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Charges dropped against Yasir Shah in alleged rape case

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

According to Islamabad police, his name was removed from the FIR after the alleged victim retracted her earlier statement

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Jan-2022All charges against Pakistan legspinner Yasir Shah, who was named in a case concerning the alleged rape of an underage girl, have been dropped. According to Islamabad police, Yasir’s name was removed from the First Information Report (FIR) after the alleged victim retracted her earlier statement.”The victim admitted that Yasir Shah’s name was included in the FIR due to misrepresentation,” a supplementary report from the Islamabad Shalimar police station, where the FIR was first lodged, said. “Yasir Shah has nothing to do with the alleged rape case.”The case against Yasir was registered by the girl’s aunt, who alleged that Yasir’s friend Farhanuddin had raped her niece at gunpoint, and that Yasir had threatened the girl’s aunt when she attempted to register a complaint against Farhanuddin. The case against the pair was registered on December 19 under Sections 292-B (child pornography) and 292-C (punishment for rape) of the Pakistan Penal Code.Earlier this week Farhanuddin fled from the courthouse after his pre-arrest bail application was rejected by a district and sessions court.Shah, 35, has not made any public comment on the situation, while the PCB earlier said: “We have noted that some allegations have been levelled against one of our centrally contracted players. The PCB is presently gathering information at its end and will only offer a comment when in possession of complete facts.”

Yuvraj Singh asked to come out of retirement by Punjab cricket secretary

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“The request I made was for him to consider playing all formats,” says Puneet Bali

Shashank Kishore14-Aug-2020Puneet Bali, the Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) secretary, has requested Yuvraj Singh to come out of retirement and play for the state again in the upcoming domestic season. Bali is awaiting a response from the former India allrounder.It is understood Yuvraj has not committed to the PCA, and will need the BCCI permission in case he decides to take up the offer.Punjab has lost a number of key players to other states in recent years. Among them are Manan Vohra and Barinder Sran, who qualified to play for Chandigarh two seasons ago as locals, while Jiwanjot Singh and Taruwar Kohli moved to Chhattisgarh and Meghalaya respectively. Bali hopes a young team which is trying to rebuild will benefit from Yuvraj’s experience and mentoring.However, coming back from retirement may not be so straightforward. BCCI considers players to have officially retired to provide NOCs for overseas leagues. And Yuvraj has featured in two such tournaments in the past year – the Global T20 Canada and Abu Dhabi T10 League.Last month, Yuvraj spent time overseeing closed-door training sessions of Shubman Gill, Prabhsimran Singh, Anmolpreet Singh, Arshdeep Singh, Abhishek Sharma and Harpreet Brar, all of whom are set to feature in IPL 2020, at PCA’s upcoming international stadium in Mullanpur, near Chandigarh.”These boys were all undergoing sessions with our physios and trainers to prepare [for the season],” Bali told ESPNcricinfo. “Yuvraj initiated sessions with these boys while he was in Chandigarh. Over the last couple of seasons, we’ve lost players to other states, many of our players to Chandigarh, Chhattisgarh and Himachal. So we felt a player of Yuvraj’s experience and calibre could lend a lot of value and inspire the youngsters.”The request I made was for him to consider playing all formats. But if he comes back to and says, he’s available only for limited-overs cricket, for some reason, that will be fine too. I’m looking forward to hear from him soon. But as such, he’s been working hard with the boys.”In another key development, the PCA is also set to offer state contracts to their players. Bali confirmed the contracts list has been drawn up and will likely come into force from October 1, 2020. The contracts for this season will go upto April 30, 2021.The men’s category will have three grades – A, B and C. Grade A will come with a retainer of INR 8 lakh, B with a retainer of INR 6 lakh, and those in C – mostly for Under-19s and promising age-group talent – will get a retainer of INR 10,000 rupees a month. There will be 10 players in each of the contract grades.Players for Grades A and B will be considered based on seniority. Those in A should’ve played for Punjab in the previous Ranji Trophy season. However, exceptions will be made for those who have either represented India, India A or India Under-19 in the same period. “Essentially, we want to reward those who’ve performed in the Ranji Trophy, so that is first criteria,” Bali explained.The contract fee will be borne by the state association and comes outside the BCCI’s purview. The move is significant because at present, domestic cricketers earn a match fee of INR 35,000 per match day (for days’ cricket), and share among themselves 10.40% of the BCCI’s annual media rights income. An average player who plays all matches across formats in a season stands to roughly earn INR 15-20 lakh. This revenue pales in comparison to the amounts that players can earn from the IPL, with a minimum base price of INR 20 lakhs.”This will motivate players, especially those who don’t have IPL contracts,” Punjab captain Mandeep Singh said. “This is a welcome step, it will provide a lot of players financial stability.”The women’s contracts too will be divided into three, and will be valued similarly to the men’s. However, the number of players offered contracts will vary, with Groups A and B having three members each, while four players will be awarded Group C contracts.”We had a discussion in November last year, and then February, and then things came to a standstill due to the pandemic, but we’ve more or less formalised it now,” Bali said. “The men’s list has been drawn up. We’re waiting for our women’s squads to be picked before finalising the contracts in that category.”

Oman continue dominance with win over Hong Kong

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USA brush aside PNG to notch second win while Namibia overpower Canada

Peter Della Penna in Windhoek23-Apr-2019Left-arm swing bowler Bilal Khan bagged four wickets on one of his favourite hunting grounds at Wanderers before Jatinder Singh’s half-century paced a simple chase. Oman thus continued their undefeated run at WCL Division 2 with a seven-wicket win over Hong Kong. Oman are now in the driver’s seat for one of the four ODI status berths up for grabs in the tournament, and can be the first team to clinch it with a win over Namibia on Wednesday.Man of the Match Bilal struck a massive blow in the third over, claiming the tournament’s leading scorer Anshy Rath for just 3, caught in the slips by Jatinder. Hong Kong’s innings finally started to stabilise around Babar Hayat and Tanwir Afzal, who added 62 for the fifth wicket to take them to 109 for 4 by the 32nd, but Bilal’s intervention broke the stand with Tanwir dismissed for 32.Hayat carried on to top-score with 56, but was the third of legspinning allrounder Khawar Ali’s victims, leaving Hong Kong 149 for 7. Bilal was then brought back to wipe out the tail in the 48th over. A run out of last recognised batsman Scott McKechnie for 26 was followed by wickets on back-to-back balls for Bilal, which finished Hong Kong off for 176 with two overs unused.Oman faced little pressure in the chase, with the Hong Kong bowling unit lacking any spark as Jatinder and Khawar coasted through a 79-run opening stand in the first 21 overs. Khawar was run-out for 28 to break the stand, but Jatinder compiled 49 runs in tandem with Aqib Ilyas before both fell in quick succession to the spin duo of Kinchit Shah and Jhatavedh Subramanyan. Captain Zeeshan Maqsood and Mohammad Nadeem knocked off the remaining 43 runs without much fuss. Nadeem ended unbeaten on 31, and has yet to be dismissed in the tournament.The last time these two teams met in one-day cricket was in 2011 at WCL Division 3 in Hong Kong, when Papua New Guinea sent USA in to bat under a heavy cloud cover and bowled them out for 44. It took eight years, but USA finally exacted a heavy dose of revenge. The new-ball exploits of Ali Khan and an incisive spell of left-arm spin by Karima Gore decimated the PNG middle order.Monank Patel drives over mid-off•Peter Della Penna

On a ground where chasing targets has traditionally been best after the pitch flattens out in the afternoon sun, PNG chose to bat first at the toss and paid the price as Ali Khan produced another hostile spell of fast bowling to take three wickets in the Powerplay, giving him a tournament-best 12 wickets after three matches. It began with a brute of a delivery to Tony Ura, who edged to Steven Taylor at second slip, before a pair of inswingers trapped Sese Bau and Assad Vala leg before to leave PNG 19 for 3.Gore arrived in the 24th but attacked the stumps from ball one. His first three wickets were lbw decisions. Chad Soper and Lega Siaka prodded down the wrong line to arm balls before Jason Kila was late on a sweep. Damien Ravu was bowled by Gore for the final wicket as the innings lasted just 39.3 overs.Monank Patel and Xavier Marshall batted ten overs before lunch to take USA to 49 for no loss. PNG extended a streak of three maidens with two more to start after the break, but Monank and Marshall exploded shortly thereafter, scoring 79 off the next 43 balls to end the match. Monank took Siaka’s part-time spin apart in the 19th, driving three sixes in a 22-run frame, and was named Man of the Match.Stephan Baard’s 90 at the top of the order was bookended by an unbeaten 65 from Craig Williams as Namibia bounced back from their final-over loss to USA to notch a 98-run win over Canada. Namibia moves to 2-1 with the win while Canada remains the only winless team in the tournament at 0-3, as their hopes of reclaiming ODI status hang by a thread.Baard and Jean Bredenkamp added 73 for the second wicket to steady the innings after the loss of JP Kotze in the Powerplay for just 6. Bredenkamp eventually fell to left-arm spinner Saad bin Zafar, who along with Nikhil Dutta took two wickets each to slow down Namibia in the middle stage of the innings.But Williams produced half-century stands with Baard and JJ Smit to keep Namibia on course for a well-above par total at United’s sluggish outfield. Smit clubbed three sixes in his 35 off 23 balls to dominate a 51-run stand with Williams before falling in the 49th over to Romesh Eranga.Canada’s batting struggles in Namibia continued as six of the top seven got starts but none passed Rodrigo Thomas’ 28. Dilon Heyliger wound up top-scoring from No. 10 with an unbeaten 29 to save Canada from taking an even bigger hit to their net run rate.

Nip it in the bud on the field – du Plessis

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The SA camp and former Australia batsman Simon Katich have called on match officials to play a more proactive role to ensure that tensions between the two sides don’t boil over

Firdose Moonda in Durban05-Mar-2018The South African camp and former Australia batsman Simon Katich have called on the match officials to play a more proactive role in ensuring that tensions between the two sides don’t boil over and lead to incidents such as the one between David Warner and Quinton de Kock on the fourth day in Durban.With the teams pointing fingers at the other, it will be up to the on-field umpires – Kumar Dharmasena and S Ravi – and match referee Jeff Crowe to decide if the altercation merits disciplinary action. They have until 3pm on Tuesday to do so.”The important thing is that match referee has to step in and nip this in the bud,” Katich told ESPNcricinfo. “If it is allowed to keep going on, then things are going to get out of control as we saw in the tunnel. And we don’t need that look for Test cricket.”The South Africa captain Faf du Plessis had suggested earlier that Dhamarsena and Ravi should have stepped in when Warner and de Kock were exchanging words on the field, which could have prevented the argument spilling over into the stairwell as players left the field for tea.”I heard there was a lot of personal stuff on the field already. To and from. Who started it, I don’t know,” du Plessis said. “If it was happening on the field, it probably should have been nipped in the bud on the field already. Umpires play a big role in that, to make sure you don’t let it get to that stage. There have been a lot of games where our bowlers will get penalised, or [pick up] demerit points if you step over the line.”While nothing was broadcast on the stump mic, several sources said they heard Warner and de Kock make comments of a “personal nature” to each other. Australia captain Steven Smith claimed de Kock “got quite personal and provoked an emotional response from Davey”, but insiders close to the South African camp insist it was the other way around. The suggestion from South Africa is that the umpires were aware of what was being said but can sometimes be “too intimidated by Australia,” to act.”This is where the umpires need to step in as soon as they start to hear stuff,” Katich said. “We have all heard about the stump mics being turned up and everything being heard, but initially, the umpires have got to be the ones to hear this stuff and put it to rest straight away; give the warnings to the skippers and get the skippers to control it. That obviously hasn’t happened, and now it is tit for tat with the teams blaming each other for who started it.”Neither side is contesting the line was crossed, something that has become frequent in their bilateral contests. Most recently, on South Africa’s tour to Australia in 2016, du Plessis was the centre of a ball-tampering storm when published footage of him shining the ball with saliva while he had a mint in his mouth. Du Plessis was fined 100% of his match fee but received massive support from team-mates and the opposition, with Smith saying such practices were common.Du Plessis, however, was labelled a “cheat” in the Australian press, which he said he took personally, and there was a physical altercation when he was trailed by a Channel Nine television crew on arrival in Adelaide.While South Africa are not saying so, this is an opportunity to get their own back. The CCTV footage from Kingsmead of Warner’s aggressive confrontation of de Kock was first made public by a South African publication Du Plessis hoped the incident would not detract from the quality of cricket on show in Durban. “It’s generally isolated incidents – it’s one incident now. You expect that playing against Australia,” he said. “It’s competitive cricket. As long as it stays on the field, its okay.”But Smith could not guarantee there wouldn’t be more sparks during the series, but hoped his players would stay within acceptable limits. “There’s going to be times when people can let their emotions get the better of themselves, it’s part of playing the international game and playing at such a high intensity and with everything that comes with playing international sport,” he said. “I’m not going to say nothing will ever happen again, but as far as I’m concerned we’ve just got to try to play within the spirit of the game.”Neither Smith nor du Plessis knew whether Warner and de Kock had put the issue to bed, but the pair shook hands at the end of the match. “Quinny is fine. You don’t get a reaction out of Quinton anyway most of the time,” du Plessis said. “When you look at him now, it’s like nothing happened.”

Warner ton sets up series win for Australia

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A David Warner century and sloppy Pakistan fielding were the key differences between the teams in Sydney, where Australia wrapped up a series victory with one match to play

The Report by Brydon Coverdale22-Jan-2017
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsDavid Warner celebrated his 12th ODI century and first against Pakistan•Cricket Australia/Getty Images

A David Warner hundred. A catalogue of Pakistan fielding errors. A big win for Australia. It was as if the fourth one-day international in Sydney was a recap of the Test campaign earlier this summer. Certainly the result was the same – a series victory for Australia. Unlike in the Tests, Pakistan at least tasted success in this series, having won in Melbourne, but the best they can now hope for is to win the dead rubber in Adelaide and finish 2-3.

Thankfully we took our chances – Warner

David Warner has credited Australia’s bowlers for overcoming Sharjeel Khan’s early counterattack in their defence of 353, on what he though was a “better wicket to bat on” than the three surfaces that had featured previously in the ODI series.
“The way the bowlers came out and bowled today on one of the better wickets to bat on was great,” he said. “They changed their pace, they bowled and executed well. We knew they always had to come hard, Sharjeel was always going to give us a chance the way he plays, and thankfully we took that.
“From there their momentum slowed a little bit; they knew we had to bowl 20 overs of spin, that was probably their time to attack. But credit to Zamps [Adam Zampa] and Heady [Travis Head], they took five wickets between them.”

This was a match that got away from Pakistan early. Warner raced to a half-century from 35 deliveries, and together with Steven Smith lifted the score to 1 for 212 in the 36th over. Glenn Maxwell and Travis Head then built on that platform as Australia plundered 118 from the final 10 overs. Smith, Maxwell and Head all benefited from Pakistan’s awful catching, and the target of 354 would have required the highest successful ODI chase ever on Australian soil.It was too much for Pakistan. Far too much. Only if Sharjeel Khan had sustained his early striking would Pakistan have had a hope, but his dismissal summed up the difference between the two sides. On 74 from 46 deliveries, Sharjeel slog-swept Adam Zampa to deep midwicket, looking for his fourth six of the innings. But Warner, running around the boundary, showed perfect judgment to take the catch and effectively dash Pakistan’s chances.Compare that to a chance that Sharjeel himself had in the deep earlier in the day, when Head skied one off Junaid Khan. Sharjeel grassed what should have been a straightforward opportunity, and Head went on to raise a half-century off 35 deliveries. It was Sharjeel’s second drop of the innings, after he had also put down Smith at backward point. In all, Pakistan missed four very gettable catches as well as two much harder ones.There were also fumbles and overthrows enough to make the fielding coach Steve Rixon wonder why he bothered. Pakistan’s fielding was more chaotic than the Shahrah-e-Faisal at peak hour, and was one of the key factors in the result. Australia missed a couple of chances too, but took the important ones. Warner snared an even better catch at deep midwicket after the Sharjeel one; running in quickly he snapped it up low to the ground to get rid of Shoaib Malik for 47.But even if Pakistan’s fielding had been perfect, they would still have faced trouble from Warner. He was dropped, but not until he was well past 100. It was his eighth ODI century in 12 months and featured 11 fours and two sixes. He slowed down after his quick start and brought up his hundred from his 98th delivery, but with such a platform he might still have been dreaming of a double-century when he edged behind off Hasan Ali for 130.Warner had been the architect of two key partnerships for Australia: a 92-run opening stand with Usman Khawaja, who edged behind off Hasan for 30, and then a 120-run second-wicket combination with Smith. When Hasan broke the stand, he did it comprehensively, getting both Warner and Smith in the same over – Smith was lbw for 49 – but Head and Maxwell proved more than capable of continuing the destruction.Maxwell was dropped on 8 by Hasan, who had also grassed Warner on 113, and the Maxwell-Head partnership was worth exactly 100 in just over 10 overs. Both men struck the ball cleanly and went at a brisk rate – Head’s fifty came from 35 balls and Maxwell’s from 34 – before Head was caught in the deep by Malik off the bowling of Mohammad Amir for 51 off 36. Hasan completed a five-wicket haul by getting Matthew Wade and Maxwell (78 off 44) in the final over, but it meant little.Australia had piled on 6 for 353, and Pakistan needed everything to go right to win. It was already clear that this was not an “everything goes right” kind of day for Pakistan. Azhar Ali, back from injury to captain the side again, edged Josh Hazlewood to slip in the second over, and Babar Azam was well caught at long-on by Hazlewood off Head’s offspin for 31 off 39 balls. Then Sharjeel, who had made a 36-ball fifty, fell, and Australia were firmly in control.The required run-rate began to balloon. Mohammad Hafeez was taken in the deep off Zampa for a run-a-ball 40, Malik holed out off Head, Umar Akmal skied a catch off Mitchell Starc for 11, and Mohammad Rizwan was trapped lbw by Zampa for 10. Then came the formalities of wrapping up the tail: Amir was caught behind off Pat Cummins for 5, Imad Wasim tickled a catch behind off Hazlewood for 25, and next ball Hazlewood bowled Junaid for a golden duck.Australia had completed an 86-run win and secured the series. Warner was rightly named Man of the Match; his hundred set up Australia’s total and his two catches highlighted the chasm in the fielding of the two sides. Australia can now head to Adelaide to celebrate the final match on Australia Day; Pakistan look ready for home already.

Jalaj Saxena takes 16 as MP crush Railways

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A round-up of the Ranji Trophy Group B matches on November 9, 2015

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Nov-2015
ScorecardFile photo: Jalaj Saxena ended with match figures of 16 for 154, the second best in Ranji Trophy history•BCCI

Jalaj Saxena produced the second-best figures in Ranji Trophy history, taking 16 for 154 to help Madhya Pradesh rout Railways by nine wickets inside three days. After collecting 8 for 96 in the first innings, Jalaj ran through Railways’ line-up again in the second, picking up 8 for 58 to dismiss the team for 131 in 51.1 overs. Jalaj’s haul matched those taken by former Rajasthan fast bowler Pradeep Sunderam against Vidarbha in 1985. Anil Kumble currently holds the best ever figures in a Ranji Trophy match – 16 for 99 for Karnataka against Kerala in 1995.As was the case in the first innings, a few of Railways’ top-order batsmen made starts, but nobody could cross 26, as Railways folded to set the hosts a simple chase of 112. Madhya Pradesh began the chase positively, with the openers Jalaj and Rajat Patidar adding 72 off 75 balls. The hosts eventually overhauled the target in 19.1 overs, but the wicket of Patidar cost them a bonus point. The defeat left Railways rooted to the bottom of Group B, with just six points from six matches.
ScorecardHeavy rain in Chennai washed out play for the second straight day to all but rule out any chance of an outright result in the clash between Tamil Nadu and Andhra. Tamil Nadu are currently fourth in the table with 15 points, while Andhra are sixth with nine.
ScorecardUttar Pradesh’s top and middle order dug in to help the team make its way to 350 for 5 against Mumbai at the Wankhede Stadium. UP, who began at 51 for 0 in reply to Mumbai’s 610 for 9 declared, lost Tanmay Srivastava early in the day, but Himanshu Asnora and Umang Sharma (53) combined for a 92-run partnership. Mumbai clawed their way back with two quick wickets, but Asnora once again led a recovery with another crucial stand – 70 for the fourth wicket with Sarfaraz Khan. Asnora was denied his maiden first-class ton, falling for 92, but Eklavya Dwivedi and Piyush Chawla both struck half-centuries during an unbroken 104-run partnership to keep UP’s slim hopes of first-innings points alive.
ScorecardBaroda were left staring at an innings defeat against Gujarat in Valsad after losing 11 wickets on the penultimate day. Baroda, who began their first innings at 82 for 3, were bowled out for 252. Ambati Rayudu (47) and Irfan Pathan (58) held the innings together with a 58-run partnership, but no batsman was able to really produce a score of meaning. Axar Patel was the pick of the bowlers with 3 for 81, while RP Singh, Jesal Karia and Rujul Bhatt took two each. With a massive lead of 253 in hand, Gujarat enforced the follow-on, and made further inroads as Baroda lost four more wickets in their second innings before the close of play. At stumps, the team was tottering at 81 for 4, still needing another 172 runs to make Gujarat bat again.

Lancs blunted by Nash hundred

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Kent played out the final day with Brendan Nash continuing his strong early season form with an unbeaten hundred

Andrew McGlashan at Old Trafford27-Apr-2013
ScorecardJames Anderson troubled the Kent batsmen but ended up wicketless•Getty Images

On the evidence of this match, both Lancashire and Kent are going to struggle to take 20 wickets on a regular basis this season. Even if rain had not taken out two sessions a draw would still have been the likely result and Kent played out the final day with Brendan Nash continuing his strong early season form with an unbeaten hundred, although he had to work hard against James Anderson.Kent were on the edge of a wobble when Robert Key was given caught behind off Glen Chapple although the former captain was clearly unhappy with the decision and stomped off the field hitting his pad with his bat. Another quick wicket, with the deficit still more than 100, would have opened a door for Lancashire but it never came despite Anderson’s efforts.Last season, his first for Kent, Nash averaged over 47 – no mean feat in a wet summer – and his hundred in this innings followed three consecutive fifties to start the season. Nash innings rarely stick in the mind and there is more than a hint of Kent’s coach, Jimmy Adams, in the way he plays. There will not be much flamboyance, but he is providing plenty of substance to the top-order.James Tredwell, in his second game as Kent captain, knows his team can improve but he praised their resolve. “We faced a few challenges in this game and have come through them pretty well,” he said. “The first day was probably ideal bowling conditions in the end, having won the toss and had a bat, but we came through that with real fight, then again on this last day. Lancashire have a high-class bowling attack. It was really tough at times on the first day but the resolve was great.”The pitch was on the sluggish side, which did not help attempts to force the pace, but the way Lancashire batted late on the third day and into the final morning showed that brisk run-scoring was possible. Simon Katich, who fell to the first ball he faced today, Steven Croft and Chapple were able to play with freedom because of the platform they were given – so it is difficult to be too critical – but the bowling attack is going to need as much time as possible to force results.However, Gary Yates, Lancashire’s assistant coach, was delighted with the team’s approach. “We are pleased how we are playing, and frustrated that we lost quite a bit of time to the weather,” he said. “Maybe if we had more time we may have been able to force a result. But fair play to Kent, they batted well and we never really got into a position to force a victory.”We would like to have had at least one win, but we have played good disciplined cricket and if we continue to do that we will get rewarded with victories sooner rather than later.”Momentum can be picked up throughout the season and we have played really, really solid cricket. We have set up first-innings leads in both games and without the rain I think we would have set up victory in at least one of those games.”Most of Lancashire’s threat with the ball on the final day came from Anderson, who was outstanding, looking a class above the other bowlers (although Kyle Hogg and Matt Coles were excellent), as an England bowler should when he returns to county cricket. He conceded one run in his first seven overs, had Sam Northeast – a talented young opener – playing and missing at four balls in one over, hammered Michael Powell’s foot with a rapid yorker and had a high-quality contest with Nash yet still ended wicketless.Simon Kerrigan, the left-arm spinner, was Lancashire’s other main hope on the final day after the declaration following a heavy shower, which left 79 overs remaining in the game. He made the first breakthrough, taking Northeast’s off stump with a lovely delivery, but there was not a huge amount of assistance from the pitch and Nash played him excellently.

Pietersen's dazzling ton puts England in command

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Kevin Pietersen made 151 as England established a 185-run first-innings lead over Sri Lanka on day three of the second Test

The Report by David Hopps05-Apr-2012
Live scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsKevin Pietersen acknowledges his century after the controversy•Getty Images

A century of great bravado, and not a little theatre, by Kevin Pietersen sharpened England’s anticipation of their first Test win of a troubled winter as they took a first-innings lead of 185 runs in the second Test in Colombo.Pietersen brought chaos to Sri Lanka’s ranks with a potent combination of imperious strokeplay and impatient slogs. His 151 came from 165 balls with 16 fours and six sixes and was a flamboyant contradiction of the suspicious, attritional cricket that had gone before. As he struck 88 runs between lunch and tea to transform the game, he batted pretty much as he pleased. “I probably played a bit one-day modish, but I feel as if I’m in very good form so why not,” he said.On a dead pitch that experts galore had agreed made strokeplay almost impossible, Pietersen batted as if such limitations were intended for lesser men, banishing the memories of a demoralising winter. He had been England’s least successful batsman in four Tests in Asia, scoring only 100 runs at 13. To draw supreme confidence from that record was quite something. It does not take much to stir his self-belief.He departed reluctantly, appealing to the DRS for clemency after Sri Lanka’s left-arm spinner Rangana Herath defeated his paddle shot with a flatter delivery. As reviews go, it was based on little more than the fact that he fancied an encore or two, and replays predictably judged him plumb, but he had provided such flamboyant entertainment that he could be forgiven his indulgence.Herath, who had 1 for 102 at one stage, recovered his poise once Pietersen’s storm had blown out and finished with 6 for 133, his third six-for in successive innings, but there was none of the pleasure he had felt during Sri Lanka’s 75-run win in Galle. There is enough treacherous bounce in this pitch to encourage England’s stronger pace attack and Graeme Swann can expect substantial, if slow turn.There was also a controversial element to Pietersen’s innings when the umpires, Asad Rauf and Bruce Oxenford, clamped down on his unconventional switch hit when he was only two runs away from his 20th Test century, issuing a warning on the dubious grounds that he was changing his stance too early. “To bowl before the bowler delivers is unfair,” Rauf said afterwards. “There is no intention to outlaw the stroke,” Oxenford added.

Smart stats

  • Kevin Pietersen’s century is his first in nine Test innings. Between his 175 against India at The Oval and this knock, he had scored 100 runs in eight innings at 12.50. It is also his highest score in Sri Lanka, surpassing his previous best of 45.

  • Pietersen’s century is his 20th in Tests, which puts him level with Graham Gooch and Ken Barrington among England batsmen with most hundreds. Wally Hammond, Colin Cowdrey and Geoff Boycott are on top of the list with 22.

  • This was Pietersen’s ninth 150-plus score in Tests. He is only one behind Hammond and Len Hutton (10 scores) on the list of England batsmen with the most 150-plus scores.

  • Pietersen’s century is the highest score by an England batsman in Sri Lanka, surpassing Robin Smith’s 128 in 1993. It is also the third-highest score at the P Sara Oval by a visiting batsman.

  • The strike rate of 91.51 during Pietersen’s 151 is the third-highest for a non-subcontinent batsman and the sixth-highest overall for a visiting batsman in Tests in Sri Lanka.

  • England’s score is their highest ever in Sri Lanka surpassing their previous best of 387 in Kandy in 2001.

  • Rangana Herath picked up his third consecutive five-wicket haul and became the second bowler after Daniel Vettori (in 2004) to pick up six wickets in an innings three consecutive times. Herath’s series haul of 18 wickets makes it his highest ever.

  • England have never lost a Test match after taking a first-innings lead of more than 180. Their highest lead in a losing cause is 177, against Australia at Old Trafford in 1961.

Tillakaratne Dilshan objected to the switch hit, in which Pietersen changes his hands on the bat to become, in effect, a left-hander, and stopped twice in his run-up as he anticipated a repeat. Rauf intervened on the grounds of timewasting – not against Dilshan but Pietersen – and after a conversation with Oxenford warned Pietersen, informing him England would recieve a five-run penalty if he repeated the tactic.Dilshan’s protest came during an over in when Pietersen thrashed his way from 86 to 104. He had unveiled the switch hit in Dilshan’s previous over to combat a defensive leg-stump line and when he was rewarded by a woeful long hop it was apparent that Dilshan, until then Sri Lanka’s most effective bowler, had lost the psychological game.After being told by the umpires that he risked a timewasting penalty, he bided his time, reverse swept again with Dilshan committed to the delivery, and reached his hundred to roars of approval from England’s sizeable contingent of fans. “No dramas,” he said. “They just told me to get my timing right.”Soon afterwards, Ian Bell fell for 18, mistiming a hook to midwicket as a ball from Dhammika Prasad did not get up. It was symptomatic of an innings in which he had rarely timed the ball and he walked off shaking his head at Pietersen’s audacity. Batting alongside Pietersen has a tendency to make you feel inadequate. If Bell felt its full force, so did Matt Prior when he tried to hit Herath down the ground and paid the consequences.For Pietersen, it was all plain sailing. He had been riddled by doubt against Pakistan’s spinners, Saeed Ajmal and Abdur Rehman, in the Test series in the UAE, but Sri Lanka’s slow bowlers – for all Herath’s recovery – were a grade below that class. When Suraj Randiv attempted an Ajmal-style doosra it pitched halfway down. Pietersen had a life on 82, though, when Prasad deceived him with a slower ball but followed up with an even slower attempt to catch.England produced their most authoritative batting of the winter. They resumed on 154 for 1 and their top three created the platform to enable Pietersen to strut his stuff.Alastair Cook, six runs short of a century, was the only England batsman to fall before lunch. It was Dilshan who did the trick, finding modest turn to have Cook caught by Mahela Jayawardene at slip. Earlier, when Cook had 84 to his name, it was still a surprise to see him dust off a reverse sweep, especially as he had eschewed the conventional variety. The ball deflected off the pad to Jayawardene at leg slip, umpire Rauf showed no interest, and despite innumerable replays the third umpire could discern no sign of a flick of the glove for which Sri Lanka’s captain had appealed.Randiv’s use of DRS for an lbw appeal against Trott, on 42, was even more wasteful. Replays showed an obvious inside edge. Trott communicated this to the umpire with a subtle quizzical look and a peaceful examination of his inside edge, his alibis presented with the tranquillity of his strokeplay. He fell soon after lunch, edging a turning delivery from Herath to slip.Nothing was going right for Sri Lanka. Appeal began to follow appeal, each one of them increasingly absurd. Sri Lanka entered lunch with one more wicket and an urge to study TV replays that would have only brought more disappointment. Pietersen at his most disrespectful was about to inflame them even more.Edited by Alan Gardner

Another tight title race on the cards

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Nottinghamshire clinched the County Championship on a thrilling final day last September but it will be tough work to defend the title

ESPNcricinfo staff07-Apr-2011Comeback trail: Graham Onions hasn’t played for 15 months but is on course for a return during the early stages of the season•Associated Press

Durham

(FLt20: North Group; CB40: Group B)
Captain Phil Mustard Coach Geoff Cook Overseas David Miller (t20)
A hat-trick of Championship challenges was too much to ask, especially when injuries took a severe toll coupled with uncertainty over the captaincy situation when Will Smith stepped down mid-season. Phil Mustard took charge and has the reigns again, which is a tough workload for the keeper. However, the well-run structure that brought trophies to the North East remains in place and the club will feel they can’t have such bad luck with injuries for another summer. Steve Harmison, Liam Plunkett and a potentially fit-again Graham Onions remains the most potent pace attack in the country. They will also have Paul Collingwood available for much more of the season to boost the batting line-up, while Ben Stokes is hugely talented. Andrew McGlashanPlayer to watch Graham Onions: shows the depth of English pace bowling that the national team haven’t missed him. Is a high quality performer if he can fit who’ll want to remind the selectors what he can do.Prospects If their fitness woes are behind them they’ll be in the Championship race but will need runs on the board. Should also push for one-day honours.

Hampshire

( FLt20: South Group; CB40: Group B)
Captain Dominic Cork Coach Giles White Overseas Imran Tahir (SA), Shahid Afridi (Pak- t20)
An ambitious county, whose maiden Test will take place against Sri Lanka in mid-June, Hampshire are desperate for more silverware to add to the t20 Trophy they lifted at the Rose Bowl last season. They haven’t had their mitts on the Championship since 1973, despite boasting such luminaries as Marshall, Smith and Greenidge down the years, so whether the new captain Dominic Cork can outdo those greats is a moot point. Nevertheless, his team’s blend of youth and experience is as promising as that of any county, and when Imran Tahir recovers from his broken thumb, they will once again possess one of the prime sources of wickets in the whole of the county circuit. Andrew MillerPlayer to watch Michael Carberry: one of the forgotten men of English cricket, having toured Bangladesh in March 2010 and made his one and only Test appearance at Chittagong. His open-faced style is arguably a liability at the highest level, but he is good for another four-figured Championship season.Prospects It is the 50th anniversary year of their maiden Championship title in 1961, so what better way to commemorate it? It could be that a retention of the t20 crown is a better bet, however, especially with Johann Myburgh and Shahid Afridi on their books for that competition.

Lancashire

(FLt20: North Group; CB40: Group C)
Captain Glen Chapple Coach Peter Moores Overseas Farveez Maharoof (SL)
A vital, and potentially club-saving, boost appeared to come a month before the season started when Lancashire won their latest legal battle against Derwent Holdings who were trying to block the White City development plans that incorporate the regeneration of Old Trafford. However, further legal challenges threaten to derail the project and this remains a nervous time for the club as they aim to secure a 2013 Ashes Test. Due to the rising legal costs around the rebuilding plans Peter Moores and Mike Watkinson have had little money to spend so there has been no recruitment over the winter. Farveez Maharoof was late acquisition but it will be down to some of the club’s younger players to develop quickly. Andrew McGlashanPlayer to watch Simon Kerrigan: a left-arm spinner who impressed with 30 Championship wickets in first full season. Forms a strong spin attack alongside Gary Keedy.Prospects Batting looks too weak to mount a Championship challenge and the bowlers will need to fire to avoid a relegation fight. Twenty20 offers a more likely path to silverware.Luke Fletcher will need to make up for the loss of Ryan Sidebotton’s wickets at Trent Bridge•Graham Morris

Nottinghamshire

(FLt20: North Group; CB40: Group C)
Captain Chris Read Coach Mick Newell Overseas David Hussey and Adam Voges (Aus)
After finishing second in the previous two seasons, Nottinghamshire secured the Championship pennant in the dying moments of campaign when they claimed three Lancashire wickets to deny Somerset. A repeat performance will depend largely on how they replace Ryan Sidebottom and how dry the summer is. If the pitches turn, their lack of a frontline spinner (with Graeme Swann away with England) could be a problem. In their favour they have two consistent overseas players, could see more of Stuart Broad early season than expected, and have a solid core of players build around Chris Read. Mick Newell, the coach, is highly regarded and was handed the England Lions role in the winter. Andrew McGlashanPlayer to watch Samit Patel: too unfit for England and seemingly unable to change, but the county – whether rightly, or wrongly – is more forgiving. Can win matches in all formats.Prospects If they can back early-season victories when the seamers dominant they can push to retain the title. Otherwise, a one-day trophy may need to be the route to success.

Somerset

(FLt20: South Group; CB40: Group C)
Captain Marcus Trescothick Coach Andy Hurry Overseas Murali Kartik (Ind), Ajantha Mendis (SL), Kieron Pollard (WI – t20)
The best team of 2010 ended cruelly empty-handed as they finished second to Nottinghamshire on the last day of the Championship season, lost out on a tie to Somerset in the t20 and lost under lights in the CB40 final. The winter has been spent making sure nothing goes amiss this time around. Ajantha Mendis will be dangerous in the FPt20 (never mind Kieron Pollard as well) while Steve Kirby has been signed to bolster the pace attack. They are again the best team in the country, led superbly by Marcus Trescothick, surely this time they’ll reap the rewards? Sahil DuttaPlayer to watch James Hildreth: in the lead-up to every new county season his name crops up as one to keep an eye on. Finally, last year, he converted his undeniable talent into runs. Serious runs: 1440 at 65.45 in the Championship, 627 at 69.66 in the CB40 and 459 at 32.72 in the FPt20. If he can match that again the England selectors will come calling.Prospects Anything less than a Championship title will be a disappointment. No reason why at least one of the limited-overs crowds couldn’t be theirs as well.

Sussex

(FLt20: South Group; CB40: Group A)
Captain Mike Yardy Coach Mark Robinson Overseas Rana Naved (Pak), Wayne Parnell (SA – T20)
Another county that has been busy with redevelopment work during the winter, with the construction of a new 1700-seater stand on the South-West corner of the ground. On the field, the signing of Amjad Khan from Kent will reinforce a seam attack that will miss the steadying influence of Corey Collymore, now of Middlesex, with Wayne Parnell and Rana Naved set to share the overseas duties. International calls will limit the availability of Matt Prior and Luke Wright, while the progress of their captain, Michael Yardy, will be closely monitored following his depression during the World Cup. Andrew MillerPlayer to watch Monty Panesar: had big boots to fill when he moved from Northants last season to replace the legendary Mushtaq Ahmed, but a winter in Mushtaq’s company during the Ashes means that numerous tips for thriving at Hove will have been passed across.Prospects The serial Championship winners of the 2000s may struggle to launch the 2010s in a similar manner, but they are a stronger side than the one that was relegated two seasons ago.Chris Woakes is developing into a fine allrounder and has already shown his nerve on the international stage•Getty Images

Warwickshire

(FLt20: North Group; CB40: Group B)
Captain Jim Troughton Coach Ashley Giles OverseasTBC
Warwickshire hovered precariously over the trap door in Division One last year before a late surge took them safe and they then delivered a spirit-raising CB40 title. The off-season has brought a new captain in Jim Troughton and the good signing of William Porterfield from Gloucestershire. He will have a key role in shoring up a top-order that is flimsy without its England stars, Ian Bell and Jonathan Trott. Chris Woakes leads a sparky pace line-up alongside Boyd Rankin, which could be a potent mix. Sahil DuttaPlayer to watch Chris Woakes: took 50 wickets last year and impressed with a calm temperament in his brief international outings over the winter.Prospects The Championship title looks beyond reach but a decent challenge is a must. The CB40 is more realistic though they will desperately miss Imran Tahir who back at Hampshire.Worcestershire (FLt20: North Group; CB40: Group A)
Captain Daryl Mitchell Coach Steve Rhodes OverseasSaeed Ajmal (Pak), Damien Wright (Aus), Shakib Al Hasan (Bang)
Confounded expectations by being promoted back to Division One on the last day of the season last year. Avoiding an immediate drop back down would be even more surprising as the county battles dwindling financial resources and a thread-bare pace attack. There is plenty of experience in Alan Richardson, Matt Mason and Damien Wright but not the quality to prise out Division One batsmen on the better Division One pitches. The batting will rely heavily on Vikram Solanki but Shakib Al Hasan will hope to offer runs as well as wickets. Sahil DuttaPlayer to watch Moeen Ali: passed 1000 runs last season and his flashing wrists and style was an icon of a promising season. Will enjoy the better pitches but can he survive the better bowlers a division higher?Prospects Anything but relegation will be a major success in the Championship. A tilt at one-day success is more possible but the lack of an outright wicket-taker makes silverware unlikely.

Yorkshire

(FLt20: North Group; CB40: Group A)
Captain Andrew Gale Coach Martyn Moxon OverseasTBC
They exceeded expectations last year by making a push for the Championship title until the final round of matches, plus a consistent CB40 campaign. Andrew Gale, a very impressive captain, and Martyn Moxon have formed a cohesive squad with a strong balance of youth and experience. They need to cover likely England-based absences for Tim Bresnan and Ajmal Shahzad plus maybe Adil Rashid, so the return of Ryan Sidebottom is a significant boost in that regard. Gale and Adam Lyth have both represented England Lions this winter and will lead the batting alongside an evergreen Anthony McGrath. Andrew McGlashanPlayer to watch Adil Rashid: had a terrific all-round 2010 after being sent back to the county game. England will come calling again, but until then he’s a matchwinner for YorkshireProspects If Sidebottom fires they’ll be competitive but they appear a quality batsman short after Jacques Rudolph’s departure.

Kumar and Kaneria take Dolphins to title

by n8rngtd.top Uncategorized

Left-arm medium-pacer Lal Kumar and legspinner Danish Kaneria demolished the Baluchistan Bears middle-order to hand Sind Dolphins the title

Cricinfo staff29-Apr-2010
Scorecard
Left-arm medium-pacer Lal Kumar and legspinner Danish Kaneria demolished the Baluchistan Bears middle-order to hand Sind Dolphins the title at the National Stadium in Karachi.Their efforts came on the back of a strong batting effort that took the Dolphins to 270 after they chose to bat. Dolphins’ openers, Shahzaib Hussain and Khurram Manzoor, were the highest run-getters in the tournament but neither made a substantial contribution in the final. Each of the next four batsmen made it past 40, though, to set the Bears a stiff target. Hasan Raza was the top scorer, with a brisk, unbeaten 61.The Bears’ chase didn’t get off to too good a start, but they reached a satisfactory 59 for 2 after 12 overs. It was then that the innings unraveled: in the next eight overs, they added only 14 runs losing six wickets, all of which were shared by Kumar and Kaneria. At 73 for 8, the match was effectively over, but half-centuries from Abid Ali and No. 10 Abdur Rauf reduced the margin of defeat.