ENM TROPHY

ENM Trophy 2017 -(Get-Together)

2017-09-09T23:09:00.000+05:30

https://www.facebook.com/ENM-Trophy-Uva-Wellassa-University-683076311773787/?hc_ref=ARRCMaZRFYZQ8ssbA2zUQf5P76vhLi3OXm9nKNgwPMirJEX8pacxdQ34eWf9K80I5Sc

Ireland and Afghanistan ICC newest full members amid wide-ranging governance reform

2017-06-22T23:43:00.001+05:30

Afghanistan and Ireland were today confirmed as Full Members of the International Cricket Council (ICC) after a unanimous vote at the ICC Full Council meeting at the Oval.

Afghanistan and Ireland were today confirmed as Full Members of the International Cricket Council (ICC) after a unanimous vote at the ICC Full Council meeting at the Oval. Both will now be eligible to play Test cricket following a Membership Committee recommendation that the respective Full Member applications from each met the newly approved membership criteria and should be put forward for approval.

ICC Chief Executive David Richardson said: “I’d like to congratulate Afghanistan and Ireland on their Full Membership status which is the result of their dedication to improving performance both off and on the field resulting in the significant development and growth of cricket in their respective countries. Both have clearly demonstrated they meet the new criteria and as such have made the progression to Full Membership.”

Afghanistan Cricket Board Chief Executive Shafiq Stanikzai said: “For a nation like Afghanistan it is a huge and remarkable achievement, the entire nation will be celebrating across all five regions and different provinces, it is the perfect Eid gift. Everyone has waited for this news and has been so keen to hear this news. Afghanistan Cricket has gone from strength to strength and we dared to dream that this would happen and today it has become a reality.

“I would like to thank the ICC and the Board who have demonstrated today that they are committed to growing the global game and rewarding nations who are performing on and off the field. As an administrator every achievement is huge and it opens the doors to new challenges and we need to work hard to maintain and sustain our development at the top of the cricket world.”

Cricket Ireland Chief Executive Warren Deutrom said: “We are delighted and proud with today’s historic announcement. It is an extraordinary testament to the talent and endeavour of thousands of passionate players, coaches, volunteers, staff, clubs and committee people.

We would like to thank most sincerely the ICC and its members for bestowing this honour on us today. It is a reflection not just of our past achievements but of our potential to grow our great game. We shall spend the next 24 hours marking the moment and celebrating this great day for Irish cricket and next week the hard work of planning to transition to full membership and Test status begins in earnest.”

The decision followed the unanimous adoption of an extensively revised constitution for the ICC which in addition to transforming the membership process through the adoption of new membership criteria, introduced a female Independent Director and a Deputy Chairman and equalised Board voting.

The Membership Committee which will consider all future requests for membership – full and associate – against an objective set of criteria. In addition Affiliate Membership has now been removed leaving only Full and Associate Members, with all previously categorised Affiliate Members becoming Associate Members.

Other changes to the constitution include the appointment of a Deputy Chairman, who shall assume the duties of Chairman, Shashank Manohar, when he is unable to fulfil his duties. In addition, a female Independent Director with full voting rights will be recruited to the ICC Board.

The voting composition of the ICC Board will also change so that every Board Member – including Full Member and Associate Member Directors, as well as the Independent Chairman and Independent Director – will each have equal votes, with a two-thirds majority necessary for a resolution to be approved. In future, the Chairman of the Associate Members (who comprises one of the three Associate Member Directors) will also be required to be independent of any Member Board.

The ICC Board also unanimously agreed a new financial model, thereby reversing the 2014 resolutions and giving greater equality in the distribution of ICC income. As such the revenue distribution for the cycle 2016-2023 will be as follows:

Based on current forecasted revenues and costs, BCCI will receive $405m across the eight year cycle, ECB $139m, Zimbabwe Cricket $94m and the seven existing Full Members $128m each. The Associate Members (together with Ireland and Afghanistan) will collectively receive funding of $240m.

The ICC Full Council also voted unanimously to expel USACA following a Board recommendation in April and a recent Dispute Resolution Committee hearing before the Honourable Michael Beloff QC, which concluded last week. Further details will be issued in the coming days outlining the process which will now be followed to establish a new governing body for cricket in the USA that is capable of unifying the fractured cricket community in that part of the world.

ICC Chairman Shashank Manohar said: “I would like to thank all ICC members for their commitment to changing the constitution for the good of the global game. This is the first step towards the ICC improving its governance and I believe that these changes will benefit all members and enable us to continue to grow the global game.

“Throughout this process we have shown the strength of a collective and unified approach and I would like to pay tribute to my Board colleagues who have been so determined to reach consensus. They have not focused solely on their own country but have ensured cricket around the world benefits.”

Pakistan's trophy cabinet is complete! (Pakistan Won ICC CT2017 )

2017-06-18T23:18:00.001+05:30

Fakhar’s swashbuckling ton, Amir’s sensational opening burst consign India to 180-run hammering in final.

Pakistan completed an incredible run from No. 8 in the ICC ODI rankings to win its maiden ICC Champions Trophy title, with an 180-run annihilation of India at The Oval on Sunday (June 18). Equally importantly, it also got the monkey off its back as it was the first time it defeated India in an ICC event since 2009, and only the third time ever. It meant it ended the tournament in stark contrast to how it had started it, when it was on the other side of the result as the sides met in a group game. Everything apart from the toss went Pakistan’s way. Sent in to bat, Pakistan rode on Fakhar Zaman’s maiden ODI ton to post a daunting 338 for 4 before Mohammad Amir’s carnage with the ball destroyed India for 158 in just 30.3 overs. The margin could have been even bigger if not for Hardik Pandya’s late 43-ball 76.

Pakistan had a dream run in the tournament, but doubts remained over its ability to tackle the pressures of an India game, let alone that of a final. It answered that in emphatic fashion with a clinical performance, outplaying India in all facets of the game. First, it was the turn of the batsmen, led by Fakhar. The opener did not play Pakistan’s earlier game against India, and showed Virat Kohli’s men the difference he can make as he smashed a swashbuckling 114 off 106 balls. It could so easily have been his first failure when he was caught behind on three, but Jasprit Bumrah had overstepped. Importantly, Fakhar made use of the good fortune and went on to add 128 for the opening wicket with Azhar Ali (59) before Babar Azam (46) and Mohammad Hafeez (57* off 37) capitalised on the platform. Pakistan still had a tough task of restricting the in-form Indian batsmen. It had spoken about exposing India’s hitherto untested middle order and Amir took care of the execution, nipping out India’s top three run-scorers -- Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma and Kohli -- within the first nine overs. Once that was done, the rest of the plan took care of itself.

On the other hand, India looked surprisingly switched off. R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja conceded 137 runs from a combined 18 overs, Bumrah was so ordinary he didn’t even complete his quota. India bowled 13 wides and three no-balls, missed run-out opportunities and was generally sloppy. In fact, the first phase of the innings was a contest of which team was sloppier. Quite uncharacteristically, India won that battle, which meant Pakistan edged ahead in the actual game. India’s biggest miss came when Bumrah had Fakhar caught behind in the fourth over, only for the wicket to be denied by a no-ball. The runs were flowing but it wasn’t even like Pakistan’s batsmen were in complete control. Fakhar in particular was all nerves but once he settled in, he played some terrific shots. Apart from his temperament, his nimble footwork that messed up the spinners’ lengths was impressive. With Azhar steady, Pakistan coasted to 114 without loss by the 20th over while India looked clueless and wrecked.

India got a lucky break when a ball-watching Fakhar left Azhar stranded, but the youngster showed tremendous maturity in moving on. Zaman ensured Pakistan kept the momentum, smashing Ashwin and Jadeja for two sixes and three fours in a two-over span. Another boundary with a sweep off Ashwin took him past his maiden century, but he fell soon after when he carved Pandya to point. But yet again, the set batsman ensured Pakistan wouldn’t lose momentum. Babar took control, dominating a 47-run stand for the third wicket before the pair passed on the baton to Hafeez and Imad Wasim, who shared an unbeaten 71-run partnership off 47 balls as Pakistan added 91 in the last ten. Once the baton was passed to the bowlers, Amir didn’t look remotely close to someone who had missed the previous match with back spasms. He bent that back, bowled with pace, and also got sharp swing. One such inswinger trapped Rohit leg before off the third ball, separating the successful Indian opening pair of Rohit and Dhawan without a run on the board.

The bigger wicket came in Amir’s next over when Kohli got a leading edge to point. It was even more incredible, considering Kohli had been dropped at first slip just the previous ball. Dhawan looked in good touch and began with a few boundaries but Amir was not going to let him get away. He cramped the left-hand opening batsman for room with a tight channel outside off and got him to nick with extra bounce, leaving India 33 for 3 in nine overs. Amir’s brilliance left India’s senior pair of Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni with a mountain to climb. Yuvraj counter-attacked with three boundaries off Hafeez but was undone by Shadab Khan. The leg-spinner struck Yuvraj’s pad in his first over and then forced his captain to take a successful review, leaving India in a shambles at 54 for 4. That became 54 for 5 in the very next over when Dhoni hooked Hasan Ali straight to deep square-leg. Wickets tumbled but Pandya kept attacking at one end with some astonishingly clean strikes. Three consecutive sixes took him past his half-century but just when Indian fans could even think of hoping for a miracle, a terrible mix-up saw Pandya and Jadeja at the same end with the latter refusing to sacrifice his wicket. They blamed each other before a fuming Pandya walked off, even as Pakistan celebrated at the other end. That kind of summed up India’s day.

The two best bowling attacks of the tournament will be tested in batsmen-friendly conditions in ICC Champions Trophy Final

2017-06-17T22:52:00.002+05:30

The mother of all battles. Cricket’s biggest showdown. In short, India vs Pakistan is much more than a game, and that game just so happens to be only the second time the two sides meet in the final of a world event!

In many ways, it’s incredible that these two sides are actually meeting on this grand stage after India’s convincing triumph in the group stage, essentially forcing their rivals to go undefeated to stay alive.

But how things have changed in the two weeks since! Pakistan stunned the world’s No. 1 side in South Africa and also destroyed England, the tournament favourite. And what’s a Pakistan winning run without one of those mad scrambles, like the one that came against Sri Lanka? Out of nowhere, Pakistan has lifted itself to set a date with destiny.

India, meanwhile, have done exactly what was expected. Apart from a blip against Sri Lanka, they have been clinical and looked the team to beat in the competition. The batting has looked as strong as ever, but, incredibly, India now also have one of the best bowling attacks in world cricket.

In fact, it’s in the bowling department where there’s hardly anything to differentiate between India and Pakistan. Both sides have brilliant pacers who are backed by tidy spinners. They also have a knack of picking wickets in the middle overs – a phase of the game that has turned out to be the most crucial after the new fielding restrictions. India and Pakistan have got 18 wickets each from their four matches between overs 11 and 40.

Where India stands out though is its ability to handle pressure in big matches. In Mickey Arthur’s own words, Pakistan played the occasion last time instead of the opposition. This time, the occasion is much bigger, but Arthur has promised that their plans are based on “us” rather than “them”. If they can do that, the Edgbaston match and all the other previous encounters could well be history.

Teams

India: Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli (capt), Yuvraj Singh, MS Dhoni (wk), Kedar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Mohammed Shami, Ajinkya Rahane, Umesh Yadav.

Pakistan: Sarfraz Ahmed (capt, wk), Fakhar Zaman, Ahmed Shehzad, Azhar Ali, Babar Azam, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Hafeez, Shadab Khan, Shoaib Malik, Haris Sohail, Junaid Khan, Rumman Raees.

Rampant India races to date with Pakistan

2017-06-15T23:07:00.003+05:30

Rohit ton headlines brilliant performance as Bangladesh is swept aside by nine wickets in second semi-final.

Strap yourselves in and hold fast to your seats because it’s going to be a wild ride.

India will meet Pakistan in the ICC Champions Trophy 2017 final, a dream match-up that few could have expected when the two sides met to kick off their campaigns.

With India stomping over Bangladesh in a nine-wicket win in the second semi-final on Thursday, that match-up of rivals has become reality. This was to be Bangladesh’s biggest match in its history, and the team was keyed up for it. Perhaps a little too keyed up, as it squandered a strong batting position. Then the combine of Rohit Sharma (123 not out off 129) and Virat Kohli (96 not out off 78) showed that no matter what it would have got, it might not have been enough.

The two put on a batting exhibition in an unbeaten 178-run stand that took up only 25.3 overs. The end result was India coasting past Bangladesh’s 264 for 7 in just 40.1 overs.

India’s bowlers had done well to keep Bangladesh in check, with Kedar Jadhav emerging as an unlikely bowling hero alongside the established duo of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah. Each of them took a brace of wickets, stymieing Bangladesh at key moments. And then it was the turn of the batsmen to take over.

Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit began the chase perfectly, not allowing the bowlers even a sniff of a chance. A few early wickets might have got some zip among Bangladesh’s bowlers, but Dhawan powered through and Rohit caressed it as the openers rattled along at pace. The result was that Bangladesh’s shoulders began to droop. The bowling, not very on-target to begin with, became even more directionless with the slightest error in length or room punished.

Rohit had the majority of the strike, but Dhawan was the more electric. As is his wont, Dhawan was particularly strong square of the wicket, not afraid to take the aerial route. His rich vein of form was to the fore, the timing leaving the fielders standing. He looked in complete command when a moment of indiscretion cost him, stepping out to Mashrafe Mortaza but only squirting a leading edge to point for 46 off 34 balls. The openers had put on 87 in just 14.4 overs, but if Bangladesh thought the wicket of the man who was hitting boundaries at will would bring respite, it was sadly mistaken.

Kohli got into his stride immediately, and Dhawan’s departure merely meant Rohit moved smoothly up a gear. Bangladesh tried six bowlers, it tried defensive fields, and it tried bowling dry. Against two men in imperious form, nothing mattered. Kohli dominated the bowling, almost toying with it, making 11 men look ridiculously inadequate to man a cricket field. Rohit had a strike-rate of 95.34 and looked unhurried, stroking and helping the ball to the boundary more than powering it.

Rohit’s 11th ODI century came with a hooked six off Mustafizur Rahman in the 33rd over. Kohli, meanwhile, reached a landmark of his own in getting to 8,000 ODI runs in just his 175th innings, a new world record that bettered AB de Villiers’s mark of 182. That Kohli didn’t end up with yet another century in a chase was just down to India having too few to chase, thanks to the task the bowlers had done.

Bhuvneshwar had given India the perfect start by snaring Soumya Sarkar in the first over, and then setting up Sabbir Rahman in the seventh to leave Bangladesh 31 for 2. Sabbir had begun with a flurry of fours off both Bhuvneshwar and Bumrah. But both bowlers cut down on the loose stuff and Bhuvneshwar mixed up his lengths nicely, before suckering Sabbir into an airy drive at a slower one that went straight to Ravindra Jadeja at point. Sabbir had thrown it away after looking good, but the experienced pair of Tamim Iqbal (70 off 82) and Mushfiqur Rahim (61 off 85) wasn’t about to do the same.

They got together with the run-rate having plateaued, thanks to two consecutive maidens, took some time to take stock and pounced when the opportunity came. Hardik Pandya was handed the ball for the 13th over, and not only did he overstep twice, one of the no-balls cost him the wicket of Tamim, who had played on and could have been out for 17. The over fetched 14 runs and was the cue for both batsmen to start stroking the ball more freely.

Bangladesh seemed on course for a massive total when the two were batting. That was when Kohli turned to Jadhav’s part-time off-spin. Denied pace off the ball, both Tamim and Rahim couldn’t rattle along. Had they perhaps weathered the lower run-scoring pace, they would have doubtless found avenues to accelerate again later. But betraying an impatience that Bangladesh has still not mastered, Tamim tried to go for a big slow-sweep, only to miss the ball altogether and see it hit the stumps.

Jadhav’s golden arm had broken a dangerous stand of 123 that took just 127 balls. That brought on the squeeze by India’s bowlers, with Jadhav and Jadeja operating in tandem. Once again, Bangladesh didn’t show the patience to ride out the rough periods, looking to hit its way out of a quiet spot but paying the price. Shakib Al Hasan was caught behind, MS Dhoni making another fast-reaction take look effortless, and in the next over, Jadhav had his second wicket when Rahim skipped down to slog-sweep straight to Kohli, who had taken a few steps to his left anticipating the ball when he saw Rahim shape up.

Suddenly, Bangladesh had gone from 159 for 2 in the 28th over to 184 for 5 in the 36th, and its ambitions of a big total had to be scaled down.

Mortaza swung his bat around, and had no fewer than three boundaries coming off edges, but he rode his luck to end with 30 not out off 25. It did spoil the figures of Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar, who bowled with great control to nail their yorkers and bouncers, but saw boundaries flying off outside edges and top edges behind the keeper.

In the end, those extra runs merely meant Kohli got the chance to complete one landmark. And for India to set up what will doubtless be called the mother of all finals.

Pakistan in to Semi Beating England at CT2017

2017-06-15T00:07:00.000+05:30

Home side falters in all departments to go down by eight wickets in one-sided semi-final

A clinical Pakistan stunned England to seal its place in the final of the ICC Champions Trophy 2017 with a comprehensive eight-wicket win in the first semi-final in Cardiff on Wednesday.

England came into the game as the only team with three victories in the league stage, after scoring in excess of 300 in two games and topping Australia with its batting might in the other. But all of that added up to little as it ran into a spirited Pakistan unit, which bowled the home side out for 211 in 49.5 overs.

Its batsmen then did the job in composed fashion in just 37.1 overs, openers Azhar Ali (76) and Fakhar Zaman (57) scoring half-centuries and setting up the chase with a 118-run stand before Babar Azam chipped in with 38 not out and Mohammad Hafeez with an unbeaten 31.

Pakistan suffered a crucial blow on the morning of the game when Mohammad Amir was ruled out with back spasms, but the others in the attack stood up, and how! The pacers were on the money and the spinners choked the run-flow, never letting England get away on a pitch that was tricky for strokeplay; England managed only a modest score despite four of its top five crossing 30, and that told the story.

That Pakistan bowled well was no surprise but the completeness of its performances on the field was impressive. The bowlers were terrific, the fielding top notch, and the batting calm. The captain too had a great day with almost every decision working wonders: Sarfraz Ahmed handed Rumman Raees a debut in place of Amir and he delivered, Shadab Khan was brought in for Faheem Ashraf and he too did his job. Sarfraz was aggressive on the field and, most importantly, was backed up by a fielding unit that raised its level.

The first ten overs of the game were action packed with fortunes swinging rapidly. It started with an ‘umpire’s call’ on an lbw appeal saving Jonny Bairstow by the thinnest of margins in the second ball. Three overs later, Pakistan got an lbw decision in their favour when Raees hit Alex Hales’s pads, but the review by England went against it again. But Raees had his man soon when Hales stepped out and drove straight to cover.

England still got the runs and reached 52 at the end of the first ten. Bairstow got going and enjoyed more luck when he was put down on 42 at slip but couldn’t make use of the fortune, slogging Hasan Ali’s third ball straight to deep mid-wicket after adding just one more run.

Sarfraz then applied the brakes in the middle overs by getting Hafeez to bowl to Eoin Morgan straightaway. The England captain couldn’t get going like he usually does and took 21 balls for his first boundary.

Root too went 37 balls without a boundary before edging Shadab to Sarfraz, leaving England struggling for momentum at 128 for 3 in the 28th over.

The dismissal reunited the pair that had toyed with Australia’s bowlers recently, but soon found out that Pakistan – on the day – was a different challenge altogether. Sarfraz attacked Stokes with a short-leg and a slip and Hafeez ran through his tidy spell conceding just 27 runs from seven overs.

There would be no release even after the spinners were done as Pakistan’s pacers ran through the middle order with pace, good lengths and reverse swing. It was almost like a repeat of their performance against Sri Lanka at a similar stage earlier in the tournament.

Morgan and Jos Buttler fell nicking to the wicketkeeper while Moeen Ali succumbed to his old nemesis – the short ball – when he hooked Junaid Khan to deep square-leg where Fakhar took a sensational catch.

England was limping at 169 for 6 after 40, having lost 4 for 44 in 11 overs. Junaid completed a second spell of 2 for 15 from five overs and the death bowling by Raees and Hasan was equally miserly. Even Stokes struggled to break free, managing only 34 off 64 balls without a single boundary. England scored only one boundary in the last 12 overs, adding only 42 in the last 10.

If at all there were nerves, they were eased by Pakistan’s openers soon. Fakhar set the tone with a flurry of boundaries while Azhar complemented him perfectly with stability. England’s pacers tried to bounce Fakhar out but it allowed him to swat across, even top edges flying over the ropes.

Azhar joined in soon as Pakistan scored at least one boundary in every over between overs eight and 12. By the time spin was brought on, Pakistan’s openers had already raced to 81 in 14 overs.

Fakhar crossed his half-century at more than a run-a-ball but fell soon after, stumped after failing to read a googly from Adil Rashid in the 22nd over. Pakistan didn’t let that affect it as Azhar and Azam added 55 for the second wicket, England’s body language dropping with each of those runs.

Even the wicket of Azhar didn’t help as England returned empty handed from a campaign that promised a lot. Pakistan, meanwhile, will head to London for the first time in the tournament, and wait for the winner of the India v Bangladesh game.

A memorable chase by Sri Lanka keeps their #CT17 hopes alive as they beat India by 7 wickets in a thriller !

2017-06-09T00:23:00.001+05:30

In a result that will only make the tournament more interesting in the days ahead, self-confessed underdog Sri Lanka thumped India by seven wickets after successfully chasing a stiff target of 322 at The Oval on Thursday (June 8).

Victory was made possible by aggressive batting, as promised by captain Angelo Mathews. The personnel who did that were Kusal Mendis (89) and Danushka Gunathilaka (76), who wasn't even in the squad until an injury to Chamara Kapugedera on the eve of the game.

The pair added 159 in 139 balls for the second wicket to set up the chase before passing on the baton to Mathews (52) and Kusal Perera (47), who took the game away from India with a 75-run stand for the fourth wicket before the latter was forced to retire hurt. Asela Gunaratne then played his part with an unbeaten 34 as Sri Lanka won with eight balls to spare.

The impeccably timed chase meant Shikhar Dhawan’s third century (125) in seven ICC Champions Trophy innings that powered India to 321 for 6 went in vain. It also meant that after two matches each, all the four teams in Group B have one win each, rendering the last two league games virtual quarter-final clashes.

Sri Lanka’s chase started with Niroshan Dickwella misreading a knuckle ball from Bhuvneshwar Kumar and popping a leading edge to point. With Bhuvneshwar and Umesh Yadav finding swing, Sri Lanka managed only 22 runs in the first seven overs.

But it all changed quickly when when Gunathilaka pulled Umesh into the stands at the beginning of the eighth, signalling a shift in fortunes. Gunathilaka took charge with some glorious drives, particularly down the ground, while Mendis too started confidently, shifting the pressure on to India gradually.

India could have had Mendis in the 15th over but Hardik Pandya could not hold on to a sharp return chance. Gunathilaka rubbed salt into Pandya’s wounds by heaving him for a massive six to get to his half-century, in the process taking Sri Lanka to 108 for 1 in 20 overs. It was one run ahead of where India was at the same stage.

But a good beginning is not even a job half done, as Sri Lanka found out the hard way against South Africa. The middle-overs batting was the most crucial phase of the chase, and how Sri Lanka handled Ravindra Jadeja was in particular important, given that it had crumbled against Imran Tahir’s leg-spin.

Mendis took that task upon himself and dismantled the left-arm spinner’s threat with smart batting. With only four fielders allowed inside the ring, Mendis targeted the mid-wicket boundary to perfection, getting past fifty with one such massive swipe into the crowd.

Jadeja conceded 36 from four overs, the partnership crossed 150, and India’s shoulders began to drop. It didn’t help that Rohit Sharma could not hold on to a very tough chance in the deep when Gunathilaka was on 70.

India’s desperation was evident when Kedhar Jadhav and Virat Kohli came on to bowl, but the breakthroughs came via run outs.

Umesh and MS Dhoni first combined to catch Gunathilaka just short of his second run in the 28th over before Bhuvneshwar’s quick work and accurate throw on his follow through got Mendis.

A run-out had changed Sri Lanka’s fortunes for the worse in its previous game but this time, it had the experience of Mathews and a calm Kusal Perera. They knew exactly what to do, and with some controlled aggression, got the equation down to 51 off 42 from the 126 off 104 when they had joined hands.

India was also becoming increasingly impatient and sloppy on the field, but it got an opening when Perera was forced off the field with a hamstring injury after 43 overs. It only resulted in Gunaratne playing some unbelievable shots in a cameo that clinched the game.

Earlier, Dhawan added 138 with Rohit (78) – their third century and sixth 50-plus stand in seven ICC Champions Trophy innings -- before Dhoni applied the finishing touches with a 52-ball 63.

Sri Lanka’s bowlers were in the firing line with all the three frontline pacers including Lasith Malinga conceding more than 70 runs each.

After opting to field, the Sri Lankan bowlers tried to restrict India’s openers with straight lines but the lengths weren’t as tight, resulting in the odd boundary to go with plenty of quick singles.

Rohit pressed on the accelerator, swatting Thisara Perera for two sixes in the 20th over to go past his half-century but perished to the mood, pulling Malinga to long-leg one ball after successfully hitting a similar one for six. One brought two when Virat Kohli edged Nuwan Pradeep to the wicketkeeper in the next over without scoring. All of a sudden, India had to rebuild after slipping to 139 for 2.

Dhawan wrested the momentum by hitting five boundaries in the next three overs, but with Yuvraj Singh settling in, India scored only 13 runs between the 30th and 34th overs. Dhawan slowed down, going 26 balls without a boundary in that period, and India also lost Yuvraj.

The innings got the impetus once again with Dhoni’s arrival. His calculated aggression rubbed off on Dhawan, who went past his century by cutting Pradeep to the deep point fence. Once the landmark was out of the way, there was attack from both ends, aided by plenty of full tosses.

Dhawan holed out in the 45th over, but Dhoni and Jadhav finished powerfully as India added 103 runs in the last ten overs. As things turned out, even that wouldn’t be enough.

Mumbai Indians romp home their third IPL win.

2017-05-22T00:10:00.001+05:30

What a game. A final that's been nailed home by a run, can you believe? Rohit runs as Suchith misfields at deep mid-wicket. Fumbles, almost allowing a super over with the batsmen into the third run already.. but recovers just in time and parries a throw to the keeper. Patel takes the bails off, lights the stumps, and Mumbai get into a huddle! IPL finale is done.

M.S. DHONI: THE UNTOLD STORY (2016)

2016-09-16T22:14:00.001+05:30

History of The ENM Trophy-10 ( AQT Won the ENM Trophy 2016 beating MRT)

2016-08-30T03:18:00.001+05:30

AQT Won the ENM Trophy 2016 beating Team MRT in the final. It was a most nail baiting final match in the ENM history. After loosing a 3 big wicket in the very 1st over in the match, MRT scored 87 runs in their 5 overs. AQT openers were launched their fire but final over they need 24 runs . However in the final ball they need 3 runs. He wsa the man who hit the 6 runs in the final ball of the grand final. History will remember his name "Uditha Malshan Perera" who was bring the first ever ENM trophy for their degree program. There were no doubt he was the Man of the serious and Man of the final Match.Congratulations AQT & MRT for their performances in ENM trophy 2016.

ශ්‍රී ලාංකේය ක්‍රීකට් වංශකථාවේ ඔටුනු නොපලන් රජූ - තිලකරත්න දිල්ශාන් !. (Ishan Jayawardane ගේ ලිපියකි)

2016-08-26T21:16:00.002+05:30

"කණ්ඩායමට නායකයෙක් නෑ , ඔයා ඇවිත් නායකයා වෙන්න !.
"ඔයාගෙ නායකත්වය හරි නෑ, අපි ඔයාව අයින් කරනවා !.
"මිඩ්ල් ඔර්ඩර් එකට අලුත් අය ගන්න ඕනෙ. ඔයාට තැනක් නෑ. ගිහින් සනත් එක්ක ඕපන් කරන්න, ෆේල් උනොත් එලියේ තමා !.
"හෙට සංගා ගහන්නෙ නැ ලූ. ඔයා කීප් කරන්න හෙට !.
"බොලර් කෙනෙක් අඩුවෙන් ගහන්නෙ, ඔයා ඕවර් ටිකක් පාස් කරලා දෙන්න !.
ඒ පුහුණුකරුවන් , කලමණාකරුවන් විටින් විට ඔහුගෙන් කල ඉල්ලීම්ය.
ඒ හැම ඉල්ලීමකටම ඔහුගේ පිලිතුර සරල ය. ඒ "හරි" යන්නය. ඔහු වෙන කව්රුත් නොවේ !. වසර ගණනක සිට ශ්‍රී ලංකා ක්‍රීකට් කණ්ඩායමේ ගැලවුම්කරුව සිට සිය අවසන් එක්දින ජාත්‍යන්තර තරගයට ක්‍රීඩා කිරීමට සුදානම් වන ඔහු නමින් තිලකරත්න දිල්ශාන් !.
මෑත කාලයේ කණ්ඩායමට වැඩියෙන්ම ආදරය කල , කණ්ඩායම වෙනුවෙන් වැඩිපුරම කැප කීරිම් කල ක්‍රීඩකයාත් දිල්ශාන් !.
ජ්‍යේෂ්ට ක්‍රීඩකයන් තමන්ගේ ස්ථානය පවා වෙනස් කීරීම ප්‍රතික්ෂේප කළ සමයක මැද පෙලෙ සිය ස්ථානය නවකයෙකුට ලබා දී ඔහු ආරම්භක පිතිකරුවෙකු ලෙස ක්‍රීඩා කරනවා. ආරම්භක පිතිකරු වි ඉන්පසු අසාර්ථක වූ පසු දිල්ශාන් කණ්ඩායමෙන්ම එලවා දැමීමට උත්සාහ කල අයට ඔහු පිලිතුරු දුන්නෙ එක පිට එක ශතක වලින් !.
නායකයෙක් නොමැතිව අයාලෙ ගිය කණ්ඩායමට නායකත්වය දෙන්න ඔහු ඉදිරිපත් උනේ තමන් පැලැද සිටි කරාබු ඉවත් කර පාට කර සිටි කොණ්ඩය කපා!.
නමුත් සෙසු ජ්‍යේෂ්ට ක්රීඩකයන්ගෙන් නායකයෙකු ලෙස ඔහුට සහය ලැබුනේ නැ. එම නිසාම පිතිකරුවෙකු ලෙස ඔහු උපරිම උත්සාහ කළත් ඔහුගේ නායකත්වය යටතේ කණ්ඩායම පරාජයන් කිහිපයකට ලක් වෙනවා !.
ඉන් පසු එම පරාජයන්හි සියලු වගකීම් නායකත්වය පිට පවරා අසාධාරණ ලෙස ඔහුව නායකත්වයෙන් ඉවත් කරනවා!..
නමුත් හිතෙ කිසිදු කහටක් නොමැතිව මේ විශිෂ්ටයා නව තරුණ නායකයාට සිය උපරිම සහයෝගය ලබා දුන්නෙ ඔහු ක්‍රීඩා කලේ පුද්ගලික න්‍යාය පත්‍ර වලට නොව රට වෙනුවෙන්ම නිසා !..
ශතකයක් , අර්ධ ශතකයක් රැස් කරන සෑම විටම ජාතික ධජය සිබිමින් එය සමරන දිල්ශාන් ආරම්භක පිතිකරුවා වීමෙන් පසු 2009 සිට මේ දක්වා ශ්‍රී ලංකාව ජයගත් සෑම තරගයකම පන්දුවෙන් පිත්තෙන් හා පන්දු රැකීමෙන් කණ්ඩායමට එක ලෙස දායකත්වය සැපයු ඔහු අසාර්ථක වූ දිනක ශ්‍රී ලංකාව තරගයක් ජයග්‍රහණය කලේ කලාතුරකින් !.
සංගා මහේළ මොන තරම් ලකුණු රැස් කළත් ශ්‍රී ලංකා කණ්ඩායමේ ජයහ්‍රහණ සාධකය වූයේ දිල්ශාන්.
2009 විස්සයි විස්ස ලෝක කුසලාන තරගාවලියෙ මෙන්ම 2011 ලෝක කුසලානයේ වැඩිම ලකුණු ලාභීයා වූ දිල්ශාන්ට සංගාට මහේළට තරම්ම රසික ආදරය හා ගෞරවය ලැබිය යුතු වුවත් එය ඔහුට ලැබුනාද යන්න නම් ගැටලුවක්.
ශ්‍රී ලංකා කණ්ඩායම වෙනුවෙන් කොතරම් සාර්ථක වී ලකුණු රැස් කළත් IPL වැනි මුදලට ක්‍රිඩා කරන විදේශ ලීගයන්හි දක්ෂතා දැක්වීමට දිල්ශාන්ට නොහැකි වනවා !.
නමුත් පෙරලා ශ්‍රී ලංකාවට පැමිණ අංක 23 සිංහ ජර්සීය ඇගලා ක්‍රීඩා පිටියට බසින තිලකරත්න දිල්ශාන් සිය සුපුරුදු දක්ෂතා අතරට පැමිණෙමින් ශ්‍රී ලංකාවේ තරග දිනවන මැශිම බවට පත් වන්නේ මේ ආදරණීය මිනිසාට ජවය සපයන්නෙ සිංහ ජර්සීය දැයි අපහට සැකයක් ඉතිරි කරමින් !..
කණ්ඩායම තුලත් ඉන් පිටතත් නිහතමානී සරල මිනිසෙකු උනත් ක්රීඩා පිටිය ඇතුලදි කිසි ලෙසකින් වත් පරාජය පිළි ගැනීමට සුදානම් නැති මේ ක්රීඩකයාගේ සටන්කාමීත්වය නිසාම ඔහුට "මහත්මයා" යනුවෙන් ආමන්ත්‍රණය කිරීමට අපගේ රසිකයන්ම අදි මදී කරනවා !.
සෑම පන්දුවකටම හතරෙ පහරක් හයෙ පහරක් එල්ල කළ හැකි තරග දිනවන පිතිකරුවෙක් ,
ස්ථාවර වී තිබෙන සබදතාවයක් බිද තමා කඩුල්ලක් ලබා ගත හැකි පන්දු යවන්නෙක් ,
කණ්ඩායමේ හොදම පන්දු රකින්නා සිටින පොයින්ට් කලාපයේ පන්දු රකිමින් ප්‍රතිවාදීන්ගේ ලකුණු කපා හරින ,
අවශ්‍ය මොහොතක කඩුලු රකින
දිල්ශාන් වැනි ක්‍රීඩකයෙක් ශ්‍රී ලංකා කණ්ඩායමට නැවත කිසිම දිනක ක්‍රීඩා නොකරනු ඇත.
පසුගිය දශකයේ ශ්‍රී ලංකාව වෙනුවෙන් තරග ජයග්‍රහණයට වැඩිම දායකත්වයක් සැපයු , නමුත් කිසිම දිනෙක රසිකයන්ගෙන් ඔහුට සුදුසු ආදරය නොලැබු මේ විශිෂ්‍ටයා ලබන ඉරිදා එක්දින ජාත්‍යන්තර පිටියෙනුත් ,
එලබෙන නව වෙනිදා විස්සයි විස්ස පිටියෙනුත් සමුදි තවත් එක් මතකයක්ම වනු ඇත.
අවසන් වරට කණ්ඩායම ඇසු
"දිලි දැන් ඔයා රිටයර් වෙනවාද ?" යන ප්‍රශ්ණයටත් කණ්ඩායමේ අනාගතය වෙනුවෙන් "හරි" ලෙස පිළිතුරු දී කණ්ඩායමෙන් සමුගෙන යන මේ ක්‍රීඩකයාට රසිකයන්ගේ නොමද ආදරය හා ගෞරවය සිය අවසන් තරග වලදි ලැබිය යුතුමයි.
තිලකරත්න දිල්ශාන් නම් ඒ ලාංකේය ක්‍රීකට් ක්‍රීඩාවේ කිරුලු නොපලන් රජුට උපහාරයක්ම වෙවා !..

ටී.එම් ඩිල්ෂාන් ගේ සමුගැනීමේ සටහන

2016-08-26T21:09:00.000+05:30

මට ආදරය කර මා සමග මෙතෙක් කල් සිටි මාගෙ ආදරණීය රසිකයිනි.අද දින මා මගෙ ජීවිතයෙ ගත් වැදගත් ති‍රණයක් ඔබ හට පවසමි.මා මගෙ ක්‍රිකට් දිවියට සමු දිමට තිරණය කරෙමි.මා මෙ තිරණය ගත්තෙ කිසිදු දෙශපාලන බලපැමක් නොව.මාගෙ පවුලෙ අය සමග කතා බහ කොට මගෙ සිතින්ම ගත් තිරණයකි.අපේම තරුණයෙකුට අවස්ථාවක් දිමට මා තීරණය කලෙමි.තරුණයන් සමග ගැටී ක්‍රිඩා කිරිමට මට හැකියාව ඇති නමුත් තව කෙනුකුගෙ දක්ෂතාවය පෙන්විමට ඇති ඉඩ ලබා දි මා සමු ගැනිමට තිරණය කලෙමි.පාසල් කාලයෙ සිට අවුරුදු 30ක පමන කාලයක් ක්‍රීඩා ජීවිතයෙ සිටි අතර ඉන් අවුරුදු 17ක කාලයක් අන්තර්ජාතික ක්‍රීඩා කලෙමි.මෙ මස 28 වන දින දඹුල්ලේ පැවෙත්වෙන එක් දින තරගය මාගෙ අවසාන එක් දින තරගය වන අතර ලබන මස 9 වන දින ඛෙත්තාරාම පිටියෙ පැවෙතෙන T20 තරගය මාගෙ ක්‍රිකට් ජීවිතයේ අවසාන දිනයයි.ක්‍රිකට් ජිවිතයෙන් සමු ගත්‍තද මා මාගෙ රසිකයන් සමග සිටිමි.මා අද මෙ තැන සිටින්නෙ ක්‍රිකට් නිසා බව මා කවදාවත් අමතක නොකරමි..මා සමග මෙතෙක් කල් සිටි ඔබට හා ක්‍රිකට් ක්‍රිඩාවට මා සැමදා ආදරෙයි.ඔබට මා නොමියන මතකයක්ද ඉතුරු කර තැබුවෙමි.එ Dilscoop පහරයි...ස්තුතියි ඔබට.

Tm dilshan

Dear beloved fans who with me throughout my cricket career.. today i would like to convey an important decision of my life.i decided to retire from my cricket life..this decision was not taken due to political conflicts.. this is my own decision taken after discussin with my family..i decided to give the opportunity to tye upcoming youth..i believe i can show my skill and talents along with them but i would like to give them the opportunity to show there talents and perform well.. i have been in this field for 30 years since i was schooling..and out of the 30 years 17 years i have played international cricket..the ODI on the 28th at dambulla will be my final ODI and the t20 match to be held at kettarama on the 9th of September will be the last international match and the last match of my career..even though i retire from cricket i will always be among ma beloved fans.. i wll never forget that it is because of cricket am in this position..my heartiest love to cricket and all my fans.Even though i retire from international cricket my dilscoop will be there forever...thank you all..

Who will be the next champions? (ENM TROPHY 2016)

2016-08-22T00:51:00.001+05:30

ENM Trophy Cricket tournament started year 2007 & ANS was the 1st ever champions in the ENM History.
They (ANS) were able to proceed their victory for the next year beating Team ENM in the final Year 2008.
Year 2009, Team ENM be the victorious team, beating their famous enemy ANS at the final.
Year 2010, ANS able to get their glory back beating CST at the final.
2011, the history identified the new heroes & Team IIT won the championship beating ENM’s at the final.
However year 2012, ENM won the 6^th ENM Trophy beating EAG at the final. This was the first time EAG entered to the final.
Year 2013 ENM able to continue their championship beating their new enemy –Team IIT at the final.
In year 2014 ENM selected to the final with their new enemy IIT. But this time IIT won the championship beating ENM’s.
Last year (2015) Rain came to the tournament & ruin the spirit of the game. So there were no Champions, but had Co-champions. There are 4-EAG, AQT, MRT & SCT.
In Year 2016 there are many hopes, but finally only one champion can survive.
Who will be the next Champions?

ENM Trophy 2016 (10th Edition)

2016-08-21T23:16:00.002+05:30

ICC World Twenty20 Teams Of The Tournament Named

2016-04-05T23:49:00.000+05:30

Men

1. Jason Roy (England)

2. Quinton de Kock (South Africa, wicket keeper)

3. Virat Kohli (India, captain)

4.Joe Root (England)

5. Jos Buttler (England)

6. Shane Watson (Australia)

7. Andre Russell (West Indies)

8. Mitchell Santner (New Zealand)

9. David Willey (England)

10.Samuel Badree (West Indies)

11. Ashish Nehra (India)

12th man. Mustafizur Rahman (Bangladesh)

Women
1. Suzie Bates (New Zealand)

2. Charlotte Edwards (England)

3. Meg Lanning (Australia)

4. Stafanie Taylor (West Indies, captain)

5. Sophie Devine (New Zealand)

6. Rachel Priest (New Zealand, wicketkeeper)

7. Deandra Dottin (West Indies)

8. Megan Schutt (Australia)

9. Sune Luus (South Africa)

10. Leigh Kasperek (New Zealand)

11. Anya Shrubsole (England)

12th player. Anam Amin (Pakistan)

Sad story of Marlon Samuels

2016-04-05T23:43:00.001+05:30

Congratulations for 2016 WT20 Champions- West Indies

2016-04-05T23:37:00.000+05:30

''Carlos Brathwaite'' History remember the name of West Indies....

2016-04-05T23:12:00.005+05:30

ICC T20 World Cup 2016 Final - Carlos Brathwaite unforgetable 4 Sixes against Englend

ICC T20 2016 Stat -Men

2016-04-05T23:07:00.000+05:30

ICC T20 2016 Stat -Women

2016-04-05T23:06:00.001+05:30

ICC WORLD TWENTY20 INDIA 2016- Qualifier

2016-01-09T00:03:00.002+05:30

History of The ENM Trophy-9 (EAG, AQT, MRT & SCT became the CORE CHAMPIONS OF ENM TROPHY 2015 )

2015-12-28T22:59:00.001+05:30

Due to bad weather EAG, AQT, MRT & SCT became the CORE CHAMPIONS OF ENM TROPHY 2015 (ENM Trophy 9th Edition) this was the 2nd time team ENM not qualified for the final. 1st time it was a 2010, SCT defeat ENM. ......... CONGRATULATIONS for the CORE CHAMPIONS OF ENM TROPHY 2015 !.............

Guptill, Henry star in big New Zealand win

2015-12-28T22:18:00.001+05:30

Martin Guptill’s unbeaten 30-ball 93 and Matt Henry’s 4 for 33 helped New Zealand beat Sri Lanka by ten wickets in the second One-Day International at the Hagley Oval in Christchurch on Monday (December 28).

Having chosen to bat first, Sri Lanka was bowled out for 117 in 27.4 overs as Henry and Mitchell McClenaghan (3 for 32) picked up seven wickets between them. After that, Guptill and Tom Latham had an unbroken 118-run stand in 8.2 overs as New Zealand chased down the target and took a 2-0 lead in the five-match series.

Guptill attacked the Sri Lankans after being dropped off the first ball he faced. His innings included nine fours and eight sixes as he maintained a strike rate of 310.00. He was particularly severe on Dushmantha Chameera, whom he hit for 26 runs in one over.

Guptill reached 46 off 12 balls, but two yorkers from Nuwan Kulasekara, who was earlier taken for 14 runs in one over, denied the batsman the chance to record the fastest fifty.

Guptill took five balls to reach his 50, one behind the world record – 16 balls –held by AB de Villiers.

Guptill did, however, break the New Zealand record for the fastest fifty, going one better than Brendon McCullum's best.

McCullum did not open the New Zealand batting after injuring himself when he crashed into the fence while trying to cut off a boundary. Instead, Latham took up the opening duties and hit the winning run to be unbeaten on 17 from 20 balls.

Afterwards, McCullum called Guptill “superb”, while Angelo Mathews described his side's performance as “embarrassing” and “pathetic”.

For Sri Lanka, it was a poor performance after it had expressed a desire to gain some pride following a seven-wicket loss in the first ODI.

“It was embarrassing. Once again a pathetic display by the whole batting unit,” said Mathews. “We just couldn't handle it. It didn't swing or seam or bounce. It was just bad shot selection.”

When he had won the toss and elected to bat, Mathews described the pitch as “good for batting”. But Sri Lanka could not handle Henry. He struck in the fourth over when Tillakaratne Dilshan was caught at first slip by Ross Taylor, and the wickets tumbled regularly from there.

Sri Lanka still looked capable of posting a respectable score when it reached 81 for 5 in the 18th over, but it then lost three wickets for no runs from there. Kulasekara was Sri Lanka’s highest scorer with 19.

AUSTRALIA V INDIA PREVIEW, 2 nd SEMI-FINAL, SYDNEY-Dhoni’s men have been ruthless, and Clarke will know his team must be at its best on the spin-friendly SCG

2015-03-25T23:58:00.001+05:30

They say that in all of Australia, it’s the pitch at the Sydney Cricket Ground that assists spinners the most.

They say Indians are among the best players of spin, driven by their quick feet and soft hands and an almost inborn contempt of non-Oriental spin bowlers.

They say, also, that few countries can boast of the wealth of spinning talent in the history of the game as India, the home of spin, of the Bedis and the Prasannas and the Chandras and the Kumbles can.

If we go by all they say, India should have an outstanding record at the SCG. And yet, in 11 Tests, it has tasted victory just once, when Australia was severely weakened by Kerry Packer’s World Series in January 1978, and lost five times. In 14 One-Day Internationals against Australia at this hallowed venue, India’s record is more dismal – one victory, 12 defeats, two no-results.

History. Statistics. Numbers. Precedent. Knowledge of conditions. Home advantage. They all stack up favourably in Australia’s corner ahead of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 semi-final on Thursday (March 26). But no one is taking Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s men lightly.

India’s astonishing transformation from the tri-series in January into this rabble-rousing bunch of robust individuals that has tornadoed the field has been one of the stories of the World Cup. The team has been clinical, professional, meticulous, impeccably prepared, delivering their lines sharply, but with emotion and joy and a sense of freedom that has at once been popular and punishing. You have to prise the World Cup out of its grip, it is not giving it back.

Australia is convinced it has what it takes to snatch it away, but around the conviction, gremlins are slowly beginning to germinate. Michael Clarke’s men haven’t been the dominant, all-conquering unit that Australians in World Cups have come to be identified as for so long now. The team has won plenty, but the players have laboured and huffed and puffed, surviving several attacks of nerves and benefitting from slices of luck at the most opportune of moments. Australia has been conquered, cornered, taken blows on the chin, and yet, here it is, standing within two wins of its fifth World Cup title.

The gremlins stem from a wariness of the pitch for the second semifinal of the World Cup. The team would have preferred a surface with genuine pace that Mitchell Starc and Mitchell Johnson would relish, with bounce that Josh Hazlewood would thrive on, with grass that would have India in trouble. Instead, the pitch seems to be a bare, brown strip with loads of runs.

No matter. By Thursday, Australia will have laid those gremlins to rest. It has to, for if Australia is at anything less than its best, India will exploit it with the ease of a practised master that Dhoni has elevated his ODI outfit to.

The No. 1 ODI side in the world is not so fragile as to be seized by the fear of the unknown. It will back itself to play India’s spinners, given that in Michael Clarke and Steven Smith, it has two of the best players of spin and that in David Warner and Glenn Maxwell, it has a pair that makes it fairly impossible to set fields.

Australia did have a very interesting addition to its training session on Wednesday afternoon. A gentleman with 1000 international victims, the man they call the Sheikh of Tweak. Shane Warne strode out for a close look at the pitch, then strode back to the Australian nets and turned his arm over. Not so much turned his arm over as put on a master class in leg-spin bowling. Warne spoke at length to Clarke and Darren Lehmann, he watched from close quarters as Xavier Doherty bowled to Shane Watson, speaking to the left-arm spinner after almost every delivery.

Self-doubts or not, Australia will be up for a fight on Thursday, in front of a predominantly pro-Indian crowd in what will be a new experience for it at home. The team has tried to reopen old wounds by pointing to its dominance of India in the summer gone by. It has promised aggression. It knows that in World Cups, it has the advantage over India – seven wins, three losses in ten matches. It hasn’t forgotten that four years ago, it was India who ended its reign, in the quarterfinal in Ahmedabad. It believes it will be poetic justice if it can dethrone India at the SCG, in its own backyard. Australia has the desire, India has the Cup. This could just be Eden Park revisited, a classic of undulating fortunes and unbridled drama.

Teams:

India (likely): Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Suresh Raina, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (capt, wk), Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Mohit Sharma.

Australia (from): David Warner, Aaron Finch, Steven Smith, Michael Clarke (capt), Shane Watson, Glenn Maxwell, Brad Haddin (wk), James Faulkner, Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Johnson, Josh Hazlewood, Xavier Doherty, Mitchell Marsh, Pat Cummins, George Bailey

SOUTH AFRICA CWC15 WRAP-With a line-up bursting with talent, South Africa was one of the title favourites - but fell short in a thrilling semi-final at Eden Park

2015-03-25T23:53:00.000+05:30

Belief, hunger and a desire to make their nation proud were the calling cards of South Africa at the 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup.

There is plenty to like about the South Africa team, from their catchy #ProteaFire call to arms, to their serious ability to entertain with both bat and ball, to the obviously close bond between players. Through the tournament, de Villiers never wasted an opportunity to talk up his team.

With a line-up bursting with talent, it began the tournament as one of the title favourites. It played like a champion team in the league stages – barring the losses to India and Pakistan – but fell agonisingly short in a thrilling semi-final at Eden Park.

With five runs to defend in the last two balls against New Zealand on Tuesday (March 24), Dale Steyn bowled one in the slot of Grant Elliott, who dispatched the ball over the long-on fence, leaving the entire South African camp distraught.

AB de Villiers, the captain, was crestfallen after the loss, but insisted his side would leave with "no regrets".

"We were trying everything. I'm proud of the guys the way we fought in every single game right till the death," he said.

South Africa’s history of ending on the wrong side of must-win World Cup matches is well documented. It put that to rest, however, with a comprehensive show against Sri Lanka in the quarter-final to win its first World Cup knockout game. The victory was engineered by JP Duminy’s hat-trick and Imran Tahir’s three-wicket haul, as the opposition was bundled out for 133. Then, the target was comfortably chased down for the loss of just one wicket.

Therefore, to say that the nerves came back to haunt the team in the semi-final would be unfair. In fact, South Africa has learnt to put the ‘chokers’ tag behind it. “We don't mind that too much. I've gone through the whole package of feeling emotional about it, fighting against it, then accepting it, then fighting again,” de Villiers said before Tuesday’s semi-final, when asked specifically about the unflattering tag.

Even in defeat, South Africa stood for a brand of entertaining cricket it played throughout the tournament. That onslaught by David Miller in the death overs against New Zealand was as good as any. The batsmen had a splendid time as South Africa became the first team ever to post two consecutive totals of 400 or more in ODIs.

Earlier in the tournament, after a victory over Zimbabwe to start things off, South Africa struggled against India in its second outing. The run chase – an area the Proteas have been known to struggle in – was its undoing, with the batsmen crumbling to a 130-run loss. Good wins against West Indies and Ireland followed, before a rain-affected encounter with an unpredictable Pakistan at Eden Park. Again, the run chase caused problems.

In many ways, the game against Pakistan was a big moment for South Africa in the tournament. Having almost already assured itself of a place in the last eight, it faltered in a chase of 232 in yet another weather-affected game. Barring de Villiers’s valiant 77, none of the batsmen stood up to the cause, and the captain was furious after the 29-run defeat.

De Villiers went on record to say that his boys may “not be as good as we think we are” and were “not prepared to fight it out”. Such comments in the media galvanised the entire unit once again and the intent was clearly on show in the quarter-final against Sri Lanka.

On the whole, it was a campaign that featured several highlights.

De Villiers led by example, best exemplified by his swashbuckling century against the West Indies. He came to the crease in the 30th over, and just took off. His calculated assault on Jason Holder was of the highest quality as he made the fastest 150 in ODIs.

His unbeaten 162 in 103 balls took South Africa to 408 for 5. In the very next game against Ireland, Hashim Amla and du Plessis made 159 and 109 respectively, as South Africa made 411 for 4.

Earlier, Amla also became the fastest man to 20 ODI tons in Canberra, while Miller and JP Duminy also scored tons in the tournament. And, as always, the Proteas catching was almost always on point, with Dale Steyn, Rilee Rossouw and de Villiers producing some of the catches of the tournament.

The bowling of Morne Morkel and Imran Tahir was a revelation throughout. Tahir had 15 wickets with an average of 21.53, but more importantly, offered South Africa the much-needed variety and slowed things down whenever there was a requirement to do so. It was his maiden over when New Zealand was 71 for no loss in five overs in the semi-final that brought South Africa back into the game.

Similarly, Morkel was incisive. He picked up at least a wicket in each of South Africa’s eight games and ended as the team’s best bowler with 17 victims against his name. He was at his best in the semi-final loss when he returned figures of 3 for 59.

“You need a little luck. You need things to go for you. You need to take your opportunities,” said Russell Domingo, South Africa’s coach explaining what better his team could have done to qualify for the final. “I'm so very proud of the effort they put in and the emotions that they left on the field. It's testament to how much it means playing and how much trying to win a World Cup means for them.”

De Villiers, Amla, Morkel, Steyn and Du Plessis – who have all played in two or more World Cups – have to wait for another four years to realise a collective dream. While the World Cup they hungered for will not be coming home with the Proteas in 2015, they gave their fans plenty to be proud of.