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Another revelation has emerged from Paul Mullin's autobiography, as the Wrexham striker has shone light on one of Phil Parkinson's most famed rants.

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Mullin's autobiography discuss Parkinson rantsSays boss has "a switch on him"Reveals secret Welcome To Wrexham editWHAT HAPPENED?

The publication of Mullin's autobiography 'My Wrexham Story' has revealed some fascinating stories behind the rise of North Wales' biggest club, from his doubts about joining to his experiences of promotion. He's also given a clearer picture of Wrexham boss Phil Parkinson, famed for his explosive, expletive-packed dressing room rants. However, according to Mullin, these moments, captured on film for 'Welcome To Wrexham', aren't always what they seem like from the outside.

AdvertisementGettyWHAT MULLIN SAID

"The gaffer, like all bosses, has a switch on him," wrote Mullin. "There’s a famed scene in Welcome to Wrexham where, at half-time in a game where we’ve not been at the races, he exasperatedly comes out with the unique ‘You’re like a bunch of f*cking fatty f*cking footballers.’ Or at least that’s what he appears to say. I’ll let you into a secret: his actual words were changed on the voiceover. Sadly, I can’t reveal here what his real words were. If you see me at the ground, I might tell you, but only in the strictest confidence! In brief, he was telling us we needed to be a bit more aggressive if we were going to win the game. There are times when, being on the inside, you watch Welcome to Wrexham and can hardly help pissing yourself laughing – and that’s one of them. In reality, it’s very rare for the gaffer to lose his rag. When he's got something to say, he says it in a calm way. That's Phil's way, and as a group we listen and understand."

THE BIGGER PICTURE

According to Mullin, Parkinson's strategy is a broader reflection of modern coaching methods. "Fewer managers scream and shout than you might think," he wrote. "What's the point of blowing up, saying everything's shit? What a manager should be doing is telling his players what to do to make things better."

Whatever the 55-year-old is doing, it seems to be working. Having won the National League with a remarkable 111 points last season, Wrexham are on the hunt for another successive promotion this campaign. They're currently 2nd in League Two and in line for an automatic promotion to the third tier, if they keep their current form up.

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Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT FOR MULLIN?

Mullin's new book comes out at a crucial stage in his career, when the talismanic striker is aiming to pull the Red Dragons up to League 1 for the first time since 2005. So far this season, he's contributed 7 league goals and 3 assists, a tally he'll be hoping to build on significantly. But before he does so, Mullin and his teammates face an FA Cup second round clash with National League South side Yeovil Town this weekend.

Buy your copy of Paul Mullin's brilliant new autobiography My Wrexham Story on Amazon.

Four Big Bash League matches have been rescheduled as a result of the new dates for the Sydney Test, while Cricket Australia has also confirmed that the next round of Sheffield Shield matches will be delayed by four days

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Dec-2014Four Big Bash League matches have been rescheduled as a result of the new dates for the Sydney Test, while Cricket Australia has also confirmed that the next round of Sheffield Shield matches will be delayed by four days. The funeral for Phillip Hughes in Macksville on Wednesday came two days before the scheduled round of Shield games was to start, but those matches have now been pushed back to begin on December 9.In a statement, Cricket Australia said it encouraged all players selected by their states to play, “however will respect the wishes of those players who decide, for grieving or compassionate reasons, not to play”. Pat Howard, the executive general manager of team performance with Cricket Austaralia, said it was only natural the round should be delayed.”We could not ask or expect players to be able to take the field the day after farewelling Phillip,” Howard said. “This is a difficult time and the players’ wellbeing is our priority, so we are taking it day-by-day.”Grief is very personal and we want to give our players every opportunity to feel ready to take the field, though ultimately we recognise that returning to play is a significant milestone in assisting all players to move forward. We are continuing to work with the Australian Cricketers’ Association to ensure all players and match officials are receiving ongoing counselling and support.”There has also been a necessary reworking of the BBL schedule due to the three-day delay to the Sydney Test, which will now start on January 6. The BBL window remains unchanged but Cricket Australia’s executive general manager of operations, Mike McKenna, said four matches had been rescheduled.”The Sydney Sixers v Sydney Thunder match due to be played at the SCG on January 9 fell during the revised SCG Test dates, and accordingly has been moved to 22nd January,” McKenna said. “With 35 matches scheduled in 39 days, plus taking into account the Carlton-Mid Series in January, it was not possible to reschedule the Sydney Smash without impacting other matches, hence the need to reschedule three other BBL games.”The other affected matches are: Sydney Thunder vs Hobart Hurricanes at Sydney’s Showground Stadium, which has moved from January 7 to January 9; Hobart Hurricanes vs Melbourne Renegades at Bellerive Oval, which has changed from January 15 to January 7; and Brisbane Heat vs Hobart Hurricanes at the Gabba, which has switched from January 22 to January 15.Cricket Australia said pre-purchased tickets would be honoured for the revised BBL dates, and refunds would also be available.

Round-up of all matches in the Plunket Shield that finished on December 7, 2013

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Dec-2013
ScorecardMichael Papps’ unbeaten 183 went in vain•Getty ImagesAn unbeaten 183 from Michael Papps – his 25th first-class ton – took Wellington close to overhauling 470 for a famous win, but the team fell ten runs short against Canterbury in Rangiora.Chasing a mammoth total, Wellington were propelled by a 139-run stand for the fifth wicket between Papps and Luke Woodcock, who made 51. Woodcock departed in the 77th over, but Papps, who struck 26 fours during his innings, carried the innings to 459 with the tail. Papps and Brent Arnel were the last two batsmen at the crease and, having added 37, they seemed to be heading towards an unlikely victory. However, Arnel was bowled by Hamish Bennett, giving Canterbury their second win of the season. Bennett had made a contribution with the ball in the first innings as well, finishing with 4 for 45 to bowl Wellington out for 130 and secure Canterbury a first-innings lead of 93.The reason Wellington had to chase such a big total was due to a century from the Canterbury captain Andrew Ellis in the second innings. His 109 had helped the team to 376 after they had been reduced to 187 for 6. It was a substantial improvement on Canterbury’s first innings, when they were bundled out for 223, with Tom Latham’s 92 being the only big score of note.
ScorecardRain washed out the first two days in Auckland, consigning their game against Central Districts to a draw. The visitors took five points from the contest, while Auckland earned four.Central Districts, who were put in to bat, began their innings on the third day and produced a strong performance. Four of their top five batsmen made half-centuries, with Will Young and Greg Hay making 87 and 83, the top scores of the innings. They declared only on the fourth day, having scored 402 for 7 in 108.5 overs. Michael Bates was the best bowler for Auckland, taking 3 for 61.Auckland’s reply was also strong: their top three made half-centuries. Jeet Raval and Martin Guptill ad a century opening stand, and Anaru Kitchen made 59 at No. 3. Auckland had progressed to 253 for 4 when the game ended in a draw.
ScorecardNorthern Districts and Otago played out a draw in a low-scoring encounter in Whangarei that was marred by rain completely washing out play in the first two days. Northern Districts needed 154 to win, but their chase was stalled by wickets at regular intervals from James Neesham, who finished with 5 for 65. In the end, the team finished at 124 for 7, 30 runs shy of what would have been their second victory of the campaign.Despite the rain delay, Northern Districts will feel that this was a game they perhaps should’ve won, after securing a first-innings lead of 130, thanks to fifties from the openers Brad Wilson and Daniel Flynn, which lifted them to 223. This had followed after Otago, put in to bat, declared at 93 for 6 on the third day, with their top order all making starts, but failing to push on for bigger scores.Otago however fared much better in the second innings, posting 288 thanks to a 92-run partnership for the fifth wicket between Nathan McCullum and Jesse Ryder, who top-scored with 80. Graeme Aldridge was the pick of the bowlers for Northern Districts, finishing with 4 for 50.

The PCB has claimed that a ‘British Universities’ team will visit Pakistan to play two limited-overs games in the first week of April

George Dobell29-Mar-2012The PCB has claimed that a ‘British Universities’ team will visit Pakistan to play two limited-overs games in the first week of April.The Pakistan board, increasingly frustrated in its attempts to return international cricket to the country, said in a press release that “the British Universities team will be arriving in Lahore on April 2″, and listed a squad purporting to include several MCC members, including Will Hodson, the son of current MCC president, Phillip Hodson.Actually the team has no official link to the MCC or the British Universities. While some of the squad may be playing members of the former or have attended organisations linked to the latter, the tour has not been authorised, funded or condoned by either. Indeed, neither organisation knew anything of the tour until contacted by ESPNcricinfo. Those of the touring team that are not already in Pakistan – and some are – will pay their own travel costs. Will Hodson is not taking part.Pakistan has been a no-go area for major international cricket since an armed terror attack on the Sri Lanka team bus during a Test match in Lahore in March 2009 and on Wednesday Phillip Hodson indicated that MCC are more likely to tour Afghanistan than Pakistan. The PCB has invited Bangladesh to play a limited-over series in April, but it remains unclear whether the tour will go ahead.Perhaps the ‘British Universities’ episode underlines just how keen the PCB are to re-establish cricketing relations with the rest of the world. On Wednesday it emerged they were in talks with the Kent-based club Lashings, while the manner in which the universities’ tour has been marketed suggests that the PCB, keen to add a gloss of gravitas and officialdom to what amounts to an unofficial tour by a group of friends, have embarked on something of a propaganda campaign.It is a ploy that may have backfired. The MCC and British Universities were underwhelmed with the PCB’s press release.”We were in a bid to bring foreigners to Pakistan,” Intikhab Alam, the PCB’s director of international cricket, told ESPNcricinfo. “There is a point to prove and it will make an impact that foreigners are coming to Pakistan and playing cricket.”The law and order situation in the country isn’t as bad as it is being portrayed. The team are coming next week and will be well taken care of. Their tour isn’t something which was arranged quickly as we were in communication with them from last two months. The British team’s tour will help us create a soft image of Pakistan.”Edited by Alan Gardner

ESPNcricinfo previews the fifth ODI between Pakistan and Sri Lanka in Abu Dhabi

The Preview by Nitin Sundar22-Nov-2011Match factsWednesday, November 23
Start time 1500 (1100 GMT)Kumar Sangakkara and Tillakaratne Dilshan have both suffered poor form since the World Cup•AFPBig PictureWhat is ailing Sri Lankan cricket? In the past eight months, following the World cup, they have played eight series across formats against top-flight teams, and gone on to lose six of them. The two victories came in Twenty20 series, if that term can be used to describe one- and two-match Twenty20 shoot-outs. Their decline in Test cricket was not a complete surprise, given how much the side depended on Muttiah Muralitharan, but the ODI slump cannot be easily explained.The answer lies in the batting numbers: since the World Cup final, Sri Lanka’s top order, with one notable exception, has endured significant drops in their batting averages. The captain Tillakaratne Dilshan has been the biggest offender, scoring 267 runs at a pitiful average of 17.80. Kumar Sangakkara and Upul Tharanga have also been poor imitations of their usual pace-setting selves at the top of the order, while Angelo Mathews is going through his worst phase since emerging as a world-class allrounder.Mahela Jayawardene is the one man who has managed to steer clear of the Sri Lankan batting nadir. He delivered them their only win in this series with a sparkling half-century in the second game. Jayawardene won’t be playing Wednesday’s dead rubber because of a knee injury.Sri Lanka’s chances of a face-saving win are further blighted by the prime form of the Pakistan bowling unit. Saeed Ajmal is among the most dangerous offspinners going around now, while Mohammad Hafeez adds another dimension with his mix of straight ones and straighter ones. Umar Gul has been exemplary with the new ball, while Aizaz Cheema has shown that he belongs at this level. Pakistan’s worries, if any, will be on the batting front too. But if their bowlers continue to be unplayable, it won’t matter. And if all else fails, they still have Shahid Afridi.Form guidePakistan: WWLWW (most recent first)
Sri Lanka: LLWLWWatch out for …At the risk of stating the obvious, don’t take your eyes off Shahid Afridi. He batted responsibly in the fourth ODI, curtailing his instincts for the most part of his innings, and still needed only 65 balls for his 75. Later, he slid clumsily while attempting to save a boundary in the outfield and got his knee stuck in the turf. It was the sort of injury that stalled Simon Jones’ career for four years. Afridi came back after three overs, limped through his run-up and ripped out five wickets. Expect the X-man celebration to make a few appearances in Abu Dhabi.Lasith Malinga has largely been off the boil in this series. His six wickets have come at nearly five runs per over, and three of those dismissals came in a single match-winning effort. Given how patchy Pakistan’s batting form has been thus far in the series, he will be targeting their toes on Wednesday. Can his yorkers provide Sri Lanka some succour?Team newsShoiab Malik looked out of place on his return to the side, but an injury to Abdul Razzaq is likely to give him another chance. Razzaq is returning home with a shoulder injury that puts him in doubt for the upcoming Bangladesh tour as well. With the series in the bag, Gul might be in line for a break, in which case Junaid Khan could get a well-deserved chance.
Pakistan (possible): 1 Mohammad Hafeez, 2 Imran Farhat, 3 Younis Khan, 4 Misbah-ul-Haq (capt), 5 Umar Akmal, 6 Abdul Razzaq/Shoaib Malik, 7 Shahid Afridi, 8 Sarfraz Ahmed (wk), 9 Umar Gul/Junai Khan, 10 Saeed Ajmal, 11 Aizaz CheemaJayawardene’s absence could pave the way for Dimuth Karunaratne’s inclusion in the Sri Lankan XI, unless Chamara Silva is ready to play after being called up two days ahead of the game. Angelo Mathews’ form is likely to be a huge worry, but Sri Lanka don’t have the reserves to afford him a break now.
Sri Lanka (possible): 1 Upul Tharanga, 2 Tillakaratne Dilshan (capt), 3 Kumar Sangakkara (wk), 4 Dinesh Chandimal, 5 Dimuth Karunaratne/Chamara Silva, 6 Angelo Mathews, 7 Jeevan Mendis, 8 Thisara Perera, 9 Lasith Malinga, 10 Seekkuge Prasanna, 11 Dilhara FernandoStats and trivia Tillakaratne Dilshan is yet to hit his first six in ODIs since taking over as full-time Sri Lankan captain – he has led in 15 one-dayers Pakistan have featured in each of the 16 games played at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium, winning nine of them Sri Lanka have lost two of their three games here, with the win coming in the dead rubber of a three-match seriesQuotes”As a captain I can’t do anything to change the players’ game. As a unit we have to take responsibility. As captain I am disappointed to lose, and we need to sit down and think where we can start again before the South Africa series.”

“When you have a good atmosphere around you, then you try your best to deliver. I was overjoyed by the support in Sharjah where they cheered my singles, so I was happy to put my head down initially.”

A round-up of the final day’s action of the ICC WCL Division Five in Singapore

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Feb-2012Hosts Singapore lifted the World Cricket League Division Five trophy, beating neighbours Malaysia by nine wickets in a one-sided final at the Kallang Ground. Both teams have been promoted to Division Four, and will join Nepal, Tanzania, Denmark and the United States of America in the division to be played late this year.Malaysia’s 159 turned out to be woefully inadequate as Singapore, led by Chaminda Ruwan’s unbeaten 91, guided them home in just 26.4 overs. Ruwan smashed 14 fours and a six and shared an unbeaten stand of 118 with Anish Param for the second wicket.Malaysia’s middle order let the side down after the captain Suresh Navaratnam opted to bat. The opener R Madhavan scored 48 to get the team off to a steady start, but Singapore fought back thanks to their legspinner Christopher Janik, who took 3 for 17. Hassan Ghulam resisted with 33 at No.10 but it came a little too late. Malaysia lost their last nine wickets for only 85 runs.Singapore coach Trevor Chappell said: “I am very pleased to have been able to have coached the side to promotion, they’ve worked hard this week and it’s a good group of cricketers from many different backgrounds trying to play as much cricket as they can while also raising families, studying or working full-time.”I have to say our bowler who has stood out for me is Shoaib Razzak, he’s probably my Singapore player of the tournament. Shoaib’s worked really hard on his bowling.”The other two that have shone for me are the opening partnership of Chaminda Ruwan and Chetan Suryawanshi – although Chetan needs to work hard on keeping his head out in the middle, it was frustrating today when he got out early and it would have been nice to have not lost a wicket with the win – they both proved very capable batsmen throughout this week and continue to improve in their performances.”Malaysia’s coach Roy Dias said poor batting had let the side down in the event.”There have been few players that have really performed this week with the bat for us and in my opinion we did well to win the first four matches with the performances we put in. I am disappointed we lost today but our batting and bowling wasn’t up to the mark this week at all and I want to go back to Malaysia and look at the pool of players on offer and start to phase out some of the older members of the squad to help the team develop.”I really expected more from the likes of Suhan Alagaratnam and Ahmed Faiz but perhaps they didn’t have enough match practice ahead of the event. I was pleased with how Sharif Shafiq has performed this week making runs for the side and doing well behind the stumps.”I’m looking forward to Division 4 and facing my former team Nepal, the whole division is going to be tough for Malaysia but I believe we have got what it takes to be there.”3rd Place Play-offIt was a tense finish at the 3rd place play-offs at the Padang as Guernsey sneaked home by one run against Cayman Islands. Jeremy Frith top scored for Guernsey with 57, off 81 balls before he was trapped lbw to Troy Taylor, the right-arm seamer. Taylor took 4 for 50 and he was supported by Ryan Bovell, who took 3 for 41. Cayman Islands though conceded a massive 49 extras, including 32 wides and six no-balls, amounting to just over six extra overs.Guernsey bowled with better discipline and were led by a five-wicket haul by the right-arm seamer David Hooper. Pearson Best was the only batsman to show solid resistance, scoring 79. Conroy Wrght made a patient 39, off 77 balls, but Hooper took two more lower order wickets to help Guernsey sneak home.5th Place Play-offBahrain coasted to a five-wicket win against Argentina in the fifth place play-offs at the Indian Association Ground. Bahrain’s off-spin duo of Adil Hanif and Zafar Zaheer took four wickets each to restrict Argentina to a paltry 139. Argentina featured some of the reserves who had not played in the tournament this week, and the batsmen struggled. Martin Siri’s 26 was the highest individual score in the innings. Hanif followed up his efforts with the ball to hit 38 to set up Bahrain’s easy win. He picked up the Player of the Tournament trophy as well, in addition to his Man-of-the-Match award.

Defending champions Australia will take on England at Townsville’s Tony Ireland Stadium on Saturday to kickstart the latest edition of the Under-19 World Cup, in Queensland

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Aug-2012Defending champions Australia will take on England at Townsville’s Tony Ireland Stadium on Saturday to kickstart the latest edition of the Under-19 World Cup, in Queensland. On the same day, two-time former champions Pakistan play Afghanistan at John Blanck Oval on the Sunshine Coast, while Bangladesh and Sri Lanka face each other at Townsville’s Endeavour Park. At the Allan Border Field in Brisbane, Zimbabwe play Papua New Guinea.The biennial competition features 16 teams, including the 10 Full Members of the ICC and six qualifiers (Afghanistan, Ireland, Namibia, Nepal, Papua New Guinea and Scotland). The teams are divided into four groups of four each, with the top two from each group qualifying for the quarter-finals. The bottom two from each group will compete in the Plate Championship. The grand final will be played at Tony Ireland Stadium on August 26.Australia captain William Bosisto said his side cannot expect an easy journey, despite playing at home. Australia have won the tournament a record three times. “I wouldn’t necessarily say that Australia is a firm favourite in any way,” Bosisto said. “I think we see ourselves as having a very good chance to win the title, and hopefully we can do everything in our power to do that. But I know there will be many strong sides from the subcontinent, and obviously England, so we know there is a lot of tough competition out there.”England last won the title in 1998, under Owais Shah, and the captain Adam Ball said consistency is the key.”It is definitely time for England to add to that previous success,” Ball said. “It will be very tough for us to repeat that but I feel the team has what it takes to do so. I think Australia have to be one of the favourites as they are playing in their own country and have won the tournament several times before. I also think that Pakistan will be a very hard team to beat even in conditions that may not favour them.”Pakistan captain Babar Azam said his team’s chances will depend on how soon they adapt to the conditions.”I think we are one of the tournament favourites as we bat deep, have a couple of good allrounders and also possess a few quality fast bowlers and spinners in the side,” Azam said. “Moreover, our recent performance at the international level is encouraging so I think our team could be termed as favourites alongside some other teams. However, it will all depend on how quickly we adjust to the conditions in Australia. We all know that pitches and outfields in Australia are very hard and there is extra bounce on the pitches.”South Africa have never won the tournament, though they came close in 2008 in Malaysia, finishing as the runners-up. They open their campaign on Sunday, against Bangladesh.”This squad has been on a two-year progression plan for this event,” the captain Chad Bowes said. “We have arrived in Australia to play good, solid cricket and we believe that we have the potential to be the first South Africa side to win the U-19 World Cup.”

Barbados strengthened their position in the Regional Four Day Competition final against Trinidad and Tobago

ESPNcricinfo staff11-May-2013
Scorecard
Barbados strengthened their position in the Regional Four Day Competition final against Trinidad and Tobago. Opener Kraigg Brathwaite anchored their response to T&T’s 110 with a century of his own, helping Barbados gain a 269-run lead in the first innings. He made 122, , was involved in a 74-run stand with Jonathan Carter, and the tail chipped in to help Barbados reach 369. For T&T Marlon Richards took 4 for 55.In T&T’s second innings, opener Lendl Simmons dominated the Barbados bowling, racing to an unbeaten 111 at stumps, in just 24 overs. While his presence will give T&T hope, they are in some trouble being four down. Seamer Miguel Cummins, who bagged five wickets in the first innings, grabbed three more. T&T were 140 for 4 at the close on the second day, still 129 behind.

Glenn Maxwell might be the very model of the modern cricketer, raised on Twenty20 and thriving on the short format’s fast pace, but he insists he has the patience to make it as a Test cricketer as well

Brydon Coverdale02-Feb-2013Glenn Maxwell might be the very model of the modern cricketer, raised on Twenty20 and thriving on the short format’s fast pace, but he insists he has the patience to make it as a Test cricketer as well. On Thursday, Maxwell was named as the main spinning allrounder in Australia’s Test squad to tour India, meaning he is likely to earn a baggy green on the trip, and the following day he crunched an unbeaten 51 from 35 balls in Australia’s one-day annihilation of West Indies.Promoted to open the batting Maxwell scored nearly three-quarters of Australia’s runs in their tiny chase of 71, racing to the target within the first ten overs. Maxwell’s brisk scoring is nothing new to those who have watched him at domestic level over the past few seasons, but he has also managed to average 42 at first-class level and believes his technique can stand up to the challenges of the five-day game.”I feel like I’m definitely a genuine batsman,” Maxwell said in Perth ahead of Sunday’s second ODI. “I’ve done a lot of work on my technique over the last few years. [Victoria coach] Greg Shipperd has been a big believer in my technique and I feel that’s shone through in Shield cricket.”I’ve played some good Shield innings where I’ve played technically really good cricket. I’m hoping I can showcase that when the opportunity arises, but yesterday wasn’t really the time to do it. I’m sure if I get the chance to play Test cricket I’ll probably be a bit more reserved.”Maxwell has spent some time in India in the past, visiting the country in 2010 for a training camp as part of the Centre of Excellence intake, and enjoying a short stint with the Delhi Daredevils in last year’s IPL. He said his plan, if he was given the opportunity in Test cricket on the upcoming tour, would be straightforward.”I’ve thought about how I’m going to be playing spinners over there,” he said. “I’ve been lucky enough to play over there a little bit, I had the Academy a couple of years ago and had the IPL experience last year. I know my game plan over there is going to be pretty simple, using my feet against the spinners and hopefully that will hold me in good stead.”Although Maxwell is considered a batting allrounder, his offspin has developed over the past few months and the selectors would expect significant overs from him if he was slotting into the Test outfit. Maxwell said he had worked with Shane Warne this summer on the mental side of spin bowling, as well as Ray Bright and Shawn Flegler, and he was confident that the sharp turn expected on the Indian pitches would allow him greater margin for error.”With the wickets and the way they spin, you can bowl a lot faster over there and really use your pace variations to your advantage,” Maxwell said. “In Australia you’ve got to be a lot more accurate, a lot more consistent in a certain area, where India allows you a lot more margin for error just because of the way it spins.”

The ECB are continuing their efforts to persuade Mervyn Westfield to give evidence at Danish Kaneira’s appeal hearing

George Dobell17-Apr-2013The ECB are continuing their efforts to persuade Mervyn Westfield to give evidence at Danish Kaneira’s appeal hearing into his life ban for the game for corruption.Officials from the ECB met Westfield and his legal representatives in London on Thursday afternoon with discussions continuing into the evening. A further round of meetings has been scheduled for Friday with no agreement having been reached.Westfield, whose evidence was crucial in the original hearing that found Kaneria guilty of corruption, has had no contact with the ECB for many months and has so far resisted all attempts to persuade him to appear at the appeal. While the ECB were successful in gaining a summons from the High Court compelling Westfield to attend the appeal hearing on April 22, doubts remain as to whether the court has any jurisdiction in this case.Westfield remains angry with the ECB and the PCA. He feels that the harshness of his penalty – he spent two months in prison and was banned from the first-class game for five years and the recreational game for three – does not reflect that he cooperated with the investigating authorities, pleaded guilty and gave evidence against Kaneria.The fact that he has agreed to meet the ECB suggests a deal could be imminent, however. Westfield is understood to desire a return to club cricket – he remains connected with Wanstead Cricket Club in the Essex League – and he could be offered a chance to partially revive his career if he cooperates. Westfield would be expected to earn several hundred pounds a week as a club professional.Kaneria, the Pakistan legspinner, was banned from the game for life and charged £100,000 in costs by an ECB panel in June 2012 for his part in the spot-fixing case involving Westfield.Kaneria had been found guilty of inducing his former Essex team-mate to underperform in a limited-overs game in 2009 and of bringing the game into disrepute. Westfield, who was jailed for his role in the case, gave evidence against Kaneria at the hearing.As all boards under the governance of the ICC have an agreement to mirror bans imposed in such circumstances, Kaneria’s ban has been effective worldwide.Kaneria’s appeal hearing was originally scheduled for December but, after the ECB was unable to gain Westfield’s cooperation, it was postponed until April. Without Westfield’s evidence, the ECB’s case against Kaneria is severely compromised. Kaneria’s lawyers are looking not just for his ban to be overturned – at 32, he harbours hopes of a reviving his international career – but they are also claiming “very substantial damages” from the ECB.Kaneria returned to the UK on Wednesday. His lawyers remain adamant that, without Westfield’s evidence, the ECB “has no case”.This is an updated version of the story first published on April 17