Report
Tamil Nadu pull off dramatic victory
Tamil Nadu pulled off a dramatic 12-run victory over Delhi to clinch a semifinal berth in the Vijay Merchant (under-16) Trophy cricket tournament at Thiruvananthapuram on Friday
07-Jan-2000
Tamil Nadu pulled off a dramatic 12-run victory over Delhi to clinch a
semifinal berth in the Vijay Merchant (under-16) Trophy cricket
tournament at Thiruvananthapuram on Friday.
The odds were in favour of Delhi when play resumed on the third and
final day. Chasing 168 for victory, Delhi were 67 without loss at
stumps on Thursday. And things continued to go Delhi's way
initially. Openers G Malhotra (37) and skipper R Jaswal (34) went on
to put on 91 runs in 35.5 overs before the latter was out. In the
following over and without any addition to the score, Malhotra was
dismissed. Sushil Kumar (5) fell at 98 and A Trehan (0) was out at
101.
K Bhardwaj and Deepak Sharma however took the score to 129 and Delhi
needed only 39 runs for victory with six wickets intact. However at
this stage Deepak Sharma (6) was out. A Budania now joined Bhardwaj
and they took the score to 143 when Bhardwaj was run out for 24. S
Khullar and Budania now came together and the 150 was raised. At 151
for six, Delhi were just 17 runs away from victory.
Now came the dramatic denouement. First Khullar was caught by skipper
Aditya Srikkanth off Malick for 2. Off the last ball of the same over,
at the same score, Malick had Abhishek Sharma caught by Vijayasarathy
for a duck. Off the fifth ball of the following over, without any
addition to the score, Rudania gave Vasudevadoss a return catch. And
finally in his next over, after four runs had been added,
Vasudevasdoss had last man Aggarwal caught by Karthik for two and
Delhi were all out for 155. K Lal remained not out on one and Tamil
Nadu had ended surprise victors. The bowling honours were shared by
Vasudevadoss who took two for 30 and Malik who bowled 27 overs to
capture four wickets for 33.
Full postODI #3 - WI v NZ - Napier: A Review and some thoughts.
Sometimes, it is very difficult to write about cricket in general and especially a particular cricket game
Colin Croft
07-Jan-2000
Sometimes, it is very difficult to write about cricket in general and especially a particular cricket game. The 3rd ODI between the West Indies and New Zealand is such a situation. I should note here that I am not the "real" supporter of West Indian cricket as would be normally found in the streets of the Caribbean. After all, I have played cricket for the West Indies, so I obviously want them to win. However, since I am something of a Sports Journalist, I tend to be neutral, if that is really possible, with a hidden hope of success for the West Indies. That is acceptable, and understandable, I think.
Game #3 of this one day series was the poorest effort yet by the West Indies. How much lower this team could go is anyone's guess, but I will not be surprised at all if the basement floor gets lower. I genuinely hope that the basement floor is a massive trampoline, and an almighty bounce upwards is soon to be had by the West Indies cricket team. Realistically, though, I am not so sure of that.
Before we go too far though, let me say that New Zealand deserve every accolade that could be directed their way for both the Test and One Day series wins. While many would suggest that the West Indies played so badly overall that it might be difficult to really assess exactly how well New Zealand has played over the last five weeks or so, I believe that, in most cases, a team is allowed to play as well or badly by the opposing team's efforts. New Zealand's efforts were, very obviously, considerably more organized, purposeful and effective that those of the West Indies have been.
One of the things very much in the air during this 3rd game was the fact that West Indies cricket has now, somewhat justifiably, become a great big joke. Seasoned sports journalists and cricket enthusiasts alike now find it very difficult to find the proper adjectives to describe the tremendously poor efforts being put out by the West Indies. Some are grossly embarrassed at what they are asked to witness on the cricket field, as offered by the West Indies.
Full postOrissa in a position to call the shots
A strong rearguard action by Assam failed to prevent Orissa from taking a first innings lead of 119 runs on the third day of their East Zone Ranji Trophy league match at the Angul stadium in Orissa on Wednesday
06-Jan-2000
A strong rearguard action by Assam failed to prevent Orissa from
taking a first innings lead of 119 runs on the third day of their
East Zone Ranji Trophy league match at the Angul stadium in Orissa
on Wednesday.
Resuming at 117 for three in reply to Orissa's 425, Assam ran
into trouble against S Satpathy and were tottering at 134 for
seven. Then commenced the splendid fightback. First R Borah and
VR Samant (20) added 51 runs for the eighth wicket off 12.4 overs.
But the Assam batting really gained impetus during the ninth
wicket association of 118 runs off 26.3 overs between Borah and
GD Dutta. Borah finally fell to Satpathy for 82 compiled off 95
balls and inclusive of 13 fours and a six. Dutta remained unbeaten
with 55. He faced 107 balls and hit nine fours and a six. Assam
were finally all out for 306 with Satpathy finishing with six for
86 off 35 overs.
In the remaining time, Orissa in their second innings hit up 118
for one. SS Das was bowled by O Singh for 71 off the last ball of
the day. He faced 94 balls and hit five of them to the ropes.
P Mahapatra, content to play second fiddle, was unbeaten with 41
at close. He faced 100 balls and hit three fours. With an overall
lead of 237 runs and nine wickets in hand, Orissa are in a position
to call the shots on the final day.
Full postKarim's unbeaten ton helps Bengal take lead
Bengal, with their top order working efficiently, serenely proceeded to a first innings lead of 36 runs with five wickets still intact at stumps on the third day of their East Zone Ranji Trophy league match against Bihar at the Keenan stadium in
06-Jan-2000
Bengal, with their top order working efficiently, serenely proceeded
to a first innings lead of 36 runs with five wickets still intact
at stumps on the third day of their East Zone Ranji Trophy league
match against Bihar at the Keenan stadium in Jamshedpur on Wednesday.
Resuming at 128 for one, Bengal suffered an early blow when
opener Nilamber Saha was out for 60, adding only six runs to
his overnight score. Rohan Gavaskar, 49 overnight went on to get
72 before he was third out at 172. The 24-year-old left hander
faced 114 balls and hit six fours and a six. But Bengal really
took command during the fourth wicket stand between S Kalyani and
Saba Karim. The two added 158 runs off 55.2 overs. Kalyani
seemed headed for his century but was out for 94. He faced 226
balls and hit eleven fours. C Singh (5) fell quickly but in the
company of skipper Utpal Chatterjee, Saba Karim reached his
century shortly before close. At close, Karim was unbeaten with
105. He batted 285 minutes, faced 213 balls and hit eight fours
and a six. Bengal at close were 377 for five in reply to Bihar's
341.
Full postMaharashtra fighting hard to stave off defeat
Maharashtra were fighting hard to stave off defeat at the hands of Baroda at stumps on the third day of their West Zone Ranji Trophy league match at the Deccan Gymkhana ground in Pune on Wendesday
06-Jan-2000
Maharashtra were fighting hard to stave off defeat at the hands of
Baroda at stumps on the third day of their West Zone Ranji Trophy
league match at the Deccan Gymkhana ground in Pune on Wendesday.
The home team were restricted to 213 in their first innings conceding
a lead of 180 runs. Forced to follow on, Maharashtra were 176 for
three at close of play.
Veteran opening batsman Surender Bhave tried his best to keep the
Maharashtra innings going in the morning. He added 54 runs for the
seventh wicket with Iqbal Siddiqui (24) and then went on to get
113. He batted 399 minutes, faced 260 balls and hit 15 of them to the
fence. His 25th Ranji Trophy hundred was his fifth against
Baroda. Following on, Maharashtra lost two wickets for 30 runs but AV
Kale and S Sugwekar (34) commenced the recovery process by adding 67
runs for the third wicket off 21 overs. The rescue act continued with
Kale and KD Aphale (34) putting on a further 79 runs for the unbroken
fourth wicket off 30.2 overs. By stumps, Kale had batted four hours
for 77. He faced 161 balls and hit eight fours.
Full postNatal made heavy weather of defending a total of 223
Natal made heavy weather of defending a total of 223 in their Standard Bank Cup match against Free State at Kingsmead last night, squeezing home by seven runs in an exciting contest that produced much for the crowd of 4000 to enjoy
Ken Borland
06-Jan-2000
Natal made heavy weather of defending a total of 223 in their Standard Bank
Cup match against Free State at Kingsmead last night, squeezing home by seven runs in an exciting contest that produced much for the crowd of 4000 to enjoy.
The game's exciting conclusion was mainly due to most of the Natal bowlers
being unable to find a disciplined line or length and even though Victor
Mpitsang, with one run in his only previous Standard Bank Cup innings, had
little chance of seeing Free State home when he came in with 35 runs wanted
off four overs, he and Herman Bakkes did enough to make a close match of
it.
The Natal innings saw man of the match Andrew Hudson at his best as he
plundered the Free State bowlers for an unbeaten half-century off just 32
balls, his innings turning a competitive total into an almost unbeatable
one.
Captain Dale Benkenstein also got on top of the attack as he scored 58, he
and Hudson adding 61 for the fourth wicket off just 48 balls as Natal ran
amok in the closing stages of their innings, having been asked to bat first
in conditions that were kind to the bowlers, swing and bounce being freely
available.
Doug Watson (35) and Mark Bruyns (47) had got the innings off to a solid
start, seeing off some impressive bowling by Bakkes, Mpitsang and Matthew
Hoggard.
Full postTamil Nadu book Wills Trophy berth
Tamil Nadu won the Subbaiah Pillai Trophy for zonal one-day supremacy after an astonishing batting display against Goa at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai yesterday
06-Jan-2000
Tamil Nadu won the Subbaiah Pillai Trophy for zonal one-day supremacy
after an astonishing batting display against Goa at the MA Chidambaram
Stadium, Chennai yesterday. Chasing a target of 136 and mindful of the
need to beef up their net run rate in the event of a Karnataka victory
in a parallel match at Hyderabad, the TN batsmen went berserk,
knocking up the runs in 66 balls and 61 minutes. As it turned out
Karnataka lost to Hyderabad leaving TN as clear winners. With this
title triumph Tamil Nadu have also qualified for next season's Wills
Trophy.
After being put in, Goa could only muster a total of 135 in 41.4
overs. J Gokulakrishna with 4-23 from 9 overs and Sridharan Sriram
with 3-9 from 3.4 overs were the bogeymen for Goa. In the TN reply S
Mahesh, who opened both the bowling and batting, lashed a furious 69
from 29 balls (8 fours, 5 sixes). Madanagopal (19) and Sharath (12)
were at the crease when the end came with five wickets to spare.
Full postHyderabad complete successful run chase
A 179 run 3rd wicket partnership in 30 overs between Mohd
06-Jan-2000
A 179 run 3rd wicket partnership in 30 overs between Mohd. Azharuddin
(94) and D Vinay Kumar (97) helped Hyderabad see off Karnataka by two
wickets at the Gymkhana Ground, Secunderabad and take the runner up
spot with 8 points, one behind Tamil Nadu. Earlier Karnataka had
posted an imposing 299-8 from their 50 overs. Thilak Naidu (63) and B
Akhil (59) provided the springboard for the slog which S Shiraguppi
(48 off 38 balls) and Anand Yalvigi (25 off 18 balls) completed most
efficiently.
Hyderabad were 231-2 at one stage but after Azharuddin was out at that
score, for a rousing 89 ball knock including 9 fours and a six, they
made heavy weather of their target. They lost five wickets for 51 and
were in a precarious position at 282-8. But Pawan Kumar and NP Singh
saw them through with 14 balls to spare. Karnataka had to settle for
third place in the league with 7 points.
Full postKerala hand Andhra fifth straight defeat
In the other inconsequential match between Kerala and Andhra at the REC Ground, Kozhikode, the hosts outplayed the visitors by 62 runs
06-Jan-2000
In the other inconsequential match between Kerala and Andhra at the
REC Ground, Kozhikode, the hosts outplayed the visitors by 62 runs. A
delayed start due to overnight rain meant that the match was reduced
to 43 overs a side. Kerala won the toss and, boosted by a 135 run 4th
wicket partnership between Sunil Oasis (53) and K Chandrashekara (68),
totalled 199-8. A lethal spell of 6-2-11-4 by KN Ananthapadmanabhan
then had Andhra struggling to 137-9. Kerala finished fourth with 4
points while Andhra sunk to the bottom of the table having lost all
five games.
Full postGauteng win big against EP
In an exciting game of high scores and low wicket hauls, Gauteng pulled ahead of the EP target to finish their innings on 245/5 with a few balls to spare off their allotted 45 overs
Caryn Snashall
06-Jan-2000
In an exciting game of high scores and low wicket hauls, Gauteng pulled ahead of the EP target to finish their innings on 245/5 with a few balls to spare off their allotted 45 overs.
Winning the toss and electing to bat, EP set about creating a formidable total. With the runs coming freely, it was the spinning combination of Crookes and Eksteen that had to put the brakes on the run rate. Dylan Jennings achieved his first stumping on debut, when he caught Benfield out of his crease. The next wicket to fall was Bryant, in devastating form before he was run out off the fielding of Bacher. Callaghan's wicket was taken by skipper Eksteen's bowling, caught by Rutherford. Leaving Bradfield to finish his innings four runs short of a century when he ended on 96*.
The Gauteng innings was an impressive one, reaching 7 runs an over before the first wicket fell on 106 as Andrew Hall fell short of his crease after a series of close calls in previous overs. Rutherford too looked in form before he was stumped off Peterson's bowling. Bacher became the second run out vistim of the Gauteng innings - the decision going to the third umpire. Toyana and Crookes were well matched as they kept to the required run rate until Crookes wicket fell, a few short overs from the end, off the bowling of Kruger. His innings finishing on 49.
The decision by Rushmere to bowl Abrahams in the last few overs was to prove decisive for the visitors. The required run rate at that stage was 6 per over but after a few misdirected balls and an overthrow, the rate came down until Dylan Jennings was able to hit a four to clinch the win off his first ball.
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