Stefan Kelly © ICC

Bermuda are hoping Stefan Kelly, a 17-year-old fast bowler, will become a much-needed strike-bowler for them in the coming years - possibly even as soon as the World Cup:

Stefan Kelly is now into his third year of a sports scholarship at Oakham School in the English Midlands and has spent the last two weeks furthering his cricketing education on a school tour in South Africa.

The 17-year old has spent much of the winter in the indoor nets developing his technique and stands a strong chance of being selected for Leicestershire’s Under 19 squad in the summer.

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But as with every other Bermudian cricketer in or on the fringes of the national team, the World Cup has never been far from Kelly’s mind...

"Having spoken quite a lot to (Bermuda Cricket Board chief executive) Neil Speight though, I know that I am part of their overall thinking and it is up to me to go on and prove that I am worthy of a place."

There's an official Nepali Cricket blog which looks like it will be regularly updated. Let's hope so.

David Hemp, Bermuda's high-profile recruit, reflects on the state of the game as he completes his 100-day residential qualification ahead of the 2007 World Cup.

I have been very impressed with what I have seen since I’ve been here, the basics are all in place and the plans are ambitious so it is a case of moving forward together. We need everyone moving together, that’s the players, the administrators, the coaches, the schools, the Government and the public in general. If we don’t have that, then we might as well give the $11 million back because it is going to get wasted.

Namibia might have failed to qualify for the 2007 World Cup, but the Under-19 side's preparations for their own version of the tournament, which takes place in Sri Lanka in February, are well underway.

Uganda are widely considered to be the rising force in African cricket, and if Kenya and Zimbabwe continue to struggle, many believe that Uganda will emerge as No. 2 to South Africa. Here, the New Vision website offers an insight into the best young players on the block.

Bermuda's captain Clay Smith is likely to be out of action until at least April, as he travels overseas to seek advice on his injured knee.

Having accepted an invitation from the Nepal tourist board, Sunil Gavaskar has praised the standard of Nepali cricket but says more exposure is needed if they are to prosper:

“There is a lot of talent and enthusiasm; and the crowd is the most encouraging thing,” said Gavaskar, who was shown a 20-minute highlight of the ACC U-19 Cup final. “But your team needs more exposure.”

He also said he felt ‘overwhelmed’ and ‘touched’ when he was offered a goodwill ambassadorship of Nepal, the country he praised as the best destination for relaxing holidays.

“When the Nepal Tourism Board CEO, Tek Bahadur Dangi, offered me the goodwill ambassadorship, I was overwhelmed because that offer has never come to me from the government of India,” Gavaskar said. “It’s touching. I can assure you all that if I could do that for NTB, I am most likely to do so.”

The ICC, Melbourne Cricket Club and Cricket Victoria have joined forces to establish an equipment drive event for the ICC’s East Asia-Pacific (EAP) Region at the Boxing Day Test between Australia and South Africa. Pads, bats - and in particular, balls - are sometimes scarcely available (or too expensive) and with the game's increasing popularity in the region, organisers hope the public will donate their old equipment to a worthy cause:

The initiative calls on all Victorians to donate their unwanted cricket gear by bringing it with them to the MCG. A collection point will be set up outside Gate 6 on days one, two and three of the Boxing Day Test. The equipment will be distributed to countries such as Fiji, Cook Islands, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Tonga and Vanuatu.

Cricket in Kabul © AFP

One day in August 2001, during an inter-provincial tournament in Kabul, the Taliban's vice and virtue police turned up at a game in their 4x4 pick-up vehicles and some other cars surrounded the ground. We had forgotten to go to prayer. All the players and spectators were dispersed. Some people were arrested, including two players. They were imprisoned for about a week and missed the rest of the matches.

On another occasion, the then president of the Afghanistan Olympic Committee, Maulawi Qalamuddin, told us that the Taliban Grand Council wanted to ban cricket, which they considered to be an American game. We managed to convince the Taliban that cricket was not American and that it was in fact very similar to thope danda.

The MCC have arrived in Bahrain for a tour to help promote the game. Under the captaincy of John Emburey, the highlight of the trip will be a match to celebrate the 70th anniversary of Awali Cricket Club.

The ICC's Winter Training Camp has been about more than simply improving players from the six Associate countries to have qualified for the 2007 World Cup, and the rewards are there for all to see. As Richard Done, the high-performance manager, explained:

The future continued development of Associate and Affiliate countries depends not just on the improvement of playing standards but also on the continued improvement of all parts of the cricket support network. Coaching is a key element of this process.

There is real evidence that the players from Bermuda, Canada, Holland Ireland, Kenya and Scotland will benefit from their participation.

Ireland are considering offering key players semi-professional contracts as they gear up for a key 15 months which culminates in the 2007 World Cup. As Adrian Birrell, the South African-born coach, explained:

We'll never be able to afford to contract 15 players but we might be able compensate players in some way for their time and their commitment and that's going to be massive in the next few years.

So low is the USA Cricket Association's standing in world cricket - this was the organisation barred from the last ICC AGM in London - that you woukd think they would do all they could to show that they are now on the ball. Not so. At the weekend they held a meeting in Dallas which should have shown that all disputes are a thing of the past. The problem is ... nobody turned up.

The attendance was so poor that there were not enough people present to constitute a forum, and furthermore, only six of the 12 USACA directors turned up, so it was not even possible to hold a board meeting.

You know that you've hit the big time when you start selling replica shirts, as is the case in Bermuda.

Replica shirt sales have never been truly big business in Bermuda in terms of national strips, with the majority of owners of such merchandise – in both football and cricket – those who have represented their country at one level or another. The trend first began when Premier Alex Scott started wearing both replica shirts and caps at various cricket-related Press conferences and ceremonies.

One can think of other national leaders who boards would pay not to wear their replica shirts for fear of causing a nationwide slump in sales ...

Cricket in the Caribbean was given a tremendous boost in October with the announcement of the Stanford 2020 challenge. And now the competition's representatives, almost all former West Indies internationals, are spreading the word across the region's less high-profile outposts. One has been assigned to each of the participants.

Visits have been made to Antigua, Bermuda, Cayman Islands, St Kitts and the Virgin Islands, and in many places Stanford's investment has been matched by local governments.

Never mind a new trophy cabinet, the winners of the Under-14 Dolphin Cup to be held at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium might need to build a new clubhouse.

"The trophy will be 13 feet tall and weigh 200 kilograms. It will break the existing record of 11 feet and three inches for the tallest trophy," explained Sanjay Ahuja, the event spokesman. It is also likely to crush anyone foolish enough to attempt to lift it.

The best batsman, best bowler and player of the tournament will be presented with a scooter. So ... the winners get a trophy they cannot move, and the leading players a vehicle they cannot legally drive.

George O'Brien is led from the field © Royal Gazette

The two players involved have been fined and put on probation, but the real loser is St George's captain, Herbie Bascome, who was fired as the country's Under-19 coach.

The BCB has hardly helped the situation by taking an age to investigate and produce its finding, but at least the matter now appears to be at an end.

The tremendously enjoyable - and I speak from personal experience -

Sarasota International Sixes took place again last week, with the usual quotas of fun, good cricket, and Budweiser. As Lawrence Parry, Sarasota stalwart and the man responsible for leading many good men off the straight and narrow, explained:

There's just a lot of camaraderie between the players, and we call it a festival, not a tournament. It's really more like a reunion for the teams.

The Herald Tribune has provided a photo gallery and more information can be found at the official Sarasota Cricket Club website.

Cricket in Afghanistan is on the up. Though the fundamentalist Taliban banned all sports during its seven-year rule, more that 300 cricket clubs have sprung up all over the country during the last three years with the return of democracy.

President Hamid Karzai is a great cricket fan and watches the game whenever he finds time. He has promised a Toyota vehicle each to the team members if they are able to beat Pakistan. But our most cherished dream is to play against India

The Nepal's Under-19s side are to play Namibia and Scotland in Sri Lanka before the ICC Under-19 World Cup in 2006. More here.

In Uganda today, cricket has grown from just a recreational sport to a highly competitive and intense game.

And the great thing is that it is the youngsters who are shining, and that has to be good for the future.

The MLC Interstate tournament is up and running in Florida and Texas's Sushil Nadkarni has been the star of the show. He kicked off with 171 not out and followed with 214. Texas won both games, the second, against the hosts, by the small margin of 379 runs.

UScricket.com profiled him back in August.

The tournament is ongoing and Cricinfo will have regular daily updates. Check out the official MLC site.

The ICC winter training camp in South Africa is producing results ... and taunts that Canada are reliant on John Davison will be a thing of the past:

But thanks to the work put in by the four Canada players attending the 11-week residential course in Pretoria - Qaiser Ali, Umar Bhatti, Kenneth Carto and Henry Osinde - it is an accusation that could soon be put to bed for good.

Umar Bhatti, Kenneth Carto, Henry Osinde and Qaiser Ali are the four players benefiting.

An end in sight for the shambles that has been blighting the USA Cricket Association for more than a year, or another false dawn? Cricinfo reveals that finally there will be an Extraordinary General Meeting in Dallas on December 10.

It is unclear how many members of the association will actually attend what could be a lively meeting, assuming that the officers are willing to answer questions from the floor and not fall back behind the legal agreement.

People from across the country have to attend as this could be one of the last chances they have to be heard and make a difference before US cricket, already something of a pariah, is irreparably damaged.

"There is wicket keeping – it's kind of like catching like a catcher and then there is bowling which is like a pitcher and then there's fielding which is, you know, fielding."

But there are also interesting comments about the profile of the game among the next generation and some great clips of the youngsters in action.

Good news from Fiji where the authorities are reviving their free school holiday cricket program beginning next Monday (Dec 5) at Albert Park, Suva. More from the Fiji Times.