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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.

South Africa bounced back into contention for 2009 ICC Champions Trophy glory with a five-wicket triumph over New Zealand at SuperSport Park on Thursday.
Upset by Sri Lanka in the tournament opener two days ago, the Proteas had to win and did so with relative ease before a large, holiday crowd.
New Zealand were all out for 214 in 47.5 overs and South Africa cruised to 217-5 in 41.1 overs and another win Sunday over England would virtually assure the hosts of a place in the knockout phase.
AB de Villiers was a fitting matchwinner, sealing success with a four having top scored for the Proteas with an unbeaten 70 in 76 balls, including nine boundaries.
Ross Taylor was the top Kiwi scorer with 72 off 106 balls before missing a low full toss and being trapped leg before by revitalised Wayne Parnell , who was voted man of the match. Parnell finished with five wickets.

India stumbled in pursuit of 156 under lights but MS Dhoni and Suresh Raina kept cool heads to steer them to a six-wicket win with 57 deliveries to spare and with it move to No. 1 in the ICC’s ODI rankings. New Zealand, after opting to bat, made a complete mess of things and ended up with 155, a total that briefly challenged India but eventually proved to be inadequate. With this loss, New Zealand crashed out of the tournament.

Inspired by their two most experienced bowlers, New Zealand refused to surrender without a scrap but their spirited effort on the field wasn’t enough to defend a modest target. Dinesh Karthik was removed early in the piece to bring Rahul Dravid to the crease but his comeback was a labored 45-ball 14, after which Sachin Tendulkar fell for 46. Raina joined Dhoni and finished off the chase with a calculated 72-run partnership.

Dravid endured a few testing moments as he adjusted himself to this format. Shane Bond was particularly quick and nasty in a hostile first spell, which included a fiery maiden sixth over, and repetitively tested Dravid with the short deliveries. Dravid negated Bond’s aggression with customary grit only to be trapped lbw by Jacob Oram.

Tendulkar came out full of intent and treated the sparse crowd to some stunning shots. He repeatedly whipped Mills across the line, deft of wrists, for boundaries and welcomed Ian Butler into the attack with a fierce cut behind point and the shot of the day – a stylish whip off the back foot to a ball that pitched back of a length. Daniel Vettori was hammered off the back foot as Tendulkar closed in on fifty, but a clever change of pace had him lobbing the simplest of chances to cover. The bowler, the batsman and the catcher couldn’t believe it.

Sixteen minutes later Yuvraj Singh moped off after he was beaten in flight to pop a catch when attempting to play another slog-sweep for four off Vettori. Raina eased the nerves a pinch by swinging Vettori for six and following up with three past midwicket, and continued to play with a perfect blend of aggression and smartness. His back-foot play was especially pleasing – he rocked back to pull anything even slightly off line – and backed himself to swing deliveries that had a bit of air. Dhoni was his composed self and put his head down to indulge in some good old-fashioned ones and twos. He helped steer the chase with a dependable innings, one devoid of any risks.

A cursory look at the New Zealand card would suggest an ordeal against pace on a juiced-up track in Australia or England, but the truth was they struggled against a tidy fast-bowling attack and failed to cope with Yuvraj. Having lost the toss, India turned in a committed display in the field to take to pieces a line-up woefully short on inspiration and effort. Once they had New Zealand at 19 for 3 they provided few escapes routes, and that was the deciding factor in the result.

India, led initially by Ashish Nehra before Yuvraj continued the carnage, were on top from the time the first wicket fell. Nehra set the tone for India’s domination with a lovely new-ball burst, in which he passed 100 ODI wickets. With his second ball, he beat Jesse Ryder’s loose shot across the line to hit him in front of leg stump and then removed Brendon McCullum with one that straightened and rapped the pads in front of middle.

Having watched an edge from Ross Taylor sneak through between slip and keeper, RP Singh held back the length and got Taylor nicking to Dhoni for 11. New Zealand’s worries against left-handers – Thilan Thushara has been a handful all tour – continued with a poor display. Such was their discomfiture against the left-arm variety that Yuvraj’s gentle slow turners soon looked like missiles.

Puttering along to 22 from 41 balls, helping put on 32 with Grant Elliott, Martin Guptill fell in Yuvraj’s first over. Barely settling in to see what Yuvraj could offer, or if the pitch would assist turn, Guptill stabbed at one and Dravid, at first slip, reminded all of his class as a catcher with his 194th pouch.

Elliott, who looked the only one capable of batting till the 45th over and beyond, was then incorrectly given out for 22 by Kumar Dharmasena down the leg side. Replays showed the ball brushed only his pads as he attempted to tickle it fine. New Zealand had reason to feel aggrieved, but their efforts at the start had been unforgivable. The rest of the New Zealand line-up made fleeting appearances and there was little let-up for them as Dhoni rotated his bowlers, with the top four providing the dividends. New Zealand will need to improve considerably if they are to live up to their No. 4 ranking and challenge teams in the Champions Trophy.

With the rain clouds staying away and the Galle sky clear, Sri Lanka romped to victory in the first Test, finishing off proceedings mid-afternoon. The New Zealand tail offered far more resistance than the top order – Daniel Vettori led the way with a brave 67 – but with the spinners coming into their own after early breakthroughs from Thilan Thushara, Sri Lanka eased to a 202-run win. Fittingly Muttiah Muralitharan, who had taken his 100th wicket in Galle earlier in the match, had the final say, running out Brendon McCullum with a superb throw from mid-off to finish off proceedings.

 Any realistic hopes that New Zealand had of survival had disappeared soon after lunch, when Jesse Ryder edged Murali behind. McCullum and Vettori staved off the inevitable for a while, and there was polite applause for Vettori when he reached his half-century. Two neat pulls for four off Thushara followed, but by then both Murali and Ajantha Mendis were turning the ball at wicked angles.

 And it was Mendis who delivered, coming round the wicket and turning one sharply away to take the edge of Vettori’s bat. Once again Prasanna Jayawardene’s glovework was smooth, and as Vettori walked back, it was only a matter of when Sri Lanka would wrap things up. McCullum swung Murali for a six, and then swept him for four to rage against dying light, and there were a couple of lovely drives too from Jeetan Patel. But after Mendis had seen him dropped by Malinda Warnapura, substituting for Angelo Mathews, at short leg, Murali struck, with the doosra luring him forward and Prasanna doing the rest.

 Iain O’Brien went caught at silly point off the inside edge, and McCullum then made the mistake of taking on Murali’s throwing arm to end the contest. The damage, though, had been done much earlier, as Sri Lanka started the morning with some exceptionally tidy overs. The pressure eventually told once Thushara switched the angle of attack to round the wicket. Martin Guptill was clueless against one that came in with the arm and then darted away to clip the top of off stump. Soon after, Tim McIntosh, perhaps still suffering the after-effects of illness, was squared up, and Thilan Samaraweera took a fine low catch at third slip. McIntosh waited for the third umpire’s decision, but had to walk off eventually.

 An even heftier blow came soon after. Kumar Sangakkara threw the ball to his predecessor as captain, and when Mahela Jayawardene got Ross Taylor to tickle on into Prasanna’s hands down the leg side, the Lankan celebrations were raucous. Up in the dressing room, Trevor Bayliss, the coach, held his head in his hands in disbelief.

 With the fields more attacking, both Vettori and Jacob Oram had the opportunity to play some strokes. Vettori played a couple of lovely drives, and the sweep and pull were also employed by both as the scoreboard ticked along. But just when it seemed that they might get to lunch without further damage, Oram tried to sweep a straighter one from Mendis, and missed.

Both Vettori and Ryder saw edges off Murali evade wicketkeeper and slip and go for four, but there was to be no great escape for New Zealand. Sri Lanka, whose home form is the envy of so many, chipped away relentlessly and with Thushara adding a cutting edge to the wiles of Murali and Mendis, victory was as inevitable as it was emphatic.

Legendary New Zealand allrounder Richard Hadlee has hit out at the ICC for betraying the game of cricket by protecting the interests of India, who are the largest generator of revenue.
Hadlee was also particularly worried for the future of Test cricket, saying the growth of T20 and the huge financial lures for players from the IPL meant the International Cricket Council needed to exercise its authority.
We are in grave danger of having the decision makers betraying the game of cricket, said Hadlee during a nationwide tour to promote his latest book Changing Pace, which summarises his last nine years of cricket research.
We all know now that Asia, and more particularly India, have a more powerful say (at ICC level) because they generate that much more a higher percentage of revenue, which other countries benefit from.
So, who protects the game The ICC have to try so all the games can co-exist , he said.

Whether you agree or not, I firmly believe that cricket is still a gentlemans game. And even though I am not averse to change, I do feel the best way for the game to be played at the highest level is when it is played country versus country, and not club against club.
Ever since international cricket started way back in the 19th century, international games have always been followed more. Just look at the following that the Ashes or an India-Pakistan or an Australia-New Zealand series generates across the globe. The closely fought series recently between India-Australia and Australia-South Africa have also proven that these series are as much followed across the globe as the other rubbers that I mentioned earlier. Even nationals of those respective nations based in countries where cricket is hardly played closely monitor scores of their home teams ties. And believe it or not, I have always experienced that especially when it comes to non-cricketing regions (untapped markets , for those who refer to the game as business), people are more interested in Test cricket than one-dayers . Just to cite an example, go to any cricket academy or a gully cricket match anywhere in the globe and youll see people betting on the outcome of the Ashes, and not the T20 Champions League. So, those who fear Test cricket is nearing its death should keep their eyes and ears open instead of mouth.
And you dont need an expert to tell you that Test matches can NEVER be played between two clubs. Sometimes I just dont understand the purpose behind promoting so much club (franchisees) cricket for that matter. Twenty20 is a welcome change but its overdose, especially in the club format, can always prove to be futile for its shelf life.
Those who have been promoting the shortest format have been talking so much about things like audience span. For them, audience prefers much shorter games so a 20-over-aside just like a game of football will generate more audience interest than a Test match or an ODI.
But let me tell you that golf one of the most popular sports globally is never played three or four hours a day. Just like a Test match, it is played eight hours a day, four days a week. And people call the sport gripping just like a Test match. Every form has its beauty and that of Test cricket is testing cricketers endurance, fitness, skills and consistency . Even among the television viewers, iconic Test series continue to capture the imagination of the cricket fan.

Indian crickets spoilt child has finally called it quits. Vinod Kambli , who last played an ODI in 2000 against Sri Lanka at Sharjah, and in a Test back in 1995 against New Zealand at Cuttack, has decided to end his international career .
Kambli made the announcement while launching his sports academy at Vikhroli, in the presence of coach Ramakant Achrekar and former India captain Ajit Wadekar. Kambli had invited childhood friend Sachin Tendulkar too, but the latter could not make it.
Kambli has, however, admitted that he is still available for domestic cricket. Kambli last played first-class cricket in 2004-05 . Kambli made his ODI debut in 1991 and played 104 ODIs overall, scoring 2,477 runs. He made 1,084 runs from 16 Tests, with four centuries. After an explosive start at the international level, with two double hundreds on the trot and two centuries in his first seven Tests, Kambli floundered, with the West Indian quicks exposing his weakness against the short ball in 1994.
Kambli made as many as nine comebacks, but failed to cement a place. He played his last Test even before turning 24. 

The Knight Riders team management has begun a hunt for a suitable coach in right earnest. Having sacked former Australian coach John Buchanan, KR is looking for someone who can turn around the fortunes of the team in the third season of the Indian Premier League which will begin on March 12, 2010.
The KR managers have been working overtime for the last one month and have finally shortlisted six coaches three foreigners and three Indians for a formal screening to be held at owner Shah Rukh Khans residence Mannat on August 22.
However, two of the three Indians invited Paras Mhambrey and Praveen Amre have declined the invitation, citing their present commitments .
Other then the two mentioned above, those in the shortlist are: Lalchand Rajput (India), John Wright (New Zealand), Richard Pybus (South Africa) and Duncan Fletcher (England ). TOI had first reported last month that Wright was in the KR scheme of things.
Invites have been sent to these coaches and they have been asked to make formal presentations alongwith a list of their ideas that can help KR emerge a strong contender, informed an official of the franchisee.
Mhambrey, former Mumbai and Bengal coach and currently coach of Baroda, said he did receive an invitation but wasnt sure of being there. I havent given it much thought as I am presently occupied with the Baroda Ranji team, Mhambrey told TOI on Wednesday.
Amre too toed a similar line. Now in Chennai with the Mumbai team for the Buchi Babu tourney, Amre, who is also IPL franchisee Mumbai Indians coach, informed KR that he wont be in Mumbai on August 22.
I have told them that I will not be in Mumbai on that day and hence cant attend the meeting. Besides I am coaching Mumbai Indians so how can I be available, wondered Amre.
Lalchand Rajput, who coached Mumbai Indians in the first edition of the IPL is presently in Scotland, but has given his nod and is expected to be back in time for the presentation.
The three foreigners have also confirmed their participation. Former India coach Wright is already in India and according to sources met SRK at his residence on Wednesday.