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

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

Harbhajan Singh may have struggled with his bowling over the last year, but when it comes to a scrap, you want him in your corner

Sidharth Monga at Newlands04-Jan-2011Harbhajan Singh has come in for criticism for his bowling over the last year, not unjustifiably, as his average of 40.69 suggests. However, when it comes down to a scrap, you want him in your corner. And whether he was batting or bowling today, it was a scrap all right. There was no use hanging around with the bat, for Dale Steyn would have surely got him with one of those amazing outswingers, and Harbhajan took the sensible approach, getting his body out of harm’s way and slogging.To the day three years ago in Sydney, in another scrap, he gave Sachin Tendulkar similar support in securing India a first-innings lead. Today, he set South Africa thinking with one four down the ground off Morne Morkel and another huge hook off Lonwabo Tsotosbe that nearly ended up in the Newlands Train Station. That 76-run partnership with Tendulkar, 40 of which Harbhajan scored, set India on the road to sharing control of the game.”I always enjoy my batting,” Harbhajan said at the end of the day’s play. “I don’t have the technique to bat like Rahul Dravid or Sachin Tendulkar or Jacques Kallis. This is the way I play my cricket, and I knew [if the ball was pitched in certain] areas, it was going to disappear. I did hit a couple of big sixes today, but I am happy about it. Would have been nice to get another 50-60. I am always greedy.”He spoke about that Sydney partnership too, and how it has been great for him to have batted with Tendulkar and VVS Laxman. “When I have batted with Sachin and Laxman, they have been helpful. In Sydney I batted with Sachin and again today. They have a lot of things to tell me. When I was batting, Sachin told me to play my natural game and counter-attack was the best option. With the kind of technique I have, I could have got hit on my ribs or somewhere else. He told me just to play my shots. I felt I should play my shots, and they would try to do something else. I think that worked, and they didn’t bowl the right line to me.”When India came out to bat, South Africa got off to a solid start, but Harbhajan emphasised his presence with two late wickets. Given the way the pitch has behaved, Harbhajan could be a crucial factor on day four. “There is a bit of bounce, and it’s not even. Some balls are going down and some are bouncing little bit more than you expect. It’s good if you keep on hitting the right areas, you still have a chance of getting good batsmen out, like [Jacques] Kallis and [Hashim] Amla. Those are the two key wickets we need to get, and then we will be in the driving seat.”Another scrap where Harbhajan has been influential is in keeping Sreesanth calm. Sreesanth has courted controversy with his sledging and been taunted by the crowd, but Harbhajan has made a conscious effort to keep him in check. When Sreesanth got Amla’s wicket in the first innings, he seemed to want to run towards the crowd. Harbhajan, though, held him back. Physically. And mock-clapped at the crowd from afar.”Crowd tried booing me in Australia, it doesn’t affect me,” Harbhajan said. “Let them enjoy. They have come to see the game. And obviously Sreesanth is getting more famous with this. I have enjoyed in Australia, let him enjoy here. It is not a bad thing.”Regarding the general heating up of tempers in the series, Harbhajan suggested he was enjoying it. “This is how the cricket is being played. When No.1 and No.2 sides play, there’s a lot of competitiveness, but I think everything is under control. Yes, you have to play with aggression. You can’t just be quiet there and waiting for things to happen. If you feel this is the way to play, why not go out and express yourself? This is Test cricket, not some match in the park. You have to have aggression, and you have to have that thing inside you to win games for your country. They are trying to win games for their country; we are trying for our country. Whatever trouble it takes we will go ahead and make sure we get the result we are looking for.”

MS Dhoni was full of praise for his bowlers, and the way his side showed character despite injuries to key players, following India’s clean sweep of Australia in the two-Test series

Sidharth Monga at the Chinnaswamy Stadium13-Oct-2010MS Dhoni was full of praise for his bowlers, and the way his side showed character despite injuries to key players, following India’s clean sweep of Australia in the two-Test series.Both Tests in this series were heading towards draws before India’s bowlers triggered Australia’s second-innings collapses, setting up close finishes in each of the games. “I think the effort put in by the players, especially the bowlers, was really outstanding because by losing tosses I am not really helping them out,” Dhoni said.”Every time, especially in the subcontinent, we are having to bowl first. First innings [in Bangalore] we couldn’t get any kind of reverse-swing because the wicket and the square were not so dry, which meant they had to turn up and look for alternative ways to get the batsmen out. Still they were more than willing to come up with spells whenever needed. This was not a track where a match can get over in four-and-a-half days. It was not a turning track where the spinners can just bowl and get wickets.”As has often been the case of late, India played a Test series without their first-choice XIs, and also lost players along the way. VVS Laxman and Ishant Sharma needed injections and tablets to stand up straight, but they rescued India in a famous finish in Mohali. Gautam Gambhir, too, injured his knee and had to sit out.All the three replacements, though, did their jobs in Bangalore, and Dhoni acknowledged that. “Not only in Tests, we have been playing series without our key players,” Dhoni said. “Consistently we have not played our strongest side.”I am fortunate to have a side that has performed very well in the past one-and-a-half years and the credit goes to them. Whether it is the youngsters or the seniors, they have always performed whenever they get the opportunity. Individuals like Murali Vijay, who is not consistently featuring in the XI because we have Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir doing the job for us. But whenever he has got an opportunity to play games, he has scored decent amount of runs. You could complain maybe that he got the kind of start he needed, but hasn’t scored big runs. In this match, he really made it big. He got the start, went onto cross the century barrier, and continued his innings. It was a good learning experience for him. In the same way [Cheteshwar] Pujara, too, batted really well.”Having beaten Australia, their biggest rivals over the last decade, 2-0 in their last two series, Dhoni said India needed to create bowling reserves if they were to dominate world cricket like Australia did. “If our bowling lot can grow – four-five good fast bowlers, and one or two more spinners, the workload can be spread,” Dhoni said. “It is very difficult for the fast bowlers to play every Test. Within the next 20 days, we will start another three-match series on similar wickets. You just can’t turn up there and put the ball there, these pitches take a lot of effort. There is a lot of pressure on the fast bowlers, and especially with the four-bowler combination, spinners have to bowl a lot of overs. Especially when the captain keeps losing the toss.”Dhoni also credited the side for having come together well despite the limited time for preparation. “The whole team didn’t get a chance to have practice sessions together because some of the boys were playing the Champions League,” Dhoni said. “We got limited time, but what is impressive is the way we utilised those practice sessions in the right manner. Everyone was up for it.”Dhoni made it a point to praise the team for handling the pressure situations well. “Most of the times, this is a series that has plenty of hype created around it, and it’s good that it ended without any controversy… One good thing in both the Test matches, even though the last-innings targets were not huge, was that there was pressure on both the sides. Ultimately it was a close finish in both the games. You may look at this scorecard and say this was an easy win, but still there was nervousness in the dressing room. I think it was a good short Test series we had.”

MS Dhoni has defended his bowling unit, which is yet to bowl a side out on tour, including the Board President’s XI in a tour game

Sidharth Monga at the SSC30-Jul-2010Following the high-scoring draw at the SSC, the Indian captain MS Dhoni has defended his bowling unit, which is yet to bowl a side out on tour, including the Board President’s XI in a tour game.”I am happy with the kind of effort they [Ishant Sharma and Abhimanyu Mithun] are putting in to their bowling,” Dhoni said. “In the last two Tests, we have bowled first, and there was nothing in it for them.”Quite placid tracks. Even when you are bowling in the second innings, the wicket slows down a bit, so the batsmen are going to be in little discomfort. And if you are bowling first and the wicket is one of these sorts, it gets really difficult for a fast bowler to either contain batsmen or get wickets. But still they were up there when it came to pace. They were bowling at decent pace and they are always willing to bowl whenever they are asked to, so overall, I am quite happy with their performance.”It was an inexperienced pace attack, with Ishant trying to come out of a lean patch and Mithun making his debut, but surely more was expected of Harbhajan Singh? Apparently not. “It’s about when you are bowling,” Dhoni said. “If you are doing that on the first two days with nothing in the wicket, with no marks, it doesn’t really bother. In the second game here he looked very impressive, getting bounce. If conditions are slightly in his favour he can do wonders for the team.”It’s really difficult to judge what a good performance is. At Galle, Murali took 25 overs to get that one wicket. So it’s not always the wickets that count. You also have to see the broad picture – when the bowler bowls, who the batsman is, the start the opposition has got and accordingly, you have to decide.”Dhoni spoke about having to play a lot of cricket in batsmen-friendly conditions. “If it’s always about bowlers’ turning up and taking 20-odd wickets on wickets that are in favour of the batsmen, it’s not really possible,” he said. “It’s not the first time we are playing a Test match or a series where we haven’t been able to get the batsmen out. So I don’t think it’s a big worry.”The bowlers we have look fit and can bowl long spells. It’s just that with a little more exposure, with a bit more games under their belt, they will have experience and will know more ways of getting the batsmen out. You don’t always have to nick them to the slips or to the keeper. In a Test match, you can get them out in different positions, using the slower ball or the bouncer can work well.”Dhoni, though, was concerned about the bench strength of bowlers, especially with the amount of cricket India plays. “Overall, if we can have a bigger bench strength, which means if we can have a spectrum of around eight fast bowlers to pick from, it will be really great because we are not a side which plays three Tests a year,” he said. “We play a lot of Tests, ODIs and with IPL also coming in, we need fast bowlers who are fit, which means you [need to] have eight to 10 fast bowlers whom you can rotate around and still play with your best bowling attack.”

Babar, Rizwan add 150 for first wicket, before Shaheen Shah Afridi stars with three wickets

Valkerie Baynes16-Jul-2021Liam Livingstone scored England’s fastest T20I century in vain as Pakistan won a thrilling contest by 31 runs to go 1-0 up in their three-match series at Trent Bridge.Babar Azam and Mohammad Rizwan guided Pakistan to their highest T20I total of 232 for 6 with a 150-run opening partnership, Pakistan’ssecond-highest for any wicket in this format.It meant England had to better their highest T20I score while chasing and Livingstone did his utmost to try and get them there, his 42-ball hundred beating Dawid Malan’s 48-ball century against New Zealand in 2019. But with his dismissal, they fell short, bowled out for 201. Livingstone struck nine sixes and six fours but, after Pakistan had reduced England to 48 for 3, their bowlers continued to take wickets at regular enough intervals to dent the hosts’ run-rate, which had been superior for significant periods. Shaheen Shah Afridi was the pick of the bowlers with 3 for 30 off 3.2 overs and he was excellent in the field.Pakistan didn’t get off to a blazing start. On the contrary, by the end of the powerplay, they were 49 for 0 and it wasn’t until the 12th over that they struck their first six. They went on to score 12 in all, equalling Pakistan’s record against Bangladesh in 2007.Rizwan was still scoring at a run a ball by the end of the eighth over but the 12th over – when he and Azam each struck sixes off Matt Parkinson in the space of three balls – signalled an acceleration. Pakistan ended up scoring 152 runs of the last 10 overs, their middle order maintaining the momentum even after Azam fell for a 49-ball 85 and Rizwan for 63 from 41.

Azam on a roll

His 158 had set Pakistan up to avoid being swept 3-0 in the ODI series before James Vince and Lewis Gregory trumped his effort, and Azam continued his fine form. He struck three consecutive fours off David Willey in the third over of the match, steering him through the covers before advancing down the pitch to send the ball over long-on and then flicking through midwicket with imperious timing. On the last ball of the over, he survived an England appeal for lbw and their subsequent review when he was given not out, replays showing the ball was missing leg stump.Eoin Morgan brought Livingstone on in the ninth over, but it backfired when he conceded 11 runs, including back-to-back fours to Rizwan. The 12th over, bowled by Parkinson, went for 18, Azam cracking a shot over the midwicket boundary and Rizwan going flat and hard in the same direction. Azam went over the fence at long-on twice more, off Parkinson and Gregory, amid a total of eight fours. He finally fell swinging at a wide, full delivery from Willey which Jonny Bairstow took behind the stumps. Initially given not out, England’s review was successful when UltraEdge revealed a clear spike for bat on ball.Sohaib Maqsood contributed 19 runs off seven balls, Fakhar Zaman 26 off just eight – including three sixes off Saqib Mahmood in the 18th over – and Mohammad Hafeez 24 off 10 to keep Pakistan tracking in the right direction.

Catches, winning matches and all that

England were well ahead of the required run-rate at the end of the powerplay, having scored 20 more runs than Pakistan to that point, but wickets were the problem and some excellent fielding from the visiting side was responsible.Afridi’s gem of a return catch sent Malan packing for just 1, as he dived forward on his follow-through to grab the ball low to the ground. Imad Wasim’s take to dismiss Bairstow, also off Afridi, was straightforward in comparison, but then came Haris Rauf’s miraculous effort at cow corner to remove Moeen Ali. Having skied Mohammad Hasnain in that direction, Moeen could only watch as Rauf – and Maqsood – were lucky not to be injured as they both ran for the ball. Rauf ended up in Maqsood’s lap as he leapt with two hands and both fell to the ground, Rauf crucially holding the ball to leave England wobbling on 48 for 3.

Livingstone lights it up

Jason Roy looked the man most likely to go big for England, racing to 32 off just 13 balls as wickets fell around him. But when Roy was out edging Shadab Khan to Azam at deep point, Livingstone stepped in. Playing just his sixth international T20, Livingstone raced to a half-century off just 17 balls, England’s fastest fifty in T20Is.His striking was immaculate and power immense as he pummelled nine sixes in all. Having seen Hasnain tip his leading edge off Rauf over the rope at third man, he then sent Rauf into the stands over deep square leg. Livingstone punished a couple of Shadab long-hops before punching him down the ground twice more. His drive into the stands at cow corner off Rauf took him to 97 off 41 and within reach of the England record. Livingstone’s almighty drive over long-on off Shadab to bring up his hundred was to be his last. He skied the very next ball in the same direction but picked out Afridi on the boundary’s edge. Needing 44 off the last three overs, the task proved too much for the England tail.With Eoin Morgan having said that England would use this series to assess fringe players ahead of the T20 World Cup later this year, Livingstone showed there is nothing “fringe” about him.

Worcestershire have pulled off a significant coup by securing Moeen Ali on a new five-year deal

George Dobell25-Oct-2017Worcestershire have pulled off a significant coup by securing Moeen Ali on a new five-year deal.Moeen was of interest to several other counties – notably Warwickshire – but Worcestershire’s long-term loyalty to him, the promise of their young players and their presence back in Division One of the County Championship have convinced him to stay.While Worcestershire supporters may see little of Moeen over the next couple of years – not only is he established in the England sides in all three formats but he is expected to enter the next IPL auction – the decision to sign such a long-term deal suggests he is happy to spend the rest of his career at the club.And, even though transfers between counties are increasingly prevalent in county cricket, such a long-term deal will deter other clubs and ensure Worcestershire are well compensated.”We’ve had some fantastic wins this season and this is one of them,” Steve Rhodes, Worcestershire’s director of cricket, said.”Moeen is our England player and it’s important for us to have an England player. It’s also important for our dressing room, our players, our staff and our members and supporters and everyone involved at the club.”It sends a message to other clubs that our better players don’t feel the need to be elsewhere. They want to be on this journey to success and in Moeen’s case, he has stayed loyal to the club in signing this longer deal.”He is in such a rich vein of form internationally and on the back of a wonderful season, he is turning himself into one of the best allrounders in the world in international cricket. For us to sign someone of that ilk for five years is a real credit to all we do at Worcestershire. Whenever he comes back, it gives a big lift to the place.”Moeen is the 12th Worcestershire player to sign a new deal this year. So, while the club were disappointed to lose Tom Kohler-Cadmore to Yorkshire, they are delighted to have retained the services of such highly rated young players as fast bowler Josh Tongue (who signed a new four-year deal and won a place on the England Lions tour), Ben Cox and allrounder Ed Barnard.Worcestershire will hope Moeen’s commitment might also play a part in persuading Joe Clarke to stay. Clarke, another man who won selection to the Lions squad, is out of contract at the end of 2018 and, with his wicketkeeping opportunities blocked by the excellence of Cox, might be persuaded to try his luck elsewhere. As one of the most promising batsmen in the county game, he is unlikely to have any shortage of options. Worcestershire are understandably keen for him to stay and will hope Moeen’s example – proving England selection can be won while playing for the club – may play a part.”Moeen is such a loyal guy,” Rhodes continued. “He knows we were the vehicle that gave him the opportunities to impress people and get selected for England in the first place.”In his previous contract, the way we sold it to him was that you are batting three in the Championship, you are opening in the one-dayers and you are our number one offspinner and our vice-captain, you are doing everything.”Now it will be down to you putting in the performances. We will give you the opportunities to do that and because we did that, and he took those opportunities, he got selected by England, I think he feels loyal to Worcestershire.”Moeen said: “To commit my future and probably the rest of my career to Worcestershire is a fantastic feeling. It’s happy days.”I’ve been part of this club now for a very long time. We have some brilliant young players, probably the best young English players in the country.”It is a fantastic club and they have always been good to me and supported me and I’m delighted to sign. We are in Division One now and I don’t think we are far off now in all competitions and the young players are gaining more and more experience.”Steve Rhodes is a massive reason for me signing. He has always been good to me, he has always supported me and looked after me and even when I am away with England he is always sending me messages.”

A day after becoming only the second Indian umpire to be included in the ICC’s elite panel since its inception in 2002, S Ravi believes the “perception” of Indian umpires will now change

Gaurav Kalra05-Jun-20156:43

‘Perception of Indian umpires will change’ – Ravi

A day after becoming only the second Indian umpire to be included in the ICC’s elite panel since its inception in 2002, S Ravi believes the “perception” of Indian umpires will now change. Speaking to ESPNcricinfo from his hometown Chennai, Ravi said his elevation would convince the cricketing world that “Indian umpires are capable enough to officiate in Test matches and ODIs and get on to the elite panel.””I was working hard for this,” Ravi said. “I was expecting it because I was on the emerging panel of ICC and after having a good World Cup I thought I should be there and I got the nod from the selectors.”Last month, Ravi, 49, umpired in England for the first time in his six-Test international career, officiating in both games of New Zealand’s tour. He described the experience as “challenging” but rewarding.”It was a great experience,” he said. “The conditions were very challenging for me. When you go to England, you have to expect tough weather conditions, the ball seams and swings throughout the game, it is a tough ask for us. I was prepared for that and I thought I did reasonably well.”On the third day of the second Test in Leeds, Ravi gave an official warning to England’s leading bowler James Anderson for running onto the pitch in New Zealand’s second innings. ESPNcricinfo’s ball-by-ball commentary noted at the time that “‪Anderson isn’t impressed. Fuming is probably the correct term,” but Ravi said he had “no issues” with players from either side.”I am just implementing the laws of the game, that’s all,” he said. “Whether it is X player or Y player, the law is the same. I am there to conduct the match within the framework of the laws. That’s it, very simple.”Ravi is among four Indian umpires- Vineet Kulkarni, C Shamshuddin and Anil Chaudhary being the other three – who are serving on the ICC’s international panel of umpires, the level immediately below the elite panel. He is now convinced that more people can make the grade up, and credits the experience of officiating in the IPL over the last few years as the reason for improved umpiring standards.”In the last five-six years, the standard of Indian umpires has gone up because of our umpires standing in the IPL, which is an international standard tournament,” he said. “They get to work with elite umpires and referees from different countries. They get to interact with international players, coaches, support staff and other stakeholders. All these things have made Indian umpires better. I am sure in the near future at least one or two more will make it to the elite panel.”A couple of them (Indian umpires) are now nominated for the World T20 qualifiers in Scotland and Ireland next month. That’s a big tournament for them. If they do well, they can get on to the emerging panel and move up the ladder.”Ravi has also officiated in 12 T20Is and 24 ODIs since 2011, including three matches in the recently-concluded World Cup. The experience gained from these high-profile assignments has made him realise that intense scrutiny comes with the territory.”As umpires, who are umpiring at the highest level of the game, we are bound to be scrutinised by the media, the players, and the captains.” he said. “We should be prepared for that. If you make an error, it will be highlighted, technology will expose you at some stage or the other. You should be prepared for that, learn from that error and move on. You can’t do much about it.”Ravi credits former Australian umpire Simon Taufel, who has worked with him as an advisor and mentor to the BCCI’s elite panel of umpires, for his rise. According to Ravi, Taufel, who was the ICC umpire of the year for five consecutive years from 2004 to 2008, has helped him understand the mindset needed to succeed in the job.”I have been working very closely with Simon for the last three years almost,” he said. “I have learnt a lot from him; right from preparation to getting into the game, decision making, handling big players, match management skills, the man-management skills, how to get out of setbacks. All those skills have helped me to become a better umpire. I am very thankful to Simon, it is because of him that I have achieved this dream.”While Ravi says Taufel is his idol, the other umpire he has a lot of “respect and regard” for is England’s David Shepherd, who passed away in 2009, having officiated 92 Tests and 172 ODIs over his two-decade career.”He was a great umpire and great personality,” Ravi said. “The way he conducted himself and interacted with the players, had a good relationship with the players is something fantastic. “A keen cricketer himself, Ravi represented Madras Universities and played in the senior division league in Chennai for many years. Umpiring, he explains was the best way to “keep in touch” with the game. But due to such commitments, he will now need more time off from his day job as Special Assistant at the Reserve Bank of India, where he has worked since 1989.”The bank has been kind to me so far,” he chuckles when asked if they are happy to let him take time off to go on umpiring duties. He also says his family will “have to cope” with the additional travel required as part of the 12-man elite panel. And what about his dream assignment now that he finds himself among the world’s top umpires?”An Ashes Test match at Lord’s.”

A strong all-round performance helped United Arab Emirates secure a crucial 46-run win over Canada in a World Cricket League Championship match, lifting them to the fourth place on the table.

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Aug-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsShaiman Anwar’s century led UAE to a comfortable win from a potentially dangerous situation•Eddie Norfolk

A strong all-round performance helped United Arab Emirates secure a crucial 46-run win over Canada in a World Cricket League Championship match, lifting them to the fourth place on the table.Put in to bat, UAE staged a strong recovery from a precarious 54 for 3 in the 12th over to finish at 269 for 4. Shaiman Anwar anchored the innings, posting a 68-run fourth-wicket partnership with Swapnil Patil and then staging an unbeaten 147-run fifth-wicket stand with Rohan Mustafa. Mustafa and Anwar began cautiously but accelerated in the last 10 overs, scoring 96 runs off 60 balls to lift UAE to a challenging total. Anwar brought up his third List-A hundred off the last ball of the match with a four off Cecil Pervez and his innings included nine fours and three sixes. Mustafa scored an unbeaten 68 off 61 balls, which included five fours and two sixes.Canada’s batsmen couldn’t replicate UAE and their chase suffered for a lack of big partnerships. They had just one fifty-plus stand between Ruvindu Gunasekera and Usman Limbada for the fourth wicket. Both batsmen eventually scored fifties but the loss of regular wickets hurt Canada. Pacer Mohammad Naveed and offspiner Nasir Aziz did most of the damage, picking up four wickets each.

West Indies’ horror of a match against India on Friday has not only been an eye opener for them, but also opened up the tournament

The Preview by Kanishkaa Balachandran06-Jul-2013

Match facts

Sunday, July 7
Start time 0930 (1330 GMT)West Indies need their top order to set the base•Associated Press

Big Picture

West Indies’ horror of a match against India on Friday has not only been an eye opener for them, but has also opened up the tournament. India’s chances of qualifying for the final looked bleak after two consecutive defeats, but they trounced the hosts by a big enough margin to pick up a bonus point. West Indies are still on top with nine points and a game to play, and a win against Sri Lanka on Sunday will guarantee their spot in the final. A defeat will still give them a chance at qualifying, but it could come down to a three-way net-run rate scenario if the teams are tied on nine points. A win for Sri Lanka on Sunday will tighten the screws as it will at least put them on par with the hosts. It will also make things tougher for India, who are currently on five points with a game to play.While West Indies are not yet in grave danger of being knocked out, concerns remain. For starters, they will be without their captain Dwayne Bravo, who has been suspended for a slow over-rate. In all likelihood, Kieron Pollard will take over for the second time in three matches. Nothing went right for West Indies on Friday. If looks could deceive, the pitch certainly did. The grass looked inviting enough for both captains to have a bowl, but the decision to insert the opposition backfired on Bravo as his seamers failed to pick up early wickets. The opening partnership was allowed to develop and the West Indies’ death bowling was exposed by Virat Kohli. The batting suffered a bigger meltdown than the bowling, and while the afternoon rain may have spiced up the pitch for the Indian seamers to exploit, the hosts were struggling to get the start they wanted even before rain struck. Chris Gayle and Darren Bravo fell to poor strokes and the loss of two early wickets piled the pressure on the middle order, which looked just as inept. Perhaps the hosts lost the game in the mind after conceding 311. Perhaps batting first might not be a bad option if given the chance, going forward.Sri Lanka have two more games to play, are tied on points with India but have a superior net run rate. They peaked in all three departments in their previous game, losing just one wicket on their way to 348 and all their five bowlers contributed in bundling out India for less than 200. It remains to be seen if they will change their batting order and give players like Lahiru Thirimanne more time in the middle.

In the spotlight

The over-rates in the last two games have been costing the captains and players, literally. On Tuesday, India overshot by 20 minutes leading to Kohli being fined and on Friday, West Indies were worse by one more minute. It was costlier for West Indies, with Bravo now suspended. Changing captains during a tournament could upset a side’s rhythm and West Indies especially can’t afford too many stop-gap arrangements, at a time when Bravo is establishing himself as a full-time ODI captain.Sri Lanka’s new opening pair of Mahela Jayawardene and Upul Tharanga was formed after Tillakaratne Dilshan’s pre-tournament pull-out due to injury and that combination could stay at least until Dilshan returns. The question is whether Sri Lanka will be tempted to persist with it in future series, after their 213-run stand against India. Jayawardene has had success as an opener, but he hasn’t been a regular at that position; Dilshan is most comfortable at the top and Tharanga will be hard to ignore after his 174. With Kusal Perera earmarked for the future, Sri Lanka might find it hard to settle on one pair, once Dilshan returns. It’s a good headache to have.

Team news

Lendl Simmons, the opening batsman, was called in to the squad on Saturday as a replacement for Bravo.* West Indies could either play him or bring back Devon Smith.West Indies (probable) 1 Chris Gayle, 2 Johnson Charles, 3 Darren Bravo, 4 Marlon Samuels, 5 Devon Smith/Lendl Simmons, 6 Kieron Pollard (capt), 7 Denesh Ramdin (wk), 8 Darren Sammy, 9 Sunil Narine, 10 Kemar Roach, 11 Tino BestSri Lanka may retain their winning combinationSri Lanka (probable) 1 Mahela Jayawardene, 2 Upul Tharanga, 3 Kusal Perera, 4 Kumar Sangakkara (wk), 5 Dinesh Chandimal, 6 Angelo Mathews (capt), 7 Lahiru Thirimanne, 8 Sachithra Senanayake, 9 Nuwan Kulasekara, 10 Rangana Herath, 11 Lasith Malinga

Stats and trivia

The 11,337 people who showed up at the ANZ Stadium tonight in western Sydney were treated to the Chris Gayle Show

Alex Malcolm23-Dec-2011
ScorecardThe 11,337 people who showed up at the ANZ Stadium tonight in western Sydney were treated to the Chris Gayle Show. In a brutal display of power hitting, Gayle clubbed an unbeaten 100 off 54 balls to help Sydney Thunder chase down 156 against Adelaide Strikers. The West Indian smashed three fours and 11 sixes, breaking his own record for the number of sixes hit in an Australian domestic T20 innings.In reality the match was a tough sell. The Strikers travelled without their biggest star Kieron Pollard, out of the tournament with a hamstring injury, while the Thunder’s captain and first match centurion, David Warner, is away on national duty.The Strikers did cause some concerns though. Gayle faced just six deliveries between the 12th and 16th overs. The Strikers removed Ben Dunk for 8 when he holed out needlessly off Johan Botha with 59 needed from 45 balls. Craig Philipson then faced eight deliveries for just two runs, seven of them consecutively. Such was the demand for Gayle, that Philipson was booed by his own crowd when he could not get off the strike.Eventually, Philipson was bowled by Aaron O’Brien, the left-arm orthodox spinner, who took 3 for 26 in an impressive spell. But the 15th over was O’Brien’s last.By the conclusion of the 16th over, Strikers captain Michael Klinger had a problem. Both O’Brien and Kane Richardson were bowled out, whilst Botha and Alfonso Thomas each had only one over left. Klinger’s fifth bowler, Bryce McGain had conceded 21 in two earlier overs with Gayle smashing him into the stands three times.Klinger instead gambled with the very part-time offspin of Cameron Borgas and Gayle made him pay. He smashed three consecutive sixes, one which travelled 105m, to take the required run-rate from nine-an-over down to five, and the victory was a mere formality from there. Klinger looked helpless, probably wishing he could have placed fielders in the stands.All that was left was for Gayle to bring up his first Twenty20 hundred in Australia, and his sixth in the format worldwide.Given Gayle’s performance it was unlikely that any target the Strikers set would have been defendable, however, 155 was never going to be enough.Adelaide slumped to 4 for 52 in the ninth over and never really recovered. A brief salvage effort was mounted by Botha (41) and Borgas (24) so help steer the Strikers to a middling total. But they struggled to conquer a versatile Thunder attack. Teenager Sean Abbott was the pick of the bowlers with 2 for 20 while Fidel Edwards generated good pace collecting 2 for 35.In the end though, the night was all about one man.