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April 26, 2003 21:02 IST

Australian captain Steve Waugh wants his all-conquering side to write another chapter in their golden story by becoming the first visiting team to clinch a Test series clean-sweep in the Caribbean.

After pulling off a 118-run win in the second Test, Waugh says he is confident that his side can win the next two matches in Barbados (May 1-5) and Antigua (May 9-13).

"We have the best bowler in the world, Glenn McGrath, coming back into our side and we are playing good cricket, so there is no reason why we cannot win the next two Test matches," said Waugh.

"We want to create our own history. We want to win the next two Test matches and continue to improve.

"We have played excellent cricket in the first two Tests, but we will not be letting up in Barbados and Antigua. But I am sure the West Indies will be looking to come back, they have a pretty good record in Barbados over the years," Waugh told www.westindiescricket.com.

"It was an excellent win here for us because to take 20 wickets on this pitch was never going to be easy and, realistically, we gave West Indies a chance so I am very happy with the win," said Waugh who now has a record of 35 wins out of 47 Tests as Australia captain.

BCCI officials would meet in Delhi on April 28 to decide the venues for the forthcoming New Zealand's tour of India.

BCCI secretary S K Nair said some of the Board officials, including president Jagmohan Dalmiya, would meet in Delhi to finalise the dates and venues for the one-dayers and two-match Test series, starting in October.

The Board is also trying to rope in world champions Australia for a triangular one-day series involving hosts India and New Zealand, he said.

The West Indies Cricket Board has agreed to pay a "retainer fee" to its players from October this year to "ensure that they stay fit and have peace of mind at all times even when they are not playing cricket".

The decision comes in the wake of protracted negotiations between the WICB and the West Indies Players Association (WIPA) for the last many years.

"At this time the WICB is looking at around 20 players for the initial group and is willing to do this at whatever cost because it will certainly assist the competitive life of our best players," a source in the Board said.

The amount of the retainer fee was not immediately known.

According to the current payment structure for international cricketers in West Indies, players at the lowest rung -- those who have played between 1 to 20 Test matches -- earn about $3,500-$4,000 per Test. The amount ranges to $8,000 per Test for players having experience of more than 80 Tests. The captain gets between $8,000 and $8,500 per Test.

WICB and WIPA will work together to ensure that all parties are agreeable to this idea of retainer fee to the players. Meanwhile, legendary fast bowler Michael Holding has urged WICB and WIPA to settle their differences and operate closely for the welfare of West Indian cricket.

"The relationship needs to be like a marriage. There is no way you can go forward unless you work hand in hand," Holding said.

He said the recent strike by the players should not have happened.

"I don't think we should have reached that far where cricketers go on strike. I cannot accept that as an ultimatum. But we learn and we move on. Let's hope we have learnt from that experience."

South African cricket coach E Simons has hit out at the news report that blamed the players' "inappropriate lifestyles" for the hosts' first round exit from the World Cup tournament.

"It was with anger and frustration that I learnt about the article that appeared in the Cape Argus newspaper and its sister publications," said Simons of the report that charged most of the players had been drinking, partying and over-eating in the run-up to the World Cup.

A confidential report by the team's fitness advisor Andrew Gray, which singled out Herschelle Gibbs, Allan Donald, Jacques Kallis, Lance Klusener, Mark Boucher, Shaun Pollock, Andrew Hall and Charl Langeveldt in terms of their lifestyles and fitness levels, appeared in the the Cape Argus newspaper on Wednesday.

"Clearly it was written by a journalist with no understanding or knowledge of the team or our World Cup campaign.

"Highly confidential reports have been leaked by a person or people who obviously have little or no sense of moral integrity, to a reporter who has acknowledged to the UCB that he knows very little about the game," Simons was quoted as saying by the SAPA news agency from Chittagong yesterday where South Africa are playing the first Test against Bangladesh.

"The fitness trainer's report is grossly misinterpreted in the article".

Simons, who was in charge of the South African team during the World Cup as well, claimed the news report was highly "exaggerated and twisted".

"Obviously, as coach, I have seen both the report and the article, and it is clear that the writer has chosen to exaggerate and twist the content purely for the sake of sensationalism as the article makes no attempt to present the facts fairly."

Simons said Gray's report stated that every provisional World Cup squad member passed a fitness test prior to the naming of the final squad.

"But the reporter did not bother to mention this as, clearly, it did not suit the overall tone of his story.

"I could continue explaining why this article is a disgrace, and simply an attempt to suit someone's own selfish ends."


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