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Chris Adams has been sacked as Surrey’s team director while his assistant, Ian Salisbury, has also lost his job as the club launch a radical shake-up following their poor start to 2013 season.Adams joined Surrey amid much fanfare in 2008 but under his leadership there has only been one piece of silverware – the CB40 in 2011.He has presided over the controversial approach of signing a host of ageing players to try and bring some stability to the club following the traumatic events of 2012 in which Tom Maynard, Surrey’s England Lions batsman, lost his life in a tube accident, the captain, Rory Hamilton-Brown sought a fresh start at Sussex and there was criticism of behavioural standards in the squad.It was an exhausting task for Adams to hold the club together during one of the most difficult periods in its history.Surrey’s recent Championship match against Sussex, at Arundel, was their sixth draw of the season and they are seventh in the Division One table just eight points clear of the relegation spots. In the YB40 the team are second bottom in Group B, only ahead of Scotland, with two wins.The county made a host of big-name signings over the winter, notably Graeme Smith and Ricky Ponting, but Smith was forced to leave due to an ankle injury.Alec Stewart, the former England captain, will take temporary charge of the first-team while Stuart Barnes, the bowling coach, will be given an expanded role in the weeks ahead. Stewart’s first match will be the County Championship game against Yorkshire which is also set to be Kevin Pietersen’s return to action following his knee injury.Richard Gould, Surrey’s chief executive, said: “Chris and Ian have worked really hard for the club and we appreciate their endeavours during the past five seasons. The club has decided it is now time to make a change in order to progress further.”

Pakistan captain Misbah-Ul-Haq took a harsh view of Denesh Ramdin’s actions during the last ball of the ninth over at The Oval, labelling the wicketkeeper’s ruse “not in the spirit of the game”.Misbah bottom-edged a Kemar Roach delivery to Ramdin, who initially seemed to have snaffled the chance, but lost control of the ball falling forward, and it slipped out of his gloves onto the turf. But instead of making his mistake obvious to the umpire or his team-mates, Ramdin simply picked up the ball and threw it in the direction of the square leg umpire, before joining his team-mates in the celebratory huddle.Misbah turned to the dressing room, but square leg umpire Nigel Llong alerted the third umpire, and the replay revealed the chance had been dropped. The batsman, who had not scored at the time, went on to make 96 not out.”What can I say about that?” Misbah said when asked about the catch after the match. “I think he should have told them what happened, but I don’t know what he was thinking at that time. I would not be very happy if my wicketkeeper did that.”If we don’t know anything, then it’s fine, but if you know clearly that it’s not a catch, you should not claim that because it’s not in the spirit of the game.”West Indies captain Dwayne Bravo vouched for and defended his wicketkeeper, whom he says, does not feel he acted dishonestly. According to MCC’s Law 32, a batsman can only be caught if the fielder obtains complete control over the ball and his movement.”Denesh honestly thought he had control of the ball,” Bravo said. “By rights the umpire had another look and the replay showed he did not. So we don’t play the game like that. History shows we’ve never had anything negative against us unlike other teams.”Unfortunately, he did not catch it. He’s a very honest player, and as I said, history shows if you check the records that we don’t have any stigma or negatives around us as a team. We have been true in our cricket careers and history has shown that we play the game in true spirit of the way it should be played. I don’t think we did something like this deliberately.”Roach said he had also thought it was a clean catch, but was philosophical about the lost chance, which would have given him his fourth wicket of the morning, and left the opposition 17 for 4.”I thought he caught it. I really thought he caught it,” Roach said. “But the square umpire thought differently. That’s an issue for them to deal with, and we’ll see what plays out from here. You make mistakes. No one goes to drop a catch, but it happens, so you just have to accept it and move on and be professional about it.”

Gideon Haigh’s examination of one of the finest bowlers to play the game, was named the Cricket Book of the Year at the 11th annual British Sports Book Awards at Lord’s on Monday.Haigh tells the tale of Shane Warne’s scarcely-fathomable talent, his pivotal cricket relationships and noteworthy controversies. He also breaks down Warne’s practically perfect bowling action, each element assessed, and the mental games Warne played, and invariably won, with batsmen.The book was selected from a shortlist which included Chris Waters’ biography of Fred Trueman, Simon Wilde’s and Graeme Swann’s autobiography.”As a cricket lover, I feel very blessed to have lived in Shane Warne’s era; as a journalist, I feel immensely fortunate to have had him as a subject,” Haigh said in a message to the ceremony, having been unable to attend.”Some of his luck now appears to have rubbed off on me. The British Sports Books aren’t quite the Ashes, but for a writer they’re getting close. I won’t be defeatist and say that this is the best cricket result an Australian will obtain this summer. But for me it’s a very happy one.” is now put to an online vote, along with the winners of 10 other categories, to find the Sports Book of the Year. Voting for the award opens on May 22 at www.britishsportsbookawards.co.uk and closes at midnight on June 7 with the winner announced three days later.Christopher Martin-Jenkins was also recognised for his career in a posthumous tribute. His widow Judy and son James were present to accept copies of Wisden signed by Ian Botham for Christopher’s outstanding contribution to sports writing.

ScorecardGareth Batty’s 41 helped keep Surrey in the match•Getty Images

This could be a disappointing season for Surrey, who will be casting envious glances in the direction of their neighbours, poised seemingly to collect a third victory of the season at Taunton.Themselves without a win, with their major signing crocked and already revising their expectations downwards, Surrey have some ground to make up to emerge with a draw at Trent Bridge, where they were in danger of being asked to follow-on until Gary Wilson and Gareth Batty averted the threat in a partnership of 81 for the seventh wicket.In the event, Surrey were still bowled out for 207, conceding a lead of 67 to Nottinghamshire, whose 274 looked a meritworthy effort given that the conditions they faced on day one, against a persistent attack with at times heavy cloud cover.The wickets were shared equally between five bowlers, of whom Luke Fletcher looked the most impressive. There has been a feeling over the last couple of seasons that Nottinghamshire have become too reliant on Andre Adams to win them matches, with Fletcher and the others cast merely in supporting roles, but the Adams’ absence with a calf injury is requiring others to take responsibility and should they complete a victory in this match it might been seen as a significant moment.Indeed, it would be a milestone of sorts, given that Nottinghamshire have not actually won a Championship match in which Adams has not taken part since 2010, discounting this season’s win over Derbyshire, over which he had little influence but in which he was on the field at the start.Adams, leading wicket-taker for the last three years, is not done yet, but at 37 he has a limited shelf life. Hence Nottinghamshire’s need someone to emerge from the pack as the new leader. It may yet be Ajmal Shahzad, although the Yorkshire refugee needs time to settle into his new surroundings. In the meantime, Fletcher and Harry Gurney, the left-armer, have a chance to make their case.Sharing the new ball after Jade Dernbach had quickly taken the remaining Nottinghamshire wicket, Gurney struck first, drawing Rory Burns into an edge, before Fletcher, tall, thickly set and with a willingness to work hard, opened his account by finding a way through Jason Roy’s defence with a fine inswinging ball. Fletcher could not claim much credit for dismissing Vikram Solanki, leg before shouldering arms, but figures of 2 for 40 from 18 overs with 10 maidens, though impressive enough, did not do him full justice.There was a bonus for Nottinghamshire in the return of veteran seamer Paul Franks, who has forced his way back into the side after being told last autumn he was at liberty to seek another county, rather than wait for limited opportunities. He bowled as if he had a point to prove, removing both Zander de Bruyn and Steven Davies in his first four overs with the help of second slip, conceding no runs in the process. Had Ed Cowan not dropped a routine chance at third slip, he would have seen off Arun Harinath in that spell too.As it was, Surrey were 47 for 5. When Shahzad removed Harinath, who was caught at gully stretching to cut, they were 71 for 6. It did not help the batting side that, despite an outing for the heavy roller between innings, there was clearly an element of variable bounce.Conditions eased in the afternoon, when Batty and Wilson were able to stem the flow of wickets. There was an argument that James Taylor, standing in for Chris Read as Nottinghamshire’s captain, might have turned to Samit Patel’s left-arm spin a little earlier given that it was his bowling that regained control. As it was, the possibility of a follow-on was removed moments before Patel had Wilson caught behind, attempting a cut. Batty followed soon afterwards, stumped as he went for a big hit over midwicket.A couple of boundaries from Dernbach secured a batting point for Surrey and the wicket of Alex Hales, who chopped on to Stuart Meaker, offered a measure of encouragement. But Nottinghamshire are still well placed to stretch ahead on day three.

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India opened without their first-choice pair and still did not have any trouble in beating Bangladesh by seven wickets to take an unbeatable 2-0 lead in the Twenty20 international series. Bangladesh were restricted to 88 after choosing to bat, and Anagha Deshpande and Mona Meshram put on 52 upfront as the hosts eased to victory in 18 overs.Bangladesh lost just four wickets but were never able to get going, an opening stand of 30 in 9.3 overs between Shahanaz Parvin and Farzana Haque summing up their struggles. Shukhtara Rahman and Salma Khatun tried to make something out of the remaining overs but the former’s run-out in the 17th over dented Bangladesh’s hopes of a late charge. India’s bowlers kept a tight control over proceedings through the innings, left-arm spinner Ekta Bisht setting the tone with a spell of 1 for 11 in four overs along with medium-pacer Nagarajan Niranjana’s 1 for 14.Thirush Kamini did not bat in the chase, and her opening partner and vice-captain Poonam Raut came in as low as No. 5. Deshpande and Meshram ensured India did not miss their regular openers, who had put on 130 in the first T20.Panna Ghosh took a couple of quick wickets to reduce India to 63 for 3 but captain Harmanpreet Kaur and her deputy Raut were around to steer their side home.

Barring a few minor tweaks, the squad Gary Kirsten has for the current series against Pakistan is the one that will represent South Africa in the Champions Trophy in June. As a result, almost everyone in that unit knows they are not playing for their place but to enhance their skills and accumulate match practice. Almost.Ryan McLaren is one of those who is not.As the current first-choice allrounder, McLaren is likely to compete with Jacques Kallis for a spot in a major tournament XI and it does not take a rocket scientist to know who will win that battle. It puts McLaren in a tricky position because, although it may not be as harsh as him clinging on by his fingernails, it could get there.Kallis does not play bilateral one-day series anymore as part of his management programme. Kirsten said after 18 years of service that is a more than acceptable concession. But Kallis wants an ICC medal as much as the next South African cricketer, so management remain “in negotiation” with him for the Champions Trophy and the World Cup.Whether he will be at either of those events will depend on his fitness after the IPL and his own willingness. If he makes himself available and his body agrees, Kallis will definitely be part of the squad. McLaren will not be discarded completely but he may be an understudy. He remains the ODI all-rounder and all indications are that he will be given a fair run.Like Robin Peterson did when he was offered an extended rope, McLaren will have to do something with that to keep ahead of the likes of Chris Morris, who is emerging as another option at bay. Currently, one of the only things to choose between them is experience and McLaren’s is more valuable in time than numbers.His international record reads like that of a bit-part all-rounder. Ideally, he would like his batting and bowling statistics swapped around. In 16 matches over the last four years, McLaren averages 10.66 with willow and 32.52 with leather. His most memorable performance was probably only one moment long – the one in which he hit James Franklin for six off the last ball to win the third ODI against New Zealand in January in a series that South Africa had already lost.Domestically, McLaren has enjoyed far greater success. In 132 List A matches, he has scored eight half-centuries and averages 32.57. He has taken 157 wickets at 27.56 and is known for his dependability above everything.Noble a quality as that is, it is also forgettable because it is overshadowed by exciting talents who produce dramatic performances. McLaren knows that he has to come with a few of those in this series. “We know that when we go to the Champions Trophy, we will try and take the strongest squad available so there are a few guys in this team that want to try and cement a place in the side and put their hand up to make sure they go along,” he said, distancing himself from the obviousness of who those players are.Batting at No.7 and bowling behind the likes of Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel, Lonwabo Tsotsobe and Kyle Abbott may not give McLaren much opportunity but there will be a role for him to play. South Africa’s middle order is notoriously soft and often leaves it to the end for something to happen. A quickfire 15 or 20 runs are not immediately classed as valuable but when they prove the difference between two sides, they are exactly that.To that end, McLaren has been preparing for ways to break free with the bat, especially against the Pakistan attack. “Their strength is in their spinners and our preparation has been specifically focused on how we are going to play their spinners,” he said.In the bowling department, South Africa have lacked at the death but also appear to freeze when confronted with a batsman who has had the confidence to take control. Martin Guptill in the festive Twenty20 against New Zealand and Kane Williamson in the ODI series which followed are classic examples, as is Mohammad Hafeez’s 86 in the Centurion T20.For much of Hafeez’s innings it looked as though the better he got, the more South Africa’s bowlers allowed themselves to shrink away. No-one could come up with the breakthrough and it took a bizarre of hit wicket to end his knock. Guptill and Williamson were both unbeaten because South Africa could not apply sufficient pressure.McLaren said there has been much introspection from the attack in the aftermath. “There has been reflection. As bowlers, we got together and had a chat about what we learnt and what we felt we could improve on. It’s an on-going process, every game is about building for the Champions Trophy.” And for McLaren, it will be about ensuring he is part of the group that travels there.

Samit Patel, the England allrounder, has signed as an overseas player for Warriors in South Africa’s domestic Twenty20 tournament.He is currently in New Zealand and will arrive in Port Elizabeth on February 25 to be available for the rest of the tournament. The final takes place on April 7 with Nottinghamshire’s first County Championship match, against Middlesex, starting on April 10.”I’m very excited to be joining the Chevrolet Warriors,” Patel said. “I’ve heard fantastic things about the team and the area. The Warriors have a history of doing well in this format and I hope I can add something extra and make this year a winning season. I want to thank my county in England for releasing me to play and speaking to the staff at the Warriors I really can’t wait to start.”Patel was among the Nottinghamshire players barred from going into the IPL auction by their county coach Mike Newell. Unlike the IPL, however, South Africa’s tournament takes place out of the English domestic season and will not require Patel to miss any county cricket even if Warriors make it to the final.Patel, 28, has played 18 T20 internationals for England and was approached about appearing in the now-delayed Pakistan Super League.

Cricket Australia’s chief executive James Sutherland has said there was no evidence linking cricket to an Australian Crime Commission report that has found widespread drug use in Australian professional sport as well as links to organised crime and possible match-fixing.However, the disturbing findings of the report have prompted Cricket Australia to consider its integrity processes, and in a statement the organisation said it would “immediately implement a review of our own integrity systems, controls and processes to ensure that Australian cricket is fully equipped to deal with the heightened integrity risks that have come to light this week”.Sutherland and other chief executives of major sports were part of an hour-long press conference on Thursday in Canberra, where some of the findings of the Australian Crime Commission’s year-long investigation were revealed. The ACC report suggested there was widespread use of banned substances including peptides, hormones and illicit drugs in Australian sport.”The findings are shocking and they’ll disgust Australian sports fans,” Australia’s justice minister Jason Clare said. “The findings indicate that drugs are being facilitated by sports scientists, coaches, support staff as well as doctors and pharmacists, and in some cases sports scientists and others orchestrating the doping of entire teams. In some cases players [are] being administered with drugs that have not yet been approved for human use.”The investigation has also found that organised crime is used in the distribution of these drugs. This is particularly serious. Links between organised crime and players exposes players to the risk of being co-opted for match-fixing and this investigation has identified one possible example of that, and that is currently under investigation … It’s cheating but it’s worse than that. It’s cheating with the help of criminals.”The Australian Crime Commission said the sporting bodies affected had been briefed on the investigation’s findings. While the specific sports in which widespread drug use was found were not revealed to the public, Sutherland said there had been no suggestion cricket was directly affected.”There’s no specific evidence that has been passed through to us but all this report does for us is heighten our concerns about risk and gives us a mandate to take our own action independently, but also collectively with other sports, the government and other agencies,” Sutherland said.When asked about match-fixing and the integrity of cricket, especially the Big Bash League, Sutherland said: “We’re as confident as we can be in that regard. We have our own integrity unit that has surveillance activities over all of the Big Bash League matches. That’s networked through to the ICC, who has its own anti-corruption unit and we work very closely with them, with information not just about the Australian betting market but the global betting market.”Of course this report heightens our awareness of risk and we will only be taking a step up, in terms of the support around our integrity unit, to protect the Big Bash and all other cricket matches played in Australia.”The release of the report came in the same week that the AFL found itself embroiled in a drug scandal centred on the Essendon club and its use of supplements given to players. Fast bowler Peter Siddle, when asked about what supplements Australian cricketers were given, said only basic items like multi-vitamins were used and none were injected.”It’s just all the general multi-vitamins and general stuff for health and well-being,” Siddle said. “Ours is pretty simple. Some blokes take them, some blokes don’t. It’s pretty standard stuff.”Australia’s captain Michael Clarke said the integrity of the game was paramount for he and his team.”[Integrity] is our priority and I think cricket does that generally,” Clarke said. “I think through the ICC and Cricket Australia they try and hold it in such a high regard that if you do anything that jeopardises that there will be consequences. We’re very lucky in our sport.”I’ve never been approached by anybody anywhere in the world playing in any country. Maybe they know me too well. The most important thing for the current Australian team is we continue to respect this great game and the integrity of it.”

The Big Bash League (BBL) Technical Committee has allowed the Melbourne Renegades to replace Marlon Samuels with England batsman Alex Hales, after the West Indian was ruled out of the remainder of the tournament due to the injury sustained during Sunday night’s fiery clash against the Melbourne Stars.Samuels suffered a suspected fracture of the eye-socket when struck in the face, via a top-edge, while facing Lasith Malinga.The injury brought to an end a turbulent tournament for Samuels. Brisbane Heat coach Darren Lehmann and Adelaide Strikers coach Darren Berry had been charged for breaches of the Code of Behaviour when they publicly questioned the legitimacy of Samuels’ bowling action. Berry got into a heated discussion with Samuels prior to his side’s match with the Renegades, before Samuels became the pantomime villain again against the Stars on Sunday when he embroiled himself in arguments with both David Hussey and Shane Warne, who was later fined and suspended for the incident.Samuels’ absence won’t create a void as his replacement Hales will be available for the Renegades’ remaining games – their last preliminary match against the Sydney Sixers, and the semi-finals.Hales has played 14 Twenty20 internationals for England over the past 18 months. He made 99 from just 68 balls against West Indies in June on his home ground at Trent Bridge. It is one of four international half-centuries he has scored, the latest coming against India during a two-match tour in December.The final round of preliminary matches begins when Melbourne Stars host Sydney Thunder at the MCG. Malinga has also been withdrawn from the Stars’ team as he joins the Sri Lankan squad in preparation for the ODI series, starting on Friday. The Australian ODI squad members David Hussey, Clint McKay and Glenn Maxwell have been allowed to play for the Stars, as well as Usman Khawaja, who will represent the winless Thunder. But should the Stars make the finals, they will lose Hussey, McKay, and Maxwell, and reports suggest an assessment on Malinga’s availability for the semi-final will be made closer to the time should the Stars qualify for the final four.The Stars called up former England allrounder Dimitri Mascarenhas as cover for Malinga. Mascarenhas took two wickets in both the semi-final and final of the England domestic T20 tournament last year to help Hampshire win the title. He also represented Hampshire at the Champions League, and played two Twenty20s for Wellington in New Zealand on December 28 and January 1. Mascarenhas must play the Sydney Thunder to be available for selection in the semi-final should the Stars qualify.Meanwhile, Hobart Hurricanes batsman Travis Birt was fined $1000 by Cricket Australia for a Code of Behaviour breach. Birt was initially cited for striking the advertising foam on the rope after he was given out against the Sydney Thunder but was not fined over the incident. Birt was, however, fined for breaching Rule 9: Detrimental Public Comment when he criticised umpires for “ruining games,” on Twitter on December 23.

Mitchell Starc is out of the second ODI against Sri Lanka on Sunday and may miss further matches beyond after complaining of calf soreness following Australia’s opening win at the MCG. The South Australian fast bowler Kane Richardson has been called into the squad as cover.As the most durable of Australia’s young fast bowlers over the past year, Starc has played successfully for the national side across three formats without injury since his Test debut against New Zealand in late 2011. However his spell of six overs in Melbourne, returning the figures of 1 for 25, resulted in the calf complaint.The injury marks an unfortunate point in the summer for Australia’s fast bowlers, meaning every paceman in the first Test squad of the season has suffered an injury of some kind.James Pattinson was first to break down with a side injury, Peter Siddle missed the Perth Test due to a hamstring problem, and Josh Hazlewood had foot stress hot spots uncovered while bowling in the WACA ground nets. Ben Hilfenhaus suffered side injury in Hobart, Shane Watson fell prey to a calf strain in Melbourne, and now Starc has suffered similarly.While the Australian team physio Alex Kountouris described the problem as minor, calf trouble is infamously stubborn, as Watson can attest after suffering a string of the injuries in recent times. “Mitchell Starc had some mild right calf soreness after the match at the MCG last night,” Kountouris said.”Whilst we are not majorly concerned about it, we have withdrawn him from the game on Sunday as a precaution. He will be reassessed over the next few days and is a possibility to play next weekend’s matches against Sri Lanka if his symptoms resolve.”If Starc’s withdrawal is another blow to Australia’s efforts to reduce the amount of injuries suffered by their fast bowlers, Richardson’s call-up is a reward for some of the more eye-catching performances in domestic limited overs matches this summer, including one haul of 6 for 48 at Adelaide Oval.”Kane has been called in as cover in the squad due to his impressive form in the limited overs formats this season,” the national selector John Inverarity said. “This provides another great opportunity for a young player as we look to build towards Cricket World Cup in 2015.”A part of Australia’s winning Under 19 World Cup team in 2010, 21-year-old Richardson has impressed many with his speed, aggression and the ability to fire in a mean yorker. He may now get the chance to debut for Australia on his home ground.Should Richardson be included he will, like the rest, benefit from the guidance provided by Brad Haddin’s presence in the dressing room. The captain George Bailey said Haddin’s influence had been notable in preparation for the opening match, helping a team of players getting used to the international game learn from a player with years of war stories to tell.”One of the challenges with the group is the lack of experience,” Bailey said. “Having someone as composed as Brad is, not only on the ground but off the ground in the way he sets up for the game, the way he prepares, it’s something that I take a lot out of. The debutants and the guys who have played even less than I have would certainly get a lot out of the way he is.”I thought he kept beautifully, and even the way he batted, I thought Sri Lanka bowled quite well at the back end of their innings, but he and David Hussey just found a way to keep that score ticking over and that was really important to get that score up around 300.”Bailey was also satisfied by the way his men had blunted the threats posed by Lasith Malinga and Ajantha Mendis. Both Malinga and Mendis were expected to be the major threats to Australia’s batting, but were to return the poorly combined figures of 2 for 123 from 20 overs, something Bailey attributed partly to the new ODI rule limiting the fielding side to four fielders outside the circle at any one time.”It’s certainly good for our confidence, that we stuck to our plans on how to play both of them,” Bailey said. “One of the advantages we will have for a brief little period is that we’ve played the four out rule for a season and a half domestically.”That’s something that we may have adjusted a little bit better to, whereas I’m not sure those guys have been exposed to that much. That does take a little bit of adjustment and a little bit of re-jigging of your plans. I certainly expect them to bounce back. For our confidence, to be able to pick off their best bowlers like that was really good.”