Report
Zimbabwe Development XI v Denmark, Match Report
Denmark caused a surprise on the opening day of the Emerging Nations tournament at Alexandra Sports Club in Harare today by trouncing an uninspired Zimbabwe A team by seven wickets
John Ward
05-Apr-2000
Denmark caused a surprise on the opening day of the Emerging Nations tournament at Alexandra Sports Club in Harare today by trouncing an uninspired Zimbabwe A team by seven wickets. Their leading performers were pace bowler Thomas Hansen and opening batsmen Carsten Pedersen and the bespectacled Jan Overgaad, who put on 91 for the first wicket, both recording excellent fifties, but it was really a team performance by an enthusiastic and determined side.
Zimbabwe's policy these days seems to be to be as hospitable to their visitors on the field as they are off it. Denmark put the home side in to bat on winning the toss and were soon in ecstasy. Thomas Hansen, also of Hampshire Seconds, opened the attack, left-arm over the wicket, and began with a leg-side wide to Ray Price, which was followed by a leg-bye. He then produced a superb yorker to hit Alister Maregwede's off stump. Off the next ball Gavin Rennie pushed a ball on the leg side, called for a run, changed his mind, and Price was left stranded as Hansen himself threw down the stumps at the bowler's end. The Zimbabwe team were two wickets down for two runs, both extras.
The Danes were almost beside themselves with delight and enthusiasm, appealing for everything. Rennie and Dion Ebrahim played safe for a while but never looked comfortable, and had scored only 4 when he snicked Hansen high to second slip, where Aftab Ahmed took the catch; the score was now 15 for three. Trevor Madondo, always unpredictable, went for his shots with some success, driving Hansen for four and three on the off side in the same over, but then hit a high return catch to the same bowler for 11 - 33 for four. Three runs later, Greg Lamb faced his first ball, to be adjudged lbw to Morten Hedegaard.
Dan Peacock, ambitious to be recognised as a batsman, held firm with Dion Ebrahim, both playing sensibly but finding it difficult to get the bowling away or penetrate the field. The score had reached 55 when Peacock (2) checked a drive and a low chance just carried to mid-off. This seemed to unsettle Ebrahim, who played some dodgy strokes and was dropped at deep backward point on 26.
Full postKalyani helps West Zone make it three out of four
West Zone proved today that they are the side to watch after Air India and Indian Railways
Anand Vasu
05-Apr-2000
West Zone proved today that they are the side to watch after Air India
and Indian Railways. Their skipper Kalyani stole the show with an
unbeaten 75. When West came out to bowl, they put on a thoroughly
professional show, skittling out North Zone for 120 and won the match
easily by 48 runs.
Losing the toss for the fourth consecutive time, West Zone were put in
to bat at the India Pistons CPT Ground. Newcomer Triptimani Rocque
opened the batting with Amrutha Shinde. Amrutha, who has scored
proficiently in the series thus far was in good nick, middling the
ball well from the start. In three games she has made scores of 29,59
and 44. The North Zone medium pacers Asha Jain and Vandana bowled
straight up and down, not attempting anything fancy. Striving for the
yorker they delivered more full tosses than they would have liked and
were eased through the off side.
Though she was solid, Triptimani could not get the ball into the gaps
and struggled to rotate the strike. After a longish stay at the
crease, she drove a ball on the up straight back to Asha Jain.
Bending low, the bowler snapped up the catch and sent the West Zone
opener on her way for just 1.
At the fall of the first wicket, the West Zone captain walked out to
the middle. Kalyani seemed in no hurry at all. In the company of
Amrutha, Kalyani settled into a good rhythm. Driving the ball firmly
into the outfield, the two ran hard. They kept the scoreboard ticking
over and kept the fielders on their toes.
Full postSaleem's century steers HBL into NBP Cup semis
LAHORE: Opener Saleem Elahi hit a brilliant unbeaten 105 to steer HBL to an easy seven-wicket victory over Karachi Whites in a fixture of the NBP National One-day Cricket Championship at the Gaddafi Stadium here Tuesday
Azam Maqbool Sheikh
05-Apr-2000
LAHORE: Opener Saleem Elahi hit a brilliant unbeaten 105 to steer HBL to an easy seven-wicket victory over Karachi Whites in a fixture of the NBP National One-day Cricket Championship at the Gaddafi Stadium here Tuesday. With this victory, the bankers have now qualified for the semi-finals.
Saleem, who holds the distinction of scoring a hundred in his very first One-day International for Pakistan, hit 10 boundaries while facing 140 balls in his 186-minute stay at the crease. It was Saleem's third hundred of the championship which enabled the bankers to overhaul a moderate Karachi total of 188 all out with 22 balls and seven wickets to spare. His second wicket stand of 116 with young Taufeeq Umer made the target look even more easier. Taufeeq faced 73 balls, two of which were hit to the boundary, before being trapped lbw by medium-pacer Muhammad Hasnain for 45. Hasnain, who also claimed the wicket of opener Imran Farhat for 12, bowled with line and length to get two for 35 in 10 overs. However, he lacked support from the other end as his opening partner conceded 30 runs in just four overs.
Earlier, skipper Shadab Kabir, another Test discard, held the Karachi Whites innings together with a solid knock of 60 off 104 balls after HBL captain Saleem Malik won the toss and preferred to chase the target. Most of the other Karcahi batsmen got the start but none of them went on to play a long innings. Muhammad Shakeel was the second highest scorer with 24 followed by Muhammad Masroor 22, Arif Mehmood and Zeeshan Pervez 17 each and Naumanullah 10. Saleem Malik was the pick of HBL bowlers claiming three for 40 in 10 overs. Taufeeq Umer (2/17) also bowled his off-breaks with economy and success while Sajid Shah, Kabir Khan and Danish Kaneria got one wicket apiece.
Salim Elahi was declared Man-of-the-Match. Umpires Nazir Junior and Sajjad Asghar supervised the match while Abdul Sami was the match referee.
Full postSydney Grade Final: Bankstown Bulldogs take Belvidere Cup
Despite frequent rain interruptions and a determined St
Bankstown-Canterbury Cricket Club
04-Apr-2000
Despite frequent rain interruptions and a determined St. George fightback, the Bankstown Sports Club-sponsored Bulldogs clinched the Belvidere Cup in a thriller at Bankstown Oval last weekend.
Failing light and an interminable last wicket stand appeared set to deprive the locals of a well deserved victory in the final. However the advent of the new ball and a gem of a delivery from fired up paceman Wayne Holdsworth got the 'Doggies home in the nick of time.
The stunning victory has capped a magnificent season for Bankstown cricket which will live long in the memory of the district's cricket enthusiasts. Local legend Steve Waugh and his majestic brother Mark have been instrumental in Australia's World Cup success and a record-breaking string of Test match victories. Bankstown's Martin Shield, Foster and Creak under ten and eleven sides were successful, whilst the A.W. Green Shield side clinched back to back victories under the expert guidance of Ian Gill and Noel Trevena.
The under-sixteen champions have now won twenty games in succession and will be looking to complete an unprecedented treble of premierships next season. To add to this the opening of the new pavilion and grandstand has given Bankstown ground facilities second to none.
Full postAir India toy with mediocre opposition
Air India hardly broke into a sweat in romping past South Zone by seven wickets for their third successive victory in the CricInfo Rani Jhansi tournament at the SRMC ground in Chennai today
Sankhya Krishnan
04-Apr-2000
Air India hardly broke into a sweat in romping past South Zone by
seven wickets for their third successive victory in the CricInfo Rani
Jhansi tournament at the SRMC ground in Chennai today. South Zone put
in a richly soporific display with the bat, scraping together 84/9 in
50 overs after winning the toss and batting. Opener Vanita Viola was
the lone lass who managed to stay put at the wicket for any length of
time but her 46 not out (129 balls) in 50 overs was just a shade
better than Sunil Gavaskar's infamous 36 in 60. In the post noon
session, GS Lakshmi again bowled her heart out, grabbing two early
wickets, but a 54 run fourth wicket partnership between Mithali Raj
and Anju Jain steered the Air India women home with 22 overs to spare.
Keeping in mind the formidable batting reputation of Air India, South
dared not tempt fate by putting them in and the match as a spectacle
was killed at that very moment. The openers just did not make any
effort to score. At the very least they could just drop the ball at
their feet and run but here they were patting the ball straight to the
fielders, refusing to be hurried. New ball bowlers, Smitha Harikrishna
and Kusumlatha gave away just 15 runs in the first twelve overs before
off spinner Seema Pujare was brought on from the pavilion end.
She struck with her third ball to as Karuna Jain stepped out to one
outside off stump and missed the line to be stumped by keeper Anju
Jain. New batswoman Harsha was brilliantly caught by Mamtha Ranade at
slip in Seema's third over as she drove lazily at one outside off
stump. And Sejal then gifted a dolly catch to Smitha at mid off to
give Seema three out of three and leave the score at 23/3 in the 19th
over. Kusumlatha had bowled out her ten overs on the trot to finish
with the fabulous figures of 10-6-6-0, which speaks as much for her
opponent's ineptness as much for her own skill.
Left arm spinner Usha Bogade was introduced in the 22nd over while
Purnima Rao's off breaks were seen in action from the other
end. Vanita Viola and Sudha Rani then added 32 runs for the fourth
wicket before Purnima got rid of Sudha Rani, caught behind by Anju
Jain. Amsavalli hit a full toss into the arms of backward square leg
and Kamakshi ran herself out going for an ambitious second run through
the covers. There was a spell between the 40th and 45th overs when no
run came off the bat for 29 balls and the last ten overs produced all
of 17 runs. Seema finished with 3/13 in 10 overs and Usha, 2/17 but
the most successful was Purnima Rao who mopped up the tail to bag a
haul of 4/29. There was not a single boundary in the innings, not even
a three, although on one occasion the batswomen ran two byes off a
wide to get three runs from the delivery.
Full postRakhi Mehra shapes North win
North Zone managed to pull off a five-wicket win against East Zone in the CricInfo Rani Jhansi Trophy Women's cricket tournament at the IIT Chemplast ground in Chennai on Tuesday
Natarajan Sriram
04-Apr-2000
North Zone managed to pull off a five-wicket win against East Zone in
the CricInfo Rani Jhansi Trophy Women's cricket tournament at the IIT
Chemplast ground in Chennai on Tuesday.
At the start of the match, both North and East were looking for their
elusive first win in the tournament. After dismissing East for 142,
North started disastrously by losing both openers Jaya Sharma (0),
Gulshan (2). But the East bowlers could not maintain the pressure and
when Rakhi Mehra (67) and Rajni Bhalla (17) came together, one saw as
many as three bowling changes in five overs. They both put on a 57-run
partnership in 13.4 overs for the third wicket before Rajni Bhalla was
caught at short cover by Saswathi off Seema Singh when she tried to
clear the fielder.
Incidentally, East's bowling was in sharp contrast to that of North
Zone. There were far too many extras conceded in the early overs even
as they were able to pick up the two early wickes. This, coupled with
some wayward bowling later on saw Rakhi Mehra pick some easy runs and
lay the platform for a North Zone win.
In the company of Gurdeep Kaur (27), Rakhi took the match well and
truly out of East Zone's hands with a 68-run fourth wicket stand in 24
overs. But Kavitha came back in the 37th over to pick up Gurdeep and
Vandna off successive deliveries. But that was too precious and too
little for the occasion and North completed the formalities thanks to
Rakhi Mehra and Reema Malhotra.
Full postWest Zone glimmer, then fade away
After beginning both their bowling and batting in lacklustre fashion, Indian Railways came through strongly thanks to a thoroughly professional performance
Anand Vasu
04-Apr-2000
After beginning both their bowling and batting in lacklustre fashion,
Indian Railways came through strongly thanks to a thoroughly
professional performance. Beating West Zone by 74 runs, Indian
Railways notched up their second win of the series and handed West
Zone their first loss.
West Zone have won both the matches they have played so far. Indian
Railways have played one match (against Central Zone), winning it in
convincing fashion and are looking to further their chances in the
tournament. The clash between the two teams at the Railway Stadium
would decide who had the upper hand in the tournament.
Indian Railways along with Air India are the established big teams. In
the past they have dominated tournaments almost completely. A lot of
people expected the same of the CricInfo Rani Jhansi Trophy 2000. West
Zone apparently were not told about this. In what must be called a
spirited effort, the West Zone team snatched the initiative from the
first over of the innings.
As she has done so efficiently in the past, the West Zone skipper
Kalyani took the new ball herself when she lost the toss and was asked
to field. Beginning with a maiden, Kalyani set the tone for the rest
of the bowlers. At the other end, Neelima Waghmare bowled with
determination. Having bowled out her 10 overs on the trot yesterday,
she proceeded to the same today. In just the 4th over, she beat
Purnima Chowdury for pace, leaving the stumps in disarray. Despite
being injured while fielding, she soldiered on, never losing out on
pace. Attempting to field a ball on the rather uneven outfield, she
was surprised by uneven bounce and took a knock on the side of her
head.
Full postAustralians make it easy in the end
Justin Langer's quick-fire century led Australia to a six-wicket win in the final test of the National Bank series in New Zealand, the virtually unchallenged march to the 210 needed for victory hardly in keeping with the ebb and flow of the previous
Chris Rosie
03-Apr-2000
Justin Langer's quick-fire century led Australia to a six-wicket win in the
final test of the National Bank series in New Zealand, the virtually
unchallenged march to the 210 needed for victory hardly in keeping with the
ebb and flow of the previous three days.
Australia started the fourth day of the third test on another beautiful
Hamilton needing 73 runs with seven wickets in hand to complete a 3-0
whitewash of New Zealand and extend their winning streak to 10.
Justin Langer resumed on 71 and Steve Waugh on 1. Chris Cairns opened up
from the grandstand end and steady accumulation rather than shots in anger
saw 10 come off the first over. A Langer drive through extra-cover off
Shayne O'Connor brought the 150 up in the fourth over of the morning,
taking just 135 minutes.
Cairns continued to suffer, Waugh taking consecutive fours past point and
through extra cover. Cairns, not surprisingly, was replaced after three
overs but Daryl Tuffey fared no better, Waugh back cutting for his third
boundary of the morning. However, Tuffey did get one to rise sharply on
Waugh, catching him on the forearm and requiring running repairs.
Full postHyderabad pull off remarkable victory
Spinners Venkatpathi Raju and Kanwaljit Singh bowled Hyderabad to a remarkable 92-run victory over Uttar Pradesh in the Ranji Trophy quarterfinal at the Green Park in Kanpur on Monday
03-Apr-2000
Spinners Venkatpathi Raju and Kanwaljit Singh bowled Hyderabad to a
remarkable 92-run victory over Uttar Pradesh in the Ranji Trophy
quarterfinal at the Green Park in Kanpur on Monday.
It was a magnificent win for Hyderabad who were behind by 71 runs on
the first innings. A superb effort in the second innings, spearheaded
by VVS Laxman who scored his sixth century this season in the national
competition, gave Hyderabad a chance to come back. But when UP
resumed this morning at 38 for no loss chasing a victory target of
311, the home team did seem to have the better chance of qualifying
for the penultimate round. After all they had already secured the
first innings lead. This feeling gathered momentum when UP were 104
for one and in mid afternoon, 163 for three. But then there was an
amazing turnabout and the last seven wickets fell for the addition of
55 runs. UP were all out for 218 with six overs to spare.
UP suffered an early blow when Jyoti Yadav was bowled by Kanwaljit
Singh for 18 with the total on 43. But the other opener M Saif and Md
Kaif came together in a second wicket partnership which realized 61
runs off 24.2 overs. Saif then fell to Raju for 57. He batted a trifle
over three hours, faced 162 balls and hit seven fours. In the same
over, Raju dismissed R Shamshad for nought.
Shortly before lunch, Kaif reached his half century. At the interval,
UP were 119 for three. Kaif and Saurabh Shukla then seemed to have
carried UP to safety by adding 59 runs off 25.3 overs. However at 163,
Shukla was caught by wicketkeeper Sheikh off Raju for 27. He batted an
hour and a half, faced 68 balls and hit four boundaries. Another
crucial wicket was taken in the same over with skipper Gyanendra
Pandey being held by Nandakishore for a duck.
Full postRamesh, Sharath steer Tamil Nadu to victory
Left handers Sadagoppan Ramesh and skipper Sridharan Sharath, with an unbeaten fourth wicket partnership of 127 runs off 34.3 overs, steered Tamil Nadu to a seven wicket victory over Punjab in their Ranji Trophy quarterfinal at the MA Chidambaram
Partab Ramchand
03-Apr-2000
Left handers Sadagoppan Ramesh and skipper Sridharan Sharath, with an
unbeaten fourth wicket partnership of 127 runs off 34.3 overs, steered
Tamil Nadu to a seven wicket victory over Punjab in their Ranji Trophy
quarterfinal at the MA Chidambaram stadium on Monday. Tamil Nadu now
take on oft crowned champions Mumbai in the semifinal, commencing in
Mumbai from April 11.
Tamil Nadu, who were 30 for one wicket at close of play on Sunday,
required another 134 runs to win. It did seem an easy task but the
early fall of Hemang Badani and JR Madanagopal set them back a
bit. The left handed Badani was caught behind by Jagnu off Harbhajan
Singh for 11 while Madanagopal was bowled by Sandeep Sharma for nought
in the following over.
As Sarath joined Ramesh, Punjab had fought back commendably. But
amidst the tension filled atmosphere, the two experienced players
exhibited all their skill to combat the situation. Harbhajan, the
danger man was given a long spell by Vikram Rathour but both Ramesh
and Sarath batted carefully on a wicket that was still playing well.
Gradually, however the batsmen got on top as the bowlers wilted in the
heat. In the post lunch session, as Ramesh and Sarath became more
confident, the Punjab team turned desperate and there were frequent
appeals. Ramesh lifted the tension by hitting a couple of lofted
boundaries and Sarath too joined in with some rasping cuts to the
ropes. The siege was lifted and by mid-afternoon, the runs came more
freely. Ramesh lofted Sharandeep Singh for a straight six and with the
few hundred spectators cheering the home team on, the victory was
hastened by Sarath too stroking the ball freely. Indeed, it was the
Tamil Nadu captain who finished the match off in style with successive
shots for four and six off Harbhajan Singh. Ramesh who batted in
exemplary fashion for 264 minutes, faced 144 balls and hit nine fours,
besides the six. Sarath batted 166 minutes, faced 126 balls and hit
five fours, besides the winning six.
Full postMost Read
Writers