LONDON, MAY 8: Shane Warne said there should not have been four years of secrecy over fines imposed on himself and Mark Waugh for accepting money from an illegal Indian bookmaker.Warne and Waugh were fined by the Australian Cricket Board (ACB) in 1994 for providing information about pitch and weather conditions during a tour of Sri Lanka and Pakistan but the episode was not made public until last December.Leg-spinner Warne, who is in England with the Australian squad for the World Cup starting next Friday, talked about his regrets over the scandal in The Times newspaper.Warne said it all started when Mark Waugh introduced him to a man called John who told them he bet on cricket.``The next day he thanked me for taking the time to meet him and handed me an envelope which he said was a token of appreciation,'' Warne wrote in The Times.``He said: `Look, there are no strings attached, I don't want anything in return'.'' The envelope contained $ 5,000.``It was only later that hetelephoned to ask for what I still think is pretty harmless information about weather and pitch conditions.''`Mahanama top class'LONDON: Who is the best fielder in world cricket? Ricky Ponting with accurate throws? Jonty Rhodes with fleet-footed reflexes? Or Mark Waugh with his soft hands and effortless catches?The odd man out is Sri Lanka's 33-year-old Roshan Mahanama.The veteran middle-order batsman is fighting for a batting spot but, as the island's livewire fielder, has been picked purely for his fielding.The Sri Lankan fielding that set a benchmark during its 1996 World Cup success has begun to wane and the selectors were forced to recall Mahanama, who was not in the initial shortlist of 19.``People talk about the Rhodes, the Pontings and the Waughs. If only we had the television exposure as those countries, people would know who Mahanama is,'' skipper Ranatunga says of the right-hander.``I think he is easily the best allround fielder. Let it be in the slips, close catches orin the outfield, he is brilliant,'' Ranatunga said.`Dukes swings less'HYDERABAD: Indian batting legend Sunil Gavaskar has said the Dukes ball to be used in the World Cup would make a big impact in the tournament.The little master, who is giving his views and analysis in the World Cup News, being telecast daily by ESPN and Star sports networks said in Saturday's programme that the Dukes ball does not swing as much as Kookaburra ball in the initial overs. The Dukes ball would, however, ``reverse swing a lot'' in the later overs. The Dukes ball also does not bounce as much as Kookaburra ball.
