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Tillakaratne Dilshan, the Sri Lanka captain, has said he will not consider changing the way he bats after a pair of impetuous innings contributed to his team’s heavy defeat by Australia in the first Test in Galle

Daniel Brettig03-Sep-2011Tillakaratne Dilshan, the Sri Lanka captain, has said he will not consider changing the way he bats after a pair of impetuous innings contributed to his team’s heavy defeat by Australia in the first Test in Galle.Mahela Jayawardene and Angelo Mathews added 142 before being parted on the fourth day, showing what might have been achieved by Sri Lanka with a little more application on the most difficult of Galle pitches. Dilshan admitted his side’s first innings surrender for 105 had been the key to their downfall, but has no intention of reining in his own game.”We can’t expect to get out for 105 in the first innings [and win],” Dilshan said. “That is why we lost this match. We can’t give a 150-run lead, especially on this kind of wicket. We planned to get 220-230 runs [in the fourth innings] but unfortunately we had to get 400 runs.”[But] I’m not going to change my batting, I’ve batted aggressively over the last three or four years and I want to play my shots. I play my natural game. Especially on a wicket that it is not easy to survive on, you have to play some shots and overcome that [challenge] with something special.”On the second morning Dilshan drove Trent Copeland’s first ball for four then attempted to repeat the shot from the second and was pouched at short cover by Ricky Ponting. In the second innings he played a succession of questionable strokes before being bowled by Ryan Harris, helping open up the innings and the match for Australia.Sri Lanka have now gone nine matches since last registering a Test victory, the sort of streak that puts Australia’s struggles around the Ashes series into some perspective. The hosts are yet to win a Test since the retirement of Muttiah Muralitharan, who seems to have left the same sort of hole Richard Hadlee did for New Zealand when he retired in 1990.”We have to find a way to win matches,” Dilshan said. “After Murali retired, it is very difficult to win matches, but we’ve got new spinners. I look forward to winning upcoming matches.The omission of Ajantha Mendis had been a talking point through the match, especially in the second innings when Suraj Randiv did not trouble Australia as much as a spin bowler might have expected to on a dastardly pitch. Dilshan defended the selectors’ call.”In the last few matches Randiv and [Rangana] Herath clearly did well for our team. Mendis played in the last Test series, but these two have been better overall. That is why we picked them. I feel they were a good choice for this wicket.”Sri Lanka’s primary consolation came from Jayawardene and Mathews, who showed tremendous courage and skill to hold up Australia’s attack. Dilshan said he had nurtured slims hopes for victory while Jayawardene was at the crease.”Their fightback was great. After being 68 for five, I felt they put us in a winning position at one stage,” he said. “Mahela batted really well, he showed his character and experience.”He’s batted in these kinds of situations a lot over the last six or seven years for Sri Lanka. When the team is struggling, he puts his hand up and puts runs on the board. Today he did the same thing. Unfortunately he got out to the new ball, but I’m really happy with the way these two batted.”

ESPNcricinfo previews the semi-finals of the the Faysal Bank T20 in Karachi

The Preview by Umar Farooq01-Oct-2011

Match facts

Lahore Eagles v Sialkot Stallions, October 1, 1st semi-final, Karachi

Start time 1600 (1100 GMT)
Peshawar Panthers v Rawalpindi Rams, October 1, 2nd semi-final, Karachi

Start time 2000 (1500 GMT)
Peshawar’s Umar Gul has a point to prove to win back his place in the national side•Associated Press

Big Picture

The 2011 Faysal Bank T20 Cup has thrown up a few surprises in the group stage of the competition, with pre-tournament favourites, Karachi Dolphins, and defending champions, Lahore Lions, both falling by the wayside before the semi-finals.The draw had seemed to favour Karachi, who were in the same group as depleted teams such as Islamabad Leopards and Peshawar Panthers, but Twenty20 is the most fickle form of the game. Sialkot Stallions, the five-time-champions, are finally back in the spotlight after thumping Lahore Lions and Quetta Bears, while Rawalpindi Rams beat Faisalabad Wolves to extend their winning streak and ease into the semi-finals.Most of the games have been played in front of just a few thousand spectators at the National Stadium in Karachi, but a couple of contests that involved the home team, led by Shahid Afridi, had close to overflowing stands. Karachi, though, did not make the semi-finals, and it remains to be seen how many fans turn up to watch the final few matches.

Watch out for …

Sialkot’s 18-year-old Raza Hasan, a left-arm spinner who last appeared for Rawalpindi, has consistently been called up for the national side but has never been handed the opportunity to kick-start his international career. A good showing here could help his chances.Out of favour Pakistan fast bowler Umar Gul, who is captaining Peshawar, also has a point to prove to win back his place in the national side.

Team news

In the absence of seasoned campaigners Naved-ul-Hasan and Abdul Rehman, Sialkot lost their way in 2010, but the pair are back this year and the team, led by Shoaib Malik, have set their sights on re-establishing their dominance in the format. “We were missing several key players for the last couple of events, but particularly with Rana [Naved-ul-Hasan] making his way back into the squad, and Raza [Hasan, who has shifted to Sialkot from Rawalpindi], we have good additions to our squad this year,” captain Shoaib Malik told ESPNcricinfo. “We definitely have our sights on regaining our lost glory as former champions, but [right now] our focus is currently on the semi-final.”Rawalpindi are the defending champions and have responded well to the pressure of trying to retain their title, winning all three of their league games. Though they are a young side, they have not been overawed by the occasion and their strength in depth makes them a definite threat to repeat.

Stats and trivia

• Rawalpindi Rams and Lahore Eagles are the only teams with two batsmen aggregating over 100 runs so far in the tournament
• Sialkot Stallions’ Sarfraz Ahmed’s 4 for 13 against Hyderabad Hawks is the best bowling figures in the tournament

Quotes

“It’s all about the right combination. The Twenty20 format is a unique form of game that requires being on your toes all the way while batting or fielding and [the right] combination means a lot. You can’t afford to be complacent with even a single ball.”
“We weren’t one of the fancied teams going into this tournament, but we have shown that we are a match for any team in this competition.”

ESPNcricinfo previews the one-off Twenty20 international between Bangladesh and West Indies in Mirpur

The Preview by Dustin Silgardo10-Oct-2011

Match Facts

Bangladesh v West Indies, October 11, Mirpur
Start time 1700 (1100GMT)Marlon Samuels smashed a century in the warm-up Twenty20•Associated Press

Big Picture

It’s been a tough year for Bangladesh. After convincing home one-day series wins against New Zealand and Zimbabwe last year, which helped them go above West Indies in the ICC one-day international rankings, many expected 2011 to be the year Bangladesh would permanently shed the “minnow” tag. Instead, they failed to make it past the group stages of the World Cup, were thrashed at home by Australia and then lost both the one-off Test and ODI series in Zimbabwe. Their captain and vice-captain were sacked after that tour and it is under Mushfiqur Rahim that they attempt a climb back up the rankings.In coming up against West Indies, they revisit the moment when it all started going wrong – when they were bowled out for 58 by the same opponents in a crunch World Cup game in Mirpur, a performance that caused their angry fans to aim stones at the team bus, only to hit the visitors’ bus instead.Bangladesh’s strength at home is based on the effectiveness of their spinners on slow, turning tracks. West Indies, though, might not find the conditions as alien as sides like New Zealand and Zimbabwe. The pitches in the Caribbean of late have often resembled subcontinent ones, and four of West Indies’ batsmen will come to Bangladesh straight from having played for Trinidad & Tobago in the Champions League Twenty20 in India.West Indies do not have Sunil Narine or Samuel Badree, who were so successful for T&T in Indian conditions, in their squad, but the presence of Devendra Bishoo and Andre Russell, who bowls a good slower ball, means they have an attack that can adapt to the conditions. They established their status as favourites by winning both their practice matches against a strong BCB XI outfit, one through a strong bowling performance and the other through a century from Marlon Samuels.For Bangladesh, a Twenty20 international is the last way they would want to start a comeback. They have only played 16 in their history and their last T20 win came way back in 2007. For West Indies, Twenty20 represents everything that is right and wrong with their cricket. A shock win in England, and T&T’s eye-catching performance in the CLT20 suggest this might actually be the format in which West Indies see most success in the near future.

Spotlight

Mushfiqur Rahim is stepping into the shoes of a man who led from the front. Mushfiqur is as not as outstanding an individual performer as Shakib. He is safe behind the stumps and handy with the bat, but has not won Bangladesh as many games as Shakib has – he has just one hundred in limited-overs internationals. Having been handed the captaincy he will want to contribute more than just cameos down the order and may promote himself.Marlon Samuels’ comeback to international cricket has not really taken off. But in the warm-up Twenty20, he blazed his way to 102 off 56 balls. In the absence of Chris Gayle, Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Dwayne Bravo, Samuels is the most experienced player in the West Indies limited-overs squad. This series is an opportunity for him to show he still has the capability to become the world-class batsman he was expected to be when he first arrived on the international scene, way back in 2000.

Team news

Bangladesh have picked the uncapped Elias Sunny in their squad and may want to give him a chance before the one-day series starts. That may mean resting one of Mahmudullah or Nasir Hossain. Alok Kapali and Mohammad Ashraful are the experienced hands in the squad but there may only be place for one in the batting line-up.Bangldesh (probable): 1 Tamim Iqbal 2 Imrul Kayes 3 Naeem Islam 4 Shakib Al Hasan 5 Mushfiqur Rahim (capt & wk) 6 Alok Kapali 7 Mahmudullah 8 Abdur Razzak 9 Shafiul Islam 10 Elias Sunny/ Nazmul Hossain 11 Rubel HossainWith several senior players returning, the West Indies side will have a completely different look to the one that upset England at The Oval. They used just one specialist spinner in their XIs for both the practice matches but considering the conditions may play both Devendra Bishoo and Anthony Martin, meaning Kemar Roach could be left out. Kieron Pollard is not eligible to play in T20Is since he did not play the Caribbean T20, so Danza Hyatt will probably occupy a slot in the middle order.West Indies (probable): 1 Adrian Barath 2 Lendl Simmons 3 Darren Bravo 4 Marlon Samuels 5 Danza Hyatt 6 Denesh Ramdin (wk) 7 Andre Russell 8 Darren Sammy (capt) 9 Ravi Rampaul 10 Devendra Bishoo 11 Anthony Martin/ Kemar Roach

Pitch and conditions

Scores at the Shere Bangla Stadium have seen some strange fluctuations this year. This is the same ground where Bangladesh were bowled out for 58 against West Indies and 78 against South Africa during the World Cup. But there have also been scores of 370, by India in the World Cup opener, and 361, by Australia. The low scores were more due to poor batting, though, so the pitch can be expected to provide plenty of runs if the batsmen do not make careless errors.

Stats & Trivia

• This will be the first Twenty20 international to be played in Bangladesh since 2006. It is the first T20I at the Shere Bangla Stadium
• Though they have won a Test and one-day series in the West Indies, Bangladesh have never won an international match against West Indies at home

Quotes

“I believe we can win the series. West Indies are a good outfit. We have to play well to beat them.”
“Their attack is full of spinners and we have a good mix of pace and spin. It will be the spin of Bangladesh versus the pace of West Indies.”

Brad Haddin says he will continue playing his natural game but will try to assess situations better than he did at Newlands

Brydon Coverdale in Johannesburg14-Nov-2011Of all the shots played by Australia batsmen during their capitulation for 47 in Cape Town, Brad Haddin’s stood out as the most reckless. And of all the players in the team, few could afford such a blemish less than Haddin.As this week’s Johannesburg Test approaches, with a new selection panel ready to choose a squad to play New Zealand during the next fortnight, three men in Australia’s side are under pressure. Ricky Ponting is 36 and in a trough, Mitchell Johnson’s inconsistency continues to frustrate, and Haddin’s slump has become worrying.Haddin is 34, an age at which lean patches are dangerous, especially if a younger replacement is ready. Ian Healy was axed at 35. Haddin’s understudy, Tim Paine, has a broken finger and is out indefinitely, but Victoria’s keeper Matthew Wade is in fine touch and would not be out of place at Test level.Although Haddin was one of Australia’s better performers during the Ashes debacle, he now has a top score of 35 from his past five Tests. And the image that is freshest in the minds of those who watched the Newlands Test was of Haddin, with Australia at 18 for 5, slashing irresponsibly outside off and edging behind at a time when discretion was required.He had fallen to a similar rush of blood in the first innings, when Australia were 163 for 5. This week’s Test, which starts at the Wanderers on Thursday, is an important opportunity for Haddin, and the other struggling members of the side, with John Inverarity’s new selection panel watching on with interest.”It wasn’t my proudest moment the other day but the thing about this game is the way you fight back,” Haddin said. “It’s where your mental strength comes from, where you turn back up after the disappointment of the other day, not only individually but as a team. It shows what mental strength you have as a player moving forward.”Mental strength was one of the things Australia lacked in Cape Town. The assistant coach Justin Langer referred to the players’ lack of game awareness on the second day, when wickets fell at an alarming rate.Better shot selection, Langer said, was the key, although he also said it was important for the batsmen to retain their positive intent. Haddin doesn’t intend to go into his shell, but he does concede that he failed to assess things correctly at Newlands.”It’s important for everyone to play their natural game. There are moments in the game when you have to assess situations and that’s something I didn’t do great the other day. But the bottom line is you have to be true to yourself and your team-mates and play the way that’s got you here.”Haddin worked hard in the nets at Newlands on Sunday, on what was supposed to be the fifth day of the Test, and he will do so at the Wanderers when Australia train there on Tuesday for the first time. He is understandably keen to play as long as possible at international level, after he spent the best part of a decade in the queue behind Adam Gilchrist.Now it is Paine, 26, and Wade, 24, who are waiting in line. If Haddin has his way, they’ll be there a bit longer yet.”I’ve never looked at age or anything like that. For me it was always about being the best cricketer I could possibly be. If I get to the point where I think I’ve got no further part in the game then I won’t play the game anymore but at this stage I feel like I’ve got a lot of improvement in me and I’ll be kicking until then.”

Peshwar’s trio of seamers – Riaz Afridi, Waqar Ahmed and Afaq Ahmed – bowled Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited out for 202 on the first day of the final of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Division Two 2011-12

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Dec-2011
ScorecardPeshawar’s trio of seamers – Riaz Afridi, Waqar Ahmed and Afaq Ahmed – bowled Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited out for 202 on the first day of the final of the Quaid-e-Azam Trophy Division Two 2011-12. SNGPL chose to bat but lost a wicket off the second ball, Afridi dismissing Naeemuddin. After a 62-run partnership between Azeem Ghumman and Ali Waqas, wickets fell regularly. Afridi and Waqar ripped through the top order, and then Afaq made sure the tail did not wag.Waqar, who was second in the wicket-charts during the group phase, took 3 for 80, Afridi had 4 for 55, and Afaq finished with 3 for 48. Usman Arshad’s 41 was SNGPL’s top score. Four other batsmen got starts but there were also five single-digit scores and SNGPL slumped to a disappointing total.Peshawar got off to a blazing start in their response, with the openers putting together a partnership of 82 runs in just 12.1 overs. Israrullah was dismissed for 36 and Iftikhar Ahmed fell for a first-ball duck to give SNGPL some respite at the end of the day. But Mohammad Fayyaz was 43 not out off 40 balls at stumps and Peshawar will look to get the first-innings lead on the second day.

Australia’s fast men obliterated India with bowling of sustained hostility and direction to deliver a handsome 122-run victory to the hosts, on day four of the first Test at the MCG

The Report by Daniel Brettig at the MCG29-Dec-2011
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
James Pattinson and Peter Siddle took six wickets each in the Test•Getty Images

Australia’s fast men obliterated India with bowling of sustained hostility and direction to deliver a handsome 122-run victory to the hosts, on day four of the first Test at the MCG.James Pattinson, Ben Hilfenhaus and Peter Siddle made a fearful mess of India’s batting, sharing nine wickets between them to bring a swift conclusion to a match that had fluctuated often over the course of the previous three days. In doing so they finished with the ball what had started with the bat – Australia’s tail deflated India in the morning by stretching the target to 292.Pattinson’s contribution on his home ground was telling, first stroking an unbeaten 37 then firing out Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman while also softening up Sachin Tendulkar for Siddle, who claimed him with his first ball after relieving the younger Victorian. The end arrived 70 minutes after tea, Australia claiming a 1-0 series lead in their quest to regain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.The result was a vindication of Australia’s team selection and the full length pursued by the team’s pacemen under the guidance of the bowling coach Craig McDermott. The captain Michael Clarke and the coach Mickey Arthur will now focus their efforts on ensuring the heights reached on day four in Melbourne are not undone by a poor follow-up in Sydney, as has been the pattern in recent Tests.By contrast India’s surrender exhumed the batting shortcomings exposed by the unhappy tour of England earlier this year. The difference at the MCG was that Australia had to counter a far stronger visiting bowling attack, on a well-prepared pitch that remained lively throughout the Test. It was watched by a 189,347 spectators, the most for a Test between Australia and India in this country.In the morning, Michael Hussey had added only 10 to his overnight 79 before receiving a blistering delivery from Zaheer Khan, but Pattinson and Hilfenhaus frustrated India’s bowlers with a stand of 43 that took the total to 240. Pattinson’s unbeaten 37 was his highest first-class score, and there are sure to be better days with the bat if he retains the technique demonstrated here.Hilfenhaus proved a worthy ally, playing one or two sparkling strokes of his own. The visitors slipped all too easily into run-saving mode against the hosts’ last pair until Hilfenhaus edged Ishant Sharma into the slips. The last team to achieve a fourth-innings target of such dimensions was South Africa’s 4 for 297 to beat Australia in 1953.Resuming with a lead of 230, Hussey and Pattinson began soundly, finding gaps here and there, and occasionally stepping out to attack bowling of high calibre. Pattinson’s good-morning cover drive to Umesh Yadav was the equal of anything managed by a batsman in this match.Hussey was fortunate to go past 80, flicking at a Yadav delivery that swung down the legside and getting the merest of touches – as revealed by Hotspot. Zaheer persisted, however, and soon he found a dastardly delivery that pranced at Hussey and moved away, clipping the outside edge on the way to MS Dhoni. An outstanding ball to conclude an outstanding innings.Pattinson leant into another consummate cover drive from Yadav, but on 15 he did not control a hook and offered up a swirling chance. Running in from fine leg but never sure of himself, Zaheer dropped it. From there each run accrued was painful for the visitors, the partnership assuming unsavoury proportions for India and making it past the drinks break. R Ashwin was introduced as Dhoni searched for the wicket, but it was ultimately collected by Ishant.Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir began the chase carefully, Sehwag even offering a rare forward defensive blade to Hilfenhaus. But he could not contain himself totally, and Hussey was delighted to grasp a sharp chance from a sliced forcing stroke as the interval beckoned.Gambhir’s angled bat outside off stump remains a source of considerable encouragement for bowlers taking the ball across him, and Siddle completed an unhappy match for the opener soon after lunch when a snick was held neatly by Ricky Ponting.Dravid and Tendulkar had provided the greatest resistance in the first innings, and in the second wanted to assume similar roles as Dravid dug in while Tendulkar was busy, scoring with pleasing freedom. But their union was to be split by Pattinson, who found a ripping delivery to seam between Dravid’s bat and pad, and have middle stump leaning at a drunken angle. Victim of two princely deliveries, Dravid was bowled in each innings for only the fourth time in his long career.Laxman completed a Test that returned three runs in 36 balls when he flicked heedlessly at Pattinson and presented a catch forward of square leg, Ed Cowan’s first in Tests. Australians with long memories held their collective breath while the umpires checked for a possible no-ball, but Pattinson’s foot had seemingly landed millimetres within the legal zone. So rarely has Laxman been dismissed so softly against Australia.By now the Australians had inexorable momentum behind them, and Hilfenhaus pinned Virat Kohli lbw first ball. Bat, pad and ball were all in close proximity, and Kohli lingered at the wicket upon his dismissal. However replays offered precious little evidence of an edge, even if India deigned to employ the DRS that might have saved him.Aghast at the chaos all around him, Tendulkar had been stretched by Pattinson’s speed, hostility and movement. Siddle relieved his younger club and state team-mate, and first ball gained the wicket Pattinson had so strived for. As dictated by team planners, the ball was full and moving wider, Tendulkar’s square drive was airy, and Hussey’s hands safe. At 6 for 81, evening flights to Sydney were being booked en masse, but Dhoni and R Ashwin picked off a few runs before the interval.Ashwin’s 30 gave him a more respectable batting contribution for the match than many of the rest, but he failed to ride Siddle’s bouncer, which skimmed off the wicket to produce a skier and a simple catch for Cowan moving around from short leg. Pattinson returned to the attack and became embroiled in a brief sledging match with Zaheer, the bowler striking a boundary over point and a steepling six over long on before squeezing another catch to Cowan under the helmet.Dhoni’s will to frustrate Australia ebbed away, and an unbecoming heave at Pattinson resulted in a drag onto the stumps. Ishant and Umesh Yadav resisted briefly, but Clarke called Nathan Lyon into the attack and Yadav obliged by swinging into the deep. David Warner held a smart catch to begin rich and deserved celebrations.