New deal for McGrath

Yorkshire captain Anthony McGrath has signed a new three-year contract to stay at Headingley.

The 33-year-old is entering his benefit season with the White Rose county, almost 14 years after making his debut.

The Bradford-born right-hander played a leading role for Yorkshire last season, and finished as their top-scorer in Twenty20 action.

"I'm delighted to stay at the club for the next three years," McGrath said. "I have enjoyed a fantastic career here so far and I think the next three years will be an exciting time for the club and for me, especially in my new role as captain."

Stewart Regan, Yorkshire's chief executive, added: "It's great news that one of our most senior players and our captain has chosen to commit himself to the club for another three years.

"Under Anthony's leadership I'm confident that 2009 will be a successful year for the team and the Yorkshire County Cricket Club."

Mahela not worried about form

Sri Lanka's outgoing captain Mahela Jayawardene has said that he is not worried about his form with the bat.

Jayawardene, who will step down as Sri Lanna captain after the two-Test series against Pakistan, said he does not have the runs to show but he was hitting the ball well.

"Generally we tend to evaluate a batsman's form by the runs he scores. But to me I see how he is playing the ball and I have been comfortable in the last few months although the runs have not flowed from the bat," Jayawardene told a news conference.

"I just want to go out there tomorrow and try to execute my batting plans properly and get the runs that matter. But I would not say I am worried," he said.

Under pressure to come out of the prolonged bad patch, Jayawardene said he would be treating the series just like any other series.

Jayawardene has to come to terms to quitting captaincy

Besides, Jayawardene said he had come to terms with the fact that he would quit captaincy after this series.

"It is really not on my mind now that I am going to leave the captaincy after the series. The other players are now reconciled with my decision and we are ready for the match," he said.

He said he enjoyed leading his country and would love to go out on a winning note. "But I think the time for this talk about giving me a good farewell as captain is over. It is going to be a tough challenge out there and we need to perform as a team and get our basics right to do well," he said.

Jayawardene felt it really did not matter that Pakistan has not played a Test for the last 14 months.

"They are always a dangerous side and they have a new captain in Younis Khan who is a very seasoned player. So it is going to be a hard series and we are not underestimating them at all," he said.

Sri Lanka have not lost a Test series in Pakistan since 1995 but their last two Test defeats have both come at the National Stadium here.

Jayawardene said Sri Lanka had not decided about their team combination as yet but insisted they were not under any pressure because of the recent one-day series defeat at home to India .

"Look that is one-day cricket and our Test side is very different so this is a new ball game and we are looking ahead to a good match," he added.

Aus clinch a thriller

Australia earned a thrilling one-run win over New Zealand in the one-off Twenty20 international at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Sunday.

Set 151 for victory, New Zealand fell just short of their target when Nathan McCullum smashed a four and a six from the final two deliveries of the match.

Brendon McCullum (61) top-scored for the tourists, while Nathan Bracken finished with 1-16 from four overs.

David Hussey (41) was the pick of the Australia batsmen, with Daniel Vettori (1-23) outstanding for New Zealand.

The Black Caps had looked on course for victory with the destructive Brendon McCullum at the crease in the penultimate over.

The wicketkeeper put on 71 runs with Neil Broom in an enterprising third-wicket stand before his partner fell for 36 top-edging a James Hopes delivery to Callum Ferguson with the score at 73-3.

However, the complexion of the match changed courtesy a moment of inspiration from Adam Voges when McCullum launched a Ben Hilfenhaus length ball down the ground in the 19th over.

With the ball set to fly for six, long-on fielder Voges made the catch on the boundary, but his body's momentum took him over the rope.

However, just before he crossed the boundary, the Western Australian threw the ball back into play, regaining his composure before sprinting on to the field to complete a quite outstanding catch, a dismissal confirmed by the third umpire Rod Tucker.

Needing 14 from the final over, bowled by Bracken, New Zealand's hopes of victory looked to have ended when Grant Elliott (23) was run out off the first delivery.

The next three went for just two runs, leaving the tourists needing 12 runs to win from the final two balls.

Nathan McCullum promptly slapped them for a four and a six, leaving New Zealand agonisingly short of their winning target.

With Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke or Mike Hussey all absent, Australia stand-in captain Brad Haddin won the toss and elected to bat at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

The wicketkeeper made a flying start alongside David Warner at the top of the innings, racing to 34 inside four overs before he was caught and bowled by Tim Southee.

Warner and Ferguson fell soon after before Hussey steadied the innings with a composed 41 off 39 deliveries, ably assisted by Voges (23), Cameron White and James Hopes (both 16).

Aussies under pressure

Australia will be a touring team under pressure when they arrive in South Africa Monday, according to South African captain Graeme Smith.

Australia will play three Test matches, five one-day internationals and two Twenty20 internationals on their two-month tour.

South Africa will be favourites after winning both the Test and one-day series in Australia recently.

It is a position with which the host nation will be comfortable, Smith said in the South African Sunday Times, although he warned that he expected an Australian backlash.

"It's going to be an unusual place to be for a South African team," said Smith.

"It's a great feeling and a reward for all the sacrifices everyone has made. But we know that Australians are very competitive people and they don't like to be on the back foot. The only way we can keep them there is by playing better cricket again."

The side that Ricky Ponting will lead is one of the most inexperienced Australian touring parties in recent history and Smith said they would lack the confidence that previous sides had on the second leg of the back-to-back tours that have been the norm for South Africa-Australia contests.

"On previous tours they have come here with confidence having had the foot on us right through the summer there and they've just carried it on. Now, even their experienced guys will come here in a different frame of mind, while the younger players are coming here for the first time."

Smith said the Australians faced several selection issues while South Africa had already announced they would field the same starting eleven, with the addition of left-arm pace bowler Lonwabo Tsotsobe, that won the first two Tests in Australia before losing the third game.

"They're a touring team under pressure and it's never easy," he said. "If we can play well in the first Test maybe we can open up a few cracks."

One good omen for the Australians is that they will travel to the small university town of Potchefstroom, an hour's drive west of Johannesburg, immediately after their arrival.

With good training facilities and no big-city distractions, Potchefstroom was chosen by Australia as their pre-tournament base before the 2003 World Cup in South Africa. They went on to lift the title without losing a match.

After three days of training, the Australians will open the tour with a three-day match against South Africa A in Potchefstroom