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Notts ease drop fears with draw

Nottinghamshire eased their relegation worries by picking up two valuable bowling bonus points at Lord’s before their Championship Division One game against Middlesex ended in a weather-ravaged draw

14-Sep-2013
ScorecardAndre Adams picked up four wickets to help edge Notts further away from the relegation places•Getty Images

Nottinghamshire eased their relegation worries by picking up two valuable bowling bonus points at Lord’s before their Championship Division One game against Middlesex ended in a weather-ravaged draw.Chris Rogers took his overnight 67 to 108, the fourth first-class hundred of a memorable summer for Australia’s Ashes opener, but then became the first of four scalps for Andre Adams as Middlesex, who resumed on 96 for 0, reached 353 for 7 declared.Somerset’s win against bottom club Surrey pushed Nottinghamshire down into seventh place in the Division One table, but on 132 points they are 12 ahead of Derbyshire, who crashed to defeat against Durham.After the final day’s first session was ruled out to more bad weather it was just a case for both teams of playing for bonus points after a resumption at 1.10pm following an early lunch. Rogers was in aggressive mood, flashing Adams between third slip and gully for one of his eventual 12 fours and then uppercutting a short ball from Harry Gurney to square third man for six.A superbly timed back-foot force to the ropes through point off Luke Fletcher took Rogers to his century but the left-hander fell just five runs short of completing 1000 Championship runs for the season – in only his 11th appearance for Middlesex. Going for another pull, this time against Adams, the Middlesex captain skied to Fletcher at mid-on after batting for 155 balls and dominating an opening stand of 151 with Sam Robson, who edged behind on 41 in Adams’s next over.Dawid Malan had helped Joe Denly to add 49 for the third wicket when, to Samit Patel’s second ball of the day, he aimed a drive and was bowled for 15 by the left-arm spinner. Denly, 42 not out at tea, went on to reach 63 from 76 balls before being bowled by Gurney, with the left-arm paceman squaring him up with a fine delivery from around the wicket.Neil Dexter then thick-edged Gurney to Michael Lumb in the gully as, on 9, he pushed hard at another ball angled in but straightening a little off the pitch, while Gareth Berg fell for 26 to the second new ball when he gave Adams a return catch.John Simpson’s punchy 51 not out, though, from 74 balls and with six fours, guided Middlesex past 350 and a fourth batting point, despite Ollie Rayner falling lbw to Adams.Nottinghamshire’s David Hussey suffered a finger injury while fielding that caused a cut, but he should be fine for next Saturday’s Yorkshire Bank 40 final against Glamorgan. Director of cricket Mick Newell said: “It’s not dislocated and it’s not broken so it shouldn’t be any problem with regard to next week’s final.”

Diniz aponta dificuldades ao analisar empate na Copa do Brasil: 'Foi justo'

MatériaMais Notícias

Sem inspiração, o Fluminense não conseguiu sair do 0 a 0 contra o Luverdense no Passo das Emas, no Mato Grosso, em jogo válido pela terceira fase da Copa do Brasil. Ao analisar o desempenho das equipes na noite desta quarta-feira, o técnico Fernando Diniz viu justiça no resultado.

– O resultado foi justo, sim. Criamos pouco, tivemos uma ou outra chance, o Luverdense criou pouco. Foi um jogo muito truncado. Foi um jogo para empate mesmo. A equipe soube jogar a partida, mas tivemos dificuldade para penetrar – disse o comandante, que relembrou o retrospecto de outras equipes diante do LEC para justificar as dificuldades do Flu:

– Muito difícil, com já esperávamos. Historicamente o Luverdense pega os times grandes aqui e complica. Lembro do Inter empatar jogo aqui, o Botafogo não conseguir ganhar… O Santos perdeu aqui.

O treinador enumerou as duas maiores dificuldades enfrentadas pelo Fluminense no centro-oeste do país: o gramado e a obediência tática do time de Júnior Rocha.

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– As dificuldades foram criadas não só pelo campo, mas pela disposição tática dos jogadores do Luverdense. Eles marcaram muito, jogadores rápidos, foram muito obedientes. Os dez marcando com força. Sabíamos que seria difícil criar. Faltou um pouco de criatividade para o time, mas que foi dificultado pelo campo e o esquema tático deles – analisou.

A viagem para o interior do Mato Grosso não era novidade para Fernando Diniz, que já esteve em Lucas do Rio Verde com Paraná e Oeste para enfrentar o Luverdense. O comandante tricolor disse ter tirado proveito das experiências anteriores e enxergou o Fluminense melhor na segunda etapa.

– Já conhecia e sabia das dificuldades de jogar aqui. A experiência que tive aqui ajudou a preparar bem o time para fazer um jogo seguro. No segundo tempo melhoramos um pouco na partida, tivemos algumas chances para marcar e oferecemos muito poucas chances de contra-ataque, que era a proposta deles.

O jogo de volta entre Flu e Luverdense está marcado para o dia 9 de abril, próxima terça-feira, no Maracanã. Sem o critério do “gol fora de casa”, qualquer novo empate leva o jogo para os pênaltis. Diniz conjecturou a próximo encontrou entre as equipes:

– No Rio tende a ser um jogo diferente, porque as condições do gramado são outras, o ambiente é outro. O gramado, a maneira como nos sentimos em casa, jogando no Maracanã. O jogo fica mais fluido. Aqui, de fato, fica mais difícil de jogar.

Por fim, o treinador que chegou às Laranjeiras nesta temporada citou o cansaço gerado pela viagem até o interior mato-grossense.

É procurar minimizar os danos que causam uma viagem como essa. Todos sabem que aqui iríamos dormir pouco, a alimentação não seria ideal. Foi cansativo para vir, será cansativo para voltar. Mais incompreensível ainda é, sabendo disso, marcarem nosso jogo para sábado, tendo todas as condições de marcar para domingo. A tabela, de fato, não nos favoreceu, mas agora é saber trabalhar com o que temos. Isso não vai mudar mais. É descansar os jogadores para jogo contra o Flamengo – completou.

O Fluminense disputa seu quarto clássico contra o Rubro-Negro no ano neste sábado, às 19h, no Maracanã. O jogo é válido pela semifinal do Campeonato Carioca.

إشارة جديدة للخروج.. مبابي يتدرب مع المستبعدين من باريس سان جيرمان

يتدرب الدولي الفرنسي كيليان مبابي مع اللاعبين المستبعدين من قائمة باريس سان جيرمان التي اختارها لويس إنريكي، للسفر إلى جولة اليابان التحضيرية للموسم الجديد.

باريس سان جيرمان يرغب في تجديد عقد كيليان مبابي، أو رحيله بمقابل مادي مناسب هذا الصيف، لكن اللاعب الفرنسي يريد الاستمرار حتى نهاية عقده يونيو 2024.

لويس إنريكي المدير الفني الإسباني لفريق كرة القدم الأول بـ نادي باريس سان جيرمان، أعلن عن قائمة اللاعيبن الذين سيتجهون إلى اليابان، لمواجهة النصر السعودي وسيريزو أوساكا الياباني، ثم إنتر ميلان الإيطالي.

طالع أيضًا.. بيدري عن مصير مبابي: لست رئيس ريال مدريد

ولم يتواجد اللاعب الفرنسي ضمن قائمة فريقه المتجهة إلى اليابان، دون أي توضيح من باريس سان جيرمان عبر موقعهم الرسمي.

صحيفة “لو باريزيان” الفرنسية، أكدت أن مبابي يتدرب مع اللاعبين المستبعدين من قائمة باريس سان جيرمان، مثل فينالدوم وباريديس، وجوليان دراكسر، وعبده ديالو بالإضافة لـ كولين داجبا.

وأشارت الصحيفة ألى أن المستبعيدن من قائمة باريس سان جيرمان في معسكر اليابان، جميعهم خارج حسابات المدرب لويس إنريكي للموسم الجديد، ويبحثون عن أندية.

وبذلك، فإن كيليان مبابي خارج حسابات المدرب الإسباني أيضًا، ويبدو أنه جاري العمل على إيجاد حل لحسم مستقبل لاعب موناكو الأسبق في أقرب وقت ممكن.

Yorkshire sign up Williamson

Yorkshire have confirmed the signing of New Zealand international Kane Williamson as their overseas player for the 2014 season after he made an impressive short-term contribution to their abortive Championship challenge.

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Sep-2013

Kane Williamson will return to Yorkshire next season after impressive in his short stint with the county•Getty Images

Yorkshire have confirmed the signing of New Zealand international Kane Williamson as their overseas player for the 2014 season after he made an impressive short-term contribution to their abortive Championship challenge.Williamson, 23, who joined Yorkshire in August, averaged 53 with the bat from seven Championship innings including a top score of 97 only for Yorkshire’s challenge to be outdone as Durham won their third title in six seasons.Despite the disappointment, Yorkshire have taken to Williamson, both for his zealous approach and ability to bat on difficult pitches, and now see him as a potential long-term overseas signing.”It is great news to have Kane on board for next season,” said Yorkshire’s director of cricket Martyn Moxon. “He has settled in well and is a popular member of the dressing room. We have seen him excel in four-day cricket in the short time he has been with us and I have no doubt that he will be a tremendous asset in all forms of the game next season.”For a young man, he has already gained a massive amount of experience playing at the highest level against the best teams in the world. He should be available for the majority of next season and play his part in our efforts to be successful and competitive in all forms of the game.”Yorkshire have vowed to improve their limited-overs performances next season and, although Williamson is not renowned as a one-day player, a changed Twenty20 format, which sees the tournament played on Friday nights for the majority of the season, means that overseas players will have to adapt to all formats.Williamson, who plays his final match against Surrey at The Oval, believes Yorkshire are on the verge of a successful period. “I have only been at the club for a short period of time and already it feels like I have been playing here for many years,” said Williamson.”One of the reasons why I wanted to return next season was the fact that we are on verge of something special. We have all the processes in place to be successful over the next few years.”I know all about the history and the traditions of the club. Even back home it is talked about fondly and is held in high esteem. It would be nice to be part of the squad that creates its own piece of history.Once his commitments come to an end with Yorkshire at the end of this week, Williamson will be joining up with New Zealand on their tour of Bangladesh and Sri Lanka before home series against West Indies and India.

World T20 prep begins for South Africa, Pakistan

For both Pakistan and South Africa, this is the first of seven T20 matches before the 2014 World Twenty20, and they will be looking to finalise and fine tune their combinations

The Preview by Firdose Moonda12-Nov-2013Match factsWednesday, November 13, 2013
Start time 2000 local (1600 GMT)Pakistan will go top on the T20 rankings, if they win 2-0•AFP

Big Picture In the space of 10 days, Pakistan and South Africa will play four Twenty20s, in what can be seen as the one of the longest mini-series the format has seen to date. In reality, these are two separate contests.The first one was planned months ago, as the dessert to South Africa’s ongoing UAE tour. The second was hastily arranged as a snack for South African cricket supporters who will see less of India than was originally scheduled. Together, they will script an intriguing narrative across continents that will rigorously examine the skill of both sides four months ahead of the World Twenty20.For both teams this is the first of seven matches before the global event. Pakistan will play Afghanistan and Sri Lanka, while South Africa have three matches against Australia to fine tune.There is still time to find combinations but they will both want to settle on them quickly and allow players time to adjust to their roles. For South Africa, the main decisions will be with the top order and the seam-bowling trio, while Pakistan will look to settle on a middle order and find an allrounder. They will be considered favourites, especially on current form, and have the added incentive of becoming the top-ranked team in Twenty20 cricket should they sweep the series. South Africa, though, have all the confidence having won the ODIs.Form guidePakistan WWWWW (completed games, most recent first)
South Africa LWWLWIn the spotlight Sohaib Maqsood had a moderate start to his international career with 26 runs from two T20s matches against Zimbabwe but erased that from memory with the way he began his ODI run. Back-to-back half-centuries against South Africa showed him to be a clean hitter of the ball who is able to find good placement. He is aggressive and unafraid to show it. If Pakistan hope to turn around the indifferent batting performances from their one-day showings, they will need him to come good in the shortest format.After a lean run, not dissimilar to the one he has had in the UAE, Faf du Plessis scored 85 in a T20 in Sri Lanka to boost his confidence. At the time he said he really needed those runs and he needs them again. In the format in which he captains, du Plessis will want to lead by example. He will need to find a way to keep the scoreboard moving against a slew of spinners who have thus far kept him quiet.Team news Although Mohammad Hafeez has batted lower down the order in this format, he may choose to open to keep the same top order as Pakistan had in the ODIs. Sohaib Maqsood has been successful at No. 3 in the fifty-over format and may stay there. Shoaib Malik could make his return in the middle order with Abdul Razzaq also in line for a comeback. Pakistan may overlook him if they opt for an extra spinner in Abdur Rehman. It may also be time to rest Mohammad Irfan, who has played every match on the tour so far.Pakistan: (likely) 1 Mohammad Hafeez (capt), 2 Ahmed Shehzad, 3 Sohaib Maqsood 4 Umar Amin, 5 Shoaib Malik, 6 Umar Akmal (wk), 7 Shahid Afridi, 8 Abdul Razzaq/Abdur Rehman 9 Sohail Tanvir, 10 Junaid Khan/Mohammad Irfan, 11 Saeed AjmalSouth Africa are spoilt for choice at the top with Quinton de Kock having found form, Hashim Amla back in the T20 squad and Henry Davids, the incumbent, in good nick in domestic cricket. Amla may find himself missing out. Dale Steyn has also made himself available for the shortest format and will likely slot back in. That will mean South Africa may have to choose two out of Morne Morkel, Lonwabo Tsotsobe and Wayne Parnell. With Imran Tahir enjoying these conditions, he will likely be selected ahead of Aaron Phangiso.South Africa: (likely)1 Henry Davids, 2 Quinton de Kock (wk) 3 Faf du Plessis (capt), 4 JP Duminy 5 AB de Villiers, 6 David Miller, 7 Ryan McLaren, 8 Dale Steyn 9 and 10 Morne Morkel/Lonwabo Tsotsobe/Wayne Parnell, 11 Imran TahirStats and trivia This is the only format in which Pakistan have dominance over South Africa. Of the eight matches the two teams have contested, Pakistan have won four and lost three with one abandoned. But, two of South Africa’s three victories over Pakistan have come in the UAE, both in Abu Dhabi, on the 2010 tour Ahmed Shehzad is one run behind Aaron Finch in this year’s Twenty20 batting charts, with 261 runsQuotes”They have the potential to beat us 2-0 but we also have the potential to do that. It’s going to be a fight out there. We are not going to give an inch and I am sure they will do the same.”

'A vitória dá confiança, mas o Fla não ganhou nada', alerta Abel Braga

MatériaMais Notícias

Nem mesmo a vitória por 2 a 0 do Flamengo sobre o Vasco é suficiente para Abel Braga deixar-se levar pela euforia. Em entrevista coletiva neste domingo, logo após o jogo de ida da final do Campeonato Carioca, no Estádio Nilton Santos, o treinador foi categórico:

– A vitória traz confiança, mas foi uma vitória em 90 minutos e esse jogo tem 180. Alertei aos jogadores que não conquistamos nada. Se não jogarmos com a mesma seriedade do segundo tempo… Porque as opções do primeiro tempo, falei com eles, foram horríveis. No segundo tempo, não, com Flamengo muito forte, começando a rodar a bola de um lado para o outro.

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O treinador apontou o que pesou para que De Arrascaeta começasse a jogar entre os titulares.

– Ele vem num momento bom, se adaptou melhor ao grupo e, no Cruzeiro, demorou dois anos para assumir a titularidade. Aqui, três meses. Ele não entrou porque Diego estava mal, mas porque ele (De Arrascaeta) estava muito bem. Viemos sem treinar, não deixei de correr certo risco por isso. Lincoln mereceu entrar, qualidades ímpares, estou contente.

Aos seus olhos, a equipe vem crescendo de rendimento aos poucos:

– No primeiro tempo não fizemos as melhores opções. E, hoje, com 1 a 0 e com o segundo, o time não saiu naquela loucura. Quando saiu o espaço é que a gente pôde verticalizar. Estamos começando a amadurecer. Vitória justa sem o goleiro do Flamengo fazer nenhuma defesa.

Abel Braga minimizou polêmicas quanto à possibilidade de atuar no Nilton Santos:

-O Maracanã é a casa do Flamengo, apesar de eu ter uma história feliz aqui no Engenhão (Nilton Santos). Não fico triste, não.

O treinador destacou as atuações de jogadores como Everton Ribeiro e Diego. Porém, fez um alerta sobre análises:

– Everton, hoje, jogou por dentro, mas quando joga pela ponta recompõe. Diego entrou bem. É muito simples falar agora depois do jogo. Ruim é análise sobre o resultado. Porque você, por acaso, sabe o segredo do sucesso? Mas eu sei qual o segredo do fracasso. É quando você quer escutar todo mundo. E eu vou ganhar ou perder com a minha cabeça. Não tem como ser diferente.

ثروت سويلم: حسين الشحات خسر الكثير بسبب واقعة محمد الشيبي.. ووارد تغليظ عقوبته

تحدث ثروت سويلم عضو رابطة الأندية المحترفة، عن واقعة حسين الشحات جناح الأهلي مع محمد الشيبي ظهير بيراميدز.

وكان حسين الشحات قد توجه إلى محمد الشيبي، عقب انتهاء مباراة الأهلي وبيراميدز، ووجه له السباب ثم صفعه على وجهه.

وقال سويلم في تصريحات لفضائية “ten”: “سأتحدث بشكل شخصي، أول مرة أرى واقعة مثل ذلك، أنا أحب حسين الشحات، هو إنسان مهذب جدًا ومتدين”.

طالع أيضًا | عدلي القيعي: الأهلي رد حق محمد الشيبي.. والمغربي يسير على منهج

وتابع: “بعد الذي شاهدته، لم أتخيل أن الشحات الذي شاهدناه بالاحترام والتدين والالتزام وحب الوالدين يفعل ذلك، واقعة صعبة جدًا، وكانت عقوبة لجنة المسابقات قرارًا سريعًا عقب المباراة، هذا يدل أن الكل غير راض عن التصرف”.

لجنة المسابقات أصدرت عقوبة بإيقاف حسين الشحات لمباراتين وتغريمه ماليًا 20 ألف جنيه بسبب ما بدر منه تجاه الشيبي.

وأكمل: “العقوبة أقل من الحدث نفسه ولكن كان يجب أن يكون هناك سرعة في القرار، وخاصة أن الطرف الثاني في بيراميدز لاعب غير مصري، فكان هناك نوع من التعاطف، وارد بعد ذلك يحدث اجتماع للجنة المسابقات ويكون هناك تغليظ للعقوبة، ووارد تدخل لجنة الانضباط، سرعة اتخاذ القرار نتيجة أن التصرف كان صعبًا بعض الشيء”.

وأوضح: “الأهلي نادي المبادىء، أول شيء فعله هو تطبيق عقوبة على حسين الشحات، كل المؤسسات بما فيها النادي الأهلي لم يعجبها ما حدث”.

واختتم: “النادي الأهلي حريص جدًا ألا يوجد منتمي له يفعل ما حدث، هذه اللقطة مسيئة لـ حسين الشحات نفسه، وخسر الكثير جدًا حتى لو اعتذر للشيبي، الاعتذار ليس كل شيء”.

سبورت: صفقة انتقال برناردو سيلفا إلى برشلونة تحتاج لمعجزة

كشفت تقارير صحفية إسبانية، أن الدولي البرتغالي برناردو سيلفا، لاعب فريق كرة القدم الأول بنادي مانشستر سيتي، يائس من الانضمام إلى برشلونة.

اللاعب البرتغالي ارتبط بالانتقال إلى برشلونة منذ الصيف الماضي 2022، قبل أن يعود اللاعب على طاولة مفاوضات البلوجرانا هذا الموسم.

صحيفة “سبورت” الإسبانية، أفادت بأن برناردو سيلفا بدأ يشعر باليأس، ويرى بأن انتقاله إلى برشلونة أصبح مستحيلًا، وتحقيق حلمه بارتداء القميص الكتالوني لن يكون ممكنًا في الوقت الحالي.

طالع أيضًا.. سبورت: تشافي “المحبط” حاول إقناع ديمبلي بالبقاء في برشلونة عن طريق نيمار

في برشلونة الأمور صعبة من الناحية المالية، وهو ما يجعل الصفقة غاية في الصعوبة، حيث إن النادي الكتالوني غير قادر على دفع الأموال التي يطلبها مانشستر سيتي.

وكيل اللاعب خورخي مينديز، تواصل كثيرًا مع برشلونة والعديد من الاجتماعات التي عقدها النادي الكتالوني مع البرتغالي، لم تأت بجديد، وهو ما جعل برناردو يشعر باليأس من الانتقال إلى ملعب كامب نو.

تلك الصفقة تحتاج لمعجزة كما وصفت الصحيفة الإسبانية، حتى إذا رحل عثمان ديمبلي بمبلغ مالي كبير، فلن يجازف البلوجرانا بدفعه في التعاقد مع برناردو سيلفا.

ما هو مؤكد، أن برناردو سيلفا سيستمر مع مانشستر سيتي حتى نهاية عقده في 2025 أو على الأقل، لنهاية الموسم المقبل 2023/2024، وبعد ذلك ينتظر ما سيحدث.

All too easy for India in the decider

Against a moderate West Indies total and a mediocre West Indies attack, India ambled to victory on the back of another Shikhar Dhawan century

The Report by Siddarth Ravindran27-Nov-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Shikhar Dhawan made his fifth ODI century of the year to guide India’s chase•BCCI

India have been masterful while chasing in ODIs this year, and against a moderate total and a mediocre West Indies attack, they ambled to victory in the series-deciding third ODI in Kanpur. Shikhar Dhawan hit his fifth ODI hundred of his magical year and the struggling Yuvraj Singh hit his first ODI half-century in 11 innings as India cruised to their sixth successive one-day series win of the year.With a 9am start on a hazy winter morning, the talk at the toss was about how the first hour would be a challenge for the batsmen. West Indies negotiated that phase well losing only one wicket, and half-centuries from Kieran Powell and Marlon Samuels took them to a strong 164 for 2 when the batting Powerplay was taken. Perfectly placed then for the power-hitters to come; they nearly squandered that advantage by losing three quick wickets, but Darren Sammy and Darren Bravo provided the late flourish to lift them to 263.Smart stats

Virat Kohli was Ravi Rampaul’s 100th ODI wicket. Rampaul was playing his 80th match, making him the sixth fastest to the landmark among West Indies bowlers. Curtly Ambrose and Ian Bishop, who took 61 matches, are the fastest.

Shikhar Dhawan hit the fifth ODI hundred of his career and all of them have come in 2013. He leads the list of batsmen with most centuries in international cricket this year.

The West Indies batsmen made eight fifty-plus scores in this series, the most they have hit in any three-ODI series.

The 129-run partnership between Dhawan and Yuvraj Singh was the highest for the third wicket at this venue, beating the 105 added by Chetan Sharma and Navjot Sidhu against England in 1989.

Darren Bravo scored his third half-century of the series and became the first West Indies batsman since Ramnaresh Sarwan in 2011 (also against India) to hit three or more fifty-plus scores in an ODI series.

India achieved the highest successful run chase at Green Park, Kanpur, beating the 256 they chased against England in 1989.

The series victory was India’s sixth in a row in ODIs, equalling their longest sequence of series wins before this, starting with the bilateral series in Sri Lanka in 2008 and ending with the Compaq Cup tri-series in 2009.

That proved too little, especially as only Ravi Rampaul and Sunil Narine posed any threat with the ball. Jason Holder had a disappointing day, with Dhawan feasting on the poor lines to take five fours in his first two overs to propel India along early. Dwayne Bravo and Sammy were tame, and midway through the chase – when Dhawan and Yuvraj were killing off the chase – West Indies had turned to the innocuous duo of Veerasammy Permaul and Lendl Simmons.There was briefly some hope for West Indies early on, when Rampaul dismissed two of India’s red-hot top three early. He couldn’t get the wicket of Dhawan, though, and Dhawan scored big. As usual, the innings was studded with breathtaking cuts and drives through the off, and without really seeming to make the effort, he had 20 fours to his name was scoring at over a run a ball.While it was Dhawan’s innings that made the game safe, Yuvraj’s will gladden Indian fans. A destructive batsman with a penchant for the big stage, Yuvraj hasn’t been among the runs in recent months, even during the Australia series which was a bowlers’ bloodbath. Australia turned to Mitchell Johnson to dismiss him early several times, and West Indies hoped Narine would have a similar impact. Yuvraj wasn’t comfortable against Narine today either, misreading him several times, but he managed to ride out that difficult phase and cashed in against the lesser threats in the attack.Even though Dhawan and Yuvraj were dismissed with India just under 50 away from the target, it only afforded the chance for India’s other out-of-form batsman, Suresh Raina, to play a pressure-free cameo on his birthday, with the result never in doubt.It was far easier batting in the evening than in the first hour. India’s new-ball bowlers posed plenty of questions for West Indies’ openers, who were regularly beaten by the movement. Even as late as the 12th over, India had three slips in place.Powell had grabbed the chance offered by Chris Gayle’s absence with a half-century in Visakhapatnam, and built on that with another solid score. He was a bit loose outside off early on but settled in as the innings progressed, showing off his driving skills, with a square drive off Mohit Sharma in the sixth over a highlight. He had reached 70 by the 30th over, but miscued a sweep off R Ashwin – the fifth time in a row that the opener has gone past 40 without reaching triple figures.His 117-run partnership with Samuels had set West Indies up for a strong total. Samuels was nervy early on, extremely reluctant to get on the front foot against the fast bowlers, and played and missed often. After his initial struggles, he was more at ease against the spinners, stepping out to launch Ashwin onto the temporary roof in the stands beyond long-on. He was reprieved on 60 when Virat Kohli put down a chance at first slip, but was bowled soon after by Ashwin.That was in the first over of the batting Powerplay, and with Simmons and Dwayne Bravo failing, West Indies had suddenly slipped to 196 for 5. However, Darren Bravo made his third consecutive half-century and Darren Sammy’s all-power game worked again this time as they threw the bat around to put on 67 in little over eight overs. It proved to be too little against India’s formidable batting though.

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