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Sri Lanka Women started their preparations for the upcoming ICC Women’s World Cup Qualifier in Bangladesh with a convincing win against the hosts in the first of two matches

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Nov-2011
ScorecardSri Lanka Women started their preparations for the upcoming ICC Women’s World Cup Qualifier in Bangladesh with a convincing win against the hosts in the first of two matches. Sri Lanka’s lower order made handy contributions to get them to 195 for 8 in 50 overs, and they then took early wickets to end the match as a contest. Bangladesh ended up crawling to 131 for 8 in their chase.Sri Lanka were put in and both their openers got starts. Sandamali Dolawatte came in and anchored the innings, scoring 41 off 102 balls. But the run-rate was slow and when Eshani Kaushalya was run out in the 38th over, Sri Lanka were 117 for 6. The lower order gave the innings the final push it needed and 56 were taken off the last eight overs. No. 9 Chamani Seneviratna hit 28 off 24 balls and No. 10 Sripali Weerakkody hit two fours in the six balls she faced. Bangladesh offspinner Khadiza Tul Kubra took 3 for 34 in her 10 overs. Bangladesh’s bowlers were generous and gave away 35 extras including 22 wides.Udeshika Prabodhani scuppered the chase with three early wickets that reduced Bangladesh to 31 for 3. Runs came in a trickle after that and spinner Suwini de Alwis bowled her 10 overs for just 15 runs. Bangladesh’s captain Salma Khatun scored 34 but Bangladesh were never in the chase and fell well short of the target.

Michael Clarke believes his batsmen are well prepared and should play their natural game, even if they are sent in under cloudy skies on Boxing Day

Brydon Coverdale at the MCG24-Dec-2011Last Boxing Day, the biggest day on Australia’s cricket calendar, Andrew Strauss sent the Australians in on a pitch with a little bit of juice in it. They didn’t last 50 overs. Chris Tremlett and James Anderson skittled the Australians for 98. They never recovered, England secured the Ashes with that victory, and the Argus review was commissioned in the weeks that followed.Fast forward 12 months and the Australians have been bowled out for 47 in an innings against South Africa. They have lost a Test to New Zealand in challenging conditions at Bellerive Oval. Their batsmen continue to fail. Only David Warner and Shaun Marsh, the two newest members of the top order, have averaged more than 40 in the past year.And now they are back at the MCG. It is still the biggest day on Australia’s cricket calendar. They are still struggling against the moving ball, the reason behind their batting camp over the past few days. Zaheer Khan and Ishant Sharma are skilled movers of the ball in the air and off the pitch. But the captain Michael Clarke still believes his batsmen should play their natural game, even if they are sent in under cloudy skies.”I think it’s important if we bat first that we play our natural game,” Clarke said. “I think you have the confidence to back your own ability. We’ve done plenty of work so it’s not from lack of training … Our preparation has been spot on. Now it’s about getting out there and enjoying every minute of it. I have no concerns if we bat first on that wicket and there’s a bit of movement. I’m confident we’re ready for it.”I make no bones about it, we’ve had extra time as a batting unit because we know we’ve got to get better at facing the new ball if there’s a bit in the wicket. We want to improve. We want to get better in that department of our game as batters. We’ve done the work though. That’s all I can ask any of the boys for.”Clarke said the ghosts of last year’s Test – five members of that side will not play this year – were well and truly exorcised. However he said it remained a special day and the Australians would need to handle the atmosphere at the start of the contest against a strong India side.”It is [special] because of the date,” Clarke said. “It’s the Boxing Day Test match. It’s built up because it is a special Test match, no doubt about it. And we’re playing against a very good opposition. I think the start of any Test match is crucial, whether you bat or bowl is irrelevant, but how you start the game… is a good indication to where the Test match is going to end up.”As the first Test in the series, the Boxing Day match will set the tone not only for the type of cricket that is played over the coming month, but also how the teams interact. Last time India toured Australia, under Anil Kumble in 2007-08, the series was acrimonious in the extreme, the Sydney Test featuring controversial umpiring and a racism row involving Harbhajan Singh and Andrew Symonds.However, since then the sides have played two Test series, both in India, without major incident, and plenty of the players now turn out together in the IPL. Clarke said he was confident the series would be played in the right spirit.”I think the IPL has been very good for that,” he said. “The relationship between the Australian players and the Indian players is very good and will continue to be that way. The IPL has played a big part, the opportunity to play with people from all around the world.”In saying that I think the series out on the field will be very competitive. Both teams want to win. Both have a lot to play for. In my career it’s been no different against India. It’s always been very competitive on the field but off the field both teams get on very well.”

The Perth Scorchers successfully defended 136 against the Melbourne Stars at the MCG, to win a match that had its fair share of dramatic moments by eight runs

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Jan-2012
ScorecardHerschelle Gibbs and the Perth Scorchers handed Shane Warne’s Melbourne Stars their third defeat in four matches•Getty ImagesThe Perth Scorchers successfully defended 136 against the Melbourne Stars at the MCG, to win a match that had its fair share of dramatic moments by eight runs. The win puts Marcus North’s Scorchers at No. 2 on the points table after the fourth round of games, while Shane Warne’s Stars are languishing at second-to-last with just one win.The Scorchers chose to bat and were steered through most of their innings by Herschelle Gibbs, who top scored with 69 off 48 balls – he fetched the Player of the Match award for this effort. When he was out in the 14th over, the scoreboard read 108 for 3, and the Scorchers seemed set for a weighty total. However, they failed to produce the typical late-overs surge, and a manic collapse in the final over of the innings – they lost five wickets in the over, three to run outs – meant they were left with a middling total to defend.Their bowlers were up to the task, knocking over Cameron White, George Bailey and David Hussey cheaply, and not allowing Rob Quiney to score freely. With their top order not delivering, the Stars were left chasing around ten runs an over in the final few, and could not get home despite a fighting, unbeaten 53 off 43 balls from Matthew Wade.

ESPNcricinfo presents a list of players bought, transferred and retained for IPL 2012

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Feb-2012BoughtBrendon McCullum – $900,000 to Kolkata Knight Riders (base price $400,000)
Ravindra Jadeja – Maximum purse of $2 million bid by Chennai Super Kings and Deccan Chargers. It goes to a tiebreaker. Bought by Chennai Super Kings for an undisclosed amount (base price $100,000).
Muttiah Muralitharan – $220,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price $200,000)
Mahela Jayawardene – $1.4 million to Delhi Daredevils (base price $300,000)
Herschelle Gibbs – $50,000 to Mumbai Indians (base price $50,000)
Brad Hodge – $475,000 to Rajasthan Royals (base price $200,000)
Parthiv Patel – $650,000 to Deccan Chargers (base price $200,000)
Dinesh Chandimal – $50,000 to Rajasthan Royals (base price $50,000)
Andre Russell – $450,000 to Delhi Daredevils (base price $50,000)
Mitchell Johnson – $300,000 to Mumbai Indians (base price $300,000)
RP Singh – $600,000 to Mumbai Indians (base price $200,000)
Vinay Kumar – $1 million to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price $100,000)
Sreesanth – $400,000 to Rajasthan Royals (base price $400,000)
Ramesh Powar – $160,000 to Kings XI Punjab (base price $100,000)
Brad Hogg – $180,000 to Rajasthan Royals (base price $100,000)
Sunil Narine – $700,000 to Kolkata Knight Riders (base price $50,000)
Robin Peterson – $100,000 to Mumbai Indians (base price $100,000)
Daniel Harris – $70,000 to Deccan Chargers (base price 50,000)
Kevon Cooper – $50,000 to Rajasthan Royals (base price 50,000)
James Faulkner – $190,000 to Kings XI Punjab (base price $100,000)
Azhar Mahmood – $200,000 to Kings XI Punjab (base price $100,000)
Thisara Perera – $650,000 to Mumbai Indians (base price $50,000)
Marchant de Lange – $50,000 to Kolkata Knight Riders (base price $50,000)
Darren Bravo – $100,000 to Deccan Chargers (base price $100,000)
Doug Bracewell – $50,000 to Delhi Daredevils (base price $50,000)
Retained(Players who were signed last year as a replacement for injured players and then retained by the franchise for this year)
Chris Gayle – Royal Challengers Bangalore, $550,000
Sourav Ganguly – Pune Warriors, $400,000
David Miller – Kings XI Punjab, $100,000
Transferred(Main players signed during the IPL’s trading window between December 15 and January 20)
Kevin Pietersen – Deccan Chargers to Delhi Daredevils
Andrew McDonald – Delhi Daredevils to Royal Challengers Bangalore
Dinesh Karthik – Kings XI Punjab to Mumbai Indians
Pragyan Ojha – Deccan Chargers to Mumbai Indians
R Sathish – Mumbai Indians to Kings XI Punjab
Harmeet Singh – Deccan Chargers to Kings XI Punjab
UnsoldJames Anderson – base price $300,000
Tamim Iqbal – base price $50,000
Adrian Barath – base price $50,000
Ramnaresh Sarwan – base price $100,000
Ian Bell – base price $200,000
Owais Shah – base price $200,000
Upul Tharanga – base price $50,000
VVS Laxman – base price $400,000
Matt Prior – base price $200,000
Brendan Taylor – base price $100,000
Mark Boucher – base price $100,000
Justin Kemp – base price $100,000
Marlon Samuels – base price $100,000
Steven Smith – base price $200,000
Ravi Bopara – base price $100,000
Luke Wright – base price $200,000
Kevin O’Brien – base price $50,000
Dwayne Smith – base price $100,000
Lonwabo Tsotsobe – base price $50,000
VRV Singh – base price $100,000
Vernon Philander – base price $200,000
Fidel Edwards – base price $100,000
Ravi Rampaul – base price $100,000
Peter Siddle – base price $200,000
Tim Southee – base price $100,000
Graeme Swann – base price $400,000
Rangana Herath – base price $50,000
Ajantha Mendis – base price $50,000
Steve O’Keefe – base price $100,000
Xavier Doherty – base price $100,000
Michael Klinger – base price $50,000
Richard Levi base price $50,000
Alviro Petersen base price $100,000
Lendl Simmons base price $50,000
Farveez Maharoof – base price $50,000
Jacob Oram – base price $100,000
Moises Henriques – base price $50,000
Ben Laughlin – base price $50,000
Ryan McLaren – base price $100,000
Nicky Boje – base price $200,000
Jacques Rudolph – base price $20,000
Andy McKay – base price $50,000
Alister McDermott – base price $20,000
Michael Neser – base price $50,000

For the full list of players who had registered for the auction, click here.

Chris Rogers scored his third hundred of the Sheffield Shield season to give Victoria hope victory over Western Australia at the WACA

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Mar-2012
ScorecardChris Rogers scored his third hundred of the Sheffield Shield season to give Victoria hope victory over Western Australia at the WACA. The Bushrangers must win if they are to have any chance of reaching the final and at stumps on the third day, they led by 337 runs, with Ryan Carters on 27 and William Sheridan on 21, and the total had reached 6 for 361.Rogers and Rob Quiney gave Victoria a strong start with a 142-run opening stand after the Warriors took first-innings points. Quiney, the leading run scorer this Shield season, was caught and bowled by Michael Beer for 66, and a series of other batsmen chipped in with useful scores.But it was Rogers’ 124 that anchored Victoria’s innings and gave the bowlers something to defend on the final day. Western Australia will secure a place in the Shield final if they chase down whatever target is set, and they will also have a strong chance of hosting the decider.

Sri Lanka left-arm fast bowler Chanaka Welegedara has been ruled out of the second Test against England that starts at the P Sara Oval on Tuesday with a groin injury

Sa'adi Thawfeeq31-Mar-2012Sri Lanka left-arm fast bowler Chanaka Welegedara has been ruled out of the second Test against England, which starts at the P Sara Oval on Tuesday, with a groin injury. Welegedara’s place in the squad will be taken by 25-year-old right-arm fast bowler Shaminda Eranga.Sri Lanka squad for the Colombo Test

Mahela Jayawardene (capt), Tillakaratne Dilshan, Lahiru Thirimanne, Kumar Sangakkara, Thilan Samaraweera, Tharanga Paranavitana, Dinesh Chandimal, Angelo Mathews, Prasanna Jayawardene (wk), Rangana Herath, Suraj Randiv, Suranga Lakmal, Dhammika Prasad, Shaminda Eranga
In: Angelo Mathews, Shaminda Eranga
Out: Chanaka Welegedara, Chamara Silva

The Sri Lanka selectors made one other change to the 14-man squad, including allrounder Angelo Mathews in place of batsman Chamara Silva. Silva had come into the squad as replacement for Mathews in the first place, after the allrounder failed a fitness test on his calf muscle ahead of the Galle Test.”Welegedera bowled with some discomfort during the Galle Test and an MRI scan revealed that he had a groin strain,” Ashantha de Mel, Sri Lanka’s chief selector, said. “Mathews has been declared fit and we have brought him in, but he will only bat.”Mathews last played for Sri Lanka in the league phase of the Commonwealth Bank Series in early March, missing the tri-series finals and the Asia Cup that followed due to the calf injury. He was initially picked in the squad for the Tests against England, before failing to recover in time for the first Test. At that point, De Mel had said that the concerns over Mathews’ injured leg put his future as a bowler in doubt. He will contest the No. 6 spot in the Sri Lanka line-up with Dinesh Chandimal, who scored 27 and 31 in the first match in Galle that Sri Lanka won by 75 runs to go 1-0 up in the two-Test series.Eranga has played the one Test for Sri Lanka, against Australia at the Sinhalese Sports Club last September, taking a four-for in his debut innings, including the wicket of Shane Watson with his first ball in Test cricket. In Sri Lanka’s domestic first-class competition, the Premier League Tournament Tier A, he took 11 wickets in six games for Chilaw Marians Cricket Club at an average of 35.45 this season. Despite the call-up, he is not expected to play against England – De Mel said that Dhammika Prasad is the most likely candidate to share the new ball with Suranga Lakmal.

Chennai coach Stephen Fleming believes the pressure of expectation, which comes from winning two successive IPL titles, has contributed to his team’s defeats

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Apr-2012Chennai Super Kings coach Stephen Fleming has said he believes the pressure of expectation, which comes from winning two successive IPL titles, contributed to his team’s defeats against Delhi Daredevils and Mumbai Indians.Against Daredevils on Tuesday, Super Kings imploded for 110, with M Vijay, Suresh Raina, S Badrinath and R Ashwin being run out – which Fleming also attributed to pressure.The Super Kings’ captain MS Dhoni scored 11, taking his aggregate to 22 runs in three matches, but he was backed by Fleming. “Yes he’s under pressure but it’s a pressure where he’s thrived before and one that he lives with, day in and day out, playing for India, so it’s nothing new.”He has a desire to win, so he will feel pressure to perform like all other players do, and him more so because he’s a very talented player and a key component of this side,” Fleming said. “When he’s playing well, nine times out of ten we win the matches.”Run-outs cost Super Kings dearly in both their losses, with three batsmen (Dhoni, Ashwin and Faf du Plessis) erring in the season opener against Mumbai Indians on April 4. “We panicked, we were trying to create runs that weren’t there and we paid the price,” Fleming said. “I don’t want to make run-outs an issue, but it’s mainly due to the pressure we’re being put under.”However, Fleming said it’s still early days in the tournament. “It’s too early to give you big synopses of what is going wrong; it’s two games we haven’t played well, we want to rectify it.””We are not an up-and-down side, we are usually consistent, but we’ve been beaten twice now and have been well off the mark. We just need to reassess how hard we’re going with the bat and may be set our sights a little bit lower, and if we over achieve then we’re in the game.”

Twenty minutes of play was lost in bright sunshine on the second morning of the Trinidad Test because officials wanted to make sure no commercial contracts would be breached

Daniel Brettig in Port-of-Spain17-Apr-2012Twenty minutes of play was lost in bright sunshine on the second morning of the Trinidad Test because officials wanted to make sure no commercial contracts would be breached if the match continued without television coverage due to a power failure.In a Test that had already lost two hours to rain and lost more time on the second afternoon, the sight of the West Indies and Australia players marching back off the ground after assembling for the scheduled 9.30am start drew groans from the Tuesday crowd in Port-of-Spain. Play did not get underway until 9.50.Observers at the ground, including local radio commentators, speculated that upon hearing in the middle that DRS referrals would not be available, Australia’s captain Michael Clarke took his men from the field. However ESPNcricinfo understands that none of the players, umpires Marais Erasmus and Ian Gould, or the match referee Jeff Crowe, knew of the power cut until informed by the television production crew moments before the scheduled start.Upon discovering it, the umpires took the players from the field and a meeting was convened between management on both sides, the match officials and the WICB. The meeting concluded that play should re-start at 9.50 irrespective of whether or not the power returned. Any further cuts to television’s power source at the Queen’s Park Oval will not stop play from continuing.The power outage on the second morning was not the first of the match, as one Michael Beer over on the second evening was played out without television working at the ground. In that over Beer appealed strongly for lbw against Adrian Barath, but Australia were unable to refer the decision due to the lack of television pictures.Matches have gone on in the past when DRS referrals are not available for environmental or technical reasons. Australia played on in the field against New Zealand at Wellington’s Basin Reserve in 2010 when strong winds shook television cameras and rendered ball-tracking technology inaccurate.There have also been past instances of matches being delayed by the loss of television pictures, including the India versus Sri Lanka ODI at Bellerive Oval in Hobart during this year’s triangular series in Australia.The relevant passage of the ICC’s Test match playing conditions state that the match referee has the final call on the use of DRS in a match. “Where practical usage or further testing indicates that any of the above forms of technology cannot reliably provide accurate and timely information, then it may be removed prior to or during a match,” the conditions state. “The final decision regarding the technology to be used in a given match will be taken by the ICC Match Referee in consultation with the ICC Technical Official, ICC Management and the competing teams’ governing bodies.”

Chris Nash and Ed Joyce turned the clock back 12 months with an unbroken stand of 143 before the weather halted a Sussex charge against Worcestershire

18-May-2012Chris Nash and Ed Joyce turned the clock back 12 months with an unbroken stand of 143 before the weather halted a Sussex charge against Worcestershire in the Division One match at New Road.Their first century partnership in a year stretched their team’s lead to a commanding 199 but bad light and light rain wiped out the final session and put declaration plans on hold until the last day.It was a timely resurgence by a pair who lost some of their momentum after starting last season with five three-figure stands, culminating in a stand of 201 in a successful run chase against Somerset at Hove on May 19. Nash has not scored a century since reaching 120 in that match but the trip to Worcester for his 100th appearance in first-class cricket has been highly profitable so far with scores of 84 and 69 not out.Apart from a couple of sketchy shots, notably a top-edged cut parried by Michael Klinger at third slip, Nash played himself into a good rhythm. His driving was particularly impressive with 11 fours before the umpires took the players off at 3.00pm.In cruising to 70 from 118 balls, Joyce was a different player from the one who laboured for more than an hour over 6 runs in the first innings. His timing was spot-on from the outset, with nothing better than an effortless pull for six off David Lucas, and he also notched eight other boundaries.For Worcestershire, the third day, albeit cut short by 44 overs, became increasingly uncomfortable. Last year they stayed in Division One despite losing their first six matches. This year there has been an improvement, with three draws so far, but finding a way to win games will be key to their survival battle.Any hopes they had of matching Sussex’s first innings total of 315 evaporated on the third morning with their dismissal for 259 after losing their last three wickets for the addition of 28 runs. Jack Shantry managed to hold out with 22 not out in his first Championship knock of the season but there was nothing substantial from his partners.Ben Scott was leg-before to Jimmy Anyon, Lucas was run out by Nash’s quick reactions at short leg and Richard Jones scooped up a catch to mid-on as Monty Panesar completed a return of 3 for 65 in 23 overs. In terms of economy Steve Magoffin had the best figures after an immaculate performance in bowling 30 overs for his 2 for 35.

The IPCC has handed responsibility for investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of Tom Maynard back to the Metropolitan police

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Jun-2012The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) has confirmed that it has handed responsibility for investigating the circumstances surrounding the death of Tom Maynard back to the Metropolitan police.The matter had been passed on to the IPCC has a matter of course, after Maynard was found dead on tube tracks near Wimbledon Park station on Monday, having been pulled over by police while driving in the early hours of the morning. Maynard, the 23-year-old Surrey batsman, subsequently abandoned his car and fled the scene.However, the police regulator will not investigate the case further, as Maynard eluded the chasing officers before his body was discovered almost an hour later.”The IPCC has assessed the referral from the Metropolitan Police Service regarding the death of a 23-year-old man,” an IPCC statement said. “The police evidence is that at 4.13am officers saw a car being driven erratically which they followed.”The driver then decamped and after a short chase on foot, officers lost sight of him and had no further contact. The man appears to have been hit by a train at 5.04am. In the circumstances the IPCC has referred this matter back to the MPS. British Transport Police will prepare a file for the coroner.”Maynard’s death was marked by a minute’s silence at The Oval, his home ground, before the start of the second ODI between England and West Indies. Tom, the son of former England and Glamorgan batsman Matthew Maynard, has been the subject of tributes and messages from former players and members of the cricketing community and his family issued a statement on Tuesday, expressing their thanks and asking for privacy.The statement, issued through the British Transport Police (BTP), said: “The Maynard family would like to thank everyone for the many messages of support following Tom’s tragic death in London yesterday morning.”As you can appreciate, the news has come as a devastating blow and although the family is grateful for all the kind messages of sympathy, we would ask that we can be left to grieve in private at this very difficult and sad time for us.”