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Bell and Anderson star in 34-run win
England started their tour of New Zealand on a positive note with a 34-run win in the warm-up match against Canterbury in Christchurch
Cricinfo staff
02-Feb-2008
England XI 295 for 6 (Bell 79, Cook 51) beat Canterbury 261 (Myburgh 87, Anderson 5-47) by 34 runs
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Riding on a half-century by Ian Bell and a five-for by James Anderson, England started their tour of New Zealand on a positive note with a 34-run win in the warm-up match against Canterbury in Christchurch.
Bell's 79 and his 95-run partnership with Kevin Pietersen (48) laid the base for some lower-order fireworks by Luke Wright, which took the England XI to 295 in their 50 overs. Wright's 42, at No. 8, came off 15 balls with three fours and three sixes. He added an unbeaten 59 in four overs with Ravi Bopara.
Wright said he wasn't certain he would get a chance to bat. "It all happened quite quickly and it was nice to get in for five overs and luckily it went well," he said. "I suppose it suits me to either go in at the top of the order or going in at the end and just trying to get bat on ball. It was perfect for me and Ravi to go in and have a go.
Full postEugene's historic hundred in vain as St Maarten fall short
John Eugene blasted the first century in Stanford 20/20 history, but could not prevent St Maarten from falling short of St Vincent and the Grenadines by 10 runs
Cricinfo staff
02-Feb-2008
St Vincent and the Grenadines 168 for 4 (James 73*, Bobb 38*) beat St Maarten 158 for 6 (Eugene 100*, Jackson 3-23) by ten runs
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John Eugene blasted the first century in Stanford 20/20 history, but could not prevent St Maarten from falling short of St Vincent and the Grenadines by ten runs at the Stanford Cricket Ground in Coolidge.
Eugene, who claimed the US$25,000 Man-of-the-Match award, gave St Vincent a scare by launching into a late-over blitz with the run-rate having climbed to 18 runs an over, smashing 20 off the 17th over, 24 off the 18th and 14 off the 19th. But with 14 required in the final over, Eugene could not sustain the momentum against left-arm seamer Keon Peters, who conceded only four runs to clinch a ten-run win for St Vincent. Eugene, however, managed to bring up his hundred off 46 balls.
Full postPakistan complete clean sweep
A new-look Pakistan, without a handful of their senior players, beat Zimbabwe comprehensively by seven wickets in the final one-dayer in Sheikhupura to complete a 5-0 sweep of the Mobilink Cup
The Bulletin by Kanishkaa Balachandran
02-Feb-2008
Pakistan 187 for 3 (Younis 63, Manzoor 50) beat Zimbabwe 181 (Taylor 49, Chigumbura 34, Rauf 3-45) by seven wickets
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How they were out
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A new-look Pakistan, without a handful of senior players, drove Zimbabwe into the ground with a comprehensive seven-wicket victory in the final one-dayer in Sheikhupura to clean sweep the Mobilink Cup 5-0. The overcast and bitterly cold conditions didn't faze debutant Khurram Manzoor and Younis Khan as they chased down a meagre target of 182 with 19 overs to spare.
The win was set up by Pakistan's sprightly young bunch - which included four debutants - who showed exemplary commitment in the field to keep Zimbabwe in check for much of their innings. The overcast conditions were tailor-made, it seemed, even for Pakistan's untested seam-bowling attack, and Hamilton Masakadza's decision to bat first was perplexing. After a top order wobble, Zimbabwe were lifted by a rearguard from Elton Chigumbura and Brendan Taylor, but couldn't sustain the momentum as Pakistan quickly clawed back to shoot them out for a woefully inadequate score.
Full postBeaten Sri Lankans hurt after Jayasuriya facial injury
Sanath Jayasuriya's preparation for the CB Series took a severe blow when he was forced to retire hurt in the loss to Tasmania
Cricinfo staff
02-Feb-2008
Tasmania 3 for 184 (Paine 54, Anderson 47*) beat Sri Lankans 9 for 183 (Jayawardene 51, Drew 5-36) by seven wickets
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Sanath Jayasuriya's preparation for the CB Series took a severe blow when he was forced to retire hurt after being hit on the jaw during the Sri Lankans' defeat by Tasmania. Jayasuriya, who was struck when trying to pull a Tim MacDonald bouncer in the eighth over, left the field for six stitches and later went for an x-ray, which cleared him of a fracture.
Brendan Drew also hurt the visitors with 5 for 36 from ten overs and they could only reach 9 for 183 in 47.4 overs. Drew, the right arm swing bowler, was impressive, removing Upul Tharanga (24), Kumar Sangakkara (0) and Chamara Silva (5) in his first spell before coming back for the crucial wickets of Chamara Kapugedera and Farveez Maharoof.
The pair had put on 46 when Kapugedera fell swiping straight for 34 and Maharoof went in a similar fashion in the next over for 29. Tasmania continued to exert pressure through the left-arm spin of Xavier Doherty, who collected 2 for 36 off ten.
Full postde Villiers steers South Africa to five-wicket win
South Africa cruised to a fourth straight victory in their one-day series against West Indies, thanks to a blistering 37-ball fifty from their captain, Graeme Smith, and a coolly compiled 77 from 86 balls from AB de Villiers
The Bulletin by Andrew Miller
01-Feb-2008
South Africa 266 for 5 (de Villiers 77) beat West Indies 263 for 9 (Chattergoon 48, Parchment 48) by five wickets
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How they were out
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South Africa cruised to a fourth straight victory in their one-day series against West Indies, thanks to a blistering 37-ball fifty from their captain, Graeme Smith, and a coolly compiled 77 from 86 balls from AB de Villiers. But the man who stole the show on an emotional evening at Kingsmead was Shaun Pollock, who bade farewell to his adoring home fans with one final display of his allround qualities.
Pollock has had more taxing assignments in his 12-year, 302-match one-day career, but there was a sense of inevitability about his penultimate appearance. First he strangled West Indies' batsmen with the trademark figures of 10-3-38-1, and then, against a backdrop of banners reading, among other things, "For he's a Polly good fellow," he marshalled the final overs of a trouble-free run-chase, and sealed the deal with a carve for four off Dwayne Bravo.
The result was the perfect retirement present, but West Indies had only themselves to blame for missing out on a consolation victory. After winning the toss, their innings was a hotchpotch affair that started with impressive resolve, folded with weary familiarity, then revived itself in an extraordinary final flurry, as the tailenders Jerome Taylor and Fidel Edwards clobbered 57 unbeaten runs from just 33 balls, to transform their innings from a perilous 206 for 9 to a respectable 263.
Full postPakistan take final courtesy eight-wicket win
Right from the toss, it was Pakistan Under-19s day as they dismissed hosts Sri Lanka for 131 in 36 overs and proceeded to overhaul their target with eight wickets and more than 21 remaining
Cricinfo staff
01-Feb-2008
Right from the toss, it was Pakistan Under-19s day as they dismissed hosts Sri Lanka for 131 in 36 overs and proceeded to overhaul their target with eight wickets and more than 21 remaining.
Sri Lanka started well after being put in to bat, with Dilshan Munaweera (39) and Dinesh Chandimal (21) added 58 inside ten overs. But Chandimal's dismisssal, caught by wicketkeeper Ali Asad off right-arm medium-pacer Mohammad Rameez, cued the collapse. Imad Wasim, the slow left-arm spinner, and Umar Akmal, in his first bowling effort at this level, snared six wickets between and Sri Lanka slipped to 113 for 6 in 30 overs. A couple run outs later and Pakistan found themselves chasing 132 to lift the final.
That they did, with little fuss, as Ahmed Shehzad (20 from 14 balls) and Akmal (47 from 20) set about with hurried shots. The duo were back in the pavilion in seven overs, but with 68 on the board Pakistan were on their way to victory. Umar Amin's unbeaten 38 from 77 balls and Shan Masood's handy 26 settled the affair well before the alloted 50 overs were complete.
Full postIndia crash to nine-wicket defeat
It was hardly the stuff of world champions. Four months after India were crowned the world's best Twenty20 side, they crashed to a humiliating nine-wicket defeat against Australia at the MCG
The Bulletin by Brydon Coverdale at the MCG
01-Feb-2008
Australia 1 for 75 (Clarke 37*) beat India 74 (Pathan 26, Bracken 3-11) by nine wickets
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How they were out
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It was hardly the stuff of world champions. Four months after India were crowned the world's best Twenty20 side, they crashed to a humiliating nine-wicket defeat against Australia at the MCG. They were so rusty that they almost broke Kenya's record of 73, the lowest total in Twenty20 internationals, instead registering the second-worst score of 74 as they failed to adjust to the tempo.
They were dismissed in the 18th over and Australia needed less than 12 overs to post their first Twenty20 win against India, with just enough time for Adam Gilchrist to entertain the 84,041-strong crowd in his final match in the shortest format. India's captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said his side wanted to use the game as practice for the CB Series, which starts on Sunday, but more net sessions might be in order for several players.
Full postPerry the hero in Australia's win
Ellyse Perry confirmed herself as a star of the future, helping Australia to a 21-run win over England at the MCG
Brydon Coverdale at the MCG
01-Feb-2008
Australia 5 for 127 (K Blackwell 30*, Perry 29*) beat England 8 for 106 (Taylor 34, Perry 4-20) by 21 runs
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Ellyse Perry confirmed herself as a star of the future, helping Australia to a 21-run win over England at the MCG. Perry batted with impressive power to guide Australia to 5 for 127 and picked up 4 for 20 as Australia strangled England's scoring in front of a crowd of more than 20,000.
The match was a curtain-raiser to the Australia-India men's Twenty20 game and the Melbourne fans who turned up early were given a taste of local success. England struggled to pierce the field and found their required run-rate quickly ballooning after Kirsten Pike's tight spell of 1 for 14 from four overs.
Full postSnyman bludgeons Kenya to defeat
A remarkable double hundred by Gerrie Snyman provided the platform for Namibia to move top of the Intercontinental Cup table with a 105-run win over Kenya in Sharjah
Cricinfo staff
31-Jan-2008
Namibia 183 and 282 (Snyman 230, Obuya 3-34) beat Kenya 229 and 135 (K Burger 4-37) by 105 runs
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A remarkable double hundred by Gerrie Snyman provided the platform for Namibia to move top of the Intercontinental Cup table with a 105-run win over Kenya in Sharjah.
Snyman utterly dominated Namibia's second innings, scoring 230 out of his side's 282, more than 84% of the runs made off the bat and turning the match on its head. Soon after he came in Namibia were 42 for 4, still four runs shy of clearing their first-innings deficit. With precious little support, he single-handedly took on the bowlers, hammering 11 sixes and 22 fours in a brutal assault.
Full postSt Kitts knocked out by US Virgin Islands
An unbeaten 43 from captain Sherville Huggins guided United States Virgin Islands to a narrow victory over St Kitts in the Stanford 20/20
Cricinfo staff
31-Jan-2008
US Virgin Islands 131 for 6 (Huggins 43) beat St Kitts 130 for 8 (Liburd 55) by four wickets
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An unbeaten 43 from captain Sherville Huggins guided United States Virgin Islands to a narrow victory over St Kitts in the Stanford 20/20. In a tight finish Virgin Islands needed 14 runs off the last two overs; a six and a flick to the fine-leg boundary from Huggins secured a four-wicket win with four balls to spare and fetched him the Man-of-the-Match award and US$25,000.
Earlier, St Kitts had opted to bat and managed 130 on the back of captain Steve Liburd's 41-ball 55, the first half-century of the tournament, which included three sixes and three fours. Only two other batsmen got into double digits but St Kitts' total was boosted by some indisciplined Virgin Islands bowling, which gave away 23 extras. Their opening bowlers Dane Weston and Hamish Anthony, though, finished with tidy figures snapping two wickets each, and conceding a mere four runs an over.
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