Waugh to play central character in movie

After making a huge success of a career in cricket, Steve Waugh is all set to try his hand at acting. According to Robert Joske, his manager, Waugh will star in an English movie which will be shot in India. Joske made the announcement in Kolkata, during Waugh's visit to Udayan, a home for the children of leprosy patients.

Joske said that the script, written by an Australian writer, was almost ready. "Waugh will be the central character in the movie to be shot in India. Most probably he will play himself. It will be a feel-good movie involving the children of Udayan. Waugh is looking at an Indian film-maker to direct the film and an Indian producer to finance it." Joske didn't reveal the location where the film would be shot.

This news is likely to increase speculation about an impending end to Waugh's cricketing career, but the man himself gave no such indication, stating that he was still excited by the prospect of playing a Test series, even against Bangladesh. "Whenever we play a new country, it's always an exciting challenge. It's a great experience to play a new team."

Waugh dismissed the notion that motivating himself would be a problem. "Playing for Australia is enough motivation," he said. "There should not be any need for motivation when you are playing for your country. I would love to play for Australia as long as I can."

Waugh, who has been associated with Udayan for more three years, admitted that there were activites other than cricket which kept him busy. "If I think I can't improve then there are other things to do, like being in Udayan," he said. "Cricket is not the only thing for me. I'm playing only a small role in helping children at Udayan."

Meanwhile, Bangladesh took a day off from cricket, visiting a Gold Coast theme park on Wednesday, a day before the start of a three-day match against the Commonwealth Bank Cricket Academy (CBCA). The opposition will be even more challenging than the Queensland Academy of Sport, against whom Bangladesh lost by 29 runs in the tour opener. The CBCA line-up has four players with first-class experience: Scott Meuleman, Luke Ronchi and Peter Worthington have all played for Western Australia, while Mark Cleary has represented South Australia.

Dav Whatmore, the Bangladesh coach, announced that he was looking for allround improvement. "We're looking to improve in every department and get accustomed to the conditions as best as we can and just to play some good percentage stuff."

Bangladesh will play two Tests and three one-day internationals on their month-long tour. The first Test starts on July 18 at Darwin.