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Ireland will play a quadrangular Twenty20 tournament in Sri Lanka, involving Sri Lanka A, Afghanistan and Canada

Cricinfo staff18-Dec-2009Ireland will play a quadrangular Twenty20 tournament in Sri Lanka, involving Sri Lanka A, Afghanistan and Canada, as part of their preparations for the ICC World Twenty20 qualifier in the UAE in February.Ireland will travel to Sri Lanka after the completion of their Intercontinental Cup match against Afghanistan and the four-team tournament will be held from January 31 to February 4,”This will give the squad a good work-out ahead of the UAE leg of the tour. It’ll get the players into the mindset of the shorter format of the game,” Phil Simmons, the Ireland coach, said. “We still haven’t played a lot of 20-over cricket, although the experience of playing in the finals in England last year will help us. There are only two places up for grabs for the finals in the West Indies, so it will be difficult for all the teams. There will be a lot of pressure games with so much at stake, but we have a lot of experience in our camp, which is so vital as we showed last year when we won the World Cup Qualifiers in South Africa.””I and the players want to make it four in a row in terms of qualifying for the major tournaments – when you get a taste of the big time, you want more. The players are still hungry for more success, and for me there would be the added bonus of coaching Ireland in the West Indies. We did fantastically well there in 2007, as that’s where we really announced ourselves on the world stage. Ireland has happy memories of the West Indies – it’d be great if we could have a few more in 2010.”

MS Dhoni believes India are a long way from becoming the best Twenty20 side in the world, despite a record chase against Sri Lanka in Mohali

Cricinfo staff12-Dec-2009India may have squared the series with a record chase but MS Dhoni has said the team will have to pull up their socks before they
can claim to be a quality Twenty20 side. India’s successful chase of a target of 207, the highest successful chase in this format, snapped a four-game losing streak but their bowling and fielding left much to be desired.It was the second match in a row that Sri Lanka were allowed to cross 200, and the fielding was worse than in Nagpur, with six catches going down. “We could be the best team in the world in this format, but our bowling and fielding has got to improve,” said Dhoni. “We have been struggling with our bowling for some time, not just in the Twenty20 format, but in the one-day version as well.”If we could improve that aspect of the game, we would be a difficult team to beat. We certainly have the batting and this team has got character, but there are areas in which we need to improve.”That India managed to emerge triumphant owed plenty to Virender Sehwag’s 36-ball 64, Yuvraj Singh’s unbeaten 60 off 25 balls, and Dhoni’s quick 46. These three innings allowed India chase down Sri Lanka’s total of 206 for 7 with five balls to spare. “We had the firepower to chase this score, but we needed a good start,” said Dhoni. “Even if you lose a wicket at the top, the player who comes in ought to score at a brisk pace. That didn’t happen for us in the first game in Nagpur, but we were perfect here. Overall, you need every batsman to contribute and that’s exactly what happened in this game.”I’ve never seen a team dropping six catches, but then Sri Lanka missed as many run-out chances. In an international game, you have to take those chances whatever the reasons may be.”Kumar Sangakkara’s 31-ball 59 had been the foundation of Sri Lanka’s imposing total, but he was left to look on in frustration as Sri Lanka outdid India’s butter-fingered performance. “We did well to create that total which I thought was more than enough to win us this game,” he said. “We bowled the first six overs really well, but those catches and those run outs really mattered in the end. We had our chances, quite a few of them really, and we didn’t take them.”From there on, it was just a case of trying to contain because once we let go of the chances, there was no way of putting pressure on the opposition.”Yuvraj, whose rambunctious innings made a massive difference, said his 28th birthday was his best to date. “This is my best birthday till now. I am very happy the way we played, especially the batsmen. Frankly I was not expecting to score 60 of 25 balls.”He also credited India’s coach Gary Kirsten. “He is the best coach that I have ever played under,” said Yuvraj. “He understands the game and the pressure.”The sides will now begin a five-match ODI series on December 15 in Rajkot.

Charlie Taylor, who played both cricket and hockey for Barbados in a sporting career that lasted more than 30 years, died in Oakville, Canada

05-Jan-2010Charlie Taylor, who played both cricket and hockey for Barbados
in a sporting career that lasted more than 30 years, died on
Tuesday in Oakville, Canada. He was 82. Christened Alfred
McDonald and son of a well-known Bridgetown entrepreneur, A.E.
Taylor, Charlie first made his mark in both sports at Pickwick
Club.He was a quick-scoring batsman, wicket-keeper and fleet-footed
fielder and the most solid defender in Barbados hockey at the
time, representing the island in the Caribbean championships in
Trinidad in 1960 as a still fit and fast 42-year-old.Taylor made his cricket debut just short of his 20th birthday
against Trinidad at the Queen’s Park Oval in 1942. He batted down
the order, was out cheaply and wasn’t chosen again until five
years later.In his second match on return, against British Guiana at Bourda,
he scored the first of his four hundreds, 101 not out in a total
of 601 for 9 declared, going in at No. 9 and adding 125 with
E.A.V. ‘Foffie’ Williams for the ninth wicket.It gained him a promotion as an opener for the rest of his
career, sharing partnerships with Teddy Hoad jnr., George Carew,
Roy Marshall and Conrad Hunte until he bowed out against Jamaica
at Kensington, aged 33.His two major innings were both at Kensington 168 against
Trinidad and Tobago in 1949, when he and Marshall put on 278 for
the first wicket in an eventual total of 698, and 161 against the
touring M.C.C. (England) team in 1948 that was followed by Clyde
Walcott’s 120 and Everton Weekes’ unbeaten 118 in a total of 514
for 4 declared.In 16 first-class matches for Barbados Taylor scored 860 runs at
an average of 34.4, took nine catches and made three stumpings.His son, Alfred, also played four matches for Barbados as a
batsman/wicket-keeper in the 1960s.Charlie was one of the pioneers in the Barbados hotel industry as
proprietor of the Royal Hotel in Hastings, Christ Church, now the
Regency Cove. He leaves to mourn his wife, Sylvia, sons Alfred,
Tony and Allan (the calypsonian, the Mighty Whitey) and daughter
Patricia. Another son, Christopher, predeceased him

Mohammad Kaif scored his maiden first-class double century to boost Central Zone to a massive total on the third day

Cricinfo staff21-Jan-2010
Scorecard
Fog and bad light continued to eat away at match hours in Amritsar, where Mohammad Kaif scored his maiden first-class double-century to boost Central Zone to a massive total on the third day.The entire morning session was lost to bad light, after which Kaif and Naman Ojha guided Central past 400. Their partnership had grown to 64 when Ojha fell to medium-pacer Dhiraj Goswami. Piyush Chawla chipped in with a quickfire 27 but it was Kaif who was the star of the day, going on to become only the fourth Central Zone batsman to cross 200. Central declared soon after the milestone was reached, in the hope of giving their bowlers enough time to dismiss East Zone and progress on the first-innings lead.East made an assured start to their reply, with openers Dheeraj Jadhav and Arindham Das putting on 62. Jadhav was dismissed by Sanjay Bangar for 28, and East had progressed to 64 for 1 before bad light caused play to be called off.

What is India’s best bowling attack in Kolkata: the existing two-seamer and two-spinner combination or does it make sense to field three fast bowlers

N Hunter13-Feb-2010What is India’s best bowling attack for Kolkata? Is it the existing two-seamer and two-spinner combination or does it make sense to field three fast bowlers with Harbhajan Singh as the lone spinner and Virender Sehwag as a sidekick. The Indian think-tank has less than 24 hours to sort out that puzzle before the final Test begins.The question has cropped up only because the South Africans, among the best players of spin in India, successfully tackled the pair of Harbhajan Singh and Amit Mishra in Nagpur through a mixture of sheer application and some luck. It continues the trend of Indian spinners struggling for consistency, which was on evidence in the Sri Lanka series late last year as well.In the past the thumb rule was to field at least two spinners because the pitches would invariably start turning sharply from the third day. But on surfaces which have refused to break and have been slow and low (Motera and Green Park during the Sri Lanka series are good examples), the Indians spinners have failed to find a rhythm, adding pressure on the fast bowlers. The pitches cannot be as spin-unfriendly as they are made out to be especially considering Paul Harris’ effectiveness against some of the best players of spin in Nagpur.In the three-Test series against Sri Lanka, Harbhajan managed 13 wickets at an average of 41. India won that series more because of their batting might and some incisive fast bowling spells. Otherwise more questions would have been asked of India’s best spinner, whose form has been a concern for a while now.You can’t blame his slow-bowling partners, Amit Mishra and Pragyan Ojha, since neither of them has been given the long rope. Mishra failed to make an impact with his leg breaks against Sri Lanka in Ahmedabad, picking only one wicket, but came back with an impressive seven-wicket match haul in the first Test in Bangladesh. Harbhajan returned for the next Test but only picked two wickets in the game, in which Mishra was dropped for the left-arm spin of Ojha. Even in the Sri Lanka series, Ojha was preferred over Mishra during the victories in the final two Tests, in which Ojha claimed nine victims.With the spinners unconvincing, a better ploy at Eden Gardens could be to play three fast bowlers. It might look like a desperate measure, but with MS Dhoni emphasising that India prefers the four-bowler theory, it is the only way to play their four best bowlers. Dhoni, too, agrees to an extent. “We have always been comfortable with four bowlers because it has worked for us. If you have an allrounder in the side that makes it very easy but we don’t have that option.”Importantly, India’s fast bowlers have featured prominently in most of the recent Test wins. Less than three months ago, Sreesanth produced an amazing spell of fast bowling against Sri Lanka at Kanpur in what was India’s 100th Test victory. Then, as now, Sreesanth was coming out of a break, but found his rhythm and swing without much sweat. Also, South Africa have been Sreesanth’s favourite opposition: his 22 wickets against them are his highest against a single team, with the famous 8 for 99 at the Wanderers remaining his career-best performance.His presence could lighten the burden on Zaheer Khan and even Ishant Sharma, who has been under pressure over the past year. But the team management has retained confidence in Ishant, who has faded a bit in the recent past after his much-heralded arrival during the tour of Australia in 2007-08.A crucial factor that might support the quicks could be the conditions especially in the final session when the breeze wafting in from the Hooghly on the West side of the ground can help swing bowlers a lot. The trio of Zaheer, Ishant and Sreesanth has the capability of swerving the ball about and could prove a handful on their day.”There is a bit of grass on the wicket so I think the seamers will get a bit of help,” Dhoni said after the final training session. He also acknowledged the afternoon breeze could play a role, especially with the stands on the West side being reconstructed. “There is no stand on one side of the ground so you can see a bit of breeze going across the field so there will be a bit of help for the seamers.”But Dhoni remained non-committal on the number of seamers of spinners he would like to field, leaving that decision for Sunday morning. Perhaps he could heed the thoughts expressed by John Wright, former India coach. “You have to play a spinner but you don’t play a spinner for a spinner’s sake, he has to be among your four best bowlers. Who are your first bowlers? That is a question you need to ask.”

Half-centuries to Jess Cameron and Shelley Nitschke kept Australia in the series as they snatched a two-wicket win from the final ball of the first ODI

Cricinfo staff03-Mar-2010Australia 229 for 8 (Cameron 68, Nitschke 51) beat New Zealand 228 for 6 (Devine 74*, Lind 68) by 2 wickets

ScorecardShelley Nitschke set up Australia’s chase with 51•Associated Press

Half-centuries to Jess Cameron and Shelley Nitschke kept Australia in the series as they snatched a two-wicket win from the final ball of the first ODI in Queenstown. Chasing New Zealand’s 228 for 6, Australia were in difficulty a couple of times before the tail-enders Erin Osborne and Julie Hunter were able to seal a thrilling result.Australia’s chase was healthy when Nitschke was in charge, but she departed for 51 as part of a collapse of 3 for 3 that left them at 90 for 5. Sophie Devine (2 for 63) had picked up Sarah Elliott when she forced Nitschke into a catch for the wicketkeeper Rachel Priest.The game seemed over but Cameron turned up and kept the visitors in sight of the total, with them needing 27 off the final four overs. However, Ellyse Perry departed for 27 and Cameron went in the penultimate over for 68 off 81, leaving Osborne and Hunter seeking 16 from nine deliveries. They whittled down the target and wanted four off the last ball, with Hunter finding the boundary off Devine.New Zealand had struggled to 85 for 5 after winning the toss but life became easier once Victoria Lind was joined by Sophie Devine. The pair put on 74 in 15.3 overs before Lind was out for 68 off 100 and then Devine sped forward with Nicola Brown as the innings concluded.Devine, who has been a big problem for the Australians, was unbeaten on 74 off 82, with two sixes, while Brown had 26 off 24. Perry had the best figures with 2 for 44 of 10 while Sarah Andrews, Hunter and Nitschke gained one victim each.New Zealand have ruled the Twenty20s, winning all five at home and away over the past month, but Australia took their recent advantage in the 50-over games to 6-0. New Zealand currently lead the home Rose Bowl series 2-1, following their Twenty20 successes, and the second and third ODIs will be played in Invercargill on Saturday and Sunday.

Waqar Younis, Pakistan’s incoming coach, has expressed “shock” at the clean-up operation in Pakistan which saw the PCB ban and fine seven leading players

Osman Samiuddin10-Mar-2010Waqar Younis, Pakistan’s incoming coach, has expressed “shock” at the clean-up operation in Pakistan which saw the PCB ban and fine seven leading players. Waqar is due to arrive next week in Lahore from Sydney to take over from Intikhab Alam and prepare Pakistan’s defense of the World Twenty20 title in the Caribbean in April-May.He will arrive now preparing to deal with the repercussions of the board’s decision to hand out year-long bans to Rana Naved-ul-Hasan and Shoaib Malik and open-ended ones to Younis Khan and Mohammad Yousuf.Of immediate concern will be the unavailability of Rana and Malik from the World Twenty20 squad; both have been key performers in the format in the past and Malik was in charge of the side that finished runners-up in the 2007 World Twenty20.In the longer-term Waqar may well have to do without Younis and Yousuf in the Test side, a worrying prospect for a batting side that has failed to cross 350 more than twice in their last 16 innings, often with both of them present.”It’s a huge shock for me definitely,” Waqar told Cricinfo. “I want to speak to the board about it to get more details on it before saying more, but it is definitely a big step.”Waqar was part of the touring set-up in Australia, appointed as a bowling and fielding coach for the series. That was his second stint in a coaching position with the Pakistan side, after spending nearly a year with the team and Bob Woolmer in 2006 as a bowling coach.Though he has spoken to the chairman since about the tour, he wasn’t called to the inquiry committee sittings. According to the PCB’s release, he did submit a report which the inquiry took into account.”It is a big step the board has taken and I hope they have solid evidence for taking the actions that they have taken,” Waqar said. “All evidence must be there and they must have spoken to a lot of people for this. Once a player is banned it is a label you have put on him so it is a big thing.”

Sachin Tendulkar shored up Mumbai Indians yet again, steering them into the semi-final with his fifth half-century of the IPL that took him to the top of the run-charts in the tournament

The Bulletin by Siddhartha Talya11-Apr-2010Mumbai Indians 174 for 5 (Tendulkar 89*, Watson 3-37) beat Rajasthan Royals 137 for 8 (Dole 30, Zaheer 2-17) by 37 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out
Sachin Tendulkar’s unbeaten 89 was the defining feature of Mumbai’s comprehensive win•Indian Premier League

Sachin Tendulkar shored up Mumbai Indians yet again with his fifth half-century of the IPL that all but guaranteed them a place in the semi-final and took him to the top of the run-charts in the tournament. He overcame Rajasthan Royals’ strong start by building two partnerships: the first with JP Duminy to lead Mumbai’s recovery after the loss of three early wickets, and the second with Kieron Pollard to accelerate at the end. That effort was backed up by a clinical performance from Mumbai’s bowlers, which left Rajasthan battling in a mid-table scrap at fourth place, and inflicted on them their first defeat in Jaipur.While their chase seemed doomed to fail after four wickets in the first seven overs, Rajasthan will look back at two phases where Mumbai could have been restricted. They grabbed three wickets in the Powerplay, but failed to keep up the pressure during a rebuilding endeavour by Tendulkar and Duminy. And they performed poorly in the field, with Adam Voges missing an easy opportunity to run out Pollard off his first ball, and Aditya Dole dropping a sitter off Tendulkar when on 45. The lapses cost Rajasthan dearly, as the pair helped plunder 68 off the last five overs to lift Mumbai to a score that proved out of Rajasthan’s reach.Tendulkar faced just 12 deliveries in Mumbai’s Powerplay, but adapted superbly, restraining himself while ensuring a healthy rate after the early setbacks, and taking off with ease at the death against Rajasthan’s seamers. Shane Watson removed Sanath Jayasuriya in his first over, and followed up by dismissing Ambati Rayudu and Saurabh Tiwary with the bouncer, a weapon used successfully against local batsmen. But Duminy proved a suitable foil for Tendulkar, and the pair worked the field, picked the singles by calling well and accumulated 30 runs in five overs after the Powerplay.There was hardly anything for the Jaipur crowd to cheer thereafter, but franchise loyalties mattered little in a Shane Warne v Tendulkar contest that fans were deprived of in the previous encounter. Tendulkar prevailed today, with three boundaries in one over against his counterpart. Warne was the only Rajasthan spinner to rely on flight, and Tendulkar improvised twice by striking him inside-out through extra cover. And when Warne dropped one short, Tendulkar made room to cut him through point.Rajasthan had a chance once they broke the 63-run stand between Duminy and Tendulkar in the 13th over, but paid the price for mistakes in the field and some indisciplined bowling at the death. The seamers often bowled too short and when varying their pace, pitched the ball on a length which Tendulkar and Pollard were able to feed off with ease. Pollard began the surge with a slapped four off Dole in the 16th over and clipping Watson through fine leg in the next. He singled out Dole for treatment, smashing him for a six and a four off consecutive deliveries before being bowled to end a 50-run stand.Tendulkar’s acceleration was more calculated. He had picked out his spots in the field and it didn’t help Rajasthan that their bowlers gave him ample opportunity to find them. With a mid-on inside the circle in the penultimate over, Watson bowled short and was hammered over that fielder for two consecutive fours. When Siddharth Trivedi came on next, Tendulkar targeted the wide long-on region for two successive sixes and finished off with 20 in the final over.The only moment of promise in Rajasthan’s chase was when Michael Lumb struck Dhawal Kulkarni for two fours in the second over, before slashing one straight to point. Zaheer Khan was the best of the Mumbai bowlers, nipping the ball away from the batsmen and clocking in excess of 140 kph, and earned his reward when opener Naman Ojha edged to slip.While Rajasthan were generous in the field, Mumbai didn’t waste their chances and Shane Watson and Faiz Fazal were run out after responding late to calls from their partners. All hopes rested on Yusuf Pathan but there were no miracles this time, and when he was caught in the 14th over with the score on 85, Rajasthan’s fate was sealed.

Sri Lanka have been left knowing only a victory against Zimbabwe will keep them in the tournament

Andrew McGlashan in Guyana30-Apr-2010Sri Lanka were the most consistent team in last year’s World Twenty20, moving into the final unbeaten before falling to an inspired Pakistan outfit at Lord’s. This time they are left knowing only a victory against Zimbabwe will keep them in the tournament, and even then it will require a nervous wait for the outcome of the final match in the group.The game against New Zealand was always a nip-and-tuck affair although Sri Lanka had the bowling attack to defend 135. When the spinners strangled the middle of the chase it looked as though they would do just that, but on this occasion Lasith Malinga’s skills at the death weren’t quite up to their best.”You’d probably back him more times than not,” said coach Trevor Bayliss. “Having said that, it shouldn’t have got down to the last over and all being on Lasith’s shoulders. It’s certainly not his fault.”It wasn’t the happiest of afternoons for Malinga, who missed two run-out chances in the field. A wild throw from Malinga at point in the sixth over meant Kumar Sangakkara couldn’t gather the ball, then in the final over he missed an underarm flick towards the stumps from a couple of yards away with Daniel Vettori stranded. In the end, the small errors added up for Sri Lanka.”We were a little off our game in most departments,” said Bayliss. “Our batting didn’t score as many runs in the first six overs as we normally do, our fielding could have been a bit better. It wasn’t too bad, but not quite good enough at this level.”This was never likely to be a high-scoring match, but Sri Lanka’s lack of early momentum with the bat had allowed New Zealand an early hold on the game. After six overs they were 36 for 1 and 30 of those had come from the blade of the promoted Mahela Jaywardene, opening for the first time in a Twenty20 international. At the other end the going had been much tougher.Tillakaratne Dilshan has come into this tournament amid much hype after his prolific form over the last year, but he struggled during the IPL with 44 runs from six innings before being dropped by Delhi Daredevils. His lack of touch was soon apparent as he couldn’t get the ball off the square against the combination of Nathan McCullum’s offspin and Shane Bond’s pace. When he fell for 3 from 19 deliveries – the slowest strike-rate for a Sri Lanka Twenty20 innings – Jayawardene, who was in supreme IPL form despite Kings XI Punjab’s poor event, had 30 from 15.”Every batter goes through a bit of a lean trot,” said Bayliss. “In the last 18 months Dilshan has been unbelievable and you can’t have that sort of form and not be able to score runs. I’m sure in the next game or two we’ll see the best of him.”And Bayliss also had a very simple answer to how Sri Lanka will approach the tournament from here. “If we win every game from here we’ll be champions.” But there’s no room for anymore mistakes.
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The Indian national selectors meet in New Delhi on Monday to pick the team for the Asia Cup in Sri Lanka, with the knowledge that they have had little gains from the tri-series in Zimbabwe

Cricinfo staff06-Jun-2010The Indian national selectors meet in New Delhi on Monday to pick the team for the Asia Cup in Sri Lanka, with the knowledge that they have had little gains from the tri-series in Zimbabwe. The only man to push the nine players who were rested is Rohit Sharma, who scored back-to-back centuries in Zimbabwe. The other big question will be the bowlers: none of the bowlers who represented India in Zimbabwe were first-choice.The selectors will also be hoping for a return to fitness for Virender Sehwag among others. If Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Sachin Tendulkar and MS Dhoni are fit and willing to go, the final two places in the starting XI will be contested between Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, Virat Kohli and Rohit. India could take all eight batsmen to Sri Lanka, but that would mean sacrificing one of the allrounders’. Yusuf Pathan is anyway pretty close to the end of the rope. The choice then could be between an extra batsman and R Ashwin, who impressed with bat and ball in the only chance he got in Zimbabwe.The selectors will hope Praveen Kumar is fit after a side injury forced him out of the World Twenty20. Zaheer Khan and Ashish Nehra should come back, leaving an interesting choice for the back-up seamer. Ishant Sharma could get the nod again. Harbhajan Singh will definitely walk back in, and Pragyan Ojha should pip Amit Mishra for the second spinner’s slot after an impressive showing in Zimbabwe.There were two unconfirmed reports late on Sunday evening that Tendulkar might pull out and that Yuvraj and Nehra might be left out as disciplinary action. Those, however, could not be confirmed with BCCI sources.Squad from: MS Dhoni (capt/wk), Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, Gautam Gambhir, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Harbhajan Singh, Pragyan Ojha, Zaheer Khan, Ashish Nehra, Praveen Kumar, Ishant Sharma