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Lahore Lions’ loss by three wickets meant Chennai Super Kings progressed to the semi-final against Kings XI Punjab

The Report by Devashish Fuloria30-Sep-2014
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsLahore Lions spinners created panic in the Perth Scorchers ranks•BCCIA must-win pressure-cooker contest for a team, an improbable equation from the outset, then a lost toss, a batting collapse, a seriously underwhelming total of 124, followed by an even more challenging task – to hold the opposition to 78. For most, it would have been a lost cause. But when it’s a team from Pakistan, one almost expects a miracle every single time.Lahore Lions employed Test-match fields from the first over, their spinners created panic in the Perth Scorchers ranks, their fielders gobbled away all the chances, the wicketkeeper affected a stumping, there were appeals that were given, there were ones that were not given too. For 13 overs, the hopes of Lions’ progression to semis remained strong as Scorchers were reduced to 64 for 7, until Brad Hogg drove, cut and hoicked 15 runs in the 14th over, bowled by Adnan Rasool, to shut the doors on Lions and let Chennai Super Kings through to the knockouts. The result – Scorchers winning by three wickets – was only of academic interest.Lions had been in such a situation in the qualification stage of the tournament too. Faced with a must-win task, they bowled out Southern Express for 109 to register a heavy 55-run win. But their batting this evening, and the Robert Frylinck assault in their previous game that ate away on their net run rate, left them too big a task at hand.Still, Mohammed Hafeez shrugged away the shadow of suspect-action sleuths and provided the ideal start, nipping out the wicket of opener Craig Simmons in the first over, getting him caught bat-pad at short leg. Replays showed the ball had missed the edge though. There was an inside edge off the very next ball, and the catch was taken at short leg, but unfortunately for Hafeez, the umpire Rod Tucker missed it completely.The first over set the tone for Lions’ fightback as their spinners made regular strikes, with Mustafa Iqbal picking up two wickets in the fifth over. By the ninth over, Scorchers were reduced to 40 for 6 but Mitchell Marsh, the stand-in skipper, maintained an aggressive stance against the spinners and fast bowlers alike. Once Scorchers crossed the figure of 78, the 125-run target was achieved with relative ease.Even that target had appeared improbable after the start Lions had to their innings. Joel Paris removed Nasir Jamshed and Umar Siddiq in the first over, then Marsh picked the big wicket of Hafeez in the second. Wahab Riaz, promoted up the order, did not make a dent to the score, departing in the fourth over for a duck. From 11 for 4, Lions were revived by two stands of 43 and 48, with Saad Nasim, unbeaten on 69, playing a part in both. However, the hopes of a strong total had ended with Umar Akmal’s departure with the score on 54.

Ned Eckersley again made New Road a stage for his batting talent as Leicestershire blunted Worcestershire’s hopes of pressing for a win

10-May-2013
ScorecardNed Eckersley made his first Championship century of the season•Getty ImagesNed Eckersley again made New Road a stage for his batting talent as Leicestershire blunted Worcestershire’s hopes of pressing for a win with their spinners in their rain-hit clash.The home side set out their stall by declaring at 320 for 7 after a maiden Championship century for Thilan Samaraweera, but Eckersley’s undefeated 108 took Leicestershire to 229 for 2. They were still 91 behind when the third day closed because of bad light.The 23-year-old’s third first-class century, a well crafted innings with 14 fours from 186 balls balls, was completely different from an explosive performance when he last appeared on this ground in August last year. Hitting seven sixes in an unbeaten 72 from 44 balls he turned impending defeat into a memorable 40-over victory.A return visit offered a new challenge in facing Shaaiq Choudhry and Moeen Ali in helpful conditions for the spin pair. Slow left-armer Choudhry, appearing in a home Championship match for the first time, made a breakthrough by bowling Michael Thornely after an opening partnership of 51 with Niall O’Brien.In general, however, Leicestershire played the slow bowlers well and O’Brien, although restricted to a couple of fours, featured in a stand of 55 with Eckersley before he was bowled for 46. That was Moeen’s 100th first-class wicket and soon afterwards he might have had another when Ramnaresh Sarwan was dropped at short midwicket.That proved to be costly for Worcestershire as the West Indies batsman – he will be playing in the Champions Trophy next month – reached 46 not out and helped Eckersley through to his hundred. Their stand was worth 123 at the close but the overall tempo for the match has been stuck at a fraction under three runs an over.Samaraweera’s first innings for Worcestershire at New Road was technically proficient but rarely eye-catching. After passing 50 he went through more than 30 overs without scoring a boundary and the clip off his legs that brought up the hundred was only his ninth four in over five hours.Worcestershire resumed on 294 for 7 and claimed a third batting bonus point with Choudhry making 32 not out in an unbroken stand of 63 with Samaraweera.

Australian cricket’s next television deal may ban rights holders from the kinds of in-broadcast betting infomercials currently peddled by Channel Nine, the Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland has said

Daniel Brettig08-Feb-2013Australian cricket’s next television deal may ban rights holders from the kinds of in-broadcast betting infomercials currently peddled by Channel Nine, the Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland has said.The Bet365 online gambling firm is a prominent presence at Australian grounds through dual deals with CA and Channel Nine. But Sutherland conceded Thursday’s Australian Crime Commission (ACC) revelations of the links between performance-enhancing drug use, organised crime and betting corruption had forced a reconsideration of how prominently betting agencies and their services were now featured around professional sport.”We will consider that, whether it’s appropriate or not,” Sutherland said of the current betting inserts into Channel Nine’s coverage. “As it is, there are certain things we have spoken to Nine about in terms of the way in which that’s presented; it’s not within play, it’s separate, it’s in breaks and technically they’re allowed to make choices about who they promote and what organisations endorse their products in those breaks.”There is no doubt that there will be a greater level of scrutiny and question marks about that. We’ll make our decisions about that in time.”There is also a review of the interactive gaming act being undertaken by the federal senator, Stephen Conroy, which may yet place tighter controls on the advertising and “product-placement” of gambling firms within sporting broadcasts. CA’s television rights deal expires at the season’s end, with the Seven Network expected to make a significant play to wrest Australian coverage of the game from Channel Nine.Despite the game’s long and chequered history of underhanded links with gambling, betting firms have seldom been more prominent than Bet365 currently is. The relationship begs the question: how does Cricket Australia set the boundaries on bookies’ involvement in cricket when its boundary rope bears the logo of a betting agency?Nevertheless, Sutherland said the commercial arrangements presently struck between CA and betting firms provided a major deterrent for corruption in the form of the information shared between each party, the better to pick up unusual trends or financial relationships that contravene the rules.”I think that it’s a real positive,” Sutherland said. “The level of connection between the sports and the license betting operators is a real gain in an integrity sense, because what we have is an ability to control the types of bets the license betting operators take on cricket.”On top of that they are compelled to share information with us at any stage that we have cause for investigation on suspicious activity around cricket betting, and that wouldn’t otherwise be the case. So if you didn’t have those integrity arrangements with the betting companies, you wouldn’t have that access to information – that is a level of protection that we are afforded, and in other parts of the world it just doesn’t take place.”Though Sutherland is the chairman of COMPPS, the Coalition of Major Professional and Participation Sports, the ACC investigation did not uncover specific examples of wrongdoing in cricket, which has had its nose bloodied many times before by issues of corruption. Sutherland said findings about the link between drug use and coercion towards match-fixing had been revelatory for him, and further encouragement to ensure all sports worked together to maintain their integrity.”They did a whole lot of investigations and investigations led them down various paths, and the paths they went down didn’t cover cricket,” Sutherland said. “I’m not here telling you cricket doesn’t have a problem. Every sport has a problem and we have to address that by ensuring we have the hardest possible anti-corruption measures within our integrity unit. So that’s the step up we’re going to take.”The pleasing thing out of all this [is that] we’re not, as a sport, going to be operating in isolation on this; we’re going to be doing it in [conjunction] with government and all the other sports, and have a national integrity unit to share information and all these things. So people who hop from one sport to another and try and corrupt people or games or whatever, there’s a heightened awareness of who they are and what they are doing.”

A round-up of the Ram Slam T20 Challenge matches played on March 2, 2013

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Mar-2013
ScorecardThe Warriors comfortably chased the Dolphins’ target in East London to win by nine wickets. Dolphins won the toss and batted first, but were in serious trouble as they lost both openers for seven runs on the board. Cameron Delport’s cameo of 23 off 14 was cut short when he was caught by Ayabulela Gqamane off Simon Harmer, leaving them at a precarious 38 for 4. The most experienced pair in the squad, Ravi Bopara and Vaughn van Jaarsveld, put on 98 runs for the fifth wicket to revive the innings. Van Jaarsveld top-scored with 58 off 41 balls, as the Dolphins put up 136 for 4 at the completion of their 20 overs.The Warriors started assuredly, with their openers putting on a 73-run stand. Once Christiaan Jonker fell, Colin Ingram came in and helped opener Ashwell Prince maintain the course. They eventually steered the Warriors to victory, achieving the target with 15 balls to spare. Prince finished unbeaten on 70 off 55 balls.
ScorecardThe Knights won a low-scoring thriller against the top-placed Lions at the Wanderers. The Knights were put into bat, but despite the openers getting a start, none of the batsman were able to capitalise, with only Rilee Rossouw (33) and Johan van der Wath (24) passing the 20-run mark. The Dolphins’ bowlers bowled as a unit, with Aaron Phangiso, Imran Tahir and Hardus Viljoen picking up two wickets each. The Knights finished their quota of 20 overs with 125 for 9.The Lions simply couldn’t string substantial partnerships together as they attempted to chase the Knights’ target. Jean Symes top-scored with 46 off 37 balls, but once he was dismissed off the second last ball of the innings, the game was heavily in favour of the Warriors as van der Wath bowled an excellent final over, picking up Temba Bavuma as well. His final over clinched the game for the Knights, who moved to third place in the points table.

Rangana Herath has been ruled out of the fifth ODI against England, and is unlikely to play a further part in the series. He will be replaced by Sachithra Senanayake

Andrew Fidel Fernando09-Dec-2014Rangana Herath has been ruled out of the fifth ODI against England, and is unlikely to play a further part in the series, after pulling a hamstring in his left thigh during Tuesday’s fielding practice. Offspinner Sachithra Senanayake – who was cleared to bowl again earlier in the day – will immediately take Herath’s place in the squad, and may even play against England on Wednesday.Herath’s injury has not yet been fully assessed, and as such, the full extent of damage will not be known until late tomorrow. However, team manager Michael de Zoysa said it was unlikely he would play again in the ongoing series. The injury also puts him in doubt for the first Test against New Zealand, which begins on December 26, but he was unsure of playing that game in any case, thanks to separate personal reasons.Senanayake had bowled 10 overs in a List-A match in Panagoda – near Colombo – on Tuesday, and will now travel to join the team in Kandy, in the evening. De Zoysa said Senanayake will be considered for a place in the XI for Wednesday’s match.The loss of Herath is a blow to Sri Lanka, who have relied on him during the middle overs. He has seven wickets at an average of 25 in the series. Senanayake also comes into the side in some bowling form, however, having taken five wickets in three List A matches over the past week.Sri Lanka lead the seven-match series 3-1, with two games at Pallekele and one in Colombo, to play.

MS Dhoni has said the mixed reactions to the BCCI’s decision to host Pakistan in December-January for a limited-overs series have had no effect on the team

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Jul-2012MS Dhoni, the India captain, has said the mixed reactions to the BCCI’s decision to host Pakistan in December-January for a limited-overs series have had no effect on the team. “We are professional cricketers,” Dhoni told reporters in Chennai prior to the national team’s departure to Sri Lanka for a five-match ODI series and a T20 international. “The series will have to be played and we have to get ready for it. Sentiment does not play any part since we are taught to be professionals on field.”While many former cricketers welcomed the BCCI’s decision, some, like Sunil Gavaskar and Kirti Azad, were critical, questioning the move – which revives bilateral cricketing ties after five years – due to outstanding differences between the countries since the Mumbai attacks in 2008.The series against Pakistan is part of a hectic new season for India, who host New Zealand after returning from Sri Lanka, play the World T20, then host England and Pakistan. “We have to be positive and we have to understand that we are representing the country. It will be a bit tough because of the hectic schedule but we have to do well against Pakistan also.”The decision was hailed by Imran Khan, former Pakistan captain and now a prominent politician. “I welcome India’s decision to revive cricket with Pakistan,” Imran told reporters in Karachi. “Anything which can bring both the countries to negotiations and normalcy is very good and we must appreciate that.”The prospect of India and Pakistan playing against each other is a good news for international cricket because these matches are followed by millions across the world. The Indo-Pak matches are special because of the high tension and whoever deals with that extreme pressure comes out as the winner.”Pakistan last played a match in India during the 2011 World Cup, in the semi-final in Mohali. The game was attended by the Prime Ministers of both countries. Since then, a Pakistan team, Sialkot Stallions, has been allowed to participate in the Champions League T20 to be held in South Africa later in the year.”That semi-final in Mohali is a good example of the tension and the excitement. India committed a lot of mistakes in that match but they won because Pakistan made more mistakes in comparison.”

The Champions League Twenty20 is set to have a team from Pakistan for the first time. The BCCI has said it will recommend to the tournament’s governing council that it had no objection to Pakistani participation

Siddarth Ravindran12-May-2012The Champions League Twenty20 is set to have a team from Pakistan for the first time. The BCCI, the league’s largest stakeholder, has said it would inform the tournament’s governing council ahead of its May 28 meeting that it had no objection to the participation of a team from Pakistan.The decision was taken at the BCCI’s working committee meeting in Chennai today, where it was also decided to distribute approx $13m to ex-Indian players, set up a BCCI anti-corruption unit, and set up matches between IPL teams and Associate/Affiliate countries.BCCI president N Srinivasan said the CLT20 governing council had already decided to invite a Pakistani team for the next tournament, to be held in India in October; the BCCI was now concurring with that decision. “The CLT20 is owned by the BCCI, Cricket Australia, and Cricket South Africa, so we will recommend to the governing council that the BCCI has no objection and is prepared to invite a Pakistan team,” he said.The news was welcomed by the PCB, which saw it as the first step towards restoring cricketing ties with India. The PCB had been pushing for the inclusion of sides from Pakistan, the only major Test-playing nation to not have teams in either the qualifiers or the main round of the tournament since it got off the ground in 2009. Pakistan were among the countries included in the first tournament, in 2008, but that event was cancelled after the Mumbai terrorist attacks and Pakistani teams had been kept out of subsequent tournaments.The current champions are Sialkot Stallions – who, coincidentally, were also the representatives in the 2008 tournament that was never held. The Sialkot Regional Cricket Association had requested the PCB last month to make efforts to enable the participation of Sialkot in the Champions League. The PCB, in turn, had said that Sialkot’s participation was dependent on the restoration of bilateral ties between India and Pakistan.Rajiv Shukla, the BCCI vice-president and a minister in the Indian federal government, said there was no interference or green signal from the government. “Though PCB were asking us from the last three years, we did not consider that,” Shukla said. “But now we felt it was good time to invite them and have acceded to the PCB request.”It is understood that it was Srinivasan who proposed the matter during the discussion in Chennai. Everyone felt that the political climate was conducive to a team from Pakistan to come and play and the working committee members accepted the proposal unanimously.Pakistan players are currently excluded from the Indian Premier League as well. Shukla, also the IPL chairman, had said last month that their participation was also dependent on the resumption of India-Pakistan cricket ties.

Australia’s selectors have decided to take no chances with key members of the side for the first Ashes Test, with Michael Clarke, Ryan Harris and Peter Siddle all set to rest from this week’s Sheffield Shield matches

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Nov-2013Australia’s selectors have decided to take no chances with key members of the side for the first Ashes Test, with Michael Clarke, Ryan Harris and Peter Siddle all set to rest from this week’s Sheffield Shield matches. While England’s cricketers will be warming up for the Gabba Test with a four-day match in Sydney this week, several of Australia’s Test players will also be enjoying some match practice with a full round of Shield games scheduled.But Clarke, Harris and Siddle will not be among them, and instead will head to Cricket Australia’s new high-performance facility at Allan Border Field in Brisbane to work with the Test team’s coaching staff. Clarke has scored 88, 7 and 43 in his two Shield appearances so far this summer but given his ongoing back problem, the selectors and team management are loath to take any risks with his fitness, given the number of times his injury has flared up this year.”We’re very pleased with Michael’s preparation ahead of the first Test,” the coach Darren Lehmann said. “The plan for his Ashes build-up was to play two Sheffield Shield matches, which he has done successfully. He has spent valuable time in the middle batting and fielding. Importantly his back has coped well in both matches, but we will continue to take a sensible and cautious approach to managing him.”Harris and Siddle will be the spearheads of the Test attack and will be especially important given the long list of injured fast bowlers already this season, including James Pattinson, Mitchell Starc, Jackson Bird, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood. Harris and Siddle have each collected five wickets in two Shield matches so far this summer and will be rested from this week’s games.”On the fast bowling front, Ryan and Peter are both in great condition,” Lehmann said. “As part of their management plan they will continue their preparation under the guidance national coaching staff in Brisbane over the coming days.”Harris and Siddle are likely to be joined by Mitchell Johnson in the pace attack for the Gabba Test, while the allrounder James Faulkner could also come into consideration if Shane Watson’s hamstring injury prevents him from bowling. Australia’s squad for the first Test will be announced on Tuesday, before the Shield matches begin.

Hot Spot could be set for a late entry into the upcoming Ashes series as part of a trial for an enhanced DRS, including Real Time Snicko technology

Andrew McGlashan03-Nov-2013Hot Spot could be set for a late entry into the upcoming Ashes series alongside a trial for an enhanced DRS, including Real Time Snicko technology, having previously been jettisoned after talks between its inventor, Warren Brennan, and Cricket Australia broke down over the cost of the system.Now, however, the two parties are reported by the to have reopened negotiations less than three weeks before the Ashes resumes with the introduction of Real Time Snicko, which is also part of Brennan’s company BBG Sports, being pushed forward for full-scale use. The enhancement was trialled behind the scenes during the previous Ashes in England, but was not part of the available DRS process which was the centre of much controversy during the series.Most of that stemmed from the reliability of Hot Spot which appeared to not detect a number of thin edges with the third umpires using evidence from the stump microphones instead. Under the current DRS protocols, Snicko cannot be used due to the time it takes to match up the audio with the pictures but the Real Time version makes this an almost instant process.Earlier this year Brennan said: “I am hopeful that it would improve fine-edge detection dramatically. On most occasions, you are going to have the Real Time Snicko and Hot Spot agreeing with another. So the third umpire will now have two points of reference. There can be more consistency that way.”Although confidence in the DRS was dented during the Ashes series in England – which also sparked the controversy over taped bat edges which angered the England team – both sides remain two of the strongest supporters of using the review system and the boards are understood to be open to the upgraded version.David Saker, England’s bowling coach, still believes more correct decisions are made. “Obviously over the English summer, a few things went a little wrong with it,” he said. “But the majority of the time, they’ve got more decisions right than wrong – so I’m a big supporter of it.'”I think if we can get as many correct decisions as possible, it’s better for the game – not just for England. The decision obviously will be made by Cricket Australia, but I’d definitely welcome it for sure.”Matt Prior, the England wicketkeeper, supports the DRS if the technology is reliable. “I’m a fan of the review system and technology. At the end of the day there is a huge amount on each decision and you have to get the right decision,” he said shortly before the tour started. “If Hotspot is inaccurate it cannot be used and we have to find another way of getting to the right decision. As long as the right decision is made, that is all the players want.”An enhanced DRS – which will require approval from the ICC – would bring the role of the third umpire back to the fore. It has been suggested that because of the key position third umpires now hold in the decision-making process, away from the traditional line decisions of run outs and stumpings, that extra training is required and potentially a panel of specialist TV officials to support on-field umpires.The back-to-back Ashes have put pressure on the ICC’s elite panel of umpires because the majority come from England and Australia which makes them ineligible to stand in the 10 Tests which began in July and run until early January in Sydney.Only four umpires – Marais Erasmus, Aleem Dar, Tony Hill and Kumar Dharmasena – are available for the Test matches and are rotated through the on-field and TV roles. There have been talks about selecting from the international panel of umpires, the level below the elite, to ease the burden and Billy Bowden, who was demoted earlier this year, has been the name mentioned.

Wriddhiman Saha, back from a decent performance in the Adelaide Test against Australia, put East Zone in a strong position against North Zone with an unbeaten century in Delhi

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Feb-2012Wriddhiman Saha, back from a decent performance in the Adelaide Test against Australia, put East Zone in a strong position against North Zone with an unbeaten century in Delhi. East began with a 60-run stand between openers Dheeraj Jadhav and Manish Vardhan but soon found themselves in some trouble. Rajat Bhatia trapped Vardhan leg-before and Jadhav was bowled by Parvinder Awana in the next over. The score became 60 for 3 when Bhatia dismissed Natraj Behera for a duck. Saha and Ishank Jaggi then settled into a big partnership for the fourth wicket which ended only in the penultimate over of the day. The pair had put on 194 at a healthy rate when Jaggi fell to Harshal Patel for 86. Saha was batting on 100 with 12 boundaries as East finished on 258 for 4.Mohammad Kaif helped Central Zone recover with an unbeaten hundred against South Zone in Chennai. Central put in a disappointing performance after choosing to bat, with only No. 8 Piyush Chawla making more than 30 apart from Kaif. Abhimanyu Mithun bowled Naman Ojha for 9 in the ninth over, after which Central’s specialist batsmen were unable to build any partnership of note. When Robin Bist, the highest run-getter in the recent Ranji Trophy, was bowled by KP Appanna for 5, Central slipped to 90 for 4. Parvinder Singh and Jalaj Saxena managed starts but could not support Kaif for long. It was down to Chawla, who smashed eight boundaries in his 52 off 54 deliveries, to revive the stuttering innings. Stuart Binny limited the stand between Chawla and Kaif to 73 when he had the former caught by Robin Uthappa. Kaif remained unbeaten on 108 off 207 deliveries with Central ending on 292 for 8.