Daredevils blitzed

Adam Gilchrist blasted a 17-ball half-century and led the Deccan Chargers to a shock win over the Delhi Daredevils in the first Indian Premier League semifinal at Centurion Park on Friday.

Gilchrist finished with 85 off 35 balls, hitting five sixes and ten fours, as the Hyderabad-based Chargers stormed to a six-wicket victory against the tournament favourites.

It was the first time in five matches that Deccan had been able to beat Delhi, who posted 153 for eight after being sent in.

That target soon looked easy as Gilchrist went on the rampage, hitting the fastest half-century in the IPL's short history.

Gilchrist hit five successive boundaries off fellow-Australian Dirk Nannes in the first over of the Deccan innings.

Herschelle Gibbs was bowled playing a reckless shot against Ashish Nehra in the next over but Gilchrist continued his assault, hitting 15 off an over from Pradeep Sangwan, then 13 off Nehra as the total raced to 56 off four overs.

Tillekeratne Dilshan managed an economical over of off-spin, conceding only three runs but Delhi skipper Virender Sehwag was smashed for 25 runs in his only over, including three successive sixes by Gilchrist, one from a free hit following a no-ball.

Gilchrist was third man out when he top-edged an attempted big hit against leg-spinner Amit Mishra to backward point off the last ball of the tenth over with the total on 102. Amid the carnage handed out to the other bowlers, Mishra took three for 19 in his four overs.

Deccan made a great start when Ryan Harris dismissed both Delhi opening batsmen for no runs in the first over.

But Sehwag (39) and Dilshan (65) counter-attacked in a third wicket stand of 85 and Delhi were on target for a challenging total before they lost four wickets for eight runs off the last seven balls of the innings.

IPL

Daredevils blitzed

ICC World Twenty20

ICC World Twenty20

The Bangladesh cricket team will leave for London today to take part in the ICC World Twenty20, which will kick off from June 5.

Captain Mohammad Ashraful and his deputy Mashrafe Bin Mortaza however will not accompany the team as they are scheduled to fly out tomorrow. Mashrafe has already returned home and Ashraful is expected to return today after their idle IPL adventure in South Africa.

Ashraful's men will be based in Wormsley until the end of this month. Bangladesh have additional practice matches lined up against New Zealand at Wormsley on May 26 and travel to Kent to take on the Netherlands on May 28 and face Scotland on May 29 at Wormsley.

Their official practice games are against Australia on June 1 and Sri Lanka a day later at Nottingham.

The five practice matches will definitely help Jamie Siddons charges to accustom themselves with the English condition before the tournament proper.

The Tigers has been out of international cricket for the last four months after the scheduled home series against Pakistan was cancelled in March. The national players made up the loss by playing in the PCL T20 competition in Chittagong and three T20 matches against mediocre Maharashtra Cricket Association but it was not the case for Ashraful and Mashrafe.

So the two frontline players look set to benefit most to make up their lack of match practice due to warming the dugouts for most of the time in the IPL.

Mashrafe played one match for Kolkata Knight Riders but the pace spearhead will never like to recall that match against Deccan Chargers where he conceded 26 runs in the last over. For Mashrafe the IPL is now past rather he was looking forward to the World Cup.

"IPL is past now. I am looking forward to play from the first practice match in England," said Mashrafe.

Bangladesh captain Ashraful was also played in just one match for his side Mumbai Indians and there was nothing encouraging in his performance.

Bangladesh has been pitted in Group A and play defending champions India at Trent Bridge on June 6 and ICC associate member Ireland on June 8.

Bangladesh set their first target to qualify in the Super Eights and they need to beat only Ireland to fulfill their dream but Jamie Siddons said that he has also targeted India.

SQUAD
Mohammad Ashraful, Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, Tamim Iqbal, Zunaed Siddiqui, Rokibul Hassan, Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim, Nayeem Islam, Abdur Razzak, Shahadat Hossain, Syed Rasel, Mahmudullah Riyad, Rubel Hossain, Shamsur Rahman and Mohammad Mithun.

IPL : McGrath

McGrath upset, may not return

Glenn McGrath has expressed his disappointment at not being given a chance by the Delhi Daredevils to prove his fitness during this season's IPL. He is contracted with Delhi next year as well, but McGrath hinted that he may not return for the 2010 season.

The 39-year-old McGrath, who retired after the 2007 World Cup, played almost every game for Delhi in the inaugural IPL and was among the stand-out bowlers in that tournament. However, with Victoria fast bowler Dirk Nannes being outstanding this season, and the Indian pace contingent of Ashish Nehra, Pradeep Sangwan and Aavishkar Salvi performing consistently, McGrath has been on the sidelines this year.

"It has been hard to be a part of the bench, and I was hoping for a game during the league stage," he wrote in his column in the Hindustan Times. "I have asked a couple of people about why I was not being played, and I get the sense that they were worried about my fitness. I feel fitter than I did last year, but I guess I will not get a chance to prove that now."

 Gilchrist blitz propels Chargers into IPL final  


 A blistering 85 from skipper Adam Gilchrist propelled last edition's bottom-ranked Deccan Chargers into the final of the Indian Premier League following their six-wicket win over table-toppers Delhi Daredevils in the first semi-final on Friday.

'Man of the Match' Gilchrist hammered 10 fours and five sixes in his 35-ball knock that single-handedly turned the semi-final into a no contest after Delhi, invited to bat, rode on Tillakaratne Dilshan's half-century to post a fighting 153 for eight.

The Australian wicketkeeper seemed to be in a hurry to finish off the match. He was in a murderous mood, hitting Dirk Nannes for five consecutive boundaries in the very first over and then welcoming Pradeep Sangwan with back to back fours and a huge six over mid-wicket.

Herschelle Gibbs' (0) dismissal had very little effect on him as he brought his 50 off just 17 deliveries, the fastest in the IPL so far, and fifth quickest in Twenty20 cricket.

His innings was finally brought to an end by Amit Mishra after Gilchrist attempted another big one but held out to Nannes at short third-man.

And if Delhi thought getting rid of Gilchrist was the end of all their troubles, they were in for shock as Andrew Symonds (24 off 15 balls) walked in and clobbered Nannes for two successive boundaries.

Tirumalsetti Suman (unbeaten 24) too joined in the party and picked up a couple of fours and by the time Symonds fell to Mishra (3/19), Deccan Chargers were well into the final, which they did with 14 balls to spare.

Earlier, Tillakaratne Dilshan's breezy half-century helped Delhi Daredevils recover from a nightmare start and post 153 for eight against Deccan Chargers in the first semi-final.

Sri Lankan Dilshan survived two dropped catches and a run out attempt to score 65 off 51 balls and alongwith captain Virender Sehwag (39) and AB de Villiers (26), helped Delhi reach a competitive total.

Dilshan, who started off with a pulled six off RP Singh, and Sehwag produced a counter-punch that saw Delhi recover from two down without opening their account.

Adam Gilchrist's decision to put Delhi Daredevils to bat after winning the toss seemed vindicated when they suffered a twin blow in the very first over, Ryan Harris removing openers Gautam Gambhir and David Warner in quick succession.

Gambhir tried to hoist the Australian over the top but only found RP Singh at third man without opening his and Delhi's account.

Warner slashed the next ball to Herschelle Gibbs at point and Delhi were in trouble with two down without any runs on the board.

It brought Sehwag and Dilshan together. The duo was in ominous form as they drove, cut and pulled with effortless ease and at the half-way stage, Delhi had raced to 83.

However, the first over after the break accounted for Sehwag. Andrew Symonds trapped the Delhi skipper in front of the wicket for 39. His 31-ball knock included five hits to the fence.

Sehwag's departure put the breaks on Delhi before Dilshan, accompanied by AB de Villiers, got the team back on track.

The Sri Lankan brought his 50 off 35 balls with a four and De Villiers then hit two sixes to push the run rate.

The South African fell for 26 (off 21 balls) and Dinesh Karthik (9) went soon after.

Towards the end, wickets fell in a heap and Dilshan, who hit seven fours and a six, too perished, going for a non-existent second run in the last over.

And with Gilchirst at his ominous best, no score was safe and Delhi found that out on Friday much to their dismay. 

ICL releases Naved Rana

Yorkshire's overseas star Rana Navedul Hasan has been released from his Indian Cricket League contract.

The decision means the Tykes will now be able to field the Pakistan right-arm medium-fast bowler in the Twenty20 Cup, which begins next week.

This development should mean Yorkshire will face no repercussions for fielding Naved should they win the cup and qualify for the Champions League.

The International Cricket Council has still yet to sanction the ICL.

Last season, any English county who fielded players from the unsanctioned ICL in any domestic competition were banned from taking part in the lucrative Champions League.

However, before the start of the 2009 season the Champions League's administrators relaxed rules that meant Yorkshire would be eligible for the Champions League as long as Naved did not play in the Twenty20 Cup.

Now Naved is no longer contracted to the ICL, he will be able to play in the competition with no fear of punishment for either him or his county.

Rabiul Islam enough for SL DEV

Rabiul Islam's five-wicket haul took GP-BCB National Cricket Academy to a series win over Sri Lanka Development Squad after a close 13-run victory in the fifth and final one-dayer at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium yesterday.

The tourists had earlier taken the honours in the four-day matches easily but the Academy side made a triumphant return in the one-dayers.

Promising fast bowler Rabiul ripped through the tourists' middle-order during Academy's defence of a modest 198-9. The Lankans were bowled out in the 45th over when skipper Marshall Ayub ran out Thisara Perera (45). But it was yet another batting debacle which began in the four-day matches. The home side lost the first game inside three days by nine wickets and the second by a massive 246 runs.

According to Academy head coach Ruwan Kalpage, it was all down to the two sides' strength. "They (Sri Lanka Development) were a much experienced side than ours. Some of them play for the national team and six play for the A team. Actually they have only five development players," said Kalpage who also added that the Academy batsmen lack the ability to score hundreds.

"Half of our twenty-four players are either in the national team and playing for Bangladesh A so it was hard on the new boys. They came after performing in domestic cricket, so they need a lot of training and need to learn the longer-version better, especially scoring the hundreds," explained the former Sri Lankan international who echoed national selector Rafiqul Alam who also pointed out the lack of experience among the Academy players.

On Friday it was only a captain's knock that saved helped Academy get past even the hundred-mark after yet another batting collapse.

With four batsmen gone for 35 runs, Marshall added 69 for the fifth wicket with Farhad Hossain, who missed a half-century by four runs. After the Rajshahi batsman was removed, the right-handed Marshall added another 50-plus partnership with Nasir Hossain before falling for 56 off 76 balls. Nasir's late-order charge, 36 off 35 with five boundaries, almost took the home side past the 200-run mark.

Then Rabiul cut short Gihan Rupasinghe's madcap 48 off 32 balls in the 15th over before picking up Muthumudalige Pushpakumara (7), Ashan Priyanjan (1), Milinda Sirwardena (6) in one spell that spelled doom for the visitors. From a perilous six for 86, opener Kaushal Silva and Perera added 85 for the seventh wicket. The partnership threatened to be a match-winner but Silva, on 63, was caught behind off left-armer Saqlain Sajib. Rabiul returned to complete his five-for with the wicket of Ranesh Perera. Saqlain took two while Mukhtar Ali picked up one wicket.

"Rabiul is a prospective player but he will need a year to develop," said former national cricketer Rafiq.

Kalpage also had high praise for the Khulna paceman, who took six wickets against Abahani in a Premier League match earlier this year. "He needed a bit of a break after domestic cricket. The Sylhet matches were washed out so he got his break and came back strongly. I think he's improving every day and this experience was very good for him," said the former off-spinner.

BRIEF SCORES
GP-BCB ACADEMY: 198-9 in 50 overs (Farhad 46, Marshall 56, Nasir 36; Lakmal 3-32, Udana 3-38).
SL DEVELOPMENT: 185 all out in 44.5 overs (Silva 63, Rupasinghe 48, Perera 45; Rabiul 5-38, Saqlain 2-33).
Result: GP-BCB Academy won by 13 runs.

Rajin stars in win

Rajin Saleh returned with an unbeaten 79 to justify his last moment inclusion as Bangladesh A started their campaign against the visiting Maharashtra Cricket Associa-tion with a 13-run victory in the rain-interrupted first one-day at the Birshrestha Shahid Motiur Rahman Stadium in Khulna yesterday.

The match was decided via Duckworth-Lewis method as heavy rain stopped the play with the second string Bangladesh side making 187-4 in 37.4 overs in reply to 255-7 in 50 overs.

Rajin remained not out on 79 off 104 balls that featured four boundaries and a six while captain Mehrab Hossain added 32 off 54 deliveries with a boundary.

Srikant Munde took two wickets for 22 runs.

Maharashtra's innings was built on three half centuries from Ameye Srikhande (62), Kedar Jadhav (58) and Ankit Bawne (50).

Rajin and Mehrab captured one wicket each while three batsmen fell victims to run-outs.

The second one-day match will take place at the same venue today.

        Abu Dhabi willing to step in as World Cup host  

Dilawar Mani, the chief executive of the Abu Dhabi Cricket Council, will be meeting the PCB chairman Ijaz Butt in the coming week to discuss the possibility of Pakistan hosting their World Cup matches at Abu Dhabi as a neutral venue. Pakistan's share of matches in the 2011 World Cup were taken away by the ICC due to concerns over security in the aftermath of the shootings in Lahore, where gunmen targeted a team bus carrying Sri Lankan cricketers.

Butt is currently in South Africa to watch the IPL, and is expected to meet officials of the South Africa and Zimbabwe cricket boards. "On the way back from South Africa, Mr. Butt will be making a stopover in Abu Dhabi and I will be meeting with him," Mani told AP.

Mani has offered to host all of Pakistan's international matches in Abu Dhabi, including those of the 2011 World Cup. "If asked (by the PCB), we are willing to organize all its international matches including the World Cup," he said. "It's difficult times for Pakistan and we want to help them."

The Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi has hosted four bilateral tournaments involving Pakistan. They played India in a two-match ODI series in 2006, Sri Lanka in a three-match series in 2007 followed by three ODIs against West Indies last year. Most recently, they split a five-ODI series against Australia between Abu Dhabi and Dubai.

The ICC is scheduled to meet the chiefs of cricket boards of the four countries - India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh - co-hosting the 2011 World Cup in Dubai on June 3. The PCB had earlier issued a legal notice against the ICC for moving the competition out of Pakistan, and filed a case in a Lahore court, disputing the transfer of the headquarters of the tournament from Lahore to Mumbai.

Earlier this week, Butt revealed to Cricinfo that the PCB were presenting a security plan for Pakistan's venues first and if that failed to convince members, would then propose a neutral venue. "We will, as per the agreement we have all signed, submit a satisfactory security plan to the ICC for games in Pakistan," Butt said. "Should that plan not be satisfactory then we will put forward a proposal for a neutral venue, be that in the Middle East or Kuala Lumpur. That process and procedure is part of the hosting agreement that we all signed." 

Ganguly better captain: Dinda

Had Kolkata Knight Riders played under the leadership of former India skipper Sourav Ganguly in the Indian Premier League, they might have avoided the tag of tournament-laggards, feels teams young pacer Ashok Dinda.

"Dada (Ganguly) knows us (the Bengal cricketers) inside out. He knows what are our strengths and weaknesses. Our performance would have been better under his captaincy. He would have been successful in getting the best out of our players," Dinda said on his arrival here today.

Dinda arrived with his teammates including Ganguly, Laxmi Ratan Shukla and Wriddhiman Saha from South Africa, where they finished their IPL campaign at the bottom of tally.

Ganguly, however, declined to talk to the waiting media.

Under New Zealander Brendon McCullum the Kolkata side had a disastrous campaign as the Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan-owned side earned the dubious distinction of losing eight matches on the trot.

Warne eyes Indian spin coach role

Shane Warne has expressed his interest in coaching Indian spinners if the BCCI offered him the job.
  ‘If there is any offer or something like that I will seriously consider,’ Warne told Indian news channel CNN-IBN. ‘I love Indian culture. It took a long time to embrace the culture and get to appreciate India and probably took me a couple of tours to understand.’
  Warne wasn’t at his best in India during his Test career, averaging 47.17 in 14 Tests compared to his career figures of 25.41 in 145 matches, but was in great form in last year’s IPL leading the unfancied Rajasthan Royals to victory. Wednesday’s defeat to Kolkata Knight Riders ended Rajasthan’s hopes of making the semi-finals this season.
  ‘As far as BCCI is concerned I love working with the spin bowlers over there,’ he said. ‘I worked with Yusuf Pathan, Ravindra Jadeja (both part of the Rajasthan squad) and he had a great last year and he has done well this year also.’

Yousuf hopeful of Pakistan comeback

met with Pakistan board officials and is confident of a rapid return to test cricket following his resignation from the rebel Indian Cricket League.
  Yousuf, who was rated as Pakistan’s top batsman before he joined the ICL last year, said he had conveyed to the officials that he had broken all ties with the ICL and wanted to be considered for national selection again.
  ‘I am hopeful of making a comeback soon. As the meeting was very positive and I am keen to play my remaining years as an international cricketer for Pakistan,’ Yousuf told Reuters.
  The batsman, who has played 79 tests and 269 one-day internationals, said he was available for the tour of Sri Lanka, where Pakistan play three tests and five one-day internationals from June 27.
  The PCB set a May 31st deadline for all Pakistani players who had contracts with the ICL to sever their ties with the league and make themselves available for national selection again.
  Salim Altaf, the Pakistan Cricket Board ‘s chief operating officer, told Reuters a special committee would look into the cases of the ICL players before deciding if they should be penalised before being considered for national selection.
  ‘The ICC has left it up to the home boards to sort out matters with the ICL players. Yousuf is the first one to have resigned from the ICL and conveyed officially he wants to play for Pakistan again,’ he said.
  PCB Chairman Ejaz Butt told reporters that Yousuf remained a valuable player for the Pakistan team.
  ‘He is still a very valuable batsman for us in the test and one-day teams and the board committee will decide soon on his case,’ Butt said.

Profile : Andrew Strauss (R S A )

Andrew Strauss



Full Name: Andrew John Strauss
Born: Mar 2, 1977, Johannesburg, SA
County: Middlesex
Other Teams: England, Northern Districts
Test Debut: England v New Zealand, Lord's, May 20-24 2004
ODI Debut: Sri Lanka v England, Dambulla, November 18 2003
T20 Debut: England v Australia, Southampton, Jun 13 2005
Batting Style: Left-hand bat
Bowling Style: Left-arm medium

Symonds not considering retirement

Not getting picked in the Ashes squad does not mean end of career for Andrew Symonds and the controversial all-rounder is determined to get back to the Test side according to his agent.
  Selectors left out Symonds from the Ashes squad on Wednesday and speculation was rife that the all-rounder would probably hang his bat after the exclusion.
  But Symonds’ agent Matt Fearon has dismissed speculation that the Queenslander was considering retirement.
  ‘Whether he was selected or not he has given me every indication he is focused on continuing to play cricket for Australia and he was certainly hoping that he would be in the Ashes,’ Fearon said.
  ‘He understood that may not be the case but I think he was pretty practical about that. I know some people have speculated that he may retire based on not being picked in the side but every indication he has given me is that if he was not picked in this Test side, he would focus on being picked in the next one,’ Fearon was quoted as saying by ‘The Age’.

Pakistan hopes for positive result

Pakistan said Thursday it was hoping for a positive outcome from next month’s ICC meeting to resolve a dispute after the country was stripped of its World Cup 2011 matches over security concerns.
  ‘The International Cricket Council has scheduled a meeting in Dubai on June 3 to discuss the World Cup 2011 matters in which PCB is also invited,’ the Pakistan Cricket Board said in a statement.
  The PCB is involved in a legal battle with the game’s governing body after challenging last month’s decision to strip Pakistan of its 14 World Cup matches.
  The ICC said the ‘uncertain security situation’ in Pakistan had forced it to distribute the matches among the three co-hosts India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.
  The PCB sent a legal notice to the ICC earlier this month, saying the decision to strip them of the matches was legally flawed and done in haste.
  It also moved the ICC Dispute Resolution Committee to look into the decision and warned it would take the case to the Court of Arbitration for Sports in Switzerland.
  The ICC Board said last week that they had not decided to remove the PCB as a joint host of the event, but only that the matches assigned to the PCB should be played outside Pakistan.
  PCB legal adviser Taffazul Rzivi said the invitation to the ICC meeting was a favourable move for Pakistan.
  ‘We feel that the invitation to the meeting as a positive step and hoped that issues will be resolved as per the hosts’ agreement of the World Cup 2011,’ Rizvi told AFP.

AUS

Johnson ready to cede
leadership

Paceman Mitchell Johnson insisted Thursday he would bear no grudges if veteran quicks Brett Lee or Stuart Clark returned to lead Australia’s bowling attack during the Ashes series against England.
  Johnson has impressed during Lee and Clark’s injury-enforced absence, spearheading an inexperienced Australian bowling line up and marking himself as one of the world’s best fast bowlers during this year’s tour of South Africa.
  But with Lee and Clark both named in the Ashes squad and itching for a chance to again clash with Australia’s oldest cricketing rival, Johnson faces the prospect of being relegated down the pecking order. He said there would be no ructions in the Australian camp if he had to cede the senior role.
  ‘Those guys are the senior guys and they’ve got the experience and they’ve been around to earn their positions,’ he said.
  ‘I’ll be looking forward to those guys taking the leadership role and I’m not going to change anything in my game.’
  But the 27-year-old was also ready to lead the attack again if needed, saying he had grown confident in the role against South Africa after once believing he would not be able to handle it.
  ‘In South Africa I had that leadership role and didn’t change my game, I just tried to lead by example and things are going to be the same over in England hopefully,’ he said.
  Johnson enthusiastically welcomed captain Ricky Ponting’s call to put pressure on England skipper Andrew Strauss in the hope that if he was contained the rest of the side would crumble.
  He believed his left-arm swing bowling had the potential to be effective against the left-handed Strauss in English conditions.
  ‘Over in South Africa I started to swing the ball and (Strauss) being a left handed batsman, it will go away from him,’ he said.
  ‘I like bowling to lefties so that’s something that I’m looking forward to.
  ‘It’s going to be a great challenge and he’s been scoring a few runs but hopefully we can put a bit of pressure on him and maybe their side will follow.’ 

Indian Premier League

Delhi maul Mumbai

Barring a late scare by Harbhajan Singh, who took 4 for 17, Delhi Daredevils go into the semifinals of the Indian Premier League with a confidence boosting six-wicket win against the Mumbai Indians at the SuperSport Park in Centurion yesterday.

At the toss Virender Sehwag said he wanted to field to give his side some much needed practice chasing. And a fair bit of practice they got, with Sehwag leading the power-hitting top-order who stayed ahead of the fairly steep required run-rate.

Gautam Gambhir and David Warner, Delhi's openers, blitzed to 30 in the first three overs. It started from the sixth ball of the first over. Lasith Malinga found bounce and bowled over 140kph but Gambhir picked his slower bouncer and pulled it for four to square leg. Then Gambhir and Warner hit 22 off the next 12 balls. Gambhir walked out and hit Dhawal Kulkarni for a four behind square leg before lifting a fuller one down the ground for another boundary.

Rahil Shaikh began his IPL campaign with a high full toss that Warner pulled to midwicket boundary before being picked for another in the same area by Gambhir. Warner lofted Kulkarni for a six over long-on but then top-edged one and ended up losing his wicket and his bat. But Delhi couldn't afford to slow down, needing over seven an over. Not that they would slow down when Sehwag joined Gambhir at the crease. Kulkarni was the one to suffer as Sehwag scored boundaries off whatever length he bowled. He gave away 36 in three overs.

Harbhajan came on at the end of the Powerplays with Delhi at 60 for 1. He kept it tight by mixing flighted deliveries with flatter and sharper ones but it didn't help as Sehwag and Gambhir instead picked the boundaries from the other end. Gambhir played Abhishek Nayar's shorter deliveries to the fine-leg and midwicket boundaries while Sehwag hit a half-volley over the bowler's head for a six. After ten overs Delhi were 93 for 1 in contrast to Mumbai, who were 72 for 3 at the same stage.

Gambhir finally fell in the 12th over, again walking down the track but mistiming a loft to a diving Mohammad Ashraful at third man. But by then the required run-rate had come down to under seven an over, mostly owing to the wides conceded by Sanath Jayasuriya. Tillakaratne Dilshan waited only two balls before going for the big shot. He hooked a slower ball by Malinga to deep backward square-leg for six. Jayasuriya further pulled down the asking rate to less than six, this time owing to Sehwag who made room to hit him for four over extra cover and a six over long-on. Dilshan stuck into Malinga in the next and overs 12 to 14 cost Mumbai a whopping 39. Sehwag got his fifty immediately after that but the two batsmen fell off successive balls to Harbhajan.

There were some tense moments for Delhi after that. Harbhajan gave away only three and JP Duminy two. Harbhajan came back to pick up AB de Villiers and Rajat Bhatia off successive balls as well. De Villiers was caught at midwicket trying to flick him for a six and Bhatia misread an off-break and was bowled for 2. At the end of that over, Delhi needed 12 off 18, with four wickets in hand. Amit Mishra ensured they needed only three of those balls, hitting Duminy for a six and a four, and Mumbai ended their IPL campaign at No.7, after having being a semi-final contender at one point.

However their batsmen, led by Ajinkya Rahane, had given them a chance to end on a positive note. Rahane began attacking after the Powerplay overs and added 73 with Sachin Tendulkar. Bhatia, bowling his slow-medium stuff, had sent down four tight balls and a wide before Tendulkar messed up the over with two beautifully executed fours. He late-cut the first to the third-man boundary and drove the next straight past the bowler to long-on. After the strategy break, the two took advantage of Mishra's poor length and scored 15 off his third over. Even after Tendulkar fell, Rahane kept the scoreboard ticking and got to his second half-century of the season from 37 balls. Mumbai scored 56 off the last five overs but Delhi's batsmen came in to form and spoiled their farewell.

 Hughes itching to get back to England for Ashes  

Australia batsman Phillip Hughes arrived home from a successful few weeks in England on Friday and said he could not wait to get right back on the plane to Europe for his first Ashes series.

The 20-year-old, who spent a month playing for English county side Middlesex, had never played in England before and said the experience had whetted his appetite for Australia's defence of the Ashes, which begins on July 8.

"I thoroughly enjoyed it and the preparation has been great to be honest," Hughes told reporters in Sydney on his return.

"I think the big thing that came out of it was that I played at three test grounds I'm going to be playing on and got to experience them before this big series coming up.

"Lord's was obviously my home ground there for Middlesex ... and I played at the Oval as well and Edgbaston. It couldn't have really worked out any better.

"The big thing was just going over there to experience the whole different culture really, the weather, the wickets and the bowlers as well."

Hughes hit three first class centuries and another in a one day match during his time in England, performances that look to have vindicated English concerns that a spell on the county circuit could only improve one of Australia's best young talents. The dashing left-hander's spell in England came after an astonishing tour of South Africa.

After making a four-ball duck in his debut innings at Johannesburg, he scored 75 in the next innings then twin centuries in the second test at Durban. He finished the series with 415 runs at an average of 69.16.

While he similarly plundered the English county attacks, he dismissed Australian concerns that England's test bowlers had been given a good look at him.

"The thing was I wanted to spend as much time as I could in the middle," he said. "I went over there to help guys around me win games of cricket and that's the big thing I wanted to do.

"I just wanted to contribute in that way, so it doesn't matter about those guys seeing me bat in the middle." 

I P L

Delhi cruise along

Mohammad Ashraful's disappointing debut in Mumbai Indians' four-wicket loss to Delhi Daredevils in Centurion yesterday made sure the Bangladesh dream of the Indian Premier League was not realised.

In his side's last match of the tournament, Ashraful came in to bat at number four but scratched around for ten deliveries before edging Pradeep Sangwan to wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik after scoring just two runs in his side's total of 165-8 from 20 overs.

In reply, Delhi captain Virender Sehwag hit his first half-century of the tournament as leaders Delhi reached 166-6 in 17.3 overs. The first two catches of the Delhi innings however went to Ashraful, but success in the IPL remained out of the Tigers' reach as Ashraful joined teammates Mashrafe Bin Mortaza and Abdur Razzak (from last year) as flop shows.

But it was Delhi all the way with skipper Sehwag making exactly fifty off 27 balls with five boundaries and two sixes.

"It was great to score my first half century this season," said opener Sehwag. "It is critical that I am in form with a semifinal at Centurion tomorrow."

Mumbai captain Sachin Tendulkar could not mask his disappointment after Mumbai finished with only five wins from 14 outings and finished second last on the eight-franchise standings.

"I thought we batted well today and built a good total, but our bowling was not up to the mark. This was a pity as our bowlers have generally performed well this season."

Ajinkya Rahane (56) and Tendulkar (46) performed best with the bat for Mumbai, who battled to get sixes with the first of only two coming from the former 98 balls into the innings.

Australian Dirk Nannes was his usual destructive self with the ball, taking 3-27 in four overs, and Pradeep Sangwan (2-28) was the best of the rest on a chilly afternoon halfway between Johannesburg and Pretoria.

Delhi got off to a flying start, putting 60 runs on the board within six overs, and the loss of opener David Warner for only 15 had little impact as Gautam Gambhir (47), Tim Dilshan (24) and Sehweg (50) did the damage.

SCORES IN BRIEF

MUMBAI: 165 for 8 in 20 overs (Rahane 56, Tendulkar 46, Shah 12, Harbhajan 12 not out, Ashraful 2; Nannes 3-27, Sangwan 2-28)

DELHI: 166 for 6 in 17.3 overs (Sehwag 50, Gambhir 47, Dilshan 24, Warner 15, Mishra 13; Harbhajan 4-17)

Result: Delhi Daredevils won by four wickets.

Man-of-the-match: Virender Sehwag.

 Sharma gets sharp for India's Twenty20 defence  

 Strike bowler Ishant Sharma is looking to sharpen his yorkers and widen his repertoire to help India defend their title in the Twenty20 World Cup in England next month.

"Conditions in England will be helpful for bowlers and I want to make it memorable for myself," 20-year-old Sharma told the Indian Express on Friday. "It's a huge honour to go in as the defending champions," he added.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni led a young Indian team to surprise success in South Africa in 2007 to ensure the game's newest format gained instant popularity in cricket's commercial hub. "I really have to take care of my economy rate and then I need to work on variations," said the wiry paceman, who was part of a losing Kolkata franchise in the ongoing Indian Premier League Twenty20 in South Africa.

"In Twenty20, you need to have a good yorker and different kinds of slower balls. Also, I am looking to become an impact bowler because nothing else puts the opposing team back like losing early wickets."

Sharma played his first Twenty20 international during the 2008 tour of Australia, nine months after making his test debut, and soon emerged as the leading fast bowler for his country.

Sharma will spearhead a five-man pace attack to exploit the seam-friendly conditions in England with the wily left-armer Zaheer Khan as his new-ball partner.

India are in group A with Bangladesh and Ireland. The tournament starts in June 5. 

 Pandey hits century as Bangalore secure semis spot  

 Manish Pandey smashed the highest score of the Indian Premier League season as his unbeaten 114 helped Bangalore Royal Challengers to a 12-run win over Deccan Chargers and third place in the table. The Delhi Daredevils secured first place in the standings with a four-wicket victory over Mumbai Indians on the final day of round-robin action on Thursday.

Pandey was called on to open the batting for the first time in the IPL and the 19-year-old smashed the ball all over Centurion in just the second century of the season.

His 114 not out off 73 balls led Bangalore to 170 for four.

Rudra Pratap Singh, who holds the Purple Cap for taking the most wickets in the competition, dropped Pandey on two and then bowled a terrible final over for Deccan, conceding 23 runs.

Herschelle Gibbs ensured Deccan were initially up with the required run rate as he blasted 60

But spinner Balachandra Akhil, who had earlier winkled out Adam Gilchrist (15), dismissed the South African at the start of the 15th over with the help of a fine running catch by Pandey on the midwicket boundary.

Akhil finished with two for 18 in four overs, while experienced leg-spinner Anil Kumble claimed two for 23 as Bangalore restricted Deccan to 158 for six.

They will now play the second placed Chennai Super Kings in Saturday's semi-final in Johannesburg.

Deccan ended fourth on 14 points, edging the Punjab Kings XI out of the semi-finals by virtue of a better run rate and will face Delhi Daredevils in the semis.

Delhi continued to sweep all before them as they powered to their 10th victory of the round-robin stages, overwhelming the Mumbai Indians by four wickets with 15 balls to spare.

Despite Mumbai off-spinner Harbhajan Singh claiming four for nine in two overs at the death, Delhi chased down a target of 166 with ease after Indian openers Gautam Gambhir (47) and Virender Sehwag (50) had terrorised the bowlers with a second-wicket stand of 68 off 48 balls.

Sehwag's return to form heading into the semi-finals was particularly pleasing for Delhi and the captain teared into the bowling as he hammered five fours and two sixes in his half-century.

Harbhajan claimed two wickets with successive deliveries in both the 15th and 17th overs, but it caused just a minor wobble in the Delhi innings.

Delhi pacemen Dirk Nannes (three for 27), Aavishkar Salvi and Pradeep Sangwan had earlier bowled consistent four-over stints to restrict Mumbai to 165 for eight.

But the spinners let Delhi down and Mumbai's favourite son, Sachin Tendulkar (46), and Ajinkya Rahane (56) scored freely in a stand of 73 off 57 balls for the fourth wicket, although it was to no avail in the end. 

ICC World Twenty20

Grand finale promised

Bollywood superstars Katrina Kaif and Shilpa Shetty will join reggae icon Eddy Grant and R&B singer Akon onstage Sunday as the glitzy Indian Premier League (IPL) wraps up in Johannesburg.

The closing ceremony after the five-week Twenty20 extravaganza will take place after the last ball is bowled in the glamorous tournament's final with a fireworks display topping the showcase.

"We believe we have put our best forward foot forward and it's going to be a spectacular show," IPL chief operating officer Sundar Raman told AFP Thursday.

The show tops a tournament that was moved to South Africa over fears of insufficient security in India due to date clashes with general elections.

"It's our way of saying thank you (to the fans). This is our humble way of thanking them and getting them to the field of play, to the stadium, to watch something beyond cricket," Raman said.

The line-up at the sold-out match includes Indian percussionist Shivamani, a performance by Indian and South African drummers and the crowning of the Miss Bollywood IPL South Africa.

The presentation ceremony for the 2009 season winners and runners-up will follow the entertainment.

The IPL's eight cricket teams are owned by some of the biggest Bollywood stars and richest people in the world, including Bollywood giants Shah Rukh Khan, Preity Zinta, and Shetty.

Khan is one of Bollywood's biggest stars and owns the Kolkata Knight Riders, while Shetty is co-owner of the Rajasthan Royals and a former winner of Celebrity Big Brother.

Fellow actress Zinta is part-owner of the Kings XI Punjab franchise.

Business tycoon Mukesh Ambani is the head of the fourth-richest family in the world, and owns the Mumbai Indians through his conglomerate Reliance Industries.

Warne eyes spin job

Shane Warne has expressed his interest in coaching Indian spinners if the BCCI offered him the job.

"If there is any offer or something like that I will seriously consider," Warne told Indian news channel CNN-IBN. "I love Indian culture. It took a long time to embrace the culture and get to appreciate India and probably took me a couple of tours to understand."

Warne wasn't at his best in India during his Test career, averaging 47.17 in 14 Tests compared to his career figures of 25.41 in 145 matches, but was in great form in last year's IPL leading the unfancied Rajasthan Royals to victory. Wednesday's defeat to Kolkata Knight Riders ended Rajasthan's hopes of making the semifinals this season.

Eng-WI ODI washed out

The first one-day international between England and the West Indies at Headingley here on Thursday was abandoned without a ball being bowled after rain made the outfield unplayable.

A heavy downpour delayed the scheduled 1045am local time start (0945GMT). Although the ground was subsequently bathed in sunshine, hours later standing water remained on the outfield at the home of Yorkshire cricket.

This was despite the county having spent 600,000 pounds (940,273 dollars) on a new drainage system during the off-season.

It was a concerning sign for Yorkshire chiefs ahead of the fourth Ashes Test against Australia, which is due to take place at Headingley from August 7-11.

When it was announced following an umpires' inspection at 2pm (1300GMT) that the officials would have another look an hour later, boos rang out around the ground from frustrated spectators.

And when Australian umpire Steve Davis and his English colleague Nigel Llong decided there was no prospect of play and called the game off shortly after 3pm (1400GMT), their decision was greeted with more cat-calls from the crowd.

The second match of this three-game series takes place at Bristol on Sunday before concluding on Tuesday at Birmingham's Edgbaston ground.

IPL :

Ashraful shows poor performance in IPL


Bangladesh skipper Mohammad Ashraful, representing Mumbai Indians' last India Premier League (IPL) match scoring only two runs facing 10 deliveries on Thursday.

Pradeep Sangwan picked up the wicket of Mohammad Ashraful, who was finally given a chance to play against Delhi Daredevils that beat Mumbai Indians by four wickets.

Earlier, Bangladesh vice-captain Mashrafe Bin Mortaza, who represent for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKS), got a chance to play against Deccan Chargers. KKS lost that match due to Mashrafee's expensive four overs for 58 runs.

ICC World Twenty20

Pakistan Wasim Akram's pick


Famed paceman Wasim Akram on Thursday tipped Pakistan to win next month's World Twenty20 in England, predicting the green shirts can triumph if they play to their potential.

"My favourite team is Pakistan," Wasim told AFP. "I thought Australia would thrash them in the one-off T20 match in Dubai but it was the other way round and now, if Pakistan play to their potential, they can win the title."

Pakistan beat Australia by seven wickets in the only Twenty20 match in Dubai earlier this month -- their last international match before the World Twenty20 in England starting from June 5.

Australia, however, won the preceding five-match one-day series 3-2, a loss that Wasim said was unacceptable.

"Pakistan did not play to their potential in the second, third and fourth match and I hope Younus Khan will learn from his mistakes as captain because there is no margin of error in the Twenty20 matches," said Wasim.

He played 104 Tests and 356 one-day internationals before retiring in 2003.

Pakistan are in Group B alongside hosts England and the Netherlands. Two teams from each of four groups will qualify for the Super Eight Stages.

Wasim said Pakistan had been doing well in T20 matches since their inception in 2005.

"Pakistan has the best winning ratio of all the teams in the Twenty20 cricket, so if they continue to keep that consistency it won't be difficult to win after losing the last match in 2007," said Wasim.

Pakistan chalked up a five-run defeat against India in the final of the inaugural World Twenty20 in South Africa.

Wasim said batting can let Pakistan down.

"With Umar Gul, Sohail Tanvir and Shoaib Akhtar, if he is fit and going with the team, Pakistan has the best bowling attack backed by quality spin of Shahid Afridi," said Wasim, himself a world class left-arm paceman.

"I am also impressed with the talent of Mohammad Aamir who is nippy and can swing the ball both ways. He could be a revelation in the event," said Wasim of the 17-year-old rookie left-armer included in the 15-man squad.

"But batting can let Pakistan down, as it has always done in the past, so there will be more responsibility on Younus, Shoaib Malik, Misbahul Haq and Shahid Afridi. Twenty20 is not only thrashing, it is also sensible batting."

Wasim believed defending champions India could suffer from a hectic season.

"I think Pakistan has played less cricket and will be fresh, while Indian players could be fatigued after playing in the Indian Premier League," he said.

 Australia selections spell trouble for England  

   
 Australia's squad selections for this year's Ashes series reflects a growing confidence that they have overcome a spate of high-profile retirements, which spells big trouble for England.

The makeup of the 16-man squad was unsurprising and deeply conservative, a typical blend of youth and experience. Every player in the squad warranted selection and there were no glaring omissions.

It is a measure of Australia's confidence that they were able to so easily choose their side and testament to their ability to recover from the retirement of so many top players in such a short period.

Most worrying for England, however, was the fact that Australia's risk-free approach to their selections proved they had not forgotten the lessons of four years ago.

The Australians exacted a measure of revenge for their 2005 defeat when they humiliated England 5-0 at home in 2006-07 but they clearly have more retribution in mind.

"A lot of us have been there and learnt from our mistakes of last time and we're keen to obviously rectify that," Australia captain Ricky Ponting said.

"We're really excited about the prospects of a great series coming up."

FAMILIAR FEEL

There is a familiar feel about the batting lineup, despite the departure of long time openers Matthew Hayden and Justin Langer. They have been replaced by Simon Katich and Phillip Hughes, both lefthanders and both highly unorthodox.

Katich, like Hayden and Langer, has fought his way back from adversity while Hughes is a brash kid from the bush who embodies the new feel of the team.

Virtually unknown outside Australia a year ago, the 20-year-old Hughes is suddenly poised to be one of the major players in the series.

He became the youngest player to score centuries in each innings of a test when he blasted a pair of hundreds in just his second match against South Africa two months ago and has been piling on runs during a brief stint with Middlesex.

"I am a little bit worried that he's scoring so many runs," Ponting joked. "I would like him to keep a few in the bank for a little later down the track."

Ponting, his loyal deputy Michael Clarke and Mike Hussey once again feature in the middle order. They have been joined by Marcus North, a left-handed batsman who scored a century on his debut against South Africa last month, and a handy right-arm spinner.

Brad Haddin has proven a worthy replacement for the retired Adam Gilchrist and has been given a back-up wicketkeeper in Graham Manou, the South Australian captain, to avoid any danger of burnout.

The selectors also adopted a cautious approach in the choice of their all-rounders, opting for Shane Watson and Andrew McDonald ahead of the headline-grabbing Andrew Symonds.

Watson has long been recognised as an outstanding, albeit injury-prone, batsman who can fill in anywhere from opener to six, while McDonald is a solid lower-order batsman and deceptive seamer.

PACE COMPETITION

The squad included five pace bowlers in Brett Lee, Stuart Clark, Mitchell Johnson, Ben Hilfenhaus and Peter Siddle and the competition among them for places is fierce.

Johnson, now the spearhead of the attack, is the only certain selection in the test side. Lee and Stuart are experienced campaigners on the way back from injury while Siddle and Hilfenhaus are newcomers.

Australia's chairman of selectors Andrew Hilditch was in no doubt the trio of Siddle, Johnson and Hilfenhaus would perform well at the Ashes after excelling in South Africa.

"The young fast bowling group which performed so well in South Africa .... will all be taking part in their first Ashes tour to England and .... they have the skills to perform at the international level and will be well suited to English conditions," he added.

Australia are still searching for a leg-spinner to fill the massive void left by the retirement of Shane Warne but off-spinner Nathan Hauritz has rediscovered his form in time for the Ashes.

Hauritz played the first of his four tests back in 2004, capturing the prized wicket of India's master batsman Sachin Tendulkar, but fell out of favour before suddenly returning to the top of the spinner's list this season.

"We've been in a transitional phase with our test and one-day cricket now for the past 12 months but I think we've worked our way through that particulary well," Ponting said.

"I think the selectors have definitely got it right." 

IPL

 Holders Rajasthan out of IPL contention after defeat  


 Holders Rajasthan Royals were knocked out of the Indian Premier League following a four-wicket loss to Kolkata Knight Riders at Kingsmead on Wednesday. In the second match of the Durban double-header, Chennai Super Kings beat the Kings XI Punjab by 24 runs to secure their place in the competition's semi-finals. Rajasthan, after completing their 14 round-robin matches, are in sixth place with 13 points, while Chennai moved up to second on 17, one point behind leaders Delhi Daredevils.

Punjab's defeat left them in fifth with only a slim mathematical chance of making the semi-finals.

After restricting Rajasthan to 101 for nine, Kolkata made heavy weather of their run chase as they slipped to 45 for six.

Fast bowler Munaf Patel did the early damage, capturing two for 14 off four overs before South Africa off spinner Johan Botha snared two for 19.

But right-handed Indian batsman Laxmi Shukla kept his head and compiled a match-winning innings of 48 not out off 46 balls to give Kolkata their third victory with three balls of the innings remaining.

Rajasthan's innings had begun as poorly as Kolkata's and they tottered to 62 for seven in 11 overs as South African swing bowler Charl Langeveldt ran through the top order, picking up three wickets in his first three overs.

Opening batsman Naman Ojha top-scored for Rajasthan with an aggressive knock of 22 runs off 12 balls.

Chennai posted 116 for nine before restricting Punjab to 92 for eight.

Opening batsman Parthiv Patel carved his way to 32 runs off 23 balls as Chennai made a good start and reached 54 for one.

However, they proceeded to lose eight wickets for 62 runs in the face of some disciplined Punjab bowling.

Fast bowler Shanthakumaran Sreesanth was Punjab's top performer with the ball, capturing two for 23.

In reply, Punjab failed to cope with Chennai's off spinners as Ravi Ashwin (2-13), Muttiah Muralitharan (2-8) and Suresh Raina (2-17) maintained such a stranglehold over Punjab's batsmen that only Australian Luke Pomersbach (26) and Irfan Pathan (14) reached double figures.

SL

 Thirimanne inspires SL development squad  

   
 A scintillating century from L Thirimanne guided visiting Sri Lanka Development Squad to a massive 128-run win over GP-BCB National Cricket Academy at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium on Thursday.

The hosts were skittled out for 178 in 39 overs after the visitors posted a challenging total of 306-5 in 50 overs.

The GP-BCB side were reduced to 27-2 in 6.5 overs before opener Imtiaz Hossain and Marshal Ayub repaired the damage adding 49 runs for the third wicket.

But the introduction of M Pushpakumara spelled trouble again as the bowler removed both Imtiaz (41) and Ayub (24) to trigger a middle order slump before the lower order produced some resistance with Muktar Ali making 35.

Ranesh Perera, however, cleaned the tail with 4-42 while Pushpakumara returned 3-43.

Opting to bat, Sri Lanka lost opener M Udawatta in the third over with scoreboard reading 11-1, but Kaushal Silva and L Thirimanne took the side to 99-2 in 19.1 overs before Nabil Samad trapped Silva leg before for 47.

Thirimanne then added another 86 runs for the fourth wicket with A Priyanjan (46) before being bowled by Nasir Hossain, leaving the side at 261-5 in 46.1 overs.

The opener made 124 off 129 balls that included 15 fours and two sixes.

Shoaib to miss World Twenty20

 Pakistan's Shoaib to miss World Twenty20  


 Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar has been ruled out of the World Twenty20 due to a skin infection in his groin, a Pakistan Cricket Board spokesman said on Thursday.
"The medical panel of the board has examined Shoaib and he has been advised 10-12 days rest for a skin infection," the spokesman said.
"The medical panel will re-examine him in the first week of June. In the meantime the team management has requested a replacement," he said.
Fast bowler Rao Iftikhar is likely to replace Shoaib who did not attend a week-long conditioning camp held in Bhurban, a hill resort near Islamabad, last week.
"Shoaib is not fit so it was useless waiting for him to recover just before the tournament," Pakistan coach Intikhab Alam told reporters in Lahore.
"He has not trained or bowled for the last two weeks so it would have been risky taking him to the World Cup and I think Rao Iftikhar is a suitable replacement," he added.
Shoaib, 33, has played just six one-day internationals and a Twenty20 game since December 2007 because of fitness and disciplinary issues.
Pakistan are drawn in Group B of the 12-team World Twenty20 and open their campaign against hosts England on June 7.

 Pakistan confident of hosting 2011 World Cup matches  

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) will submit new proposals to get back its share of 2011 World Cup matches at a meeting called by the International Cricket Council in Dubai on June 3.

PCB chairman Ejaz Butt said he was confident the meeting would produce positive results.
"We are open to all options. We just want our World Cup matches back," Butt told Reuters on Thursday.
Pakistan mounted a legal challenge against the ICC executive board decision in April to move World Cup matches out of Pakistan due to security concerns.
"Pakistan has been invited to this meeting which we see as a positive," Butt said.
Butt said Pakistan's second option would be to hold games at neutral venues such as Dubai, Abu Dhabi or Malaysia.
Pakistan, originally scheduled to host the tournament along with India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, stands to lose around $11 million in rights fees if it does not stage its share of 14 matches. 

 Pietersen out of one-day series  

  England batsman Kevin Pietersen will miss the one-day series against West Indies because of an Achilles tendon injury in his right leg. Pietersen said the injury was likely to heal in time for the Ashes series against Australia starting in July and next month's World Twenty20.

"The medical advice is to rest the Achilles and although I'm frustrated to be leaving a happy and successful dressing room I'm absolutely confident this will help me overcome what has up until now been a minor ongoing injury," Pietersen said in a statement issued by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).

"I hate missing out on playing for England but understand that in this instance it's necessary in order to overcome the injury. I was looking forward to playing a significant part in what should be an exciting and closely fought series."

The first of the three one-day internationals against West Indies is at Headingley on Thursday with the other two matches scheduled for Sunday and next Tuesday.

"Even though I won't be lining up for England during this series I'll be watching and supporting the team closely as they set about repeating the recent one-day series win in the Caribbean," Pietersen said.

"I'm looking forward to being back in the England lineup for the World Twenty20 and the rest of an exciting summer of cricket." ECB chief medical officer Nick Pierce said Pietersen's injury had flared up after the second test against West Indies, which England won by an innings and 83 runs on Monday to complete a 2-0 series win.

"The injury would not necessarily prevent him from playing but by giving him a precautionary period of time out to receive some concentrated treatment and rest we are enabling the niggle to settle down in preparation of the ICC World Twenty20 and the Ashes," Pierce said in the ECB statement.

"This is not an injury that would preclude him from participating in either event."

The World Twenty20 begins on June 5 while the Ashes series starts in Cardiff on July 8. 

UCBL T20 wc sponsors for bd

 UCBL sponsors national cricket team in T20 WC  

   
The United Commercial Bank (UCBL) has become the official sponsors of the Bangladesh national cricket team for the ensuing ICC Twenty20 World Cup in England next month.

The declaration came at a press conference on Wednesday at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium where the match and practice jerseys were also unveiled.

Syed Farhad Ahmed, the vice chairman of Bangladesh Cricket Board's marketing and commercial committee, said the sponsor would provide them $ 30,000 for two matches at the group stage and a further $ 5,000 per match if Bangladesh qualified for the Super Eights.

The UCBL, on the other hand, will use the tag line 'United Commercial Bank official sponsor of the Bangladesh national cricket team for the ICC World Twenty20 England 2009" in all their promotion during the 30-day agreement.

BCB senior vice president Mahbub Anam, UCBL managing director M Shahjahan Bhuiyan, national cricketers Syed Rasel and Abdur Razzak were among others present. 

Shakib TVS brand ambassador

Shakib becomes TVS brand ambassador

Cricketer Shakib Al Hasan, the world's number one all-rounder, is the first Bangladeshi to become the brand ambassador of TVS, a India-based two-wheeler motor manufacture company.

Ex-England cricketer Lewis jailed for 13 years

Former England cricketer Chris Lewis was jailed for 13 years on Wednesday for trying to smuggle drugs into Britain in his kit bag.

BNS will get no World cup 2011

Bangabandhu National Stadium will host none of the matches of the World Cup Cricket 2011, though it will stage the opening ceremony. Bangladesh will host eight matches including two quarter-finals at two different venues.

We showed what we are capable of: McCullum

Kolkata Knight Riders captain Brendon McCullum finally had something to cheer about.

Here are excerpts from his media briefing after a rare win

On whether the win has sunk in: I guess. The irony is it was our worst fielding and bowling performance we have put in for the whole tournament. The feeling in the change room at the moment is fantastic. I am so pleased for the guys. It's been a hell of a ride, the last three or four weeks. We have got ourselves into situations where we thought we couldn't lose games. And we managed to come up short. I am so pleased for the change room and for all the guys that they have continually got off the camp after every time.... after every hard loss. They continued to give their absolute all for the team. It's nice to get some reward like we did tonight.

On the factors behind the win: I guess them scoring 190 almost allowed us to play freely that we couldn't stop. I think that is part and parcel of a good start. Try and get our run-rate up so that we could try and keep things in check as we headed into the last five or six overs. And as it worked out it was near to a perfect run chase. Even when six off six were needed there were parts of me which were thinking that once again we might fall short of the line. I thought Brad Hodge was outstanding today. He has been great for us throughout the tournament. To hold the nerve in the manner in which he did today and to get us across the line. Same with Saha. He was great too. I am so pleased for all the guys who have gone through such a time over the last three or four weeks and to come out of the other side of it against a very, very good side in a tough situation is pretty pleasing.

On what they did different: We batted second for a start. We have had some pretty good totals to try and defend over the last couple of games. We haven't probably executed with the ball as much as we should have. We have dropped a few catches which have let us down. I guess with the bat in hand today was a different proposition for us. Quite refreshing, as well, knowing well that the destiny of the game was within our bats rather than being on the field and having a ball in hand. So it was quite a nice change. and I think it certainly worked for us.

On his message to fans: I guess the same message that we are telling one another within the camp. We have given it everything that we possibly could over these last three weeks. Things haven't always gone our way. We have faced some pretty tough times as a group. But hopefully this is just a small sort of payback for all the hard work and all the dedication... not only the players... but the people within the group and from outside the group, fans, everyone. Hopefully, they enjoyed it tonight. I guess what it did show was what we are capable of as a team. And I guess the emotion as well that we saw at the end from the guys is something that we are looking to try and re-capture next year. So hopefully we have managed to continue to keep ourselves pleased and keep our supporters proud with the way we have continually stepped up and managed to overcome adversity right throughout the tournament. And hopefully people have seen that. We have still got a fantastic fan base. And guys have been great, we have got messages from all over the world. With messages of support does show that a lot of people care about this team.

On whether Shah Rukh Khan spoke with the team: Not so far but no doubt he will be in contact tonight. He has been in contact after pretty much every game. He lives and breathes the team more than anyone else. I am sure he will be sitting at home quietly pleased with the way how this game unfolded.

Praveen's first over set the match up: Kumble

Royal Challengers captain Anil Kumble said Praveen Kumar and Jacques Kallis' fantastic spell with the new ball helped the team outplayed Delhi Daredevils by seven wickets in the DLF Indian Premier League at thhe Wanderers on Tuesday.

"Praveen and Kallis set the match up for us," he said after notching up the win. "Two wickets in the first over gave us an edge. Later, Kallis bowled and batted superbly while Rahul Dravid gave him good company. It was an important match for us and someone had to bat through the innings and Kallis was the man today,"

The Royal Challengers skipper said the team knew what exactly it had to do to make it to the last four. "We are very much in the tournament. We need to win our next match for the semi-final berth. We know what to do and we are taking one game at a time. We are not looking at the point's table," he said. 

Man-of-the-match Jacques Kallis said there was need for experienced guys to come up with good scores in big games and today was his day. "I am happy that I did well with bat and ball and my team won an important game. The pitch was a little bit slow and chasing 150-155 could have been difficult. But my partnership with Rahul was important. I think the guys have settled with their position in the team now and giving off their best."

Dravid, too, was in all praise for Praveen and Kallis and said that their bowling gave them an edge. "The bowlers did a good job to restrict Delhi Daredevils to 134. Three wickets in the first six overs put Delhi Daredevils on back foot. Now every game is important. We played really well today," he said.

Delhi Daredevils captain Virender Sehwag didn't look perturbed by the loss and said that his boys were a bit relaxed today. "Since we have reached the semis, the boys seemed to be a bit relaxed. But we won't take it lightly our next game from. We will come back strong in our next game. The fall of early wickets made things hard for us," he said. 

Sehwag also said he wasn't worried about his own form. "I am not at all worried about my form. I know I am not very far from scoring. But yes Gautam Gambhir and I will have to do well in the coming matches," he said.

Warne vs. Ganguly: D-Day is here

There are two men in Wednesday's encounter who will be banking on the final flicker of fire inside them to make an impact on the big stage that they have so dominated for so long. Shane Warne will be thinking of spinning another web while for Sourav Ganguly will probably look at spoiling Warne's party one more time, if not for the last time itself.

Though there are many variables involved but it is a good wager that the fate of Wednesday's tie could be decided on the outcome of this high-profile battle.

"Every match in the Indian Premier League is like a judgment day of one's abilities and skills," said Rajasthan Royals skipper Warne."This is an important one. We have to win. We didn't want it to happen this way but here it is- we are taking on Knight Riders in a do-or-die situation. Ganguly isn't the one to back out of such battles. "Whatever they bowl, we will have to adapt and play according to that. If they bounce we have to pull or hook, if they bowl in the right areas we will respect that and work on it. When you're an opening batsman you are always a target and I've been playing long enough to handle the pressure."

But on the eve of the net session, the Aussie seemed to be a bit bothered by a certain Ishant Sharma. "He is good, really good," he said. Warne also spoke about his last game when he had the luxury of throwing the ball to Kamran Khan who had answered his SoS last time they played against Kolkata Knight Riders. "There is no denying that I will miss him," he said.

The true test of a champion is his performance when it matters the most. Mumbai Indians lost a crucial game to Rajasthan Royals and Sachin Tendulkar couldn't finish it off for his side. "I think he batted well. He was immaculate in all his shots. You cannot blame him. He is a champion. It is not one on one, but yes individual performance do matter in T20s. I will try to have fun in there. Let's see, I think I can," Warne said.

David Hussey, who was seen swinging two bats while preparing himself for going in to bat against Chennai Super Kings, says: "Well, I was just opening a bit. It helps when you play shots with two bats and then play with one. It helps you get rid of the stiffness and when you actually hold one bat if gives you a good feel."

On the match against Rajasthan Royals, Hussey said "We don't have anything to lose. We are here playing for pride. We are not that bad a team that we finish at the bottom of the table."

Whichever way you look at it, pride will eventually decide the outcome. The shine of victory will rub off on either Warne or Ganguly as they take their rivalry to its final stretch. The pride of being defending champions against the pride of two cricketing adversaries - Shane Warne and Sourav Ganguly. We can only hope for an encore!

Ponting need Symonds

Ponting backs Symonds for Ashes spot

Ricky Ponting has said he would be more than happy to have Andrew Symonds in his Ashes squad but conceded the selectors faced a hard call on whether they could squeeze him in. The touring party will be named at 11am (AEST) Wednesday and there is no guarantee that Symonds, who was once a certainty in the starting XI, will be chosen.

His off-field issues over the past year have led him to being stood down from the side on two occasions and he has struggled to regain his best form at first-class level. That has allowed Marcus North to capably slot into the No. 6 role, while Andrew McDonald has held down the allrounder's position.

Shane Watson and Brad Hodge will also come into contention along with Symonds, who made his latest comeback for Australia in the recent one-day series against Pakistan in the UAE. Ponting said it would be no great bombshell if Symonds was named in the squad, which is likely to feature 16 players.

"I wouldn't be surprised, he has had his share of battles over the last 12 months, obviously the well documented stuff off the field," Ponting told AAP. "He's worked his way back into domestic cricket pretty well and played well for us over in Abu Dhabi, Dubai”.

IPL : Umpires report Amit Singh's bowling action

Umpires report Amit Singh's bowling action again

Umpires Gary Baxter and Kumara Dharmasena reported Rajasthan Royals fastmedium bowler Amit Singh a second time for a suspect bowling action on certain deliveries during the game against Rajasthan Royals in the DLF Indian Premier League at the De Beers Diamond Oval on Saturday.

At the end of the match, TV footage was obtained and examined by the three umpires including TV umpire Amish Saheba and it was decided that further action was necessary under Law 24.3 of the Laws of Cricket. Javagal Srinath.was the match referee for the game.

Earlier, Umpires Daryl Harper and K. Hariharan reported Amit Singh for suspect bowling action on certain deliveries during the game against Royal Challengers Bangalore at SuperSport Park on May 4. They had been supported by TV umpire Tyron Wijewardene and match referee S. Venkatraghavan.

IPL, which has referred Amit Singh to the Rajasthan Royals team management and the Technical Committee, has once again forwarded the relevant material to the team management and the Technical Committee.

He became the second bowler after Rajasthan Royals' left-arm paceman Kamran Khan to be reported. The IPL Technical Committee, comprising Sunil Gavaskar, Ravi Shastri, Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi, Anurag Thakur and and IPL Chairman & Commissioner Lalit Modi recommended a fortnight-long rehabilitation programme for Kamran Khan.

England face keeper crisis

England manager Fabio Capello will have to rely on third-choice goalkeeper Robert Green for next month’s World Cup qualifiers against Kazakshstan and Andorra after David James opted for shoulder surgery.
  Manchester United’s Ben Foster, who had moved past Green in Capello’s pecking order, is also unavailable for the trip to Kazakhstan and the Wembley meeting with Andorra after having an operation to correct a ligament problem in his thumb.
  James has had a problem with his left shoulder for some time but delayed a decision on surgery until his club, Portsmouth, had secured their survival in the Premier League.
  He missed Monday night’s 3-1 defeat of Sunderland and decided to have the operation on Wednesday rather than wait until after the England matches, on June 6 and 10, and risk not being fit for the start of next season.
  The 38-year-old is taking a calculated gamble over his England place by handing Green or someone else the chance to come in and catch Capello’s eye only a year before the World Cup finals in South Africa.
  Portsmouth’s interim coach Paul Hart said the goalkeeper accepted that.
  ‘He’s a strong-minded person and he knows what he’s doing,’ said Hart. ‘He weighed up missing the England games before making his decision.’
  James said he had been carrying the injury for 18 months. ‘I have to look at the bigger picture. I want to be fit for the start of next season and I trust England to do well without me.’
  Green has yet to play in a competitive fixture for his country but has had a good season with West Ham and collected a second cap in February’s friendly defeat by Spain.
  England travel to Kazakhstan with a five point lead over Croatia after winning their first five matches in group six. Having beaten the Kazakhs 5-1 at Wembley in October, they will be confident of extending that winning run.