad included just one uncapped player in Asim Kamal, a middle-order batsman.”The team has been selected on the availability of players, current performance and form,” said Aamer Sohail, the chairman of selectors. “We understand that there are some injury concerns and that did make our task difficult. However, the squad has been picked with the consent of the team management.”Meanwhile, Inzamam is expected to be fit for next week’s second Test at Faisalabad. He pulled a hamstring during the second ODI last week, and although he played in Sunday’s series decider he was clearly incapacitated. “Tauseef Razzak [Pakistan’s team doctor] examined Inzamam,” explained Haroon Rashid, the Pakistan manager, “and has confirmed he needs at least a week’s rest to recover from his hamstring strain.”Squad
Taufeeq Umar, Imran Farhat, Yasir Hameed, Yousuf Youhana (capt), Misbah-ul-Haq, Faisal Iqbal, Asim Kamal, Shoaib Malik, Moin Khan (wk), Shoaib Akhtar, Mohammad Sami, Mushtaq Ahmed, Danish Kaneria, Shabbir Ahmed, Salman Butt, Kamran Akmal (wk).

ScorecardVictoria virtually ensured their hold on the Pura Cup, as Queensland ended the fourth day of the final on 2 for 56, needing a further 520 on the last day. Earlier, Victoria declared their second innings at 1 for 140, after bowling out Queensland for 275 in their first innings.Full report follows …

Australia v Zimbabwe:Adam Gilchrist (AUS) needs 134 runs to complete 5000 ODI runs
Andy Symonds (AUS) needs 95 runs to complete 1000 ODI runs
Grant Flower (ZIM) needs 90 runs to complete 6000 ODI runs
Heath Streak (ZIM) needs 14 runs to complete 2000 ODI runsGrand Flower (ZIM) needs 3 wicket to join the 100 ODI-wicket clubMichael Bevan (AUS) needs 111 runs to complete 500 World Cup runs
Adam Gilchrist (AUS) needs 227 runs to complete 500 World Cup runs
Grand Flower (ZIM) need 64 runs to complete 500 World Cup runsHeath Streak (ZIM) needs 7 wickets to join the 25 World Cup wicket-clubSri Lanka v Kenya:Sanath Jayasuriya (SL) needs 171 runs to complete 9000 ODI runs
Thomas Odoyo (KEN) needs 76 runs to complete 1000 ODI runs
Ravindu Shah (KEN) needs 52 runs to complete 1000 ODI runsAravinda De Silva (SL) needs 2 wickets to join the 100 ODI-wicket clubAravinda De Silva (SL) needs 191 runs to complete 1000 World Cup runs
Hashan Tillakaratne (SL) needs 211 runs to complete 500 World Cup runs
Steve Tikolo (KEN) needs 92 runs to complete 500 World Cup runs
Maurice Odumbe (KEN) needs 217 runs to complete 500 World Cup runs
Ravindu Shah (KEN) needs 225 runs to complete 500 World Cup runsMuttiah Muralitharan (SL) needs 6 wickets to join the 25 World Cup wicket-club
Chaminda Vaas (SL) needs 3 wickets to join the 25 World Cup wicket-club

Goa Cricket Association (GCA) president Dayanand Narvekar and threeother GCA officials were arrested and subsequently released by Margaopolice last evening, police sources said in Panaji on Tuesday.Narvekar, GCA secretary Vinod Phadke, former treasurer Rama Shankardasand a member Vivek Pednekar were arrested under section 336 of IndianPenal Code (IPC) on charges of endangering human lives during theIndia-Australia ODI on April 6, they said. They were subsequentlyreleased on bail bond of Rs 10,000 each, sources said.Narvekar, a former deputy chief minister, Phadke and Shankardas are onbail in another case connected with the fake ticket scam. Achargesheet in the case was likely to be filed by the police thisweek, they said.According to police, around 15,000 ticket holders had to be deniedentry fearing a stampede on the day of the ODI as the stadium waspacked to capacity. It had to then resort to a lathi charge todisperse the crowd.