Cricket News and Cricket Highlights - Crichotline |
- Preview: Sri Lanka vs New Zealand, 2nd ODI, Pallekele, 2012
- Virender Sehwag sustains finger injury
- Stuart Meaker called up for injured Steven Finn
- Bairstow ton leads England XI to 338-6 in tour match against Mumbai A
- Injury scare for Shane Watson ahead of Australia-South Africa test series
- If India win first Test, England won’t be able to come back: Gavaskar
- Sri Lanka-New Zealand 3rd ODI shifted to Pallekele
- Sachin Tendulkar scoring runs ahead of England series good sign: Gavaskar
| Preview: Sri Lanka vs New Zealand, 2nd ODI, Pallekele, 2012 Posted: 03 Nov 2012 02:00 PM PDT
After washouts in the one-off T20 and first ODI, Sri Lanka and New Zealand cricket authorities Friday agreed to shift the venue for the second and third one-day internationals from Colombo to Kandy. Sri Lanka definitely go in as favourites owing to their brilliant home record but it's actually New Zealand who want victory desperately because they need some confidence following a disastrous World T20. Their batting on turning wickets has been unconvincing over the years and this time once again questions are being raised whether the Kiwi batsmen are good enough to surprise the hosts. Even though mystery spinner Ajantha Mendis has been ruled out of the series, the Lions still have big threats in Rangana Herath and Akila Dananjaya.
And then there are medium pacers Lasith Malinga and Nuwan Kulasekara. The Kiwi batsmen led by Ross Taylor must be sweating it out ahead of the match. It's important that senior players like Taylor, Brendon McCullum and Jacob Oram rise to the occasion. Sri Lanka's batting is no less impressive with the likes of Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara and Tillakaratne Dilshan. Cleary, the Blacks Caps have a big task on their hands and they will have to play out of their skin to surprise the Lankans. But first, let's hope there is plenty of sunshine at Pallekele tomorrow and we get to see a full game. Probable XIs: New Zealand: 1 Brendon McCullum (wk) 2 Andre Ellis 3 Rob Nicol 4 Ross Taylor (c) 5 Kane Williamson 6 BJ Watling 7 James Franklin 8 Jacob Oram 9 Tim Southee 10 Ronnie Hira 11 Nathan McCullum  |
| Virender Sehwag sustains finger injury Posted: 03 Nov 2012 11:43 AM PDT
The incident happened during the post lunch session when Mohammed Kaif, who was batting on 78 edged an Ishant Sharma delivery that flew to first slip where Sehwag was fielding. Delhi skipper dropped the chance and the ball raced to boundary. When he got up, he seemed to have had a cut on his ring finger of his right hand and went off the field. Sehwag didn’t come back on the field during the post-tea session and at the end of the match was seen having the finger suitably bandaged.
“It was cut which needed medical attention. It didn’t need any stitches and he is fit to bat in the second innings,” Delhi’s coach Sanjeev Sharma said after the match.  |
| Stuart Meaker called up for injured Steven Finn Posted: 03 Nov 2012 11:10 AM PDT
The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) made the announcement in a statement on Saturday, saying Meaker "will return to the England Performance Program once Finn is available for selection,” according to the Associated Press. Meaker is expected to play in the four-day game against Haryana in Ahmedabad from November 8-11. Earlier, fast bowler Steve Finn was ruled out of the remainder of their opening tour game against India A because of the thigh injury he sustained on the first day.
“Steve Finn has been ruled out of remainder of the three-day game with right thigh strain. He will be assessed over the next couple of days to determine a rehabilitation programme,” said a spokesperson of the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) travelling with the team. The 23-year-old Finn, from English county Middlesex, is yet to play against India in Tests and has taken 66 wickets from 16 Tests. The lanky fast bowler bowled only four overs for 22 runs without taking a wicket in the opening session of play on day one yesterday at the Brabourne Stadium and took no further part as India A raked up 369 for 9 by close in 90 overs, PTI reported.  |
| Bairstow ton leads England XI to 338-6 in tour match against Mumbai A Posted: 03 Nov 2012 08:45 AM PDT
Bairstow (118) and Morgan (73) pulled England out of the woods by stitching 156 runs for the fifth wicket in just under three hours after Mumbai A bowlers had threatened to bowl the visitors out cheaply in the morning session. The right-handed Bairstow, who hit 15 fours in his stay of 261 minutes, and left-handed Morgan, who struck eight fours and a six in 191 minutes, joined hands when England were tottering at 64 for 4 at lunch and were separated only in the final session.
England consolidated their innings further when Bairstow and Samit Patel (59) put on another 107 runs for the sixth wicket to finish the opening day strongly at 338 for six wickets. Patel, who scored a century in the tourists’ first warm-up game against India A, and stand-in skipper Stuart Broad (6) were the unbeaten batsmen at stumps. In the morning, the visitors were rocked by a two-wicket burst from Kshemal Waingankar and a wicket each from first change seamer Javed Khan and captain Suryakumar Yadav, a part time spinner, after opting to bat first. Morgan and Bairstow then rallied the visiting team by batting with confidence and fluency till the former was dismissed by Shardul Thakur. In the first hour of play, Waingankar picked up the wickets of opener Nick Compton (1) and Ian Bell (4) but was punished later on with the old ball to finish the day with figures of 2 for 68. Javed Khan and part-timer bowler Surya Kumar Yadav, the home team skipper, got rid off Jonathan Trott and Joe Root respectively. Khan packed off Jonathan Trott, who looked good when making 28 in 64 minutes with four fours, to break his second wicket stand with opener Joe Root, who also made 28. The second wicket pair put on 51 runs and then England lost two more wickets — those of Bell and Root, who was sent back by Yadav in the last over before lunch. But thereafter, England took control through Morgan and Bairstow first and then Bairstow and Patel as the track lost its liveliness of the first session and against an attack that lacked an effective spinner. Morgan and Bairstow took the attack to the enemy camp to add 56 runs in 14 overs in the first hour after lunch. In all, the visitors added 108 runs in 27.5 overs in the period between lunch and tea to wrest the initiative. Morgan continued in the same vein before he was trapped in front by Thakur for the bowler’s first wicket. Bairstow was also dismissed before close but not before he and Patel had taken the score past the 300 mark, Javed Khan being the wicket taker. Khan, who bowled pretty short at times, finished the day with 2 for 75 while Thakur (1 for 61) and Yadav (1 for 30) were the other wicket-takers for Mumbai A. The post-lunch progress of the visiting team’s innings was in sharp contrast to the first session when they were rocked by Mumbai’s second-string medium pacers. Waingankar, Javed Khan and Yadav got among the wickets on a track assisting seam bowling to leave England tottering at 64 for 4 the end of the session after the visitors opted to bat first. Waingankar struck once each in his two spells to take the wickets of opener Nick Compton for one and Ian Bell for four while first change bowler Javed Khan dismissed Jonathan Trott for 28. To make matters worse for England, Yadav struck in the last over before lunch to dismiss Joe Root caught at short leg for 28 to leave the visiting team innings in tatters. But, Mumbai A clearly lacked a fifth regular bowler with leg-spinner Sagar Gorivale being left out from the eleven and England eased their way out of trouble against Yadav and Shoaib Shaikh. Mumbai A also had to use irregular bowlers Yadav and Shikhar Dhawan to pep up the over-rate. The visitors rested captain Cook, pace bowlers Steven Finn and Tim Bresnan, batsman Kevin Pietersen, wicketkeeper Matt Prior and leading spinner Graeme Swann from the team that played at the CCI.  |
| Injury scare for Shane Watson ahead of Australia-South Africa test series Posted: 03 Nov 2012 08:15 AM PDT
Watson left the field after bowling his first over of the day for New South Wales in their match with Queensland in Brisbane on Saturday. On Friday, former Test skipper Ricky Ponting was withdrawn from Tasmania’s Shield match against South Australia on Friday with hamstring soreness, while pace hope Pat Cummins was ruled out for season with a stress back complaint.
Watson, 31, stopped short after bowling his sixth ball and then held a lengthy conversation with NSW and Test captain Michael Clarke. He stayed on the field for the following over but later left the ground to return to his team’s dressing room. Medical staff reported Watson suffered calf soreness and would continue to be assessed during the second day’s play. Australia’s vice-captain has had problems with his troublesome calf in the past five months and was sent home from England during the one-day series loss in July. Watson was brought home early from the Champions League Twenty20 in South Africa last month amid fears of burnout and a lack of activity in the longer form of the game. Cricket Australia’s plan was to give Watson a rest and have a four-day Sheffield Shield game for New South Wales, before tackling South Africa in the opening Brisbane Test. The first Test between Australia and South Africa begins in Brisbane on Friday.  |
| If India win first Test, England won’t be able to come back: Gavaskar Posted: 03 Nov 2012 07:45 AM PDT
“I have always believed that home teams have an edge. They are familiar with the conditions. They are able to be in the surroundings they are comfortable in. You know the pitch conditions. “In 2011, England very vulnerable, Australia were very vulnerable. The first Test becomes an important factor. England won the first Test and Australia won the first Test. You derive strength from that. If India wins the first Test, I don’t think England will be able to come back,” Gavaskar said.
He maintained that the batting looks depleted with the retirement of senior players like Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman and the opening pair of Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir struggling for form. “The batting looks a bit shaky. The opening pair’s form doesn’t look that good. Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman have retired. Cheteshwar Pujara is new. The batting looks a bit weakened to what we had earlier. “Just now the season has started… if the players are in form then even we can score 500-600 runs. In bowling Umesh Yadav is new. Pragyan Ojha and R Ashwin’s combination has not become that popular. It is not the same attack we had a couple of years ago,” he said. Asked to predict the outcome of the series, Gavaskar hoped India would make a clean sweep. “It is hard to predict but I hope so. I hope it is 4-0 against England and 4-0 against Australia. It is what we suffered in 2011,” he said. Gavaskar conceded that the opening pair is woefully out of form, but said it is premature to think about tinkering with it. “It is good that there is competition because competition ensures that nobody takes his place for granted. We have got a set opening pair with Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag. Unless the situation is dire, unless the situation is that somebody is so out of form, I don’t think we should be doing unnecessary changes. “We have got a pair who understand each other, (it) is not an easy thing. It takes time for a new pair, new combination to settle. I think we should wait a bit before taking any decision,” he said. On the much-debated number six spot that is up for grabs, he said, “After Yuvi’s performance with not just the bat but also the five wickets, he gives the extra flexibility to the skipper. He brings in different angle of attack. Down the order at no. 6 if he gets going, he can smash any attack. “Yuvraj has made a case for himself. The way he bowled and the way he has batted. He brings another option. He gives the captain flexibility in terms of bowling and batting. One of England’s leading and dangerous batsmen Kevin Pietersen has been susceptible to left-hand spinner.” Asked about captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s form and trying out different captains for different formats, he said, “Dhoni’s form will not be a worry on Indian pitches. The Australian system of picking the best 11 and then choosing the captain I think is very good. None of the players have doubt about a person’s place in the team. “As of now Mahendra Singh Dhoni is an automatic choice. If he is an automatic selection then he continues to be the captain. When he is not an automatic selection then you can look at somebody else being the captain.” On the proposed day-night Tests, he said, “This is something Sir Don Bradman spoke to me in 1977-78, he told me day-night Test matches would be soon. “But if the ball is good and it doesn’t lose it’s colour and can be spotted at night, I think certainly day-night matches will come. The dew factor and everything else will have to be considered. “The timings have to be chosen… say in India you cannot play in November to January because the dew factor is quite high. But my feeling is when they talk about day-night matches it won’t be till 10 pm, it might be something that finishes at 8pm. “I am not in ICC’s technical committee anymore so I don’t know about the timing,” he said.  |
| Sri Lanka-New Zealand 3rd ODI shifted to Pallekele Posted: 03 Nov 2012 07:15 AM PDT
Pallekele will replace Colombo as the venue for the matches on Sunday and Tuesday, Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) said in a statement. “This decision was made considering the prevailing weather patterns and available ground conditions,” it said. “SLC will be constantly monitoring weather conditions for further review.” Rain in Pallekele has already marred a one-off Twenty20 international and the opening one-dayer, which were abandoned. Only 16 overs were bowled in the T20 game while the one-day match was called off without a ball being bowled.
Hambantota is scheduled to host the last two one-day internationals on November 10 and 12. Sri Lanka and New Zealand will also play two Tests after the one-day series.  |
| Sachin Tendulkar scoring runs ahead of England series good sign: Gavaskar Posted: 03 Nov 2012 06:49 AM PDT
Gavaskar was one of those who had said the 39-year-old’s mode of dismissals in recent matches was concerning. “He is one the most hardworking studious guys you come across. I think Sachin would have got enough time to think about how he got out. If he has got the runs now, obviously he has worked hard for it. “The evidence will be seen in the Test matches. The fact that he has got runs is a good sign,” Gavaskar told reporters at an event where he was honoured for his 34 centuries by a Swiss luxury watch firm.
On Saturday, Tendulkar roared back to form ahead of the upcoming Test series against England with a strokeful 137 in 136 balls against Railways in the Ranji match. On his earlier comment on the senior batsman’s dismissals, he said, “That was the early part of the season. Some people can be a little bit rusty. India had a rare two months off from international cricket. May be it was a case of rustiness. But he is somebody who would have noticed it himself and studied the videos. So I don’t see too much of an issue.” On the series against arch-rivals Pakistan, to be held in between the Test and ODI series against England, Gavaskar clarified that he has no objection but felt the timing was slightly odd as India would have no rest before facing Australia after the long series against the English. Gavaskar was moved when presented with a watch and said it will be his 25 years of retirement on Monday and also recounted a nightmarish experience in 1971, just before the series against the West Indies. “In the New York flight I started screaming and the on-board doctor gave me tranquilisers. When we reached an infirmary, the nurse mad a bad face because of the swollen finger and pus. The doctors told me it was lucky we had a stopover otherwise gangrene would have set in and we would have had to chop that finger off. “I couldn’t play the warm up matches because it was my top hand and I couldn’t hold the bat, ” he said, adding that he noticed a similar thing in the morning but used a band aid this time around,” recollected Gavaskar.  |
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