All posts by csb10.top

The PCB is unlikely to accede to Gill Woolmer’s request to play a Twenty20 match against India, to raise funds for a cricket academy Bob Woolmer had planned to set up in South Africa, due to a congested fixture list.”We got a letter asking us to play a Twenty20 match with India for the academy. But this seems unlikely in the near future,” Ehsan Malik, PCB spokesman, told Reuters.Malik said a packed international schedule for both teams was the reason behind the decision and that the PCB was looking at other means of helping establish the academy. The PCB has dedicated the practice area of its National Cricket Academy in Lahore to Woolmer and named it after him.A proposal to play a Twenty20 match against England in August was earlier rejected as the England team had prior commitments.Woolmer died in Jamaica on March 18, a day after Pakistan suffered a shock defeat against Ireland and were knocked out in the first round of the World Cup. His death was investigated as murder until after the tournament when Jamaican authorities u-turned and announced he had died of natural causes.

Lance Gibbs, the former world record holder, is concerned West Indies’ newest spin talent does not have enough variety to be a long-term force at international level. While Gibbs is pleased Sulieman Benn was picked for his debut against Sri Lanka last month, he said the left-armer had work to do to become a success.Benn, who is from Barbados, picked up three second-innings wickets during West Indies’ opening-Test loss in Guyana and is in the squad for the final match of the series starting in Port of Spain on Thursday. However Gibbs, the former offspinner who took 309 Test wickets, said Benn would have to improve.”He has got to bowl six different balls because on that type of track [in the first Test] batsman could get accustomed to you,” Gibbs said. “I would say he has got the ability but he’s got work to do.”He could become a success story but it is all in his hands, he’s got to learn the strengths and weaknesses as far as batsmen are concerned and use that effectively. In Guyana, Benn fought the wicket too much. As a spinner you’ve got to vary your pace, he was particularly flat and this is why he didn’t get any wickets in the first innings.”Amit Jaggernauth, the Trinidad and Tobago offspinner, is also part of West Indies’ squad and Gibbs said both should be in the side to face Sri Lanka. “I told Amit in Guyana not to be too disappointed,” Gibbs said. “It is best to start your Test career on wickets that you know and I’m sure he will be given a chance here.”

Nottinghamshire will announce to members at the AGM on Monday that they have made a profit for the seventh successive year. The club made a pre-tax profit of £137,831 and are also on course to complete the £8.2 million Bridgford Road Stand and other improvements on budget in late April.Despite the results, finance chairman Richard Tennant still sounded a cautious note. “We cannot afford to stand still in what is a very dynamic competitive environment,” he said. “Since last year’s AGM, not only have Cardiff completed their re-development but the Rose Bowl, The Oval, Headingley and Old Trafford have all announced their own very ambitious plans.”We are fortunate to have a staging agreement with the ECB which guarantees international cricket at Trent Bridge until the end of the 2011 season,” he added. “But 2012 will be on us before we know it and we must ensure that our business is in the best possible financial shape as we are forced to bid with other venues for major matches – without any staging agreement certainty.”Barry Pailing, the club chairman, will announce at the meeting at that he will not be continuing in his role after four years, but he will remain on the general committee for a further year.

Scorecard

Opener Dale Richards blasted 80 off 93 balls with 11 fours to lead Barbados to a thumping nine-wicket win over Windward Islands in Kingston. Richards, who capitalised on some wayward bowling to bring up his half-century off 55 balls, added 111 runs for the first wicket with Jason Haynes, before Haynes and Dwayne Smith finished off the job. Earlier, Windward, who resumed on 58 for 3, with a lead of only two runs, lost overnight batsmen Andre Fletcher and Liam Sebastian for 14 and 18 respectively as they slumped to 87 for 5. Donwell Hector looked assured before he was run out for 14, the second time that he was dismissed in such a manner in his debut match. Lindon James, the wicketkeeper-batsman, took Windward from 104 for 6 to 190 with an unbeaten 56. Smith then took the last two wickets to finish with 3 for 41. Ryan Hinds was named Man of the Match for scoring 95 in Barbados’ first innings as well as claiming three wickets with his left-arm spin.
Scorecard
Guyana slumped 128 for 4 against Trinidad to gain an effective lead of only 61 runs at the end of the third day’s play in Port of Spain. Captain Ramnaresh Sarwan, with an unbeaten 35, was at the crease when stumps were drawn after Guyana began their second innings 67 runs in arrears. Richard Kelly gave Trinidad the early breakthrough by getting rid of Shivnarine Chattergoon, the first innings century-maker, for four. Seamer Rayad Emrit, playing his first match as Trinidad captain, then dismissed opener Travis Dowlin and Leon Johnson for 10 to leave Guyana at 48 for 3. Narsingh Deonarine, who scored 46 of 51 balls with seven fours and a six, set about doing the repair job with Sarwan, adding 74 runs for the fourth wicket, before he was dismissed by offspinner Amit Jaggernauth. Earlier, Trinidad, who resumed on 273 for 3, lost Lara in the morning session when he gave left-arm spinner Veerasammy Permaul a return catch after only adding eight runs to his overnight score of 115. Trinidad lost wickets at regular intervals, but Kieron Pollord, who had resumed on 41, kept up the attack by scoring 85 off 103 balls before edging to the wicketkeeper. There was an hour-long stoppage after lunch due to rain, subsequent to which, Richard Kelly, with an unbeaten 30, took Trinidad to 401. Offspinner Zaheer Mohammed claimed the bowling honours with figures of 4 for 78.
Scorecard
Jamaica, after overcoming a nervy start, were led by an aggressive half-century from Wavell Hinds, who scored 62 off 82 balls, to take them to a five-wicket win over Leeward Islands at Sabina Park. Leeward’s seamer Gavin Tonge took three wickets to have Jamaica stuttering at 20 for 4, but they could not capitalise on that opening, with Hinds and David Bernard adding 82 runs for the fifth wicket. Earlier, Leewards could only add 96 runs to their overnight 87 for 2, with legspinner Odeon Brown taking 5 for 31 to finish with a match haul of 10 for 103, his maiden ten-wicket haul at the first-class level. Brown, who was named Man of the Match, was aided by left-arm spinner Nikita Miller, who claimed figures of 4 for 43 to end with overall figures of 7 for 85. Montcin Hodge provided resistance from Leeward, taking his score from 38 to 64, consuming 267 deliveries in a knock that stretched five hours.

Worcestershire are lining up Cameron White, the Victoria allrounder, as their overseas player for the Twenty20 Cup. According to the he is one of “three or four” options being considered along with South African pair Shaun Pollock and Herschelle Gibbs.White has a strong Twenty20 pedigree with 878 runs in 26 matches and a top score of 141 not out made for Somerset. In his one international Twenty20 he plundered England for a 20-ball 40 in Sydney but missed out on a place in the World Twenty20 last September.Pollock, who retired from international cricket in January, has said he would like another spell of county cricket and has gained the interest of a number of counties. Pollock, Gibbs and White are all part of the forthcoming Indian Premier League.Worcestershire already have two overseas fast bowlers on their books, Steve Magoffin from Western Australia and West Indies quick Fidel Edwards. Magoffin could be retained for the Twenty20 but the county are keen for someone were more experience in that format. Edwards then arrives for his stint in July.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

The one-day series might have gone but India lived up to their world champions tag in the Twenty20, finishing with a thumping seven-wicket win in Mumbai. Australia have bossed around for most of the last month but India can take consolation from one stat: the last eight internationals between the two sides have been shared 4-4.Ricky Ponting’s blazing 76 launched a meaty Australian total but it was soon to be overshadowed by Gautam Gambhir’s swash and buckle. The jury is still out on his Test and 50-over credentials but there’s few who will argue with his ability to swing a Twenty20 match. With fifties against New Zealand, England, Pakistan and Australia he’s been India’s most valuable batsmen in the shortest format. Only Matthew Hayden has managed a similar number of fifties; nobody has managed to defy expectations so consistently.Like he’s done on each of those occasions, Gambhir set the agenda in an emphatic manner, partnering Robin Uthappa and Yuvraj Singh in rollicking stands. Gambhir cut loose with a fearlessness that was missing in some of the 50-over games. The dance down the track was a regular feature but the chiselled square-cut was the sight of the evening.Australia’s bowlers had a tough time – the 24 extras indicated as much – and all conceded seven or more runs an over. Brett Lee was shredded to the tune of 20 runs in his sixth over, when the total went from 30 to 50, and Australia never recovered. Overthrows and a wicket off a no-ball typified their day and there was really nothing that went their way in front of a raucous crowd. Gambhir fell with 24 still needed, holing out to mid-on trying to end with a flourish, but Australian would have known that the kangaroo was well and truly bolted.Robin Uthappa’s blistering 35, including six crunchy fours, went well with the fireworks illuminating the Mumbai skies. The cheerleaders in the stands might have twisted and turned but Uthappa didn’t waver from striking straight: walking down the track casually and ripping shots with laughable ease. Virender Sehwag managed just 5 on his return but Yuvraj Singh swung India to the finish. Ben Hilfenhaus, playing his first match of the tour, and Michael Clarke were the most effective bowlers but the others didn’t have much to smile.

Earlier Ponting made good use of the advantage at the toss. Cashing in on a belter of a pitch that was being used for the first time, he shrugged off a regular loss of partners to motor to his highest score of the tour.Entering as early as the first over, after Adam Gilchrist slammed three consecutive fours before losing his middle stump to a incisive RP Singh yorker, Ponting displayed controlled aggression. He threw his bat at anything wide of the stumps – fortunate to see Mahendra Singh Dhoni unable to clasp onto a thick edge while lunging to the right – and brought out the imperious pull when anything was short.He did struggle occasionally against sharp turn that Murali Kartik extracted – the most attacking bowler on show – and preferred to play out Harbhajan Singh’s yorker-length offerings. Hayden, who missed the two games due to a hip injury, hammered two huge sixes, walking down the track with characteristic impunity, before playing on to Harbhajan. A mid-pitch misunderstanding did Andrew Symonds in, just when he appeared set to open up, and Brad Hodge capped off a forgettable tour, finishing on an average of less than 10.Harbhajan was India’s most economical bowler, conceding just 17 in his four overs, and Kartik proved an able ally. RP Singh, largely erratic, should have ended with another wicket, with umpire Amish Saheba failing to detect an edge off Brad Haddin in the last over, but it didn’t make a difference in the final analysis. This was a Twenty20 and India were here to show their championship class.

The Indian cricket board has decided to serve a show-cause notice to Dilip Vengsarkar, the chairman of selectors for defying an official gag by continuing to write his weekly column and giving an interview to , a Mumbai-based newspaper.Rajiv Shukla, vice-president of the Board for Control of Cricket in India told PTI that the decision to serve the notice was taken by Sharad Pawar, the BCCI president. “An explanation will be sought from Vengsarkar for the columns which have appeared in Hindi and Marathi dailies,” he said. His column appeared in a Marathi paper, , and Hindi daily, .”The BCCI is of the view that if he wants to continue as a columnist, he can give up the post of the chief selector,” Shukla said. However, the board secretary Niranjan Shah said that the notice hadn’t yet been served. “It will be done some time by today,” he told Cricinfo. “We have decided to issue it, maybe by evening.”The BCCI had earlier imposed a seven-point diktat to the national selectors, and one of the main points of the directive was to restrict them from airing their views by writing newspaper columns or even interacting with the media.Vengsarkar had earlier flouted an oral directive by the BCCI after a piece carrying his byline appeared in , a Marathi daily run by the brother of Sharad Pawar, the BCCI president. That prompted the board to seek an explanation from Vengsarkar as well as impose further restrictions on all the national selectors by banning them from accompanying the team on foreign tours.Vengsarkar has been writing his columns ever since he took over as chairman. There is a view, especially with selectors enjoying only a honorary post, that Vengsarkar shouldn’t be asked to sacrifice what is effectively a regular salary.In his latest interview, Vengsarkar spoke of India’s Test captaincy issue, following Rahul Dravid’s resignation after the England tour. He hinted that Dravid’s batting form may have contributed to his decision and the selectors felt it was best to give him a break by dropping him from the one-day squad.”I feel he [Dravid] is a very sensitive person and I guess too much media pressure affected his batting,” Vengsarkar told the paper. “Dravid looked mentally down when we gave him a break. At such a time, it is always better for a player to play domestic or even club cricket to get his confidence and rhythm back. Dravid has done that and I’m sure he will score loads of runs in the future.”On the appointment of separate captains for Test and one-dayers, Vengsarkar said the selectors were in favour of an experienced candidate for for the Tests keeping in mind India’s challenging tour of Australia next month. He added that Mahandra Singh Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh were close contenders for the one-day post.”It is really difficult to differentiate between the two because both have some great qualities to take Indian cricket to the top,” he said. “I guess Dhoni’s cool demeanor in a crisis tipped the scale in his favour.”Kumble is highly respected by his team-mates but also by the opposition. Most importantly he knows how to handle the Aussies in their own backyard.”

An unwelcome visitor
The two days preceding the match were warm and dry but Hyderabad awoke to the sound of rain on Friday morning. The shower didn’t last long but it was enough for the groundstaff to bring out the covers to protect the square. An early-bird crowd cheered massively as each plastic sheet was removed and when the Indians jogged out to warm up the decibel level went up a notch. The loudest shouts were reserved for the Twenty20 stars – MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh – until, that is, Sachin Tendulkar strode out.A bit too straight
The stumps got hit twice in the first ten overs of the day, and all three times it was by the Australian openers. After facing a wide first up, Matthew Hayden began in style, flicking his first ball through square leg for four and following up with a powerful straight drive for the same result. He nearly had a hat-trick of fours but the booming drive cannoned into the stumps at the bowler’s end, uprooting one and pegging the middle back. In the fourth over, it was Gilchrist’s turn to drive too straight and umpire Shastri began to take cover before the ball hit the stumps.Going from superb to sloppy in a flash
Ricky Ponting drove the ball towards point and Yuvraj moved nimbly, diving full stretch to his right, to pull off a spectacular save. He leapt up in time to see Hayden stranded after Ponting declined a single. Yuvraj threw to the bowler’s end and Hayden wasn’t in the frame when the ball reached Zaheer Khan who broke the stumps. Replays showed that Zaheer didn’t collect the ball and broke the stumps with his hand. An easy run out through a superb throw had been ruined through sloppy finishing.An exercise in self-control
Sreesanth’s antics in Kochi attracted so much attention that he was restrained today. He began tidily, conceding eight off his first two overs before Hayden got stuck into him. In his fourth over, he bowled three wides outside off stump and got smacked for four of the ninth ball of the over. His day got worse in the final over of the game when he dropped a simple return catch off James Hopes. In frustration he shied at the bowler’s end where Hopes was safe and needlessly conceded an overthrow. Two balls remained and just as nothing seemed to be going his way, Sreesanth dismissed Symonds and Hopes off consecutive deliveries.

Watch out for falling objects
During the ICC World Twenty20, spectators often wore hard hats as it was raining sixes. There were no sixes for 39.5 overs today but when Symonds launched Irfan Pathan over midwicket hard hats were the need of the moment. The ball cleared the boundary and fell into the stands, hitting a spectator on the head. Symonds went on to clout four more sixes but the crowd had begun to watch carefully.Free hit anti-climax
The bowlers hadn’t over-stepped for 58.4 overs and then Brett Lee committed the first front-foot offence. Sachin Tendulkar was on strike for the no-ball and Yuvraj Singh reminded him that the next one was a free hit. The crowd realised what was in the offing once umpire Shastri twirled his hand above his head. The roar soon became deafening as they urged Tendulkar to cash in. Lee charged in amid the din, Tendulkar charged down the pitch, Lee fired it fast and outside off stump and Tendulkar was beaten. Terrific noise one moment, silence the next.

Badureliya created the biggest upset of the season by trouncing the formidable Nondescripts team by a 271-run margin at the Nondescripts Stadium. Led by captain Hemantha Wickramaratne, who scored 114, Badureliya managed 339 in their first innings after being put in by Nondescripts. Wickramaratne, though, narrowly missed out scoring a century in both innings when he was dismissed for 91 in the second innings as Badureliya topped 300 twice in the match. Nondescripts’ batting was dismantled by Badureliya’s all-round bowling strength, collapsing for totals of 191 and 187.The win placed Badureliya second on the points table.Sinhalese recovered from 52-3 to total 514 and beat Tamil Union by an innings and 104 runs at the P.Saravanamuttu Stadium. The foundation for their victory was laid by their fourth wicket pair of Thilan Samaraweera (125) and Thilina Kandamby (who scored a career-best 163), who figured in a stand of 261. Sachitra Serasinghe’s offspin then unsettled the Tamil Union batting as they were forced to follow-on. He ended the match with eight wickets.In a low scoring game played at the R Premadasa Stadium, Colts recovered from conceding a first-innings lead of 21 runs to beat Ragama by four wickets to retain third spot.Colombo recovered from their shock defeat at the hands of Moors last weekend to beat Bloomfield by 257 runs at the Colombo Cricket Club Ground. Discarded Sri Lanka batsman, Jehan Mubarak, was in great form for Colombo, scoring 121 and 49.Following their giant-killing performance last weekend, Moors were brought down to earth by Chilaw Marians, who beat them by 226 runs at the Moors Sports Club Ground. The architect of Marians’ victory was the former Sri Lanka left-arm spinner Dinuka Hettiarachchi, who took a match bag of ten wickets including six in the second innings.Player of the Week: Dinuka Hettiarachchi
Hettiarachchi got his first big break at the age of 24 when he was picked to represent his country against Nasser Hussain’s England at the Sinhalese Sports Club (SSC) in 2001, but after that he never came under the microscope of the national selectors despite consistent performances in domestic cricket for Colombo Colts, SSC and now Chilaw Marians with whom he has been for the past three seasons.Part of Marians’ success in the past few years has been due to Hettiarachchi’s presence but as team manager Godfrey Dabare noted: “Dinuka is a very talented cricketer who for some reason has been overlooked for selection even to the Sri Lanka A team. He was given one opportunity with the A side that toured New Zealand and he performed well. After that he has been performing consistently taking nearly 50 wickets a season without much luck.”It is frustrating for bowlers like Dinuka to bowl their hearts out and not get a look-in even for the A team. Unless they give opportunities to bowlers like Dinuka there’ll come a time when Sri Lanka will be stuck for a quality spinner the day Murali [Muttiah Muralitharan] decides to retire.”

Points Table

Essex have agreed to release Andre Nel one match early so that he can take up a deal with the Mumbai Indians in the IPL. Nel was due to end his stint after Sunday’s match against Middlesex, but the defeat against Kent on Friday was now his final game for the club.He is the second overseas player to leave county cricket at short notice to join the IPL following Brad Hodge’s sudden departure from Lancashire after receiving an offer from the Kolkata Knight Riders. However, unlike the Hodge move, which hasn’t gone down well at Old Trafford, Essex are fully behind Nel.”The club has given its full backing to Andre with his request to leave after the Kent game on Friday,” the chief executive David East said. “It is an honour for Essex to have players in their ranks who are attracting the attention of those teams competing in the Indian Premier League.”We thank Andre for all his efforts during this latest stint with the county. Once again he has proved a very popular member of our dressing room and has played his part in the team’s excellent start to the campaign.”Nel said on the Essex website: “I would like to thank Essex in granting my request to end my time with them early, in order to take up a contract with the Mumbai Indians. As always, I have enjoyed my stay with Essex enormously and the excellent way I continue to be treated by the club bodes well for our future relationship should I get another chance to return.”This was Nel’s third spell with Essex, having also featured for the county in 2005 and 2007. He appeared in three County Championship and three Friends Provident Trophy matches in 2008, picking up 10 wickets at 34.10 in four-day cricket and three wickets at 37.33 in the FP Trophy to help Essex to second and top spot in the respective tables.Nel will join the Mumbai Indians, under the captaincy of Sachin Tendulkar, on Sunday. He could be back in England later in the season if selected for the South Africa tour, although he was controversially dropped for the recent trip to India.The Pakistan legspinner Danish Kaneria will take up his duties as overseas player from next Wednesday when Essex begin their Championship match against Leicestershire.