All posts by n8rngtd.top

Mark Cosgrove and Tom Maynard powered Glamorgan to a superb seven-wicket victory over Essex in their Friends Provident t20 match at Chelmsford

Cricinfo staff11-Jun-2010
Scorecard
Mark Cosgrove and Tom Maynard powered Glamorgan to a superb seven-wicket victory over Essex in their Friends Provident t20 match at Chelmsford. The duo combined in a thrilling partnership of 97 in only 50 balls to set up victory with 14 deliveries to spare after Essex had posted a total of 191 for 6.Cosgrove plundered 89 from 55 balls, with the help of 13 fours and two sixes, although he had one slice of good fortune when he was put down at short third man by David Masters when 44. Maynard finished with an unbeaten 66 from 30 balls, with four fours and six sixes, the last of which saw the Welsh county to their third win in the competition in as many matches.No-one escaped the carnage as the third-wicket pair cut loose. Pakistan legspinner Danish Kaneria conceded 43 from three overs while New Zealand allrounder Scott Styriss’ two overs cost 29. The Essex bowlers hardly helped their cause with some woeful bowling as they gifted their opponents a dozen wides.Essex made a stuttering start to their innings when captain Mark Pettini provided a simple return catch from Robert Croft’s first ball of the match. Ravi Bopara (29) and Ryan ten Doeschate (37) did manage to keep the scoreboard ticking over but the only real momentum was provided by James Foster.He thrashed an unbeaten 54 from 25 balls, the high point of which was three successive sixes in the 18th over sent down by Jamie Dalrymple. All of them came as he stood at least two foot outside his off stump and each ball was dispatched over midwicket.Foster also helped himself to five fours and he could be forgiven for thinking that he had done enough to give Essex a total that should have been defended. But Cosgrove and Maynard had other ideas as they both gathered their personal bests in this competition. Veteran offspinner Croft also shared the honours for Glamorgan as he sent down four teasing overs that brought him 3 for 22.

Pakistan batsman Misbah-ul-Haq is upset about his omission from the team’s forthcoming tour of England, saying his average in all forms of the game is better than most of the touring members

Cricinfo staff24-Jun-2010Pakistan batsman Misbah-ul-Haq is upset about his omission from the team’s forthcoming tour of England, saying his average in all forms of the game is better than most of the touring members. Pakistan had announced the squads which will face Australia in two Twenty20 matches and two Tests followed by four Tests and two Twenty20 matches against England. Misbah was left out of both squads.”It is very disappointing,” Misbah told . “You find yourself in the XI and suddenly you are not even in a preliminary squad of 35, it prompts you to burn all your cricket equipment in anger.”Misbah has been in and out of the selectors’ radar in the recent past. A loss of form through 2009 led to him being dropped, initially, for the tours of New Zealand and Australia. However, he was flown in midway through the New Zealand tour to shore up an inexperienced batting order. In the interim, he struck form in the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy in Pakistan and that prompted the then captain, Mohammad Yousuf, to push for his recall. He last played for Pakistan in the World Twenty20 in the West Indies and was dropped for the Asia Cup.The Pakistan selectors picked a fairly inexperienced Test squad for England, including new faces like Azhar Ali and Umar Amin. Misbah felt his experience would have been useful.”My Test average is 33, one-day is 39 and Twenty20 is 36, and if you compare it with other players it is better than many, so it makes you think what’s wrong with you,” said Misbah.Misbah was in fine form in the RBS Cup fifty-over tournament in Pakistan, leading the run charts with 490 runs at 163.33 and scoring a century in the final for Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited.”I am very disappointed because I was dropped last year as well and I came back through performing in domestic events, and then suddenly I found myself dropped again,” Misbah said.Besides Misbah, another experienced batsman Younis Khan, was also left out, due to fitness and disciplinary reasons. Misbah could be in the running for the one-day squad for the five-match series against England, which will be announced later.

The BCCI is currently negotiating with Nimbus Sport for the television productions rights for cricket played in India until 2014

Tariq Engineer31-Jul-2010The BCCI has entered into negotiations with Nimbus Sport for the television production rights for cricket played in India until 2014. The period covers about 350 domestic matches and 60 international matches.Nimbus, which owns the India broadcast rights until 2014, is the current holder of the production rights. The board had invited bids between July 23 and July 30 on payment of Rs 5 lakhs (about US$10,800) for the bid document.All the bids were opened at the BCCI working committee meeting held in Mumbai today and Cricinfo has learned Nimbus submitted the lowest bid. Subsequently, the committee “authorised the BCCI president to negotiate the deal,” according to a broadcasting official with knowledge of the situation. The deal is expected to be completed in the next two or three days.At the meeting, the working committee also turned down a request from India’s Commonwealth Games Committee to be its lead sponsor. “The Committee expressed its inability to agree to the request of the Commonwealth Games to be the lead partner by donating Rs. 100 crores (about $22 million),” the board said in a press release.The Indian Olympic Association President, Suresh Kalmadi, had complained about the board’s decision to schedule Australia’s tour of India at the same time as the event, and asked for a donation to help ensure the Commonwealth Games would be a success. The BCCI has come to the aid of sporting federations in the past, most recently giving the All India Football Federation a two-year grant of Rs 25 crores (about $ 5.5. million) in 2009 to develop the sport in the country.In light of the resolution of the WADA anti-doping issue, the board voted to seek the appointment of Dr Vece Paes, a former Olympian and father of Indian tennis player Leander Paes, a 12-time doubles Grand Slam champion, to be its anti-doping officer. According to the release, the details of Paes’ appointment are still to be worked out.The Board also agreed to give the Mumbai Cricket Association and the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association grants of Rs 20 crores (about $ 4.4 million) and Rs 25 crores (about $5.5. million) respectively for renovating stadiums, according to .

Cayman Islands completed a five-wicket win against Argentina on the reserve day in Pianoro

Cricinfo staff16-Aug-2010Cayman Islands completed a five-wicket win against Argentina in Pianoro on the reserve day, following an abandonment on Sunday because of rain.Lucas Paterlini was bowled by Marlon Bryan•International Cricket Council

Argentina’s batsmen struggled to get going after they were sent in and wickets fell at regular intervals. Opener Pablo Ferguson, who toiled for 121 balls for 37, was one of only two batsmen to pass 30. The other was Gary Savage, whose 33 was brisker, coming off 45 balls. The others failed to contribute substantially and Argentina were restricted to 160 for 8 in 50 overs. Conroy Wright and Ryan Bovell took two wickets each for Cayman Islands but it was Marlon Bryan who had best figures of 3 for 32.Cayman Islands’ chase of a modest target got off to a horrific start with both openers falling for first-ball ducks. The innings was floundering at 4 for 2 when Pearson Best launched a brazen counterattack, clobbering 55 off 32 balls, an innings that included three sixes and seven fours. By the time he fell, bowled by Diego Lord, Cayman Islands had scored 64 in ten overs and the chase was back on track. Two more wickets fell, reducing the innings to 95 for 5, but Bovell chipped in with the bat as well, scoring an unbeaten 53. He was supported by Ronald Ebanks, who made 30 not out, as Cayman Islands reached the target with 102 balls to spare.”It was great to secure our first win today and against a side we know well in the form of Argentina. We played them in the ICC Americas tournament in Bermuda recently and lost so it was good to be victorious on this occasion,” said Bovell. “I think we played good disciplined cricket and stayed focused on our game plan and ended up executing it well. We now need to maintain the momentum of today’s win into tomorrow’s fixture against the USA.”

James Franklin has not given up on fighting into New Zealand’s World Cup squad next year, despite losing his national contract during the off-season

Brydon Coverdale13-Sep-2010James Franklin has not given up on fighting into New Zealand’s World Cup squad next year, despite losing his national contract during the off-season. Franklin will have an opportunity to press his claims when he captains New Zealand A in Zimbabwe in October, after enjoying a highly productive county season with Gloucestershire.Franklin, 29, has an Irish passport and when he was cut from New Zealand’s contracted group, briefly considered using his heritage to play in England as a local player. However, the lure of the black cap was enough to convince Franklin to keep pursuing his international goals, especially with a World Cup around the corner.”Every domestic player around the world has got an eye on the World Cup,” Franklin told ESPNcricinfo, before the New Zealand A squad was named. “Going back home and hopefully being able to put up some good domestic performances, hopefully I might be able to put my case forward for selection for that. We’ll wait and see.”One of the major challenges for Franklin is to convince the selectors that he can lift his output at the elite level after struggling to grab his chances in 23 Tests and 75 ODIs. That could be extra difficult in a New Zealand side full of allrounders – Jacob Oram, Grant Elliott, Nathan McCullum, Kane Williamson and Scott Styris were all part of the recent tri-series in Sri Lanka.”There’s a lot of multi-skilled cricketers in the New Zealand side at the moment,” Franklin said. “That can only be a good thing for the New Zealand team going forward into a World Cup come February and March. The guys that are there at the moment are ahead of me, so I’ve just got to try and perform well at domestic level and push my case that way and force my way back into the New Zealand side.”In Franklin’s favour is the excellent form he has shown with Gloucestershire this year. He is second on the team’s run-scoring list in the County Championship, with 821 runs at 32.84, and has also collected 45 wickets at 22.86, including a career-best 7 for 14 against Derbyshire a fortnight ago.He also topped Gloucestershire’s one-day run tally with 511 at 73.00, including two centuries, and their Twenty20 list with 470 at 39.16, when he was given the chance to open the batting. Those numbers have appealed to the New Zealand selectors, and Mark Greatbatch hopes the A-team captaincy will help “unlock something we have not seen before” from Franklin.It is a strong indication that Franklin made the right move not to head to England permanently when he missed out on a national contract. Although he has not ruled out such a decision later in his career – Hamish Marshall has made the switch and will qualify for Ireland next year – Franklin still has the passion to play for his country.”I’m lucky in that I have an Irish passport through my grandparents, so I have a few options up my sleeve,” Franklin said. “I want to still go back home this summer and play for Wellington, try and win trophies with them and on top of that if I could try to get back in the New Zealand side for a World Cup, or even before that for Test match cricket, then that would be great.”It’s not a decision that you can take lightly. It wasn’t a decision to come to England and play as a local, that I wanted to make quite yet. I like to think that being 30 in November I’ve still got a good five to six or seven years of cricket ahead of me, as long as I can stay fit.”

South Australia’s progress to the semi-finals has made it a crucial Sunday for the other four teams in Group B. Lions will start as clear favourites against Guyana in the first game tomorrow

The Preview by Abhishek Purohit18-Sep-2010

Match facts

Sunday, September 19
Start time 1330 (1130 GMT)

Big Picture

Neil McKenzie has been in good touch in the Champions League•Getty Images

South Australia’s qualification to the semi-finals has made it a crucial Sunday for the other four teams in Group B. If the Lions lose to Guyana and Mumbai Indians beat Royal Challengers Bangalore, the last group game between the Lions and Bangalore will become a virtual quarter-final, with net run-rate also coming into play. The Lions would want to avoid that situation with a win at the Wanderers over a Guyana side that has struggled in its first two games.It is hard to believe that this is the same side that beat Trinidad & Tobago on their way to the Caribbean T20 title less than two months ago. T&T had an unbeaten run to the final of the inaugural Champions League last year with a style of play that was distinctly Caribbean. The only thing distinct about Guyana has been their inability to compete with the IPL sides, who themselves haven’t done well against better opposition. Defeat will put Guyana on the flight back home and even a win will barely keep them alive, given their woeful net run-rate.While the batting that clicked in the Caribbean T20 – particularly Travis Dowlin, Jonathan Foo and Sewnarine Chattergoon – looked out of touch against Bangalore, the bowling was mauled by Mumbai’s Kieron Pollard. It will be hard for Guyana to recover from that thrashing within three days.Weekend scheduling means the Lions have had six days off after their previous match. Their bowlers have gone for almost nine an over so far, putting pressure on the batting. And but for Shane Burger’s twin strikes against Mumbai, they might well have been in a situation similar to Guyana’s. Still, the home team will start as clear favourites tomorrow.

Team news

Shane Burger missed the match against South Australia due to injury and should be back for this game.Lions (probable): 1 Alviro Petersen (capt), 2 Jonathan Vandiar, 3 Richard Cameron, 4 Vaughan van Jaarsveld, 5 Neil McKenzie, 6 Robert Frylinck, 7 Zander de Bruyn, 8 Thami Tsolekile (wk), 9 Shane Burger, 10 Aaron Phangiso, 11 Ethan O’ReillyFast bowler Paul Wintz replaced offspinner Lennox Cush in the previous match, and was smashed for 46 runs in four overs. Cush should regain his place in the XI.Guyana (possible): 1 Travis Dowlin, 2 Sewnarine Chattergoon, 3 Ramnaresh Sarwan (capt), 4 Narsingh Deonarine, 5 Chistopher Barnwell, 6 Robert Crandon, 7 Jonathan Foo, 8 Derwin Christian (wk), 9 Lennox Cush, 10 Esuan Crandon, 11 Devendra Bishoo

Watch out for …

Guyana are heavily dependent on Ramnaresh Sarwan, their only world-class batsman, and he knows it. He has to fire if Guyana are to have even a remote chance of winning.Neil McKenzie delighted with his strokeplay against Mumbai and was looking good against South Australia till a brilliant piece of fielding led to his run-out. Guyana’s bowling should not pose too many worries.

Key contests

Devendra Bishoo v Lions’ batting: The legspinner was Man-of-the-Series in the Caribbean T20 and took three wickets against Mumbai, including that of Sachin Tendulkar. How the South Africans tackle him could determine Guyana’s chances.

Stats and trivia

• Travis Dowlin has made five of the six half-centuries for Guyana in T20s.
• Neil McKenzie has made the most T20 runs for Lions, 914 from 36 games at a strike rate of 123.34.

A round-up of the third day of the opening round of matches in Division 2 of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Oct-2010Junaid Khan, the left-arm fast bowler who has played for Pakistan A, set up Abbottabad‘s six-wicket victory inside three days, running through the Pakistan Television lower order at the Abbottabad Cricket Stadium. Junaid’s 13th first-class five-wicket haul in 32 games skittled Pakistan Television for 154, after they had begun the day on 133 for 5. Chasing the small target of 86, Abbottabad lost their openers with three runs on the board. However, Fawad Khan guided the chase with an unbeaten 34, and captain Wajid Ali chipped in with 21, as Abbottabad completed the victory. Pakistan Television seamer Zahoor Khan’s 3 for 35 was in vain.Rizwan Ahmed and Kashif Bhatti took eight wickets between them as Hyderabad took the first-innings lead on the third day against Quetta at the Niaz Stadium, despite Bismillah Khan’s career-best 181. Quetta lost seven wickets for 68 runs to be dismissed for 343, 18 short of Hyderabad’s 361. Bismillah and Ata-ur-Rehman had added 62 runs to take the score to 275 for 3, before legspinner Rizwan scythed through the middle order, taking 5 for 87. Bismillah hit 16 fours and three sixes in his 181 before falling to Rizwan, but lacked support from the other batsmen. Hyderabad’s openers raced to 99 at stumps, an overall lead of 117. Sharjeel Khan was in a particularly belligerent mood, hammering 66 off 56 deliveries.State Bank of Pakistan batted themselves into a strong position against Lahore Ravi at the Lahore City Cricket Association Ground, ending the third day on 418 for 7, a lead of 150 runs. Mohtashim Ali and Rameez Alam hit patient centuries, and Naved Yasin and Gulraiz Sadaf made contrasting half-centuries as Lahore’s bowlers struggled to make the breakthroughs. Mohtashim (117) and Rameez (107) added 217 runs for the fourth wicket. There were two more century partnerships for State Bank before Yasin and Sadaf were both run out late in the afternoon. While the other batsmen chose to grind the bowling with sedate innings, wicketkeeper Sadaf slammed 61 off 63 deliveries.Unbeaten centuries from Usman Salahuddin and Saad Nasim helped Lahore Shalimar declare on an imposing 457 for 6 on the third day against Peshawar at the Sports Complex in Mardan. Lahore had lost two early wickets in the morning to slump for 264 for 6, before Salahuddin found a willing ally in Nasim. They first took Lahore past Peshawar’s 272, and then went on to complete their centuries as Lahore declared with a lead of 185. Nasim’s 114 was his maiden first-class century while Salahuddin made 161. After being in the field for more than 150 overs, Peshawar lost Mohammad Fayyaz off the first ball of their second innings when he was bowled by Emmad Ali. Peshawar finished on 33 for 1, trailing by 152 runs.

Ashes history is littered with some extraordinary opening days and Brisbane produced another as Peter Siddle gave himself a birthday to remember by claiming a hat-trick

The Bulletin by Andrew McGlashan24-Nov-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsPeter Siddle was the star of the opening day with a hat-trick and a career-best haul•Getty Images

Ashes history is littered with some extraordinary opening days and Brisbane produced another as Peter Siddle, a controversial selection for this match, gave himself a birthday to remember by claiming a hat-trick and a career-best 6 for 54, which removed England for 260. Alastair Cook played calmly for his 67 and Ian Bell produced one of his finest international innings, but the visitors will feel they’ve let a golden chance slip and Australia closed on 0 for 25.Siddle’s moment of glory came in the final session after England had reached 4 for 197 and Australia had gone into a holding pattern. He was recalled to the attack and in his second over back persuaded Cook, after 168 balls of concentration, to push outside off and edge to first slip. That was followed by a full, fast delivery that Matt Prior barely had time register and the hat-trick ball was again homing in on the stumps but instead struck Stuart Broad’s boot. The atmosphere at the ‘Gabbatoir’ was electric and just to add to the drama Broad, who clearly wasn’t prepared for the clatter of wickets and was rushed to get ready, reviewed his decision, but there was no escape.It was some way to mark a Test recall – Siddle hadn’t played since January after suffering a stress fracture of his back – and was an emphatic tick for the selectors, who’d preferred him over Doug Bollinger. He showed how to bowl on a slow surface, pitching the ball a touch fuller than is normal in Australia. Even before his hat-trick, Siddle had justified the call with the key scalps of Kevin Pietersen and Paul Collingwood, which set England back during the afternoon. His sixth wicket came when Graeme Swann played round a straight ball and he was only denied a seventh when Brad Haddin spilled James Anderson.Around the mayhem caused by Siddle, Bell played a wonderful innings that highlighted his development as a Test player. Left with the tail, he opened up in a manner rarely seen at the highest level, producing a string of a purring drives through the off side until lofting Xavier Doherty to deep cover to hand him his first Test wicket.The drama of the final session will grab the headlines, but the series had also been given a lively beginning as England managed to write another entry into the list of Ashes horror starts. After events on this ground four years ago all eyes were on the first ball of the day and the opening delivery from Ben Hilfenhaus sailed harmlessly past off stump. However, it didn’t take long for the series to burst into life – two balls later Strauss tried to cut one that was a little too close to his body and picked out Mike Hussey at gully.The England captain stood there, head in hand for a moment, before turning for the dressing room as the Gabba erupted to the cheers of the home support. Strauss had made two hundreds during England’s near-perfect warm-up period and Australia knew how vital the scalp was. It took the visitors until the third over to open their account and that was an edge to third man by Jonathan Trott, who then had to survive a heart-stopping referral when Siddle’s lbw shout was sent to the third umpire.

Smart Stats

• Peter Siddle’s hat-trick was the tenth by an Australian bowler and the second at the Gabba after Courtney Walsh’s hat-trick in 1988-89. It is also the first by an Australian bowler since Glenn McGrath’s effort at Perth in 2000-01.

• Siddle’s 6 for 54 is his third five-wicket haul and best bowling performance after the 5 for 21 against England at Headingley in 2009.

• In six Tests at the Gabba since 1990, England have passed 300 only twice in their first innings. While they made 325 and lost in 2002, they managed a draw in 1998 after scoring 375.

• Ian Bell’s 76 is his fifth half-century in 11 innings in Australia and his ninth against Australia overall.

• Kevin Pietersen has not scored a century since his 102 at Port of Spain in March 2009. Since March 7 2009, he has scored 904 runs at an average of 36.16 with six fifties. In contrast, till March 6 2009, he scored 4445 runs at an average of over 51 with 16 centuries and 14 fifties.

However, he and Cook steadily evened the scales. Trott provided some impetus but was also rather skittish at stages as he edged short of second slip and got a leading edge towards point trying to work through midwicket, before giving his innings away with a loose drive at Shane Watson. England believe they can target Watson as a weak link in the Australian attack, so providing him an early wicket will have been a disappointment, but Watson’s full length was a lesson to heed on this pitch.Cook was one of England’s batsmen to enter this series with an unflattering record against Australia and shouldn’t have survived the first session when he was dropped at point on 26 by Doherty. That, though, was his only mistake until his dismissal, as he refused to chase anything wide and waited for the bowlers to drift towards the pads. He pulled Mitchell Johnson through midwicket for his first boundary then started after lunch with a sweet clip and picked off Doherty with ease.The game settled as Cook and Pietersen added 76 to take England into the period where batsmen traditionally dominate in Australia once the ball has gone soft. However, Siddle had been picked because of his ability to unsettle batsmen on good pitches and proved his worth. He made one move a fraction to find the edge of Pietersen’s drive and produced a very similar delivery to have Collingwood taken low at third slip.Collingwood is known to be a dodgy starter but Pietersen had looked in fine fettle, as good as he has at Test level since before his Achilles injury. Pietersen’s first boundary was a sweet straight drive and he wore the expression of a man on a mission as he picked off a further five fours. He also seemed intent on attacking Doherty during an intriguing mini-battle and Australia were relieved to end it when they did. Slightly surprisingly, Siddle was rested after a four-over burst, but his impact on the day was far from over.

Mark Sorell has become the second state coach in a week to step down after being told his contract with South Australia would not be extended at the end of the season

ESPNcricinfo staff14-Dec-2010Mark Sorell has become the second state coach in a week to step down after being told his contract with South Australia would not be extended at the end of the season. The move comes as Darren Lehmann, the former Redbacks captain, has agreed to link with Queensland for the Big Bash after Trevor Barsby’s sudden exit last Wednesday.The flurry of in-season movement is extremely unusual in Australia and while Barsby was the victim of player power, Sorell’s time ran out to lift the perennially underperforming South Australia. The SACA board decided on Monday night that Sorell’s fourth season in charge would be his last.Jamie Cox, South Australia’s director of cricket, told Sorell, 45, the news on Tuesday morning. “He has consequently stepped down as coach of the Redbacks, effective immediately,” Cox said. Jeff Vaughan, the assistant, will take over for South Australia’s one-day and Sheffield Shield games against Victoria this week.”I would like to make it very clear that this outcome was initiated by management and the board and not by the playing group,” Cox said. “The players have, however, been consulted and understand the reasons for the decision.”In Queensland, Lehmann will start coaching the Twenty20 side next week to prepare for its opening match against Victoria on January 2. Lehmann, who looks after the Deccan Chargers in the IPL, steps in at a difficult time for the Bulls after Barsby’s departure.Graham Dixon, Queensland’s chief executive, said Lehmann would provide the side with an experienced Twenty20 hand. “Darren’s earned a reputation as an innovative coach in the IPL and with his extensive international playing and coaching experience, we are confident he will further assist the development of our promising young squad,” Dixon said. Justin Sternes will look after the Bulls in the Shield and one-day competitions for the rest of the season.

Rain allowed only 30 overs on the fourth day, and Karachi Whites managed a draw, but they had already lost their chance of making the finals

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Dec-2010Khan Research Laboratories pocketed first-innings points as Karachi Whites finished on 262 for 5 in their second innings in the 30 overs possible today in Karachi. Though Asif Zakir fell early to Yasir Arafat, Rameez Aziz carried on to make a half-century before he fell caught behind to seamer Shakeel-ur-Rehman for 61. Ali Asad and Javed Mansoor ensured no further damage for Karachi. However, after KRL had taken a massive first-innings lead, Karachi’s chances of making the final were dashed. They finished three points behind second-placed State Bank of Pakistan, who now take on leaders KRL in the final at Rawalpindi from December 31.