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Top officials of the BCCI and Sahara India will meet in Mumbai on Sunday afternoon over the dispute regarding the IPL Pune franchise, with all indications pointing to an amicable resolution. Both parties have, given the high stakes involved, softened their stance in the week since Sahara went public about its grievances with the Indian board and announced its pullout from the sponsorship of the Indian team and the ownership of the Pune Warriors franchise.The BCCI is likely to be represented by its president N Srinivasan and and its treasurer Ajay Shirke. IPL chairman Rajeev Shukla and IPL chief executive Sundar Raman will also be present. Sahara chairman Subrata Roy will lead his side, with his son Sushanto expected to sit alongside him.The meeting follows a week of top-level dialogue between officials from both sides seeking to work out possible openings for a solution. There are several issues to be sorted out, including the reduction in the number of IPL matches last season from 94 to 74; Roy said Sahara had paid $370 million for the franchise based on a 94-match season.Sahara’s immediate point of dispute, though, concerns the IPL’s refusal to allow it any concession in replacing Yuvraj Singh, who is being treated for cancer and is expected to miss the entire season. Sahara had wanted his $1.8 million salary added to its $1.6 million auction purse but that request was turned down.Sahara insiders say Roy will ask the IPL to tweak its rules and allow the Warriors to field five foreigners, instead of the stipulated four – as was done for Mumbai Indians in the 2011 Champions League. However, it is unlikely to be acceptable to the BCCI, with rival franchises already making noises that it would be unfair to them. “Mumbai’s case was extraordinary and everyone respected that, but if you now allow Sahara the same then in future there is a danger of this becoming a norm,” said an official of one of the original eight franchises.Instead, ESPNcricinfo understands, the IPL will allow the Warriors to buy players left unsold at the supplementary auction held in Bangalore on February 4. The IPL rules say franchises can pick unsold players only as a replacement for an injured player or in a medical emergency, but the rule could be relaxed to allow the Warrirors to utilise the $1.6 million purse.It’s unclear whether that will be acceptable to Sahara but crucially the company, which has a relatively long and close connection with Indian sport, has not closed all doors to cricket. In fact, as reported, the Warriors coaching staff have been asked to compile a list of players it could get on board during the IPL’s third trading window, which ends on March 4.The onus, though, seems to be on the BCCI, which has higher stakes in this issue. Already without a TV broadcast deal and unable to sell its internet rights, it cannot afford the embarrassment of being without a sponsor for the Indian team. The IPL, too, is in some flux; it has already lost one team – the Kochi franchise – and losing another in a relatively depressed financial market will not help advertisers and sponsors.That is believed to have forced board officials to admit they would have to soften their stand on some of the contentious issues. One top board official conceded its top brass needed to take the blame for the current impasse. “Things could have been handled and sorted out in good time as opposed to our approach, which is to allow it to build up into a fight.”There is no provision in the IPL rules for someone who is suffering from cancer. The BCCI top brass was aware about Yuvraj’s sickness for the last few months. Sahara were asking for a solution but if you keep neglecting a potential area of conflict, then it is bound to build up. So Sahara thought obviously enough is enough.”

Hashim Amla will miss the remainder of the ODI series against Sri Lanka to be with his wife, who is expecting their first child. Jacques Kallis has been rested while Rory Kleinveldt has been ruled out due to injury.Alviro Petersen and Colin Ingram replace the two senior batsmen and Vernon Philander, who’s been impressive in Tests, has been picked in the ODI squad in place of Kleinveldt.Amla’s been in excellent form in the series; he scored a century in the first ODI in Paarl and followed up with a half-century to help South Africa take a 2-0 lead in East London.The decision to rest Kallis is part of Cricket South Africa’s rotational policy, though it is yet unclear about when Kleinveldt is likely to return after a “relatively long-term injury”.”Hashim Amla has been forced to stand down because of family responsibilities while Rory Kleinveldt has a relatively long-term injury,” Andrew Hudson, the CSA selection convenor, said in a release.Petersen has been in good form, with runs behind his back for the Lions in the Franchise 1-day Cup, the domestic List A tournament, where he was the top scorer, and a century against Sri Lanka in the third Test in Cape Town, where he was picked at the expense of Ashwell Prince.Ingram, too, has had a good run, with consecutive hundreds for Warriors in the SuperSport series and 521 runs at 57.88 in the Franchise 1-day Cup. Both are making a comeback to the ODI side after extended breaks. Ingram last played in the World Cup and Petersen hasn’t played an ODI for South Africa since May 2010.Philander finished the Sri Lanka Test series with 16 wickets in two matches and grabbed 14 in the series prior against Australia. He last played an ODI for South Africa in August 2008.”Both Petersen and Philander showed excellent form in the recent Test series against Sri Lanka and they have also represented the Proteas in the ODI format before so I don’t anticipate their having any problems adapting to 50 overs cricket,” Hudson said. “Ingram has also been in top form in domestic cricket and was a member of the squad that went to the World Cup last year after making a century on debut against Zimbabwe.”Although we are sad to lose players such as Amla and Kallis I see this as an opportunity to try out our options. There are still places up for grabs in our ODI squad and I must say I am excited to see the talent coming through our development pipeline.”South Africa squad: AB de Villiers (capt & wk), Johan Botha, JP Duminy, Faf du Plessis, Colin Ingram, Albie Morkel, Morne Morkel, Wayne Parnell, Alviro Petersen, Robin Peterson, Vernon Philander, Graeme Smith, Dale Steyn, Lonwabo Tsotsobe.

Australia’s young fast-bowling spearhead James Pattinson is out of the remainder of the Test series against India after scans revealed the early signs of stress fractures in the metatarsal bone of his left foot.He has been replaced in the squad for the Perth Test by Mitchell Starc – the only change to the squad that was selected for Sydney. Ryan Harris is favoured to win a recall to the XI after making his own return to fitness.Pattinson bowled throughout the Sydney Test but complained of pain in his left foot towards the end of the match. Scans revealed the injury, which the team physio Alex Kountouris called an “early stage bone stress injury of the metatarsal bone of the left foot”.”He will be managed carefully over the next few weeks and will not be available for the remainder of the Test series,” Kountouris said.John Inverarity, the national selector, said his panel had already considered resting Pattinson for the WACA Test after he played four Tests in little more than a month since his debut against New Zealand in Brisbane.”The intention of the National Selection Panel was to rest James from the Perth Test match as this young man has played in four Test matches over a period of just five weeks,” Inverarity said. “This intention has become a necessity after post-match scans have revealed James’ foot injury.”Pattinson’s injury is a serious blow to Australia, given that in those four Tests he has taken 25 wickets at 18.12, while also impressing considerably with the bat. It also continues an unsettling run of injuries for young fast bowlers. Pat Cummins, who made an equally remarkable introduction against South Africa in Johannesburg in November, is missing the entirety of the home Test summer due to a heel injury.At the other end of the age scale is Harris, who would now appear certain to return to the XI for the Perth Test, after battling a hip problem and then building up his fitness for Test cricket with an intensive training regimen through December.Before Pattinson’s injury was known, Clarke said Harris’ recall as part of a pace quartet was a genuine option – he had also flirted with the idea before the Sydney match.”It is an option, there will certainly be at least four fast bowlers in our squad for Perth, and we’ll assess conditions once we get there,” Clarke said. “I’m hoping that wicket is similar to what we played on against England last summer, where it’s got a lot of pace and bounce and some sideways movement. If that’s the case there’s an option there [to play four quicks], but I always love to have a spinner in the team, and I continue to say that I think Nathan Lyon is doing a really good job for this team.”Clarke’s run as captain has been made far more agreeable by the presence of an effective pace attack, and he said the group’s collective ability to place pressure on India’s batsmen had been significant to the results so far.”We have [several] guys who can get a breakthrough, that’s one of the most pleasing things for a captain,” he said. “You can turn to any one of our bowlers to try and take a wicket, so that makes life easier for me. We’re able to build up pressure – at the moment, we’re bowling a lot of dot balls, bowling a lot of maidens, we’re restricting the scoring and I think that is what’s getting us wickets.”It’s not necessarily a one-off delivery that is getting somebody out. Against very good players you have to be able to build up pressure – if you think one-off balls are going to get six or seven of the best batsmen in the world out, you’re in for a rude shock. So you need the whole team and the whole bowling attack performing, and that’s what we’re doing at the moment.”

Bangladesh coach Stuart Law has said the team has to get the experience of playing more four-day games if their Test record has to improve. He suggested it would help to play such games against non-Test playing teams during the off season.His views echo that of the captain Mushfiqur Rahim, who blamed the run of defeats on the lack of infrastructure in the country’s first-class set-up. In the first Test against Pakistan at Chittagong, Bangladesh made 135 and 275 and went on to lose by an innings and 184 runs in less than four days.”Four-day cricket is where you produce your Test players from. The more you play, the easier it gets,” Law said. “Bangladesh haven’t played a lot of Tests in the years they’ve been involved. Some players have been around for 5-6 years but haven’t played a lot of Tests.”If you play a lot of ODIs but not Test cricket, something’s got to give. Hopefully the cricket board and players can come up with some program so that they can get enough four-dayers in before Test matches. The other option is to play longer forms of game against the associate nations, especially in the downtime when Bangladesh are not playing cricket.”Bangladesh’s batting has let them down this year. In eight Test innings they have gone past 300 just once and none of their batsmen have managed a century. Mushfiqur said this stemmed from the inability of batsmen to get big scores in first-class cricket. No player has scored more than two centuries in this year’s National Cricket League, which is currently in its second phase.Law acknowledged that it would take a lot for his team to get over the loss ahead of the second Test in Mirpur starting on Saturday.”It is a difficult thing to come out of. Having been a player in a similar situation where you don’t know where your next run is coming from, it can engulf you,” Law said. “The easiest thing to do is, as I’ve been telling the players, don’t lose sight of what makes you successful. We have to be up there mentally when the game starts, to want to do the hard yards. It has been a sign for million years that the longer we bat, the more runs we score.”On the bowling front, Law said there was plenty to be learnt by observing Pakistan’s varied attack.”Although Pakistan are playing very good cricket, there’s nothing in their bowling attack we should not want to face. They have always had class seamers who can swing the new ball and get the old ball reversing. Saeed Ajmal is one of the best to watch, has lots of tricks up his sleeve. He puts batsmen under pressure. He’s more like (Muttiah) Muralitharan in the sense that he’s more of a wrist spinner than an offspinner.”

Danish Kaneria, the Pakistan legspinner, has lost his four-month legal tussle with the Pakistan Cricket Board in the Sindh High Court. A two-member bench dismissed his petition to be cleared to play for Pakistan, leaving his international career in limbo. The ruling came after an objection was raised by PCB lawyer Tafazzul Rizvi questioning the court’s jurisdiction to hear the case.”It was dismissed only because the Sindh High Court doesn’t have the jurisdiction to hear the case,” Kaneria’s lawyer Mohammad Farogh Naseem told ESPNcricinfo. “We are yet to decide our next move but we have two options: either to appeal against the decision in the Supreme Court or to file a fresh petition in Lahore High Court (the city where the PCB office is situated).”Kaneria has not been selected to play for Pakistan since October 2010 after he was questioned by the Essex Police in a spot-fixing case last year in England. In July 2011, he filed a petition in the Sindh High Court challenging the PCB’s integrity committee’s continued refusal to clear him to be considered for national selection.”I remember Tafazzul [Rizvi], in the first hearing, raised the point of jurisdiction. If this was the legal constraint for the court then why should [the case] be so prolonged,” a disappointed Kaneria told ESPNcricinfo. “In all this, a player is losing [the chance to play] cricket, while mental stress is another concern. I will decide my next move in due course. I am very disturbed by all this.”Though Kaneria was not charged in the spot-fixing case, in which his Essex team-mate Mervyn Westfield faced criminal proceedings, he has not been cleared to play for Pakistan since the incident. The legal brawl sparked when the PCB integrity committee asked Kaneria to produce the transcripts of the Essex Police investigation. He appeared before the committee with his bank statements and other financial records but not with the required copy of the police interview transcripts, failing to satisfy the committee.”To be very honest I don’t have the tapes, my England lawyer Steve [Haurigan] has it, but the police had directed us not to share it with any third party since the trial of Westfield is starting from January. If we do so then it’s contempt of the court.”But still I gave my consent during the hearing that I have no problem if the PCB lawyer can get those tapes from the police,” Kaneria said. “I didn’t lie, I have a honest stance not only before the integrity committee but also before the court.”During the September 27 hearing it was decided that the PCB would write to the Crown Prosecution Service to ask for the tapes or their transcripts that required a court order, but there was a dispute during the October 20 hearing over who would bear the cost of the process. “We obviously wanted Kaneria to bear the cost of the process as this was his concern to satisfy his integrity,” Rizvi told ESPNcricinfo. “If he wants to go to the Supreme Court or Lahore High Court then we will contest. But at the same time PCB has nothing against him. There are some integrity concerns over the player, just like with Shoaib [Malik] who was cleared after he came up with the required documents to satisfy the integrity committee.”

The 2012 IPL will be the longest edition of the tournament yet and will clash with a number of international tours, most notably Australia’s tour of West Indies in April and West Indies tour of England in May. Pakistan are also scheduled to play international cricket during the event, which will be played from April 4 to May 27, but their players have not been part of the IPL since the inaugural tournament in 2008.The BCCI approved the dates of the tournament on Friday and West Indies, with their traditional home season falling in March and April, will once again have to find a way of coping without players who want to play in the lucrative Twenty20 league. According to the ICC’s Future Tours Programme, West Indies host Australia for three Tests and five ODIs in March and April, before heading to England to play three Tests, three ODIs and a T20I in May and June.Former West Indies captain Chris Gayle, who starred for Royal Challengers Bangalore in the 2011 IPL, and allrounders Kieron Pollard and Dwayne Bravo were given No Objection Certificates by the West Indies Cricket Board to play in the tournament this year. Pollard missed the ODI series against Pakistan while Bravo missed the Tests to turn out for their IPL franchises Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings. The Gayle situation is further exacerbated because he is involved in a standoff with the board over his decisions to play domestic T20 events around the globe, and has not played for West Indies since the World Cup.The Australia players who have IPL deals will be free to join the league mid-way, as they did this year after their ODI series against Bangladesh. However, England’s players will once again find themselves at odds with the IPL, since the West Indies series starts on May 1. That could discourage franchises from bidding for players from England, should they be part of a player auction next year.Pakistan are scheduled to welcome Bangladesh in April and May for two Tests and three ODIs, after which they are due to tour Sri Lanka for three Tests, five one-dayers and two T20Is. Pakistan’s visit would require Sri Lanka’s international players to leave the IPL early, something that became a contentious issue in 2011 for Sri Lanka’s tour of England.

ScorecardJoe Denly took advantage of a dropped catch to score his second century of theseason but Derbyshire are still in a commanding position after two days of theCounty Championship match against Kent at Derby.Denly made 142 not out after he was missed on 33 but Kent still have a lot todo to save the game after a hundred from Ross Whiteley took Derbyshire past 500for the first time in two years. The 22-year-old all-rounder ended with an unbeaten career-best 130 out of 535, while Kent pace bowler David Balcombe took six for 128, his fourth five-wickethaul in five matches.Kent faced a daunting 386 to avoid the follow-on and they slipped to 77 forthree before Denly led a recovery which saw the visitors close on 279 for four,still 256 behind. Derbyshire had started the day well-placed on 405 for six with Whiteley and JonClare both in the 70s, but Balcombe broke through with the first ball of thesecond over.Clare edged a drive to first slip which ended a stand of 142 in 22 overs andKent struck again when Tim Groenewald could not avoid a lifting ball fromBalcombe. That was the on-loan Hampshire bowler’s 30th wicket for Kent but he could notbreak the ninth-wicket stand between Whiteley and Tony Palladino which carriedDerbyshire past 500.Whiteley has delivered some impressive performances since coming into the sidethis season and his second Championship hundred was another demonstration of hisability to strike the ball cleanly. Although it was a streaky four through the slips that took him to a hundred, it was a rare false stroke in a commanding innings that contained 14 fours and foursixes.Palladino also played his part by scoring 34 out of 83 before he skied a driveto mid-off, and he was back in the action again when he struck in the fourthover of the Kent reply. Daniel-Bell Drummond was caught behind for four fending at the former Essex seamer who claimed his 48th Championship victim when he trapped Sam Northeastlbw for 12.Kent’s position would have been far worse if Denly had not been dropped by LukeSutton off Mark Footitt before Alex Blake (10) was pouched by the Derbyshireskipper off Clare in the 20th over. At that stage, Kent were in deep trouble but Denly grew in authority and played some handsome straight drives in a century which came off 128 balls and was well supported by Darren Stevens and Azhar Mahmood.Stevens made 38 out of 110 before he pulled Clare to deep square but Mahmoodcompleted a half century and was unbeaten on 60 as Kent ended the day 107 runsaway from their follow-on target.

Their key players may be coming off lengthy lay-offs, but the Royal Challengers Bangalore think-tank believes that won’t affect their Champions League campaign. Their captain Daniel Vettori, like talismanic opener Chris Gayle and South Africa import AB de Villiers, has not played any competitive cricket since the IPL ended in late May, but Vettori and coach Ray Jennings reckon the freshness can work in the team’s favour.”Too much cricket could put you in a bad state of mind, and that’s a big issue for me as the coach,” Jennings said in Bangalore. “Players never lose their talent. The fact that these guys are coming in fresh could be a blessing in disguise. Freshness is a very funny thing – if you are fresh in the mind, you could be fresh in expressing talent.”Vettori also stressed on the freshness aspect, insisting his four-month off-season – time he spent “looking after the kids” – could work in his favour going into the tournament. “Sometimes freshness of mind is the best thing coming into a tournament like this. Myself, AB and Chris haven’t played in a long time and are actually excited about playing cricket again. And you will see that intensity going into the first game.”The Bangalore players assembled from various parts of the world on September 18, and have their first full practice session only four days before their first game. Jennings underplayed the impact of the quick turnaround, and the potential disadvantage faced by his side compared to teams from other countries that have the luxury of spending most of the year together.”On the day, the team that connects better with the game technically and mentally will win in this format,” Jennings said. “There is a very good culture and unity in the team, everyone enjoys each other’s company. The local sides from other countries have certain problems – they don’t have a blend of different ideas [from around the world] like we do. Some of our guys have played in Indian conditions a lot more than the other sides.”Bangalore’s campaign has already suffered a huge blow, with pace spearhead Zaheer Khan missing the tournament due to the injury he picked up on India’s tour of England. Zaheer was one of many players to break down in England, a tour that brought cramped cricket schedules under scrutiny once again.”That is a problem, especially in Indian cricket,” Jennings said. “Unfortunately the pressure on India players is a lot more than others, especially fast bowlers like Zaheer. There’s not much we can do about it, we have given Virat Kohli [who joins the Bangalore team straight after the ODI series in England] some time off. The last thing I want to do is bring him to a net session to sharpen him up, since he has played so much. I need him to rest, get away from the cricket and come back fresh after 3-4 days. I am sure he will be ready for the game on Friday.”Bangalore are set to become the only side to feature in each of the first three editions of the Champions League, but they have no silverware to show for their efforts so far. Even in the IPL, they have made two finals and one semi-final without managing to go all the way. They will hope to change all that in this tournament. Bangalore begin their campaign with a match against Warriors on September 23.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Graeme Swann chose the final day at The Oval to turn in a match-winning performance•Getty Images

Graeme Swann’s six wickets led England’s charge to a famous whitewash on a dramatic final day at The Oval as India collapsed during the afternoon session, which included Sachin Tendulkar falling for 91. An increasingly agitated home side had been frustrated as Tendulkar and Amit Mishra added 144 for the fourth wicket, but once Swann made the breakthrough the rest of India’s resistance crumbled. The innings folded in 15 overs with England winning by an innings and eight runs.Swann’s success made it the complete series for England, where everyone played a key role in either setting up, positioning or securing a victory. This was a display of attacking offspin of the highest quality, although the wide smile he wore when he savoured his fifth wicket, as Gautam Gambhir sliced to backward point, and his sixth to complete victory, hadn’t been so evident during the earlier part of the day. All the frustration, though, vanished in a clatter of wickets.By batting through the morning without further loss, India had managed their first wicketless session of the series, increasing the prospects of a draw that would have salvaged a modicum of pride. However, that was being overshadowed by the progress of Tendulkar towards the century that would have completed his 100th international hundred – the landmark that has stalked him throughout the series. It continued to prove elusive.

Smart stats

• England won by a 4-0 or greater margin for only the seventh time in their Test history.

• For India, it’s their sixth series defeat by such a margin – their previous one was in Australia in 1991-92.

• It’s India’s 11th innings defeat against England, and the third time they’ve lost at least two Tests against them in a series by an innings.

• England averaged 59.76 runs per wicket, and lost 47 wickets in the series; India averaged 25.55, and lost 80.

• Graeme Swann’s 6 for 106 is his first five-for against India, and the 11th in his career. He also went past 150 Test wickets, and is fourth among England spinners, after Derek Underwood, Jim Laker and Tony Lock.

• Sachin Tendulkar’s 91 is his ninth score in the nineties in Tests, pushing him level with Michael Slater. Only Rahul Dravid and Steve Waugh, with ten, have more nineties.

Tim Bresnan, with his first ball of new spell, swung one back into Tendulkar, who was hit on the pad, and Rod Tucker raised his finger. Replays showed it was clipping leg stump. It hadn’t been a classic Tendulkar innings by any means, but the fact he’d had at least three lives raised the belief that it was to be his day.The previous evening, England had failed to appeal for a stumping when Tendulkar momentarily lifted his foot, and two further opportunities were missed on the final day. Alastair Cook dropped a relatively straightforward chance at short leg when Tendulkar had 70, and Matt Prior shelled a thick edge with him on 85. During a wonderful contest with Swann, there was also an lbw appeal from a missed sweep that, had there been the DRS and England had reviewed, would have been overturned. The look on Tendulkar’s face when he was finally given suggested he too would have reviewed given the chance, but it wouldn’t have mattered.To highlight that Tendulkar’s innings wasn’t fluent, it was Mishra who dominated the partnership and caused England, possibly, the greater headache. His second Test fifty had come from 103 balls, and he used his feet against Swann, while playing leg-side shots off the quicks that wouldn’t have looked out of place coming off Tendulkar’s bat.For all his failings with the ball, Mishra showed tremendous application with the bat that has been missing from some of his team-mates. For a while it appeared he may even beat his partner to three figures but Swann’s persistence paid off when a delivery scooted past the edge. Mishra’s presence, and the missed chances off Tendulkar, had certainly got England hot under the collar and Andrew Strauss was given an official warning for his players walking across the pitch.England’s on-field temper can still boil over, but it showed the hunger to win. The final two days of this match were of terrific value to them, even if the foot-sore bowlers might not agree, because Test victories shouldn’t come easily. To be made to work, as they were yesterday by Rahul Dravid and today by Tendulkar and Mishra, and to come through with victory, will stand them in good stead.England know how to sense an opening and continued to surge through line-up. Suresh Raina completed a horror match as he was given lbw to complete a pair, which used up 42 deliveries, although it was a poor decision from Simon Taufel. There was an inside edge before pad and the ball was also heading over the stumps.The new ball was taken straight away – Swann had said he preferred a harder ball on this surface as well – and the hosts’ Man-of-the-Series Stuart Broad, who was the pick of England’s quicks on the final day, made swift inroads. MS Dhoni flashed an edge to second slip and three balls later RP Singh edged behind. The only question now was whether India would at least make England bat again.Even that proved too much as Swann wrapped up the innings against batsmen who had decided to have a swing. Sreesanth was the last to fall, heaving an inside edge on to the stumps to send England into another round of celebrations. It was a familiar scene in this series, a run of performances that will go down in the game’s history as one of the most dominant displays. England have set a benchmark for this generation of Test cricket and now others need to follow suit.

Brad Haddin and Steve O’Keefe have joined a growing list of New South Wales and Australia players to sign with the Sydney Sixers in the Big Bash League. The SCG-based side has now locked in 13 players, seven of whom have played for Australia, and all but one of whom are current New South Wales players.”Brad is a quality player and someone who will play a big part in our squad as a senior player,” Stuart Clark, the general manager of the Sixers, said. “He brings a competitive edge and a winner’s outlook to our group of players, as well as dangerous hitting ability at the top of the order. I think he is a great fit for the Sixers.”Haddin’s signing came a day after the Sixers also secured the services of Shane Watson, but both men are likely to be busy with international commitments for much of the BBL campaign. However, Haddin said he was keen to be part of a successful Sixers outfit whenever Australia’s schedule allowed.”I have known Stuart a long time and I think that he has assembled a very talented squad,” Haddin said. “I look forward to being part of that group of players and helping to develop a winning culture. With the freshness of the competition and the high level of interest I think it will generate, I can’t wait to be part of what I think will be a strong team.”O’Keefe played for Kochi Tuskers Kerala during the Indian Premier League, and spent time learning from the Sri Lankan spin maestro Muttiah Muralitharan.”I think the BBL is a great concept and becoming part of the Sydney Sixers is a real honour,” O’Keefe said. “You only have to look at the list of names that have been recruited, to understand that the squad has a stack of quality, and great depth.”Playing cricket for the Sixers at the Sydney Cricket Ground, was a real drawcard, and I can’t wait to join a highly talented group of players. I think the squad has a great combination of youth and experience, and I look forward to getting together with the guys”.The Sixers are the only side not to have yet signed an overseas player, instead focusing on local talent. Watson said the lack of international stars available during December and January had made it difficult to find an overseas player, but the Sixers could still succeed with a heavily Sydney-based roster.”The hardest thing for getting imports is finding the right person who’s not playing international cricket around that period,” Watson said on on Tuesday. “It’s been a little bit of a headache for Stuart Clark and the team to get the right overseas players but in the end we’re lucky in Australia and at the Sydney Sixers to have the strength and quality of the Australian players we do have. We don’t necessarily need a big star overseas signing.”Of the 13 Sixers players so far confirmed, Watson, Haddin, O’Keefe, Steven Smith, Brett Lee, Mitchell Starc, Moises Henriques and Josh Hazlewood have all played for Australia. The only non-New South Wales man in their group is the opener Ed Cowan, who played for the Blues before moving to Tasmania two years ago.