Report
Vandort carries Sri Lanka but Hoggard strikes
Michael Vandort and Tillakaratne Dilshan formed a resolute fifth-wicket stand of 125 as Sri Lanka moved into the lead on a truncated third day at Edgbaston
The Bulletin by Andrew McGlashan
27-May-2006
Sri Lanka 141 and 194 for 5 (Vandort 89*, Maharoof 0*) lead England 295 by 40 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
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Hoggard troubled both batsmen with swing during his first spell but, unlike last night when they concentrated solely on defence, Vandort and Dilshan found the boundary. After the pacemen failed to provide the breakthrough, Monty Panesar was thrown the ball and greeted by a lofted drive over mid-on by Vandort, to pass fifty for the fourth time in Tests off 162 balls.
However, there was plenty of encouragement for Panesar as he found some turn and bounce, ripping one past Dilshan, which missed the glove by a matter of millimetres as it looped to slip. Then, on 46, Dilshan came mighty close to feathering an edge through to Geraint Jones and replays did not entirely settle the issue as whether it was bat or pad.
Full postTrott guides Warwickshire
A round-up of the latest County Championship matches
Cricinfo staff
26-May-2006
Division One
Kent struggled in reply to Hampshire's useful first-innings total but without some negotiation between captains this match is heading for a draw. Nic Pothas boosted Hampshire beyond 250 before falling four short of a deserved century and Kent lost wickets early in their reply. David Fulton fell second ball and seamers shared the first five wickets. Shane Warne removed Justin Kemp but Andrew Hall and Niall O'Brien staged a recovery with a stand 64. Warne claimed his second shortly before the close and with him involved don't discount an interesting final day.
Warwickshire progressed towards avoiding the follow-on against Middlesex at Lord's through a fine century from Jonathan Trott, his third of the season. He added 181 with Alex Loudon but, when three wickets fell for 49, Warwickshire were not out of danger. However, Dougie Brown and Daniel Vettori came together in a robust stand and their team ended just nine short of the follow-on target. Chris Silverwood picked up two scalps in the day, but generally it was hardwork for the bowlers.
Only an hours play was possible at Old Trafford, but it was long enough for Brad Hodge to reach his first Championship century of the season. But Lancashire are likely to be denied the chance to close the gap on Sussex at the top of the table with just a day remaining. Nottinghamshire's attack picked up two more wickets with Mark Ealham taking his fourth of the innings.
Full postLara and Bravo take Windies to glory
Playing what will probably be his penultimate one-day game at his home ground of Queen's Park Oval, Brian Lara produced a glorious matchwinning 69 as West Indies romped home to a six-wicket win
The Bulletin by S Rajesh
26-May-2006
West Indies 218 for 4 (Lara 69, Bravo 61*) beat India 217 for 7 (Kaif 63, Yuvraj 50) by six wickets
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How they were out
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
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Playing what will probably be his penultimate one-day game at his home ground of Queen's Park Oval, Brian Lara produced a glorious matchwinning 69 as West Indies romped home to a six-wicket win to seal the series with an unbeatable 3-1 lead. Set a target of 218 after the Indian batting misfired again, West Indies stuttered briefly when they lost Chris Gayle, but Lara found a willing ally in fellow Trinidadian Dwayne Bravo, who remained unbeaten on 61, and their 91-run stand shut out all hopes for India.
On a pitch which tested a batsman's run-scoring abilities - the pace and bounce was variable, and the spinners got significant turn - the Indians were again found wanting after being put in to bat. The West Indies fast bowlers - led by Fidel Edwards, who added impeccable control to his usual pacy offerings - shackled the Indian top order early in the piece. Yuvraj Singh and Mohammad Kaif subsequently injected some momentum with half-centuries, and Mahendra Singh Dhoni produced some fireworks at the end, but India were restricted to a total far below what they would have liked.
Full postBowlers build on Pietersen's stunning century
Kevin Pietersen's breathtaking 142 and a productive final session in the field put England within sight of a swift victory at Edgbaston
The Bulletin by Andrew McGlashan
26-May-2006
Sri Lanka 141 and 86 for 4 (Vandort 30*, Dilshan 21*) trail England 295 (Pietersen 142, Muralitharan 6-86) by 68 runs
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Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
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But despite Muralitharan's sterling haul, and the fine efforts of the England attack, the day was still about one man. Pietersen was even more dominant than at Lord's as he flayed the attack to all corners of the ground. His audacious strokes through midwicket, against balls outside offstump, had to be seen to be believed and some of his thumping drives down the ground were as far removed from the coaching manual as is possible. But Pietersen is a rare talent and Edgbaston just soaked up the strokeplay.
After working hard against a probing opening spell from Chaminda Vaas, he formed two consecutive half-century stands, with Paul Collingwood and Andrew Flintoff, where the other batsmen were hardly noticed. Collingwood is happy to play second fiddle, but it isn't often that Flintoff is so overshadowed at the crease. Then again, Pietersen has been so far ahead of other batsmen in this match that the next highest score is 30.
Full postHodge pushes Lancashire forward
A round-up of the latest County Championship matches
Cricinfo staff
25-May-2006
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Division One
Brad Hodge carried the Lancashire reply to Nottinghamshire's 253 after other members of the top order gave away hardworking half-centuries. Iain Sutcliffe and Mal Loye both reached fifty before falling and Stuart Law went for a seven-ball duck to Mark Ealham, who claimed three. But Hodge remained firm and the hopes of a sizeable lead rest with him. Oliver Newby had earlier claimed career-best figures of 4 for 58 to help wrap up the Notts innings.
Middlesex piled up an imposing total against Warwickshire as Ed Smith carried his innings to 166 and there were useful contributions right down the order. Jamie Dalrymple stroked 69 in a stand of 124 with Smith then Nick Compton chipped in with 40. The lower-order flayed the bat with good effect as the Warwickshire bowlers toiled; Daniel Vettori going wicketless on his debut for the county. Warwickshire's day got no better as they lost three top-order wickets in reply to Chad Keegan, who is making his first Championship appearance of the season.
Kent had the upperhand against Hampshire on another rain-affected day at Southampton. The big wicket of John Crawley fell to Robbie Joseph before Dimitri Mascarenhas unleashed some powerful blows. Nic Pothas remained solid as wickets continued to fall and Hampshire will still harbour hopes of a batting point.
Full postEngland close in after Sri Lanka collapse
After the nightmare performance by their fielders last week at Lord's, Geraint Jones promised a greatly improved effort by England and his team-mates didn't disappoint on the first day of the second Test against Sri Lanka at Edgbaston
The Bulletin by Will Luke
25-May-2006
England 138 for 3 (Pietersen 30*, Hoggard 2*) trail Sri Lanka 141 (Vaas 30*, Plunkett 3-43) by 3 runs
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How they were out
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
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After the nightmare performance by their fielders last week at Lord's, England promised a greatly improved effort and they didn't disappoint on the first day of the second Test against Sri Lanka at Edgbaston. They routed Sri Lanka for 141, before motoring to 138 for 3 at the close to put them firmly in the driving seat.
Given the surprisingly sunny conditions in Birmingham, belying the torrential rain and sodden outfield just 12 hours earlier, Mahela Jayawardene understandably opted to bat first on a pitch which appeared easy-paced. He wasn't going to make the same mistake Ricky Ponting did last year, when England plundered 400 runs in a day. However, his optimism of a run-feast was short-lived, as Matthew Hoggard and Liam Plunkett made the apparently idyllic batting conditions appear utterly hazardous.
Full postSussex crush Durham in two days
A round-up of the latest County Championship matches
Cricinfo staff
24-May-2006
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Division One
2nd day
Sussex blew away a feeble Durham by an innings and 80 runs as Naved-ul-Hasan and Mushtaq Ahmed wrecked havoc for the second time in the match. Durham had eased to 47 without loss, cutting into their deficit of 119, before Mushtaq came into the attack and snaffled three wickets in four balls against a hapless top order. Naved-ul-Hasan ripped out the middle order before the pair shared the last two wickets, aptly finishing with five apiece in the innings and 19 in the match. Durham's collapse overshadowed a promising performance from Steve Harmison who found disconcerting bounce to take four wickets but he could do little to help his team at the end.
Full postThe difference at the finish
Forty-two - that's a number that will haunt the Indian team after West Indies clinched another game which went all the way to the last over
On the Ball with S Rajesh
23-May-2006
At the 35-over stage of their innings, India were cruising at 204 for 3, and West Indies must have been bracing themselves for a target in the region of around 300. As it turned out, India could only muster 41 in the last 15 as West Indies fought back magnificently in a passage of play which turned the match around. After the 35-over mark, West Indies themselves were 162 for 4, a whopping 42 runs behind India's score at the corresponding stage, with one extra batsman back in the hutch. However, with Ramnaresh Sarwan in splendid form, and Shivnarine Chanderpaul supporting him well, West Indies always had the target under control.
As the graphic below shows, from the 34th over onwards, India didn't score more than five in a single over; West Indies had only six overs during the corresponding period in their innings which fetched less than five.
West Indies' hero was Sarwan, who made his 100th ODI an extremely memorable one by becoming only the seventh batsman to celebrate it with a century. (Kumar Sangakkara, Mohammad Yousuf, Marcus Trescothick, Chris Cairns, Chris Gayle and Gordon Greenidge are the others.) There were many aspects of his innings which were worthy of the highest praise. When he came in to bat, West Indies had just lost a couple of wickets in quick succession, and 31 for 2 wasn't the ideal start when chasing nearly five an over.
Full postMushtaq's five routs Durham
A round-up of the latest County Championship matches
Cricinfo staff
23-May-2006
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Division One
Mushtaq Ahmed routed Durham with five wickets on Sussex's first day at Chester-le-Street, before the Sussex batsmen motored to 119 for 2 before stumps, to give them a lead of nine runs. Durham's batsmen made heavy work of it all day, with Rana Naved-ul-Hasan removing Jonathan Lewis and Gordon Muchall. Jimmy Maher, who top-scored with 23, didn't last much longer - and thereafter, it was the Mushtaq show. Dale Benkenstein (18) and Phil Mustard (15) edged Durham beyond 100 but both fell to Mushtaq as Durham were swept away inside 53 overs. In reply, Sussex raced past Durham - and it was a less than spectacular comeback for Steve Harmison who conceded 24 runs in his six overs. Though Sussex lost Richard Montgomerie (28) and Carl Hopkinson (20), Murray Goodwin crunched four fours and a six and remained unbeaten on 38.
Division Two
Superb Sarwan seals the deal
West Indies took a 2-1 lead in the five-match series with an impressive four-wicket victory at Basseterre.
The Bulletin by Dileep Premachandran
23-May-2006
West Indies 248 for 6 (Sarwan 115* , Chanderpaul 58, Agarkar 2-32) beat India 245 for 9 (Sehwag 96, Kaif 63, Bradshaw 2-41) by four wickets
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Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
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It was a Made-in-Guyana triumph, but given West Indian cricket's recent
travails, it might as well have been made in heaven. A magnificent
unbeaten 115 from Ramnaresh Sarwan, incidentally playing his 100th ODI, provided the momentum for the pursuit of 246, and a classy half-century from a
hamstrung Shivnarine Chanderpaul proved as decisive as West Indies took a
2-1 lead in the five-match series with an impressive four-wicket victory
at Basseterre.
As in the two games at Sabina Park, the inaugural international at St
Kitts too went down to the final over, bowled by S Sreesanth with six runs
still needed. Dwayne Bravo's run out gave India a glimmer of hope, but
crucially, Rahul Dravid misfielded the fourth ball, allowing Sarwan a
couple where there might not even have been one. The next ball was
summarily dismissed to the cover fence, setting the seal on another
matchwinning innings from Sarwan, whose 106-run partnership with
Chanderpaul made all the difference.
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