.

Australia Comback With A Crushed Win Of Innings And 80 Runs Over England To Level The Ashes...

2009-08-09T08:29:00.000-07:00

Australia required a session and six overs on the third day at Headingley to wrap up a thumping innings-and-80-run victory against England, and so draw level at 1-1 in the Ashes with just the fifth Test at The Oval to come in a fortnight's time. Mitchell Johnson had the honour of sewing up the contest with his fifth wicket of a resurgent performance, when he bowled Graham Onions for a duck to confirm his return to his best and most hostile form, and underline the fact that Australia have suddenly emerged as firm favourites to complete their 10th Ashes victory in their last 11 contests.

It was not, however, a day that went entirely to plan for Australia, who were frustrated - not for the first time in the series - by England's tail, not least Stuart Broad, who added a boundary-laden 61 from 49 balls to his earlier six-wicket haul, as he became the first England cricketer to achieve such an Ashes double since Darren Gough at Sydney in 1994-95.On Saturday evening, Board had promised to provide late-innings resistance for England's beleaguered cricketers, and he was true to his word as he and Graeme Swann compiled a spirited and thrilling eighth-wicket stand of 108 in just 12.3 overs. The tempo of the stand, at more than eight-and-a-half runs per over, was the second fastest for any partnership over 100 in Test cricket, behind Nathan Astle and Chris Cairns at Christchurch in 2001-02, and then as now, it was glorious in its futility. It could not save England from a hefty defeat, but it might just preserve a modicum of their self-respect.

Srilanka Won The Series With 3-0 As Jayawardena's fabulous Century Makes A Quick Win For Srilanka...

2009-08-05T18:27:00.000-07:00

The morning may have belonged to the Akmal brothers and Pakistan, but it was all Sri Lanka in the afternoon, with an imperious century from Mahela Jayawardene central to a commanding six-wicket victory which clinched the series with two games to spare. The pursuit of 289 was made to look like child's play as Jayawardene and Upul Tharanga put on 202 for the first wicket, and not even a brief wobble thereafter could stop Sri Lanka's inexorable progress. Jayawardene's 123, his first hundred since 2007, took only 108 balls, and even cramps failed to curtail the boundary barrage as the bowlers were treated with disdain.

Jayawardene's driving down the ground, and over cover, was majestic, and any shortness in length was ruthlessly punished by the most elegant of pull shots. But for a huge leg-before shout from Shahid Afridi which he survived - the umpire suspecting a bottom edge - Jayawardene made few mistakes, finding the boundaries with elan as the bowling started to fall apart. There was even a cheeky reverse-sweep for four off Saeed Ajmal, as he cruised to his century from only 91 balls.Tharanga had slowed after getting to his own half-century from 55 balls, content to work the ball around, but there was more than a measure of misfortune about his dismissal, with the Ajmal delivery clearly striking him outside the line of off stump. When Mahela followed, after a tired miscue to cover, Pakistan scented opportunity. And the feel-good factor increased when Thilan Samaraweera played one back to Ajmal off the leading edge.

Srilanka Lead The Series With 2-0 Vs. Pakisthan As Kapugedara And Sangakkara Help 2 Make Lanka A 6W Victory...

2009-08-01T08:18:00.000-07:00

Pakistan got rid of Sri Lanka's batting luminaries without too much trouble, but found Chamara Kapugedera and Thilan Samaraweera impossible to dislodge as the home side eased to a comfortable six-wicket victory and a 2-0 lead in the series. The bowlers had done the hard work earlier, dismissing Pakistan in just 47 overs, and Kapugedera's sixth ODI half-century offered a gentle reminder that there's more to Sri Lanka's batting than the big three in the top order.

The bowlers, with Thilan Thushara taking 3 for 33, had reduced Pakistan to 87 for 7, but two doughty tailend partnerships lifted them to 168. Mohammad Aamer top-scored with 24, but it was extras that was the largest contributor (26) as Sri Lanka got a little sloppy in the final stages. They didn't start well with the bat either, and when Mahela Jayawardene pulled Shahid Afridi to short midwicket, the scoreboard showed 74 for 4.With the game in the balance, Kapugedera and Samaraweera batted with great composure and class to see it home. Samaraweera square-drove superbly, while Kapugedera drove and pulled with immense power. One pull off Afridi went for six, and he then crashed Umar Gul through cover to get to his half-century. By the end, it was just a procession.

Srilanka Make A Winning Note Over Pakistan In A Late Drama...When Pak Deflated Over Survival...

2009-07-30T07:16:00.000-07:00

After Angelo Mathews and Muttiah Muralitharan had combined to devastating effect with the bat, Sri Lanka's pace bowlers scythed through Pakistan's top order to lead them to a 36-run victory on a blustery day in Dambulla. Sri Lanka seemingly had the game in the bag at 134 for 8, but a gritty and stroke-filled 62-run stand between Umar Gul and Mohammad Aamer so nearly spoilt their day. Pakistan had bossed the opening exchanges after electing to field on a green-tinged pitch, but they never quite recovered from a batting Powerplay in which 54 runs were conceded. With none of the frontline batsmen able to build on starts, it was left to the tail to try and pull off a miracle.

Sri Lanka had scripted a stirring revival of their own in the morning. After 44 overs, they were an underwhelming 169 for 6. But once Nuwan Kulasekara fell, having added 42 with Mathews, Murali whirled his bat like a dervish. Gul was top-edged for four and then straight-driven for six in an over that cost 15, and Shahid Afridi then clobbered through the off side for fours before Aamer put the sheen on a superb debut display by bowling him for 32. It had taken just 15 balls though, and by then, on a surface where run-making was not easy, Sri Lanka had enough of a total to defend.

Bangladesh Get A Tight Win Over Windies In Its Second ODI...Getting The Series Win For 1st Time In Windies....

2009-07-29T07:24:00.000-07:00

Every time they step on the field, Bangladesh seem to be making history. After having beaten West Indies for the first time in Tests and ODIs, they today sealed their first ODI series win against the hosts. More importantly, this win came by way of their highest successful chase in the limited-overs format, reaching the requisite 275 with six balls to spare.

At the centre of the accomplishment once again was Shakib Al Hasan, pulling West Indies back from a flying start, and then seeing his team through a tricky chase with a calm 65. Mohammad Ashraful, who got to back-to-back fifties for the first time since 2006, set up the Bangladesh reply after the openers struggled on a sluggish pitch that made it difficult to stroke the ball cleanly. The Shakib-Ashraful combination outdid an exceptional effort from Travis Dowlin, whose maiden international century lifted a fledgling West Indies to a fighting total.Ashraful and Shakib came together after a sensible third-wicket partnership between Ashraful and Raqibul Hasan had ended, thanks to the pressure created by a slow pitch and tight bowling.Nevertheless, they had added 52 after the openers fell in a quick succession.

Shakib And Razaaq Make It Easy For Bangladesh To Comeover Windies With a 52-Run Win In Its 1st ODI....

2009-07-26T17:19:00.000-07:00

Shakib Al Hasan, yet again, was the architect of Bangladesh's success as he delivered a fine allround performance to lead his team to a 52-run win in the series opener in Dominica. His fighting half-century helped his team post a formidable total on a slow pitch; his tactic of opening the bowling with left-arm spinner Abdur Razzak succeeded in denting West Indies early in their chase, and his dismissal of Devon Smith helped strangle the resistance which threatened to cause an upset. Mohammad Ashraful and Mahmudullah backed the effort with important contributions while fighting through a disciplined bowling performance led by Kemar Roach's five-for.

West Indies showed few signs of learning from their mistakes in the Test series. Inept footwork combined with poor shot selection from their batsmen produced a top-order collapse on a track favouring slow bowlers. Shakib, without hesitation, opened the bowling with Razzak, who made a successful return to international cricket after being suspended for a suspect action. Accustomed to sharing the new ball - he had opened the bowling in the 2007 World Cup - he struck with his second ball, trapping Dale Richards in front and returned to bowl Travis Dowlin, who was found cutting too close to an arm ball. Razzak stuck to a flat trajectory, varied his pace, got the ball to grip and surprised the batsmen with both turn and bounce.

Flintoff Ends England's 75-Year Old Dream With His 5W Spell Over Australia In Its Second Test...England Won By 115 Runs...

2009-07-20T08:41:00.000-07:00

In his final act at the home of cricket, Andrew Flintoff broke England's 75-year Lord's curse with his first five-wicket haul since the Ashes-clinching Oval Test of 2005. It was, unquestionably, a performance that will enhance his already mythical status within English cricket, but more pertinently for now, delivered England to a 1-0 series lead heading into Edgbaston.Victory was sealed 17 minutes before lunch when Graeme Swann, another major contributor on Monday, pegged back Mitchell Johnson's middle stump with the Australian total at 406.

The wicket prompted scenes of jubilation not witnessed at Lord's in decades, and a collective furrowing of brows in the Australian dressing rooms as the series momentum shifted sharply in the hosts' favour.Flintoff, who bowled unchanged for ten overs from the Pavilion End to claim three of the five Australian wickets to fall on Monday, broke first from England's celebratory huddle to shake the hands of the vanquished Johnson and his batting partner, Ben Hilfenhaus. It was a scene that mirrored the final act of the corresponding Test four years ago, and envoked a spirit of cricket that had been bruised over the previous four days.

England Get close To the Win Against Ausies in Its 2nd Test Of Ashes....

2009-07-19T05:41:00.000-07:00

England inched ever closer to a historic victory at Lord's and, as has become de rigueur in this Test, controversy was the order of the day. Phillip Hughes was ordered to stand his ground by Ricky Ponting, the non-striker, after edging an Andrew Flintoff delivery to Andrew Strauss at first slip. Replays were inconclusive as to whether Strauss' fingers were completely between ball and turf, but unlike Nathan Hauritz's claimed catch the previous day, umpires Rudi Koertzen and Billy Doctrove did not refer the matter to Nigel Llong, the third umpire.

Koertzen, after several minutes of consulting with Doctrove, ordered Hughes back to the pavilion, much to the chagrin of Ponting and delight of the Englishmen. The dismissal was Australia's second of the morning, and placed England in a position of total dominance heading to lunch on day four, having earlier declared their second innings closed at 311 for 6 to hold an overall lead of 521.The latest claimed catch controversy could not detract from a virtuoso performance from Flintoff, playing his last ever Test at Lord's. Storming in from the Pavilion End, England's enigmatic allrounder bowled seven overs of pure menace for figures of 2 for 9, accounting for both Australian openers in the process.

Presumably, Flintoff will not be offering conciliatory handshakes and embraces to the Australians in the event of a second Test victory, as was the case at Edgbaston four years, given the ferocity of his encounters with Hughes and Ponting in the first session on Sunday. In the second over of the morning, Flintoff unleashed a ferocious bouncer that barely cleared Hughes' helmet, and followed with an exaggerated verbal barrage delivered while walking backwards to his mark. The chirping also extended to Ponting, somewhat more practiced at the art than Hughes, as tempers frayed in this most pressurised of series.

Kulasekara and Herath set up series win For The First Time Over Pakistan In Srilanka....

2009-07-14T17:54:00.000-07:00

A match in which fortunes swung wildly finally ended in an emphatic seven-wicket win for Sri Lanka, as they sealed their first home series win against Pakistan with a convincing performance at the P Sara Oval. Pakistan were left to rue another batting collapse of monumental proportions, one in which they lost nine wickets for 35 to go from a commanding 285 for 1 to 320 all out. That left Sri Lanka with a target of just 171, which they knocked off in a mere 32 overs to ensure a three-day result.

That had seemed a remote possibility when play started this morning, and seemed even less likely when Fawad Alam and Younis Khan were motoring along during their 200-run second-wicket partnership in the morning. Pakistan had wiped off the 150-run deficit with aplomb, and were building a substantial lead of their own; the pitch was flat, offering little assistance for pace or spin, and the Sri Lankans appeared completely deflated. Sri Lanka got a very small glimmer when Younis gifted his wicket away, attempting a reverse sweep against the part-time offspin of Tharanga Paranavitana with the second new ball just two overs away, and from there it went horribly wrong for Pakistan.Surprisingly, it was Rangana Herath who took the new ball, and equally surprisingly, he struck immediately, removing Mohammad Yousuf with his second ball. That triggered a spectacular collapse, as seven more wickets fell in the next 92 deliveries. Pakistan had recovered brilliantly from their first-innings debacle, but there was no escape route this time around.

England Pull-off A Great Escape...In 1st Test Of The Ashes(The Oldest Rivalry In Cricket)....

2009-07-13T05:36:00.000-07:00

James Anderson and Monty Panesar produced the most important innings of their lives as England's final pair survived 11.3 overs to pull off a thrilling escape at Cardiff. When Paul Collingwood fell for a monumental 245-ball 74 England still trailed by six, but once Australia had to bat again, valuable time was taken out of the game leaving Andrew Strauss and a packed Cardiff nervously clock-watching. The Australians threw everything into the final hour in an electric atmosphere with the crowd cheering the two unlikely batting heroes as though the Ashes had been won.

A vital moment came when Anderson collected consecutive boundaries off Peter Siddle to finally erase the deficit. It meant that two further overs would be lost from the remaining allocation, but there was yet another twist. Australia had bowled their overs quickly during the final hour, which meant it came down to a clock-watch situation for the batsmen. The crucial mark was 6.40pm: at that point it meant there was no time for Australia to start a run chase.The closing overs were in the hands of Nathan Hauritz - who rose above all the pre-match concern over his quality to claim three final-day wickets and six in the match - and Marcus North. Anderson, outwardly calm while inside he must have been churning, blocked confidently but also picked up vital runs to just edge the lead ahead further. Meanwhile, Panesar, the most unlikely of batting saviours, watched the ball like a hawk. Having left expertly against the quicks he played with soft hands against the spinners, and one of the biggest cheers of the day came when he square cut North for a boundary.

Nehra And Dhoni Give Indian Another Victory Over Windies In 3rd ODI And The India Leads Series With 2-1....

2009-07-03T17:50:00.000-07:00

MS Dhoni and India kept their nerve on a frustrating day of rain delays to take a 2-1 series lead in St Lucia. It was still anybody's game when India needed 11 off the final over, but Dhoni slammed the second ball over deep midwicket to put the visitors on course for victory.India threatened to lose their way in the chase after a solid start provided by Dinesh Karthik before Dhoni hauled them past the line. The rain-breaks initially readjusted their target to 195 in 27 overs before a further shower reduced it to 159 in 22 overs.

When Karthik fell after a fine 47 India needed a relatively comfortable 111 from 89 balls, and at the next rain-break they needed 64 from 51 balls with nine wickets in hand, but a succession of wickets left India requiring 34 in four overs. It came down to the last over. Curiously, Chris Gayle turned to Jerome Taylor, who had a poor game, instead of Ravi Rampaul, who had bowled a pretty decent 20th over. Dhoni killed the contest in the second ball with a six over deep midwicket. He picked the slower one and used his bottom-hand to swipe it with the wind over midwicket boundary. Dhoni and Yusuf Pathan got the remaining four runs with a ball to spare.

Dhoni Says A Poor Batting Display Over Windies Help Them Lose 2nd ODI....

2009-06-30T06:00:00.000-07:00

India's poor batting display in their eight-wicket defeat in the second ODI in Kingston owed to a misjudgment on the part of their batsmen about the pitch, MS Dhoni has said. Dhoni played a captain's innings of 95, which rescued his team from a hopeless situation at 82 for 8, but proved woefully inadequate in the face of an attacking opening stand of 101 led by West Indies captain Chris Gayle.

"We should have paid a little more respect to the bowlers," Dhoni said after the game. "The wicket was a bit difficult, it was swinging around a bit. We didn't judge the wicket well and just went around playing our strokes which really brought our downfall."

Dhoni was involved in a 101-run stand for the ninth wicket with RP Singh, who chipped in with a valuable 23. It was the fifth instance of a ninth-wicket pair putting on a century-partnership, and it saved India's blushes after they were in danger of being bowled out for under three figures. "Once you lose too many wickets then the only thing that you are doing is catching up. RP and me had a partnership otherwise it would have been quite embarrassing," he said.India's top and middle orders were blown away by some disciplined bowling from the West Indian seamers, led by Ravi Rampaul, who finished with a career-best 4 for 37. India were in trouble as early as the second over, when Rampaul dismissed Gautam Gambhir and Rohit Sharma in a space of three deliveries, and West Indies retained the advantage for the remainder of the game.

Pakistan Win The T20 WorldCup Where Afridi Make His 50 After Razzaq Strikes Early.....

2009-06-21T18:35:00.000-07:00

It wasn't the edge-of-the-seat final that would have signed off the ICC World Twenty20 in style, but that won't matter to Pakistan who gave their nation a something to savour amid troubled times. From the moment Tillakaratne Dilshan, the tournament's top-scorer, fell in the opening over Pakistan had a grip on the match. Shahid Afridi, who emerged as their trump card, guided his team home in the 19th over with an unbeaten 54, and it was left to Younis Khan to raise the trophy in what he later announced would be his final Twenty20 international, in front of a sea of delirious Pakistan supporters.

Pakistan won't be playing at home for the foreseeable future, but the following they have had at this event has reinforced the notion that England can be a surrogate home. The masses were cheering from early on as Abdul Razzaq - a great individual comeback-story among the team's resurgence - claimed three key wickets in his opening burst to leave Sri Lanka on 32 for 4. They never looked back despite the best efforts of Kumar Sangakkara.Occasionally the tension rose as the required rate climbed, but each time Afridi was on hand with one of his most mature innings. He hit consecutive balls from Muttiah Muralitharan for six and four in the 14th over, a calculated assault against a key bowler. The destination of the trophy was sealed when he swung a huge six over midwicket off Isuru Udana in the 18th over - the moment when Sangakkara gambled on one of his weaker bowling links - and followed that with another boundary off a high full toss.

The Big Final of T20 Worldcup 2day B/W Srilanka N Pakistan....Hope 2 See A Tough Fight...

2009-06-20T18:28:00.000-07:00

On the morning of March 3 in Lahore, the world of cricket was shaken to the core. The horrific attack on the Sri Lankan team bus, as it pulled into the Gadaffi Stadium ahead of the third day of the second Test against Pakistan, was the moment a thousand preconceptions were destroyed. Cricket's presumptions to diplomatic immunity had been mocked by the forces of evil, and as Pakistan spiralled into sporting exile and Sri Lanka's traumatised players rushed home to the bosom of their families, the obvious reaction was to wonder "what now?" for the great game.

Three and a half months later, and sport's great gift for reinvention has delivered a contest that flicks two fingers at the perpetrators of the Lahore atrocity, and proves that - without wishing to overload the sentiment - the human spirit cannot be crushed by cold calculation. Pakistan and Sri Lanka will take center stage at Lord's on Sunday for the final of the most joyful international tournament the game has arranged in years. Twenty20 may be cricket for hedonists, but after everything these two teams and their respective nations have been through of late, the need to lay on a party suddenly feels like the only serious obligation."It is a fitting reward for the courage of the team in the way they have played the tournament," said Kumar Sangakkara, Sri Lanka's statesmanlike captain. "All the players have got through Lahore, but what it brought home to us is that we are just the same as everyone else. Sometimes it is nice to be reminded of your mortality, especially when the press and everyone else blows you up to be more than that in this sporting culture. But we've shown no fear and we've gone to play cricket, and it's a fitting reward for that attitude."

Pakisthan Enters Again In2 T20 Worldcup Final By A 7Run Victory Over SA......

2009-06-18T17:32:00.000-07:00

The South African juggernaut was brought to a screeching halt by Shahid Afridi who, with a little help from his team-mates, dumped the tournament favourites out of the World Twenty20 and secured Pakistan's place in the final. Afridi put in an all-round performance of tremendous intensity, lifting Pakistan to a defendable total with an aggressive yet methodical half-century, before bowling a spell that left the South Africans winded at Trent Bridge.

The clinical South African side, unbeaten in the competition, were favourites going in to the semi-final and their bowlers fought admirably to restrict Pakistan to 149 when, at one stage a total of 170 seemed on the cards. With the exception of Jacques Kallis, though, their batsmen failed to give the chase any sort of direction. They were suffocated by Afridi and the offspinner Saeed Ajmal and their inability to score enough runs during the middle overs left them with too much to do against the pinpoint accuracy of Umar Gul's yorkers.

Malik had played a more subdued, anchoring role until then, but began to step up, scoring his first boundary - a sweep off van der Merwe - off his 31st ball. He soon added another, hitting Duminy over extra cover, but eventually holed out to long-off. Younis and Abdul Razzaq were two new batsmen at the crease and Parnell and Steyn bowled with extreme accuracy to deny them loose deliveries at the death.A target of 150 appeared less than what Pakistan were on course to get when Afridi was at the crease. Afridi, though, bowled with tenacity to ensure that it was enough.

Srilanka March 2 Semis In Its Own Style.....

2009-06-16T08:41:00.000-07:00

A curiously conventional innings from Tillakaratne Dilshan and substantial contributions from the experienced pair of Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara led Sri Lanka to a challenging total in their knockout game against New Zealand at Trent Bridge. A total of 158 might be about par in the Twenty20 format but Sri Lanka have the best bowling attack in the competition and are likely to stretch the New Zealand batsmen all the way.

Daniel Vettori emphasized the importance of separating Sri Lanka's explosive openers early and he sought to do that by opening the bowling with the offspinner Nathan McCullum. The ploy worked immediately for Sanath Jayasuriya top edged an attempted sweep to short fine leg, leaving Sri Lanka on 3 for 1. New Zealand's start grew better when Chamara Silva, who was promoted to No. 3, was caught at mid-on off a leading edge as he tried to close the face against Kyle Mills.

Sri Lanka, however, did not lose momentum after Dilshan's wicket because Jayawardene continued batting as fluently as he did against Ireland. He played his trademark inside out drives over cover, lofted a free hit from Vettori over the press box, and elegantly raced to 41 off 29 balls. His most unique shot of the day was a reverse paddle of Jacob Oram. What made it special was that Jayawardene hit the ball with the back of the bat and sent it speeding past short third man.

DC Makes The Champion Note In IPL Season 2 With A 6Run Victory Over Banglore......

2009-05-24T19:11:00.000-07:00

Deccan Chargers invoked the bull in their emblem to successfully defend a modest total, beat Royal Challengers Bangalore and win a tournament they had ended up last in the previous season. They bowled with fire, fielded aggressively and sledged and hustled - almost literally - to victory in a final that twisted and turned and lived up to the occasion.

The last of those turning points was the 15th over, bowled by Andrew Symonds, who matched his verbal skills from earlier in the night with the wickets of Ross Taylor and Virat Kohli off back-to-back deliveries. Bangalore were 99 for 6 when the over started, and Taylor had looked dangerous during his 20-ball 27. That Symonds over, though, was symbolic of the night: every time a batsman got away from the bowling, a breakthrough pulled the batting side back.

Towards the end Gibbs played a bizarre little innings. He had been inconspicuous in his struggle to score runs earlier, and didn't make much effort to farm the strike in the end. He faced only six balls in the last three overs, and kept taking twos in the last over to hand the strike over to Harris. He had batted the whole 20 overs for less than 60, much like Sachin Tendulkar, in more trying conditions, had in the first match of the tournament. Somehow they both ended up winning.

McCullum And Brad Hodge Gundown Chennai In Successful Chase Of 188....

2009-05-18T21:50:00.000-07:00

Kolkata Knight Riders, powered by fifties from Brendon McCullum and Brad Hodge, staged one of the most thrilling chases in the tournament and showed why the bottom-placed team may still prove to be the king-makers in this crucial last phase of the league games. Chennai Super Kings, who looked set to seal a semi-final spot with their mammoth total batting first, will now have to put the celebrations on hold.

The run-chase owed its success to three partnerships: the opening stand totally dominated by McCullum, his association with Hodge, where he took charge initially before letting his partner step up, and Hodge's match-winning association with Wriddhiman Saha, whose calm presence combined well with the timely acceleration to stun Chennai.

The return of the seamers at the death heralded a decisive shift in the game as Hodge found an unlikely foil in Saha, who smote a six and a four in the 17th over from L Balaji that went for 14. The next over from Albie Morkel bled 13, with Hodge collecting two fours, one slapped back past the bowler and the other swung behind square leg.

Daredevils Outclass Rajasthan Royals With Their Exclusive Play...

2009-05-17T17:26:00.000-07:00

In a match when the ball jagged and spun past the bat more often than it hit the middle - largely down to a sporting pitch that assisted pace and spin - two crucial hands allowed Delhi to recover from the loss of their openers. Munaf Patel appeared to have it figured from the first over, keeping it straight and on a length to get rid of the dangerous duo of Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag in his second but returned to bowl a horror 19th over after Rajasthan's support cast disappointed. From 15 for 2 a resourceful 87-run stand between AB de Villiers, who read the conditions excellently, and Tillakaratne Dilshan buttressed Delhi to a competitive total. And therein lay the difference between a reasonable total and a winning one.

Delhi's innings gradually changed character when Rajasthan's second-choice bowlers came on. The pitch was slow and Shane Warne set attacking fields for the first ten overs, so all that was needed was for de Villiers and Dilshan to perforate the field consistently. The loose offerings weren't spared - Siddharth Trivedi strangely dropped it short and wide when the pitch was demanding of a fuller length - and both batsmen slapped fours off his first and only over.

Panjab Won A Nail-Bitting Victory With 1 run Over DC.....

2009-05-17T07:25:00.000-07:00

A careless effort from the top order, followed by some tight bowling from the Deccan Chargers spinners, held the Kings XI Punjab to 133 which may not be enough to keep them in the tournament. Kumar Sangakkara led a recovery, after four early wickets, with a 43-ball 56 but he did not stay on till the end to ensure a more competitive total. The fast bowlers, who had conceded wides in their opening spells, returned with disciplined lines and the last three overs went for just 17 runs.

The spinners cashed in on the early collapse and worked over the batsmen by bowling full and using flight to dry up the runs. Sangakkara played it out patiently and made do with singles till there were short and wide deliveries to go after. Rohit Sharma provided enough of those in the 15th over that went for 16 runs. Sangakkara cut the first two for fours and paddled the third to fine-leg for three. After that over, Sangakkara went on the attack; Punjab crossed 100 in the 16th. He launched Harris for a six over midwicket and reached his fifty with a four in the same area. But it didn't last long as he fell trying to hit another boundary in an RP Singh over that had gone for just six runs.

Bravo N Sachin Dazzling Partnership Gives Mumbai Another Win....

2009-05-12T17:05:00.000-07:00

For the second time in two meetings between these teams, Kings XI Punjab batted first and scored 119, but unlike the game in Durban, there was no redemption in the field this time as Mumbai Indians swept to an eight-wicket win to move up to 11 points and fourth in the points table. The win was set up by Mumbai's offspinners - Harbhajan Singh, JP Duminy and Ajinkya Rahane returned combined figures of 4 for 29 in nine overs to launch a stunning comeback. Dwayne Bravo ensured a hiccup-free run-chase with a magnificent unbeaten 70 in an innings full of expansive drives and pulls.

Tendulkar soon joined in the fun, dropping down to No.4 and playing himself back into form after a run of low scores. The spinners caused a few problems, but Bravo trusted his footwork, going down the pitch and striking Yuvraj for a straight six. Piyush Chawla spun a few past the bat, Brett Lee bowled a fiery spell and tested the batsmen with pace and bounce - Bravo copped one on the helmet late in his innings - but with such a paltry target before them, the batsmen were never under any pressure. Tendulkar carved a few slog-sweeps through and over midwicket, Bravo finished it off with a spanking pull shot, and Mumbai ended the evening feeling much better about their semi-final chances than they had when they began the match.

Another Defeat 2 KnightRiders.....Ross Taylor Leads Royal Challengers 2wards Victory...

2009-05-12T07:13:00.000-07:00

Two partnerships involving Brendon McCullum, the first with with David Hussey and the next with Angelo Mathews, helped Kolkata Knight Riders overcome a shaky start and post a challenging total on a sluggish surface in Centurion. Bangalore held the early advantage by way of a double-strike from opening bowler R Vinay Kumar, who removed Sourav Ganguly and Arindam Ghosh in fairly quick succession. But McCullum fought through a patchy phase and changed gears following Hussey's dismissal to hand his team its most satisfying batting performance of the season.

The Bangalore seamers justified Anil Kumble's decision to bowl, using favourable conditions to extract movement as well as bounce to unsettle the Kolkata top order. Ganguly looked edgy from the outset: he was beaten by Vinay Kumar in the first over and charged down the track to counter the bounce. Ruffled by two bouncers, Ganguly probed at Vinay Kumarr's full ball immediately after which produced the outside edge. Ghosh was Kolkata's T Suman, but failed to live up to his role, nicking one off an ugly attempt to clear point.

Injured Warne likely to miss Game Against Mumbai Indians,...

2009-05-12T07:05:00.000-07:00

Shane Warne, the captain of Rajasthan Royals, is likely to miss his team's next match, against Mumbai Indians on Thursday, due a hamstring injury he suffered during Monday's game against Deccan Chargers.

Darren Berry, the Rajasthan coach, confirmed the injury but wasn't sure how many games Warne would miss. "He slightly stretched his hamstring in the field yesterday and we are waiting for the diagnosis today," he told Cricinfo. "It is only minor. At this stage we think he may miss one match but we are hoping that's the only game he misses. That's still to be determined and when the physio treats him today we'll have a better indication.

"If he has miraculous treatment in the next three days we will have him for the Mumbai Indians game but we don't know that yet."A statement from the team management on Tuesday said Warne was currently working with the team doctor and more information would be available in the next 24 hours.

DC Beat Rajasthan Royals By 53 Runs....Dwayne Smith Sizzles....

2009-05-11T18:32:00.000-07:00

Smart team changes by the Deccan Chargers and a spineless batting display by the Rajasthan Royals contributed to a big mismatch in Kimberley. Deccan dropped two under-performing overseas players but their replacements - Dwayne Smith and Chaminda Vaas - contributed significantly in shaping a comprehensive 53-run win. Smith slammed 47 to help Deccan surge to a competitive total while Vaas took two early wickets before Rajasthan's middle order imploded.

Rajasthan were in the game for the first 15 overs. Then Smith walked in and, first, negated the effect of the spinners, who till had the batsmen on a tight leash. He smashed four sixes in his 32-ball 47 and pushed Deccan to a score that was sure to test an unpredictable opposition. The chase lacked fight and the loss cost Rajasthan their No.3 spot.Rajasthan's slide began in the second over of their chase, when Graeme Smith was trapped lbw by Chaminda Vaas. Replays showed the ball hitting Smith high above the knee roll but it evened out for both teams as Adam Gilchrist was also given out in doubtful circumstances.

DareDevils Go Top With 7W Victory Over Knight Riders....

2009-05-10T17:42:00.000-07:00

The reduced canvas of a Twenty20 game is supposed to shorten the gulf between sides but in Johannesburg there was no hiding the difference in quality between the two teams at opposite ends of the table. Another commanding performance from Delhi Daredevils helped them sweep past struggling Kolkata Knight Riders and regain their No.1 spot. After their bowlers, led by Ashish Nehra and Amit Mishra, had restricted Kolkata to a paltry total, the batsmen - led by AB de Villiers - kept the chase in hand and strolled to victory with seventeen balls to spare.

It initially seemed Brendon McCullum would script a surprise after he swatted the game's second ball for six and jumped out with intent on the next. However, he was wrongly adjudged lbw off Nehra's next delivery, with the ball going over and wide of offstump, and Delhi gained an advantage they never relinquished.

Mumbai Indians 16 Runs Victory Over Royal Challengers.....

2009-05-10T08:54:00.000-07:00

Pushed into the corner after three successive defeats, Mumbai Indians turned in a fine all-round performance at St George's Park, converting a middling target of 158 into a match-winning one. Sachin Tendulkar failed with the bat, falling for a third-ball duck, but he didn't falter with his captaincy moves. Starting with the promotion of Ajinkya Rahane, who scored an unbeaten 59, it was the bowling changes which proved crucial in the end as they resulted in the fall of four wickets. The wheels came off Bangalore and the game was over when they needed an improbable 40 off the last two overs.

Mumbai had earned their revenge after being vanquished by Bangalore exactly a week ago at the Wanderers. Their defeat to Delhi Daredevils was just as demoralising when their batting imploded. Today, they reworked their batting order, turned in a much more commanding performance and lost just two wickets. A stand of 104 between Rahane and JP Duminy gave their comeback campaign a surge and the momentum rubbed off on the bowlers who all chipped in with equal measure to effect timely breakthroughs and in turn strangle the runs.

Super Kings Super Victory.....Over Rajasthan Royals

2009-05-09T14:37:00.001-07:00

Matthew Hayden and Shane Warne. Sixty-nine Tests together, the last 12 of them wins, but today they would decide who'd win this IPL game and go to the top of the table. There could be only one winner, and on the night it was Hayden. Chasing 141 Chennai Super Kings were in for a tough one, with the pitch turning square and staying slow and Warne looking like pulling off something special. Hayden, though, attacked clinically, played like a workman in between those assaults, and ensured Chennai beat Rajasthan for the second time in this IPL. He had with him S Badrinath, who went from being a supporting act to a lead player towards the end.

The two teams seemed inseparable till Hayden's one-on-one with with Warne. A disciplined Chennai, with a varied attack and well captained, had kept Rajasthan down to a total that - at the half-way mark - they would have backed themselves to chase. But Rajasthan were equally disciplined, smart, and well led. In the first eight overs, they had limited Chennai to 49 for 2, including Suresh Raina's wicket. Yusuf Pathan was bowling big turners at 95kmph.

Knight Riders 4 Sale...???Shahrukh Khan Says 'NO'....

2009-05-04T17:45:00.001-07:00

According to reports, Khan was in touch with Nokia, Sahara and the Anil Ambani Group to sell the side he had bought last year for Rs 300 crore.Knight Riders have been plagued by a slew of controversies which went on to affect their performance on the field as the side managed just one win so far in the second IPL.

Coach John Buchanan's multiple-captain theory, stripping Sourav Ganguly of captaincy and handing it over to Brendon McCullum, sending Aakash Chopra and Sanjay Bangar back home midway through the tournament and reports of a possible players' revolt against the coach - all affected the side's morale.McCullum himself is going through a bad patch and has decided to step down if the side fails to reach the semifinals. Khan was with the team in South Africa before returning home to cast his vote and he plans not to rejoin the team unless it starts winning again.

"If my team continues to lose like this, I am not going back to South Africa. I will go only when they play well and win," Shah Rukh had said.

2009-05-04T17:43:00.001-07:00

Kolkata Knight Riders made a good attempt at causing possibly the biggest surprise of the season so far but fell short despite smart bowling for most of Mumbai's innings and a first fifty for them by Brad Hodge, who kept together a chase that threatened to fall away early on.

Mumbai turned the game irreversibly in six overs: the last three of their innings and the first three of Kolkata's. The main characters in this script were JP Duminy and Zaheer Khan. Duminy's late assault helped Mumbai scored 42 in the last three overs of an otherwise limp effort and, on the other side of the break, Zaheer removed Kolkata's openers Chris Gayle and Sourav Ganguly in his first two overs.

The three sixes he hit were hit down the ground without any power at all, just a clean swing of the straight bat. Despite the run-rate climbing every over, Kolkata were always with a chance while Hodge was in. With 61 required off the last six overs, he hit Graham Napier for back-to-back fours. With 51 needed from the last five, he hit Zaheer Khan for a six over long-off, and suddenly Kolkata needed just 38 in the last four overs with seven wickets in hand.

India 2 Host 2011 WorldCup Final.....

2009-05-04T17:36:00.000-07:00

India will host the final and one semi-final of the 2011 World Cup while Sri Lanka will stage the other semi-final, the tournament's organising committee decided in Mumbai on Tuesday. India will host 29 of the 49 matches across eight venues, Sri Lanka will host 12 in three venues while Bangladesh will stage eight at two grounds as well as the opening ceremony on February 18, 2011.

The 14 matches originally scheduled to take place in Pakistan have been redistributed with eight going to India, four to Sri Lanka and two to Bangladesh. The quarter-finals will be shared among the three neighbours, with Bangladesh hosting two.

The committee also decided to shift the tournament secretariat from Lahore to Mumbai. BCCI's chief administrative officer Ratnakar Shetty was appointed the event's managing director in place of Pakistani banker Salman Butt. The organising committee, headed by ICC vice-president Sharad Pawar, will include an operations and planning group comprising the Bangladesh Cricket Board senior vice-president Mahbubul Anam, Indian board secretary N Srinivasan, Sri Lanka's Duleep Mendis and Shetty. Haroon Lorgat, the ICC's chief executive, said IS Bindra, the special adviser to the ICC, would be a key person in the management of the World Cup.

Sachin Sizzles In IPL-2 Vs Knight Riders....

2009-05-04T17:35:00.000-07:00

Many a time over the last 15 years or so fans of this great game have wondered what it would be like if Sachin Tendulkar and Sanath Jayasuriya opened together in a limited-overs game and really turned it on. Today they got a glimpse.

The two masters of the limited-overs game, with a combined age of nearly 76, treated Port Elizabeth to the cleanest, purest exhibition of batting that this season of the IPL has seen. Tendulkar paved the way with a sublime innings and Jayasuriya followed suit with an explosive hand, the veteran pair combining to raise a century stand in 52 balls that flummoxed Kolkata Knight Riders. That stunning opening assault formed the crux of Mumbai Indians' 187 and though Kolkata restricted the damage with six wickets for 48 runs after the tactical break, the damage had been done. Their only realistic chance at victory rested on their explosive openers' shoulders but once they were gone inside three overs the chase was basically kaput.