Report
Mumbai finish with all win record
Bengal's Ranji Trophy aspirations for the 1999-2000 season ended on Thursday as they lost to Mumbai by 242 runs
Sakyasen Mittra
16-Mar-2000
Bengal's Ranji Trophy aspirations for the 1999-2000 season ended on
Thursday as they lost to Mumbai by 242 runs. Chasing a victory target
of 381 runs, Bengal were bundled out for 138 runs.
The hosts, who were 67 for the loss of four wickets overnight, lost
their remaining six batsmen in 107 minutes of play today. Romesh
Powar and Rajesh Pawar picked up five wickets apiece to establish
Mumbai's superiority. They finished with 32 points winning all their
four matches. On the other hand, Bengal finished their league
engagements with 13 points. The match was especially memorable for
Ramesh Powar who followed his second innings score of 92 with his
first five-wicket haul in the Ranji Trophy.
Much was expected of the overnight pair of Saba Karim and Rohan
Gavaskar. However, the junior Gavaskar, playing his first match
against Mumbai, disappointed in the second innings also. He played
forward to the off-spinner Powar and was caught pad-bat at silly point
by skipper Amol Muzumdar. Powar was also responsible for getting Saba
Karim. The batsman who had hit him for two sixes over mid wicket tried
to cut a delivery against the turn only to edge it on to his
stumps. This was the last of the resistance.
If Powar had decimated the top half of Bengal it was the turn of the
left arm spinner Rajesh Pawar to destroy the lower order. He took four
wickets today and his victims were Utpal Chatterjee, Vishal Yadav,
Nikhil Haldipur and Sourashis Lahiri. Pawar bowled flat today and
deceived the batsmen by varying the length of his deliveries. He had
Haldipur leg before with one that kept low and then bowled Yadav with
a quicker delivery which surprised the batsman. Pawar had the
outstanding figures of 9.1-3-32-4 today and his innings analysis read
19.1-5-60-5. Powar finished with five wickets for 46 runs of 23 overs,
nine of which were maidens.
Full postTamil Nadu, UP go through the formalities
The last day of the Group C Ranji Trophy Super League match between Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh at Kanpur on Thursday assumed farcical proportions
16-Mar-2000
The last day of the Group C Ranji Trophy Super League match between
Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh at Kanpur on Thursday assumed farcical
proportions. The match ended in a tame draw. Tamil Nadu picked up
five points to finish with 26 while Uttar Pradesh got three to end
with 22.
After scoring close to 700 runs in their first innings, Tamil Nadu
made a meal of their second stint at the crease. The match was all but
over before they came out to bat. With nothing to play for, Tamil Nadu
were all out for 264 in the second innings. Hemang Badani who made 62
in the first innings helped himself to a hundred while wickets fell
around him. Trailing by 733 with just 14 overs to play, Uttar Pradesh
rightly saw no point in sending their openers out to bat. Instead,
tailenders Mrithyunjay Tripathi and Musi Raza came out and made 28
runs without being troubled.
Sridharan Sriram, who was not out on zero at the end of the third day,
was called away on national duty and could not take the crease on the
final day. Sriram has been drafted into the Indian one-day
squad. Sadagoppan Ramesh batted at No 8, instead of opening the
innings.
Reuben Paul, the Tamil Nadu wicketkeeper bowling an over just about
summed up the farcical nature of the last day's play.
Full postPakistan crush Sri Lanka to win Karachi Test
Karachi, March 15: Pakistan crushed Sri Lanka by 222 runs with a day to spare to win the third cricket Test here at the National Stadium on Wednesday
Samiul Hasan
16-Mar-2000
Karachi, March 15: Pakistan crushed Sri Lanka by 222 runs with a day
to spare to win the third cricket Test here at the National Stadium on
Wednesday. Sri Lanka, who clinched the series 2-1, found themselves
hapless against the charged-up Pakistanis and were dismissed in just
46 overs while scoring 228 in pursuit of a record 451-run victory
target.
Earlier, Pakistan were bowled out for 421 after resuming their second
innings on Wednesday morning at 375 for seven.
Pakistan's excellent and convincing victory not only helped them to
boost their morale after a spate of losses but also maintain their
remarkable 45-year unbeaten record at the National Stadium. They now
have 17 victories and 17 draws.
The victory also ended a five-match win drought after being
whitewashed in Australia and then losing back-to-back Tests to Sri
Lanka in Rawalpindi and Peshawar.
Full postSouth Africans handled the pressure situation admirably
The Springboks were 0-2 down and it was a must win situation for them at Faridabad, to stay in the series
Woorkheri Raman
16-Mar-2000
The Springboks were 0-2 down and it was a must win situation for them at Faridabad, to stay in the series. With the plan of defending targets not succeeding in the earlier games, Cronje had to come up with a different ploy. He decided to back his batting and opted to chase on winning the toss. The wicket at Faridabad was different than it normally is, providing a bit of bounce and movement for the seamers early on, but Ganguly countered it with some magnificent shots.
He is aware that his strength is in playing through the offside and he smashed the South African seamers at will after giving himself room. Tendulkar, trying to graft out a big score, looked solid but was trapped by Shaun Pollock. This brought Dravid to the crease early on, providing him the opportunity to play a long innings. He always puts a price on his wicket and the fall of Ganguly and Azharuddin meant that Dravid had to play the sheet anchor role, which suits him. Dravid, along with Jadeja, kept things ticking over with the South Africans slowly sneaking back into the game. Some sensible batting towards the end by Joshi and Dighe produced 75 runs in the last 10 overs to give the Indians a competitive score.
There was always a chance that the Springboks, in trying to get the runs, would mess things up. Kirsten, the experienced opener, took upon the responsibility of keeping one end going after losing his partner Gibbs. Boje played a brief but belligerent innings to up the tempo but the Indians dismissed him and Kallis in quick succession. At this stage, the match was developing into more of a game of chess and the team which held the nerve better was going to emerge victorious. Cronje, the ever positive batsman in one-dayers regardless of his form, went after the Indian attack and at one stage the South Africans were cruising.
Tendulkar got rid of Cronje and the late middle order collapse brought the Indians back into the game. The lack of a genuine fifth bowler proved to be a major handicap and Ganguly had to press Dravid into the attack. Dravid castled Pollock but that wicket came a bit late in the day. Strydom, having a nightmare of a tour, must have learnt a thing or two about something called pressure. He had Boucher, as solid as a rock amidst all the excitement, at the other end. Strydom managed to scamper for a single and it was left to the wicket keeper to complete the formalities.
Full postZimbabwe in West Indies: Sarwan knocking hard
The West Indies Busta XI finished their four day match in Trinidad, against the touring Zimbabwe team this past Monday on a very strong note as Guyanese youngster, Ramnaresh Sarwan, slammed two centuries in a very comprehensive bid for West Indies
Zach Kenworthy
15-Mar-2000
The West Indies Busta XI finished their four day match in
Trinidad, against the touring Zimbabwe team this past Monday on a
very strong note as Guyanese youngster, Ramnaresh Sarwan, slammed
two centuries in a very comprehensive bid for West Indies
selection. Upon winning the toss, Zimbabwe captain, Alistair
Campbell, asked the home side to take first knock on a Guaracara
pitch that looked like a batsman's paradise. The decision must
have delighted the Busta XI batsmen for when they were finally
bowled out for 349, both Ramnaresh Sarwan and Sylvester `Bouncin'
Joseph had compiled two even centuries of extremely high class.
Both batsmen were perfect foils for the other as they were
relentless in their attack on the Zimbabwean attack. Henry Olonga
was the main sufferer as he was milked for 103 runs from his 18
overs. Bryan Strang was the pick of the bowlers with 4 for 36.
The Zimbabweans initially started badly as Trinidadian, Marlon
Black claimed two early wickets for just nine runs. However, the
middle order batsmen in Trevor Gripper (30), Murray Goodwin (30),
Alistair Campbell (158) and Stuart Carlisle (86) pulled the fight
back together as they established a formidable total of 394 all
out. Campbell played a captain's innings as he and Carlisle
shared in a sixth wicket 160 run partnership. Marlon Black had a
strong return of 4 for 87 and was ably assisted by Cameron Cuffy
(3 for 70) who bowled with persistent aggression.
In their second innings, the Busta XI decided to bat out for some
much needed batting practice. At the close on the fourth and
final day the Busta XI were all out for a formidable total of
417. Sarwan once again played an innings of brilliance as he
accumulated his second century of the match, this time a
masterful 111. He was ably assisted, as in the first innings, by
Sylvester Joseph who put together a solid 51. Darren Ganga (41),
Rawl Lewis (62) and Cameron Cuffy (37) also aided the Busta XI's
cause as they constructed a massive second innings total.
Sarwan has obviously submitted a huge claim for selection, as the
selectors can obviously not ignore these centuries. Such a
situation is food for thought as the WICB announced that they
will not select outside of their 20-man squad, of which Sarwan is
not a member, for the two test series against the Zimbabweans. It
seems to be a poor move by the WICB as they are restricting
themselves to 20 players in a home series. Why restrict yourself
on home soil? Restriction should be avoided as much as possible,
especially ahead of a two test series, which starts this
Thursday, in which a new captain, manager and coach are to embark
on a mission to revive West Indies Cricket.
Full postPunjab knock out Railways and qualify for next phase
Railways were struggling even at the end of the second day's play
15-Mar-2000
Railways were struggling even at the end of the second day's
play. From a precarious position of 176 for 9 at stumps on Day 2,
Railways managed to push their score to 195 thanks to a timely 31 run
last wicket partnership between Murali Kartik and K Parida.
However, there was bad news all around for the Railways team as their
batting failed once more. The second essay was far worse than their
first and right arm off spinner Sharandeep Singh made the best of the
opportunity, running through the Railways side. Bowling a nine over
spell that yielded 5 wickets for 22 runs, Sharandeep scuttled out
Railways for just 96.
For Railways, just 4 batsmen reached double figures, and captain Rawat
with 23 was the top scorer. A rather dismal scorecard, one that no one
from the Railways team would like to look at again.
Winning the match by an innings and 64 runs, Punjab picked up a
valuable 8 points and took their tally to 24. This means that they
qualify for the knock out phase. In their group Hyderabad defeated
Baroda today and ended with 21 points.
Full postHyderabad qualify with an outright win
Hyderabad completed a 71 run out-right victory against Baroda in the Ranji Trophy Super League Group B match at the Gymkhana Ground in Secunderabad on Wednesday
15-Mar-2000
Hyderabad completed a 71 run out-right victory against Baroda in the
Ranji Trophy Super League Group B match at the Gymkhana Ground in
Secunderabad on Wednesday. Hyderabad, by virtue of this win, collected
the necessary 8 points to qualify for the knock-out stage of the
tournament. Thus, Hyderabad and Baroda ended their Super league
engagements with 21 points and 18 points respectively.
Earlier, Baroda resuming at 24 for 2, were allout for 163. There were
only three significant partnerships. First, Jacob Martin (30 runs of
94 balls) with Tushar Arothe (10 runs of 41 balls) added 40 runs of
16.4 overs for the fourth wicket. Then Atul Bedade (22 runs of 45
balls) and Nayan Mongia (34 runs of 123 balls) put on 32 runs in 14.5
overs for the sixth wicket. But after that Baroda lost three more
wickets with only 33 runs being added to the total. Baroda prolonged
the inevitable thanks to a last wicket stand between Valmik Buck and
Zaheer Khan who added 28 runs in 8.4 overs.
Hyderabad saw some disciplined bowling by their spinners Venkatapathy
Raju and Kanwaljit Singh as they picked up three wickets each. But the
man of the moment for Hyderabad was Satwalkar (4 for 41) as he
dismissed three of Baroda's top order batsmen in the morning to set
Hyderabad on the course to victory.
Full postInzamam hits 138 as Pakistan take control
Karachi, March 14: Master batsman Inzamam-ul-Haq returned to his majestic best when he smashed a commanding century - the ninth of his career, third against Sri Lanka and first at the National Stadium - which brightened Pakistan hopes of ending a
Samiul Hasan
15-Mar-2000
Karachi, March 14: Master batsman Inzamam-ul-Haq returned to his
majestic best when he smashed a commanding century - the ninth of his
career, third against Sri Lanka and first at the National Stadium -
which brightened Pakistan hopes of ending a five-Test win drought.
Inzamam, promoted as vice-captain 24 hours earlier, belted a
superlative 138 as Pakistan put a stranglehold over Sri Lanka when
they finished the third day's play in the third and final cricket Test
at 375 for seven for an overall lead of 404. The home team resumed
their second innings on Tuesday at 88 for three.
Pakistan have never lost a Test here in 33 matches. As things stand at
present, the home team looks well set to notch up its 17th victory
here which would give them a much-needed consolation and
morale-boosting win after defeats in the three one-dayers and two
Tests.
The highest Sri Lanka ever scored in the fourth innings to win a Test
was 326 which they achieved against Zimbabwe at Colombo in
1997-98. The record fourth innings score to win a Test is 406 by India
who beat the West Indies at Port-of-Spain in 1975-76.
Full postWarne claims the record as Australia claims the win
Shane Warne wrote himself even further into Australian cricket history as the visitors bowled out New Zealand 40 minutes after lunch on the fifth day of the first test at Eden Park to prevail 62 runs
Chris Rosie
15-Mar-2000
Shane Warne wrote himself even further into Australian cricket history as the visitors bowled out New Zealand 40 minutes after lunch on the fifth day of the first test at Eden Park to prevail 62 runs. Warne had to wait until the last wicket of the match but when he had Paul Wiseman caught behind he advanced from the 355 he had shared for two days with Dennis Lillee.
Warne's record-breaking effort overshadowed Colin Miller's best figures in test cricket, five for 55, and Craig McMillan's defiant 78 for the home team.
After a day lost to rain and an hour-and-a-half delay on the fifth morning to allow the outfield to recover, New Zealand, on151, set out in search of the 130 runs still needed for victory with McMillan on 57 and Chris Cairns 20. For the Australians, the target was simple: five wickets to maintain their winning streak, at least one of them to Warne.
Runs were never going to be easy to come by. Glenn McGrath bowled the first over of the morning under passing dark clouds and in a cooling southerly, attacking with just two slips, defending with a third man and fine leg and adding to the tension with a maiden.
Full postTamil Nadu seal domination of Uttar Pradesh
Tamil Nadu chose not to enforce the follow on after a solid batting display was backed by a good bowling performance
15-Mar-2000
Tamil Nadu chose not to enforce the follow on after a solid batting
display was backed by a good bowling performance. Resuming on 599/4,
Tamil Nadu declared their innings closed after they had reached
696/5. Sridharan Sharath playing confidently reached his double
hundred off 320 balls. Adding another 5 runs to that mark, Sharath was
run out.
After a side has made nearly seven hundred runs for the loss of just
five wickets, one would think the wicket was good for
batting. However, the wicket certainly was not good for Uttar
Pradesh. The Tamil Nadu bowlers all plugged away, chipping in and
sharing the wickets as Uttar Pradesh were dismissed for 228.
Only S Shukla in the middle of the innings resisted the Tamil Nadu
attack. He helped himself to 102 runs, a large percentage of the Uttar
Pradesh total. The fact that the next highest score was 26 from young
medium pacer Mrithyunjay Tripathi spoke volumes of the inability of
the Uttar Pradesh batsmen to deal with the Tamil Nadu bowling.
Tamil Nadu leading by over four hundred runs chose not to enforce the
follow on. Whether there was a need to get more batting practice after
almost all batsmen had made runs in the first innings is a question
only the Tamil Nadu captain can answer.
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