Malinda Warnapura's brisk unbeaten 50 off 74 balls proved to be the difference between an emphatic session and a merely satisfactory one for India on a rain-hit opening day of the Test series

Five years since he quit the game, Wasim Akram is as sharp with a provocative opinion as his bowling used to be in his heyday

For two weeks in Karachi almost everyone talked about cricket, but none bothered to turn up at the National Stadium

Dhoni was mesmerised even at the press-conference. For every question demanding explanations for the defeat, he the same answer: Mendis

A great knock is one that can be seen independent of the situation, irrespective of the result, yet one that contributes to the team cause. Some times a great knock looks effortless compared to batsmen. Jayasuirya, today, satisfied all the above criteria

Ajantha Mendis happens to be a major part of Sri Lanka's gameplan, not just with his mystical bowling, but also because he seems to have taken focus off most of the other bowlers

Sidharth Monga presents the Plays of the day for Pakistan v Bangladesh, Super Four, Asia Cup, Karachi, July 4, 2008

On pitches where the bowlers can do very little, such as at the Asia Cup, the little they manage to do is priceless

All of a sudden the favourites going in to the tournament find themselves one defeat short of being ousted from the event.

Sidharth Monga rewinds the Plays of the day from the match between Pakistan and India in Karachi

For all the flaws in the Asia Cup, there lies a positive for India: it provides their fast bowlers with a constructive challenge

Pakistan's premier city is one that provokes many observations - not least about the similarities with India across the border

Sanath Jayasuriya is one of those rare cricketers who doesn't care about records, and worryingly for bowlers, he isn't slowing down even at the age of 39

The plays of the day from the Pakistan-Sri Lanka game in Karachi

Indian players looked tired and listless on the field against Bangladesh

It will remain a shame that, despite Alok Kapali's heroics, all Bangladesh managed to do was add Karachi to their list of "what ifs"

The Plays of the day of the first match of the Super stage of the Asia Cup between Bangladesh and India

There has been a sense of unfulfilled promise about Suresh Raina for more than two years now, and his last two innings are perhaps signs of a coming of age

The plays of the day from the India-Pakistan game in Karachi