Cricket India

Yet Another comprehensive win for India.

2011-10-23T11:20:00.000-07:00

England's weakness against spin cost them for the third time in the series as they unravelled from a strong position to post an underwhelming total on a slow turning pitch in Mumbai. Their fast bowlers struck three early blows but Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina motored to a 131-run stand at close to seven an over, showcasing the difference between the sides and sparking another needless bout of words in the middle as England's frustration overflowed.

It was England's own batsmen who had let down their ragged bowlers down when they caved in against spin in the afternoon. R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja took 5 for 79 in 20 overs between them after Jonathan Trott and Kevin Pietersen had built on England's quickest start of the series.

Vinay Kumar broke the 73-run stand between Trott and an uncharacteristically subdued Pietersen, then Jadeja and Ashwin worked their way through a clueless England middle order, striking three times in six overs. Tim Bresnan took the score past 200 with a run-a-ball 45, but England were dismissed with 23 deliveries remaining when fast bowler Varun Aaronbowled Bresnan to finish with three wickets on debut.

Disciplined pace bowling led by the impressive Steven Finn kept England in with an outside chance at the start of the chase. Kohli and Raina kept the runs coming, though, not allowing the score of 46 for 3 to tie them down in a partnership that steadily at first, and then emphatically, pushed England out of the match, making a 5-0 whitewash ever more likely.

Finn and Bresnan had started with testing spells that kept the India openers quiet. The first five overs produced only 17 runs, leading Parthiv Patel to whip across the line and lose his stumps to Finn. Finn struck again in his next over when Gautam Gambhir inside-edged onto his stumps. His opening spell of 5-0-10-2 was followed by a sharp burst from debutant Stuart Meaker that induced Ajinkya Rahane into a poke outside off stump only for wicketkeeper Craig Kieswetter to take a leaping one-handed blinder.

Scott Borthwick, the young legspinner surprisingly chosen ahead of Grame Swann, bowled with heart, but it was unfair to expect him to have the same effect that the experienced Swann could have managed. Kohli and Raina continued almost unbothered, picking off the singles easily and finding the boundaries with crisp shots. The duo's approach was in sharp contrast to England's tottering line-up.

Despite India being three down at the start of the bowling Powerplay, Raina took the chance and chipped Meaker just over mid-off for a boundary. His innings grew into a blur of scythes through extra cover and swings down the ground before Finn bowled him after a missed slog during a heated over. Raina had surged to 80 by then and with Kohli easing into elegant drives and cuts, India were runaway winners with almost ten overs remaining.

England's fate had virtually been sealed when their middle order tried to sweep and slog-sweep their way out of trouble. Pietersen was one of three batsmen to fall on the shots, though the substitute fielder Manoj Tiwary was responsible for sending him back with a diving catch after running across from deep midwicket.

Ravi Bopara missed one from Jadeja to be caught in front and Jonny Bairstow's disappointing series continued when he was bowled by a ripper that pitched on leg and turned to hit off stump. Samit Patel and Bresnan tried to salvage something from 145 for 6 but Patel slog-swept Ashwin straight to deep midwicket in another disappointing batting Powerplay for England.

Aaron, who had consistently hovered above 140kph on debut, came back to run through the lower order, hitting the stumps three times, the last of which straightened past Bresnan's outside edge to clip the top of off, with England well short of a challenging total on a turning pitch without Swann.

Things hadn't looked as gloomy for England when Pietersen and Trott accumulated solidly in a steady partnership that helped them recover after Alastair Cook and Kieswetter departed off successive deliveries. Though Pietersen went hard at deliveries and mistimed his strokes at times, Trott kept the runs flowing, cutting Jadeja three times to the deep point boundary. Trott welcomed Vinay's second spell with a cracking drive that beat the cover sweeper easily but was dismissed two deliveries later. Pietersen continued to find the field and the India spinners soon got on top decisively, yet again.

Dhoni takes India to series victory

2011-10-20T10:02:00.000-07:00

Ajinkya Rahane compiled a 59-ball half-century, the second of his career, to guide India's pursuit of England's total of 298 for 4 in the third ODI at Mohali. By the halfway mark of their run-chase, they were well placed on 136 for 1, with Gautam Gambhir settling in on 30 not out following the loss of Parthiv Patel for 38.

India's progress was serene from the outset, as Parthiv and Rahane added 79 for the first wicket in 15.3 overs. Tim Bresnan forced the breakthrough with a swinging delivery that might have pitched outside leg stump, but the lbw appeal was upheld by the umpire.

Gambhir, whose first boundary came from a first-ball cut for four, could have fallen for 17 when a thin edge off Samit Patel was dropped by Craig Kieswetter, but chances were few and far between. The introduction of England's spinners slowed the scoring rate but with time and wickets on their side, India's batsmen were content to trade singles, secure in the knowledge that their power-players are still to come.

On a livelier surface than in the first two ODIs, Rahane's technique against England's quicks was impressive, as he picked off boundaries behind square with soft hands and deft use of the wrists. He had made 63 from 73 balls after 25 overs, with five fours to his name.

50 overs England 298 for 4 (Trott 98*, Patel 70*) v India

Jonathan Trott and Kevin Pietersen gave England a solid platform

Jonathan Trott anchored England's most impressive batting performance of the series with a calmly paced 98 not out from 116 balls, and shared in a pair of key partnerships with Kevin Pietersen and Samit Patel, as India were set a challenging target of 299 in the third ODI in Mohali. Pietersen made a bold 64 from 61 balls before falling lbw to the left-arm spin of Ravindra Jadeja, while Patel's sparky hitting in the final ten overs carried him to a career-best 70 from 43 balls, as India's effortless dominance in the series to date received its first significant challenge.

Needing a victory to stay in the series, Alastair Cook gave England an early leg-up by winning the toss, because in 19 matches at the Punjab CA Stadium, 14 have been won by the side batting first. The captain himself was unable to capitalise - he was trapped lbw by Vinay Kumar for 3 - but Craig Kieswetter produced a sprightly 36 from 38 balls, including a brace of sixes in consecutive overs, to kickstart the innings and ensure that England's batting frailties of the first two matches were not revisited.

However, the key man, as so often, was Trott, whose tempo is immoveable regardless of the format of the game. This was his first significant innings since being named the ICC Cricketer of the Year, and it was a reprisal of the role he had played at the World Cup in March. He picked off eight boundaries after coming to the crease in the fourth over of the innings, and was denied his fourth ODI hundred by a sharp piece of fielding at short fine leg, when he paddle-swept the penultimate ball of the innings for a single. Though he missed out on his milestone, the net gain was England's, as Patel blazed Vinay Kumar's final ball of the innings into the long-on stands for six.

The debate will rage about Trott's approach to one-day cricket, but seeing as England collapsed in a heap in the first two matches, the backbone he provided to this performance was self-evident. Both of his major partners, Pietersen and Patel, thrived on the right to go for their strokes, and as history has shown time and again at Mohali, chasing under the lights is never an easy task. The last team to falter at this venue was Pakistan in the World Cup semi-final seven months ago.

Pietersen and Trott came together with England wobbling on 53 for 2, with Kieswetter having ruined his good start by steering a wide ball from Virat Kohli into his leg stump. But the pair soon settled into a comfortable accumulative rhythm. Pietersen glanced his second ball through fine leg for four, whereupon Trott responded with three fours in four balls from Yadav and Kohli. A thick outside edge off Ashwin gifted Pietersen another boundary, but there was nothing fortuitous about his subsequent assault on Praveen Kumar, as he helped himself to four further fours in consecutive overs.

As so often, it was the introduction of a left-arm spinner that dented Pietersen's momentum, but crucially India let their opportunity for a breakthrough slip past. Ravindra Jadeja sent down five consecutive dot-balls, which tempted Pietersen into a suicidal single from the sixth. Trott, on 32 at the time, barely responded to the call, and would have been out by the length of the pitch had the shy from midwicket been remotely accurate. But MS Dhoni behind the stumps was forced to dive to intercept, and the chance was lost.

It would soon prove costly, even though Pietersen was unable to convert his fine start into a flying finish. Jadeja, from round the wicket, tweaked one into his front pad to send him on his way in the 30th over, whereupon Ravi Bopara followed up with 24 from 32 balls - a promising innings that included three fours but was ended by a superb swinging yorker from Praveen, which flattened his middle stump from the first ball of his eighth over.

Patel appeared at No. 6 - a surprising promotion with Jonny Bairstow still to come - but with a licence to play his strokes, he responded supremely. His second ball was hooked for two to the deep midwicket boundary, and he continued in the same aggressive vein thereafter. Umesh Yadav was dispatched in the same direction for his first boundary, while Vinay was manipulated through the leg side for consecutive fours - the second of which was upgraded after an intervention from the third umpire.

However, it was in the final four overs that Patel really found his range, as England built on a promising position of 255 for 4 with 43 further runs in 24 deliveries. Vinay was belted over midwicket for the first of Patel's two sixes, while Yadav's figures were further dented by two more fours from the final two balls of his spell. Trott was little more than a spectator by this stage, as he worked the singles and handed over the strike, and though he was left shaking his head in frustration after falling short of his century, his solidity paid rich dividends for England's hopes in the series.

India 1 Parthiv Patel, 2 Ajinkya Rahane, 3 Gautam Gambhir, 4 Virat Kohli, 5 Suresh Raina, 6 MS Dhoni (capt & wk), 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 R Ashwin, 9 Praveen Kumar, 10 Vinay Kumar, 11 Umesh Yadav

England 1 Alastair Cook (capt), 2 Craig Kieswetter (wk), 3 Jonathan Trott, 4 Kevin Pietersen, 5 Ravi Bopara, 6 Jonny Bairstow, 7 Samit Patel, 8 Tim Bresnan, 9 Graeme Swann, 10 Steven Finn, 11 Jade Dernbach

Kohli hundred seals huge victory

2011-10-17T20:53:00.000-07:00

India 238 for 2 (Kohli 112*, Gambhir 84*) beat England 237 (Pietersen 46, Vinay 4-30) by eight wickets

Innings	Dot balls	4s	6s	PP1	PP2	PP3	Last 10 overs	NB/Wides

England	172	21	4	48-3	27-0 (16-20)	36-0 (36-40)	47-5 (48.2)	0/11
India	108	29	1	53-2	32-0 (18-22)	13-0 (36-36.4)		0/13

Dhoni unbeaten 87 crush England

2011-10-14T09:47:00.000-07:00

India 300 for 7 (Dhoni 87*, Raina 61) beat England 174 (Cook 60, Jadeja 3-34) by 126 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details

MS Dhoni

MS Dhoni's hard-hitting 87 not out was the bedrock of India's victory

MS Dhoni marked India's homecoming with a brutal innings of 87 not out from 70 balls, before the left-arm spin of Ravindra Jadeja sparked a dramatic English batting collapse, as the team that failed to win a single international fixture on their recent tour of England returned to form with a crushing 126-run victory at Hyderabad.

Dhoni's performance was his fourth half-century in as many international innings, but whereas the last three had been insufficient to force victory, this performance was more reminiscent of his last performance in a home international - his crushing 91 not out in the World Cup final against Sri Lanka in April.

After winning his first toss in six attempts against England, Dhoni chose to bat first on a slow surface, but India were struggling on 139 for 4 after 34 overs before he and Suresh Raina turned on the after-burners as a further 161 were added in the final third of the innings. As had regularly been the case in England, he started cautiously against a disciplined attack, and had reached 5 from 18 balls before belting his first boundary, from Ravi Bopara, to signal India's late charge.

In total, Dhoni belted 10 fours and one six in his innings, the latter coming from a trademark helicopter flick off Steven Finn in the penultimate over of the innings. Finn had started his day's work with impressive pace and accuracy, and should have had a first-over wicket when Jonathan Trott dropped a sitter off Ajinkya Rahane at second slip - a moment that only the 26,000 crowd were able to witness, thanks to a TV rights dispute that caused a three-over blackout. But Finn finished with the bruised figures of 1 for 67 in nine overs, with his solitary wicket that of Raina in his seventh over, moments after he had been battered for another six over long-on.

Raina, whose brutality against the full length ball was a sight to behold, crunched 61 from 55 balls, with both of his sixes coming from the final four balls of his innings. Like Dhoni, he had opted for circumspection in the early part of his stay, but the longer his 62-run stand for the fifth wicket continued, the more boisterous the Hyderabad crowd became.

It had been a more muted affair in the early part of India's innings. Parthiv Patel was run out at the non-striker's end for 9 as Finn fingertipped a Rahane drive onto the stumps, while Rahane himself had reached 15 from 41 balls when Graeme Swann dragged him out of his crease with his third delivery of the match to give Craig Kieswetter an easy stumping.

In his first match since recovering from concussion, Gautam Gambhir confirmed his fitness with a fluent 32 from 33 balls. However, Jade Dernbach's liquorice allsorts proved hard to pick and tough to get away on the surface, and the slower ball that did for Gambhir was a beauty. It looped up above the batsman's eyeline and dropped sharply to rap his shin in front of leg stump.

At 79 for 3 after 18 overs, the game was very much in the balance. However, England's position could, and probably should, have been even better after 25 overs, when Samit Patel repeated Finn's trick of dropping his fingertips on a straight drive. It was Raina this time who was in peril as the bails were dislodged, but after a lengthy delay for the TV adjudication, he was given the benefit of the doubt by the third umpire, Sudhir Ashani.

In the final analysis, however, it really didn't matter. Though Alastair Cook continued his impressive form as England captain with 60 from 63 balls, his dismissal in the 23rd over of the innings precipated a dramatic collapse at the hands of Jadeja and R Ashwin. England tumbled from 111 for 2 to 134 for 7 in the space of 40 balls, and only Samit Patel (16) and the No. 10, Finn, with a run a ball 18, provided any resistance.

Praveen Kumar, India's star bowler from their ill-fated tour of England, had launched India's defence in fine style, opening up with a maiden to Cook, and he had not conceded a run when he extracted Kieswetter with his eighth delivery, a full-length ball that jagged off the seam to take a thin edge through to Dhoni.

The loss of their top-order powerhitter caused England to rejig their conventional batting order, with Kevin Pietersen emerging at No. 3 ahead of the more staid Trott. The plan looked to be paying off as Pietersen launched his innings with ominous resolve, but having struck three fours in a 28-ball 19, he attempted a quick single to mid-on where Ashwin nailed him with a direct hit.

Trott then appeared at No. 4, and for 13.3 overs he and Cook steadied the innings, adding 71 for the third wicket to give England a solid platform. But then, having brought up his fifty at exactly a run a ball, Cook gave his innings away with a loose clip to deep midwicket off Ravindra Jadeja, and thwacked his pad with his bat in frustration as he left the crease.

Worse was to follow for England two overs later. Trott, whose 26 from 42 balls had been a typically measured performance, attempted an ungainly smear across the line against Jadeja and lost his leg stump, and eight balls later, Ravi Bopara drove loosely at Ashwin and chipped a simple return catch to the keeper.

Jadeja by now was on a roll with the crowd fully behind him, and he extended England's collapse to four wickets in 26 balls when Jonny Bairstow, the hero of the run-chase in Cardiff, last month, also offered up a return catch. His figures after four overs were 3 for 17, and England's unbeaten run against India in 2011 was soon all over.

Innings	Dot balls	4s	6s	PP1	PP2	PP3	Last 10 overs	NB/Wides

India	144	22	5	47/1	20/1	59/1	91/2	1/18
England	115	16	1	48/2	29/0	26/2	n/a	0/3

info from cricinfo

2011-10-12T02:24:00.000-07:00

1st ODI: India v England at Hyderabad (Deccan), Oct 14, 2011

	MS Dhoni captain/keeper Age: 30 years 84 days Playing role: Wicketkeeper batsman Batting: Right-hand bat Bowling: Right-arm medium

	Sreenath Aravind Age: 27 years 174 days Playing role: Bowler Batting: Left-hand bat Bowling: Left-arm medium-fast

	Gautam Gambhir Age: 29 years 350 days Playing role: Top-order batsman Batting: Left-hand bat Bowling: Legbreak

	Virat Kohli Age: 22 years 328 days Playing role: Middle-order batsman Batting: Right-hand bat Bowling: Right-arm medium

	Parthiv Patel Age: 26 years 204 days Playing role: Wicketkeeper batsman Batting: Left-hand bat

	Suresh Raina Age: 24 years 306 days Playing role: Batsman Batting: Left-hand bat Bowling: Right-arm offbreak

	Manoj Tiwary Age: 25 years 319 days Playing role: Batsman Batting: Right-hand bat Bowling: Legbreak googly

Umesh Yadav

Age: 23 years 339 days

Playing role: Bowler

Batting: Right-hand bat

Bowling: Right-arm fast-medium

Varun Aaron

Age: 21 years 335 days

Playing role: Bowler

Batting: Right-hand bat

Bowling: Right-arm medium-fast

Ravichandran Ashwin

Age: 25 years 12 days

Playing role: Bowler

Batting: Right-hand bat

Bowling: Right-arm offbreak

Ravindra Jadeja

Age: 22 years 297 days

Playing role: Allrounder

Batting: Left-hand bat

Bowling: Slow left-arm orthodox

Praveen Kumar

Age: 24 years 362 days

Playing role: Bowler

Batting: Right-hand bat

Bowling: Right-arm medium

Ajinkya Rahane

Age: 23 years 116 days

Playing role: Top-order batsman

Batting: Right-hand bat

Bowling: Right-arm medium

Rahul Sharma

Age: 24 years 303 days

Playing role: Bowler

Batting: Right-hand bat

Bowling: Legbreak googly

Vinay Kumar

Age: 27 years 229 days

Playing role: Bowler

Batting: Right-hand bat

Bowling: Right-arm medium

Bravo blasts Chennai Super Kings to victory

2011-09-28T21:23:00.001-07:00

Chennai Super Kings got their title defence back on track with a chase that covered the spectrum from blue to yellow and all the colours in between against Cape Cobras. Michael Hussey got the pursuit of 146 off to a positive start, but JP Duminy's four wickets wrested the advantage back, and put the Cape Cobras in the pound seat. MS Dhoni and Dwayne Bravo's 43-run partnership helped Chennai recover but Vernon Philander dismissed Dhoni to give the Cobras another sniff. Then, Bravo made a mockery of Dale Steyn, scoring 17 runs off his last over, the 19th of the innings, to paint the Chidamabaram Stadium in the colour of the home team.

With 23 runs required off the last two overs, Chennai needed someone to launch them over the line, and Bravo took it upon himself to do so. First, he mowed a Steyn slower ball which turned into a full toss over midwicket, and carved the next delivery behind point for four, before playing a classy inside-out cover drive to ensure the Super Kings succeeded in a tricky chase on a slow pitch.

Hussey set the tone when he picked up from where he left against the Mumbai Indians with an authoritative knock upfront. In M Vijay's company, he put the Super Kings on the right path before Duminy came on to bowl. He started bowling in the Powerplay and did not hesitate to flight the ball, drawing Hussey forward and giving Dane Vilas enough time to complete the stumping.

Justin Ontong extracted good turn and bounce from his end, and Duminy capitalised on the pressure he was creating. In his second over, Duminy enticed S Badrinath to play a lofted drive straight to short cover. A quiet third over was followed by an eventful fourth in which Duminy got rid of Wriddhiman Saha who swept to deep square leg, and Suresh Raina who played too early and handed a return catch.

MS Dhoni held himself back and came out at No.6, at a time when the Super Kings needed to play catch-up. Dhoni and Bravo played cautiously for three boundary-less overs against Robin Peterson's crafty spin, Philander's slower balls and Justin Kemp's offcutters. Bravo broke the drought when Philander got his line wrong and allowed the pull to fine leg.

Duminy then turned from hero to villain by over-running a Dhoni catch at deep cover, and the Cobras' fortunes worsened from that moment. Bravo unleashed a six over extra cover off a Philander slower ball to keep the asking-rate under control. Even Dhoni's departure did not affect his resolve, and he hauled Chennai to their first win.

The Cobras would have rued not scoring enough runs after being dragged back from a position where they looked set to score over 170. They had a stuttering start, when R Ashwin trapped Richard Levi lbw with his first delivery. Herschelle Gibbs fizzed for a while, but fell after trying to pull a length ball from Doug Bollinger.

Thereafter, Owais Shah's responsible, yet busy knock and his partnership with Duminy troubled Chennai. The pair complemented each other, with Duminy the energiser and Shah the sage. Albie Morkel removed both in the same over to peg the Cobras back just when they looked set to take off.

With the pressure building and the Super Kings deploying a series of slower deliveries, some of which were a touch short, the Cobras became edgy. Bravo's variations proved particularly problematic and the innings ended with the Cobras unable to find a boundary off any of the last 29 deliveries. Bravo's real contribution, however, came much later in the piece.

India's Bad Form and England Terrific Game Show

2011-08-14T09:52:00.000-07:00

It had been inevitable for much of the previous three days but England officially became the No. 1 Test team in the world shortly after 3pm, ending India's stay at the top with one of their most crushing victories, by an innings and 242 runs. The fourth day didn't even last until tea as the visitors were dispatched for 244 after James Anderson ripped the top off the batting before Graeme Swann and Stuart Broad chipped in.

In theory India had the line-up to at least make England toil for victory, but in reality they have looked a beaten side throughout this match. When Gautam Gambhir and Rahul Dravid fell within the first four overs of the day it was clear Sunday wouldn't be required although at least India went down swinging as Praveen Kumar clubbed 40 off 18 balls - momentarily looking on course for the fastest Test half-century - and MS Dhoni continued his return to form with an unbeaten 74.

Yet all it did was delay the inevitable and when Sreesanth fended at Tim Bresnan, Kevin Pietersen held the catch at gully and England went top of the pile. Although the tables weren't introduced until 2003 back-dating shows it's the first time they have been No. 1 since 1979 although that was when West Indies had been severely depleted due to the Packer-era.

India, meanwhile, lose their title after a stint of 21 months and will have to dig very deep to try and salvage pride at The Oval. If they lose the series 4-0 they will be down to third. Sachin Tendulkar was the only one of the top six to really show the hunger for a fight and had moved to 40 when Dhoni drove towards Swann, who got his right hand to the ball, deflecting it into the stumps with Tendulkar's bat on the line. While it's always a tough way to fall, Tendulkar had backed up a long way which leaves the chance of such a dismissal. Regardless, though, Tendulkar wouldn't have saved the match for India because of the damage inflicted in the first hour.

Anderson didn't wait long to make an impression; he found Gautam Gambhir's outside edge with his first ball of the day and the catch was taken by Swann at second slip. Gambhir has shown the ability to occupy the crease in the past - he cited his 436-ball innings at Napier as how India could save this game - but with him removed early the pressure was squarely on Dravid and, of course, Tendulkar. Dravid, though, did not last long but his dismissal appeared to throw up a bizarre set of circumstances.

When he played forward to Anderson's outswinger, the noise suggested a clear outside edge and Simon Taufel gave the decision. However, subsequent replays showed that the sound didn't quite match the pictures and it appeared Dravid's shoelace may have flicked the bottom of his bat. Dravid could have reviewed but didn't take the option and whether there would have been enough clear evidence to overturn the decision will never be known.

India were 40 for 3 and sinking fast. Tendulkar gave momentary relief with a couple of sweet drives, but VVS Laxman was given a tough time by England's fast bowlers. Anderson's swing and Broad's extra bounce kept him on nought for 16 balls before Anderson produced another fine delivery to take the outside edge.

Broad, meanwhile, tried to take advantage of Tendulkar's problems with the sightscreen behind the bowler's arm. In a similar manner to Andrew Flintoff against Jacques Kallis in 2008, Tendulkar was having trouble picking up deliveries from a set of dark windows and Broad probed away with a series of very full balls which he tried to squeeze under Tendulkar's bat.

Tendulkar, though, responded with a fighting effort although a few of his drives came with a hint of frustration - even anger? - at India's position. The wait for the 100th hundred carries on until at least The Oval and there is a growing sense that it isn't meant to happen in this series.

Before Swann's literal hand in Tendulkar's scalp, he'd been brought on to target Suresh Raina and it was an absorbing, if brief, battle. Raina should have gone for 1, but Andrew Strauss couldn't hold a low chance at gully as Swann tried to add to his lean tally of two wickets in the series. Raina didn't hold back, crunching a straight drive past Swann's right hand, then driving over cover, but Swann had the final say when he gained an lbw decision from Steve Davis.

Raina wasn't happy, and even signalled for a review having forgotten they can't be used for lbws, but replays confirmed Davis was spot on with the ball hitting middle and leg. The fact Raina even considered the DRS showed his frazzled mindset. Swann claimed his second shortly after lunch when Amit Mishra was well caught at mid-off but his figures then suffered at the hands of Praveen with one over costing 21.

The fifty stand between Praveen and Dhoni was raised in 28 balls of free swinging to ensure no record defeat for India. The fun ended when Broad was recalled and immediately had Praveen, whose right thumb had been given a battering, caught at cover. Dhoni continued to show the fight that has been so lacking from India, but it had long since become a forlorn effort. His team has had their time at the top, for the time being at least, and now that's England's honour. The next challenge is to stay there.

England ALL OUT for 221

2011-07-30T03:41:00.000-07:00

If England rush wicket fall to the top of the tree in tests, their powers of recovery in play is a significant role. At various times, things are not according to plan, but it's like a team withdraws from the difficulties that often defines their credentials. Australia had it during their march to the top, India have shown the same insistence on occasions and England, now show similar traits.
In the second innings at Lord's they were 62 for five and, although the actual position of a less dangerous was 250 for five, the game could have simply shifted to India. Instead, Stuart Broad and Matt Prior reaffirmed authority in England with an unbroken stand of 162nd On the first afternoon at Trent Bridge, the hosts were reduced at 124 for 8 before adding the last two gates with a precious 97 Broad again a key figure in the renaissance as he clubbed 64 off 66 balls.
Until the Indian Association of one man in particular, a mixture of anger and grudging respect have felt. Duncan Fletcher put a premium on lower-order runs. Shortly before his inauguration England coach in the years 1999-2000, she had a tail of Andrew Caddick, Ed Giddins, Alan Mullally, Phil Tufnell fielded. No more, said Fletcher, five would not mean all out. What bowlers could produce with the bat was the most important selection criteria.
It is hard to remember a stronger lower order than the current, including Broad, Graeme Swann and Tim Bresnan, even when it comes to default after Chris Tremlett's injury brought. They are all shot players, which means, once a partnership is in motion the game suddenly change direction, as was the case during the last session, where MS Dhoni suddenly sent fielders scurrying to field players.
"We had a chat over tea and decided we needed to grab back the momentum by our natural game and hitting me on the ball," said Broad. "If there is a width on the ball I'll throw my hands was around. There was some swing pretty hard there was hell for leather to go. I knew it was important that the Indian bowlers from their get line and length, this was the tactic, and it was worth it. "
Stuart Broad played an attacking innings, England v India, 2nd Test, Trent Bridge, 1st Days, 29 July 2011 Stuart Broad is a half-century England, quickly pulled out of her chin-strap © Getty Images Enlarge
It has not gone unnoticed, either, that the stand between Broad and Swann was ended with a value of 73 in 11.4 overs, a spitting delivery from the medium pace of Praveen Kumar. Swann struck it on the glove and forced him into a hospital for a precautionary x-ray, that no serious damage resulting.
"We know we have a chance, and there were a few pieces missing that evening and that may have nicks," Broad said. "You have seen Graeme Swann dismissal, the ball really jumped out at him, and that will give us much encouragement. We are all anxious to what might happen. It will be up to us to seize the initiative."
The trouble for Fletcher to see India's position is slipping by the fact that post-opposition line-ups has been a longstanding problem for them increases. Since 2005 they have conceded 800-plus partnerships for the seventh wicket and down. Nevertheless, it was Sreesanth who took 3 for 77 from 19 overs lively, India, were not impressed.
"That's how Testkricket goes, we knew would come a partnership," he said. "All credit to him [Broad], he took his chances. If there were 140 all out, it would have been one-sided, but it is good, they struggle."
While the chase was not over the former position England were in splendor, it was not purely a poor batting display from top to. India rolled well and the conditions were very helpful, so that at two down at lunch was a good result for England. Six gates in the afternoon session was a big problem, but it showed the fine line involved in test cricket.
Last week, the Lord, were used in England and fought under gray skies with a shortened first day to reach 127 for two - a position from where they dominated the test. But at the time, they gave it was hard, and they needed some luck. There was much to play and went missing while today the edges to slip.
"We knew we had to fight hard," Broad said. "You saw Mr. we have succeeded, through time, where it swung, but failed to do so successfully they get here." I thought India overwhelmed brilliant, it was a good throw to win, but the way we were two was brilliant at noon.
"You can not throw the blame for many of our batsmen its doors removed. There were some good deliveries in there." he added. "The bowlers are champing at the bit to be there in the morning. Over tea in India was day 100%. We are delighted wrestled his way back to have, it's been a tough fight, but it's exciting."
Nevertheless, there are a couple of England batsmen who could make a significant contribution. Andrew Strauss struggled until the morning, as he has done Lord, give only his innings with a flat-footed drive for 32 and Eoin Morgan collected his second third-ball duck in the series when he was LBW in the same compared with Praveen Kumar.
Strauss was far from fluent in this series were to continue a lean international season, despite his impressive Test match form for Somerset, while Morgan has twice been removed by the swinging ball. There is no need to set the alarm bells still ring, but now only one trying to Strauss test cricket and Morgan, the No. 6 part cement, a quiet series will be to ask some tough questions. For the moment, but the tricky questions are asked by the conditions. It can, however, prove a testing game for all the top-order batsmen.

Anderson five wicket haul leads England to big win

2011-07-25T22:21:00.000-07:00

England's bowlers fought dogged by an eyelash, the absence of DRS for lbws and some sloppy start to avoid a repetition of the Lord 2007 - when India saved the test - and completed a comprehensive win 28.3 overs before the scheduled end of a gruelingScrap last days.
India's four great hopes survived 93, 113, 56 and 68 deliveries, which England had for wickets work and also that they never let the batsmen they feel in. James Anderson took meant Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman and Sachin Tendulkar, although it could argue that he made the knockout blows, Stuart Broad and Chris Tremlett after the batsmen had to be softened.
Although there were two dropped catches and two non-controversial out LBW decisions, it was all in a manner suggesting England had scripted it that way. They would not come for the strongest resistance demonstrated by Suresh Raina, to which he belonged, with a fighting 78 have been budgeted, but was of the last meeting Anderson in red-hot form.He completed his 11th Five-to break through that last stretch of the Indian struggle with a beautiful away from sealing around the stumps. Originally, Anderson had fed from the immense pressure created by Tremlett and Broad, Graeme Swann, with contributions and accounting for one of the best players of spin Gautam Gambhir today.
It was just as well that England and India from finished avoided, which had a major dispute with India hung a wicket door in the hand. The dreaded scenario of a disagreement between Hawk-eye and the referee, it is potentially important in two circumstances. Broad have had extensive cases lbw against Tendulkar and Raina, and would be successfully challenged the original decision was not out to DRS since lbws available. These two decisions cost England a potentially decisive 15.4 overs.
Smart Statistics England have improved on its excellent reputation with the Lord in the last test. 23 tests in 1984-1999, they won four and lost 11 of 23 tests. In 24 tests since 2000 they have won 13 and lost only three. India suffered their 11th Defeat in 16 Tests at Lord's. The 11 defeats is interested in a certain place for India. James Anderson dismissed Sachin Tendulkar for the sixth time in five tests. In 223 balls, Anderson has 114 runs conceded and Tendulkar lifted six times. Anderson's five wicket haul is his 11th tests and in third Place at Lord's. His previous five wicket haul at Lord's against India came in 2007. Stuart Broad match figures of 7 for 94 are his best in tests surpassed his previous best of six for 87 against South Africa in Durban in 2009. Rahul Dravid, during his 36, surpassed Brian Lara became the highest run-getter in the fourth innings in tests. Tendulkar's strike rate of 17.64 is fourth on the list of the lowest strike rates for a 10-49 score in tests since 2000. Kevin Pietersen seventh game award puts him joint third on the list of English players with the most awards in compliance testing. Compiled by Madhusudan Ramakrishnan Broad would have wondered what he had to do more to get a wicket. He had two catches dropped him regularly in the first innings, and in the morning today, after Anderson had pulled to a rare loose shot Dravid out he beat Laxman off the bat in a five-over spell that often turns out to be too good to take the edge.
While Andrew Strauss caught at slip and its defensive might in-and-out fields in the first session to be argued, his bowling changes worked like a charm. About 20 minutes before lunch, he brought on Anderson, who with a long hop that Laxman began immediately drawn to short midwicket.
Laxman put India's dismissal wounded foot, Gambhir and Tendulkar. They hung in bravely, Gambhir for 56 balls with a painful elbow and Tendulkar for 68 with a viral infection. Regardless of the debate about DRS, the referee had a great game, and it was evident in the LBW Gambhir, Laxman in which more than after discharge. The arm ball Swann had the pad a micro-second before he hit the bat. Asad Rauf sent Gambhir on his way.
Of the load transferred the injured man, the sick, Tendulkar, who started positively, but went into a bowl after lunch. The Raina looked more comfortable than Tendulkar during their 17.4-over partnership tells a story. While Tendulkar was solid in defense, he let the bowlers bowl was attached to a perfect rhythm, and the odd well.
Scream after recovering from that Broad, Tendulkar played 40 balls for one run. Once again, Anderson came back and met immediately. He had Tendulkar dropped by Strauss, but produced a similar Inswing Broad two balls later, and Tendulkar was plumb.This was the sixth time in the game, an Englishman that had put a gate in the first over of a new spell.
Prior to the tea, with England easing of pressure, as they built up to the new ball was Raina and MS Dhoni India hope. Raina showed character, how he avoided bouncer, reaching half a century, only do him good. With the new ball, but England were back on track. The ball began to jagging again, and a shaken-up Dhoni eventually edges a outswinger from Tremlett.
A cold, ruthless destruction of the tail followed. Harbhajan Singh refused to return to England, but it worked with accurate short deliveries. Praveen Kumar was not much of a chance. Raina has come a jewel of Anderson in from round the stumps, then leaves him, and under the rim. Broad deservedly ended the game with a plumb LBW, which had fallen 18 runs last four.
Scenes of enthusiasm followed for the home side and the largest amount on Monday, Lord. England to feel relief finish off the job, and. Not only because they taught what happened in 2007, India had drawn from them, they would have to see positive things, now they have hurt the body and a series deficit.

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2011-07-25T03:55:00.000-07:00

Hayden in Brisbane Heat Twenty20

2011-07-25T02:33:00.000-07:00

He plans to have a part-owner of the Brisbane heat Twenty20 franchise will not be far from guaranteed, although suspended the air of inevitability about the announcement of his signature play for the team next summer, the expanded Big League Bash.
So far, only the Melbourne and Sydney is thunder Renegades have been authorized to seek minority private ownership of up to 49%, a process that currently oversees the financial services company Credit Suisse.
Other teams are currently closed, unofficial negotiations with potential investors, but ends the moratorium as soon as the Sydney and Melbourne prices are located.
In addition to playing, Hayden wants his company The Way Hayden with the heat as part of what he breathlessly as "a leisure-tainment and entertainment package, which were never seen on our shores in cricket" align.
However, Cricket Australia must be satisfied when the time is allowed for private investment in the heat, that will provide a worthwhile return on Hayden Company.
"We do not know what will be the timing, and it is subject to approval of Cricket Australia," a CA spokesman said. "In this phase, The Way Hayden is sharp, sharp Brisbane, and Matthew Hayden is in the queue first to a private investor to be in the heat."
Speaking in Brisbane, has to secure Hayden case for the use of T20 cricket in Australia in the future by appealing to a wider audience. He also said he was interested in international cricket against nations except England and India, a strong statement by a CA board member lost.
"There are a lot of things you can not control cricket, the future tours program is one of those, but we can control, our home," said Hayden. "From a commercial point of view in any case, I consider this a huge success, but it is key if there are mothers, fathers, families dead cricket, he enjoyed a three-hour set is not with the jewelry and charms, but a true More value.
"I love cricket and have been cricket inspired my whole life. I love the baggy green, I love what it stands for. But beneath the ashes, and possibly the Indian summer, I have for a long time for me ', said m largely in that particular competition un-invested. So for me now with witnessed first hand what it means [T20] as an entertainment proposal, first in the IPL and now within the franchise, I know it will re-engage us fan base.
"If children, mothers and fathers and families on rocks, then this is an investment that adds them to make them participate in our great game, then we will all have done both commercially and from a participation perspective.
"Lose I think most definitely people interested in the tournaments. I'll give you a prime example that the ICC Champions Trophy. Australia won the tournament, the first time that trophy ever in the closet was, and yet we know is something we have had an idea, but it was not the same effects as that might make what he did. The World Cup is incredibly important within the game, but there are challenges in the landscape, it is a very confusing scene. "
Australia's T20 competition was previously state-based, said Hayden was a bit of the way towards the national team and not something that he in attending such a player or investor who was interested. But in a somewhat convoluted argument, he also expected that his return to the domestic scene would help to educate young players with his experience.
"The reason why I've never been interested in this tournament until now I've always seen it as a way program," said Hayden. "It is within the players of the game, the states sat, and every point I took was an opportunity for a child to come and take the same position, and I would benefit from this wonderful way programs exist in our country.
"Now this is another statement, this is an entertainment package, and it's going to, whether we like it or not, and it has already, in competition with every other sports franchise, and there will be some rationalization of its past the next two years. I'm looking forward to see part of what fits best for cricket.
"When you lose someone like one [Adam] Gilchrist or [Shane] Warne and [Justin] Langer and Waugh, all of these players, you lose 20, 30, 40 years of cricket experience.'s Why I love the strategic direction with guys like Darren Lehman invested back into our great game, because you have a passionate love cricket, which has got an incredible skill set as players, but also information on our young people is key to the development of any culture.
"John Buchanan said, as he coaches from Australia and Queensland, that his ideal scenario to be redundant in this role was, and he did by raising the younger players in the more iconic items. I think I can this value to Add the dressing room as well. "

backin15: Abeyance

2011-07-25T01:33:00.000-07:00

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India struggle with nine wickets in hand in the final day

2011-07-25T01:00:00.000-07:00

Ruthless England came hard on wounded and bruised India, first by Matt Prior century and then through an exploratory 27 overs to end need Ninth Gate on the last day.However, India had fingernails dug into the edge of the cliff. Forced to bat and No. 2 and 3 were made Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman to look awkward, but she beat out 131 deliveries between them in the last session of the fourth day. Gautam Gambhir and Sachin Tendulkar were not available to bat in their usual positions of injuries and illnesses, because I respectively.

Who would have tuned into the game know that the actual game on the fourth day, some time in the last session would start when England - effectively 193 for 0 and the start of the day - would explain leaving India to bat four times, giving or take. The journey to this point proved to be fascinating though. Ishant Sharma, a rhythm bowler, found his groove against a surprisingly circumspect batting line-up, which England won five and 62 for Shoppers in an Indian incredibly weak edge of the frame.
Before and Stuart Broad then introduced to India a reality, all but ruled out their chances of winning 162-run with a seventh stand door. Together before the England team attitude when he attacked and scored a century at a strike price of 85.83, although defensive fields, he said only five fours and six began to hit. Wide and could do no wrong. After his unbeaten half-century, he took a wicket in the first over of a spell for the third time in this match, Abhinav Mukund, the removal, which was once again solid, before he spotted the outline.
Before-and Broad has a decent counter-attack to India in the absence of the injured Zaheer Khan. It helped that England were in their shells and the beginning of the day, though barely, the ball then swung. During this time, Praveen Kumar dismissed Alastair Cook for a rare single-digit levels, and Andrew Strauss fell on the second full sweep off Harbhajan Singh.
The next day belonged to Ishant. No matter where this game goes, the spell of 5-3-4-3 it rolled shortly before lunch significance for the rest of the series will keep. For starters, let Kevin Pietersen he knows that he will not be bullied. In the first innings Pietersen had completely switched off his line and length Ishant walk over and put it on. Today Ishant greeted him with a bouncer, got extra bounce and the glove. Then followed the two quintessence Ishant doors. Ian Bell is one that confronts him the angle to the left, with the edge. Past two gates in one. Two overs later, Ishant got one in heavily after Jonathan Trott, against the slope, and press the up and out. Sizes would get the ball out.
Sixty-seven runs came in 26 overs before lunch, for the loss of five gates. After lunch, India were not so aggressive. They did not want to Ishant, the rolling 11 overs in the first session had begun. If you Ishant again, he got a short ball Eoin Morgan, who has for the batsman in pace.
Prior, but the shell did not inhabit his teammates. His faced with aggression, supporting India a little. The fielders wilted. Before the in-and-out area used well. Every time he got room, he ran strongly, everything was punished in the other directly on the site, and perhaps the biggest blow was a meaty sweep in Gambhir elbows and short legs, minutes before tea. The batsman had to go to hospital for an x-ray to go, and came back just before stumps, with news that it is not broken.
Ago, India's spirits, though. Post tea, he went and Broad in Twenty20 mode, scoring 95 runs in 12 overs. Ishant resurgence of earlier now seemed just a little blip. India drew their specialist bowlers tired, no longer strives to England, asked for as long as possible to make. Dhoni made himself so open to Dravid because of the innings in a few minutes, keeping wicket door.
That did not affect the concentration of Dravid when he went to Prior's century, announced the declaration. The opener saw off eight overs, but came at the Broad Abhinav to dismiss in a similar way as the first innings: played on.
As with Abhinav, England tried to prevent the recurrence of dismissal with Laxman keep their fine bowling leg and into his ribs. Laxman took two boundaries on the ground.England first innings dismissal does not go through to Dravid. They still did well enough for him. Chris Tremlett and Broad bowled outswingers particularly outstanding. While the two were dedicated to, there was some luck involved, because it always happens in such situations: they were beaten 15 times between them.
One Broad about the nature of the rate of the two fought summed. The first ball swung away late against the outer edge. Dravid looked to cover the movement of the next ball, but this beat came and took the inside edge. Dravid looked to bounce, but the next has remained low. The bat was in the time it was down in the time before stumps.

Stunning Victory Helps India Level The Series

2010-12-29T03:46:00.000-08:00

A defiant Ashwell Prince stood in the way of India's charge for their second Test win in South Africa. In front of a disappointingly thin crowd at Kingsmead, the venue where India suffered one of their worst-ever Test defeats in 1996, their bowlers rarely bowled a bad delivery on the fourth morning, to put their side in sight of victory. A Sreesanth snorter to Jacques Kallis started South Africa's slide, before two lbws - one a marginal decision and the other a howler - that are sure to refuel the UDRS debate, hurt them further. India are firmly in charge at lunch, but teams have fought back from seemingly hopeless situations before in this Test.

If the match has to-and-fro-ed over the week, so has Sreesanth's bowling form. The wayward, antic-loving Sreesanth was missing on the fourth morning, as he sent down an accurate spell of sustained hostility. The highlight was in the seventh over of the day - an utterly unplayable bouncer which reared up sharply and jagged in to Kallis, who had no way to avoid it, arched his back in an attempt to get out of the way, but could only glove it to gully. It was the snorter that was needed to remove the kingpin of South Africa's batting.

That wicket put India slightly ahead, and there was no doubt who were front-runners after AB de Villiers decided to not offer a shot to a Harbhajan Singh delivery from round the wicket. He was struck in front of middle and looked lbw and the umpire agreed, though Hawk-Eye suggested the ball would have bounced over the stumps.

Over a decade in international cricket, Mark Boucher has built his reputation as a scrapper, and with Prince also around, it wasn't yet lights out for South Africa. Boucher, though, made only one before he was given lbw to a delivery that was angling across him and going to comfortably miss off stump.

South Africa had lost three wickets, and there was still no boundary in the morning, a testament to the scarcity of bad deliveries. When the first four did come, from Dale Steyn, it was an edge to third man. Steyn had pinged Zaheer Khan on the helmet with a quick bouncer on Tuesday, and the Indian responded with a string of short balls to the South African spearhead. After three of those, Zaheer slipped in a fuller delivery, which Steyn duly nicked to slip.

At 155 for 7, with lunch still 45 minutes away, the game looked set for a quick finish. Prince and Paul Harris, however, resisted with some dour batting, in addition to a couple of confident boundaries from Prince. They batted out the 10 overs to the break, to leave South Africa 121 adrift of an improbable win.

Zaheer Helps India Balance the Innings

2010-12-27T04:16:00.000-08:00

Zaheer Khan's return made an immediate impact as Graeme Smith departed early allowing India to test South Africa's middle order

On the first day, the track had plenty of juice making life difficult for the Indian batsmen, but with the sun shining on the second day, they expected an easier time - only for eight wickets to fall for 96 runs before lunch. The first four of those were the Indian tail-enders, which didn't tilt the game's balance much, but the remaining were South African top-order dismissals which helped India level the match.

Zaheer was accurate, extracting movement and frequently mouthing off at the batsmen. He had little support though, with Sreesanth wasting the new ball by regularly bowling down the leg. Zaheer stuck at it, and was rewarded with the wicket of Graeme Smith - for the 10th time in Tests - as a leaden-footed prod ended in MS Dhoni's gloves.

Alviro Petersen had begun fluently, dining on the freebies from Sreesanth, but like other batsmen in this match, he too didn't convert his start. On 24, he walked across to a Zaheer delivery and looked to work it towards the leg-side but the ball deflected onto the leg stump off his pad.

If there were any worries in the South African camp, they were doused by the soothing sight of Hashim Amla, continuing to be in supreme form, highlighted by a backfoot cover drive off Ishant Sharma. Kallis had also picked up a couple of early boundaries, and with ten minutes to lunch South Africa were looking good to end the session without further casualties.

That wasn't to be, though, as Ishant half-fielded a drive from Amla, the ball was parried onto the stumps at the non-striker's end, catching a diving Kallis short. Worse followed for South Africa, when de Villiers was taken out by a ripper from Sreesanth, bouncing sharply and cutting away to surprise the batsman, who thumbed it to the keeper.

India's batsmen had struggled as well earlier on. Much depended on the overnight pair of Harbhajan Singh and MS Dhoni but neither inspired much confidence: Harbhajan was reprieved at second slip by Kallis in the second over of the day, and Dhoni was worked over by Steyn in the next. Harbhajan kept prodding at deliveries outside off, and was dismissed soon after, snaffled brilliantly by de Villiers at third slip. Zaheer followed, stuck on the crease to a full ball and nicking it to the keeper.

Dhoni decided to go after the bowling, smashing Steyn for a six over long-off, one ball after top-edging an attempted pull over the keeper. The counterattack was brief as he holed out to sweeper cover for 35 to give Steyn his sixth wicket of the innings. Two deliveries later, Sreesanth picked up a golden duck, a wild swing swirling high and landing in Mark Boucher's gloves.

Steyn, Morkel leave India in tatters

2010-12-16T19:23:00.000-08:00

It lasted three deliveries. After weeks of anticipation, and a four-and-a-half-hour rain delay, the duel between Dale Steyn and Virender Sehwag ended the moment the batsman touched the ball at SuperSport Park. Anti-climatic it may have been, but the South Africans were in raptures. With Sehwag gone, Steyn and Morne Morkel gave India a hostile welcome - one that involved tenderising gloves, bruising bodies and the smell of lacquer and leather. India were hustled and hurried by bouncers, but it was the fuller follow-up delivery that brought South Africa the wickets.

The Indians had spent a week at Gary Kirsten's academy in Cape Town customising their preparation for today but no simulation could match the reality of Steyn and Morkel. The batsmen were unable to score - even if only to get off strike, to deny the bowler consecutive deliveries at a particular player and the time to execute plans. Of 122 deliveries bowled in the first session, 101 were dots and India's accomplished line-up continued to underperform in their bogey country.

Overnight and early-morning downpours had dampened conditions, prompting Graeme Smith, with an attack far classier than India's previous opponents New Zealand, to put India in. The first delivery set the tone: Steyn hit Gautam Gambhir's back pad and a close lbw appeal was denied. Sehwag shouldered arms twice in Steyn's opening over, and in the bowler's second, he attempted to flay the ball through cover point. It moved away a fraction and flew off the edge to Hashim Amla, placed at third man for precisely that. Steyn 1, Sehwag 0, India 1 for 1 and stunned.

Gambhir was perhaps lucky on 1, when a ripsnorter from Morkel rose from a length and sped towards his face. Gambhir began to sway and then fended helplessly. The ball appeared to kiss the glove and was pouched by Mark Boucher, but umpire Steve Davis shook his head. Morkel had touched speeds of 150kph during his first spell and was perhaps just too quick.

The reprieve cost South Africa only four runs, perhaps the hardest runs Gambhir has made. Morkel pounded in from round the wicket, pitched the ball short of a length, angled it into the left-hander, targeting the body and sometimes the head. Pinned to the crease without room outside off, Gambhir ducked and defended in discomfort.

There was no respite against Steyn either. Following a brief exchange of words, Steyn let rip. Gambhir took his eyes off the bouncer and took the ball on his back. The next ball was fuller, moved away from the left-hander, and beat the tentative poke outside off stump. Gambhir was soon put out of his misery, though, and it was the follow-up ball to the bouncer that got him. Having been cornered by the short-pitched attack from Morkel, he drove at a fuller one with poor footwork, and edged to first slip.

Dravid had appeared the most comfortable, relatively speaking, taking his bottom hand off the bat to fend off rising deliveries, careful to leave anything outside off, and compact while playing deliveries aimed at his body. Morkel then got one to jag sharply into him from outside off. Dravid was caught on the crease, hit on the pad and Morkel was celebrating his 100th Test wicket, having reduced India to 27 for 3.

The smattering of rain-resistant spectators gave Sachin Tendulkar a warm reception and he responded to adversity by taking on the less-threatening Lonwabo Tsotsobe. Tendulkar pulled him twice for fours from outside off stump, drove fluently through cover and guided to third man. Neither Tendulkar nor VVS Laxman was tested much by South Africa's support act, but their respite was fleeting and ended soon after the break for tea.

Tendulkar continued to attack Steyn, edging past his stumps before driving through extra cover and cutting past point - all for boundaries. Steyn responded with two similar deliveries, on a good length, straight and fast. The first beat Laxman's flick from the crease and uprooted middle stump. The second beat Tendulkar's flick from the crease and hit the pad, otherwise it too would have uprooted middle stump. Between those dismissals Suresh Raina, who appeared brittle as a leaf in a thunderstorm, had edged Jacques Kallis to third slip. India, at 71 for 6, were being cooked on a braai.

Harbhajan Singh fought, as he usually does, but a trigger movement towards leg as the fast bowlers attacked him betrayed nervousness. He hit the day's first six, clouting Tsotsobe over long-on, before losing his grip on the bat while attempting a third to be run out. The tailenders had no chance against the barrage, and only Dhoni, with his awkward movements, threw a few counterpunches.

Rain had threatened to ruin the opening day of the series, the terrific efforts of the groundstaff had ensured it wasn't washed out, and similar efforts from South Africa's fearsome new-ball attack ensured that lost time was made up.

India Clean Sweap 5-0

2010-12-10T08:43:00.001-08:00

New Zealand were at the receiving end of another humiliation as a hapless batting performance led to their lowest score against India and sealed a 0-5 whitewash. On a dry pitch susceptible to the influence of the overcast weather, New Zealand were keen to make the most of initially favourable batting conditions. But their edginess against pace at the start of the innings, and capitulation to spin later on, ensured their misery in ODIs continued.

The pitch offered limited assistance to the bowlers and was not responsible for the domination that India showed; New Zealand's inability to survive perhaps was. The seamers were crafty enough to make use of the hint of swing and movement available early on, the spinners, led by R Ashwin, varied their lengths, pace and worked the angles well to prove more than a handful against the middle and lower orders.

Praveen Kumar's control and Ashish Nehra's quick recovery from a Brendon McCullum onslaught in his first over set up India. Praveen earned his prize straight away, beginning with three straight-ish deliveries before getting one to nip away and prompt a fatal poke from Martin Guptill. Nehra had a contrasting start, struggling for line and length, dragging one short to be dispatched over square leg and providing width to be slammed through the off side for two boundaries. McCullum's aggressive posture, characterized by his advances down the wicket as well as moving well across to look for scoring opportunities, promised an entertaining counterattack. It caused his downfall instead, as he shuffled across to Nehra and was done in by the inswing to be caught on the pads, leaving New Zealand 14 for 2.

Smart stats

This is the second time India have won an ODI series 5-0. The only previous instance was against England in 2008-09, when a seven-match series was curtailed to five due to the terrorist attack in Mumbai. India won each of those five games.
For New Zealand, it was their fourth 5-0 drubbing in a five-match series. Three of those four series defeats have happened since 2003.
New Zealand's total of 103 is their lowest in a completed innings against India. It's their second-lowest in India - they'd scored six runs fewer against Australia in Faridabad in 2003.
India won with 173 balls to spare, which is their fourth-highest in all ODIs and their best against New Zealand. For the visitors too, it's the fourth-heaviest defeat in terms of balls remaining.
Over the five-match series, Indian batsmen averaged 56.95 runs per wicket, at a strike rate of 94.05 runs per 100 balls, and scored four hundreds. New Zealand averaged 24.38 at a strike rate of 80.43, and didn't manage a single hundred.
Ashish Nehra became the 11th Indian bowler to take 150 ODI wickets.

The pitch largely behaved itself for the duration of the innings and the Indian bowlers, for their part, provided reasonable opportunities to ease the pressure. Ross Taylor looked confident, piercing the field with some delicious drives past mid-off, but his stay ended with an instinctive attempt at a pull against Nehra, and the ball scraped the glove on the way to Parthiv Patel. Jamie How appeared on course to lend some respectability to what's been a miserable series with some lovely flicks off his pads and Scott Styris seemed determined to get the innings back on track, but the steadiness that they had painstakingly brought to the innings was obliterated by spin.

The slow bowlers were expected to play a prominent role as the day wore on and it didn't take long for Yuvraj Singh to step into the act. In the 17th over, after having built a stand of 43 with Styris, How tried to play across the line and was bowled as the ball straightened. Styris misread the length and played the sweep, almost as an afterthought, against Ashwin in the next over to be caught plumb. And Grant Elliott, included in the line-up to strengthen the batting, made no impact, failing to read the straighter one from Yuvraj to be lbw.

Three wickets in three overs, and the departure of Daniel Vettori to a catch at slip not long after indicated New Zealand were in a hurry to finish the game even before the weather, overcast and ominous, was given a chance to intervene. Sure enough, Kyle Mills' inability to read Ashwin's carrom ball and Tim Southee's gifting a catch to short leg marked a sorry end to a line-up that bats deep.

The early wickets of the in-form Gautam Gambhir and Virat Kohli were the only consolation as New Zealand succumbed to a 0-5 battering, with their World Cup preparations in disarray following a bitter experience in two recent assignments in the subcontinent. India, for their part, have been boosted by the successful return of Yusuf Pathan and the consistency of Ashwin, while consecutive fifties from Parthiv Patel have further spiced up the selection race for the World Cup.

Yusuf's blazing ton flattens New Zealand

2010-12-09T00:13:00.001-08:00

They said he couldn't perform in international cricket. They said he was good only for IPL and domestic cricket. He proved them wrong tonight. Yusuf Pathan engineered an improbable win for India with a violent hundred, his first in ODIs, and perhaps sealed a World Cup berth for himself. It looked grim for India when they were tottering at 188 for 5 in the 34th over, after the fall of Rohit Sharma, but Pathan pulled off a heist. One game doesn't guarantee a successful future of course, especially considering that this New Zealand attack wasn't potent enough to provide a stern test of his weakness against short balls, but Pathan left his past behind with a potentially career-changing innings on a drizzly Bangalore night. His century overshadowed a superbly-crafted 98 from James Franklin that had allowed New Zealand to reach a daunting total.

Pathan declared his intent with two brutal shots. The first came in the 37th over, when play resumed after a one-hour rain break that didn't reduce any overs and left India needing 113 runs from 14. Yusuf launched a Daniel Vettori delivery into screaming fans beyond long-on and clubbed a length delivery from Kyle Mills over the roof at cow corner. Those two imperious hits gave a feeling, then, that he could pull off a special win.

A couple of quiet overs followed but Pathan roused himself in a violent 43rd over: he smashed Mills for three fours - a lofted hit overs cover and two flicks past short fine-leg - before crashing a length delivery for six over midwicket. And when he brought up his maiden hundred with a pulled six, off Andy McKay in the next over, the game was all but over. He found support in Saurabh Tiwary, who intelligently rotated the strike, and the pair gave India a 4-0 lead in the series.

It was an incredible effort considering India had lagged behind for a major part of the chase. McKay's twin strikes to remove Gautam Gambhir and Virat Kohli in the 10th over and Nathan McCullum's double-strike to dismiss Yuvraj Singh and Parthiv Patel, who hit his maiden fifty, had pushed India on the back foot. And when Tim Southee had Rohit Sharma hitting straight to mid-off, New Zealand would have been thinking about the win, but Yusuf crushed their hopes with a blinder.

As good as their batting was in the end overs, their death bowling nearly lost India the game. Franklin's knock provided the perfect climax to New Zealand's spirited approach; the openers attacked to take them to 91 for 2 in the 14th over and the middle-order adapted to the fall of wickets - rebuilding at a slower pace before Franklin's final flourish.

Franklin looted 22 runs in the final over, bowled by Nehra, with some wickedly entertaining big hits: he smashed the second delivery to the straight boundary, the third over long-off, the fourth to midwicket, and the fifth to the wide long-off boundary. It was not, however, a knock of such fury and adrenalin from the start. He had built his innings with conventional shots, such as the one in 47th over, when he was batting with the tail and was under some pressure. He sashayed down the track to Yusuf Pathan, who had just picked up two wickets, and nonchalantly flicked him wide of the deep midwicket fielder. No manic rush or desperation, he simply carried on with his style, sweeping the spinners and flicking and square-driving the seamers to get to his fifty. Only in the final two overs did he explode. It seemed he had done enough to win the game for his team, especially after India's top-order had collapsed, but Yusuf seized the day.

India seals series win against New Zealand

2010-12-04T03:44:00.000-08:00

New Zealand's one-day woes continued into a ninth straight game as their batting failed to cope with moist early-morning conditions in Vadodara. Zaheer Khan, coming back after injury, and Munaf Patel swung and seamed the ball all right, but New Zealand will look back at how unremarkable their response was. With the pitch easing out in the afternoon, Gautam Gambhir made the chase look ridiculously easy, becoming only the eighth captain to score centuries in back-to-back ODIs.

From the time he won the toss and put New Zealand in, Gambhir hardly put a foot wrong, keeping his perfect captaincy record and India's unbeaten home season intact. New Zealand's openers gifted their wickets, the middle order went into a shell, and even though James Franklin and Nathan McCullum added 94 for the eighth wicket, it was never going to be enough. Not with Gambhir making room and peppering the off side with drives and cuts, bringing up his fifty in 30 balls, out of India's 64 then.

Watching Gambhir bat, the struggle New Zealand went through early in the morning seemed far away. Brendon McCullum, making a comeback himself, laid out a welcome mat for Zaheer, guiding a widish delivery straight to second slip. Martin Guptill ran himself out soon after.

Between those dismissals, Williamson set the template for the day. His front foot went across to the first ball he faced. It swung in enough down the leg side to be called a wide, but Williamson had fallen over trying to correct the movement. Neither Williamson nor Ross Taylor could get rid of that tendency during their short stays. Taylor's wicket, though, came in a tame fashion as he tried drive Zaheer on the up. The shot was played away from his body, and an inside edge ensued.

Taylor's No. 4 position has been a matter of debate, with arguments that he should take more responsibility and bat at No. 3. Williamson's inability to counterattack only seemed to highlight that notion. For the third game running, he got off to a slow start, and did little to hit Munaf off his plan.

Munaf loves to bowl back of a length, just outside off, and wobble the ball slightly either way. He tends to get a bit rattled when somebody uses that predictability to come down and hit him. In this series, though, no one has come close to doing that. And once Williamson allowed Munaf to do what he wanted, that lbw call seemed a matter of time with the batsman regularly falling over.

Modern captains tend to go into the containment mode once the 15th over ends irrespective of how many wickets they might have got. Gambhir, who had put New Zealand in, was refreshingly old-school. When he saw R Ashwin turn the first ball, he set Test-match fields for Scott Styris and James Franklin. Yuvraj, at leg slip, soon came into action taking a sharp low catch to send Styris back. Daniel Vettori did a B McCullum, guiding Yusuf Pathan straight to slip for another sharp catch for Yuvraj, who later returned to leg slip to get rid of Gareth Hopkins too.

Having fallen behind the over-rate, though, Gambhir omitted to use four of Zaheer and Nehra's overs. Facing part-time spinners on a pitch that had eased out a bit, Franklin and N McCullum had little trouble building a partnership. It was almost as if Gambhir was not concerned at all by their stand.

The way he turned out with the bat, Gambhir need not have worried either.

After having been at the wrong end of Gambhir's off-side play in Jaipur, New Zealand tried to cramp him up, and found that Gambhir was equally adept at scoring through the on side. He flicked the second ball he faced fine for a boundary. In Kyle Mills' next over, he picked the gap between mid-on and midwicket. In Mills' next, Gambhir started making room and went into his favourite off side. He capitalised on the correction on the next delivery, moving to 23 off 11.

Andy McKay got the same treatment: wide ball, four; too straight, four; wide again, four. With time, Gambhir's favourite chips over extra cover and midwicket came out too. He might have seemed to slow down after reaching his fifty, but he took only 58 further deliveries to get to the hundred.

M Vijay didn't struggle like he did in Jaipur, but had to stay content with being the lesser partner in the opening stand. And like he did in Japiur, Virat Kohli came out and scored a half-century in the company of his captain as India cantered home.

India On a Hattrick!!!

2010-12-03T16:11:00.000-08:00

Three games remain but the ODI series already seems to be heading into a one-way street, and the focus has shifted towards the preparations for the World Cup. The success of Virat Kohli, Gautam Gambhir, R Ashwin, and Sreesanth must have heartened the Indian camp and the spotlight is now on the likes of Yusuf Pathan. Suresh Raina, who has one ODI fifty in the last 17 games, has got a break and his form can now be only monitored in South Africa.

Yusuf doesn't have much time to stake his claim. When Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag get back, and given Kohli's rich form, the think-tank could choose to play Yuvraj Singh as the allrounder at the expense of Yusuf and Ravindra Jadeja. Ashwin has perhaps already shoved Jadeja out of the equation with his performances.

That leaves Yusuf in the hot seat. You can understand India's desire to see him succeed. The pitches for the World Cup will most likely be flat patta tracks where Yusuf can hide his shortcomings against the short ball, and showcase his brutal power. Hope floats. On the other hand, we saw him suffocated by the short delivery even on the Indian tracks during the IPL this year and, unfortunately for him, his bowling hasn't reached a level where it can compensate for weaknesses in batting. Three games to go, a seat in the World Cup dugout awaits, will he seize the moment?

New Zealand have lost both games and the World Cup puzzle is yet to fall in place: Should Ross Taylor replace Kane Williamson at the crucial No. 3 position? When Brendon McCullum and Jesse Ryder return at the top, will Taylor, Scott Styris, and Williamson take up the positions from No.3 to No. 5? If Daniel Vettori bats at No. 7, who will then fill up the vital No. 6 slot? "Jacob Oram if he's fit, [James] Franklin is in the mix but I don't think [No.] 6 suits Grant Elliott's batting style," Craig McMillian, the former New Zealand batsman, believes. And where does Martin Guptill figure in this line-up?

The New Zealand seamers disappointed with their inconsistency in the first two games but a few good things have come out in the batting department. Guptill, prone to spontaneously combust after getting starts, has had two good games; Styris is proving as dependable as ever in the lower order; Vettori showed signs of returning to batting form after an indifferent run in the Tests; Taylor had a good first game and looked good for more in the second; Williamson is learning how to pace his innings and while he is yet to crack it, this experience will be invaluable.

Zaheer returns for remaining ODIs

2010-12-02T05:51:00.000-08:00

Zaheer Khan, the India fast bowler, has been included in the squad for the remaining three ODIs against New Zealand after he missed the third Test and the first two ODIs with a groin strain. Praveen Kumar, who missed the first two ODIs with a fever, also made a comeback.

The Indian selectors also gave Suresh Raina a break for the rest of the series following comments by MS Dhoni saying the batsman needed a rest. Sreesanth, too, didn't feature in the squad. Both of them will presumably leave for South Africa early to prepare for the Test series, which begins on December 16.

Rohit Sharma, the Mumbai batsman who was dropped after the tri-series in Sri Lanka in August, is part of the squad for the fourth and fifth ODIs. Rohit is currently representing Mumbai in a Ranji Trophy game against Gujarat in Valsad, which won't finish before the third ODI that will be played in Vadodara on December 4.

Medium-pacer R Vinay Kumar will stay with the team for third ODI, but will be released to play for Karnataka by the time the fourth and fifth ODIs arrive. The only other change in the squad for the fourth and fifth games is Parthiv Patel taking over wicketkeeping duties from Wriddhiman Saha, who might also be leaving for South Africa.

Squad for third ODI: Gautam Gambhir (capt), M Vijay, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Saurabh Tiwary, Yusuf Pathan, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), R Ashwin, Zaheer Khan, Ashish Nehra, Praveen Kumar, Munaf Patel, Ravindra Jadeja, R Vinay Kumar.

Squad for fourth and fifth ODIs: Gautam Gambhir (capt), M Vijay, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Saurabh Tiwary, Yusuf Pathan, Parthiv Patel (wk), R Ashwin, Ashish Nehra, Munaf Patel, Zaheer Khan, Praveen Kumar, Ravindra Jadeja, Rohit Sharma.

Gautam Gambhir sets up India's chase

2010-12-01T08:11:00.000-08:00

Gautam Gambhir continued his return to form and gave India a favourable start in their chase of a fighting total set by New Zealand. At the halfway mark, Gambhir was unbeaten on 67 from 60 balls, out of India's 126.

M Vijay's struggles at the other end highlighted how well Gambhir batted. New Zealand started with a spinner, presumably to get through some of Nathan McCullum's overs before dew made it difficult for him to grip the ball. From then on, Vijay struggled with the slowness of the pitch.

Gambhir, though, timed almost everything sweetly except for a couple of inside edges that went for fours. Against Kyle Mills, he walked down the pitch on a couple of occasions to create the driving length. When Mills pitched slightly short, he cut him away. The driving between mid-off and extra cover stood out.

By the end of the eight over, Gambhir had scored four times Vijay's eight, taking India to 40, and putting Mills out of the attack. Against Scott Styris he made room and went over extra cover. Andy McKay strayed too straight, and was clipped for four into the leg side. There was not a hint of power; the short back lift emphasised how well he timed the ball.

Vijay continued his patchy innings until he tried a premeditated slog-sweep off Daniel Vettori in the 18th over, and was bowled. Gambhir, though, had reached 54 off 48 by then, out of India's 87, and the loss of Vijay did not hold him back: he kept going over midwicket and extra cover. A crucial moment came in the 22nd over when Gambhir's bat got stuck into the ground as he tried to slide it in, but Vettori failed to collect the throw cleanly and Gambhir was let off.

Cricket World Cup 2011

2010-12-01T02:10:00.000-08:00

Cricket World Cup 2011: India as the main host of ICC Cricket World Cup 2011, Cricket World Cup 2011 venue includes stadiums of cities like Dhaka, Mumbai, Kolkata, Mohali, Colombo, Chennai, Nagpur, Ahmedabad, chittagong and Bangalore. Cricket World Cup 2011 venue also includes new venues like Pallekelle and Hambantota – both being in Sri Lanka.

Cricket World Cup 2011 teams: Cricket World Cup 2011 teams include 4 times winner Australia, 2 times winners West Indies, South Africa, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, New Zealand, Netherlands, Canada, Ireland, England and Kenya. Groups in which Cricket World Cup 2011 teams are divided:

Group A – Australia, Pakistan, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Canada and Kenya.

Group B – India, South Africa, England, Bangladesh, West Indies, Netherlands and Ireland.

ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 Fixtures / Time Table:

S.NO.	DATE	TEAMS	VENUE
1	19 February 2011	India vs Bangladesh	Dhaka
2	20 February 2011	New Zealand vs Kenya	Chennai
3	20 February 2011	Sri Lanka vs Canada	Hambantota
4	21 February 2011	Australia vs Zimbabwe	Ahmedabad
5	22 February 2011	England vs Netherlands	Nagpur
6	23 February 2011	Pakistan vs Kenya	Hambantota
7	24 February 2011	South Africa vs West Indies	New Delhi
8	25 February 2011	Australia vs New Zealand	Nagpur
9	25 February 2011	Bangladesh vs Ireland	Dhaka
10	26 February 2011	Sri Lanka vs Pakistan	Colombo
11	27 February 2011	India vs England	Kolkata
12	28 February 2011	West Indies vs Netherlands	New Delhi

13	28 February 2011	Zimbabwe vs Canada	Nagpur
14	1 March 2011	Sri Lanka vs Kenya	Colombo
15	2 March 2011	England vs Ireland	Bangalore
16	3 March 2011	South Africa vs Netherlands	Mohali
17	3 March 2011	Pakistan vs Canada	Colombo
18	4 March 2011	New Zealand vs Zimbabwe	Ahmedabad
19	4 March 2011	Bangladesh vs West Indies	Dhaka
20	5 March 2011	Sri Lanka vs Australia	Colombo
21	6 March 2011	India vs Ireland	Bangalore
22	6 March 2011	England vs South Africa	Chennai
23	7 March 2011	Kenya vs Canada	New Delhi
24	8 March 2011	Pakistan vs New Zealand	Pallekelle
25	9 March 2011	India vs Netherlands	New Delhi
26	10 March 2011	Sri Lanka vs Zimbabwe	Pallekelle
27	11 March 2011	West Indies vs Ireland	Mohali
28	11 March 2011	Bangladesh vs England	Chittagong
29	12 March 2011	India vs South Africa	Nagpur
30	13 March 2011	New Zealand vs Canada	Mumbai
31	13 March 2011	Australia vs Kenya	Bangalore
32	14 March 2011	Pakistan vs Zimbabwe	Pallekelle
33	14 March 2011	Bangladesh vs Netherlands	Chittagong
34	15 March 2011	South Africa vs Ireland	Kolkata
35	16 March 2011	Australia vs Canada	Bangalore
36	17 March 2011	England vs West Indies	Chennai
37	18 March 2011	Sri Lanka vs New Zealand	Mumbai
38	18 March 2011	Ireland vs Netherlands	Kolkata
39	19 March 2011	Australia vs Pakistan	Colombo
40	19 March 2011	Bangladesh vs South Africa	Dhaka
41	20 March 2011	Zimbabwe vs Kenya	Kolkata
42	20 March 2011	India vs West Indies	Chennai
43	23 March 2011	First Quarterfinal	Dhaka
44	24 March 2011	Second Quarterfinal	Colombo
45	25 March 2011	Third Quarterfinal	Dhaka
46	26 March 2011	Fourth Quarterfinal	Ahmedabad
47	29 March 2011	First Semifinal	Colombo
48	30 March 2011	Second Semifinal	Mohali
49	02 Apr	FINAL	Mumbai

The Big Show

2010-11-30T22:17:00.000-08:00

First the good news: Daniel Vettori, who missed the first ODI, is fit to play the second game. However it's learnt that Brendon McCullum is a doubtful starter and New Zealand, who are already missing Jesse Ryder, have lost the services of Daryl Tuffey due to a bicep strain.

Of late, there seems to be a pattern to New Zealand's one-day chases. They appear to dawdle initially and allow the required rate to climb, and then lose wickets in a heap in a frantic effort to keep the chase on track. In the absence of three key players, it was always going to be difficult for New Zealand to put up a fight in the first one-dayer.

Without McCullum (if he doesn't get fit in time) and Ryder, much will depend on Ross Taylor. He had a very average Test series but took his first step towards regaining form with 66 in the first match. Martin Guptill provides aggression at the top and Kane Williamson adds stability in the middle. Gareth Hopkins, the wicketkeeper, has however been disappointing so far on this tour.

India would have been gladdened by a couple of developments in the first match. Virat Kohli hit his second successive hundred and the way he paced and built his innings stood out. R Ashwin too impressed with his control and composure in the Powerplays, while Munaf Patel caught the eye with a disciplined effort.

There were couple of concerns as well. Sreesanth picked up two wickets in the end but struggled with the new ball. His career economy rate is over six and he has struggled with his lengths in the shorter formats. Suresh Raina hit 71 against Australia in his last one-dayer before this series but went 15 games before that without a half-century. MS Dhoni had said he hoped that Raina will get a break after this match, ahead of the South Africa tour, but had added that it would depend on his performance in the first two games.

Form guide

(most recent first)

India: WWLWL
New Zealand: LLLLL

Watch out for...

Kane Williamson looked solid in the Tests and has hit an ODI hundred against Bangladesh's spinners in his last series. The Jaipur track is reported to play slow and aid turn, and Williamson's skills will come to the fore.

M Vijay impressed with his brief, but skilful, innings in the first game on a wicket that aided the seamers initially. He played his shots and looked good for more before he threw his wicket away. It's something that we have seen in the past as well: he has been guilty of failing to convert starts. Can he play a big knock tomorrow?

Pitch and conditions

The pitch is expected to play slow, but a bigger worry could be dew in the evening. "Obviously dew is a big factor, they do use the chemical to reduce its effect, but I don't think it makes much of a difference," Gautam Gambhir said. "The wicket appears to be on the slower side and it might a spin a bit. We could [play an extra spinner]. Because it looks a little dry, it might spin if we bowl first."

Teams

Vettori will replace Tuffey and, given the conditions, New Zealand could retain Nathan McCullum as well. They will hope that Brendon McCullum wins the race for fitness.

New Zealand (probable): 1 Jamie How, 2 Martin Guptill, 3 Ross Taylor, 4 Scott Styris, 5 Kane Williamson, 6 Grant Elliott / James Franklin, 7 Daniel Vettori (capt), 8 Gareth Hopkins (wk), 9 Nathan McCullum, 10 Kyle Mills, 11 Andy McKay

With Gambhir mulling the possibility of playing an extra spinner, Ravindra Jadeja will fancy his chances of getting a game, coming in for either Sreesanth or Munaf Patel.

India (probable): 1 M Vijay, 2 Gautam Gambhir (capt), 3 Virat Kohli, 4 Yuvraj Singh, 5 Suresh Raina, 6 Yusuf Pathan, 7 Ravindra Jadeja , 8 Wriddiman Saha (wk), 9 Ashwin, 10 Sreesanth / Munaf Patel, 11 Ashish Nehra

Daryl Tuffey to return home

2010-11-29T23:25:00.000-08:00

Daryl Tuffey, the New Zealand fast bowler, will return home to recover from a bicep strain he suffered during the first one-day international against India in Guwahati. New Zealand have not named a replacement yet, and will do so if the need arises during the ongoing five-ODI series.

"Daryl developed some discomfort in his right bicep when playing but was able to manage it during the match," Mark Greatbatch, New Zealand's coach and selector, said. "It's appears to be okay when he bowls but he's unable to throw without pain, so he will return to New Zealand for further assessment and treatment."

Tuffey took 2 for 56 in eight overs during the series opener, which New Zealand lost by 40 runs to go 0-1 down in the series. Brendon McCullum and Daniel Vettori did not play that match because of back problems and their fitness will be assessed ahead of the second ODI in Jaipur on December 1.

"We are hopeful that both Dan and Brendon will be available for the next match," Greatbatch said. "Dan is more likely at this stage but we are monitoring both on a day-by-day basis. A decision on the final line-up is not expected until shortly before the match."