Star Wars

Battle for semis heats up

It's Ian Chappell at No. 1, leading Sambit Bal by 118 points

Cricinfo staff
17-Jun-2009
Johan Botha gets the high fives after removing Rohit Sharma, India v South Africa, ICC World Twenty20 Super Eights, Trent Bridge, June 16, 2009

Johan Botha's 3 for 16 gave Sambit Bal 104 points  •  Associated Press

It's the end of the Super Eights and as we go into the final three games of the tournament, it's Ian Chappell at No. 1 in the Star Wars league, leading Sambit Bal by 118 points.
The first game between Sri Lanka and New Zealand was a good one for Ian. He had Tillakaratne Dilshan as trump who yielded 176. While Sambit had Dilshan, he also had Sanath Jayasuriya (trump) and Jehan Mubarak but they disappointed, fetching just 68. The second game between India and South Africa was a low-scoring affair for Ian with Herschelle Gibbs (5), Rohit Sharma (39) and Wayne Parnell (0). Sambit had a better game - while he had Gibbs, he also had Johan Botha who gave him 104.
Sanjay Manjrekar had Man-of-the-Match AB de Villiers in his team who gave him 178. Sanjay is now 103 points adrift of Sambit. "It's getting very close now between the top three and could be anybody's game," says Sanjay. "And once again it has come down to the number of transfers, which hopefully, for me, will make the difference."