Sri Lanka fight back after Nash, Chanderpaul stand

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Posted by FunKingdom | Posted on 6:05 AM

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Only 41 overs of play were possible on the second day at Pallekele, before rain intervened once again to bring a premature end to play. A charged up Sri Lanka made two quick breakthroughs after lunch to even things up after Brendan Nash and Shivnarine Chanderpaul capitalised on a flat Sri Lankan bowling effort and a comical missed run out opportunity in the morning session. Sri Lanka's resurgence in the nine overs after the break had West Indies at 245 for 5 by the time the heavens opened up.

A maiden century beckoned yet again for Darren Bravo as he began the second morning with the same nonchalant aplomb he had displayed for much of the previous day. Dilhara Fernando overpitched in the second over and Darren eased it casually past cover for four, seeming to have lost none of the form or fluency from his overnight 63. But he was out soon after crossing 50 for the third time in four innings this series. Fernando bent one in, off a full length, to rap Darren on the pads and despite the hasty review, Bravo was dismissed for 68.

While Shivnarine Chanderpaul was circumspect in the early exchanges, Brendan Nash didn't take long to come to grips with the pitch, leaning back to slap Fernando behind point to get off the mark before racking up 1000 Test runs with a clip to the leg side after two more boundaries. The runs kept coming at a decent pace for Nash, as he picked the gaps and dispatched loose deliveries, while Kumar Sangakkara strove for wickets with attacking fields. Nash brought up his eighth Test half-century before lunch and was unbeaten on 62 when the weather intervened.

Chanderpaul eventually found his feet against the spinners, rotating the strike efficiently towards the end of the session and leaving the boundary-hitting to his more fluent partner. He was given lbw by the on-field umpire when he missed a reverse-sweep off Herath on 38, but the review showed the ball to be brushing the glove before it hit the fore-arm guard, and the decision was overturned in his favour. Chanderpaul progressed to his first half-century of the series with a bottom-edged sweep off Herath, but was caught spectacularly at slip soon after. He attempted a late dab off Ajantha Mendis, but Mahela Jayawardene was onto it in a flash. Jayawardene dove to his left and plucked the ball one-handed, centimetres from the turf, ending the stand on 99.

Dwayne Bravo fell in the following over to Herath, who made an immediate impact after being kept out of the attack for 58 overs. He had beaten Dwayne's edge two balls prior, but sucked him in completely with a flighted delivery that dipped and turned. Bravo barely had time to register that he had over-balanced before Prasanna Jayawardene had the bails off.

Suranga Lakmal was consistent in his morning spell, but was rarely threatening. He never strayed far from the channel outside off stump, yet was unable to extract enough movement to worry the batsmen. Angelo Mathews, too, was negotiated without fuss by Nash and Chanderpaul, and Fernando was wayward despite Darren's wicket. The double-strike after lunch had the game finely balanced and the teams will be hoping for better weather over the remainder of the match if there is to be any hope of a result.

Arbitrator in BCCI, Punjab case stands down

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Posted by FunKingdom | Posted on 8:38 AM

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The arbitrator in the case between the BCCI and the Kings' XI Punjab, Justice BN Srikrishna, has withdrawn from the case after disclosing to both parties that he represented the Wadia Group, part owners of the KXIP, in many of their cases, in the past.

"I disclosed to the BCCI today that I was defence counsel for the Wadia Group," Justice Srikrishna told ESPNcricinfo. "They said I couldn't continue, I said that was fine with me."

The news comes a day after Srikrishna delivered an interim order in another case involving the BCCI, granting a stay on the expulsion of Rajasthan Royals. He said today's development would not have any bearing on the Rajasthan case. "I will carry on because my association with the Wadias in the past does not concern that case."

Justice Srikrishna was scheduled to begin hearing the Punjab case today, with the hearing set to last three days with provisions for a reserve day. But the board's objection - made before the day's proceedings started - has stalled things.

The irony is that Justice Srikrishna was the BCCI's own choice as arbitrator when both the issues went into arbitration. BCCI president Shashank Manohar told ESPNcricinfo that "he was chosen as we have all our faith in him."

Manohar said they would be challenging Srikrishna's order staying the Rajasthan Royals' termination in the Bombay High Court tomorrow, but said there was a possibility to include more teams in the fourth IPL.

"Honestly speaking, we have nothing against any teams or any of the franchises," Manohar said. "We have just acted based on the advice we have taken from our lawyers over certain matters."

The BCCI chief said the Board was "not at all worried" about the turn of events in the IPL arbitration cases. "We will work it out ... even if there are eight teams or ten teams in the next IPL, that's fine. If we get an order from the court tomorrow that we cannot terminate the teams and they will have to be included in the IPL, that will happen."

Darren Bravo stars on rain-marred day

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Posted by FunKingdom | Posted on 8:38 AM

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Half-centuries from Darren Bravo and Devon Smith took West Indies to 134 for 2 on a rain-affected first day of the first-ever Test at the Pallekele Stadium. Play began in dramatic fashion when Suranga Lakmal removed Chris Gayle with the day's first delivery but only 40 overs were possible in the day. A wet outfield delayed the start of the match, and a heavy burst of rain just after lunch and bad light in the evening contributed to the shortened day.

Darren Bravo continued to impress on his maiden tour, stroking three boundaries to get his innings started. A glide through cover off Angelo Mathews was followed by a controlled edge behind point, before a wristy flick from middle stump in the next over signaled the confidence Darren had gained from his impressive half-centuries in each of the previous matches. The runs flowed either side of the wicket for Darren, with an elegant drive after lunch standing out, as he stood tall to crack the over-pitched delivery through extra cover. He continued assuredly alongside Smith, negotiating the Sri Lanka attack with little fuss for the majority of the day and brought up his third fifty in as many matches with a pair of delicate boundaries off Dilhara Fernando; the first, a late dab through the slips, followed by a leg glance to the fine leg boundary.

Devon Smith made use of some wayward bowling to race to his own half-century after tea, in his first Test innings in almost eighteen months, before he was dismissed by Ajantha Mendis on 55. Smith had played Mendis with assurance until his dismissal, working him comfortably for singles despite the turn on offer and twice dispatching him to the fence when he pitched too full. He punished the quick bowlers as well, glancing Suranga Lakmal for four when he erred down the leg side and crashing a misdirected bouncer from Dilhara Fernando to the wide long-on boundary. The leg-break that has proved so productive for Mendis throughout this tour proved to be Smith's undoing however, as he misread the straightening delivery after Mendis had bowled a succession of offspinners at the batsman.

Fernando was wayward through the day as he struggled to find a consistent length, but created opportunities nevertheless, particularly in the evening. His awayswingers shaved Smith's outside edge on occasions, and even prompted an unsuccessful review from the Sri Lankans, just minutes before the batsman finally fell to Mendis. Bravo then edged Fernando to second slip in his next over, only for Mahela Jayawardene to spill the straightforward chance, reprieving the batsman on 55.

Although the swing and seam movement that Kumar Sangakkara expected when he chose to field was less pronounced than he would have liked, there was considerable turn for Mendis and Tillakaratne Dilshan. Rangana Herath was not bowled today, but the spinners are likely to play a major role as the Test wears on.

Gautam Gambhir, bowlers make 2-0

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Posted by FunKingdom | Posted on 8:35 AM

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Gautam Gambhir's bowlers responded well to his call of bowling first, restricting New Zealand with smart, accurate bowling, and the captain reciprocated with a fluent 138 off 116 balls to make the chase look easy.

Gambhir, capping off a return to form that began with a struggling Test fifty in Hyderabad last month, never let his strike-rate come under 100 once he crossed the mark in the sixth over. He had for company an equally hungry Virat Kohli, who now has two centuries and a fifty in his last three international outings.

Dew, expected later in the evening, was the reason why India put New Zealand in on a cracking surface, but the towels were conspicuous by absence in the second half of the game. Which is what made the bowling effort special.

The pitch played slow and low, and India cut out the pace and the room. There was nothing spectacular done with the ball, just accurate, wicket to wicket bowling for most of the part. Martin Guptill and Scott Styris tried to take New Zealand towards a fighting total with important fifties, but India pulled the visitors back every time they threatened to break free.

New Zealand began with three boundaries in the first two overs, but Sreesanth's late swing removed Jamie How. Guptill and Kane Williamson looked solid but subdued in a 50-run stand for the second wicket. Those runs took 12.5 overs coming - all but seven of those deliveries in the Powerplay.

The duo did little to upset the bowlers' rhythm. Munaf Patel was allowed to hit the same spot again and again, with slight seam movement either way. One of those moved a bit more than expected, and found a way through Williamson's bat and pad, taking the top of off. The pressure showed when Ross Taylor went to hit Yusuf Pathan's first delivery for a six, but found deep midwicket.

Styris came out in the 25th over with the score yet to reach three figures, and cut out the unproductive balls, taking singles with ease and finding timely boundaries. When he and Guptill asked for the Powerplay in the 35th over, R Ashwin responded with a carrom balls to remove Guptill. That set New Zealand back by a couple of overs.

Styris and Daniel Vettori had to take some time set up another charge, but Sreesanth pegged them back again. Like he did in the first match of the series, Sreesanth came back for a new spell in the 46th over, and took two wickets with his first two deliveries. He ended a threatening ninth-wicket partnership in the last game, and got rid of Styris and Vettori this time.

New Zealand opened their defence with Nathan McCullum, presumably to get through some overs of spin before dew appeared, and immediately troubled M Vijay, who struggled to come to terms with the slowness of the pitch.

Gambhir, however, was playing in a different world. He timed almost everything sweetly except for a couple of inside edges that went for fours. Against Kyle Mills, he walked down the pitch on a couple of occasions to create the driving length. When Mills pitched slightly short, he cut him away. The driving between mid-off and extra cover stood out.

By the end of the eighth over, Gambhir had scored four times Vijay's eight, taking India to 40, and putting Mills out of the attack. Against Styris he made room and went over extra cover. Andy McKay strayed too straight, and was clipped for four into the leg side. There was not a hint of power; the short back lift emphasised how well he timed the ball.

Vijay continued his patchy innings until he tried a premeditated slog-sweep off Vettori in the 18th over, and was bowled. Gambhir, though, had reached 54 off 48 by then, out of India's 87, and looked set to carry India through. A crucial moment came in the 22nd over when Gambhir's bat got stuck into the ground as he tried to slide it in, but Vettori failed to collect the throw cleanly and Gambhir was let off.

Every time Gambhir needed quick runs, he made room and went over extra cover. Kohli batted like he was never dismissed in Guwahati, pulling powerfully wide of long-on, and punching square for most of his runs. Over by over, the 116-run partnership brought the asking rate down, until it read 4.3 for the last 13 overs when Kohli found short midwicket with a pull shot.

It was a distraught batsman that left the wicket, 36 short of a third straight century, which was possible with 56 still required. His captain and a senior back in Delhi, though, was there to see India home and continue their unbeaten home season.

InningsDot balls4s6sPP1PP2PP3Last 10 oversNB/Wides
New Zealand15620440/122/033/179/40/6
India12829152/025/0-19/0(41-43)0/8

PCB committee submits report on Haider

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Posted by FunKingdom | Posted on 7:44 AM

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Pakistani officials submitted a report on Monday into former wicket-keeper Zulqarnain Haider's dramatic escape to London, abandoning his team ahead of a match with South Africa, the cricket board said.

The 24-year-old fled the team hotel in Dubai on the morning of the fifth and final one-day against South Africa on November 8, claiming he received death threats from unknown people to influence the results of matches.

After flying into London, Haider retired from international cricket and sought asylum in Britain.

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) terminated his contract and formed a three-man committee, headed by team manager Intikhab Alam, to establish the facts surrounding Haider's disappearance.

The committee finalised and submitted its report to the PCB, the PCB said, declining to make any further comment on Monday.

Team security manager Khawaja Najam and PCB official Subhan Ahmed were the other two members of the committee.

On Sunday, Haider posted a message on Facebook, threatening to name several players in the next five days who took money to fix matches.

His family in Pakistan's eastern city of Lahore have told local media that they received death threats.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) said its anti-corruption staff met Haider in London and offered support to the former wicket-keeper.

Haider faces severe punishment for violating ICC ethics by not telling the council he was asked to influence match results for money.

PCB chairman Ijaz Butt says the Board's decision on the Haider affair will be based on the committee's report.

Several former players criticised Haider for merely trying to get political asylum in Britain.

Eye-catching moments of 1st Ashes Test

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Posted by FunKingdom | Posted on 7:42 AM

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