All posts by h716a5.icu

On the face of it this series of three Twenty20s may seem trivial, but it is a significant contest for both sides as they use these games as preparation for the World Twenty20

Preview by Andrew McGlashan17-Jul-2012Match FactsJuly 18, 20 and 21, Stormont
Start time, first two 5.00pm (1600GMT), third 4.00pm (1500GMT)Niall O’Brien and Paul Stirling are part of a strong Ireland batting order•AFPThe Big PictureOn the face of it this series of three Twenty20s may seem trivial, but it is a significant contest for both sides as they use the games as preparation for the World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka. Although conditions in Stormont will not bear any resemblance to Colombo.Ireland, desperate for more cricket against Full Members, get a chance to showcase their talent against a team they, one day, want to follow into the top flight of the international game. For Bangladesh it is a chance for their players to gain more experience away from home, but for their credibility as a Full Member it is not a series they can afford to lose. They are the team starting under the most pressure.Ireland, in home conditions, have every right to begin this series with the belief they can win. Their side is packed full of experienced county cricketers such as Ed Joyce, Niall O’Brien, Tim Murtagh and the captain William Porterfield. The return of Boyd Rankin, the fast bowler, makes for a very strong seam attack.Bangladesh have brought their big-name players which confirms how importantly they are treating the series. Tamim Iqbal and Shakib Al Hasan are impressive international cricketers who have experience of county cricket that will serve them well in conditions likely to help the bowlers.The Test series across the water in England will capture most of cricket attention this week but keep an eye on this battle, too.Form guide (Most recent first)
Ireland WWWWW
Bangladesh LWLLLWatch out for…Paul Stirling has said he is firmly committed to Ireland and will not be enticed by an England call, but if he continues to perform the way he has that loyalty may soon be tested for real. A hard-hitter at the top of the order he has the ability to take an attack apart – as shown with his 17-ball fifty against Afghanistan in the World Twenty20 Qualifiers – and has an international T20 strike-rate of 123. His offspin is a more-than-useful second string.Tamim Iqbal can be one of the most fearsome strikers of a cricket ball in the world, but his T20 average is a very modest 13.60 (and a strike-rate of under a hundred), compared to his Test figure of 38.00 and ODI number of 30.07. On Bangladesh’s tour to England in 2010 he lit up the Test matches with back-to-back hundreds and he needs to show he is one of the team’s senior batsmen in the shortest format.SquadsIreland William Porterfield (captain), Alex Cusack, George Dockrell, Trent Johnston, Ed Joyce, John Mooney, Tim Murtagh, Kevin O’Brien, Niall O’Brien, Andrew Poynter, Boyd Rankin, Max Sorensen, Paul Stirling, Andrew White, Gary WilsonBangladesh Mushfiqur Rahim (capt), Mahmudullah, Tamim Iqbal, Mohammad Ashraful, Junaid Siddique, Jahurul Islam, Shakib Al Hasan, Nasir Hossain, Ziaur Rahman, Elias Sunny, Abdur Razzak, Mashrafe Mortaza, Shafiul Islam, Nazmul Hossain, Abul Hasan.Pitch and conditionsAll the wet weather of recent weeks (and months) means it is unlikely that the pitches will have any great pace. Bangladesh won’t mind if Boyd Rankin is not pinging the ball at their chests. The forecast for Wednesday is promising but further ahead there is less certainty.Stats and trivia The only other meeting between the two teams at T20 level came at the 2009 World Twenty20 in England when Ireland won at Trent Bridge by chasing down 137 to move into the Super Eights Stirling’s 79 against Afghanistan in the final of the World Twenty20 Qualifiers was Ireland’s highest individual T20 score Bangladesh have played just two T20 internationals since the previous World Twenty20 in the CaribbeanQuotes”Off to Gatwick to fly to Belfast for Bang 20/20’s…loving the frequent trips home for Ire games.”

Piers Morgan, the former British tabloid editor turned chatshow host, has escalated the conflict between Kevin Pietersen and the England team

David Hopps14-Aug-2012Piers Morgan, the former British tabloid editor turned chatshow host, has escalated the conflict between Kevin Pietersen and the England team and officials by alleging that two of his team-mates are linked to the parody Twitter account that Pietersen found so offensive.The allegations involve two Nottinghamshire players – Stuart Broad, England’s Twenty20 captain, and Alex Hales, who took his place at the top of the order in England’s T20 side after Pietersen’s stand-off with the ECB had led to his enforced retirement from one-day cricket.The dispute drags on while Pietersen and his advisers pursue negotiations with the ECB in what seems to be an increasingly forlorn hope that he will win a reprieve and be named in England’s squad for World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka month when it is announced by Saturday’s deadline.Morgan, a close friend of Pietersen, took to Twitter, where the debate is raging, to accuse the ECB of “double standards” in lecturing the player about the overriding need for team unity while overlooking a lack of team unity elsewhere, in the shape of personal hostility towards Pietersen from some of his team-mates.What was intended to support Pietersen’s contention to ECB officials in ongoing private discussions that he is the victim, not the problem, in the England dressing room, could prove to be counterproductive as the ECB concludes that emotions are running too high to risk naming Pietersen in their World Twenty20 party.An increasingly fantastical affair has also caused the originator of the Pietersen parody account, Richard Bailey, a 20-something scientist from Nottingham who tweets personally under @Bailsthebadger, to apologise for the offence he has caused and insist that no England players were involved.ESPNcricinfo’s investigations last week had found no evidence that any England player had been actively involved in Baileys’ account and passed on all information gathered to senior officials of the ECB.Indeed, in Broad’s case, the evidence is purely circumstantial and Bailey, not a close friend of the England captain but who shares a house with two other Nottinghamshire players, is now deeply embarrassed by an outcome he could barely have imagined.Morgan’s accusation relies upon the fact that Hales was the first follower of the Pietersen parody account. Claims that Broad was involved seem to rest upon a tweet he sent on the same evening that the account was opened saying that he had lent Bailey a pair of socks, therefore putting him in the same place, if not necessarily in the know.”Put a sock in it,” was the tacit response last night of one former England coach, David Lloyd, who used Twitter to argue that it was time to move on as the ECB attempted to stop the affair running out of control.Pietersen’s England future is in the balance after England refused to pick him for the Lord’s Test against South Africa despite him appearing a video in which he made himself available for all forms of cricket and publicly apologising for mistakes he may have made.The ECB, in the person of England managing director Hugh Morris, refused to accept the apology because Pietersen had not explained “derogatory” text messages about members of the England dressing room that he had allegedly sent to South Africa players after the Headingley Test.Nottinghamshire have a long history of antagonism towards Pietersen. He left the county after his kit was famously thrown off the dressing room balcony at Trent Bridge and the views of many involved at the time – Broad and Hales were not at the county – have not noticeably softened in the meantime.A third England and Nottinghamshire player, Graeme Swann, was also dismissive of Pietersen’s captaincy skills in his autobiography, and his relationship with Pietersen is strained. Pietersen suspected Swann of being behind the account but there is no evidence to support Pietersen’s belief that Swann is in anyway involved with this latest brouhaha.Pietersen’s brother, Bryan Pietersen, also took to Twitter to threaten the instigator of the parody account and suggest his phone should be thrown into the River Trent, which runs close to the Nottinghamshire ground.In the corridors of the ECB, as this affair drags on, rivers are certainly running deep.

James Anderson has admitted England’s much-vaunted bowling attack were given a sharp “wake-up call” by the quality of their South African counterparts

George Dobell22-Aug-2012James Anderson has admitted England’s much-vaunted bowling attack were given a sharp “wake-up call” by the quality of their South African counterparts. The Test series against South Africa had been billed as a battle between the two best bowling attacks in world cricket but there proved to be little comparison as South Africa clinched the series 2-0 and with it usurped England as the No.1 rated Test team.While Anderson and Stuart Broad claimed their wickets at a cost of 40.66 and 39.72 apiece respectively, Vernon Philander and Dale Steyn claimed theirs for 23.66 and 29.20. Graeme Swann claimed only four wickets in the two Tests he played at an eye-watering cost of 77 runs apiece.”It was a huge wake-up call for this bowing attack,” Anderson admitted. “When you get to No.1 you can start believing your own hype and your own press. When people say you are a great bowling attack you can start believing that and this is a huge wake-up call in this series.”We have been truly out-bowled in this series and it shows we have a lot of work to do. Maybe we have got a long way to go.”Despite the defeat, Anderson insisted that Andrew Strauss remained the man to lead England. While England’s captain endured a grim series, averaging just 17.83 and looking increasingly jaded by the Kevin Pietersen debacle, Anderson said the entire dressing room – sans Pietersen – were united in support of Strauss and would back him “to the hilt”.”Andrew Strauss has been pivotal in everything we have achieved,” Anderson said. “He is a huge part of our team. As players I can speak for everyone and say we hope he carries on for a few more years yet. Straussy has got so much respect as a captain and a leader. We all very much respect his decisions and we will back him to the hilt with whatever he and the ECB decides to do over the Kevin Pietersen issue.”It was Straussy’s 100th Test match and you could see how much he still loved being in the dressing room. Now we have lost the No.1 spot I am sure he is very hungry to get us back there.”Anderson struggled to explain England’s disappointing form in the series against South Africa, but conceded that the mindset of being No.1 rather than chasing that status may have been a contributory factor.”There is a slightly different mentality when you are trying to get to No.1 rather than being No.1,” he said. “Teams have a different approach towards how they play against you and maybe we needed a different mindset to the one we had. We have not quite got it right whatever it might be.”Perhaps we have let our standards slip as Straussy said after the game. If you do that you are going to come under pressure.”I don’t think we have shown any complacency. The one thing that got us to No.1 in the world was striving for constant improvement. We were always trying to be better and maybe we rested on our laurels a little bit. We didn’t try and keep improving as we had done in previous years.”I think we were better when we were trying to get to No.1. We were better when we were chasing. We know how to do that.”Anderson remained confident that England could reclaim the top spot, though. He felt that the success of younger players such as Steven Finn and Jonny Bairstow promised much for the future”We have made some steps forward,” Anderson said. “Steven Finn has done a great job since he came in. The spell on the fourth day at Lord’s was one of the best spells of bowling I have seen in a Test. It is exciting from that point of view, but we know we have got to do a lot of improving if we want to get back to that No.1 spot.”We got to No.1 in the world with this team and Straussy leading this team. I don’t see why we can’t do it again. Especially with a couple of new guys coming in it is an important phase letting them settle into the team. I thought JB was exceptional this week and he showed real signs of being a world class player. It is exciting we have guys like that coming into the team. We know what it takes to get there so hopefully we can do it again.”Could we do it without Kevin Pietersen? I don’t see why not. We have seen we have talented guys coming through. If he doesn’t play Test cricket against it would be a huge loss because he is such a devastating player but I don’t see why we can’t. We have enough talent there to get back to No.1.”The starting point is India. It is a tough place to start but it an exciting challenge. If you want to be No.1 in the world you have to win in India, so why not start there?”Investec, the specialist bank and asset manager, is the title sponsor of Test Match cricket in England. Visit the Investec Cricket Zone at investec.co.uk/cricket for player analysis, stats, test match info and games.

Nick Compton boosted his chances of England selection with a timely century as Somerset tightened their grip on Worcestershire at Taunton.

12-Sep-2012
ScorecardNick Compton hopes to be included in England’s tour party for India•Getty ImagesNick Compton boosted his chances of England selection with a timely century as Somerset tightened their grip on Worcestershire at Taunton.The leading run-maker in first class cricket this summer was returning to action after a back problem but it did not show as he hit an unbeaten 114 in a Somerset total which also featured 146 from Marcus Trescothick. That gave the hosts a lead of 239 with two days to go and took Compton’s first-class tally for the season to 1,453 runs at an average of 96.86.Somerset began the day on 142 without loss in reply to 212 and soon lost Arul Suppiah, caught and bowled by Moeen Ali for 75 off a checked drive, having added only two to his overnight score. Trescothick had resumed on 66 and after surviving some scares against Alan Richardson, who bowled beautifully without luck before lunch, moved to his century off 187 balls with 13 fours.Lunch was taken at 227 for 1 and the pitch inspector who had stayed on after Abdur Rehman’s nine-wicket first-day haul, was able to abandon any thought that the wicket was unduly spinner-friendly.Trescothick and Compton had taken the total to 307 when Trescothick edged to second slip to at last give 37-year-old Richardson some reward for his efforts. Trescothick’s innings had spanned 260 balls and, while not one of his most fluent, was hugely important for his team as they chase runners-up spot in the Championship for only the third time in their history, having never won it.Richardson continued to bowl with great heart and gained thoroughly deserved lbw verdicts against James Hildreth (19) and Chris Jones (one) on his way to figures of 3 for 65 from 35 overs as Somerset moved to 343 for 4.Compton had moments of fortune, but again displayed his powers of concentration in moving to his 16th first-class hundred off 248 deliveries, with nine fours and a straight six off Moeen.With Somerset already 131 ahead when he walked to the crease, Peter Trego was able to enjoy himself with a rapid 45 off as many balls, with five fours and two sixes before being bowled by a slower ball from Chris Russell.Craig Overton and Steve Snell fell cheaply to Moeen, but there was no disturbing Compton, who has now scored 239 more first-class runs than his nearest challenger in the averages, Hildreth with 1,214, despite playing in three less matches than his Somerset team-mate.

Australia tightened their hold on the Sydney Test on the third day and stand an excellent chance of sealing a clean sweep against Sri Lanka

The Report by Siddhartha Talya05-Jan-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Matthew Wade struck his second Test ton and his first at home•Getty ImagesAustralia tightened their hold on the Sydney Test on the third day and stand an excellent chance of sealing a clean sweep against Sri Lanka. Matthew Wade scored his second Test century in front of a raucous crowd engulfing the venue in a sea of pink on Jane McGrath day, and stretched his team’s lead to 138 before Michael Clarke declared. Half-centuries from Dimuth Karunaratne and Mahela Jayawardene gave Sri Lanka hope, not just of recovery but even putting Australia under pressure in the fourth innings, but much of it was crushed by a middle-order implosion in good conditions for batting.The opener Karunaratne and captain Jayawardene had taken Sri Lanka to within six runs of erasing the deficit, after the early loss of Tillakaratne Dilshan, but Australia wrested the control they had achieved at the end of their innings. Karunaratne, let off on 54 but solid for the bulk, drove at a fullish, reverse-swinging, delivery from Jackson Bird in the final session to feather one to the keeper. Hot Spot didn’t capture any heat signature – Karunaratne did not call for a review after being given out – but Snicko later indicated there may have been a nick. Sri Lanka still had the batting to guide them to a competitive lead but much of the damage they suffered from then on was self-inflicted.Lahiru Thirimanne impressed with 91 in the first innings but failed while trying to hook a quick, short ball from Mitchell Johnson, top-edging it to fine leg. Thilan Samaraweera, inexplicably and totally out of character, charged out to Nathan Lyon third ball, only to miscue it to Michael Hussey, who took a well-judged catch running back from mid-off. Angelo Mathews called and ran after playing one to midwicket but met an unresponsive Jayawardene, who stayed his ground as David Warner dived, collected and returned an accurate throw to Wade to catch the batsman short. When Jayawardene nicked a wide one from Peter Siddle to first slip, Sri Lanka had lost five for 46, leaving Dinesh Chandimal and the tail too much to achieve to test the hosts.Smart stats

Matthew Wade’s century is the tenth by a wicketkeeper in Tests against Sri Lanka and the second by an Australian wicketkeeper after Adam Gilchrist’s 144 in 2004.

Wade’s century is his second in Tests after his 106 in West Indies in 2012. It is also the third century scored by an Australian wicketkeeper in Sydney and the fifth overall by wicketkeepers at the venue.

The 77-run stand between Wade and Peter Siddle is the joint third-highest stand for the seventh wicket for Australia in Tests against Sri Lanka. The highest is 129 between Ian Healy and Greg Matthews in 1992.

Dimuth Karunaratne’s 85 is the second-highest score by a Sri Lankan batsman in Tests at the SCG. The highest is Lahiru Thirimanne’s 91 which was made in the first innings of this Test.

The century stand between Karunaratne and Mahela Jayawardene is the 11th for Sri Lanka in Tests in Australia and the first in Sydney. It is also the third-highest second-wicket stand for Sri Lanka against Australia.

Australia were largely disciplined when they bowled but that didn’t prevent Karunaratne and Jayawardene from scoring fluently, both displaying ease and confidence in their century stand. The only threat of discomfort on the pitch for the batsmen was some uneven bounce, but Karunaratne set the tone for the stand as early as the first over. Karunaratne has a tall frame, doesn’t have too much flourish in his shot-making, but showed he is especially strong on the off side while being an excellent timer of the ball. He dispatched Mitchell Starc for two boundaries in the first over, chopping him past point then driving a half-volley past mid-off.The seamers tried to bowl tight lines but occasionally provided width, allowing Karunaratne to be expansive. He scored freely through cover and point, and drove well on the up against Starc, whom he took for four boundaries. He even stepped out to Nathan Lyon, launching him for a six and four past long-on. Jayawardene looked assured, worked the ball around for singles and twos despite the field being brought in and collected boundaries with ease. He scored off Starc on either side behind the wicket, and pulled well, cracking Starc and Bird for fours through square leg. But his own anxiety and frustration grew as he saw two of his partners throw their wickets away, and it wasn’t long before he, too, made his way back.The role played by Wade, who found able partners in Siddle and Bird, in extending the lead to 138 acquired greater significance once Sri Lanka’s batting began to unravel after tea. The hundred was still a distant landmark for Wade when the day began, as the priority appeared to be improving Australia’s position from one of a slight advantage to greater control. Wade was busy, running hard and occasionally attempting the aggressive shot, but also timed the ball superbly, his first four being just a punch past point off Suranga Lakmal. Siddle fell when he edged Nuwan Pradeep to the keeper – ending a 77-run stand for the seventh wicket – and Rangana Herath hit back with two wickets in quick succession.Three men in the deep on the off side were not enough to prevent Wade from slicing Pradeep over point as he stepped up his attacking game further with just one wicket in hand; as he watched the field move back in, he picked up a boundary past gully by opening the face. He smashed Pradeep over extra cover, then neatly clipped him past midwicket for two more fours. Bird, at the other end, not only survived but scored during his short stay, long enough for Wade to reach his landmark. In what was to be the last over of the innings, Wade pierced a packed off-side field in the deep to cream Lakmal for two fours, the second of which brought up his century and sparked wild celebrations with an expectant SCG joining in.

Brett Lee has called on Cricket New South Wales to sack the chief executive David Gilbert after the board fired the head coach Anthony Stuart during the week

ESPNcricinfo staff22-Dec-2012Brett Lee has called on Cricket New South Wales to sack the chief executive David Gilbert after the board fired the head coach Anthony Stuart during the week. Lee, who plays for the Sydney Sixers but is no longer a New South Wales state player, said Stuart, who was appointed as head coach in mid-2011, had been the scapegoat for deficiencies within the state’s cricket setup that had been apparent for several years.”I think the blame for a lot of things has been unfairly dumped on Anthony Stuart,” Lee told Fairfax Media. “It should have been at the top, Dave Gilbert. He should’ve been made to go in my opinion. Cricket New South Wales is all about leadership, and while that comes from the coach, it comes from the top, too, and I believe for the last five or six years New South Wales has seriously dropped the ball … you can tell by their performances and it isn’t the guys on the cricket field – it’s the hierarchy.”New South Wales last won the Sheffield Shield in 2007-08 and the domestic one-day tournament in 2005-06, and for a state with such a proud history that is something of a drought. Lee said Gilbert, who has been chief executive for a decade, should have been held accountable by the board instead of getting rid of Stuart only a year and a half in to his two-year contract.”If David Gilbert appoints Anthony Stuart and then basically fires him, even though they’re saying his contract was not renewed, it was a bad call,” Lee said. “Why is he still there? In my opinion, it is a terrible situation and while Anthony Stuart was given the tap on the shoulder I believe the board should have gone right to the top and started with David Gilbert.”Lee said he was also unhappy with the way he was treated during the final stages of his state career, including when he was told after an appendix operation early last summer that he would need to fly to Melbourne to play in an Under-19s game to prove his fitness.”I wasn’t going to ‘earn’ my stripes for them,” Lee said. “I was 35 at the time and decided to just pull the pin. I’d proven my fitness by bowling in the nets for four weeks. It was a disgrace.”Lee said his impression of the current hierarchy at Cricket New South Wales had not improved when he announced his retirement earlier this year.”When I retired I phoned David Gilbert to thank Cricket New South Wales for all it had done for me, and the opportunities it presented me,” Lee said. “I believe in New South Wales cricket, I loved wearing the baggy blue, but I have not received a reply from him … every person I phoned, Ricky Ponting, James Sutherland, Adam Gilchrist … The only person who hadn’t phoned me back was Dave Gilbert and Cricket New South Wales.”It was disappointing but it’s important in this context because it’s about communication and support, something I believe is missing at New South Wales and it’s having a negative effect on the team.”Lee said the only way things would change at New South Wales would be through changes at the top.

South Africa have selected four uncapped players in their ODI squad for the three matches against New Zealand

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Jan-2013South Africa have named four uncapped players – Quinton de Kock, AaronPhangiso, Farhaan Behardien and Rory Kleinveldt – in their ODI squad forthe three-match series against New Zealand this month. Jacques Kallis wasrested while JP Duminy is still recovering from the Achilles’ injury hesustained in Australia.In keeping with their redesign of limited-overs sides, six of the groupthat last played fifty-over cricket for South Africa in England inSeptember have been left out. Apart from Duminy, whose exclusion wasforced, Dean Elgar, Wayne Parnell, Albie Morkel, Imran Tahir and JustinOntong all missed the cut.Elgar is perhaps the most surprising omission as convenor of selectorsAndrew Hudson said he was “part of their future plans.” He played in allfive fixtures in England, batted in four of them but scored 93 runs and not a single half-century. He has since played Tests for South Africa and may be tasked with focusing on that. Colin Ingram has taken his place for now, having not played for South Africa in a year.Ontong may consider himself unlucky having done well when he was picked in the Twenty20 squad against New Zealand. He played in the final fixture in Port Elizabeth on Boxing Day and brought up his highest score of 48.Tahir was dropped from the Test squad after his disastrous performance inthe Adelaide Test where he conceded 260 runs without taking a wicket. Hehas since been sent back to the domestic game to regain confidence where he took 12 wickets in a first-class fixture this weekend to show that he is slowly getting there.Parnell picked up a wrist niggle which ruled him out of the Twenty20s andit seems he has done the same for the ODIs. He will see a specialist this week to determine an estimated come back period. Morkel has also battled with injury recently and has not overcome his chronic ankle problem. He may even require surgery to overcome the problem completely.Someone who has recovered from an ankle problem is Lonwabo Tsotsobe who hasbeen named in the ODI squad. Tsotsobe was due to play in the T20s againstNew Zealand but needed a two to three week rest period after his ankleflared up. Once the top-ranked ODI bowler in the world, Tsotsobe has alsofallen down the pecking order and will want to rectify that in this series.AB de Villiers returns to captain the side after CSA granted his request tobe rested from the T20s. He is unlikely to keep wickets, however, as part of his workload management program. De Kock will take the gloves, as he didduring the T20 series.The rest of the group is made up of a familiar core of experience withGraeme Smith, Hashim Amla, the pace duo of Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel,although both may be rested as the series wears on, and Robin Peterson.Petersen will be partnered by Aaron Phangiso who played in the T20s afteran impressive domestic run. The latest spin decision means that Johan Botha is unlikely to make a comeback. Botha relocated to Australia last October after he asked to be released from his CSA contract and although he remains available for selection, it seems the administration is looking to the future.”We only have the three ODI matches against New Zealand plus another fiveagainst Pakistan to prepare our squad for the Champions Trophy in themiddle of the year,” Hudson said. “The Champions Trophy also marks thehalfway point to the next World Cup so this is a critical part of ourpreparation to win these two major events.”South Africa’s quest for ICC silverware is well documented. The last trophy they won was the ICC KnockOut Trophy, which later became the ChampionsTrophy, in 1998 and tried everything in pursuit of further glory. The nextexperiment in that regard starts with the series against New Zealand.The three matches will be played in Paarl, Kimberley and Potchefstroom,starting on January 19, three days after the second Test is scheduled toend. Ryan McLaren, who is part of the one-day squad, has been called up as cover for the Test squad but will not play. Vernon Philander is nursing a left hamstring strain and is likely to sit out of the Port Elizabeth match.Kleinveldt will take his place and McLaren will only be used in anemergency.South African ODI squad: AB de Villiers, Hashim Amla, FarhaanBehardien, Quinton de Kock, Faf du Plessis, Colin Ingram, Rory Kleinveldt,Ryan McLaren, Morne Morkel, Robbie Peterson, Aaron Phangiso, Graeme Smith,Dale Steyn, Lonwabo Tsotsobe.

Chris Gayle powered to his tenth Twenty20 hundred and set up Dhaka Gladiators’ narrow win against Sylhet Royals, which earned then a place in the final

The Report by Mohammad Isam15-Feb-2013
ScorecardChris Gayle hit 12 sixes in his first BPL innings this season•BCBChris Gayle powered to his tenth Twenty20 hundred in Dhaka Gladiators’ Race to the Final, but despite the huge target of 197 the Sylhet Royals gave spirited chase, and ultimately fell just short of the 24 runs they needed in the final over. With five runs needed off the last ball, Elton Chigumbura swung Mashrafe Mortaza to deep midwicket, where Darren Stevens held the catch to seal Gladiators’ berth in the final of the BPL.Royals captain Mushfiqur Rahim had batted steadily for most of the chase, keeping his side on par with the Gladiators at the 10th and 15th-over marks. He had an 82-run stand with Dwayne Smith, who made 41, for the third wicket and added 46 runs with Nazmul Hossain Milon.With 55 to defend in the last four overs, the Gladiators got two good overs from Alfonso Thomas and Shakib Al Hasan. Thomas bowled a good penultimate over to give his captain Mashrafe Mortaza 24 runs to defend in the 20th. He nearly made a mess of it, bowling a crucial no-ball when Anamul Haque had caught Mushfiqur, who was eventually run out off the next ball for 86 off 44 balls. Chigumbura was dropped soon after by Raqibul Hasan at deep square leg but was not able to hit the final ball over the boundary.The result validated Gladiators’ last-minute buy – Gayle. The Jamaican blasted 114 off 51 deliveries, hitting 12 towering sixes. His ninth six was the longest in the tournament at 103 metres and it nearly reached the second tier of the stands behind long-on. It was the third hundred of the season, and the highest so far.The Royals’ fielders stood with hands on hips and necks craned, following the path of those big hits. They had been on top until the 10th over, having reduced the Gladiators to 64 for 5. Tillakaratne Dilshan was out off the first ball of the innings to Sohag Gazi, before Mohammad Ashraful was caught at fine leg off Chigumbura. Shakib Al Hasan blasted 38 off 21 balls with four sixes but he was cleaned up by debutant Sajidul Islam, who then removed Stevens off the next ball. Anamul’s dismissal in the ninth over was a major blow, but it just opened up the arena to two of the biggest hitters in the field.The Gayle-Kieron Pollard partnership played out two quiet overs, but the pair got going in the 14th over, taking 24 off Suharwadi Shuvo. Gayle scored 23 of those, striking three sixes and a boundary. He smashed Nazmul Hossain Milon for 29 runs in the 17th over, and took 16 off Sajidul in the next, also bringing up his century. He soon got out, and the Gladiators’ tail couldn’t take the total past the 200-run mark.The result meant the Royals will have to face the winner of the knockout match between Chittagong Kings and Duronto Rajshahi.

Ishant Sharma has been fined 15 per cent of his match fee for breaching the ICC Code of Conduct on the third day of the Delhi Test

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Mar-2013Ishant Sharma has been fined 15 per cent of his match fee for breaching the ICC Code of Conduct on the third day of the Delhi Test, won by India who completed a sweep of the four-match series. Ishant, who admitted to the charge and accepted the penalty, was found to have breached Level, Article 2.1.6 of the ICC Code of Conduct, “which relates to pointing or gesturing towards the pavilion by a bowler or a fielder upon the dismissal of a batsman in an International Match.”The incident occurred in the 45th over, immediately after Ishant dismissed James Pattinson. Ishant “repeatedly gestured towards the pavilion while in his follow through,” an ICC release stated. “Ishant’s reaction after dismissing James Pattinson was inappropriate and clearly in breach of the Code. I’m sure Ishant will learn from this incident and ensure such actions are not be repeated in the future,” the ICC match referee Ranjan Madugalle said.Player behaviour has been under scrutiny in this Test match. On the second day, Australia opener David Warner was involved in a verbal altercation with Ravindra Jadeja, who asked the umpires to intervene and they subsequently called on captain Shane Watson to speak to Warner. Warner had reacted, seemingly, in response to the Indian batsmen running through the middle of the pitch while going for a couple. MS Dhoni was also batting at the time, the incident having occurred after the second ball of the 51st over in India’s innings.Dhoni, at the end of the game, said the issue was dealt with well by the umpires, but added, “The schoolboys [younger players] just graduated into college for a while.”One thing I always tell the match referee is that whichever team starts it, I think the other team has an equal right to give it back to them. And then you should stop it, saying, “no more, now both sides need to be disciplined.””If the umpires stopped one side from retaliating “at that point in time”, he said, “the individuals in that side just keep it on, keep it on…and sometimes, just blow it out on the opposition, that’s the time when people get fined and disciplinary action gets taken.”

Chris Gayle consigned a quiet start to a chase of 155 a distant memory with another calm demolition job of an opposition team

The Report by Siddhartha Talya11-Apr-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
An all too familiar sight in the IPL•BCCIChris Gayle took centre stage once again for Royal Challengers Bangalore, after a rare-slip up in their previous game. He consigned a quiet start to a chase of 155 to a distant memory with another calm demolition job of an opposition team, backed up by his captain Virat Kohli, as Kolkata Knight Riders suffered their second defeat in a row following a promising start to their new season as defending champions.Gautam Gambhir guided the Knight Riders batting, happy at being asked to bat during the toss, but the total his side managed proved below-par on an excellent track for batting. The Royal Challengers seamers bowled impressively to restrict partnerships after they had begun encouragingly, and struck in the late overs to stifle an attempted surge. It kept Knight Riders down to a chaseable score, and Gayle made it look worse than it was.Gambhir was at ease piercing the gaps through the in-field, dispatching Moises Henriques, who opened the bowling, through the leg side and RP Singh past point and extra cover. Muttiah Muralitharan was driven through off, smacked over mid-on, and slog-swept, all this during a half-century stand with Jacques Kallis that promised to take Knight Riders beyond what they eventually got. Kallis sliced Vinay Kumar to deep point, but the promotion of Yusuf Pathan to No.4 triggered an acceleration.Yusuf struck his first three balls, all from Vinay, for boundaries to different parts of the ground, before whipping Jaidev Unadkat for six over midwicket. But Royal Challengers pulled things back, breaking the stand when Yusuf holed out to long-on off a slower delivery from Henriques. Gambhir and Tiwary put together a spirited partnership of their own, but the pair, together with Eoin Morgan, fell in a space of two overs at the death. RP leaked a few fours, but picked up three wickets and ran out Ryan McLaren in his final spell. The last four overs, which began with seven wickets in hand, yielded just 31 runs.Knight Riders would have expected a closer contest, having limited the hosts to 21 for 1 in the first five overs of the chase. But both Gayle and Kohli compensated for their early restraint. They targeted McLaren – who was replacing Brett Lee – first, Kohli whipping him for two fours through the leg side and Gayle swinging him for two massive sixes near cow corner. Kohli cashed in on anything bowled too straight, dismissing Pradeep Sangwan for two consecutive sixes.The occasional relief for Knight Riders came through Sunil Narine’s miserly spell and when Sangwan managed to york Gayle, though not well enough to beat his defense, but there was a generous supply of length balls against a batsman well set and in the groove to finish things off quickly. Gayle picked out the deep midwicket area, sending Sangwan again, and L Balaji, over the ropes before reserving the same treatment for Kallis twice in an over.Changes of pace, cutters, and variations in length were all futile against Gayle, who was the architect of another dominating Royal Challengers performance. Just how will bowling attacks find a way through that formidable trio of Gayle, Kohli, and AB de Villiers?