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Sunday November 25, 2007

WELLINGTON, - New Zealand and Bangladesh are in discussions to play a Twenty20 charity cricket match to raise funds for survivors of Cyclone Sidr, which devastated the South Asian country last week.

Although Bangladesh officials said Saturday the match would be played in New Zealand on December 23, just before the start of a one-day series between the teams, a New Zealand spokesman said discussions were ongoing.

A warm-up one-day match between Bangladesh and Northern Districts had been scheduled for that date.

Monday November 26, 2007
by Jateen Gutta

DURBAN, South Africa (AFP) - Tailender Andre Nel hit nine runs off the last three balls as South Africa snatched a two-wicket win over New Zealand in the first one-day international at Kingsmead on Sunday.

New Zealand seemed set to end their losing streak against South Africa when batsman Jamie How and opening bowler Kyle Mills produced career-best performances.

But dropped catches again proved costly for New Zealand.

"We mucked it up," was the stark reaction of Black Caps captain Daniel Vettori.

Man-of-the-match AB de Villiers, who made 87, was put down by Ross Taylor at backward point off Chris Martin when he had 21.

Mark Boucher, who hit an unbeaten 35, was dropped by Mathew Sinclair at long-on off Martin on five and Nel was missed by Scott Styris at backward point off Mark Gillespie before he had scored in the final over.

"We missed chances in the field again," said Vettori. "We should have finished the game off and should have won it comfortably."

How made 90 as New Zealand made a competitive 248 for six after being sent in. Then Mills took five for 25 as South Africa were left needing 11 to win off the last over, bowled by Gillespie.

Nel could not score off the first ball of the over and was missed by Styris when he miscued the next, with the batsmen running a single.

Boucher could only score one off the third delivery but Nel pounded the next two balls through the covers for fours. He lofted the final delivery over cover for the winning run.

"I've been saying all along that we're probably more comfortable in the one-day form of the game and the way we played today was an indication of that," said Vettori.

"But we're still not winning, so we have to move forward and try to find a way of winning the next one."

How, batting at number three, made a slow start after the early dismissal of Lou Vincent, but batted with increasing confidence, hitting 11 boundaries in a 124-ball innings.

How shared stands of 72 for the second wicket with Brendon McCullum and 75 for the third wicket with Styris. Both his partners made 40.

He looked set for a maiden international century before he tried to work a yorker-length ball from Nel to the leg side and edged it into his stumps.

South Africa also found it difficult to bat against the new ball and were nine for two when Mills struck twice in his opening spell, bowling Morne van Wyk and having Jacques Kallis caught at first slip.

But De Villiers and captain Graeme Smith put on 91 for the third wicket before Smith was caught at deep midwicket.

"It was always going to be tough. We saw how much the new ball moved around for both sides, so it was about getting through the new ball. After that I thought we batted well and had some good partnerships. But we've got some things to work on with the bowling."

De Villiers added 72 with JP Duminy for the fourth wicket before De Villiers was superbly caught off his own bowling by Vettori. De Villiers drove the left-arm spinner and Vettori leaped high to hold a right-handed catch.

Mills took three more wickets in his last two overs and it seemed New Zealand were finally to have something to celebrate after being badly beaten in two Test matches and losing a Twenty20 international.

But Nel, who earlier took three for 46, gave South Africa the lead in the three-match series.

Final scoreboard at Kingsmead:

New Zealand

L Vincent b Ntini 6

B McCullum b Botha 40

J How b Nel 90

S Styris c Botha b Nel 40

R Taylor c Nel b Morkel 20

M Sinclair not out 32

G Hopkins b Nel 0

K Mills not out 9

Extras (lb5, nb1, w5) 11

Total (6 wkts, 50 overs) 248

Fall of wickets: 1-12 (Vincent), 2-84 (McCullum), 3-159 (Styris), 4-195 (Taylor), 5-223 (How), 6-223 (Hopkins)

Bowling: Pollock 10-4-21-0, Ntini 9-0-62-1 (1nb, 1w), Nel 10-0-46-3 (3w), Morkel 10-0-54-1 (1w), Botha 9-0-44-1, Duminy 2-0-16-0

Did not bat: D Vettori, M Gillespie, C Martin

South Africa

M van Wyk b Mills 0

G Smith c Martin b Styris 44

J Kallis c Taylor b Mills 1

A de Villiers c and b Vettori 87

J Duminy c sub (Patel) b Martin 46

M Boucher not out 35

S Pollock c Taylor b Mills 6

A Morkel c McCullum b Mills 0

J Botha c Vincent b Mills 6

A Nel not out 10

Extras (lb4, w10) 14

Total (8 wkts, 50 overs) 249

Falls: 1-0 (Van Wyk), 2-9 (Kallis), 3-100 (Smith), 4-172 (De Villiers), 5-211 (Duminy), 6-220 (Pollock), 7-222 (Morkel), 8-238 (Botha)

Bowling: Mills 10-2-25-5 (2w), Gillespie 10-3-50-0 (2w), Martin 10-0-65-1 (1w), Vettori 10-0-47-1 (3w), Styris 10-0-58-1 (1w)

Did not bat: M Ntini

Result: South Africa won by 2 wickets.

Umpires: M Benson (ENG), B Jerling (RSA).

TV umpire: M Erasmus (RSA).

Match referee: J Srinath (Ind).

Remaining matches: Nov 30, Port Elizabeth; Dec 2, Durban.

Saturday November 24, 2007

JOHANNESBURG - Shaun Pollock took three wickets on his return to international cricket as South Africa beat New Zealand by three wickets in a Twenty20 international at the Wanderers Stadium.

Veteran all-rounder Pollock, who was not selected for the Test series against the Black Caps, took three for 28 as New Zealand struggled to 129 for seven in their 20 overs.

AB de Villiers hit the only half-century of the match as South Africa made hard work of their reply before tailender Johan Botha hit a boundary off Kyle Mills to seal victory with one ball to spare.

De Villiers finished with 52 not out off 45 balls but South Africa got into a tangle against some accurate bowling by New Zealand spinners Daniel Vettori and Jeetan Patel towards the end of the match.

Pollock was quickly into the action after South Africa sent New Zealand in to bat. He took the first two wickets of Brendon McCullum and Jamie How and followed up by dismissing New Zealand captain Vettori in his second spell.

McCullum hooked a short ball for six in the third over but then slammed a fierce drive to JP Duminy at cover off the next delivery.

Scott Styris was the only New Zealand top order batsman to prosper, making 30 off 27 balls before being caught at mid-off by South African captain Graeme Smith off fast bowler Dale Steyn, who was selected for his 20-overs international debut after taking 20 wickets in two matches in the Test series.

All-rounder Mills gave the New Zealand innings some late sparkle with a hard-hit unbeaten 33 off 24 balls which included two straight sixes off Charl Langeveldt in the last three overs.

Jacques Kallis, who was controversially left out of South Africa's team for the World Twenty20 in September, returned to the South African team and opened the batting but made only four before being caught at fine leg.

Left-hander Duminy made a fluent 33 and South Africa seemed on course for an easy win before Duminy was deceived by Vettori and stumped by McCullum.

De Villiers survived a dropped catch by Mills at long-off against Vettori when he had five and the lapse proved costly for the tourists.

Saturday November 24, 2007

DUBAI (ICC) - South Africa, fresh from its comprehensive 2-0 Test series win over New Zealand, will look to inflict more hardship on the Black Caps when the two sides go head-to-head in a three-match ODI series that starts on Sunday.

And if Graeme Smith’s side can win all three games, in Durban, Port Elizabeth and Cape Town, it can move to within two rating points of Australia, the side currently on top of the LG ICC ODI Championship table.

The Proteas did secure the lead in the listing, albeit briefly, in late March after Australia lost six matches in quick succession – three to England and three to New Zealand – but Ricky Ponting’s line-up quickly regained its stride and went through the ICC Cricket World Cup without a single defeat.

However, South Africa’s excellent form in seeing off Pakistan in October/November means it is now once again within touching distance of top spot.

Smith’s team is currently five points behind Australia, while New Zealand, in third position, is a further nine points back. But if the Black Caps lose those three matches then Daniel Vettori’s side will find itself slipping down to fourth place in the table with 109 points, with India taking over the position as the team closest to the top two in the ladder.

In truth, New Zealand’s players could probably do with something to cheer themselves up after two heavy Test defeats in Johannesburg (358 runs) and Centurion (an innings and 59 runs) in only seven playing days and something that might fit the bill is the prospect of them taking over second spot in the LG ICC ODI Championship table if they can win all three matches in the upcoming series.

If they could do that then New Zealand would gain six rating points (giving it a total of 120) while dropping South Africa’s haul by five (to 118).

Of course, that will be easier said than done, especially as the visitors will be without the player that sits second in the LG ICC Player Rankings for ODI bowlers, paceman Shane Bond, who returned home injured after breaking down during the first Test.

In Bond’s absence, New Zealand still has two other players in the bowling top 20 – captain Vettori in sixth spot and all-rounder Jacob Oram, who missed the second Test with a hamstring injury, lying in 18th position. That compares to three South Africans: Shaun Pollock, left out of the Test side, still tops the ODI bowling chart, Makhaya Ntini is in seventh position and his fellow fast bowler, Andre Nel, is in 14th place.

Meanwhile, the contrast between the two sides in terms of representatives inside the top 20 of the LG ICC Player Rankings for ODI batsmen will not have New Zealand supporters dancing in the streets. South Africa has four players in that elite group – Smith (fourth), Herschelle Gibbs (12th), AB de Villiers (16th) and Jacques Kallis (17th) – but the visiting side has none, with its best-placed player former captain Stephen Fleming in 23rd position.

The top of that batting list is dominated by Australia with Ponting, Andrew Symonds and Matthew Hayden making it a 1-2-3 for the world champions.

South Africa can claim primacy in the all-rounder listing with Pollock topping the group, clear of the West Indies’ Chris Gayle, while Kallis is in fifth position. Scott Styris (sixth) and Oram (seventh) are the highest-placed New Zealand players in that table.

The schedule for the South Africa – New Zealand ODI series is as follows:

25 November – first ODI, Durban

30 November – second ODI, Port Elizabeth

Monday November 26, 2007
Tharanga, Harmison give England a headache

COLOMBO - Sri Lanka's young batsman Upul Tharanga staked a strong claim for the first Test against England with another powerful display against the tourists on Sunday.

The left-hander, who made 112 in the tour opener last week, smashed 86 as the Sri Lanka Cricket XI made 298-9 by stumps on the opening day of the three-day match at the Nondescripts Cricket Club.

Strike bowler Steve Harmison added to England's worries when he left the field with back spasms after sending down the third ball of his 11th over an hour before close.

Harmison, a late entrant to the touring squad after proving his fitness playing first-class cricket in South Africa following hernia problems, finished the day with one for 45.

"Steve does not require scans, but is being treated and we will see how much he recovers overnight," England media manager Andrew Walpole told reporters.

Fast bowler Matthew Hoggard and left-arm spinner Monty Panesar claimed three wickets each.

Tharanga, who did not play on the recent Test tour of Australia, has been included in Sri Lanka's 14 for the first Test starting at the Asgiriya stadium in Kandy on Saturday.

The 22-year-old, with 13 Tests behind him, is one of the contenders for the batting spot left vacant by former captain Marvan Atapattu, who retired after the Australian series.

Openers Tharanga and Mahela Udawatte gave the hosts a good start with a 55-run stand for the first wicket when Hoggard broke through by having Udawatte caught by a diving Michael Vaughan at mid-on.

Test discard Malinda Warnapura, who made his debut in the previous home series against Bangladesh in June, hit four boundaries in 16 when he tickled a ball from seamer Ravi Bopara to the wicket-keeper.

The hosts, who went to lunch at 109-2, suffered a setback seven runs later when captain Tillekeratne Dilshan was dismissed by Harmison for 23.

Dilshan, who was overlooked for the Australian tour and failed to make the squad for the first Test, smashed three fours and a six when he mis-hit a bouncer and was caught at mid-on.

Tharanga was denied a second successive century against the tourists when he edged a drive from James Anderson and was snapped up by Ian Bell in the slips.

Chamara Kapugedera, who made 141 in the previous tour game, managed only 13 when he flicked Hoggard to Bopara in the short mid-wicket region.

Jehan Mubarak (68) and wicket-keeper Kaushal Silva (53) boosted the total by adding 105 for the sixth wicket.

Cricket: England Tour match scoreboard

First day's scores in the three-day match:

Sri Lanka Cricket XI

U. Tharanga c Bell b Anderson 86

M. Udawatte c Vaughan b Hoggard 18

M. Warnapura c Prior b Bopara 16

T. Dilshan c Anderson b Harmison 23

J. Mubarak c Prior b Hoggard 68

C. Kapugedara c Bopara b Hoggard 13

K. Silva c Cook b Panesar 53

K. Lokuarachchi lbw b Panesar 0

S. de Silva not out 1

C. Welagedera c Cook b Panesar 1

I. Amarasinghe not out 0

Extras: (b6, nb7, nb6) 19

Total (for nine wickets) 298

Fall of wickets: 1-55 (Udawatte), 2-79 (Warnapura), 3-116 (Dilshan), 4-158 (Tharanga), 5-182 (Kapugedara), 6-287 (Silva), 7-287 (Lokuarachchi), 8-297 (Mubarak), 9-298 (Welagedera).

Bowling: Hoggard 17-3-57-3 (nb2), Anderson 15.3-4-55-1 (nb1), Harmison 10.3-1-45-1 (nb1), Bopara 11-2-43-1 (nb1), Panesar 22-4-67-3, Pietersen 4-0-15-0, Vaughan 1-0-3-0

Overs: 81

(Note: Harmison left the field after bowling three balls of his 11th over. Anderson completed the over.)

Toss: Sri Lanka Cricket XI

Saturday November 24, 2007
COLOMBO - England start their lone first-class match on the Sri Lankan tour here on Sunday hoping to fill the blanks in the Test squad for the series starting in a week's time.

The three-day match against the Sri Lanka Cricket XI at the Nondescripts Club is the tourists' last opportunity to strike form ahead of the first of three back-to-back Tests starting in Kandy on December 1.

The tour opener earlier this week against the same opposition, where all 16 England players were allowed to take the field, saw the hosts pile up 500-5 and restrict the tourists to 315-6.

But on Sunday only 11 will play and England captain Michael Vaughan said performances in the match will help him finalise the team for the Kandy Test.

"There are still a couple of places up for grabs and we have to make sure that, come Kandy on December 1, we get our eleven right," said Vaughan.

"So there might be a couple of spaces where we can give players a chance and rest a couple of players who have played a lot of cricket recently.

"But ideally you want to play as many players as possible in this three-day game who are going to be playing in the Test match."

The first five batting spots are settled with Vaughan opening with Alastair Cook, followed by Ian Bell, Kevin Pietersen and Paul Collingwood.

Except for Pietersen, who was dismissed for four, the rest had a good outing in the opening match with Cook top-scoring with 63 and Collingwood making 52 before both retired to give others a chance at the crease.

Owais Shah, who also retired after making 38, and Ravi Bopara, who returned unbeaten on 40, are expected to contest the number six Test spot.

With wicket-keeper Matt Prior and left-arm spinner Monty Panesar certain to play in Kandy, England need to decide the three fast bowling places among five hopefuls.

Steve Harmison, who joined the squad late having proved his fitness in South Africa, will be keenly watched after sending down just six overs in the previous match.

Left-armer Ryan Sidebottom, Matthew Hoggard, James Anderson and Stuart Broad are the others in line to share the new ball attack.

Tillekeratne Dilshan will lead the home team in a bid to regain his Test place after being ignored for the recent Australian tour and the Kandy Test.

The local side also includes left-handed opener Upul Tharanga, who was on Friday named for the first Test after scoring 112 against England in the tour opener.

England (from): Michael Vaughan (capt), Alastair Cook, Ian Bell, Kevin Pietersen, Paul Collingwood, Owais Shah, Ravi Bopara, Philip Mustard, Matthew Prior, James Anderson, Stuart Broad, Matthew Hoggard, Ryan Sidebottom, Steve Harmison, Monty Panesar, Graeme Swann.

Saturday November 24, 2007
COLOMBO - Tillekeratne Dilshan was once again ignored by Sri Lanka's selectors when they named a 14-man squad on Friday for the first cricket Test against England.

Dilshan, a seasoned middle-order batsman, was left out of the recent tour of Australia, but was expected to take the spot left vacant by the retiring former captain Marvan Atapattu.

The selectors instead picked left-handed Upul Tharanga and Jehan Mubarak as the batting options for the first of three Tests against Michael Vaughan's men starting in Kandy on December 1.

Atapattu and the injured Farveez Maharoof are the only two names missing from the eleven that played in the second Test against Australia in Hobart last week.

Added to that team are Tharanga, Mubarak, left-arm seamers Chaminda Vaas and Sujeewa de Silva and leg-spinner Malinga Bandara.

Dilshan, 31, has scored 2,152 runs in 42 Tests and is leading the Sri Lanka Cricket XI in two practice matches against the tourists this week.

He made 111 and 78 while captaining Sri Lanka 'A' on the recent tour of Zimbabwe and returned home to smash 188 off 135 balls for Bloomfield in a domestic one-day match earlier this month.

Fast bowler Dilhara Fernando retained his place in the squad despite suffering from a recurring ankle injury.

Skipper Mahela Jayawardene said Fernando, who is due for surgery next April, took injections in Australia to make himself fit for the England series.

"Dilhara has had that ankle problem for quite some time," the captain said soon after the team returned from Australia, where it lost both Test matches.

"He saw a specialist in Australia who has recommended an operation for him, probably for early April when we get a decent break.

"He had an injection just before we left Australia, so he should be fine for this series," Jayawardene said of his fast bowler who has taken 80 wickets in 28 Tests.

The squad for the remaining two Tests in Colombo and Galle will be announced later.

Sri Lanka squad:

Saturday November 24, 2007
COLOMBO - England drew their first match of the Sri Lanka tour on Thursday after gaining useful batting practice at the Colombo Cricket Club.

The tourists, replying to Sri Lanka Cricket XI's mammoth 500-5 piled over the first two days of the practice match, scored 315-6 on the final day before the game was called off.

Opener Alastair Cook made 63, Ian Bell hit 49 and Paul Collingwood smashed a belligerent 52 off 69 balls before all three batsmen retired to give others a chance at the crease.

England captain Michael Vaughan made 38 but star batsmen Kevin Pietersen was dismissed cheaply.

Vaughan was trapped leg-before by leg-spinner Malinga Bandara, while Pietersen fended at a short ball from Nuwan Kulasekera and was caught at gully for four.

It was England's first hit since the one-day tour of Sri Lanka a month ago when they recorded an impressive 3-2 win in the five-match series.

The tourists get another chance to tune up for three back-to-back Tests starting in Kandy on Decemer 1 when they play a first-class match against the same opposition in Colombo from Sunday.

The home team, comprising Sri Lanka's second-string, had batted for two days with opener Upul Tharanga making 112, 20-year-old Chamara Kapugedara 141 and Thilana Kandamby an unbeaten 107.

The local spinners suffered as much on the dead wicket as their English counterparts Monty Panesar (1-117) and Graeme Swann (1-112).

After the Kandy Test ends on December 5, the second Test will be played in Colombo from December 9-13 and the third in Galle from December 18-22.

Brief scores:

SLC XI 500-5 decl (U. Tharanga 112, M. Warnapura 48, C. Kapugedara 141, T. Kandamby 107 not out, K. Silva 54 not out, R. Sidebottom 1-46, S. Broad 1-41, M. Panesar 1-117, G. Swann 1-112)

NEW DELHI - Sachin Tendulkar completed an attractive half-century as India beat Pakistan by six wickets on the fifth and final day of the opening Test at New Delhi on Monday.

The hosts needed only 32 runs to win with seven wickets in hand to gain a 1-0 lead in the three-Test series, with Tendulkar (56 not out) completing the formality with his 46th half-century.

Resuming at 171-3, India achieved their 203-run target after just 6.2 overs on Monday morning. Venkatsai Laxman remained unbeaten on six.

Tendulkar, 32 overnight, was in punishing mood as he pulled fast bowlers Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Sami for fours early in the morning.

He reached his half-century when he hammered leg-spinner Danish Kaneria through the covers for a boundary and finished the match with a square-cut four off Akhtar.

Akhtar was the most impressive bowler, finishing with 4-58.

He again bowled with fire, denying left-handed Sourav Ganguly a 50 in his second over. The Indian batsman was caught pulling by debutant Sohail Tanvir at fine-leg.

Ganguly fell at his overnight score of 48 after putting on 88 for the fourth wicket with Tendulkar to help ensure a comfortable victory. He hit eight fours in his 64-ball knock.

India virtually wrapped up the match on Saturday when they stopped Pakistan from setting a challenging fourth-innings target. They dismissed the tourists for 247 after gaining a 45-run first-innings lead.

"This ground is very special for me," said India captain Anil Kumble.

"I think the boys responded very well. Everyone contributed in this win. The stand between Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Laxman in the first innings was very crucial."

The match was a personal triumph for veteran leg-spinner Kumble, who finished with seven wickets on his captaincy debut. He was named man of the match.

It was at this ground that he became the second bowler in Test history after Englishman Jim Laker to grab 10 wickets in an innings against Pakistan in 1999.

"We are a good side and I am confident that we will recover. If we had made 300 in the second innings, we would have been in the contest," said Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik.