Sports & Cricket Headlines

Kevin Pietersen celebrated his first innings as England captain with a century on Friday, steering his side to a first-innings lead on the second day of the fourth Test at The Oval. At tea England were 38 ahead of South Africa, who were bowled out on Thursday for 194.

Kevin Pietersen made the best of some good fortune to score a century in his first Test as England captain, against South Africa at The Oval, in London, on Friday.

Ajantha Mendis has dismissed VVS Laxman in five successive innings in this series. He has bagged 23 wickets at an average of 17.26 runs. He is the highest wicket-taker in the series.

India were bundled out for a paltry 249 in their first innings, but opener Gautam Gambhir believes the team still had a chance to make a match out of the third and deciding Test against Sri Lanka. The left-handed batsman from Delhi top-scored for India with 72 runs but the middle-order cut a sorry figure yet again.

India cricket coach Gary Kirsten's ailing mother Gayl Hall passed away in Cape Town on Friday after losing a battle against cancer. Gayl was 64 and undergoing treatment for lung cancer at the Vincent Pallotti Hospital.

Spinner Ajantha Mendis claimed 5-56 as Sri Lanka dismissed India for 249 on the first day of the third Test.

Sri Lanka have recalled fast bowlers Dilhara Fernando and Farveez Maharoof for the ICC Champions Trophy in Pakistan next month. Fernando returns after recovering from a leg injury and Maharoof has recovered from a side strain, although the selectors have decided he should not be rushed back for the India series. All rounder Kaushal Weeraratne will replace Maharoof for the five-match one-day series against India which starts in Dambulla on August 18.

The slow pace of renovations to the stadium at Rawalpindi could force cricket authorities to restrict next month's Champions Trophy to just two venues, sources within the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) have said. PCB chief operating officer Shafqat Naghmi said a deadline of August 20 had been set for renovation work on the Pindi stadium to be completed.

Recalled England fast bowler Steve Harmison took two wickets in two balls and James Anderson captured three to help dismiss South Africa for 194 on Kevin Pietersen's first outing as Test captain on Thursday.

India skipper Anil Kumble said wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel will replace butterfingered Dinesh Karthick in the third and final Test against Sri Lanka, beginning on Friday.

India's cricket selectors did a volte-face on Thursday when they brought in seniors to replace youngsters for the ODI series in Sri Lanka and Champions Trophy. It was not surprising that Sachin Tendulkar, Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh made a comeback and making way for them were Robin Uthappa, Piyush Chawla, Yusuf Pathan and Manpreet Singh Gony.

Interestingly, Kevin Pietersen's debut as England captain comes against South Africa -- the country of his birth.

Sachin Tendulkar, Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh made a comeback into the Indian ODI squads for the five-match series against Sri Lanka and the forthcoming 2008 ICC Champions Trophy in Pakistan. Under-19 World Cup winning captain Virat Kohli was the surprise inclusion in both the squads.

A film based on the life of late South African cricket captain Hansie Cronje, who fell from grace in the 2000 match-fixing scandal, is all set to release in Durban next month. Directed by Cronje's brother Frans, 'Hansie' chronicles the former skipper's life, that met a tragic end when he died in a plane crash in 2002, completed filming on Monday.

Reader Saurabh Sawant sent us this picture.