Thursday 20 October 2011
India v England: 3rd ODI in Mohali
MS Dhoni was India's matchwinner once again, as he marshalled an asking-rate approaching ten an over to seal an unassailable 3-0 series lead in the third ODI at Mohali. With Ravindra Jadeja alongside him, he clubbed Tim Bresnan for consecutive boundaries in the final over of the match to finish unbeaten on 35 from 31 balls, as England's best total of the series - 298 for 4 - proved insufficient to keep the series alive. It was a sloppy fielding display from England in a match they could and should have won. Their own total had been built on another sheet-anchor performance from Jonathan Trott, who finished unbeaten on 98 from 116 balls, but the point-of-difference innings had been played by Samit Patel, whose career-best 70 from 43 balls enabled England to add 91 runs in their final ten overs. Given the history of chasing at Mohali - only five teams had previously managed it in 19 matches at the venue - their route back into the series was awaiting them.
Instead, they produced a listless defence, with Ajinkya Rahane cruising along to 91 from 104 balls in a second-wicket stand of 111 with Gautam Gambhir. They managed just one wicket in the first 34 overs - a marginal lbw against Parthiv Patel, which broke an opening partnership of 79 - and though they rallied well to claim four wickets in an eight-over spell of dominance, their failure to take their chances cost them dear in the closing stages...
Pakistan v Sri Lanka 1st Test: 3rd day
Pakistan Goes on with Taufeeq's double-century:
Twelve hours of monkish accumulation in the Abu Dhabi heat earned Taufeeq Umar only the seventh double-century by a Pakistan opener, and the first since 1992. It also left a tired Sri Lanka waiting for a declaration as Pakistan's batsmen, barring Misbah-ul-Haq, favoured accumulation over urgency. Misbah finally relented about an hour before close of play, after the lead was 314, leaving the Sri Lanka openers a testing period to survive.
Sri Lanka's day got worse when umpire Tony Hill, who is having a rough game, harshly adjudged Tharanga Paranavitana leg-before first ball. Several close shaves against the new ball followed, which was the last thing Sri Lanka needed after Taufeeq had ground them out of the match.
Taufeeq went through three contrasting partnerships on the third day: he collected runs without risk with Younis Khan, stepped back as Misbah attacked the bowlers and finally took charge when Asad Shafiq - coming in at 436 for 4 - remained stuck on 1 for 30 deliveries.
And he Rocked the Stadium.
Tuesday 18 October 2011
Pakistan v Sri Lanka: 1st Test ,1st day
Sri Lanka crawl in dull first session:
On a dead Sheikh Zayed Stadium pitch that brought back memories of Pakistan's drawn series against South Africa last year, Sri Lanka crawled at under two runs an over in a dull first session of the three-match Test series before Saeed Ajmal dismissed Lahiru Thirimanne on the stroke of lunch. Flat would be an understatement for the way the surface played given that it was the first morning of a Test. Though the three Pakistan fast bowlers, Umar Gul, Aizaz Cheema and Junaid Khan - surprisingly chosen ahead of the quicker and more experienced Wahab Riaz - ran in with heart, they were rendered ineffective by the lack of bite, and life, in the pitch.
Pakistan news:Afridi withdraws retirement
Shahid Afridi has withdrawn his international retirement and says he is available for selection for Pakistan in the limited-over formats. Afridi had announced his retirement from international cricket in May after having been stripped of the ODI captaincy following a public spat with coach Waqar Younis.
He had, however, said it was a 'conditional' retirement, stating that if there were changes in the PCB and the team management, he would consider playing for Pakistan again. Since then, Waqar Younis has quit as coach of the national team, and Ijaz Butt has been replaced as PCB chairman by Zaka Ashraf. Afridi said he had not really retired but had only said he wouldn't play under the previous (Ijaz Butt-led) board.
"I didn't as such retire," Afridi told reporters in Karachi. "I only said I will not play under the previous board but now people are changed - exactly what I wanted - so I am available for selection for the country."
Good Luck for Pakistani team.
Monday 17 October 2011
India v England : 2nd ODI in Delhi
India's 126-run win against England in Hyderabad was a dramatic turnaround after they had been battered by the same opposition all summer, but Virat Kohli said they had been playing good cricket from the one-day series in England. Rather than any drastic change in approach, Kohli said it was the fact that the team had continued to stay positive through the 0-3 loss in the ODIs in England that allowed them to win the game.
"I think we played really well in the ODIs in England," Kohli said. "It was just a matter of crossing the line which we couldn't do there. Unfortunately, a few times we had rain and Duckworth/Lewis coming in at the wrong time, though we can't really blame that. We fought hard through that series and kept our heads high; and that probably made the difference in this first game here."
India were also helped by home conditions in Hyderabad and Kohli said the spinners would be the key through the series. The second ODI, on Monday, is at Kohli's home ground - the Feroz Shah Kotla in Delhi, where the pitch had been quite inconsistent during the IPL in April-May.
Zimbabwe v New Zealand : 2nd Twenty20 in Harare
New Zealand favourites for series win:
The heady heights of a Test win must be a distant memory for Zimbabwe, even though it was only two months ago that they beat Bangladesh in their comeback Test. They have now lost nine international games on the trot and are coming to terms with what looks like it will be a long, hard slog to prove they are worthy of Test status.
Though they are inexperienced at Twenty20 cricket, this may be the format most likely to provide Zimbabwe rare wins against Test-playing nations. The brevity of the game means there is not much time for a better side to make the difference in quality count, and an individual performance or a single phase of play can often be enough for an underdog to cause an upset.
Zimbabwe's problem in Twenty20 cricket seems to be the inability to get off to quick starts with the bat. They had an opportunity to beat Pakistan after they kept them to 141 in Harare during the recent home series, but the top order floundered and left the middle order too much to do.
Australia in South Africa 2011-12
Cummins into Test squad:
Australia is not gambling with the future of the young New South Wales fast bowler Pat Cummins by rushing him into the Australia Test squad for the tour of South Africa, the outgoing chairman of selectors Andrew Hilditch has said.
Still only 18, Cummins has enjoyed a meteoric rise, and will now stay on in South Africa for the whole tour after impressing all who have viewed him in the two Twenty20 matches between the visitors and South Africa. He has played only three first-class matches, the last of which was the Sheffield Shield final between NSW and Tasmania.
Cummins' 48 overs to return 3 for 118 in the first innings of the final was the probable source of a back complaint that kept him out of two winter tours - Hilditch revealed Cummins would have been a likely visitor to Sri Lanka if he had been fit. But it also demonstrated his ability to sustain his pace and discipline over long periods.
Thursday 13 October 2011
Bangladesh v West Indies: 1st ODI in Mirpur
West Indies 298 for 4 (Simmons 122, Samuels 71) beat Bangladesh 258 for 7 (Naeem 52, Shakib 67) by 40 runs ...
Five years after his debut, Lendl Simmons finally made his first international hundred, and with the help of another batsman who has resurrected his international career this year, Marlon Samuels, powered West Indies to a total that proved too much for Bangladesh in the first ODI in Mirpur. The pair put on 150 for the first wicket before a power-packed Kieron Pollard cameo further demoralised a Bangladesh team that was on a high after their dramatic win in the Twenty20 two days ago.
Bangladesh were asked to chase down 299, which was higher than any ODI score they have made in the past two years, and despite a quick half-century from former captain Shakib Al Hasan and a patient one from makeshift opener Naeem Islam, they ended well short.
Simmons had made half-centuries in six of his previous nine ODI innings, but failed to reach triple-digits each time. On Thursday, he made a fidgety start before settling in on a surface that didn't have much in it for either the medium-pacers or the spinners
South Africa v Australia : 1st Twenty20 in Cape Town
Australia 147 for 5 (Watson 52) beat South Africa 146 for 7 (Duminy 67, Cummins 3-25) by 5 wickets
A powerful half-century from Shane Watson helped Australia make an encouraging start to their tour of South Africa as they won the opening Twenty20 in Cape Town by five wickets. The teenage debutant Patrick Cummins collected three wickets as South Africa reached 146 for 7, led by a solid innings from JP Duminy, and the target wasn't enough to prevent Australia from turning around their recent poor T20 form.
Although Australia's chase was on track for most of the innings, a couple of good late overs from Morne Morkel and Lonwabo Tsotsobe gave South Africa a sniff in the dying stages. Australia needed six from the final over, bowler by Rusty Theron, and a single from Matthew Wade was followed by a square-driven boundary and a single from Steven Smith to get Australia home with three balls to spare, their second win from their past nine T20s.
England's opportunity against injury-hit India.
To give the marketing machinery generous benefit of doubt, India and England haven't exactly offered them much by the way of close series. India last beat England in England in September 2007.
The corresponding date for England in India is April 2006. India have whitewashed only two Test series (longer than two matches); one of those victims was England. Four out of their seven whitewashes (in series longer than two matches) have been handed by England; the last one earlier this year now invokes the deadly weapon of vengeance...
Simmons century leads West Indies to 298
50 overs West Indies 298 for 4 (Simmons 122, Samuels 71) v Bangladesh
Lendl Simmons finally made his first international hundred, five years after his debut, to power West Indies to a big score in the first ODI against Bangladesh in Mirpur. He was supported by another West Indies batsman who has resurrected his international career this year, Marlon Samuels. The pair put on 150 runs to demoralise a Bangladesh team that was on a high after their dramatic win in the Twenty20 two days ago.
Simmons had made half-centuries in six of his previous nine ODI innings, but failed to reach triple-digits each time. On Thursday, he made a fidgety start before settling in on a surface that didn't have much in it for either the medium-pacers or the spinners.
In the sixth over, he was hurried into a pull which was top-edged just wide of the bowler, then he mistimed a straight drive with which he still managed to find the boundary, before jumping outside leg as he looked to crash a short ball through off without managing to connect. He punched the air in frustration after missing out on a cut in the next over, but then showed how good he could be with fours through cover off the back and front foot.South Africa v Australia, 1st Twenty20 IN Cape Town
With his eye firmly set on challenging for the only global title that has eluded Australia, the ICC World T20, Australia T20 captain Cameron White sees the series against South Africa as crucial to the team's progression. Australia have five T20s scheduled before the event in Sri Lanka next year and White thinks every one of them will be vital.
"We definitely have to win these two games," he said. "From my point of view, with quite a young side and an inexperienced line-up, it would be nice to play some more cricket before the T2O World Cup. The more experience you can get into younger players, the better performances you will get out of them so it would be good to play a few more matches."
Australia's current T20 squad has six players under the age of 25 and three who have yet to play an international. Although White acknowledged that Australia are not at full strength, he thinks they are "pretty close," to it. "The side we've picked is the best Twenty20 side we could have picked."
Given the recent turmoil around the team following the Argus review and that they will play under an interim coach, there have been plenty of off-field distractions, but White denied any claims of instability and said the unit is as solid as ever. "I think everyone knows the situation the team's in and knows certain players are out of the team," he said. "Unsettled is definitely not a word I would use." Terms like "dynamic" and "promising" are the ones White would prefer to describe Australia's current situation and he is particularly pleased with sense of anticipation that surrounds the three rookies.
Quaid-e-Azam Trophy: 2nd round,1st day.
Contrasting centuries from Umar Akmal and Ali Waqas put Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited in command of their match against Multan at the Multan Cricket Stadium. The pair built on a quick start from the openers, with Azeem Ghumman going on to make a brisk 77. Ghumman and Waqas put on 104 for the second wicket to take SNGPL to 156 for 2, but the worst was yet to come for Multan. Umar Akmal clobbered 21 fours and three sixes in an unbeaten 153 that came at better than a run-a-ball and took less than three hours. His pyrotechnics were in contrast to the sedate 104 from Waqas which required nearly five hours. Lahore Shalimar continued their poor start to the season, by collapsing to 84 all out against Khan Research Laboratories at the Gaddafi Stadium. Such a paltry total didn't seem likely when they reached 66 for 3, but left-arm spinner Nayyer Abbas ripped through the middle order to spark a dramatic implosion. Lahore lost their final four wickets with no runs added as part-time left-arm spinner Saeed Anwar ended with figures of 2.1-2-0-3. KRL then solidified their advantage through half-centuries from Zain Abbas and Bazid Khan which took them to 140 for 1 by stumps.
Bangladesh v West Indies 1st ODI in Mirpur.
Kieron Pollard, the West Indies allrounder, has said that the Bangladesh series is a very important one for West Indies and for himself personally. Pollard joined the squad after winning the Champions League T20 with Mumbai Indians, but was ineligible to play in his side's Twenty20 international defeat on Tuesday. He has yet to establish himself as an ODI force, averaging 21.73 from 43 games, and score a one-day hundred. "Hopefully we can go there and give a good account of ourselves [in the ODIs]," he said. "Bangladesh played well in the Twenty20 game but it can go either way, that you have seen in the Champions League. Fifty-overs games are the test of character of each team."
'Watching Merchant was a part of our training.
About 200 people turned up at the CK Nayudu Hall of the Cricket Club of India in Mumbai to listen to former India batsman Vijay Merchant's few surviving team-mates speak on the occasion of his birth centenary on October 12. Former players Madhav Mantri, Madhav Apte, Vasant Raiji and Merchant's fellow commentator Anand Setalvad related stories of their interactions with a cricketer who was widely acknowledged as the best Indian batsman of his generation, and who later became a respected administrator, commentator and writer.
Mantri said that after his nephew Sunil Gavaskar's early success as a Test opener, he was asked who he felt was the better opening batsman. "I said then that a great of one generation will be a great in another generation as well. But it is the way an opening batsman leaves the ball that is more important, and in that aspect Merchant was a master. Sunil later wrote to Merchant saying: 'and they say blood is thicker than water.'"
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