Friday, September 18, 2009
ICC Champions Trophy Warm-up Matches Pakistan v Sri Lanka Pakistan won by 108 runs
| Pakistan innings (50 overs maximum) | R | M | B | 4s | 6s | SR | ||
 | Imran Nazir | b Kulasekara | 12 | 29 | 20 | 1 | 0 | 60.00 |
| Kamran Akmal† | b Muralitharan | 82 | 126 | 78 | 11 | 2 | 105.12 |
| Younis Khan* | c Kapugedera b Mathews | 9 | 34 | 28 | 1 | 0 | 32.14 |
| Mohammad Yousuf | b Prasad | 0 | 8 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Misbah-ul-Haq | b Muralitharan | 72 | 134 | 85 | 3 | 2 | 84.70 |
| Umar Akmal | c Mathews b Malinga | 67 | 63 | 51 | 8 | 0 | 131.37 |
| Shahid Afridi | not out | 36 | 37 | 24 | 6 | 0 | 150.00 | |
| Fawad Alam | c Dilshan b Kulasekara | 9 | 16 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 128.57 |
| Naved-ul-Hasan | lbw b Kulasekara | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Umar Gul | not out | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.00 | |
| Extras | (b 7, lb 3, w 7, nb 1) | 18 | ||||||
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| Total | (8 wickets; 50 overs; 229 mins) | 306 | (6.12 runs per over) | |||||
| Did not bat Mohammad Aamer, Iftikhar Anjum, Shoaib Malik, Mohammad Asif, Saeed Ajmal |
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | Econ | |||
| KMDN Kulasekara | 8 | 0 | 46 | 3 | 5.75 | (1w) | |
| SL Malinga | 8 | 0 | 55 | 1 | 6.87 | (1nb, 3w) | |
| KTGD Prasad | 10 | 2 | 46 | 1 | 4.60 | ||
| AD Mathews | 4 | 0 | 13 | 1 | 3.25 | (1w) | |
| M Muralitharan | 8 | 0 | 43 | 2 | 5.37 | ||
| BAW Mendis | 7 | 0 | 54 | 0 | 7.71 | |||
| T Thushara | 5 | 0 | 39 | 0 | 7.80 | (1w) |
| Sri Lanka innings (target: 307 runs from 50 overs) | R | M | B | 4s | 6s | SR | ||
| TM Dilshan | c Mohammad Yousuf b Mohammad Aamer | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| ST Jayasuriya | c Imran Nazir b Naved-ul-Hasan | 12 | 18 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 92.30 |
| KC Sangakkara*† | c Mohammad Yousuf b Naved-ul-Hasan | 21 | 59 | 26 | 2 | 0 | 80.76 |
| DPMD Jayawardene | lbw b Iftikhar Anjum | 18 | 55 | 34 | 2 | 0 | 52.94 |
| SHT Kandamby | lbw b Saeed Ajmal | 12 | 51 | 29 | 0 | 0 | 41.37 |
| AD Mathews | c †Kamran Akmal b Naved-ul-Hasan | 49 | 108 | 88 | 1 | 0 | 55.68 |
| CK Kapugedera | c Misbah-ul-Haq b Naved-ul-Hasan | 59 | 66 | 70 | 5 | 0 | 84.28 |
| WU Tharanga | st †Kamran Akmal b Saeed Ajmal | 1 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 25.00 |
| KMDN Kulasekara | not out | 11 | 13 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 122.22 | |
| KTGD Prasad | c †Kamran Akmal b Naved-ul-Hasan | 1 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 33.33 |
| T Thushara | run out (Naved-ul-Hasan) | 0 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Extras | (lb 1, w 13) | 14 | ||||||
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| Total | (all out; 46.5 overs) | 198 | (4.22 runs per over) | |||||
| Did not bat BAW Mendis, SL Malinga, M Muralitharan, TT Samaraweera |
| Bowling | O | M | R | W | Econ | |||
| Mohammad Aamer | 3.1 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 2.84 | ||
| Naved-ul-Hasan | 9 | 1 | 41 | 5 | 4.55 | (4w) | |
| Umar Gul | 6.5 | 0 | 25 | 0 | 3.65 | (2w) | ||
| Iftikhar Anjum | 6 | 0 | 14 | 1 | 2.33 | ||
| Saeed Ajmal | 8.5 | 0 | 46 | 2 | 5.20 | ||
| Shahid Afridi | 8 | 0 | 37 | 0 | 4.62 | (2w) | ||
| Shoaib Malik | 5 | 0 | 25 | 0 | 5.00 | (1w) |
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Australia aim to climb up rankings
English viewers may need more convincing. As if a bumbling fielding performance and a fifth straight ODI defeat were not enough, England suffered the added ignominy of watching their all-time ODI win-loss record slipping into the red for just the second time since January, 2007. In a more practical, though equally depressing, development the hosts learned on Wednesday that Luke Wright's toe injury would rule him out of the final two matches against Australia, and possibly the Champions Trophy. Dimitri Mascarenhas bowled well in Wright's absence on Tuesday, although his uneasiness against the express pace of Mitchell Johnson will not have imbued Andrew Strauss with much confidence.
England at least managed their highest ODI total against Australia since 1980, and have something to build upon ahead of the Champions Trophy. Eoin Morgan produced his best performance since defecting from Ireland earlier this year, and Strauss was at his indomitable best before being incorrectly adjudged lbw.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Door ajar for full-strength Windies squad
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West Indies could yet field a full-strength squad at the Champions Trophy, with the ICC willing to accept a "revised" line-up in the event the industrial relations dispute between the board and the players is resolved. Despite setting an August 11 deadline for national boards to nominate their 15-man squads for the Champions Trophy, the ICC has advised the WICB it would take into account the exceptional circumstances brought on by the labour dispute and allow the likes of Chris Gayle, Denesh Ramdin and Shivnarine Chanderpaul to play at the tournament.
For that to happen, the WICB and the players would need to end their stand-off before West Indies' tournament opener against Pakistan at the Wanderers Ground on September 23. The recent breakdown in mediation talks between the two parties raised fears of a damaging and protracted split, although WIPA's announcement this week that it would accept CARICOM's six-point resolution plan may yet mark a turning point in the labour crisis.
Both the ICC and its broadcast partner, ESPN STAR Sports, have impressed upon the WICB their desire for a full-strength West Indies team to compete at the eight-team, two-week tournament in South Africa. The Champions Trophy has been criticised in the past for lacking context and prestige in an already crowded international calendar, and the ICC is hopeful the streamlined format - and the $4 million prize purse - will reinvigorate the appetite of both the players and the public for the embattled tournament and the 50-over game in general.
A weakened West Indies squad is hardly in keeping with that ambition. The WICB controversially named a second-string squad for the Champions Trophy while locked in mediation talks with WIPA - a move criticised by Bharrat Jagdeo, the Guyanese president CARICOM chairman, and Sir Shridath Ramphal, the former Commonwealth secretary-general and CARICOM-appointed mediator - but an ICC source told Cricinfo hope remained that an 11th-hour settlement would allow West Indies to field their elite squad.
The ICC has played a behind-the-scenes role in the WICB-WIPA dispute, although Haroon Lorgat, the council's chief executive, would not be drawn on the specifics of their involvement. He did, however, call upon the West Indian board to restore senior players to the Champions Trophy squad; a move that would enhance the tournament's objective of pitting the best versus the best.
"We would be disappointed if the best team is not taken to South Africa, but we understand the complex situation that exists," Lorgat told Cricinfo. "The West Indies have the unfettered right to select whomever they choose."
Any move to return their elite players to the field would present the WICB with a sizeable logistical and cost issue. The Floyd Reifer-led West Indies squad have already arrived in South Africa and played two practice matches against provincial sides. The bulk of those players would presumably be recalled to the Caribbean should the path be cleared for the Windies' striking cricketers to return - a scenario the cash-strapped board could do without.
But there is much at stake - not least the desire of ESPN Star Sports to protect its reported $1.1 billion broadcast deal with the ICC through to 2015. Manu Sawhney, ESPN Star Sport's managing director, delivered a veiled criticism of West Indies' current stance by stating his hope that "the unique position of the ICC Champions Trophy in the international cricket calendar will remain intact with the full participation of best available squads from all the competing teams."
"We firmly believe that the ICC Champions Trophy should be a premium international event where the best players from the top cricketing nations compete for the honours and are confident that the ICC and the cricketing community in general shares that belief," Sawhney told Cricinfo.
"As highlighted by you, lately there have been concerns regarding West Indies that have been raised in the media. As ICC's leading commercial partners, we continually maintain a dialogue with the ICC on various aspects of our relationship. However, it is our policy not to publicly comment on such discussions. We are proud of our association with the ICC and very much value this relationship."
Ponting masterclass secures another win
Ricky Ponting has already suffered the ignominy of surrendering the No. 1 Test ranking on this tour, but his final week in England may yet witness Australia's return to the summit of the 50-over game. Ponting produced his highest ever ODI total against England - a breathtaking innings of 126 from 109 deliveries - that provided the platform from which Australia launched a successful assault on England's intimidating 299.
Nothing short of a 7-0 series whitewash will allow Australia to usurp the top-ranked South Africans entering the Champions Trophy, and Ponting's 27th career ODI century delivered them to within two wins of the feat. Australia's fifth consecutive victory over England was sealed when Mitchell Johnson blasted Ryan Sidebottom for a straight six with four wickets in hand and 10 balls remaining, however it was the imperious batting of Ponting that will be remembered as the tide-turner.
The designated rest period has clearly done Ponting no harm. From the outset, his was an innings of sublime timing and intimidating power that England's bowlers could do little to repel. At one point, Ponting cuffed a Sidebottom delivery over the press box, but his most entertaining sequence came when he pounded consecutive sixes off Adil Rashid, who had the dubious honour of taking the second ball.
Ponting's only moment of trepidation came on 35 when, facing Dimitri Mascarenhas, Matt Prior removed the bails with his foot in motion behind the crease. The third umpire, Nigel Llong, found in his favour, however, allowing Ponting to resume his third-wicket stand with Michael Clarke, which produced 123-runs.
The Australians suffered a pair of setbacks when Tim Bresnan removed Tim Paine and Shane Watson, the latter for a well-struck 36 from 34 deliveries. But their exits drew Ponting and Clarke to the centre, and both appeared in an ominous mood from the outset. While Ponting powered out of the blocks, Clarke began his innings watchfully before steadily accelerating as the evening progressed. His penchant for scoring runs this series has not been in question, although his ability to do so quickly has emerged as a discussion point, particularly with the Twenty20 captaincy up for grabs. A return of 52 from 64 balls might not have ended the debate, but it did represent a higher gear than those which he has operated on thus far in the series.
England were left to rue a poor fielding display that undid much of their earlier work with the bat. Australia's final pair of Cameron White (24 not out from 15 balls) and Johnson (18 not out from 12) were too often allowed charity runs in the closing overs, turning a potentially tense finale into a relatively docile stroll.
Earlier, Eoin Morgan's flashing blade propelled England to their highest total of the series, and with it their best chance yet of ending Australia's fortnight of dominance. Morgan's frenetic innings of 58 from 41 deliveries featured an array of dazzling strokes, including powerful sixes to bring up England's 200 and his own half-century.
England seemed set for another middle order stammer when Owais Shah departed in the 39th over with the total at 192 for 5, however Morgan's late-innings partnerships with Mascarenhas and Stuart Broad provided the hosts first with ballast, and later authority. The Dublin-born left-hander made his move between the 38th and 42nd overs during England's batting Powerplay, at which time the hosts advanced their total by 45 runs, then proceeded to frustrate the Australians with powerful and occasionally improvised strokeplay, such as his stunning reverse sweep to the boundary off Nathan Bracken.
Bracken exacted revenge with his next delivery, though not before Morgan, who was dropped on 38 by juggling Michael Hussey at deep square-leg, had accelerated to his highest one-day international score since shifting allegiances from Ireland. At the time of his departure in the 48th over, England were well on course for a competitive total, and when Rashid blasted three boundaries from Johnson's final over, a intimidating score was in the books.
England's middle-order resurgence may not have come in time to save the series, but it will provide team management with a sense of optimism ahead of the Champions Trophy. Too often England's batsmen have been contained and subsequently dismissed by Australia's bowlers over the past few weeks, but on an ideal batting surface the hosts managed a display befitting of an international-standard limited-overs side.
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Tuesday, September 15, 2009
'One of my best innings' - Tendulkar
Sachin Tendulkar has rated his risk-free 138 against Sri Lanka in the final of the Compaq Cup as one of his best innings. His 44th one-day hundred propelled India to 319, which proved 46 runs too many for Sri Lanka.
"This is one of my best innings. I will rate this up considering the conditions and the ground, the humidity," Tendulkar said. His superbly paced innings fetched him his 59th Man-of-the-Match award besides helping him to yet another Man-of-the-Series award. It capped a successful return for Tendulkar, who had to miss the one-day series against West Indies earlier this year due to a finger injury.
Tendulkar said India's success was due to the current team having more match-winners than before. "I think in this lot we have got match-winners and more big hitters as such and you know the guys have delivered at the crunch moment. It could be with bat or ball. But they have been delivering pretty consistently and you know they are all talented guys. You need match-winners to win consistently. That is what this team is about."
Tendulkar said this team was among the top ones he had played for since debuting in 1989. "There have been so many great names. I would not want to run anyone down by making comparisons about teams. I would like to respect the fact that I was fortunate to be part of various generations. This is definitely one of the top teams I have been part of. We have always tried to win but we have been able to produce results in the last couple of years or so. We have been able to perform pretty consistently. There are going to be upsets in between but if you look at the larger picture, we have had better days."
India's victory was only their fourth in ODI finals in 21 attempts since 2000, and their first trophy in Sri Lanka since 1998. MS Dhoni played his part in setting up the win with a brisk 56 after promoting himself to No. 3. "The victory is special," Dhoni said, "It feels great to win a trophy in Sri Lanka after such a long time. Being the second-placed team in world rankings we have to keep performing well to sustain the quality."
Despite the big total, India had to endure some anxious moments as Sri Lanka's batsmen battled hard till the end (Tendulkar said he had "no nails left" after the match see-sawed its way to the finish). The home side were helped by some tardy Indian fielding; two catches were grassed and several run-out chances were missed. The fast bowlers were also off the boil early on, wilting in the face of an onslaught from the Sri Lankan openers. "We have got to learn from our mistakes," Dhoni said. "We did lack a bit in the fielding and bowling departments and both are very crucial. Thankfully, we ended on the winning side today."
Dhoni dedicated the win to the former BCCI president, Raj Singh Dungarpur, who died on Saturday. "He was the manager during our tour to Pakistan [in 2005-06]. He was a great man. We dedicate the victory to him."
India's next assignment is the Champions Trophy, which kicks off on September 22 in South Africa.
Top ten Icc Rankings
ID Rat. Name Nat.
1 859 K.C. Sangakkara SL
2 847 G. Gambhir IND
3 830 D.P.M.D. Jayawardena SL
4 821 S. Chanderpaul WI
5 818 Mohammad Yousuf PAK
6 808 M.J. Clarke AUS
7 801 Younus Khan PAK
8 782 G.C. Smith SA
9 779 R.T. Ponting AUS
10 755 J.H. Kallis SA
Top 10 Test Bowlers
ID Rat. Name Nat.
1 844 D.W. Steyn SA
2 824 M. Muralidaran SL
3 786 M.G. Johnson AUS
4 741 M. Ntini SA
5 735 Harbhajan Singh IND
6 710 S.R. Clark AUS
7 669 P.L. Harris SA
8 650 Zaheer Khan IND
9 643 J.M. Anderson ENG
10 634 G.P. Swann ENG
Top 10 ODI Batsmen
ID Rat. Name Nat.
1 825 M.S. Dhoni IND
2 778 Yuvraj Singh IND
3 759 S. Chanderpaul WI
4 756 C.H. Gayle WI
5 752 A.B. de Villiers SA
6 746 M.E.K. Hussey AUS
7 737 S.R. Tendulkar IND
8 731 G.C. Smith SA
9 721 V. Sehwag IND
10 712 H.H. Gibbs SA
Top 10 ODI Bowlers
ID Rat. Name Nat.
1 731 K.M.D.N. Kulasekara SL
2 694 D.L. Vettori NZ
3 686 Shakib Al Hasan BAN
4 685 K.D. Mills NZ
5 675 M.G. Johnson AUS
6 670 M. Muralidaran SL
7 669 N.W. Bracken AUS
8 656 S.E. Bond NZ
9 655 J. Botha SA
10 645 Mashrafe Mortaza BAN
India beat Sri Lanka in Compaq Cup final; Harbhajan takes 5 after Tendulkar's 138
India won their first ODI tournament on Sri Lankan soil in 11 years. Sachin Tendulkar's masterly 138 and Harbhajan Singh's 5-56 helped them beat Sri Lanka by 46 runs in the final of the Compaq Cup on Monday night. Sri Lanka didn't surrender without a spirited chase. They were also helped by India's atrocious fielding and pedestrian fast bowling at Colombo's Premadasa Stadium.
But Tendulkar first: 138 flawless runs from 133 balls, 10 fours, one six. It was his 44th ODI hundred, his eighth against Sri Lanka, fourth at the Premadasa, and sixth in a final - and India's won all six. He collected his 59th man of the match and 14th man of the series awards for it. The hundred, and fifties from MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh and Rahul Dravid's 39 as an opener, boosted India to 319-5.
Sri Lanka responded with 273. Tillakaratne Dilshan and Sanath Jayasuriya blitzed away to 60 in seven overs, thanks mainly to Ashish Nehra and Ishant Sharma who bowled short and wide - and then followed it up with some short and wide bowling. RP Singh was no different. The lessons from the last game - when Angelo Matthews scored six wickets with gentle in-cutters - were not learnt. There was little variation and the trio kept banging it in, perhaps happily imagining they were in Durban.
Gripping final
The introduction of spin bore fruits for India. Harbhajan got Dilshan second ball with a straighter one that'd do Saqlain Mushtaq proud. The ball pitched around middle, held its line, and knocked over the stumps as Dilshan went back for a cut. Mahela Jayawardene also misread Harbhajan, played across and popped a simple return catch. Yusuf Pathan, too, did his bit by sending back Jayasuriya in his first over.
The match took a decisive turn in the 28th over when RP slipped Sangakkara a full-toss. The Sri Lankan captain swung, and in the follow through, his bat slipped through his sweaty palms and dislodged the bails, rendering him out hit wicket. Sangakkara fumed and checked if it was a height no ball. It wasn't. India had one hand on the trophy.
Miserable fielding
Thilana Kandamby, however, was in no mood to relent. Making use of Yusuf Pathan's gift - a sitter missed at mid-off - and several other fielding lapses, Kandamby reached a slow-paced fifty. He had banked on letting loose in the batting Power Play which Sri Lanka saved for the end. He and Chamara Kapugedera added 70 runs and made the Indian side nervous.
Pathan's drop was the second of the day after Virat Kohli had floored another simple one at backward point. Luckily for Kohli, Jayasuriya didn't make India pay. Then, there were twos offered easily by outfielders, and several run-outs missed, even if one discounts the missed direct hits.
Harbhajan aside, the bowler of the day was perhaps Suresh Raina (8 overs, 1-26), whose miserly spell was topped with the crucial wicket of Kapugedera. He bowled well in tandem with Yuvraj (6 overs, 1-24) to bring Sri Lanka's asking rate under check. Harbhajan then quickly wrapped up the game with three wickets in his final spell.
Toss the boss again
The toss has been crucial to results at the Premadasa. Dhoni won it and put India in. Tendulkar opened with Dravid and laid the bedrock - an opening stand of 95. The stand-out feature of Tendulkar's flawless innings was his cover-driving, against both pace and spin. He gently tapped his first ball of the match past mid-off and it raced away for three. It set the tone for the match.
Only Nuwan Kulasekara, and to some extent, Jayasuriya, could be proud of their bowling figures today. The rest - Lasith Malinga in particular - were punished. Malinga took 1-81, Thilan Thushara 2-71 and Ajantha Mendis 1-70.
Dhoni produced a typically Dhoni-like fifty - with lots of hard running, sensible gap-finding and some brute drives. He added 110 with Tendulkar. The master batsman then added 71 with Yuvraj Singh, who provided the late boost with his power-packed 56 not out. Tendulkar cramped up towards the end of his innings and had Dravid running for him.
From 173/1 in 30 overs, India had the chance to score well over 330. But sides batting second at the venue are disadvantaged and even 319 was a mighty big ask. The highest chase at the Premadasa in an ODI is 270 - by India themselves, against England in the 2002 Champions Trophy.
Sri Lanka's highest successful chase here is 265 in 2004, the only other time a 250+ target was achieved here in a total of 95 matches. These facts meant India had done the most to not asphyxiate in yet another final.
Resolute batting
After the 139-run loss to Sri Lanka, India wore a resolved look today. Dravid cut the second ball of the match for four, a sign he wasn't going to be bogged down. Dropped twice on his way to 39, he and Tendulkar built on their cautious start. They boosted India's run rate to nearly six by the time Dravid popped a simple catch to cover.
Tendulkar carried on regardless, his knock built around those exquisite cover drives - off the front-foot against Kulasekara and Thushara, off the back-foot against Malinga, and stepping out to Mendis.
His fifty was raised in 45 balls and the hundred in 92. He was cramping up when he lofted Mendis over cover for six and reverse-swept him for consecutive fours. He was out LBW trying his third straight reverse sweep. With the run rate stalling a little, Yuvraj struck a 39-ball fifty to take India past 300.
The previous five instances of Tendulkar's hundreds in final are 134 against Australia (Sharjah, 1998), 100 not out against Kenya (Kolkata, 1998), 128 against Sri Lanka (Colombo, 1998), 124 not out against Zimbabwe (Sharjah, 1998) and 117 not out against Australia (Sydney, 2008).
What's next?
A tournament win 18 months after the CB Series win over Australia would no doubt boost the Indian team's morale. However, they need to work on a few things before they head for the Champions Trophy.
The catching in recent times has been alarmingly bad. India's fielders have not pulled off any spectacular catches off late, but worryingly they've been putting down a lot of easy ones. Ishant Sharma's form also concerns. He's not been among the wickets, and has continued to bleed runs.
Then, there's the opening slot. In Virender Sehwag's absence - and possibly, Gautam Gambhir's - India must quickly make up their mind about who should partner Tendulkar. Gambhir was replaced by Kohli, who according to Dhoni is not an opener. Dinesh Karthik was dropped after two games. Heading into the CT, India should look to settle this problem, and not be found grappling with it midway through the tournament.
Monday, September 14, 2009
Sunday, September 13, 2009
IPL 2010 Schedule
The teams are of IPL 2010 are:Deccan Chargers (DC), Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Mumbai Indians (MI), Rajasthan Royals (RR), Kings XI Punjab (KXIP), Delhi Daredevils (DD), Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). March 12: DC v KKR in Hyderabad.
March 13: MI v RR in Mumbai/Nagpur; KXIP v DD at Mohali.
March 14: CSK v DC in Chennai; KKR v RCB in Kolkata.
March 15: RR v DD in Jaipur.
March 16: RCB v KXIP in Bangalore; KKR v CSK in Kolkata.
March 17: DD v MI in Delhi.
March 18: RCB v RR in Bangalore.
March 19: DC v KXIP in Vishakapatnam.
March 20: RR v KKR in Ahmedabad; MI v RCB (venue to be decided)
March 21: DD v DC in Delhi
March 22: MI v KKR (venue to be decided)
March 23: RCB v CSK in Bangalore.
March 24: KXIP v RR at Mohali.
March 25: KKR v DD in Kolkata.
March 26: CSK v MI in Chennai; RR v DC in Ahmedabad.
March 27: RCB v DD in Bangalore; KXIP v KKR at Mohali.
March 28: RR v CSK in Ahmedabad; DC v MI in Vishakapatnam.
March 29: DD v KKR in Delhi.
March 30: MI v KXIP in Mumbai/Nagpur.
March 31: CSK v RCB in Chennai; DD v RR in Delhi.
April 1: KKR v DC in Kolkata.
April 2: KXIP v RCB in Mohali.
April 3: CSK v RR in Chennai; MI v DC in Mumbai/Nagpur.
April 4: DD v RCB in Delhi; KKR v KXIP in Kolkata.
April 5: DC v RR in Hyderabad.
April 6: MI v CSK in Mumbai/Nagpur.
April 7: RR v KXIP in Ahmedabad.
April 8: RCB v DC in Bangalore; CSK v DD in Chennai
April 9: KXIP v MI in Mohali
April 10: RCB v KKR in Bangalore; DC v CSK in Hyderabad
April 11: RR v MI in Jaipur; DD v KXIP in Delhi
April 12: DC v RCB in Hyderabad
April 13: CSK v KKR in Chennai
April 14: MI v DD (venue to be decided)
April 15: RR v RCB in Jaipur; KXIP v DC in Dharamsala
April 16: DD v CSK in Delhi.
April 17: RCB v MI in Bangalore; KKR v RR in Kolkata.
April 18: DC v DD in Hyderabad; KXIP v CSK at Dharamsala.
April 19: KKR v MI in Kolkata.
April 20: Rest day.
April 21: 1st Semifinal in Bangalore.
April 22: 2nd Semifinal in Bangalore.
April 23: Rest day.
April 24: Play-off for 3rd place.
April 25: IPL 3 final
I want to win Champions trophy or 2011 World Cup: Younis
Younis Khan, under whose leadership Pakistan won the Twenty20 World Cup this year, said he wants to win the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy or the 2011 World Cup during his tenure as captain.
Younis said his burning desire was to see Pakistan win either the Champions Trophy or World Cup in 2011 and to beat Australia and India in Test series.
“Every captain has certain targets in mind, mine is that we must win either of these two major ICC events until I am captain,” Younis told reporters at the start of the second phase of the Champions Trophy conditioning camp in Karachi on Friday.
“We also go to Australia later this year and we have never won a Test series there. I think we have the best chance of achieving this first time feat in the coming series. Beating Australia in Australia is something I have always dreamed off,” he added.
The senior batsman said Pakistan had a strong line up of players for every form of the sport but the real issue was to get them to click collectively.
“We have the players to win the Champions Trophy or World Cup and even beat Australia in Australia but we need to combine and click together,” he said.
Younis said a Test series against India was always a big thing for him and he hoped that while he was captain bilateral cricket relations with India would be revived soon.
IPL: Razzaq allowed to join Kolkata Knight Riders
LAHORE: The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Tuesday allowed all-rounder Abdul Razzaq to sign a contract with Kolkata Knight Riders for next year’s Indian Premier League (IPL). PCB officials had a meeting with Razzaq here at the board headquarters, and after that chairman Ijaz Butt allowed the cricketer to join the Knight Riders. Razzaq had informed Ijaz that the Knight Riders were seeking his services for the 2010 IPL edition. The all-rounder, who quit the rebel Indian Cricket League (ICL) earlier this year, recently met Ijaz to seek his permission for what is expected to be a lucrative stint for Knight Riders that is owned by Bollywood superstar Shahrukh Khan. Razzaq, who was banned by the PCB for his links with ICL, made his international return with the ICC World Twenty20 in England in June. He was a part of the Pakistan team to Sri Lanka earlier this summer but was dropped for the ICC Champions Trophy because of lack of form and fitness. The all-rounder was delighted to receive PCB’s permission to join the IPL. “It is great news for me and I am now looking forward to give my best for Knight Riders,” he said. (News Source: Daily Times)