Report
Wolves to meet Stallions in finals
Twenty-20 Cup semi-finals round-up
Cricinfo staff
04-Mar-2006
Tahir Mughal, the fast-bowling allrounder, fell six short of a well deserved century as Sialkot Stallions advanced to the finals of the Twenty-20 cup, beating Karachi Dolphins by 29 runs at the National Stadium in Karachi. Batting first, Mughal carried the Stallions innings, and shared a productive stand of 96 with Shoaib Malik (33). Mughal's knock came to an end when he was bowled by Khalid Latif for 94, off 55 balls with nine fours and six sixes. Meanwhile, Irfanuddin, the offbreak bowler from Karachi, bagged the best bowling figures in the competition's history, taking 6 for 25 and cleaning up the lower order. Chasing 199, the Dolphins started off confidently, putting on 67 for the first wicket. However, with wickets in hand, they were unable to keep pace with the required rate, finishing at 169 for 7 off their 20 overs. Barring the top order, the others failed to contribute anything substantial. Qaiser Abbas, who had a good outing with the bat for the Stallions in the previous match, took three wickets with his left-arm spin.
Faislabad Wolves, the defending champions, gave themselves another shot at the trophy, beating Lahore Lions by six wickets and booking a spot in the finals of the Twenty-20 Cup. The Wolves chased down the target of 150 with ease, led by Misbah-ul-Haq (44) and Asif Hussain (34). The Lions failed to post a challenging total, despite the presence of powerful hitters like Abdul Razzaq and Kamran Akmal, both of whom failed. Samiullah Khan was the most successful bowler for the Wolves, picking up three wickets. They will meet Sialkot Stallions in the finals on Saturday.
Full postSuper Hilfenhaus seals Tasmania success
Ben Hilfenhaus took a career-best 7 for 58 in his ninth first-class match to consign New South Wales to an emphatic defeat at the Bellerive Oval
Cricinfo staff
04-Mar-2006
Tasmania 353 beat New South Wales 141 and 157 (Hilfenhaus 7-58) by an innings and 55 runs
Scorecard
Points table
Scorecard
Points table
Ben Hilfenhaus took a career-best 7 for 58 in his ninth first-class match to consign New South Wales to an emphatic defeat at the Bellerive Oval. Tasmania, who joined the Blues and South Australia in last spot on 20 points, thumped NSW by an innings and 55 runs to win with a day to spare - even despite the rain breaks.
The first two sessions of the day were completely washed out, but when play resumed Tasmania - in particular the 22-year-old Hilfenhaus - worked their way through the Blues with ease, taking the last seven wickets for 41. The fast-medium bowler Hilfenhaus ended with a match haul of 10 for 87 to confirm his potential and upset the Blues' hopes of defending the Pura Cup in the final.
The day started badly for NSW as they lost Aaron O'Brien first ball. Adam Griffith picked up the wicket, with the batsman squirting to Brendan Drew at mid-on. Then Hilfenhaus got in on the act, removing Brad Haddin for 13 when he edged through to Sean Clingeleffer. It was Hilfenhaus' third wicket of the innings and Dominic Thornely fell in an identical way ten overs later, leaving NSW in trouble at 6 for 144. They were soon put out of their misery, losing their final four wickets for only 13 runs. Game over.
Full postCook's debut century drives England
Alastair Cook cut Harbhajan Singh past point for four to go to a brilliant maiden Test century, as England's lead extended past the 350-mark at Nagpur
The Bulletin by Andrew Miller
04-Mar-2006
Close England 393 and 297 for 3 (Cook 104*, Collingwood 36*) lead India 323 (Kaif 91, Hoggard 6-57) by 367 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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A brilliant maiden Test century from England's new boy-wonder, Alastair Cook, and a typically pugnacious - and decidedly fortunate - 87 from Kevin Pietersen set England up for a shot at an extraordinary Test victory, after a fourth day at Nagpur that exceeded the wildest expectations of even the most diehard member of the travelling Barmy Army.
By the close England led by the small matter of 367 runs, with Cook leading the way and receiving a tumultuous ovation for his 104 not out on debut, an innings that had spanned the best part of six hours and included 243 balls of supreme application. It is extraordinary to think that he is just 21 years old, for this was a performance that Marcus Trescothick, the 69-Test veteran whom he has replaced for this match, could scarcely have bettered.
Full postWest Indies sneak thrilling win
West Indies restricted New Zealand to only 233 and sneaked a thrilling win in the final ODI at Eden Park in Auckland
The Bulletin by Anand Vasu
04-Mar-2006
West Indies 234 for 7 beat New Zealand 233 (Styris 90, Smith 5-45) by 3 wickets with two balls to spare
Scorecard and ball-by-ball commentary
How they were out
Scorecard and ball-by-ball commentary
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West Indies put together their best 50-over block of the series by restricting New Zealand to only 233 in the final game at Auckland, and followed it up with a competent batting performance to sneak a thrilling win by three wickets with two balls to spare and staved off a humiliating 0-5 scoreline. Their batsmen, keen to see off Shane Bond early on, played with utmost caution, succeeded in preserving their wickets, and despite scoring painfully slowly initially, managed to get past the finish line.
While there was no exaggerated movement in the air or off the pitch the sheer pace of Bond was enough to keep Chris Gayle and Daren Ganga honest as West Indies began their pursuit of 234. Gayle, who has had a forgettable series, was in all sorts of trouble, poking and prodding before being put out of his misery by a perfectly pitched delivery that beat bat and nailed the top of off stump.
Full postMorkel continues to shine
A round-up of the latest action from the second day in the SAA Provincial Challenge
Cricinfo staff
03-Mar-2006
Easterns will be well pleased with their day's work against Free State. After twice fighting back on the first day, on Friday they boosted their overnight score of 162 for 4 to 337 before reducing Free State to 187 for 6. They will be particularly delighted with taking three quick wickets before the close as Free State tumbled from 174 for 3 to 179 for 6. Again Albie Morkel did the bulk of the damage, with three wickets. He now has seven in the match so far and this is turning into a fine allround display from him. When play resumes on Saturday, Free State will have a lead of 29 with just four wickets remaining - and they will be hoping to avoid a repeat of their first-innings collapse.
Western Province will be the happier of the two sides after a seesawing day against Border at East London. While WP made it to 377 all out in their first innings in reply to Border's 129 all out, wickets tumbled steadily throughout, while Border made a better stab at their second innings. At the close they had reached 134 for 2, courtesy of unbeaten fifties from L Gamiet and A Dyili who lifted them from difficulties at 32 for 2. Border trail by 114 runs with 8 wickets remaining, so WP will fancy their chances of doing early damage. Still, Border have made a good fist of things and a fascinating day is in store.
Full postZondeki helps Cobras seal strong position
A round-up of the action from the second day in the seventh round of Supersport Series matches
Cricinfo staff
03-Mar-2006
Monde Zondeki made inroads into Warriors' line up, taking three wickets to leave Cape Cobras well-placed heading into Saturday. When play resumes at Stellenbosch, Warriors will have a slender lead of 3 runs with just five wickets remaining after closing on 104 for 5. If Cobras' bowlers can continue to dominate, the game is theirs for the taking. But Cobras didn't have it all their own way on the second day: resuming on 77 for 1 they folded for 198. Andy Puttick and JP Duminy made fifties, but Justin Kreusch blew the rest of their batting was blown away with 5 for 31 from 16.5 overs of controlled aggression. Brent Kops and Lyall Meyer mopped up the other wickets between them.
Titans will be pleased with the way they fought back on the second day at Potchefstroom, coursing to 251 for 4 by the close. Lions resumed on 382 for 6 and were soon all out for 415. Heino Kuhn set about chipping away at the deficit, and he posted 84 from 155 balls of patience - but he also whipped in ten fours and a six. Grant Kruger took two wickets in quick succession, before Zander de Bruyn and Goolam Bodi repaired the innings, each notching fifty to give the middle order some shape. De Bruyn was out soon after his landmark, for 55, but Bodi strode on and was unbeaten on 62 by stumps.
Just 12 overs were possible at Durban after rain played spoilsport for the second successive day. The Eagles managed to pick up the wicket of Imraan Khan for Dolphins, but Dale Benkenstein strode towards his fifty. He had made 43 not out by the time that play was called off for the day.
Full postVidyut and Rao power South to big win
A round-up of the Deodhar Trophy matches that took place on March 3
Cricinfo staff
03-Mar-2006
S Vidyut and Venugopal Rao contributed fine hundreds to propel South Zone to a 80-run win over Central Zone in the Deodhar Trophy limited-overs league match at the Sawai Mansingh stadium in Jaipur. Central were made to rue their decision to field first as Vidyut hit 158 from 123 deliveries and Rao an unbeaten 103 to take South to 327 for 4.
South had been given a jolt when Jai Prakash Yadav clean bowled Robin Uthappa (6) in the third over, but Vidyut and Rao steadied the ship with a 233-run association. In reply, Central could only score 247 as South's bowlers produced a good display. Ravikant Shukla, the Indian Under-19 captain, fought valiantly with 94 not-out and Abbas Ali chipped in with 73. Five of Central's batsmen were back in the pavilion with just 40 on the board before Shukla, in his maiden Deodhar Trophy match, offered resistance. Vinay Kumar (2 for 31) and Somasetty Suresh (2 for 37) rocked the top order while Rao backed up his fine innings with 2 for 47. South took five points from this win to make it nine from two matches so far, while Central remained with nothing to show from three matches.
Rohit Sharma hit an unbeaten 142 from 123 deliveries to take West Zone to an eight-wicket win over North Zone at the Maharanna Bhupal College Ground in Udaipur. Gautam Gambhir had earlier hit 109 out of North's total of 278 for 9 but Sharma's innings overshadowed his effort considerably, with West sealing the deal with more than five overs to spare. Jacob Martin (72*) lent valuable support to Sharma in their 184-run stand. Gambhir and Shikhar Dhawan (65) put on 136 to get North off to a very good start but Ravindra Jadeja applied the skids, taking 4 for 28 with this left-arm spin. Munaf Patel, the start of the Indian Board President's XI's recent victory over an England XI, took 2 for 31. West now find themselves in a favourable position, leading the points table with eight.
Full postRinke and Higgins help Zimbabwe crush Kenya
A 70-ball 72 from Piet Rinke helped Zimbabwe to a series-levelling victory in the fourth ODI against Kenya at Harare Sports Club
Cricinfo staff
03-Mar-2006
Zimbabwe 231 for 9 (Rinke 72, Taylor 40, Ongondo 3-32, Odoyo 3-50)beat Kenya 122 (Otieno 69, Higgins 4-21) by 109 runs
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A 70-ball 72 from Piet Rinke helped Zimbabwe to a series-levelling victory in the fourth ODI against Kenya at Harare Sports Club. Zimbabwe made 231 for 9 in a match which was reduced to 44-overs-a-side by heavy overnight storms which left the outfield sodden. Their total proved more than enough as Kenya were bowled out for 122, with Ryan Higgins grabbing 4 for 21. With one match to go, there's now everything to play for.
While it had been optimistic to expect the full tally of overs to be fitted in before the light faded - two and a half hours had been lost to rain first up - Zimbabwe's use of spinners combined with a dire collapse by Kenya meant that the game was settled just as it was getting dark.
Full postNtini destroys Australia with six of the best
Makhaya Ntini destroyed Australia with 6 for 22 as South Africa powered to a 196-run win at Cape Town
The Bulletin by Andrew McGlashan
03-Mar-2006
South Africa 289 for 7 (Gibbs 66, Kemp 51*) beat Australia 93 (Ntini 6-21) by 196 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
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This winter-long contest has moved continents over the last few weeks but, so far, the cricket has been from a different planet. Australia are the side struck down by injuries, struggling with their bowling attack and generally not having the rub of the green. South Africa, meanwhile, have been transformed from the flat, lifeless side of the VB series.
For South Africa this series is about trying to lay some of the ghosts from the Australian tour to rest - and they are certainly making a decent fist of things. On Sunday it was Graeme Smith discarding the bad memories with a cathartic, match-winning century and, today, Kemp went through a similar process. The barnstorming half-century showed his true colours and helped South Africa garner 93 runs in final ten overs - chiefly with the support of Shaun Pollock in a 62-run stand off 44 balls.
Full postSouth Australia's big guns fail to fire
A solid allround batting performance by Western Australia put them in a strong position after being put in by South Australia on the first day of their Pura Cup match at Perth
Cricinfo staff
03-Mar-2006
Western Australia 4 for 274 (Langer 82, North 62*, Marsh 57) v South Australia
Scorecard
A solid allround batting performance by Western Australia put them in a strong position after being put in by South Australia on the first day of their Pura Cup match at Perth. Both sides need a win to give them any chance of making the end-of-season final.
Darren Lehmann's decision to field might have been more successful had wicketkeeper Graham Manou not spilled a simple chance off Chris Rogers before he had scored. But Justin Langer, making his 100th first-class appearance for his state, laid the foundations with 82, and Rogers went on to make 41 in an opening stand of 91 before becoming the first of Dan Cullen's three wickets.
The game had been billed as a battle between Jason Gillespie and Shaun Tait to find a possible replacement for Glenn McGrath in South Africa, but both were unimpressive. Gillespie finished with 1 for 64, while Tait took 0 for 62 and was expensive in his first two spells.
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