Cricket News

Rahane 100 in IPL season-5 stars in big win for Royals

2012-04-15T22:17:00.000-07:00

The game was effectively over when the players walked off for the innings break. Ajinkya Rahane's blistering, unbeaten 103 brought up the first century of IPL 2012, propelling Rajasthan Royals to 195 against an already battered Royal Challengers Bangalore. Assisted by Owais Shah's equally intimidating 60, the Royals piled on a score way beyond reach for the hosts and such was the dominance that the chase turned out to be a tepid affair.

Rahane also smashed six consecutive fours off an over - the first in Twenty20 history, S Aravind being the unfortunate bowler. Rahane and Shah - ten years apart - didn't just deliver for the team's cause but also nudged their respective national team selectors ahead of the World Twenty20, each getting two big scores so far this IPL. Their bowlers - led by Siddharth Trivedi - backed them up, hitting their targets like efficient salesmen, getting six batsmen bowled.

Ironically, the losing side had the bigger names. With the likes of Daniel Vettori, Muttiah Muralitharan and Zaheer Khan to contend with, it appeared as if the Royals worked to the plan of exploiting the less-experienced Indian bowlers. It was an extension of Royal Challengers' affliction from the match against Chennai Super Kings, when Virat Kohli leaked 28 off the penultimate over of the game.

At one stage, Aravind conceded 48 off three overs, almost the same number given away by Zaheer, Vettori and Murali off ten combined overs. A less-than-fit Chris Gayle, recovering from a groin injury, came on in the 16th over more as an act of desperation by Vettori and didn't fare any better than the other weak links, leaking 21.

The hammering Rahane dished out was reminiscent of Brendon McCullum's butchering at the same venue in the IPL's opening game in 2008. He began by splitting the gap past cover and backward point for two fours off Aravind in the second over. The onslaught that followed was so brutal that it's easy to forget Zaheer bowled a maiden over to Rahane, the third of the innings. Rahane showed no such respect for Aravind the following over, taking 15 off it, including a massive hit over long-on.

Vettori and Murali then pulled things back with five relatively quiet overs, going for 23. Vettori's spell only widened the gap between him and the rest. He varied his pace and flight, fired in the quicker ones to keep the batsmen guessing.

Rahane's merciless approach was best illustrated in the 14th over, which produced six fours. He drove Aravind forcefully down the ground off the first two balls, scooped the third to fine leg, pulled the fourth to midwicket, drove the fifth past cover and delicately dabbed the six to third man. Aravind varied his pace and length, AB de Villiers came up to the stumps but nothing deterred Rahane.

Shah began his party with a top-edged six over long leg, before ripping into Gayle. Vinay Kumar aimed for the blockhole, but somehow Shah found a way to get under the bounce and slam sixes down the ground. He brought up his fifty off just 19 balls before launching into Murali. He tried the same against a slower Zaheer delivery but was caught at long-on.

At the other end, Rahane started the final over needing seven for his century and he required just three balls to get there. After driving Vinay past mid-off, he flat-batted the third ball just past long-on's grasp to bring up the landmark. The Royals hammered 113 off the last seven overs, the third-best in IPL history.

Royal Challengers began the chase in enterprising manner, with Mayank Agarwal pulling the first ball for six over fine leg. But a double-strike by Pankaj Singh in the fifth over derailed the chase and took the fight out of the hosts. Agarwal was caught off a top-edge and two balls later, Gayle dragged one onto his stumps.

That followed a period of prolonged struggle for Royal Challengers, stumbling against the asking rate, compounded by the steady fall of wickets. The boundary drought lasted an unforgivable 37 deliveries and that was thanks largely to Trivedi's nagging line and slower deliveries bowled from back of a length, assisted by the slow pitch. De Villiers played on to one that kept low, Kohli and Saurabh perished swinging across the line, before Vettori lost his leg stump giving the bowler the charge. Trivedi's 4 for 23 was his personal best in the IPL and the combined efforts launched the Royals to the top of the table.

Source:-http://www.espncricinfo.com/

IPL, 17th match: KKR v K XI Punjab at Kolkata, Apr 15, 2012 Punjab win thriller

2012-04-15T10:37:00.003-07:00

A triple strike from Piyush Chawla in the middle of the Knight Riders innings and last over heroics from Harmeet Singh brought Kings XI back from the dead to beat their hosts in unlikely fashion. After posting a below par 134 and allowing Knight Riders to canter to 71 for 2 at the halfway stage of the chase, Kings XI relied on a spectacular effort from their legspinner to negate Sunil Narine's jaw-dropping 5 for 19.

Narine's strangling efforts and Rajat Bhatia and Shakib al Hasan's supporting efforts kept the lid on Kings XI. Knight Riders were favoured to chase down a moderate target after Gautam Gambhir started with a speedy 22 and Manvinder Bisla and Manoj Tiwary steered the reply with a stand of 43. But, the home side unravelled after Chawla removed three of their key batsmen, Bisla, Yusuf Pathan and Shakib. Debrabata Das threatened to take the match to its expected conclusion with his aggressive innings but a slew of legbreaks from Harmeet ensured Kings XI defended what seemed hard to defend at one stage.

Gambhir began in a hurry. The early loss of Jacques Kallis - caught spectacularly by Paras Dogra at point - did nothing to deter him as he collected boundaries at will before offering Dimitri Mascarenhas a simple return catch.

Despite the departure of their captain, Bisla and Tiwary continued the task stoically and formed a partnership that would not have been out of place in longer formats of the game. They rotated strike, searched for singles and only targeted the boundary when they got a bad ball. They seemed certain to guide Knight Riders to an easy win but the match turned when Tiwary was trapped in front by Bhargav Bhatt.

A tiny wound had been inflicted on Kolkata Knight Riders and Chawla prised it open. He bowled Bisla with a delivery that did not turn and meted out the same to Yusuf Pathan with a legbreak in the same over. After 14 overs, Knight Riders were 85 for 5. Chawla had pulled them back to exactly the position Kings XI had been in at that stage - 85 for 3. He struck again, with a googly to Shakib al Hasan, to have the Bangladesh all-rounder caught of his own bowling.

Das defied the Kings XI charge. He started by smacking a full toss from Chawla for a straight six. As full deliveries were offered to him, he smoked them to the boundary. Ryan ten Doeschate provided some support and the pair took Knight Riders to within 13 runs of victory with two overs left.

Praveen Kumar gave away only four of those runs, bowling an over punctuated with yorkers and Harmeet had nine runs to work with in the final over. His seemingly harmless legbreaks had ten Doeschate frustrated as he played on. Harmeet then proved impossible to get away as he made up for Kings XI's lapses with the bat through cunning bowling.

Kings XI saw off 36 dot balls in their innings and allowed Knight Riders' attack to create pressure and use it to their advantage. Narine struck twice in his opening spell - when Adam Gilchrist top-edged and attempted pull to depart for 5 and by bowling Shaun Marsh with a delivery that turned away from the left-hander.

Together with Kallis, he ensured Kings XI crawled to 31 for 2 after seven overs and that they did not score a single boundary in five of them. If not for the half-century stand between Mandeep Singh and David Hussey, they would have not got off the starting blocks at all. The pair settled in on the surface, started to time the ball better and occasionally challenged the fielders, beating them for boundaries and pushing them hard to turn singles into twos. Old-fashioned grit and grind helped them build but just as they were looking to launch, Mandeep slog swept straight to deep mid-wicket.

They were never really able to push after that as Hussey was run-out soon after and the dominoes fell steadily after that. Bhatia took two wickets in his final over and Narine also struck twice on being brought back on the attack. Kings XI scored 30 runs off the last two overs which, in the end, proved to be the difference.

Source:-http://www.espncricinfo.com/

Confirm Bangladesh to tour Pakistan at month end

2012-04-15T10:28:00.001-07:00

International cricket is set to return to Pakistan after three years, with Bangladesh formally confirming to the PCB that they will play one ODI and one Twenty20 International there later this month. There has been no cricket between two Full Member nations in Pakistan since the attack on the Sri Lanka team in March 2009.

The ODI is scheduled for April 29 and the T20I for April 30. Both matches will be played at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore.

"The public of Pakistan have been deprived of cricket and we felt that we needed to support them," BCB president Mustafa Kamal said. "The reception we received when we toured Lahore and Karachi on our security visit was overwhelming."

Zaka Ashraf, the PCB chairman, thanked the BCB and the Bangladesh government for their support for the tour.

The ICC, though, was more guarded in its response, saying it had asked the the PCB for a security plan, following which its Anti-Corruption and Security Unit would commission a localised risk assessment to determine the safety of its officials and staff; only after that would it decide on deploying its officials.

Last month, the ICC had introduced a "special dispensation" to be made only in "exceptional circumstances" in order to ensure that bilateral series take place even if the ruling body has determined it "unsafe" to appoint its officials for such series. This would allow such series to be manned by "non-neutral match officials", a departure from the ICC's Standard Playing Conditions, pending permission from its executive board.

Bangladesh was due for a full tour of Pakistan in 2012 under the ICC's Future Tours Programme. The PCB also said the remaining matches of the tour will be played at dates mutually agreed between the two Boards at venues including Bangladesh.

There had been several itineraries proposed for the tour, including a three-match ODI series and a series of two ODIs and one Twenty20 international. Karachi and Rawalpindi were the other possible venues but ESPNcricinfo understands they were dropped on security grounds.

Sunday's announcement follows lengthy negotiations between the two boards over the terms of the tour, and at times it looked as though the tour would be a non-starter. A nine-member delegation, headed by Kamal and including security officials from that country, visited Pakistan in March for a demonstration of the security plan for the proposed series. The plan was well received, it is believed, but confirmation of the series was delayed. One reason, according to the BCB, was that it was waiting for a government advisory; another possible reason was the ICC's special dispensation plan, which possibly implied that the venue was not safe for neutral officials.

Jalal Yunus, the BCB's media committee chairman, said Kamal had taken charge of the matter and handled it personally. "We haven't talked about it since Zaka Ashraf came and discussed the matter officially, so it has been 2-3 months," he said. "The BCB president must have known the government stance and that's why he has confirmed. He has handled it personally from the beginning."

The tour will come a little more than three years after masked terrorists attacked the Sri Lanka team bus and a van carrying ICC officials to Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore, on what would have been the third day of the second Test of that tour. Six Sri Lankan cricketers were injured in the attack, and six security personnel and two civilians were killed.

Since then, Pakistan have hosted "home series" in UAE and other neutral venues. They played New Zealand in New Zealand (2009-10), England and Australia in England (2010). UAE has been their favoured home base, having hosted South Africa, Sri Lanka and England.

Source:-http://www.espncricinfo.com

Azhar Mahmood gets Indian visa To Play IPL-5

2012-04-13T09:26:00.001-07:00

Azhar Mahmood, the former Pakistan allrounder, has been granted an Indian visa for the IPL but ESPNcricinfo understands it is valid only for Chandigarh and Delhi. Mahmood will arrive on Saturday to play for Kings XI Punjab but will be available only for five games in Chandigarh, at their home ground in Mohali, and one match against Delhi Daredevils in Delhi.

Mahmood, who is now a British citizen and plays for Kent, was bought by the franchise at the auction last February for $200,000. He was expected to be available for selection from the beginning of the IPL season but visa delays led him to miss Kings XI's first three matches.

However, his arrival will boost Kings XI, who suffered a setback when England allrounder Stuart Broad was ruled out of the entire IPL season due to a calf strain.

Adam Gilchrist, the Kings XI captain, had announced Mahmood's imminent arrival at the media briefing in Mohali after the game against Pune Warriors India on Thursday. Mahmood, who is the only player in this IPL to have played for Pakistan, tweeted to confirm the development.

Azhar Mahmood@AzharMahmood11

Thank you all for your concern but I HAVE got the visa and in Shaa Allah be in india very soon !

13 Apr 12 ReplyRetweetFavorite

Kings XI suffered successive defeats in their first two matches, both away games. Back then Gilchrist had made public his disappointment about not having Mahmood at his disposal, saying Kings XI were missing out on a "class" player.

A consistent allrounder in Twenty20 cricket, Mahmood has been one of the top performers for Kent. He was player of the season for Kent in the County Championship last year and finished as the county's highest run-getter in the domestic T20 tournament, with 485 runs, including a century, from 15 games at a strike-rate of 143.91.

Tendulkar on his 100th hundred

2012-04-07T23:10:00.003-07:00

The context of Tendulkar's 100th century will be remembered today, tomorrow, even at the end of his career. Debating societies will exhaust themselves over its significance, particularly what transpired between 99 and 100. But the memory of Tendulkar's labours over the last 12 months will not outlast the hundreds. The numbers will neither be repeated nor surpassed. A hundred hundreds are the stuff of sporting eternity; this is our generation's 99.94.

For an entire year it actually seemed destined to become the 99.94 - a final Bradmanesque flourish of imperfection. In less than three months, between December 2010 and March 2011, Tendulkar had scored four centuries in 12 innings. His march towards the 100th was, we believed, destined. A hundred centuries was a landmark waiting to be reached. Except, of course, like every cricketer will tell you, nothing is merely written, because everything is accounted for. The game sought its dues and Tendulkar paid with with heavy interest. Between Nagpur and Mirpur, he has clanked through various gears to find the form to take him past three figures. From free-flowing to fastidious, from studiousness to abandon, from the purity of shot to anxiety of thought. He came close, went adrift and over and over again.

Tendulkar's failure to get across that ever-receding line had actually begun to shrink the hundred in its import. In the period, he took surprising decisions that have still not been clearly explained: he first missed out on a Test series for the first time in his career for reasons other than injury, and he chose to return to the ODI game after the World Cup, first in Australia and then, to everyone's surprise, in the Asia Cup.

Along with Tendulkar's trials, there was mayhem in India's Test cricket, the team went through two tours from hell. The eight Test defeats were larger than the absence of a Tendulkar hundred. Eight-zero reflects a worrisome future for Indian cricket which is not going away soon. The completion of 100 centuries still stand though for Tendulkar's appetite, drive and sheer cussedness as a competitor over two decades - and the combination of those qualities will be gone from Indian cricket sooner rather than later.

What unsettles some is that Tendulkar's 100th had to arrive in ODI cricket. Mirpur was not pretty, it did not round off a great script, it did not reflect the nobility of the longer version of the game, or indeed, the purity of Tendulkar's own game at its best. India didn't even win. But there it was. Slammed down our throats like a shot of country liquor. Gulp that down, boys.

Yet, it was in the short form cricket that Sachin Tendulkar became the boy-man to walk out for India and it was with 50-over feats that he first grew in the public eye. His identity as team-mate and prodigy, colleague and hero in Test cricket, will remain his most enduring. But one-day cricket has always been bread and butter. Tendulkar has often said that opening the innings in ODIs helped bring a greater range of shots into his Test game. So what if Mirpur was not poetry or fine dining? Right now, bread and butter will do just fine.

The 100 international hundreds are an essential part of the reason why Tendulkar has continued to survive in the game; this desire to put his game into repeated examination, has remained front and centre in his life, over and above everything else - the pop-icon status, the cult, the insane fans, the media circus, the protesting body, the clock, the scorn. The fact that the 100 hundreds even exist is because he wanted questions asked of himself and he found ways to answer them. A few minutes after Mirpur had happened, Sanjay Manjrekar tweeted to say that attention should not be so much on the 100th hundred, "but how he got his 100 hundreds."

It is the Machine, always at his side, purring, growling, always trying to win. He will have to keep it at bay for the rest of his life, but for the moment, with the fortress of a hundred international hundreds around him, Sachin Tendulkar is winning.

Jadeja take 5 wicket to get chennai first win in IPL-5

2012-04-07T23:03:00.001-07:00

While Jadeja's name was all over the scorecard, it was Dwayne Bravo's late blast with the bat that took the game away from Chargers. Bravo blasted five sixes in the last two overs to propel Super Kings to a tall score, which was aided by loose bowling from the Indian component of the Chargers attack. Faf du Plessis provided the boost at the start, Jadeja built on it in the middle and Bravo took Chargers apart at the death.

Forty runs came in overs 19 and 20 bowled by TP Sudhindra and Manpreet Gony. A leading edge off Sudhindra carried all the way over the straight boundary for the first six. Bravo wound up and deposited the next delivery, a length ball, over long-on. Gony was wayward in the final over, and Bravo clattered three sixes off an assortment of full tosses and short deliveries.

Bravo ended on 43 off 18, with Super Kings taking 72 in the last five overs. Du Plessis had set the tone earlier, hitting Gony for three consecutive boundaries in the fifth over. Gony became too predictable with his shortish length, and du Plessis stayed back to steer for four to third man and pull for six over deep midwicket. Gony became predictable again when he went full with the last ball of the over, and du Plessis lofted him over long-off.

Sudhindra had du Plessis holing out to long-on with his first ball, but was to go for 46 in four overs. Suresh Raina and S Badrinath looked in fine touch till Daniel Christian got them. Christian and Dale Steyn were difficult to get away, but Chargers had plenty of weak links in the attack.

Jadeja went after fellow left-arm spinner Ankit Sharma, slog-sweeping and lofting him for three boundaries. Christian was taken for consecutive fours. Jadeja even tried to distract Steyn by moving around in his crease but was dismissed hit-wicket when he trod onto his stumps as he tried to nudge a short of a length Steyn delivery. Things weren't looking as bad for Chargers at that point with the score on 147 in the 18th over, but Bravo's innings turned a stiff chase into an improbable one.

It did not help Chargers that the longest any of their batsmen managed to last was 18 deliveries and the most any of them made was 23. Super Kings' spin battery smothered Chargers completely. R Ashwin gave 12 runs in his three overs at the start, Shadab Jakati got the important wickets of Cameron White and Christian, and Jadeja did the rest. He is an unspectacular bowler, but is generally accurate.

By the time he was brought on in the 11th over, the asking-rate had already crossed 12. Chargers had no option but to go after the bowling. But this was Jadeja's night, and there was to be no hitting him.

Sehwag wins series for India with record 219 - India vs West Indies 2nd ODI 2011

2011-12-08T08:39:00.000-08:00

It took nearly four decades for a batsman to score the first double-century in one-day international cricket but less than two years for the second. Virender Sehwag, the batsman most touted to break Sachin Tendulkar's record for the highest individual ODI score, didn't merely break it - he shattered it and raised the bar so high that it's hard to imagine anyone, apart from Sehwag himself, raising it higher.

Unlike Tendulkar in Gwalior, Sehwag wasn't running out of time as he raced towards 200 in Indore. He got there in the 44th over and had made 219 off 149 balls by the time he was dismissed in the 47th. And in one of cricket's stranger coincidences, both ODI double-centuries were scored in the same Indian state - Madhya Pradesh - at venues less than 500 kilometres apart.

Sehwag's performance led India to 418 for 5, their highest ODI total, and sealed victory in the five-match series against West Indies. It was an innings characteristic of Sehwag's approach to batting. He hit his second ball for four and simply did not stop. He took plenty of risks too, surviving two run-out chances and two dropped catches, but thundered on, ensuring India's run-rate stayed above seven after the 15th over. Sehwag's only out-of-character moment came in the 20th over, when he dived to avoid being run out. Sehwag never dives. It was a sign that he was determined to stay the course. He went to 50 off 41 balls, to 100 off 69 balls, to 150 off 112 and past 200 off 140. The record was broken with a withering cut that sped to the backward-point boundary, and he celebrated with an aggressive fist-pump before breaking into a smile.

Before this game, and after each of the previous three, Sehwag had admitted that the top-order failures, which he contributed to, were the reason India had struggled in their chases. Sehwag had made a duck in the previous match in Ahmedabad, where India lost, but led by example today.

India did two things differently at the Holkar Cricket Stadium. They chose to bat for the first time in the series and also opened with their strongest combination, Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir, pushing Parthiv Patel down the order. The upshot of those decisions was an opening partnership of 176 that began smoothly, picked up speed, and gathered the momentum of a runaway train before it was eventually ended, inevitably, by a run-out.

A strong crowd continued the trend of resurging attendances during the home ODIs and they cheered the first boundary in the second over, when Sehwag flicked Ravi Rampaul's first ball for four - a welcome he would give several other West Indian bowlers. Sehwag looked dangerous from the start. Gambhir did not. After making only 3 off 15 balls, Gambhir finally had the width he needed and cut Kemar Roach to the point boundary.

Both batsmen could have been dismissed on 20, though. Sehwag had given up hope of making his ground but Kieron Pollard missed the stumps from point, and Andre Russell dropped Gambhir on his follow through. Gambhir began to steer, cut and drive through the off side frequently, going over fielders' heads and placing wide of the boundary riders. Seven of his first nine fours were in this region. India ended the mandatory Powerplay on 63 for 0.

The field spread after that but it didn't matter. Sehwag and Gambhir scored 45 runs between overs 11 and 15. This passage began with Sehwag hoisting the offspinner Sunil Narine's first ball over the long-on boundary. He then launched Darren Sammy's first inside out over extra cover. This passage ended with Sehwag hammering Narine again, this time into the stands beyond deep midwicket.

The field came in for the bowling Powerplay and Gambhir immediately cut Roach through point, and then dabbed for a single to reach his half-century off 51 balls. The smash-and-dab combo was a feature of the partnership. Sehwag got to his hundred with a fierce cut, hit in the air, brushing the fingertips of the leaping fielder at point before speeding to the boundary. The next ball, he ran Gambhir out, to a direct hit from Samuels. Visibly upset with himself, Sehwag continued to punish West Indies.

When he was hitting fours, Sehwag preferred to go square of the wicket, flicking and glancing the numerous deliveries he received on the pads. When he wanted six, he usually went straighter, targeting the arc between midwicket and long-on. He hit 25 fours and seven sixes in all. On 170, in the 38th over, Sehwag spooned Rampaul towards cover, where Sammy dropped a dolly, leaving the bowler distraught.

The rest of the innings was a blur of boundaries and landmarks. Suresh Raina got to his half-century off 42 balls. India reached 300 in 39.1 overs. Sehwag broke his personal best - 175 against Bangladesh in the World Cup - with a flick to the square-leg boundary. He went past 8000 ODI runs with a chip over the fielder at short fine leg. That shot took him from 191 to 195, and soon he was cutting Russell to send India into rapture. When Sehwag was dismissed - lofting Pollard to the substitute Anthony Martin at long-off - most of the West Indian fielders came from far and wide to shake his hand.

Sehwag did not come out to field - the only blot on his performance - and watched from the dressing room as West Indies' top-order batsmen crashed and burned amid a flurry of shots. India's debutant legspinner Rahul Sharma struck with the last ball of each of his first three overs in international cricket, bowling Marlon Samuels, Danza Hyatt and Pollard to leave West Indies reeling at 100 for 5.

Rahul, who's been in India's squads since the home ODIs against England but stayed on the bench, bowled a variety of deliveries. He sent down legbreaks, googlies and topspinners at varying speeds, but it was the one delivered quicker that brought him success.

Samuels tried to cut a fast topspinner but bottom-edged it on to his stumps. Hyatt then stepped out of the crease, but was yorked by a fast legbreak. The ball pitched outside leg stump and spun between the batsman's pads to bowl him. Pollard was the next to go, swinging across the line and missing a topspinner that clipped off stump.

After losing more wickets, West Indies decided to bat out time instead of playing shots, and the match ended in stark contrast to how it began - tamely. Denesh Ramdin, however, made 96, his best score and the highest by a West Indies wicketkeeper in ODIs. His 64-run partnership with No. 11 Sunil Narine merely kept India on the field longer than they would have liked.

India vs West Indies 2nd ODI 2011

2011-12-08T08:37:00.000-08:00

After a thrilling finish in the first ODI, India and West Indies now play in the second ODI at Visakhapatnam on 2nd December. Unlike recent matches in India, 1st ODI was a low-scoring match and bowlers played really well. The venue for 2nd ODI has been considered as a batting friendly pitch and even the score just over 250 may not be a challenging one. The batting must be productive if the team wants to win the match. Here are the match details:

2nd ODI: India v West Indies at Visakhapatnam
Date: Dec 2, 2011
Time: 14:30 local (IST) | 09:00 GMT

India relies on the spinners in absence of several senior players like Dhoni and Tendulkar. It was Rohit Sharma who saved the firs match. The top order batsmen must perform if they want a decent score. Parthiv Patel has got an excellent opportunity to remain in the team as Dhoni is absent. West Indies on the other hand seems to be heavily relying on Darren Bravo. Other player too need to perform.

Watch the 2nd ODI live - You can watch the second ODI live for free on BCCI.tv. Live video as well as highlights are available on the site. For more details India vs West Indies 2011 - Live.

Indian Team For India vs Australia - 2011

2011-12-08T08:36:00.001-08:00

India have already announced the test squad for their upcoming Australia tour. The team will be touring Australia for our tests which will be followed by tri-series between Australia, India and Sri Lanka. You can check-out the fixtures here. After the two practice matches, first test will be on Boxing day (26 Dec) at MCG.

MS Dhoni (capt & wk), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Virat Kohli, R Ashwin, Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Varun Aaron, Rohit Sharma, Pragyan Ojha, Praveen Kumar, Ajinkya Rahane, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Zaheer Khan (subject to fitness)

Indian captain MS Dhoni and Sachin Tendulkar will join the team after their res from ODI series against West Indies. Sill no Yuvraj and Harbhajan in the side whereas Zaheer Khan is under the probable. Khan's fitness will be checked in Ranji Trophy matches.

R Ashwin and Pragyan Ojha got their place in the team after their heroic performance in the home against West Indies. As only two-spinners could travel to play in Aussie pitch, Harbhajan couldn't make his place. Wriddhiman Saha is taken as the reserve Wicket-Keeper in the series. Suresh Raina couldn't manage his place on the side whereas leg-spinner Rahul Sharma also axed from the side. Sharma was called for WI series but didn't got chance in any matches.

Collingwood Eyes England Comeback

2011-12-02T09:52:00.001-08:00

London Former England one-day captain Paul Collingwood is hoping stints at domestic level in Australia and India can help him force his way back into his country's limited overs set-up.

Collingwood, now 35, retired from Tests after the triumphant Ashes series last winter and has not played for his country since the World Cup in March.

However, he believes he can still play a role for England both in one day internationals and in the Twenty20 format.

England's selectors have brought in a handful of promising younger players in recent months as they look to the future, but Collingwood aims to make his case with spells in the Big Bash - Australia's domestic Twenty20 tournament - with Perth Scorchers, followed by the Indian Premier League, where he represents Delhi Daredevils.

"I still have the ambition to play one-day and T20 for my country," Collingwood said.

"If I have a really good six months you never know what can happen. I'll be out in Australia for six or seven weeks playing against some of the world's best cricketers then playing in the IPL."

"This is an exciting opportunity for me. Although I'm 35 it is a fresh challenge. I'm looking forward to playing in the Big Bash, it's a big stage and that is where you want to be."

Source:- http://cricket.yahoo.com/

Kohli And Rohit steered to Win as India go 2-0 up

2011-12-02T09:47:00.000-08:00

Despite shoddy catching and phases of wayward bowling, West Indies managed to strike enough blows to ensure India had a fight on their hands in Visakhapatnam. Virat Kohli batted fluently at one end, but there was no stability at the other until Rohit Sharma, who played a pivotal role in India's victory in Cuttack, joined him in an unbroken partnership of 38.

West Indies were riding a wave of momentum after Ravi Rampaul's pyrotechnics with the bat and they did not wait long to celebrate in the field. Roach struck with the second delivery of the second over, Darren Sammy diving to his left at slip to catch Parthiv Patel. They could have had Virender Sehwag four balls later but this time Sammy dropped the edge.

India got going with a couple of streaky boundaries: Gautam Gambhir flicked Rampaul in the air but wide of the fielder at square leg, and Sehwag unintentionally slashed over the cordon. Rampaul retorted by smacking Sehwag on the back of the helmet with a bouncer, before Gambhir threw a counterpunch with a cover drive.

Gambhir's end in the seventh over came unexpectedly. He moved back and cut Rampaul hard towards short cover where the shortest fielder in the game, Adrian Barath, timed his jump perfectly and plucked the speeding ball out of the air with one hand. India were 29 for 2.

Kohli was scoreless for eight balls before driving Andre Russell on the up to the cover boundary. His second four was a top edge over the keeper but the third was more authoritative: a carve to the point boundary.

Sehwag was dropped again, off Sammy in the 12th over, when Darren Bravo moved forward too slowly at third man and couldn't reach the sliced ball in time. Sammy's disappointment was evident as he trudged off the field because of a drizzle moments later. Bravo was poor in the field as soon as play resumed as well, misfielding a Kohli bottom edge as the ball sped past the wicketkeeper towards the boundary.

It was the beginning of a streaky, eventful passage of play. Kohli successfully cut Russell over the outstretched arm of the leaping Kieron Pollard at point, and then failed to connect with a swivel pull as the bowler strayed down leg side. Denesh Ramdin did not catch the ball cleanly and the umpire did not signal leg-byes, which meant West Indies had dropped another catch. A few overs later, Kohli would be let off again, this time by Marlon Samuels, who couldn't hold on to a caught-and-bowled chance as he dived to his right.

Sehwag was barely noticeable during all this excitement. During the bowling Powerplay, he tried to loft Samuels inside out but Russell was too quick at wide long-off. Sehwag was out for 26, having faced only 35 balls even though he batted into the 17th over.

Rohit had a painful start to his innings, as Rampaul thudded a short ball into his glove, but he responded with an audacious pull over the midwicket boundary. It was the start of a partnership that could decide the game.

West Indies 269 in 9 overs (Rampaul 86*, Simmons 78, Yadav 3-38) v India

Lendl Simmons brought up 1000 ODI-career runs during his half-century © AFP

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Umesh Yadav and Vinay Kumar, India's new-ball attack, exploited rare seam-bowling conditions on the subcontinent and cut through the West Indian top order. Under cloudy skies, on a cracked pitch that had bounce, they used consistent outswing to help reduce West Indies to 149 for 8 despite defiance from Lendl Simmons. The end should have quickly followed, but it didn't, because Ravi Rampaul's record-breaking innings at No. 10 ensured he would have a strong target to defend.

Rampaul's unbeaten 86 was the highest score by a No. 10 in one-day internationals. His partnership of 99 in 14 overs with last man Kemar Roach was the third-highest for the final wicket. He stunned India and rendered their bowlers bereft of ideas. It had seemed a matter of when, and not if, West Indies would be dismissed. In the end, they never were, and finished on 269 for 9.

A drizzle in Visakhapatnam forced the toss to be delayed by 30 minutes, but when it eventually took place, Virender Sehwag won and chose to chase. The floodlights were on at 2.45 pm as play began in front of a strong crowd and Yadav didn't take long to give them reason to roar. In the second over, he produced a delivery that angled in to the right-hand batsman, pitched on a good length, bounced sharply and seamed away late to graze Adrian Barath's outside edge en route to the wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel.

Simmons also had a nervy start, surviving a close lbw shout from Yadav and edging Vinay wide of a diving second slip. He then square drove Vinay with flair to the point boundary. It was how Simmons would bat, trying to play his shots despite surviving a close call every now and then.

A feature of Yadav's bowling was how upright the seam was before the ball hit the pitch and moved away. He induced an outside edge from Marlon Samuels, on 2, only for Rohit Sharma to drop a sitter at second slip. Sehwag, because of all the movement, had a third slip and he was rewarded for this attacking field when Samuels edged Yadav again. This time Suresh Raina dived to his right and took a low catch. West Indies were 25 for 2.

Simmons continued to attack, stylishly whipping Yadav to the square-leg boundary, and walking out of his crease to drive Vinay on the up through extra cover to bring up 1000 career runs, before flaying the next ball through point for four. There was promise from Darren Bravo, who flicked and straight drove Varun Aaron for fours. It proved false, though, for Bravo lofted a length ball from Vinay to mid-on - a soft dismissal. Vinay hurt West Indies again two balls later by finding Danza Hyatt's outside edge before he had scored.

Only after Denesh Ramdin - Yadav's third wicket - departed with his team reeling at 63 for 5, did things begin to look up for West Indies. Kieron Pollard found the boundary frequently and Simmons reached his half-century by dabbing Ravindra Jadeja past slip to the third-man boundary. Pollard then brought up the 50 partnership by launching the offspinner R Ashwin over the straight boundary, and followed up with another one over wide long-on next ball. Another slump was around the corner, though.

The ball after Pollard hit his second six, he was caught by the wicketkeeper off Ashwin, after the ball grazed the glove and lobbed up off the pad. Darren Sammy and Andre Russell came and went, and it was then that Rampaul made his entrance at 149 for 8. He swept Ashwin for four and clubbed him over long-on, before targeting Jadeja and scoring two more boundaries on the leg side. Between those shots, Simmons had been run out for 78.

The boundaries were small but Rampaul would have cleared larger ones today. He hit half a dozen sixes and as many fours, most of them swung with power over and through the leg side. Ashwin and Aaron suffered the most. Rampaul was barely troubled and brought up his half-century off 35 balls. In Roach, he had a sensible partner who simply rotated strike.

There was a certain inevitability about how the innings ended, with Rampaul slamming Aaron over the straight boundary. He walked off the field with a composed look on his face, knowing the job was only half done.

Ponting half-century to steers Australia

2011-12-02T09:21:00.000-08:00

After nearly two years without a Test hundred, Ricky Ponting gave himself every chance of completing one on home soil with an assured half-century that provided a solid platform for Australia at the Gabba. On an eventful day on which Daniel Vettori ran himself out on 96 and Michael Clarke was bowled off a no-ball, Australia finished in a reasonable position at 3 for 154, but New Zealand knew a couple of early wickets on the third morning would put them on top.

New Zealand had done well to post a competitive 295, thanks largely to Vettori and Dean Brownlie, who in his second Test remained unbeaten on 77. But after Australia lost both their openers cheaply, including the debutant David Warner in the second over of the innings, their recovery was encouraging for the home fans, though it was not without its nervy moments.

Ponting was nearly run out before he had scored when he was called through and then sent back by Usman Khawaja, who himself was caught short due in the first over after tea. Kane Williamson's direct hit had Khawaja on his way for 38, a disappointing end to a promising innings, and it was hard to avoid thinking that Ponting's call for the tight single was to blame, although a split-second hesitation from Khawaja also played a part.

Source:- http://www.espncricinfo.com/

Afridi's five wicket to win 1st ODI of Bangladesh

2011-12-02T09:13:00.000-08:00

Pakistan's battery of spinners used the considerable bounce and turn in the Mirpur pitch to exploit the inadequate temperaments and techniques of Bangladesh's batsmen, routing them for 91 to set up what should have been a facile victory in the first of three one-day internationals. It wasn't. Pakistan made a mess of chasing the small target, which Bangladesh defended spiritedly. They lost more wickets and took longer than they would have liked, as the match sparked to life before victory was finally achieved with plenty of overs to spare.

To subdue and wreck Bangladesh, Misbah-ul-Haq used four spinners - Mohammad Hafeez, Shahid Afridi, Shoaib Malik and Saeed Ajmal - for 22.3 out of 30.3 overs, and they had combined figures of 8 for 56. Though Afridi emerged the star, taking his seventh five-wicket haul in ODIs, the Bangladesh innings was rotting before he came on to bowl. Pakistan's chase had also begun to rot when Afridi came to bat at 63 for 5 in the 18th over. His innings wasn't pretty, but it cured Pakistan of the yips and secured the series lead.

Source:- http://www.espncricinfo.com/

2011-02-19T21:26:00.001-08:00

ICC Rankings

2011-02-19T21:22:00.001-08:00

ICC ODI Rankings

Rank	Team
1	Australia
2	India
3	Sri Lanka
4	South Africa
5	England
6	Pakistan
7	New Zealand
8	Bangladesh
9	West Indies
10	Ireland
11	Zimbabwe
12	Netherlands
13	Kenya

ICC Test Rankings

Rank	Team
1	India
2	South Africa
3	England
4	Sri Lanka
5	Australia
6	Pakistan
7	West Indies
8	New Zealand
9	Bangladesh

Rana Naved returns to Sussex

2011-01-27T01:29:00.000-08:00

Sussex have secured seam-bowling Pakistan allrounder Rana Naved-ul-Hasan as their overseas player for the first half of the season.

Naved played for Sussex between 2005 to 2007 and - after two years with Yorkshire - for the first month of last season. He will be available until the end of June.

He is a crowd favourite at Hove after twice playing a pivotal role in Sussex's Championship wins in 2006 and 2007. He prospered in his nine appearances last year, taking 27 wickets and scoring 258 runs, including 101 against Leicestershire.

Naved, who is currently representing Tasmanian in Australia's Big Bash Twenty20 competition, has played in nine Tests, 74 one-day and four T20 internationals but is not in Pakistan's World Cup squad. He has not played for his country for almost a year, having been banned for 12 months for indiscipline on the 2009-10 tour of Australia, although that decision was overturned in October.

Sussex coach Mark Robinson said: "We're delighted that Rana is returning this summer as he was like a breath of fresh air when he was with us last year. The energy and match-winning threat he gives us will be an important ingredient for what hopefully will be a successful season."

Source:- http://www.espncricinfo.com/

Ervine pulls out of World Cup squad

2011-01-27T01:26:00.000-08:00

Sean Ervine has pulled out of Zimbabwe's squad for the World Cup, and will remain at Hampshire in 2011. Ervine, who had been named in both the preliminary and finalised squads for the tournament, had a change of heart shortly before the national team were due to depart for a training camp in Dubai.

"After having had time to reflect on all of the circumstances, I have realised that this is not the right time to leave Hampshire," said Ervine. "I have a great relationship with this club and its supporters and I feel like part of a family. I feel Hampshire is my home; so much so that I am planning to get married there next year. I do not, therefore, want to be away for long periods of time."

It had appeared certain that Ervine would part ways with Hampshire to reignite his international career, which he described as his "ultimate goal", but his decision not to play for Zimbabwe means he will not be considered an overseas player - a position filled by legspinner Imran Tahir at Hampshire - and will therefore be eligible to play for the county in all forms of the game in 2011. Ervine had proved a success in his six years with the club, helping the team to three trophies, scoring 3,956 first-class runs and taking 118 first class wickets in the process.

"We are very happy that Sean has come to this conclusion," said Hampshire manager Giles White. "He is an important and highly-valued cricketer who is popular with everyone associated with The Rose Bowl and central to our plans for the future."

Alistair Campbell, the head of Zimbabwe's selection panel and former national captain, expressed his disappointment at Ervine's withdrawal. "Zimbabwe Cricket was very excited about Sean coming back into the setup. However, he may not have realised that international cricket is a lot harder than he remembers," Campbell said in a ZC statement.

"He has lived a very comfortable life in county cricket for the last six years and obviously decided at the last minute he might not be up to the challenges of international cricket after all. A lot of people have gone to a lot of effort to make it happen for Sean. Although is very late in the day to change his mind, it is better than realising his mistake during the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011."

ZC has approached the ICC Event Technical Committee to seek approval for batsman Tino Mawoyo to replace Ervine in the squad. An opening batsman, Mawoyo played two one-day internationals against Bangladesh in 2006 and is a regular in the Zimbabwe A line-up. He had been named as a non-travelling reserve for the World Cup before Ervine's last-minute departure. Craig Ervine, Sean's younger brother, remains part of Zimbabwe's squad.

Source:- http://www.espncricinfo.com/

Amir plays club game

2011-01-27T01:22:00.000-08:00

The ICC has written to the PCB asking for details into the appearance of Mohammad Amir in a friendly club match. Amir is currently provisionally suspended from all levels of cricket facing charges of spot-fixing placed by the governing body in the aftermath of the Lord's Test during Pakistan's tour of England in 2010.

Amir took part in a game in Rawalpindi on Monday, though the contest is not believed to carry any official status. But under the ICC's anti-corruption code of conduct, Amir - and Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif, the other two players suspended - are not allowed to play even at club level if those clubs are affiliated to the regional cricket body - in this case the Rawalpindi Cricket Association - which is in turn, affiliated to the PCB. It is believed that the club Amir turned up for is not affiliated to the Rawalpindi association.

A spokesman for the Pakistan board said they were also investigating the matter. "Yes, we have come to the knowledge of Amir playing a match in Rawalpindi and we are investigating the matter," Nadeem Sarwar told AFP.

At the moment it is believed that the ICC has only asked for details of the appearance, after which it will decide whether or not it constitutes a breach of the code. Local officials in Rawalpindi say Amir apologised after appearing in the game, saying he wasn't sure whether or not he could play in a game at that level.

Amir, along with Butt and Asif, was suspended by the ICC after the spot-fixing row centering around pre-planned no-balls broke during the Lord's Test between England and Pakistan.

An ICC anti-corruption tribunal heard the case relating to the three suspended players in Doha, Qatar, last month and is due to announce its verdict on February 5.

2011 ICC Cricket World cup - Schedule and fixtures

2011-01-21T01:54:00.001-08:00

The final fixtures of ICC Cricket World cup 2011 has been announced with India taking Bangladesh in the opening match. India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh will be the hosts with Mumbai hosting the final of the World cup. It seems ICC took lessons from 2007 world cup and has divided the teams in two groups so that big teams qualify.

Group Division:

Group A:	Group B
Australia, Pakistan, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Canada, Kenya.	India, South Africa, England, West Indies, Bangladesh, Ireland, Netherlands.

Match no.	Date	Teams	Venue
1	19 Feb	India vs Bangladesh	Dhaka
2	20 Feb	New Zealand vs Kenya	Chennai
3	20 Feb	Sri Lanka vs Canada	Hambantota
4	21 Feb	Australia vs Zimbabwe	Ahmedabad
5	22 Feb	England vs Netherlands	Nagpur
6	23 Feb	Pakistan vs Kenya	Hambantota
7	24 Feb	South Africa vs West Indies	New Delhi
8	25 Feb	Australia vs New Zealand	Nagpur
9	25 Feb	Bangladesh vs Ireland	Dhaka
10	26 Feb	Sri Lanka vs Pakistan	Colombo
11	27 Feb	India vs England	Kolkata
12	28 Feb	West Indies vs Netherlands	New Delhi
13	28 Feb	Zimbabwe vs Canada	Nagpur
14	1 Mar	Sri Lanka vs Kenya	Colombo
15	2 Mar	England vs Ireland	Bangalore
16	3 Mar	South Africa vs Netherlands	Mohali
17	3 Mar	Pakistan vs Canada	Colombo
18	4 Mar	New Zealand vs Zimbabwe	Ahmedabad
19	4 Mar	Bangladesh vs West Indies	Dhaka
20	5 Mar	Sri Lanka vs Australia	Colombo
21	6 Mar	India vs Ireland	Bangalore
22	6 Mar	England vs South Africa	Chennai
23	7 Mar	Kenya vs Canada	New Delhi
24	8 Mar	Pakistan vs New Zealand	Pallekelle
25	9 Mar	India vs Netherlands	New Delhi
26	10 Mar	Sri Lanka vs Zimbabwe	Pallekelle
27	11 Mar	West Indies vs Ireland	Mohali
28	11 Mar	Bangladesh vs England	Chittagong
29	12 Mar	India vs South Africa	Nagpur
30	13 Mar	New Zealand vs Canada	Mumbai
31	13 Mar	Australia vs Kenya	Bangalore
32	14 Mar	Pakistan vs Zimbabwe	Pallekelle
33	14 Mar	Bangladesh vs Netherlands	Chittagong
34	15 Mar	South Africa vs Ireland	Kolkata
35	16 Mar	Australia vs Canada	Bangalore
36	17 Mar	England vs West Indies	Chennai
37	18 Mar	Sri Lanka vs New Zealand	Mumbai
38	18 Mar	Ireland vs Netherlands	Kolkata
39	19 Mar	Australia vs Pakistan	Colombo
40	19 Mar	Bangladesh vs South Africa	Dhaka
41	20 Mar	Zimbabwe vs Kenya	Kolkata
42	20 Mar	India vs West Indies	Chennai
43	23 Mar	First Quarterfinal	Dhaka
44	24 Mar	Second Quarterfinal	Colombo
45	25 Mar	Third Quarterfinal	Dhaka
46	26 Mar	Fourth Quarterfinal	Ahmedabad
47	29 Mar	First Semifinal	Colombo
48	30 Mar	Second Semifinal	Mohali
49	02 Apr	FINAL	Mumbai

Team Group

2011-01-19T23:31:00.000-08:00

There were lot of lessons were learnt in the 2007 World Cup which was held in West Indies. There were too many matches. This time ICC has come up with a short World Cup. They have only 2 Groups

Group Name	Team Names
Group A	Australia, New Zealand, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Canada, Kenya
Group B	Bangladesh, England, India, South Africa, West Indies, Ireland, Netherlands

There are 7 Teams in each group. In the first round, Each team of a Group will play with other teams within the same group. It means each team will play 6 matches.

After the end of first round, only 4 teams will go to next round Quarter Final and 3 teams will be eliminated.

In the 2nd round (Quarter Finals), 4 Teams will advance to Semi Finals and 4 Teams will be eliminated.

Winners of 2 Semi Finalists Teams will then play the Final and lift the ICC World Cup 2011

Read more: ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 Team Squad, Team Names, Groups | Nihar's World http://www.niharsworld.com/2011/01/11/icc-cricket-world-cup-2011-team-squad-team-names-groups/#ixzz1BYhEP7Tv

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South Africa Squad For World Cup 2011

2011-01-19T23:24:00.000-08:00

South Africa Team Squad for World Cup 2011

Squad:- Graeme Smith (Capt), Hashim Amla, Johan Botha, AB de Villiers (wk), JP Duminy, Faf du Plessis, Colin Ingram, Jacques Kallis, Morne Morkel, Wayne Parnell, Robin Peterson, Dale Steyn, Imran Tahir, Lonwabo Tsotsobe, Morne van Wyk (wk)

Kenya Squad For World Cup 2011

2011-01-19T23:22:00.000-08:00

Kenya Team Squad for World Cup 2011

Squad:- Jimmy Kamande (Capt), Seren Waters, Alex Obanda, David Obuya, Collins Obuya, Steve Tikolo, Tamnay Mishra, Rakep Patel, Maurice Ouma, Thomas Odoyo, Nehemiah Odhiambo, Elijah Otieno, Peter Ongondo, Shem Ngoche, James Ngoche

England Squad For World Cup 2011

2011-01-19T23:17:00.000-08:00

England Team Squad for World Cup 2011

Squad:- Andrew Strauss (Capt), James Anderson, Ian Bell, Tim Bresnan, Stuart Broad, Paul Collingwood, Eoin Morgan, Kevin Pietersen, Matt Prior, Ajmal Shahzad, Graeme Swann, James Tredwell, Jonathan Trott, Luke Wright, Michael Yardy

Zimbabwe Squad For World Cup 2011

2011-01-19T23:10:00.000-08:00

HARARE: Zimbabwe Cricket Union (ZCU) announced Wednesday its squad for the ICC World Cup 2011 with Sean Ervine getting recall after a span of six years.

As per the International Cricket Council media release, Ervine, who last played for Zimbabwe in an international game in 2004, has joined his younger brother Craig in the final 15-man squad, to be led by Elton Chigumbura.

Zimbabwe are placed in Group A along with the likes of Pakistan, Sri Lanka, New Zealanad, and Australia and will start their World Cup campaign against the Kangaroos on February 21 at Ahmedabad.

In the interim, Ervine has played domestic cricket in Australia for Western Australia. He currently plays for Hampshire in the English county cricket.

Batsman Vusimuzi Sibanda has been named one of the five non-travelling reserves.

Squad:-

The squad includes Elton Chigumbura (captain), Regis Chakabva, Charles Coventry, Graeme Cremer, Craig Ervine, Sean Ervine, Gregory Lamb, Shingirai Masakadza, Christopher Mpofu, Raymond Price, Edward Rainsford, Tatenda Taibu, Brendan Taylor, Prosper Utseya, and Sean Williams.

Sri Lanka Squad For World Cup 2011

2011-01-19T23:08:00.000-08:00

Sri Lanka is the second host of the 2011 edition of the World Cup, and were the runner-up in the previous edition of the tournament. They had won the tournament in 1996, and were the semi-finalists in 2003.

Sri Lanka’s batting has been a key to their successes, but the best part of the side is their spinners. It is not only the likes of Muthiah Muralitharan and Ajantha Mendis, but also Suraj Randiv and Rangana Herath who will make it difficult for the opposition.

Squad of Sri Lankan cricket team for 2011 ICC cricket World Cup

Squad :- Kumar Sangakkara (captain), Mahela Jayawardene (vice-captain), Tillakaratne Dilshan, Upul Tharanga, Thilan Samaraweera, Chamara Silva, Chamara Kapugedera, Angelo Mathews, Thisara Perera, Nuwan Kulasekara, Lasith Malinga, Dilhara Fernando, Muttiah Muralitharan, Ajantha Mendis, Rangana Herath.