Three of Karnataka’s greatest ever cricketers – Anil Kumble, Javagal Srinath and Venkatesh Prasad – will contest the elections to the KSCA

George Binoy in Bangalore03-Nov-2010Anil Kumble, the former India captain, has stressed on the importance of retired players getting involved in the administration of the game and has pledged his time and commitment to improving cricket in Karnataka. Kumble was speaking at the Karnataka State Cricket Association’s office in Bangalore, where he formally announced his decision to stand for the post of association president in the elections on November 21.Former India fast bowler Javagal Srinath, who was also present, will contest the secretary’s post held for the past 12 years by former Indian batsman Brijesh Patel. The third member of that bowling attack from the 1990s, Venkatesh Prasad, will stand for a vice-president’s post. Their effort is being backed by Patel, who said cricketers were “the right people to take any association forward.”One of the first decisions of Patel’s administration in 1998 was to give cricketers membership in the association, and Kumble said Karnataka had led the way in this regard. “I retired two years ago and was keen to get involved in the association,” he said. “I thought this was the best time for the cricketers of our generation to get involved.”We’d like to put our vision in place and ensure Karnataka cricket really grows. We hope that Karnataka, as a team, goes on to be No. 1 in India, and that many more Karnataka players go on to represent the country.”There’s a lot to be done at the grassroots – from structuring schools cricket, club cricket and reaching out to all parts of Karnataka. That will be the challenge. We’d like to ensure that the paying public, who come and watch the game, have a wonderful time watching any form of cricket. We thought this was the right time to get into the KSCA.”When asked whether they would have enough time to take on these significant responsibilities, given that Kumble is also chairman of the National Cricket Academy and Srinath an ICC match referee, Kumble said he wouldn’t have contemplated standing for elections if he wasn’t committed.”If I didn’t have the time, I wouldn’t be sitting here,” he said. “The priority is cricket, whether it is the NCA, the KSCA – they are on the same campus. It’s been a big decision but I’ve taken that decision for the good of cricket.”Rahul Dravid, who is still playing Tests for India, will not stand in the elections but Kumble said he would be part of the administration committee because of his association with Bangalore United Cricket Club (BUCC). “To get into mainstream cricket administration, you have to retire. Rahul is still playing for the Indian team. I’m hopeful he will come in and play an important role in being part of the committee, from the BUCC.”Kumble’s electoral opponent is likely to be the incumbent president, Srikantadatta Narasimharaja Wadiyar, if he chooses to stand for re-election. Kumble, though, refused to label the polls a contest between cricketers and others. “This is not a political system,” he said. “The 24 members are there to support and improve Karnataka cricket. It’s not that cricketers are on one side and the others are on the other side. There are no groups. It’s about ensuring Karnataka cricket grows. If that is focus of everyone, then I don’t think there’s a problem in working together.”

Two vital partnerships took the Knights to a four-wicket victory over the Dolphins in the first leg of the second MTN40 semi-final in Bloemfontein

Firdose Moonda28-Nov-2010
ScorecardRavi Bopara’s half-century was in vain as Dolphins lost to Knights by four wickets•Getty Images

Two vital partnerships took the Knights to a four-wicket victory over the Dolphins in the first leg of the second MTN40 semi-final in Bloemfontein. They successfully chased 227 in an intriguing low-scoring match on a deceivingly two-paced wicket.Dean Elgar and Reeza Hendricks steadied the Knights’ innings with a 109-run fourth-wicket stand in 117 balls after they had been reduced to 29 for 3. And in a tense finish with 54 needed in 5.3 overs, Obus Pienaar and Johan van der Wath finished off the job in 23 balls.The Dolphins had earlier got off to a snappy start after choosing to bat, with Imraan Khan and Ahmed Amla putting on 31. Khan skied a Ryan McLaren delivery to midwicket, giving the South Africa fringe bowler his first scalp. McLaren also removed Jon Kent four overs later, and the scoring rate cooled off a bit after the big hitter’s dismissal.Amla and Ravi Bopara then found some rhythm. Both played a range of wristy boundaries, but just when the combination had started to look dangerous, Amla lofted one to Obus Pienaar at long-on to depart for 35. Jandre Coetzee had snagged the big fish in his first over.He went on to bowl an economical spell, giving away 19 runs in his first four overs. Coetzee and Con de Lange managed to keep Bopara and Vaughn van Jaarsveld relatively quiet in the middle overs. After being frustrated by a lack of boundaries, the pair began to rotate the strike. Van Jaarsveld, however, grew restless and with no balance, played a nothing shot, a casual flick to Johan van der Wath at long leg.Bopara patiently soldiered on and reached his 28th limited-overs half century, off 60 balls with six boundaries. He had his anchor role cut short when Coetzee came back for a second spell. He offered Bopara a long hop down the leg side which should have been smacked over midwicket for six, but the batsman played too early, the ball came off the back of the bat and Morne van Wyk took the catch.David Miller and Daryn Smit’s seventh-wicket partnership added late impetus. They hit three sixes between them; Smit’s was a down-on-bended-knee improvisation over fine leg. They added 37 in five overs as the Dolphins ended on 226 for 7.The Dolphins had the Knights on the back foot early when the opening bowling pair of Kent and Kyle Abbott plucked three wickets in ten overs. van Wyk was dismissed off the first ball in bizarre fashion. He missed a Kent delivery, which went on to clip his off stump although the bail was not removed. Umpire Dennis Smith heard the noise and gave van Wyk out caught behind.Rilee Rossouw went in the next over, trapped lbw by Abbott, who had a superb five-over opening spell, also taking out Ryan Bailey. Abbott gave the batsmen no room and only conceded nine runs in that spell.The change bowlers didn’t have the same success though. Quinton Friend was expensive and Bopara had a chance put down. Elgar was on 17 and offered a simple catch to Glen Addicott on the deep cover boundary, who not only couldn’t dropped it, but also let the ball escape for four.The Dolphins were left to rue that mistake as Elgar and Hendricks quietly chipped away at the target. Hendricks finally went lbw to Friend for 64 and Elgar followed in the next over on 58, also leg before, to Imran Tahir.When McLaren too fell in the 35th over with 54 runs required, it looked as though the Dolphins had sealed the win, but Pienaar and van der Wath had other ideas. Their bludgeoning burst finished off the Dolphins, with van der Wath the chief aggressor. He bashed 29 off 14 balls to lead the Knights to victory with 10 balls to spare. The second leg of the tie takes place in Durban on Friday.

Shane Watson says it will be “shattering” and “horrendous” to be part of the first Australian side in 24 years to finish a home Ashes series without the urn

Peter English at the MCG28-Dec-2010Shane Watson says it will be “shattering” and “horrendous” to be part of the first Australian side in 24 years to finish a home Ashes series without the urn. The hosts, who last lifted the prize in 2007, are only four wickets from a defeat that will ensure England retain the tiny trophy that means so much.”It’s not very good, it’s horrendous, to be totally honest,” Watson said after the side finished day three at 6 for 169, still 246 from making England bat again. “Going into this Ashes series we knew how important it would be to win the Ashes because Australia hasn’t lost the Ashes in 24 years.”England have two days to take the four wickets needed to earn a 2-1 lead and while the contest could finish level in Sydney next week, that will be no consolation for the local men. “The most important thing is winning that urn back,” Watson said. “Obviously we will do everything we can to restore pride and draw the series, but the most important thing was
winning that little urn and we haven’t been able to do it.”Watson, who top scored with a smooth 54, said it was “shattering” to be in this position a week after hitting back so strongly in Perth. He was also concerned about driving people away with the side’s poor play here and during the second Test in Adelaide.”The Australian fans have come out and supported us and we haven’t given them anything to support,” he said. “We really do have to go out there in Sydney and try to keep some of our supporters and fans onside. The way we’ve played, we might have turned a few people off. We’re going to have to restore that.”

Upul Tharanga’s ninth one-day century and his first against West Indies steered Sri Lanka to a convincing eight-wicket win and a 1-0 lead in the three-match one-day series

The Bulletin by Sa'adi Thawfeeq 03-Feb-2011 by eight wicketsUpul Tharanga proved he can play the sheet anchor role for Sri Lanka as he carried his bat through the innings•AFP

Upul Tharanga’s ninth one-day century and his first against West Indies steered Sri Lanka to a convincing eight-wicket win and a 1-0 lead in the three-match one-day series.Tharanga paced his innings superbly, and batted out the entire length of the Sri Lanka innings, to remain unbeaten on 101 off 143 balls with the help of seven fours.The tall, lean left-hander is expected to play the sheet anchor role during Sri Lanka’s World Cup campaign and bat out the entire 50 overs. On Thursday, he showed what he is capable of doing, as Sri Lanka chased down a rain-revised total of 197 off 47 overs in just 42.3, after West Indies had been dismissed for 203.Tharanga’s innings was chanceless, and on a slow pitch which suited his style of batting he was never in trouble despite West Indies using as many as seven bowlers, who managed to prize out only two wickets between them.Tillakaratne Dilshan left in the ninth over, attempting to cut a ball too close to his body and offering a catch behind the wicket. Captain Kumar Sangakkara managed 20 out of a second-wicket stand of 70 with Tharanga, before hitting a half volley from Dwayne Bravo to short extra cover.Mahela Jayawardene and Tharanga made sure West Indies didn’t make any further inroads into the batting by sharing an unbroken stand of 97. Jayawardene sealed the match with an inside-out drive to the boundary off Miller. He was unbeaten on 48 at the end of the match.Sri Lanka came up with a disciplined bowling performance to restrict West Indies to 203. Given the persistent rain over the previous two days, the toss was vital and Sri Lanka had no hesitation in inviting West Indies to bat on the same surface on which the first match was played three days ago.
Openers Chris Gayle and Adrian Barath, who made a century in the first ODI, negotiated some testing overs from Lasith Malinga and Nuwana Kulasekara to add 45 runs within the first 10 overs, before Kulasekara trapped Barath lbw, playing across the line to a ball that pitched on off stump.Gayle, who had previously hit Kulasekara for a six and four in one over, then edged Muttiah Muralitharan to Thilan Samaraweera at second slip. Gayle came forward to a good length ball and was surprised by the bounce that Muralitharan got off the very first ball of his spell.The fall of the openers on 45 slowed West Indies’ run-rate and Sangakkara took advantage of it by getting a few overs from part-time offspinner Dilshan in. West Indies looked to be getting their innings back on track as Darren Bravo and Ramnaresh Sarwan added 49 runs off 96 balls. The stand ended when Sarwan, who was backing up too far at the non-striker’s end, was run out after a hard drive by Darren Bravo hit the stumps off bowler Rangana Herath’s hand.Darren was joined by his half-brother Dwayne Bravo and the duo put on 38 before Malinga, returning for his second spell, trapped Darren Bravo lbw with a reverse-swinging delivery.
Another reverse-swinging delivery from Malinga soon accounted for the dangerous Kieron Pollard, who played down the wrong line, and had his off stump pegged back.Dwayne Bravo and Carlton Baugh added a further 37 runs to take West Indies to 175 for 5 before Herath, who had bowled a tight line and length, was finally rewarded with the wicket of Dwayne Bravo. The remaining West Indies batsmen failed to offer much resistance as the last four wickets fell for just 16 runs.It was an all-round bowling effort from the Sri Lankans, with Malinga the pick of the bowlers with 3 for 30. Sri Lanka’s fielders backed their bowlers with some excellent ground fielding and missed just one catch when Angelo Mathews dropped Baugh at long leg.

A brutal display of Big Bash batting from West Indian Chris Gayle has lifted the Warriors to an easy 32-run win over Queensland at the Gabba – eliminating the Bulls from the competition

The Bulletin by Andrew Fuss25-Jan-2011
ScorecardChris Gayle was at his brutal best, pasting the Queensland attack for eight sixes and seven fours•Getty Images

A brutal display of Big Bash batting from West Indian Chris Gayle has lifted the Warriors to an easy 32-run win over Queensland at the Gabba – eliminating the Bulls from the competition.On a night where the focus of the crowd was on how much would be raised for the Queensland Flood Appeal – a local brewery pledged $500 for each four and $1000 for each six – Gayle stepped up to the plate with a sensational 92 off just 40 balls, raising $11,500 along the way off his own bat with seven boundaries and eight sixes, including the biggest of the summer at 120 metres.It was an innings of sheer brutality as he punished short, length and full deliveries, peppering the long on boundary with his powerful drives.He was well supported by pocket rocket Liam Davis (53 off 46) with the pair putting on 144 for the opening partnership off just 12.5 overs. Despite the middle order stumbling, the visitors still managed to crack 200, with Luke Ronchi (22 off 17) and Tom Beaton (21 off 10) finding the boundaries late.The total looked too big for Queensland, a side that lacks the sheer brutality with the bat that other states possess. It proved to be so as they fell well behind the required rate in the middle overs, despite the best efforts of Michael Lumb (42 off 33) and Nathan Reardon (56 off 45).The game was in stark contrast to the one the previous night at the same venue, with bat dominating ball on a more tame Gabba pitch – noticeably flatter the second time around.Western Australia will now face Tasmania on Thursday at Bellerive – the winner will go into the preliminary final with the possibility of hosting it should the Bulls pull off an unlikely win over the Blues on Saturday night.

Darren Sammy said his side was in a good position during their match against South Africa at the Feroz Shah Kotla, but the allrounders in the lower-middle order did not capitalise

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Feb-2011Before West Indies’ opening World Cup match against South Africa, Darren Sammy had said he wanted the cricket community of the Caribbean to wake up on Thursday morning and discover that their team had broken open the World Cup with a performance to remember. After the game at the Kotla on Thursday night, what they would see and read though, was a scorecard that reflected one more game had slipped away from his team’s dangerously careless grasp.A seven-wicket defeat to South Africa could have been expected, for Graeme Smith’s gamblers had sent warning shots across the subcontinent after their performance on Thursday night, but Sammy spoke of how West Indies threw it all away. “We had guys getting starts and none of us carried on. That’s where we lost out,” he said. “At 41 overs, we were 201 and our allrounders were still there. We had [Kieron] Pollard, [Dwayne] Bravo and myself … we could have got to 270.”Sammy admitted that getting to 222 was actually a bonus, “given that myself, Chris [Gayle] and Pollard didn’t do what we were supposed to. If any of us would have done something …” he said and trailed off. The possibility of people like Gayle and Pollard performing to their optimum is probably what Sammy hopes will keep keep the Caribbean fans waking up on cricket mornings with some optimism.The Delhi wicket has always made stern demands on bowlers and West Indies had, Sammy said, already decided to bat first. “Before the match everyone was uncertain as to how the pitch would play but looking at it, we should have scored 270-plus on the wicket.” West Indies, he said, could only have made a match of Thursday’s game had they got into South Africa’s middle order. “From what we had seen in their series against India, we didn’t think their middle order looked too strong, they have quite a few young players.” He said that while opportunities had been created, “AB [de Villiers] batted like a senior and took South Africa home.”There were four referrals in the West Indies innings, and barring one that went in favour of Darren Bravo in the opening over of the match, South Africa were at the winning end of all. Sammy, who managed to retain his humour at the end of what must have been a tough evening, stepped aside from stirring up trouble when asked about the UDRS Lite in operation at the World Cup without both Snicko and Hot Spot, though he did hint that there were some decisions he was not sure of even after the referrals. “I think it’s a good addition to the World Cup. Less mistakes are likely to be made,” he said and went on, with a laugh, “The decisions that were made [in the match] clearly showed us the ball was hitting the stumps”. The laugh however was as good as him, saying the word, “Not” in his head. Sammy ended the debate with, “So there is nothing much I can say about that, it was just Hawk Eye for us.”There would have been much debate about whether West Indies could have played an extra specialist spinner in their left-armer Nikita Miller to give Sulieman Benn some company and the team another slow bowling option, for they are with the current combination far too dependent on the part-time spin of Gayle. Miller could have been included in the team had Darren Bravo been asked to keep wickets instead of Devon Smith, who replaced the injured Carlton Baugh in the squad. Sammy would have none of it, “The guys who are picked in the XI to bowl are capable of doing the job but you have to be consistent to exert the pressure … I don’t think we misread the pitch.” He was asked whether he missed Miller and said that hypothetically, “who knows what he could have,” before adding, “after I lost [Dwayne] Bravo, I surely did miss him.”Dwayne Bravo’s injury and West Indies’ defeat may have distracted attention from the Darren Bravo innings, but Sammy’s assessment of his No. 3’s 73 was measured. At the start he said, “Darren is a very confident young player, most people compare him to Brian [Lara]. He really looks like Brian. He is a good asset for us. From the time he has made his debut he has batted well for us and I hope he continues.” When asked about Darren Bravo’s progress in his brief international career, Sammy said, “He played really well in Sri Lanka; all I would say is that when he gets to fifty, he must try to convert it to a hundred, which I am sure he will do.”West Indies’ next match is against Netherlands in Delhi on February 28.

Bengal batsman Manoj Tiwary says he’ll be targeting several Man-of-the-Match performances in IPL 2011, while Kolkata Knight Riders will be concentrating on just making it past the group stage

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Apr-2011Bengal batsman Manoj Tiwary has said he’ll be aiming for match-winning performances in the IPL this year, while his franchise, Kolkata Knight Riders – who are coming off three poor seasons – will be concentrating on making it past the group stage before thinking of a maiden title.”We have a new team and a new captain [Gautam Gambhir]. Our first goal would be qualify for the semis and then take the final two steps,” Tiwary told the . “Personally, I would be looking to score consistently and I’m targeting four or five Man-of-the-Match awards.”Tiwary captained Bengal to victory in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy – India’s domestic Twenty20 competition – this year. He played for Delhi Daredevils in the first two IPL seasons, before moving Kolkata in 2010 and will provide the main local connect for fans in the absence of Sourav Ganguly.”To be honest, I didn’t have a proper feel of the IPL in the first two seasons. In my first season with the Delhi Daredevils, I batted in the middle order where opportunities were rather limited – with Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir and Shikhar Dhawan in top form, the lower order didn’t have much to do,” he said. “In the second season, in South Africa, I got injured after playing just one match and didn’t play thereafter.”It was only after I moved to Kolkata Knight Riders in 2010 that I got a real feel of the competition. I learnt a lot about batting in T20 cricket from Brad Hodge.”Though predominantly a batsman and an agile fielder, Tiwary has filled the role of a handy part-time bowler on the domestic circuit and this is an aspect of his game he’ll be looking to further during the IPL. “I would be looking to contribute substantially in all three departments of the game.” In a Kolkata practice match earlier this week, Tiwary made 86 off 44 balls batting at No. 3, but he’s not certain of where he will bat in the line-up.”I was asked to open the innings [in 2010] which I was not accustomed to doing, but I thoroughly enjoyed the challenge. It [opening the batting this season] depends on the role assigned to me by the team management.”The entry of Yusuf Pathan and Brett Lee gives the new-look Kolkata side an edge, Tiwary said. “We have a very balanced side [this year] and can go all the way. L Balaji is a very effective bowler in T20, while [Jaidev] Unadkat is quite sharp. And I am looking forward to playing alongside [Jacques] Kallis, [Brad] Haddin, [Eoin] Morgan, Shakib [Al Hasan] and [Ryan] ten Doeschate.”Kolkata take on Chennai Super Kings in the opening IPL match, on April 8 in Chennai.

West Indies have been fined for maintaining a slow over rate in the one-off Twenty20 against Pakistan which they won by seven runs on Friday

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Apr-2011West Indies have been fined for maintaining a slow over rate in the one-off Twenty20 against Pakistan which they won by seven runs on Friday. ICC match referee Jeff Crowe said the hosts were assessed to be one over behind the required rate, after time allowances were taken into consideration.In accordance with ICC Code of Conduct regulations governing minor over-rate offences, players are fined 10% of their match fees for every over their side fails to bowl in the allotted time, with the captain fined double that amount.As such West Indies captain Darren Sammy was fined 20% of his match fee, while the rest of the side were penalised 10% each. Sammy did not contest the penalty, so there will be no hearing.

The secretary of the Karachi City Cricket Association (KCCA), Ijaz Farooqui, has accused the PCB of deliberately neglecting players from Karachi when selecting the national team

ESPNcricinfo staff15-May-2011The secretary of the Karachi City Cricket Association (KCCA), Ijaz Farooqui, has accused the PCB of deliberately neglecting players from Karachi when selecting the national team. “They have used different ways to overlook them and discard those already in the national team,” he told reporters.The KCCA had complained about the non-selection of Karachi players like wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed, Danish Kaneria, Khurram Manzoor, Faisal Iqbal and Mohammad Sami – each of whom has represented Pakistan – among others. “Sarfraz did so well and we all were thinking that he will be automatically selected for the longer format but shockingly Mohammad Salman was picked up [for the West Indies tour],” Farooqui said.The PCB issued a show-cause notice to Farooqui over his complaints but he was undeterred. “We will continue to raise our voices in order to provide justice to our players. We wrote letters to the PCB about our reservations over the selection but the board did not pay any attention on the issue, which has forced us to come out on the roads and protest.”As far as Pakistan cricket’s problems in the recent past are concerned, Farooqui held what he called the “dictatorship” of Ijaz Butt, the PCB chairman, responsible for it. “Our cricket has suffered because of one man’s dictatorship. Once the dictatorship starts objectivity ends.”

The England & Wales Cricket Board has launched an inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the appearance of the banned Pakistan fast bowler, Mohammad Amir, in a Surrey League fixture last weekend, after accepting that the fixture, between Addington 174

ESPNcricinfo staff10-Jun-2011The England & Wales Cricket Board has launched an inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the appearance of the banned Pakistan fast bowler, Mohammad Amir, in a Surrey League fixture last weekend, after accepting that the fixture, between Addington 1743 CC and St Luke’s, falls under its regulatory jurisdiction.In a press release, the ECB announced that it had requested the Surrey Cricket Board to assist it in its investigation, adding that it had also written separately to Addington, seeking a full written explanation from the club of the events leading up to Amir’s appearance in the match.The ECB’s acknowledgement of the incident increases the likelihood that Amir will now face sanctions from the ICC for breaching the terms of the five-year ban that he incurred earlier this year, following his involvement in the spot-fixing scandal which erupted during the Lord’s Test between Pakistan and England last August.Though Amir did not deny reports in the Daily Star that he had taken part in the fixture, he claimed he had done so on the understanding that it did not contravene the terms of his ban – something that the ECB have now made clear is not the case.”I was informed by club representatives before the game that it was a friendly match, being played on a privately owned cricket ground,” Amir told PakPassion.net. “I asked the club representatives if the match fell under the jurisdiction of the ECB and they informed me that the match did not. I spoke to several club representatives about the issue and they all told me that it was a friendly match and therefore would not contravene my ban from the ICC. I was informed that I was fine to play.”Amir also denied that he had signed any registration documents with the club and insisted that he would never have taken the risk of playing had he known it was an official match.”I would not be stupid enough to knowingly play in a match that I knew would contravene my ban. Wherever I am going to play cricket, the world will know about it. I would not be stupid enough to play in a match where I knew that I would be taking a risk”.Amir was central to Addington’s 81-run victory in the game, against St Luke’s CC. He surprisingly opened the innings and scored 60 before returning figures of 4 for 9 in seven overs.This is not the first time Amir has appeared in a game which has had to be investigated by cricket authorities. Earlier this year in January, when he was under provisional suspension and still awaiting punishment for the Lord’s scandal, he turned out for a Rawalpindi club to play a friendly game. That prompted the ICC and PCB to investigate the nature of the game before the former eventually concluded that it was an unofficial game and the club wasn’t registered with the Rawalpindi cricket association; Amir was thus found to have not broken the ICC’s anti-corruption code of conduct