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Available as DVD and VHS, running time 80 mins approx

Nasser Hussain used to be regarded as an angry young man. How times have changed. Now he is generally regarded as an intelligent, respected man of substance following his four-year – and reasonably successful – stint as as England captain.This visual account of Hussain, out at the same time as Stewart’s autobiography, allows a comparison between the two and it would not be unfair to Stewart to suggest that Hussain is destined to remain the more interesting character, likely to be written about and analysed for years to come.Focusing on his career’s main turning points – starting off as a spinner with England prospects, his double century against Australia at Edgbaston, England’s successful tours of the subcontinent and unsuccessful tour of Australia – the film offers a decent insight with lengthy, instructive interviews with the man himself, his father, brother and sister and former England captains David Gower, Mike Atherton and Alec Stewart.Apart from the footage of Hussain out with team-mates at a restaurant in Sri Lanka, which resembles the painful humour of TV sitcom The Office, this account of Hussain’s life is well-packaged and penetrative. It leaves you waiting for a substantial autobiography which surely must be just around the corner.

The true strength of Pakistan’s line-up for the World Cup was at test against South Africa, and they fared poorly in the one-day portion of the tour. After a very successful tour in Zimbabwe, where the team made a clean sweep in both the series, the real challenge was South Africa, one of the top teams in international cricket. The main problem facing the Pakistan management is team combinations, with doubts about who to play and who to drop.The Zimbabwe ODI series was ideal to help blood the openers, a chance to cash in against somewhat weak bowling, and Saleem Elahi and Taufeeq Umar did exactly that. It appeared as if the opening combination may have finally settled.Sadly, the South African pitches exposed reality very quickly. Taufeeq Umar, though highly talented, looked totally out of sorts, while Saleem Elahi has a terrible habit of playing with the angled bat, making him a major candidate for a catch in the slips.Youhana, Inzamam and Younis Khan on the other hand, justify their place in the batting order, and are bound to fire sooner or later. That leaves the opening slots up for grabs.With Faisal Iqbal looking in good touch, he deserves an opportunity, and Afridi is desperately needed for his all-round skill. Pakistan does need some aggression at the top of the order to try throwing opposition bowlers off their line and length. Aside from that, Pakistan desperately needs a sixth bowler, as one saw in the first one-dayer, when Razzaq was not in form.The question however remains, which player is to be selected as the wicket-keeper for the World Cup. Rashid Latif although brilliant with the gloves, just isn’t a competent enough batsman, which means it is necessary for Kamran Akmal to be inducted into the team. The Pakistan think tank should seriously consider having Kamran Akmal in the lower middle order to lend much greater balance to the side.On the other hand, the bowling department does not require too many changes, with strike bowler Shoaib Akhtar likely to be fit, could be swapped with Mohammed Sami in the less important games and Sami could also come in to give some rest to Waqar and Wasim. Thus Wasim, Waqar, Saqlain and Razzaq are automatic selections in the squad. Although it was disappointing to see Razzaq a bit rusty after a long lay off, he can be excused. He however should not be asked to bowl at the death because Wasim and Shoaib Akhtar are fitter candidates for that job. Special mention must be made of the superb effort by Wasim Akram to get back into form. Hhe did prove that in the early games in South Africa, till he was hurt, and that is exactly why he is regarded as the best bowler in contemporary cricket. Waqar too led his team from the front in the later games to grab key early wickets and one hopes he continues to show a rejuvenated effort.

Karachi, Nov 25: Karachi Whites moved another step towards the finalof the Quaid-i-Azam Trophy National Grade-I Cricket Championship witha six-wicket triumph over Sargodha at the Sports Stadium in Sargodhaon Saturday.According to a message received here, pace trio of Mohammad ZahidJunior (4-23), Mohammad Hasnain (3-12) and the explosive MohammadSami, who claimed three for 53 to complete a match bag of eight for105 routed Sargodha for just 102 in their second innings.Requiring 54 for their sixth victory, Karachi Whites, who had earlierdeclared their first innings at their overnight score, reached theirtarget for the loss of four wickets.

Tottenham manager Antonio Conte is keeping an eye on Liverpool defender Joe Gomez ahead of a potential move in the summer transfer window.

What’s the story?

The England international has struggled for game-time this season at Anfield, and according to 90min, it appears his future on Merseyside could be coming to an end, with Spurs one of the clubs interested.

They revealed: “Despite Klopp’s hopes that Gomez will stay, 90min understands the defender wants to move, although he does have two years left on his current deal and will carry a hefty price tag.

“One man who is desperate for Gomez to see more action, whether it be at Anfield or elsewhere, is England boss Gareth Southgate, who believes the Liverpool defender is one of his best options at the back.”

He’s a major Davinson Sanchez upgrade

Here on FFC, we’ve looked at how Sanchez’s career at Spurs has gone awry since his move from Ajax a few years ago, and there’s no questioning that Gomez would be a serious upgrade on the Colombian.

Jurgen Klopp, the 24-year-old’s manager at Liverpool, has waxed lyrical about the kind of qualities he possesses and why that marks him out as a superb central defender.

He said: “Since he is playing as a centre-half again – his natural position – together with (Virgil van Dijk) there is exceptional. He is a sensational footballer, which is good.

“He has outstanding speed, which helps us a lot to keep our last line high; he is a really good challenger; good in one-on-one situations; football-wise, I said already, good. The package is really nice.”

Given that Gomez has only played 102 minutes of Premier League football this season, with a mixture of injuries and the form of others keeping him out of the team, it’s no surprise that he is looking for a fresh start.

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As a Premier League and Champions League winner, the English ace would bring some much-needed title-winning experience to this Spurs squad and a winning mentality that Conte would surely crave.

The £22.5m-rated star would surely fancy his chances of staking a claim for a first-team spot at Spurs.

AND in other news – Sold for £18m, now worth under £1m: Levy played a blinder with shocking Spurs disaster

	Sunil Gavaskar will make a final decision on continuing as chairman of the ICC cricket committee after the body’s meeting on May 5-6 © Getty Images

The ICC has told Sunil Gavaskar that he would have to quit from the post of the chairman of the cricket committee if he wishes to continue as a media columnist and commentator to avoid a potential conflict of interest between the two roles.Gavaskar was told “very clearly” by Malcolm Speed, the ICC chief executive, during a meeting between the two in Dubai on Wednesday that the ICC expected a final decision. The ICC’s cricket committee will meet on May 5-6 and Gavaskar has been given the same deadline. The ICC board will review the issue at its next meeting, during the ICC Annual Conference week, between June 29 and July 4.Speed had last week been authorised by the ICC board to ask Gavaskar to choose between the two roles. “That situation still stands, and Gavaskar will have to convey his decision to the ICC after the cricket committee meeting,” an ICC source told Cricinfo. “The message was conveyed very clearly to Gavaskar. But the meeting, as such, was held in a cordial atmosphere. Speed and Gavaskar have been working together for so long, that was not a problem.”The issue of a potential conflict of interest came up in the aftermath of the Sydney Test between Australia and India last January, when Gavaskar criticised match referee Mike Procter in his newspaper column for banning Harbhajan Singh for alleged racial abuse.After the ICC’s executive board meeting in Dubai last week, Gavaskar criticised the boards of England and Australia in another syndicated newspaper column. “Gone are the days when two countries, England and Australia, had the veto power in international cricket, even though the dinosaurs may not open their eyes and see the reality,” he wrote. “The cricketing world has found that India has no longer a diffident voice but a confident one that knows what is good for its cricket, and will strive to get it.”

Scorecard

Matthew Hoggard traps Murray Goodwin lbw for 2 © Getty Images

Sussex batted out a draw on the final at Lord’s after being set an unattainable 368 in 49 overs by MCC. But they had to overcome an uneasy start to their second innings as Matthew Hoggard struck twice after Owais Shah moved to an unbeaten 120. There was a late injury scare when Hoggard left the field following a dropped catch, but fears were eased of a major problem.Hoggard, who struggled for his rhythm in the first innings, spent part of yesterday afternoon working on the Nursery Ground with Peter Moores, acting as MCC’s coach for this match. The extra practice paid off as he appeared more comfortable in the second innings, removing Carl Hopkinson with an edge to first slip then trapping first-innings centurion Murray Goodwin lbw.Sandwiched between Hoggard’s strikes, Alex Gidman had Chris Nash caught behind and at 30 for 3 – with Michael Yardy unable to bat after breaking his finger on Sunday, ruling him out for up to six weeks – the champions were under pressure. But this isn’t a fixture where players want to push themselves too hard and Hoggard was rested after six overs, while Steve Harmison delivered just a four-over burst.After tea, the attack was largely in the hands of Alex Loudon and Adil Rashid, leaving Matt Prior and Andrew Hodd with a comfortable task of batting out time. Hoggard dropped Prior at long on, then immediately left the field with a suspected hand injury, but it was later confirmed there was no break. Prior fell three short of a half-century when he was caught behind off Rashid a few overs before the draw was agreed.The morning session had been cut to 45 minutes after a faulty sprinkler allowed water to leak under the covers at the Nursery End, leaving a damp patch on the bowler’s follow through. The groundstaff used torches to dry the area as the umpires, Trevor Jesty and George Sharp, made two inspections.On resumption, Shah moved to his century off 208 balls and Gidman eased to a fifty. Gidman was deceived in the flight by Ollie Rayner shortly after lunch, but Alastair Cook batted on as Shah and Steven Davies added another 40.

Points tables

Southern conference

Andrew Flintoff bowls Chris Rogers for 13 on his way to 3 for 30 © Getty Images

A silky 92 by Matthew Wood set up a 26-run victory for Somerset against Surrey, their second win in three matches this campaign. Mark Ramprakash’s departure for 56 tipped the balance in Somerset’s favour, as Surrey lost their last six wickets for 41 runs, strangled by Cameron White (2 for 37) and Arul Suppiah (4 for 38). Together they administered a quick and clinical death.While Ramprakash, who was dropped by Wood at midwicket on 18, was cruising along with his usual consummate timing, it looked like he could seal a perfect week, after his 292 sank Gloucestershire in the Championship. But Surrey could find no impetus after he fell, leaving his side still needing 69 from ten overs.There was a strange mood to the innings, one not filled with urgency and one not helped by a calamitous mix-up between Mark Butcher who was let down by a James Benning call after reaching 33 in quick-time. Benning followed soon after, fishing at one – and you’d imagine that compliments were not what he caught when he arrived in the changing room (80 for 3).On a typically flat Oval pitch, Somerset’s 279 looked like a par score after they were asked to bat. There was an easy pace to their innings, the langorous nature reflected by the relaxed Sunday crowd. Wood carved out the bulk of the score, with Suppiah setting up a good day with 63, before Ian Salisbury snapped up a sharp return catch. But it was Somerset who were ultimately sharper.Down at Lord’s, Middlesex finally chalked up a win, breaking Hampshire‘s unbeaten run in the process, with a 13-run victory. Ed Smith battered 88 to lift Middlesex to 254, helped by another cool Ed, Joyce, who made 43. Chad Keegan wrapped up proceedings with 3 for 52 from 9.1 overs.Alastair Cook’s commanding 91 not out took Essex to an emphatic eight-wicket victory against Ireland at the County Ground. After the early loss of Ronnie Irani for a duck, Cook and Grant Flower didn’t look back, adding 163 for the second wicket to do the damage. Ryan ten Doeschate took 4 for 49 from nine overs, including the wicket of dangerman Shahid Afridi for 7, to dent Ireland’s hopes of setting a decent target. Heavy overnight rains failed to make an impression on the match and Essex were left to chase 191, after Andre Botha had boosted Ireland with 69 and Eoin Morgan had added 34.

Northern conference

It’s not often these days that you see Andrew Flintoff in a Lancashire shirt, but he didn’t disappoint those fans who turned up to Northamptonshire to watch him take 3 for 30 and help his county side to an authoritative eight-wicket win. And there was no need for him to bat, either, as Brad Hodge and Stuart Law each made unbeaten fifties to take Lancashire home. On the bowling front, Dominic Cork chipped in with 3 for 23 and there was a solitary wicket for Sajid Mahmood who will be celebrating his England call-up along with his international captain, Flintoff, tonight.Gareth Breese blew through Warwickshire with 4 for 36 to take Durham to a 66-run win at the Riverside. Mick Lewis also left the visitors windswept – his 2 for 26 from five overs started the rot. Fifties from John Lewis and Paul Collingwood had teed up Durham who made a crashing 224 from 36 overs in a reduced match. With such a stiff target, Warwickshire were always going to be up against it, and they froze.Chris Taylor squeezed out victory for Derbyshire with an unbeaten 66 against Leicestershire at the County Ground. After rain reduced the match to 45 overs, Derbyshire were left to chase 190 which they did with eight balls to spare. Leicestershire made 188 for 6 from the 45 overs that were possible in their innings, Jeremy Snape (34 from 35 balls) and Paul Nixon (27 from 24) boosting them late on.Scotland’s Australian import, Corey Richards, clubbed an unbeaten 88 from 70 balls to set his adopted country up for a memorable eight-run victory over Worcestershire at the Grange in Edinburgh. In a match reduced to 25 overs a side, Richards was aided and abetted by another Aussie, his New South Wales team-mate, Ian Moran, who scampered a brisk 42 not out from 28 balls. In reply, Vikram Solanki hit 61 from 56, and Graeme Hick was still there at the end, on 50 not out from 42, but Worcestershire were left with just too much to do.

Steve Waugh: had a hand in allowing India back into the Chennai Test three years ago© Getty Images

Another Chennai Test, another Australia collapse. Those who were here three years ago could tell you that it wasn’t Harbhajan Singh’s 15 wickets or Sachin Tendulkar’s century that won India the series. No, it was Steve Waugh’s hand. When the man renowned for his steely temperament decided to play catch with a Harbhajan delivery that was spinning back towards the stumps, Australia were 340 for 3, and on course to give India a hiding to end all hidings. Matthew Hayden was at his intimidating best at the other end, and Waugh himself had seldom been troubled during his innings.But that momentary lapse of reason left the door ajar for Harbhajan, and a little over an hour later, Australia had subsided to 391 all out. The world champions don’t do anything by halves, and when they lose the plot, it can make the average B-grade Bollywood pot-boiler look coherent. At Kolkata a week earlier, with VVS Laxman and Rahul Dravid having played the innings of their lives, Australia were handily placed to salvage a draw on the final day, going to tea at 161 for 3, with the Hayden-Waugh combination occupying the crease.But once Waugh was caught in the close-in cordon by Hemang Badani, the last seven batsmen were loathe to make the scorers work unduly hard, adding only 46 more before subsiding to 212 all out. This penchant for stunning collapses hasn’t been restricted to matches in India either. In the series opener at Brisbane last year, Australia went from 268 for 2 to 323 all out. And in the Adelaide match, where they lost despite piling up an imposing 556 in the first innings, the last five second-innings wickets added just 13.Of course, only a foolish punter would write off Australia’s chances here. In Sri Lanka a few months ago, they conceded first-innings leads of 161 and 91 in the first two Tests, storming back to win both despite a certain Muttiah Muralitharan being in opposition. But the stumble from 189 for 2 to 235 today certainly gives India hope. Like the boxer who strives incessantly for a knockout despite being way ahead of points, Australia remain suspect to the sucker punch, and Anil Kumble’s haymaker certainly laid them out cold.

It finished how it had started six weeks ago in Dambulla. The first twotests might have been edgy and attritional but the last test was gloriouslyemphatic. Sri Lanka produced their best performance since the Asia TestChampionship in March 2002 as they overwhelmed England by an innings and 215runs – a whopping hammering by anyone’s standards.

© Getty Images

Michael Vaughan, England’s skipper, held his hand up afterwards and admittedthat his team had been fairly and soundly trounced. "Sri Lanka appliedpressure on us for almost every day of the series. We fought hard but thereare only so many punches you can take. Today was the knockout." The analogywas apt for Sri Lanka had jabbed away at their opponents all tour, wearingthem down slowly but surely. Finally, after two days in the field in thebaking sun in Colombo followed by sleepless nights as the Taj Samudra hotelthrew noisy late night parties, they dropped their defences. Sri Lanka tookaim and finally landed a killer punch.Not surprisingly it was Murali that was responsible for the bulk of thecarnage in the second innings, as England were skittled for 148, theirlowest total against Sri Lanka. His 4 for 64 extended his series tally to 26and justly earned him the man of the series award. His was a trulyexceptional performance. We are used to his brilliance, but this was in adifferent league. England arrived confident of handling him; they leftflabbergasted by his wrong’un.Duncan Fletcher, England’s coach, said simply: "He creates mystery wheneverhe comes on and the other bowlers feed off that mystery." Vaughan was gladto see the back of him: "The one thing about the West Indies is that theydon’t have a Murali…that will make a difference."England, lulled into a false sense of security by his injuries before theseries in 2001 (groin) and 2002 (shoulder), were surprised by the quick pacewith which he bowled and, particularly, by the amount he turned his wrong’un. Many pundits have referred to it as a new delivery, but Murali has beenbowling it for years. Now though it’s been perfected and it makes him a verydangerous bowler.

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But Murali was not the only star on that final one-sided day. DilharaFernando, back in the side after recovering from a back injury, provided theattack with that extra cutting edge. He was not express in pace because of aside injury that required an injection, but he was nevertheless potent:Vaughan was deceived by a slower ball, Ashley Giles had his stumpsrearranged by a reverse swinging Yorker and Andrew Flintoff was surprised bysome extra bounce. For the first time in the series Chaminda Vaas had aproper seam bowling partner.Perhaps with hindsight – to be fair to Hashan Tillakaratne he had apparentlychampioned Dilhara’s cause in Kandy only to be overruled – he should haveplayed in Galle and Kandy too, although Dinusha Fernando did score apriceless fifty in the second test.The bowlers killed England off but it was the batters that drained theirresolve. At times it wasn’t pretty but it was nevertheless mightyimpressive. Sanath Jayasuriya provided an entertaining start, batting withfresh vigour after two tentative Test matches, to set the stage for ThilanSamaraweera and Mahela Jayawardene, who piled up a massive 262 in 543balls for the third wicket.Samaraweera was picked for the series as a specialist batsman, but lurkingdown at number six and seven he’d struggled to make an impression. A rarechance though at number three, as Marvan Atapattu nursed his injured hand,was snapped up. Samaraweera is a man that likes to control his own destiny.He’s not supremely talented but he makes up for that with sheerbloody-mindedness. He was fortunate to be dropped on 12, 46 and 98, and allthree Test tons have been scored on the pancake flat SSC pitch, but he nowdeserves a proper run in the side.

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The performances of Jayawardene and Dilshan were also of great significanceto a team that had suffered from middle order jitters for the best part of18 months. Jayawardene’s slump was most pronounced in the one-day game, buthe had still failed to knit together a really substantial Test score sincehis hundred against England at Lord’s in May 2002. Talk of him being droppedfrom the Test team though was quite frankly absurd. He started cautiously adoggedly in Galle with a grinding second innings knock and improved witheach innings he played to become Sri Lanka’s highest scorer in the series.The team looks so much healthier with him on song.Dilshan’s second coming was a revelation and a true bonus. After 2 ½ yearsout of the team he bounced back with two fifties and one superb century thatnearly set-up and Sri Lanka win in the hill-country. His positive andattacking intent – some of the credit for which must go to the coach whogave him free licence to play his shots – forced England onto the back footand played a major part in the series win.Thus, despite Sri Lanka’s disappointingly negative approach in Kandy, wherethey refused to take the game by the scruff of the neck, Sri Lanka finishedthe series in very good shape. You can sense some of the old confidencereturning. The Aussies had better be on guard because their Feb/Mar tour isnow going to be very tough indeed.

Oh dear, what can the matter be?For a nation which boasts of a rich cricketing tradition, Barbados are seemingly quickly trying to establish the same dubious records that the West Indies have set in recent years, especially on overseas tours.Seven hours after the West Indies sank to their 24th defeat in their last 27 Tests outside of the Caribbean, Barbados succumbed to a second successive Busta Cup defeat here yesterday in a match they subsided for less than 180 in either innings.Statisticians will have to turn back the pages several years to find such an instance. They will also have a hard time finding an occurrence of Barbados losing two successive first-class matches in the same season.And this defeat, inside three days, follows that against the Windward Islands last weekend when they were beaten by a team that had not toppled them at this level in 19 years.Over the last three days at Sabina Park, it was clear why the defending Cup champions were a distant second to Jamaica, the reigning Shield champions.We didn’t apply ourselves, captain Philo Wallace said after Barbados had crashed to their lowest total of the season in an innings that lasted only three-and-a half-hours and 46.3 overs.We played the extra batsman and it didn’t work and I think we are still searching for the right combinations to come up with the results we are looking for.Barbados, faced with a first innings deficit of 172 after enjoying a good first session in which they took Jamaica’s last six wickets for 75, were undone by a combination of disciplined bowling, a few rash strokes and maybe a couple of decisions at which they showed their displeasure.Kurt Wilkinson hit the topscore of 35 before he went in bizarre circumstances, while Sulieman Benn weighed in with 32 not out, but there was little else from anyone.This Barbados team, missing the experience and skill of some of their leading batsmen for varying reasons, depends heavily on Wallace, but even before the bowlers could remove their boots, he was heading back to the pavilion for a fifth-ball duck.For the second time in the match, the Barbados captain was undone by a peach of a delivery, one of fullish length from Laurie Williams which dipped and swung through the air at the last moment.We have young, inexperienced batsmen who are still learning the trade and we have three senior players. I am one at the top. I didn’t get any runs in this game, so I, too, have to take some responsibility for not getting among the runs, Wallace said.At the end of the day, we didn’t bat particularly well and we are still not taking wickets at the rate that I would like.Williams, who was given a rare chance to use the new ball, also responded by gaining the wicket of Wallace’s opening partner Shirley Clarke, lbw on the back foot to a break-back.With Wallace out of the way, Barbados would have been relying on Floyd Reifer and Courtney Browne to carry the fight, but once both were despatched within an hour-and-a-quarter after lunch, it was obvious the match would not go into the fourth day.Reifer fell to a loose stroke from a loose ball in the first over of a new spell from Darren Powell. A ball wide of off stump induced Reifer into an attempted cut which he edged to the keeper.Browne was prised out by a big inswinging yorker from Jermaine Lawson, but he might have done better had he attempted to block it rather than play the off-drive he inside-edged into his stumps.It was not yet 2 p.m. and the die had been cast.Barbados, 60 for four, rapidly deteriorated to 85 for eight in the first completed over after tea.Dwayne Smith succumbed to another soft stroke, providing a return catch to Gareth Breese, but poor Kurt Wilkinson could not be faulted for his freak dismissal.He flicked Breese into the chin of Leon Garrick at forward short-leg and the alert wicket-keeper Keith Hibbert dived to take the rebound. There was, however, a feeling in some quarters that the ball might have struck the turf before it hit Garrick.A hobbling Martin Nurse came out just before tea with an injured hamstring, but lasted only one ball which he prodded to silly-point to complete a disastrous match in which he bagged a pair. His injury seems almost certain to rule him out of Barbados’ fourth round match against Trinidad and Tobago, starting Friday in Port-of-Spain.Both Ryan Austin and Ian Bradshaw went the run-out route.In the morning period, Barbados were finally rewarded for their persistence of the previous day when they made early inroads into Jamaica’s batting.Tino Best, wicketless in an impressive six-over burst on Saturday when the Jamaicans in the stands were urging him on, suffered from early blows before claiming four wickets with awesome pace.Two of those scalps were catches courtesy of substitute Antonio Thomas. The first, which accounted for Breese, was at third man from an upper-cut, and the second, from Robert Samuels’ top-edged hook, was a spectacular effort, hauled in inches from the ground with a despairing dive after running in from the long-leg fence.