Australian and South African powerhouses clash

Match facts

October 26, 2012
Start time 1730 local (1530 GMT)

Big Picture

As expected of a young tournament with potentially different qualifiers every year, we have a semi-final between two sides that have never met each other. However, these two sides - not literally, but the regions they are derived from - are traditional powerhouses in their respective countries.

It is generally said that a healthy New South Wales equals a healthy Australia. The same can be said of Pretoria and surrounds, the region the Titans represent, and South Africa. This is one of the appeals of the Champions League. We can quibble about the formats, but here are two teams, traditionally best or thereabouts in their own domestic tournaments, facing each other for a right to play the final of a lucrative tournament.

Sydney Sixers don't have Shane Watson or David Warner (both New South Welshmen now) available, but Titans have lost out on more stars for various reasons. Morne Morkel, Dale Steyn, Faf du Plessis and AB de Villiers all come from the region, yet they are either injured or representing other franchises, South African or Indian. Sixers, on the other hand, have retained services of a homegrown pace attack that has even Test fans excited. If only Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood were going up against Steyn, Morkel and Marchant de Lange, we could even have looked at this as a bit-sized precursor to the blockbuster Test series next month.

Watch out for…

Starc and Cummins have been known outside Australia for some time now, but this was an important tournament for Josh Hazlewood. The rest of the world now knows of another potential baggy green holder. He might not have taken many wickets, but he has bowled his quota in all the four matches he has played, and has gone at just 4.5 per over. Starc, who is leading the charts with 11 wickets, will no doubt acknowledge Hazlewood's contribution to his wickets.

Forget homegrown players, Titans have the services of one who has taken a rather circuitous route. Alfonso Thomas was born in Cape Town, moved to the North-West team in Potchefstroom, then joined Titans, before leaving for Dolphins and then came back to Titans. Despite his one Twenty20 international representing South Africa, he is mostly known to those outside South Africa as a Somerset professional. He will be key if Titans are to exploit what remotely resembles a weakness: Sixers' batting.

Weather and conditions

The forecast point to a "mostly sunny" day and a "mostly clear" evening in Centurion. If it does rain enough to wash the game out, we still have a reserve day on Saturday. That reduces the teams' challenge to dealing with the slightly tacky bounce at SuperSport Park. That this is Titans' home ground should give them a slight advantage.

Quotes

"There won't be any change in game plan. Everybody knows their role and we will continue to play our roles whether Shane's here or not. So, I don't think that is going to be an issue."
Sydney Sixers' Peter Nevill on the absence of Shane Watson

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England have point to prove - Finn

Steven Finn has said that England will head to India in search of a fresh start and eager to restate their credentials as one of the best Test sides in the world, after a difficult year in which they lost the No. 1 ranking, their captain and very nearly their star batsman.

A 2-0 defeat at home to South Africa led to England being deposed as the top-ranked team in Tests and precipitated Andrew Strauss' retirement from cricket, leaving Alastair Cook to assume the Test captaincy ahead of one of the most difficult touring propositions in the game.

England have not won a Test series in India since 1984-85 and struggled against subcontinental opposition last winter, being whitewashed 3-0 by Pakistan in the UAE and drawing 1-1 in Sri Lanka. England's victory in Colombo was only their fifth Test win in Asia, against countries other than Bangladesh, in 27 years but Finn said Cook's squad have a point to prove and invoked their landmark Ashes victory of 2010-11 by way of inspiration.

"It is almost a fresh start for us," Finn said, "the Test team hasn't played together since August so we've had a bit of time and we've got a new captain who will have his own ideas how he wants the team to move forward. There are a few fresh faces in the squad and I think we like proving people wrong. We like rearing our backs up in the face of adversity.

"It is something we're excited about, I don't think an England team have won out there for 27 years so we're looking to do a similar thing to what we did in Australia, by breaking those sort of records."

The tour is likely to provide Cook with plenty of challenges, not least brokering a successful return to the England environment for Kevin Pietersen, after a turbulent summer in which he retired from limited-overs internationals and was then dropped from the Test side after admitting sending messages about Strauss to members of the South Africa squad. The circle will be completed when Pietersen joins up with England in Dubai over the weekend, after his IPL team, Delhi Daredevils, were knocked out of the Champions League at the semi-final stage.

England have set much store by team unity in recent years but Finn said that he was looking forward to playing with Pietersen again. "He is a world class player and has produced some splendid innings that have won us games so I think it's great to have him back and good for English cricket," he said.

England's last win on the subcontinent, against Sri Lanka in April, was inspired by Pietersen's magnificent innings of 151 and knitting him back into the fabric of the team would appear to be essential to the tourists' chances in the four-Test series. While India will be seeking to avenge the 4-0 whitewashing they suffered in 2011, England also have plenty at stake.

"We have a massive point to prove," Finn said. "We have to prove to the general public, to the people who comment on the game and to people within the game. If we want to be the number one side in the world again and get that mantle back we have to be able to perform in subcontinental conditions.

"We have done a lot of work since we played Pakistan earlier this year, as a unit and as a team, developing skills that we will need in the subcontinent - playing against spin, using old balls on wickets that aren't doing much. We have done a lot of work to refine our game to become better in the subcontinent and hopefully that will bear fruit on this tour."

Investec, the specialist bank and asset manager, is the title sponsor of Test match cricket in England. Visit the Investec Cricket Zone at investec.co.uk/cricket for player analysis, stats, Test match info and games

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Mitchell Marsh loses Australia A spot

The allrounder Mitchell Marsh has missed out on being selected for Australia A because of his behaviour in South Africa over the past week. Marsh was one of several Perth Scorchers players who had a big night out in the lead-up to a must-win Champions League Twenty20 match and he and his brother Shaun were subsequently dropped from the Scorchers' final match of the tournament.

It has also cost Marsh the chance to play against South Africa in a three-day match in Sydney starting next Friday. The Australia A team will be captained by the Victoria allrounder Andrew McDonald, one of four players with Test experience in the side along with Phillip Hughes, Tim Paine and Steven Smith, and while there are plenty of allrounders in the 11-man team, Marsh is not one of them.

"Four or five days ago we had a squad of 15 that we were looking to mould and Mitch was in that," the national selector John Inverarity said. "What's happened in South Africa recently didn't help his cause there. It's up to the WACA to deal with that and they will deal with that appropriately. As soon as that has been dealt with and whatever sanctions they have in mind…when that's finished he'll be very much back on the radar.

"Mitch is a good lad but apparently there was alleged to be an indiscretion there. I'm sure we've all had indiscretions in our time. But he'll come back onto the radar. He's a very good cricketer, a very promising cricketer and a cricketer that Australia needs to develop."

When asked if Marsh's name was taken off the list of 15 specifically because of the events in South Africa, Inverarity said: "Yes, his name was taken off the list because of what's happened recently. Mitch is a lively 21-year-old and a very good cricketer. I feel really confident he will kick on as a young man and as a player. I'm sure he will."

Inverarity, a former Western Australia player, said the incident in South Africa, in which players were believed to be out on the town celebrating Marsh's 21st birthday, was a concern for the culture of cricket in the state.

"There are concerns there, the concerns are fairly widespread, yes," Inverarity said. "We want cricket to have a very healthy culture in all parts of Australia, and I think in WA there need to be some changes and they need to pull up their socks."

Two Western Australia players made the Australia A side, the fast bowler Nathan Coulter-Nile and the opener Liam Davis. Victoria's prolific opener Rob Quiney was also included, along with the Tasmania batsman Alex Doolan, who made 149 for the Tigers earlier this month against South Australia, followed by a fighting 95 in the ongoing match against Victoria at the MCG.

There was no place for Callum Ferguson, who impressed with a career-best 164 in this week's Sheffield Shield match for South Australia in Adelaide, nor for the Queensland batsman Usman Khawaja. Ferguson's century this week was his first major score in some time, after he averaged 32.40 in the Sheffield Shield last summer.

"We were delighted he made 160-odd the other day, which was terrific, the issue with Callum is consistency," Inverarity said. "We want him to do it again, and again and again. I think Phil Hughes really benefited by having an uninterrupted time at Worcester. He was there, he was settled, he made runs there, and we're looking for Callum staying with SA, batting at No. 4, batting under pressure and getting runs consistently."

There were plenty of allrounders picked in the 11-man group, including Smith, Moises Henriques and Glenn Maxwell. The new ball will be shared by Coulter-Nile and John Hastings, while other fast men including Jackson Bird and Luke Butterworth were overlooked.

The team will play the South Africans in Sydney ahead of the first Test, although the Australia A players cannot force their way into the Test side with performances in this match, for the Test squad will be announced on Monday.

"The national selection panel does not intend, at the moment, to include any of the players in this Australia A team in the squad for the first Test," Inverarity said. "Phillip Hughes, Rob Quiney, Liam Davis and Alex Doolan are four top-order batsmen who have played well recently and will have an opportunity to impress against the formidable South African pace attack.

"Rob Quiney has been very close to receiving recognition for some time and his sound technique and equable temperament should serve him well as an opener. Phillip Hughes has been in pleasing form and showing the benefits of his four month uninterrupted spell with Worcestershire and settling in well with his new team, South Australia.

"Andrew McDonald, Steve Smith, Moises Henriques and Alex Doolan have been in sparkling form recently. Following the unfortunate shoulder injury to Jon Holland, Glenn Maxwell has been given the responsibility of being the team's sole spinner. The NSP is very keen for him to develop as a genuine allrounder.

"John Hastings has made a splendid return from injury, as has Tim Paine, and John will share the new ball with Nathan Coulter-Nile, who impressed with Australia A in England a few months ago, as did Davis. They will be supported by the medium pace of McDonald and Henriques."

Australia A squad Phillip Hughes, Rob Quiney, Liam Davis, Alex Doolan, Andrew McDonald (capt), Tim Paine (wk), Steven Smith, Moises Henriques, Glenn Maxwell, John Hastings, Nathan Coulter-Nile.

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BCCI holds firm on broadcaster fees

The BCCI remains firm in its demand of what it calls "realistic costs" of providing space and access for independent TV and radio commentary teams from Sky TV and BBC's Test Match Special to cover England's tour of India which is due to begin in early November.

Officials have refused to make a statement on the matter but ESPNcricinfo understands that the BCCI has not signed any rights deals or contract with either Sky or TMS. The dispute of the amounts mentioned - £500,000 (US$806,000) for Sky and £50,000 (US$80,000) for BBC - has arisen because, for the first time, the BCCI holds production rights for the coverage of Indian cricket.

Sky and BBC have signed sub-licencee agreements with Star TV which is the owner of "global media rights" of Indian cricket which will give them access to the world feed. As Star is not in charge of production, the arrangements to set up independent commentary teams and provide access to commentary boxes and independent studios must be made between sub-licencees and the production house, in this case the BCCI.

A BCCI official, preferring anonymity, said: "It is not as if they have only asked for a commentary box. They have demanded a full control room, just like the one our host broadcaster has at every venue. If you have to create an additional space of 2000 sq ft, fully air-conditioned, it will bear a lot of cost. And neither the BCCI nor any of our affiliated units who would be hosting the match would bear the additional cost."

In the past, the TV channel that owned the rights, usually also controlled production. During overseas tours, the cost of providing access and facilities to overseas commentary teams were worked out between the production house and the visiting media channels. The "access fees" were worked out through mutual relationships between broadcast and production companies. Costs have often been waived and even if the extent of the support required was substantial, the fees were arrived at following mutually-agreeable discussions.

With the BCCI owning production rights to all cricket out of India, the visiting broadcast companies must independently negotiate costs over and above what it has paid the rights owners for sub-licences. Just after Star won its global media rights, a joint ESPNStar production team had made a pitch for production rights of cricket in India but had not won the contract.

BCCI is not the only cricket board that owns production rights: Cricket South Africa's global rights are sold to SuperSport but it keeps production under its own control. Under CSA's terms, the Board has the final say on its commentary team for its home audience while IMG takes care of some of camera crew and graphics and also sorts out the agreements between independent visiting commentary teams.

The fees being asked for by the BCCI from Sky and BBC for production costs have led the visiting broadcasters to suggest they may decide to provide independent commentary from their UK headquarters off a television set rather than live action at the venue.

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PCB to buy bulletproof buses

The PCB governing board has sanctioned the purchase of bulletproof buses to ensure best security protocol for visiting teams, and thus address some of the security concerns that have prevented international teams from touring Pakistan over the last three and a half years.

Pakistan has been a no-go zone for major international teams after the attack on Sri Lankan team - their bus was shot at by gunmen near Gaddafi Stadium in March 2009, and the attack injured five cricketers and killed six security men and two civilians. Since then, Pakistan have been playing their 'home' series abroad, and the PCB has been trying to bring international cricket back to the country. Now, the PCB hopes it can be revived as early as next year, following the successful staging of two exhibition Twenty20s involving an International World XI in Karachi last week.

The PCB relies heavily on the government with regards to providing the visiting teams' security. The bullet proof buses will be an additional safety measure for visiting teams, ensuring box security while travelling. The buses were sanctioned at the PCB governing board meeting on Thursday in Abbottabad, the garrison town north of Islamabad.

"To ensure best security protocols for international teams, the Board of Governors unanimously approved the purchase of bullet proof buses," the PCB said in a statement. "The members noted that the step would enable the PCB to achieve higher security measures for the teams visiting Pakistan in future."

Apart from working on security protocol, the PCB has been working on identifying potential new venues for international cricket across the country and upgrading them to international standards. The board had visited the Abbottabad cricket stadium and, at the meeting, approved a Rs 12.5 million budget for its upgrading and development.

Earlier this year the PCB had identified a 35-acre piece of land in Islamabad, where a stadium that is meant to be the biggest in the country, with a capacity of capacity of 50,000, will be developed. "The board unanimously decided to name the stadium after Mohtarma Shaheed Benazir Bhutto," the PCB statement said.

The stadium will be in the Shakarparian area of Islamabad, with multiple facilities that include a cricket ground, a cricket academy and lodging facility. According to the Memorandum of Understanding between the PCB and Capital Development Authority (CDA), the PCB will receive 70% of the revenue generated by the stadium, while the CDA will take 30%.

Also at the meeting, the governing board reviewed the progress made in bringing together Pakistan's proposed Twenty20 league. "The board was updated on the progress thus far and a roadmap was shared with them," the statement said. "The board appreciated it as a positive initiative for the revival of international cricket in Pakistan." The league is planned for March 2013, immediately after Pakistan's South Africa tour, which ends on March 24.

The board also sanctioned the use of Kookaburra balls in domestic cricket, terming it a 'positive step' for the improvement of the domestic game. The PCB is yet to introduce the balls in the ongoing President's Trophy; the fifth round of the tournament, starting from November 2, will be played with the imported balls.

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At least three bids expected for new IPL franchise

For the second time in as many months, the BCCI's mandarins will assemble on Thursday in an attempt to find a new franchise owner for the IPL. Their last attempt was foiled when the owners of Deccan Chargers rejected the sole bid by PVP Ventures to take over the then beleaguered (and now terminated) Hyderabad franchise on September 13, and the BCCI would be hoping Thursday does not see a repeat.

It's unlikely the new invitation to tender - floated by the board on October 14 after India's Supreme Court upheld Chargers' termination - won't attract bidders. When the BCCI top brass meet in Mumbai on Thursday, they would be hoping to have "at least three" bidders for the new IPL team that would feature in at least five editions of the tournament from the 2013 season. "Around half a dozen tender documents have been bought by prospective owners, so it cannot be said that the response has been negative," a BCCI insider told ESPNcricinfo.

The lower base price is expected to draw more interest from bidders. When the Sahara group bought the Pune franchise in 2010, the base price was $225 million for 10 years. It was learnt that this time, the BCCI has set the base price at Rs 60 crore ($11.2 million) per year for a period of five years.

Though the BCCI bigwigs were tightlipped over the expected winning bid amount, a market expert, requesting anonymity, said he "won't be surprised if the winning bid is around Rs 600 crore ($112 million) for five years".

Recently, Kamla Landmarc group had offered to buy Chargers hours before they were terminated for Rs 1250 crore ($231.5 million) payable over ten years, according to Ajay Vazirani, senior partner of Hariani & Co, legal advisors to the group.

"If the base price is lowered, then it will certainly become an investor-friendly entity," Prahlad Kakkar, the leading ad filmmaker, said. "What has been happening till now is the cost of the team is so high that the only option to make money is to sell the team. A lowered base price suddenly makes it more viable for a lot of investors."

The tender had invited bids with respect to 12 cities: Ahmedabad, Cuttack, Dharamsala, Hyderabad, Indore, Kanpur, Kochi, Nagpur, Noida, Rajkot, Ranchi and Vizag. Among those who will most likely submit their bids are PVP Ventures, whose efforts to buy Chargers last month went in vain. And don't be surprised if the Ahmedabad-based Adani group and Noida-based Jaypee group end up bidding for their home cities. However, with the BCCI having imposed stringent measures when it comes to the termination clause by adding a performance deposit, investors will think long and hard before bidding for the team.

Meanwhile, the IPL governing council, which meets on the sidelines of the bidding process, will discuss a host of matters regarding IPL 2013. The main issue will be to decide the fate of the Chargers players. The governing council could decide to send all those players back into the auction pool.

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Habib Bank remain unbeaten

Habib Bank secured their fourth win in as many matches in Pakistan's President's Trophy when they defeated State Bank by 129 runs in Faisalabad. State Bank's win was grounded on a first innings total of 327, which featured a Younis Khan ton and 91 from Rameez Aziz. Fast bowler Ehsan Adil took 8 wickets for 79 in the match, ensuring State Bank never breached the 200-run mark, while part-timers Ahmed Shehzad and Aftab Alam also took 4 wickets apiece.

Younis made 101 after Habib Bank won the toss and chose to bat first, and shared a 101-run partnership for the fifth wicket with Aziz. Saad Altaf and Mohammad Ali ground out five top-order wickets between them for State Bank, before legspinner Kashi Siddiq took care of the tail with 4 of his own.

In response, State Bank could only manage 198, as Adil accounted for four of the top five. Only Usman Saeed made a fifty for State Bank, before Shehzad decimated the lower order with 4 for 7 in 2.5 overs. With a first innings lead of 129, Habib Bank declared their second innings at 148 for 5. Adil and Alam then completed the victory, taking eight wickets between them as they dismissed State Bank for 148 on the final day.

Habib Bank sits atop the President's Trophy ladder, with 33 points.

National Bank drew with Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) in a high-scoring match in Lahore, where both teams posted first innings totals in excess of 300, before National Bank made 428 in their second innings. There was only time for two overs in the fourth innings before stumps were drawn on the fourth day.

Qaiser Abbas' 106 provided the backbone for National Bank's 323, after being asked to bat first, and though PIA had them at 151 for 5 on the first day, a 136-run partnership for the sixth wicket propelled National Bank towards 300 before the tail took them beyond it. Aizaz Cheema took 4 for 81 among the PIA bowlers.

PIA also produced a lone centurion in response, though they had seemed headed for a large first innings deficit before he sparked a revival. Wahab Riaz and Abbas had reduced PIA to 144 for seven before Shoaib Khan snr batted alongside the tail for his unbeaten 121, taking part in a 125-run partnership for the eighth wicket, before putting on 53 for the ninth. When PIA were eventually dismissed, they had a 13-run lead.

National Bank then made 428 in the second innings, effectively making a result impossible, despite the urgency with which Amim-ur-Rehman compiled his 137 from 168 deliveries. Bilal Munir and Umair Khan made half-centuries, while Anwar Ali took 5 for 115.

Sui Northern Gas Pipelines ground out a 32-run victory against Port Qasim Authority (PQA) in Sialkot, after PQA were dismissed for 215, having been set 247 to win. On the final day, PQA had progressed to 161 for 5, needing 87 to win, but lost their last five wickets for 54 as Samiullah Khan and Mohammad Hafeez took four second-innings wickets apiece. Samiullah finished with 7 wickets for 112, but PQA's left arm spinner Azam Hussain's 10 for 91 could not prevent defeat for his side.

Mohammad Rizwan's 91 and Ali Waqas' 56 took Sui Gas to 266 in the first innings. Rizwan struck 13 fours in his innings, striking at 77.14. Azam dismissed Rizwan and Waqas, as well as Misbah-ul-Haq as he took 4 for 41 in the first innings. In response, PQA made 244, with Saniyal Ahsan the only batsman to make a half century, with 61.

A six-wicket haul by Saeed Ajmal was one of the highlights of a drawn game between Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited and Water and Power Development Authority. It was Ajmal's 27th five-for in a first-class game but it was not enough to turn the momentum completely in favor of ZTBL, who were behind by eleven runs in the first innings.

Batting first, WAPDA rode on Sohaib Maqsood's 110 to get to 294 all out after Abdul Razzaq helped remove middle-order cheaply. The allrounder took his twelfth five-wicket haul but ZTBL began poorly in their reply. Only Haris Sohail withstood the challenge, hammering 115 in his first first-class appearance of the season. He had been away in South Africa playing in the Champions League T20s for Sialkot Stallions, and missed the first three games for ZTBL.

Ajmal then took six wickets in WAPDA's second innings which was kept alive by Kaleem Ahmed's staunch 70 which he made in more than five hours at the crease.

Mohammad Irfan and Yasir Ali fashioned Khan Research Laboratories' (KRL) fightback as they beat United Bank Limited (UBL) by four wickets at their home ground in Rawalpindi. The pace duo picked up three wickets each in the UBL second innings to reduce them to 143 all out, which added little to the 29-run deficit KRL had sustained in the first innings.

After being put into bat, Abid Ali's first century of the season helped UBL post 319 all out, despite a four-wicket haul from left-armer Irfan. Half-centuries from Zain Abbas, Saeed Anwar jnr and Naved Yasin got KRL close but they were bowled out for 290 runs. Fast bowler Mohammad Irshad took five wickets and four were taken by left-arm spinner Kashif Bhatti in the KRL first innings.

Irfan and Ali broke through early in the second innings, to restrict UBL to 143. It left enough time for KRL to chase down the 173-run target, which they did in 39.4 overs, picking up their second win. UBL are winless after four games.

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Cook ready for India challenge

In early days of England's 1992-93 tour of India, the pair of Mike Atherton and Phil Tufnell wandered around the streets of Kolkata, admiring and swallowing at once the beauty, chaos and stench of the City of Joy. The pair were bunking as room-mates on their first trip to India and Atherton recounts an interesting story in his autobiography Opening Up.

As they ambled along the streets, the duo ended up sitting "cross-legged" in front of a fortune teller, who had lured the Englishmen in with the offer that for a small fee he would have his caged parrot pick the Tarot cards which would reveal their immediate future. Superstitious, both men acquiesced. The pair's fate, the fortune teller warned, was "bleak" for the next couple of months, but would pick up from February 24 - the day before the England tour ended. Needless to say, England lost the series 3-0.

Security concerns will not allow England's newly installed Test captain, Alastair Cook, to find himself squatting in the promenade by the Gateway of India, a happy hunting ground for fortune tellers. Then again, Cook does not need a stranger to tell him what lays in store when he lands in India.

The reintegration process of Kevin Pietersen back into the England dressing room; how to conquer spin, England's Achilles for the many debacles over many decades; installing a suitable and long-term opener to replace Cook's predecessor, Andrew Strauss, with whom he had a prolific partnership; and, importantly, rediscovering the team's winning ways are the main hurdles for Cook and England's team director, Andy Flower, on the India trip.

The rights and wrongs of the Pietersen issue have all the makings of a bestseller but if England want to stand up on Indian soil confidently, they need their best player of spin and they need to embrace him despite his faults. Some have argued that England won the 2009 Ashes largely without Pietersen but then playing India in India on turning tracks is a different proposition to Australia at home. Among current England batsmen, Pietersen has the best scoring rate against Indian spinners in India of 3.57. Of the touring squad, only Cook and Pietersen have made centuries in India, with the pair both passing 1000 runs on the subcontinent since Cook's 2006 debut.

On Thursday, before England departed to India via the UAE - where the squad train over the weekend - Cook said several times that Pietersen was "desperate and keen to pull his England shirt on", because with the three lions on his chest Pietersen has shown the ability to bring down the opposition single-handedly.

Cook acknowledged the bitterness of the past two months, as Pietersen was dropped immediately after his heroics at Headingley in the second Test against South Africa. Earlier this week Strauss himself said that it would not be an easy healing process. Cook recognised the difficulty but indicated strongly that he wanted to move forward.

"It has been a difficult two months for us as an England side but for me as a captain the best possible outcome has happened," Cook said. "We have got a world-class player back in our team. It has been a tough couple of months for Kevin but he seems very contrite. He is desperate to be back playing, doing what he does best - scoring runs for England. As a captain that is what all I want. I want him to come back into the side as he was to score match-winning runs like he did in Colombo, like he did at Headingley. I am sure he will be desperately keen to do that. As a captain I wanted our best players in the team because that is how we know we can get the best results."

Asked if it would be easy for the team management and his team-mates to give Pietersen respect and expect the same in return, Cook agreed that it would take time for the reconciliation but said the first positive steps had been taken. According to Cook the key was to develop the same team ethos that had seen England climb to top of the Test rankings last year with consistent performances.

"Clearly we know how important team spirit and team harmony is because that is where all our strength has been in the last couple of years and it shows in the results," Cook said. "We know how hard we have to work at that to make sure we continue on that front. We will be working as hard as we can in the coming months to put the team in that spirit that we know makes us perform well."

Keeping his house in order is bound to keep Cook occupied, but he is more keen to focus on England's biggest challenge: countering the menace of spin. Last year, England were blanked 5-0 in the ODI series in India. The 3-0 whitewash by Pakistan in the UAE is not even twelve months old and the subsequent struggle in Sri Lanka only re-emphasised their continuing agony against the slow bowlers.

"We know how important playing spin is," Cook said. "We did struggle in UAE, but the amount of work we did towards the latter part of the tour and then in Sri Lanka, we need to get as close to that point as soon as we can and build from there. Because we know how important playing spin is and how important first-innings runs are."

Cook was also not that concerned that the absence of any specialist spinner in the first warm-up game against India A was a smart trick by the Indians to protect their trump card. "What happened in UAE against Pakistan highlighted exactly where were at: we did struggle there. But I thought the improvements were made in Colombo and Galle. To draw a Test series out there was a really good achievement. It is important how we train against spin and how we start."

England last won a series in India in 1985. The last time they won a Test match was when then-captain, Andrew Flintoff, played the role of DJ-cum-captain in Mumbai. Cook did not play that match. He will be desperate to play a leading role this time around; importantly he will need all hands on the deck.

"We have a real, tough challenge ahead of us as a side," Cook said. "It has been almost 30 years since we won in India so that shows the challenge ahead but I am very confident in this squad that we can go out there and do something special."

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Dead rubber washed out, Delhi Daredevils finish top

Delhi Daredevils v Titans Match abandoned without a ball being bowled
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details

Heavy rain after the toss in Centurion meant the final league match of Champions League T20 was abandoned without a ball being bowled. With that, Delhi Daredevils finished at the top of the group, and drew Lions in their semi-final in Durban on Thursday. Titans will take on Sydney Sixers at home venue, Centurion, on Friday.

The teams, both of whom had already qualified for the semi-final, were two points apart, and the result of the match could have had an impact on the final standings.

Keeping the relatively low stakes in mind, Daredevils had rested captain Mahela Jayawardene to give David Warner a hit. Ross Taylor lost the toss for them.

Titans had also made two changes to give Paul Harris and wicketkeeper Mangaliso Mosehle a game, but it was not to be.

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India is England's biggest challenge - Prior

Matt Prior, the England wicketkeeper, believes that winning a Test series against India in India equates to a bigger task than beating Australia away, which England did for the first time in 24 years in 2010-11.

Later this week England depart for a training camp in Dubai before the four-Test tour of India, where they will be seeking a first series win since 1984. In the latest edition of Alison's Tea Break, Prior describes winning on the subcontinent as "the final frontier" for a team who are determined to climb the Test rankings again after losing their No. 1 status to South Africa at home earlier this year.

Prior's contention is perhaps one of the reasons why he was central in attempting to smooth Kevin Pietersen's return to the England set-up ahead of the India series. Prior was one of the senior England players to meet with Pietersen ahead of his return to the Test squad. He was also quick to pick up the phone to Pietersen in the aftermath of the batsman's extraordinary press conference at Headingley when he stated "it's tough being me" in the England dressing room.

"I've seen Kev, we had a good chat or meeting, whatever you want to call it," Prior says. "Obviously I don't want to go into too much detail about what went on in the meeting but the important thing about it is KP playing for England will make England a better team. He is a phenomenal player, we all know that.

"The really important thing is that we are all pulling and moving in the same direction, and whether it be KP, or myself - if one person steps out of line in the other direction, it's tough. Our team ethic and team ethos has been the most important thing in our success over the last couple of years and we want to make sure we look after that and make sure we can get it back to where it was."

Prior explains why he felt compelled to speak to Pietersen after the second Test against South Africa, what he felt it achieved and the extent to which he believes England can recapture the dressing room ethos that he feels has been central to the team's success over the last couple of years.

"To be honest, all the time it was KP having an issue with the ECB, IPL, etc, but the minute he said he had an issue with the dressing room, it suddenly became the players' problem," he says. "I felt the only thing to do was to say 'Right, what are your issues?' Kev will probably admit he did a few things wrong but if one of our senior players is saying he's struggling in the dressing room then it would be wrong of us not to look at it and say, 'Okay what are we doing that's making him feel that way?' So it works a bit both ways."

In the interview, Prior also discusses what makes for a successful and happy dressing room and the importance of trust and respect in a team game, as well as reiterating his desire to get back in the one-day and Twenty20 squads once again for England.

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