Mumbai Indians Won Champions League T20 triumph

Mumbai Indians 139 (Franklin 41, Bhatkal 3-21, Vettori 2-30) strike Royal Challengers Bangalore 108 (Dilshan 27, Harbhajan 3-20, Chahal 2-9, Malinga 2-23) beat by 31 runs

Mumbai Indians stand-in captain Harbhajan Singh term his team's Champions League T20 triumph as a "great achievement" allowing for the fact they didn't have lot of top players as well as master batsman Sachin Tendulkar.

"Not many people gave us a chance at the start of the tournament. If we can achieve so much without have players like Sachin Tendulkar, Rohit Sharma and Munaf Patel, just think about what we can do if we have them," a thrilled Harbhajan said at the post-match presentation ceremony.

He supposed that it was a matter of getting the top three - Tillakaratne Dilshan, Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli.

"We knew that if we could get Gayle, Virat and Dilshan, we will be right in the game. Shaun Pollock told us during the interval that if we try we could defend any total. We wanted to give our best shot. The body language of the boys was great and by the grace of God we got the desired result."

He was all admiring for man of the tournament Lasith Malinga for his all-round show.
"His record shows what a phenomenal cricketer he has been. It's great pleasure to have a guy who can win matches for you. Another of our bowling hero has been Abu Nechim Ahmed."

Malinga on his part said that it was a great feeling to get a batsman like Tillakaratne Dilshan out.

"He is a good player so it was great that I got him out. When we started the tournament, we were not in a very good circumstances but I am very happy that we have won the tournament in the end."

About his couple of crucial knocks, he said, "I am happy to have contributed with the bat but I would like to concentrate on my bowling."

RCB skipper Daniel Vettori was a dissatisfied as he felt that 140 was a "gettable target."

"We were aware that the wicket will be vastly dissimilar from the one we played on at the Chinnaswamy. It was on the slower side. On two occasion now, we have got stuck on this track."

Read more »

Last-ball six take RCB into semis final

Royal Challengers Bangalore 215 for 8 (Dilshan 74, Kohli 70, Tait 5-32) strike South Australia Redbacks 214 for 2 (Harris 108*, Ferguson 70) by two wickets

Royal Challengers Bangalore scripted a striking entry into the semi-finals of the CLT20 when Arun Karthik hit a six off the last ball while chase a enormous 215 set by South Australia Redbacks here at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Wednesday.

The tormentors-in-chief for the Redbacks, although, were Virat Kohli (70) and Tillakaratne Dilshan (74) who put on a 100-run partnership after a not-out century from Daniel Harris (108) had propel the visitors to a mammoth total.

Dilshan continued with Kohli and the pair pummel the Redbacks' attack to all corners of the park for a 100-run partnership within nine overs before Kohli became Shaun Tait's first victim for 70. Kohli faced 36 balls and hit four boundaries and hity six sixes out of the park.

Dilshan sustained on the quest, but the wickets kept plummeting around him as Shaun Tait found his radar, and dismiss Saurabh Tiwary, follow by the in-form Dilshan (74) with 15 runs still needed off 11 balls.

Tait was not over, and he also got rid of Daniel Vettori and Raju Bhatkal in the 19th over to finish with 5/32 and give the South Australian team hope to still save a victory.

However, Sreenath Aravind made up for his unhappy bowling by scoop a four over the wicketkeeper, running a bye and Arun Karthik hit the winning six off the final ball to see the Redbacks crashing out of the competition.

Earlier elect to bat, the Australian outfit made a mockery of the unfortunate RCB bowlers to post the highest total in the event. The Redbacks have four points and need a victory to take the top slot.

The last six overs twisted 92 runs with Sreenath Aravind being hit for 69 runs in his four over spell. The manner in which the left-arm seamer was hit all over the park may critically dent his chances of making it to the playing XI against England.

For the Australian side, Harris was the star of the innings.

The right hander took charge from the word go with his impudent strokes that stunned the RCB bowlers. His wonderful innings was laced with 17 hits to the fence and two sixes one of which was the one which help him reach his maiden T20 ton.

Ferguson was equally brilliant at the other end, scoring a 43-ball 70, studded with four boundaries and three sixes.

After losing Captain Michael Klinger (7), Harris connected hands with Ferguson as the second wicket pair stitch an aggressive century partnership of 114 runs coming off only 75 balls.

Harris show no respect to RCB's left arm seamer Dirk Nannes, hitting him for four successive boundaries taking 18 runs in the process. He was mainly severe on Arvind, creaming 28 runs in two overs.

For RCB, Syed Mohammad and Rajoo Bhatkal claim a wicket apiece.

Read more »

Cobras can switch T&T's spin attack'

Cape Cobras wicket-keeper Dane Vilas said his team is sure of seeing off T&T's spin attack on the hard MA Chidambaram strip.

"Luckily, we are playing them at the finish, so they're not a totally unknown entity," Vilas said at the pre-match media meeting on Monday.

"We've done some work on them; they bowled brilliantly next to Chennai Super Kings. I think the key to the game alongside Chennai was that they took the pace off the ball quite a lot. A lot of bowlers that we've faced have taken the pace off, using dissimilar variations. So hopefully, we've got that enclosed," he said.

Asked to name one area the team needs to recover upon, he said, "It's essentially a quarter-final for us, we have to win this game. We had a long pre-season. One key area we can improve on is almost certainly our fielding. I think we have not been the field side we can be in this event "

Vilas said he is sure about the South African side's own spin attack, in spite of it going for runs in the rain-hit match next to Mumbai Indians in Bangalore, when the latter amassed 176/6 in 20 overs.

"We're very sure. The Chennai and Bangalore pitches are entirely different. The one in Chennai help spin, while the Bangalore one was a lot flatter and a better pitch to bat on.

"But we've played three games here and JP (Duminy) bowled a brilliant spell next to Chennai, taking four wickets next to huge players of spin and we've also got Robin Peterson," he said.

Asked if china-man bowler, Michael Rippon, would obtain a look in next to Chennai on a spin-friendly pitch on Tuesday, Vilas said, "I think we'll keep the same team, we're bowling well as a unit."

"(But) guys like Andrew Puttick and Rippon are forever ready (if picked)."

Read more »

Ganga aim for NCL T20 semis spot

T&T captain Daren Ganga said they will now play with expect and faith to qualify for the semifinals of the NCL T20.

Ganga was dissatisfied that his team lost two close ties earlier in the event but said they wanted to do something significant on Sunday against Chennai Super Kings as it was the birthday of Mahatma Gandhi.

"Obviously, we were dissatisfied with our two losses earlier. Both were very close games which went down to the last over. And, that is the beauty of 20-20 cricket. Today, we played wonderfully to get them over the line," Ganga said.

"You can say that our bowling was very good next to the Mumbai Indians, though we just did not put good total on the board. And, it is always good to obtain a win very early in a competition.

"This day is a very special day as it is the birthday of Mahatma Gandhi and we required to do something important. For us coming from Trinidad, not receiving those wins was a bit unlucky," he said.

"We consideration today is going to be our day. We had that faith as a team. There is more chance of qualify as well. We will play with that hope and that belief. God only knows as to what will happen in the last game. But, we powerfully feel that we will qualify for the semifinals," Ganga added.

Trinidad & Tobago, who lost by one-wicket to Mumbai Indians before being beaten by New South Wales in a one-over eliminator, finally tasted success when they hit title holders Chennai by 12 runs in a low-scoring Group A match.

The Caribbean side will now next take on South Africa's Cape Cobras on Tuesday in their last match of the group stage.

"It was not easy (win) at all. We saw in the first game itself that it is tough to bat to put up a huge total. We realised that and recognize that and we stuck to get as much runs as probable," Ganga said.

"We might not make 150 or so but were very contending with 130. We were satisfied with that and we fight with confidence with the total as such."

Ganga said his side doesn't have any big name and their power lies in team coordination.

"As I said before the event, our strength is on our team members. We do not have big players who had played in the IPL. But, we have got players who appreciate their roles. We taught and ready them with certain philosophies," he said.

"All in all, all the guys are put their weight to add as a team and get success that we had (against Chennai)."

Off-spinner Sunil Narine, who took three critical wickets giving away just eight runs in his four over’s to set up the win for Trinidad & Tobago, said he has a special release up his sleeves, which he developed after spending hours at the nets.

"We play wind ball (tennis ball with a tape) cricket. I just had been bowling and trained that delivery regularly. I got it by practicing and working regularly," Narine said.

Read more »

Chennai pitch rough to score on

After beat to the NSW Blues, Mumbai Indians all-rounder James Franklin say the MA Chidambaram Stadium pitch in Chennai is one of the most challenging he has played on.

"It's almost certainly one of the more challenging pitches I've played on in my vocation," Franklin said after the match.

"It was really, really tough looking to score runs up front and it was real attach, credit to New South Wales, I think they bowled exceptionally well, they stuck to the basics, which came out really well."

Batting first, Mumbai could only post 100 for seven and would not have reach three figures but for Franklin's winning knock of 42.

"It was a case of trying to get runs; I think we were 20 or 30 runs short. (A total of) 130 would have made the game really interesting. But our bowlers bowled exceptionally well, they gave us a chance of winning, but Steven Smith and Ben Rohrer (who shared an unbeaten 63-run partnership for the sixth wicket) batted wonderfully and saved New South Wales," he said.

Franklin also defended the attacking fields set by Mumbai captain Harbhajan Singh when New South Wales were in trouble at 28 for five. The Australian outfits were still able to milk singles and decrease the force building on their team.

"We were trying to take wickets and also aware of not giving away too many runs. (But) you've got to pay credit to those two guys out there (Rohrer and Smith), who were able to turn strike in the middle with minimal risk," Franklin said.

Read more »

Trinidad and Tobago beat Chennai Kings

Trinidad and Tobago 123 for 8 (Perkins 34, Cooper 28, Jakati 2-18) hit Chennai Super Kings 111 for 6 (Bravo 32*, Narine 3-8) by 12 runs

Dwayne Bravo attempt to save the situation with 32 from 22 balls and Albie Morkel hit 18 from 12 but it was too little too late.

Doug Bollinger take three for 30 and Shadab Jakati two for 18 as the West Indian side were limited to 123 for eight, with only Kevon Cooper's late assault lifting their total to that mark.

It proved crucial, though, as Chennai struggle to 111 for six in reply, with Sunil Narine taking three for eight from his four overs.

T and T openers Lendl Simmons (20) and William Perkins (34) put on 52, taking 9.3 overs to do so, but only Adrian Barath (23) contribute further as they fell to 92 for six.

But Cooper, whose preceding seven Twenty20 innings had yield just 39 runs at an average of 7.80 and a run a ball, club three sixes and a four as he made 28 from 10 balls to set up a competitive total.

Mike Hussey's 13 were the best of a weak contribution from Chennai's top order, with even Subramaniam Badrinath's 14 occupying 26 deliveries. Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni summed up the hosts' struggle with seven from 22 balls before offering a return catch to Narine.

Read more »

Washout after Mumbai make 176

Match discarded Mumbai Indians 176 for 5 (Pollard 58, Kanwar 45) v Cape Cobras

Two men at dissimilar ends of the Twenty20 range powered Mumbai Indians to their best batting presentation in the tournament after which heavy rain wiped out the match. One of the biggest names in the format, Kieron Pollard, and a debutant, Sarul Kanwar, went on a six-hitting spree as Mumbai put up a strong 176 next to Cape Cobras.

Aiden Blizzard was probable to be the fire starter at the top of the order for Mumbai; as an alternative it was the little known Kanwar who provided the explosive. Kanwar, a 23-year-old Punjab opener with only one season of domestic cricket behind him, show no fear in his first big game, clouting the Cobras fast bowlers.

The first blast to make people sit up was a clean sway that sent Charl Langeveldt over the midwicket boundary in the second over. Langeveldt was taken for a four and a six square on the leg side in his next over, and JP Duminy left for 17 in the fifth, before Kanwar showed he can hit straight as well by thrashing Vernon Philander over long-off. After five sixes and three fours, he nearly got to his half-century with a fashionable hit over deep extra cover but the shot lack a few yards and was wedged.

Kanwar's endeavor solved Mumbai's headache at the top of the order, and they will also be pleased with the return to form of one of their middle-order stars, Pollard. With Blizzard and Ambati Rayudu falling soon after Kanwar, Mumbai were in danger of losing their way before Pollard intervenes. He warmed up with two hideous straight sixes off JP Duminy, before backing it up with a couple of fours behind square leg. James Franklin connected in by launching Robin Peterson for two more sixes. By the time Pollard completed Langeveldt's horror day by scoring 18 in the 16th over, Mumbai had surged to 143 for 3.

Cobras manage to pull it back a bit in the final overs, with Justin Kemp giving away only two runs in the 17th, but some more boundaries from Andrew Symonds pressed Mumbai to 176. Even as the Mumbai innings wound to an end, the rains arrived and stay for several hours, forcing the team to split points.

Read more »

Kallis and Gambhir stay Knight Riders alive

Kolkata Knight Riders 171 for 1 (Kallis 64*, Gambhir 55*) strike Royal Challengers Bangalore 169 for 9 (Vettori 44, Bhatkal 25) by nine wickets

Kolkata Knight Riders hit Royal Challengers Bangalore by nine wickets in Bangalore, thanks to a winning second-wicket stand by Jacques Kallis and Gautam Gambhir.

South African Kallis ablaze 64 from 47 balls, ably assist by Gambhir who scored an winning 55 from just 31 delivery, as they chase down Bangalore's total of 169 with two and a half overs to spare.

Australian opening batsman Brad Haddin helped KKR to a flying start with a knock of 42 before he was fixed by Virat Kohli off the bowling of Daniel Vettori.

Earlier, New Zealand's Vettori top-scored for Bangalore with 44 in the middle of their innings after KKR won the toss and put them in to bat.

Bangalore lost two early wickets when Kallis bowled Chris Gayle for 25 before Virat Kohli was out for a duck when Gambhir wedged him off the bowling of Brett Lee.

Raajoo Bhatkal put up some fight with Vettori with a seventh-wicket stand of 61 but Bangalore's total never looked to be sufficient.

Read more »

Dhoni cheerful after CSK victory

MS Dhoni was all praise for his bowlers after CSK's three-pronged pace attack controlled Cape Cobras to a modest score of 145 on Wednesday.

"Had we lost, it would have become very hard. The score of 145 was a very good effort by our bowlers, who capitalized really well when they lost a couple of wickets at the wrong time. Our bowlers did a good job," said Dhoni after his team's exciting four-wicket victory over the Cobras.

"It was a big game for us and (Dwayne) Bravo played a special innings in the end. My heart was pounding. We are look forward to the next game," the skipper added.

The pace trio of Albie Morkel (2 for 26), Doug Bollinger (2 for 25) and Dwayne Bravo (2 for 23) shackle the Cobras' batting line-up and prohibited their order consisting of Herschelle Gibbs, J P Duminy and Owais Shah from changing the gears up.

Dhoni also approved that while batting, Chennai abandoned the importance of singles at the start.

The Chennai Super Kings, with this win, have two points, the same as the Cape Cobras and New South Wales while Mumbai Indians head the table with four points from two victories.

Cape Cobras' captain Justin Kemp said that Chennai pacers bowled fine with the old ball.

"We would have liked to score more at the back end, but I consider the Chennai boys bowled well with the old ball. They were excellent in the end over’s," said Kemp.

Kemp selected all-rounder Bravo's timely cameo for special praise and said, "It took something special from Bravo. We bowled well, but it was always going to come down to the last couple of over’s, and they have a big batting line-up. Bravo played some outstanding shots and took the game away from us."

"Overall it was a good game. We were right up there until the 18th over. A couple of mistake here and there," he added.

Man-of-the-match Dwayne Bravo, whose sparkler (46 not out off 25 balls) took the Chennai Super Kings past the target of 145 with just two balls to spare, said, "Today was a great day for us. I was just backing my ability. I am enjoying my cricket now. Hope this continues later in the event."

"Dale Steyn bowled just one bad ball and I got on top of it."

Asked about his bowling, he said, "I have work hard on my bowling in the nets and distorted my action a bit. I am happy now."

Read more »

Katich: Batting wants to improve

NSW Blues captain Simon Katich was relived after his move to bowl Steve O'Keefe in the Super Over paid off in their NCL T20 match, but felt the batting wanted to improve further.

"We're dissatisfied to have left it too late today," he said after his team's win over Trinidad and Tobago via the Super Over, before adding that NSW also approved too many runs in the middle overs.

"But that's the nature of Twenty 20 cricket. The stress is on the bowlers, it's not easy for them as well. But we've got to come up with a better batting effort throughout that middle phase. If no one bats through (the innings) it's very difficult."

About going in with spinner Steve O'Keefe in the Super Over, he said, "I deduction we felt pace off the ball with an older ball is possibly the hardest thing to hit.

I guess (T&T) went the other way and Moises played wonderfully and got us back into the match when it looked like it was over. It was a unbelievable knock and to cap it off in the Super Over was magnificent.

"O'Keefe had bowled wonderfully for us and we just felt that the pace off the ball was the right option than one of the quicks. Yes, it can be look at as a gamble but appreciatively, it paid off," Katich said.

The left-hander also said that the fact that T&T picked his pacers for runs in the final five overs (they went from 89/3 to 139/6) also contribute in giving the ball to a spinner.

Moises Henriques, who starred with the bat for NSW, said, "To be honest, it was just trying to like the cricket.Nothing much was going throughout my mind.

In my last game, we were in a similar circumstance. We work hard to bat in such circumstances and give your best every time you go out, sooner or later it's gonna pay off."

Henriques took a single and gave the strike to pace bowler Pat Cummins in the final over with just three balls residual and eight runs wanted for a win.

Asked if he had the self-confidence in the 18-year-old's capability, Henriques said, "I had just taken nine runs off Ravi (Rampaul) in the first three balls and the maths in my head said we needed eight off three balls and at that stage every run was crucial.

If I could perhaps get on strike on the last ball, then we were in with a possibility, whether a six or four."

Read more »

Dwayne Bravo lead Chennai Kings to win

Dwayne Bravo enables Chennai Super Kings to get their Champions League Twenty20 title defense back on path with a four-wicket victory over Cape Cobras at Chennai.

Owais Shah Lead the way with 45 as the Cobras, who won the toss and chose to bat, totall 145 for seven - but Bravo's 46 from 25 balls enable the Super Kings to pass the total with two balls to extra.

The Cobras' score was built on a firm partnership of 57 for the fourth wicket between Shah and JP Duminy. Shah's knock come from 38 balls and built-in a six and three fours, while Duminy chip in with 24 from 21 balls.


South Africa spinner Duminy then excel with the ball, taking four wickets for 20 runs from his four overs as the Super Kings slip to 77 for five.

However, the influx of Bravo at the crease redress the balance - and after distribution in a 43-run stand for the sixth wicket, the West Indies all-rounder took them to brink of victory by taking 17 runs off the last but one over of the game, bowled by Dale Steyn.

With Albie Morkel, Bravo saw the Super Kings over the line, appropriately hitting the winning single with two balls remaining.

Read more »

Ganga preserve Rampaul conclusion

T&T captain Darren Ganga shielded his decision to use Ravi Rampaul in the Super Over in their NCL T20 conflict next to NSW Blues in Chennai.

Rampaul, who gave left 16 runs in the 20th over that allowable NSW to level the scores, conceded another 18 in the Super Over, which the T&T failed to overhaul.

"Ravi is the most knowledgeable bowler, he's been our best bowler so far in this event, the most in-form. Every time he's bowled at the passing away for us, he's done the job for us.

We've trained and drill ourselves in a certain way, to finish off the innings in a certain manner. If we give Ravi 15 or 16 runs to guard, he'll do that on any given day," Ganga said after the beat.

Rampaul persist with bowling around the wicket in spite of going for runs in the 20th over, but his captain shielded the move.

"We've tried it time and time once more, to bowl around the wicket to most of the batsmen, angle the ball across, the field positions... more often than not we get out of jail. (But) Ravi was a little bit tired, almost certainly having bowled two over’s back to back and then with that strength coming back to bowl the Super Over.

"In retrospection you can say a lot of things, but he's our most knowledgeable bowler," he said.

Ganga said he would've preferred to go with a right-left combination in the Super Over but the team had to name prior to the match its three favored batsmen for such a scenario.

"We were under the feeling that we had the option of using any (of the) three to open, but that's amazing we learned regarding just prior to start of the game.

"(As if) the Gods are next to us. We've had two very close games; it just shows how spirited we are. It's a pity we haven't crossed the line and secure a win. We still hold our belief. This group is still open and we'll be coming very, very hard in that game beside CSK,” he concluded.

Read more »

Gautam Gambhir: We played well in scrap

KKR skipper Gautam Gambhir said his side played well in patches but praise resistance batsman Callum Ferguson and Daniel Christian for their match-winning efforts.

Ferguson scored an winning 40-ball 70-run knock and together with Christian (42) added quick fire 84 runs for the fourth wicket to propel South Australia to a spirited 188 for five after opting to bat.

The target finally twisted out to be too steep for KKR as they lost wickets at normal intervals to be restricted to 169 for nine, in that way handing South Australia a 19-run victory.

"I never thought they would get to 180-odd. It was a brilliant attempt from Ferguson and Christian," a visibly dissatisfied Gambhir said after the match.

"Sometimes we've bowled well in patches, and sometimes batted well in patches. At times we haven't complement our batsmen, sometimes our bowlers," he added.

His equivalent Michael Klinger was also full of praise for Ferguson and Christian, saying the two batsmen laid the basic basis for South Australia's win.

"The innings from Callum (Ferguson) and Christian were incredible. Those two were fantastic, they pushed a lot of twos and ran really hard when the pitch slow up," Klinger said.

Asked about the reason behind leaving out speedster Shaun Tait for today's match, the South Australia captain said, "We left out Tait purely because of the circumstances. Tait, with extra pace, on this wicket is slightly easier to way probably."

Man-of-the-match Ferguson, in turn, accredited his partner Christian for his match-winning knock.

"It was hard early on, took a while to get in.

Christian came in and made it easier for me by hitting some boundaries. We finished the innings well," he said.

Read more »

'T&T eyeing better show beside NSW'

Trinidad and Tobago would look to list their first win in the NCL T20 with a better show in their second game Wednesday, Denesh Ramdin said.

Ramdin assered the West Indians were far from being dissatisfied after their narrow one-wicket loss alongside Mumbai Indians,

T&T came close to dramatic Mumbai in Bangalore Monday and Ramdin said his team would draw self-assurance that they stretched their fancied opponent to their limits before losing by one wicket in the last ball of the innings.

"We are dissatisfied (at the defeat against Mumbai). But as I said, we fought well and extended Mumbai. They have a strong batting order with Kieron Pollard and Andrew Symonds.

"But our bowlers bowled well under lot of force," he said about yesterday's hit at the hands of Mumbai.

Ramdin said his side would look to post a spirited total in case they bat first in their second match of the tournament next to New South Wales.

"We would hope to shoot them out for about 130 or 140 runs and then chase it down. If we bat first, we would also look to maintain impetus and try to post a spirited total," he said.

T&T were shot out for 98 in their last match and Ramdin admit that his side would have to produce a better show in their batting department.

"We misinterpret the pitch in Bangalore and it was bad that we didn't score runs. (Lendl) Simmons' run out was unlucky and as a result we kept losing wickets. We fought, but couldn't pull off victory," he said.

"(Against NSW) it's a different attack, different surface, different game as well, so hope the boys pick themselves up (and post a win)," he added.

He said the Chepauk wicket here looks a bit slow and "should almost certainly aid our slow bowlers."

Read more »

Mumbai win a thriller beside T & T

The Mumbai Indians protected a last-ball one-wicket victory over Trinidad and Tobago in their Nokia Champions League Twenty20 clash in Bangalore.

Chasing a meager 99 to win and go to the top of Pool A, Yuzvendra Chahal took two from Sherwin Ganga's last ball of the match to drive his side over the line.

Batting first after winning the toss, T&T started well and were nicely placed on 41 for one when Lendl Simmons was inaccurately run out on 21, signalling the start of a collapse.

Harbhajan Singh (three for 22) was the main attacker, well backed by Lasith Malinga (two for 22) as Jason Mohammed (23) top scored.

The tone for Mumbai's chase was set early, although, as Ravi Rampaul (three for 17) ripped throughout their top order to leave them almost out of the game at 16 for four.

But Ambati Rayudu stood firm for 36 and, in spite of nine wickets falling, there was just sufficient time left for Chahal to win the game.

Teams:

Mumbai Indians: Aiden Blizzard, Sarul Kanwar, Tirumalasetti Suman, Abu Nechim, Dilhara Fernando, Harbhajan Singh, Lasith Malinga, Yuzvendra Chahal, Andrew Symonds, James Franklin, Kieron Pollard, Rajagopal Sathish, Ambati Rayudu, Davy Jacobs

Trinidad and Tobago: Adrian Barath, Daren Ganga, Darren Bravo, Jason Mohammed, Lendl Simmons, Dave Mohammed, Ravi Rampaul, Samuel Badree, Shannon Gabriel, Sunil Narine, Kevon Cooper, Rayad Emrit, Sherwin Ganga, Denesh Ramdin, William Perkins

Read more »

Somerset win thriller to eliminate Auckland from Champions League Twenty20

Somerset 126 for 6 (Snell 34*, Hildreth 34) hit Auckland 125 for 7 (Vincent 47*) by four wickets

Somerset opened their Champions League Twenty20 qualification campaign with a theatrical final-ball victory over the Auckland Aces.

Alfonso Thomas hit the last ball of the innings over a packed infield for the single the Sabres essential to secure a four-wicket win.

After restrict the New Zealand T20 champions to 125 for seven, Somerset made serious work of their chase until a 61-run stand between James Hildreth (34) and Steve Snell (34 not out).

Hildreth was brilliantly run out from the penultimate delivery to leave his side still needing one from the final ball, a task Thomas manage with a lofted drive over cover.

Victory means Somerset will reach the group stage should they win their second and final qualifier next to the Kolkata Knight Riders tomorrow evening.

After Somerset lost Saturday's Clydesdale Bank 40 final to Surrey they had less time to lick their wounds and were without Craig Kieswetter and Jos Buttler, who are not existing until the group stage due to England duty, as well as skipper Marcus Trescothick.

Just as at Lord's at the weekend, it looked like one more faltering batting presentation would cost them when they slip to 64 for five in their chase.

But Hildreth and Snell joint for the highest stand of the match and, when they took 15 from the last but one over, victory looked certain with five needed from the final six balls.

There was a final twist; however, as Hildreth was wedged short by Colin Munro's throw from the deep attempt the winning run before Thomas finally proved match-winner.

Somerset earlier reduced the Aces to 14 for three, with Peter Trego claim two of the early wickets as well as the dangerous Martin Guptill wedged by Hildreth at long-on.

Lou Vincent and Gareth Hopkins then put on the best stand of the Aces' innings, causal 49 runs previous to the latter was run out by Arul Suppiah's direct hit from the deep.

That left Vincent to anchor the innings with an victorious 47 from as many balls that prove just short of sufficient as the Aces, who also suffered a tight two-run loss to the Knight Riders yesterday, were eliminate.

Auckland squad: GJ Hopkins (c), AR Adams, JHK Adams, MD Bates, C de Grandhomme, MJ Guptill, RM Hira, AK Kitchen, BP Martin, CS Martin, KD Mills, C Munro, RJ Quiney, DR Tuffey, L Vincent

Somerset squad: AC Thomas (c), AWR Barrow, JC Buttler, NRD Compton, AJ Dibble, GH Dockrell, JC Hildreth, GM Hussain, M Kartik, C Kieswetter, SP Kirby, CAJ Meschede, SD Snell, AV Suppiah, PD Trego, RE van der Merwe

Read more »

KKR record slight win in qualifiers

Kolkata Knight Riders 121 for 6 (Bisla 45, Kallis 33, Mills 2-24) strike Auckland Aces 119 for 6 (Vincent 40, Yusuf 2-21) by two runs

The Kolkata Knight Riders survive a thrilling opener to their NCL T20 movement as they edged to a two-run win next to the Auckland Aces in the second qualifier.

The New Zealand champions fell agonizingly short of an upset when, with four wanted from the final ball; Kyle Mills could only squirt a Brett Lee yorker away for a single.

The Knight Riders expensively-assembled batting order managed only 121 for six batting first, but the Aces failed to capitalize on that with Lou Vincent's 37-ball 40 the only important input to the chase.

Vincent had look set to contentedly guide his side to victory, hitting 30 of his 40 runs in boundaries, but after he was run out Yusuf Pathan claim two wickets in three balls to bring his side back into the match.

The Aces required 22 from the last two overs and while Jacques Kallis right away bowled Colin Munro, Andre Adams hit his first ball for six.

But the New Zealand side unsuccessful to find the ropes again, most considerably from the last ball, to suffer a beat which leaves them needing to win their second and final qualifier against Somerset on Tuesday to have any chance of reaching the group stage.

Earlier, the Knight Riders had looked on course for a bigger score than they managed after openers Manvinder Bisla and Kallis joint for 73 in 57 balls.

But after Bisla fell for a breezy 45 from 32 balls the IPL side lost their way with four wickets going down for the addition of five runs in 10 balls.

Andre Adams started the mid-innings slump bowling dangerman Yusuf Patel before Mills unconcerned Kallis and Manoj Tiwary in the next over.

A direct hit from Hampshire's Jimmy Adams then ran out Ryan ten Doeschate and when some more good fielding, this time from namesake Andre, wedged Shakib Al Hasan backing up too far the Knight Riders had to be content with a below-par score.

Read more »

West Indies name inexperienced squad

West Indies have named an inexpert squad for their two Twenty20 internationals in England next month.

With the two matches at The Oval set to clash with the Champions League Twenty20, the Windies selectors have chosen to fail to notice Dwayne Bravo, Kieron Pollard, Lendl Simmons, Adrian Barath, Darren Bravo and Ravi Rampaul.

Star batsman Chris Gayle has also been lost as he remains out of favour following a spat with the West Indies Cricket Board after he miss the limited overs series next to Pakistan earlier this year.

West Indies' choice not to select their Champions League Twenty20 players may not go down well with their England rivals, who earlier this month, tag the matches on to the end of their summer programme to help fulfil a contractual responsibility with the media and the WICB.

England is also likely to select Eoin Morgan in spite of the left-hander being named in the Kolkata Knight Riders' squad for the competition.

In contrast, Bravo and Pollard are due to play for their IPL franchises - defensive champions the Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians correspondingly - while the residual four players will appear for home country Trinidad & Tobago.

In their nonattendance the Windies have called on four new uncapped players - Miles Bascombe, Johnson Charles, Nkruma Bonner and Derwin Christian. The two Twenty20s are listed for September 23 and 25 at The Oval.


West Indies squad: Darren Sammy (capt), Christopher Barnwell, Miles Bascombe, Devendra Bishoo, Nkruma Bonner, Johnson Charles, Derwin Christian (wk), Fidel Edwards, Danza Hyatt, Ashley Nurse, Andre Russell, Marlon Samuels, Krishmar Santokie, Dwayne Smith.

Read more »

ECB threaten to ban county from CL T20 except paid up front

The England Wales Cricket has in danger to stop its county teams from challenging in this year's Champions League Twenty20 in India unless the organizers of the event, the BCCI pay them the participation fees in go forward, according to a report.

The ECB insist that the two counties -- one out of Lancashire and Leicestershire, and one out of Hampshire and Somerset -- will have to take delivery of the money to cover their costs from the BCCI before travelling to India for the tournament in September, a report in the Daily Telegraph stated.

The ECB's statement came after many of the participate teams in the first two CLT20 tournament have supposed that they have either not established their payment on time or in full.

Somerset and Sussex played in the opening CLT20 in India in 2009, but not a single team from England played in the next tournament, in South Africa in 2010, after an argument between the ECB and the Indian organizers over scheduling.

"The payment was late but was paid ultimately, within about five months, and it was paid in full less about 20 per cent Indian government tax," said Richard Gould, who was Somerset's chief decision-making when they participate in CLT20 in 2009 and is now Surrey's.

The CLT20 is at present chosen a window in ICC's Future Tours Programmed, unlike the Indian Premier League which is regard as a domestic competition.

The third edition of the event kicks off in Hyderabad on September 19 with the qualification matches.

Read more »