Tough, competitive, and memorable

It's the day after the Under-19 World Cup final and Townsville feels different. Flinders Street bears no sign of the Indian party the night before, and the cafés on Palmer are missing the groups of young cricketers who've been ever-present over the last two weeks. For the 240 players who've left the city, the fortnight gone by has been probably the most revealing, instructive and emotional of their teenage lives.

The 2012 Under-19 World Cup has felt like a bowler's tournament; perhaps it was the imprint left by the first day, when England were dismissed for 143 by Australia after which Reece Topley broke Jimmy Peirson's middle stump and Jamie Overton let rip at scary speeds for someone so young.

The finalists were perhaps the best prepared sides and their success a vindication of the investment made. India gave their players exposure by going on two tours, to Malaysia and Townsville, and hosting a quadrangular series. Their players had been tested by foreign conditions and demanding situations several times before they faced the pressures of the World Cup. The Indians also had an elaborate camp at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore where, apart from their cricket skills, the players worked on intangible factors such as building trust and team spirit.

The 2012 Under-19 World Cup was the time of Reece Topley and Anamul Haque, of William Bosisto and Unmukt Chand, the stars of a stage protected by age. Whether it is they, or someone who was hidden in obscurity during the last two weeks, who will succeed in greater arenas, it is much too early to tell. Most of the cricketers who came to Brisbane, Sunshine Coast and Townsville will never return again, but perhaps the time they spent here will be the making of some of them.

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Sehwag hopes for Indian victory at U-19 WC

Virender Sehwag believes that the Under-19 World Cup provides a wonderful opportunity for youngsters to build their confidence and hopes that the current tournament produces some future talent. "I think whoever plays well in the ICC U19 CWC 2012 and keeps performing well in first-class cricket could also end up traveling to Australia for the ICC CWC 2015. I'm hoping a couple of guys will come through, especially for India," said Sehwag, in an ICC media release.

The 33-year-old also acknowledged the fact that the tournament would harbor many new cricketing relationships, "the players have a great opportunity to go out there, play with and against the best and perform well. They will be motivated and will get a lot of self-confidence. The players will also make a lot of friends for life during the tournament."

The Indian opener offered some words of motivation for the U-19 squad, "go there and give your best, just make the most of the opportunity. Try to win the World Cup for your country," he said. "Mohammad Kaif won it in 2000 and Virat Kohli lifted the trophy in 2008. Maybe, this time, the India captain (Unmukt Chand) can lift the Cup again and make us proud. Every single player from the current India team is wishing the very best of luck to the India team in the U-19 CWC 2012," Sehwag added.

Sehwag, who played in the Under-19 World Cup in 1998, didn't quite prosper in the tournament, scoring a highest of just 38 against South Africa. He did shine with the ball though, and his off spin helped him pick up seven wickets. Talking about that particular tournament Sehwag said, "we played against a lot of top teams - South Africa, England, Australia, Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka, Pakistan - in that event. It was a great platform. Any player who performs at that level can harbour hopes of playing at the highest level."

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Australia's T20 BBL 2 to start on December 7

Australia's Twenty20 Big Bash League this year, will be held from December 7 to January 19, it was announced here on Friday.

This year's BBL 2 is an increase in the total matches from 31 to 35 to give teams and their fans four home games each. It is set to be more exciting waku doki than last year.

The structure of the league remains the same however, with the top four teams at the end of the round matches not only qualifying for the Big Semi-finals but also getting the chance to play for a place in the elite Champions League Twenty20 tournament.

Despite adding another round of matches, the duration of the season is the same as BBL 01. It applies last year's winning formula, which featured record-busting TV ratings and more than 550,000 fans packing stadiums, to guarantee live action almost nightly during the December-January holiday period, a BBL media release said on Friday.

The new fixture also gives fans in Sydney and Melbourne two Derby matches each after huge interest saw a combined 70,000 fans attend the first inter-city clashes last season.

After the opening round, the eight BBL teams will criss-cross the country before the KFC T20 BBL 2 Big Final is played 41 days later on Saturday, January 19.

Also confirmed on Friday were the contracting rules that have been issued to teams ahead of the opening of the official Player Signing Window next Monday July 9 at 9am.

BBL Teams

Melbourne Renegades

Melbourne Stars

Sydney Sixers

Sydney Thunder

Brisbane Heat

Hobart Hurricanes

Perth Scorchers

Adelaide Strikers

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Sri Lanka top arrange pummels Pakistan

Sri Lanka 300 for 2 (Sangakkara 111*, Dilshan 101, M Jayawardene 55*) v Pakistan

Nine months ago, the ICC had said a "better balance between bat and ball (needs to be) achieved" after a Galle dustbowl made life difficult for batsmen. Today, on an unexpectedly sunny day in Galle, Sri Lanka reached stumps at a commanding 300 for 2.

Ahead of the series, Mahela Jayawardene had talked of the need for Sri Lanka's experienced players to build a platform for the others. He couldn't have expected more: Tillakaratne Dilshan made his first Test hundred in more than a year, Kumar Sangakkaradrew level with Don Bradman on 29 centuries and Jayawardene himself made an unbeaten 55.

It rounded off a wretched day for Pakistan cricket. Before the start of play came the news of disgraced former captain Salman Butt returning home from jail and denying involvement in spot-fixing, and towards stumps the headlines were about legspinner Danish Kaneria being found guilty of corruption by the ECB.

Though the scoreline might suggest it, the Galle track didn't overnight become a clone of the famously flat SSC pitch. It didn't provide much for the quick bowlers - either with the new ball or old - but there was plenty to interest Pakistan's world-class spinners. As early as the first session, Abdul Rehman got the odd ball to bounce extra, all the spinners got the ball to turn sharply.

Especially in the half hour before lunch, Saeed Ajmal and Rehman piled on the pressure. Dilshan survived several lbw appeals, Sangakkara edged past slip, there was a leading edge from Dilshan, the spinners put together three successive maidens, and despite a healthy score of 94 for 1 Sri Lanka were relieved when the lunch interval arrived.

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Hosts pin hopes on batting stars

Till recently, Pakistan's full tour of Sri Lanka for a series of two Twenty20s, five ODIs and three Tests existed only in the ICC's Future Tours Programme. The schedule was formally approved by the PCB a month ago and whatever build-up that existed was lost in the frenzy of the IPL. Despite its perfect positioning - the IPL is over, those from the two sides in question are free of other commitments and Sri Lanka is the venue for the World Twenty20 - the pre-series hype that usually accompanies a contest between two high-profile teams as Sri Lanka and Pakistan is missing.

One reason could be the fact that the tour gets underway in far-flung Hambantota, the country's newest cricketing venue; at the cricket board office in Colombo, though, there is little or no activity at the ticket counter.

For Pakistan, international cricket's nomads, it's another series away from home. Deprived of IPL activity, the lead-up to this tour for them consisted of a two-week camp in Lahore under hot conditions sure to test them in Sri Lanka. Fans showed up in thousands to watch a series of practice games between the best limited-overs players in the country. Nothing can substitute international action at home, but this is the best their fans can get.

Only a select number of Sri Lankan players, on the other hand, have had the benefit of rigorous Twenty20 match practice. Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara and Lasith Malinga have been particularly busy in the IPL, while the others have been keeping busy training at home. Dinesh Chandimal, who failed to get a game with Rajasthan Royals, was released midway to join a training camp at home. A few more weeks in the dugout could have been detrimental to the fledgling star's development. Fitness is paramount in June's punishing cricketing conditions and it's an area both teams will have to address.

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Dhoni outstanding performance knocks out Mumbai

Chennai Super Kings 187 for 5 (Dhoni 51, Hussey 49) v Mumbai Indians 149 for 9 (Smith 38, Bravo 2-10, Morkel 2-31)

Innings	Dot balls	4s	6s	Powerplay	16-20 overs	NB/Wides
Chennai Super Kings	48	23	6	30-2	73-1	0/3
Mumbai Indians	59	14	5	54-1	37-2	1/5

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Kolkata in IPL final for first time

Kolkata Knight Riders 162 for 4 (Yusuf 40*) beat Delhi Daredevils 144 for 8 (Jayawardene 40, Kallis 2-24, Narine 2-24) by 18 runs

After four seasons of at times embarrassing underachievement, Kolkata Knight Riders will play for the IPL trophy on Sunday. For almost two-thirds of the qualifier against Delhi Daredevils, they nearly blew it, though the odds were stacked in their favour right from the start. On a pitch where the first ball of spin turned sharply, Knight Riders had three spinners waiting; Delhi Daredevils stuck to playing three specialist fast bowlers. 

Daredevils' strategy did not seem to have backfired when Knight Riders lumbered to 106 for 4 in 16 overs. In the chase, despite losing Virender Sehwag and David Warner in the first 13 balls, Daredevils were right in the hunt at 83 for 2 after 10 overs. But like they had suddenly bolted away in the last four overs of their innings, Knight Riders choked Daredevils in the latter half of the chase. Daredevils did not help their cause, sending Pawan Negi ahead of Ross Taylor, who finally came in at No. 7 when the asking-rate was more than 14 an over. 

The late boost that carried Knight Riders to a challenging total on the difficult pitch came from the unlikeliest quarters. Yusuf Pathan, who had done almost nothing the entire season, and Laxmi Shukla, playing in place of an unfit Manoj Tiwary, carted the quicks for 56 off the final four overs, and 36 off the final two, as Knight Riders surged to 162.

Gautam Gambhir had once again given Knight Riders a strong start, taking the fast bowlers for several boundaries. He had sped to 32 off 16 deliveries before he failed to make his ground to a direct hit from mid-off after having backed up too far. Not for the first time after Gambhir's departure, Knight Riders lost their way. Only 58 runs came off the next ten overs as Negi, the left-arm spinner, and Irfan Pathan strangled the batsmen. 

With 55 needed off 32, Sehwag sent in Negi ahead of Taylor, who hit his third ball from Narine for six over wide long-on. But it was too late by then. Daredevils have another chance to get it right in the second qualifier on Friday.

Innings Dot balls 4s 6s Powerplay 16-20 overs NB/Wides Kolkata Knight Riders 44 14 6 48-1 56-0 0/2 Delhi Daredevils 56 14 3 49-2 27-4 0/5

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Australia Pull Out All The Stops to Clinch Victory

Australia completed a three-wicket victory with around an hour to spare on the final day of the first Test against the West Indies to snatch a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

After the West Indies were bowled out for 148 in their second innings, Shane Watson's half-century handed Australia enough runs, despite some late jitters, to reach a victory target of 192.

Matthew Wade (18) and Michael Hussey (32) were both dismissed by Kemar Roach with victory in sight but Ben Hilfenhaus and Ryan Harris finished off the job.

It was somewhat fitting that the two fast bowlers were there at the end as their efforts with the bat in the first innings and then with the ball had turned the game on its head.

Hilfenhaus finished with four for 27 and Harris, who scored a maiden Test half-century in Australia's first innings, returned three for 31 as the West Indies failed to string together the partnerships they needed to make the game safe.

Carlton Baugh made 23 and Roach 25 but that was as strong as their resistance would get.

Captain Darren Sammy was bowled by Watson for 14 and Fidel Edwards fell for three to set Australia a testing target given that rain delayed proceedings before they began their reply and the light was always likely to close in on them.

They got off to a good start, David Warner leading the way with 22 in 39 balls as opening partner Ed Cowan was more circumspect, making 34 in 100.

Warner was caught by Baugh off Sammy and Cowan fell when he was caught by first-innings centurion Shivnarine Chanderpaul off Narsingh Deonarine.

Deonarine proved a revelation with the ball, going to also take the wickets of Watson, Ricky Ponting (14) and Michael Clarke (6) to finish with four for 53, although his efforts proved to be in vain.

Watson's 52 in 57 balls included four fours and a six and was the defining innings of the day, taking Australia from a position of uncertainty towards one where they were in control, although Cowan's 34 and Hussey's 32 ensured there would be no way back for the West Indies.

Despite Roach bowling Hussey and having Wade caught by Devendra Bishoo, Harris (4) and Hilfenhaus (2) held their nerve although even the winning moment was full of drama as the third umpire had to adjudge whether Hilfenhaus had made his ground successfully.

He had, and Australia move to the second match, which begins in Trinidad on 15th April with a lead that few expected them to have given the slow nature of the game up until the final two days.

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Pollard power too much for Rajasthan

Mumbai Indians 197 for 6 (Pollard 64, Rayudu 47*) beat Rajasthan Royals 170 (Shah 76, Rahane 40, Munaf 4-28)

The scoreboard might not tell you that but Mumbai Indians and Rajasthan Royals gave IPL 2012 its first close high-scoring game as Wankhede Stadium cheered. The 27-run margin did not do justice to Rajasthan Royals for the way they went after an asking-rate of nearly ten an over against a quality bowling attack. This after Kieron Pollard had muscled his way to his highest IPL score and propelled Mumbai Indians to the highest total of this IPL season so far. 

Pollard's all-round performance, 64 off 33 deliveries and 4 for 44, left in the shade a dazzling innings of 76 off 42 from Owais Shah, which had rudely threatened to gatecrash what had shaped up to be Pollard's night. Till the end of the 14th over, as Shah kept peppering the on-side rope with boundaries, Royals had an almost even chance. But in a game where no bowler apart from him went for less than seven an over, Lasith Malinga uprooted Shah's off stump with a yorker off the first ball of the 15th. 

While Munaf Patel and Pollard ended with four wickets each, it was Malinga's over that turned the game in Mumbai Indians' favour. While Malinga stood out with figures of 4-0-13-2 in a match where 367 runs were scored, it was Pollard who towered above everyone with his all-round performance.

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Delhi crush lethargic Chennai

Delhi Daredevils 111 for 2 (Pietersen 43*, Sehwag 33) beat Chennai Super Kings 110 for 8 (M Morkel 2-19) by eight wickets

Chennai Super Kings were disappointing with the bat for the second time in three games and their confused running allowed Delhi Daredevils to restrict them to their second-lowest total in the IPL for a comprehensive win. Three of the first four Super Kings batsmen ran themselves out as neither Daredevils' bowlers nor their fielders let up on the pressure.

Off the first ball of the game, M Vijay responded too eagerly to a call for a single from Faf du Plessis only for the latter to stop after taking a few steps. Vijay was almost at the other end and had no chance of making it back. Such chaos was to be a feature of the innings. Suresh Raina went too far down the pitch in search of a tight single but could not make it back in time; S Badrinath was to meet a similar fate a couple of overs later.

It did not help Super Kings that after hitting three boundaries and looking in fine touch, du Plessis found extra cover off Morne Morkel with another drive. It allowed Daredevils to come back from Irfan Pathan's second over, the third of the innings, which went for 14. Raina slogged a couple of sixes over the on side before contriving to dismiss himself. The last thing Super Kings wanted was for Daredevils wicketkeeper Naman Ojha to pull off a stunning diving catch off Ravindra Jadeja's outside edge.

With Super Kings struggling on 66 for 5, Daredevils were able to exert even more pressure through their left-arm spinners Roelof van der Merwe and Shahbaz Nadeem. The duo conceded just 24 runs off seven overs between them. Super Kings' final hope was the pair of Dwayne Bravo and MS Dhoni but they failed to push on after adding 23 in 41 balls. Super Kings' crawl was summed up by Bravo playing out seven consecutive dot balls against the spinners.

After plodding along to 11 off 18, Dhoni could not clear long-on off Morne Morkel as he tried to break free in the 18th over. Bravo followed in the 19th, and Super Kings signed off their innings with one more run-out in the last over.
the visitors slumped to their biggest defeat in terms of balls remaining.

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IPL 5: DC-MI tie witnesses drama after umpiring error

Controversy erupted in the IPL match between Deccan Chargers and Mumbai Indians here Monday with the latter team's captain Harbhajan Singh having a heated and prolonged argument with the field umpires who committed a mistake in not giving a home side batsman out. The incident happened in the 13th over of Deccan Chargers' innings after they opted to bat first. Their captain Kumar Sangakkara was clearly out off the bowling of Munaf Patel though the field umpires thought it otherwise initially before referring the decision to the third umpire.

The third ball of Munaf Patel's third over and 13th of Deccan Chargers' innings saw Sangakkara dragging the ball onto the off-stump with the bails dislodged and the ball hit the wickets for the second time after ricocheting from Mumbai wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik. Field Umpires AK Chowdhury of India and JD Cloete of South Africa consulted each other but thought that the ball came off Karthik's pads and ruled Sangakkara not out. That led to the drama with an angry-looking Harbhajan rushing towards the umpires and apparently asking Cloete why he did not go upstairs for a third umpire decision. 

A heated argument followed between Harbhajan and the field umpires with Munaf joining in and play stopped for more than five minutes. Deccan captain Sangakkara also had a word with the umpires who finally referred the decision to the third umpire. The third umpire gave Sangakkara out as was expected and play resumed.

 

Innings	Dot balls	4s	6s	Powerplay (0-6)	16-20 overs	NB/Wides
Deccan Chargers	39	6	8	45-2	29-5	0/4
Mumbai Indians	44	8	8	29-2	48-2	0/0

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