Report
Pankaj grabs four as Lions crash to 155
Pankaj Singh grabbed four wickets as England Lions crashed to 155 all out giving Central Zone a healthy 115-run first-innings lead
Cricinfo staff
04-Feb-2008
Central Zone 270 (Kaif 64, Richardson 4-50) and 23 for 2 v England Lions 155 (Rashid 40, Pankaj 4-35)
Scorecard
Scorecard
| ||
Pankaj Singh grabbed four wickets as Central Zone shot out England Lions for 155 and gained a healthy 115-run first-innings lead. Central, though, lost two wickets in the seven overs they had to face before stumps on the second day in Vadodara.
In the morning session, Central, resuming from 238 for 7, could only add 32 runs to their first-innings effort before being bowled out. Alan Richardson, the right-arm medium pacer, took two more wickets to be the Lions' most successful bowler with four wickets.
The Lions' batting effort got off to a poor start with Joe Denly, winner of the NBC Denis Compton award for four successive years at Kent, falling to Pankaj, who was part of the Indian squad that toured Australia recently, in the first over. Michael Yardy, the Lions' captain, was Pankaj's next victim, managing only 5. After some brief resistance, both Michael Carberry and Ed Joyce fell in quick succession to leave the Lions at 66 for 4.
Full postArmy advance to the top
A round-up of the third round of the Tier B matches of the Premier League Tournament that ended on February 3
Sa'adi Thawfeeq
04-Feb-2008
The ongoing war in the north of Sri Lanka seems to have had the least effect on Sri Lanka Army who produced an outstanding performance over the weekend to record their third successive win of the season and take over the top position in Tier B.
With Tier A clubs being given a weekend off because of the country's 60th Independence Day celebrations which fell on February 4, clubs in the other tier came to the limelight with Army being the only club to record a win out of the five matches. They beat Lankan Cricket Club by three wickets chasing 242 in the fourth innings in Panagoda.
Army's match-winners were two 22-year-old bowlers who produced career-best returns Ajantha Mendis, the right-arm slow-medium bowler, accounted for seven Lankan batsmen in the first innings for 37 runs and in the second innings, legspinner Seekuge Prasanna took 6 for 76 as Lankan was dismissed for 164 and 283.
The only resistance came from Yasas Tillakaratne, brother of former Sri Lanka Test captain Hashan Tillakaratne. Yasas who spends a good part of his time playing in the English leagues made a rare appearance for his club to score only his fourth hundred (121) in a first-class career spanning 15 years. However, it was not good enough to stop Army from advancing to the top of the table.
Full postGrenada beat Anguilla to enter quarter-finals
Andre Fletcher's 70 helped Grenada post 177 for 6, the highest score of the season, which was enough for them to scrape past Anguilla by a 16-run margin
Cricinfo staff
04-Feb-2008
Andre Fletcher's 70 helped Grenada post 177 for 6, the highest score of the season, which was enough for them to scrape past Anguilla by a 16-run margin to move into the quarter-finals of the Stanford 20/20 in Coolidge.
Anguilla's chase was off to an inauspicious start when they lost openers Lyndel Richardson (18) and Chesney Hughes (8) for the addition of 33 runs. However, Montcin Hodge, who remained unbeaten on a 39-ball 75 that included seven sixes, and Omari Banks, who made 44 runs with a couple of sixes and a four, added 93 runs in 10 overs to briefly threaten Grenada.
The duo went on the attack at the half-way mark. With the required run-rate having gone past 10 an over, they blasted 58 runs between the 10th and 14th over, but were kept down to only 35 runs in the next six overs. By the time Banks was run out in the 16th over, the target had gone beyond the reach of Hodge, who ensured Anguilla went out with a bang by taking 18 runs off the last over.
Full postBlackwell century gives Australia victory
Alex Blackwell's first ODI century gave Australia a strong chance of levelling the series as they posted a challenging 4 for 240 at the MCG
Brydon Coverdale at the MCG
03-Feb-2008
Australia 4 for 240 (A Blackwell 101, K Blackwell 57*, Sthalekar 45) beat England 156 (Perry 3-24) by 84 runs
Scorecard
Scorecard
| ||
Alex Blackwell's first ODI century set up Australia's win and Ellyse Perry made it a certainty with three early wickets as England spiralled to an 84-run loss at the MCG. A day after England won their second game on Australian soil, the hosts reasserted their authority and levelled the five-match series 1-1.
Blackwell guided Australia to 4 for 240 and England's chase never got out of first gear following Perry's strikes, which reduced them to 3 for 24 in the sixth over. Her three wickets came in eight balls as she continued her starring role in the series after she snared four victims in Friday's Twenty20 match and made 40 in Sunday's ODI loss.
Full postSS Das and Halhadar Das lift East Zone
Half-centuries by Shiv Sunder Das and Halhadar Das lifted East Zone to 265 for 7 on the first day at the Wankhede Stadium
Cricinfo staff
03-Feb-2008
East Zone 265 for 7 (SS Das 82, Halhadar Das 78*) v South Zone
Scorecard
Scorecard
Half-centuries by Shiv Sunder Das and Halhadar Das lifted East Zone to 265 for 7 on the first day at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai against South Zone. SS Das, the former Indian opener, scored a patient 82 at the top before Halhadar Das stepped in and led a lower-order revival after East lost half their side for 134.
After they chose to bat first, East lost opener Arindam Das early, leg before to the seamer Vinay Kumar, and the top order failed to construct sizeable partnerships. NSC Aiyappa, the Karnataka seamer, struck twice in quick succession to reduce East to 54 for 3 before SS Das and Manish Vardhan added 48. SS Das was involved in stands of 32 and 36 with Palash Das and Halhadar respectively before edging offspinner R Ashwin to M Vijay at the slips for 82. He faced 160 balls and hit 12 fours in his knock.
Halhadar and Tushar Saha settled down to construct the biggest stand of the day - 71 - before Saha fell to a brisk 29 off 39 balls to the seamer P Vijay Kumar. Halhadar remained unbeaten on 78 with Debasis Mohanty for company.
Full postCentral falter after Kaif 64
Mohammad Kaif top scored with 64 to propel Central Zone to a healthy position at 179 for 3 before England Lions picked up quick wickets in the last session to restrict the hosts to 238 for 7
Cricinfo staff
03-Feb-2008
Mohammad Kaif top scored with 64 to propel Central Zone to a healthy position at 179 for 3 before England Lions picked up quick wickets in the last session to restrict the hosts to 238 for 7 by the end of the opening day's play at Vadodara.
Walking in at 70 for 2, Kaif struck 13 fours in his 121-ball knock to charge Central before he fell to the legspinner Adil Rashid, triggering a mini-collapse. Monty Panesar prised out Sanjay Bangar, the former India International, and Harshad Rawle and Mahesh Rawat fell in quick succession.
Earlier, Central were off to a steady start, reaching 54 runs without any loss, before Steve Kirby removed Faiz Fazal (37) in the 19th over. Five overs later, Onions made further inroads but the opener Vineet Saxena settled the nerves, adding 54 runs with Kaif.
Full postDebutant Mohammed spins Trinidad to victory
Left-arm spinner Dave Mohammed had a dream debut, claiming figures of 5 for 8 to help dismiss St Lucia for 105, after which Trinidad and Tobago chased the target with ease to claim an eight-wicket win
Cricinfo staff
03-Feb-2008
Trinidad and Tobago 106 for 2 (Simmons 42) beat St Lucia 105 (Lesporis 45, Mohammed 5-8) by 8 wickets
Scorecard
Scorecard
Left-arm spinner Dave Mohammed had a dream debut, claiming figures of 5 for 8 to help dismiss St Lucia for 105, after which Trinidad and Tobago chased the target with ease to claim an eight-wicket win at the Stanford Cricket Ground. Incidentally, Mohammed's were the best ever returns in Stanford 20/20 history.
Chasing 106, openers Lendl Simmons and William Perkins gave Trinidad a blazing start, putting on 75 runs in 51 balls, before Perkins, who made 25, was caught by Cyrille Charles of offspinner Shervin Charles. Simmons failed to reach his half-century, when, after scoring 42 with four fours and a six, he was dismissed by seamer Xavier Gabriel. Daren Ganga and Kieron Pollard then knocked off the remaining runs to complete a facile win.
Earlier, St Lucia's openers Keddy Lesporis and Johnson Charles added 45 runs in eight overs before Charles was bowled by Richard Kelly. The second-wicket stand between Lesporis and Shervin Charles (17) fetched 35 runs, before Charles was caught by Mervyn Dillon of offspinner Sherwin Ganga.
Full postSouth Africa complete 5-0 whitewash
Herschelle Gibbs' bristling 102 and a classy 74 from Jacques Kallis took South Africa to their fifth win, whitewashing the West Indies who were soundly beaten by 8 wickets in Johannesburg
The Bulletin by Will Luke
03-Feb-2008
South Africa 211 for 2 (Gibbs 102, Kallis 74*) beat West Indies 295 for 7 (Smith 91, Chanderpaul 51, Langeveldt 3-61) by 8 wickets (D/L method)
Scorecard and ball-by-ball commentary
Scorecard and ball-by-ball commentary
| ||
Herschelle Gibbs' bristling 102 and a classy 74 from Jacques Kallis took South Africa to their fifth win of the series, whitewashing West Indies who were soundly beaten by eight wickets in Johannesburg. With 26 runs needed from 34 balls, out marched Shaun Pollock to carry his side home for the last time and, with a flay past point for two, the fairytale was complete.
Initially set 296 before two rain interruptions, South Africa found the going tough in their first five overs. In dank conditions, the ball nibbled around for Daren Powell and his opening partner, Ravi Rampaul, and Graeme Smith, for the umpteenth time, edged one onto his stumps as he played across the line. Gibbs continued to look out of sorts, as he has done all series, scratching around unconvincingly to the disciplined lines of West Indies' opening attack.
Full postCook ton seals victory
Alastair Cook struck gold in the second practice match against Canterbury, blasting an unbeaten 138 off 140 balls, etched with 20 hits to the boundary and two beyond it, to take the England XI to a convincing seven-wicket win in Christchurch
Cricinfo staff
03-Feb-2008
England XI 219 for 3 (Cook 138*, Collingwood 40) beat Canterbury 218 for 9 (Papps 89, van Wyk 53*, Collingwood 3-15, Wright 3-31)
Scorecard
Scorecard
| ||
With his knock, Cook has all but booked his place in the England line-up for the Twenty20 international at Eden Park on Tuesday, as well as the following five ODIs. Cook was the mainstay of England's chase of 219, starting with aggressive intent while opening with wicketkeeper Phil Mustard, who after scoring 11, was cleaned up by seamer Leighton Burtt. Kevin Pietersen, too, had a brief stint at the crease, caught behind by Kruger van Wyk off Hamish Bennett.
But Cook, maintained his cool and kept up the scoring rate, adding 89 runs with captain Paul Collingwood, before the latter holed out to the deep off legspinner Todd Astle within reach of a half-century. The finishing touches were laid by Cook and Shah (20 not out), as England claimed victory with 43 balls to spare.
Full postLee stars in abandoned game
Australia dominated India for the majority of the duration of the tri-series opener in Brisbane but the monsoonal weather intervened and ensured that both teams left the Gabba with two points apiece
The Bulletin by George Binoy
03-Feb-2008
7.2 overs Australia 3 for 51 v India 194 (Gambhir 39, Lee 5-27). No result due to rain
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
| ||
Australia dominated India for the majority of the tri-series opener in Brisbane but the monsoonal weather intervened and ensured that both teams left the Gabba with two points apiece. India's athletic but inexperienced side had its merits and demerits: the running between the wickets was the sharpest it's been for a while but the raw middle order crumbled against an all-pace attack led by Brett Lee, who once again emphasised that he was at the peak of his powers with his seventh five-wicket haul.
The rain stayed away until the 36th over of the Indian innings but a delay of nearly 90 minutes reduced the game to 45 overs per side. After the resumption, India recovered from 128 for 6 and scored 66 off the last nine overs. By the time Adam Gilchrist and James Hopes began the run-chase, another rain delay during the innings break had cut Australia's target to 192 off 43 overs. They got off to a rapid start, knocking 33 in four overs before the rains came down again. Australia's final target was 141 off 26 overs but only 3.2 overs were possible after the resumption. During that period, Australia were rocked by Sreesanth and Ishant Sharma, losing two wickets for 17 before more showers forced play to be called off.
Full postMost Read
Writers