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New South Wales v Western Australia 205/5 *

2011-03-02T03:53:00.000-08:00

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PIA win to earn spot in final

2011-01-09T09:06:00.000-08:00

The IPL auction

ESPNcricinfo's blow-by-blow coverage of the IPL auction in Bangalore on January 8 and 9, 2011

The budgets of the IPL franchises for the auction

How much money the IPL franchises have during the auction

What they bought, and what they still need

A look at how the franchises approached the first day of the IPL auction, and the gaps they would need to fill on the second day

Tendulkar and Steyn sizzle in a battle for the ages

To appreciate Sachin Tendulkar's effort today - his fourth century off his first innings in each of the last four years - it is important to appreciate the most exciting bowler in world cricket at his best

Defensive India pay the price

Both teams have been guilty of taking a backward step in what has otherwise been an enthralling series, but India's tactics on the fourth day could prove decisive in the outcome

View the original article here

IPL player list

2011-01-09T08:54:00.000-08:00

The IPL auction

ESPNcricinfo's blow-by-blow coverage of the IPL auction in Bangalore on January 8 and 9, 2011

The budgets of the IPL franchises for the auction

How much money the IPL franchises have during the auction

What they bought, and what they still need

A look at how the franchises approached the first day of the IPL auction, and the gaps they would need to fill on the second day

Tendulkar and Steyn sizzle in a battle for the ages

Defensive India pay the price

Both teams have been guilty of taking a backward step in what has otherwise been an enthralling series, but India's tactics on the fourth day could prove decisive in the outcome

View the original article here

Vettori laments 'familiar' batting collapse

2011-01-09T08:37:00.000-08:00

The IPL auction

ESPNcricinfo's blow-by-blow coverage of the IPL auction in Bangalore on January 8 and 9, 2011

The budgets of the IPL franchises for the auction

How much money the IPL franchises have during the auction

What they bought, and what they still need

A look at how the franchises approached the first day of the IPL auction, and the gaps they would need to fill on the second day

Tendulkar and Steyn sizzle in a battle for the ages

Defensive India pay the price

Both teams have been guilty of taking a backward step in what has otherwise been an enthralling series, but India's tactics on the fourth day could prove decisive in the outcome

View the original article here

ten Doeschate first Dutchman in IPL

2011-01-09T08:31:00.000-08:00

List of players involved in the IPL auction held in Bangalore on January 8 and 9, 2011. The list of players bought is in descending order of their final bid price. Players sold on Sunday are in bold

Gautam Gambhir sold to Kolkata Knight Riders for a record $2.4 million.

Yusuf Pathan to Kolkata Knight Riders for $2.1 million.

Robin Uthappa to Pune for $2.1 million

Rohit Sharma to Mumbai Indians for $2 million.

Irfan Pathan to Delhi Daredevils for $1.9 million.

Yuvraj Singh to Pune for $1.8 million.

Saurabh Tiwary to Royal Challengers Bangalore for $1.6 million.

Mahela Jayawardene to Kochi for $1.5 million.

David Hussey to Kings XI Punjab for $1.4 million

Dale Steyn goes to Deccan Chargers for $1.2 million

Muttiah Muralitharan to Kochi for $1.1 million.

AB de Villiers to Royal Challengers Bangalore for $1.1 million.

Cameron White to Deccan Chargers for $1.1 million.

Jacques Kallis to Kolkata Knight Riders for $1.1 million.

Ross Taylor to Rajasthan Royals for $1 million.

Angelo Mathews to Pune for $950,000

Ravindra Jadeja to Kochi for $950,000

Johan Botha to Rajasthan Royals for $950,000.

Dan Christian to Deccan Chargers for $900,000

Dinesh Karthik to Kings XI Punjab for $900,000

Piyush Chawla to Kings XI Punjab for $900,000.

Sreesanth to Kochi for $900,000

Adam Gilchrist to Kings XI Punjab for $900,000.

Zaheer Khan to Royal Challengers Bangalore for $900,000.

R Ashwin to Chennai Super Kings for $850,000

Ashish Nehra to Pune for $850,000

Andrew Symonds to Mumbai Indians for $850,000

S Badrinath to Chennai Super Kings for $800,000.

Praveen Kumar to Kings XI Punjab for $800,000.

Abhishek Nayar to Kings XI Punjab for $800,000

Umesh Yadav to Delhi Daredevils for $750,000

David Warner to Delhi for $750,000

Munaf Patel to Mumbai Indians for $700,000
Venugopal Rao to Delhi Daredevils for $700,000

Cheteswar Pujara to Royal Challengers Bangalore for $700,000.

Doug Bollinger to Chennai Super Kings for $700,000

Kumar Sangakkara to Deccan Chargers for $700,000.

Dirk Nannes to Royal Challengers Bangalore for $650,000.

Tillakaratne Dilshan to Royal Challengers Bangalore for $650,000.

Kevin Pietersen to Deccan Chargers for $650,000.

Daniel Vettori to Royal Challengers Bangalore for $550,000

Lakshmipathy Balaji to Kolkata Knight Riders for $500,000

Pragyan Ojha to Deccan Chargers for $500,000

Rahul Dravid to Rajasthan Royals for $500,000.

Graeme Smith to Pune for $500,000.

RP Singh to Kochi for $500,000.

R Vinaykumar to Kochi for $475,000

Manoj Tiwary to Kolkata Knight Riders for $475,000.

Morne Morkel to Delhi Daredevils for $475,000

Brendon McCullum to Kochi for $475,000.

Ishant Sharma to Deccan Chargers for $450,000.

Brad Hodge to Kochi for $425,000.

Shakib al Hasan to Kolkata Knight Riders for $425,000

Michael Hussey to Chennai for $425,000.

Brett Lee to Kolkata Knight Riders for $400,000

Stuart Broad to Kings XI Punjab for $400,000

VVS Laxman to Kochi for $400,000.

Ashok Dinda to Delhi Daredevils for $375,000

Eoin Morgan to Kolkata Knight Riders for $350,000.

James Hopes to Delhi Daredevils for $350,000.

Ryan Harris to Kings XI Punjab for $325,000.

Brad Haddin goes to Kolkata Knight Riders for $325,000.

Shaun Tait to Rajasthan Royals for $300,000

Callum Ferguson to Pune for $300,000.

Aaron Finch to Delhi Daredevils for $300,000

Amit Mishra to Deccan Chargers for $300,000

Shikhar Dhawan to Deccan Chargers for $300,000.

JP Duminy to Deccan Chargers for $300,000

Mitchell Marsh to Pune for $290,000
Manpreet Gony to Deccan Chargers for $290,000

Parthiv Patel to Kochi for $290,000

Naman Ojha to Delhi Daredevils for $270,000

Tim Paine to Pune for $270,000

Abhimanyu Mithun to Royal Challengers Bangalore for $260,000
Jaidev Unadkat to Kolkata Knight Riders for $250,000

Paul Collingwood to Rajasthan Royals for $250,000.

Sudeep Tyagi to Chennai Super Kings for $240,000
Ajit Agarkar to Delhi Daredvils for $210,000
Owais Shah to Kochi for $200,000
Scott Styris to Chennai Super Kings for $200,000

Steven Smith to Kochi for $200,000

Dwayne Bravo to Chennai Super Kings at $200,000

Davy Jacobs to Mumbai Indians for $190,000

Ramesh Powar to Kochi for $180,000

Wayne Parnell to Pune for $160,000
Ryan ten Doeschate to Kolkata Knight Riders for $150,000
Joginder Sharma to Chennai Super Kings for $150,000
Charl Langeveldt to Royal Challengers Bangalore for $140,000

Clint McKay to Mumbai Indians for $110,000

Jerome Taylor to Pune for $100,000
Nuwan Kulasekara to Chennai Super Kings for $100,000
Matthew Wade to Delhi Daredevils for $100,000
Ben Hilfenhaus to Chennai Super Kings for $100,000

Nathan McCullum to Pune for $100,000

James Franklin to Mumbai Indians for $100,000

Wriddhiman Saha to Chennai Super Kings for $100,000

Pankaj Singh to Rajasthan Royals for $95,000
Suraj Randiv to Chennai Super Kings for $80,000
Andrew McDonald to Delhi Daredevils for $80,000
Thisara Perera to Kochi for $80,000
Michael Klinger to Kochi for $75,000
Johan van der Wath to Royal Challengers Bangalore for $50,000
Roelof van der Merwe to Delhi Daredevils for $50,000
Luke Pomersbach to Royal Challengers Bangalore for $50,000
Steven O'Keefe to Kochi for $20,000

Unsold on Sunday: Shane Harwood, Ravi Rampaul, Fidel Edwards, Andy McKay, VRV Singh, Andre Nel, Ian Butler, Chris Tremlett, Ryan Sidebottom, Lonwabo Tsotsobe, Makhaya Ntini, Chanaka Welegedara, Graham Napier, Kaushalya Weeraratne, Jeevantha Kulatunga, John Hastings, Prosper Utseya, Jeevan Mendis, Aaron Redmond, Darren Sammy, Lou Vincent, Neil McKenzie, Jehan Mubarak, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Martin Guptill, Simon Katich, Jonathon Trott, Bryce McGain, Jacques Rudolph, Jason Krejza, Aaron Heal, Ray Price, Abdur Razzak, Suhrawardi Shuvo, Xavier Doherty, Tim Southee, Chaminda Vaas, Thilan Thushara, Kemar Roach, Rusty Theron, Peter Siddle, Grant Elliot, Moises Henriques, Elton Chigumbura, Dillon du Preez, Samit Patel, Justin Ontong, Zander de Bruyn, Vernon Philander, Wasim Jaffer, Upul Tharanga, Darren Bravo, Adam Voges, Michael Lumb, Colin Ingram, Mohammad Kaif, Ian Bell, Chamara Silva, Nikita Miller, Malinga Bandara, Kaushal Lokuarachchi, Sulieman Benn, Robin Peterson, MS Panesar, Rangana Herath, Paul Harris, Kyle Mills, Farveez Maharoof, Ryan McLaren, Jacob Oram, Dwayne Smith, Justin Kemp, Dimitri Mascarenhas, Ravi Bopara, Michael Yardy, Sanath Jayasuriya, Tim Bresnan, Indika de Saram, Denesh Ramdin, Tatenda Taibu, Chris Hartley, Gareth Hopkins, Brendan Taylor, Dinesh Chandimal, Niall O'Brien, Luke Ronchi

Unsold on Saturday: Tamim Iqbal, Chamara Kapugedera, Murali Kartik, Ajantha Mendis, Graeme Swann, James Anderson, Dilhara Fernando, Luke Wright, Matt Prior, Mark Boucher, Graeme Manou, Brian Lara, Herschelle Gibbs, Jesse Ryder, Sourav Ganguly and Chris Gayle.

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Klinger leads South Australia to big win

2011-01-09T08:20:00.000-08:00

The IPL auction

ESPNcricinfo's blow-by-blow coverage of the IPL auction in Bangalore on January 8 and 9, 2011

The budgets of the IPL franchises for the auction

How much money the IPL franchises have during the auction

What they bought, and what they still need

A look at how the franchises approached the first day of the IPL auction, and the gaps they would need to fill on the second day

Tendulkar and Steyn sizzle in a battle for the ages

Defensive India pay the price

Both teams have been guilty of taking a backward step in what has otherwise been an enthralling series, but India's tactics on the fourth day could prove decisive in the outcome

View the original article here

'Hard decision to omit Jayasuriya, Vaas' - De Silva

2011-01-09T08:07:00.000-08:00

The IPL auction

ESPNcricinfo's blow-by-blow coverage of the IPL auction in Bangalore on January 8 and 9, 2011

The budgets of the IPL franchises for the auction

How much money the IPL franchises have during the auction

What they bought, and what they still need

A look at how the franchises approached the first day of the IPL auction, and the gaps they would need to fill on the second day

Tendulkar and Steyn sizzle in a battle for the ages

Defensive India pay the price

Both teams have been guilty of taking a backward step in what has otherwise been an enthralling series, but India's tactics on the fourth day could prove decisive in the outcome

View the original article here

Teams spend big to overhaul their rosters

2011-01-09T07:52:00.000-08:00

Shaking off months of controversy, litigation and uncertainty, cricket's biggest, richest and most brassy domestic event, the Indian Premier League, sprang into life again, breaking records and banks on the first day of auction weekend in Bangalore.

From the 88 players auctioned today, 15 new millionaires were created by the ten IPL franchises who will compete in season four, but there was another sorry bunch of 16 players who were left 'unsold' when the auction finally ended at 6 pm.

Minutes after his name was the first to be randomly pulled out from a list of 'marquee players' at 11 am on Saturday morning, Gautam Gambhir earned the highest playing contract in cricket, $2.4 million for two years with the Kolkata Knight Riders. With the top seven of the 15 new 'millionaires' being Indian, the day was marked by big spends for the small 48-strong pool of home-grown talent available to the ten teams, who must now compete to create new squads from scratch. Just over a month ago, the number of teams in the auction had been unclear, with Kochi trying to establish an undisputed ownership pattern and Rajasthan Royals and Kings XI Punjab fighting the BCCI against their sudden expulsion from the lucrative league.

In Bangalore on Saturday though, with differences quelled for the moment, the auction diverted the IPL spotlight away from legal disputes towards the Bollywood and big business-driven spectacle it was meant to be. There were 72 players (30 Indians, 42 foreign players) sold on the first day of the auction for $52.8m. If Gambhir was the highest-earning Indian ever in the league (going for more than Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni and Virender Sehwag's 'retention' salaries), Sri Lankan Mahela Jayawardene became the highest-earning overseas player, signed on for $1.5m by Kochi, the only team left to declare its formal, merchandise-friendly IPL name. They have until April 8 to decide, the IPL beginning just a week after the end of the World Cup.

If there was a single trend through the giant auction player pool, it was this: younger, high-impact men, whether with bat or ball, and genuine multi-tasking allrounders went for the highest price, even if it was the sole big spend a team could make. The player's marketability was an additional bonus. It is what explains the $1.9m for Irfan Pathan, who has spent a good portion of the domestic season injured and now finds himself out of India's World Cup probables as well.

The short supply of Indians in categories of all kind meant that a younger bunch of Indians suddenly found themselves receiving wages far higher than their more experienced colleagues. The Pune Warriors' $2.1m spend on Robin Uthappa (only the third $2m man), for example, was well ahead of their $1.8m on Yuvraj Singh, who may well eventually be named Pune captain.

South Africa's Twenty20 captain Johan Botha went for almost double the price of his Test and ODI captain Graeme Smith to Rajasthan Royals, the team Smith had played for in the first three years. Along with the franchise owners and coaches present in the auction room, the team's captain-coach Shane Warne spent the day in consultations over the telephone with the franchise.

There were several approaches at work today: Kolkata made their intentions clear early on, first winning allrounder Yusuf Pathan at the second-highest bid for the day, $2.1m. By lunchtime, they had spent another $1.1m on South African allrounder Jacques Kallis. As the only team to have three millionaires on their payroll, Kolkata were willing to gamble early on spending more than half of the $9m salary cap on three players.

Most of the other teams also tried to overhaul their personnel in an attempt to avoid the mistakes of the previous three seasons. Going against that grain, though, Chennai Super Kings, the current IPL Champions as well as the Champions League Twenty20 winners, retained as many as eight players from their successful campaigns. Four of those were retained before the auction which cut their salary cap by half and today, despite being the most infrequent bidder, Chennai managed to both sign on key members of their old squad and stick to their restricted budget.

A Chennai official said the team's approach was not surprising given that it had been asking the BCCI to allow it to retain players for the last year. "We had the strategy to retain as many players as possible. They players definitely wanted to stay back with us and it helps maintain the winning the form. Our aim has been that our team should gel well and hence we have always felt we shouldn't change it. You can't get a player only for two months and then discard them."

He said the men behind keeping the unit intact were the-captain-and-coach pair of MS Dhoni and Stephen Fleming: "The coach and the captain believe in this same ethos and they are the ones who have established this trend."

The IPL, which has broad-based and transformed cricket's entire economy, once again produced unexpected, unorthodox and some illogical changes as well.

The returns from the IPL auction for the England players continue to remain uneven: three players from their World Twenty20-winning team, Graeme Swann, James Anderson and Luke Wright were unsold (along with wicketkeeper Matt Prior, while Kevin Pietersen, Stuart Broad, Eoin Morgan and Paul Collingwood were bought for a total of $1.65m). The Ashes may well be a sign of doom for the Australian cricket establishment but at the IPL, they remain the most sought after overseas hirings, with 18 Australians being signed on today.

The three West Indian cricketers who have turned down central contracts with their board have been dealt with differently: Kieron Pollard had been retained by Mumbai Indians, Dwayne Bravo was bought cheap at $200,000 by Chennai, but the most experienced of the three, left-hand opener Chris Gayle found himself without a contract of any kind.

On a day when franchises signed up as many as 42 overseas players, Sri Lanka's Ajantha Mendis found himself unsought after as did Bangladesh's attacking opener, Tamim Iqbal, and New Zealand's Jesse Ryder, who by all logic, is New Zealand's leading impact man after Brendon McCullum.

In the symbolic statement of representing both the shorter, sharper, faster and more demanding format of Twenty20 and therefore the 'Gen Next' cricketer, older men like the retired Brian Lara and the semi-retired Sourav Ganguly have been left on the shelf. Similarly, Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman, mainstays of the Indian Test middle order, also struggled to get a bid any distance over their 'base price'. Dravid finds himself in the cash-strapped Rajasthan Royals franchise on a $500,000 salary while Laxman went at his price of $400,000 to the first and only bidder Kochi. Three years ago, this would have been a handsome wage, but in the time of the $2.4m contract and in the IPL's unreal pay scales, these are lean pickings.

The presence of Harbhajan Singh and Andrew Symonds in the same Mumbai Indians dressing room will serve as a handy marketing pitch for the tightly-controlled high rollers of the IPL. For all the advertising about the rationale and practicality of franchise purchase, several auction equations remained unbalanced: the $1.6m spend on Saurabh Tiwary did not exactly go hand in hand with the absence in the auction of some highly rated IPL names - Manish Pandey, Sidharth Trivedi, Ambati Rayudu. Piyush Chawla's $900,000 compared to IPL 3's top wicket-taker Pragyan Ojha's $500,000 could not be explained but then again neither could the general silence around Murali Kartik, whose economy-rate for the struggling Kolkata last season was better than both younger men.

One the men who has benefitted the most in the auction would be allrounder Ravindra Jadeja who was left out of the Rajashthan team last season for entering into discussions about a transfer to the Mumbai team. Jadeja came to within $50,000 of being IPL 4's Mr Millionaire No. 16.

At the auction tomorrow, there will be 71 more players up for sale, with the number of Indians now down to 18.

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Hall helps Mashonaland grab draw

2011-01-09T07:32:00.000-08:00

The IPL auction

ESPNcricinfo's blow-by-blow coverage of the IPL auction in Bangalore on January 8 and 9, 2011

The budgets of the IPL franchises for the auction

How much money the IPL franchises have during the auction

What they bought, and what they still need

A look at how the franchises approached the first day of the IPL auction, and the gaps they would need to fill on the second day

Tendulkar and Steyn sizzle in a battle for the ages

Defensive India pay the price

Both teams have been guilty of taking a backward step in what has otherwise been an enthralling series, but India's tactics on the fourth day could prove decisive in the outcome

View the original article here

Taufeeq lauds Misbah and Shafiq

2011-01-09T07:25:00.000-08:00

Pakistan opener Taufeeq Umar heaped praise on Misbah-ul-Haq and Asad Shafiq who took Pakistan to a commanding 235 for 4 with an unbeaten 128-run stand. Pakistan were wobbling after having bowled New Zealand out for 275 in their first innings earlier, but Misbah and Shafiq ensured the visitors were in front at stumps on day two at Seddon Park, as they played out the initial tough period before the runs started flowing towards the end.

"Misbah and Asad played brilliantly, and because of that we are in the driving seat right now," Taufeeq said. "I think as a senior player, Misbah helped Asad along in the innings, and they really showed us how to bat on this wicket.

"The first target is 275, and then we can see from there. If Misbah and Asad continue to play well, we are looking at a lead of about 100."

Taufeeq believed the Pakistan bowlers should be given credit for keeping New Zealand down to 275 on a pitch he describes as "a paradise wicket for batsmen." Pakistan immediately ended the eighth-wicket partnership between Kane Williamson and Tim Southee which had frustrated them the previous evening, getting the breakthrough in the first over of the day when Southee was dismissed for 56.

"Last night Southee played well, but we came in with a plan this morning to bounce Southee out and to give [Williamson] the single, so we bowled really well." Both Willamson and Brent Arnel also fell to short deliveries soon after, as Pakistan wrapped up the innings with a barrage of hostile bouncers.

Taufeeq, who scored his first half-century since 2003 after an aggressive counterattack in the morning session said he never gave up hope on playing for Pakistan after a four year hiatus and a stint in the ICL. "I never thought my [career was over]. I had to come back, I always thought like that. I was training hard, and I stayed positive and I told myself I had to play for Pakistan again, which helped me a lot. "

New Zealand fast bowler Arnel was confident his side could regain control of the match by making early breakthroughs on day three to put Pakistan under pressure. Arnel was the best of the New Zealand bowlers on a tough day for them, picking up the wickets of Taufeeq and Younis Khan in the second session. "We're in a position now with the new ball coming up first thing in the morning," Arnel said. "If we can get a couple of early ones like they did this morning, we can get right into their tail. If we can set up the game that they might only be 20 or 30 ahead, then it's game on for us to bat big."

Arnel also said he enjoyed bowling in tandem with Northern Districts team-mate, Tim Southee as the pair tied Pakistan down after lunch. "If you check our history, we bowl together quite well. It was quite a good period for us and we got the reward. We were great in patches and showed signs of penetrating them quite well. If we can break the partnership as soon as possible tomorrow, one becomes two and hopefully becomes three and maybe we can knock off the tail."

Arnel defended the New Zealand attack who seemed to stray towards the pads, claiming it was part of their plan to bowl straighter, despite the ease with which the Pakistan batsmen played the ball off their legs, especially in the evening session.

"There were some plans in place with the ball tailing a wee bit, and we were trying to get them to work the straight ones and perhaps get an lbw. But sometimes your plans can backfire and it looks like you've bowled a bad ball. There were a few that were too straight."

There was also concern for Daniel Vettori, who battled illness throughout the day to deliver 22 miserly overs for 29 runs. Vettori had undergone blood tests in the morning to check for various illnesses, but remained on the field for all but 15 minutes of the Pakistan innings. Dave Currie, the New Zealand manager, was unable to confirm the exact nature of Vettori's malaise, stating that he had "a bit of a fever and was a little listless out in the field. Clearly he's not a million dollars, he's well enough, but we aren't sure what the problem is. He's had the blood tests and we'll have the results in a couple of days."

"He's a very tough guy," Arnel said. "Maybe a lot of other guys would be in their hotel room sleeping it off. He's a courageous leader and to be out there and bowling like that, it's magnificent."

View the original article here

Butt undergoes 'tough' cross-examination

2011-01-09T07:12:00.000-08:00

The IPL auction

ESPNcricinfo's blow-by-blow coverage of the IPL auction in Bangalore on January 8 and 9, 2011

The budgets of the IPL franchises for the auction

How much money the IPL franchises have during the auction

What they bought, and what they still need

A look at how the franchises approached the first day of the IPL auction, and the gaps they would need to fill on the second day

Tendulkar and Steyn sizzle in a battle for the ages

Defensive India pay the price

Both teams have been guilty of taking a backward step in what has otherwise been an enthralling series, but India's tactics on the fourth day could prove decisive in the outcome

View the original article here

England target No. 1 ranking

2011-01-09T06:57:00.000-08:00

England's coach, Andy Flower, has praised the ruthlessness of his Ashes-winning cricketers, but warned that their 3-1 series win must not be seen as an end in itself, as the squad prepares to embark on a tough ODI campaign against Australia that will test their readiness for the World Cup in the subcontinent later this year.

Speaking on the morning after England's innings-and-83-run victory in Sydney, Flower said that, while the successful defence of the Ashes in Australia was a special achievement, it would be disrespectful to the challenge posed by other countries to single it out as a crowning glory.

"Our celebrations were good, and well deserved by the players," said Flower. "We had a good time and I think the guys are reflecting on a job well done and a job that they are very proud of. But our ultimate goal is to be No. 1 in the world, and in no way would I demean the Ashes series in saying that. Any series against any international nation is important in its own right, and any Test win is a very proud moment for me and our players. I think it would be disrespectful to view it any differently."

England's itinerary has left them little time to sit on their laurels. Much as was the case in 2009, when the team departed for Belfast shortly after wrapping up victory at The Oval, the squad set off for Canberra on Saturday to prepare for the two Twenty20 internationals that precede the seven-match ODI series. "There's not much rest time," said Flower. "The guys won't be able to bask long in the sunshine. They have to get their training boots on, and get back to work soon."

One man who will not be joining them on that trip, however, is Alastair Cook. England's Test vice-captain is not a member of the one-day set-up, and so he is set to fly back to England on Saturday evening, to reflect on his phenomenal achievement in racking up 766 runs in the five Tests, a tally that has only ever been exceeded by one Englishman in Australia - Wally Hammond, who made 905 runs in 1928-29.

"Cook had a particularly outstanding series," said Flower. "He's a very strong young man, he's displayed that strength in a number of ways through his career, and he's overcome most challenges that have been put in front of him, which is testament to that strength of character. Our players are picked to play international cricket because we believe they are good enough, and crucially they believe they are good enough."

Cook's turnaround in form has been stunning, after he struggled to 100 runs in the first four Tests of the English season before saving his short-term place in the side with a gutsy second-innings century against Pakistan at The Oval.

"Considering that people were calling for his head not so long ago, it is an outstanding riposte," said Flower. "Although that's not why he did it. It was because of the pride he has in his own performance and because he is very proud to play for England. I am very happy for him personally, and we're all thankful that he made those contributions to the team for us."

The team ethic was the defining feature of England's Test campaign, and of their rise and rise in the past 12 months, in which they have not lost a single series or tournament in any form of the game for 15 series and counting. The knock-on effect of such confidence is that the less-experienced members of the team, such as Tim Bresnan and Chris Tremlett, have been able to slot into the set-up without missing a beat.

"Bresnan and Tremlett stepped into the breach very skillfully I thought, and held themselves well under pressure," said Flower. "It's not easy to do when you don't play a lot of cricket at the start of the series, and you're asked to take over because of injury or form, but they did it very well. It's down to a combination of things. It's a testament to their character and the way they handle pressure, but also a testament to the unity in the side, and the fact that they felt comfortable coming in and didn't feel like outsiders."

The fact that England have forged a squad of international-standard players, rather than just a first eleven as was the case in 2005, augurs well for the challenges that lie ahead, with Flower hinting that changes of position and personnel may come into play when the team reaches the subcontinent in February for the World Cup. But all the while, that aim of No. 1 remains the ultimate focus.

"It's realistic, it's achievable," said Flower. "I don't know if we'll get there or not, but it's certainly what we are aiming for. This result will give the players a lot of confidence, and some of the results they are achieving are building that confidence all the time. Winning the Twenty20 World Cup, playing well in South Africa, and winning two of the last Ashes series are all things that will build the confidence of the side."

Andrew Miller is UK editor of Cricinfo.

Feeds: Andrew Miller © ESPN EMEA Ltd.

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Shafiq, Misbah give Pakistan control

2011-01-09T06:48:00.000-08:00

Pakistan 235 for 4 (Shafiq 74*, Misbah 50*) trail New Zealand 275 (Southee 56, Williamson 50, Ahmed 4-63) by 40 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details

Pakistan retained the advantage in the Hamilton Test with their batsmen edging out a testing battle against the New Zealand bowlers on a placid surface more deserving of a one-sided contest. Middle-order batsmen Asad Shafiq and Misbah-ul-Haq batted patiently to rebuild Pakistan's reply to 275, which had lost track in the session before tea against a determined spell from the seamers. The pair provided stability to the innings and set the platform for a lead with an unbeaten 128-run stand that has eased the burden on the inexperienced line-up to follow.

The bowling was unthreatening, the conditions even more so with the virtual absence of swing and movement. Such a situation lent itself to a waiting game, one that New Zealand appeared to have an upper hand in after Taufeeq Umar and Younis Khan brought about their own downfall post lunch. Misbah and Shafiq played their own waiting game, assured that the pitch would have little role to play in their dismissals and aware that a bad ball wasn't too far away with New Zealand rotating their bowlers. Both were opportunistic, Shafiq more so than Misbah, helping offset any extended period of quiet with the occasional boundary and taking their team closer to the first-innings target.

Shafiq found the boundaries with ease on a quick outfield, clipping and driving the seamers through midwicket and fine leg and using his feet well against spin. He charged out to Daniel Vettori to loft him over mid-on, rocked on the back foot to punch Kane Williamson through the covers and stepped out to part-timer Martin Guptill to smote him over midwicket. Too often did the seamers bowl on his pads - his fifty was brought up with a tickle to fine leg - but he also scored through off, driving through point and cover.

Misbah's intention was to occupy the crease and he did that well with his solidity in defence and not feeling compelled to force the pace with a fluent partner at the other end. He's been Pakistan's in-form batsman in Tests with three half-centuries in four innings against South Africa, and a century in the warm-up match prior to this. His first major expansive shot, quite inexplicably, came towards the end of the day; a slog-sweep for six off Williamson. He then went a notch higher, reverse-sweeping the same bowler successive boundaries to reach his half-century just two overs before stumps. For the bulk, Misbah ceded floor to Shafiq and secured one end for Pakistan.

The pair built on the efforts of the Pakistan seamers, who brought about an early conclusion to New Zealand's innings on the second morning, and Taufeeq. Tim Southee and Williamson had set up frustrated Pakistan with a fighting stand to save New Zealand the embarrassment of being bowled out for under 200 on a track full of runs. But their resistance ended this morning when Pakistan's seamers made up for the lack of purchase from the pitch by ruffling the batsmen up with short deliveries.

When the time came to defend 275, New Zealand's bowlers were guilty of doling out freebies on the pads, Chris Martin particularly, and Taufeeq duly dispatched them. Martin was struck for three boundaries in an over, through midwicket, square leg and mid-on, while Brent Arnel paid for dropping too short, slashed and pulled to the ropes.

Post lunch, however, New Zealand bowled better. Lengths were rethought and both Martin and Arnel targeted the good-length area, and angled the ball in by bowling round the wicket to the left-hander. Taufeeq, who had dealt in boundaries, became more restrained and didn't help himself when he struggled to middle the ball when opportunities came his way. He lost a solid partner in Azhar Ali not too long after lunch, and that gave New Zealand an opening.

Taufeeq fought through his frustration by reaching his first half-century since 2003 by guiding Arnel to the third-man boundary, while at the other end Younis injected some urgency to the innings. Like Taufeeq had done before lunch, Younis went after Martin, opening the face to square-drive him thrice for fours and flicking him to the fine-leg boundary.

But just when it seemed Pakistan were emerging out of a difficult phase, they put themselves back into one. Taufeeq played a loose flick straight to midwicket, and Younis closed the face too early to spoon a catch back to the bowler. It was Arnel who dismissed the pair, leaving it to the captain Misbah and Shafiq to rebuild.

Siddhartha Talya is a sub editor at Cricinfo

Feeds: Siddhartha Talya © ESPN EMEA Ltd.

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Clarke and Nielsen differ on batting approach

2011-01-09T06:36:00.000-08:00

Michael Clarke, the stand-in captain, and the coach Tim Nielsen have disagreed over Australia's Test batting tactics in the aftermath of the side's horrible Ashes loss. The lack of runs was a key problem for the hosts throughout the 3-1 series defeat and it has become clear that there was a clash over the best method of survival.

Nielsen, who has been in charge since 2007, said the batsmen had to learn how to adjust their mind-sets to avoid losing wickets at crucial times, which was a feature of the campaign. However, Clarke, who replaced the injured Ricky Ponting in Sydney, said he told his men not to alter their attitude in the second innings, when they were attempting to hold off the rampaging tourists.

"[It was] 100% to play their natural game," Clarke said of his instructions. "For me, if I try to occupy the crease and block, I know I'm going to have no chance for success. Every individual is different, but you have to stick to your game plan. You have to play your way."

Nielsen disagreed after watching his batsmen fall around breaks in play at vital stages of the past five Tests. "They are little things we need to improve, it's not about saying you can't play a cover drive or a cut shot or can't catch the ball," he said. "Players don't get to this level without being able to do that, but it's us improving as a group to identify those times and realising that sometimes you need to put your own game on the back burner."

It is not unusual for a coach and captain to have different views. Nielsen was angry this week with Stuart Clark, the former Test bowler, for suggesting Nielsen and Clarke had problems in the West Indies during the World Twenty20. Clark had written about the pair's relationship for the Sydney Morning Herald at the start of the final Test.

"It is my belief Clarke will want full control, and this might mean Nielsen has to take a back seat on several fronts," Clark wrote. "It might be better if he provides support and guidance to Clarke rather than a dominant hand.

"He should then ensure the rest of the side are having their requirements met - be they extra netting time, throwdowns, catching, fielding work, bowling work or just sitting down and talking to players about their fears and concerns. This might take away from the more glamorous work of deciding when to declare or who should be 12th man, but it's still a very important part of building a successful team."

Nielsen insisted he did his best during the Ashes but could only point to three players - Michael Hussey, Shane Watson and Peter Siddle - who had improved over the past six months. Before the season he signed a contract to the end of the 2013 Ashes and James Sutherland, Cricket Australia's chief executive, delivered a surprising vote of confidence.

"He's doing a great job with the development of players and at the same time we have some significant changes in the personnel within the Australian team and team management," Sutherland said. "The decision that was made, the board's very comfortable that Tim's contract should be renewed through that period. Tim's fine."

Andrew Hilditch, the chairman of selectors, said after the match that his panel had done "a very good job" during the series. When Nielsen was asked if he rated his own performance the same way he said: "We've done our very best, no doubt about that. We did everything we thought we could do and we tried everything we could have."

While Nielsen ran out of answers for his team, his support staff also struggled to lift the players. Every time Australia bowled the wicket looked flatter and slower, with Troy Cooley suffering badly in comparison with David Saker, England's Australian bowling coach. Justin Langer's batting advice was either ignored or not useful, and the fielding was also disappointing.

"The planning was there, it was just our inability as a group to do what we wanted to do with bat and ball," Nielsen said. The players have been the only ones to accept blame for the side's worst series of results in history.

Peter English is the Australasia editor of Cricinfo

Feeds: Peter English © ESPN EMEA Ltd.

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'A great feeling for the Pathan family'

2011-01-09T06:29:00.000-08:00

Among the big winners on the first day of the 2011 IPL auction were the Pathan brothers, Yusuf and Irfan, whose combined bids totalled US$4m. While Yusuf, who was bought by the Kolkata Knight Riders for $2.1m, was always expected to attract one of the highest bids, Irfan commanding $1.9m was something of a surprise.

Irfan is still recovering from a back injury and hasn't played competitive cricket since last season's IPL (almost nine months ago). Yet, there was strong interest from five franchises at the auction, with Delhi Daredevils ultimately emerging victorious over Kings XI Punjab, which had bought Irfan in the 2008 auction for half of what Delhi paid this time around.

"It is a very good start to 2011," Irfan told ESPNcricinfo. "People think I am an important player. I am very pleased. It is a great feeling for the whole family."

Irfan, who watched the bidding live on television, admitted the high price tag would only add to the scrutiny of his performances as he targeted a return from his injury, but said it was all part of the game. "To be very honest, the more money, the more pressure there is. [But] pressure will always be there, whether you are playing for your country, or playing domestic cricket.

"I am feeling much feeling better. The way I am bowling, I will be able take any pressure."

Irfan was not selected in India's 30-man squad for the upcoming World Cup because of his injury and while he expected to return to competitive cricket with Baroda for the domestic one-day tournament in February, he realised the IPL was his best chance of attracting the attention of India's selectors ahead of India's tours to England and the West Indies next summer.

"It is a big platform for me. The whole world is watching it. Even though it is only a four-over game, people come to know what you can do. I want to play for my country. That is why I am working for hard. The best recognition you get playing for your country. It can't be replaced by money."

Irfan had an impressive IPL in 2010, even though Punjab finished at the bottom of the table. He was the team's third highest run-scorer with 276 runs at an average of 34.50 and a strike-rate of 148.38. He also took 15 wickets at a strike rate of 18.50 and an average of 28.40. He described his time with Punjab as "very memorable", saying it was an experience he would cherish all his life, and called Preity Zinta, among the co-owners of the franchise, "an amazing boss". He was also flattered that the franchise tried so hard to buy him this time around as well, but said now that he had a new team, it was time to look ahead.

"Delhi has been a really good side in the IPL and been performing really well even though they haven't lifted the cup. It is one of the biggest cities in India and has a larger fan base. I have played with Viru [Virender Sehwag] and I am looking forward to playing for Delhi."

Yusuf, too, said he was very pleased with the result of the auction, both for himself and Irfan, but added he wasn't thinking as far ahead as the IPL as his focus was on the ODI series against South Africa and then the World Cup. He did, however, admit he would miss playing for Rajasthan Royals, for whom he scored a memorable 37-ball hundred against Mumbai Indians, an innings Shane Warne called the best he had ever seen.

"Obviously I will miss Warne and Watson and the rest of team,' Yusuf said. "At the same time, I have always enjoyed playing in Kolkata because the people there love their cricket, and are passionate about it. The atmosphere is great. This is a great opportunity. It will be a new team, new players, but I have played with many of them. It won't be too difficult to adjust to the new set-up."

Yusuf said Kolkata had the makings of a good team and could potentially make the final with the likes of Jacques Kallis, Gautam Gambhir and himself. He tipped Gambhir, under whose leadership he played in the ODI series against New Zealand, where he made that savage match-winning hundred, to captain the side. He was also looking forward to being part of a team owned by Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan.

"Shah Rukh likes his cricket. Whatever match is there, he comes to the ground and watches. I will get to learn something new here."

With inputs from Sidharth Monga

Tariq Engineer is a senior sub-editor at Cricinfo

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Players struggle to adjust to one-off Twenty20

2011-01-09T06:17:00.000-08:00

is ironic that, from a cricketing point of view at least, the game that will draw the biggest crowd of the season is the least anticipated. Although, on second thought, it is perhaps unfair to ask a Twenty20 game to match up to what was a thrilling Test series, and that too, a Twenty20 game played in a football stadium, on a pitch expected to stay low, with short square boundaries.

Still, 50,000 are expected to sell out the Moses Mabhida Stadium and they will have plenty to watch: Makhaya Ntini playing his last international match, Johan Botha continuing his audition as potentially South Africa's next ODI captain, some flashy Indian youngsters trying to hit balls into the streets, and some song and dance from Shah Rukh Khan, Priyanka Chopra and Anil Kapoor.

For the players, though, it will be difficult to adjust. They first have to get over the hangover from the Test series, which should take some time, and then prepare for the ODI series, which will be the real deal going into the World Cup. "Of course it is a difficult one, because more often than not whenever there is a Twenty20 game, you play just one-off game," MS Dhoni said. "It's very difficult to get into that groove, and then come out of that groove and play ODIs. Of course we will give it our best shot. We have got players who are part of the ODI squad, but along with that there are T20 specialists also. That will help."

Forget the change of ball and change of kits, there is a change of stadium too. Both the teams seek to draw on their experience of playing cricket in New Zealand, where some of the grounds double up as rugby stadiums. At times in New Zealand, even as the post-match presentation is going on, the groundstaff start starts removing the drop-in pitch to get the ground ready for a rugby game to be played the same week.

"You may say the experience we have of paying in New Zealand will come into effect," Dhoni said. "Of course the sides will be pretty small compared to the long front boundaries. We haven't seen the ground yet, but after the practice session that we are having right now, we are planning to go to the stadium. Before starting cricket, play a bit of football there. And then a fielding session. And exactly see what it looks like. It looks really different from the outside, but very similar to a football stadium."

Johan Botha, who will be captaining South Africa in Graeme Smith's absence, concurred. "I haven't been to the ground yet. We will be going after this to do a bit of fielding there, just see what the different dimensions of the ground are. But both teams have to bat and bowl on it. Hopefully, we can play well on the ground with the specific distances. It's almost like a New Zealand ground."

The game feels like a transit airport in a long journey right now. You don't know much about it, you don't expect much out of it, you don't have a proper sense of time and space either. It will pass in a blur, but both teams will look to find better bargains at duty-free shops.

Sidharth Monga is an assistant editor at Cricinfo

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Paine set for captaincy test

2011-01-09T06:07:00.000-08:00

The IPL auction

ESPNcricinfo's blow-by-blow coverage of the IPL auction in Bangalore on January 8 and 9, 2011

The budgets of the IPL franchises for the auction

How much money the IPL franchises have during the auction

What they bought, and what they still need

A look at how the franchises approached the first day of the IPL auction, and the gaps they would need to fill on the second day

Tendulkar and Steyn sizzle in a battle for the ages

Defensive India pay the price

Both teams have been guilty of taking a backward step in what has otherwise been an enthralling series, but India's tactics on the fourth day could prove decisive in the outcome

View the original article here

Bowlers won it for us - Misbah

2011-01-09T05:56:00.000-08:00

The IPL auction

ESPNcricinfo's blow-by-blow coverage of the IPL auction in Bangalore on January 8 and 9, 2011

The budgets of the IPL franchises for the auction

How much money the IPL franchises have during the auction

What they bought, and what they still need

A look at how the franchises approached the first day of the IPL auction, and the gaps they would need to fill on the second day

Tendulkar and Steyn sizzle in a battle for the ages

Defensive India pay the price

Both teams have been guilty of taking a backward step in what has otherwise been an enthralling series, but India's tactics on the fourth day could prove decisive in the outcome

View the original article here

Davy Jacobs eager to open with Tendulkar

2011-01-09T05:51:00.000-08:00

The IPL auction

ESPNcricinfo's blow-by-blow coverage of the IPL auction in Bangalore on January 8 and 9, 2011

The budgets of the IPL franchises for the auction

How much money the IPL franchises have during the auction

What they bought, and what they still need

A look at how the franchises approached the first day of the IPL auction, and the gaps they would need to fill on the second day

Tendulkar and Steyn sizzle in a battle for the ages

Defensive India pay the price

Both teams have been guilty of taking a backward step in what has otherwise been an enthralling series, but India's tactics on the fourth day could prove decisive in the outcome

View the original article here

Day 2 | India vs Sri Lanka | 2nd Test SSC 2010

2010-10-27T07:27:00.000-07:00

Posted by admin on Jul 27, 2010 in Ze Archive | 26 comments

Part I Direct External Video Link
Part II Direct External Video Link
Part III Direct External Video Link

Part IV Direct External Video Link

HQ Option for the above clip unavailable for reasons unknown – maybe later on

Part V Direct External Video Link

Part VI Direct External Video Link

Watch cricket highlights: Day 2 of the 2nd Test – India vs Sri Lanka played at the SSC, Colombo on July 27, 2010

Scoreline: Sri Lanka (1st Inn) 642/4 declared Sangakkara 219, Jayawardene 174, Samaraweera 76 no
India (1st Inn) 95/0 Sehwag 64 no (63)

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Day 3 | India vs Sri Lanka | 3rd Test PSS 2010

2010-10-27T07:17:00.000-07:00

Posted by admin on Aug 5, 2010 in Ze Archive | 33 comments

Part I Video Link | Part II Video Link | Part III Video Link |
Part IV Video Link | Part V Video Link

Part I

Part II

Part III

Part IV

Part V

Watch cricket highlights: Day 3 of the 3rd Test – India vs Sri Lanka played at the PSS on August 5, 2010.

Scoreline: India 436 all out (1st Inn) Raina 62, VVS 56, Mithun 46, Mishra 40 | Randiv 4, Malinga 3, Mendis 2
SL 45/2 (2nd Inn) | Sehwag 2

Looks like Yuvraj will get to finish reading that book, the way Raina has looked comfortable in his test role.

C’mon VVS – make that hundred. You make a hundred and it sticks in people’s heads. A 70 or 80 just fades away.

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Day 2 | SL vs India | 3rd Test 2010

2010-10-27T06:57:00.000-07:00

Posted by admin on Aug 4, 2010 in Ze Archive | 55 comments

Part I

Part II

Part III

Part IV

Part V

Part VI

Watch cricket highlights: Day 2 of the 3rd Test – Sri Lanka vs India played on August 4, 2010

Scoreline: Sri Lanka 425 all out Samaraweera 137 no, Mathews 45 | Ojha 4, Ishanth 3
India (1st Inn) 180/2 Themanwhosenameshallnotbetakeninvain 97 no (87), Tendulkar 40 no

By the time the-man-whose-name-shall-not-be-taken-in-vain had stepped across and played a shot he normally avoids to Welegedera to reach 42, it was already one of his best test knocks. With the pitch deemed to break up, looks like the last 3 days here could well make up for a relatively dull series thus far.

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Day 1 | Sri Lanka vs India | 2nd Test SSC 2010

2010-10-27T06:52:00.000-07:00

Posted by admin on Jul 26, 2010 in Ze Archive | 22 comments

Part I Direct External Video Link

Part II Direct External Video Link

Part III Direct External Video Link

Part IV Direct External Video Link

Part V Direct External Video Link

Above clip should be ready by 6:45 PM GMT

Watch cricket highlights: Day 1 of the 2nd Test – Sri Lanka vs India played at the SSC on July 26, 2010

Scoreline: Sri Lanka 312/2 Kumar Sangakkara 130 no, Paranavitana 100, Dilshan 54 (42)

View the original article here

Lord’s Test Alleged Fixing | The NoBall Controversy | Salman Amir Asif

2010-10-27T06:34:00.000-07:00

Posted by admin on Aug 29, 2010 in Cric Clips, Featured Articles | 146 comments

Majority of Video 2 courtesy Times News

The first bit in the 2nd video was a user request. There were no side-on angles available for deliveries before or after the no-ball. This one’s from the Collingwood referral and has Salman Butt in pretty much the same position as during the noball – watching his bowler. Therefore kind of ruling out the “he was watching his bowler carry out his instructions” theory

Press Conference after Day 4 of the Test

The News of the World story can be read here

Don’t have the 1st two noballs as they were on Day 1 and I don’t have its recording anymore.

The problem with this controversy (if proved) is that doubts will linger regarding the extent of fixing. If it were as simple as – it’s only these noballs and nothing else – it would be easy to make a stand. I know I’d be on the side of serious talent being allowed the odd mistake (particularly Amir, who’s only just begun) after the cricket-law-based punishments were handed out. However, unlike the Warne-Mark Waugh weather/pitch information incident, here, the incident has allegedly occurred during play. That really complicates things because the question then arises – at what stage did the fixing stop.

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Day 5 | Sri Lanka vs India | 2nd Test SSC 2010

2010-10-27T06:14:00.000-07:00

Posted by admin on Jul 30, 2010 in Ze Archive | 15 comments

Part I Direct External Video Link

Part II Direct External Video Link

Watch cricket highlights: Day 5 of the 2nd Test at the SSC – Sri Lanka vs India played on July 30, 2010

Scoreline: India 707 all out (1st Inn) Ishanth 27 (117), Ojha 18 (92)
Sri Lanka (2nd Inn) 129/3 declared – Match Drawn

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