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Rahul Sharma, the Punjab and Pune Warriors legspinner, has focused on extracting bounce after receiving the advice from Harbhajan Singh

ESPNcricinfo staff06-May-2011Rahul Sharma, the Punjab and Pune Warriors legspinner, has been one of the most-improved performers in this IPL. Last season, he took just five wickets and went at 8.08 an over in the six matches he played for Deccan Chargers. This year, after switching to Pune Warriors, he has already taken 11 wickets and his economy rate of 5.27 is the best among all bowlers who have bowled more than 10 overs. He attributed some of his success to advice he received from fellow Punjab spinner Harbhajan Singh.”I had a chat with Bhajji when he came to Jalandhar and he told me that my strong point is the bounce I can extract,” Rahul, who is more than six-feet tall, told the . “He told me to keep working on that.”Rahul received similar advice from his Punjab coach Bhupinder Singh. “I have advised him to hit the pitch so that he gets bounce,” Singh said. “He is very similar to Anil Kumble and can be groomed to be a good limited edition bowler.”Apart from extracting bounce, Rahul said what he was also working on was bowling a wicket-to-wicket line, and using as many variations as possible. That strategy worked well for him during Pune’s home game against Mumbai Indians in which he had figures of 4-0-7-2, the most economical by any bowler in this IPL. “I had a strategy to bowl wicket to wicket with variations,” Rahul said of that performance. “You can’t be predictable in Twenty20.”Things did not look good for Rahul after he was diagnosed with Bell’s Palsy – a dysfunction of the facial nerve that results in one’s inability to control facial muscles and results in temporary paralysis – during the last IPL. Rahul said it affected his vision.”I was advised complete rest by the doctors,” Rahul told the . “My vision was hazy and I couldn’t move my lips. I knew if I quit, I would miss the opportunity. It was a difficult period of my life. I had to do lots of facial exercises but eventually it was my will power that helped me keep going amid the discomfort.”One of the things that has helped Rahul during this edition of the IPL is the fact that his captain at Pune, Yuvraj Singh, is also from Punjab and had played with Rahul in the 2010-11 Ranji Trophy. “Yuvraj played three Ranji matches this season and it was there he got to know me. He has been very supporting and encouraging. So have the coach Geoff Marsh and assistant coach Praveen Amre.”On the eve of every match, Marsh and Yuvi brief me on every player and I bowl accordingly. Sometimes, that doesn’t work and then I have to think on my feet. I vary the pace a lot and rely heavily on my legspinners. My aim is to be accurate as much as I can and the bounce I purchase from the wicket helps me contain runs,”Rahul played only one Ranji match in the 2010-11 season, and has featured in nine games since his debut in 2006.After a few steady performances, Rahul entered the limelight during Pune’s first match against Mumbai, at the Wankhede Stadium, in which he dismissed Sachin Tendulkar and went for just 14 runs in his three overs. Rahul said Tendulkar congratulated him after the match. “He told me that I am bowling at my best. It is the best compliment that one can receive.”Pune’s next game is against Kings XI Punjab, in Mohali, on Sunday.

New South Wales overcame a top-order scare to beat Mumbai Indians and keep control over their progress in the tournament

The Report by Siddarth Ravindran02-Oct-2011
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Patrick Cummins hit the 150kph mark while taking 1 for 13•Associated PressNo Australian domestic side has lost to an IPL team in three seasons of the Champions League T20, and that trend continued after New South Wales beat Mumbai Indians in a low-scoring encounter in Chennai. The win not only keeps NSW in the race for the semi-finals but also in control of their own destiny, while Mumbai Indians will have to watch other results to know whether they progress.On a hot and cloudless day, and on a track where the ball kept low and didn’t come on to the bat, each member of NSW’s attack played their part as Mumbai’s batting faltered for the third time in the tournament. Only James Franklin put in a decent effort. Faced with a target of 101, it seemed a straightforward chase, but fast bowler Abu Nechim reduced NSW to 28 for 5 before they got home through Steven Smith and Ben Rohrer’s unbroken 73-run stand.The NSW bowlers made a terrific start with Stuart Clark, four days after his 36th birthday and having reduced his playing responsibilities, showing he had lost none of his old accuracy. Handed the new ball, he didn’t strive for pace and stuck to disciplined bowling to knock over Aiden Blizzard and Ambati Rayudu in his first two overs.Patrick Cummins, who is half Clark’s age, then took over. Hitting 150kph on what was widely expected to be a sluggish track, he showed why he’s being called a superstar in the making, intelligently mixing in the slower ball to befuddle the batsmen. In his first over, he got the key wicket of Kieron Pollard, who looked to bludgeon a full ball over midwicket. In the four overs he and Clark bowled from the fifth to the eighth, only five runs were scored.Much then depended on Andrew Symonds. He has not looked his old effervescent self in this tournament, and he struggled today as well. A charge down the track to swipe Steve O’Keefe ended with the ball crashing into the top of off stump and Mumbai Indians were gasping at 51 or 5 after 12 overs.Franklin, subjected to some criticism before the game over his position at No. 4 in the line-up, cut out the Hollywood strokes his team-mates attempted, preferring to play straight, highlighted by a perfectly timed on-drive off Moises Henriques for four. Even as he lost partners regularly, he kept poking the ball around, ensuring Mumbai Indians at least avoided the ignominy of finishing their innings with a double-digit score.NSW weathered the first over of the chase from the chief threat, Lasith Malinga. It was Nechim, though, who made the big breakthroughs, removing both openers, Shane Watson and David Warner, in his first over. With Malinga then dismissing Simon Katich courtesy a trademark swinging yorker, Daniel Smith nicking Nechim behind after attempting a footwork-less slash, and Henriques picking up a duck on being given lbw to a spinning delivery from Yuzvendra Chahal that pitched outside leg, Mumbai were well and truly in the game.Steven Smith and Rohrer then stabilised the innings and slowly took the game away from Mumbai Indians. With the spinners operating, the batsmen used their feet well to punch the ball for singles. It wasn’t till the 13th over of the chase that the first six of the match was struck, Smith clouting Chahal over midwicket. A Franklin long hop was helped to fine leg for four, a wide Malinga yorker was chopped past point for four more before a bunch of boundaries from Smith settled the match in the 17th over.

For the second time in four days, India and West Indies showed that big hits aren’t crucial ingredients in absorbing cricket

The Report by Siddarth Ravindran29-Nov-2011
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Nos. 10 and 11, Varun Aaron and Umesh Yadav, managed to string together the 11 runs India required to take a 1-0 lead in the series•AFPFor the second time in four days, India and West Indies showed that big hits aren’t crucial ingredients in absorbing cricket. As in the Mumbai Test, the final delivery of the match was punched to long-on, but this time there were no tears for the home fans as last man Umesh Yadav’s drive went for four to end a pulsating match.It wasn’t the highest quality of cricket, but there was no shortage of entertainment for a voluble Cuttack crowd watching its first international match in two years. Rohit Sharma seemed to have sealed the game with a mostly level-headed half-century after India slipped to 59 for 5, but his dismissal 11 runs short of the target provided an extra dollop of suspense to an already tumultuous match.Watching tailenders bat ranks high among the enjoyable sidelights in cricket, and watching a panicky No. 10 Varun Aaron and Umesh, with all of 10 ODI caps between them, negotiate the final passage was a heart-warmer. The two came together after Vinay Kumar, a relatively more skilled batsman, lost his head and his wicket by charging out and holing out to mid-off, and that five deliveries after Rohit’s dismissal.Eleven runs were needed from the final pair, off 23 deliveries. It was to be expected that the predominant mood in the middle wouldn’t be calm-and-collected, but it was still hard to explain the thinking behind Aaron declining a single off the fifth delivery of the 47th, so that he could take strike in the next over. A visibly stricken Rohit couldn’t believe that decision, and substitute Ajinkya Rahane muttered under his breath.A spell of 15 dot balls was finally ended by Aaron thumping the ball to long-off for a single. More headless-chicken stuff followed as Umesh nurdled the fifth ball of the 48th, with Aaron this time desperately wanting a non-existent second in another attempt to face the start of the next over.In Aaron’s defence, Umesh wasn’t exactly the most confidence-inspiring of batsmen, regularly planting his front foot across the stumps and poking at the ball. Umesh managed to sneak a single towards square leg off the first delivery of the penultimate over, for which the pacy Andre Russell might have been a better choice than the innocuous Darren Sammy. An on-target yorker at Russell’s pace could have been the game, but Sammy perhaps feared the edged boundary to third man or fine leg.In any case, Sammy’s second delivery was a hit-me short-and-wide delivery that was dispatched for four by Aaron, to bring India within four of victory. He guided the next ball towards point for a single, and in his enthusiasm to look for yet another unlikely second, he slipped and had to settle for one. Umesh coolly shouldered arms to the next delivery, before punching a length ball past mid-on for the boundary that extended India’s winning streak in home ODIs to ten. It also ended Aaron’s mad scramble for the second run, something he famously did, without delivering victory, off the final delivery in the Mumbai Test.At the other extreme when it comes to taking the second is R Ashwin, who was mildly criticised after delaying setting off for the potentially winning-run in Mumbai. This time he will receive a lot more criticism, after staying put for too long though his senior partner Rohit was running to the danger end, and was confident of making it.Before that run-out, India were 54 away with plenty of overs to go, with Rohit and Ashwin – fresh from a Test century – in the middle. A fairly comfortable state, which India reached due to a 83-run stand for the sixth wicket between Rohit and Ravindra Jadeja. That stand administered CPR to a chase that was fast fading at 59 for 5.Rohit played the more expansive strokes – a stylish six over the bowler, a textbook cover drive for four off Russell, followed by a controlled pull for another boundary. Jadeja was more content playing the no-frills role, picking up several of his boundaries through glides behind point. It was crucial innings for both players – Rohit, returning after several months out due to a finger injury, is looking to secure a spot in the crowded middle order, while Jadeja is still to emphatically prove he deserves a spot as high as No. 7.All the drama seemed unlikely when India’s openers galloped to 37 four overs into the chase. The dew was expected to play a huge role in the evening, and a chock-a-block crowd was probably one of the biggest many of the West Indians had played in front of. Kemar Roach didn’t let any of that affect him as he pulled West Indies back into the match by removing Parthiv Patel and Gautam Gambhir in the fifth over, and adding the scalp of Virat Kohli soon after.When Russell snuck one past Virender Sehwag’s bat, and Suresh Raina chipped a catch to mid-off, it was West Indies who were in control, particularly as India’s most reliable middle-order finishers, MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh, were absent.Rohit and the bowlers clinched it for India at the end, but the inexperienced attack had been hugely impressively in the afternoon as well. India had none of the regular members of their World Cup-winning line-up but that didn’t prevent them from limiting the visitors to a small total. Umesh and Varun showed off the pace for which they have made a name, Vinay ‘s patented away-swinger was on display, and the spinners continued to give the selectors no reason to think of Harbhajan Singh.West Indies’ batting had had a reviving stand of its own between Darren Bravo and Danza Hyatt after the top-order stumbled. Bravo doled out his usual share of easy-on-the-eyes boundaries as he extended his rich form from the Tests to make 60, while Hyatt was more controlled after starting problems, due to which he has reached double-digits only twice in six ODI-innings so far.Some amateurish running from Hyatt took away any semblance of momentum from the West Indian batting, and the dismissals of Bravo and Kieron Pollard within a short span, meant the final third of the innings was slow going.The 211 they posted seemed far from substantial, especially as the pitch wasn’t playing too many tricks – the curator had boldly predicted 300-plus ahead of the match – but they again showed an encouraging ability to fight. That may not have translated into results on this trip so far, but it has resulted in the home side being forced to dig very deep in most of the matches.

A request by the PCB to have an observer present at the spot-fixing hearing currently underway in Doha, Qatar, was turned down by two of the three players

Osman Samiuddin in Doha06-Jan-2011A request by the PCB to have an observer present at the spot-fixing hearing currently underway in Doha, Qatar, was turned down by two of the three players defending themselves against the ICC’s charges, reaffirming the distance that has grown between the players and their former employers.The code of conduct under which the ICC hearing is held allows for such a provision but leaves the final choice to the discretion of the tribunal. The relevant portion of article 5.1.8 of the ICC Anti-Corruption Code states, “At the discretion of the Anti-corruption tribunal, a representative of the Player’s or Player’s support personnel’s relevant National Cricket Federation may also attend any such hearing (but strictly as an observer only and with no right to be heard).”ESPNcricinfo understands the request was made ahead of the hearing that began on Thursday. The request was considered by Michael Beloff QC, the chairman of the tribunal and the ICC’s code of conduct commissioner, and discussed with other members of the tribunal as well as the players and their lawyers. Though the final decision remains with the tribunal, in this case it appears that the players’ objections have been heeded. Had it been accepted, the PCB would have sent a legal representative.The reason behind the PCB’s request appears to have been nothing more than wanting a representative present at such a significant trial involving players who have been such an important part of the national team until recently.”When the request was made for Shahid Afridi and Waqar Younis [who will appear as witnesses for the ICC] we felt there should be a board man there too because they are our players in that sense and to keep an eye on the proceedings to ensure justice is done,” a board source told ESPNcricinfo.The refusal might not ultimately be a bad thing, as one source pointed out. “Whoever went would be under a bit of tension in the sense of whether they should support the players or the system so in that sense it isn’t a bad development ultimately.”When the scandal first broke in England last summer, the PCB as well as the Pakistani High Commission in London assumed broadly supportive stances. The board did not suspend the players until the ICC officially charged and suspended them, even offering initial legal representation in their interactions with Scotland Yard.But since then, at the insistence of an ICC concerned that its members might be seen as supporting players potentially facing spot-fixing charges, the board has stepped back. The players’ central contracts have been suspended, they have not been allowed to practice at board facilities and no legal or financial assistance has been offered. On at least a couple of occasions, Salman Butt and Mohammad Amir have indicated public bewilderment at how the board has left them to fend for themselves.Given that one player is believed to have not raised an objection the move also points to a growing individuality in the players’ approach to their defence. The trio have been staying separately in Doha and arrived and left separately on the first day of the hearing.

Shahid Afridi, Pakistan’s recently axed one-day captain, has announced his “conditional” retirement from the international game, as a mark of protest against the way he has been “humiliated” by the PCB

ESPNcricinfo staff30-May-2011After weeks of growing tension and speculation Shahid Afridi, Pakistan’s recently axed one-day captain, has announced his retirement from the international game. It is, however, a “conditional” retirement in protest against the way he has been “humiliated” by the PCB, a temporary self-imposed exile more than a permanent retirement. Afridi said he was ready to reverse his decision if and when a new board came into power.”There is nothing bigger than a man’s respect, and the way the board has treated me, there is a limit to everything,” an emotional, angry Afridi told from London, where he is currently preparing for a Twenty20 stint with Hampshire. “I will not play under this board. If a different board comes in, I will definitely return but I cannot play under this board. When you have been humiliated like this, by dishonourable people, what is the point in playing on?”The way I’ve been treated… the future doesn’t look too good. I can’t play under a board that doesn’t respect its players. Because of this, under protest, this is a conditional retirement.”Afridi, a Pathan who has lived in Karachi all his life, also hit out at “a Lahore lobby that has been filling the chairman’s ears against me,” reviving an issue of regionalism that has been festering for some time now, and shows few signs of stopping; in recent weeks, Karachi officials have protested loudly against the PCB for not selecting players from the city.The decision caps – for now – a saga that began last December effectively, when the board first began to hesitate in appointing Afridi captain. He was made leader for the New Zealand ODI series and then, only two weeks before the tournament began was he made captain for the World Cup. The impermanent nature of his appointments was one of the reasons for Afridi’s unhappiness.”I wasn’t told anything when I was made captain, I wasn’t given a tenure, I wasn’t told what my squad would be, nothing,” Afridi said. “I took a broken team along with me. When I took over the Pakistan team was in the middle of the spot-fixing crisis. Then the Zulqarnain Haider case happened but my side fought both against England and South Africa in the ODI series. Then we beat New Zealand, we got to the semis of the World Cup and beat West Indies there as well. Maybe I have become a thorn in their throats. It’s better that I step aside for now as I have respect for myself.”But the tipping point came upon Afridi’s arrival back from the Caribbean, growing differences between him and coach Waqar Younis over matters of selection being another concern. Then, he told reporters, “Although the differences in team management are not such which could not be solved, I feel everyone should do his job and need not interfere in other’s work”.That led to the board issuing him a show-cause notice to explain his remarks, unhappy with his penchant for public straight-talking and his cosy relationship with the media; indeed it is understood a major concern of the board was their belief that Afridi was leaking news to the media. Incidentally, Afridi didn’t touch on the selection issue at all when announcing his decision, though he did say that as captain, if he “didn’t speak to the media, who else in the team would?”Soon after his return, the board removed him from the ODI captaincy he picked up in June 2010, not giving any official reason for the removal. “We had very solid reasons to remove Afridi and I will reveal them when the time is right,” PCB chairman Ijaz Butt said recently. “We haven’t taken this action without any reasons.”That prompted Afridi to pull out of the two ODIs against Ireland; speculation was that he was unhappy over his ouster, though he said he had decided to miss the series due to his father’s ill-health. It was around this time that stories began to appear that he may retire soon.Afridi is not new to retirement. He first announced a temporary sabbatical from Test cricket in April 2006, in a bid to concentrate only on ODIs in the lead-up to the 2007 World Cup. He later returned to the side, and even led Pakistan’s Test side at the start of their tumultuous tour of England last summer. He, however, once again retired from the longest format, as soon as Pakistan lost the first Test against Australia at Lord’s.How long the current impasse lasts is difficult to ascertain. Afridi, until the World Cup, was Pakistan’s most effective and successful limited-overs bowler of the last three years. And his public popularity – he remains the most sought-after autograph in Pakistan as well as the only current player brands will invest in – ensures that the pressure on the PCB, and in particular the chairman, will be immense.In any case, Butt’s tenure has been pockmarked by constant instability – nine captaincy changes in Tests and ODIs, five different selection heads and three coaches – and regular spats with senior players: Mohammad Yousuf announced a brief retirement last year and Younis Khan wasn’t chosen for almost a year after the pair were handed open-ended bans last year. Shoaib Malik and Rana Naved-ul-Hasan have also faced one-year bans (eventually overturned), while after the World Cup, Butt had a dig at Abdul Razzaq as well, saying that he should retire now.Afridi will play in the Friends Life t20 for Hampshire, and he will also be available for the inaugural edition of the Sri Lankan Premier League, while continuing to participate in domestic cricket in Pakistan as well.

John Hastings derailed the Bangladesh Cricket Board XI chase with a hat-trick to spur the visiting Australians to a comprehensive victory in their only warm-up game ahead of the three-match ODI series

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Apr-2011
Scorecard
John Hastings rattled the hosts with a hat-trick•Associated PressJohn Hastings, the medium-pacer, derailed the Bangladesh Cricket Board XI chase with a hat-trick to spur the visiting Australians to a comprehensive victory in their only warm-up game ahead of the three-match ODI series.Raqibul Hasan and Maisuqur Rahman had built a solid century stand in the BCB XI’s response to 308, though the hosts were well behind the required rate. But that partnership was put to an end by Hastings, who bowled Raqibul for 65 and trapped Alok Kapali and Shuvagoto Hom off successive deliveries to claim a hat-trick in the 36th over. He wasn’t done, as he returned in the 38th over to dislodge Maisuqur. The tail offered some resistance as BCB XI limped to 218 for 7.Australia’s strong performance with the bat centered around half-centuries from four of their batsmen – Brad Haddin, Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke and Michael Hussey. Ponting, having relinquished his post as captain, played a fluent innings, striking 10 fours and a six in his 69. Clarke, his successor, made 55 in 56 balls and Hussey made a quickfire 69.At 236 for 3 at the end of 41 overs, Australia would have hoped to pile up more than what they eventually got, but it proved more than sufficient. The first of three ODIs begins on April 9 in Dhaka.

A round-up of matches from the third week of the Standard Bank Pro20

Firdose Moonda14-Feb-2011The Dolphins became the first team to qualify for the semi-finals with a third consecutive victory before registering their first defeat of the competition. At the other end of the table, the Knights are out of semi-final contention, not having won a single game from their four matches.Their best chance at victory came in the rained out encounter against the Lions on Wednesday in Potchefstroom. The Knights put on a modest 137 for six in their innings with Reeza Hendricks the highest run-scorer with 47. Ethan O’Reilly, Alfonso Thomas and Paul Harris all conceded less than six runs an over and the only other damage came from Johan van der Wath who hit 29 off 21 balls.The Knights bowlers looked up to the task, removing Alviro Petersen for three and Jonathan Vandiar for eight. The Lions were 12 for two when the rain came down and no further play was possible.In Durban, the Dolphins secured their place in the final four with a nine-run win over the Cobras on Friday. Devon Conway led the way, scoring 62 off 60 balls. He shared a 92-run third wicket partnership with Vaughn van Jaarsveld, who scored a bruising 53 off 38 balls. Daryn Smit’s quickfire 22 off 11 balls took the Dolphins to 154 for 3. Vernon Philander was the most successful Cobras bowler, claiming the wicket of David Miller for a duck and finished with 1 for 23.The Cobras lost Richard Levi, who went without scoring, in the first over but Andrew Puttick and Herschelle Gibbs kept them in the game with 32 and 31 respectively. The pair were slightly sluggish is their approach and it kept the Cobras behind the run rate. Owais Shah chipped with 28 and when he departed in the 16th over, the Cobras needed 55 to win in 26 balls. Imran Khan’s four overs went for just 13 and Kyle Abbott was economical in picking up two for 21. Dane Vilas tried to resurrect the challenge but the task was too much.The final nail got smacked into the Knights coffin when they lost to the Warriors on the same day in Kimberley. Things started well for them when they restricted the Warriors to 152 for nine. Davy Jacobs and Ashwell Prince went cheaply again, both to Ryan McLaren. It was the 46 off 35 balls from Jon-Jon Smuts and 57 from 42 balls from Justin Kreusch that restored respectability. McLaren ended with four for 16 after mopping up the tail.The Knights looked comfortable in the chase at 99 for two in the 14th over. Kreusch removed Rilee Rossouw for 30 and that started the rot. Nicky Boje accounted for Ryan Bailey’s wicket and then Rusty Theron bowled a typical spell at the death to make sure the Warriors could defend their total. He took two wickets in three balls in the last over of the match and the Warriors won by six runs.On Sunday, the Titans earned a commanding seven wicket win over the Dolphins in Centurion. The Dolphins looked like fish out of water when in the third over, they were 1 for 3. Devon Conway was run out by an athletic Henry Davids, David Miller was caught off the bowling of Andre Nel and Loots bosman fell to Albie Morkel. A hat-trick of ducks sat at the top of the Dolphins scorecard. Ahmed Amla scored 44 in testing circumstances and Yasir Arafat added 17 batting at number eight to take the Dolphins to 103 for 6.The Titans made light work of the target, reaching it in the 16th over. Davids’ impressive showing continued with 45 off 32 balls, Jacques Rudolph scored 29 and Farhaan Behardien 24. Morkel and Wiese, who both impressed with the ball, were there at the end to see the Titans home. They move to second on the standings after their win.Bowler of the week: Ryan McLaren has been in sublime form in this competition and his four-wicket haul against the Warriors should have been a match-winning one. He leads the standings with eight wickets at an average of 10.12.Batsman of the week: Devon Conway was the key man in the Dolphins’ success over the Cobras, the match that secured a place in the knockouts. His 62 earns him this week’s award.

Sri Lanka’s captain Tillakaratne Dilshan has demanded more from his batsmen following their first-innings surrender for 174 in the second Test against Australia in Pallekele

Daniel Brettig in Pallekele08-Sep-2011Sri Lanka’s captain Tillakaratne Dilshan has demanded more from his batsmen following their first-innings surrender for 174 in the second Test against Australia in Pallekele. He threatened numerous changes to the team if performances did not improve.Dilshan was one of a series of batsmen dismissed cheaply as Sri Lanka lurched to 76 for 5 at lunch on the first day, a position from which they never recovered despite an excellent batting pitch. The start seemed to reflect the chaotic nature of the hosts’ lead-in to the Test, with Rangana Herath (finger) and Ajantha Mendis (back) ruled out on the morning of the match due to injuries.”Definitely there is something wrong in the batting,” Dilshan said. “We are talking, discussing, we are doing a lot of hard work in the training and we are discussing a lot of things, but now is the time to deliver.”We can’t say the wicket is bad. They’ve bowled really well but we’ve played the last series in England, where there was a better attack, and on a difficult wicket we batted really well. Now the players should put their hands up and deliver, they have to deliver, now is the time, we can’t wait anymore.”This is the third time we’ve got out cheaply [including 82 on the final day against England in Cardiff]. They bowled really well in the start but our batsmen didn’t bat well, that is why we got out. It is a good wicket, we are playing seven batsmen, we can’t expect 174 all out.”Several ideas have been tossed about in Sri Lanka’s dressing room, including the employment of the sports psychologist Rudi Webster at the conclusion of the series. Dilshan also said the older batsmen, including himself and Thilan Samaraweera, had to take more responsibility or risk being dropped. Their struggles contrasted with the success of Angelo Mathews, who followed a second-innings 95 in Galle with 58 here.”He’s batted really well in the No. 7 position,” Dilshan said. “We have problems with the middle order and the top order. We don’t want to change someone batting really well at No. 7, but we have to think about the second innings. Maybe change the batting line-up and send someone in top.”Dilshan described the changes to the side minutes before play as “unfortunate”. They necessitated the inclusion of the offspinner Suraj Randiv, who was going to be dropped, and the legspinner Seekkuge Prasanna, making his debut.Herath was struck on the finger during a fielding drill on the eve of the Test, while Mendis had a back problem that worsened in the lead-up to the game. “We thought he [Herath] would be okay but today he tried to grip the ball and he couldn’t, his finger was very sore,” Dilshan said. “Ajantha had a back injury in last one-dayer but he managed to play, but today morning he talked to the physio, he was worse than the last few weeks. I don’t want to take a chance and play him, so that is why we gave a youngster a chance. Unfortunately we had to make two changes in the morning.”

Doug Bollinger, who arrived from the Champions League two days before the first Test, injured himself on the final day of the Mohali Test

Sidharth Monga in Mohali06-Oct-2010October 24, 2009. Brett Lee joins the Australian team barely 12 hours before the toss for the first ODI of the gruelling seven-match series. Till then, Lee has been occupied in winning New South Wales the Champions League Twenty20. On the day of the match, with Harbhajan Singh and Praveen Kumar threatening a heist with the bat, Lee pulls up sore. End of series.It’s déjà vu in October 2010 in certain ways. Doug Bollinger, after a successful Champions League, arrives here two days before what turns out to be an all-time great Test, bowls impressively in the defence of a modest total, and when he is on absolute fire, running through the Indian batting with his aggression and hostility, he has to pull out because of abdominal pain. After an over in which he bounces Harbhajan Singh out, Bollinger is not available through the rest of the innings.”I actually had him ready to bowl the next over,” Ricky Ponting said later. “I went to grab his hat off him for the start of his next over and he said he’d felt some pain in one of his abdominals, and being a fast bowler and having that sort of injury I just sent him off the ground straight away.”Ponting, captaining an Australian side not dominant any more and hence in need of every resource it can get hold of, didn’t hide his disappointment last year. He is not hiding it this year.”It would have been nice to have another fast bowler to rotate through when we needed that breakthrough,” Ponting said. “At that stage, Doug had bowled just the one spell as well, so he would have been nice and fresh. When you are bowling at the tail, you need those strike options. That said, we used five other bowling options, but none of them could give us that result.”Ponting – not obligated, unlike many other international players, to always sing praises for the leagues – and the Australian team management haven’t been a fan of the clashes the various leagues create with national duty, the preparation part more than the actual playing part. They have all been concerned about the late arrivals of Bollinger and Michael Hussey.There is nothing to ensure that Bollinger wouldn’t have been injured had he trained with the Australian team for the last 10 days, but it helps a captain to know that his strike bowler has not been away playing in a private league until two days before a Test.”It probably doesn’t help,” said Ponting of Bollinger’s Champions League commitments. “But he’d been bowling, and that’s one positive for Doug that he’d been playing competitive cricket.”He probably hasn’t been bowling the amount of overs in the Champions League that some of the others have had coming over here, but the facts are that he’s been playing, he arrived a couple of days before the game.”I thought his work before that was very good, I thought his spell today was probably the best he’s bowled during the game, so [it was] disappointing for him to go down at the end there, it hurt us a lot.”

England surged to a six-wicket win on the third afternoon of their tour match against Western Australia at Perth, captain Andrew Strauss’s unbeaten 120 guiding their fourth-innings pursuit of 243

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Nov-2010
Scorecard
Andrew Strauss acknowledges applause after a match-winning century•Getty ImagesEngland surged to a six-wicket win on the third afternoon of their tour match against Western Australia at Perth, captain Andrew Strauss’s unbeaten 120 guiding their fourth-innings pursuit of 243. Four wickets for Graeme Swann, with admirable back-up from Stuart Broad and Steven Finn, had brought England back into the game after Western Australia started the day well placed at 1 for 109. The last nine wickets tumbled for 93 runs to set up England’s second-innings chase, and though Alastair Cook again fell early Strauss ran to an aggressive hundred and a string of contributions from the middle order sealed the win in the 48th over.England looked set for a long day in the field while Wes Robinson and Michael Swart built on a strong opening stand of 77 with a 53-run partnership for the second wicket. But Swart’s removal, pinned in front of his stumps by Finn, sparked a collapse as Robinson was stumped off Swann shortly after passing fifty, captain Marcus North was run out by substitute fielder Eoin Morgan and Adam Voges was caught behind off Broad in the space of eight overs.From then on, England kept firm control of the match and wickets fell at regular intervals. No. 11 Michael Hogan bashed 21 from just 12 balls, including two fours and two sixes, to boost Western Australia’s innings past 200, but when he was run out England were left with the appetising task of chasing 243 in 52 overs.Hogan kept up the counter-attack with the ball in his hands, clean bowling Cook in the fifth over as England’s chase suffered an early setback. But Strauss anchored the innings with aplomb, adding a sedate 65 in 16.2 overs for the second wicket with Jonathan Trott and then shifting gears in a 66-run partnership with Kevin Pietersen that took half that time.Pietersen followed his first-innings 58 with a quickfire 35, striking three powerful straight drives in succession off Hogan and lofting left-arm spinner Michael Beer over midwicket before being given out leg before to the same bowler attempting an adventurous reverse sweep. The decision didn’t impress Pietersen, who stood at the crease for several seconds looking at his bat before walking off.Strauss then added a third half-century stand, with Paul Collingwood, and brought up his 36th first-class century with a crisp straight drive off Swart’s part-time spin. After Beer had Collingwood caught for 26 for his second wicket, he finished the job in partnership with Ian Bell. Bell hurried the conclusion with three fours and a six in his 22 as England sealed victory with more than four overs to spare.