* Pakistan invites Indian junior team

Pakistan has invited the Indian junior cricket team to play matches in an under-19 tournament in preparation for next year's Youth World Cup to be held in New Zealand. "So far we have not received any confirmation regarding our invitation from India but we had also asked the Sri Lankan Board to send their junior team and they have sent in their confirmation," Pakistan Cricket Board's director Brigadier Munnawar Rana was quoted as saying in The News on Tuesday.

Rana said the Sri Lankans would visit Pakistan sometime in November. He added he had extended the invitations to Sri Lanka and India during the International Cricket Council meeting in London in June. "We are hoping the Indians will also confirm, let us see what happens. But we have to ensure our junior team goes well prepared to New Zealand," he said.

India did not send their team to Karachi for the Asia Under-17 Championship last year. Rana said Pakistan will prepare for the Youth World Cup very seriously this time as they had never managed to win this particular title. Pakistan juniors lost in the semi-finals of the last Youth World Cup held in Sri Lanka.

* ACU team to visit Sharjah

Two members of the ICC Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) will visit Sharjah this week, to discuss the implementation of security measures with officials from the Cricketers Benefit Fund Series, which organises the Sharjah tournament.

Specifically, these will be preliminary discussions concerning recommendation 9 in the Anti-Corruption Unit interim report of April this year. Recommendation 9 covers the need for 'extra vigilance and security' at neutral venues hosting international matches.

"This visit will be followed by another, timed to coincide with the next Sharjah tournament in October and November. This will provide the opportunity for my team to assess the implementation of the additional security measures that need to be put in place to deter improper approaches," commented Lord Condon, director of the ACU on Tuesday.

* Eight zonal under-19 academies proposed in TN

With the first of its proposed eight zonal cricket academies for the under-19 category being launched at Chennai on Wednesday, the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) will take a decision on the location of the other seven at a meeting during the end of the month.

VR Sivakumar, chairman of TNCA's District Development Committee, told reporters in Coimbatore that the TNCA would provide each zone, comprising a maximum of five districts, infrastructural facilities, like building with gymnasium facilities, roller and sprinkler and a prominent coach. The selected district association would have to provide grounds with a turf wicket, Sivakumar, who is also the joint secretary of the Coimbatore District Cricket Association, said. He said boys in the age group of 13 to 18 would be given training in two camps - summer and winter. Based on their performance, the TNCA would decide on opening district-wise academies to promote cricket in these areas.

CDCA president D Lakshmi Narayanaswamy said the association would host the three-day final of the 'Hercules-TNCA inter district under-19 cricket tournament between Coimbatore and Vellore from August 16. The selectors would monitor the players' performance for selecting the combined districts and state teams, he said. The two combined district teams would play round-robin matches with four city teams at Chennai, before the final under-19 State team was selected, Narayanaswamy said.

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