Latest Cricket News and Updates, Live Cricket Score

Indian bowlers would find it more difficult than the batsmen to make the switch from the longest to the shortest format of the game, according to Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

“It’s (switch) difficult. But if you see we had been scoring at five-an-over in the last Test we played (at Mumbai). I don’t think it would be too difficult for some of the batsmen, especially Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir,” Dhoni said ahead of the first Twenty20 international against Sri Lanka.

“They actually bat in the same way. Just that they are a bit over-aggressive in T20 format, you can say,” he said

Though the bowlers need to roll their arm for only four overs, an enormous effort is involved to do so in the T20 format as the batsmen would go after them from ball one, especially on Indian pitches, he said.

“Most of our players are positive players, looking for strokes and runs. I don’t think you need to change your game too much. Of course a few others need to change according to the requirements.”

“Considering we are playing in India, it would be a bit different for the bowlers, as the batsmen would go after them from the very first ball. It looks to be a small game, just four overs, but the amount of effort that’s needed, that’s what it is all about” he explained.

Dhoni said his team will look to win both the T20 matches.

“We will try our best, it’s a very different format. We have to be up to the mark in everything. It’s important to be right on target. We will try and win both the two T20 games (against Lanka),” he said.

The second match is at Mohali on December 12.

Dhoni hoped to keep it a 100 per cent win record for India at this new venue after having won the Test against Australia last year and again the ODI against the same opponents two months ago.

“We hope to have a 100 per cent strike rate at Nagpur. It will be good for Nagpur and India,” he quipped.

Dhoni felt the wicket looked to be good for stroke playing but also cautioned the quick manner in which things fall apart for a batting side when they are on the look-out for quick runs in T20 games.

“Looks like a good track. It’s a late evening start. We may see dew come into effect. But by the time dew comes in the game may be over. It won’t be that big a factor.”

“Overall it will be good for batting, but in T20 its very tough to predict. All of a sudden you look to go aggressive and lose quite a few wickets at quick intervals and you are not able to get big runs”, he pointed out.

Dhoni said that the two newcomers in the Indian team, Ashok Dinda of Bengal and R Ashwin of Tamil Nadu are bound to benefit by having a close look at what an international game is about by sharing the dressing room.

Date Time Teams Match Venue
December 9
7:00 AM
India vs Sri lanka
1st Twenty/20
Nagpur

December 12
7:00 AM
India vs Sri lanka
2nd Twenty/20
Chandigarh

December 14
10:30 PM
India vs Sri lanka
1st ODI
Rajkot

December 18
4:00 AM
India vs Sri lanka
2nd ODI
Visakhapatnam

December 21
4:00 AM
India vs Sri lanka
3rd ODI
Cuttack

December 24
4:00 AM
India vs Sri lanka
4th ODI
Kolkata

December 27
4:00 AM
India vs Sri lanka
5th ODI
Delhi

Chris Gayle has more than his share of critics, often due to an impassive appearance that is sometimes taken for apathy, but he proved how much he cares about his team’s results with a patient century in Adelaide. Gayle’s first Test hundred against Australia gave West Indies a 296-run lead with a day to play and on a turning pitch Australia will have their work cut out against the spin and bounce of Sulieman Benn.

In the past century, no team has made more than 239 in the fourth innings to win an Adelaide Test and if Gayle doesn’t declare overnight, Australia might need to beat the all-time record of 315. West Indies finished at 8 for 284 with Gayle, who batted throughout the day, on 155 and Ravi Rampaul yet to score after Benn skied a catch in the final over off Mitchell Johnson.

A draw remains the most likely result, especially with the possibility of some final-day showers, but Gayle at least significantly slashed the odds of West Indies going 2-0 down with one match to play. Following Australia’s innings victory inside three days in Brisbane, Gayle and the team management kept their players in the dressing rooms for a long discussion, during which they resolved that the same result could not be allowed to happen again.

Dwayne Bravo, Brendan Nash, Benn and Kemar Roach have all stood up in Adelaide and on the fourth day it was the captain’s turn to lead from the front. A late challenge from Johnson, who snared Bravo and Denesh Ramdin in one over on the way to 4 for 85, couldn’t mask the fact that for most of the day Australia’s bowling lacked bite. West Indies could have accelerated quicker in the final session to increase the pressure on the hosts but they remain in a strong position thanks to their captain.

It was an innings of uncharacteristic restraint from Gayle, who for most of the day resisted his urges to hit over the top, and instead scored most of his boundaries along the ground with well-timed straight drives or clips through the leg-side. Australia tried to tempt him early in the day with Marcus North and Nathan Hauritz bowling an outside off-stump line but he was happy to leave, and apart from trying to force a couple of shots into the turf and back past Hauritz, his patience held up.

His century came from 179 deliveries and it prompted a display of clear emotion from the usually poker-faced Gayle, who beamed towards the dressing rooms and swung his bat in joy, having never before passed 71 against Australia. Late in the day he began to suffer cramps but was still willing to sprint for singles and keep his team moving, and it wasn’t until his 257th delivery that he registered a six, with a pull over midwicket off North.

Wickets gradually fell around him but nowhere near regularly enough for Australia’s liking. They thought they had Gayle on 26 when they asked for a review of a leg-side take by Brad Haddin off Johnson but replays showed the ball had come off Gayle’s leg. Australia had already burned a review on a caught-behind appeal against Adrian Barath and were left to rue their poor judgment when Nash later padded up to Doug Bollinger, who kicked the turf in disgust when Asad Rauf turned down a strong appeal. The action led to Bollinger being reported by the match referee Chris Broad.

It was that sort of day for Australia, frustration upon frustration, as they felt decisions went against them and their spinners failed to have the same impact Benn had enjoyed on the third day. There was turn and bounce for both slow men and one Hauritz delivery that ripped back viciously to Bravo suggested that Benn will be a handful on Tuesday.

Peter Siddle was clearly not at full fitness due to hamstring tightness and bowled only eight overs, while Bollinger, Johnson and Shane Watson battled hard with little success for most of the day. Watson delivered a searing, swinging yorker that clipped the leg stump of Nash (24), after Bollinger trapped Shivnarine Chanderpaul directly in front for 27.

Ramnaresh Sarwan fell for 7 when he sent a leg-side catch to Haddin off Johnson and Barath (17) was unfortunate to be run out at the non-striker’s end when Gayle’s straight drive was adjudged to have touched the bowler Hauritz before crashing into the stumps. It was the only thing Gayle did wrong all day

England has moved up a place while South Africa has dropped a position in the Reliance Mobile ICC ODI Championship table at the end of their series on Friday.
England’s 2-1 series win with washed out matches in Johannesburg and Durban, has earned it three ratings points which has helped it go ahead of Pakistan in fifth position while the series loss has pushed South Africa behind India into third spot.
World champion Australia continues to enjoy a comfortable eight-point advantage over second-placed India but the middle of the table is quite congested with only 13 ratings points separating third-placed South Africa with seventh-placed Sri Lanka.
And with India to go head to head with Sri Lanka in the five-ODI series in Rajkot from 15 December, there could be more reshuffle depending how the series pans out.
A 5-0 clean sweep will take India to 126 ratings points, four behind Australia, while Sri Lanka’s 5-0 series win will put both the sides on 115 ratings points. Sri Lanka’s 3-2 series win will lift it to 110 ratings points and will drop India to 119 ratings points but ahead of South Africa.
In the Reliance Mobile ICC Player Rankings for ODI batsmen, South Africa’s AB de Villiers and Paul Collingwood of England have achieved career-best rankings to date.
De Villiers, who scored 145 runs in the three ODIs, has climbed two places to third position while Collingwood, who won the player of the series award for his 193 runs, has rocketed six places to 12th position in the latest rankings which were released on Friday.
However, the news is not so good for South Africa captain Graeme Smith and former England captain Kevin Pietersen. Smith, after scoring just 68 runs in the series, has dropped five places to eighth spot while Pietersen has fallen four places and out of the top 20 in 21st position after managing just 52 runs.
The batting list is still headed by India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni while Mike Hussey of Australia is in second position.
In the Reliance Mobile ICC Player Rankings for ODI bowlers, England fast bowlers Stuart Broad and James Anderson have stormed up the order.
Broad, who took six wickets in two matches, has leaped eight places to seventh position while Anderson, who was the most successful bowler of the series with eight wickets, has rocketed 13 places to share ninth spot with Dale Steyn of South Africa who has slipped two places.
South Africa off-spinner Johan Botha has returned to the top 10 after climbing three places to 10th position.
The bowlers’ list is still headed by New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori with Bangladesh’s Shakib Al Hasan in second spot and Ray Price of Zimbabwe in third place.
In the Reliance Mobile ICC Player Rankings for ODI all-rounders, Collingwood has climbed three places and now sits just outside the top five in seventh position.
Shakib Al Hasan leads the field with Shane Watson of Australia second, India’s Yuvraj Singh third and a three-way tie for fourth spot between Jacques Kallis of South Africa, Pakistan’s Shahid Afridi and New Zealand’s Jacob Oram.

Rank Team Rating
1 Australia 130
2 India 122
3 South Africa 119
4 New Zealand 112
5 England 109
6 Pakistan 108
7 Sri Lanka 106
8 West Indies 76
9 Bangladesh 55
10 Zimbabwe 26
11 Ireland 25
12 Kenya 2

Incongruously, India have risen to the top in a format some would accuse them of neglecting – and their low frequency of Tests could cause them to lose their crown sooner rather than later. They are only the third team, after Australia and South Africa, to reach the summit of the ICC’s Test rankings since they were introduced in 2001 but their time there could be brief because of a schedule that contains only two Tests in the next 11 months.
Which means the duration of their reign will be determined by how their closest rivals, South Africa and Australia, fare in the next few months. “It is a bit of a concern, as we play only two Test matches in the next six months, so it will be tough for us to maintain the position,” MS Dhoni said after India’s victory in Mumbai. “I can’t do anything about the schedule. It is good to play Test cricket, at the same time we are here to play whatever cricket we are asked to play.”
Before their 2-0 victory, India were ranked third with 119 points after Sri Lanka and chart-toppers South Africa (122). The two consecutive innings victories in Kanpur and Mumbai earned India five points, taking them two clear of South Africa, while Sri Lanka slipped below Australia to fourth place.
During the period in which India have only two Tests – against Bangladesh – to maintain a hold on their No. 1 position, South Africa play at least four and Australia eight. A 2-0 win against Bangladesh isn’t likely to give India too many ratings points either, so they could be overtaken depending on how South Africa do against England, and how Australia go against West Indies and Pakistan at home, and in the away series in New Zealand and against Pakistan in England.
What is certain is that India will end 2009 as the No. 1 Test side because even a 3-0 victory for Australia in the ongoing series against eighth-ranked West Indies will give them only one point, taking their tally to 117, and no improvement in position.
India’s immediate threat is South Africa, but they will have to beat England by a 2-0 margin or better to reclaim the No. 1 spot. A 2-0 or 3-1 victory for South Africa will take them marginally ahead of India, 3-0 will given them 126 points, and 4-0 will extend their lead over India by three. However, if England win 1-0 or 2-1, South Africa’s tally will reduce to 117, increasing India’s lead by seven points.
If South Africa fail to recapture the top spot against England, India’s reign will receive an extension because even if Australia blank Pakistan 3-0 at home, following a 3-0 win against West Indies, their ratings points will increase only by three to 119. They will then need to win in New Zealand and beat Pakistan in England – an away series for Australia – to move up the ladder.

The PCB hopes the task force set up by the ICC would help revive its international cricketing reputation, which has been battered by security fears. Earlier this year, the ICC established the task force to ensure that Pakistan would host international cricket in the future, security conditions permitting. The PCB was initially reluctant to accept the help of the task force when the idea was floated in February, but was now pinning its hopes of recovery on the efforts of the game’s governing body.

“Ijaz Butt, the PCB chairman, will be apprising the task force about the issues being faced in our cricket and hopes that through the efforts of the task force, the best possible solutions can be worked out for Pakistan,” a release from the board said. “The efforts of David Morgan [the ICC president], Giles Clarke [the England and Wales Cricket Board chairman] and the other members are greatly appreciated by the PCB at a time when Pakistan cricket is facing its toughest challenges.”

The task force, which will convene in Dubai on Friday and Saturday, is headed by Clarke and includes former Pakistan captain Ramiz Raja, former England captain Mike Brearley, and former Sri Lankan captain Ranjan Madugalle among its other members.

Several countries have refused to tour Pakistan due to security fears. Cricket in the country was dealt a severe blow when the Sri Lankan team bus was attacked in Lahore in March this year, killing eight people and injuring five visiting players. The 2009 Champions Trophy was moved out of Pakistan to South Africa, while the country lost its share of 2011 World Cup matches later.

It’s a venue that Pakistan’s bowlers have enjoyed more than those from any other side over the last two decades, and they celebrated the Basin Reserve’s fiftieth Test in fitting style, destroying New Zealand’s top order with another clinical performance that left them superbly placed to level the series. After extending their first innings to 264, thanks largely to Kamran Akmal’s enterprising 70, the bowlers immediately got down to business, exploiting the conditions and the huge flaws in the techniques of the New Zealand batsmen, bundling them out for 99 and taking their overall lead to 229 by stumps.

Save for a brief four-over period when New Zealand took the last three Pakistan wickets and a spell just before close of play, the day belonged entirely to the visitors. Mohammad Aamer did his now customary trick of taking a wicket in his first over – is he the new first-over specialist after Daryl Tuffey? – and consistently bowled in the mid-140s, Mohammad Asif operated in his usual channel around off and seamed the ball both ways, Umar Gul was the perfect first-change bowler offering New Zealand no respite, while Danish Kaneria befuddled the lower order with his bag of tricks.

While the four-pronged bowling attack gave little away, New Zealand put in yet another shambolic batting display, as their poor defensive techniques and shot selection were ruthlessly exposed. None of their batsmen came to terms with the ball seaming around in both directions, and they made it worse for themselves with some poor strokeplay. None was more guilty than Brendon McCullum, who chased his first ball – a wide one – and edged to second slip when New Zealand had already lost five wickets with little on the board.

From the moment Aamer started his first over, it was clear New Zealand would have their hands full. His fourth ball to Guptill swung back and rapped him on the pads; the next one left him, clipped the edge, and New Zealand’s opening pair had failed to last the first over for the third time in three innings.

That was one of two overs Pakistan bowled before lunch and the slide continued after the break. Asif flummoxed Tim McIntosh and forced an inside edge to short leg, and should have had Daniel Flynn in similar fashion had Salman Butt not dropped a regulation catch. Ross Taylor was the only batsman to play with confidence – he raced to 30 from 40 balls, showing decisive footwork and driving confidently through the off side off the fast bowlers. His judgement failed him, though, when Gul slipped in an indipper that took the off stump after Taylor left it alone.

Peter Fulton was a walking wicket once again, shuffling indecisively to a straight and full one on the stumps, but New Zealand really crumbled after tea, going from 85 for 4 to 99 all out in the space of six overs. It’s a fate that has often befallen New Zealand sides of the past against Pakistan, and this time it was Asif who started the slide. Flynn’s painstaking knock ended when he was trapped in front of off by one that straightened – the review failed to save him – and when McCullum fell next ball, Asif was on a hat-trick. Vettori averted it, but was, for once, unable to lead another rearguard effort as Kaneria snuffed out the tail in a trice. More than just the three wickets he got, what would have worried Vetorri was the amount of turn he extracted from the second-day pitch.

Apart from Taylor, the one batsman who was comfortable batting on the surface was Kamran Akmal, who showed plenty of skill and aggressive intent in his 70. His 64-run stand with Gul – the largest of the innings – kept New Zealand in the field much longer than they would have liked in the opening session. Both batsmen went after the bowling, with Kamran lacing drives confidently through the covers to bring up his second half-century of the series. When New Zealand did get Rudi Koertzen to raise the finger against Kamran, the lbw decision was overturned on review, with replays suggesting it would have gone over the top of the stumps.

Throughout the day, the bounce on the track kept the bowlers interested: the last 30 minutes was a huge test for Pakistan’s batsmen, with O’Brien, who bowled an inspired spell, exceeding 140 kph, peppering the batsmen with plenty of short deliveries, and getting Butt with one such delivery that had him all tangled up and gloving to Taylor in the slips.

Imran Farhat was consumed by the pace and movement too but, despite that lion-hearted effort, the story of the day remained New Zealand’s abject collapse. In their last two Tests at this ground, Pakistan have had one bowler winning them the match – it was Wasim Akram in 1994 and Shoaib Akhtar in 2003. The spoils were shared this time around, but the end result could be just as emphatic for Pakistan.

Bravo third Test century ensured a healthy total for West Indies but their fighting efforts were overshadowed by a controversial umpiring review that ended Shivnarine Chanderpaul’s push for a hundred. West Indies must win to keep the series alive and Bravo’s 104 gave them hope, although on a good batting surface six opening-day wickets wasn’t a bad result for Australia.

At stumps, West Indies had moved to 6 for 336, which augured well for a better contest than in Brisbane. Darren Sammy provided some late-afternoon highlights with a pair of sixes down the ground off Nathan Hauritz and he was 44 not out at the close, with Brendan Nash also on 44, having earlier retired hurt.

Bravo rode his luck to reach triple figures after being dropped three times but Chanderpaul’s fortune ran out when he was on 62. Chanderpaul was given out caught-behind off Shane Watson and was the victim of a successful review for Australia after Mark Benson initially denied Australia’s appeal.

Hot Spot did not carry the right angle to show an edge but a camera view from the long-on region seemed to show a slight deflection as the ball passed the bat. It was far from conclusive evidence and nor was the decision a blatant shocker – those are the calls the review system is designed to eradicate – but the third umpire Asad Rauf was convinced and sent Chanderpaul on his way.

Chanderpaul had earlier survived a similar review off Doug Bollinger on 38, when again the evidence was inconclusive despite the Australians being utterly convinced that he had edged the ball. The eventual dismissal was a major blow for West Indies and things went from bad to worse when in the same over Denesh Ramdin played on to give Watson his second wicket.

Watson was pleased to redeem himself after his comical mishap gave Bravo a reprieve on 59. Bravo hooked Peter Siddle and Watson tried to snare the catch at deep square leg but stumbled back and lobbed the ball up as he realised he would step over the boundary. He tried to reclaim the catch after jumping back into the field of play but stumbled and parried the ball over for six.

Bravo had already been dropped twice on 46, though both were tough chances – a caught-and-bowled that rocketed back to Siddle and an edge off Hauritz that ricocheted off Brad Haddin and was missed by Michael Clarke at slip. Bravo wasn’t about to be discouraged from playing his shots and brought up both his half-century and his hundred with drives that sailed over the bowler’s head and away to the boundary.

But Bravo was being far from irresponsible in his strokeplay; he was patient and waited for his opportunities, and a crunching, classic cover-driven boundary off Watson was especially attractive. It was his first Test century in four years, since he made 113 in Hobart in 2005-06, and though he eventually missed a straight ball from Hauritz and was bowled, it was just the sort of innings that West Indies needed to lift their spirits after their innings loss at the Gabba.

He had the perfect ally in Chanderpaul, who had looked out of sorts in Brisbane but here compiled his first half-century in his past eight Test innings. As expected, Chanderpaul scored the majority of his 54 runs behind the wicket but also drove well and enjoyed a lovely clip off his toes for four through midwicket off Mitchell Johnson.

The 116-run stand was comfortably West Indies’ best partnership of the series, which made it all the more frustrating for them that it was ended in such debatable style. The pair had come together after Nash retired hurt on 20 during the lunch break, having been struck on the arm by his former flat-mate Johnson in the final over before the interval.

It left West Indies in a spot of bother after they lost three wickets in the opening session, including Ramnaresh Sarwan, whose return from a back injury ended on 28 when he drove Johnson on the up to Clarke at point. The early damage came from Bollinger, who had been waiting 11 months for his second Test and picked up two wickets in his first five overs.

Bollinger’s first two went for 18 as Chris Gayle, who had chosen to bat, launched an early assault. The bowler’s confidence improved when Adrian Barath (3) pushed a catch to gully and the major prize followed when Gayle tried to cut too close to his body and was surprised by extra bounce, which was unusual for an Adelaide pitch, and was caught behind for 26.

There was no doubt about that decision. If only the same could have been said later in the day.

The Indian board has extended by six months its current contract with Sahara India to sponsor the national team after its inability to find any alternative sponsors. N Srinivasan, the BCCI secretary, said the extension was granted on the basis of the present terms and conditions by the marketing committee, headed by the president Shashank Manohar.

“A fresh tender will be issued, before the expiry of the extension period, inviting bids for the team sponsorhip,” Srinivasan said.

Sahara’s contract was to have ended on December 31 this year, and had already been extended by three months.

Reports indicate that one stumbling block in finding a new sponsor was the base price the BCCI deemed fit for the deal. While the previous contract with Sahara was a four-year-deal signed in 2006 for Rs 400 crore, the BCCI is now asking companies to top that and fork out around $35 million (about Rs 162 crore) annually.

The board also awarded the title and ground rights for the two Twenty20 internationals against Sri Lanka to WSG at Rs 3.15 crore per match.

The BCCI also said that any party that strikes a deal with it for the IPL, will have to submit a bank guarantee for the full value of the deal with immediate effect. This includes Multi Screen Media, for IPL telecast rights, and Entertainment Sports Direct (ESD), which won the IPL theatrical rights.