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Wednesday, August 1, 2012

C r i c H o t L i n e

C r i c H o t L i n e

Preview: West Indies vs New Zealand 2nd Test #WIvNZ Kingston 2012

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 10:44 AM PDT


Having taken a 1-0 series lead in Antigua, the Darren Sammy-led West Indies go into the second and final Test at Kingston's Sabina Park starting on Thursday as favorites. That is a tag rarely attached to West Indian sides since the turn of the century, but such was the manner of victory over New Zealand last week that it is difficult to see the tourists, depleted by the loss of Daniel Vettori, squaring the series.

The last time West Indies won two consecutive Test matches at home, Jimmy Adams was captain, Walsh and Ambrose were sharing the new balls and Adrian Griffith and Sherwin Campbell were opening in Tests. Yes, that long ago – March 2000 when they beat Zimbabwe by ten wickets at the same venue for Thursday’s Test match.

Sammy’s side will be confident of changing that poor record, given how they have bossed New Zealand over the last few weeks. The return of Chris Gayle was a rousing success, and Sunil Narine bagging the Man-of-the-Match award in his second Test simply extended the mystery spinner's stranglehold over New Zealand's batsman. That West Indies won by nine wickets with their batting mainstay and No. 4 ranked batsman, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, also gave Ottis Gibson reason to be proud. This is West Indies’ best shot at winning a series in years.

New Zealand have to pick themselves up after a nine-wicket loss in Antigua, where they were left to rue dropping Gayle and going from 228 for 3 to 351 in the first innings and 171 for 1 to 272 in the second. The opener Martin Guptill and No. 3 Brendon McCullum were the only batsmen to score fifties in that Test, and much more will be needed from Daniel Flynn, Kane Williamson and Dean Brownlie.

Both teams have injury problems. For the hosts, Ravi Rampaul has been ruled out with a groin injury and will be replaced by one of Tino Best or Fidel Edwards. Best has been part of the squad and his last appearance saw him pick up the Man-of-the-Match award, but the management could opt for Edwards who has taken 25 wickets at 22.28 at Sabina Park.

New Zealand will be without Daniel Vettori who also strained his groin. It is not yet known who will replace Vettori, who currently sits on 360 wickets in 112 Tests, in New Zealand's line-up. The leading candidate is legspinner Tarun Nethula. Neil Wagner could also be swapped for Tim Southee after failing to make in impact with the ball.

A win for either side will have some landmark value; it will be West Indies' first series win by a margin of two matches or more for over 12 years and the first under Sammy and for New Zealand, it will be their second win in the Caribbean for over a decade and just their second overall, dating back to 1972.

Probable XIs:
West Indies: 1 Chris Gayle, 2 Kieran Powell, 3 Asad Fuddadin, 4 Shivnarine Chanderpaul, 5 Marlon Samuels, 6 Narsingh Deonarine, 7 Denesh Ramdin (wk), 8 Darren Sammy (capt), 9 Tino Best/Fidel Edwards, 10 Sunil Narine, 11 Kemar Roach

New Zealand: 1 Daniel Flynn, 2 Martin Guptill, 3 Brendon McCullum, 4 Ross Taylor, 5 Kane Williamson, 6 Dean Brownlie, 7 Kruger van Wyk (wk), 8 Neil Wagner/Tim Southee, 9 Tarun Nethula, 10 Doug Bracewell, 11 Chris Martin

Preview: England vs South Africa 2nd Test Leeds #EngvSA 2012

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 07:00 AM PDT


England will seek to bounce back after what spin bowler Graeme Swann described as a “public humiliation” when they face South Africa in the second Test starting at Headingley on Thursday.

England’s ranking as the number one Test team is under threat after they were beaten by an innings and 12 runs in the first Test at the Oval last week, with the hosts taking only two wickets while South Africa piled up 637 runs in their only innings.

Swann revealed that the England players spent two hours analysing their defeat immediately after the first Test and England coach Andy Flower insisted that confidence remains high and that the team could come back strongly.

“We get ourselves into the right frame of mind by doing the things that we have been doing very well for the last couple of years,” said Flower.

“I have every confidence in our players that we can come back and play good cricket.”

England will lose their number one ranking if the tourists win what is only a three-match series and so they need to bounce back quickly.

However, they can draw some comfort from recent South African defeats which have followed innings wins.

The Proteas beat India by an innings in the first Test in an away series in 2009/10 and a home series in 2010/11 only to lose the second Test each time, and that dubious feat was repeated at home against Sri Lanka in 2011/12.

They also won the first Test against Australia last summer, albeit not by an innings, only to lose the second clash.

With conditions likely to be more bowler-friendly at the Yorkshire ground than they were at the Oval, England will seek to exploit the potential weakness of South Africa’s batting from number six down.

Specialist batsmen Jacques Rudolph and JP Duminy did not bat at the Oval and failed to strike form in four innings apiece in warm-up games against county teams, while the South African tail does not have the batting credentials of the England lower order.

However, Rudolph, who spent five years playing for Yorkshire, brushed aside any concerns when he spoke to journalists on Tuesday.

“The way we play the game we are not too results orientated,” he said. “Going into Thursday we just have to make sure we stick to the same processes which I thought we did brilliantly in batting and bowling down at the Oval.”

South Africa will almost certainly stay with the team that triumphed at the Oval, while England will make at least one change following the withdrawal for personal reasons of batsman Ravi Bopara.

Uncapped James Taylor was called into the squad and will make his debut unless England decide to go in with an extra bowler.

Flower said, though, that a four-man attack had served England well and he did not see any reason to change the strategy.

If Taylor does play he will come into the match in good form, having made 163 not out for Nottinghamshire against Sussex in a county match at the weekend.

Tall fast bowler Steven Finn, who was in the squad but did not play at the Oval, could be brought in to provide more penetration to the England bowling attack in place of Yorkshire pace bowler Tim Bresnan.

Teams (from):

England: Andrew Strauss (Capt.), Alastair Cook, Jonathan Trott, Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell, James Taylor, Matt Prior, Tim Bresnan, Stuart Broad, Graeme Swann, James Anderson, Steven Finn, Graham Onions.

South Africa: Graeme Smith (Capt.), Alviro Petersen, Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis, AB de Villiers, Jacques Rudolph, JP Duminy, Vernon Philander, Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel, Imran Tahir.

Sachin Tendulkar in race for ICC People’s Choice Awards

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 04:48 AM PDT


Just two years after winning it, senior Indian batsman Sachin Tendulkar was on Wednesday once again nominated for the International Cricket Council (ICC) People’s Choice award.

Those nominated include Sri Lanka’s Kumar Sangakkara, South Africa’s duo Vernon Philander and Jacques Kallis, while England’s James Anderson makes up the quintet of nominees.

Both Sangakkara (2011) and Tendulkar (2010) have won the award in the past.

For the third time in the history of the awards, fans will have the opportunity to decide the winner, this time by accessing an application on the ICC’s official Facebook page.

Voting will be open until midnight August 31 with the winner to be announced on September 15 at the LG ICC Awards in Colombo, the ICC said in a statement.

The shortlist, nominated by an elite panel of cricket experts headed by former West Indies captain Clive Lloyd, along with Sri Lanka’s Marvan Atapattu, England’s Clare Connor, West Indies Carl Hooper and Australia’s Tom Moody, was selected using criteria set out by LG and the ICC.

“This is the third year of the LG People’s Choice Award and it is proving to be hugely popular among fans across the globe and continues to highlight how much voting for their cricketing heroes means,” ICC Chief Executive David Richardson said.

“This year sees the two past winners nominated again alongside three other extremely deserving candidates, I’m sure the public will choose wisely as to who will be the 2012 winner of this prestigious award at the LG ICC Awards 2012.” (PTI)

Dhoni praises Kohli and Tiwary after series win over Sri Lanka

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 02:40 AM PDT


India were clinical in almost all departments in their six-wicket win over Sri Lanka in the fourth ODI, but skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni especially emphasised on the part-time bowlers’ role and said his side has plenty of option to trouble the rival batsmen.

Spinner Manoj Tiwary claimed four wickets while Virat Kohli slammed an unbeaten 128 to help India take an unassailable 3-1 lead in the series.

“The part-timers bowled really well, the pace was important and they bowled to their field. This is the reason why fast bowlers bowled just 18 overs,” Dhoni said after their comfortable six-wicket win.

“What matters is the variations we got now. Manoj is the away going spinner for us, we have some off-spinners and also Virat can bowl his medium pacers with the keeper up. That is the sort of quality we have.

“They bowled the right length to create trouble for batsmen. So have plenty of options now. Even when Manoj is not there, we have Viru and Suresh Raina who can bowl. So if we don’t get a perfect allrounder, we are comfortable playing seven batsmen,” he added.

Dhoni also heaped praise on Kohli, who completed his 13th ODI hundred, and also singled out Raina for special mention.

“Kohli has improved a lot, once he gets set, he’s someone who doesn’t like to throw away his wicket, he’s a very improved cricketer, very hungry to get runs,” he said.

“Raina also, he bats at No. 6 or 7, the time has come for him to bat at 4 or 5. The problem is, you have to see what’s best for the side, the kind of finisher he is at 6 or 7.

“Last one or two years we haven’t found anyone who can fit in his shoes. But it is high time he gets a chance to score big runs,” he added.

Kohli, who was adjudged Man of the Match, said he was disappointed after his last match failure and that spurred him on.

“It’s been going well for me, just trying to keep it simple. I got out in the last match, it was disappointing, I thought about it. It always pleases a sportsperson than when we perform and the team wins,” he said.

On how he tackled Lasith Malinga, Kohli said: “Luckily, I’m strong on the leg side, he’s the sort of bowler if you don’t get on top of him, and he can change the match. I was very disappointed with the last match as I didn’t have the strike-rate to set up a platform for the side.”(PTI)

Daniel Vettori ruled out of 2nd Test against West Indies

Posted: 01 Aug 2012 02:07 AM PDT


New Zealand spinner Daniel Vettori will miss the second Test against the West Indies in Kingston with a groin strain, New Zealand Cricket (NZC) said Wednesday.

The 33-year-old managed to play on after suffering an adductor strain in the first Test, when the Black Caps slumped to a nine-wicket loss, but would not be fit for the Kingston match, NZC physiotherapist Paul Close said.

“Dan will return to New Zealand where he will be monitored closely and undergo a period of rehabilitation,” Close said.

“He will require a rest from bowling and his return date will be determined by how well he responds to the treatment.”

New Zealand will be hoping to rehabilitate Vettori, the country’s most capped Test player, in time for the Black Caps’ tour of India, which begins on August 23.

His absence in Kingston potentially opens the way for leg spinner Tarun Nethula to make his Test debut.(AFP)

India vs Sri Lanka 4th ODI Statistical Highlights #IndvSL 2012

Posted: 31 Jul 2012 11:26 PM PDT


Statistical highlights of the fourth one-dayer between India and Sri Lanka on Tuesday.

# Upul Tharanga (51 off 73 balls) recorded his fifth fifty against India – his 27th in ODIs.

# Lahiru Thirimanne (47 off 69 balls) registered his highest score in Sri Lanka in the ODIs.

# Suresh Raina\ and Virat Kohli were involved in an unbroken match-winning fifth-wicket partnership of 146 = the third highest for India against Sri Lanka in ODIs. Mohammad Azharuddin and Ajay Jadeja had recorded 223 at Colombo RPS on August 17, 1997 – the highest ever for India against Sri Lanka.

# Raina and Kohli batted aggressively in the last few overs to register an overall run-rate of 7.82 (146 off 112 balls) – India’s second highest against Sri Lanka. Raina and Gambhir had registered a run-rate of 8.24 during their fifth wicket partnership of 103 off 75 balls at Colombo on February 5, 2009.

# Manoj Tiwary (4/61) was the most successful bowler in the fourth ODI – his best bowling performance in ODIs.

# Tiwary has become the third Indian spinner to capture four wickets or more against Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka in ODIs, joining Harbhajan Singh and Pragyan Ojha.

# Tiwary’s splendid figures of 4 for 61 are the best by an Indian bowler while bowling at number seven against Sri Lanka – the fourth best by an Indian bowler in ODIs.

# In his last two innings, Suresh Raina has batted quite well to remain unbeaten, steering India to splendid victories – 65 not out and 58 not out. He is averaging 68.65 in successful chases in Limited-Overs Internationals, aggregating 1373 runs in 54 matches, including a century and eleven half-centuries.

# Raina’s average is the third highest by an Indian batsman (minimum qualification: 1000 runs), behind Mahendra Singh Dhoni (101.40) and Virat Kohli (76.57)

# Raina has been a consistent batsman recently, posting four fifties in his last six innings.
# Raina’s unbeaten 58 off 51 balls is his 24th half-century in ODIs – his eighth against Sri Lanka.

# Gautam Gambhir has recorded his third duck against Sri Lanka – his eleventh in Limited-Overs Internationals.

# India have won five consecutive bilateral ODI series against Sri Lanka.

# India’s victory by six wickets is their 400th in Limited-Overs Internationals. The first two teams to achieve the distinction were Australia (490) and Pakistan (416).

# India have won 22 games and lost 13 against Sri Lanka (Tied 1 and No Result 2) out of 38 ODIs contested under Dhoni’s captaincy – a record under one captain against Sri Lanka in ODIs.

# Virat Kohli has been adjudged the Man of the Match twelve times in ODIs. His tally includes five received this year.

# In consecutive calendar years in 2011 and 2012, Kohli has aggregated 1,000 runs or more – 1381 (ave. 47.62) in 34 matches in 2011 and 1003 (ave.77.15) in 15 matches in 2012.

# Kohli became the first player to record five hundreds in 2012.

# Kohli’s outstanding unbeaten knock of 128 off 119 balls is his fifth century against Sri Lanka – his 13th in Limited Overs Internationals. Just two Indians – Sachin Tendulkar (8) and Gautam Gambhir (6) have registered more centuries than Kohli for India against Sri Lanka.

# Kohli’s superb feat of reaching 13 hundreds in 89 matches is without parallel in ODIs. In his last eight outings in ODIs, he has posted five hundreds, four against Sri Lanka and one against Pakistan.

# With 273 runs at an average of 91.00 (strike rate of 90.39), Kohli is the leading run-getter in the current series.

# Kohli has become the sixth player to post eight centuries or more in successful chases in ODIs (1991 runs at an average of 76.57 in 34 matches). He has joined Sachin Tendulkar (14), Saeed Anwar (9), Sanath Jayasuriya (9), Ricky Ponting (8) and Adam Gilchrist (8).(PTI)
Posted by MohammaD IsmaiL at 1:42 PM

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