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Ryan Sidebottom is set to fly home from the England tour of Bangladesh, after failing to recover from a thigh injury, and he could yet be joined on the plane by Stuart Broad and Graham Onions, both of whom are being sent for MRI scans on their lower back, as the England camp was hit by a wave of injuries ahead of the third ODI in Chittagong.

Waqar Younis has signed on as the new coach of the Pakistan side, in the process becoming the fourth coach of the team in three years. The former fast bowler has been in negotiations with the PCB over the last few days, but confirmed that he will now replace Intikhab Alam on a tenure that sees him through to December 2011.

Waqar, who is based in Sydney currently, will arrive in Lahore next week to begin work, the first assignment of which will be to prepare Pakistan’s defense of the World Twenty20 crown in the Caribbean in April-May. “I’ve signed on and agreed to the contract,” Waqar told Cricinfo. “I’ll be arriving in Lahore from next week to begin work.”

A year on from cricket’s most shocking and deadly event, match-referee Chris Broad, who survived the harrowing Lahore terror attack, said the sport’s hierarchies cannot afford to become complacent regarding security. If they slack in their efforts, Broad fears the terrorists will return.

Broad, 52, was caught in the now infamous terrorist ambush on March 3 last year, when the match officials’ bus and that of the Sri Lanka team, en route from their hotel to the Gaddafi Stadium was shot at by masked gunmen. The driver of Broad’s vehicle was killed and reserve umpire Ahsan Raza took a bullet, but has now recovered. Several Sri Lanka players were injured in the attack. Broad later said that the passengers in his bus were left “like sitting ducks” and he felt let down by security that had been assured them.

Scott Styris went from probable 12th man to match-winner after guiding New Zealand to a two-wicket victory in a tense chase of 276 in Napier. Styris began the day outside New Zealand’s starting XI but was called in late due to Daniel Vettori’s stiff neck, and the inclusion helped Ross Taylor start his international captaincy career on a high.

Styris sealed the win with a six over long-off from the second ball of the 50th over from Doug Bollinger and finished unbeaten on 49 from 34 deliveries. He roared as the ball sailed over the boundary and was pumped up after he and Mitchell Johnson appeared to clash head and helmet in the 46th over, in which Styris slogged two boundaries.

John Howard, the former Australian prime minister, has finally been nominated by the boards of Australia and New Zealand as their candidate for the post of ICC president from 2012. Howard, who led the country from 1996 to 2007, will have the position rubber stamped in June and will succeed India’s Sharad Pawar in two years.

The decision ends a long-running dispute over the preferred Australasian candidate. Cricket Australia searched outside their board of directors for a nomination and wanted Howard, who admits to being a cricket tragic, while New Zealand Cricket recommended its former chairman Sir John Anderson. Howard is a 70-year-old with no background in cricket administration but was pursued by Cricket Australia for his diplomatic skills.

Brett Lee, who retired from Test cricket last month, is gearing up for the IPL which starts on March 12 and regards the tournament as the first step towards making the Australian team for the World Twenty20 and the ODI World Cup in 2011. Lee had missed the entire Australian summer due to an elbow injury, but is confident of returning to full fitness during the course of the IPL.

“I’ve been working very, very closely with Patrick Farhart — he’s been my physio for 16 years — and he’s happy with the way it’s progressing,” Lee, who has been named in Australia’s 30-man preliminary squad for the World Twenty20, told the Sydney Morning Herald. “I’m looking to be up to full pace within a couple of weeks.”

Mohsin Khan, the former Pakistan batsman, has been appointed chairman of selectors by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). Mohsin, 54, will begin his duties “with immediate effect”, the board said in a statement.

Mohammad Ilyas, Salim Jaffer and Azhar Khan will continue as regular members while Asif Baloch and Farrukh Zaman will continue as co-opted members of the Selection Committee.

Mohsin played 48 Tests, scoring 2709 runs at 37.10, and also has 1877 runs in 75 ODIs at 26.81. He made his international debut in an ODI against West Indies in March 1977 and played for Pakistan till 1986.

Eoin Morgan hit his first hundred for England as they overcame a major challenge from Bangladesh to secure a nerve-jangling two-wicket victory with seven balls to spare and seal the series in Mirpur. For Bangladesh it means their wait for success over England continues and their inability to close out matches came back to haunt them as Morgan’s ultra-cool approach proved too much.

Match facts
Tuesday March 2, 2010
Start time 14.00 (08.00GMT)

Big Picture

Given their flashes of success against every other Test-playing nation, it’s certain that Bangladesh will eventually beat England. But after eight straight defeats, it’s the most recent, on Sunday that will really grate. Tamim Iqbal’s dazzling hundred was a glimpse of the talent that lies latent in the country, but the soft dismissals and clumsy fielding from his team-mates showed just how far they have to go before they can regularly challenge the best sides.

Match Facts
Wednesday, March 3, Napier
Start time 1400 (0100 GMT)

The Big Picture

Life in a more sedate lane will begin in Napier after a frenetic finish to the two-match Twenty20 series, which left everyone in New Zealand breathless after Sunday’s Super Over victory. While the short affairs were leading to the World Twenty20 in the Caribbean late next month, the five ODIs for the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy act as a more leisurely warm-up for the two Tests.