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Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsLasith Malinga left carnage in his wake at the Kotla•AFP

When batsmen face Lasith Malinga, they know what’s coming at them: several yorkers, some low full tosses, the odd slower ball. Some might not swing but everything will be aimed at the stumps. Knowledge wasn’t power for Delhi Daredevils’ batsmen, though, as Malinga ripped through them in two spells, claiming the third-best figures in the IPL. His five-wicket haul helped shoot out Delhi for 95, their second-lowest total, and ruin the contest before the sun had set at the Feroz Shah Kotla.Malinga’s performance allowed the Mumbai batsmen to chase in comfortable gear. Davy Jacobs’ first stint as Sachin Tendulkar’s opening partner was ended early by Morne Morkel and Roelof van der Merwe ran out Ambati Rayudu with a scintillating intercept, slide, turnaround and direct hit from extra cover, but that was it for Delhi. Tendulkar could not be dismissed and without the pressure of a high asking-rate he steered Mumbai to an eight-wicket victory with 19 balls to spare. In a format engineered to produce the exciting finish, this was a mismatch from the fifth over.Delhi’s strength was their top order and in Virender Sehwag and David Warner they possessed the most explosive openers of the tournament. Sehwag began aggressively by launching his first delivery, off Harbhajan Singh, miles in the air only for the ball to fall short of the straight boundary and plug in the outfield. He improved on that attempt the next ball, clearing long-off by a considerable distance, forcing Harbhajan to bowl quicker and flatter.Enter Malinga, who had been retained by Mumbai, and he re-emphasised his value in no time at all. With his second ball, a pinpoint yorker, Malinga breached Warner’s defences. With his fourth, a fast and straight delivery, he hit Unmukt Chand’s middle stump.Chand made the novice error of playing across the line to a Malinga arrow, a mistake Sehwag had committed in the World Cup final. Today Sehwag was watchful, defending Malinga with a straight bat when the line demanded it, but opening the face to guide to the third-man boundary when the width allowed it. He played out the 2011 IPL’s first maiden over, seeing off Malinga’s second without damage, and set himself to take on the rest of the bowlers.That did not come to pass, though, for in the fifth over Aaron Finch came down the pitch to Ali Murtaza’s left-arm spin, worked the ball off his pads towards short fine leg, and continued running. Sehwag hesitated and then responded, but was beaten by Tendulkar’s direct hit. He had swooped on the ball with the agility of a much younger man. It was the decisive moment of the game. Finch did not last long either, slog-sweeping Harbhajan to deep-backward square leg, leaving Delhi on 40 for 4.Naman Ojha, whose 29 was Delhi’s top score, showed a semblance of resistance but his dismissal – caught on the long-off boundary – hastened the end of the innings. Irfan Pathan, bought for $1.9 million and playing his first competitive match in a year, was run out first ball.And then Malinga returned, and inevitably the yorkers followed. He bowled Venugopal Rao with one, broke Morne Morkel’s bat with another before dismissing him with a third next ball. Malinga finished with 5 for 13 – the fifth came with a slower ball – leaving his team with a straightforward chase.

Half-centuries from Saqib Ali and captain Khurram Khan helped United Arab Emirates to a five-wicket win over Namibia in the final of the ICC World Cricket League Division Two tournament at the Dubai Sports City Cricket Stadium on Friday.Having been set a target by Namibia of 201, the hosts claimed victory after a stand-out performance from Ali who set the side up for victory before captain Khan and Amjad Javed finished proceedings. By virtue of reaching the final UAE and Namibia have now claimed 17th and 18th position in the world rankings.UAE had been undefeated in the group stages of the event and made a strong start in the final after Namibia had won the toss and opted to bat. Both Namibian openers were removed within the first eight overs, but captain Craig Williams’ 58 and contributions from Sarel Burger (42) and Raymond van Schoor helped Namibia reach 200.Under darkening skies, UAE lost both opener Amjad Ali and Naeemuddin Aslam early in their chase to left-arm medium-pacer Kola Burger. Arshad Ali contributed a solid 30, but two wickets in the space of six balls brought Namibia right back into the game as UAE slipped to 73 for 4. Then came Ali and Khan’s match-winning partnership of exactly 100, which took UAE to within striking distance of the Division 2 title.After adding yet another half-century, Williams took his tally of runs for the tournament to 335 and earned the Player of the Tournament title. “I’ve worked really hard particularly since my appointment to captaincy, and I try to set an example,” he said. “We are lucky to have such a well-balanced side, and the long batting line up really does take the pressure off me. As captain I hope the boys get that that they see how hard I work for them.”I think we lost wickets at crucial moments within the game and we’re going to work on it. UAE bowled 40-something overs of spin alone, so we really need to work on our response to such bowlers. In South Africa we play against quick bowlers all the time so it’s something we need to work on.”Namibia are very good competition – they started very well today and we were worried they’d run up a total of 250 or more, which would be very hard to chase particularly on this turf,” added UAE captain Khurram Khan. “But then Saqib Ali came and bowled exceptionally – with his 3-13 and I think that really turned the game around.”There is a lot of pressure on Saqib as we know he is always going to do well and he has performed consistently throughout the tournament. He is also a good batsman and I think we had a very good partnership. Throughout the tournament our key bowlers have always been spinners – and we know that they are very good. In this one-day format we must ensure we restrict the batsmen from scoring and that’s what our spin bowling attack is there for.”On a personal note I am very proud of my team – and I don’t know how much longer I’ll be playing for the UAE now I’m 39. I hope to play in the Intercontinental Cup should the Development Committee select us as I’d like to see my boys through that. It will be time for me to step down soon, but who knows.”In a repeat of the Division Three finals, Hong Kong and Papua New Guinea faced each other once more with PNG romping to a 127-run win at the ICC Global Cricket Academy. The win earned PNG third place and both teams will remain in Division Two.PNG’s win was set up by a solid 55 from Asad Vala and an adventurous, unbeaten 74 from Vani Morea, which took their team to 225 for 6. Hong Kong’s reply never got going, seamer Raymond Haoda providing three early breakthroughs and spinners Andrew McIntosh and Mahuru Dai sealing the result with a volley of quick wickets.After the match 16-year-old Hong Kong batsman Mark Chapman received a reprimand and an official warning after being reported by on-field umpires Theunis van Schalkwyk and Sri Ganesh. Chapman was found to have breached Section 2.1.3 of the ICC Code, which relates to “showing dissent at an umpire’s decision during an international match,” and was consequently charged with a Level 1 offence.”I hope Mr Chapman, as a young and potential player for the future, has learned that there is no place for this type of behaviour in the game and that the spirit of the game should be maintained at all times,” said Match Referee Graeme La Brooy. “I also trust that in future, he will be more courteous and pay others the respect that they deserve.”With both Uganda and Bermuda assured of relegation to Division Three, they had little more than pride – and the positions of 21st and 22nd in the world rankings – in their match at the Global Cricket Academy.Bermuda captain David Hemp held his side’s innings together with 44, but Bermuda could manage only a sub-par 193 as Uganda’s bowlers struck at regular intervals. Uganda lost Roger Mukasa to the very first ball of their chase and slipped to 33 for 3 before opener Arthur Kyobe and Benjamin Musoke launched the recovery with a 96-run stand for the fourth wicket. Kyobe fell to offspinner Delyone Borden to give Bermuda hope, but Musoke and Frank Nsubuga responded with a rapid partnership that sealed a five-wicket win with almost four overs to spare.By virtue of finishing in the top four of the event, UAE, Namibia, PNG and Hong Kong will each receive dedicated ICC High Performance grants while two out of the four will play in the ICC Intercontinental Cup which commences later this year. The two teams that will compete in the Cup will be chosen by the ICC Development Committee at its next meeting.

ScorecardAuckland captain Gareth Hopkins poses with the trophy•Getty Images

A 152-ball 153 from Lou Vincent propelled Auckland to a six-run victory against Canterbury in a high-scoring final of the NZC one-day competition. The game saw 664 runs scored and included a spirited century in a losing cause by Canterbury’s Rob Nicol.Winning the toss and batting, Auckland got off to a solid start, with openers Vincent and Jeet Raval putting on 92 for the first wicket within 15 overs. Canterbury followed up fast bowler Andrew Ellis’ dismissal of Raval with two quick wickets, but a 136-run partnership for the fourth wicket between Vincent and Greg Todd asserted Auckland’s dominance in the match.By the time Canterbury knocked over Vincent in the 47th over, he had pummelled their bowlers for 16 fours and a six. A hard-hitting cameo by Colin de Grandhomme in the death overs gave Auckland the finish they wanted, and they finished with 335 for 6. Richard Sherlock was the only bowler to take more than one wicket, but bled 9.37 runs per over.Canterbury’s chase did not begin ideally, as they moved along to 52 for 2 in the 11th over. But a 136-run third wicket partnership between Nicol and Dean Brownlie (60 off 66 balls) got the innings back on track. After the two fell, Shanan Stewart’s 60 off 47 balls combined with the lower order to almost take Canterbury home, but they fell just short.Nicol’s century made him the tournament’s leading run-scorer with 648 runs in nine matches at 72.00, ahead of Lou Vincent, who finished with 642 in 11 matches.

Brandon Bess began his Regional Four Day Competition campaign on a high, grabbing a five-for for Guyana against Jamaica at the Alpart Sports Club in St. Elizabeth. Four Jamaica batsmen, including Marlon Samuels and Brendan Nash, made 20s but failed to push on as Bess, with support from spinners Devendra Bishoo and Veerasammy Permaul, ran through the line-up to bowl it out for 150. In their reply, Guyana lost opener Shemroy Barrington for 13 and ended the day on 32 for 1.Only 48 overs were possible on a rain-affected day at Guarancara Park in Pointe-a-Pierre where Barbados reached 133 for 2 against hosts Trinidad and Tobago. Barbados lost openers Dale Richards and Kraigg Brathwaite but Kirk Edwards finished with an unbeaten 75 to help lay a strong platform for his team.England Lions took control of their contest against Leeward Islands at the Warner Park in Basseterre, courtesy an unbeaten century from captain James Hildreth and his ongoing 186-run stand with James Taylor. Opener Adam Lyth led England’s charge at the top of the order, making a fluent 55 while Ravi Bopara chipped in with a steady 46. Leewards had evened things out when they had England Lions at 134 for 3, but Hildreth, who struck 13 fours, and Lyth, who supported him with 79, put the visitors on top.Windward Islands held a slight edge over Combined Campuses and Colleges on a wicket-filled day at the three Ws Oval in Bridgetown. A collective bowling effort from Windwards, led by the offspin of Liam Sebastien, skittled out CCC for 131. Sebastien grabbed three wickets, and was supported by Keon Peters and Keron Cottoy who picked up two each. Windwards had been shaping up well in their response with Johnson Charles, Andre Fletcher and Keddy Lesporis each getting starts. But spin worked the magic again in the day as Ryan Austin and Nkruma Bonner shared four wickets to limit Windwards to 145 for 7 at stumps, a lead of just 14.

Cricket South Africa have named four uncapped players in the preliminary squad for the 2011 World Cup and recalled batsman Jacques Rudolph and allrounder Johan van der Wath, who made themselves eligible for selection following the termination of their Kolpak deals with their respective counties. The list of 30 will be pruned to 15 for the final squad by mid-JanuaryBatsman Jonathan Vandiar, allrounders Faf du Plessis and Dean Elgar and seamer Ethi Mbhalati are the four players yet to play for the national team. du Plessis, who plays for Titans in domestic cricket, was the highest run-scorer in the recently-concluded MTN40 series, with 567 runs at an average of 81. Elgar, representing the title-winners Knights, averaged 39.57 while Vandiar, who plays for Lions, averaged 53.75 at a strike-rate of 122.15. du Plessis’ team-mate Mbhalati also impressed with nine wickets at 22.Rudolph, 29, last played an ODI for South Africa in February 2006 and had signed with Yorkshire before opting to return home. van der Wath had played for Northamptonshire before which he played in the unauthorised Indian Cricket League. Also back in the reckoning is wicketkeeper-batsman Morne van Wyk, who played his previous ODI in 2007.”We indicated at the start of the season that we would reward players who performed well in domestic cricket,” CSA’s selection convenor Andrew Hudson said. “There have been some highly impressive performances in the MTN40 and this has opened the door of opportunity for the likes of Faf du Plessis, Jonathan Vandiar, Ethy Mbhalati and Morne van Wyk among others.”Preliminary squad: Graeme Smith, Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis, AB de Villiers, Alviro Peterson, Loots Bosman, Jacques Rudolph, Morne van Wyk, Jonathan Vandiar, JP Duminy, David Miller, Colin Ingram, Albie Morkel, Robin Peterson, Mark Boucher, Thami Tsolekile, Faf du Plessis, Dean Elgar, Heino Kuhn, Morne Morkel, Dale Steyn, Wayne Parnell, Lonwabo Tsotsobe, Johan Botha, Ryan McLaren, Charl Langeveldt, Rusty Theron, Ethy Mbhalati, Roelef van der Merwe, Johan van der Wath

Ganesh Sanap, the president of the Northern California Cricket Association (NCCA), has thrown his hat into the ring to fill the vacant vice-president position for the USA Cricket Association (USACA). Sanap told ESPNcricinfo that he will run for the position against Hemant Buch. Both men are involved with cricket administration in the San Francisco Bay Area, and it now appears that a regional rivalry will be played out on the national stage.”I just want to bring new energy to the old guard,” Sanap said. Sanap traveled with USA’s U-19 squad to New Zealand for the 2010 ICC U-19 World Cup, where he served as team statistician. If elected, he says his focus will be on youth development, which he feels has been badly neglected by USACA.”As far as the national administration is concerned, all they care about is funding tournaments, which is basic duty of course. Other than that, there has been no plan shown by anyone on the national level that they care about the growth of the game or development of the sport.”Only a handful of committed people at the regional level, they’ve been doing it by themselves. Some have vested interests; some have real passion for the sport. There won’t be any vested interests from me.”Sanap served as secretary of the NCCA from 2006 to 2007 before taking over as president of the league in 2008. The league had 33 teams in 2010, and Sanap says his biggest accomplishment was the formation of the NCCA youth program and U-19 team.”It’s one of the best. My major focus on the league level as well as the national level will be getting more programs in place for youth cricket, identify coaches across the nation, across the various regions, and then if possible, have a few dollars earmarked for them to hold those regular coaching camps, at least a two-day session or a weekend every month to coach U-19 players or youth and then gather reports from them, maintain a database of how the players are progressing.”According to John Aaron, Secretary of USACA, the general elections for USA’s governing body will take place “sometime between March 8 and November 30” following guidelines from the USACA constitution. A USACA board meeting is scheduled for January 15-16 in New York in conjunction with the departure of the USA squad traveling to Hong Kong for the ICC World Cricket League Division Three tournament. Aaron believes that the date of this year’s USACA elections will be finalized at the upcoming board meeting, but said that a full meeting agenda hadn’t been finalized.Depending on the date selected for the elections, Aaron also indicated that someone may be appointed to fill the USACA vice president position left vacant after the resignation of Nabeel Ahmed up until the elections are held.

Michael Clarke has conquered his first major obstacle to proving his fitness for the opening Ashes Test while Peter Siddle has firmed as Australia’s third bowler for the Gabba. Clarke batted in the nets for almost an hour on Tuesday and played a full range of shots without any noticeable discomfort from his degenerative back problem.Clarke, the vice-captain, has been the major worry this week after picking up the problem earlier in the month, but Alex Kountouris, the team physio, said he was “really positive” after the training session. “He got through today well and it’s important to wait to see how he pulls up tomorrow,” he said. “Michael will bat again on Wednesday and a final decision will be made on Thursday morning.”The sight of Clarke pulling, driving and dancing down the wicket during his session of throw-downs provided a much-needed boost for the locals, who have experienced a difficult time over the past month. “That’s good signs for him and for Australia,” Mitchell Johnson said. “He’s still got two another days to prove himself. To have someone like Michael not in the team would be a big loss for us.”Usman Khawaja remains on standby but Australia’s squad is taking shape, with Steven Smith, the legspinning allrounder, released to play for New South Wales. Siddle has not appeared in a Test since January but has moved ahead of Doug Bollinger for the final bowling spot.Johnson and Ben Hilfenhaus are the two certainties in the attack while Siddle is capable of providing some right-arm menace after a long and detailed recovery. “Out of us four, it’s going to be a tough time for one of us and there will be highs,” Siddle said. “Whoever gets that opportunity will be ready to go.”Bollinger’s action has usually been a selling point but in this team there are also the left-armers Johnson and Xavier Doherty, the finger spinner in line for a debut. Bollinger has played only one Sheffield Shield match since hurting his stomach in India, limiting his chances to impress.The Gabba pitch is green and the square is soft, prompting suggestions Australia should lean towards a four-man pace attack. That combination is extremely unlikely given the allrounder Shane Watson’s ability to deliver around 15 overs a day of medium-fast.When asked if the four specialist quicks would corner Ricky Ponting to push for an all-pace attack Siddle said: “That’s what we’d always like to say, and Marcus North has taken a Test five-for. We will always put that out there. It’s up to selectors which way they go. It always makes it harder when you’ve got Watson there.”Siddle has been in demand this week and was a guest at a Test match lunch where he spoke of his desire to charge in and “have a crack” at England. He was a key member of the team during the 2009 loss, taking 20 wickets at 30.80, and has done some serious remodelling of his body during his time out with a back stress-fracture.”I’m a new and improved person and a new and improved bowler,” Siddle said. “There’s a lot more to do for Australia cricket.”

Scorecard
Tanmay Mishra hit one of three half-centuries for Kenya as they beat UAE by 24 runs to sweep the series 4-0•AFP

Kenya, playing without Steve Tikolo, proved too strong for UAE in the fourth and final one-dayer in Mombasa, beating them by 24 runs to sweep the series 4-0. Half-centuries from Tanmay Mishra, Alex Obanda and captain Jimmy Kamande ensured Kenya had enough runs. This, despite a late collapse in which five wickets fell for 18 runs, all of them to medium-pacer Amjad Javed, who took a career-best 6 for 50.UAE began promisingly, but sedately, and later slumped to 134 for 6, before the other Amjad, Ali, led a fightback with an aggressive fifty. But Kenya kept up the pressure, and UAE folded up for 214.The game had begun well for UAE when fast bowler Shoaib Sarwar had struck twice to leave Kenya in trouble at 25 for 2. But Mishra and Obanda steadied the innings with an 84-run partnership before Obanda was bowled by offspinner Mohammad Tauqir for 64 off 70 deliveries. Mishra then found an able ally in Kamande and the duo took the score past 150 until Mishra was stumped for 68 off 71. At 220 for 5, Kenya were eyeing a substantial score but Javed struck repeatedly as the lower order collapsed. Kamande made 56 off 62 but also fell to Javed as Kenya were dismissed for 238 with 14 balls left.UAE began solidly until Arfan Haider fell to Nelson Odhiambo for 20 off 43. Kenya were miserly and as the asking rate mounted, the pressure told on the UAE batsmen. Wicketkeeper Swapnil Patil was run out for 20 off 48 and offspinner James Ngoche trapped opener Arshad Ali leg before for 40. Amjad Ali resisted with a quick half-century but when he fell to Aga, it was all but over for UAE. Elijah Otieno snuffed out the last two wickets as UAE were bowled out with two overs to spare.

India 405 (Tendulkar 98, Raina 86, Johnson 5-64) and 216 for 9 (Laxman 73*, Hilfenhaus 4-57, Bollinger 3-32) beat Australia 428 (Watson 126, Paine 92, Zaheer 5-94) and 192 (Watson 56, Ishant 3-34, Zaheer 3-43) by 1 wicket
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Australia ran into VVS Laxman once again•Getty Images

VVS Laxman overcame his sore back to become the hero of a nail-biting one-wicket victory for India, who retained the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in dramatic fashion in Mohali. In one of the most memorable finishes in recent history, Pragyan Ojha picked up two leg-byes off Mitchell Johnson to seal the result, which until that delivery could also have been a tie or an Australian win.The match was firmly in Australia’s grasp when the No. 10 Ishant Sharma joined Laxman with 92 runs still required, but the pair ground Australia down and left a dejected Ricky Ponting still winless as a Test captain in India. The visitors’ hopes were raised again when Ben Hilfenhaus (4 for 57) trapped Ishant lbw – although the ball would have missed leg stump – with 11 runs needed.In the final, chaotic scenes, Australia continued to attack, desperate for one wicket. They thought they had it two balls before the winning runs were struck, when Mitchell Johnson rapped Ojha on the pads only to have a strong lbw shout denied. Adding to the commotion, Ojha wandered out of his crease and a throw from gully that would have found him short missed the stumps and ran away for four overthrows.When the winning leg-byes arrived, the Indian players streamed onto the field as the Australians thrust hands on heads. For sheer on-field tension, the finish ranked up there with Australia’s last-minute SCG win of 2007-08. But that match was overshadowed by claims of poor sportsmanship; this time there should be no such post-script.On that occasion Ishant was the last man out as the sun set over Sydney; in Mohali he was every bit as important as Laxman, with a defiant innings of 31 in their partnership of 81. But Laxman was the star. The Australians will wonder how they let such a golden opportunity slip; the answer lies in the hands, or wrists, of one of their chief tormentors of recent years.Entering the final day, Ponting’s men feared Sachin Tendulkar, who went to stumps unbeaten on 10, much more than they were concerned about Laxman. They knew that in the first innings VVS had been very, very sore. He’d batted at No. 10, with a runner, and was hampered in his strokeplay. Two days later, the man with the most unique initials in cricket was very, very stubborn.Again he had a runner, Suresh Raina, but just as important were the eight boundaries he struck in his 73, which came from 79 deliveries. Had he not started to farm the strike in the dying stages, he would have finished with a strike-rate of more than 100 for only the fourth time in his 188 Test innings.

Smart Stats

• This was India’s first one-wicket victory in Tests and the 12th such result overall. India’s two closest victories previously were by a margin of two wickets, both coming against Australia.

• This was the 17th occasion when India has won a Test after conceding a lead. In eight of these matches, they have batted second and on the other nine occasions, they have batted first. Nine of these victories have come against Australia.

• The 81-run partnership for the ninth wicket between VVS Laxman and Ishant Sharma was the second-highest against Australia, behind the 89-run stand between Harbhajan Singh and Irfan Pathan in 2004. It was also the second-highest ninth-wicket stand for India in the fourth innings of Tests.

• During that 81-run stand, Ishant played 71% of the total deliveries (92 out of 130).

• Laxman is one of the few batsmen who averages more in the second innings in Tests. He averages 45.67 in the first innings, but 50.47 with five centuries in the second innings.

• India have a win-loss ratio of 4.00 in Mohali, the best among all home venues that have hosted ten or more matches.

• Sachin Tendulkar became the only batsman to aggregate 1000 runs in a calendar year for the sixth time, surpassing Ricky Ponting, Brian Lara and Matthew Hayden, who have done so on five occasions each.

Laxman flicked the ball through gaps and was always looking to counterattack as Ponting continued to set aggressive fields. His approach was critical, for Australia had all the momentum in the hour before lunch when Doug Bollinger, who did not take the field after lunch due to abdominal stiffness, made two breakthroughs, including the key wicket of Tendulkar for 38.But try as they might, Australia under Ponting simply haven’t been able to close out a victory in India. In 2008 he was over-defensive, failing to push for wickets and grab opportunities when they arose. This time Ponting didn’t do much wrong; Laxman was just too good.India began the day needing 161 runs and for an hour they were cruising, as Tendulkar and Laxman brought the target down with a rapidity that alarmed Ponting. Nathan Hauritz had picked up the night-watchman Zaheer Khan, caught at slip, but was leaking runs and when he conceded 14 off an over, Ponting knew the fast men were his only option.Cheers went around the ground as Tendulkar passed 1000 Test runs in a calendar year for the sixth time in his career, and it seemed that he was destined to deliver India to victory. But his desire to score quickly brought his undoing, when he tried to cut Bollinger over the cordon to the vacant third-man region.The ball was too close to his body and he steered it to gully, where Michael Hussey grabbed the sharp chance. Tendulkar was gone, and the atmosphere cooled down slightly as the runs began to dry up. Then came the second big moment of joy for Australia, when the presence of a runner cost MS Dhoni his wicket.Laxman drove Bollinger to mid-on and his runner Raina took off for what should have been a comfortable single. But Dhoni appeared confused by Laxman remaining in his ground and the hesitation was enough to give hope to the fielder Hilfenhaus, whose superb direct hit at the striker’s end finished Dhoni’s stay on 2.When Bollinger’s fast, well-directed bouncer had a fending Harbhajan Singh caught at slip two balls later, Australia were in control. Laxman and Ishant had other ideas, and the rest is history. The great shame is that this is only a two-match series.

Pakistan cricket’s chief Ijaz Butt has said his board will not make any appeals for leniency for 18-year-old fast bowler Mohammad Amir in the spot-fixing controversy. Butt was speaking in New Delhi after meeting with ICC chief Sharad Pawar on Thursday afternoon.He told the Indian news channel that Amir would be treated like the other two Pakistan cricketers suspended for their role in the spot-fixing controversy. “Different standards cannot be applied for different cricketers,” he said, adding that according to the PCB the players had to be thought of as “innocent unless proven guilty”. If they are found guilty Butt said, “the book will be thrown at them”.The cricket administrators emerged out of Pawar’s residence after the meeting which lasted close to 75 minutes. Butt said the “first and foremost reason” he was in Delhi was because he “owed him (Pawar) one because we had not met after he became the ICC president – I have a lot of respect for him and he is a dear friend”.The two had talked about the suspended players but Butt said he would not comment on the investigation until it was complete, though he did add it was “wrong of the police to search the players’ room without their permission”. Butt said the PCB had protested strongly when it was discovered that the Pakistan dressing room at Lord’s had been searched without the knowledge of either the English or the Pakistan boards. He said only the MCC, as the hosts, were informed about the search.Butt’s meeting with Pawar appears to be a move to gain support in the ICC to put forward a case for Indo-Pak cricket. Butt was quick to say he “didn’t see an India bias in the ICC suspension – but I am not a politician” and wanted ties between the two nations to “resume as soon as possible”.The resumption of ties, he believed, would be quickened if an India-Pakistan series was to be held at a neutral venue. “If we can play against Australia in England, why can’t we play India?”, Butt said, adding that the PCB had a few suggestions to offer to the Indians as his Board had discussed the possibility “for a long time”. A BCCI official, however, told ESPNcricinfo that a neutral series seemed “impossible” at this stage due to both the political climate between India and Pakistan as well as the spot-fixing controversy.In his television interview, Butt said Pakistan’s defeat in the Lord’s Test, by an innings and 225 runs, had proved that “there was no match-fixing in that game – the three no balls had nothing to do with the ultimate result”. He said that the media coverage had shifted during the week following the Lord’s Test. “First everyone said match-fixing. Then they switched to spot-fixing, spot-fixing”.The anger in Pakistan after the ICC’s first-ever suspension of players was not reinforced by the PCB chief who told the media, “we are not angry about the players being suspended … the ICC’s Code of Conduct is clear and the ICC has the authority to do what they did”. Butt said, “the PCB is a part of the ICC and we should work together for a solution”.As the ICC chief, Pawar was “duty bound” to meet Butt, his aides told ESPNcricinfo. “He has to be accessible to all member boards – particularly an ICC member in distress.”Pawar said the Scotland Yard investigation into the charges against four Pakistan players is likely to end soon. “Prima facie there are some allegations and we have suspended the players on the basis of that,” Pawar said. “Scotland Yard has permitted them to go back to Pakistan and the PCB has also promised to make them available to the investigators if required. Nobody is playing hide and seek.”A major investigation agency is carrying out the probe and that will not take long. Neither the PCB nor ICC will interfere in the process.”