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Indian opener Gautam Gambhir appears likely to play in India’s opening match of the Champions Trophy, against Pakistan on Saturday, a senior BCCI official indicated on Thursday. There were doubts over his availability after he sustained a groin injury that kept him out of the Compaq Cup in Sri Lanka.However, the BCCI sounded optimistic about Gambhir’s return. “He was cleared by the BCCI experts when he underwent a fitness test in Mumbai before the team’s departure. I understand he’s playing in the first match,” said BCCI secretary N Srinivasan.Gambhir pulled out on the eve of India’s first match after aggravating the injury during a nets session. He was advised 10 days’ rest and his withdrawal from the tri-series was more of a precautionary measure, given the recent spate of injuries.Gambhir’s return would, no doubt, be good news for the Indian team, who have had their share of injury worries. While Yuvraj Singh was the latest casualty, fracturing the little finger on his right hand in South Africa, Gambhir’s opening partner Virender Sehwag and Zaheer Khan failed to make the trip after both picked up shoulder injuries.”Nothing can be done. The doctor has just told me to rest and let the recovery happen. Now, it depends on me on how fast I recover. I am very positive about working on my fitness.”Gautam has worked really hard. There were always apprehensions about him not performing against big teams. He has proved everybody wrong and become the No. 1 Test batsman. I am very proud of him as a team-mate.”Following their opening match in Centurion, India take on Australia on Monday and play West Indies in their final group match on September 30.

ScorecardOnly 18.4 overs were possible on the third day of a match in which 906 runs have now been scored for the loss of just five wickets and which, unless Somerset collapse dramatically on the final morning, will be lodged by the scorers as yet another high-scoring draw at Taunton. There was time enough for Marcus Trescothick, the leading run-scorer in the land, to add 38 with Arul Suppiah, who for once has out-scored him.Trescothick, who has made 71, has now scored 1401 runs this season, overtaking his best tally in a county championship year, 1343 in 2007. He has no regrets about not returning to Test cricket this week: touring with England will never be a part of his life again, although he is still intent on taking part in the Champions League Twenty20 tournament in India in October. Richard Gould, the Somerset chief executive, is looking at flying him in for matches as opposed to commuting daily from the Middle East.No-one who watched Trescothick resume his innings after heavy overnight rain could conceivably imagine there was anything awry with his technique, desire to pile up the runs at county level and intention on prolonging his career until he reaches middle age. In such play as there was, he glanced and drove with customary élan while Suppiah, who possesses no little elegance at the crease, progressed to 80. Somerset, though, are 578 runs in arrears.The issue of heavy run-scoring on this square will be addressed by Somerset this winter. The head groundsman, the long-serving Phil Frost, is planning to top dress and re-seed the pitches with a mix of loans as opposed to the Ongar loan that is used at present. The drawback the club has in terms of digging up a pitch is that it cannot then be used for two years.”This is an issue for the ECB and above, not just for us,” said Gould. “It is an issue that needs addressing as Test match crowds are dwindling and we need to re-define what constitutes a good pitch.” He himself will be going to Harvard Business School in Boston for two months in the autumn to undertake its Advanced Management Programme at the suggestion of his chairman, Andy Nash. It is all a far cry from the days when Brigadier E.H. Lancaster and Air Vice-Marshall M.L. Taylor ran Somerset in their less-than-glory days before and after the Second World War.As for Sussex, whose batsmen gorged themselves on Thursday, Mark Robinson, their cricket manager who takes a Yorkshireman’s pragmatic view of cricketing matters, was less than impressed at the time it took the four-man Taunton groundstaff to bring on the tarpaulin covering when a heavy downpour occurred in mid-afternoon. In fairness to Frost, he had a fair number of old pitches to protect – pitches which, within five minutes were sodden to the point at which it was evident there would be no further play. His players will do well to achieve anything other than the odd bonus point before stumps are finally drawn.

Division One

Paul Horton made his highest Championship score for more than a year to help Lancashire to a seven-wicket victory against Worcestershire at Old Trafford. In a match dominated by the bowlers it was an impressive run-chase from the home team as VVS Laxman also hit an unbeaten 84. They needed a further 224 at the start of the day, but lost Mal Loye early when Matt Mason claimed his eighth wicket of the match. However, Horton and Mark Chilton added 109 on a surface that had slowed since the first day. Gareth Batty gave Worcestershire brief hope when he had Horton caught at slip and soon had Chilton taken at short leg. But after a brief rain delay, Laxman eased through his innings alongside Steven Croft and Lancashire had few further alarms. The defeat leaves Worcestershire rooted to the foot of the table, but revives Lancashire’s hopes after three matches without a win.David Stiff claimed a career-best 5 for 91 to put Somerset on course for victory against Hampshire at Taunton. Michael Carberry’s 123 was the only major resistance for the visitors as they struggled against Stiff’s bounce. But it was Charl Willoughby who provided the first breakthrough when Jimmy Adams was well caught at second slip and Alfonso Thomas removed Michael Lumb. Stiff they got to work as regular edges flew into the alert slip cordon, while Arul Suppiah chipped in with a couple. Despite a last-wicket stand of 58, Justin Langer enforced the follow on and was rewarded with three more wickets before the close. Andrew Caddick got off the mark for the game when his yorker removed Adams and Suppiah had Carberry caught and bowled for 52 to leave Hampshire a final-day battle.Click here for John Ward’s report on the third day’s play between Yorkshire v Durham at Headingley.

Division Two

Leicestershire raced to their first Championship win of the season leaving Middlesex bottom of Division Two, with a facile eight-wicket win at Grace Road, a victory which took them under an hour to complete on the third day. Middlesex began poorly, when Gareth Berg was brilliantly caught down the leg-side by the wicketkeeper Tom New, while Shaun Udal was also smartly held. Leicestershire dismissed Middlesex for their lowest total this season, 91, leaving the home side just seven to win. They lost two wickets in the process, but the captain, Boeta Dippenaar was there at the end to see them to their first win of the season.Kent took a leaf out of the Australian book as four batsmen racked up hundreds against Surrey at The Oval. Joe Denly, Robert Key, Martin van Jaarsveld and Justin Kemp all reached three figures to help build a lead of 123 going into the final day. Denly and Key took their opening stand to 247 as Denly notched his third ton of the season before being run out from square leg. Key went to his hundred with 13 off a Murtaza Hussain over, but was part of a mini Kent collapse. Geraint Jones and Darren Stevens fell trying to drive Pedro Collins while Key was unluckily run out backing up. However, the batting dominance returned as van Jaarsveld and Kemp plundered 214 in 56 overs and Kent will be pushing to bowl out the home side on Monday.1st dayGloucestershire paid from dropped catches on the opening day against Derbyshire at Cheltenham as they reprieved Greg Smith on his way to a career best 121 and also missed Chris Rogers. Smith was put down on 2 by Craig Spearman and Rogers offered a low catch to Hamish Marshall in the slips when he had 4. Gloucestershire slumped from 112 for 1 to 119 for 5 after lunch with Rogers part of the collapse when he chopped on against Jon Lewis. But Smith turned the innings around and reached his hundred with a boundary off Chris Taylor. Tim Groenewald (26) helped Smith add 90 for the eighth wicket before the new ball wrapped up the innings. The Derbyshire openers survived five overs before the close.

ScorecardNeither the rain nor Jonathan Bairstow came to Yorkshire’s rescue on the final day, but a fine innings of 99 from Andrew Gale, aided by a dogged Joe Sayers, ensured Nottinghamshire were denied victory at Scarborough. Yorkshire may have felt aggrieved at being deprived of the chance to ram home their advantage on the first day, but after that the visitors dominated the match without securing the victory that would have put them near the top of the table again.Yorkshire began the day on 14 for 1 in the follow-on, exactly 150 runs behind Nottinghamshire. Anthony McGrath began positively by driving the fourth ball of the day, from Ryan Sidebottom, through covers for four. He did not look comfortable, though, and edged a couple of balls just short of the slips. Sayers, on 3, was dropped off a low chance by the wicketkeeper, Chris Read, a rare occurrence, and it is said of the Scarborough pitch that on the final day the keeper and slips need to stand closer.McGrath made only 9 before he walked into a straight ball from Andre Adams and was trapped lbw, leaving Yorkshire 31 for 2. This brought together the two young left-handers, Sayers and Gale, and in their differing manners they constructed the partnership that was to do most to earn Yorkshire a draw that they did not really deserve. Sayers played the anchor role, getting particularly bogged down in the early twenties, while Gale played a positive innings, noted for its good driving. He reached his 50 before lunch with a drive for six off Samit Patel, and it took him just 68 balls.Yorkshire had recovered to 115 for 2 at lunch, but then after the interval Sayers, quite out of character, drove at the second ball he faced before settling in, and was caught at third slip off Ryan Sidebottom. Bairstow failed, scoring only an edged four before, perhaps bothered by Sidebottom going around the wicket, he went for a loose drive outside his off stump and was also caught in the slips. Suddenly Yorkshire were in possible danger again at 135 for 4.The obligatory rain arrived just after 2.00pm, but this time it did not last long and only 30 minutes were lost. With Gerard Brophy for company, Gale moved steadily towards his century and was on 92 when an early tea was taken owing to rain. This may have affected him, as on 99 he threw away the century he deserved. He seemed quite nonplussed by a slow high-bouncing long-hop outside off stump, which he first decided to hit out of sight. He ended up lobbing an easy catch to midwicket. He had faced 143 balls and hit 16 fours and a six.But Gale had done his part, and Yorkshire had now avoided the innings defeat and still had five wickets left. Brophy and Tim Bresnan batted without trouble or undue pressure, the former reaching his 50 off 105 balls, upon which Yorkshire declared 68 runs ahead and the match, damaged by rain, was drawn. Sidebottom had been Nottinghamshire’s best bowler again, taking three more wickets to add to his five in the first innings, although he seemed to tire towards the end.

Steve Harmison added the wicket of Ricky Ponting yesterday, along with Phillip Hughes for the second time in the match•Getty Images

The speed with which England vacated the field at Edgbaston on Friday afternoon revealed plenty about their mindset in the lead-in to next week’s first Test in Cardiff. The time was 5pm on a perfect summer’s afternoon, and the opportunity was there for at least another hour and a half of fine-tuning. However, it was not deemed necessary by England’s think tank, who have seen enough already, and just want to get the proper action underway now.On Sunday, that action will come one step closer to fruition when the national selector, Geoff Miller, unveils England’s trimmed-down squad for Wednesday’s massively anticipated Ashes opener. That Miller has spent the week in the stands at Worcester, watching the Lions – and more pertinently, Steve Harmison – rather than fussing about the form of, say, Monty Panesar, suggests that 11 of the expected 13 names on his list will be fairly easy to second-guess.All the permutations, therefore, come down to the selection of two men: the squad’s spare batsman, and of course, the extra seamer, a man who remains highly likely to complement the chosen triumvirate of James Anderson, Stuart Broad and Andrew Flintoff, given that Cardiff’s reputation as a raging turner has resulted in a mere 17 wickets for spinners, out of a possible 120, in three Championship matches this season. Regardless of his three morale-boosting wickets at Edgbaston on Thursday, Panesar’s own figures for Northamptonshire last month were 2 for 149.The fact that England have yet to finalise their squad was telegraphed by the sight of Miller’s fellow selectors, James Whitaker and Ashley Giles, joining him on the balcony at Worcester for the final day of the Lions match. As fate would have it, the England captain, Andrew Strauss, arrived at the ground just as Harmison and Graham Onions were about to take the new ball in Australia’s second innings. That pair, plus the injury-prone but highly rated Ryan Sidebottom, are the front-runners for that final berth, and their fates will be revealed in an announcement at Old Trafford at 10am on Sunday.If the heart says Harmison, after the fury of his performance against the Australians this week, the head suggests that Onions will be permitted to continue in the role in which he excelled, in albeit subdued circumstances, against West Indies earlier in the year. Having claimed five wickets on debut at Lord’s, including four in seven balls, Onions impressed with his versatility in the second Test at Chester-le-Street, where at various stages of the match he found swing, bounce and aggression to meet his team’s requirements.Continuity calls for Onions’ inclusion, even if Harmison is the last man that the Aussies would wish to line up against right now. Besides, the impression gleaned from the winter campaign in the Caribbean is that Harmison still has a lot of ground to make up with the management – not least the hard-bitten new coach, Andy Flower – after a lacklustre series of performances. His inclusion would be expedient in the circumstances, but having gone to such lengths to arrange that squad bonding exercise in Flanders last week, it would be peculiar if England went fishing outside their initial squad of 16 at this crucial stage of the series.What is more, it is arguable that Harmison may already have done his job for this summer. In 2005, his furious five-wicket onslaught on the first morning at Lord’s was the performance that spelt out to the Aussies the extent of the challenge that awaited them. If truth be told, he was rarely as effective thereafter – he made vital incisions, most notably the dismissals of Michael Clarke and Mike Kasprowicz at Edgbaston, but claimed just nine wickets at 50.22 in the remaining four Tests of the series.What Harmison has done, however, is put on the sort of welcoming committee that Australian sides have habitually laid on for English touring teams. His unbridled hostility with the ball has been coupled with a selection of choice barbs that reveal an astonishing appetite for a tussle from a man who came across so meekly in Australia three years ago. It hasn’t quite been like watching the long-retired Dennis Lillee and Jeff Thomson chopping England down to size in regular tour openers at Lilac Hill, but it’s not far removed.Even Harmison himself does not expect to feature at Cardiff, but the lurking menace of his Worcester performance is quite enough national service for now – in particular, the manner in which he has dissected the technique of Australia’s wunderkind opener, Phillip Hughes. “I have put loads of doubt in him [Hughes],” said Harmison. “I imagine I’ve put doubt in a lot of the batsmen’s minds.”As for the 13th man in the squad, Michael Vaughan’s retirement has cleared the clutter quite nicely as far as the selectors are concerned. Regardless of his first-ball duck for the Lions, Ian Bell’s class is such that he’s unlikely to be shunned at this stage of the series, even if his temperament has yet to convince everyone. Including, quite possibly, the man himself.Possible Test squad Andrew Strauss (capt), Alastair Cook, Ravi Bopara, Kevin Pietersen, Paul Collingwood, Ian Bell, Matt Prior (wk), Andrew Flintoff, Stuart Broad, Graeme Swann, James Anderson, Graham Onions, Monty Panesar.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
Virender Sehwag showed up at last•Associated Press

Barring a late scare by Harbhajan Singh , who took 4 for 17, the Delhi Daredevils go into the semi-final with a confidence boosting six-wicket win against the Mumbai Indians. At the toss Virender Sehwag said he wanted to field to give his side some much needed practice chasing. And a fair bit of practice they got, with Sehwag leading the power-hitting top order who stayed ahead of the fairly steep required run-rate.Gautam Gambhir and David Warner, Delhi’s openers, blitzed to 30 in the first three overs. It started from the sixth ball of the first over. Lasith Malinga found bounce and bowled over but Gambhir picked his slower bouncer and pulled it for four to square leg. Then Gambhir and Warner hit 22 off the next 12 balls. Gambhir walked out and hit Dhawal Kulkarni for a four behind square leg before lifting a fuller one down the ground for another boundary.Rahil Shaikh began his IPL campaign with a high full toss that Warner pulled to midwicket boundary before being picked for another in the same area by Gambhir. Warner lofted Kulkarni for a six over long-on but then top-edged one and ended up losing his wicket and his bat. But Delhi couldn’t afford to slow down, needing over seven an over. Not that they would slow down when Sehwag joined Gambhir at the crease. Kulkarni was the one to suffer as Sehwag scored boundaries off whatever length he bowled. He gave away 36 in three overs.Harbhajan came on at the end of the Powerplays with Delhi at 60 for 1. He kept it tight by mixing flighted deliveries with flatter and sharper ones but it didn’t help as Sehwag and Gambhir instead picked the boundaries from the other end. Gambhir played Abhishek Nayar’s shorter deliveries to the fine leg and midwicket boundaries while Sehwag hit a half-volley over the bowler’s head for a six. After ten overs Delhi were 93 for 1 in contrast to Mumbai, who were 72 for 3 at the same stage.