Spicy Cricket News

It’s ridiculous to play cricket in unsafe Pak, says Symonds

Exhausted Dhoni opts out of Lanka Test series

India beat Sri Lanka by 6 wickets and March into the finals

Younus Khan unbeaten ton helped Pakistan beat India by 8 wickets

Sri Lanka in the Finals of Asia Cup

Watch Live Cricket Action on Satellite TV

Asia Cup 2008 Schedule - Fixtures

Sreesanth ruled out of Asia Cup

ICC backs Pakistan to stage successful tournament

Shoaib set to appeal against reduced ban

Ponting nowhere near Tendulkar, Lara's status: Boycott

Chanderpaul carries bat for third innings

India confident of executing final plans

Pakistan Crush Banlgadesh By 70 Runs

Sreesanth may not play in Bangladesh tri-series

New and improved Balaji

Australia sends back-up for injured Haddin

Ref Mahanama urges Windies, Australia to calm down

Australia call-up Watson for one-dayers

PCB swings into action to bail out Asif

Pakistan announce squad for triangular series

Final : Rajasthan Royals Vs Chennai Super Kings

Yusuf Again Shines with Bat & Ball

Delhi Win By 105 Runs

Watson steers Jaipur into the finals

Preview Semi-final 1, Rajasthan Royals vs Delhi Daredevils

IPL Kings XI Punjab v Rajasthan Royals

IPL Bangalore Royal Challengers v Mumbai Indians

Sachin is enjoying captaincy

IPL Match 47: Kings XI Punjab v Deccan Chargers

Another Victory For Punjab Kings

A Royal shock for the Super Kings!

IPL Match 44 : Rajasthan Royals Vs Kolkata Knight Rider

IPL Match 43 : Bangalore Royal Challengers v Delhi Daredevils

'Nobody dare stop me,' SRK tells ICC

Delhi seek survival; pride at stake for Bangalore

IPL Match 42: Hyderabad Deccan Chargers vs Mumbai Indians

Bravo Mumbai! One more victory

IPL Match 41: Kolkata Knight Riders vs Chennai Super Kings

IPL Match 38: Mumbai Indians vs Kolkata Knight Riders

Shaun, Sanath walk all over Kolkata

Knight Riders taken to court for alleged copyright violation

IPL Match 37: Delhi Daredevils vs Hyderabad Deccan Chargers

Mishra's fiver script Delhi win

Cricketer Harbhajan banned for five ODIs in slapping row

IPL Match 36: Mumbai Indians vs Chennai Super Kings

IPL Match 35: Kolkata Knight Riders vs Delhi Daredevils

Knight Rider Shoaib in Action

IPL Match 34: Bangalore Royal Challengers vs Kings XI Punjab

IPL Match 33: Rajasthan Royals vs Delhi Daredevils

Team Jaipur puts Delhi to Shane

IPL Match 32: Kolkata Knight Riders vs Deccan Chargers

Ganguly fireworks lead Kolkata to win

IPL Match 31: Chennai Super Kings vs Kings XI Punjab

Balaji's hat-trick won the match for

IPL Match 30: Rajasthan Royals vs Deccan Chargers

Warne, Pathan brings another win

Bhajji appeals to BCCI for one more chance

IPL Match 27 : Rajasthan Royals Vs Mumbai Indians

Mumbai end Jaipur's win streak

IPL Match 26 : Chennai Super Kings Vs Hydrabad Deccan Chargers

IPL Match 25 : Kings XI Punjab Vs Banglore Royal Challengers

Match 24 : Rajasthan Royals vs Chennai Super Kings

IPL Match 23 : Mumbai Indians vs Delhi Daredevils

IPL Match 22 : Kings XI Punjab vs Kolkata Knight Riders

Match 21 : Bangalore Royal Challengers vs Deccan Chargers

IPL Paisa Vasool - Report

IPL Match 20 : Delhi Dare Devils Vs Chennail Super Kings

IPL Match 19 - Punjab Kings Vs Deccan Chargers

IPL - 18th match - Rajasthan Royals v Kolkata Knight Riders

Match 17 : Delhi DareDevils Vs Banglore Royal Challengers

Bangalore Short By 10 Runs

Match 16 : Mumbai Indians Vs Kolkata Knight Riders

Finally Mumbai Indians Flight Take Off

Umpire suspended for comments on Bhajji row

Finally Chennai Lost Their First Match at IPL

2008-07-11T11:31:00.000-07:00

Sydney: In the wake of the fresh spate of bomb blasts in Pakistan ahead of the Champions Trophy slated to be played in September, Aussie all-rounder Andrew Symonds has said that he was yet to be convinced about how safe it was to be playing in Pakistan.

Symonds, who arrived home from a West Indies tour yesterday, said he was yet to be convinced whether it was safe to play in Pakistan

“My feelings haven’t changed a great deal. I don’t mind the odd game of cricket for Australia, but it is only a game at the end of the day, and putting yourself in a position where you’re not safe, to me is ridiculous,” The News quoted Symonds as saying.

Players from Australia, New Zealand and England have expressed concern over playing in Pakistan after a deadly suicide blast in Rawalpindi, one of three venues for the tournament. Symonds had first raised objections about Australia’s scheduled Test tour of Pakistan in April, which was eventually cancelled following a wave of suicide bombings.

Meanwhile, acting Australian captain Michel Clarke refused to express an opinion, and instead preferred to leave the call up to the game’s administrators. He said he would wait to hear what Cricket Australia (CA), the Australian Cricketers’ Association and the International Cricket Council (ICC) decided on the issue.

Shane Watson said he would play for his country wherever he was asked. “Personally, I’d go anywhere, I’ll play anywhere, I just want to play for my country. That’s what I’ve worked so hard for, the injuries I’ve had, pretty up and down times over the last year, so I’d do anything to play for my country so wherever we have to go, I’ll go,” Watson told reporters.

Source: ANI

2008-07-08T12:49:00.001-07:00

Indian ODI skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni has opted out of the upcoming Test series against Sri Lanka citing exhaustion caused by non-stop cricket.

Dhoni, who had hinted of his desire to take a break after a hectic Asia Cup in Pakistan, met BCCI secretary Niranjan Shah to convey it officially.

"Dhoni met BCCI Secretary Niranjan Shah and expressed his wish to take a break. He wants to opt out of the Test series," BCCI sources told PTI.

The wicketkeeper-batsman has been playing non-stop for the past one year that included an 80-day tour of the UK, the Twenty20 World Cup in South Africa, an ODI series against Australia and a Test and ODI series against Pakistan at home, a more-than-a-two-month long tour Down Under, a Test series against South Africa followed by the Indian Premier League (IPL).

Just days after the 44-day IPL, in which he played the most matches as his team the Chennai Super Kings were the finalists, the Indian captain was back in action in the tri-series against Bangladesh and Pakistan followed by the Asia Cup.

Faced with a hectic schedule at the Asia Cup, which saw India twice play back-to-back matches, Dhoni had sarcastically quipped that the teao react with vice-President Rajiv Shukla saying "any tired player should inform the board".

And taking a cue from the Board vice-President, Dhoni has conveyed that he needs a break to save himself from being burnt-out.

2008-07-03T12:12:00.000-07:00

So true are the tracks at the National Stadium here, that even a score of around 310 is never safe. Once again, teh team batting second made a mockery of the big score they chased. The Indian batsmen found few devils in the pitch and none at all in the bowling as they sailed to a comfortable win over Sri Lanka to book a place in the final of the Asia Cup.

Chasing Sri Lanka's 308-8, India comfortably reached 310-4 in 46.5 overs.

India now take on Sri Lanka again in the final on Sunday, while Pakistan and Bangladesh play for statistics on Friday.

There were times when India looked like getting into some sort of trouble, especially when they lost Suresh Raina and Mahendra Singh Dhoni in quick succession. The two had put on 99 runs together before Sharma was run out going for the 100th.

However, Yuvraj Singh and Rohit Sharma ensured that there were no alarms.

Three stands, the one between Dhoni and Raina, along with the 92 runs put in earlier by Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir, and the unbeaten stand between Yuvraj and Sharma, ensured that India were never in no trouble.

Dhoni played like he is expected to, but seems to sometime not manage to do. His 67 was instrumental in ensuring that India's middle-order did not come under any pressure, and carried on with the good work later.

The distinction between the two sides was quite clear. India, needing to win this one, were nervous and unsure, while Sri Lanka, already in the final, were relaxed, but still had a great chance to put thing beyond India's reach.

But the fielders found their feet late in the game and managed to pull Sri lanka down to 308-8, which may not be impossible to chase.

Sri Lanka at one stage were looking good for at least 320, if not more, but from the 41st over onwards, India managed to put into some long yards, and restricted the batting.

Chamara Kapugedera was the man for Sri Lanka, scoring a fine 75, while Mahela Jayawardene and Chamara Silva contirbuted 50 apiece. Among the Indian bowlers, no one really seemed to make much headway though RP Singh, returning to the XI, returned figures of 1-44 off 10 overs, quite decent under the circumstances. Irfan Pathan went for 80 off 10 overs.

The fielding left a lot to desire, and the ground fielding was absolutely abysmal early on in the innings, esepcially with the bowlers -- Praveen Kumar, Irfan Pathan, Pragyan Ojha and Ishant Sharma -- fluffing on the ground off each other.

In the afternoon, the coin didn't favour Mahendra Singh Dhoni as India were left to field first in the match they must win to stay alive in the Asia Cup.

India made two changes in the team, with RP Singh and left-arm spinner Ojha coming back into the team, replacing Yusuf Pathan and Piyush Chawla.

The Indians, who were rated favourites in the tournament, and looked good to carry on the ratings in the league stage, suddenly find themselves in a corner.

They lost to Pakistan by a fair distance on Wednesday, and that didn't do their run-rate any favours. However, even that also comes into play if they manage to beat Sri Lanka on Friday.

Sri Lanka naturally decided to give some of the fringe players an outing, as they have already booked their seat in the final.

It is now left to India to get their act together.

2008-07-02T12:42:00.000-07:00

Younus Khan hit a magnificent century as Pakistan achieved a much needed eight-wicket win against India in the Asia Cup Super League match at the National Stadium here on Wednesday.

Younus boosted Pakistan's quest with an unbeaten knock of 123 off 117 balls to help his side overhaul India's total of 308-7 for their fifth successful run chase in one-day internationals, the fourth against their arch-rivals.

The win helped Pakistan stay in the tournament and leaves them hoping that India lose to Sri Lanka on Thursday. The hosts would then seek to beat Bangladesh on Friday.

India, on four points from two matches with one win and two carry over points from the first round, need a win Thursday to reach the July 6 final.

Titleholders Sri Lanka have already qualified for the final with wins over Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Younus, declared man-of-the-match, shared a crucial unbroken 144-run stand for the third wicket with stand-in captain Misbah-ul-Haq who hit seven boundaries and a six in his unbeaten 62-ball 70.

Misbah hit paceman Praveen Kumar for a boundary to bring victory with 4.3 overs to spare.

The 30-year-old Younus hit Kumar for his ninth boundary to reach his fifth one-day hundred off 99 balls.

Younus, who also completed 5,000 one-day runs when on 36, hit eleven fours and a six to outshine Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni's 76 which lifted India to an imposing total.

Pakistan raced to a solid start of 65 before Salman Butt (36) was run out in the eighth over. Opener Nasir Jamshed, who came in after captain Shoaib Malik was ruled out due to dehydration, hit an aggressive 53 with nine boundaries.

When Jamshed retired hurt after suffering cramps, Younus and Mohammad Yousuf (21) took Pakistan to 165 when Yousuf was bowled by leg-spinner Piyush Chawla.

That did not deter Younus who in company of Misbah brought up the win.

Misbah said containing India was crucial.

"We bowled well and staged an important comeback after India had a fiery start and once we restricted them to 308 we were sure that it was a chaseable target and Younus ensured it with a brilliant knock," said Misbah.

Dhoni admitted losing quick wickets had put pressure on the batting.

"We lost four wickets which put us under pressure," said Dhoni. "Then the only way to stop Pakistan was to get wickets which we couldn't."

Earlier India almost spoiled a robust start of 88 provided by Virender Sehwag (49) and Gautum Gambhir (35) but Dhoni added 112 runs for the fifth wicket with Rohit Sharma (58) to steady the innings.

Sehwag smashed six boundaries and two sixes during his 33-ball knock, while Gambhir hit four boundaries before Pakistan hit back taking three wickets off just nine balls in the space of three runs.

Paceman Rao Ifktihar, who finished with 3-51, had Gambhir before Abdur Rauf, one of three changes in the Pakistan team, removed Sehwag and Suresh Raina (one).

Yuvraj hit four boundaries and a six in his 32-ball 37 but his fall left India struggling at 129-4

Sharma and Dhoni steadied the innings through their 139-ball partnership. Sharma hit four boundaries during his 71-ball knock.

Dhoni miscued a heave off Sohail Tanveer in the penultimate over and was caught by wicket-keeper Sarfraz Ahmed. He added 41 for the seventh wicket with Irfan Pathan who finished 38 not out.

2008-06-30T22:11:00.000-07:00

Sparkling centuries from Sanath Jayasuriya and Kumar Sangakkara powered defending champions Sri Lanka to a crushing 158-run win over Bangladesh Monday to reach the final of the Asia Cup.

Jayasuriya celebrated his 39th birthday with an 88-ball 130 while Sangakkara scored 121 to help Sri Lanka pile up a mammoth 332-8 before Muttiah Muralitharan took 5-31 to bowl Bangladesh out for 174 in 38.3 overs.

Sri Lanka beat Pakistan by 64 runs in the opening match of the Super League on Sunday. They have six points after winning two matches and carrying over two points on account of their win over Bangladesh in the first round.

India, who beat Bangladesh on Saturday, also have four points. They come face to face with Pakistan in a crucial match on Wednesday. If they win, India will meet Sri Lanka for a repeat of the 2004 final, here on July 6.

The match was a one-sided affair after Sri Lankan captain Mahela Jayawardene won the toss and opted to bat, with the innings built around a massive 201-run partnership for the opening wicket between Jayasuriya and Sangakkara in 169 balls.

Jayawardene was full of praise for the two centurions.

"Both Sanath and Sangakkara played well and ensured we made a solid total. It was disappointing to lose wickets in the middle order but then Muralitharan bowled very well to help us qualify for the final," said Jayawardene.

Bangladesh failed to match the strokeplay of the two left-handed Sri Lankans. Only Raqibul Hasan (52) and opener Nazimuddin (47) offered resistance in an otherwise listless batting display.

Nazimuddin was run out after hitting seven boundaries and a six during his 59-ball innings, while Hasan smashed seven boundaries during his 63-ball knock before Muralitharan had him caught by Jayawardene.

Bangladesh coach Jamie Siddons admitted the Sri Lankans were too good for his young team.

"They were too good for us on the day. It was a big target and Muralitharan was too hot to handle," said Siddons of the Sri Lankan wizard.

It was Muralitharan's ninth five-wicket haul in limited overs cricket.

Earlier, Jayasuriya and Sangakkara punished the hapless Bangladesh attack.

Jayasuriya was ruthless from the outset, hitting shots with power and precision. He took just 31 balls to reach his half-century.

He continued in the same vein to reach his 26th one-day hundred off 55 balls -- the sixth-fastest hundred in one-day internationals -- with 14 boundaries and five sixes.

Jayasuriya becomes the second oldest batsman to score a one-day hundred behind England's Geoff Boycott, who scored a century against Australia at Sydney in 1979 when he was 39 years and 51 days old.

Jayasuriya miscued a drive off leg-spinner Alok Kapali and was caught in the 28th over. In all he hit 16 boundaries and six sixes during his devastating knock.

Sangakkara was steadier as he batted around Jayasuriya and took runs whenever he had the opportunity. He reached his hundred off 117 balls before he was bowled by left-arm spinner Abdur Razzak in the 44th over.

The 30-year-old left-hander hit 16 boundaries and a six off 128 balls.

Sri Lanka lost their last eight wickets for just 99 runs. Alok Kapali and Reza took two wickets apiece.

2008-06-23T04:42:00.000-07:00

There is some great cricket action available to watch on satellite tv. If you live in the UK then Setanta Sports is the recommended sports broadcaster, they have won the rights to show the upcoming Asia Cup and of course the recent IPL cricket tournament which has proved a big hit amongst cricket fans all over the world.
Setanta is available on Sky satellite, virgin media and now broadband. Their cricket package is an ideal way to watch live cricket either in the comfort of your own home or live streaming on your computer and do not forget they are also showing live Premiership football and new for 2008, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland as they aim to qualify for the World Cup 2010.

2008-06-20T11:54:00.000-07:00

The Asia Cup will be an interesting tournament as it gives young-guns the opportunity to play with the big-guns of international cricket. Relatively inexperienced teams like UAE and Hong Kong get to play with with experienced teams like India and Pakistan which not only helps then in building their game, but also helps generate interest in this sport in their countries.

The schedule for the Asia Cup 2008 is as under :

Tue 24th June
Group A - Bangladesh v United Arab Emirates
Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore
Time : 16:00 IST, 11:00 GMT

Tue 24th June
Group B - Pakistan v Hong Kong
National Stadium, Karachi
Time : 16:00 IST, 11:00 GMT

Wed 25th June
Group A - Bangladesh v Sri Lanka
Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore
Time : 15:00 IST, 10:00 GMT

Wed 25th June
Group B - Hong Kong v India
National Stadium, Karachi
Time : 15:00 IST, 10:00 GMT

Thu 26th June
Group A - Sri Lanka v United Arab Emirates
Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore
Time : 15:00 IST, 10:00 GMT

Thu 26th June
Group B - India v Pakistan
National Stadium, Karachi
Time : 15:00 IST, 10:00 GMT

Sat 28th June
TBC v TBC
National Stadium, Karachi
A2 v B2
Time : 16:00 IST, 11:00 GMT

Sun 29th June
TBC v TBC
National Stadium, Karachi
A1 v B1
Time : 16:00 IST, 11:00 GMT

Mon 30th June
TBC v TBC
National Stadium, Karachi
A1 v A2
Time : 16:00 IST, 11:00 GMT

2nd July 2008
Wed 2nd July
TBC v TBC
National Stadium, Karachi
B1 v B2
Time : 16:00 IST, 11:00 GMT

Thu 3nd July
TBC v TBC
National Stadium, Karachi
A1 v B2
Time : 16:00 IST, 11:00 GMT

Fri 4nd July
TBC v TBC
National Stadium, Karachi
A2 v B1
Time : 16:00 IST, 11:00 GMT

Sun 6nd July
Final - TBC v TBC
National Stadium, Karachi
Time : 16:00 IST, 11:00 GMT

(All matches will be played in Day/Night conditions under floodlights)

2008-06-18T05:24:00.000-07:00

Shantakumaran Sreesanth has been ruled out of the Asia Cup later this month after he failed to recover successfully from a side strain injury he picked up in the IPL.

The same injury forced him to miss the Bangladesh Tri series as well.

The BCCI confirmed that the fast bowler, who is currently undergoing a rehabilitation programme at the National Cricket Academy, has been advised two weeks rest to recover.

"According to BCCI Physio Paul Close at NCA, Sreesanth was declared unfit for the Asia Cup. His bowling rehabilitation programme will start on June 23 and he requires further two weeks of rehabilitation before full recovery," BCCI Secretary Niranjan Shah said in a release.

Source : CricBuzz.com

2008-06-18T05:23:00.000-07:00

Pakistan was given a vote of confidence Tuesday by international cricket bosses as it gears up to host the Champions Trophy later this year.

International Cricket Council (ICC) president Ray Mali said he was confident Pakistan would put on a good tournament as the country had experience of running such events in the past.

The tournament, from September 11-28, involves all the major cricketing powers -- Australia, South Africa, India, England, Pakistan, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and the West Indies.

Pakistan also host the six-nation Asia Cup involving defending champions Sri Lanka, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates from June 24 to July 6.

Mali, who arrived with other ICC officials for Wednesday's launch of the biennial Champions Trophy, said: "The Asia Cup will give Pakistan an opportunity to rehearse for the Champions Trophy."

Mali and other ICC officials held talks with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) over preparations for the event.

PCB chairman Nasim Ashraf gave assurances on security.

"The ICC is launching the event in Lahore on Wednesday and that is an ample proof that there are no problems. We have made foolproof security arrangements for the event," said Ashraf.

It will be the first time that Pakistan has staged a major sporting event since hosting a quadrangular tournament in 1997. Pakistan also hosted some matches of the 1996 World Cup with India and Sri Lanka.

Australia put off their March-April tour to the trouble-hit country this year over security fears.

2008-06-16T21:29:00.000-07:00

Karachi: Controversial Pakistani pacer Shoaib Akhtar will appeal against the reduced 18-month ban slapped on him by the appellate tribunal of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), his lawyer said on Monday.

Though the tribunal actually reduced the original five-year ban to 18 months while slapping a Rs 7 million fine on the pacer, Shoaib's legal counsel Abid Hasan Minto said the fast bowler would appeal against the punishment as he was not happy with the ruling.

"Shoaib feels the 18-month ban is still very harsh and unjustified given the reasons for his being banned. We will either appeal in the High Court or perhaps even before the tribunal," Minto said.

"We have to first go through the full judgment of the tribunal in which it reduced his ban from five years to 18 months and fined him Rs 7 million. After this we will decide where to appeal but in principle we have decided to appeal," Minto said.

The three-member tribunal, headed by retired Lahore High court judge Aftab Farrukh, had earlier found the original five-year ban too harsh. But while reducing it to 18 months, the tribunal also fined the fast bowler Rs 7 million.

Minto said the appeal would also be against the fine.

Shoaib was initially banned for five years by the disciplinary committee of the board in March who found him guilty on several counts of violating the players code of conduct and also violating a two-year probation period imposed on him since last year.

The pacer who has represented his country in 46 Tests and 138 One-day Internationals has remained in conflict with the board since last year when he was also banned for 13 matches and fined Rs 3.4 million for hitting teammate Mohammad Asif with a bat in South Africa.

Shoaib had said after the tribunal decision that he was not happy and very disappointed as he wanted to play for Pakistan as soon as possible.

Minto said the 180-month ban was still harsh and could prevent Shoaib, 32, from resuming his international career soon.

2008-06-13T23:30:00.000-07:00

Ricky Ponting might have joined the 10,000-run-club, but he has no comparison with India's master Sachin Tendulkar, who is technically correct and has caught the imagination of the public over the years, former English batsman Geoff Boycott has said.

He said he considers Ponting as the world's best batsman at present, but he had not reached the all-time status enjoyed by his fellow modern-day greats - Tendulkar and West Indies' Brian Lara.

"Lara and Tendulkar are iconic figures, which is about more than being just a terrific player. They have captured the imagination of the public. They haven't just scored runs: Lara twice got the record of most Test runs and he still holds the record of the highest score in Test cricket. Those are huge figures. And, the way he bats is just very special," the Daily Telegraph quoted him as saying.

Boycott added: "Sachin is technically correct against all kinds of bowlers and the way he took Shane Warne apart when he came to India makes him more than just a terrific player. Sorry, I don't think Ponting is in the same league as Lara or Tendulkar."

About the Aussie skipper, he added: "Ponting ... is a top-class player and I think most people would vote him as the best player over the last couple of years,"

During the second Test against the West Indies in Antigua, Ponting became the seventh player to pass 10,000 Test runs. He is also just the fourth player - along with recently retired West Indian Lara, and Indian duo Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid - to reach 10,000 runs in both Test and ODI cricket.

2008-06-13T23:29:00.000-07:00

Shivnarine Chanderpaul carried his bat for the third consecutive innings but once again lacked support from his team mates as West Indies were dismissed for 216 on the second day of the third Test on Friday.

Although Chanderpaul compiled 79 not out Australia, who are 1-0 up in the three-match series, still took a first innings lead of 35 runs with left-arm pace bowler Mitchell Johnson capturing four for 41.

Left-hander Chanderpaul has scored two centuries against the Australians and only once in five innings has he failed to make at least a half century. He has scored 392 runs so far in the series for an average of 196.

The Australians added just 25 runs to their overnight 226 for seven but Ricky Ponting's side soon bounced back with the ball. Brett Lee removed both openers, captain Chris Gayle (14) along with opener Sewnarine Chattergoon (6) and Ramnaresh Sarwan (20) was a victim of Stuart Clark before lunch, caught brilliantly by Mike Hussey at backward point.

After the interval, Xavier Marshall continued to a lively 39 before he went caught by debutant Beau Casson off Andrew Symonds, a soft dismissal for a batsman who had looked settled.

Chanderpaul and Bravo consolidated, putting on 60 for the fifth wicket before Bravo once again failed to build on a solid start. The Trinidad all-rounder had made 29 before he was caught behind, flicking a leg-side delivery from Johnson.

Then came the by now traditional lower order collapse. Denish Ramdin, Sulieman Benn, Jerome Taylor, Daren Powell, and Fidel Edwards all went without reaching double figures as the last five wickets fell for just 28 runs.

2008-06-13T23:28:00.000-07:00

Everything's peachy for India going into Saturday's final against Pakistan. There were concerns over a team coming right out of the IPL, but India have made the transition from Twenty20 to 50-over matches with two clinical victories. The batsmen have scored at more than six an over and the bowlers have dismissed the opposition in both league matches.

"There are no issues," Gary Kirsten, India's coach, said. "The team's playing well at the moment. We've had to remain focused on our preparation and at the same time give the guys rest. We've tried to balance the two and everyone's feeling good about tomorrow."

Both of India's innings in the tournament have got off to terrific starts. Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir added 155 in 21.3 overs against Pakistan and 85 in 10 against Bangladesh. Both have scored more than fifty on each occasion and their success has left the middle-order with not much to do.

"It [the opening partnership] is important but we're not expecting too much," Kirsten said. "It might happen such that we don't get that partnership. It will obviously be nice to have it because they [Sehwag and Gambhir] score at a good rate and it sets our innings up. We've also got to be willing to know that we might lose a wicket early on. But we've got quality [middle-order] batsmen who can apply themselves in that situation."

It is an area which Pakistan can look to capitalise on: take out Sehwag and Gambhir early and put the middle order under pressure. Another aspect of India's play which Pakistan can target is the fifth bowler. In their previous encounter, Praveen Kumar's four-wicket burst with the new ball crippled Pakistan's innings but, if they can keep wickets intact, their batsmen could play aggressively against Yusuf Pathan, Yuvraj Singh and Sehwag.

An area where India scores heavily over Pakistan, however, is in the field. Yuvraj, Rohit Sharma and Suresh Raina cover plenty of ground between them in the inner circle and fielders such as Yusuf and Irfan Pathan have strong arms from the boundary. "It [fielding and fitness] is certainly an area that we're working very hard on," Kirsten said. "It's nice to have a lot of youth because there's energy and enthusiasm, which is great. They are very keen to prepare well physically. We're placing a lot of emphasis on that. We're still a long way from where we want to be but we're heading in the right direction."

The key for India is to ward off complacency. Both Kirsten and Mahendra Singh Dhoni said if they played to potential, India would win more often than not. However, Kirsten expected a different and far more competitive Pakistan outfit for the final. "They are going to be motivated and determined and we know they can play good cricket. We like to try and stay away from worrying about the opposition too much apart from expecting them to play at their best. We feel if we can execute our plans the way we want to, we are going to be difficult to beat."

The last final between India and Pakistan was at the World Twenty20 in Johannesburg and memories of Misbah-ul-Haq scooping the last ball to Sreesanth at short fine leg are still vivid. Dhoni said India had got the better of Pakistan over the last four years or so. His team would look to do the same come Saturday.

2008-06-08T21:32:00.000-07:00

Wahab Riaz and Shahid Afridi took three wickets each in a 70-run win over Bangladesh on Sunday to extend Pakistan's winning streak to 12 limited-overs internationals. After being sent in to bat and posting 233 in 39.3 overs, Pakistan restricted Bangladesh to 163 for eight in 40 overs in the rain-shortened, series opening match.

Half centuries by Salman Butt and Mohammad Yousuf set Pakistan on course for victory.

Opener Butt scored 70 before he was caught off Alok Kapali's bowling, and Yousuf added 59 before Pakistan lost its last five wickets for six runs in the hunt for quick runs and was all out with three balls to spare.

Riaz, who replaced paceman Mohammad Asif, removed Shahriar Nafees (9), Roqibul Hasan (8) and Dolar Mahmud (0).

Afridi conceded only 19 runs for his three wickets, including opener Tamim Iqbal for 29.

Bangladesh skipper Mohammad Ashraful's emerged from his form slump, laboring for 93 balls to finish unbeaten on 56. Abdur Razzak remained not out on 26 when Younis Khan ended the match with a maiden over.

Earlier, recalled spinner Razzak claimed 3-35, while all-rounder Kapali took 3-49.

A rain-soaked outfield at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium delayed the start of the day-night game by nearly two hours, reducing it to 40 overs per side.

Pakistan drafted in Riaz to replace paceman Asif, who was dropped from the squad after being arrested in Dubai for allegedly carrying an illegal substance.

Pakistan has a day off before its match against archrival India on Tuesday. Bangladesh's next match is against India on Thursday. The series final is scheduled for June 14.

2008-06-07T00:48:00.000-07:00

Due to side strain sustained in the IPL Sreesanth may not be able to play the Bangladesh Tri-Series.

Niranjan Shah said that Sreesanth sustained the injury during the Kings XI Punjab vs Rajasthan Royals match in Mohali.

"Sreesanth has got a left side strain from the last IPL game at Mohali. This is confirmed by MRI scans and currently he still has some effusion in the region. Sreesanth is planned to join the Indian team for the Bangladesh tour tomorrow," Shah said in the release.

"So it is undecided whether he is going to play or not at the moment" Shah said.

2008-06-06T23:11:00.000-07:00

CHENNAI: Lakshmipathy Balaji shied away from the camera and microphones when he made his comeback into bigtime cricket through Team Chennai in the IPL. He said his time had not come to speak to the media and he did not budge even when he took a hat-trick. But he broke his silence to speak about his injury, bowling action, career, his IPL experience and his future plans. Excerpts:

How difficult was it to bowl at the death in the final of IPL?

They had an easy target in the last over. Scoring eight runs from an over was not impossible. When Dhoni asked me to bowl the final over, I was confident of handling the pressure. In such a high-intensity game, bowling was not easy. Every moment was electrifying. I tried my best to turn the match in our favour, but I was unlucky.

What did Dhoni's say before the final over?

He did not give me any instruction. Dhoni just told me to do whatever I felt was the best. I didn't try to experiment and bowled my natural deliveries. The match was fought till the end and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

What is your view on Dhoni's captaincy?

He is a cool customer and has become a matured skipper. He has got nerves of steel and never shows his emotions on the field. I have learnt many things from him. Dhoni has been a great source of encouragement for me.

In Twenty20, where every ball is like a free hit to the batsman, as a bowler how do you strategise those four overs?

The format does not allow too much experimentation and I never tried to do anything exceptional. To me keeping a nagging length is important and if you consistently bowl on the off-stump with a proper field, batsmen will find it difficult to hit. Moreover, in a T20 match, where every ball changes the match situation, you need to adapt with the situation fast.

You had a long lay-off due to injury but made a decent comeback in the IPL. How does it feel now?

I just wanted to knock the door and I'm happy do get a platform like this. It feels great to play with international players after such a long break. I'm taking things slowly and looking forward to the next season. My rehabilitation took time. I've worked very hard and I'm trying my best to get ready for future battles.

How was the IPL experience?

I enjoyed each and every match. It gave me a huge mental boost. I'm happy to play a few matches for Team Chennai and share the experience with so many international greats after a long time.

You've changed your bowling action.

Yes, I did. My doctor Vijay Ranawat advised me to do so.

2008-06-06T12:11:00.000-07:00

Antigua: Cricket Australia Friday said Luke Ronchi would be sent to the West Indies as a 'shadow' wicketkeeper after gloveman Brad Haddin broke a finger in his debut Test.

Haddin, who took on the role of Australian wicketkeeper following the retirement of Adam Gilchrist in March, suffered the injury during the first Test of the tour at Kingston last month.

Cricket Australia said 27-year-old Western Australian wicketkeeper Ronchi would travel the West Indies as soon as possible to provide back-up following scans of Haddin's right hand during the second Test in Antigua.

"Due to Brad Haddin's injured finger and as a precaution against him missing the third Test and a part of the one-day series, Luke Ronchi will join the Australian touring team," national selection panel chairman Andrew Hilditch said.

"The need for Luke to remain with the squad will be decided as Brad Haddin's fitness becomes clearer," he added.

Ronchi, a right-hand bat, scored a century during Australia A's tour of Pakistan in September 2007 and last season hit the fastest hundred in Australian domestic one-day history during a match against New South Wales.

2008-06-04T12:27:00.000-07:00

St John's (Antigua): After a series of umpiring bloopers marred day four of the second Test between Australia and the West Indies, match referee Roshan Mahanama told captains Ricky Ponting and Ramnaresh Sarwan to calm down their respective teams.

Zimbabwean umpire Russell Tiffin produced three shocking decisions in a short span of five minutes to rattle the West Indian batting line-up. It caused hostilities to bubble as Australia reached 244/6 to forge out a 371-run lead at stumps.

The flashpoint came when Andrew Symonds refused to walk after appearing to glove a ball to the wicketkeeper. Several Windies fielders confronted Symonds and the situation continued to fester, with Mahanama summoning rival captains after the end of the days play to ensure both teams avoided future conflict.

Former Sri Lankan batsman Mahanama did not hit either side with an official warning but spoke to both skippers to try to stamp out any lingering tension between the teams.

''They were told to be cool. The skippers were told that we wanted to finish the Test without having any problems. It was a preventative thing,'' Mahanama said

The situation was sparked when Tiffin's three mistakes ruined the Windies' hopes of a challenging first innings total.

The West Indies were bowled out for 352, losing their last six wickets for 38.

Right-arm pacer Brett Lee took 5-5 with reverse swing in an astonishing 18 balls, but he had Tiffin to thank for his figures.

Three of his victims appeared to be not out, with Dwayne Bravo ruled caught behind after the ball came off his hip and Denesh Ramdin and Darren Sammy being adjudged lbw after being hit outside the line of the off-stump.

It was reminiscent of some of Steve Bucknor's blunders in Australia last summer, which led to his sacking at the demand of a furious Indian side.

2008-06-04T12:26:00.000-07:00

Melbourne: Australian all-rounder Shane Watson, who excelled in the recently concluded Indian Premier League (IPL) Twenty20 tournament, has been named as the replacement for Matthew Hayden in Australia's one-day side to play the West Indies.

Hayden has been ruled out of the tour with an Achilles tendon injury.

"It is obviously disappointing for Matthew Hayden and the Australian side that injury has forced him out of the one-day tour of the West Indies ... however this does create an opportunity to reintroduce Shane Watson back into the Australian one-day side," Fox Sports quoted the Chairman of Selectors Andrew Hilditch, as saying.

"Approximately 18 months ago, we identified Shane as someone we thought could open the batting for Australia in one-day cricket. And in the opportunities he has had since, he has played that role extremely well. He also adds great flexibility to our bowling attack in this format of the game.

"Shane has had a disappointing run with injuries but finished our interstate season well and has sustained his fitness levels throughout the IPL tournament.

"Shane is an exciting young player and deserves his opportunity to return to the Australian side."

Watson, 26, last played for Australia in the 2007 Cricket World Cup final against Sri Lanka in Barbados.

He scored 472 runs at an average of 42 in the Indian Premier League, will join the Australia team together with rest of the one-day squad members in Barbados during the third Test.

Australia play one Twenty20 match and five one-dayers against West Indies.

2008-06-03T12:14:00.000-07:00

Efforts are on, in full swing, to assist Mohammed Asif and bail him out of his detention in Dubai for the possession of drugs. There is no charge sheet that has been filed against him yet but the PCB has already sent in legal help. The results of the blood tests are yet to be out after which a final decision is expected.

A few days back Mohammed Asif was bowling his heart out for the Delhi Dardevils in the IPL semi-final and now the pacer is cooling his heels in Dubai, caught in the net of a drug-scandal yet again.

He flew out from Mumbai on Sunday and that morning itself he was detained at the Dubai airport for possessing what sources confirmed to CNN-IBN was a small amount of opium.

"Our team which includes Nadeem Akram (Director, Human Resources) and our lawyers met Asif and told us that he is in a good spirit and is looking forward to return to Pakistan," said PCB’s Chief Operating Officer (COO) Shafqat Naghmi.

According to sources Asif was carrying the contraband in his wallet. Asif also claims that he unaware that he was even carrying it and it was a medicine prescribed by a local doctor for his long-term elbow injury.

"Asif said that he was detained because he possessed a medicine, which the authorities are unsure about and hence will check on it," stated Naghmi.

Dubai authorities have conducted various drug tests on Asif and his fate now lies in those results. PCB and the Pakistan government it seems are trying hard to get Asif off the hook lightly.

"We are hopeful that the entire matter is a mistake or a harmless issue," said Naghmi.

But drug laws in UAE are some of the harshest in the world and it may not be an easy task for Asif to get out of the dock that easily.

2008-06-02T22:27:00.001-07:00

KARACHI: Pakistan selectors have named senior batsman Muhammad Yousuf in their 16-man squad for a triangular One-day series in Bangladesh from June 8.

India and Bangladesh are the other teams in the competition, which ends on June 14.

Yousuf had not been considered for recent Twenty20 events and was also rested for part of a series against Zimbabwe and Bangladesh.

"We have picked the best possible squad for what would be a tough tournament," said chief selector Salahuddin Ahmed.

"We have also picked a few young players to give them exposure."

Selectors have called up left arm pacer Wahab Riaz and batsman Nomanullah, who made their one-day debuts recently.

Squad:
Shoaib Malik (Capt), Salman Butt, Nasir Jamshed, Younis Khan, Muhammad Yousuf, Misbah-ul-Haq, Shahid Afridi, Kamran Akmal, Muhammad Asif, Umar Gul, Sohail Tanvir, Rao Iftkhar, Wahab Riaz, Nomanullah, Fawad Alam, Bazid Khan.

2008-06-02T02:12:00.000-07:00

Attacking all-rounder Yusuf Pathan scripted a memorable last-ball victory for Jaipur against Chennai in a thrilling final of the Indian Premier League (IPL) that more than made up for the two lop-sided semi-finals.

Pathan grabbed three crucial wickets and then produced a belligerent half-century as Jaipur chased a challenging target of 164 to lift the trophy in the first edition of the championship, which brought several of the world’s top players together in a double-league format played among eight city teams.

The Jaipur team, by far the most consistent in the championship with 11 wins in 14 league matches, were deserving winners under Aussie great Shane Warne. Having thrashed Delhi on way to the final, they were on a roll with all-rounders Pathan and Shane Watson proving their match-winning capability time and again.

The two were once again in the thick of things and looked set to take the match away from Chennai with a useful partnership before some quick wickets set them back.

Pathan struck his fourth fifty of the tournament, his racy 56 off 39 balls studded with three fours and four sixes. Jaipur eventually won by three wickets, Warne seeing the team through in the company of Sohail Tanvir after they needed 18 off the last two overs and then eight off the last over bowled by Lakshmipathy Balaji. A wide ball followed by a fumble from wicket-keeper Parthiv Patel helped Jaipur breath easy in the final over and Tanvir drove through the leg side to get the one run needed off the last ball.

Jaipur did not have a good start chasing a challenging target as they fell to 42-3. But Pathan’s 65-run stand for the fourth wicket with in-form batsman Watson, who struck 28 off 19 balls with three fours, put them back on track.

Pathan continued to torment the bowling even after Watson’s departure, once carting Muttiah Muralitharan for two consecutive sixes. He was lucky to be let off twice, Suresh Raina dropping a skier off Muttiah Muralitharan when he was on 13, and then MS Gony failing to latch on to a return catch on 33. The all-rounder was also lucky to escape in a mix-up with Warne a little later.

A flurry of wickets just when Jaipur seemed to have the match in their grasp, made the proceedings interesting. Pathan was run out to a direct throw from Raina as Jaipur fell to 143-7 after cruising along at 107-3.

Pathan was not only lucky to get some chances while batting but also while bowling, because he was backed really well by some superb fielding earlier in the day. After a colourful opening ceremony delayed the match by 15 minutes, Pathan took centre-stage to return a fine bowling analysis of 3-22 that pegged the opposition back and prevented a free flow of runs despite a steady start provided by Parthiv Patel (38).

Pathan got his first wicket as Sidharth Trivedi took a lovely diving catch in the deep after Vidyut Sivaramakrishnan (16) pulled in an effort to clear the mid-wicket boundary. Pathan got success again when wicket-keeper Kamran Akmal pouched a fine catch on second attempt with Patel trying to cut the ball. Akmal also caught Albie Morkel (16) in a melee to give Pathan his third scalp.

Suresh Raina and Mahendra Singh Dhoni came up with brisk knocks later in the innings to keep the team’s hopes alive. Left-handed Raina scored a quick 43 off 30 balls and Dhoni 29 off 17 balls, both batsmen hitting two sixes and a four each.

Jaipur, who suffered a major blow before the match with the injury of Graeme Smith, brought in Akmal. The extremely impressive Niraj Patel also earned a comeback for the crucial clash.

Chennai, who decimated Mohali in their semi-final game on Saturday, made no changes to their playing eleven.

Toss won by: Jaipur Status : Match Ended Batted first : Chennai Batted Second: Jaipur

Match Result: Jaipur beat Chennai by 3 wickets
Man of the match: Yusuf Pathan
Man of the Series: Shane Watson

Chennai

Batsman	Status	Runs	Balls	4's	6's
Parthiv Patel (W)	c Kamran Akmal b Yusuf Pathan	38	33	5	0
Vidyut Sivaramakrishnan	c Ravindra Jadeja b Yusuf Pathan	16	14	1	1
Suresh Raina	c Ravindra Jadeja b Shane Watson	43	30	1	2
Albie Morkel	c Kamran Akmal b Yusuf Pathan	16	13	0	2
MS Dhoni (C)	not out	29	17	1	2
Chamara Kapugedera	c Swapnil Asnodkar b Sohail Tanvir	8	12	0	0
Subramaniam Badrinath	not out	6	2	1	0
Manpreet Gony
Lakshmipathy Balaji
Muttiah Muralidaran
Makhaya Ntini

Bowlers	Overs	Maidens	Runs	Wickets	Wides	Noballs
Sohail Tanvir	4	0	40	1	1	0
Shane Watson	4	0	29	1	1	1
Munaf Patel	2	0	14	0	0	0
Yusuf Pathan	4	0	22	3	0	0
Siddharth Trivedi	2	0	21	0	0	0
Shane Warne	4	0	34	0	1	0

Jaipur

Batsman	Status	Runs	Balls	4's	6's
Niraj Patel	b Manpreet Gony	2	11	0	0
Swapnil Asnodkar	c Suresh Raina b Albie Morkel	28	20	4	0
Kamran Akmal (W)	run out (Makhaya Ntini)	6	7	1	0
Shane Watson	b Muttiah Muralidaran	28	19	3	0
Yusuf Pathan	run out (Suresh Raina)	56	39	3	4
Mohammad Kaif	c MS Dhoni b Muttiah Muralidaran	12	9	0	1
Ravindra Jadeja	c Chamara Kapugedera b Albie Morkel	0	1	0	0
Shane Warne (C)	not out	9	9	1	0
Sohail Tanvir	not out	9	7	0	0
Siddharth Trivedi
Munaf Patel

2008-05-30T12:16:00.000-07:00

The much anticipated clash turned out to be a no-contest as Jaipur stormed into the finals of the Indian Premier league with a comprehensive 105-run win against Delhi on Friday.

Virender Sehwag after electing to field was pushed on to the back-foot early in the game and he was forced to stay there for the entire match as Jaipur walked all over Delhi, first with the bat and then with the ball. Shane Watson (52 and three for 10) was once again the hero of the show as he top-scored for Jaipur and then took three wickets to rip the heart out of Delhi’s batting.

After posting a mammoth 192-9 with some audacious strokeplay, Jaipur’s bowlers were on the money from the word go and it took all of 16 overs to knock-out Delhi for a paltry 87.

Delhi buckle under pressure

A stiff 193-run target was always going to be a mountain to climb for Delhi but once they had lost their top three for 24 runs, the task was too demanding for the middle-order. Watson broke Delhi's backbone when he sent back Sehwag (three), Gautam Gambhir (11) and Shikhar Dhawan (five) with just 24 runs on the board.

And it was always going to be downhill from there as Manoj Tiwary (zero), Farveez Maharoof (six) and Dinesh Karthik (10) failed to put on a fight. Tillakaratne Dilshan (33) stood his ground for a while but he too crumbled under pressure. Eventually, the game finished on humiliating lines for Delhi as they lost their last five wickets for just 12 runs.

Munaf Patel (three for 17) and Warne (two for 20) along with Watson proved too hot to handle as Jaipur booked a much deserved spot in the final two.

Jaipur willows flow and flourish

Though Delhi managed regular breakthroughs but they could not halt Jaipur’s surge, who never allowed the scoring-rate to sag. And it was once again Jaipur’s men-in-form who came good in the crunch game. Graeme Smith (26), Swapnil Asnodkar (39), Watson (52) and Pathan (45), all came to the party at a belter in Wankhede to give Delhi a mountain to climb.

The Jaipur batsmen pulled out everything from the drawer as audacious strokeplay along with chancy shots kept the score moving at a neck-break speed. And if it was not for a superb last over by Mohammad Asif, the target for Delhi could have been well over 200.

Blazing beginning

Smith pulled a hamstring while taking a quick run and was almost run out. But the injury turned to be a boon for Jaipur as the southpaw opened his shoulders to smash the Delhi attack. Even the ever-reliable Glenn McGrath was taken to the cleaners as Smith bludgeoned three consecutive boundaries in the Aussie’s third over.

Asnodkar from the other end was his blazing self, manufacturing some of the most astounding shots. After being dropped by Farveez Maharoof off Yo Mahesh’s first ball, Asnodkar smacked the first six of the game two deliveries later.

And just when it seemed the Jaipur openers will run away with the game, Maharoof redeemed himself for the dropped catch.

Maharoof turns it around

With bowlers getting flayed all over, it took brilliance in the field for Delhi to bounce back in the game. Smith’s cameo came to an end when Shikhar Dhawan took a blinder in the deep and one ball later Asnodkar’s fierce square-cut sent the ball right down Manoj Tiwarys' throat.

Jaipur’s surprise move to send Sohail Tanvir (five) failed as the Pakistan player could manage only one lusty blow before he became Maharoof’s third victim.

Watson whacks, Pathan pounds

But Delhi lost the momentum as quickly as they had gained it. Watson came to the middle with all guns blazing. The all-rounder in a space of two overs pounded three towering sixes as the Delhi bowlers ran for cover. Yo Mahesh, who gave away 50 runs in his full quota, was taken for 21 in the 11th over.

After Kaif was bowled by Amit Mishra for 12, Pathan joined Watson and from there began a tremendous surge by Jaipur. The duo went for everything with not the slightest of inhibition in their batting.

Pathan was at his powerful best, striking the ball as cleanly as ever and clearing the boundary ropes with far too much ease for Virender Sehwag’s comfort.

With Jaipur piling on the runs, Watson went on the all-attack mode and after a 28-ball 52, Mishra finally cleaned up the Aussie. But Pathan was in no mood to relent as the audacious Pathan took McGrath for 16 in the pacer's last over. The hard-hitting player hit three boundaries and four sixes in his 21-ball knock till he was run out in the last over of the innings.

2008-05-29T22:47:00.000-07:00

A high-octane contest between two well-balanced sides is on the anvil when table toppers Rajasthan Royals take on the confident Delhi Daredevils in the first semi-finals of the Indian Premier League here on Friday.

The two teams, which finished first and fourth in the preliminary 56-game phase of the Twenty20 league, look evenly matched ahead of what promises to be a top-drawer stuff in front of a capacity crowd at the Wankhede Stadium.

The team that holds its nerves better and grabs chances that come its way would go through to the summit clash against the winners of the second semi-final, on May 31, between Kings XI Punjab and Chennai Super Kings.

The Shane Warne-led Jaipur, impregnable at home, had finished with only three losses from their 14 preliminary phase ties and have a 1-1 head-to-head record against the Daredevils, led by Virender Sehwag, who got into the last four with seven wins and 15 points to their credit.

Both had lost their matches to hosts Mumbai Indians when they visited this metro earlier and those ties were held in DY Patil Stadium. Both must be wishing fervently that a change in venue for this knock-out tie would bring in happy tidings.

Both the teams have depended on their top-order to fire well and pile up a big total, and middle orders of both the sides looked a bit under-prepared when chips were down.

They would be keen to topple the top three rival batsmen cheaply to gain a big advantage.

Tracks at the Wankhede for the IPL have helped the seam bowlers by providing lateral movement and extra bounce and someone of the calibre of Delhi Daredevils' champion bowler Glenn McGrath would relish rolling his arm over here.

The battle between McGrath, with support from Sri Lankan Farveez Maharoof and V Yo Mahesh, and Rajasthan's successful innings launchers Graeme Smith (416 runs) and Swapnil Asnodkar could be crucial to the game's outcome.

The same applies to the Sohail Tanvir-Shane Watson-Munaf Patel combine who will be up against the marauding Delhi opening pair of Gautam Gambhir (523) and Sehwag (403), as well as another in-form batsman at number three, Shikhar Dhawan.

Tanvir, with his extra quick bowling arm action, has been a real revelation in the IPL and has hardly been collared by any rival batting line-up, indicated by his superb haul of 21 wickets at just 10 runs per victim.

The left-armer has been outstanding both in the beginning and at the death and is a major threat that needs to be negotiated well by the Delhi batsmen who did not play against him in the previous two clashes.

Rajasthan possess a better spin attack in the great Warne and his understudies Yusuf Pathan and Dinesh Salunkhe while Delhi depend on Amit Mishra, for the most part, with Sehwag chipping in with his off breaks. But seam bowlers are expected to play a bigger role at the Wankhede.

Delhi have had a sizable break of five days going into the tie while Rajasthan, without a few key players including Warne, were outclassed by Punjab King's XI on Wednesday.

Winning the toss and fielding first has become the order of the day for matches which commence at 8 pm and the trend is likely to continue on Friday.

It has been largely rain-free so far in Mumbai, barring light drizzles, and the IPL authorities must be hoping that the weather remains clear over the next few days.

The high prevailing humidity, however, is not only uncomfortable for the players but also an indicator that rains are around the corner.

2008-05-28T11:46:00.000-07:00

Marsh ton conquers Rajasthan

Kings XI Punjab beat Rajasthan Royals by 41 runs in the last league match of the Indian Premier League at the PCA Stadium in Mohali on Wednesday.

The win, Punjab's 10th in 14 matches, had no effect whatsoever on the league standings though. Rajasthan, despite suffering what was their third loss in 14 matches, finished on top of the table with 22 points, two ahead of second-placed Punjab.

Scorecard

Chasing a mammoth 222 to win, and with Graeme Smithand Swapnil Asnodkar being rested, Rajasthan got off to a terrible start losing Mohammad Kaif (1) and Younis Khan (3) inside five overs.

Niraj Patel (57) and Shane Watson (22) put on 49 runs for the third wicket before the former, who was again impressive in his 39-ball knock that contained 10 boundaries, was cleaned up by Piyush Chawla.

Watson also fell to Chawla, while trying to accelerate, but thereafter Yusuf Pathan (39) and Kamran Akmal (24) treated the crowd with some exquisite hitting.

The brief stand (33 runs) ended when Akmal, whose eight-ball knock included a four and three huge sixes off Sreesanth, became Chawla's third victim.

Rajasthan needed 61 runs off the final three overs, and that, proved to be a tough ask, much tougher than their initial target.

Yusuf Pathan's 15-ball knock, that contained three hits to the fence and three huge ones over it, was brilliantly caught by Shaun Marsh off James Hopes in the penultimate over. Hopes also caught Dinesh Salunkhe (6) off his own bowling in the same over.

Rajasthan needed 44 off the last over from Irfan. And they got just two.

IPL coverage

Rajasthan ended at 180 for seven.

Earlier, Marsh notched up his maiden IPL century to power Kings XI Punjab to a massive 221 for three.

The left-handed Australian was in a furious mood and punished all the rival bowlers to all corners of the park as he produced a scintillating 115-run knock off just 69 balls.

His amazing century, sixth of the tournament, was studded with 11 fours and seven sixes.

Marsh went back to the hut in the last over while trying to smash Watson for a big shot.

Skipper Yuvraj Singh's late blitzkrieg helped the team get past 200 run-mark. He hit a blazing 16-ball 49-run cameo before getting run out on the last ball of the innings.

The Punjab southpaw smashed two four and half a dozen sixes, including three consecutive in Siddharth Trivedi's over and shared a 80-run stand with Marsh for the second wicket.

Earlier, Marsh together with opening partner Hopes (51), who hit an elegant half-century, provided a rollicking start to the Punjab team after being sent in to bat by rival skipper.

Together they put up 133 runs for the opening wicket, which was best for the Kings XI Punjab in the tournament.

Marsh was at his best as he displayed an array for mesmerising shots all around the park.

The left-handed Aussie played furious cut shots, elegant straight and cover drives, fierce pulls and raced away to his sixth half-century of the tournament in just 27 balls.

He pulled leg-spinner Salunkhe for a boundary on the leg side to get to his fifty and in the process became the highest run-getter in the tournament.

All the bowlers were at his mercy as he hit them at will, giving enough headache to Watson, who was leading the side in the absence of Shane Warne.

He brought up his hundred after facing 58 balls when he got a single off Pankaj Singh's over, 17th of the innings.

Hopes did not get much strike initially and played a second fiddle to Marsh yet played an important part in laying the strong foudation for the big score.

Hopes opened up later and hit paceman Trivedi for three consecutive boundaries in the 11th over to bring the 100 for the hosts off just 63 balls.

He then lofted Yusuf Pathan for a huge six on the leg side in the 12th over and stole a couple a ball later to reach his third IPL fifty consuming just 30 balls.

However he fell to the same bowler when he tried to hit him for the maximum, did not connect well, and ended up in the hands of Salunkhe in the deep.

But by then he added 133 runs with Marsh in 13.4 overs, decimating the rival attack with his individual 35-ball 51-run knock, including seven fours and a six.

2008-05-28T11:36:00.000-07:00

Fernando inspires consolation win

Mumbai Indians put up an all-round display to end their Indian Premier League campaign with a thumping nine-wicket victory over Bangalore Royal Challengers Wednesday.

The win though came late for Mumbai Indians, who went out of the semifinal contention after losing three close games in a row, which made them dependant on other teams' losses to reach the last four.

Scorecard

Set to chase a paltry 123 to win, Sanath Jayasuriya (54 off 37) and Sachin Tendulkar (40 not out) made it a lopsided contest and reached the target with 12 balls to spare. The experienced duo paced their innings beautifully, punishing the bad deliveries. Jayasuriya smashed four sixes and four boundaries while Tendulkar batted around him without taking any risks.

The match was reduced to 18-overs a side after rain delayed the start by an hour and a half.

The lacklustre Bangalore Royal Challengers finished their campaign at the seventh place in IPL points tally.

Dilhara Fernando, who gave away 15 runs in the last over in their must-win match against Rajasthan Royals to see his team lose, was the pick of the bowlers Wednesday, taking four wickets that cost just 18 runs in his quota of four overs.

Fernando bowled a controlled spell and restricted the Bangalore Royal Challengers to a low score.

Shaun Pollock and Ashish Nehra bowled a disciplined line to Bangalore openers. They made scoring difficult for openers Shrrevats Goswami (20) and Mark Boucher (18).

IPL: Full coverage

Fernando was all fire right from the start and took three wickets for three runs in his first two overs to rock Bangalore's start. From 35 for no loss, the hosts were reduced to 39 for three. The damp outfield conditions made scoring difficult for the batsmen.

The pressure of losing three early wickets meant Bangalore had hit only five boundaries in the first 10 overs. Cameron White (26) hit two fours and a six in Dhawal Kulkarni's second over that cost 18 runs. Devon Smith removed White in the next over and Bangalore then lost few quick wickets. R Vinay Kumar (23) and Anil Kumble (11) boosted the scoring late down the order.

2008-05-24T00:26:00.000-07:00

New Delhi: Team India captaincy may have been a crown of thorn for Sachin Tendulkar but the Indian Premier League has been a completely different experience and the champion batsman says he is thoroughly enjoying skippering the Mumbai Indians in the ongoing Twenty20 extravaganza.

Tendulkar, who had two rather forgettable stints as Team India captain, said he was feeling good to be back at the helm.

"It has been good," Tendulkar told reporters on Friday, on the eve of the Mumbai side's crucial IPL encounter at the Ferozeshah Kotla. "I've enjoyed being out in the middle and it feels quite good as I'm leading after a long time," he said.

A groin injury kept him out of the first half of the IPL and former South Africa skipper Shaun Pollock stepped forward as the makeshift captain.

Finally back to the action, Tendulkar said the presence of two former international captains -- Pollock and Sri Lankan Sanath Jayasuriya -- have made his job easier.

"With Shaun and Sanath's help, it has become easy. In fact all the players are thinking about solution to the various problems we face on the field and chipping in with ideas," Tendulkar said.

He also felt that his return to the side has lent more balance to the top order. "I think the experience factor was lacking in the top order and Shaun and Sanath had too much responsibility on their shoulders. Now that I'm back, the responsibility got shared among us," he explained.

The Mumbai captain looked determined to erase the memories of their last match defeat against Kings XI Punjab and said he was not looking back. "You still have a lot of cricket to be played. After the first four matches too, people had a lot of opinions about us but we tried to play well and the same effort would be there."

"We don't want to look back. Even when we were on the winning streak, we didn't think about past matches and the outlook would remain same," he said.

On Saturday's match, Tendulkar said the idea would be to remove Delhi Daredevils skipper Virender Sehwag and run-machine Gautam Gambhir cheaply.

"I have played a lot with both of them. They are quality players and quite dangerous too. Efforts would be to send them back quickly because they are the two key players, who have scored most of the runs for the side."

Asked if Saturday's match would see a renewal of his well-documented battle with former Australian spearhead Glenn McGrath, Tendulkar said, "I've always maintained that the match is played among 22 players and not just two individuals. What eventually matters is how 11 members of a particular side fare."

Tendulkar also said that Pollock was recovering fast from a stiff back. "He is getting well and I think he would be fit for Saturday's match," he said.

Asked if there was any difference in the pressure of playing for the country and an IPL franchisee, Tendulkar said his intensity never dips, irrespective of opposition and occasion. "I always hold the bat thinking of scoring runs, whether I'm playing in the IPL, for India or against my son. I love the game and respect it and give my best whenever I play."

He said he never shies away from any challenge, rather confronts it. "When you embrace challenge, it becomes fun. The more you try to run away from it, the more it would chase you."

On the IPL, Tendulkar said it was his gut feeling that the Twenty20 extravaganza would prove a hit. "I always felt IPL would be a success. You have all the top players, it's a shorter version and fast-paced -- I knew people would enjoy it."

"But I still feel Test cricket is ultimate and people should enjoy that. I don't think ODI would be much affected by the IPL." Asked if age could be a factor in this format, Tendulkar said, "I've said it time and again that it's not age but performance and form that eventually matter."

Source : MSN News

2008-05-24T00:24:00.000-07:00

Shaun Marsh and Kumar Sangakkara were involved in a classy opening stand that ensured a six-wicket victory for Mohali against Hyderabad in their Indian Premier League (IPL) match at the PCA Stadium here on Friday.

The left-handed pair recorded the fastest half-century by a team (3.5 overs) in the tournament and their 84-run stand provided the buffer to chase down a target of 176 with ease in a match of little consequence as they had virtually qualified for the semifinals before this match and Hyderabad were already out of contention.

Promising Aussie batsman Marsh notched up his fifth half-century, a 46-ball knock of 60 seeing him smash three sixes and as many fours. For a change, Marsh was content playing second fiddle to Sangakkara, who notched up the second fastest fifty of the tournament, taking two balls more than Jaipur all-rounder Yusuf Pathan’s record of 21 deliveries.

The Sri Lankan wicketkeeper-batsman played quite a few inside-out shots in his seven fours and two sixes. Sangakkara was caught at long-off to part-time spinner Rohit Sharma. Yuvraj Singh was also caught in the deep a little later and the wickets of Marsh and Luke Pomersbach (13) saw the team slip to 149-4.

Just when the pressure seemed to be creeping up, Piyush Chawla eased it with a six off the first ball of the 19th over bowled by Scott Styris, who later in the over bowled a full toss down the leg side for Mahela Jayawardene to dispatch with ease over the square-leg boundary and virtually seal the win, which finally came with three balls to spare.

Earlier, Rohit Sharma capitalised on a fluent opening partnership between Adam Gilchrist and Herschelle Gibbs to help Hyderabad set a challenging 176-run target.

Sharma continued his superb run, slamming a quick-fire 50 that was spiced with four sixes and three fours and came off just 27 deliveries. Sharma, who plays for Mumbai in domestic cricket, once took 21 runs off an over from Gagandeep Singh, including two well-timed sixes.

Sharma’s blitz followed a superb start from openers Adam Gilchrist (50) and Herschelle Gibbs (44), who figured in a brisk 79-run stand that formed the bedrock for a total of 175-4.

Gibbs used his feet well during a 34-ball 44, hitting three fours and three sixes, twice dancing down the pitch to leg-spinner Piyush Chawla, hoisting him over long-on and straight to the sight-screen. He also once smashed three consecutive fours off Sreesanth. Gibbs fell to pace bowler Gagandeep Singh while trying a pull, but his partner Gilchrist continued to dominate.

The Aussie left-hander struck six fours and a six off Yuvraj during his third fifty of the tournament. He was bowled playing across the line to Ramesh Powar after having just been let off on the previous delivery by wicketkeeper Kumar Sangakkara off the spinner.

Mohali had virtually ensured a semifinal berth after a thrilling one-run victory over Mumbai in their previous match with eight wins in 11 matches while Hyderabad were already out of reckoning before this match with just two wins in as many outings.

Sangakkara was back for Mohali while Gagandeep replaced Irfan Pathan. Hyderabad brought back Sanjay Bangar and Gibbs.

In their previous match, Marsh (84 not out) had ensured a comfortable seven-wicket win for Mohali

The teams:

Mohali: Yuvraj Singh (capt), Shaun Marsh, Luke Pomersbach, Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara, Tanmay Srivastava, Ramesh Powar, Piyush Chawla, Gagandeep Singh, VRV

Singh, S. Sreesanth.

Hyderabad: Adam Gilchrist (capt), Herschelle Gibbs, Rohit Sharma, Scott Styris, Venugopal Rao, Ravi Teja, Sanjay Bangar, Chamara Silva, RP Singh, Pragyan Ojha, Vijaykumar.

2008-05-22T02:04:00.000-07:00

With Bangalore Royal Challengers out of the DLF Indian Premier League (IPL), the only thing left for them in the tournament is to end proceedings with some respectability. However, their match against the Chennai Super Kings was going to be baptism by fire, as the Super Kings have been playing well in the tournament, and would have wanted to win desperately to qualify for the knock-out stages.

The Royal Challengers won the toss and elected to bat first on a rain-affected pitch, and that was a brave decision made, especially given that batting second is usually a good option in a night encounter. The Challengers also made three changes to their side, getting in Virat Kohli, Mark Boucher and Vinaykumar in place of the injured Zaheer Khan, an out-of-form Cameron White and Bharat Chipli. On the other hand, the Super Kings went in without any changes to their playing XI.

The Bangalore Royal Challengers had a different opening combination this time - their ninth - in the form of Jacques Kallis and Shreevats Goswami, but it took Manpreet Gony only four deliveries to get rid of Kallis. The South African scored only five, making it a woeful tournament for him so far. Player of the Match in the last game, Goswami then got dropped by Stephen Fleming, but he did not last too much longer, gone for 10. Interestingly, the umpire had declared Goswami 'not out', reckoning that he had not edged the ball, but Goswami walked. Bangalore were limping to 23/2 in the sixth over.

If this was not enough, Muralidaran came onto bowl and got rid of Virat Kohli, brilliantly caught by Albie Morkel at deep square leg for 10. The Challengers then slipped into further trouble as Lakshmipathy Balaji got one to nip slightly away and got the edge of Misbah's bat giving Parthiv Patel an opportunity to show some smart glove work. The Challengers were at a dismal 41/4 at the half way mark!

With this kind of a start, it was obviously going to be a difficult ask to expect a big score, and the next few overs went for only some singles and the odd boundary. It was only in the 15th over that there were a couple of boundaries that were hit by Boucher - off the bowling of Morkel - but, that again was too good to last. Boucher was given out leg before for 17. At this stage, Bangalore was 76/5 in 15 overs. Dravid battled on - he has been the only one from Bangalore through this tournament doing so - and reached 47 (39 balls), before he got out trying to up the ante.

Praveen Kumar, who has not had a great tournament with either the bat or the ball, did hit some good shots to clear the fence in the last couple of overs, but the Challengers could manage only 126/8 in their stipulated 20 overs. Incidentally, no other team has scored lower than Bangalore's 126 after batting the full quota of 20 overs.

A score of 127 was never going to test any team in this format of the game, unless the bowling team got some early wickets. The Challengers did bowl a couple of good overs to begin with - which went for only seven - but after that it was a free fall. Steyn went for 20 in his second over, whereas Indian medium pacer Praveen Kumar conceded 13 runs. Kumble came onto bowl within the Power Play, and did manage to stem the radical flow of runs, but the wickets were not forthcoming.

Chennai Super Kings were 44/0 in the six overs, and 56/0 at the end of the eighth. They did have a chance to get a wicket down, but Kumble and Dravid kept circling under the ball without catching it, and that summed up the story for the Challengers.

Kumble did get a wicket finally - of Parthiv Patel - in strange circumstances, caught and bowled off the non-striker's shoulder, and this brought Dhoni onto the crease. However, it was not to be his day, as he also perished pretty early to get the Challengers a distant chance. Fleming then got bowled off a no-ball, but failed to make any use of this 'life' as he popped up a catch to square-leg. This was immediately followed by S Badrinath's demise at the crease, plumb in front off Kumble and Bangalore were back in it; Chennai's casual approach getting them to 89/4 in 14 overs.

At this stage, Dravid brought back his premier pace bowler, Dale Steyn, back, and this is where the match turned on its head. Steyn first got rid of Albie Morkel off a short ball which the batsman tried to pull, only to be caught at the fence. After this, S Vidyut attempted another such pull shot, and all he did was to spoon it up to the short mid-on position, where Jacques Kallis dived and caught a superlative one; Chennai looking in deep trouble with the score reading 93/6 in 16 overs, needing 34 off four.

Kallis conceded five, but Praveen Kumar gave away 10 in his first three deliveries to turn the match in favour of the Super Kings. Kumar retorted back with a short ball, that Gony pulled straight into the hands of mid-on. Needing 18 off the last two overs, Dravid took a bold decision to bowl Steyn's last over, and try and get wickets, instead of preserving him. This got him rich dividends, as Steyn gave away only two runs under pressure in an over that included Balaji's run-out. The last over was delivered by Praveen Kumar, and he ensured that the Super Kings were never going to get 16 runs to win the match for his Royal Challengers! The Super Kings had lost a match, which they would have won 99 times out of 100. This proved to be the 100th occasion!

Anil Kumble was adjudicated the Player of the Match for his superb bowling spelling of 3/14 off 4 overs. Chennai remain at 14 points in 12 matches, whereas the Royal Challengers finally move away from their 4 points to make a step up to 6 ahead of the Deccan Chargers.

2008-05-20T21:26:00.000-07:00

Yusuf Pathan On Fire Again
Yusuf Pathan and Mohammad Kaif forged an unfinished 81-run partnership as Rajasthan Royals confirmed their semi-final berth with an easy six-wicket victory over a lacklustre Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens on Tuesday.
Pathan (48 not out off 18 balls) and Kaif (34 not out off 31 balls) took the game away from the Knight Riders during their rollicking 42-ball stand after the hosts posted a modest 147 for eight in the face of a disciplined bowling performance from the league leaders.
Full Scorecard
Pathan, who played a hurricane knock studded with five fours and three sixes, ended the game in style with a boundary off pacer Umar Gul as the Royals reached 150 for four with 21 balls still remaining.
The Royals, now on 18 points from 11 outings, registered their ninth win of the tournament, while the Knight Riders' hopes of making the last four shrunk further with the defeat. The Sourav Ganguly-led side remain on 10 points after 12 ties.
Set an easy asking rate of 7.4, the Royals lost the young Swapnil Asnodkar (5) early before South African Graeme Smith and Sohail Tanvir came together in the middle to pull their team out of trouble.
The two came down hard on Ajit Agarkar in the fifth over, plundering 16 runs, with Tanvir smashed a four and a six adding to the boundary picked up by Smith as the visitors seemed comfortably placed at 42 for one after five overs.
At this stage, Ganguly turned to pacer Umar Gul, who replaced injured Shoaib Akhtar in the side, and the Pakistani pacer immediately gave a dramatic twist to the game by sending back both the batsmen in the next over.
Gambhir first batsman to amass 500 runs Top performers
First, Tanvir (13) holed out to mid on and three balls later wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha took an out-of-the-world one-handed catch diving full length to his right as Smith got a faint edge to one heading down the leg stump.
It was a wicket maiden and with the Royals score reading 42 for three in six overs, the match seemed wide open.
Shane Watson seemed in fine flow, as he punished Agarkar with a six and a four in the ninth over and proceeded to play Ganguly past the third man fence in the next over.
But Ganguly fought back two balls later as he got one to come in to the Australian who attempted a slog, missed it and saw his off-stump uprooted.
Earlier, put in to bat, the Knight Riders could not build even a single partnership of substance.
For the hosts, skipper Sourav Ganguly top scored with 32 but he was nowhere at his best.
Middle-order bat Debabrata Das (31 off 20) looked to be in fine nick, but got out when his team expected a big knock from him.
With none of the other batsmen making an impression and the Knight Riders ended up with a total that failed to test the rampant Royals, who sealed their semi-final berth with the win.
For the victorious Royals, Sohail Tanvir claimed 3-26 and Munaf Patel 2-22.

2008-05-20T05:55:00.000-07:00

Result Delhi Daredevils won by 5 wickets (with 10 balls remaining)


Bangalore Royal Challengers innings (20 overs maximum)			R	B	4s	6s	SR
	JH Kallis	c Karthik b Maharoof	25	21	3	1	119.04
	B Chipli	c Bhatia b McGrath	2	10	0	0	20.00
	SP Goswami	c Dilshan b Maharoof	52	42	7	1	123.80
	R Dravid	b Dilshan	9	11	1	0	81.81
	Misbah-ul-Haq	not out	47	25	2	4	188.00
	CL White	run out (Maharoof/sub [Shoaib Malik]/Karthik)	1	2	0	0	50.00
	B Akhil	run out (Sehwag/Maharoof)	3	3	0	0	100.00
	P Kumar	b McGrath	2	5	0	0	40.00
	Z Khan	not out	4	1	1	0	400.00
	Extras	(w 9)	9

	Total	(7 wickets; 20 overs)	154	(7.70 runs per over)

Did not bat A Kumble, DW Steyn

Fall of wickets1-31 (Chipli, 4.5 ov), 2-41 (Kallis, 6.1 ov), 3-73 (Dravid, 10.6 ov), 4-102 (Goswami, 15.1 ov), 5-105 (White, 15.6 ov), 6-122 (Akhil, 17.4 ov), 7-126 (Kumar, 18.5 ov)


Bowling	O	M	R	W	Econ
GD McGrath	4	0	15	2	3.75	(1w)
P Sangwan	3	0	51	0	17.00	(3w)
VY Mahesh	4	0	25	0	6.25	(1w)
MF Maharoof	4	0	13	2	3.25
R Bhatia	4	0	47	0	11.75
TM Dilshan	1	0	3	1	3.00


Delhi Daredevils innings (target: 155 runs from 20 overs)			R	B	4s	6s	SR
	G Gambhir	run out (White/Goswami)	39	31	6	0	125.80
	V Sehwag	c Chipli b Kumar	47	19	9	1	247.36
	AB de Villiers	c Goswami b Steyn	21	25	1	0	84.00
	TM Dilshan	st Goswami b Kumble	4	10	0	0	40.00
	S Dhawan	not out	16	13	1	1	123.07
	KD Karthik	c White b Kumble	6	4	1	0	150.00
	MF Maharoof	not out	13	8	1	1	162.50
	Extras	(b 1, lb 6, w 5)	12

	Total	(5 wickets; 18.2 overs)	158	(8.61 runs per over)

Did not bat R Bhatia, VY Mahesh, P Sangwan, GD McGrath

Fall of wickets1-90 (Sehwag, 6.6 ov), 2-100 (Gambhir, 8.6 ov), 3-121 (Dilshan, 13.4 ov), 4-123 (de Villiers, 14.2 ov), 5-132 (Karthik, 15.3 ov)


Bowling	O	M	R	W	Econ
DW Steyn	4	0	26	1	6.50
Z Khan	3	0	37	0	12.33	(1w)
P Kumar	2	0	33	1	16.50
JH Kallis	2	0	16	0	8.00
B Akhil	3.2	0	21	0	6.30
A Kumble	4	0	18	2	4.50

Toss Delhi Daredevils, who chose to field first
Points Delhi Daredevils 2, Bangalore Royal Challengers 0

Twenty20 debut SP Goswami (Bangalore Royal Challengers)
Player of the match SP Goswami (Bangalore Royal Challengers)

Umpires SJ Davis (Australia) and GA Pratapkumar
TV umpire SL Shastri
Match referee Talat Ali (Pakistan)
Reserve umpire VN Kulkarni

Match notes

Bangalore Royal Challengers innings
Bangalore Royal Challengers: 50 runs in 7.4 overs (50 balls), Extras 8
Bangalore Royal Challengers: 100 runs in 14.3 overs (92 balls), Extras 9
SP Goswami: 50 off 39 balls (7 x 4, 1 x 6)
Bangalore Royal Challengers: 150 runs in 19.5 overs (124 balls), Extras 9
Innings Break: Bangalore Royal Challengers - 154/7 in 20.0 overs (Misbah-ul-Haq 47, Z Khan 4)

Delhi Daredevils innings
Delhi Daredevils: 50 runs in 4.2 overs (27 balls), Extras 10
1st Wicket: 50 runs in 27 balls (G Gambhir 25, V Sehwag 15, Ex 10)
Delhi Daredevils: 100 runs in 8.6 overs (55 balls), Extras 10
Delhi Daredevils: 150 runs in 17.4 overs (107 balls), Extras 12

2008-05-19T06:00:00.001-07:00

Bollywood superstar and Kolkata Knight Riders owner Shah Rukh Khan on Sunday expressed disappointment at the ICC Anti Corruption Unit barring him from going to the team dug out and dressing room in the remaining matches.

"I like to hang around with the boys. I am very energetic. I am very disappointed that the ICC has stopped me. I don't know the ICC rules. I'll tell only one thing. Nobody dare stop me from coming to Kolkata. I'll be here whenever my team plays a match at the Eden," Khan said.

Earlier in the day, the Anti Corruption Unit officials had cautioned the actor about going into the dressing room and the team dug out during the Indian Premier League match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Chennai Super Kings.

Sources said later they directed the matinee idol to stay away from these areas in the remaining matches of his team.

Asked about the Knight Riders' defeat against the Chennai side, he said, "You play the game to win. We feel sad when the boys lose. But such things happen.

"I work hard. I want them to work harder. I would have liked the Kolkata Knight Riders to reach the final," he said.

On the Knight Riders's success as a brand, SRK said "With the help of colleagues we've done something for this. Still there is a long way to go before it becomes the number one sporting brand".

Khan said he was overwhelmed by the response of the Kolkata public and conceded the gate sales had fetched him twice the amount he had expected.

2008-05-19T05:59:00.000-07:00

Rahul Dravid batted with freedom against the Rajasthan Royals on Sunday but it was a hopeless cause and his team were to ultimately fall to yet another defeat, their eighth in the competition and Dravid knows that the Royal Challengers have never challenged in the competition because of their failure to do the T20 basics right.

"We are trying a few things, it's not that we have been standing there and doing the same thing. In fact, we have been accused of trying out too many things," said Rahul Dravid, captain of the Bangalore Royal Challengers.

The Daredevils, on the other hand, still hold their fate in their own hands. Rain handed out an unexpected defeat against the Kings XI Punjab at home and they know losing now will leave them with too much to do on the home stretch and some of their big-name signings know the time to justify their price tags is now.

"I have been trying to give a good performance and adjust to the conditions. But I have been very disappointed with my performance. But hopefully I will be given another chance to prove myself," said AB de villiers, member of the Delhi Daredevils.

In front of their home crowd, the Royal Challengers would want to repair some of their damaged reputation. So while the Daredevils start favourites, the result isn't a foregone conclusion.

2008-05-18T21:59:00.000-07:00

Mumbai Indians notched up their sixth win on the trot to continue to be in hunt for a semi-final place after pipping Deccan Chargers by 25 runs in their Indian Premier League encounter in Hyderabad on Sunday night.

The Mumbai team first scored a competitive 178 for seven, thanks to some sensible batting by Abishek Nayar and Dwayne Bravo, and then restricted hosts to 153 for seven in 20 overs.

Scorecard | Points table | Schedule

The win was a sweet revenge for the visitors as they had lost by comprehensive 10-wickets margin against Chargers at the home-tie.

Bravo, who was playing his last match in the tournament, ended the tournament on a high note as he first collected 30 crucial runs and then took three wickets, playing a vital role in his team's victory.

Y Venugopal Rao top scored for the Hyderabad team with a sparkling 57-run knock before walking back to the hut.

It was the third half-century for Rao in the tournament and it came off just 38 balls with the help of four boundaries and three sixes.

Rao also shared an 86-run stand with D Ravi Teja (37), castled by Bravo (3/24), for the fifth wicket.

Mumbai Indians pacers -- Ashish Nehra and Bravo -- gave their team a good start by bowling a tight spell and also creating opportunities for their fielders.

However, Rohan Raje dropped Adam Gilchrist (13) when he failed to hold on to a catch which the rival skipper had chipped high in the air. He was on four at that time.

Shahid Afridi (0) tried to extract maximum runs from the very first ball he faced and swung his arms to slice an off-stump ball bowled by Barvo, resulting in going miles in the sky and eventually landing in safe hands of Dominic Thronely.

Chennai Kings down Kolkata Knights

Nehra and Bravo gave away just 20 runs in the first four overs, putting the rival batsmen under pressure.

Sri Lankan paceman Dilhara Fernando then dealt a severe double blow to the hosts by dismissing Gilchrist and Rohit Sharma (6) on consecutive deliveries in his very first over, and fifth of the innings.

This left the hosts stuttering 20 for three and leaving a big task for Y Venugopal Rao and Chamara Silva.

The duo put on 36 runs, doing the repair work, but could not stretch their effort as Silva (17) was undone by a misjudgment by umpire Billy Doctrove when he raised his finger on a Nayar caught behind appeal.

Earlier, Nayar-Bravo combination put up an important 53-run partnership for the fifth wicket when their team was struggling at 97 for 4 at one stage, after being sent in to bat.

RP Singh (3/35), who was the most successful bowler for the hosts, dismissed both of them in the 18th over, dashing the visitors hope of setting a big target.

However, the duo ensured the Mumbai team gets enough runs on the board to make a fight out of it.

Nayar, the top-scorer for the Mumbai team, hit three fours and two sixes in his knock while Bravo hit two boundaries and as many sixes in his innings.

Jayasuriya (36) looked unstoppable from the word go as he began the proceedings with a fine-leg boundary off P Vijaykumar and then hit him for a six on the fifth ball.

The Sri Lankan then hit compatriot Nuwan Zoysa for three boundaries and one six in his first over to give a rollicking start to the visitors.

This forced Adam Gilchrist to introduce Rao, who did not disappoint his skipper and sent Jayasuriya packing, bringing relief for the hosts.

After hitting Rao (2/25) for a couple of boundaries, the Sri Lankan swept the spinner for a big shot but could only manage to find RP Singh in the deep.

The left-handed opener took just 15 balls to score 39 and hit six fours and two sixes in his cameo.

Dominic Thronely then joined his captain Sachin Tendulkar [Images] and the duo put together 33 runs for the second wicket. However the run-rate suffered as the hosts bowlers bowled well.

Then Afridi (2/23) dealt a double blow to the Mumbai team dismissing Tendulkar and Thornely in his second over to put his team in the driver's seat.

Tendulkar lofted an Afridi delivery, trying to accelerate the run-rate but could not execute the shot to perfection and gave away a simple catch to Chamara Silva, who ran from covers to mid-off.

This brought huge relief for Gilchrist as he had missed a stumping chance off Pragyan Ojha when Tendulkar came out of the crease attempting an inside out shot by making room for him.

Afridi then trapped Thornely two balls later sending shock waves in the opponent's dressing room.

The Mumbai team never recovered from these shocks and struggled to maintain a high run-rate after that.

2008-05-18T21:56:00.000-07:00

Chennai Kings down Kolkata Knights

Not much is going right for Kolkata Knight Riders, and Sunday night was no different, as the heavens over Eden favoured the visitors.

Chennai Super Kings were 55 for no loss at the end of eight overs, chasing Kolkata's 149-5, and according to the D/L calculations, they needed 53 to win.

This gives Chennai two more points, which they looked like picking up anyway, had the match gone the full duration.

Stephen Fleming and Parthiv Patel negated the only weapon Kolkata had, making sure that the pace battery of Shoaib Akhtar and Ishant Sharma did not make any headway, and kept scoring at the pretty decent clip, which is what in the end culminated in another win for Chennai.

Fleming remained unbeaten on 32, and Patel on 19. Makhaya Ntini did his bit when Chennai fielded, as he returned figures of 4-21, including a hat-trick.

Shoaib didn't look half the bowler he normally does, and Sharma seems to be losing his edge, possibly because of overuse, and that showed.

Kolkata have lost their way and their frontline batsmen never really seemed to get things going, after the initial stages. Against Chennai Super Kings too, the wheels threatened to fall off the Kolkata wagon before Salman Butt and Debabrata Das combined well to give the bowlers at least something to bowl at.

In fact, Kolkata were looking good to score a pretty imposing total as Butt and Das got after the bowling, especially Muttiah Muralitharan, to put up 86 runs.

That was before Ntini returned, to remove Das and David Hussey off consecutive deliveries. The South African fast had also claimed Mohd Hafeez and Sourav Ganguly earlier, and returned figures of 4-21, which may well make a difference.

Earlier, Ganguly won the toss and decided to bat.

In this must-win match, Kolkata have left out Aakash Chopra, bringing in Debabrata Das. Chennai made two changes, replacing Chamara Kapugedera and Joginder Sharma with Parthiv Patel and Makhaya Ntini.

Both Kolkata and Chennai came into the game after humiliating defeats at the hands of Mumbai.

Teams:

Kolkata: Salman Butt, Mohammad Hafeez, Sourav Ganguly , David Hussey, Debabrata Das, Laxmi Ratan Shukla, Wriddhiman Saha, Ajit Agarkar, Ishant Sharma, Ashoke Dinda, Shoaib Akhtar.

Chennai: S Vidyut, Stephen Fleming, Parthiv Patel, Suresh Raina, Subramaniam Badrinath, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Albie Morkel, Manpreet Gony, Laxmipathy Balaji, Muttiah Muralitharan, Makhaya Ntini.

2008-05-17T00:33:00.000-07:00

Sanath Jayasuriya played like the champion he is, while Shaun Pollock said it for the seniors, as the veterans combined to make the big match between Mumbai Indians and Kolkata Knoght Riders a ridiculously one-sided affair, the hosts winning by eight wickets off just 5.3 overs.

What has been touted as Sachin Tedndulkar's comeback over the past two matches, has essentially ended up being a Jayasuriya show, as the veteran has clobbered anything that has come his way, while the captain has struggled.

Mumbai were chasing only 67 runs, and even if they had been chasing a 100 more, they would have won.

While there was a fair amount of bounce and movement for the seamers in the track on Friday, but the Kolkata bowlers were given nothing to bowl with, and whatever little hope they had of creating inroads, after removing Tendulkar, were scotched by Jayasuriya, who continued in the same vein as in the match against Chennai Super Kings.

The margin could have been wider, had Robin Uthappa not fallen to a rather unnecessary shot off Ishant Sharma.

The 38-year-old Sri Lankan was unstoppable, and Shoaib, hoping to add to the success of removing Tendulkar, saw the left-hander crack two sixes on one over, decidedly settling the question of who would come out looking better.

Earlier, Shaun Pollock bowled a match-winning opening spell as Mumbai Indians sent Kolkata Knight Riders back to the dressing room for 67, the lowest-ever total in T-20 cricket, in just 15.1 overs.

Pollock returned figures of 3-12 off four overs, and was ably supported by Dwayne Bravo (2-13), Rohan Raje (2-16) and Dominic Thornely (2-7).

For Kolkata, skipper Sourav Ganguly could only watch as wicket after wicket fall from the other end, before he too departed, for just 15 runs. Ajit Agarkar also contributed 15, while Salman Butt scored 13, in a pathetic batting display.

Sachin Tendulkar, after having called correctly at the toss, grabbed four catches.

Mumbai Indians: Sanath Jayasuriya, Sachin Tendulkar, Robin Uthappa, Dominic Thornely, Dwayne Bravo, Shaun Pollock, Abhishek Nayar, Yogesh Takawale , Rajesh Pawar, Rohan Raje, Ashish Nehra.

Kolkata Knight Riders: Salman Butt, Aakash Chopra, Sourav Ganguly, David Hussey, Mohammad Hafeez, Laxmi Ratan Shukla, Wriddhiman Saha, Shoaib Akhtar, Ishant Sharma, Ajit Agarkar, Ashoke Dinda.

2008-05-16T00:07:00.000-07:00

Knight Riders (KKR) used 14 popular Hindi film songs like Om Shanti Om's 'Dard-e-Disco' and 'Mauja hi Mauja' from the film 'Jab We Met' without its permission during the IPL matches at the Eden.

Appearing for KKR, counsels Anindya Mitra and Debanjan Mondal submitted that they already had permission to play nine of the 14 songs at the stadium from Super Cassettes, which they said had the copyright.

Justice Banerjee directed KKR and the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB), which has also been made a party in the case, to file affidavits in opposition within two weeks after the summer vacation and IPRS its reply in another week.

The matter would come up for hearing again in July.

In the new Twenty-20 format of the gentleman's game, popular songs are played in a carnival-like atmosphere at the stadia during any break in the game while pom pom girls perform live.

2008-05-15T21:33:00.000-07:00

Amit Mishra registered the second hat-trick of the Indian Premier League as Delhi Daredevils staved off Deccan Chargers' audacious attempt to pull off an upset win, eking out a nervy 12-run victory and snapping their losing spree on Thursday night.

Chasing 195, the lowly Deccans, riding on a string of cameos, came close to the target before eventually folding up for 182 for nine.

Mishra removed Ravi Teja, Pragyan Ojha and RP Singh off successive balls in a dramatic last over to record the second hat-trick of the tournament. His final figures read 4-0-17-5.

Full Scorecard

Earlier, twin half-centuries from Gautam Gambhir (79) and Shikhar Dhawan (68 not out) powered Delhi Daredevils to an impressive 194 for 4.

Adam Gilchrist (14) and Shahid Afridi (33) walked in to spearhead the Deccan riposte and the swashbuckling duo seemed to be in a tremendous hurry to wrap things up. To make it worse for the hosts, Dinesh Karthik spilled an edge from Gilchrist off Mohammad Asif. Glenn McGrath, though, made up for the lapse in the third over by cutting short his former compatriot's stay.

There was, however, no dearth of firepower in the Deccan arsenal as Herschelle Gibbs (22), who came in next, decided to match Afridi shot for shot and smote McGrath for two sixes.

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Things looked quite ominous for the hosts at this stage. But the introduction of Mishra went on to do the trick. He struck with his very first ball as Afridi perished at point and, in his next over, the leggie sent down a googly which sneaked through Gibbs' defences, ending the South African's run-a-ball knock. Afridi's 14-ball sizzler included three four and two sixes.

Rohit Sharma (35) continued his rich vein of form, milking 19 runs off a Rajat Bhatia over, but a moment of madness and a fluffed paddle sweep brought about his downfall as a Ferveez Maharoof delivery rattled his timbers. His 18-ball cameo was studded with three fours and two sixes.

Scott Styris (29) and Y Venugopal Rao (34 off 18 balls) almost accomplished the mission before falling in quick succession and with their dismissal, Deccan's hopes for their third win in the tournament went up in smoke as the visitors lost wickets in a heap towards the end with Mishra emerging as the wrecker-in-chief.

Earlier put in to bat, the hosts lost skipper Virender Sehwag (0) in the first over, but Gambhir and Dhawan shared 133 runs in just over 14 overs to give the innings direction even though the hosts eventually fell shy of the 200-mark.

Special: Indian Premier League | Schedule, Results

Gambhir's 48-ball pyrotechnics was studded with seven hits to the fence and three sixes. Dhawan's sedate unbeaten knock spanned 52 balls and included eight boundaries.

The duo laid the perfect foundation for a late burst but Gambhir's dismissal, stumped off a wide ball from Pragyan Ojha, came as anti-climax. But with Farveez Maharoof (19 off 11) and Tillakaratne Dilshan (16 off 6 balls) weighing in with useful cameos, Delhi went on to end up with what proved a match-winning score.

2008-05-14T21:23:00.000-07:00

India bowler Harbhajan Singh was barred for five one-day internationals on Wednesday for slapping a team-mate and warned of a life ban if he steps out of line again.

The off-spinner, 27, will miss next month's triangular one-day series in Bangladesh and initial matches of the Asia Cup in Pakistan following the decision by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

He had already been handed an 11-match ban from a domestic Twenty20 tournament after his attack during the event on Shanthakumaran Sreesanth, who was left in tears.

"The (disciplinary) committee decided to ban Harbhajan for five one-day internationals starting today, and observed that any further instance of misconduct will invoke a life ban," BCCI secretary Niranjan Shah said in a statement.

Harbhajan admitted his guilt and assured the committee there would not be any misconduct in the future, the statement added.

The incident in Mohali last month left Sreesanth weeping inconsolably in full view of television cameras. Harbhajan later apologised to his India team-mate.

Harbhajan has bagged 275 wickets in 66 Tests and 189 in 171 one-dayers.

He was banned for three Tests earlier this year after being found guilty of making racist remarks against Australian all-rounder Andrew Symonds, but was let off with a fine following an appeal to the International Cricket Council.

The BCCI also warned Sreesanth, saying it would take "appropriate decision" if the fast bowler did not improve his on-field behaviour.

Sreesanth, 25, has taken 50 wickets in 14 Tests and 59 in 41 one-day internationals.

2008-05-14T21:21:00.000-07:00

Jayasuriya feasts on Chennai bowlers

Sanath Jayasuriya single-handedly led Mumbai Indians to a comprehensive nine-wicket win over Chennai Super Kings in their Indian Premier League clash at the Wankhede Stadium on Wednesday.

Scorecard

The Sri Lankan scored an aggressive 48-ball 114 not out that included nine boundaries and 11 huge sixes.

Jayasuriya and captain Sachin Tendulkar [Images] (12), playing in his first match in the IPL, put on 82 for the opening wicket in just 44 balls, Mumbai's best opening wicket stand so far in the competition, as the hosts made light work of the chase.

A packed crowd waited in eager anticipation to see Tendulkar perform but instead they witnessed Jayasuriya steal the thunder with the spectacular performance. Even Tendulkar was a mute spectator from the other end as the Sri Lankan severely punished the Chennai bowlers.

Chasing a modest 157, the home team romped home with 6.1 overs to spare.

Earlier, Subramaniam Badrinath and Mahendra Singh Dhoni [Images] revived Chennai Super Kings with a near-century stand after the Mumbai Indians' pace attack had taken early control of the match.

Badrinath, struggling initially before picking up pace, struck his second successive half century in the IPL and shared a 95-run fifth-wicket stand with Dhoni to take Chennai to 156 for six.

Badrinath made 53 off 32 balls with seven fours and two sixes while his skipper Dhoni made an unbeaten 43 in 35 balls with six fours and a six.

Earlier, the Mumbai Indians pace attack put them on the rack on a bouncy track to restrict them to 46 four in the ninth over before Badrinath and Dhoni led their revival with a splendid stand.

Put in to bat, Chennai began well by hitting a string of boundaries in the second over before being rocked by the Mumbai attack to be pushed on the back foot.

However, the Chennai Kings' final tally looked inadequate against Mumbai Indians' strong batting line-up that included the fit-again Sachin Tendulkar for the first time in the tournament.

In the top-order Stephen Fleming [Images] (26), dropped on one, and fellow-opener Vidyut Sivaramakrishnan (16) got a start but failed to flourish to the full.

The visitors started with a flourish after a tight opening over from Pollock. Vidyut Sivaramakrishnan waded into Ashish Nehra, who had bowled well in Mumbai Indians' previous tie against Rajasthan Royals, and smacked the left arm bowler for three fours in the second over of the innings.

Fleming, after striking the young medium pacer for a four to square point, dragged the next ball on to his stumps when playing well away from his body.

Sri Lankan Kapugedara was nearly run-out off the next ball when non-striker S Badrinath did not respond to a call for a single, but Jayasuriya's throw to the striker's end was blocked by the batsman with his bat as he tried to retrieve the crease.

But Kapugedara fell off the very next ball, edging a rising ball from Kulkarni that left him off the pitch to stumper Takawale.

Pollock then came back for his fourth and final over and troubled Dhoni also bowled a maiden over.

Badrinath, who played some audacious scoop shots to fine leg, and Dhoni, who hooked Rohan Raje for the first six of the innings in the 18th over, put on a half-century stand to take the score past the 100-mark in the 16th over.

The last five overs fetched 67 runs for the visiting team as the pace bowlers, after Pollock had finished his quota, were punished at will.

The Mumbai Indians' medium pacers were so much on top of the batsmen initially that Mumbai Indians skipper Sachin Tendulkar, making his debut in the IPL after missing the first seven ties because of a groin injury, did not utilise Jayasuriya's left arm spin at all.

2008-05-13T21:23:00.000-07:00

An inspired bowling performance by Shoaib Akhtar [Images] helped Kolkata Knight Riders score a 23-run win over Delhi Daredevils in their Indian Premier League match in Kolkata on Tuesday.

Scorecard

The win was the Kolkata side's fifth in nine matches while it also happened to be Delhi's fifth loss in nine games. The position of the teams in the table remains unchanged.

Shoaib, playing in his first IPL match follwoing the suspension of his five-year ban, took four for 11 to almost single-handedly ensure victory for the home side.

The Pakistani fast bowler picked up Delhi captain Virender Sehwag [Images] (0) off the second ball of the opening over, snapped Gautam Gambhir [Images] (10) in the fourth ball of his second over and grabbed AB de Villiers (7) and Manoj Tiwary (0) in succession in the the third and fourth balls of his third, to virtually derail the Delhi chase.

Chasing a modest 134 to win, Delhi were reduced to 28 for four by the fifth over and Shikar Dhawan (7) was soon cleaned up by Ashok Dinda to make it 43 for five in the middle of the eighth.

Tillekeratne Dilshan (25 of 19 balls with five boundaries) and Amit Mishra (31) tried to do some repair work but the damage had early been done.

Earlier, a lackluster performance by their batsmen allowed Delhi Daredevils to restrict Kolkata Knight Riders to a modest total of 133 for six. Delhi were finally bundled out for a paltry 110, their lowest total in the IPL, and with 13 balls left.

Laxmi Ratan Shukla finishing off the Delhi tail with three wickets in five balls.

Earlier, electing to bat the hosts set the Delhi side an asking rate of 6.7 before a crowd of 50 thousand at the Eden Gardens.

Salman Butt [Images] (48) was the principal scorer for the home team with the in-form David Hussey (31 of 31 balls) getting moderate success in the slog overs.

Superb bowling performances from Glenn McGrath (4-0-22-0), Yo Mahesh (2 for 34) and Maharoof (4-0-25-0) ensured the Delhi batsmen got an easily attainable asking rate.

The Knight Riders could never get the momentum going, and only 10 fours came in their innings.

Butt and Aakash Chopra (13) made a sedate start, though the Pakistani executed several delightful shots square of the wicket and past the cover region.

Chopra, who was dropped by Gautam Gambhir in McGrath's second over, found it difficult to force the pace, and became the victim of a rather soft dismissal.

The right hand batsman played a casual shot as he tried to loft new ball bowler Pradeep Sangwan and offered a simple catch to Ferveez Maharoof at mid off.

Sourav Ganguly [Images] (7) walked in to loud cheers from the home crowd, and raised hopes of another magical knock as he hit Yo Mahesh for a six by making full use of a free hit, but the end came soon in the same over.

Mahesh delivered a good length stuff, which Ganguly played early, and the ball rattled the veteran's leg stump off his thighs, reducing the Knight Riders to 47 for 2 in the sixth over.

Joined by the in-form David Hussey, Butt tried to accelerate the pace, with back-to-back cover drive boundaries in the ninth over sent down by Mahesh.

Hussey began with deft placements, but the run rate slowed down in the middle overs, as only 26 runs came between the 11th and the 15th over.

Mahesh, meanwhile, tasted another success in the 14th over, with Butt top-edging to third-man to bring the curtains down on a 44-ball knock, which included seven fours.

Tatenda Taibu (7) continued his dismal show, while Laxmi Ratan Shukla (10) was also dismissed cheaply.

Hussey tried to slog it out, picking up two boundaries before holding out to Manoj Tiwary at long on, but in the end it was a below-par total.

2008-05-12T21:58:00.000-07:00

Kings XI thrash hapless Royal Challengers

It could not have gone worse for Bangalore. With Rahul Dravid's men facing the heat from all corners, a nine-wicket thrashing by Mohali in game 34 of the Indian Premier League here on Monday meant that Bangalore's run in the competition is now bordering on humiliation.

Bangalore's meager 143-run total was never going to be challenging enough but Shaun Marsh's blistering 51-ball knock handed out an embarrassing defeat to the visitors as Mohali galloped to their target in the 16th over.

In their previous encounter too, Mohali had cantered home, drubbing Bangalore by six wickets at the Chinnaswamy stadium one week ago.

On a decent pitch, the Bangalore batsmen showed momentary sparks but it never came together for them. Virat Kohli and Misbah-ul-Haq flowed for a brief period while Mark Boucher and Dravid displayed grit but it was never going to be enough.

It was the combination of Indian bowlers and Aussie batsmen, which worked like a charm for Mohali. After S Sreesanth (3-29) and company restricted Bangalore to 143-8, the Aussie trio of Marsh, James Hopes and Luke Pomersbach flayed the bowlers to take Mohali to the top of the points table below Jaipur.

The impressive Marsh brought up another half-century as he smashed the deflated Bangalore attack to all corners of the ground, bludgeoning nine boundaries and two sixes in his unbeaten 74. He, along with Hopes, took the home side off to a steady start before Hopes departed for 27.

In a surprise move, Pomersbach was sent at number three and in his first game in the tournament, he blazed an unbeaten 24-ball 34, which included three boundaries and two sixes.

Pomersbach and Marsh added an unbroken 112-run stand in less than 10 overs as the duo took the Bangalore bowling to the cleaners. Marsh was particularly severe on the visitors spearhead, Dale Steyn, pounding him ruthlessly for 33 runs in his two overs.

Earlier, Mohali bowlers refused to give an inch to Bangalore as the visitors failed to get any momentum going for a sizable passage. Regular wickets pegged them back and despite cameos by Misbah-ul-Haq and Virat Kohli and some solid rearguard action by skipper Dravid and Mark Boucher, the beleaguered Bangalore team never had control over the proceedings in the middle.

After electing to bat, they lost J Arun Kumar as early as the third over with four runs on the board. Desperate for a win to stay alive in the competition, Bangalore threw in Misbah early at the opposition, hoping the Pakistan batsman may repeat his T20 heroics and script a turnaround for them.

And Misbah looked determined to play with the long handle as he went after the young Mohali bowlers. Along with Virat kohli, Misbah put on 32 runs for the second wicket in just 16 balls, perhaps the brightest part of the game for Bangalore.

The 33-year old, replacing the out of form Shivnarine Chanderpaul in the eleven, started belting the ball as soon as stepped out. The Pakistan star batsman smashed three boundaries and one six in his eight-ball 21 before he went on the back-foot to Sreesanth a tad too much to dislodge the bails with his right leg.

Piyush Chawla foxed Kohli, who looked in fine touch, in his first over as the leg-spinner cleaned up India's under-19 skipper for a well-made 21.

Craig White, the only batsman to have two hundreds in T20, hung around for a while looking like a shadow of the reputation he came with in the competition. White tried to break the shackles with a wild heave off Chawla after making a sedate 10 only to give a skier, which the bowler pouched superbly running back.

And Bangalore were restricted to 74-4 and it was left once again to Dravid and Mark Boucher to bring some respectability to the total. But after Dravid fell for 29, everything fell apart for them as they added only 41 runs in the last five overs.

Bangalore will now be playing for pride more than anything else in the tournament as their chances of qualifying to the semi-final is improbable.

2008-05-11T22:25:00.000-07:00

Shane Watson made full use of two dropped chances to score a blazing half-century, which sealed a thrilling three-wicket win for Rajasthan Royals against Delhi Daredevils in their IPL Twenty20 match here on Sunday.

Chasing, 157 to win, the hosts overcame early jolts to post a convincing victory with five balls to spare.

Click here for scores

The Delhi team, invited to bat, could put just 156 runs on the board, largely with the help of Farveej Maharoof's blistering knock of 39 down the order.

Watson's strokeful 74-run-knock came off just in 40-balls with the help of five boundaries and five sixes.

His eventful innings came to an end when he was run out in the penultimate over.

Square leg umpire did not refer the decision to the third umpire but rival skipper Virender Sehwag pushed for it and eventually got rid of Watson as TV replays clearly showed he was short of his ground.

This opened the match again for the Delhi team but Mahesh Rawat (5) and Niraj Patel (4) did not lose their nerve and won the match on the first ball of the last over.

The visitors have to blame themselves for the defeat as first their star batsmen let them down and then they dropped catches, earned by their bowlers.

Graeme Smith (24) and Watson made the most of the dropped chances to bring back their team in the hunt as they put on a crucial 71-run partnership for the third wicket.

Smith was dropped on zero by Amit Mishra and Watson by skipper Virender Sehwag when the Australian was on individual score of 26 and the team was struggling at 59 for two.

The hosts were stuttering at 15 for two after five overs and just when it seemed the Delhi team was on course of pulling a improbable win, Smith-Watson combo lifted their team from the pits.

The partnership laid a strong foundation for the victory though the battle swung again in the favour of visitors with leg-spinner Amit Mishra (2/27) scalping two wickets in successive overs.

Mishra first dismissed Smith and then bowled Ravindra Jadeja (6) to give his team a good chance to come back in the match.

Earlier, a brilliant bowling supported by charged up fielding helped Rajasthan Royals restrict Delhi Daredevils to a modest total of 156 for seven.

The visitors failed to build partnerships and paid the price as they could not put enough runs on the board and handed a tough job to their bowlers to defend a modest total.

Host skipper Shane Warne used all his bowlers effectively and made life difficult for visiting batsmen until Farvez Faharoof. Maharoof hit a blistering 39-run knock towards the end.

Maharoof top scored for the Delhi team with the help of two boundaries and four sixes, all coming in Shane Warne's overs.

The Sri Lankan also shared a crucial 54-run partnership with compatriot Tilakratne Dilshan (18) to help his team past the 150-run mark.

Mahroof hit Warne for 26 runs in the penultimate over with the help of four sixes, lifting the spirits of a dejected Delhi team.

Shane Watson (2/21) and Siddharth Trivedi (2/28) were the most successful bowlers for the hosts.

Mascarenhas, who made his debut in the tournament, bowled well and used slow balls to good effects as it did help in containing dangerous Virender Sehwag.

Watson too on the other end, bowled in tandem as the pair gave away just 29 runs in the first four overs with fielders complimenting their bowlers well.

As the pressure mounted to score quick runs, Sehwag (17) perished to Watson when he drove him uppishly only to find Mohammad Kaif at backward point.

On down Shikhar Dhawan (3) did not last long as he started his walk back to pavilion seven balls later after a terrible mix up with Gautam Gambhir (31) resulted in his run-out.

Gambhir then survived a run-out chance when Munaf Patel failed to hit stumps when the Delhi opener tried to steal a run in rival skipper's over.

The left-handed batsman, however, could not use the chance and was dismissed by Siddharth Trivedi when he tried to loft the ball over the covers but only managed an inside edge on his stumps.

2008-05-11T22:22:00.000-07:00

Kolkata Knight Riders beat Deccan Chargers Hyderabad by 23 runs in an Indian Premier League match at Hyderabad on Sunday.

It was the Kolkata team's second win over the rivals from Hyderabad after the earlier home win.

Chasing a huge target of 205, and an improbable 33 in the final over, the Hyderabad team finished on 181 for seven after being reduced to 63 for four in the ninth over.

Venugopal Rao, with a valiant 42-ball 71 that included four boundaries and six huge hits over it, waged a lone battle but the initial damage was just too much to be undone.

Rohita Sharma (33 off 24 balls) and captain Adam Gilchrist [Images] (24 off 17 balls) were the other major contributors in the Deccan Chargers' innings.

The Kolkata bowlers' bowled a tight line and applied brakes at regular intervals. Ashok Dinda and Sourav Ganguly [Images] finished with three and two wickets respectively.

Earlier, Sourav Ganguly led from the front with a quickfire 91, while David Hussey chipped in with a blistering unbeaten 57 as Kolkata Knight Riders amassed 204 for four.

Ganguly won the toss and decided to bat first but Salman Butt's [Images] exit in the first over pegged back the visitors.

Ganguly joined hands with Aakash Chopra (24) and forged a 69-run stand to steady the ship before he and Hussey tore apart the Deccan attack en route to a 102-run stand for the third wicket.

Ganguly's 91 came off 57 balls and was studded with 11 hits to the fence besides five sixes.

Hussey remained unbeaten after a 29-ball knock that included four boundaries, besides three sixes.

Laxmi Ratan Shukla was not out on 14 off just three balls as the Knight Riders went past the 200-run mark.

Playing his second match of the tournament, Butt (4) drove Chaminda Vaas [Images] for a four but perished soon edging him behind. The hosts, however, had to wait another 10 overs before another wicket fell and it was poor judgement that saw Chopra returning to the hut after being run out.

Ganguly looked good for his maiden Twenty20 century but trying to up the ante, he went for a hook only to see RP Singh take a low catch at fine leg off P Vijaykumar.

Tatenda Taibu (9) lived dangerously and threw his bat at anything and everything before Ravi Teja [Images] took a full-blooded drive off RP Singh to cut short his stay.

2008-05-10T09:25:00.000-07:00

Having let Chennai amass the IPL's highest total in their first fixture, Mohali didn't do their chances of making it six wins in a row any good, as Mahendra Singh Dhoni's side piled up an impressive 181-4 at the MA Chidambaram stadium here on Saturday. However, Mohali staged a remarkable recovery as they conceded just 37 from their last five overs.

Powered by Suresh Raina's (26) early fireworks and some lusty hitting led by Dhoni (60 not out) himmself, Chennai have forced Mohali on the backfoot once again. But it was an imacculate 47-ball 64 from Subramaniam Badrinath that got them out of jail early on.

That Sreesanth remains an enigma in cricketing circles was vindicated during this game. The India speedster was innocuous in his first over, starting off with a couple of wides before Sivaramakrishnan Vidyut blasted him through the covers twice. But as has so often been the case, the bowler returned to get rid of the opener with a peach.

His second over was equally dramatic, with the bowler getting smashed on his toe by a firm shot from Suresh Raina on his follow-through. Limping by now, Sreesanth then bowled a wide that should have been penalised for two runs instead of one, but removed Stephen Fleming in the same over as Chennai lost both their openers who provided them a rollicking start to their run chase in Delhi two days back.

Suresh Raina and Badrinath, batting at No. 4 for the first time in the competition, stepped it up with remarkable urgency, pushing for the twos and picking the gaps in between, before Dhoni and Badrinath's 91-run stand lifted them to a commanding position.

Dhoni’s susceptibility to spin bowling has been picked up by sides in the competition, as Shane Warne and Pragyan Ojha’s success against him show. But the Indian One-day captain didn’t let Piyush Chawla settle down, repeatedly stepping out and launching him into the stands.

Dhoni's brutal knock notwithstanding, Subramaniam Badrinath reaching his first half-century provided for one of the most endearing images of the IPL. The batsman has never played for India, but the capacity MA Chidambaram stadium crowd, where Badrinath plays his first-class games, gave him a rapturous applause for a phenominally mature innings.

Earlier, Mohali captain Yuvraj Singh banked on his side's chasing abilities as he elected to bowl following his side's successes.

However, they were without Kumar Sangakkara who picked up an injury, while Karan Goel replaced Gagandeep Singh in the eleven. Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the Chennai captain, retained the same eleven that pulled off a remarkable win in Delhi on Thursday.

Chennai and Mohali clashed in the second game of the IPL where a hundred from Mike Hussey, who has returned to the Australian squad, was instrumental in Mohali's defeat.

Teams:

Chennai: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain), S Vidyut, Stephen Fleming, Suresh Rania, Albie Morkel, Chamara Kapugedera, S Badrinath, Manpreet Gony, Palani Amarnath, Muttiah Muralitharan, Lakshmipathy Balaji.

Mohali: Yuvraj Singh (captain), Shaun Marsh, James Hopes, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Karan Goel, Mahela Jayawardene, Irfan Pathan, Piyush Chawla, Uday Kaul, Sreesanth, VRV Singh.

2008-05-09T21:23:00.000-07:00

Jaipur: VVS Laxman's loss didn't seem to have done Hyderabad any harm. They won the previous game against Chennai, and against Jaipur, they clearly had the upper hand, before throwing the game away, and perhaps their chances of making the semi-finals with their nine-wicket loss at the Sawai Man Singh stadium here on Friday.

Needing virtually a win from every game, Hyderabad, with only two in their bag, went to fortress Jaipur — they are the only ones to have not lost a single game at home — and started off in fine fashion before Jaipur's duo of Shane Warne and Yusuf Pathan, who were Hyderabad's nemesis in a remarkable run chase in the first leg, made short work of their opponents to go top of the IPL points table.

Warne crippled Hyderabad with a fantastic spell of 2-19 to keep them down to 140-8 — after being 74-1 in 10 overs — before Yusuf Pathan made it one-way traffic with a belligerent 37-ball 68 as Jaipur got home with four overs to spare.

Yusuf, back opening in the innings, put on 109 with Graeme Smith (40) as Hyderabad ran out of ideas to contain either, finally getting Yusuf in the 13th over, while RP Singh, Hyderabad's best bowler on the night, was rewarded with Smith's wicket with Jaipur just eight runs adrift from their target.

Sohail Tanvir didn't quite have the outing he was hoping for after his six-wicket haul here, but it was the trickery of the masterful Warne and yet another impressive performance from Siddharth Trivedi (1-8), the medium-pacer, that caught Hyderabad off guard, who let slip a fantastic start.

After being put in to bat, Adam Gilchrist belted his second successive half-century while captaining his side as he and Herschelle Gibbs blazed away to their best start of the tournament, reaching their 50 in the sixth over, before the talismanic Shane Warne yet again inspired his side to stage a remarkable turnaround.

Gibbs, who had previously disappointed with the bat, just about broke the shackles with a trademark cover drive before Munaf Patel removed him next ball for 19, before Hyderabad lost their way in the middle overs, if there is any room for the term in the shortest form of the game.

Gilchrist carried the charge to reach his second half-century of the tournament, along with a hundred, but was sent back by Trivedi for 61 before Warne figured in four dismissals, including Rohit Sharma's run out, a batsman who has been a model of consistency for the otherwise inconsistent Hyderabad outfit.

The wily leg-spinner brought himself on immediately after the first six overs and worked his magic, choking off the runs as Jaipur struck an unusual sequence. Having taken just one wicket in 12 overs, Warne struck in the 13th, while a wicket each fell in the 14th, 15th, 16th and the 17th. The sequence ended in the 18th over, but Warne got back into the act in the 19th.

Jaipur's five-match winning streak came to an end in Mumbai, while Hyderabad were on a high after posting a win in Chennai.

Besides the absence of Laxman, Hyderabad made one change to their side, including Ravi Teja in place of Arjun Yadav, while Jaipur excluded in-form Swapnil Asnodkar to draft in Niraj Patel at the top of the order.

Teams:

Hyderabad: Adam Gilchrist (captain), Ravi Teja, Herschelle Gibbs, Rohit Sharma, Scott Styris, Shahid Afridi, Venugopal Rao, Sanjay Bangar, RP Singh, Vijay Kumar, Pragyan Ojha.

Jaipur: Shane Warne (captain), Graeme Smith, Niraj Patel, Yusuf Pathan, Shane Watson, Mohammad Kaif, Ravindra Jadeja, Sohail Tanvir, Mahesh Rawat, Siddharth Trivedi, Munaf Patel.

2008-05-07T22:16:00.000-07:00

Faced with the possibility of being banned for a few matches by the BCCI, the beleaguered Harbhajan Singh has appealed to the Cricket Board to give him "one final chance" before taking disciplinary action against him.

The 27-year-old off-spinner, who has already been banned by the IPL organisers for rest of the tournament for slapping his India teammate S Sreesanth, has written a fresh letter to the BCCI just two days ahead of the disciplinary hearing to be conducted by the Board-appointed Commissioner Sudhir Nanavati in Ahmedabad.

In his letter, Harbhajan said he had apologised to Sreesanth after the incident in Mohali and was willing to do it again in public, a Television channel reported on Wednesday.

"Along with accepting my most sincere and heartfelt apologies over this incident, I would like to appeal to the Board's sense of fairplay and ask for one final chance before taking any disciplinary action against me over this incident," he said in the letter.

Although the IPL governing council has already penalised him, the BCCI will also punish him separately for the level 4 offence as per the ICC Players' Code of Conduct. A level 4 offence leads to a maximum punishment of a life ban or a minimum ban of five Tests or 10 One-Day Internationals.

When contacted, BCCI Secretary Niranjan Shah said Harbhajan has been writing a number of letters and it was not proper for him to divulge the contents.

"The inquiry is going on. We are waiting for the report," Shah said.

Despite the IPL organisers punishing his for the offence, the BCCI will also take disciplinary action against the controversial spinner who has a history of breaching code of conducts.

A top BCCI source said that the Board would take disciplinary action against Harbhajan as such incident should not have happened on the cricket field.

With the BCCI determined to crack the whip there was widespread speculation that Harbhajan could be handed out a 10-match ODI ban and also fined for the offence.

Nanavati said the footage of the incident did not indicate that there was any provocation for Harbhajan to behave in such a manner.

"I will have to talk to some more people like (Kings XI Punjab captain) Yuvraj Singh, (Mumbai Indians coach) Lalchand Rajput or Mohali the team manager to find out if there was any provocation," he said.

If Nanavati finds that there was no provocation, he could recommend a more severe punishment for the troubled spinner which means that the quantum of the ban could be higher.

Nanavati had on Tuesday said that he was shocked after seeing the video footage of the incident and will submit his inquiry report on the matter to Board President Sharad Pawar on Monday.

"What I saw was shocking but it has made my job easier. It will also help me in my further investigation. I have also summoned them (Harbhajan and Sreesanth). They have been told to come either on Friday or Saturday. Harbhajan will be coming on Friday. Sreesanth is yet to confirm a date," the Ahmedabad lawyer said.

2008-05-07T22:14:00.000-07:00

The first half of the inaugural Indian Premier League turned out to be a nightmare for the costliest team, Mumbai, but with the second half has also come a giant-killing win streak.

After beating Kolkata and Delhi, the Shaun Pollock led side put it across Jaipur by seven wickets, also bringing to an end Jaipur's five-match unbeaten run at the DY Patil stadium here on Wednesday.

Jaipur went to Mumbai to rack up another to their applecart. The home side, however, are rolling their own juggernaut, as their bowlers put up a solid effort to skittle the visitors out for 103, before the batsmen clinically finished off the proceedings with 4.5 overs remaining.

Ashish Nehra led the Mumbai bowling attack with 3-13, while Dhaval Kulkarni, Dwayne Bravo and Rohan Raje picked up two apiece.

The IPL has thrown some interesting battles within battles. Whether it's been countrymen taking on each other or old foes taking their rivavly to another level. The Mumbai versus Jaipur fixture was no different on Wednesday.

First, the two retired international stalwarts — Shaun Pollock and Shane Warne — squared off at the toss, and just as the former called the coin right and asked Jaipur to have a bat, the second battle had already begun.

The former South Africa captain was charging in at his successor Graeme Smith, the latter, batting a yard outside his crease, hell-bent on sending the metronome on a leather hunt.

Mumbai, who have had to make do without Sachin Tendulkar so far in the tournament, were going nowhere up until the last week but have seen a quiet resurgence. Pollock led the way, outsmarting Smith for five before Ashish Nehra cleaned up Yusuf Pathan.

Swapnil Asnodkar (39) and Shane Watson got the momentum back on the visiting side, adding 53 for the third wicket before the Australian all-rounder was bowled by Dwayne Bravo for 32, which triggered a mini-collapse with Mohammad Kaif and Ravindra Jadeja falling in quick time.

The Mumbai bowlers needed all of 16.2 overs to dismiss their opponents for their lowest score. Jaipur were all out for the first time in seven games.

Teams:

Mumbai: Shaun Pollock (captain), Yogesh Takawale, Sanath Jayasuriya, Dominic Thornely, Robin Uthappa, Dwayne Bravo, Abhishek Nayar, Saurabh Tiwary, R Raje, Dhaval Kulkarni, Ashish Nehra.

Jaipur: Shane Warne (captain), Swapnil Asnodkar, Yusuf Pathan, Shane Watson, Mohammad Kaif, Ravindra Jadeja, Shane Warne, Mahesh Rawat, Siddharth Trivedi, Munaf Patel, Sohail Tanvir.

2008-05-06T21:29:00.000-07:00

Hyderabad beat Chennai to score second win

Deccan Chargers, Hyderabad beat Chennai Super Kings by seven wickets at the M Chidambaram Stadium on Tuesday to keep their hopes alive in the Indian Premier League.

It was only the second win in seven matches for the Hyderabad team while the loss meant, Chennai have now faced defeat in their last three games after wins in their first four.

Scorecard | Images

The departure of Australians Matthew Hayden [Images] and Michael Hussey and New Zealander Jacob Oram [Images], all having to report on national duty, hasclearly affected the team's morale.

Chasing 145 to win, the Deccan Chargers lost South African Herschelle Gibbs [Images] (10) early but stand-in captain Adam Gilchrist [Images] (54) put on 54 runs for the second wicket with New Zealand [Images] allrounder Scott Styris (36) to lay the foundation.

Gilchrist's was a trademark knock, coming off just 36 balls with six boundaries and two huge sixes off South African paceman Makhaya Ntini [Images].

Styris then combined with Rohit Sharma (23), the tournament's highest scorer so far, to put on another 47 runs for the third wicket.

IPL: Points table | Schedule | Match reports

And he and Shahid Afridi [Images] (with an aggressive 20 not out off just six balls with two boundaries and two sixes) ensured no further damage was done as the Hyderabad team coasted home with two overs to spare.

Earlier, a disciplined show by the bowlers and some excellent fielding allowed Deccan Chargers restrict Chennai Super Kings for a modest 144 for seven wickets.

Playing without their regular captain VVS Laxman, nursing a hand injury, the Deccan bowlers responded well after their Gilchrist won the toss and asked the hosts to take first strike of the pitch.

P Vijaykumar removed Parthiv Patel (4) in the first over and his bowling colleagues ensured that the hosts subsequently did not get enough partnerships to keep going.

For the Chennai side, Suresh Raina (32), captain MS Dhoni [Images] (23) and Albie Morkel (29 not out) did bulk of the scoring.

Things could have been worse for the Chennai side had not Morkel and Manpreet Gony (15 not out of 6 balls) unleashed some lusty shots towards the fag end of the innings to swell the tally.

Morkel's unbeaten 29 came off 19 balls and included two sixes besides a boundary.

RP Singh was the pick of the Chennai bowlers, claiming two for 12 in his three overs.

After Vijaykumar drew the first blood with his sixth delivery, RP Singh soured former India opener Krishnamachari Srikkanth's son Anirudha's (1) IPL debut.

Stephen Fleming [Images] (14) was contemplating steading the ship but an airborne Rohit Sharma intercepted his full-blooded drive off Scott Styris to cut short his stay, while Herschelle Gibbs pulled off a blinder to remove S Badrinath for a duck.

Raina was looking dangerous but Sanjay Bangar halted him in his stride and Pragyan Ojha then removed Dhoni (23) to nip the hosts' hopes of a massive total in the match.

2008-05-05T23:36:00.000-07:00

Punjab thrash Bangalore

Kings XI Punjab scored their fifth win in a row when they beat Royal Challengers Bangalore by six wickets at the Chinnaswamy Stadium on Monday.

Scorecard | Images

Chasing 127 to win, the Punjab team romped home with 10 balls to spare.

Shaun Marsh (39) and Ramnaresh Sarwan [Images] (31) put on a 54-run stand for the second with to ensure a solid foundation and helped their side consign Bangalore to their fifth defeat in seven matches in the competition.

Zaheer Khan [Images] and Praveen Kumar took two wickets apiece but Bangalore's paltry total was never going to be enough.

Earlier, Rahul Dravid [Images] stood tall amid ruins with a gritty 66 as wickets tumbled around him and Kings XI Punjab shot out the hosts for 126 in 19.2 overs.

Put into bat, the Bangalore side put up a pathetic show with just two batsmen -- Dravid and Virat Kohli (34) -- managing double digit scores, while five of their compatriots had ducks against their names.

In a tournament where its has been raining fours and sixes, the Bangalore innings included just one six that came in the 19th over when Dravid hit VRV Singh over the ropes.

Dravid was the ninth man out after a defiant 51-ball knock that included nine hits to the fence besides the six.

For the Punjab side, leg-spinner Piyush Chawla was the pick of the bowlers, claiming three for 25 in his four overs.

It was S Sreesanth [Images] who started the rot when he scalped Wasim Jaffer [Images] (0) and Cameron White (0) off successive deliveries in the first over.

Sreesanth began with a wide but the Punjab bowlers hardly put a foot wrong after that and their splendid show even managed to gloss over the sloppy fielding by the side.

As if the early double blow was not bad enough for the hosts, Jacques Kallis [Images] (0) was run out in the fourth over before Kohli and Dravid joined hands to steady the rocking boat

Kohli was dropped by James Hopes but the youngster could not make the most of the largesse and departed off a soft dismissal that triggered off another batting collapse.

Since then, it was a long procession of the host batsmen returning to the hut without making a mark. Much was expected of Misbah-ul-Haq but all he could contribute was eight runs before Chawla trapped him leg before

2008-05-04T22:35:00.000-07:00

Royals thrash Super Kings by 8 wickets

Riding on a sensational best ever bowling spell of Twenty20 cricket by Pakistani left-arm pacer Sohail Tanvir (6/14), Rajasthan Royals cantered to an easy eight wicket victory over Chennai Super Kings in an Indian Premier League match here Sunday.

After Tanvir's unbelievable 4-0-14-6 rocked the Super Kings innings to skittle them out for a paltry 109 after visiting team captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni elected to bat first, Rajasthan Royals were never in trouble and they romped home with 34 balls to spare.

Click here for scores

Set 110 for a win, home team openers Graeme Smith (35 not out; 44 balls, 4x4) and Swapnil Asnodkar (32; 30 balls, 5x4) put on 78 runs for the first wicket to set up the win and place his team on top of the table.

Smith hit the winning runs off Muttiah Muralitharan for a two to bring up 110 for the home side's fifth win on the trot and hand Dhoni's team second consecutive loss after four consecutive victories.

For Super Kings, S Vidyut and Muttiah Muralitharan claimed a wicket apiece conceding 22 and 20 runs respectively.

Earlier, a sensational bowling spell of 6/14 by left-arm pacer Sohail Tanvir helped Rajasthan Royals skittle Chennai Super Kings for a paltry 109.

Tanvir's unbelievable 4-0-14-6 was the first five-wicket haul and also the best figure of the IPL so far.

He was ably supported by Munaf Patel (2/16), Shane Watson (1/19) and captain Shane Warne (1/29) in completely destroying the Super Kings batsmen.

Tanvir started on a sensational note removing Parthiv Patel (0) LBW from his first ball with the visiting opener plumbed in front of wicket.

The Pakistani pacer then castled New Zealander Stephen Fleming for a duck for another LBW verdict to send both the Super Kings opener back to the hut in the very first over of their innings with scoreboard reading 1 for two.

Tanvir did not stop there and he had S Vidyut in the third over caught out Shane watson for five to send the visitors reeling at 11 for three and end his own opening spell of two overs with an unbelievable 2-0-2-3.

He returned for the second spell in the 17th over from the first ball of which he sent Super Kings top scorer Albie Morkel' (42) stumps cart-wheeling to end a 44-run sixth wicket stand - highest for the Chennai side - with Raina (27).

Tanvir then clean-bowled Muttiah Muralitharan for a duck in the same over before claiming the last Chennai batsman Makhaya Ntini (11) to finish off the visitors' innings in style in the 19th over.

S Badrinath (15) and Raina, for a brief period, looked like to repair the early damage for the Chennai side with a fourth-wicket stand of 27 but Tanvir's new ball partner Shane Watson cut it short when he had Badrinath caught off his own bowling.

Home team captain Shane Warne also tasted success after introducing himself in the eighth over and won the battle against his opposite number Mahendra Singh Dhoni who perished for one after surviving two viciously turning balls off the retired Australian great.

By the time Dhoni was out after facing seven balls, half of his side's batsmen had returned to the pavilion for a mere 44 runs in the eighth over.

The visitors crawled to 58 for five at the end of 10th over and Munaf Patel emulated his team-mate Tanvir by removing Raina and Joginder Sharma (0) in a span of four balls in the 15th over to send the visitors to their knees.

2008-05-04T22:34:00.000-07:00

Mumbai Indians Got Their 2nd win

Skipper Shaun Pollock led from the front as Mumbai Indians defended a small total with verge and vigour to stun table-toppers Delhi Daredevils by 29 runs for their second successive win in the Indian Premier League at the D Y Patil Stadium here on Sunday.

After being restricted to a none-too-tall 162 for eight, the home team, at the bottom of the league chart going into the match, bowled with purpose and struck blows at timely intervals to skittle out the Delhi team for 133 in 18.5 overs.

Click here for scores

The bowling heroes for the struggling home team, who brought up the rear going into their sixth match, was stand-in captain Pollock (2 for 16) and discarded India pacer Ashish Nehra, who took 3 for 25 which included two off successive balls.

The superb display by the senior bowlers inspired youngster Dhawal Kulkarni to grab the last two wickets and finish with 2 for 18.

But the most telling blow was struck by Dominic Thornely who, after being introduced as the sixth bowler when Delhi skipper Virender Sehwag was on a rampage, dismissed the flamboyant opener with a low full toss.

Sehwag gave the Delhi Daredevils' chase the early momentum with a quick-fire 40 off only 20 balls, inclusive of three sixes and as many fours, in his inimitable fashion after the visitors were put on the back foot at four for two.

He also added a crucial 45 runs with Shoaib Malik for the fourth wicket after A B de Villiers was run out backing too far to a firm drive from Sehwag which got deflected on to the non-striker's end stumps by the bowler.

Sehwag seemed to be on a roll and his dismissal at 82 in the 11th over simply unhinged the Delhi line-up and also brought the Mumbai Indians back into the game.

Malik (24) and Dinesh Karthik (28) kept them in the fight before departing in the space of two overs and the rest simply caved in as Delhi suffered their second defeat in six ties.

Earlier, Mumbai Indians batting failed to prosper yet another time after being asked to take first strike.

The home team's batting sparkled sporadically with no batsman willing to bat till the end, and they finished with what seemed an inadequate total on a good pitch.

Veteran Sanath Jayasuriya (34), newcomer Yogesh Takawale (14), Thornely (30) and Robin Uthappa (22), in the top order, got starts but failed to make them count as the Delhi Daredevils struck at regular intervals to stop their progress.

After a opening stand of 46 between their new pair of wicketkeeper Takawale and veteran Jayasuriya - who looked in supreme touch and struck one six and six fours in his 16-ball knock - the innings went into a decline before being propped up by Thornely and Uthappa.

The third wicket pair put on 52 runs in 36 balls but once this stand between Thornely, who hit two fours and as many sixes in his 24-ball essay, and Uthappa was broken, there was a steep slide.

From 102 for two the home team slid to 112 for six and despite the best efforts of Pollock, who top-scored with 33 in 15 balls, with 3 sixes and 2 fours and was leading the team again after Sachin Tendulkar was declared unfit, the final tally did not assume a menacing proportion.

2008-05-04T22:32:00.000-07:00

We can still make it to the semis: Ganguly

Kolkata Knight Riders lost their fourth straight game in the Indian Premier League (IPL) with Mohali's Kings XI Punjab defeating them here on Saturday night, but their skipper Sourav Ganguly feels the side is still not out of the semi-final reckoning in the Twenty20 tournament.

Click here for full scores

"Our fourth straight loss in the tournament was owing to missed chances. We lost the game in a certain situation," Ganguly explained.

He attributed the loss to a crucial catch being dropped, giving away over 20 runs in the last over, losing five early wickets and allowing the Mohali side to pile up 178 runs after losing five wickets for just over 100 runs.

"Still, we are a good side. We are not out of the competition. You never know in cricket. We still have five more games and most of them are on home turf," the Knight Riders' skipper said.

2008-05-04T22:26:00.000-07:00

Royal Challengers pacer Praveen Kumar took three wickets to help his team pull off a narrow three-run win against Deccan Chargers in a nail-biting match of the Indian Premier League at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.

Praveen returned figures of three for 23 even as the hosts successfully defended their modest total of 156 for eight to claim their second win in the tournament while the fine half-centuries by Deccan Chargers skipper V V S Laxman and Rohit Sharma went in vain.

Scorecard

Laxman (52) and Sharma (57) put on 96 runs for the third wicket to provide a ray of hope when Deccan Chargers appeared to be in trouble after losing two quick wickets.

When the Hyderabad team needed 20 runs for victory in the last over, Sanjay Bangar (17 not out) hit Anil Kumble for two successive sixes raising the team's hopes but could not clinch the match for his team, which ended up with 153 for six in their stipulated 20 overs.

Earlier, put in to bat, none of the Royal Challengers' batsmen could touch the half-century mark and opener Wasim Jaffer top-scored with a 37-ball 44.

Virat Kohli (38) and Rahul Dravid (26) provided valuable contributions to the side when other batsmen were out cheaply.

Jaffer also stitched a 72-run partnership off 54 balls with Kohli. The hosts brought on the 50 in 6.3 overs, and were 80 for one after 10 overs.

Dravid, who was dropped by Scott Styris when he was on 12, finally got out on the last ball of the innings. He hit one four and two sixes in his 21-ball knock.

Their batting collapse began after RP Singh, who was the pick of the bowlers returning figures of three for 41 runs, bowled out Bharat Chipli for a measly individual score of 10.

Pragyan Ojha removed Jaffer by having him caught by Herschelle Gibbs and uprooted the middle stump of Jacques Kallis (6) to finish with two wickets to his credit.

Opener Adam Gilchrist (10) and Herschelle Gibbs were sent packing, leaving the visitors struggling at 31 for 2 in the sixth over.

Then came the big partnership between Laxman and Rohit Sharma, who executed some fluent strokes. They brought on the 50 partnership in 38 balls and appeared to be hardly troubled by the Bangalore team bowlers.

Laxman's 52, made off 44 balls, was aided by seven fours and Sharma hit a strokeful 32-ball 57 that included five fours and three sixes.

Shahid Afridi, who came in after the departure of Sharma, did not last long and brilliantly caught by Dale Steyn in the deep for one.

2008-05-04T22:22:00.000-07:00

The Economic Times recently calculated the moolah-run rate (MRR) for batsmen and the moolah-scalp rate (MSR) for bowlers playing in the DLF IPL.

So if Ricky Ponting's [Images] pay cheque is $114286 (4/14 of $400,000) and he scores 39 runs, his MRR is 114286/39 = $2930.

Likewise, if Brett Lee's [Images] pay cheque is $257143 (4/14 of $900,000) and he bags 4 wickets, his MSR is 257143/4 = $64286 (although ET considered only bowlers with 5 or more wickets in their analysis)

While these numbers are indicative of the state of things, they really do not tell the complete story. It would, for example, be hard to determine Irfan Pathan's [Images] total contribution based on his MRR and MSR. Again, these indices don't consider a batsman's strike rate, the bowler's economy rate and a player's fielding skills.

If franchise owners like Mukesh Ambani, Vijay Mallya [Images] or Shahrukh Khan [Images] want real numbers to tell them which of their players have really been paisa vasool (good value for money) then they will need a different sort of index.

The most valuable player (MVP) index, which has regularly appeared on Rediff's cricket pages, can easily be converted into a very reasonable paisa vasool index ("PVI"?).

The chief value of the MVP is that it factors in a lot of performance indicators (runs scored, strike rate, wickets taken, economy rate, fielding prowess) into a single index. Better still, the MVP value can be looked upon as a simple "run equivalent". If Shane Watson has a MVP of 292, it means that his combined effort as a batsman, bowler and fielder is equivalent to having scored 292 runs.

To calculate the PVI, we simply divide the player's current pay cheque by his current MVP value. For example, as on 2 May 2008, Mahela Jayawardene [Images], bought by Kings XI Punjab for $475,000, had a PVI of 1844 because, by being available for 5 matches (although he actually played only 4), he had, as on that date, earned $169643 (5/14 of 475,000) and contributed an equivalent of 92 runs. So his PVI was 169643/92 = 1844.

As on 2 May, Rahul Dravid [Images] had proved to be over three times more expensive with a PVI of 6027.

Dwayne Bravo [Images], on the other hand, has turned out to be a wonderful buy for Mumbai Indians with a PVI of just 270.

The PVI varies widely, and the best value is offered by young Indian players bought really cheap (the exact money offered is not known, but it is presumed that these players have been bought for around $30,000). Shikhar Dhawan (DD), Ravindra Jadeja (RR), Abhishek Nayar (MI), L R Shukla (KKR) and Ashok Dinda (KKR) all have a PVI of below 100.

Among the foreign players, the best buys so far have been Shane Watson (RR, PVI =152), Ross Taylor (RCB, 188) besides of course Dwayne Bravo.

Michael Hussey and Matthew Hayden [Images] too proved to be very good buys with PVIs respectively of 475 and 527 � truly wonderful when you factor in their crowd-pulling ability.

We must stress that the PVI merely quantifies contributions made on the cricket field. As on 2 May, players like Rahul Dravid (RCB, 6027), Sourav Ganguly [Images] (KKR, 4384), Jacques Kallis [Images] (RCB, 2967) and Ricky Ponting (KKR, 7453) appear to be unduly expensive. But the PVI cannot measure the phenomenal popularity of these immensely successful players.

Note too that the PVI of a player rises (perhaps unfairly) when he is on the "bench", because although he is getting paid, he is not being offered the opportunity to contribute. Daniel Vettori [Images] (DD, 4252), Ramnaresh Sarwan [Images] (KXI, 5022), Dilhara Fernando (MI, 7653) and Shivnarine Chanderpaul [Images] (RCB, 7653) have all been forced on the bench because of the only-4-foreign-players rule.

Finally, we must mention that our calculation has to ignore players like Chris Gayle and Kyle Mills who would have to be paid their pro-rata amounts although they did not play a single match. Kyle Mills is already being called the "world's most expensive nets bowler"!

Table 1 gives the PVI of DLF IPL players as on 2 May 2008.

Table 1: The best IPL buys after the first 19 IPL matches (US dollars paid so far for contributing each "run")

Player	Team	From	M	MVPI	Money offered ($)	MA	MF	PVI
Shikhar Dhawan	DD	IND	4	134.00	30000	4	8571.43	63.97
Rajat Bhatia	DD	IND	4	120.33	30000	4	8571.43	71.23
Ravindra Jadeja	RR	IND	5	140.67	30000	5	10714.29	76.17
Manpreet Gony	CSK	IND	4	106.00	30000	4	8571.43	80.86
Abhishek Nayar	MI	IND	5	117.33	30000	5	10714.29	91.31
Laxmi Shukla	KKR	IND	5	112.33	30000	5	10714.29	95.38
Ashok Dinda	KKR	IND	5	108.00	30000	5	10714.29	99.21
Praveen Kumar	RCB	IND	5	100.67	30000	5	10714.29	106.43
S Badrinath	CSK	IND	4	74.00	30000	4	8571.43	115.83
Shaun Marsh	KXI	AUS	1	89.33	30000	5	10714.29	119.94
P Amarnath	CSK	IND	4	62.00	30000	4	8571.43	138.25
S Asnodkar	RR	IND	1	74.67	30000	5	10714.29	143.49
Shane Watson	RR	AUS	5	292.00	125000	5	44642.86	152.89
S Trivedi	RR	IND	5	66.67	30000	5	10714.29	160.71
Prasanta Saha	KKR	IND	4	65.33	30000	5	10714.29	163.99
Yo Mahesh	DD	IND	3	51.33	30000	4	8571.43	166.98
Vikram Singh	KXI	IND	3	62.33	30000	5	10714.29	171.89
D Kulkarni	MI	IND	5	60.00	30000	5	10714.29	178.57
Ross Taylor	RCB	NZ	4	190.00	100000	5	35714.29	187.97
G Singh	KXI	IND	1	11.00	30000	1	2142.86	194.81
Sanjay Bangar	DC	IND	5	54.33	30000	5	10714.29	197.20
Luke Ronchi	MI	AUS	4	53.33	30000	5	10714.29	200.89
Virat Kohli	RCB	IND	5	50.33	30000	5	10714.29	212.87
Pragyan Ojha	DC	IND	5	50.00	30000	5	10714.29	214.29
Ashish Nehra	MI	IND	5	48.00	30000	5	10714.29	223.21
Karan Goel	KXI	IND	5	47.67	30000	5	10714.29	224.78
Arjun Yadav	DC	IND	4	41.33	30000	5	10714.29	259.22
Mahesh Rawat	RR	IND	3	40.67	30000	5	10714.29	263.47
Dwayne Bravo	MI	WI	4	159.00	150000	4	42857.14	269.54
Musavir Khote	MI	IND	4	39.67	30000	5	10714.29	270.11
Dinesh Salunkhe	RR	IND	4	37.00	30000	5	10714.29	289.58
Debabrata Das	KKR	IND	2	36.00	30000	5	10714.29	297.62
B Akhil	RCB	IND	3	33.67	30000	5	10714.29	318.25
Michael Hussey	CSK	AUS	4	210.67	350000	4	100000.00	474.68
Saurabh Tiwary	MI	IND	1	20.67	30000	5	10714.29	518.43
Matthew Hayden	CSK	AUS	3	203.33	375000	4	107142.86	526.93
Umar Gul	KKR	PAK	1	58.33	150000	3	32142.86	551.02
Joginder Sharma	CSK	IND	4	110.33	225000	4	64285.71	582.65
Kamran Akmal	RR	PAK	2	52.67	150000	3	32142.86	610.31
Mohd Hafeez	KKR	PAK	4	54.67	100000	5	35714.29	653.31
Ajit Agarkar [Images]	KKR	IND	5	172.67	330000	5	117857.14	682.57
F Maharoof	DD	SL	3	94.00	225000	4	64285.71	683.89
M Manhas	DD	IND	1	12.00	30000	4	8571.43	714.29
Simon Katich	KXI	AUS	2	100.00	200000	5	71428.57	714.29
Yusuf Pathan	RR	IND	5	220.67	475000	5	169642.86	768.77
Glenn McGrath	DD	AUS	4	127.00	350000	4	100000.00	787.40
B McCullum	KKR	NZ	4	247.33	700000	4	200000.00	808.63
Graeme Smith [Images]	RR	SA	3	122.67	475000	3	101785.71	829.77
Ashley Noffke	RCB	AUS	1	12.67	30000	5	10714.29	845.86
Wasim Jaffer [Images]	RCB	IND	3	62.67	150000	5	53571.43	854.86
D Lehmann	RR	AUS	2	12.00	30000	5	10714.29	892.86
James Hopes	KXI	AUS	2	118.67	300000	5	107142.86	902.89
Pinal Shah	MI	IND	2	11.33	30000	5	10714.29	945.38
Shane Warne [Images]	RR	AUS	5	169.00	450000	5	160714.29	950.97
Chaminda Vaas [Images]	DC	SL	3	69.67	200000	5	71428.57	1025.29
K Sangakkara	KXI	SL	5	240.67	700000	5	250000.00	1038.78
Nuwan Zoysa	DC	SL	2	37.33	110000	5	39285.71	1052.30
Zaheer Khan [Images]	RCB	IND	5	151.67	450000	5	160714.29	1059.65
G Gambhir	DD	IND	4	188.00	725000	4	207142.86	1101.82
Suresh Raina	CSK	IND	4	160.67	650000	4	185714.29	1155.90
V Sehwag	DD	IND	4	198.00	833750	4	238214.29	1203.10
Adam Gilchrist [Images]	DC	AUS	5	206.00	700000	5	250000.00	1213.59
Rohit Sharma	DC	IND	5	220.00	750000	5	267857.14	1217.53
Piyush Chawla	KXI	IND	5	115.67	400000	5	142857.14	1235.08
Harbhajan Singh [Images]	MI	IND	3	147.33	850000	3	182142.86	1236.26
D Kalyankrishna	DC	IND	3	8.33	30000	5	10714.29	1285.71
VVS Laxman	DC	IND	5	100.67	375000	5	133928.57	1330.42
Mark Boucher [Images]	RCB	SA	5	108.67	450000	5	160714.29	1478.97
Parthiv Patel	CSK	IND	4	59.33	325000	4	92857.14	1565.01
Sohail Tanvir	RR	PAK	2	13.00	100000	3	21428.57	1648.35
Yuvraj Singh [Images]	KXI	IND	5	227.67	1063750	5	379910.71	1668.71
Venugopal Rao	DC	IND	3	6.33	30000	5	10714.29	1691.73
Shaun Pollock [Images]	MI	SA	5	115.00	550000	5	196428.57	1708.07
Irfan Pathan	KXI	IND	5	181.67	925000	5	330357.14	1818.48
Shahid Afridi [Images]	DC	PAK	4	105.00	675000	4	192857.14	1836.73
M Jayawardene	KXI	SL	4	92.00	475000	5	169642.86	1843.94
Sanath Jayasuriya	MI	SL	5	175.33	975000	5	348214.29	1986.01
MS Dhoni [Images]	CSK	IND	4	206.67	1500000	4	428571.43	2073.73
Robin Uthappa	MI	IND	5	135.33	800000	5	285714.29	2111.19
Murali Kartik [Images]	KKR	IND	4	70.67	425000	5	151785.71	2147.91
Wilkin Mota	KXI	IND	2	4.67	30000	5	10714.29	2295.92
Mohd Asif	DD	PAK	3	60.00	650000	3	139285.71	2321.43
Andrew Symonds [Images]	DC	AUS	4	147.67	1350000	4	385714.29	2612.06
M Muralitharan	CSK	SL	3	63.00	600000	4	171428.57	2721.09
Brett Lee	KXI	AUS	4	114.00	900000	4	257142.86	2256
Shoaib Malik [Images]	DD	PAK	3	38.00	500000	3	107142.86	2819.55
Jacob Oram [Images]	CSK	NZ	4	67.00	675000	4	192857.14	2878.46
Dinesh Karthik [Images]	DD	IND	4	52.00	525000	4	150000.00	2884.62
Jacques Kallis	RCB	SA	5	108.33	900000	5	321428.57	2967.03
David Hussey	KKR	AUS	5	80.33	675000	5	241071.43	3000.89
Munaf Patel [Images]	RR	IND	5	31.00	275000	5	98214.29	3168.20
Scott Styris	DC	NZ	1	19.67	175000	5	62500.00	3177.97
Ishant Sharma	KKR	IND	5	105.00	950000	5	339285.71	3231.29
RP Singh	DC	IND	5	95.00	875000	5	312500.00	3289.47
Manoj Tiwary	DD	IND	4	50.67	675000	4	192857.14	3806.39
Mohd Kaif	RR	IND	5	60.67	675000	5	241071.43	3973.70
Daniel Vettori	DD	NZ	2	42.00	625000	4	178571.43	4251.70
Sourav Ganguly	KKR	IND	5	89.00	1092500	5	390178.57	4384.03
Salman Butt [Images]	KKR	PAK	1	4.67	100000	3	21428.57	4591.84
R Sarwan	KXI	WI	2	16.00	225000	5	80357.14	5022.32
T Srivastava	KXI	IND	1	2.00	30000	5	10714.29	5357.14
Pankaj Singh	RR	IND	2	2.00	30000	5	10714.29	5357.14
Taruwar Kohli	RR	IND	1	2.00	30000	5	10714.29	5357.14
Brett Geeves	DD	AUS	1	3.00	50000	5	17857.14	5952.38
Rahul Dravid	RCB	IND	5	61.33	1035000	5	369642.86	6026.79
S Sreesanth [Images]	KXI	IND	5	34.00	625000	5	223214.29	6565.13
Dale Steyn	RCB	SA	2	10.33	325000	3	69642.86	6739.63
Ricky Ponting	KKR	AUS	4	15.33	400000	4	114285.71	7453.42
D Fernando	MI	SL	1	7.00	150000	5	53571.43	7653.06
S Chanderpaul	RCB	WI	2	9.33	200000	5	71428.57	7653.06
Bharat Chipli	RCB	IND	1	1.33	30000	5	10714.29	8035.71
Anil Kumble [Images]	RCB	IND	1	14.00	500000	5	178571.43	12755.10
Sunil Joshi	RCB	IND	4	0.67	30000	5	10714.29	16071.43
Albie Morkel	CSK	SA	1	10.00	650000	4	185714.29	18571.43
H Gibbs	DC	SA	1	2.00	575000	5	205357.14	102678.57

The Twenty20 game seems to have got faster. While the average score in last year's ICC [Images] World Cup in 20 overs was 160, it's now closer to 170 in 20 overs in the DLF IPL.

So every batsman is now expected to score 8.5 runs in 6 balls. He gets bonus points if he scores at a faster rate, and loses points if he can't sustain this rate. The batting points equal the number of runs scored plus or minus the departure from the expected scoring rate.

A bowler is now expected to concede 34 runs in his 4 overs, and gets bonus or penalty points if he concedes less or more. Every wicket is equal to 17 points ("runs").

A catch or a stumping fetches 4 points to the fielder or wicket-keeper. A direct run out gives the fielder 17 points. If the run out dismissal involves two or more players, the 17 points are suitably shared.

Table 2: IPL's most valuable players (19 matches so far; as on noon of 2 May 2008)

Rank	Player	Team	From	Runs	Balls	Bat Pts	BB	RC	W	Bowl Pts	Ct St	Run Outs	Field Pts	M	Total
1	Shane Watson	RR	AUS	162	112	174.67	115	144	6	105.33	1	0.5	12	5	292.00
2	B McCullum	KKR	NZ	183	92	243.33	0	0	0	0	1	0	4	4	247.33
3	K Sangakkara	KXI	SL	175	103	212.67	0	0	0	0	3	1	28	5	240.67
4	Yuvraj Singh	KXI	IND	152	94	178.67	12	11	1	21	5	0.5	28	5	227.67
5	Yusuf Pathan	RR	IND	154	83	197.33	49	74	2	23.33	0	0	0	5	220.67
6	Rohit Sharma	DC	IND	178	111	208.00	0	0	0	0	3	0	12	5	220.00
7	Michael Hussey	CSK	AUS	168	100	202.67	0	0	0	0	2	0	8	4	210.67
8	MS Dhoni	CSK	IND	140	76	178.67	0	0	0	0	1	1.5	28	4	206.67
9	Adam Gilchrist	DC	AUS	159	93	194.00	0	0	0	0	3	0	12	5	206.00
10	M Hayden	CSK	AUS	189	131	203.33	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	203.33
11	V Sehwag	DD	IND	136	63	188.00	12	30	1	2	0	0.5	8	4	198.00
12	Ross Taylor	RCB	NZ	149	81	190.00	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	4	190.00
13	G Gambhir	DD	IND	174	123	184.00	0	0	0	0	1	0	4	4	188.00
14	Irfan Pathan	KXI	IND	31	34	16.67	120	143	9	161	1	0	4	5	181.67
15	S Jayasuriya	MI	SL	86	65	85.33	60	70	4	74	2	0.5	16	5	175.33
16	Ajit Agarkar	KKR	IND	33	28	28.67	102	132	8	132	1	0.5	12	5	172.67
17	Shane Warne	RR	AUS	43	30	46.00	96	125	7	115	2	0	8	5	169.00
18	Suresh Raina	CSK	IND	113	67	136.67	0	0	0	0	4	0.5	24	4	160.67
19	Dwayne Bravo	MI	WI	145	108	146.00	72	119	1	-7	3	0.5	20	4	159.00
20	Zaheer Khan	RCB	IND	28	32	13.33	112	159	8	118.33	1	1	20	5	151.67
21	A Symonds	DC	AUS	161	105	182.00	41	101	0	-46.33	3	0	12	4	147.67
22	H Singh	MI	IND	30	17	37.33	60	82	5	78.00	2	1.5	32	3	147.33
23	R Jadeja	RR	IND	99	70	104.67	0	0	0	0.00	3	1.5	36	5	140.67
24	R Uthappa	MI	IND	155	134	131.33	0	0	0	0.00	1	0	4	5	135.33
25	S Dhawan	DD	IND	127	105	114.00	0	0	0	0.00	3	0.5	20	4	134.00
26	Graeme Smith	RR	SA	122	94	118.67	0	0	0	0.00	1	0	4	3	122.67
27	Rajat Bhatia	DD	IND	25	20	23.33	60	63	4	81.00	0	1	16	4	120.33
28	James Hopes	KXI	AUS	87	49	108.67	48	86	2	10.00	0	0	0	2	118.67
29	Abhishek Nayar	MI	IND	101	56	127.33	18	46	0	-22.00	3	0	12	5	117.33
30	Piyush Chawla	KXI	IND	24	12	32.00	86	119	5	75.67	2	0	8	5	115.67
31	Shaun Pollock	MI	SA	98	79	90.67	94	149	3	24.33	0	0	0	5	115.00
32	Brett Lee	KXI	AUS	17	13	16.67	88	112	4	69.33	3	1	28	4	114.00
33	Laxmi Shukla	KKR	IND	88	63	92.00	31	57	2	16.33	1	0	4	5	112.33
34	Mark Boucher	RCB	SA	85	61	88.67	0	0	0	0.00	3	0.5	20	5	108.67
35	Jacques Kallis	RCB	SA	112	95	97.33	96	173	3	3.00	2	0	8	5	108.33
36	Ashok Dinda	KKR	IND	1	3	-2.00	102	94	4	106.00	1	0	4	5	108.00
37	Ishant Sharma	KKR	IND	5	4	4.67	100	101	4	96.33	1	0	4	5	105.00
38	Shahid Afridi	DC	PAK	25	18	26.00	78	105	5	79.00	0	0	0	4	105.00
39	Praveen Kumar	RCB	IND	64	55	54.67	114	162	3	38.00	2	0	8	5	100.67
40	VVS Laxman	DC	IND	103	88	88.67	0	0	0	0.00	1	0.5	12	5	100.67
41	Simon Katich	KXI	AUS	96	69	100.00	0	0	0	0.00	0	0	0	2	100.00
42	RP Singh	DC	IND	4	5	1.33	107	137	5	85.67	0	0.5	8	5	95.00
43	F Maharoof	DD	SL	18	12	20.00	66	78	4	74.00	0	0	0	3	94.00
44	M Jayawardene	KXI	SL	74	48	84.00	0	0	0	0.00	0	0.5	8	4	92.00
45	Shaun Marsh	KXI	AUS	84	62	85.33	0	0	0	0.00	1	0	4	1	89.33
46	Sourav Ganguly	KKR	IND	91	102	46.00	42	49	2	39.00	1	0	4	5	89.00
47	David Hussey	KKR	AUS	109	107	75.33	36	71	1	-7.00	3	0	12	5	80.33
48	S Asnodkar	RR	IND	60	34	74.67	0	0	0	0.00	0	0	0	1	74.67
49	S Badrinath	CSK	IND	33	15	46.00	0	0	0	0.00	3	1	28	4	74.00
50	Murali Kartik	KKR	IND	13	14	7.33	58	74	3	51.33	3	0	12	4	70.67
51	Chaminda Vaas	DC	SL	12	7	14.67	60	73	3	55.00	0	0	0	3	69.67
52	Jacob Oram	CSK	NZ	18	12	20.00	96	149	3	27.00	3	0.5	20	4	67.00
53	S Trivedi	RR	IND	3	7	-3.33	108	154	5	70.00	0	0	0	5	66.67
54	Prasanta Saha	KKR	IND	38	35	29.33	0	0	0	0.00	3	1.5	36	4	65.33
55	Wasim Jaffer	RCB	IND	66	58	54.67	0	0	0	0.00	0	0.5	8	3	62.67
56	Vikram Singh	KXI	IND	4	2	5.33	72	103	4	57.00	0	0	0	3	62.33
57	Rahul Dravid	RCB	IND	72	68	53.33	0	0	0	0.00	2	0	8	5	61.33
58	Md Kaif	RR	IND	73	67	56.67	0	0	0	0.00	1	0	4	5	60.67
59	D Kulkarni	MI	IND	2	16	-17.33	82	104	4	69.33	2	0	8	5	60.00
60	Parthiv Patel	CSK	IND	71	65	55.33	0	0	0	0.00	1	0	4	4	59.33
61	Umar Gul	KKR	PAK	2	2	1.33	24	31	3	49.00	0	0.5	8	1	58.33
62	Md Hafeez	KKR	PAK	36	46	10.67	42	40	1	32.00	1	0.5	12	4	54.67
63	Sanjay Bangar	DC	IND	25	32	7.33	78	109	2	27.00	1	1	20	5	54.33
64	Luke Ronchi	MI	AUS	34	32	25.33	0	0	0	0.00	3	1	28	4	53.33
65	Kamran Akmal	RR	PAK	27	19	28.67	0	0	0	0.00	4	0.5	24	2	52.67
66	Dinesh Karthik	DD	IND	26	18	28.00	0	0	0	0.00	4	0.5	24	4	52.00
67	Yo Mahesh	DD	IND	6	5	5.33	72	86	2	42.00	1	0	4	3	51.33
68	Manoj Tiwary	DD	IND	50	43	42.67	0	0	0	0.00	0	0.5	8	4	50.67
69	Virat Kohli	RCB	IND	50	41	45.33	6	11	0	-3.00	2	0	8	5	50.33
70	Ashish Nehra	MI	IND	3	12	-10.00	84	130	4	46.00	3	0	12	5	48.00
71	Karan Goel	KXI	IND	69	64	52.67	12	25	0	-9.00	1	0	4	5	47.67
72	Arjun Yadav	DC	IND	38	26	41.33	0	0	0	0.00	0	0	0	4	41.33
73	Mahesh Rawat	RR	IND	3	7	-3.33	0	0	0	0.00	3	2	44	3	40.67
74	Musavir Khote	MI	IND	24	22	18.67	30	51	2	21.00	0	0	0	4	39.67
75	Shoaib Malik	DD	PAK	25	21	22.00	27	40	1	12.00	1	0	4	3	38.00
76	Nuwan Zoysa	DC	SL	1	2	-0.67	48	62	2	34.00	1	0	4	2	37.33
77	Dinesh Salunkhe	RR	IND	27	21	26.00	24	41	1	7.00	1	0	4	4	37.00
78	Debabrata Das	KKR	IND	40	33	36.00	0	0	0	0.00	0	0	0	2	36.00
79	B Akhil	RCB	IND	5	10	-3.33	42	51	2	37.00	0	0	0	3	33.67
80	Saurabh Tiwary	MI	IND	17	10	20.67	0	0	0	0.00	0	0	0	1	20.67
81	Scott Styris	DC	NZ	6	7	2.67	24	19	0	13.00	1	0	4	1	19.67
82	R Sarwan	KXI	WI	22	24	12.00	0	0	0	0.00	1	0	4	2	16.00
83	Ricky Ponting	KKR	AUS	39	53	7.33	0	0	0	0.00	2	0	8	4	15.33
84	Sohail Tanvir	RR	PAK	3	3	2.00	48	61	0	3.00	0	0.5	8	2	13.00
85	Ashley Noffke	RCB	AUS	9	10	4.67	24	40	1	8.00	0	0	0	1	12.67
86	D Lehmann	RR	AUS	18	18	12.00	0	0	0	0.00	0	0	0	2	12.00
87	Pinal Shah	MI	IND	19	23	7.33	0	0	0	0.00	1	0	4	2	11.33
88	Dale Steyn	RCB	SA	1	2	-0.67	48	69	1	11.00	0	0	0	2	10.33
89	S Chanderpaul	RCB	WI	18	20	9.33	0	0	0	0.00	0	0	0	2	9.33
90	D Kalyankrishna	DC	IND	3	8	-4.67	48	87	2	9.00	1	0	4	3	8.33
91	Venugopal Rao	DC	IND	29	38	7.33	6	9	0	-1.00	0	0	0	3	6.33
92	Wilkin Mota	KXI	IND	1	1	0.67	18	36	1	4.00	0	0	0	2	4.67
93	Salman Butt	KKR	PAK	7	7	4.67	0	0	0	0.00	0	0	0	1	4.67
94	T Srivastava	KXI	IND	7	9	2.00	0	0	0	0.00	0	0	0	1	2.00
95	Pankaj Singh	RR	IND	4	3	4.00	18	26	0	-2.00	0	0	0	2	2.00
96	Taruwar Kohli	RR	IND	7	12	-2.00	0	0	0	0.00	1	0	4	1	2.00
97	H Gibbs	DC	SA	7	9	2.00	0	0	0	0.00	0	0	0	1	2.00
98	Bharat Chipli	RCB	IND	8	11	1.33	0	0	0	0.00	0	0	0	1	1.33
99	Sunil Joshi	RCB	IND	6	14	-6.67	55	82	1	7.33	0	0	0	4	0.67
100	Brad Hodge	KKR	AUS	1	3	-2.00	0	0	0	0.00	0	0	0	1	-2.00
101	Sunny Sohal	KXI	IND	4	8	-2.67	0	0	0	0.00	0	0	0	2	-2.67
102	Ajinkya Rahane	MI	IND	4	17	-14.67	0	0	0	0.00	1	0.5	12	2	-2.67
103	Cameron White	RCB	AUS	6	10	-1.33	6	24	0	-16.00	1	0	4	1	-13.33
104	Vinay Kumar	RCB	IND	1	1	0.67	28	81	0	-43.67	1	0	4	3	-39.00

2008-05-02T21:17:00.000-07:00

Delhi Daredevils ended the four-match winning streak of the Chennai Super Kings with a comprehensive eight-wicket win in the Indian Premier League match at the M Chidambaram Stadium on Friday.

Scores

The win opened up the tournament and ensured Chennai, Delhi and Rajasthan share the top spot in the table with four wins and a defeat each, and only separated by net run-rate.

Captain Virender Sehwag (71) and the in-form Gautam Gambhir (50) laid the foundation for the Delhi win with an opening wicket partnership of 115 off just 68 balls.

Sehwag was his usual aggressive self, hitting seven boundaries and four massive sixes in his 41-ball knock, while Gambhir again outlined his credentials in this version of the game with his third half-century in five games.

Joginder Sharma, Dhoni's lucky mascot broke the stand by having Sehwag caught by Muralitharan and 24 runs later Gambhir was cleaned up by Gony, but AB de Villiers (26 not out) and Shikar Dhawan (19 not out) saw their team through with an over to spare.

Earlier, Sivaramakrishnan Vidyut celebrated his first match of the Indian Premier League with a quick-fire 54 off 37 balls to steer Chennai Super Kings to a competitive 169 for six against Delhi Daredevils.

Vidyut, who hit seven fours and one six in his 54, proved a perfect replacement for Australian Michael Hussey and his third wicket partnership of 57 runs with his skipper MS Dhoni was the highlight of the match.

With experienced Glenn McGrath bowling a tidy line and length, the hosts began at a sedate pace with openers Parthiv Patel and Stephen Fleming not being able to play big shots.

But once Stephen Fleming was out cheaply for 13, clean-bowled by Yo Mahesh, Vidyut and Patel did not allow the Delhi bowlers to dominate and the duo shared a 43-run second wicket stand and raised their team's 50 in the seventh over.

After Patel was holed out to a good catch by Yo Mahesh at short third man off Sehwag after making 21 (20 balls; 3 fours), Dhoni, though not at his explosive best, maintained the brisk pace of scoring in company of Vidyut.

When Dhoni came in at the fall of Patel, Vidyut was batting on 25 but runs came in at a faster pace and the duo scored 50 runs in just 31 balls, sharing the spoils equally.

Vidyut reached his 50 off 31 balls but made his exit with the addition of another four runs as he came out to drive McGrath only to top-edge to Yo Mahesh at the cover area.

Soon, Dhoni, who was dropped by de Villiers at covers, walked back to the pavilion being caught at long off by Shoaib Malik off Mohd. Asif and Suresh Raina was ran out by Pradeep Sangwan before Albie Morkel did some fireworks scoring 28 off 16 balls to take the Chennai score just one run shy of 170.

For the visitors, five bowlers -- McGrath, Sehwag, Asif, Yo Mahesh and Bhatia -- took one wiicket apiece.

2008-05-01T21:23:00.000-07:00

Shaun Marsh guides Kings XI to Victory

Shaun Marsh sizzled on his Indian Premier League debut and blasted unbeaten 85 off 62 balls as Kings XI Punjab thumped Deccan Chargers by seven wickets with seven balls to spare to coast to their third win of the tournament in Hyderabad on Thursday night.

Chasing 165, the Punjab side romped home in 18.5 overs losing just three wickets. Marsh, son of former Australian opener Geoff Marsh, was the outstanding performer for the winners with a belligerent half century that included 11 boundaries besides a six off Nuwan Zoysa.

Earlier, Rohit Sharma stood tall amid ruins and hammered an unbeaten 42-ball 76 as Deccan Chargers posted 164 for eight despite a middle and lower order collapse.

Right since winning the toss, the Punjab XI did everything right and were always in firm control of the proceedings.

They began their chase on a positive note with Marsh imposing himself on the Deccan bowlers. Though it was his shot that brushed Sanjay Bangar's fingers before hitting the wicket with non-striker Ramnaresh Sarwan [Images] (15) well outside the crease, the youngster made amends by scoring at a brisk rate.

The hosts managed to hit back with D Kalyankrishna removing Kumar Sangakkara (3) and Zoysa taking a catch off his own bowling to scalp Yuvraj Singh [Images] (14).

Marsh, however, found an able ally in Mahela Jayawardene [Images] (45 not out) and the duo milked the Deccan attack with consummate ease to take the match away from the hosts.

Jayawardene's sedate knock came off 23 balls and included six fours and a six. Jayawardene hit the winning runs when he elegantly drove RP Singh for a boundary.

Earlier put into bat, it was a slipshod show by the Deccan batsmen with only Rohit, skipper VVS Laxman (48) and Shahid Afridi [Images] (13) managing double digit scores.

Rohit's magnificent knock was product of his 42-ball stay in the middle which included 10 hits to the fence besides a couple of sixes.

Deccan Chargers began with a flourish but Irfan Pathan [Images] bowled Adam Gilchrist [Images] (6) in the fourth over, while Piyush Chawla soured Herschelle Gibbs' [Images] (7) IPL debut to jolt the hosts.

Though Laxman and Rohit showed signs of a recovery, Chawla struck again removing the Deccan captain, which left the hosts 67 for three in nine overs.

Afridi (13) hit Gagandeep Singh for a huge six but a rush of blood did him in and in the next delivery, Yuvraj Singh took a skier in his fourth attempt to cut short the Pakistani all-rounder's stay in the middle.

Rohit continued playing his shots but wickets kept tumbling at the other end with Y Venugopal Rao (1), Sanjay Bangar (3), Zoysa (1) and Kalyankrishna (3) failing to make any mark.

Kings XI leggie Piyush Chawla once again impressed with a three-wicket haul, conceding 28 runs in his four overs.

2008-05-01T05:28:00.000-07:00

Rajasthan Royals Beat Kolkata

Skipper Sourav Ganguly's fighting half century went in vain as Kolkata Knight Riders succumbed to their third consecutive defeat, going down by 45 runs to Rajasthan Royals in their Indian Premier League match at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur on Thursday.

Chasing 197 for victory, Knight Riders were bundled out for 151 in 19.1 overs. Ganguly's 51 and David Hussey's 30-ball 42 were the only high points of yet another dismal batting performance by the Kolkata team.

The Jaipur team's trio of Shane Watson (2/22), Sohail Tanvir (2/30) and Siddharth Trivedi (2/31) never let the Kolkatans settle down.

The visitors also had some poor running between the wickets to blame for their dismal showing as three of their batsmen were run-out in the match, which marked their third successive loss after reverses against Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians.

Pakistan's Salman Butt opened the innings for Knight Riders in the absence of New Zealand's McCullum but could hardly get a look in as Tanvir castled him for seven in the second over.

Ajit Agarkar not last long either and became Jaipur skipper Shane Warne's only victim of the match after hitting a couple of sixes in his 13-ball 20.

Ganguly held the other end, but with wickets tumbling around him, the asking rate kept climbing, adding to the pressure on the left-hander.

Ricky Ponting's replacement, Brad Hodge, was run-out after adding just one run to the team's score and it was left to Hussey to rebuild the innings after Ganguly too departed with the score at 119.

Ganguly's knock included four boundaries and a couple of sixes.

Hussey, however, could not find an able partner at the other end to build the innings.

Earlier, Swapnil Asnodkar and Yousuf Pathan slammed blazing fifties to guide Rajasthan Royals to 196 for seven.

Asnodkar scored a 34-ball 60, that included ten fours and a six, Pathan was out after scoring 55 off 33 balls, studded with six fours and a couple of sixes.

Royals were dealt an early blow when Graeme Smith (2) departed in the second over of the innings, bowled by Ishant Sharma.

Mohammad Kaif, the next man in, too did not last long. After a whirlwind 21-run knock that included three fours and a six, he was caught by David Hussey off Umar Gul's bowling.

However, Asnodkar and Yousuf scored briskly to help the Royals to a healthy total.

Although Shane Watson couldn't contribute -- he was trapped leg before by Gul for a naught -- Ravindra Jadeja's quickfire 33 of 19 balls boosted the Royals' total. Jadeja was bowled by Laxmi Ratan Shukla after striking three fours and a six.

2008-04-30T21:16:00.000-07:00

Riding on a brilliant half-century from Gautam Gambhir, the Delhi Daredevils defeated bottom-placed Bangalore Royal Challengers by 10 runs in an Indian Premier League (IPL) match here on Wednesday night.

Chasing a target of 192, the Challengers could only make 181 for five wickets from 20 overs at the full-capacity Ferozeshah Kotla Stadium.

The Daredevils moved to the second spot in the IPL standings after their third victory from four matches while the Royal Challengers' misery continued as they were left languishing at the bottom of the standings of the eight-team league after four losses from five matches.

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Gambhir, who struck 86 off 54 balls, was the hero of the day as he helped the Daredevils post a challenging total. Shikhar Dhawan with his well-struck 50 from 33 deliveries gave him support as the Delhi team rediscovered their momentum after losing their last match against Kings XI Punjab in Mohali on Sunday night .

Chasing 192 was always going to be tough for the visitors and they failed to get a good partnership going. Jacques Kallis was the top scorer with 54 while skipper Rahul Dravid made 38.

For the Daredevils, Glenn McGrath (4-29) was the top performer with the ball.

Put into bat, the stage was set for Daredevils batsmen to fire on a good batting track. Much was expected from Daredevils skipper Virender Sehwag (24) who shone albeit momentarily.

Gambhir started the fireworks in the second over as he hit Zaheer Khan for three consecutive boundaries. In the next over, he was again severe on South African pacer Dale Steyn, hitting the pacer for two sweetly-timed boundaries.

Gambhir's big hits inspired Sehwag and again Zaheer was on the firing line. Sehwag spanked his first three deliveries for 6, 4 and 4 to get the partisan crowd swaying.

The Kotla track is never known to assist seamers and by now Dravid that his decision to bowl first had backfired.

The Challengers skipper replaced Zaheer with Vinay Kumar but the result was the same, as he could not find any solution to stop the Daredevils openers from playing their shots.

It was the fielders who gave the Bangalore team their first breakthrough when Ross Taylor's direct throw from point found Sehwag short of ground in the fifth over.

Dhawan joined the party in the middle and did not take much time to settle down. Dhawan and Gambhir applied themselves cleverly and found the gaps at a rapid pace.

The duo added 98 runs for the second wicket and left Dravid struggling for ideas.

Vinay Kumar gave Dhawan width and the Delhi batsman's delicate cuts raced onto the boundary.

Dhawan adapted well to the slow deliveries of Kallis and hit the South African for a huge six. However, Kallis had the last laugh after Dravid took a stunning catch at the midwicket to end the young batsman's 33-ball innings.

Gambhir on the other end was in fine touch. His boundaries were a treat to watch. His knock finally came to an end in the 19th over after he miscued Zaheer's delivery and Parveen Kumar lapped up the resultant catch at deep midwicket. But by then the Delhi opener had set the stage for his team's win.

2008-04-29T22:39:00.000-07:00

Mumbai finally produced a spirited team effort that helped end their drought in the Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Eden Gardens here on Tuesday. A seven-wicket win over Kolkata came after a four-match losing streak that had buried Mumbai at the bottom of the points table.

Dwayne Bravo, Robin Uthappa, Sanath Jayasuriya and Shaun Pollock all played their parts to aptness as Mumbai put behind a forgettable phase that included their stand-in skipper, Harbhajan Singh, being barred from participation in the tournament after their third match.

Chasing a target of 138 too had not looked easy for Mumbai as they lost three quick wickets, but a 113-run unbroken partnership between Bravo (64) and Uthappa (37) ensured that a fine bowling performance led by Jayasuriya and Pollock did not go waste.

Bravo generally offered a straight bat and excelled playing the lofted drive during his 53-ball knock in which he slammed eight fours and a six. On the other hand, Uthappa was not averse to playing square of the wicket despite being dropped early on at point, smashing five fours during his run-a-ball knock.

The duo struck in tandem after Ajit Agarkar, Ishant Sharma and Ashoke Dinda picked up a wicket each to reduce Mumbai to 25-3 in the fifth over.

Earlier, veteran all-rounders Jayasuriya and Pollock put their experience to good use as they restricted Kolkata to 137-8. Jayasuriya returned the best figures of the tournament (3-14) after Pollock had done the initial damage (2-27).

Jayasuriya, who was named ‘man of the match’, had David Hussey and Ajit Agarkar caught by Ashish Nehra at long-on in identical fashion. Between those two dismissals, he also removed Mohammad Hafeez while Ponting was run out as Kolkata slipped from 74-3 in the 12th over to 77-6 in the 14th and then to 90-7 by the 16th over.

Laxmi Rattan Shukla then produced a brisk knock of 40 from 22 deliveries, sending the ball to all parts of the ground much to the delight of the home crowd. The former India all-rounder, who had scored a similar 42 against Chennai, struck four fours and two sixes during his crucial knock and made batting look easy on a slow but bouncy pitch.

Earlier, Pollock, leading the team since Harbhajan Singh’s ouster from the tournament because of a ban, produced an inspired first over in which he dismissed openers Brendon McCullum and Sourav Ganguly.

Pollock had Ganguly caught by Jayasuriya at slip immediately after the left-hander had dispatched a delivery from the South African to the mid-wicket boundary with a short-arm pull. Pollock then trapped McCullum leg-before as he shuffled across.

Debabrata Das was the third batsman to be dismissed, his flurry of shots on the leg side getting him 29 off 19, but a slash outside off giving Dwayne Bravo a wicket in his first over. Robin Uthappa, fielding at point, accepted the catch gleefully and followed it with a trademark bow.

Going into the match, Mumbai had yet to earn a point after four outings while Kolkata were third on the points table with two wins from three matches.

Mumbai have had to do without skipper Sachin Tendulkar thus far but Pollock did a fine job in marshalling his resources.

Teams:

Mumbai: Sanath Jayasuriya, Robin Uthappa, Shaun Pollock (capt), Abhishek Nayar, Dwayne Bravo, Pinal Shah (wk), Manish Pandey, Ashish Nehra, Dhaval Kulkarni, Dilhara Fernando.

Kolkata: Sourav Ganguly (capt), Brendon McCullum (wk), Ricky Ponting, Debabrata Das (wk), David Hussey, Mohammad Hafeez, Laxmi Rattan Shukla, Ajit Agarkar, Murali Kartik, Ishant Sharma, Ashok Dinda.

Total: 163 for 5 in 20.0 overs Run Rate: 8.15 Extras : 7 (b - 1, w - 3, nb - 1, lb - 2, Penalty - 0)

Fall of wickets:1/39 (Vidyut Sivaramakrishnan 5.2 ov.), 2/64 (Parthiv Patel 9 ov.), 3/95 (Albie Morkel 12.4 ov.), 4/128 (Suresh Raina 16.2 ov.), 5/148 (Chamara Kapugedera 19.1 ov.)

2008-04-29T22:38:00.000-07:00

New Delhi: The IPL management appears to be extremely serious about not allowing the controversy involving Harbhajan Singh and S Sreesanth to escalate any further.

Umpire Amiesh Saheba, who was quoted in a regional newspaper as saying that Sreesanth was provoking Mumbai Indian players during the match was suspended for two games for his comments on S Sreesanth.

Saheba has been given 48 hours to reply to that notice and faces a two-match suspension.

Saheba, who was officiated the game, had said that Sreesanth had commented on the other players in the opposition team and the senior umpire on the field, Aleem Dar, had also been informed about the incident.

He went on to claim that the bowler was warned twice during the game. He also said that he was not asked by match referee Farokh Engineer to testify in the case.

The decision of the panel concluded that the attack from Harbhajan was 'unprovoked'.