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A disciplined performance in the field and an explosive 35 off 19 balls from Brad Hodge helped Kochi Tuskers overcome Kolkata Knight Riders in the last match at the Nehru stadium

The Bulletin by Firdose Moonda05-May-2011
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsEoin Morgan opened up late, but Kochi’s bowlers held their nerve to finish on the winning side•AFPA disciplined performance in the field and an explosive 35 off 19 balls from Brad Hodge helped Kochi Tuskers overcome Kolkata Knight Riders in the last match at the Nehru Stadium this IPL season.Hodge’s last over blitz, in which he took 21 runs off countryman Brett Lee, proved to be the difference between the two sides, as Kochi defended 156 by 17 runs. In the chase, RP Singh and Sreesanth failed to get the same kind of movement that Brett Lee extracted early in the Kochi innings. Jacques Kallis and Eoin Morgan didn’t have to take many risks early on as there were many poor deliveries that were smacked to the boundary. In the first three overs, the bulk of the short and wide ones came from RP Singh.R Vinay Kumar and Prasanth Parameswaran pulled back the chase before it raged out of control with a selection of back of a length deliveries that proved difficult to get away. Although they kept the boundaries down, they didn’t trouble the batsmen much and failed to get a breakthrough until after the halfway stage, when Kolkata were well set. Kallis was the senior partner and easily outscored Morgan in that phase. Seven times in the first ten overs Kallis stole the strike at the end of the over.Just as Kallis looked as though he had grown roots, Raiphi Gomez rattled Kolkata with a double strike in his second over. He bowled Kallis with a legcutter and had Gautam Gambhir caught in the covers off consecutive balls, which left Morgan to assume the senior role. Manoj Tiwary could not last long, and Yusuf Pathan was expected to counterattack, but he and Morgan were frustrated by Gomez’s variations and Parameswaran’s accurate fuller deliveries. Sreesanth let the noose loosen, giving Morgan back-to-back boundaries but Vinay Kumar was on hand to tighten it. Confusions between Morgan and Yusuf mounted in Vinay’s last over, and Morgan was run out when both batsmen ended up at the wicketkeeper’s end.It brought Brett Lee to the crease, in poetic justice for the last over he bowled, which went for 21. There were 25 to get off the last over of Kolkata’s innings. Lee was run-out and the task proved too steep.Kochi’s innings was anchored by a third-wicket partnership between Mahela Jayawardene and Michael Klinger before being given momentum at the death by Hodge. It didn’t look as though Kochi would get over the 150-run mark, especially after the way things started. Lee’s first over was a whole bag of peaches. He got impressive away movement and started the innings with a maiden.Some success seemed inevitable after the start Kolkata got and it came from Jaidev Unadkat, although he hardly deserved it. He banged one in, too short and too wide outside off that Brendon McCullum chased and his fine edge nestled in Kallis’ hands at slip.Parthiv Patel came in at No. 3 and opened his account with two stunning boundaries. He looked energetic and confident in his strokeplay and dealt with Unadkat’s bouncer and the introduction of spin, in the form of Iqbal Abdulla, with relative ease. Surprisingly, it was the short ball that undid him, when he charged down the track and miscued a pull shot to midwicket.The stage was set for Jayawardene to play an innings of authority and, with Klinger at the other end, he did exactly that. They played creative cricket, managing a boundary off five of the seven overs they were together for and pushed each other to take singles before Klinger holed out. When Abdulla got the wicket of Ravindra Jadeja for eight, Kochi were being pegged back and some impetus was needed.The floodgates were opened with Jayawardene’s six over long leg at the start of the 17th over and Kochi put on 54 runs in the final four overs, with Hodge’s fireworks yielding almost half of those.

Nottinghamshire Outlaws extended their lead at the top of the Friends Life t20 North Group as they thrashed Durham Dynamos by 54 runs

16-Jun-2011Nottinghamshire 213 for 4 beat Durham 159 by 54 runs
Scorecard
Alex Hales cracked 67 to help boost Nottinghamshire past 200•PA PhotosNottinghamshire Outlaws extended their lead at the top of the Friends Life t20 North Group as they thrashed Durham Dynamos by 54 runs.Alex Hales (67 from 39 balls) and skipper David Hussey (54 not out) were the star performers with the bat as Nottinghamshire racked up 213 for 4 after winning the toss – the highest score against Durham in the history of the competition.Steven Mullaney then took 3 for 26, including Durham captain Phil Mustard for 29, as the visitors lost five wickets inside the opening nine overs and were eventually bowled out for 159, Gareth Breese top-scoring with 34.In front of England selector James Whitaker, Hales was once again hugely impressive, striking eight crisp fours as he got the Notts innings off to a flying start in partnership with Riki Wessels.Wessels made 31 before he was lbw to Chris Rushworth, and Adam Voges kept up the momentum while making sure Hales was given as much of the strike as possible. The pair put on 72 in just over seven overs before Voges was adjudged to have feathered an attempted pull off Liam Plunkett to wicketkeeper Mustard for 39 off 24 balls.Hussey was straight in the action, hitting his fourth ball for a straight six, and although Hales and Samit Patel were both bowled by Mitch Claydon, Hussey continued to smash the Durham attack to all parts. He brought up his half-century – from just 24 balls – with his fourth six off the final ball of the innings from Liam Plunkett.Needing more than 10 runs an over, Durham had no option but to swing hard from the start and did not enjoy the luck they needed to pull off an unlikely chase. Gordon Muchall drove to cover in the second over and with four further top order wickets falling in five overs, Durham’s hopes were all but extinguished.Breese hit a breezy 34 but was then caught at short third-man off Andy Carter, with Darren Pattinson finishing off the tail as he claimed 3 for 33.

The Pakistan board is reportedly considering Zimbabwe as one of several options to host the home series against Sri Lanka later this year

ESPNcricinfo staff11-Jun-2011Pakistan are considering Zimbabwe as a potential ‘host’ for the home series against Sri Lanka later this year.The two sides are due to play a full Test and limited-overs series in October, scheduled in the FTP officially as a ‘home’ series for Pakistan. The PCB intensified efforts to find a venue for the series over the last few months and Sri Lanka itself is an option that has been considered, one Sri Lanka is probably happiest with. In 2009-10, Pakistan played a ‘home’ series against New Zealand in New Zealand, though financially the trip wasn’t a success.The PCB also asked Sri Lanka Cricket in May, “for their views” on the prospect of playing the series in Pakistan – at the insistence of the Pakistan government. However, that offer was swiftly rebuffed. Soon after the PCB had made their request, a major terrorist attack occurred in Karachi at a naval base, which was eventually held under siege overnight, near the National Stadium.The UAE is another option, having hosted a succession of Pakistan’s limited-overs commitments over the last three years and last October, a full series, including Tests, against South Africa. Authorities in the UAE are keen for Pakistan to sign a long-term agreement with them to host their ‘home’ matches, something the PCB is unwilling to do currently because they believe it pushes the prospect of a return of international cricket to Pakistan further back.The financial aspects of a ‘host’ venue have increasingly become a concern for the board; sponsorship opportunities may be greater in the UAE but the costs of hosting the series itself are likely to be much higher than Sri Lanka, for example, where marketing potential is relatively limited.”We are looking at the costs right now of hosting a series in Zimbabwe,” a senior board official told ESPNcricinfo. Peter Chingoka, ZC chairman, is also a member of the ICC’s Pakistan Task Team (PTT), a role which is likely to facilitate any such proposal. Sri Lanka have not yet been formally contacted about this possibility.Sri Lanka’s previous tour of Pakistan in March 2009 was cut short after terrorists attacked their team bus as it was on the way to the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore for the second Test. That attack, on the back of growing security concerns over the previous two years, brought an end to international cricket in the country, taking away the 2011 World Cup in the process. Since then, Pakistan have played home series in England, New Zealand and the United Arab Emirates. Afghanistan were the first international team to tour Pakistan since the March 2009 attack, when they played Pakistan ‘A’ in three 50-over games in May 2011.

Western Australia have launched an off-season raid on the eastern states, having added Nathan Rimmington, Travis Birt and Mark Cameron to their squad for 2011-12

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Jun-2011Western Australia have launched an off-season raid on the eastern states, having added Nathan Rimmington, Travis Birt and Mark Cameron to their squad for 2011-12. The move is not about youth – the three men are aged 28, 29 and 30 respectively – but filling specific gaps that the Warriors coach Mickey Arthur outlined last month in an interview with ESPNcricinfo.Arthur wanted a fast bowler to boost the attack and settled on Cameron, from New South Wales, along with Rimmington, from Queensland. Cameron played for Australia A last summer but injuries have limited him to 16 first-class appearances in nine seasons, and with the younger Patrick Cummins and Mitchell Starc competing for positions, he faced a challenge to hold his spot with the Blues.Rimmington has been a solid performer for the Bulls, but was viewed as more of a limited-overs specialist and had managed only nine first-class games in six seasons at Queensland. Arthur said the two men would add plenty to a Western Australia attack that had lost the experience of Ashley Noffke and Brett Dorey during the previous summer.”Nathan brings the ability to bowl at the death in one-day cricket, which is an area where we have been deficient,” Arthur said. “He offers a great deal of experience and is a tough character, someone who brings a great deal to the squad.”Mark bowls with incredible pace, and we have lacked that quality in recent years. He is an outstanding strike bowler and a genuine match winner when he is on the field. It is a fact that Mark has battled injuries in recent seasons, but we will manage his program carefully to ensure we get maximum impact from him when he takes the field next summer.”Arthur also spoke last month of searching for a wicketkeeper-batsman, and while Birt is far from a full-time gloveman, he has stepped into the role at times for Tasmania in the past few seasons. He is another man whose first-class chances have been limited recently – he played five Sheffield Shield games last season – but he has also played three Twenty20s for Australia.”In Travis we have filled a position available for an experienced batsman,” Arthur said. “He is an exceptional one-day player and also has a good track record in first-class cricket. He will add depth to our batting and create healthy competition for spots in the top six.”Birt and Rimmington have each signed on for two years, while the older Cameron has settled for a one-year deal. Meanwhile, Tasmania have secured the fast bowler Jackson Bird, 24, a Sydney grade cricketer who couldn’t force his way into the New South Wales side. All six states are finalising their playing lists for 2011-12, with full squads expected to be released in the next few weeks.

A round-up of the first day’s action from the European Under-19 Championship Division Two

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Jul-2011Denmark got off to an impressive start in the European Under-19 Championship Division Two, thumping Belgium by 168 runs in Castletown. Having been put in to bat, Denmark’s openers put together a stubborn 61-run opening stand, but Belgium hit back with two wickets for the addition of no runs. Hamid Shah, however, changed the complexion of the game with a busy 110-run stand with Anders Bulow. Shah stroked 70 off 72 balls, while opener Bulow was more cautious in making 78 off 110 balls. Basit Raja and Siddique Raja ensured Denmark got a flying finish, contributing 40 and 33 respectively in quick time. Chasing 303, Belgium fell behind the eight-ball steadily following a 27-run opening stand. Hameed helped himself to a five-wicket haul, while Aqeel Amjad finished with 3 for 19 off ten stifling overs. With no batsman managing to pass 30, Belgium folded without a fight in 33 overs.After France were bowled out for 183 in the 47th over, they would not have expected to win the match by a margin of over 100 runs. However, Israel crumbled in a shocking display that lasted less than 20 overs, handing France a 128-run win in Mullen-e-Cloie. Batting first, France stumbled to their sub-par total due to the inability of their batsmen to build on starts. Six batsmen were dismissed for scores between 14 and 29, as they kept losing steam through an underwhelming batting effort. Nir Dokarker, Itamar Kehimkar and Josh Evans finished with two wickets apiece, leaving Israel with what seemed like a manageable chase. Their openers pushed the score to 18 for 0 before things went pear-shaped in a hurry. Shifron Waskar (10) was the only batsmen to get into double-figures, as the French bowlers skittled Israel out for 55, with Zika Ali the most impressive with figures of 4 for 5 in 3.1 overs.Italy cruised to a 171-run win against Germany in another one-sided affair in Tromode. The win was built around captain and opener Roshendra Abeywickrama’s sparkling 156 at just under a run-a-ball. He shared a 95-run opening stand with Abdur Bhuiyan to set up the innings and though none of the other Italy batsmen managed to contribute substantially, they ensured the innings never lost momentum. Abeywickrama hit 15 fours in his innings before becoming the Italian ninth wicket to fall. Mansor Mubarik’s four-wicket haul did not really stall Italy’s progress since it came at an uneconomical 7.66 runs per over. Germany’s chase of 288 fizzled away in the face of some incisive new-ball bowling, and they stumbled to 116 all-out in the 34th over.The other encounters of the day were so one-sided that they made Spain’s 85-run humbling of Gibraltar in Castletown the closest finish of the day. Gibraltar began brilliantly thanks to opening bowler Matthew Hunter, whose efforts helped reduce Spain to 2 for 0 and later 27 for 5. Spain then launched a stirring recovery through their captain Joel Brook and No. 7 Charlie Cook. Brook was cautious in his approach, making 82 off 134 balls, but Cook was adventurous in his 51 that came at better than run-a-ball. The pair added 95 to haul their side out of the woods, before Guy Dumas skittled out the tail, leaving Brook undefeated. Hunter, who finished with a five-for opened the batting as well, but he proved to be no Rock of Gibraltar. Opening bowlers Jack Sunderland and Ben Girling rocked the chase early with a flurry of wickets that left Gibraltar gasping at 43 for 6. Philip DJ Dumas provided some late resistance, but it was only a matter of time before Gibraltar succumbed for 97 in under 25 overs, with extras contributing 26.

Leicestershire ended day two of their County Championship Division Two clash against Middlesex facing the prospect of an innings defeat

31-Aug-2011
ScorecardLeicestershire ended day two of their County Championship Division Two clash against Middlesex facing the prospect of an innings defeat after England captain Andrew Strauss claimed his maiden first-class double century at Lord’s.The visitors were dismissed shortly before the scheduled close for 193 in reply to Middlesex’s 496 for 2 declared, the highlight of which was Strauss’ unbeaten 241 off 344 balls. Led by Steven Crook with 4 for 45 and Tim Murtagh (3 for 41), the Middlesex attack made life extremely difficult for Leicestershire, who seem certain to be asked to follow on in the morning.The visitors began hesitantly, with Will Jefferson in particular struggling against the moving ball. Matthew Boyce cover drove Corey Collymore for four before despatching Murtagh to the fence at extra cover. However in the 15th over, having just driven Murtagh for four, Jefferson edged behind to make it 42 for 1.It took Greg Smith 33 balls to find the boundary. But in Ollie Rayner’s second over the 22-year-old sought to take advantage of the short distance to the Mound Stand, only to chip the ball up to Dawid Malan at mid-wicket.The visitors were 86 for 2 at tea, but that became 101 for 5 when Steven Crook picked up three wickets in 10 balls. James Taylor was bowled before, two overs later, Josh Cobb was trapped leg before. In Crook’s next over Boyce, who made 46 in 122 deliveries, had his bails trimmed by the 28- year-old allrounder to leave Leicestershire reeling.Ned Eckersley (28) and Wayne White (37) then added 50 in nine overs for the sixth wicket before Eckersley was caught behind off Toby Roland-Jones. Ten overs later White, falling away to the off side, went lbw to Collymore to spark another collapse, which saw Rob Taylor slap Murtagh straight to short extra cover, Nathan Buck edge to third slip and Matthew Hoggard lose his off stump.Earlier in the day, Strauss registered the highest score by a Middlesex batsman at Lord’s for 12 years as the home side bumped their first-innings total up to 496 for two, before declaring at lunch.Strauss took 40 minutes converting his unbeaten 184 overnight into a maiden double century, as Hoggard beat the outside edge of the England captain’s bat on a number of occasions. But in the 10th over of the day Strauss brought up the landmark with a crisply pulled four off Buck. His double hundred had come from 282 balls and it included 21 fours and two sixes.Malan played some attractive shots to move into the 40s, but, on 47, fell to a catch at slip off a skied pull. That ushered in Chris Rogers, who deposited both White and Cobb in the Mound Stand for sixes on his way to a run-a-ball 33.

Worcestershire’s escape from relegation was confirmed today at the same time as their hosts, Durham, were denied the County Championship title

14-Sep-2011
Scorecard
Dale Benkenstein helped Durham extend their lead•Getty ImagesWorcestershire’s escape from relegation was confirmed today at the same time as their hosts, Durham, were denied the County Championship title.The news came when Hampshire were making a belated attempt to achieve maximum batting points at the Rose Bowl but succeeded only in throwing away their ninth wicket through a run-out to give Warwickshire their third bowling point, ensuring Durham can not overtake them.Durham, though, they will be confident of finishing with their eighth win tomorrow. Worcestershire closed the third day on 65 for 2, still needing 300 behind, Graham Onions taking the two wickets after his wayward start had allowed the visitors to race to 50 in the seventh over.Skipper Daryl Mitchell had made 35 off only 24 balls when Onions skidded one through to bowl him and he then had first innings century-maker Vikram Solanki caught behind for a duck. Dale Benkenstein’s 13th championship 50 of the season was among four half-centuries in Durham’s second innings total of 388, Mark Stoneman top scoring with 75.Alan Richardson had the same figures as in the first innings, three for 46, to finish with 73 wickets for the season, while Gareth Andrew reached 50 when he pinned Benkenstein lbw for 63. Having opened up with six maidens on the second evening, Richardson again commanded great respect in the morning and had conceded only six runs off his first 12 overs.Runs flowed off Kemar Roach, however, and Will Smith and Michael Di Venuto took their stand to 82 before Andrew nipped one back to have Smith lbw for 37. It left the batsman 22 short of 1,000 for the season.Di Venuto departed for 55 when he bottom-edged an attempted pull off Richard Jones into his stumps. Paul Collingwood got off the mark with a six over midwicket off Moeen Ali, but after making 24 a miscued pull off Roach saw him lob a catch to square leg.Stoneman’s attractive innings ended when he thrust his pad forward down the line of leg stump and was adjudged lbw to Ali. That was the only wicket to fall in the afternoon as Ian Blackwell joined Benkenstein in passing 50. They put on 96 before departing in successive overs from Andrew.Extra bounce accounted for Blackwell, who lobbed a catch to gully, then the same bowler pierced Scott Borthwick’s defence with a swinging yorker. Richardson did the rest as the last six wickets went down for 50 runs, 27 of which were thrashed by Mitch Claydon.

Kuwait defeated Jersey in a final-over thriller at the Kinrara Oval in Kuala Lumpur in the replay of the rain-abandoned fixture on Sunday

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Sep-2011
Scorecard
Saad Khalid picked up three wickets as Kuwait squeezed past Jersey in Kuala Lumpur•ICC/Peter Lim Kuwait defeated Jersey in a final-over thriller at the Kinrara Oval in Kuala Lumpur in the replay of the rain-abandoned fixture on Sunday. Rain intruded on the second attempt as well, a heavy downfall delaying the start, but the clouds cleared in time for a 39-over match which began at 1.45pm.After being put in to bat by Kuwait, Jersey’s top order struggled and they were three down by the 15th over, Abdullah Akhunzada, Saad Khalid and Mohammed Naseer sharing the spoils. It was then up to captain Peter Gough and Corey Bisson to stabilize the Jersey innings, both men scoring half-centuries.Bisson departed on 54, run out by wicketkeeper Sharjeel Tahir after being called through for a tight single. Gough anchored the team’s innings until the 33rd over when he was caught by Mohammad Amin, while the rest of the Jersey side failed to sparkle with the bat. In contrast, Kuwait’s fast bowler Saad and legbreak bowler Akhunzada both had good games, taking three wickets each to leave their side chasing 157 for victory.Kuwait’s batsmen started the chase brightly in the afternoon sunshine, openers Irfan Bhatti and Aamir Javed adding 55 before Bhatti was bowled by Ben Stevens with the final delivery of the 10th over. The innings lost its course thereafter, Jersey chipping away to reduce Kuwait to 128 for 6 in the 28th over.With Ben Stevens dismissing Mohammad Amin and Akhunzada in the space of an over as Kuwait slipped to 140 for 9, the match built to a thrilling conclusion. No. 11 Azmatullah Nazeer smashed a huge six to bring the target down to six runs off nine balls, adding to that a couple of quick singles to leave the last pair needing four runs off the last over to give Kuwait victory. The winning runs were cracked with just three balls to spare.”I thought we performed superbly in the field today and Ben Stevens did really well to work his way through the Kuwait batting line-up,” said Jersey captain Gough. “Corey Bisson and myself did well batting today, but I know we have the strength in our top order in Sam de la Haye, Dean Morrison and Ben that we will bounce back as a batting unit and perform better tomorrow.”We really pushed Kuwait and we just need another good day to get ourselves our first win, both of these first two matches have been tight and we’ve shown we’ve got the skills we just need to finish these games off with victory now.””I think as a team we’re still getting used to the conditions here in Malaysia and we needed some time to bed into the tournament,” added Kuwait coach Basil Jayawardene. “Jersey definitely tested us as a side today but we managed to finish the game and seal the win with three balls to spare.”

A round-up of the action from the ninth match-day of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2011-12

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Oct-2011North ZoneIn his third game back since prematurely leaving the England tour, Virender Sehwag top-scored for Delhi as they beat Services by 37 runs in a low-scoring encounter at the Delhi Public School in Rohtak, and qualified for the knockout stages of the Syed Mustaq Ali Trophy. Sehwag’s 35 off 39 balls helped Delhi reach 115 for 6 in their 20 overs and Services were bowled out for 78 in response. Left-arm spinners Puneet Mehra and Pawan Negi took five wickets between them to wreck Service’s middle order. Ashish Nehra provided a breakthrough in the first over of the chase, and Sehwag and Ishant Sharma also picked up a wicket each. Only three Services batsmen reached double figures as they lasted only 18.2 overs.Delhi had been steady in their innings, scoring at around five an over throughout. Though they lost wickets regularly, they managed a total that proved more than enough in the end.

At the Bansi Lal Cricket Stadium in Rohtak, Punjab chased down 112 against Jammu & Kashmir with five wickets and three balls to spare to finish top of the North Zone table and progress to the knockout stages. J&K chose to bat, but none of their line-up could get going. At one point they were tottering at 35 for 4, before Parvez Rassol and Ian Dev Singh doubled their score. Another mini-collapse followed, but Nos. 8 and 9 Majid Dhar and Samiullah Beigh made sure they got past 100 with a 33-run stand. Punjab’s bowlers shared the wickets around. In the chase, their top five batsmen all scored between 11 and 27 to guide their side home in the 19th over without much drama.

Haryana earned a narrow victory against Himachal Pradesh at the Bansi Lal Cricket Stadium in Rohtak but it was not enough to take them through to the next round. Delhi and Punjab won their respective games leaving Haryana third in the group. Seamers Dhruv Singh, Harshal Patel and Sachin Rana bowled Himachal out for 96 but Haryana had trouble chasing the low total. They were 13 for 2 and then 59 for 5 and only got home in the final over, with just two wickets in hand. Himachal seamers Vikramjeet Malik and Rishi Dhawan caused the early flutter in Haryana’s chase and left-arm spinner Abhinav Bali’s quick wickets in the middle made the end tense.

West ZoneKuldeep Raval smashed 83 runs off 41 balls to take Saurashtra to an 11-run win against Gujarat at the Khandheri Cricket Stadium in Rajkot. The victory kept Saurashtra’s hopes of progression alive but they were dashed when Baroda won the second match of the day on the ground. Raval, 25, had only played three list A games and three Twenty20s for Saurashtra before this match, but saved his team after they were in trouble at 37 for 4 in the eighth over. He smashed nine fours and five sixes, and put together 110 runs for the fifth wicket with Aarpit Vasavada, who made a steady 45. Raval’s belligerence got Saurashtra to 162.Gujarat, who had lost all their three games before this one, wobbled early in their chase, losing two wickets within the first two overs. Manprit Juneja kept them afloat with an aggressive 66. But the required-rate kept rising, Gujarat lost too many wickets, and they eventually fell short.

A marauding innings from Yusuf Pathan helped Baroda thump Maharashtra in Rajkot, and go through to the knockouts. Yusuf, batting at No. 3, took just 32 balls to smash 72 runs and by the time he was done Baroda had already reached 136 in the 14th over. Yusuf’s brother Irfan Pathan chipped in with 20 and Aditya Waghmode got 32 as Baroda racked up a total of 192. Maharashtra floundered in the chase, slumping to 18 for 3 inside the first five overs. A bunch of batsmen in the middle order got starts but the chase never gathered momentum and Maharashtra ended up on 124 for 8 after their 20 overs.

Central ZoneA five-wicket haul by TP Sudhindra, and half-centuries from Harpreet Singh and Udit Birla, helped Madhya Pradesh to a 32-run win against Uttar Pradesh at the Holkar Cricket Stadium in Indore. After choosing to bat, MP slipped to 52 for 3. Birla then joined Harpreet and the pair put on 99 before Birla was bowled for 56 off 37 balls. Harpreet, though, took MP to 200 before he was run out for 59. Chasing 202, UP were set back right away by twin strikes by Sudhindra. Tanmay Srivastava held the chase together for a while, with 53 off 39, but Sudhindra returned to pick up three more wickets and seal the game for MP.Railways eased to an eight-wicket win against Rajasthan at the Holkar Cricket Stadium. After choosing to bat, Rajasthan were steered to a competitive 162 for 8, courtesy 52 off 38 from Ashok Menaria and 47 off 28 from Vaibhav Deshpande. Jai Prakash Yadav was the pick of the Railways bowlers, claiming 3 for 21 in his four. The top order was solid in the chase. Shreyas Khanolkar and Mahesh Rawat put on 69 in 7.2 overs for the first wicket, before Faiz Fazal added 49 for the second wicket with Rawat. Fazal and Sanjay Bangar then got together to take Railways home in the 19th over with another solid stand.The knockout stages of the tournament will be played in March next year.

The interim committee of Sri Lanka Cricket, headed by Upali Dharmadasa, has been dissolved by the country’s sports minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage ahead of elections next month

Sa'adi Thawfeeq15-Nov-2011The interim committee of Sri Lanka Cricket, headed by Upali Dharmadasa, has been dissolved by the country’s sports minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage ahead of elections next month.”The sports minister has by gazette notification dissolved the Sri Lanka Cricket interim committee today and has appointed the sports ministry secretary Udaya Seneviratne as the competent authority to oversee the day to day operation of Sri Lanka Cricket until such time elections are held,” Harsha Abeykoon, media secretary to the sports ministry, said. “The minister will call for nominations within the next three weeks and then decide on a date for the election.”The date for the election is expected to be December 15. The minister appointed the interim committee on July 1 this year for a period of six months to tide over the financial crisis that had arisen due to SLC funding the building of three cricket stadiums to host the 2011 World Cup matches.Despite Dharmadasa taking over, the board continued to suffer from financial trouble with the contracted players and SLC employees not receiving their salaries since the World Cup in April. SLC has been administered by interim committees for the past seven years.