Melbourne, Feb 14 : A rainstorm saved Australia from major humiliation when the match was abandoned with the Kiwis in sight of victory, but skipper Ricky Ponting was left red-faced in a dramatic series finale at the Gabba.

Australia was saved from the final insult of a woeful summer, allowing Ponting's side to retain the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy with the series finishing at 2-2.

Melbourne, Feb 14: Queensland all-rounder Andrew Symonds' playing future is again under a cloud, as a knee problem forced him from the field on the first day of the Sheffield Shield match against South Australia at Adelaide Oval.

Symonds took the wicket of Michael Klinger for figures of 1-3 in two overs before lunch, but appeared uneasy and did not re-emerge from the dressing room after the interval, the Daily Telegraph reported.

London, Feb. 13 : Former England cricket captain Michael Vaughan has told the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) that they must not send him an SOS from the Caribbean.

He told SunSport: "I don't believe in SOS calls. If there are injuries, they have to select someone and if that is me, then great.

"But I'm a firm believer that you pick a squad for a tour, and then you stick by those men to get the job done. I know the characters in the dressing room and I know they'll be hurting badly from what happened last weekend. The one thing that is good for England is there is a quick turnaround. We start another Test now and know we can instantly put it right," he added.

Chennai, Feb. 13 : Mumbai fast bowler Dhawal Kulkarni, who topped the wicket-taking list in the Ranji Trophy season just gone by, is the new face in the Indian Test team selected for the tour of New Zealand.

Tamil Nadu Wicketkeeper batsman Dinesh Karthik and fast bowler Lakshmipathy Balaji have been recalled to the squad. Tamil Nadu opener M Vijay has also been included by the five-man slection committee chaired by former opener Krishnamachari Srikanth.

Islamabad, Feb. 13: Sacked Director General of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Javed Miandad has refuted reports of him having differences with Board Chairman Ijaz Butt, saying he wanted to serve Pakistan cricket and help regain its lost glory.

Miandad also denied that there was a financial issue behind his removal from the post, saying he is ready to serve to uplift the standard of the game in the country, free of cost.

Karachi, Feb. 13: Retaliating against Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Chairman Ijaz Butt's criticism of the Senate Standing Committee on Sports, the body has now filed a privilege motion against him.

Committee members charged Butt with violating the privilege of the Senate.

"The PCB chairman has passed negative remarks against the sports committee that is tantamount to the breach of privilege of the Senate," The News quoted a member of the committee, Haroon Khan, as saying.