IPL-5:Faf du Plessis shown a supernatural innings for Chennai Super Kings to win

Faf du Plessis (71 from 46 balls)

Chennai Super Kings batsman Faf du Plessis described his side scoring 45 runs in two overs to pull off a sensational five-wicket win over Royal Challengers Bangalore as "supernatural" which he would cherish for his life.

"To be part of a match like that, I don't think I have ever been (in a situation) like that. I am super excited. To get those 45 runs or some thing in last two overs, I said it's going to take some supernatural," du Plessis, who scored 71 off 46 balls to be adjudged man-of-the-match, said in post match press conference.

"I think the special thing with our batting line up is that we bat so deep. Suresh comes in and he strikes the ball for fours and sixes and then Dhoni walks in and hits sixes. That takes a bit of pressure off me," said the South African.

Asked about the heroic effort by Albie Morkel who smashed 28 runs off seven balls to turn the match on its head in the 19th over, he said, "We were down and out. Hopefully that will be the turnaround of the season. We actually said this is going to be turning point. It will give us massive confidence in the games to come."

Du Plessis said his side knew that they could chase down the big target of 206 if they got a good start.

"It's a big score and so we thought we have to play really well to get there - To get a good start. We analysed the wicket and it was a good wicket. There wasn't much spin which was the key for us. If it started to spin in the second innings it really would have been tough. But it didn't spin much. The ball was coming on nicely. Just wickets in hand towards the end was the key."

On his batting as an opener, he said, "I have been hitting the ball nicely. I knew for myself that a big score was just around the corner. I knew that I had to stay at the crease a bit longer and if I stay the runs will come. I am really enjoying the opening slot. It is new to me."

Asked how he felt facing Daniel Vettori and Muttiah Muralitharan together, du Plessis said, "Those two spinners are special. As a boy I watched them on TV. Muralitharan is a legend. So it was special to face him. First time I was facing him, I had to look at the ball closely. But really enjoyed the challenge. I enjoyed (playing against) Zaheer also. He is a classy bowler. I knew I had to attack him."

Du Plessis was involved in a third wicket partnership of 40 runs with captain MS Dhoni and asked about what transpired in the middle between them, he said, "We talked about certain bowlers who we can take on. Obviously Murali was bowling really well. It was the case of playing positively against him and not taking too big risks and try and attack other bowlers.

"I said I will try and score (off) Vettori's over because the run rate was really getting high. So luckily for me, we scored a few sixes in that over. He (Dhoni) is just really calm. He is one of the best finishers in the game. To play with him was a nice learning opportunity for me," said du Plessis.

Muralitharan admitted that the 28 runs conceded by Virat Kohli in the 19th over turned the game.

On Bangalore captain Daniel Vettori giving the penultimate over to Kohli, Muralitharan said, "Raju (Bhatkal) wasn't tried because he was playing his first match and was quite expensive (35 runs in two overs). We had 42 runs to defend and we thought we could win even if we were to concede 20 in that over. But it went for 28 and that turned the game."

Muralitharan, who claimed 3/21, denied that his side were complacent after posting a big total.

"We were not at all complacent. We knew they had batters who can chase down the target and wicket was also good. Both sides fought hard and in the end one side won. Cricket is a funny game and in T20 the chances are always 50-50. We also made a few mistakes, but nothing specific," he said.

On Gayle, a useful bowler, not taking the field during bowling, Muralitharan said, "It was so hot and humid compared to Bangalore, so he got cramps while batting. With a lot more matches coming, we didn't want to risk him and thought we should give him enough time to recover for the next match. We definitely missed him because he usually bowls 2-3 overs every match."

IPL-5 : Dimitri Mascarenhas was the architects of a comfortable win for Kings XI Punjab

Dimitri Mascarenhas(5/25)

Dimitri Mascarenhas' sensational five wicket haul and Shaun Marsh's unbeaten half-century helped Punjab notch up their first win of IPL 5. Asked to bat first, Pune Warriors were dismissed for a sub-par 115 in 19 overs, courtesy a brilliant spell by Mascarenhas who claimed five wickets for 25 and was well-supported by Harmeet Singh (2-23) and Piyush Chawla (1-23). The hosts then returned to overhaul the target with 14 balls to spare with Marsh hitting an unbeaten 64 off 54 balls studded with seven fours and one six. Skipper Adam Gilchrist (21) and Chawla (21) were the other notable contributors.

With this win, Punjab avenged their first leg defeat to the Warriors at Pune and also spanned their two-match losing streak, where they had also lost to Rajasthan Royals.

Punjab began their run chase on a faulty note when hero of last year's edition, Paul Valthaty was removed off the very first ball by Ashok Dinda. After the initial blow, skipper Gilchrist along with Marsh, who made a comeback in this game after injury, tried to steady the innings. However, Gilchrist fell at the end of eight overs when Angelo Mathews had him caught by Steven Smith. A few overs later, Rahul Sharma earned his only scalp with Mandeep Singh (10) falling in the 12th over, handing over a catch to Smith.

After that Marsh along with Chawla ensured their were no more hiccups. Luck was also by his side as Pune let go of several opportunities to send Marsh back. A run out chance went abegging when Jesse Ryder failed to collect the ball cleanly to dislodge the stumps. As Marsh was inching towards half-century, he was dropped by Dinda off the bowling of Ashish Nehra. The Australian made good use of the chances and saw his team through in the end.

Earlier, there was a hint of movement in the wicket after overnight rain and the hosts made good use of it as they bowled a good line to make life difficult for Pune, who had beaten them in their first leg match. Pune suffered their first blow when New Zealand's Jesse Ryder (7), who tried to steal a cheeky single, was run out in the third over.

However, it was Mascarenhas who dealt the massive blow when in the sixth over, he had Ganguly caught by Marsh of the leading edge. The former India skipper's nine-ball innings was laced with three fours. Mascarenhas then struck again in the same over when he had a struggling Samuels bowled to an incoming delivery. Uthappa, who looked in good form in the previous two games, tried to hold one end as wickets kept tumbling and Pune was tottering at 3-29 at one stage.

Harmeet Singh, who has been bowling intelligently, tasted success in his first over when he trapped Angelo Mathews (11) leg-before in the ninth over. Mascarenhas once again came back to inflict more damage when he had Uthappa (17) caught by Bipul Sharma in the 13th over.

Middle-order batsman Mithun Manhas was the top-scorer for Pune and his 28-ball innings included three hits to the fence and a six, but he also fell to Mascarenhas in the 18th over while trying to play a sweep shot over the short fine-leg region. In the same over, Rahul Sharma became Mascarenhas' fifth victim when he had him caught by Mandeep Singh. Ashok Dinda was the last man out when he was found short of crease in the last ball of the 19th over.

Piyush Chawla also played his part and picked up a wicket when he cleaned up Steven Smith (13) in the 16th over. Manish Pandey (0) offered little resistance giving Harmeet his second wicket. Praveen Kumar and Parvinder Awana bowled a tight line, giving away 19 and 18 runs respectively, though both ended up wicketless.

Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) blamed for present crisis in cricket

BCB logo

As the domestic cricket has fallen in chronic problem, the former cricketers lashed out at Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) harshly saying that the country’s cricket would have to pay a price badly in future if such troubles continue. According to the former cricketers, it is BCB’s fault to make the matter complicated as they failed to tame the clubs and took them to the ground. They also lambasted BCB for being club oriented leaving the interest of country’s cricket in murk.
The Premier Division Cricket League this season faced huge ups and downs and was postponed six times. The uncertainty over the resumption of the league looms large day by day but the BCB is yet to take any control over the clubs.
The current stalemate is created over the transfer fiasco of Victoria’s Pakistan recruit Mohammad Yousuf as Mohammedan Sporting Club Limited and Abahani Limited cited his transfer as fake. As the domestic powerhouses were related with it, Cricket Committee of Dhaka Metropolis (CCDM) referred the issue to the cricket apex body. But the BCB failed to give any ruling though asked CCDM to restart the league on April 10. Abahani and Mohammedan remained adamant of not playing the league unless the transfer of Yousuf is declared invalid. The situation got more complicated when other clubs joined Abahani and Mohammedan. The rain for the time being gave the BCB a relief as CCDM announced the ground unplayable.
In the wake of the situation, the players also were concerned about their future. They however were not in a position to make any comment.
Former Bangladesh skipper Roquibul Hassan termed ‘poor management’ and ‘corruption’ as the reason behind the hindrance of the league.
“It is very unfortunate that the league faced obstacle repeatedly. BCB should not interfere into the matter because this issue should be handled by CCDM. But the people who are in CCDM are completely unprofessional to run the office. They just saw their interest, but not for cricket. That’s why they could not handle the issue,” he said.
He simultaneously lambasted the clubs as well for not being sincere to resume the league.
“BCB boosted them up financially as the league was halted by BPL. So they should be sincere. The big clubs should think about the interest of the cricket but they could not show a liberal attitude.”
“However I believe that we could overcome the situation and the league will be restarted. But I urged all stakeholders not to make delay to start the National Cricket League.”
Another former captain Faruk Ahmed however blamed the BCB wholly rather making the clubs culpable.
“BCB failed to take control over the clubs since the directors are completely club oriented. Their activities over the issue made it crystal clear that they gave more importance to their clubs rather than the country’s cricket,” said Faruk Ahmed, the former national captain.
“As they are morally weak, they could not overcome the trouble. But if it continues, the cricket would have to pay a severe price in future,” he added.
“It’s not new that they create the problems for the first time. They rather created problems relentlessly since they took the office. They have no plan, no vision. There was no development in any arena. There were no activities in Academy so the players were not produced.”
Though Bangladesh cricket did extra ordinary job in Asia Cup, Faruk thought that the scattered success came up with relying on some world class performers like Shakib Al Hasan and Tamim Iqbal.
“BCB could not claim the credit. Success came up only for some world class performers. They are produced in our regime. But the way they run the board, there was possibility to collapse our cricket in next three or four years.”
The CCDM however declared that the league would be restarted on April 13 though the clubs stuck to their previous decision.
“We never said that we would not play the league. They (BCB) would have to tell about the Yousuf’s transfer clearly and should give reply to our letter,” Mohammedan cricket committee chief Khandokar Jamiluddin said.
As the problem lingers, the expenditure of the clubs got higher since they continued the practice session. The five clubs excluding Victoria of the super league may claim compensation from the BCB.
“We are thinking about it but yet to discuss the matter with all clubs. However we’ve to discuss first before taking any decision,” he said.

West Indies vs Australia1st test : West Indies still hold upper hand in first Test

 West Indies held the upper hand at the end of the third day of the first Test here on Monday as they reduced Australia to 248 for 5, still trailing by 201 runs. Only a solid 73 by captain Michael Clarke and a typically stubborn unbeaten 47 by veteran Mike Hussey all but ensured that the Aussies would avoid the follow-on.
Clarke was disappointed with his team’s performance in the match so far.
“We have no excuses for not bowling and fielding as well as we would have liked day one, day two and certainly no excuses for being five down on that wicket today,” he said.
However, he was still confident the Australians could win the match.
“I think we’re going to have to bowl better than what we did in the first innings and we’re going to have to try to make as many runs as we can in this first innings to see how close we are to them.
“I certainly think we can still win the Test match from here.”
His West Indian counterpart Darren Sammy was by contrast delighted with his team.
“The team played well. The bowlers supported each other,” he said.
“We’re quite happy with the way the day went.”
Sammy snapped up the first wicket to fall as having added only one run to his overnight score of 13, Ed Cowan was drawn into a shot to a ball just outside off stump and edged through to the keeper.
Shane Watson, batting for the first time in a Test at number three, was fortunate to survive twice when he had scored five.
Sammy’s persevering line just outside off stump worked again when David Warner, having scored 42 off 55 balls, played at a ball without much foot movement and Darren Bravo took the catch at second slip.
After the early scares Watson had settled but when he turned a Fidel Edwards delivery to fine leg he was looking for a second run which would have been tight.

edward

Tigers’ India tour still only a hope

Bangladesh’s revelation that India will host them for a full international series in December raised quite a few eyebrows as it remained unclear of how India would accommodate them in their crowded international schedule.
The Bangladesh Cricket Board in a statement on Monday said its president AHM Mustafa Kamal had a favourable discussion with his Indian counterpart during his recent visit and that he ‘received assurance that India will host Bangladesh for a full tour later this year.’
No official word came from Board of Control for Cricket in India through any channel following the statement, which has taken aback many in both countries given India already have a tight schedule.
The world champions will play non-stop cricket from coming August to April, which means it will be extremely difficult for them to find a window for their less fancied neighbour.
India are due to host New Zealand in August-September for three Tests, take part in the World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka in September-October before their players get themselves engaged in Champions League Twenty20 tournament.
An intriguing four-match Test series against England will follow in November-December when India will go all-out to avenge their last year’s 4-0 drubbing that saw them losing their number one crown.
England’s India tour also includes seven one-day internationals and a Twenty20 international. According to International Cricket Council’s new Future Tour Programme England’s India tour will end in January.
It means India will be engaged against England from November to January and worse for Bangladesh is that this high-profile series will be replaced by another icon series in February when Australia will tour India.
The Aussies will play four Tests in India, which will be another revenge mission for the home side. India lost to Australia 4-0 earlier this year and it will now be their turn to return it back to Australia.
BCB spokesman Jalal Yunus, quoting Kamal, said India has promised to accommodate Bangladesh between the Test and one-day series against England in December, but still it remained a big question if they will want to risk their players of being injured before the Australia series.
Given the track record of Kamal, who has a tendency of providing contradicting statements to media, BCB’s decision of issuing a media release based on his words also came as a surprise to many.
‘We have full confidence in our president and he has informed the Board that India tour is all but certain,’ said Yunus. ‘The two boards will very soon finalise the details of the tour and sign an agreement.’
Yunus also hoped that it will not be a short trip for the Tigers and will rather include two Tests, three ODIs and a T20 International.
‘We have a plan to include all three formats in the series. Let see how we can do this,’ he said.
Meanwhile, Pakistani media already started alleging that Bangladesh’s planned India tour is a reward to them for declining the tour to their country. 
PakTribune.com under a headline of ‘BD to visit India in Dec, Pak ignored’ reported that anti-Pakistan Indian cricket lobby dominated the Bangladesh Cricket Board as BCB decided to visit India in December.
The BCB however said they are yet to take any decision on Pakistan tour.

IPL-5 : Sakib in, Knight Riders win

Shakib Al Hasan

At last the Indian Premier League provided some delight for the Bangladeshi fans as Sakib al Hasan got his place in the playing eleven of Kolkata Knight Riders against Royal Challengers Bangalore on Tuesday.
Millions of TV viewers from Bangladesh who had their eyes glued in the first two matches of KKR were disappointed as their premier star Sakib was overlooked.
 

KKR were forced to revise their strategy after two drubbing against Delhi Daredevils and Rajasthan Royals respectively that prompted call from many corners to pick Sakib.  
They made four changes to their side against tournament’s one of the most favourites Bangalore and were finally rewarded with a massive 42-run to open their account.
Sakib was unable to make any contribution with the bat and also dropped a catch but came back strongly with the ball as he picked up the last Bangalore wicket to finish with 2-21 off three overs.
 

New Zealand wicketkeeper-batsmen Brendon McCullum and West Indian off spinner Sunil Narine were left out along with Indians Debabrata Das and Iqbal Abdullah to make room for Manvinder Bisla, Sakib, Netherlands’ Ryan ten Doeschate and Laxmipathy Balaji respectively.
McCullum scored eleven runs in the first two matches while Narine who was surprisingly given the nod ahead of Sakib had an ordinary outing against Rajasthan.
Das made 18 and 12 respectively while left-arm spinner Abdullah went wicket less in the first two matches. 
Coming in at number seven with KKR at 6-143 in 17.2 overs, Sakib was in a look out to increase the run rate, but fell to the hands of the long-off fielder off Vinay Kumar when he tried to heave over the extra cover.
KKR posted 165-8 and was led by Balaji (4-18) while they defended their modest total. Balaji could have had a five-for if Sakib had not dropped Saurabh Tiwary at deep square leg.
Sakib came in to bowl in the 16th over and gave away nine runs. He picked up his two wickets in his next two overs respectively. 

India tour likely this year: BCB

Tigers are likely to have the first fully-fledged tour to India this year, Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president A H M Mustafa Kamal has said. Speaking at the board's meeting on Monday, Kamal said his Indian counterpart N Srinivasan had assured him in his recent visit to the country about the tour by the end of 2012, a BCB media release said. Kamal's meeting with Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president Srinivasan during the inauguration of Indian Premier League was fruitful, the release said, quoting Kamal as saying in Monday's meeting. Bangladesh played the first Test on Nov 12, 2000 against India at home ground but has not had a fully-fledged tour to the neighbouring country. BCB is being criticised for its failure to keep a tour to India in the current future tours programme of Bangladesh cricket team. After meeting Srinivasan during his recent visit to India to join IPL inauguration, Kamal said they had discussed the issue. "The national team will tour India soon," he had said. 

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Match Preview: West Indies vs Australia Match scheduled to begin at 014:00 GMT

West Indies v Australia, 1st Test, Barbados , Apr 7-11, 2012 (10:00 local | 14:00 GMT | 20:00 Bangladesh Time)

 

In times gone by, a Test series between West Indies and Australia would have evinced plenty of interest. Now, thanks to the state of West Indies cricket, most experts and fans expect Australia to win the series comfortably, even though they had a tough time in the ODIs and the T20Is, only managing to share those series. The reason for the pessimism is clear: West Indies have been a poor Test side for a while now, and even their home record has taken a beating recently. Since they last played a home series against Australia, in 2008, West Indies have won only two out of 15 home Tests, and lost series against Bangladesh, India and South Africa. Apart from beating England in 2009, their one bright spark was winning a Test against Pakistan in a drawn series last year.

Given these recent stats, and the unavailability of a few key players for West Indies, Australia will feel pretty confident of taking the series, especially after giving India a drubbing in their last Test series.

The recent head-to-head record between these two teams is also overwhelmingly in favour of Australia - they have a 15-1 win-loss record against West Indies since 2000, and 5-1 in the West Indies during this period. This recent run has meant West Indies no longer have a winning record against Australia at home - it's now slipped to 17-14 in favour of Australia.

Tests between West Indies and Australia

	Tests	Aus won	WI won	Drawn/ Tied
Overall	108	52	32	23/ 1
In West Indies	45	17	14	14/ 0
Since 2000	18	15	1	2/ 0
In West Indies, since 2000	7	5	1	1/ 0

The batting and bowling averages since 2000 indicate how far ahead Australia have been in their head-to-head contests. They've averaged 43.58 runs per wicket with the bat in Tests against West Indies, and conceded less than 27 runs per wicket. In the West Indies, their bowling average has gone up to more than 31, but the batting average has also climbed to 46.28. Ricky Ponting has led the charge of the Australian batsmen during this period, scoring six hundreds in 17 Tests and averaging almost 65. He has done even better in the West Indies, averaging 84.60, with four centuries in six Tests.

Among the West Indian batsmen, Shivnarine Chanderpaul has been the one batsman among the current lot who has shone consistently against Australia, and there will be plenty of responsibility on him this time around as well. In 12 Tests against Australia since 2000, Chanderpaul averages 47.95; in six home Tests against them during this period, his record matches that of Ponting's: four centuries in six Tests, and an average of 77.67. Moreover, he also has a superb record in Barbados, the venue for the first Test: in 15 matches there, he averages 63.55, including three centuries. Meanwhile, Ponting hasn't done badly here either, with two centuries in three Tests, and an average touching 60.

West Indies' fast bowling is probably their strongest suit, with Fidel Edwards, Ravi Rampaul and Kemar Roach all in the mix. Roach created a pretty good impression in Australia in 2009, but in terms of stats, Edwards has the best numbers against Australia, especially in home conditions. In three Tests against them at home, he has taken 15 wickets at 25.13. That included a match haul of eight wickets in Kingston in the first Test in 2008 - the bowlers gave West Indies a fair chance of winning that Test, but faced with a fourth-innings target of 287, West Indies could only muster 191