I have read the clarification by Sheldon Ellis published on Cricinfo and I have also read the proposed draft constitution. As the former president of USACA and also being one of the three individuals who wrote the existing constitution, here are my comments.1. The draft constitution, Article 8-section3(a) states that for the first electoral cycle, each regional director (which is current incumbent) shall appoint a maximum of four persons to the regional administration. These four individuals – along with the league presidents in the region and the current director included – shall then appoint the representative from the region to the executive board. So, let us assume that region X has five leagues out of which 2 league presidents are friends of the current director, who now has a possible 7 votes (including his own) out of a total of 9.Therefore, it is very easy for the incumbent to appoint himself to the executive board for another three years.The elections of the regional administration and other items mentioned in the constitution only are applicable to the next elections, i.e. after three years.This also applies to the appointment of the executives. The nominating panel (appointed by the incumbents) select the individuals by a process that is poorly defined.Article XII-Section 3-Subsection i & ii: The nominating panel shall have the following responsibilities:1) To evaluate prospective candidates for the executive positions2) Veto any candidate for potential conflict or other problematic background issues.Under this scenario it is possible that the panel (possibly the current members of the Board with one or two other appointments) can disqualify any nominee that is not to their liking. This is not an election as defined by the Corporate not for profit laws.2. Article XXIV section iii- states that proposed amendment to the constitution shall be ratified by three-quarters of the members present and eligible to vote. Now this begs the question as to who are eligible vote. The constitution does not clearly define who are the full eligible voting members of the organisation. Let us assume that clubs are full members; unless the clubs provide a proxy to the league president, the constitution as written does not authorize the league president to vote on their behalf. One has to understand that voting on the constitutional amendment is not the same as voting on another resolution at the AGM.3. Notice of the meeting has to be disseminated to all the members by acceptable means such as US postal mail, email or fax within a reasonable time frame in any non profit organization. Posting the notice on the web site is unacceptable.4. Complaint procedure, termination or suspension of membership and sanctions: once again it comes down to who are the full members of USACA. If clubs are full members, then in any non-profit organization, the executive Board serve at the pleasure of the membership.Therefore, the majority members of the organization shall always have the right to reverse the decision of the Board or the Executive that has been appointed to serve them.This is because there have to be checks and balances in the organisation. In case there is an executive body that conducting the business (making decisions) against the acceptable principles, the membership should have some recourse other than to wait till the next elections.By the same argument charging members a fee to file a complaint (frivolous or not) is unacceptable even if the fee can be waived by appeal to the executive board for financial hardship. This is in violation of the rights of the membership.5. Interestingly, I noticed that Mr. Sheldon Ellis has been named as the Arbitrator for the ratification process and he was also on the constitution review committee. That would be a conflict in my opinion. Also, the arbitrator does not write comments on the pros and cons of the draft.6. Further, I also noticed that several issues that were raised in the open letter to USACA have not been addressed in this clarification and I have copied them as written in the letter:i) The notice for the constitutional amendment is inadequate as per the existing constitution (it requires 21 working days notice)ii) The plan is to count only the returned ballots -for Example: if only 10 clubs returned the ballots and seven of them said yes, then the constitution shall be considered as amended. This is unconstitutional since the current constitution requires a 2/3rd majority vote of the member clubs.iii) Article XVII-Conflict of interest: The present draft states that “If any member of the executive board….has a financial interest in any contract or transaction involving USACA…., such individual shall only disclose such conflict of interest or simply not participate in the evaluation of the contract, business affair or vote. No one should have financial interest in any contract or transaction involving USACA while being part of the USACA executive board. This can also lead to USACA’s disqualification of IRS 501(C) 3 non profit status.This section should have stated that any member of the executives, BODs or any other office bearer shall not have such a conflict of interest, knowingly or otherwise. Anyone found guilty of violating this rule shall be subject to immediate removal from office and further penalties.iv) Restructuring of the regions: There is no mechanism by which the number of regions can grow. The Appendix C of the draft Constitution calls for three Leagues with at least 8 teams each to be able to form a region. This is in direct conflict with Article III Section 1 which calls for at least fifteen (15) members. There is no upper limit on the number of leagues in a region before which it needs to break into more regions such as the case with New YorkIn the Central West for example, there are currently four leagues but two of them do not have the requisite minimum number of 8 teams… Does this mean the Leagues in Central West are going to be voting to de recognize their own region? If so where will they belong? The Constitution does not address this.7. Significantly, ICC wrote a letter to USACA executive body back in March of 2006 stating that the sanctions imposed on USACA shall be lifted subject to certain conditions. One of the most important conditions listed in the letter is as follows:That – in addition to any auditor role within the USACA Constitution – the Interim USACA Board agree on a third-party to oversee the next election of the USACA Board of Directors and that the ruling of this third-party on any related matter be binding.Unfortunately, the executives failed to follow the ICC directive.Therefore, I believe that it is time for the cricket loving people of this country to speak up and act now before it is too late. I believe that this entire process that USACA has adopted is unconstitutional and also against the directive of the ICC as well as the courts. There is no independent monitor for this process. Therefore, this process is illegitimate.

Lasith Malinga, the World Cup’s equal leading wicket-taker, has been ruled out of Sri Lanka’s match against New Zealand on Thursday with a grade two tear in his left ankle. With the recovery period set between seven and 14 days, Malinga will almost certainly miss the Australia game on in Grenada on Monday and perhaps even the Ireland clash there two days later.Malinga did not train on Tuesday after hurting himself while running at an earlier practice session. Sri Lanka, who first believed the problem was nothing serious, could bring in Farveez Maharoof or Nuwan Kulasekara. But the loss of Malinga, who has 15 victims at 14.26 in the tournament and took a record four wickets in four balls against South Africa, is a serious one against the top-of-the-table New Zealand. Muttiah Muralitharan, meanwhile, has recovered from his groin strain.”We’ve got experienced players who can come in and we are confident they can do a job for us,” Mahela Jayawardene told . “It depends on how much of a gamble we want to take at this stage.”Jayawardene said an unbeaten New Zealand had not been truly tested in the Caribbean and Sri Lanka were in a good position to challenge them, having drawn 2-2 in their ODI series in New Zealand in December and January. “They are playing some really good cricket but they haven’t played one of the top teams yet,” he said.”They’ve got a very good all-round side and bat until deep. We’ve played them a lot in the last 12 months and we know their strengths and weaknesses.”

Arthur Milton, the last man to play both football and cricket for England, has died at his home in Bristol. He was 79.Born and raised in the West Country, Milton was a stylish batsman who made his debut for Gloucestershire in 1948 and was an ever-present until he retired aged 46 at the end of 1974. He was a natural at any ball game: a fleet-footed winger who went off to Arsenal, he also played golf, tennis, even bet on the dogs better than his team-mates.Blond and slight, was the last of a rare breed – the double cricket/football international. His one appearance for England at football was in a 2-2 draw with Austria in 1952. In his first Test, against New Zealand at Headingley in 1958 Milton – opening the innings with a rugby cap in Mike Smith – collected 104 not out. That won him a place on the following winter’s tour of Australia, where the opposition was rather more ferocious than the outclassed New Zealanders, and Milton struggled, as did his fellow double international Willie Watson. Milton finished his six-Test career with 204 runs at 25.50.He was happier batting for Gloucestershire, which he did until he was in his mid-forties. He finished with more than 32,000 runs and 56 hundreds in first-class cricket, most of them from the top of the order, while his tally of 758 catches emphasises his value in the field, where he was a star close in, especially at short leg. A Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1959, in retirement he became a postman in the Cotswolds.

“There are so many reasons for the sadness we all feel,” said John Light, the county’s chairman. “Anyone who can play both cricket and football to international level has to be especially gifted and indeed Arthur was. He attributed his soccer success to the passing accuracy of his inside right partner at Arsenal, Jimmy Logie. There was no Logie however in the Aston Gate mud. Arthur came home from Arsenal and gave impetus to the Cities promotion drive. The extra dimension he brought ensured promotion.”He made cricket seem so easy, playing largely off the back foot he always seemed to have so much time. Running between the wickets was his forte. Was there ever a better runner between the wickets? Cover fielders were exasperated as “roll and stroll” Arthur took single after single. ‘I have never seen this man Milton take a difficult catch,’ said a not-very-expert cricket-watcher. What he should have said was ‘I have never seen Milton make a catch look difficult’. Such was his anticipation and sure handedness he was outstanding close to the wicket.”

ScorecardWill Smith’s first limited overs century powered Durham to the top of the North Conference as they completed a 143-run demolition of Worcestershire. Smith’s hundred was followed by Dale Benkenstein’s impressive striking as the captain hit 94 from 66 balls.Smith and Benkenstein added 155 for the fourth wicket as Worcestershire’s attack were given a day to forget. Kabir Ali, especially, will want to put events behind him as the former England seamer went for 94 off his 10 overs. Doug Bollinger fared little better, also conceding over nine-an-over, and only Ray Price’s economical spell prevented even further carnage.Any chance of the visitors making an impact on their chase was blown away as they sank to 17 for 3. Ottis Gibson, who can still do a better job than some of the West Indians in the tour party, grabbed two as Steve Harmison and Liam Plunkett were made to wait for the ball.The England pair failed to impress, bowling six overs each for a total of 73 runs and a wicket apiece. They were overshadowed at the end by Gareth Breese, who claimed his first one-day five-wicket haul to wrap up the massive win, with only Moeen Ali providing meaningful resistance with a career-best 86.

North

Nottinghamshire made it two wins in two, beating Lancashire in a close match at Trent Bridge.Samit Patel made his second unbeaten fifty in consecutive evenings to seal the six-wicket victory with three balls to spare. He smashed 84 from 57 deliveries, with good support from David Hussey (21) and Will Jefferson (20*).Gareth Clough and Graeme Swann were once again in the wickets, taking two each, as did Charlie Shreck. Lancs lost wickets at steady intervals after being sent in, but Gareth Cross was on hand with a late boost to lift them to 163 for 7.Notts had enjoyed a straightforward win over Derbyshire on the opening night, but had to work much harder to sneak to the top.

South

It was a rather watery Canterbury tale down at Kent, where their Twenty20 against Essex became more like a Five5. Kent made 44 for 1 from 5.1 overs before a two-hour rain delay washed out their innings and left Essex needing 50 from 5 overs, on Duckworth-Lewis. Kent managed to keep them down to 46 for 6 – Ryan McLaren taking 2 for 3 in his over.Heading into the last over, bowled by Yasir Arafat, Essex needed 15. James Foster hit a six off the first ball, missed the second and gained a four from the third. A wide followed, leaving Essex needing four from three balls. Foster was then bowled off the fourth ball, Adam Hollioake played and missed and, in attempting a run to the keeper, Grant Flower was run out. James Middlebrook then faced the final ball, which he sent to the midwicket boundary for a catch.

Kevin Pietersen wants to be a member of an England side that ‘demolishes’ Australia in two years time after the team’s 5-0 Ashes humbling. Despite scoring 490 runs during the series, including 158 in Adelaide, he could do nothing about the eventual result.But Pietersen has promised the memory of their recent thrashing will inspire the team to success when the Ashes are next up for grabs, in England, in 2009. “People are still hurting from the winter. But I don’t think it did England too much harm, this winter,” he told BBC Radio Five Live’s Sportsweek programme on Sunday.”Yes, we got hammered in Australia and the World Cup (where England failed to reach the semi-finals) wasn’t good for us, but we are hurting. Inside, we are hurting and it is the same sort of pain we want to inflict on a lot of countries that tour England, and it is the same pain we want to inflict on the Australians in 2009, so it wasn’t all that bad.”The way we are playing our cricket now is the way we want to play and the way we want to demolish the Australians in 2009.Michael Vaughan spoke of England needing to be ruthless ahead of the fourth Test against West Indies and Pietersen echoes those opinions. “I just basically think it’s that killer instinct, that ruthlessness that the Australian team showed us in Australia this winter.”They were at our throats – that’s what we want to do, we want to be mentally right, we want to be physically right and we just want to keep asking questions ball after ball, session after session,” explained Pietersen, who said new coach Peter Moores wanted the side to have a hard edge.”A team has to back down at some stage and that is something Peter is very, very positive about and keen on doing. As soon as you turn up at the ground, you are in the right frame of mind, you have got positive energy, positive vibes chucking around the dressing room Positive energy breeds positive performances.”

The ECB has received nominations from two candidates to succeed David Morgan as ECB chairman when he becomes ICC president next year. Giles Clarke, the Somerset chairman, and Mike Soper, the ECB deputy chairman, will now contest a ballot of all first-class county chairmen and chairman of the MCC.The favourite is Soper, the former chairman of Surrey, who has been proposed and seconded by Sussex and Derbyshire. Clarke, Somerset’s often outspoken chairman, was the driving force behind the board’s decision to sell TV rights to BSkyB.On the face of it, Soper’s candidacy is surprising given his ongoing health problems. Diagnosed with bone cancer, Soper was given six months to live in 2001 but has battled through and now believes he has at least four years left. He optimistically says he’s been assured “that within that time a vaccine will come out”.”I’m trying out different drugs,” he told The Guardian. “Some work, some fail – they’ve put me on a steroid which means I have to go to the gym every day. But I will die of bone cancer, so you can see why I’ve become passionate. This is my final ambition but this would be only the start because there are so many things I want to do within the game.”Soper unsuccessfully challenged for the post in 1997 when he lost out to Lord MacLaurin, and there is no doubting his passion for the game and his initiatives while at Surrey were bold and, in the main, successful.”I still love the four- and five-day games but I believe you’ve got to get the youngsters to watch. I started watching when I was eight or nine with my dad. I wasn’t prepared to sit there for three days and kids today won’t either. I want to get young people in – even free of charge if necessary – because everyone remembers his first game. Then they come back.”There was talk that Bill Morris, the former union leader, had been asked to throw his hat into the ring but yesterday he ended speculation by announcing he was not standing.A decision on who will replace Morgan will be announced on August 28.

Jacques Kallis’ omission from the South African squad for the Twenty20 World Championship has prompted him to quit as vice-captain of the team. Kallis was non-committal about his future as an international player, though he ruled out the possibility of an early retirement.”I have resigned as vice-captain and I’m considering my options with regard to the rest of my career,” Kallis said. “I have been thinking long and hard over the weekend and there is still a lot of emotion involved because I am extremely disappointed. I was very excited about the tournament and hoping to make a huge contribution.”I feel I have a lot of good cricket left and my best years might even be ahead of me. Ideally I would like to play many more years for my country but this weekend caused me to question my future for the first time.”Joubert Strydom, the newly-appointed chairman of selectors, said that Kallis was merely rested for the tournament, keeping in mind South Africa’s packed schedule ahead. With quite a few young players competing for places in the top order, Strydom felt it would be better to preserve Kallis for Tests and one-dayers and not risk him in the Twenty20 format.Gerald Majola, the Cricket South Africa (CSA) chief executive, expressed disappointment over Kallis’ statement after he received a call from Kallis. “I said we all understood his disappointment, and appealed to him not to resign while in an emotional state but to rather meet with CSA to discuss the matter fully so that we could deal with all the issues at hand. It is most disappointing therefore that Jacques took a unilateral decision after speaking to me to publicly announce his resignation as vice-captain.”This is regrettable, particularly in the light that CSA and the players’ trade union, the South African Cricketers Association (SACA), have recently signed a ground-breaking memorandum of understanding which outlines the way in which we will deal with each other for mutual benefit.Jacques is employed by CSA, and we expected him at least to sit down at a meeting and go through the matter before he made his own decision to make a public announcement.”Majola hoped Kallis would reconsider his decision and added that CSA would attempt a meeting with him to discuss the matter in further detail.

Pakistan’s Under-19 team completed a 5-0 drubbing of their Australian counterparts with a nine-wicket win – with 160 balls to spare – in the last game of the series in Mirpur. As has been the trend throughout the series, the Pakistanis outplayed Australia in every aspect, bundling them out for 128 in just 30.4 overs, and the knocking off the runs in less than 24 overs for the loss of just one wicket.The only thing that went right for the Australians was the toss, but their innings soon faltered as Pakistan struck repeatedly with the new ball. The first five wickets went down with only 51 on the board, and only Dom O’Brien, the wicketkeeper, offered any resistance, scoring 41. Adil Raza, a right-arm fast bowler, finished with 4 for 36 while Jibran Khan’s left-arm spin fetched him 3 for 10.Pakistan lost an early wicket in reply, when Imad Wasim was trapped in front for 1, but Ahmed Shehzad, the in-form opener, blasted an unbeaten 99 from 97 balls as they swept home with plenty to spare.The fourth game, at the same venue, hadn’t been as one-sided, though ultimately Pakistan prevailed by five wickets. After winning the toss, Australia managed 214, thanks largely to a 58 by opener Jeremy Smith and O’Brien’s 44.Pakistan stumbled in reply, sinking to 79 for 4 and 127 for 5, but were bailed out by an undefeated 89-run stand for the sixth wicket between Usman Salahuddin (55 not out) and Jibran Khan (44 not out). They finally ensured that victory was achieved with 13 balls remaining.

Justin Vaughan, New Zealand Cricket’s chief executive, has said that the success of the ICC World Twenty20 in South Africa could prompt the ICC to change its policy on the game and allow cricket boards to organise more such games in a year. Concerns over player burnout had forced the ICC to restrict teams from playing more than three Twenty20 games in a season and seven in a year.”I dare say that, after the success of this present tournament and the promotion of the game over the past few months, those restrictions may well change,” Vaughan told the . “We’re already seeing proof that Twenty20’s not only more exciting for the fans, but also that it’s less arduous on the players – so I can see no reason why we shouldn’t start talking about staging more games and maybe including features such as double-headers.”Speaking on his return from South Africa, Vaughan said he was impressed with how financially viable Twenty20 is and that the demand for more such games would only increase.”I believe we have to be mindful of what the customer wants, rather than trying to prescribe to people what form of cricket they should be watching,” he said. “My position is that, if crowds want to turn up and watch Twenty20 cricket, it’s incumbent on us – as an administration – to invest in the product and serve it up hot.”On promoting the game on the domestic front, Vaughan said it was important to continue talks with Cricket Australia in launching a proposed Trans-Tasman Twenty20 competition where the top two qualifying teams will compete with teams from the Indian, African and European leagues for the Champions Twenty20 tournament.Stephen Fleming, who recently quit the New Zealand captaincy, has signed up for the Indian Premier League (IPL) an officially-sanctioned domestic Twenty20 competition to be held in India in April 2008 featuring franchised teams. Vaughan said it wouldn’t affect his availability for the tour of England in May.