All posts by csb10.top

The game at Ahmedabad’s Motera stadium shaped exactly like theone at Rajkot. Sourav Ganguly won the toss and asked the WestIndies to have a bat first, no doubt emboldened in his decisionby India’s whirlwind chase – rudely interrupted by the crowd – inthe previous game.In my last column, I had mentioned the logical options that areavailable to a captain on winning the toss. If the Indian captainopted to field first, he must have believed either than hisbowlers could restrict the West Indies to a gettable target orthat his batsmen were capable of chasing down even the tallestscores. At the Motera, Ganguly would have had an additionalfactor on his mind – the dew that would undoubtedly make bowlingdifficult in the second half of the match.Chris Gayle, at the moment, is in terrific form. One may lookaskance at his footwork, but the clean strikes from his bat canonly be admired. He is yet another batsman in world cricket whobelieves in straddling the crease with a wide stance, enablinghim to be flexible enough to pull a short delivery or drive afull one. This approach is a real problem for the bowlers, asthey hard-pressed to get the length right.Gayle scored a fabulous 140 on the day, but one must not forgetRamnaresh Sarwan. The latter yet again got so near yet so far tohis first international hundred, but he played like a championnevertheless, consolidating Gayle’s frenzied start with aresponsible, mature innings and helping the West Indies post animposing target of 325 for India to chase.India lost Virender Sehwag early, and sensing that the run-rateneeded to be boosted right away, Ganguly played some excellentshots to up the tempo. Unfortunately he was caught behind tryingto flick one down the legside to the fine leg fence. It was thenup to VVS Laxman and Rahul Dravid to play responsible knocks tosteady the Indian innings, which they did very well indeed.It was that partnership that brought hope back into the Indianinnings. Dravid in particular, playing the anchor to perfectionand holding down the fort at one end, was extraordinary, pacinghis innings to perfection and letting the other batsmen playaround him. Sanjay Bangar also came up with a gem of an innings,a deep contrast to his usually dour approach in Test cricket.The West Indians, in my opinion, lost their hold on this seriesever since they allowed Ganguly and Sehwag to smash the ball intooblivion at Rajkot. Their bowling at Ahmedabad was indisciplined,to say the least; the numerous wides and no-balls are mutetestimony to that fact.But nevertheless, the 649 runs scored in the match onlyhighlights how closely fought the match was, and that there waslittle to choose from in the batting departments of the twoteams. With the series at two-all, where the rubber will go fromhere is anybody’s guess.

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

Mumbai rounded off their IPL campaign with a comfortable win over the Bangalore Royal Challengers in a match reduced to 18 overs a side by rain. Sanath Jayasuriya and Sachin Tendulkar weren’t troubled by the damp conditions and added 96 in 69 balls after Dilhara Fernando restricted Bangalore to 122 with controlled spells of bowling that fetched him four wickets.While Mumbai’s three seamers – Shaun Pollock, Ashish Nehra and Fernando – troubled the Bangalore batsmen with varying line and length, Bangalore’s bowlers, except Dale Steyn, caused no discomfort to Mumbai’s in-form openers. Rahul Dravid chose to open with Anil Kumble, like he did in the previous game, and was made to pay as Jayasuriya lofted the bowler for a four over his head off the second ball.In any opening partnership that features Jayasuriya, the other batsman will have to play second fiddle and Tendulkar did just that as Jayasuriya went on the attack. However both the batsmen were shaken by Steyn’s pace and ability to seam the ball both ways. In his first over – that went for one run – Steyn cut one in to Jayasuriya, then had him miss a pull with a ball that stayed low and followed it with an away delivery that Jayasuriya nearly edged to the keeper. But the inability of the other bowlers to get the right length undid Steyn’s efforts.The short ball was used effectively by Mumbai’s bowlers to keep the runs in check but similar deliveries by Bangalore’s bowlers went for fours and sixes off Jayasuriya’s bat. R Vinay Kumar was hit for successive sixes and fours to midwicket and fine leg in an over that cost 16 runs. In contrast, for Mumbai, Pollock and Nehra set up Shreevats Goswami for Fernando’s taking with back-of-length deliveries that jumped up at him. And though Mark Boucher countered bouncers from the two with ease, he appeared off-guard for one by Fernando and ended up lobbing it to Robin Uthappa at mid-on.In Mumbai’s last match, Fernando had a nightmare final over where he conceded 15 runs to hand the Rajasthan Royals their 11th win of the tournament. But he had no hangover of that game today as he took three wickets for three runs in his first two overs. Later, when Tendulkar kept faith in him and gave him the final over, Fernando responded by conceding only seven and picking up a fourth wicket.Bangalore were hindered not only by the slow outfield, that converted certain boundaries in to threes and twos, but also by Mumbai’s fielders, who contained runs by running hard and diving across the ground. The last three overs – which went for 30 runs – allowed Bangalore to go past 100 but it was never going to be enough to stop Jayasuriya and Tendulkar from sealing an easy win.

A hundred from Wavell Hinds has failed to stop Barbadados from winning the 2002-03 Red Stripe Bowl.In the morning, Barbados after being put in by Jamaica reached 241 for eight in their 50 overs. Left-hander Floyd Reifer, who made 86 off 98 balls, opener Kurt Wilkinson, who made a patient 63 off 110 balls, and captain Courtney Browne, who made a hard-hitting 40 off 25 balls, were the men who guided their team to a healthy score.The Barbados cause was greatly helped by some poor Jamaican fielding, the home team dropping as many four catches including that of Reifer when the left-hander was on 28. Another beneficiary was Browne, who was dropped on one and on 16. With the home team’s fielding going to pieces, Barbados capitalised to plunder as many as 115 runs of the last 15 overs.The Jamaican reply got off to the worst possible start with openers Leon Garrick (0) and Chris Gayle (3) being dismissed with their team’s score on eight in the 8th over. Hinds in the company of Marlon Samuels repaired some of the damage by putting on 63 runs in about 18 overs for the third wicket before Samuels was run out for 22. Ricardo Powell and Gareth Breese, who followed, failed, making just 5 and 15 respectively.Hinds and his captain Robert Samuels, though, resuscitated the Jamaican innings with a whirlwind 57 runs partnership in 6.2 overs. But once the elder Samuels was dismissed for quickfire 29 off 21 balls, the home team’s innings fell apart. Hinds went on to make 103 off 141 balls with eight fours before becoming the ninth Jamaican batsman to be dismissed with his team’s score on 207. Five balls and one run later, last man Daren Powell was also dismissed as Barbados sealed a 33-run win with 22 balls to spare. Reifer was named Man of the Match for his 86.

The Tasmanian Selectors have today announced the Cascade Tasmanian Tigers ACB Cup team to play the Australian Capital Territory at Bellerive Oval on Monday, 4th – Thursday, 7th November 2002.CASCADE TASMANIAN TIGERS

Scott KREMERSKOTHEN (Captain)
Scott MASON (Vice Captain)
George BAILEY
Chris BASSANO
Luke BUTTERWORTH
Xavier DOHERTY
Andrew DOWNTON
Ben OLIVER
Tim PAINE
Matthew PASCOE
Shannon TUBB
Luke WILLIAMS
Coach: Darrin Ramshaw

BRISBANE, June 8 AAP – Australian cricket vice-captain Adam Gilchrist has urged Sri Lankan spinner Muttiah Muralitharan to rethink reported plans to skip a tour of Australia later this year.Gilchrist, reprimanded last month by the Australian Cricket Board for comments he made concerning Muralitharan’s bowling action, said today he hoped the 400-Test wicket taker would not bypass Sri Lanka’s one-day series in Australia later this year.It’s understood Muralitharan and the Sri Lanka management don’t want the spinner to tour for fear of disruptions ahead of the World Cup which follows directly after the tri-series in Australia.”That’s a decision that he’s got to make along his with support group but I’m sure the Australian team, the Australian Cricket Board and the cricket fans here would love to see him out here again and he’d be most welcome,” Gilchrist said.”He’s a very exciting cricketer and a great bloke and I’d be very disappointed and feel sorry if he didn’t come.”Muralitharan has been called twice for throwing in Australia – by umpire Darrell Hair in 1995 and by umpire Ross Emerson in 1998, with the second incident prompting then captain Arjuna Ranatunga to call his players from the field in protest.Muralitharan’s action has been cleared by the International Cricket Council.Gilchrist was reprimanded two weeks ago by the ACB for telling a Carlton Football Club luncheon that he thought Muralitharan was a chucker.The Australian wicketkeeper was speaking today ahead of one-day series against Pakistan, which starts in Melbourne on Wednesday at Colonial Stadium.But Gilchrist will not play in Australia’s scheduled practice match against Queensland at Allan Border Field tomorrow after being given time off for a family engagement.Queensland wicketkeeper Wade Seccombe will don the gloves for Australia.Gilchrist said the three matches against Pakistan would form an important part of Australia’s preparations for the World Cup in South Africa next year.”It’s major part of our build-up. We’ve got about 20 one-day games between now and the World Cup, give or take a few finals and the like, and so that’s going to be the main event for us,” he said.Gilchrist, the world’s No.1 ranked one-day batsman, said he and team management would continue to monitor his workload to ensure he was able to play at his peak, with the dual demands of batting and wicket-keeping putting a strain on his knees.”I’ve had tendonitis in both knees for a while and it’s something I have to keep on top of. I’ve seen a specialist in the past and he recommended that I not squat up and down for six months so that wasn’t that helpful,” he said.”The cancellation of the Zimbabwe tour meant that I had more of break so I’m feeling pretty good but obviously looking at the schedule, there’s a lot of cricket ahead and we’ll be looking to manage that as best we can.”I haven’t sat down and worked out that I’m going to play this match or that match but obviously if our physio Errol Alcott recommends I have a break, then we might have to get someone in for a game.”And it’s not just about me – the workload issue is one for all of the players and the coach, the captain and the selectors will make any adjustments as we go along.”

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) today announced the introduction of a Fixed Penalty disciplinary system for the coming season for registered County players. It supplements, but does not replace, the previous system whereby Counties and/or ECB took discretionary disciplinary action.Breaches of discipline and the Spirit of Cricket are placed into four categories, each with a fixed penalty, ranging from a reprimand through to a scale of demerit points. A player who accumulates the appropriate number of demerit points in any 12-month period will receive an automatic suspension.An ECB Disciplinary Panel may consider taking further action if it considers the offence warrants a tougher penalty than the minimum provided under the fixed penalty procedures. The ECB anticipates, however, that generally the fixed penalty will suffice to meet the seriousness of the offence. Fixed penalties will be generated by umpires reporting a player to the ECB but on the field procedures for the umpires remain unchanged – there are no yellow or red cards.Commenting on the new system, Alan Fordham, (ECB Cricket Operations Manager), said, “While we recognise that on-field behaviour had not seriously declined, this new system is designed to assist umpires and is aimed at being fair and consistent. We welcome it and feel confident that it will maintain the good standard of discipline in our domestic game”.

Bengal were bowled out for 247 by two teenagers in reply to the hosts’total of 467 at the Gujarat State Fertilizer Corporation Ground on thethird day of the Ranji Trophy pre-quarter-final match against Barodaon Monday.Baroda chose not to enforce the follow-on and were 121 for two whenstumps were drawn. SS Parab (33) and Jacob Martin (31) wereat the crease with the hosts having an overall lead of 341 runs.The wreckers-in-chief in the Bengal innings were 17-year-old IrfanPathan and 19-year-old Irfan Khan Pathan. Irfan Pathan bagged 3/40with his left arm medium pacers while the right handed medium pacerIrfan Khan Pathan picked up 4/59.Bengal resumed at one for no loss. Opener Nikhil Haldipur (2) wascastled by Irfan Khan Pathan to the first ball of his spell. Pathanbowled a tight spell but was not supported well by Rakesh Patel fromthe other end. Patel was guilty of overstepping and he had 17 no ballsand six wides in his spell.At the other end, opener AA Lahiri (10) and skipper Debang Gandhi (0),both fell prey to the accurate IK Pathan. Bengal were tottering at 24for three until Rohan Gavaskar (61) and Shrikant Kalyani (48) put on aface saving 101-run partnership for the fourth wicket. Both batsmenfell in quick succession just when the team wanted either of the twoto drop anchor and build on the innings.On their dismissal, Baroda put the pressure back on the Bengal middleorder. It was a brave fightback from the lower order in the shape ofveteran all rounder Utpal Chatterjee (52 not out) and AK Das (32) whoadded a crucial 69 runs for the eighth wicket. But this was not enoughas the Bengal innings folded up in 51 overs.Baroda in their second essay lost the wickets of Connor Williams (32)and H Jadhav (17), both falling to Laxmi Ratan Shukla.

Indian coach John Wright said in Bangalore on Monday that two or threespinners and four seamers would be the ideal bowling attack in the upcoming tour of Zimbabwe. “I personally favour the inclusion of two or three spinners as well as four seamers for the team which would tour Zimbabwe,” he told reporters after the end of the second day of the conditioning camp for probables. “But the matter has to be discussed and gone through,” Wright added.On Sourav Ganguly’s lack of form during the recent Australian series,Wright said it was only a matter of time before the Indian captain would strike form again. “Sourav is a world class player. He has got tremendous average in both forms of the game……everyone goes through a lean spell,” he said. “He (Sourav) is very good at the nets. He is working hard and has good tactics”.Wright said Punjab batsman Yuvraj Singh, one of the probables, had passed the fitness target set for him.On India’s dismal away record in the past, Wright said, it was because the country did not play good cricket and to its potential. “We have proved to ourselves and the Indian public that if we play good cricket, we get some good results. Unless you play good cricket, you don’t get good results. If we play to our potential, I am very hopeful that we will get the results everybody wants,” he said, responding to a question about India’s prospects in Zimbabwe where India also play West Indies in a One-day tri-series competition. “Your prospects anywhere completely depend on the quality of players. From that point of view, we have to build on the effort from the last series (against Australia which India won 2-1),” he said.

The Western Australian Cricket Association (WACA) is pleased to announce three additions to its list of State Contracted Players for season 2002-03.Callum Thorp, Beau Casson and Peter Worthington have been included in the Western Warriors squad for next season after the WACA’s International and Interstate Committee gave formal approval of recommendations made by the WA State Selectors.Beau Casson and Peter Worthington have been awarded a Rookie Contract and Callum Thorp a Senior Contract. Last season Worthington held a Senior Contract and Casson held a Rookie Contract.27 year old Thorp is tall right-arm out-swing bowler and handy lower order batsman from Wanneroo Cricket Club.Thorp was awarded a contract following an outstanding 2001-2002 season in the WACA s Sunsmart League, where he claimed 50 wickets at an average of 16.38 and finished second in the Olly Cooley medal.Thorp was selected in the WA 2nd XI for the final game of last season and showed his capabilities by taking 4-52 from 17.5 overs in the 1st innings and 3-22 from 13.1 overs in the 2nd. He also scored 28 runs in the WA 2nd innings, batting at number 8.The WACA has the option of awarding a further Senior Contract and Rookie Contract prior to finalising its list of contracted Players for season 2002-2003.

Former Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik and wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal have until December 30 to provide the PCB with the necessary documents to clear their names for World Cup selection.”The PCB has asked them to submit the documents about their assets and bank accounts by December 30 to be considered in the list of probables for the World Cup,” Subhan Ahmad, the board’s COO, told .The ICC had extended Pakistan’s deadline for the submission of its preliminary 30-member squad for the tournament to January 5, after receiving a request from the board. Kamran and Malik have not played for Pakistan since their controversial tour of England in August and were left out of the tour to the United Arab Emirates. They have also been denied permission to play league cricket in Bangladesh. The PCB has remained fairly tight-lipped about the reasons for their exclusion.Kamran and Malik had both questioned the board’s decision to not clear them for the New Zealand tour. Kamran had written to the ICC asking if he was under investigation and got a clean chit from them. The ICC had sent him and Salman Butt notices during Pakistan’s tour of England in August, seeking information about events related to the 2010 World Twenty20 held in May.Legspinner Danish Kaneria, who has not figured in Pakistan’s one-day plans in recent times, was also earlier given until the end of the year to submit his replies to the board’s integrity committee’s queries, in order to gain clearance to play for the country.