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South African batsman Herschelle Gibbs has been confirmed as Jacques Kallis’ replacement for the remainder of the ODI series against England. Kallis fractured his rib during last month’s Champions Twenty20 League in India and is also doubtful for the opening Test in Centurion on December 16. Kallis played the second Twenty20 international in Centurion and scored 7, but did not bowl.Gibbs will join the squad in Cape Town on Wednesday, ahead of the third ODI which starts two days later. He last played for South Africa during the Champions Trophy in September but failed to make the squad for the limited-overs games against Zimbabwe and England. He also had a forgettable outing in the Champions League in India, scoring just 43 runs in four games for the Cape Cobras. He scored 42 of those in the semi-final against Trinidad and Tobago, but prior to that he had recorded two first-ball ducks.However, he was in good form for the Cobras in the MTN 40-over competition at home, scoring 163 runs in four games. He was given a lifeline by the selectors when he was picked for the A squad to play England in Potchefstroom last week, where he scored 24. With Kallis on the sidelines, Gibbs will have a second chance at regaining his spot.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were outAfter a fine opening spell, Elton Chigumbura starred with the bat to give Zimbabwe a 1-0 lead•AFP

As Bangladesh had been lifted out of a hole in the afternoon, so Zimbabwe were revived from a top-order collapse with an excellent partnership that gave them a 1-0 lead in the series. Abdur Razzak’s comeback to the Bangladesh XI began with three wickets in his first over, as Zimbabwe squandered a steady start, but a quick and almost effortless 99-run alliance between Elton Chigumbura and Stuart Matsikenyeri steered Zimbabwe out of a mess and on to an ultimately comfortable win.The framework for this success was laid out earlier in the day when Zimbabwe restricted Bangladesh to 186 – Chigumbura’s three early wickets were crucial – and the stitching up owned plenty to that fifth-wicket alliance, to which Chigumbura contributed 60.Dew was expected to play a part once the sun down – “It’s not great to bat under lights,” Shakib Al Hasan had said at the toss – and Zimbabwe threatened to succumb in pursuit of 187. Predictably, Razzak returned to the Bangladesh team after recovering from a hamstring injury, and made his presence felt immediately.Chamu Chibhabha had begun Zimbabwe’s chase coolly, hitting some imperious shots against the new-ball bowlers, but was struck on the pads by Razzak’s second ball was on his way for 26. The very next ball Brendan Taylor suffered a similar fate when he was hit in front of middle and leg. Three balls later Tatenda Taibu, who played two hurried sweeps, attempted a third but then, while adjusting the ugly stroke, dragged the ball back onto his stumps.Suddenly, Zimbabwe were 39 for 3. That became 54 for 4 when Rubel Hossain forced Hamilton Masakadza into a loose shot outside off, and when Charles Coventry’s crucial cameo 32 was snapped by Dolar Mahmud, Bangladesh were cock-a-hoop. However, Chigumbura and Matsikenyeri got the chase back on track in sensible manner.Chigumbura had began in a hurry with a volley of fine shots and didn’t slow down despite the wobble. Neither he nor Matsikenyeri succumbed to the pressure and instead turned it back on Bangladesh with smooth batting and running. Chigumbura’s shot selection was quite efficient: against the spinners, when they erred in length, he quickly cut and pulled and against the seamers he played in the V – straight and past mid-off. Matsikenyeri comfortably slipped into the anchor role and didn’t offer Bangladesh a chance.Unfortunately, as Bangladesh’s fielders began to slack in the field, a section of the crowd turned unruly. Just after Chigumbura took Razzak for consecutive fours, an irate Mirpur crowd threw plastic bottles onto the field. It was a pitiful and utterly needless display of frustration that held up play for a few minutes, and after the debris was cleared off the pair finished their task without fuss. Chigumbura finished off in a flurry of boundaries and notched up his 12th ODI half-century.From the depths of 62 for 6, Bangladesh had been lifted to 186 by Mushfiqur Rahim and Dolar’s 54-run partnership for the ninth wicket. Prosper Utseya’s rationale on deciding to field was “to keep it tight during the first 15 overs and try and pick up a couple of wickets” and, with the hosts 41 for 3 after that period, Zimbabwe had achieved that goal. By taking three more wickets before the 20th over Zimbabwe were firmly on top, but Mushfiqur’s half-century and Dolar’s late cameo gave Bangladesh a decent target to defend.Leading the charge for Zimbabwe was Chigumbura, who accounted for Tamim Iqbal, Junaid Siddique and Mohammad Ashraful inside the fielding Powerplays. A run-out and two wickets to Chibhaba in the 20th over left Bangladesh six down and facing a crisis.Mushfiqur, who watched from the non-striker’s end as Shakib and Mahmudullah fell to Chibhaba’s military medium pace, ruthlessly punishing ordinary deliveries to start the recovery. Cutting and glancing his way and at a healthy strike rate, he added 53 with Naeem Islam but lost Razzak soon after – well caught by a tumbling Utseya who had to then be carried off the field – and Bangladesh were 124 for 8.The pursuit of big runs in the batting Powerplay, taken after 45 overs, brought about the end of a good partnership; Jarvis getting Dolar to smash his first ball – a rank full toss – to extra cover to depart after an entertaining 30-ball 41. Mushfiqur brought up his fourth ODI half-century with successive boundaries off Jarvis but was last man out for 57, attempting a cheeky paddle-scoop but picking out a diving Taibu behind the stumps to bring the innings to a close with 3.1 overs remaining.

Former Pakistan players have questioned the manner in which Umar Akmal was omitted from the second ODI against New Zealand, which Pakistan lost to leave the series tied at 1-1. Akmal’s name was a surprising omission from the team sheet at the toss – Shoaib Malik took his place – and Younis Khan’s explanation for the change was not entirely clear.Akmal, 19, has had an excellent start to his international career, scoring his maiden ODI century in just his third game and averages 49.83 in the format.”It can be very discouraging for a young man like Umar since he has been very impressive in recent games for Pakistan and is raring to go against the Kiwis,” said Waqar Younis, commentating on the series in the UAE. “It is bound to shake his confidence in the coming games.”Rameez Raja questioned whether the decision was down to Pakistan’s rotation policy or something else entirely. “I would like to know the logic behind this and whose decision was it to omit Umar from this game,” he said. “This will only hurt Pakistan.”Abqul Qadir, the former Pakistan legspinner and selector, also expressed his surprise. “How can you drop a batsman when he has impressed all around the world with his brilliant temperament? It will only shatter his confidence and we might lose such a talented player if he continuously gets such treatment in the team.”Qadir, who was chief selector for eight months till June this year, said that he had advised the Pakistan board to focus on younger players during his stint, advice which the board ignored. “I had told the PCB that senior players should only play Test matches and we should find fresh legs from our own domestic ODI and Twenty20 tournament, but the cricket board did not listen to my advice.”Salahuddin Ahmed, another former national selector, was also critical of the decision to drop an in-form player like Akmal. “I think the ouster will hurt the confidence of Umar to a large extent. This should have not been done with him at this moment,” he told the Karachi-based . “I will also not support the decision of dropping Shoaib Malik from the first ODI, since he is one of the best allrounders for this version of the game. Pakistan should have gone with Kamran Akmal with any of the regular openers to make room for both Shoaib and Umar for all these matches.”

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
Phillip Hughes scored an unbeaten 62 off 64 balls•Getty Images

New South Wales, the champions of Australia’s Big Bash, were the first team from Group B to secure passage, with points carried forward, to the second round of the Champions League. They did so by showing tremendous adaptability in both their matches on slow Delhi pitches with low bounce. Phillip Hughes and Moises Henriques quickly assessed what a competitive total would be on such a surface – only 130 was needed today – and their bowlers, fast and spin alike, bowled a dangerous stump-to-stump line, snuffing out Sussex’s chase with early wickets and extremely few Powerplay runs.The game was won for NSW during the 90-run partnership between Hughes and Henriques. Hughes played the patient innings while Henriques used the long handle to telling effect. Both batsmen reached half-centuries but, despite being extremely well set, were unable to provide the slog-over thrust needed to take the total towards 150. That they were unable to do so was more an indictment of how difficult batting was on this surface than a criticism of their power-hitting skills.Just how tough Sussex’s chase would be was evident in Brett Lee’s opening over of the chase. Bowling fast and straight, Lee pitched one on a length: the ball stayed low, ripped through Ed Joyce’s defence, and crashed into the middle of off stump. The total of 130 had suddenly grown in stature.NSW’s innings was in strife at 40 for 2 and they had reached only 50 at the half-way stage when the acceleration came. Hughes hit the first six in the 11th over, muscling Piyush Chawla with a flat bat over long off, and Henriques, who was dropped at cover a few balls later, struck the second, slog-sweeping over deep midwicket. NSW took 17 runs off the 11th over and appeared to be back on track. Henriques had struck three sixes during his cameo against the Eagles and began to do a repeat, launching Rory Hamilton-Brown over extra cover and clearing the long-on boundary off James Kirtley.The batsmen scored 45 runs between overs 10 and 15 and, with eight wickets in hand, a score of 150 was probable. There were no boundaries in the last four overs, though, the most eventful delivery being the beamer from Dwayne Smith that crashed into the wicketkeeper’s helmet, and NSW had to settle for less.It isn’t often that a team scores merely 130 in a Twenty20 match despite having eight wickets in the bank but it was that sort of a pitch. It got lower and slower as the day wore on; the batsmen struggled to find timing and had to stay vigilant to keep out the occasional shooter. Robin Martin-Jenkins’ first delivery of the match set the tone as it thudded into the bottom of David Warner’s bat. The Sussex bowlers rarely wavered from the straight-and-narrow line, hoping they would hit if the batsmen misjudged the pace and bounce. It was a method NSW’s attack would implement with success.After Brett Lee’s searing opening spell of 2-1-3-1, which included Joyce’s wicket, Doug Bollinger and Henriques kept the batsmen quiet. Sussex had scored only 26 off the Powerplay and, so when Simon Katich gave the ball to Steven Smith as soon as the fielding restrictions were lifted, Rory Hamilton-Brown charged the young legspinner immediately. He advanced and swung across the line but was beaten by flight and turn, leaving Daniel Smith with an easy stumping.The chase was floundering at 26 for 2 and Dwayne Smith adopted a similar approach against Steven Smith. He swiped repeatedly across the line and was beaten. He eventually connected and sent the ball rapidly to the long-on boundary but Sussex needed him to contribute substantially. However, on a pitch that needed batsmen to remain watchful and balanced, Dwayne Smith moved towards leg to manufacture room to guide Bollinger to third man. He missed and was bowled. Sussex’s bad situation grew worse when Henriques struck with successive deliveries to reduce them to 64 for 5 and it became dire when two more fell with the score on 68.Henriques ended an excellent match by dismissing Andy Hodd and finished with figures of 3 for 23 to go with his match-winning half-century.

If you’re a cricket fan in India and going to be watching the matches against Australia at the grounds, you could share your experiences with the world by writing about them for Cricinfo.We are looking for volunteers to send us short reports of the fan experience at the upcoming matches. If you are going to be at any of the games (the schedule is here) – in Vadodara, Nagpur, Delhi, Chandigarh, Hyderabad, Guwahati and Mumbai – you may be the person we’re looking for. (Note: you do have to watch the games live at the ground in order to be able to write.)Send us a brief note (under 100 words) about yourself, telling us what you do, specifying which city you’re going to be in, and anything else you think may be relevant.Unfortunately, we can’t pay you for your efforts, but you will be read by a large audience, and we’ll be happy to publish a thumbnail picture of you, and a brief bio, with a link to your blog or other webpage if any. Interested? Mail [email protected].

Zaheer Khan has said that Indian cricketers were not the only sportsmen to oppose the ‘whereabouts’ clause in the WADA code.”I’m sure athletes all over the world have problems with the clause. It is high time someone took the initiative and we are happy that we did it,” he said.Zaheer said that drug testing would be good for the game. He also said that Indian cricketers were willing to undergo tests and had concerns only over the clause which required players to disclose their whereabouts three months in advance.”We absolutely have no objection to be tested,” he said. “We know it’s important for the game that the players are tested, it’s undoubtedly for the betterment of the game we play. It’s only a particular clause that we don’t agree to.”The fast bowler said that while the players had the support of the BCCI, they would adhere to the decision of the board.Zaheer, who suffered a major shoulder injury last month and has been ruled out of the Champions Trophy, said he had taken it in his stride. “We just can’t wish away injuries. They are part and parcel of the sport, and one just has to be patient. As far as I am concerned, it’s certainly not a setback for me; I am actually viewing it as an opportunity to come back stronger and fitter.”

Shane Warne, Glenn McGrath and Matthew Hayden will once again play at the Gabba after Cricket Australia confirmed the trio would be part of the All-Stars Twenty20 match to launch the 2009-10 season. Warne will captain the All-Stars line-up, which will play against a full-strength Australian XI on November 22, four days before Australia’s first home Test of the summer.”I can’t wait to be playing back on Australian soil with Pigeon and Haydos and the rest of the crew,” Warne said. “As the All-Stars captain I’m really looking forward to working with Australia’s new and upcoming players. It will be a great experience to take on the Aussie team and should be a very fun and exciting match for all.”The concept of an All-Stars match was launched last year, when Adam Gilchrist and Justin Langer joined an All-Stars team otherwise made up of leading domestic Twenty20 players under the Australian Cricketers’ Association banner. Gilchrist’s team beat the Australians and the game provided an entertaining opening to the season.Australia’s previous three summers have featured gripping Test series against England, India and South Africa, and with the less powerful drawcards of West Indies and Pakistan visiting this season, the big-name trio of Warne, McGrath and Hayden should help attract plenty of attention. McGrath said he was keen to get back on the field in Australia after being limited to IPL appearances recently.”The All-Star match is a great start to the summer and I’m really looking forward to getting back out on Aussie soil,” McGrath said. “The match is going to support the Cricket Cares initiative so I encourage all cricket fans to get on board and come along to the match, or watch it on TV.”Hayden, the most recently retired of the three stars, is also looking forward to the chance to play again at his home venue in Brisbane. “I have really enjoyed my Twenty20 post-retirement, and this is a great way to play a game I love in my home town,” Hayden said. “This match is the perfect way to launch the summer and a great way for me to support the ACA.”The match will support Cricket Cares partners the Shane Warne Foundation, McGrath Foundation and Movember Foundation.

Andrew Strauss was ruthless in capitalising on Mitchell Johnson’s slumping form and shoulders on the opening day at Lord’s, but the England captain saw enough in the final session to convince him Australia’s pace spearhead was capable of mounting a swift comeback. Strauss, who described his unbeaten 161 as among the best innings of his career, watched with concern as Johnson removed his opening partner, Alastair Cook, then claimed the wicket of Matt Prior with a brilliant reverse swinging delivery that pegged back the off-stump.Those efforts stood in stark contrast to Johnson’s initial spells, during which Strauss and Cook made merry against a man whose body language, as much as his errant lines, indicated a bowler down on confidence. Though justifiably satisfied with a day in which England posted 364 runs, almost half of which came from his own bat, Strauss was wary of discounting Johnson as a threat over the next four days.”In Test cricket if you feel a guy is a little bit down it’s important you take advantage,” Strauss said. “[Johnson] has bowled a hell of a lot of good overs recently so we expect him to come back strongly, but on any given day, you feel a bowler is giving opportunities you’ve got to take them.”He just looked like he wasn’t getting the areas he wanted to. It’s important as a batsman if you get loose deliveries you put them away so that he can’t come back. For the first session and a half we were able to do that.”Strauss reached several milestones on Thursday, not least a 196-run opening stand with Cook which bettered any previous English first wicket partnership at Lord’s in an Ashes contest. He also surpassed 5,000 career runs – becoming the only active English batsman, and 18th over all, to have reached the mark – and will resume on Friday just 16 runs shy of his best ever Test innings.”Hopefully there is more to come,” he said. “In a lot of ways I’ve felt like I’ve batted better in the last six months than at any time during in my career. When you’re batting like that it’s very enjoyable and you don’t feel a lot of pressure. Hopefully that will continue for a few years to come.”When you look at Ricky Ponting scoring 11,000, 5000 seems like you’re just out of nappies, really. I’m pretty happy to have got another Test hundred. Each time you get one you’re helping your side get in a good position.”Like Ponting, Strauss’s batting has not been burdened by captaincy, nor overawed by the big stages. Following four largely barren years in which England have experimented with Andrew Flintoff and Kevin Pietersen at the helm, Strauss has proven successful in providing stability to the team while maintaining his standards with the bat.”In terms of setting the example for the batsmen to go big when they get in it was important,” he said. “As a captain you don’t want to be scratching around and not scoring runs because it adds more pressure when you don’t really need more pressure.”[The innings] has got to be right up there to be fair. I just think that an Ashes Test at Lord’s is pretty much the number one type of Test you can play. To get a hundred on day one is special, and hopefully there is unfinished business and I can get more tomorrow.”

Fidel Edwards could miss West Indies’ crucial World Twenty20 semi-final against Sri Lanka on Friday, after failing to recover from the same back injury that forced him to miss Monday’s five-wicket victory over England at The Oval.Edwards, who has been West Indies’ outstanding bowler of the past few months in all formats of the game, has been diagnosed with an irritation of the nerve root in his lower back. He sat out the team’s practice session on the eve of the game, but according to a spokesman, they were “very optimistic” that he’ll be available for Friday’s match.Chris Gayle, West Indies’ captain, admitted that his absence would be a big blow for West Indies, especially against a team that has already beaten them once in the tournament already, by 15 runs at Trent Bridge in the group stages.”He has been good for us throughout the tournament,” said Gayle. “He’s the sort of bowler who can actually win you games and pick up crucial wickets at crucial times. Sometimes he can go for runs, but he’s a wicket-taker and can change games. He’d be missed, because he was missed for the last game even though we won.”So far in the tournament, Edwards has picked up six wickets in four games, at an economy rate of 9.21 and with a best of 3 for 24 in the memorable victory against India at Lord’s. If he fails to recover, Darren Sammy is likely to step in, as he did against England.

Match facts

May 16, 2009
Start time 12.30 (10.30 GMT, 16.00 IST)

Big Picture

Abhishek Nayar is capable of playing the crucial match-winning knock when the chips are down•AFP

The task of qualifying for the semi-finals has gotten tougher for Mumbai Indians, who will have to raise their game considerably to beat the top two ranked teams, Chennai Super Kings tomorrow and Delhi Daredevils. They were within touching distance of beating Rajasthan Royals on Thursday but blew it in the final over, recalling images of a very similar scenario last year when they bowed out of the semi-finals race.The result of today’s game between Delhi and Kings XI Punjab will not affect Chennai’s standing at No.2. They looked set for a certain semi-final spot but slipped up against Royal Challengers Bangalore. If they lose to Mumbai, they will have to win their last two games to make it comfortably to the semi-finals.Chennai were exposed in the opening game of the tournament, against the same opposition but have since then regrouped and discovered a winning combination. Mumbai peaked early but lost the plot in the middle stages and are still struggling to piece together a winning line-up.

Form guide (completed matches, most recent first)

Mumbai Indians: LWWLL
Inconsistency in the batting has been their bane, and the way their seniors struggled to push the scoring in the first half of their chase against Rajasthan highlighted that issue. They tinkered with their opening combination yet again, sending Dwayne Bravo and Yogesh Takawale, lost three wickets for 23 runs and managed only two boundaries inside the first ten overs. They will also need to utilise Abhishek Nayar better by letting him spend more time at the crease. On the positive side, their spinners delivered against Punjab and turned in a decent performance against Rajasthan.Chennai Super Kings: LWWWW
Matthew Hayden’s been at the forefront of Chennai’s domination with 486 runs at a strike rate of 152. The top order has carried Chennai but the middle order hasn’t delivered consistently. In their first match against Delhi, they lost seven wickets for 41, and in their most recent defeat against Bangalore, they lost seven for 28. Another area which needs improvement is the catching and the captain MS Dhoni has reiterated this in post-match presentations. Despite these shortcomings, they are the form team in the tournament after Delhi.

Watch out for

Abhishek Nayar: Had the national selectors decided to experiment with a new face for the World Twenty20 squad, Nayar could well have got the nod. The left-hander from Mumbai reminded everybody of his prowess as a Twenty20 batsman on Thursday when he smashed 35 off 18 balls to give Rajasthan a scare. His trademark shot is the heave over the on side.

Team news

Mumbai’s overseas players will pick themselves but there may be room for some changes as far as the rest are concerned. A fit Zaheer Khan will walk in, possibly at the expense of Dhawal Kulkarni.Mumbai Indians: 1 Sanath Jayasuriya, 2 Dwayne Bravo, 3 Ajinkya Rahane, 4 Sachin Tendulkar, 5 JP Duminy, 6 Abhishek Nayar, 7 Harbhajan Singh, 8 Chetanya Nanda, 9 Yogesh Takawale (wk), 10 Dhawal Kulkarni/Zaheer Khan, 11 Lasith Malinga.Dhoni has made it clear that the overseas players will retain their places, which means no room for Makhaya Ntini. Expect Chennai to stick to the same line-up which has served them well over the last few games, the previous defeat notwithstanding.Chennai Super Kings: 1 Matthew Hayden, 2 M Vijay, 3 Suresh Raina, 4 S Badrinath, 5 MS Dhoni (capt & wk), 6 Albie Morkel, 7 Jacob Oram, 8 Sudeep Tyagi, 9 Shadab Jakati, 10 L Balaji, 11 Muttiah Muralitharan

Stats and trivia