Daily Sports News

After loosing the Test and the ODI series, luck has turned in favor of the visitors. They have not only won the last two ODI’s but also beaten the host in style in the last T20 game. Pakistan defeated Sri Lanka in the only T20 game of the tour with a 52 runs. Last time the two countries had played a T20 match was in the final of the T20 world cup, and the results again went in favor of Pakistan.

Shahid Afridi was the reason for the Lankan loss, he scored a brilliant half century, bowled a very tight spell taking one wicket and then a run out to send back Kapugedera to the pavilion. Pakistan was excellent in all the departments of the game. There were some excellent batting performances by Imran Nazir, Umar Akmal and Abdul Razzaq scoring 40, 30 and 25 runs respectively. Although it was not the perfect start what visitors would have expected as opening batsman Kamran Akmal was bowled out on the very first delivery of the match. Pakistan quickly recovered for the early loss and compiled a challenging target of 172 runs with the loss of 5 wickets in there required 20 overs at a run rate of 8.60 runs per over. The Pakistani approach to batting was simple, hitting boundaries at regular intervals and that is what they precisely did.

Sri Lankan chase started in a good was and as expected Jayasuriya came out firing in his true style. First to go back to the pavilion was Udawatte on the fifth delivery of the third over and just two balls after that Jayasuriya was out as he tried to pull a delivery which turned much quicker then his expectation. Jayawardene and Sangakkara tried to get the chase back on track but Jayawardene gave a leading edge to Razzaq of the bowling of Iftikhar Anjum. The last hopes for a Lankan victory were over when Sangakkara was bowled by Saeed Ajmal. Sri Lanka was bowled out in 18.1 over’s and could just score 120 runs, still short by 52 runs.

Shahid Afridi was declared man of the match. One can just say in the end – Pakistan is one team that has a habit of throwing surprises.

It was another day of surprises at the T20 World Cup, as Pakistan, the unquestioned underdogs of the tournament vanquished S.A, to enter the finals. This is Pakistan’s 2nd consecutive appearance in the finals of the T20 mega event. Last year they lost to India thanks to a blunder from Misbah-ul-Haq.

The daring promotion of Shahid Afridi to the No. 3 slot disrupted its bowling strategy; from the length of the bowlers to the management of the overs by skipper Graeme Smith. The fling of the dice worked for Pakistan. Riding on Afridi’s 34-ball 51, Pakistan progressed to a challenging 149 for four in the first semifinal of the ICC World Twenty20 at Trent Bridge on Thursday.

Both sides traded heavy blows. Pakistan smashed two fours in the opening over, but then lost Shahzaib Hasan, caught by Roelof van der Merwe off Wayne Parnell to just the second ball he faced.  Pakistan then scored at a modest rate of a run a ball until the 11th over, when it took 18 runs off Johan Botha, including four consecutive fours by Afridi. Afridi reached 50 from 33 balls in the 12th over but was then out off J.P. Duminy’s first delivery at the start of the 13th.Having gone 29 balls without a boundary, Malik tried to accelerate the scoring, but the four he struck off Duminy in the 15th over was the last of the innings as South Africa’s disciplined attack reined in the Pakistan batsmen.

Pakistan supporters, who made up the majority of the crowd, created a deafening noise as the game began in explosive fashion but were left stunned as it ended in a fizz…..

For the Proteas, everything began in a nervous fashion and it was once again Afridi who ran riot, this time with his bowling skills. Gibbs, who made 5, was beaten by the quicker delivery from Afridi that went straight on to knock off the stumps. (46-2, 7)

In his next over, Afridi claimed another big scalp in the form of AB de Villiers, who played on to his stumps for 1. De Villiers was dropped by wicketkeeper Akmal off an outside edge the previous delivery but that did not deter Afridi, who struck a ball later. (50-3, 8.3)

Afridi had made the difference with the bat and now was making a vital contribution with the ball too. He finished with two for 16 in four overs. South Africa were 73 for three after 13 overs, and faced a stiff task of scoring another 77 runs in the last seven overs. The pressure paid off in the next over when Kallis holed out Ajmal straight to Malik at long-on and was dismissed for 64 from 54 deliveries, inclusive of seven boundaries and a six. (111-4, 17.1)

He added 63 runs in 51 deliveries for the fourth wicket with Duminy, but failed to produce the big shots when needed. But it was just not Duminey’s day as Pakistan managed to keep the Proteas at bay and won the match with their hard work and perseverance.

The Proteas on the other hand are left with the title of the “chokers”…..

Pakistan managed to avenge their loss to Ireland in the 2007 World Cup, which knocked them out. Now they have ended Ireland’s dream run in the T20 World Cup and have joined S.A in the semis.

Wicket-keeper Kamaran Akmal, scored a sparkling half-century. He scored 57 off 51, as is partners frequently changed at the other end to propel Pakistan to 159 for five in their stipulated 20 overs after skipper Younis Khan elected to bat. Afridi scored a blistering 24 off 13 balls which included 3 fours. Captain Younis Khan failed to score as hr just managed 10 off 8 balls! But still they managed to put up a challenging total for Ireland.

Ireland, in reply, never really got going. Ireland lost opener Niall O’Brien early in their chase when the wicket-keeper was caught and bowled off a miscued hook by 17-year-old paceman Mohammad Amir.Paul Stirling, himself only 18, came in for his first match of the tournament with Ireland 13 for one but got off the mark first ball with a superb cover-driven four off left-armer Aamir.But the teenager, on 16, became the latest batsman to be bowled playing across the line against leg-spinner Shahid Afridi, who struck with his sixth ball and Ireland were 42 for two off seven overs. Despite a brave 36-ball 40 from their captain Williams Portersfield as the fiery pace of Pakistan bowlers Saeed Ajmal (4-19) and Umer Gul (2-19) proved too hot to handle.

With six overs left Ireland needed 72 more runs to win, John Mooney, trying to keep Ireland up with the rate, also fell to Ajmal after he was caught in the deep by Abdul Razzaq. Then Umar Gul, who took a Twenty20 international record five wickets against New Zealand, got in on the act by bowling Trent Johnston for a duck. At 99 for five in the 17th over the game was up for Ireland, who later saw four tailend wickets tumble for three runs in six balls.

Although pleased Pakistan were in the last four, Younus said their batting required improvement.

“We were still 20 runs short. It’s not possible all the time to score 150 and restrict the opposition,” he added.

“Especially against teams like South Africa, England and the West Indies, we need 170 plus.”

So, with this, Pakistan have kept their title hopes alive…. But they didn’t put up a great show against the Irish. So will Pakistan be able to hold on till the very end?

India were taught a lesson in T20, as they were beaten comprehensively by the Windies, as they won with 7 wickets in hand. The current T20 ICC champions struggled as they faced impeccable fielding and classy bowling from the Windies not to mention some sensible batting. The West Indies were always a good team, with the likes of Gayle, Sarwan, Chandrapaul, Bravo and Edwards…. But they could never perform cohesively on the big stage and India were the poor team to face them when they did!!! India were never tested during this ICC tournament and they failed in their first test. The current champions have a lot of work to do if they are to retain their title.

The tone, was set by Taylor in the first over, troubling Gautam Gambhir with the bouncers. Edwards took the cue, and removed his Deccan Chargers team-mate, Rohit Sharma, with a bouncer. He troubled Suresh Raina too with the short-pitched stuff until the latter played back to a full delivery and edged it to Denesh Ramdin. The Indians couldn’t get their pulls right and they perished due to their poor execution.

As they say, “Cathes win Matches”, and the Windies proved the quote. Simmons took a blinder to send Gambhir back to the pavilion. And then it was the Indians turn to consolidate. Dhoni and Yuvraj started slowly. But under pressure to get going, Dhoni cut Bravo straight to sweeper-cover. Two balls later, Yuvraj picked the same fielder out, but was dropped by Andre Fletcher. India would have been 71 for 5, but for the drop. Whereupon, Yuvraj played a little gem to pull India out of all sorts of trouble, but it would stay the second-best effort of the night.  His shot playing managed to get the Indians to a defendable total and a late cameo from Harbhajan helped them, as he scored boundries off the last three balls.

Then as the Windies turn to bat came, they put up a good show despite losing Fletcher and Gayle early. Bravo, being promoted up the order once again showed, why he is claimed one of the best in T20, with a 66 from 36, 48 of the runs coming off the Indian spinners. By the time Simmons was dismissed, it was Chandrapaul’s turn as they wrapped up the innings comfortably, without any problem. It was Bravo’s bravardo which put the Windies through as he pulled off the match winning knock and took 4 wickets to get the Man of the Match award. Everything is going right for the Windies and with this momentum they can win this trophy hands down. However, there is a lot of introspection to be done for the Indians if they are to retain their crown.

The English football team was having a field day against Andorra but the same couldn’t be said for their cricket team. Well, it was the opposite as they were completely outplayed, as South Africa won the match comfortably by 7 wickets.

The home side never got going and was all out for 111 as they lost their last seven wickets for 33 runs!!!!!!! For a side which appeared to be doing so well in the series against the Windies before the start of the T20 World Cup, this is a total shocker. South Africa gave an all-round performance, as they bowled, fielded and batted well, proving once again why they are favorites for the trophy. This puts S.A in a commanding position and their pace attack seems to resemble that of the Windies which struck fear in the heart of every opponent. This leaves England in a precarious position because they have to beat India and West Indies if they are to progress and even so these two victories doesn’t guarantee them a position in the semis…..

Steyn took Bopara with an inside-edge from the batsman hitting the stumps. K.P on the other hand started with boundaries off his first two deliveries but hit an Albie Morkel full toss straight to Vd Merwe who caught it in an extraordinary fashion. This came in the 6th over and England’s score at the end of it was 25-3. This is the lowest score in the powerplay section in T20 history! The English batting managed to put up an insignificant total of 111 as the rest of the batting fizzled out….Wayne Parnell, the new weapon in S.A’s pace arsenal ended up with 3/14. As S.A began their batting they looked out-of-sorts as Smith top-edged Broad to James Foster, who had to dive to take the skier, and Herschelle Gibbs looked out of sorts – and could have been run out twice. And the batsmen struggled against the English spinners as the required run rate went up for more than a run-a-ball.

It was good for the English until Kallis decided to crash their party. Any pressure on S.A disappeared then, and even Gibbs made a few shots to the rope and Swann over the rope for a maximum as they seem to call it in this format of the game. Then it ended as Kallis cut Anderson to the point fence to end up with 58 from 49 balls. The English pace attack seems to be toothless and their over dependency on Swann isn’t paying them any dividends either. They have ways to go if they are to succeed in the shorter format of the game.

India thrashed Ireland by 8 wickets to complete the group stages on a winning note. Ireland, despite improving their game in the past years, fell well short of matching up the Indians as they were 112-8 in a match reduced to 18 overs thanks to rain.

As usual, Dhoni won the toss and elected to field as he believed that due to the rain, the Duckworth-Lewis theory may come into play. And from then on, it was India all the way. J.P. Bray, Irish opener, has been having a terrible series and this match proved to be no better as he was bowled out by Zaheer for a duck after facing 7 balls. When Zaheer began his second over, Porterfield, was dismissed after a wonderful catch by Yusuf Pathan in the slips. Zaks was declared man of the match for his four wicket haul.

Then, if the Indian seamers proved to be bad for the Irish, it got worse as the spinners stepped up. Ojha, who is having a wonderful series, once again showed why his captain trusts him by taking KJ. O’Brien off an inside edge, on the first ball of his spell. It is amazing to see an orthodox spinner like Ojha, who lacks the carom ball, seldom bowls the doosra and other special deliveries, take wickets thanks to his flight and simple pace variation. But the Irish did strike back at the spinners, this time with sweeps as a few balls ran to the boundary. Moreover the Irish exploited the short boundary at Trent Bridge at Nottingham. And then R.West got himself run out thanks to his diabolical running because when he was run out, his leg and bat, despite being well inside the crease, were well, above it (didn’t touch the ground), and hence he was declared run out.

But as it has been happening in the previous matches, the Indians seem to relax a bit at the death, thereby helping the Irish to cross the 100 run mark, at a time when tight bowling could have restricted the Irish to a score well below 100. So this a major concern for the coach Gary Kristen as the Indians are yet to face serious opponents who would challenge their bowlers more than the Irish. But when it was India’s turn to bat, it was all smooth sailing for the openers Rohit Sharma and Gambhir who are in the top of their form. They played a sensible innings spiced with boundries. They steered India to the finish line, though Gambhir fell for 37 to West, the tone was set for a victory. As the captain too fell for 14, Rohit Sharma stayed till the end with a well earned half century.

So all is set for India to scorch the super eight. However the Indians have to improve their bowling in the death if they are to retain the coveted ICC T20 crown …

It is a feeling of deja vu with memories of 92 World Cup coming back to haunt to Australia as they are out of a major ICC event, in the very first round mind you, for the first time in 15 years barring their loss to INDIA in the inaugural Champions Trophy which was a knockout tournament by the way. But now coming back to yesterday’s match which went to the last over, a farcry from their thrashing at the hands of the Windies just last weekend, thanks mainly to Australia’s wagging tail & incredible slogging by Mitchell Johnson & later by Brett Lee giving them a respectable total of 159 for 9.

The day started off brilliantly for Sri Lanka as Angelo Mathews struck in his very first over getting rid of the dangerous David Warner. Australia’s top scorer of last match not was able to replicate his earlier success in the tournament & instead getting out on a duck with Tillakaratne Dilshan taking a simple catch at point. An over which was a precursor of things to come & the radical changes that Sri Lanka put in against Australia which the latter was simply not prepared for. Kumara Sangakkara in his very first match as captain was to excel with his batting being the cornerstone of Sri Lanka’s innings during their successful pursuit of 160 at the end of the day. Sri Lanka knowing the importance of slow bowlers, having witnessed their stranglehold over batsman in the earlier matches, left the likes of Nuwan Kulasekara & Farveez Maharoof in the process as was evident with Sanath Jayasuriya coming on to bowl the second over of the match.

Lasith Malinga, their premier fast bowler, came on to bowl only as a second change after which Ajantha Mendis was introduced in the powerplay. After getting a single run of the very first over Ponting & Watson took the attack to the opposition smashing debutant Udana & Malinga for 15 runs in each of the fourth & the fifth over respectively. Enter Mendis, who got rid of Ponting as he tried to smash him losing his leg stump in the process. This started a period of 10 overs in which Australia lost 5 top order wickets adding just 47 runs. Mendis picked up Watson in his next over as he tried to sweep him but fell leg before wicket on 22. Mendis took care of the top order with Mike Hussey was trapped lbw before Johnson took over his possible role as an allrounder remaining unbeaten in the end.

Some might say that Sangakkara was the man of the match but Mendis was the X-factor in the match which went Sri Lanka’s way.

In a desperate attempt to win, Pakistan won their second group match by a convincing margin of 82 runs to book a spot in the super eights. Pakistan produced their best show on the field on this trip so far in the ICC T-20 championships including the warm-ups. Pakistan scored 50 runs for the loss of a solitary wicket in the power play to lay the groundwork for a total which in the end was too big to chase for an associate team like Netherlands.

Pakistan have chopped & changed their opening pair a number of times in the past, today was no different with Kamran Akmal coming on to bat with Salman Butt. They started off aggressively with Akmal scoring two boundaries in the second over of the innings bowled by Schiferli. Dirk Nannes, the standout performer for the dutch team on the day, started off economically conceding just 5 of his first two overs. Butt who looked threatening was finally caught at cover off a loose cut shot in the fifth over. That did manage to put a brake on the scoring as the next two overs went for 4 runs apiece before Akmal took to Borren in the eighth over fetching 13 runs. Malik was dropped off the first ball of the very next over of Ten Doeschate, a chance which proved costly as he ended up scoring a crucial 30. From there onwards Pakistan looked to dominate scoring 108 in the next 12 overs with 5 sixes as against 1 versus England which came in the seventeenth over from Misbah.

Netherlands though must be disappointed that after defeating England they weren’t able to go to the next round as they put up a poor show, failing to score 151 required to qualify for the super eights, they were bundled for a paltry 93. Shahid Afridi spun his web taking 4 wickets, it seems his hard hitting days are over considering his poor show with the bat over the last many years but his legbreak or rather toe breaking pacy balls are often hard enough for accomplished players let alone lesser teams to play. The dutch were never really in the game especially at the end of 6 overs of power play after which they required nearly 10 an over to win & 114 to qualify for super eights. The introduction of spin on either ends with Ajmal & Afridi proved to be their undoing as the two produced spells of 3 for 20 & 4 for 11 respectively taking Pakistan home & through to round 2.

Score Card

Result – Pakistan beat Netherlands by 82 runs

Fall of wickets: 1. Darron Reekers 13 (1.3), 2. Bas Zuiderent 42 (7.1), 3. Peter Borren 47 (8.4), 4. Alexei Kervezee 49 (9), 5. Tom de Grooth 61 (11.1), 6. Daan van Bunge 61 (11.3), 7. Ryan ten Doeschate 71 (12.5), 8. Edgar Schiferli 74 (13.3), 9. Dirk Nannes 90 (16.4), 10. Pieter Seelaar 93 (17.3)

Man of the match: Kamran Akmal