West Indies opener Chris Gayle has pronounced himself "99 per cent fit" at the start of the three-match Twenty20 series against England in Barbados and admits that West Indies need to up their game drastically in time for their World T20 title defence in Bangladesh. "We've had some poor results in the last few games on the limited overs front but both teams are going through some challenging times,"...
Afridi, Shehzad among Pakistan's injury concerns
Misbah-ul-Haq expects high-intensity final Soon after Shahid Afridi had reached his half-century against Bangladesh on Tuesday, Pakistan's physio had run out to the field to attend to him. Struggling to move after that, Afridi was run out. Three days later, he was still walking gingerly when Pakistan trained on the eve of the Asia Cup final against Sri Lanka. "Shahid Afridi has a...
Mathews backs Jayawardene to come good
Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews has said it will be tough to pick a XI for the Asia Cup final against Pakistan, and predicts a hard contest, like in their league game. "None of the games were easy for us," Mathews said on the eve of the final. "It is going to be a fresh match against Pakistan. We have to play positive cricket. We are not worried about any individuals but the Pakistan team is balanced...
Jordan returns to old Barbados haunts
If Bill Athey, the former England batsman, had not gone on a reconnaissance trip to Barbados to seek out a potential cricketer for a scholarship at Dulwich College, Chris Jordan might conceivably have been lining up for West Indies against England in Barbados on Sunday. Kensington Oval, after all, was where Jordan watched from the stands, played on the outfield in front of the old media box and even...
Mar
07
Root set to miss World T20
Joe Root has been ruled out of the Twenty20 series against West Indies and, in all probability, the World Twenty20 to follow after x-rays revealed he had suffered a broken thumb in the deciding ODI in Antigua on Wednesday. It means Ian Bell, who last played Twenty20 cricket in January 2011, is in line for a place in the World T20 squad. Although the ECB announcement did not rule Root out of the World...
IPL schedule will be 'finalised' on Friday - Biswal
IPL chairman Ranjib Biswal has confirmed that the decision over the venues and scheduling of the seventh edition of the Indian Premier League will be "finalised and announced" on Friday. Bangladesh and South Africa have emerged as contenders to host the away leg of the IPL, if required, depending on the union home ministry's decree. Though Biswal declined to discuss the details over whether the IPL...
Mathews overcomes the finisher's jinx
Angelo Mathews has had his share of heartbreak in chases, but lately he has shown a thirst to do whatever it takes to ensure Sri Lanka come out the victorsPressing forward to a length ball from Shakib Al Hasan, Angelo Mathews bunted the ball into the off side and ran, ran like he'd just lit the fuse of a firecracker. Thisara Perera, sprinting to the batsman's end, may well have feared the cricketing...
Bangladesh devoid of form, balance and confidence
Bangladesh's struggle to strike a balance between ball and bat has hurt the team badly, contributing to them losing seven ODIs in a rowBangladesh's loss to Sri Lanka in their last Asia Cup game was their seventh consecutive ODI defeat. Given their impressive form in the home series against New Zealand, this slump is a drastic downturn in form. Worryingly for Bangladesh there has been a massive drop...
Mar
06
'When I told the team, it was a really tough night'
After 10 years, 11 months and 16 days, 117 Tests, 60 wins, 9265 runs, 27 hundreds and more press conferences, training sessions and autographs than you can count, Graeme Smith had one word to describe his international career: privileged. "When I look at my Test cap, it's worn down and it's been through a lot but it's been a privilege," Smith said after his last day as a Test cricketer. "Today...
Ryan Harris vows to return
If Ryan Harris never bowls again, he will be immortalised as Australia's hero of Newlands, conjurer of the last two wickets on one functioning leg and another months overdue for the surgeon's knife. But he has vowed to return after that extensive knee surgery, expressing his desire to again experience the elation that washed over him and the rest of the touring team as they won the match and the series...
Ball change leaves England under cloud
A cloud of suspicion hung over the England team after umpire Marais Erasmus changed the ball due to "unnatural deterioration" during the West Indies innings in the third ODI. Erasmus, clearly suspecting that the wear to the ball was due to factors beyond those expected when it is used on an abrasive pitch or hit to the boundary, exchanged strong words with the England captain, Stuart Broad, in the...
England's spring shoots of regrowth
Victory in a short and, at times, low quality one-day series should not be over-hyped but all recoveries have to start somewhere and England's may just have begun in AntiguaThe road from Durham to North Sound has been long and has claimed several casualties. But, after a miserable and momentous winter, Antigua may just have witnessed the first signs of recovery from England. In the seven months since...
Mar
05
Spectators deserve a better pitch
The pitch in Antigua, which will be used for the third time, is doing the spectator few favours but all the players can do is take their chance. Ravi Bopara did that two days ago, winning a game he may not have done in the past Young guns need to step up for WI and England Cricket's governing bodies are a curious bunch. Try to take a soft drink into a game in many places and you can...
Warner thrives on sledges
Throughout their long and legendary careers, it was a common dictate of bowlers and fielders not to sledge Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara. In the case of Tendulkar, the verbals seemed to have no effect. In the case of Lara, they often served to rouse him to feats of batsmanship that may not have been seen had the opposition kept their mouths shut. David Warner is still a long way from emulating...
We still have hope - Domingo
It was only 16 months ago but Russell Domingo seemed a lot younger in November 2012. His voice had a little more song in it and he smiled a bit more when he was put up to address the media on the fourth day of the second Test between South Africa and Australia. Then, South Africa were 77 for 4 after being set a target of 430 and Domingo admitted they were down and out. "We know that 350 on the last...
'We tell Afridi, give yourself 20-25 balls' - Misbah
Having won Pakistan their previous match against India, Shahid Afridi walked in with Pakistan in an even more difficult situation against Bangladesh. With 52 balls remaining, Pakistan needed 102 runs to win. He proceeded to clout 59 off 25 balls, sending seven sixes soaring over the ropes. In between those big hits off the spinners, he kept his head about him, and was prepared to take singles and...
Mar
03
'We showed a lot of character' - Kohli
'Proud of our boys today' - Kohli With three overs remaining, Pakistan needed 17 runs to win, with four wickets in hand. Three of India's frontline bowlers had one over left of their 10-over quotas. Virat Kohli decided to bowl out his two seamers first and leave R Ashwin to bowl the last over of the match. The strategy nearly worked; India took three wickets in five balls in the last...
Karthik lets it slip again
Dinesh Karthik has missed two important stumpings in two matches, and has lost his wicket at times when he could have helped India towards stronger totalsBefore bowling the fourth ball of his eighth over against Pakistan, R Ashwin waved to his fielders at deep backward square leg and deep midwicket. With a sweep of his right arm, Ashwin indicated he wanted both of them to move a few steps to their...
Bopara and Parry give cause for optimism
When you've been in the slump England have endured any win is gratefully received. Some their batting raised more concerns, but the bowler, fielding and Ravi Bopara's calmness impressed Croft: A dismal West Indies batting performance It wasn't pretty, it wasn't without fortune and it wasn't convincing but, like a starving man presented with week-old bread, England are in no position to quibble...
Zimbabwe Cricket mismanaged $6m ICC loan
A protest over salaries by Zimbabwe's cricketers has again brought to the fore Zimbabwe Cricket's financial problems, which have continued despite at least US $9 million being loaned by the ICC to the board. ESPNcricinfo can reveal that one reason for the financial mess is that ZC's top leadership apparently used a $6 million loan from the ICC to enrich a bank on whose board they sit and ignored a...
Mar
02
Warner, Clarke get tough
David Warner and Michael Clarke produced arguably two of their finest knocks to lift Australia into a commanding position in Cape TownWhen pondering how David Warner might respond to a raft of South African sledging expected to come his way in this match due to his howled down allegation of ball tampering, Michael Clarke offered his opening batsman the inelegant but appropriate sobriquet of "tough...
Spirited Pakistan fall in final hurdle
Having at least one subcontinent team in the final of the Under-19 World Cup was what the tournament organisers would have hoped for. It was perhaps fitting that Pakistan was one of those teams, given that the turnout is always bigger when Pakistan and India play in these parts. A Pakistan win would have brought massive cheer to the several expectant fans who showed up in Dubai, but the team failed...
'This is a shameful loss' - Mushfiqur
Mushfiqur Rahim, the Bangladesh captain, has called his side's 32-run loss to Afghanistan a "shameful defeat". He has questioned the dedication of his players and said those not motivated enough will have to be replaced. "This is a shameful loss. For a split second I thought we wouldn't lose this game, being honest with you. I thought that someone or the other would stand up and bail us out. But...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Copyright © Natural Herb. All rights reserved.
Design 
