Malinga returns to Test squad

	Lasith Malinga is set to play his first Test since December 2007 © AFP
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Fast bowler Lasith Malinga has been named in the 16-member Sri Lanka squad for the three-Test series against India beginning on July 18, setting him up for a return to Tests after two-and-a-half years . However, there was no place for spinner Ajantha Mendis, who tormented India during their previous Test visit two years ago.

Malinga played his last Test against England at Galle in 2007 before a knee injury laid him low and forced him out of cricket for nine months. Malinga was cured by Sri Lanka President Mahinda Rajapakse's personal physician Dr Eliyantha White and since then his appearances for his country has been only in limited-over internationals and in Twenty20 Internationals.

Malinga's return to Test cricket was slow because the team physio did not want to push him too early to play in the longer version of the game. However selection committee sources stated that they had got the greenlight from physio Tommy Simsek who has been monitoring Malinga's progress carefully that he was now fully fit to play in a five-day Test match.

"Malinga has nine more days before the first Test against India and we are confident he will be fit to play. He has been bowling long spells at the nets and has shown no side effects," a selection committee source said. Since making his Test debut against Australia at Darwin in 2004, Malinga has played in 28 Tests and captured 91 wickets.The other members of the fast-bowling department are Dilhara Fernando, Chanaka Welegedara and Dammika Prasad.

Offspinner Muttiah Muralitharan who is due to retire at the end of Galle Test has also been named in the squad along with left-arm spinner Rangana Herath and young off-spinner Suraj Randiv who is likely to take Muralitharan's place for the rest of the series. Mendis, who became a star with 26 wickets in three Tests against India when they visited in 2008, was left out.

The Sri Lanka Board President's team to take on India in a three-day practice match ahead of the Tests was also named. Thilan Samaraweera will lead the side which includes first-choice Test keeper Prasanna Jayawardene and promising batsmen Lahiru Thirimanne, Ashan Priyanjan and Dinesh Chandimal.

Test squad: Kumar Sangakkara (capt), Muttiah Muralitharan (vc), Tillakaratne Dilshan, Tharanga Paranavitana, Mahela Jayawardene, Thilan Samaraweera, Angelo Mathews, Prasanna Jayawardene, Lasith Malinga, Rangana Herath, Dilhara Fernando, Dammika Prasad, Suraj Randiv, Thilina Kandamby, Chanaka Welegedara, Lahiru Thirimanne.

Sri Lanka Board President's XI: Thilan Samaraweera (capt), Upul Tharanga, Lahiru Thirimanne, Thilina Kandamby, Prasanna Jayawardene (wk), Ashan Priyanjana, Kaushal Silva, Chanaka Welegedara, Dilhara Fernando, Chaminda Vidanapathirana, Sachitra Senanayake, Ajantha Mendis, Nuwan Pradeep, Kusal Janith, Dinesh Chandimal

Make UDRS mandatory - Kumar Sangakkara

	There will be no UDRS in the Test series after India objected to its use © Getty Images
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Kumar Sangakkara, the Sri Lanka captain, has asked the ICC to step in and make the Umpire Decision Review System (UDRS) mandatory for all Test series, following India's refusal to use it for the upcoming series. Sangakkara also said the ICC should perhaps pay for the technology needed to implement the system successfully, because it is something the ICC wants to introduce and the broadcasters have usually paid exorbitant monies for their rights and might not be able to afford extra costs for sophisticated tools such as Hot Spot.

"I was under the impression that the ICC has set the standards on this by saying that everyone should use the DRS system," Sangakkara said, suggesting he was not aware of the results of the latest discussion on UDRS at the ICC's annual conference. "I think last year in India also, the entire team felt a little hard done by when we came to know that we couldn't have the DRS."

The ICC's directive, too, was as ambiguous as the body's role is in international cricket. "The host member would determine whether to use DRS in home Test series (following consultation with the visiting country)," said the ICC release, in one sentence giving the home board the power to "determine" whether the UDRS should be used, and also empowering the visiting team to contest it.

"The role that ICC has to play here is to make sure that all boards are bound to have the DRS," Sangakkara said, "Rather than when one side refuses, the other side can't enforce the DRS, as is under the current playing conditions.

Sangakkara reiterated how the absence of DRS hurt his side on its tour of India ("It cost us close to 500 runs and lots of wickets"), and also how the presence of the same system proved to be an advantage when they hosted India in 2008. Then, Sri Lanka successfully challenged 11 decisions as opposed to India's one.

"There were of course complaints by the Indian team, which led to - I think - subsequent series' being played without the review system," Sangakkara said. "Having reviewed all the matches, there are flaws. You need Hot Spot and all, but even with the existing technology in place, we can still have a very fair DRS."

MS Dhoni explained his side's decision with what has been a genuine concern with the UDRS: why challenge decisions when the best available technology is not being used? "DRS is still not a 100 % correct system," Dhoni said. "We have seen that, in spite of having the DRS, not everything goes correct. Most of the teams have played a series under the DRS, so it is important now to come up with a foolproof plan. See what exactly works. In a bat-pad scenario, Hot Spot really works, it is close to over 98 % correct. Even on LBW decisions, we need to have something like that."

Which brings us to the present conundrum: Several broadcasters pushed themselves to the commercial brink to secure telecast rights, and they obviously hadn't budgeted for the extra cost to make the UDRS successful. Which is what makes the ICC's role important, because essentially the DRS is its baby. "That's another option [paying for the technology] maybe the ICC should look at," Sangakkara said. "Provide the technology, make everything standard, if the costs the exorbitant, subsidise the costs. These are all the things we can look at. Maybe the broadcasters - they of course pay such a lot for cricket, but they also make sure they earn almost as much - maybe they could work out ways of subsiding it."

Bowlers the focus in tour opener

	Ajantha Mendis will have to prove to the selectors that he's the man to fill the void left by Murali © AFP
Related Links Players/Officials: Dilhara Fernando | Ajantha Mendis | Yuvraj Singh Matches: Sri Lanka Board President's XI v Indians at Colombo (Colts) Series/Tournaments: India tour of Sri Lanka Teams: India | Sri Lanka

Colts Cricket Club Ground is an idyllic, old-fashioned cricket ground, surrounded by trees, in Havelock Town in Colombo 5. A late replacement for the Nondescripts Cricket Club, the Colts Ground was slated to host what is usually a quaint tour game to kick off India's tour, but the game has now become almost a Test trial for both sides.

India have run into fitness issues, with Zaheer Khan and Sreesanth injured and Harbhajan Singh down with fever. Sri Lanka have chosen a strong Board President's XI side, with six members from the Test squad looking to impress the team management. Ajantha Mendis, not in the squad for the first Test, has been given an opportunity too.

The Indian XI is now wide open. If Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina and M Vijay get picked for the tour game, a really impressive show from any one of them against an attack featuring Dilhara Fernando, Chanaka Welegedara and Mendis could seal him the No. 6 spot for the Galle Test.

More interesting and desperate is the bowling department. With Zaheer and Sreesanth now out, Abhimanyu Mithun will be backing himself for the Test pace attack along with Ishant Sharma. Mithun, though, will look for a solid performance against the likes of Thilan Samaraweera, Upul Tharanga and Lahiru Thirimanne to make sure that Sreesanth's replacement, to be named some time on Monday, doesn't overtake him in the preference for the Test slot.

Amit Mishra and Pragyan Ojha have for long been taking turns to assist Harbhajan in the spin department, but neither of them has impressed the selectors enough to become a definite starter. With Harbhajan still recovering from the fever and yet to attend a training session, both of them are likely to get a chance to stake claims for the Test spot.

Sri Lanka, too, have an uncertain bowling line-up, especially the pace department. While Muttiah Muralitharan is a definite starter, Galle being his last Test, either of Rangana Herath or Suraj Randiv will form the spin duo. Among the fast bowlers, though, any two of Lasith Malinga, Dammika Prasad, Fernando and Welegedara can be picked in the XI.

Two of them, Fernando and Welegedara, will get a chance in Colombo to send notice to the captain and the coach. That two of them have been asked to show their form in the tour game could suggest that Malinga and Prasad have a lead over them, but a five-for against a near-Test side never hurt anybody.

Most interesting, though, will be how Mendis bowls. He will be up against the same batting line-up that he tortured two years ago; the same batsmen have been torturing him since. He knows there will be a vacancy with Murali retiring after the first Test. He also knows he needs to convince them that he is the man to fill it. Mendis will be bowling to get his Test career back on track, to the same set of blokes he launched it against in the first place.

Pakistan's chance for redemption

Match Facts

Tuesday, July 13, Lord's
Start time 10:30am (0930 GMT)

	Can Shahid Afridi inspire Pakistan to something special at Lord's? © Associated Press
Related Links Players/Officials: Ricky Ponting | Shahid Afridi | Steven Smith Matches: Australia v Pakistan at Lord's Series/Tournaments: Pakistan tour of England | Australia tour of England and Ireland Teams: Australia | Pakistan

The Big Picture

Six months after their disastrous tour of Australia, Pakistan have a chance to redeem themselves against Ricky Ponting's men. Things are a little different for Pakistan now: Shahid Afridi is in charge, Mohammad Yousuf is gone and the series is being played on neutral territory at Lord's and Headingley. Pakistan's batting looks thin, with Umar Akmal the only man in the top six who averages over 40, but their strong attack might thrive in the English conditions. There should be swing for Mohammad Asif, Mohammad Aamer and Umar Gul, but in order to snap Australia's winning streak of 12 consecutive Tests against Pakistan, the bowlers will need support.

Australia's stretch of victories against Pakistan goes all the way back to Brisbane in November 1999. It's a joint record winning run for any nation over any other nation, equalling the 12-game streak Sri Lanka currently hold over Bangladesh, and victory at Lord's will give Australia the outright all-time high. Not since November 1995 at the SCG have Pakistan beaten Australia in a Test, and although Afridi might provide them with a spark, the Australians remain strong favourites.

Australia will have two debutants, the wicketkeeper Tim Paine and the legspinning allrounder Steven Smith, but the core of their side remains the same. As much as the Australians will talk of being focused on this series, each of their four Tests between now and November also provides them with a chance to fine-tune their Ashes preparations. One move they will make in this series is Michael Clarke up to the No. 4 position, which reflects his importance as the team's leading run scorer over the past year, while Michael Hussey will drop down to No. 5.

Then there's also the chance to play a Test at Lord's, which is an opportunity that usually comes around only once every four years. Clarke is the only man from either side with his name on the honour board at Lord's and this might be the final chance for Ponting to earn such a place in history. On the eve of the match he didn't close the door on the possibility of being back for the 2013 Ashes, but nor did he rule out this being his last Lord's Test. "It would be nice to have been up there in an Ashes Test match," Ponting said of the honour board. "That might happen - we'll wait and see what happens there."

Form guide

Australia WWWWW

Pakistan LLLDW

Watch out for...

There is much excitement about Australia's debutant Steven Smith, although nobody quite knows what to expect from him. Smith is being played as the primary spinner but Ponting thinks he has a lot of work to do in that aspect of his game. On the other hand, Pakistan have had a habit in recent years of gifting wickets to Australian spinners. Smith will also be one of the strongest No. 8 batsmen Australia have had in recent memory.

Shahid Afridi hasn't played a Test in four years, but as the new captain he will be the pulse of the Pakistan team. He brings energy to any match he plays and Ponting is keen to nullify his influence as quickly as possible. Ponting believes the younger Pakistan players will run off Afridi's spark but as the No. 6 batsman, second spinner and general in the field, he will have quite a workload.

	Steve Smith will make his Test debut and give Australia great batting depth © Getty Images

Team news

There is no doubt over the make-up of Australia's XI and only a last-minute injury will allow Usman Khawaja, Steve O'Keefe or Peter George to win a baggy green. There will be three changes from the team that Pakistan met in Hobart, with Brad Haddin, Nathan Hauritz and Peter Siddle all out through injury. Ben Hilfenhaus is making his comeback from a long-term bout of knee tendonitis and should be useful in the swinging conditions. It is a side that bats deep; Mitchell Johnson at No. 9 is a luxury and Smith at No. 8 has four first-class centuries to his name.

Australia 1 Shane Watson, 2 Simon Katich, 3 Ricky Ponting (capt), 4 Michael Clarke, 5 Michael Hussey, 6 Marcus North, 7 Tim Paine (wk), 8 Steven Smith, 9 Mitchell Johnson, 10 Ben Hilfenhaus, 11 Doug Bollinger.

Pakistan's top order remains something of a mystery, with Umar Amin, Azhar Ali, Yasir Hameed and Shoaib Malik potentially vying for two spots. There was talk that Pakistan were keen to try out some new faces, which would open the door for Amin and Azhar to make their Test debuts. From the side that lost in Hobart, Khurram Manzoor, Sarfraz Ahmed and Mohammad Yousuf are gone, with Afridi recalled and Kamran Akmal back in favour with the gloves.

Pakistan (possible) 1 Imran Farhat, 2 Salman Butt, 3 Umar Amin, 4 Azhar Ali, 5 Umar Akmal, 6 Shahid Afridi (capt), 7 Kamran Akmal (wk), 8 Mohammad Aamer, 9 Umar Gul, 10 Danish Kaneria, 11 Mohammad Asif.

Pitch and conditions

The famous slope at Lord's can make things difficult for bowlers to adjust their lines, and if there is cloud around expect the ball to swing early. The pitch was under cover on the day before the Test, with the possibility of rain, and showers were also on the cards for Tuesday.

Stats and trivia

• Pakistan have not beaten Australia in a Test since November 1995

• This is the first neutral Test in England since 1912

• Ricky Ponting's record at Lord's is poor - he has 109 runs at 18.16 with a highest score of 42. It is his worst average at any venue where he has played at least three Tests

  Quotes

  "The communication problem is not there any more now. We are all sitting together and talking to each other. If they have problems, they are coming to me or the coach and sharing their problems"
  

  Shahid Afridi on the increased unity within his team

  "He's probably got to bat at six in their side, so if we get some early wickets and get him in there against the newer ball and our quicks are still nice and fresh I think we'll test him out." Ricky Ponting on Afridi

Bangladesh collpase in face of huge chase

2 overs Bangladesh 111 for 6 (Mahmudullah 6*, Mashrafe 8*) need another 237 runs to beat England 347 for 6
Live scorecard

	Andrew Strauss and Jonathan Trott put on 250 for the second wicket, a record for England in ODIs © Getty Images
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England's cricketers were closing in on a crushing victory in the third and final ODI, as Bangladesh's batsmen faltered in pursuit of a vast target of 348 and slipped to 111 for 6 after 22 overs of their run-chase at Edgbaston. Piqued by their defeat in the second match at Bristol on Saturday, England stepped up their intensity for the series decider, and with Ajmal Shahzad leading the way, put themselves within touching distance of a record-equalling fourth consecutive series win.

If Bangladesh were to have any hope of getting close to England's total, then they needed a turbo-charged start from their star batsman, Tamim Iqbal. He began at a decent lick, with three fours from his first 13 deliveries, but then took on Shahzad with a booming cover-drive, but ended up skying a slower ball to Luke Wright at long-on. At the other end, Imrul Kayes leant into a sumptuous square drive to suggest that his eye was still in after his heroic 76 at Bristol, but it was to be his only scoring shot. At the end of his third over, a pumped-up Shahzad banged in a fearsome lifter that flicked the glove through to Craig Kieswetter.

Junaid Siddique top-edged a Tim Bresnan short ball for six before denting Shahzad's figures with two fours in two balls. Shahzad left the field after four overs with a tweaked hamstring, but Bresnan responded with a slower ball that Wright did well to intercept as he reached high to his left at mid-on. Jahurul Islam rode the short ball well to crack four of his five fours through the leg-side, before Stuart Broad cramped him for room with a well-directed lifter, and Andrew Strauss was on hand to pocket a looping top-edge.

At 77 for 4 in the 16th over, damage limitation was the only realistic option left to Bangladesh, but before any sort of consolidation could get underway, Mohammad Ashraful sold his partner Shakib Al Hasan an outrageous dummy as he turned for a second run and changed his mind in mid-pitch. Paul Collingwood had time to slip as he gathered the ball but still recovered to whip off the bails (86 for 5).

Ashraful was the next to go, as Ravi Bopara struck third ball to continue an impressive comeback game by pinning him lbw for 13 with a skiddy full-length delivery, leaving Mahmudullah and Mashrafe Mortaza to pick up the pieces.

50 overs England 347 for 7 (Strauss 154, Trott 110) v Bangladesh

Andrew Strauss and Jonathan Trott produced the highest partnership in England's one-day history, surpassing the 226 that Strauss and Andrew Flintoff produced against West Indies at Lord's in 2004, to atone for their team's failings during their historic defeat at Bristol on Saturday, and set Bangladesh a daunting target of 348 in the third and final ODI at Edgbaston.

Stung into action by their five-run reversal in the second match two days ago, England's second-wicket pairing left nothing to chance as they batted in tandem for exactly 40 overs of the innings. Strauss was the star performer with 154 from 140 balls, his fourth and highest ODI hundred but his first since the tour of the Caribbean in March 2009, while Trott put to one side the bitter memory of his last-over dismissal to Shafiul Islam at Bristol to improve on his career-best for the second match in succession.

Following on from Saturday's 94, Trott made 110 from 121 balls before flatbatting a pull to Shakib Al Hasan at midwicket, whereupon Luke Wright - pushed up the order to exploit a flagging attack - wafted a massive mow through to the wicketkeeper, Jahurul Islam, to depart for a first-ball duck. Paul Collingwood averted the hat-trick (just), as Mashrafe Mortaza completed his spell with the excellent figures of 10-2-31-3, but he was the only Bangladeshi to keep a lid on England's aggression.

For that, the credit belonged to Strauss, who once again belied his self-appointed reputation as a "stodgy" opener to blister along at a tempo rarely witnessed in England's one-day history. In all he struck 16 fours and five sixes, each of them deposited up and over the leg-side boundary, as he took personal responsibility for Saturday's setback to put England's one-day revival back on track. The innings wobbled through a late clatter of wickets, as six wickets toppled between overs 41 and 47, but Ravi Bopara slammed 45 from just 16 balls in the dying moments to reapply the swagger.

It was a commanding performance against a Bangladesh team that was unable to raise its game for a second match in succession, and what is more, England had to earn their right to the ascendancy. They lost the toss after a 45-minute rain delay, and were sent into bat in overcast conditions, and when Craig Kieswetter was bowled through the gate in Mortaza's first over for a second-ball duck, the prospect of further embarrassment could not be ruled out.

Strauss and Trott, however, responded to the setback with an initial volley of boundaries - including a brace of fours as Shafiul Islam strayed onto Trott's pads, and an agenda-setting six from Strauss as Mashrafe dropped short - before settling back into a holding pattern to ease the score along to 45 for 1 at the end of the 10-over Powerplay.

Shafiul, whose crucial final wicket had sealed the Bristol victory, this time conceded 97 runs in nine overs, with Strauss dismantling his line and length, before Bopara crushed him in a final over that cost 28.

Mashrafe did his best to keep England on a tight leash in an unchanged eight-over spell that yielded just 17 runs, before the introduction of the spinners, Abdur Razzak and Shakib Al Hasan, provided the batsmen with another challenge to surmount. Strauss in particular showed a deftness of touch with two well-timed reverse sweeps for four off Shakib, before Trott drove Shafiul to long-on to bring up his second fifty in consecutive innings from 70 balls.

At the halfway mark of the innings, England were sitting pretty on 117 for 1, and having established their platform, the pair dived in with relish. Strauss nudged Shakib for a single to reach his hundred from 106 deliveries, and then cut loose with a bold array of improvisatory strokes, including a variation on Eoin Morgan's ambidextrous "paddywhack", and a bona fide right-hander's nurdle to third man (or rather, fine leg). He needed just 29 more deliveries to rush to his second score of 150 in ODIs - the other also came against Bangladesh, at Trent Bridge in 2005.

Trott maintained a more measured approach, as is his wont, picking off his runs with clips, drives and pulls as he capitalised on the absence of Kevin Pietersen and Ian Bell, and built on his double-hundred in the Lord's Test back in May with another unflappable performance. A performance was demanded of England after the events of the weekend, and with the bat at least, they have not disappointed.