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Bollywood meets cricket as South Africa hosts the IPL

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Bollywood Insider - Shetty, Khan and Zinta give boost to IPL

2009-04-18T08:19:00.001-07:00

DLF IPL2 Schedule( The Chase Begins Today ) in South Africa

2009-04-18T08:14:00.003-07:00

IPL2 KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS SONG 2009

2009-04-18T08:14:00.001-07:00

Chennai beat Punjab, enter final

2008-05-31T11:06:00.000-07:00

MUMBAI: Chennai Super Kings thumped Kings XI Punjab by 9 wickets in the second semi-final of the Indian Premier League at the Wankhede Stadium on Saturday.

Chasing 113 runs to enter the final, Parthiv Patel and Suresh Raina guide Chennai to victory against Kings XI Punjab in the 15th over.

Chennai Super Kings will play favourite, Rajathan Royals at DY Patil stadium on Sunday in the final on the inaugural Indian Premier League.

Earlier, Chennai Super Kings' pace attack ripped apart the strong Punjab Kings XI top-order batting and restricted them to a paltry 112 for 8 in the second semi-final of Indian Premier League..

Everything went wrong for Kings XI Punjab after captain Yuvraj Singh opted to bat first on winning the toss and half their side was back in the dug-out with only 40 on the board on a seaming track.

Poor batting coupled with some good seam bowling undid the Punjab side.

Makhaya Ntini and Manpreet Singh Gony rocked the high-flying Kings XI Punjab side with a double strike each which reduced Yuvraj Singh-led team to a pathetic 34 for four in the sixth over.

Ntini started the domination of the ball over the bat when he had James Hopes caught behind chasing an outswinger for two in the second over.

Then Gony dismissed Kumar Sangakkara in similar fashion, caught by wicket keeper Parthiv Patel to leave Punjab at a shaky 2 for 11.

Things became grimmer when Kings XI Punjab captain Yuvraj Singh pulled Gony, who bowled an excellent four-over spell for figures of 2 for 14, straight to Muttiah Muralitharan at wide mid-on to leave them gasping at 28 for three.

But the biggest blow was when South African pacer Ntini dismissed Punjab batting mainstay Marsh in his third over.

At 45 for six there was a possibility of Punjab doing worse than what Kolkata Knight Riders had done (67 all out; the lowest score of IPL) against Mumbai Indians at the same venue on May 16.

This was averted with Wilkin Mota (25 off 26 balls) and Ramesh Powar (28 off 22 balls; 1X6; 4X4) leading the way by adding 35 runs for the eighth wicket.

Powar helped boost the tally by creaming Balaji for three fours in the last over from which 14 runs were scored.

Ntini got 2 for 23 in his four overs bowled on the trot, Morkel ended up with 2 for 27 while Muralitharan, who bowled the first over of the innings, finished with 1 for 19.

Clinical Chennai send Punjab packing

2008-05-31T11:04:00.001-07:00

An inspired Chennai Super Kings shrugged off the underdogs' tag with a thoroughly comprehensive display to thrash Kings XI Punjab by nine wickets and join Rajasthan Royals in the IPL final. Punjab's batting had been in superb form through most of the tournament, but they came completely unstuck in the face of some accurate and relentless seam bowling by Chennai's three fast bowlers, folding for a paltry 112. Parthiv Patel and Suresh Raina then ensured that the run-chase was a canter, putting together 102 for the second wicket - both ended on unbeaten half-centuries as Chennai sailed home with 31 deliveries to spare.

Punjab's two previous losses to Chennai, in the league games, had both come when they'd chased, and Yuvraj Singh did the team a huge favour by winning the toss and choosing to bat on a pitch which was expected to assist the spinners later in the evening. That, though, was the only thing that went right for Punjab, as Makhaya Ntini and Manpreet Gony struck twice each in their first spells, reduced Punjab to 40 for 5, and never released the pressure thereafter, as the Wankhede Stadium played host to the second one-sided semi-final in two days.

On a pitch offering generous bounce to the fast bowlers, Chennai's pace attack of Ntini, Gony and Albie Morkel bowled in the perfect channel, denying the Punjab batsmen any room to execute strokes through the off side. Learning from Shane Watson's spell on Friday, Ntini pitched it slightly short of a length, hit the bat hard, and hurried the batsmen in their shots, while Gony bowled a fuller length, and with the sort of control which would have made Glenn McGrath proud. Chennai were also superb in the field - Muttiah Muralitharan pulled off a splendid catch over his head to intercept a Yuvraj pull, Suresh Raina was equally spectacular in pulling off a diving catch to dismiss Wilkin Mota, while the ground fielding was without blemish.

There was little sign of such a dramatic collapse when Shaun Marsh stroked the first ball of the match - from Muralitharan, surprisingly - through the covers for four. Seven came off that over, but the wheels started coming off in the next over, when James Hopes slashed at a wide one from Ntini and edged to Parthiv.

That dismissal sparked off a procession of wickets, as three more fell in the next four overs. Kumar Sangakkara's was the most bizarre, as he seemed to miss a drive off Gony, but walked off even though Parthiv didn't appeal at all. Yuvraj was restless after playing out three successive dot balls and pulled to Murali at short midwicket, but the biggest blow was delivered in the next over, when Ntini hit back to dismiss Marsh immediately after being creamed for a perfect straight drive. Marsh had top-edged a pull for six earlier in the innings, but wasn't as lucky in the sixth over, as the inside edge crashed into his stumps.

Clearly rattled by the early wickets, Punjab lost the plot with some terrible running between the wickets, which cost Irfan Pathan his wicket. Mahela Jayawardene stroked the ball to third man, ran two, started for the third and then changed his mind, leaving Pathan with too little time to gain his ground. When Jayawardene himself fell next over, steering to the wicketkeeper, Punjab had slumped to 45 for 6.

From there, it was only an exercise in damage control: Mota and Ramesh Powar - the two local Mumbai players - put together 35, easily the most productive partnership of the innings. Mota managed a useful 26-ball 25, while Powar smeared Morkel for a huge six over midwicket and then punished a listless L Balaji for three fours in the last over, but a target of 113 was hardly enough to test Chennai.

S Vidyut fell early, but Raina and Parthiv gave Punjab no further opportunity. Raina was in especially sublime touch - he started off with two delectable fours, adjusting to Powar's turn and gliding a four to third man, and then cutting the next ball through point. As he grew in confidence, the ferocity of the strokes increased, and the high point was an incredible pull off Hopes - on a pitch where most batsmen struggled to ride the bounce and execute the stroke - which sailed onto the roof of the stadium. Pathan was similarly dismissed over square leg, while Chawla was slog-swept for six and then driven through extra cover in the last over as Raina brought up his fifty off a mere 32 balls.

Parthiv was slightly more subdued, but the paltry target gave him plenty of time to work with. He started slowly, but then a couple of superb straight hits off the fast bowlers, and powerful sweeps off the spinners. Pathan's early swing with the new ball offered Punjab some hope, but once Chennai got past that threat, there was little the slower bowlers could do. Chennai lost both their league games against Rajasthan, but after such an emphatic win, that'll hardly bother them.

Chennai Super Kings set up a Royals date

2008-05-31T10:52:00.000-07:00

Mumbai: Chennai Super Kings' pace attack ripped apart the strong Kings XI Punjab top-order batting and restricted them to a paltry 112-8 in the second semi-final of Indian Premier League at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Saturday night.

Everything went wrong for Kings XI Punjab after skipper Yuvraj Singh opted to bat first on winning the toss and half their side was back in the dug-out with only 40 on the board on a seaming track.

Poor batting coupled with some good seam bowling undid the Punjab side.

Makhaya Ntini and Manpreet Singh Gony rocked the high-flying Kings XI Punjab side with a double strike each which reduced Yuvraj Singh-led team to a pathetic 34-4 in the sixth over.

Ntini started the domination of the ball over the bat when he had James Hopes caught behind chasing an outswinger for two in the second over.

Then Gony dismissed Kumar Sangakkara in similar fashion, caught by wicket keeper Parthiv Patel to leave Punjab at a shaky 2 for 11.

Things became grimmer when Yuvraj pulled Gony, who bowled an excellent four-over spell for figures of 2 for 14, straight to Muttiah Muralitharan at wide mid-on to leave them gasping at 28-3.

But the biggest blow was when South African pacer Ntini dismissed Punjab batting mainstay Marsh in his third over.

The left-handed opener from Western Australia attempted to pull a ball from wide of his stumps but only managed to get an under-edge that crashed on to the stumps to the absolute delight of the Chennai Super Kings players.

Down in the dumps, Punjab lost Irfan Pathan in a horrible mix-up with Mahela Jayawardene who refused to respond to the former's call for a third run. The long throw from Ntini, who dived to stop a boundary, came handy for running out Irfan when he was stranded at mid-pitch.

Punjab, tottering at 40-5 at Pathan's dismissal, lost their sixth wicket when Jayawardene, with his poise upset at Pathan's run-out and open show of anger while walking back, tried to glide Albie Morkel and top-edged to Patel who grabbed his third catch.

At 45-6 there was a possibility of Punjab doing worse than what Kolkata Knight Riders had done (67 all out; the lowest score of IPL) against Mumbai Indians at the same venue on May 16.

This was averted with Wilkin Mota (25 off 26 balls) and Ramesh Powar (28 off 22 balls; 1X6; 4X4) leading the way by adding 35 runs for the eighth wicket.

The duo took advantage of some below-par performance by the Chennai team in the field to take the score close to 100 before Mota was out.

Powar helped boost the tally by creaming Balaji for three fours in the last over from which 14 runs were scored.

Ntini got 2 for 23 in his four overs bowled on the trot, Morkel ended up with 2 for 27 while Muralitharan, who bowled the first over, finished with 1 for 19.

Teams:

Chennai Super Kings: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain), Parthiv Patel, Sivaramakrishnan Vidyut, Suresh Raina, Albie Morkel, S Badrinath, C Kapugedera, L Balaji, Manpreet Gony, Muthiah Muralitharan, Makhaya Ntini.

Kings XI Punjab: Yuvraj Singh (captain), Shaun Marsh, James Hopes, Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara, Piyush Chawla, Wilkin Mota, Irfan Pathan, Romesh Powar, VRV Singh, S Sreesanth.

Rajasthan crush Delhi by 105 runs

2008-05-30T15:10:00.000-07:00

Mumbai, May 30: Early in the Rajasthan Royals innings, one couldn’t help but smile when Swapnil Asnodkar ran across from the non-striker’s end to have a chat with fellow-opener Smith, who was struggling with his dodgy hamstring and dicey timing. The pint-sized Asnodkar, whose normal gaze would reached the burly 6-foot-plus Smith’s navel, tilted his head more than 45 degrees to utter quick words of encouragement to his troubled mate.

The obvious physical disparity of the odd couple did provide the humour but what was more funny about this reverse idea-exchange was the contrasting international stature of the two cricketers. Smith has been in charge of one of the best ODI outfits in the world and a long-standing skipper of a very successful Test side but today he was getting words of advice from a rank junior with no international experience. But things were different today. At the time the conversation was taking place, Asnodkar had hit four fours while Smith just had one.

About three hours later, when Shane Warne was once again swarmed by his committed worker-bees to signal Rajasthan Royals’ Shane Watson-inspired semi-final victory, one understood the seriousness of that light-hearted moment at the start of the innings. There are no commoners in the Royals squad.

Asnodkar didn’t worry about Smith’s pedigree and treated him like just another team mate. And it didn’t come as a surprise when Aussie great Glenn McGrath was treated as merely another bowler by the little opener with a big heart.

It is this attitude that has been the stand-out feature of this team. And today was no different. They showed that for them the semi-final, too, was just another walk in the park. With their most convincing win of the tournament — a 105-run mauling of the Delhi Daredevils — coming at the most crucial moment of the last 40 days, it was clear that this unit is peaking for the big game on Sunday.

All-rounder Watson, who has been having a dream run in this IPL, can’t match the credentials of some of his high-profile rivals. But, like so many times in the tournament, he was the man of the moment for Rajasthan. His 52 and 3-10 were more than enough to get his team through.

Sehwag and Gambhir might have been regulars on the big stage and big run-scorers in the tournament but they failed to rise to the occasion. Once they were out by the fourth over, the game was as good as over.

There were two more Royal performers today who retained their focus despite contrasting mental states. All-rounder Yusuf Pathan didn’t get the high of being picked for the national team come in his way of scoring a vital 45. But more creditable was pacer Munaf Patel’s show. Dropped from the Indian team this afternoon, he was on field in the evening with a clear mind. His figures of 3-17 gave enough evidence that though he might have lost the India blue but being in royal blue was reason enough to give his best.

Delhi trampled by 105 runs; Royal final guaranteed

2008-05-30T15:06:00.000-07:00

Mumbai, May 30: Rajasthan Royals carried on from where they had left in the league stage as they thrashed Delhi Daredevils by a huge margin of 105 runs. Munaf Patel and Shane Watson shared three wickets apiece for the Royals and played a major role in demolishing the Daredevils. They, thus, take their team into the finals of the IPL to play against either Kings XI Punjab or Chennai Super Kings.

Shane Watson was adjudged the man of the match for his brilliant all-round performance whereas Yusuf Pathan was awarded with a cheque for the DLF maximum sixes. He clobbered four of them.

Watson top scored for the Rajasthan Royals with a 29 ball 52 while Yusuf Pathan clobbered the Daredevils for four monstrous hits over the fence and three to it to score 45 runs off just 21 balls. The two hard hitting batsmen capitalised on the rock solid platform laid down by Asnodkar and Smith. Both the openers scored 39 and 25 off 21 balls each. Maharoof was the pick of the bowlers for Delhi as he claimed 3 wickets to rattle the Royal’s top order.

Mohammad Asif looked like an inexperienced player when he was run out due to his non-presence of mind. He did not follow the ball and was casually returning to the crease when a crashing throw came into the hands of Rawat who clipped off theh bails before Asif could put the willow in the crease. This was the end of the Daredevil carnival in the inaugural Indian Premier League.

Yo Mahesh fell prey to a Munaf Patel bouncer which was safely taken by the Royal wicketkeeper Mahesh Rawat. The decision came pretty late from umpire Rudi Koertzen as he was confused whether the ball had hit Yomi on the glove or not. The replays, however, showed that the ball had hit the shoulder of the batsman.

Munaf Patel returned to his second spell only to castle Amit Mishra for a score of 2 runs of 5 balls. A lazy drive off the pads did not click and Mishra’s furniture was displaced by the Indian pacer to reduce the Daredevils down to eight wickets.

Shane Warne joined the party as he claimed two quick wickets to celebrate the Delhi Daredevil downfall. He claimed Farveez Maharoof and Tilakaratne Dilshan in the same over to wipe any hopes of a win for the Daredevils. Warne smiled while Delhi mourned the loss of their Sri Lankan duo.

Kaif showed why he is considered one of the best fielders in international cricket when he took a beauty to strangle Delhi Daredevils by claiming Dinesh Karthik off Siddhartha Trivedi. Although Karthik seemed to hit the ball from the meat of the blade, Kaif’s athleticism got the better of the Delhi batsman. The Daredevils were reduced to 55 for the loss of five wickets with Karthik’s dismissal.

Little man Asnodkar took a simple catch off the bowling of Munaf Patel to dismiss Manoj Tiwary for a duck. Tiwary fell in the form of the fourth wicket for the Daredevils and Delhi, for any hopes of making it to the finals of the Indian Premier League, required a huge partnership from Dilshan and Karthik.

Shane Watson claimed three on the trot when he induced Shikhar Dhawan into a mistimed pull shot off a slower short delivery only to be caught by Ravinder Jadeja at mid wicket. It seemed like everything that Watson touched was turning into gold. He had earlier scored a fabulous half century for his team.

The substitute for Smith, Taruwar Kohli, pulled off a stunner to dismiss the in-form Gautam Gambhir off Shane Watson who took his second wicket of the match. Frustration seemed to get on to the Delhi opener who perished in an attempt to up the tempo.

Sohail Tanvir ran almost 30 metres to catch the dangerous Virender Sehwag off Shane Watson. Watson was more than delighted to scalp the Daredevil captain as he could well have made the difference between the two teams. Sehwag perished in an attempt to hook the Australian for the maximum.

The last over proved to be one of the best of the innings for Delhi Daredevils as Mohammad Asif held his nerve and showed class to give only four runs off the 20th over. He caught Rawat off his own bowling in the same over and Yusuf Pathan’s assault was also arrested when Dinesh Karthik collected an accurate throw from Dilshan in the deep to catch Pathan well short of his crease. The Rajasthan Royals finished at 192/9. Related Stories.

Yo Mahesh contributed with two quick wickets after missing a couple of catches to bring the Rajasthan’s juggernaut to a minor halt. Sehwag puuled off a blinder to dismiss the Royals captain Shane Warne and Ravinder Jadeja was caught by Maharoof off Yomi to complete a double. However, Yusuf Pathan remained unaffected and continued his slaughter.

Amit Mishra deceived Shane Watson and rattled the right hander’s stumps to send half the Royal team back to the dugout. Mishra took two of the five till the 16th over.

Mishra joined in the party as he scalped Mohammad Kaif when he rattled batsman’s furniture. Kaif played across the line and missed to hear the jangle of the stumps. The in-form and just selected for the Bangladesh tri-series, Yusuf Pathan joined Shane Watson at the crease.

The loss of the top order seemed to have no effect on Shane Watson, the hard hitting batsman of Rajasthan Royals. He blew the Daredevil bowling smashing them for fours and sixes with Mohammad Kaif at the other end only seeing his Australian partner at his brutal best.

Prior to this, Maharoof became the Daredevil’s saviour as he struck thrice in his two overs and scalped the wickets of Smith, Asnodkar and Tanvir, who was sent in by the captain of Rajasthan Royals, Warne, and applied brakes on the scoring rate of the Royals. Tanvir was sent in to keep the run rate going but the Sri Lankan pacer proved too good for the left hander.

Maharoof struck off consecutive balls to send the openers back to the dugout with 65 runs on the board. Just when Smith started to go after everything, a bowling change to bring on Maharoof clicked when Dhawan plucked the cherry from mid-air to break the opening wicket partnership of 65 quick runs. Next to go was the very explosive Swapnil Asnodkar who was caught at point by Manoj Tiwary.\

Earlier, riding on the explosive and unorthodox batting display, the Rajasthan Royals were off to a flier in the first semi-final against the Daredevils. Smith showed his class while Asnodkar displayed that external appearances are deceptive and unlike his height, he has oodles of talent and hitting prowess. The openers denied the bowling side any wicket and continued their onslaught in customary fashion.

The captain of the Delhi Daredevils, Virender Sehwag, won the toss in the first semi-final of the lucrative and extravagant Indian Premier League and invited his contemporary, Shane Warne, to bat first.

Rajasthan have come into the semis after a huge loss at the hands of the Kings XI Punjab, another team in the semi-finals. Delhi, on the other hand, have had their share of luck in reaching the top four with Mumbai Indians playing a major role.

Both the teams have met twice prior to this in the tournament and are tied 1-1. Rajasthan were thrashed in their very first game when they were torn apart by lethal bowling by McGrath and co. but the Royals avenged their defeat and beat the Daredevils chasing 157 in the later stage of the tournament riding on a fabulous 74 by Shane Watson.

Smith, Tanvir and Warne will all return for Rajasthan and Kamran Akmal misses out whereas Mohammad Asif is back for Delhi Daredevils in place of Geeves.

Rajasthan Royals v Delhi Daredevils, 1st semi-final, IPL

2008-05-30T14:57:00.000-07:00

Watson! Watson!

Crowd favourite: Half an hour before the first semi-final, the Wankhede was only about half full. An hour into the game the crowd, now packed to the rafters, was screaming "Watson, Watson" as he smashed Delhi's bowlers to all parts of the ground. Mumbai has been known to cheer only their own but two neutral teams contesting the semi-final meant that the fans could cheer for the excellent cricket, irrespective of who was playing it.

VIP treatment: The union railways minister Lalu Prasad Yadav arrived for the match surrounded by a throng of commandos who wanted to sit next to him to guard him. However, the MCA officials, owners of the VVIP box that sits atop the Garware Pavilion, objected and tempers had to be calmed by Ratnakar Shetty, the BCCI chief operating officer. Lalit Modi was obviously irritated and was seen shaking his head.

Walking wounded: Graeme Smith was struggling with his leg and his footwork was severely restricted. Glenn McGrath tried to capitalise on the weakness but Smith countered by using his bottom hand to lift two consecutive deliveries for four to deep midwicket. McGrath then replied with a yorker which swung into Smith. Forgetting his injury for a moment, Smith punched hard at the ball, sending it racing to the long-off boundary before hobbling away to the side in pain.

Catch it right: The pull from Swapnil Asnodkar came in flat, fast, and above chest height towards Farveez Maharoof at deep fine leg. The thumb rule for catching at that height is to take it with hands cupped in front of the chest - the conventional way. Maharoof tried to catch it Aussie style - with fingers pointing upwards - and spilled it. The ball bounced off his hands, hit his face and went over the boundary for four.

Gambhir plays into Watson's hands: With the asking-rate climbing steadily, Gautam Gambhir, Delhi's best batsman, decided to force matters but failed repeatedly. He charged out of his crease to pull but was beaten by Watson's quick bouncer. He then tried to slash through covers but was beaten yet again. A second attempt at pulling also failed and when Gambhir finally connected with a fierce cut, he saw Taruwar Kohli dive to his right to pull off a stunning catch at cover.

IPL 1st Semifinal: Delhi blown away, Rajasthan in final

2008-05-30T14:54:00.000-07:00

Delhi Daredevils were blown away like leaves in a tropical storm as Rajasthan Royals stormed into the final of the IPL at the Wankhede Stadium.

The Royals had an inauspicious start to the game --- in the form of a hamstring injury to Graeme Smith --- but recovered in style with chunky contributions from the regular suspects --- Swapnil Asnodkar, Yusuf Pathan, Munaf Patel and Shane Warne himself. But the real star was Shane Watson whose 52 (29 balls) and 3-10 stood out.

Rajasthan made 192-9 after being put in, and 87 was all that Delhi could make. But Delhi's innings was done the moment Watson reduced them to 3-24 in the sixth over. Virender Sehwag's men caved in against the mounting run rate. With the ball, they had been wayward and had dropped as many as three catches.

Smith-Asnodkar at it again

The Royals' juggernaut has rolled on unstoppable, but it seemed for a moment that it would come to a halt tonight. Smith pulled his hamstring attempting a quick single in the second over. He was initially denied a runner, and for a couple of overs, the runs dried out.

However, Smith recovered from the blow, batted with a runner, and added 65 runs in quick time with his partner Swapnil Asnodkar to set the stage for Shane Watson and Yusuf Pathan, both of whom hurt Delhi bad in the last ten overs.

Rajasthan got off to a slow start --- 15 in three overs --- but it was important they saw off the opening spell by Glenn McGrath and Mohammad Asif. The wicket was hard and flat, and the aggressive openers cashed in.

Asnodkar led the way, hitting Asif over the covers to get going. Smith, on one leg, punched three fours on the trot in a McGrath over. But before the partnership bled Delhi to death, Ferveez Maharoof removed both in the seventh over.

Maharoof had dropped Asnodkar in the previous over at long leg, and he made amends. Smith fell to a catch at deep square leg and Asnodkar couldn't keep a cut shot down and hit it to point.

Watson, Yusuf carry on

Rajasthan's powerful allrounders have been in good form, and they made it count in a big game. Watson's 52 came in just 29 balls while Yusuf's 45 in 21. The two controlled the middle stages of the innings when Maharoof had taken three wickets in good time.

Watson was harsh on Yo Mahesh --- who has been quite miserly in the tournament --- and his third over went for 21 runs. Watson hit one six bang on the roof of the Sunil Gavaskar stand at midwicket in the over.

Yusuf was equally merciless on the bowlers. The highlight of the innings was the slower one he picked up from McGrath in the 19th over. The bat swung in a smooth motion, hitting the ball effortlessly into the crowd behind deep mid wicket.

Patchy performance from Delhi

Delhi had relied heavily on their seamers in the tournament but on Friday night, all didn't go to plan. No bowler was spared by Rajasthan and only Maharoof (3-34) had wickets to show. Besides there were three missed catches.

But the biggest disappointment for them was the collective failure of Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir and Shikhar Dhawan. Delhi's three best batsmen in the IPL were consumed in one spell by Watson.

Sehwag top-edged a catch to fine leg, Gambhir fell to a stunning air-borne catch by Turuwar Kohli at cover, and Dhawan hit a short ball straight to square leg who didn't move an inch for the catch.

Manoj Tiwary miscued a pull off Munaf Patel, and Dinesh Karthik hit a full toss to Mohammad Kaif at midwicket, who tumbled to take a low catch on the boundary.

Maharoof slog-swept Warne to deep midwicket, while Tilakaratne Dilshan's slog sweep went to fine leg. The score read 76-7 but the game had been decided long before that.

Rajasthan will now face the winner of the Chennai Super Kings vs Kings XI Punjab to be played on Saturday.

IPL, 1st SF: Watson dominates in Royals win

2008-05-30T14:50:00.000-07:00

MUMBAI- Shane Watson was the star of the first Indian Premier League semi-final as he steered the Rajasthan Royals to a 105-run win over the Delhi Daredevils.

Captain Shane Warne had feared a neutral venue could hamper the Royals, who topped the regular league table with 11 wins from 14 matches, but those concerns were quickly laid to rest by Watson as the Royals came through unscathed in a disappointingly one-sided affair.

The Australian all-rounder, who top-scored for the Royals with 52 off 29 deliveries, also dominated with the ball, dismissing the dangerous Virender Sehwag (three) and Gautam Ghambir (11) in quick succession to leave the Daredevils reeling.

Sehwag mis-timed a pull and was caught at deep square-leg by Sohail Tanvir, while Ghambir was caught in the covers while attempting a drive.

Those wickets coupled with that of Shikhar Dhawan (five) - Watson's third wicket - brought the Daredevils' chase to a standstill.

And when Dinesh Karthik (10) and Tillakaratne Dilshan (33) departed cheaply, it was all over bar the shouting.

Earlier Watson built impressively on the platform provided by openers Graeme Smith (25) and Swapnil Asnodkar (39) as the Royals finished with a competitive 192 for nine in 20 overs after being asked to bat first.

Asnodkar had stifled nerves at the start in typically explosive style as he put on 65 runs for the opening wicket with Smith.

The South African had seemed in considerable pain due to a hamstring injury and called for a runner in only the second over. But his stroke-making skills seemed unaffected as he hit Glenn McGrath for three consecutive boundaries in the third over.

The Daredevils had started with Mohammed Asif, just back from an elbow injury, but when the Pakistani proved expensive Farveez Maharoof was pressed into service.

The Sri Lankan delivered immediately, dismissing both openers, but those blows hardly stemmed the flow of runs.

Watson bailed his team out of trouble and together with a cameo from Yusuf Pathan (45) ensured a winning total for the Royals.

Watson pilots Rajasthan Royals into IPL final

2008-05-30T14:39:00.000-07:00

Riding on a brilliant all-round display by Shane Watson, the ruthless Rajasthan Royals crushed Delhi Daredevils by 105 runs in a lop-sided semifinal to storm into the final of the Indian Premier League in Mumbai last night.

Watson powered his way to a 29-ball 52 with three sixes and four fours in his team's challenging total of 192 for nine after league table toppers Rajasthan Royals were asked to take first strike by Daredevils captain Virender Sehwag.

Later, Watson ripped out the top-order of Delhi with a triple strike to account for the top three Delhi batsmen Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir and Shikhar Dhawan cheaply to reduce them to 24 for three.

Delhi never recovered from this early body blows and lost wickets at regular intervals while the asking rate kept climbing before they were shot out for a paltry 87 in 16.2 overs.

Rajasthan Royals now await the winners of the second semifinal, to be played at the same venue tomorrow between Punjab King's XI and Chennai Super Kings, in the final to be played at the D Y Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai on June 1.

If Watson stole the major honours of the day, teammate Yusuf Pathan also played a key role and celebrated his Team India inclusion with a whirlwind 45 in 21 balls with four sixes and three fours.

The hard-hitting Pathan, named in the Indian 15 for next month's tri-series in Bangladesh and the Asia Cup in Pakistan earlier in the day, creamed the hapless Delhi attack, which included Glenn McGrath, to hit four sixes and three fours in his 21-ball knock.

Both Watson and Pathan took ample advantage of the good half century start provided by pint-sized opener Swapnil Asnodkar (39 in 21 balls) and Graeme Smith, who made 25 in the same number of balls despite being hampered by a pulled leg muscle which required a runner.

The efforts of Watson and Pathan helped Rajasthan Royals add 109 runs in the last 10 overs after the sound beginning provided by Smith and Asnodkar who put on 65 runs in 40 balls.

Delhi began the run-chase on a poor note when Sehwag (3) pulled a ball wide of the stumps from Watson and skied to deep mid-wicket in the second over.

Gambhir (11) and left-handed Dhawan (5), both in good form in the tournament, perished in close succession after enabling Delhi to make a partial recovery.

Gambhir slashed Watson off back foot and was caught at cover point while Dhawan pulled the Aussie straight to short mid-wicket to leave Delhi gasping at 24 for three.

Watson's first three-over spell read a superb three for 10 and if Delhi had hopes of staging a fight-back they were thwarted by the dismissal of Manoj Tiwary (0), four runs later, off Munaf Patel.

It was a regular procession of batsmen thereafter and Rajasthan emerged victorious in comprehensive fashion.

Tillakratne Dilshan top-scored with 33 in 22 balls -- with a six and five fours -- before being seventh out at 76 in the 13th over.

Apart from Watson, Munaf (3 for 17), who was omitted from the ODI squads for Bangladesh and Pakistan, and skipper Warne (2 for 21) were the other leading wicket takers for Rajasthan Royals.

Watson was the obvious choice for the Man of the Match award.

Rajasthan trounce Delhi to enter final

2008-05-30T14:36:00.000-07:00

Shane Watson did the star turn as Rajasthan Royals stormed into the final of the Indian Premier League , beating Delhi Daredevils by 105 runs in the first semi-final at the Wankhede stadium in Mumbai on Friday night.

The Australia all-rounder first hit a breezy 52 as the Royals put up a challenging 192 for 9 in their allotted 20 overs and then destroyed the Delhi top order.

In a triple strike he had the top three Delhi batsmen -- Virender Sehwag , Gautam Gambhir and Shikhar Dhawan -- dismissed cheaply.

Reduced to 24 for 3, Delhi never recovered and lost wickets at regular intervals. Watson finished with figures of 3 for 10 in three overs as Delhi Daredevils were dismissed for a paltry 87 in 16.2 overs.

Munaf Patel , who was omitted from the ODI squads for Bangladesh and Pakistan tours, claimed 3 for 16 and Shane Warne 2 for 21 to hasten Rajasthan's passage to the final.

Rajasthan Royals take on the winners of Saturday's second semi-final between Kings XI Punjab and Chennai Super Kings .

Delhi began their run-chase on a poor note as Sehwag (3) pulled a ball wide of the stumps from Watson and was caught by Sohail Tanvir at deep mid-wicket in the second over.

Gambhir (11) and left-handed Dhawan (5), who both showed good form earlier in the tournament, perished in quick succession after enabling Delhi make a partial recovery.

Gambhir slashed Watson off backfoot and was caught at cover point while Dhawan pulled the Aussie straight to short mid-wicket to leave Delhi gasping at 24 for three.

Watson's first three-over spell read a superb three for 10 and if Delhi had hopes of staging a fight-back they were thwarted by the dismissal of Manoj Tiwary (0), four runs later, off Munaf Patel.

It was a regular procession of batsmen thereafter.

Tillakratne Dilshan top-scored with 33 in 22 balls -- inclusive of a six and five fours -- before being seventh out at 76 in the 13th over.

Earlier, Yusuf Pathan celebrated his Team India inclusion with a whirlwind 45. The hard-hitting Pathan, named in the Indian 15 for next month's tri-series in Bangladesh and Asia Cup in Pakistan earlier in the day, creamed the hapless Delhi attack, which included Glenn McGrath, hitting four sixes and three fours in his 21-ball knock.

The 25-year-old Baroda all-rounder took over the attacking reins from all-rounder Watson, who stroked his way to a fine half century in 29 balls, including four sixes and three fours, after openers Graeme Smith (25 in 21 balls) and Swapnil Asnodkar (39 in 21 balls) launched the innings on a sound note.

Watson and Pathan's efforts helped Rajasthan Royals add 109 runs in the last 10 overs after Smith and the pint-sized Asnodkar put on 65 runs in 40 balls at the start.

Watson was involved in a breezy 52 runs partnership off 29 balls with Mohd Kaif (12) after Rajasthan Royals suddenly slipped to 76 for 3 from 65 without loss.

The innings started slowly as Smith was hampered by a pulled muscle while going for a run. But Asnodkar, who often took the aerial route and hit a six and six fours, boosted the run-rate.

The right-hander, after edging McGrath for his first four in the third over, struck Mohd Asif for three fours in the fourth over -- a slash, a lofted off drive and a hook ? to give the innings the much-needed push.

Smith then took over and slammed McGrath for three consecutive fours as the score raced to 43 for no loss in five overs.

Asnodkar had a lucky escape off the first ball of V Yo Mahesh's spell when Farveez Maharoof dropped a sitter at long leg. He celebrated the escape by swinging the same bowler to the same area for a six to raise the 50 of the innings in only 33 balls.

Maharoof made amends by sending back both the Rajasthan openers with the last three balls of his first over.

Smith was caught flicking at deep square leg by a diving Shikhar Dhawan and then Asnodkar was dismissed at the same score of 65, caught at backward point off the Sri Lankan.

Maharoof also accounted for Sohail Tanvir, promoted up the order by his skipper, Shane Warne, as a pinch-hitter, when he miscued a swing to leg and the ball ballooned behind to stumper Dinesh Karthik .

From 65 for no loss, Rajasthan were reduced to 76 for three in the space of 14 balls. But the arrival of Watson brought about another run-spree as the Aussie slammed Yo Mahesh for a four and two sixes in his third over after change of ends to raise the 100 in 65 balls after the first ten overs had yielded 83 runs.

Watson then lofted leg spinner Amit Mishra for a six over long on to keep the scoring on a healthy note by adding 52 runs in 29 balls for the fourth wicket with Kaif to take the total past 125.

Kaif looked out of touch and was clean bowled when he tried a leg side heave off Mishra and missed the ball completely.

Pathan commenced his innings in whirlwind fashion by hoisting Mishra for successive sixes. Later he hit McGrath for a flat six over long on before being run out while going for the second run.

The track did not offer the pace bowlers the same sort of bounce and pace that was evident in previous matches held at the same stadium. Asif was carted around for 21 runs in his first two overs while McGrath gave away 22 in his first three.

Yo Mahesh proved very expensive and gave away 50 runs for two late wickets in his four overs.

Maharoof took three for 34 to emerge as the most successful bowler while Mishra claimed 2 for 37.

Royals continue their ruthless march

2008-05-30T14:33:00.000-07:00

MUMBAI, PTI: Riding on a brilliant all-round display by Shane Watson, the ruthless Rajasthan Royals crushed Delhi Daredevils by 105 runs in a lop-sided semi-final to storm into the final of the Indian Premier League on Friday.

Watson powered his way to a 29-ball 52 with three sixes and four fours in his team's challenging total of 192 for nine after league table toppers Rajasthan Royals were asked to take first strike by Daredevils captain Virender Sehwag.

Later, Watson ripped out the top-order of Delhi with a triple strike to account for the top three Delhi batsmen Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir and Shikhar Dhawan cheaply to reduce them to 24 for three.

Delhi never recovered from this early body blows and lost wickets at regular intervals while the asking rate kept climbing before they were shot out for a paltry 87 in 16.2 overs.

Delhi drubbed as Watson steers Jaipur into the finals

2008-05-30T14:28:00.000-07:00

Mumbai: The much anticipated clash turned out to be a no-contest as Jaipur stormed into the finals of the Indian Premier league with a comprehensive 105-run win against Delhi on Friday.

Virender Sehwag after electing to field was pushed on to the back-foot early in the game and he was forced to stay there for the entire match as Jaipur walked all over Delhi, first with the bat and then with the ball. Shane Watson (52 and three for 10) was once again the hero of the show as he top-scored for Jaipur and then took three wickets to rip the heart out of Delhi’s batting.

After posting a mammoth 192-9 with some audacious strokeplay, Jaipur’s bowlers were on the money from the word go and it took all of 16 overs to knock-out Delhi for a paltry 87.

Delhi buckle under pressure

A stiff 193-run target was always going to be a mountain to climb for Delhi but once they had lost their top three for 24 runs, the task was too demanding for the middle-order. Watson broke Delhi's backbone when he sent back Sehwag (three), Gautam Gambhir (11) and Shikhar Dhawan (five) with just 24 runs on the board.

And it was always going to be downhill from there as Manoj Tiwary (zero), Farveez Maharoof (six) and Dinesh Karthik (10) failed to put on a fight. Tillakaratne Dilshan (33) stood his ground for a while but he too crumbled under pressure. Eventually, the game finished on humiliating lines for Delhi as they lost their last five wickets for just 12 runs.

Munaf Patel (three for 17) and Warne (two for 20) along with Watson proved too hot to handle as Jaipur booked a much deserved spot in the final two.

Jaipur willows flow and flourish

Though Delhi managed regular breakthroughs but they could not halt Jaipur’s surge, who never allowed the scoring-rate to sag. And it was once again Jaipur’s men-in-form who came good in the crunch game. Graeme Smith (26), Swapnil Asnodkar (39), Watson (52) and Pathan (45), all came to the party at a belter in Wankhede to give Delhi a mountain to climb.

The Jaipur batsmen pulled out everything from the drawer as audacious strokeplay along with chancy shots kept the score moving at a neck-break speed. And if it was not for a superb last over by Mohammad Asif, the target for Delhi could have been well over 200.

Blazing beginning

Smith pulled a hamstring while taking a quick run and was almost run out. But the injury turned to be a boon for Jaipur as the southpaw opened his shoulders to smash the Delhi attack. Even the ever-reliable Glenn McGrath was taken to the cleaners as Smith bludgeoned three consecutive boundaries in the Aussie’s third over.

Asnodkar from the other end was his blazing self, manufacturing some of the most astounding shots. After being dropped by Farveez Maharoof off Yo Mahesh’s first ball, Asnodkar smacked the first six of the game two deliveries later.

And just when it seemed the Jaipur openers will run away with the game, Maharoof redeemed himself for the dropped catch.

Maharoof turns it around

With bowlers getting flayed all over, it took brilliance in the field for Delhi to bounce back in the game. Smith’s cameo came to an end when Shikhar Dhawan took a blinder in the deep and one ball later Asnodkar’s fierce square-cut sent the ball right down Manoj Tiwarys' throat.

Jaipur’s surprise move to send Sohail Tanvir (five) failed as the Pakistan player could manage only one lusty blow before he became Maharoof’s third victim.

Watson whacks, Pathan pounds

But Delhi lost the momentum as quickly as they had gained it. Watson came to the middle with all guns blazing. The all-rounder in a space of two overs pounded three towering sixes as the Delhi bowlers ran for cover. Yo Mahesh, who gave away 50 runs in his full quota, was taken for 21 in the 11th over.

After Kaif was bowled by Amit Mishra for 12, Pathan joined Watson and from there began a tremendous surge by Jaipur. The duo went for everything with not the slightest of inhibition in their batting.

Pathan was at his powerful best, striking the ball as cleanly as ever and clearing the boundary ropes with far too much ease for Virender Sehwag’s comfort.

With Jaipur piling on the runs, Watson went on the all-attack mode and after a 28-ball 52, Mishra finally cleaned up the Aussie. But Pathan was in no mood to relent as the audacious Pathan took McGrath for 16 in the pacer's last over. The hard-hitting player hit three boundaries and four sixes in his 21-ball knock till he was run out in the last over of the innings.

Royals drub Daredevils, enter IPL final

2008-05-30T14:24:00.000-07:00

Mumbai: Riding on a brilliant all-round display by Shane Watson, the ruthless Rajasthan Royals drubbed Delhi Daredevils by 105 runs in a lop-sided semi-final to storm into the final of the Indian Premier League at the Wankhede Stadium on Friday night.

Watson powered his way to a 29-ball 52 with three sixes and four fours in his team's challenging total of 192-9 after league table toppers Rajasthan Royals were asked to take first strike by Daredevils captain Virender Sehwag.

Later, Watson ripped out the top-order of Delhi with a triple strike to account for the top three Delhi batsmen Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir and Shikhar Dhawan cheaply to reduce them to 24-3.

Delhi never recovered from this early body blows and lost wickets at regular intervals while the asking rate kept climbing before they were shot out for a paltry 87 in 16.1 overs.

Rajasthan Royals now await the winners of the second semi-final, to be played at the same venue on Saturday between King's XI Punjab and Chennai Super Kings, in the final to be played at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai on June 1.

Daredevils demolised by Royals

2008-05-30T14:17:00.000-07:00

MUMBAI: Rajasthan Royals are worth $67 million — the cheapest franchisee in the Indian Premier League. They don’t have a coach. Their captain, an international cricket retiree, doubles up as both skipper and coach.

Graeme Smith, Sohail Tanvir and Shane Watson are the other big names in the team. The rest are little-known players.

It’s weird then that success has come in such measure to a team that was considered a ‘no-hoper’ before the start of the tournament a month ago. But then, in life as in cricket, winners aren’t always the strongest but the smartest.

On Friday, Rajasthan Royals beat Delhi Daredevils by 105 runs to reach the final. Batting first after losing the toss, Royals posted a gargantuan score of 192 for 9. A fight was expected given that Delhi have Gautam Gambhir and captain Virender Sehwag opening the innings. But the Devils hardly dared and went out of the tournament with a whimper, getting all out for 87 off 16.1 overs. Shane Watson’s outstanding all-rounder performance had Delhi on the mat. The burly Aussie scored a powerful 52 and then topped it up by picking 3 wickets, giving away only 10 runs from his four overs.

While chasing, only three players from the Delhi team managed to get into double figures - Gambhir (11), Dinesh Karthik (10) and Tilakratne Dilshan (33). The Sri Lankan put up a bit of a fight in the middle overs. But it was just too little, too late.
For Royals, Munaf Patel was the other outstanding bowler, picking up 3 wickets while giving away only 17 runs. Captain Shane Warne was, as usual, inspirational both in his bowling and captaincy. He also had two wickets to show, though he got out first ball while batting.

Earlier, the Royals’ batting charge was led by two of their electric performers in the tournament, Watson and Yusuf Pathan. There has been very little on offer for the bowlers from the flat wickets during the IPL.

Delhi captain Sehwag, wanting to provide whatever little advantage he could to his bowlers, decided to bowl first after winning the toss. The Wankhede wicket has assisted the bowlers early on before easing out for the second half. But Viru’s plan didn’t work as the Royals seemed on a mission.

The effective opening pair of Graeme Smith and Swapnil Asnodkar put on 65 runs in 40 balls for the first wicket. Smith, who missed out the Royals’ last two games with a hamstring injury, was in visible pain and had to call for a runner as early as the second
over of the innings. He followed that up with some lusty blows to the fence.

But it was the diminutive Asnodkar who stole the show early on. The Goan’s uninhibited batting has been one of the highlights of the tournament. His 39 off 21 balls provided the Royals the momentum early on. He hit the great Glenn McGrath to the boundary for his first four of the innings, and then was particularly severe on Sri Lankan bowler Farveez Maharoof and Tamil Nadu speedster Yo Mahesh.

But three quick wickets checked the run-flow for the Royals before big-hitting Watson was joined by Pathan, two of the most effective and valuable players of the tournament. Both the sturdy all-rounders seem to be made for this form of cricket and took the Daredevils bowling to the cleaners.

Watson scored yet another half-century, his 52 coming off 29 balls which included three huge hits to the fence. Pathan deserved a fifty though he fell five runs short.

IPL Match 41: Kolkata v Chennai (Chennai Super Kings win via D/L method)

2008-05-18T13:50:00.001-07:00

A floodlight disruption and a norwester curtailed a promising match, as Chennai Super Kings inched closer to a semi-final berth with a three-run victory against Kolkata Knight Riders via Duckworth-Lewis method in an Indian Premier League match on Sunday.

Replying to the Knight Riders' modest total of 149 for 5, that saw Super Kings pacer Makhaya Ntini get a hat-trick, the Chennai team were 55 without loss after eight overs, when a sudden burst of wind resulted in some of the bulbs in each of the four light towers conking off at the Eden Gardens.

The play was immediately halted and the situation turned worse as a norwester with high wind velocity raged accompanied by rains, tossing into the air the tarpaulin sheets, which had been brought in to cover the wicket and the outfield.

IPL - 41st Match - Kolkata KN v Chennai SK - Kolkata Batting (Chennai win by 3 runs, D/L method)

2008-05-18T13:45:00.001-07:00

Not much is going right for Kolkata Knight Riders, and Sunday night was no different, as the heavens over Eden favoured the visitors.

Chennai Super Kings were 55 for no loss at the end of eight overs, chasing Kolkata's 149-5, and according to the D/L calculations, they needed 53 to win.

This gives Chennai two more points, which they looked like picking up anyway, had the match gone the full duration.

Stephen Fleming and Parthiv Patel negated the only weapon Kolkata had, making sure that the pace battery of Shoaib Akhtar and Ishant Sharma did not make any headway, and kept scoring at the pretty decent clip, which is what in the end culminated in another win for Chennai.

Fleming remained unbeaten on 32, and Patel on 19. Makhaya Ntini did his bit when Chennai fielded, as he returned figures of 4-21, including a hat-trick.

Shoaib didn't look half the bowler he normally does, and Sharma seems to be losing his edge, possibly because of overuse, and that showed.

Kolkata have lost their way and their frontline batsmen never really seemed to get things going, after the initial stages. Against Chennai Super Kings too, the wheels threatened to fall off the Kolkata wagon before Salman Butt and Debabrata Das combined well to give the bowlers at least something to bowl at.

In fact, Kolkata were looking good to score a pretty imposing total as Butt and Das got after the bowling, especially Muttiah Muralitharan, to put up 86 runs.

That was before Ntini returned, to remove Das and David Hussey off consecutive deliveries. The South African fast had also claimed Mohd Hafeez and Sourav Ganguly earlier, and returned figures of 4-21, which may well make a difference.

Earlier, Ganguly won the toss and decided to bat.

In this must-win match, Kolkata have left out Aakash Chopra, bringing in Debabrata Das. Chennai made two changes, replacing Chamara Kapugedera and Joginder Sharma with Parthiv Patel and Makhaya Ntini.

Both Kolkata and Chennai came into the game after humiliating defeats at the hands of Mumbai.

Teams:

Kolkata: Salman Butt, Mohammad Hafeez, Sourav Ganguly , David Hussey, Debabrata Das, Laxmi Ratan Shukla, Wriddhiman Saha, Ajit Agarkar, Ishant Sharma, Ashoke Dinda, Shoaib Akhtar.

Chennai: S Vidyut, Stephen Fleming, Parthiv Patel, Suresh Raina, Subramaniam Badrinath, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Albie Morkel, Manpreet Gony, Laxmipathy Balaji, Muttiah Muralitharan, Makhaya Ntini.

IPL - 40th Match - Delhi DD v KXI Punjab - Delhi Batting (Kings XI beat Daredevils by 6 runs)

2008-05-18T13:42:00.001-07:00

Invaluable unbeaten cameos from Mahela Jayawardene (36) and Luke Pomersbach (25) helped Kings XI Punjab beat Delhi Daredevils by six runs via Duckworth-Lewis system in a weather-truncated Indian Premier League tie here on Saturday.

Chasing a revised target of 123 in 11 overs, the Punjab side batted braving light drizzle early in their innings and eventually finished at 94 for three in eight overs when play was suspended with the visitors six runs ahead of the hosts.

Jayawardene's 17-ball 36 included three sixes and two fours, while Pomersbach's 25 came off 12 balls.

Earlier, Sehwag slammed an unbeaten half century as Delhi Daredevils finished on 118 for four in 11 overs. Sehwag's brief violent knock included two fours and five sixes, while Gautam Gambhir chipped in with a 28-ball 40.

IPL - 40th Match - Delhi DD v KXI Punjab - Punjab Batting (Mohali edge out Delhi by D/L method)

2008-05-18T13:38:00.001-07:00

It was almost like the weather gods had conspired against Delhi as rain ensured Mohali their semi-final berth with Yuvraj Singh's men beating the home team by six runs on the Duckworth Lewis method at the Feroz Shah Kotla ground here on Saturday.

First, the Delhi innings was going great guns when rain broke down their momentum and a last ball six followed by abrupt rain during Mohali's run-chase ended matters on a somber note for Virender Sehwag's team, whose bid for a semi-final has now been severely jolted.

Chasing 119 in 11 overs, Mohali were 94-3 in eight overs when rain forced play to end, giving them their seventh win in the tournament. The win makes Mohali's place in the last four almost certain.

The heroes for Mohali were Mahela Jayawardene (36 off 17 balls) and Luke Pomersbach (25 off 12 balls) who put on an unbroken 63-run stand in just 27 balls. From a precarious, position the duo launched a brilliant counter-attack that toppled Delhi, who at one stage had the game in their grasp.

With Mohali requiring 29 runs in three overs, Jayawardene's six off Rajat Bhatia on the ball before it started pouring ended up as the decisive factor as it made sure that Mohali were ahead on the Duckworth Lewis method by as many runs.

After their skipper and Gautam Gambhir piled up the runs, Delhi started out well with the ball as they did with the bat. Glenn McGrath was at his accurate best, giving away only 18 runs in his two overs. After the dangerous Shaun Marsh (two) perished, Yuvraj Singh smashed a few lusty blows in his eight-ball 23 to give the much needed impetus to the run-chase.

And just when the Mohali skipper was all set to take the game away from Delhi, Farveez Maharoof took a brilliant catch in the deep to send back Yuvraj.

Delhi at that point of time were looking comfortably placed with Mohali needing more than 11 runs per over. But then Sehwag brought himself into the attack and that changed the entire complexion of the game. Jayawardene and Pomersbach took the off-spinner for 22 runs and swung back the match in their favour. A few more lusty blows from their willows followed and Mohali were ahead.

Delhi's innings was interrupted by rain and what began as a brilliant attack by the openers lost momentum. Sehwag led from the front and after two consecutive ducks in the tournament he was at his destructive best. Gautam Gambhir was in his element once again as the leading run scorer of the IPL bludgeoned 40 runs off just 28 balls.

Rain interrupted play when Delhi were galloping along at 94-1 in 8.1 overs. After a long delay, the game resumed ultimately and Delhi ended at 118-4 in the 11-overs-a-side affair, with Sehwag contributing a blazing 51 not out.

IPL Match 39th: Rajasthan v Bangalore - Rajasthan Batting (Rajasthan Royals maul Bangalore Royal by 65 runs)

2008-05-18T13:30:00.001-07:00

JAIPUR: Royal Challengers Bangalore continued their pathetic show in the IPL as they plunged to a humiliating 65 run defeat against Rajasthan Royals at Sawai Mansingh stadium here on Saturday.

Chasing a challenging 198 to win, the visitors could manage just 132, largely built around skipper Rahul Dravid's brilliant unbeaten 75-run knock.

Dravid waged a losing battle as he smashed Yousuf Pathan for three sixes in the 17th over but it was too late by then as Bangalore batsmen let their team down once again.

The former Indian captain hit six fours and as many sixes in his innings.

The run chase of the Bangalore team began on a disastrous note as opener Jagdeesh Arunkumar was dismissed for a nought on the third ball of the first over by Sohail Tanvir.

Pakistani Misbah-ul-Haq then got a first ball duck on the second ball of the next over reducing the visitors to two for two.

It was important to get a partnership from here but Tanvir struck again to pile up the agony of the Bangalore team when he castled Virat Kohli (3).

The scorecard read five for three bringing skipper Cameron White to the crease.

Munaf Patel (2/21) picked up his second wicket on the last bowl of his spell when he sent back White (10) and Siddharth Trivedi plotted the fall of Jacques Kallis (20).

Skipper Shane Warne (3/23) joined the party when he took wickets of consecutive balls in his second over and then dismissed Zaheer Khan (1) off a stunning caught and bowled in the third.

IPL Match 39th : Rajasthan v Bangalore - Bangalore Batting (Jaipur crush Bangalore by 65 runs)

2008-05-18T13:23:00.001-07:00

The story of Bangalore's dismal run in the Indian Premier League continued as Jaipur came up with another impressive show at the Sawai Man Singh stadium to register a 65-run win on Saturday. With this game in the bag Jaipur have eight wins in 10 games and have now qualified for the semi-finals. After posting 197-1, Jaipur restricted Bangalore to 132-9 with Rahul Dravid's heroic knock going in vain.

After asked to take first strike by Dravid, it was an almost perfect outing for Jaipur as their top-order clicked, taking them to the imposing total without breaking into a sweat. A century stand by the openers and a blazing knock by the in-form Shane Watson ensured Bangalore had to play out of their skins for their elusive third win.

Chasing the daunting target, Bangalore were out of contention within minutes of their run-chase. Sohail Tanvir (three for 10) and Munaf Patel (two for 21) removed the brittle top-order in no time and it was always going to be a no-contest after the visitors had lost three wickets and lingered at a run-rate less than four. But Dravid scored a fighting 75 that comprised six boundaries and as many sixes in his gritty 36-ball knock but it was never going to be enough to challenge Jaipur's royal total.

An overambitious shot by Arun Kumar (zero) saw him perish on the second ball of the innings. Misbah-ul-Haq (zero) miscued a pull off his first ball to give an easy catch at mid-on. Virat Kohli (two) was cleaned up by Tanvir, Bangalore tottering at 5-3. Cameron White (10) hung on for a while till he smashed one straight down long-on's throat. The visitors hardly came up with any successful attacking shots to slump to 38-4 in 10 overs, the asking-rate climbing to 16.

Skipper Shane Warne (three for 23) then got into his act. The spin wizard removed Devraj Patil (nine) and Praveen Kumar (zero) off successive deliveries and then took a stunning return catch to send back Zaheer Khan (one). The Bangalore skipper from the other end, clobbering Yousuf Pathan for three sixes in one over to score his second IPL half-century in 25 balls. His sparkling innings ensured his team went down with guns blazing as he bludgeoned the last ball of the game over the ropes.

After Graeme Smith and Swapnil Asnodkar put up 109 for the first wicket, Watson pounded an unbeaten 46 off 28 balls that included six fours. Smith anchored the innings brilliantly structuring a classy 49-ball 75 not out that had eight fours and two sixes.

Bangalore's decision to field was perhaps influenced by the Jaipur's 100 per cent chasing record. The two times Jaipur have been on the losing side in the tournament, against Delhi and Mumbai respectively, were both when they batted first. But unfortunately for the visitors, things went out of hand right from the onset.

Asnodkar and Smith flayed the Indian duo of Zaheer and Praveen and introduction of spin after the power-play didn't help either. Bangladesh left-arm spinner Abdur Razzak, replacing spearhead Dale Steyn, was taken for 17 in his first over. The openers brought up the hundred in the 11th over.

Asnodkar (50) after smashing seven fours and one six in his second fifty of the tournament fell to Kumble, giving India's Test skipper his first wicket in the competition in his sixth game.

IPL 38th Match : Mumbai Indians Vs Kolkata Knight Riders

2008-05-16T15:20:00.001-07:00

MUMBAI: Led by the redoubtable Shaun Pollock, the Mumbai Indians routed Kolkata Knight Riders for the lowest ever total in the Indian Premier League before racing to a comprehensive eight-wicket victory, their fifth in a row, at the Wankhede Stadium here on Friday.

Pollock snapped up 3 for 12 in four devastating overs to virtually flatten the visiting team before the other pace bowlers in the home team's attack provided the great South African all-rounder, retired from international cricket, some splendid support to skittle out the Sourav Ganguly-led Knight Riders for a pathetic-reading 67 in 15.2 overs.

Sanath Jayasuriya, who lashed Chennai Super Kings' attack while making a splendid 114 not out with eleven sixes and nine fours, continued in the same vein after being dropped off the first ball to make 48 not out (17 balls with six fours and three sixes) to help the hosts surge to a thumping win in only 5.2 overs.

Sachin Tendulkar (0) failed for the second match running, but Jayasuriya, who struck three sixes in one over off danger man Shoaib Akhtar, killed off any slender hopes of the visitors.

The comprehensive win brought the resurgent Mumbai Indians level on points (12 each) with the Kolkata team.

The hero of the day for Mumbai Indians was their pace attack spearheaded so well by Pollock who came up with a deadly spell on a helpful Wankhede Stadium track to rip the heart out of the Kolkata team.

Put in to bat, the Knight Riders were in dire straits, by losing half their side with only 29 on the board as the top-order was undone by some exceptional seam bowling on a bouncy and pacy track by Pollock, to a large extent, and his West Indian comrade-in-arms Dwayne Bravo.

MUMBAI: Led by the redoubtable Shaun Pollock, the Mumbai Indians routed Kolkata Knight Riders for the lowest ever total in the Indian Premier League before racing to a comprehensive eight-wicket victory, their fifth in a row, at the Wankhede Stadium here on Friday.

Pollock snapped up 3 for 12 in four devastating overs to virtually flatten the visiting team before the other pace bowlers in the home team's attack provided the great South African all-rounder, retired from international cricket, some splendid support to skittle out the Sourav Ganguly-led Knight Riders for a pathetic-reading 67 in 15.2 overs.

Sanath Jayasuriya, who lashed Chennai Super Kings' attack while making a splendid 114 not out with eleven sixes and nine fours, continued in the same vein after being dropped off the first ball to make 48 not out (17 balls with six fours and three sixes) to help the hosts surge to a thumping win in only 5.2 overs.

Sachin Tendulkar (0) failed for the second match running, but Jayasuriya, who struck three sixes in one over off danger man Shoaib Akhtar, killed off any slender hopes of the visitors.

The comprehensive win brought the resurgent Mumbai Indians level on points (12 each) with the Kolkata team.

The hero of the day for Mumbai Indians was their pace attack spearheaded so well by Pollock who came up with a deadly spell on a helpful Wankhede Stadium track to rip the heart out of the Kolkata team.

Put in to bat, the Knight Riders were in dire straits, by losing half their side with only 29 on the board as the top-order was undone by some exceptional seam bowling on a bouncy and pacy track by Pollock, to a large extent, and his West Indian comrade-in-arms Dwayne Bravo.

IPL Match 38 : Jaysuriya vs Shoaib (22 runs from 5 Balls)

2008-05-16T15:09:00.001-07:00

Led by the redoubtable Shaun Pollock, the Mumbai Indians routed Kolkata Knight Riders for the lowest ever total in the Indian Premier League before racing to a comprehensive eight-wicket victory, their fifth in a row, at the Wankhede Stadium on Friday night.

Pollock snapped up 3 for 12 in four devastating overs to virtually flatten the visiting team before the other pace bowlers in the home team's attack provided the great South African all-rounder, retired from international cricket, some splendid support to skittle out the Sourav Ganguly-led Knight Riders for a pathetic-reading 67 in 15.2 overs.

IPL Match 37th: Daredevils tame Chargers to snap losing streak (Afiridi getting slammed)

2008-05-15T15:10:00.001-07:00

New Delhi: Amit Mishra registered the second hat-trick of the Indian Premier League as Delhi Daredevils staved off Deccan Chargers' audacious design for an upset win and eked out a nervy 12-run victory to snap their losing spree here on Thursday night.

Chasing 195, the lowly Deccans did not have a single match-winning knock but they put together a string of cameos to reach near the target before eventually folding up for 182 for nine.

Mishra removed Ravi Teja, Pragyan Ojha and RP SIngh off three successive balls in a dramatic last over to record the second hat-trick of the tournament. His figures read 4-0-17-5.

Earlier, twin half centuries from Gautam Gambhir (79) and Shikhar Dhawan (68 not out) powered Delhi Daredevils to an impressive 194 for 4.

Adam Gilchrist (14) and Shahid Afridi (33) walked in to spearhead the Deccan riposte and the swashbuckling duo looked in tremendous hurry to wrap up things. To make it worse for the hosts, Dinesh Karthik spilled an edge from Gilchrist off Mohammad Asif before Glenn McGrath cut short his compatriot's stay in the third over.

There, however, was no dearth of firepower as Herschelle Gibbs (22) seemed keen to make amends for his string of poor shows and smote McGrath for two sixes as he decided to match Afridi shot for shot.

Things looked quite ominous for the hosts before Mishra did the trick. He struck with his first ball as Afridi perished at point and, in his next over, the leggie sent down a googly which got the better of Gibbs' defence, ending the Protea's run-a-ball knock. Afridi's 14-ball sizzler included three four and two sixes.

Rohit Sharma (35) continued his rich vein of form, milking 19 runs off a Rajat Bhatia over but a moment of madness and a fluffed paddle sweep brought his peril as a Ferveez Maharoof delivery rattled his timbers. His 18-ball cameo was studded with three fours and two sixes. Scott Styris (29) and Y Venugopal Rao (34 off 18 balls) almost accomplished the mission before falling in quick succession and with their dismissal, Deccan's hopes for their third win in the tournament went up in smoke as the visitors lost wickets in a heap towards the end with Mishra emerging as the wrecker-in-chief.

Earlier put in to bat, the hosts lost skipper Virender Sehwag (0) in the first over but Gambhir and Dhawan shared 133 runs in just over 14 overs to steady the boat even though the hosts eventually fell shy of the 200-mark.

Gambhir's 48-ball pyrotechnics included seven hits to the fence besides three sixes. Dhawan's sedate unbeaten knock was a product of his 52-ball stay during which he hit eight boundaries.

Deccan Chargers' two wins so far in the tournament came chasing and almost predictably, skipper Adam Gilchrist inserted the hosts after winning the toss.

And by the time P Vijaykumar had finished the first over, Delhi had their skipper back in the hut after a two-ball misadventure yielding naught.

If the fierce slash over the third man has fetched Sehwag truckloads of run, it has often been his Achilles' heel as well. Vijaykumar offered the width and Sehwag went by his instinct only to find RP Singh as a hushed silence descended on the Ferozeshah Kotla.

Gambhir did not look quite convincing either. Twice he was almost caught and once he escaped a run out, making ground just in time to hang around.

The southpaw finally broke the shackles in the fourth over, milking 20 runs off it. RP Singh banged one short and Gambhir sent it over deep square leg ropes. He walked out to swat the next delivery over mid-wicket and followed it up with a full-blooded cut that zoomed past the point fielder for a four. Dhawan was content playing the second fiddle all along and the left-hander hit Afridi for back-to-back boundaries to reach his half-century.

The duo laid the perfect foundation for a late burst but Gambhir's dismissal, stumped off a wide ball from Pragyan Ojha, came as anti-climax.

IPL Match 37th : Gambhir 79 of 48 Balls, Delhi ruins Dekhans

2008-05-15T13:58:00.001-07:00

Delhi Daredevils skipper Virender Sehwag must have had sweaty palms when he handed the ball over to Amit Mishra for the last over, but the leg-spinner came up tops to ensure that Hyderabad Deccan Chargers were kept behind by 12 runs.

In the match against Chennai Super Kings, Sehwag had handed the ball to Shoaib Malik with exactly the same number of runs - 15 - to get, and Delhi lost the match.

But on Thursday, Mishra was not to be denied, as he removed Ravi Teja, Pragyan Ojha and RP Singh off successive deliveries to ensure that Delhi claimed two vital points.

Mishra ended with figures of five for 17 off four overs, including the hat-trick, the second of the tournament after Lakshmipathy Balaji. Mishra's victims included Shahid Afridi and Herschelle Gibbs.

With this win, Delhi have added to the points table after three unimpressive games, and now have 10 points from 10 matches, while Hyderabad continue to languish in seventh spot, with just four.

For Hyderabad, it was a story of so near, yet so far, yet again as several batsmen got starts but did not finish things off. Afridi, Gibbs, Rohit Sharma, Scott Styris and Venugopal Rao all got off the ground but didn't stay around long enough.

Things were beginning to look grim for Delhi when Venugopal Rao hit two sixes and a four off Faraveez Maharoof, but the Andhra batsman had no answer for veteran Glenn McGrath's experience. With Venugopal Rao's departure, things tilted in Delhi's favour, and the first three balls of the last over ended the challenge.

Earlier, Gautam Gambhir scored the fifth half-century of the Indian Premier League while Shikhar Dhawan scored his fourth as Delhi Daredevils reached 194-4 against Hyderabad Deccan Chargers.

Gambhir scored a sensational 79 off 48 deliveries but some tight bowling from Vijaykumar along with some smart fielding ensured that Delhi did not cross the 200-mark.

IPL | Match 37th | Delhi Dare Devils Innings

2008-05-15T13:52:00.001-07:00

-5 is the second best of this league and it proved to be the mainstay of the Delhi attack to dismantle the Hyderabad team. Mishra scalped Ravi Teja, Pragya Ojha and RP Singh in quick succession to give his team the crucial win it needed to assert a stronger claim for being in the final four.

The discerning feature of this razzmatazz league has been the window of opportunity for the next rung to make an assertive leap to embrace the colour Blue. Gautam Gambhir is taking the chances that this format of the game imposes on those with lofty ambitions, but fortune has been favouring his impetuousness. More importantly, he has been consistently showing the maturity to anchor the Delhi Daredevils after early departures of his captain Virender Sehwag in the last four encounters.

His 79 was a crucial component of the Delhi ask of 198 for four against the Deccan Chargers. Then Mishra came up with his dream spell to showcase his own talent. Thursday evening in Delhi dawned pleasant in the wake of late night showers. While security concerns saw the first two rows of two main stands vacant, the crowds flocked in to pack Feroz Shah Kotla. Facing his second ball out there, Sehwag slashed at a rising P Vijaykumar delivery wide off but failed to put enough meat into the shot. RP Singh at third man palmed the gift with glee. Delhi was reduced to seven for one.

From thereon Gambhir began to build the innings with his brand of firebrand smacking. He amassed 79 from 48 deliveries. By the time he was careless enough to be stumped, the score had reached a high of 140 in 15.1 overs. Along the way he ensured there was another player whom he could swagger in the face of within the Indian dressing room. He hit RP Singh for two consecutive sixes followed by an assertive four to be one up in the unsaid pecking order that rules each team.

IPL 37th Match: Delhi Daredevils Vs Deccan Chargers (Amit Mishra gets a Hattrick)

2008-05-15T13:48:00.001-07:00

Amit Mishra registered the second hat-trick of the Indian Premier League as Delhi Daredevils staved off Deccan Chargers' audacious design for an upset win and eked out a nervy 12-run victory to snap their losing spree on Thursday.

Chasing 195, the lowly Deccans did not have a single match-winning knock but they put together a string of cameos to reach near the target before eventually folding up for 182 for nine.

Mishra removed Ravi Teja, Pragyan Ojha and RP Singh off three successive balls in a dramatic last over to record the second hat-trick of the tournament. His figure read 4-0-17-5.

Earlier, twin half centuries from Gautam Gambhir (79) and Shikhar Dhawan (68 not out) powered Delhi Daredevils to an impressive 194 for 4

IPL 36th Match: Presentation Ceremony - Mumbai vs Chennai

2008-05-14T17:54:00.001-07:00

Sanath Jayasuriya is one of those batsmen who have destroyed many a bowling attack, and his pride must have been hurt with his pretty sedate show in the Indian Premier League so far.

He repaired all that tellingly against Chennai Super Kings on Wednesday, as he blasted 114 not out off just 48 balls to guide Mumbai Indians to a sensational nine-wicket win.

The Sri Lankan veteran hammered 11 sixes and nine fours, and scored at an astounding strike rate of 237.5.

Sachin Tendulkar's debut in the IPL was sedate, as the Mumbai skipper was dismissed for just 12 runs.

Earlier, S. Badrinath and Mahendra Singh Dhoni brought Chennai back from the edge of almost certain defeat to pose a teaser for Mumbai, as they reached 156-6.

Dhoni and Badrinath were involved in 95-run partnership which carried Chennai to a pretty decent total, which looked impossible at one stage. Badrinath scored a fine 53, while Dhoni scored 43 not out.

Shaun Pollock bowled four overs for just nine runs.

Sachin Tendulkar returned to serious cricket, and won the toss against Chennai Super Kings, deciding to field first.

Teams: Mumbai Indians: Sachin Tendulkar, Sanath Jayasuriya, Robin Uthappa, Dominic Thornley, Dwayne Bravo, Shaun Pollock, Abhishek Nayar, Yogesh Takawale, Dhawal Kulkarni, Rohan Raje, Ashish Nehra.

Chennai Super Kings: Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Stephen Fleming, S Vidyut, Suresh Raina, S Badrinath, Albie Morkel, Chamara Kapugedera, Muttiah Muralitharan, Manpreet Gony, Joginder Sharma, Lakshmipathy Balaji.

IPL Match 36th: Sizzling Jayasuriya Pounds Chennai @ Wankhede Stadium (Mumbai thrash Chennai)

2008-05-14T17:50:00.001-07:00

Riding on Sanath Jayasuriya's swashbuckling, unbeaten knock of 114 that contained an amazing eleven sixes and nine fours, Mumbai Indians outclassed Chennai Super Kings by nine wickets in the Indian Premier League on Wednesday.

The Sri Lankan veteran flicked, slashed and pulled the short-pitched balls served to him on a platter by the visiting team's bowlers as the home team, chasing Chennai's total of 156 for six, surged to a comprehensive win in only the 14th over.

Jayasuriya finished the match with a flourish by slamming Lankan compatriot Chamara Kapugedara for 26 runs in five balls, with three sixes to boot.

IPL 35th Match: Rawalpindi knight too strong for Daredevils

2008-05-13T14:35:00.001-07:00

Shoaib Akhtar takes four wickets in his first three overs to lead Sourav Ganguly’s team to an unlikely 23-run win over Virender Sehwag’s Delhi Daredevils at Eden Gardens

KOLKATA: Shoaib Akhtar returned to the limelight with a fiery spell of genuine fast bowling that ripped apart the formidable Delhi Daredevils’ top-order and set the Eden Gardens alive as Sourav Ganguly’s Kolkata Knight Riders fought back on the field to win by 23 runs.

In the end, with the match going into the home stretch, Ashok Dinda, bowling the 16th over ran to the striker’s end and threw down the stumps at the non-striker’s end to run out Farveez Maharoof, the last batsman who was capable of turning the match on its head.

Laxmi Ratan Shukla then took three wickets in the 18th over to finish off the game. Akhtar, the showman fast bowler, made the trip across the border after the five-year ban slapped on him for various offences was lifted for one month to allow him to play in the Indian Premier League.

Tickets were selling like hot cakes at the Eden as news spread that the maverick Pakistan fast bowler would play against the Daredevils. Akhtar did not disappoint and brought the crowd to their feet after the home team were restricted to a disappointing 133 for six.

Gautam Gambhir took a single off Akhtar’s first ball and the second was a wide but the third got rid of Sehwag as the Pakistan paceman started off in an erratic but exciting manner. The ball to Sehwag was a beauty. It swung away late from the opener and Sehwag, not a believer in moving his feet offered a thick edge that was snapped up by the wicket-keeper.
In his second over, Akhtar tempted the in-form Gambhir with a ball outside off-stump arriving at good pace. David Hussey at backward point jumped acrobatically to pull off the catch and Akhtar and the Knight Riders were up and away in celebration.

With both Sehwag and Gambhir back in the hut, the pressure was now back on the Daredevils. Akhtar though wanted to have a ball. He struck in the first and second ball of his third over. AB DeViller’s was undone by the pace and ballooned the ball while attempting a pull, while Manoj Tiwary mis-read the length as the ball thudded into his back leg.

Earlier, electing to bat, the hosts set the Delhi side an asking rate of 6.7 before a crowd of 50,000 at the Eden Gardens. Salman Butt was the principal scorer for the home team with the in-form David Hussey getting moderate success in the slog overs. Superb bowling performances from Glenn McGrath, Yo Mahesh and Maharoof ensured the Delhi batsmen got an easily attainable asking rate.

The Knight Riders could never get the momentum going and only 10 fours came in their innings. Sourav (7) walked in to loud cheers and raised hopes of another magical knock as he hit Yo Mahesh for a six.

IPL 35th Match: (Shoaib's stupendous IPL debut) Knight Riders win by 23 runs against Daredevils

2008-05-13T14:34:00.001-07:00

Brushing aside controversies, Shoaib Akhtar made a sensational Indian Premier League debut by polishing off the Delhi Daredevils top-order in a hurricane opening spell to propel Kolkata Knight Riders to a 23-run victory here on Tuesday.

Battered by the Rawalpindi Express, who picked up four wickets in his first three overs, the visitors were skittled out for 110 of 17.5 overs, in reply to the Kolkata Knight Riders' modest total of 133 for 6 at the Eden Gardens.

Akhtar, adjudged fit for the match only a few hours ago, matched up to the high expectations, claiming wickets in each of his first three overs, with his victims including the dreaded Delhi opening combination of skipper Virender Sehwag (0) and Gautam Gambhir (10).

Akhtar, playing at his favourite ground where he made his debut in 1999 during the Asian Test championship, finished with brilliant figures of 3-0-11-4 to walk away with the Man of the Match award.

Later, Laxmi Ratan Shukla, brought on to bowl the 18th over, finished off the Delhi innings by taking the last three wickets to finish with an analysis of 0.5-0-6-3.

IPL Match 35th: Kolkata pull off a sensational win

2008-05-13T14:32:00.001-07:00

Kolkata Knight Riders rode on a sensational opening spell from Shoaib Akhtar to pull off a fine 23-run win over Delhi Daredevils.

Shoaib, much in the headlines for all the wrong reasons, showed why he is rated so highly, and shattered the much-vaunted Delhi top-order, removing skipper Virender Sehwag, tournament top-scorer Gautam Gambhir, AB de Villiers and Manoj Tiwary in a span of three overs.

Laxmi Ratan Shukla also did his bit, claiming the last three Delhi wickets in just five balls to end the proceedings.

For Delhi, Tillekeratne Dilshan and Amit Mishra showed some fight but nothing else worked as they slid to their fourth straight defeat.

Earlier, Kolkata never got off the ground against a sustained Delhi bowling and finished with a very moderate 133-6 in their 20 overs.

No Kolkata batsman apart from Salman Butt and to some extent David Hussey, managed to get any measure of the Delhi bowling and struggled for runs throughout.

Butt scored a polished 48 and Hussey contributed 31. Faraveez Maharoof and V. Yomahesh claimed two wickets each.

Earlier, Sourav Ganguly welcomed Shoaib Akhtar to his playing XI, and then decided to give him a breather, as the hosts batted first.

With the table beginning to get pretty tight up top, both teams, strung together in the middle of the points tally, need to win this one.

In an effort towards that, Ganguly called up Shoaib to bolster his bowling, while young left-arm spinner Iqbal Abdullah also comes in, in place of Murali Kartik.

For Delhi, skipper Virender Sehwag kept out Dinesh Karthik and called in Manoj Tiwary.

Teams:

Kolkata: Sourav Ganguly, Aakash Chopra, Ashoke Dinda, David Hussey, Iqbal Abdulla, Wridhiman Saha, Salman Butt, Ishant Sharma, Laxmi Ratan Shukla, Tatenda Taibu, Shoaib Akhtar.

Delhi Daredevils: Virender Sehwag, AB de Villiers, Shikhar Dhawan, Tillekeratne Dilshan, Gautam Gambhir, Glenn McGrath, Faraveez Maharoof, V Yomahesh, Amit Mishra, Pradeep Sangwan, Manoj Tiwary.

IPL Match 35th: Shoaib scripts memorable comeback

2008-05-13T14:30:00.001-07:00

No prima donna could have scripted a better comeback to the big stage. After endless weeks of controversies, Shoaib Akhtar's IPL debut would have given goosebumps to his hardest critics.

The Kolkata bowler's unadulterated pace and steamy aggression left Delhi in shambles, handing them an unlikely loss in a low-scoring game. Delhi fell 23 short chasing Kolkata's 133 in this battle for the fourth spot in the points table.

Shoaib blew Delhi's top order away, taking Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, AB de Villiers and Manoj Tiwary in one breathless spell that read 3-0-11-4. This time, there would be no confused loyalties for Eden Garden's 100,000 spectators. They were firmly behind the home side, meeting each bit of the Knight Riders' success with frenzied cheering, while receiving Delhi's boundaries and wickets with stoned silence.

Sehwag edged his first ball behind. Next over, Shoaib had Gambhir slap one straight to point. In the next over, de Villiers mistimed a pull and the next ball and Tiwary was plumb in front of a shrill in cutter. Shoaib was hitting the 150-kmph mark, and the damage had been inflicted on Delhi.

Kolkata's next worry was to remove the two dangerous Lankans - Ferveez Maharoof and Tillakaratne Dilshan. Both fell to spectacular run outs. Dilshan couldn't beat throw from Laxmi Ratan Shukla and Maharoof was caught napping by a direct hit from Ashok Dinda in his follow through.

With the match teetering at 30 runs needed from the last 18, Kolkata captain Sourav Ganguly handed the ball to Shukla, who hadn't bowled in the innings. The risk paid off. Shukla cleaned up the Delhi tail in that over, taking 3-6 in five balls.

Earlier in the day, Ganguly had elected to bat on a wicket that looked good for batting. But only Salman Butt (48) and David Hussey (31) had the runs to show.

Unlike their match against Chennai when Delhi's spinners were taken for plenty, their leg spinner Amit Mishra had figures of 3-0-13-0 to ensure the fifth bowler did not bleed runs and waste the seamers' hard work.

Maharoof (4-0-25-2), Pradeep Sangwan (4-0-29-1) and Yo Mahesh (4-0-33-2) did a terrific job to back up Glenn McGrath (4-0-22-0), who was his miserly best.

IPL Match 34: Misbah Ul Haq smashes 21 runs off 8 balls vs Punjab XI

2008-05-13T14:11:00.001-07:00

Shaun Marsh notched up his second successive half-century to lead Kings XI Punjab to a comprehensive nine-wicket win over Bangalore Royal Challengers in their IPL Twenty20 match here tonight.

Chasing 144 to win, hosts easily overhauled the target with 4.2 overs to spare.

Earlier, electing to bat, the Bangalore team could manage just 143 for eight as their batsmen struggled to negotiate a disciplined bowling by opponent pacers.

The opening pair of James Hopes (27) and Shaun Marsh (74 not out) laid a strong foundation for a comfortable victory as they put on 42-runs and provided a good start to their team.

Marsh, who had hit 58 in his last innings, was dropped on individual score of 12 but did not give any chance afterwards and hit Dale Steyn for 19 runs in the 11th over of the innings to reach his fifty in just 35-balls.

The left-handed Australian consumed just 51 balls for his furious knock, which was adorned with nine boundaries and two sixes.

Marsh along with compatriot Luke Pomersbach produced an unbeaten 102-run partnership for the second wicket.

After a cautious start, Hopes opened his arms and struck three huge sixes in his short innings.

R Vinaykumar drew the first and only blood on just second delivery of his first over when he had Hopes, going for a big shot, caught by Steyn near the boundary ropes.

However, nothing worked for the visitors after that as Marsh and Pomersbach scored at will and punished bowlers all around the park.

For the Royal Challengers, Pakistani Misbah-ul-Haq (21) eased off the pressure by hitting some thunderous shots but did not last long as he once again perished in a strange manner.

Misbah trod on to his stumps while negotiating a Sreesanth delivery which came in, forcing him to begin a long trudge back to pavilion.

Kohli (21) followed his Pakistani teammate when he was castled by Chawla though not before hitting the young spinner for a couple of boundaries.

Skipper Rahul Dravid then joined Cameron White (10) but once again a strong partnership eluded the visitors.

White was undone by a stunning caught and bowled by Chawla, who ran about 15 yard towards mid-wicket to latch on to a mistimed shot.

IPL Match 34: Bangalore lose again as Shaun Marsh hits an unbeaten 74

2008-05-13T14:00:00.001-07:00

Punjab Kings XI registered a thumping nine-wicket win over depleted Bangalore Royal Challengers with 26 balls to spare in the DLF Indian Premier League match in Mohali on Monday.

In reply to losers’ 143 for eight, the winners reached the target losing only James Hopes’ wicket. Shaun Marsh hit a brilliant unbeaten 74 off 51 balls laced with nine fours and a couple of sixes while LA Pomersbach remained not out on 34.

The Bangalore bowlers - Dale Steyn, Praveen Kumar, Anil Kumble and others - failed to curb the flowing runs.

Earlier, some disciplined bowling performances by S Sreesanth, VRV Singh and Irfan Pathan made it difficult for the depleted Bangalore Royal Challengers. Thanks to Mark Boucher, who hit 39 off 31 balls, the visitors reached 143 for eight in the allotted 20 overs.

Opting to bat, Bangalore were in trouble losing J. Arunkumar in the third over. But things started getting better with the advent of Pakistani T20 specialist Misbah-ul Haq. But he also perished in an uncanny fashion after smashing 21 off just 8 balls. While taking a shot off his backfoot, Misbah’s right foot dislodged the bails and he was adjudged hit-wicket.

With that wicket the Bangalore side’s morale seemed to have dipped further and they kept on losing wickets at regular intervals and ultimately managed to get to none-too-strong total 143 on the board in 20 overs.

In the death overs, the Punjab side managed to keep their cool and did the job almost perfectly. The yorkers - the most effective weapon - from the Punjab pacemen were difficult to get away.

IPL Match 34: Marsh takes Kings to 9-wicket win (74* Of 51 Balls)

2008-05-13T13:58:00.001-07:00

A jittery Rahul Dravid arrived at the toss, with lots on his mind. His opposite number, Kings XI captain Yuvraj Singh offered him a memento for good luck. The Bangalore captain won the toss. That was all that Bangalore Royal Challengers won on the night.

Bangalore elected to bat and produced a thoroughly average performance, making 143 at the PCA Stadium here. Kings XI Punjab chased that down with consummate ease in 15.4 overs, with Shaun Marsh again leading the chase with his 74 not out (51 balls, 9x4, 2x6).

Kings XI never gave Bangalore a chance with the bat. Once James Hopes and Marsh had added 42 for the first wicket, Bangalore's last hopes of a comeback faded away. Luke Pomersbach built on that start, while the in-form Marsh impressed again with his variety of shots and high strike rate.

Their 102-run stand kept Bangalore languishing at the bottom of the points table, while Kings XI are now joint-second along with Chennai Super Kings, at 12 points.

The Challengers threatened to get going for the briefest of periods. Misbah-ul Haq, whose name has been thrown around in Bangalore's much publicised recent problems, looked like he would turn their team's fortunes around. Having clobbered his way to 21 from 7 balls, Misbah unluckily walked back on his stumps and was out hit wicket.

Mark Boucher, like he has done throughout his career, provided some rearguard action with his 39 (31 balls, 4x4, 1x6), hanging in there till the penultimate ball of the innings. Their top order had been rocked by another polished performance from Sreesanth (3-29), who picked up J Arunkumar, Misbah and Praveen Kumar.

Dravid's innings itself lacked purpose. His mind clouded with their team's various off-field problems to go with the on-field ones, he scored 29 from 27 balls, once nearly running Boucher out. Dravid's wicket left Bangalore at 102-5 in 16 overs. The innings had had no momentum to begin with, but with their captain's wicket, their hopes of a decent score departed.

At the other end, Piyush Chawla and Irfan Pathan continued being among the wickets --- a big reason why Kings XI have done so well. Chawla, hit for 13 off his first two legit deliveries, got Virat Kohli bowled and Craig White caught and bowled. He finished with 4-0-33-2 while Pathan was economical, his figures reading 4-0-23-1.

Irfan and Sreesanth now lead the wicket takers list in the IPL, with 13 each, along with Zaheer Khan, while Chawla is No. 3 on the list of top strikers with 11.

IPL Match 33rd: Shane Watson stars in Royals' win

2008-05-12T15:06:00.001-07:00

Shane Watson made full use of two dropped chances to score a blazing half-century which sealed a thrilling three-wicket win for Rajasthan Royals against Delhi Daredevils in their IPL Twenty20 match here on Sunday.

Chasing, 157 to win, the hosts overcame early jolts to post a convincing victory with five balls to spare.

The Delhi team, invited to bat, could put just 156 runs on the board, largely with the help of Farveej Maharoof's blistering knock of 39 down the order.

Watson's strokeful 74-run-knock came off just 40-balls with the help of five boundaries and five sixes.

His eventful innings came to an end when he was run out in the penultimate over.

Square leg umpire did not refer the decision to the third umpire but rival skipper Virender Sehwag pushed for it and eventually got rid of Watson as TV replays clearly showed he was short of his ground.

This opened the match again for the Delhi team but Mahesh Rawat (5) and Niraj Patel (4) did not lose their nerve and won the match on the first ball of the last over.

The visitors have to blame themselves for the defeat as first their star batsmen let them down and then they dropped catches, earned by their bowlers.

Graeme Smith (24) and Watson made the most of the dropped chances to bring back their team in the hunt as they put on a crucial 71-run partnership for the third wicket.

Smith was dropped on zero by Amit Mishra and Watson by skipper Virender Sehwag when the Australian was on individual score of 26 and the team was struggling at 59 for two.

The hosts were stuttering at 15 for two after five overs and just when it seemed the Delhi team was on course of pulling a improbable win, Smith-Watson combo lifted their team from the pits.

The partnership laid a strong foundation for the victory though the battle swung again in the favour of visitors with leg-spinner Amit Mishra (2/27) scalping two wickets in successive overs.

Mishra first dismissed Smith and then bowled Ravindra Jadeja (6) to give his team a good chance to come back in the match.

Earlier, a brilliant bowling supported by charged up fielding helped Rajasthan Royals restrict Delhi Daredevils to a modest total of 156 for seven.

The visitors failed to build partnerships and paid the price as they could not put enough runs on the board and handed a tough job to their bowlers to defend a modest total.

Host skipper Shane Warne used all his bowlers effectively and made life difficult for visiting batsmen until Farveej Maharoof hit a blistering 39-run knock towards the end.

Maharoof top scored for the Delhi team with the help of two boundaries and four sixes, all coming in Shane Warne's overs.

The Sri Lankan also shared a crucial 54-run partnership with compatriot Tilakratne Dilshan (18) to help his team past the 150-run mark.

Mahroof hit Warne for 26 runs in the penultimate over with the help of four sixes, lifting the spirits of a dejected Delhi team.

Shane Watson (2/21) and Siddharth Trivedi (2/28) were the most successful bowlers for the hosts.

Mascarenhas, who made his debut in the tournament, bowled well and used slow balls to good effects as it did help in containing dangerous Virender Sehwag.

Watson too on the other end, bowled in tandem as the pair gave away just 29 runs in the first four overs with fielders complimenting their bowlers well.

As the pressure mounted to score quick runs, Sehwag (17) perished to Watson when he drove him uppishly only to find Mohammad Kaif at backward point.

On down Shikhar Dhawan (3) did not last long as he started his walk back to pavilion seven balls later after a terrible mix up with Gautam Gambhir (31) resulted in his run out.

Gambhir then survived a run out chance when Munaf Patel failed to hit stumps when the Delhi opener tried to steal a run in rival skipper's over.

The left-handed batsman however could not use the chance and was dismissed by Siddharth Trivedi when he tried to loft the ball over the covers but only managed an inside edge on his stumps.

IPL Match 33rd: Rajasthan beat Delhi by 3 wickets

2008-05-12T14:48:00.001-07:00

IPL Match 32nd : Knight Riders beat Chargers by 23 runs

2008-05-12T14:28:00.001-07:00

Sourav Ganguly led from the front to see Kolkata Knight Riders home by 23 runs against struggling Deccan Chargers during their Indian Premier League match in Hyderabad. ( Watch )
Scorecard

Earlier, Sourav Ganguly led from the front with a quickfire 91, while David Hussey chipped in with a blistering unbeaten 57 as Kolkata Knight Riders amassed 204 for four in their Indian Premier League match against Deccan Chargers.

Ganguly won the toss and decided to bat first but Salman Butt's exit in the first over pegged back the visitors. Ganguly joined hands with Aakash Chopra (24) and forged a 69-run stand to steady the ship before he and Hussey tore apart the Deccan attack en route to a 102-run stand for the third wicket.

Ganguly's 91 came off 57 balls and was studded with 11 hits to the fence besides five sixes. Hussey remained unbeaten after a 29-ball knock that included four boundaries, besides three sixes. Laxmi Ratan Shukla was not out on 14 off just three balls as the Knight Riders went past the 200-run mark.

Playing his second match of the tournament, Butt (4) drove Chaminda Vaas for a four but perished soon edging him behind. The hosts, however, had to wait another 10 overs before another wicket fell and it was poor judgement that saw Chopra returning to the hut after being run out.

Ganguly looked good for his maiden Twenty20 century but trying to up the ante, he went for a hook only to see RP Singh take a low catch at fine leg off P Vijaykumar.

Tatenda Taibu (9) lived dangerously and threw his bat at anything and everything before Ravi Teja took a full-blooded drive off RP Singh to cut short his stay.

IPL Match 32nd: Ganguly's blast power guides Knight riders to victory

2008-05-12T14:09:00.001-07:00

Sourav Ganguly rendered an explosive innings that propelled Kolkata Knight Riders to a 23-run victory over Deccan Chargers in an Indian Premier League match here on Sunday.

Ganguly clobbered 91 off just 57 balls as Knight Riders put up an imposing 204/4 in 20 overs and then restricted the home team to 181/7 to coast to a comfortable victory.

But the Riders did not get the match on a platter as Venugopal Rao (71 off 42 balls) produced a breathtaking innings and threatened to take the match away towards the end. The Hyderabad batsman hit six towering sixes and four boundaries, but his heroic efforts went in vain as there was no support for him from the other end.

Deccan Chargers lost wickets at regular interval and at one point were reeling at 5/95 before Venugopal's fireworks enthralled the capacity home crowd who have not savoured a single win of their home team here.

Pacer Ashok Dinda (3/33) broke the back of Deccan Chargers, scything through the top-order in no time. He removed the dangerous Adam Gilchrist, Herschelle Gibbs and in-form Rohit Sharma before Ganguly (2/25) bowled a tidy spell in the middle overs, giving nothing away to the batsmen.

But it was Laxmi Ratan Shukla (1-16) who reigned in Rao in the last two overs of the match. Rao was hitting experienced campaigners like Umar Gul and Murali Kartik out of the stadium before Ganguly threw the ball to Shukla, who kept his cool and bowled at the yorker length with consistency, cramping Venugopal.

Earlier, skipper Sourav Ganguly, after electing to bat, powered Knight Riders to an imposing total. Ganguly has not had a good tournament with the bat so far but Sunday he produced an electrifying knock, reminiscent of his hey-days.

It was not all power hitting but immaculate timing that saw the ball soaring high over stands after meeting the sweet spot of Ganguly's blade. The Maharaj of Kolkata hit 11 boundaries and five sixes, most of them straight down the ground.

David Hussey (57 off 29 balls) was an able support for Ganguly as the duo punched sixes and fours in the death overs.

After Knight Riders lost their first wicket early with Salman Butt edging one behind off Chaminda Vass in the fourth ball of the innings, they batted with caution. The first six overs fetched 43 and after 13 overs Kolkata only had 89 on the board before Ganguly decided to cut loose.

The last seven overs produced 115 as Ganguly and Hussey raced to a 102-run stand off just 48 balls.

Ganguly took his time to settle down and was good in his shot selection. He often shuffled across and improvised to hit boundaries off Vaas and P Vijaykumar, the new-ball bowlers.

Ganguly changed gears in the last overs and spanked left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha for a couple of straight sixes. Scott Styris too was hit for successive sixes by Ganguly. Vaas, who bowled an unimpressive spell, delivered too many full tosses and Ganguly grabbed the scoring opportunities.

At the other end, Hussey too turned on the heat, hitting RP for two sixes and a four in the 18th over.

Deccan were also hit by some ordinary fielding. Misfields and dropped catches were far too many.

Balaji spells doom for Kings XI Punjab (IPL Match 31: Chennai Super Kings v Kings XI Punjab)

2008-05-10T15:12:00.001-07:00

Laxmipathy Balaji's fiery bowling left Kings XI Punjab gasping as Chennai Super Kings trounced them by 18 runs in the return leg of the DLF IPL at the MAC Stadium in Chennai.

The Man of the Match, L Balaji picked five wickets conceding just 24 runs in his spell of four overs. This also includes the hat-trick he took in his last over, the first in the tournament. Balaji, who has been out of international cricket for the past couple of years, made a roaring comeback in his second IPL match.

In the first spell, he picked Yuvraj Singh and the big wicket of Shaun Marsh (58). In the last over he picked three players Irfan Pathan (40), Piyush Chawla (17) and VRV Singh.

Kings XI failed to avenge their loss to Dhoni's men despite Irfan Pathan and Shaun Marsh's heroics. Shaun marshaled Punjab innings single handedly while wickets kept tumbling from the other end. Yuvraj could not fire and perished cheaply. All-rounder Irfan Pathan made 40 runs and looked to see his side through but Balaji came up with his magical spell and put an end to Punjab's hopes of recording their sixth consecutive win.

Defending a total of 181, Super Kings bowlers were up for their job and picked wickets regularly to hamper Punjab's run chase. Albie Morkel provided Chennai Super Kings the early breakthrough as he removed Punjab opener James Hopes, who was looking threatening.

Earlier, with the help of the innings of MS Dhoni and S Badrinath, Chennai Super Kings made 181 runs at the loss of four wickets.

Chennai skipper MS Dhoni (60) and S Badrinath (64) did the recovery work for Super Kings with aplomb after their three batsmen collapsed early in the innings. They hit some lusty shots and looked to cross the 200-mark but Punjab made a brilliant comeback. They conceded just 37 runs in the last five overs.

S Sreesanth, all focused and fired up after the 'slapgate controversy', was bang on the target and picked two wickets in his successive overs to remove openers S Viduyt (8) and Stephen Fleming.

Former Kiwi skipper Stephen Fleming failed yet again and added just one run before Karan Goel took his catch at the cover. Suresh Raina in his cameo added 26 runs as his statemate and Punjab spinner Piyush Chawla put an end to his innings.

Then came captain Dhoni to take things under control. He along with S Badrinath added 91 runs for the fourth wicket. VRV Singh finally broke the partnership and Yuvraj caught Badrinath at covers.

With this win, Chennai Super Kings move up to the second place with 12 points. Rajasthan Royals, also with 12 points, lead the table as they have a better net run rate than the Super Kings.

Balaji shines with a hat-trick in Chennai Super Kings' win (Balaji Hatrick in IPL Match 31)

2008-05-10T14:17:00.001-07:00

Laxmipati Balaji registered first hat-trick of the Indian Premier League to help Chennai Super Kings assert their supremacy over Kings XI Punjab and beat them by 18 runs here on Saturday.

Balaji claimed five wickets, including a hat-trick in the last over of the match, and gave away just 24 runs in his four overs to seal his team's victory.

This was second successive win for the hosts over the Punjab team as they had beaten them in the away tie early in the tournament.

Put in to bat, the Chennai team piled up a competitive 181 for four, thanks to superb batting by S Badrinath and Mahendra Singh Dhoni, and then restricted the visitors to 163 for nine in their quota of 20 overs.

Balaji provided crucial breakthroughs early and then got his hat-trick in the last over, in which the visitors required 27 runs for the victory.

Opener Shaun Marsh (58) hit a blazing half-century but that was not enough to earn a revenge victory for his team as other batsmen let the visitors down.

Marsh's innings came off just 38-balls with three boundaries and four sixes including a towering one, which landed on the roof of the stadium, off Muttiah Muralitharan.

Like their opponents, the Punjab team also had a bad start losing two early wickets with James Hopes (14) and Karan Goel (1) departing early.

Marsh and Ramnaresh Sarwan (20) did try to bring their team back in the match as they put together 64 runs for the third wicket. But Balaji, star bowler for the hosts, removed both of them in one over to deal sever blow to the visitors hope.

Balaji hat-trick sinks Mohali (1st Innings Highlights Chennai Super Kings v Kings XI Punjab)

2008-05-10T14:13:00.001-07:00

He was the toast of the nation with his disarming smile and potent bowling until two years ago. But a back injury appeared to have ended his career prematurely. L Balaji, forcing his way back to top-flight cricket after spending two years in the wilderness, became the architect of Chennai's 18-run victory over Mohali at the MA Chidambaram stadium here on Saturday.

Powered by captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni's blitzkrieg 60 not out and a stylish 64 from S Badrinath, Chennai piled up an impressive 181-4 before Balaji got into the act with figures of 5-24, including the first ever hat-trick of the Indian Premier League.

Chennai's bowlers did well to pick up three wickets despite the batsmen getting off to a flier. Shaun Marsh, the opener, stroked a fluent half-century to continue with his stunning run of form in the tournament but got little asistance from the rest of the Mohali batsmen before Irfan Pathan's valiant 40 from just 18 balls got his side within striking distance.

But the day belonged to two home boys — Subramaniam Badrinath and Laxmipathy Balaji. Badrinath's maturity with the bat brought as much to cheer about for the crowd as did Balaji's superb effort.

Marsh and Ramnaresh Sarwan's partnership in the middle overs threatened to take the game away from Chennai, but Balaji's second over of the night fetched him the wickets of the set batsmen, sparking a middle order collapse that saw Yuvraj Singh and Sri Lankan captain Mahela Jayawardene depart cheaply.

The Mohali batsmen struggled to get the big shots in until Irfan Pathan clubbed three sixes and three boundaries with Piyush Chawla giving him company at the other end for a 48-run seventh-wicket stand. Balaji was handed the final over in which Mohali needed an improbable 27. After getting thumped for a six off the first ball, Balaji adjusted beautifully with the wickets of Pathan, Chawla and VRV Singh, completing his fairytale comeback.

Chennai, having been put in to bat, didn't get the start they expected through S Vidyut and Stephen Fleming, but were lifted by some inspiring middle order batting. While one murdered the bowling attack, the other showed just how much value the book of cricket still holds.

That Sreesanth remains an enigma in cricketing circles was vindicated during this game. The India speedster was innocuous in his first over, starting off with a couple of wides before Sivaramakrishnan Vidyut blasted him through the covers twice. But as has so often been the case, the bowler returned to get rid of the opener with a peach.

His second over was equally dramatic, with the bowler getting smashed on his toe by a firm shot from Suresh Raina on his follow-through. Limping by now, Sreesanth then bowled a wide that should have been penalised for two runs instead of one, but removed Stephen Fleming in the same over as Chennai lost both their openers who provided them a rollicking start to their run chase in Delhi two days back.

Suresh Raina and Badrinath, batting at No. 4 for the first time in the competition, stepped it up with remarkable urgency, pushing for the twos and picking the gaps in between, before Dhoni and Badrinath's 91-run stand lifted them to a commanding position.

Dhoni’s susceptibility to spin bowling has been picked up by sides in the competition, as Shane Warne and Pragyan Ojha’s success against him show. But the Indian One-day captain didn’t let Piyush Chawla settle down, repeatedly stepping out and launching him into the stands.

Dhoni's brutal knock notwithstanding, Subramaniam Badrinath reaching his first half-century provided for one of the most endearing images of the IPL. The batsman has never played for India, but the capacity MA Chidambaram stadium crowd, where Badrinath plays his first-class games, gave him a rapturous applause for a phenominally mature innings.

Teams:

Chennai: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain), S Vidyut, Stephen Fleming, Suresh Rania, Albie Morkel, Chamara Kapugedera, S Badrinath, Manpreet Gony, Palani Amarnath, Muttiah Muralitharan, Lakshmipathy Balaji.

Mohali: Yuvraj Singh (captain), Shaun Marsh, James Hopes, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Karan Goel, Mahela Jayawardene, Irfan Pathan, Piyush Chawla, Uday Kaul, Sreesanth, VRV Singh.

Mind it, its Gony not Dhoni (IPL Cricket Highlights - Sehwag Cleaned Up By M.Gony)

2008-05-09T14:21:00.001-07:00

A small town lad again rises up to the occasion. After the triumphant T20 World Cup campaign, skipper MS Dhoni had openly avowed the flair of small town players. Now even in the IPL, it seems that talents from the lesser known parts of the country are here to make the difference.

The small bracket town lying on the road between Chandigarh and Anandpur Sahib has come up with a gem in the making. Roopnagar as it is known will soon become famous for having the distinction of giving the Indian Premier League a player called Manpreet Gony.

His initial fame to claim of course was his rhyming surname to Indian cricket’s blue-eyed boy MS Dhoni. Co-incidentally he also got to play for Chennai Superkings led by the Indian skipper himself. To be honest no one knew of Manpreet Gony’s existence till the IPL came.

Gony’s fate changed after Chennai Superkings all-rounder Sudeep Tyagi got injured. He was inducted in the side after more than a good back up by national selector Bhupinder Singh. His domestic figures show 13 wickets in 5 first-class games at an economy rate of 3.5 and 122 runs in seven innings.

Superkings chief selector VB Chandrashekhar had his faith intact in the six-feet four inches tall bowler. The Punjab fast bowler was the only bright spot in the dismal performance of the North Zone team in the recent Deodhar Trophy being the highest wicket taker. Superkings, therefore, in no time drafted Manpreet in their squad in spite of his nil experience in T20 cricket.

Gony repaid the faith that the Superkings management had in him. With a side boasting of names like Muralitharan, Ntini, Oram, Morkel and of course Dhoni, Gony stood out with his competence with both bat and ball. Half the way in IPL season, Gony is the best bowler in his team with ten wickets in eight matches.

Drafted in the side as an all-rounder, his batting prowess was not seen until the last match against Delhi Daredevils. In an edge-of-the-seat thriller, Gony blasted the required 15 runs in the last over clinching a close and much needed victory for his side. Shoaib Malik bore the brunt of this burly all-rounder’s late onslaught.

As of now IPL is half way through and Gony is the third-highest wicket taker in the tournament. Also, it would be too early to call him a star material.

Even BCCI, chairman of selectors, Dilip Vengsarkar felt that a player cannot be judged on his T20 performance. Logically, it is true, citing the F50 and longer version of the game are totally a different ball game.

But what is heartening to see is the surfacing of new talent in the star-packed league. It has given a chance not to only a Gony but many other players too. It has given them recognition. Who knew a Yogesh Takawale before he snapped 4 dismissals while keeping for the Mumbai Indians against Rajasthan Royals.

Even Goan opener Swapnil Asnodkar was an alien to any cricket follower. His claim to fame was when he blazed 34-balls 60 runs for the Shane Warne inspired Rajasthan Royals against the Kolkata Knightriders. His team-mate Ravindra Jadeja has also been rated as a star material by Shane Warne.

If the grapevines are to be believed about top IPL players earning more than Rs61 crores in the coming years, don’t discount the rates that a Gony or an Asnodkar would command next season.

Finally, all of them have become more of a commodity than skilled players. Or let’s be reasonable saying their skills are being valued, probably at exorbitant rates.

Rajasthan humble Deccan Chargers by 8 wickets (IPL Match 30: Rajasthan Royals Vs Deccan Chargers)

2008-05-09T14:18:00.001-07:00

A century stand between openers Yusuf Pathan and Graeme Smith helped Rajasthan Royals notch up a convincing eight wicket victory over Deccan Chargers in the Indian Premier League match on Friday.

Put in to bat at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium, the Deccan Chargers spoiled a good start to score a modest 140 for eight in their allotted quota of 20 overs. The hosts overhauled the target in 16 overs by losing only two wickets.

Warne, Pathan spell doom for Hyderabad yet again (IPL Match 30: Rajasthan Royals V Deccan Chargers)

2008-05-09T14:11:00.001-07:00

VVS Laxman's loss didn't seem to have done Hyderabad any harm. They won the previous game against Chennai, and against Jaipur, they clearly had the upper hand, before throwing the game away, and perhaps their chances of making the semi-finals with their nine-wicket loss at the Sawai Man Singh stadium here on Friday.

Needing virtually a win from every game, Hyderabad, with only two in their bag, went to fortress Jaipur — they are the only ones to have not lost a single game at home — and started off in fine fashion before Jaipur's duo of Shane Warne and Yusuf Pathan, who were Hyderabad's nemesis in a remarkable run chase in the first leg, made short work of their opponents to go top of the IPL points table.

Warne crippled Hyderabad with a fantastic spell of 2-19 to keep them down to 140-8 — after being 74-1 in 10 overs — before Yusuf Pathan made it one-way traffic with a belligerent 37-ball 68 as Jaipur got home with four overs to spare.

Yusuf, back opening in the innings, put on 109 with Graeme Smith (40) as Hyderabad ran out of ideas to contain either, finally getting Yusuf in the 13th over, while RP Singh, Hyderabad's best bowler on the night, was rewarded with Smith's wicket with Jaipur just eight runs adrift from their target.

Sohail Tanvir didn't quite have the outing he was hoping for after his six-wicket haul here, but it was the trickery of the masterful Warne and yet another impressive performance from Siddharth Trivedi (1-8), the medium-pacer, that caught Hyderabad off guard, who let slip a fantastic start.

After being put in to bat, Adam Gilchrist belted his second successive half-century while captaining his side as he and Herschelle Gibbs blazed away to their best start of the tournament, reaching their 50 in the sixth over, before the talismanic Shane Warne yet again inspired his side to stage a remarkable turnaround.

Gibbs, who had previously disappointed with the bat, just about broke the shackles with a trademark cover drive before Munaf Patel removed him next ball for 19, before Hyderabad lost their way in the middle overs, if there is any room for the term in the shortest form of the game.

Gilchrist carried the charge to reach his second half-century of the tournament, along with a hundred, but was sent back by Trivedi for 61 before Warne figured in four dismissals, including Rohit Sharma's run out, a batsman who has been a model of consistency for the otherwise inconsistent Hyderabad outfit.

The wily leg-spinner brought himself on immediately after the first six overs and worked his magic, choking off the runs as Jaipur struck an unusual sequence. Having taken just one wicket in 12 overs, Warne struck in the 13th, while a wicket each fell in the 14th, 15th, 16th and the 17th. The sequence ended in the 18th over, but Warne got back into the act in the 19th.

Jaipur's five-match winning streak came to an end in Mumbai, while Hyderabad were on a high after posting a win in Chennai.

Besides the absence of Laxman, Hyderabad made one change to their side, including Ravi Teja in place of Arjun Yadav, while Jaipur excluded in-form Swapnil Asnodkar to draft in Niraj Patel at the top of the order.

Teams:

Hyderabad: Adam Gilchrist (captain), Ravi Teja, Herschelle Gibbs, Rohit Sharma, Scott Styris, Shahid Afridi, Venugopal Rao, Sanjay Bangar, RP Singh, Vijay Kumar, Pragyan Ojha.

Jaipur: Shane Warne (captain), Graeme Smith, Niraj Patel, Yusuf Pathan, Shane Watson, Mohammad Kaif, Ravindra Jadeja, Sohail Tanvir, Mahesh Rawat, Siddharth Trivedi, Munaf Patel.

IPL: Kolkata edge narrow win (29th IPL Match: Kolkata KR Vs Bangalore RC )

2008-05-08T16:57:00.001-07:00

Mark Boucher's blistering unbeaten half-century proved in vain as the Bangalore Royal Challengers slipped to a five-run defeat against Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League on Thursday.

The South African cracked 50 from 40 balls as Bangalore fell just short of their 130-run victory target in a match reduced to 16 overs because of rain.

Economical bowling from Sourav Ganguly in particular, who finished with figures of one for seven from three overs, limited Bangalore to 124 for four - and left them rooted to the foot of the IPL table.

Earlier Dale Steyn had taken three for 27 as Kolkata struggled to 129 for seven, but late runs at the end of the innings allowed the hosts to halt a run of four straight defeats.

Having posted a far from intimidating total, the dismissals of opening pair Jagadeesh Arunkumar (22) and Shivnarine Chanderpaul (seven) gave Kolkata early hope.

And that turned to genuine belief when Rahul Dravid was bowled by his India team-mate Ganguly for just five to leave the Challengers languishing on 51 for three in the 10th over.

Boucher and Cameron White put on 45 in an impressive fourth-wicket partnership, but when the latter was run out for 30 to leave the visitors 34 runs from victory with less than two overs remaining the writing was on the wall for Bangalore.

Earlier, the Royal Challengers had struck quickly to remove Aakash Chopra (two) and Brad Hodge (10) in successive overs, the Indian trapped lbw by Steyn and the Australian holing out to Vinay Kumar at deep square leg off Zaheer Khan.

David Hussey came to the crease and immediately looked to hit out, following up a huge six down the ground with a textbook cover drive for four.

Ganguly had also looked in good touch on his way to 20 from 22 balls before some sluggish running between the wickets saw him run out by White.

Hussey pulled another maximum over long on before he too fell victim to a needless run-out, his quickfire 27 coming off just 12 balls.

Tatenda Taibu (15) became Steyn's second victim after top-edging a delivery for wicketkeeper Boucher to pouch before a shorter delivery from the South African did for Laxmi Shukla (12), who sliced it on to his own stumps.

And Prasanta Saha and Murali Kartik made a rapid 17 apiece at the death as Kolkata's total just proved sufficient.

Kolkata clinch cliffhanger, beat Bangalore by 5 runs (IPL Match 29 - Charged Up Kolkata Win Fierce Battle v Banalore 2008)

2008-05-08T14:49:00.001-07:00

Having already experienced a cliffhanger between Delhi and Chennai during the day, it made for a perfect build-up for the rematch featuring Kolkata and Bangalore, the sides who set the stage up for the Indian Premier League.

It didn't go down to the last ball — Ishant Sharma bowled a brilliant final over — but two dot balls as Kolkata prevailed by five runs at the Eden Gardens here on Thursday.

Needing 34 runs from the last two overs, Mark Boucher, who scratched around early on in his partnership with Cameron White (30) as the duo got Bangalore back in the match, took it upon himself as White was run out on the first ball of the penultimate over. But despite taking 15 runs from the next four balls, the South African wicketkeeper-batsman denied a single to Praveen Kumar off the final ball to keep strike.

Boucher (50 not out) started the final over off Ishant in fine fashion as he hoicked the first ball to the boundary but refused another single next ball. The Indian speedster kept his nerve as Boucher didn't get the big shot, condemning Bangalore to their sixth defeat in eight games.

Man of the match Sourav Ganguly swung the pendulum back for his side with the ball. His three overs costed just seven runs which included the wicket of Rahul Dravid, while Ishant Sharma picked up another which included an outstanding spell at the death. But it was stupendous fielding from both sides which set a new fielding benchmark in the competition.

Two fantastic run outs got Bangalore the upper hand in the match, as Kolkata were restricted to 129-7 in the first rain-curtailed encounter of the IPL, before the Sourav Ganguly led side took the standards to an unheralded high in the field.

The early loss of Shivnarine Chanderpaul prompted Karnataka’s veteran batsman J Arunkumar (22) to launch an assault on Umar Gul in the fifth over of play, before Brad Hodge sensationally stopped a skimmer at point and threw the stumps down. But it was a long forgotten man from the cricketing circles who made the capacity Eden Gardens crowd stand up and take notice.

Tatenda Taibu, the diminutive former Zimbabwe captain playing his first game in the tournament, was not donning the gloves behind the stumps. Fielding at mid-on in the fourth over, he pulled off an astounding save. Hit firmly to his right, for a small man, Taibu ran huge steps before diving parallel to the ground to keep it down to one what would have been a sure boundary.

Fortunes had dramatically changed for Kolkata since the IPL opener against Bangalore on April 18. With the departure of Brendon McCullum, wins had also deserted them. After Ganguly opted to bat after rains reduced the rematch of the curtain raiser to 16 overs-a-side, the hosts just managed 129-7 against Bangalore. It could have been worse, had Wriddhiman Saha (17 not out) and Murali Kartik (17) not rescued them from a precarious 88-6.

For Bangalore, it was their South African import, Dale Steyn, who stood out with the ball with figures of 3-28. Kolkata, who opened with a new pair in Akash Chopra and Brad Hodge, didn't succeed as both were sent back with 20 runs on the board. Ganguly, batting at No. 3, steadied up but was a victim of a spectacular run out by Cameron White for 20, a dismissal he is quite familiar with.

All of the middle order batsmen reached double figures but threw it away. David Hussey clubbed three sixes and a four in his 26 but soon figured in the run-out column himself.

Both sides made wholesale changes to their line-ups following a series of defeats, with Kolkata handing Aakash Chopra his IPL debut, along with the inclusion of Zimbabwean Tatenda Taibu, who played only as a batsman. Murali Kartik and Ashok Dinda also returned to the side, while Bangalore included Shivnarine Chanderpaul, J Arunkumar and R Vinay Kumar.

Kolkata thrashed Bangalore at the Chinnaswamy stadium on April 18 but had not won a game after winning their second, against Hyderabad. Bangalore, on the other hand, remain stuck at the bottom of the points table, and have been rattled by the sacking of their CEO after their string of losses.

Teams:

Kolkata: Sourav Ganguly (captain), Akash Chopra, Brad Hodge, David Hussey, Tatenda Taibu, Wriddhiman Saha, Laxmi Rattan Shukla, Murali Kartik, Ishant Sharma, Umar Gul, Ashok Dinda.

Bangalore: Rahul Dravid (captain), Shivnarine Chanderpaul, J Arunkumar, Mark Boucher, Cameron White, R Vinay Kumar, Virat Kohli, Praveen Kumar, Zaheer Khan, Anil Kumble, Dale Steyn.

Knight Riders beat Bangalore by five runs ( IPL Match 29 | Kolkota Knight Riders Innings | Highlights )

2008-05-08T14:46:00.001-07:00

Kolkata Knight Riders came back to winning ways, defeating Bangalore Royal Challengers by five runs in a pulsating rain-curtailed encounter of the Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Eden Gardens here on Thursday night.

Sourav Ganguly's side restricted Royal Challengers to 124 for four after posting a challenging score of 129 for seven in their allotted 16 overs.

The match witnessed a keen tussle between the two sides fighting for their survival in the Twenty20 league. Though it was not a high scoring game, the highlight of the match was some eye-catching fielding and disciplined bowling from both sides.

J Arun Kumar (22 off 17) and Shivnaraine Chanderpaul (7) gave a perfect start to Royal Challengers' run chase putting on 17 runs for the first wicket. However, a sensational direct hit from Brad Hodge cut short Arun Kumar's innings to bring the match at even terms at 33 for two in 4.5 overs. In his brief stay at the crease, Arun Kumar threatened to take the game away from the hosts.

Royal Challengers' captain Rahul Dravid (5) and Mark Boucher (50 off 40 balls) then shared 19 runs for the fourth wicket before Ganguly cleaned his counterpart to reel the visitors at 51 for three in 9.1 overs.

Australian Cameron White (30 off 16) accelerated Challengers' run chase, hitting Laxmi Ratan Shukla for a six and four in the 11th over.

Needing 62 off 30 balls, both Boucher and White launched an all-round attack. The duo picked up 15 runs in the 13th over from Umar Gul. However, it was followed by a brilliant over by Ishant Sharma (25/1), in which he gave just five runs.

In the first of ball of the 15th over, Murali Kartik outsmarted dangerman White with a clever piece of fieldwork of his own bowling. But Boucher was in no mood to give up the fight as he hit Kartik for two fours and a six to keep Challengers in the hunt at 111 for four.

Needing 19 off the last over, the South African wicketkeeper fought a lonely battle and hit Ishant for a boundary in the first ball to reduce the margin. That was all he could manage, as his valiant effort could not see his side through and they fell short by five runs.

Ganguly was adjudged the man of the match for his excellent bowling. He gave up just seven runs in his three overs in which he picked the important wicket of Dravid.

Earlier, Royal Challengers dampened the home crowd's spirit, restricting the Knight Riders to 129 for seven.

Opting to bat in a 16-over-per-side match that was delayed by rain, Knight Riders' top order once again faltered and their innings never really took off. A changed opening combination of Akash Chopra (2) and Brad Hodge (10) failed to provide the hosts a solid start.

Ganguly (20 off 22 balls) and David Hussey (26 off 12) tried to resurrect Knight Riders' innings and shared a 26-run stand for the fourth wicket, but two crucial runouts and some disciplined work on the field from Challengers eventually led to their downfall.

Ganguly was first of the two runouts as White pulling off a spectacular direct hit from mid-on.

The going was slow for Knight Riders and it was Hussey who stepped up the gear and accelerated the innings. The Australian hit Kumble for two back-to-back sixes in the ninth over, but in the very next ball a sensational throw from Steyn from the fine-leg found Hussey short of the crease while he was running for a non-existent second run.

However, the hosts' lower middle order saved the day for them. Debutant Tatenda Taibu (15), Shukla (11), Wriddhiman Saha (unbeaten 17) and Kartik (17) made some valuable contributions down the order to set a challenging target before Royal Challengers.

Saha and Kartik made a quick 34-run stand for the seventh wicket, the highest partnership of the innings. Saha was lucky not to be caught off Zaheer Khan, with Dale Steyn losing the ball in the Eden floodlights.

Steyn was the pick of the bowlers for Royal Challengers, taking three wickets for 27 runs in his four overs, while Zaheer (27/1) and Praveen Kumar (36/1) were the other wicket takers.

With this victory, Knight Riders now have 2-0 win-loss record against Royal Challengers. Ganguly's men had thrashed the Bangalore side in the opening match of the IPL last month in Bangalore.

Super Kings shock Delhi, win by four wickets (IPL Match 28: Chennai Vs Delhi)

2008-05-08T13:13:00.001-07:00

Chennai Super Kings scored 15 runs from the last over to snatch a heart-stopping four-wicket victory over Delhi Daredevils in a thrilling Indian Premier League return leg match here on Thursday.

Chasing 188, Super Kings top order clicked for once but the match went down the wire before the visitors reaching the target in the last ball of their innings to hand their opponents their second consecutive loss.

In a cliffhanger of a match which saw fortunes fluctuating from one side to the other, the MS Dhoni-led side was cruising along at 98 for two after 10 overs but slumped to 166 for six in the penultimate over to find themselves in a precarious position of scoring 15 from the last over off Shoaib Malik with the seventh wicket pair of S Badrinath and Manpreet Gony at the crease.

Gony held on to his nerves to hit a six and four from the first two legitimate balls before S Badrinath took a single from the last ball to stun more than 30,000 Kotla crowd.

Stephen Fleming top-scored with 44 while his opening partner S Vidyut scored 40 and Dhoni chipped in with a useful 33. Dhoni was adjudged Man of the Match.

Bowling last over with Malik was collective decision: Sehwag (IPL MATCH 28 - LAST OVER OF THE MATCH)

2008-05-08T13:07:00.001-07:00

Delhi Daredevils captain Virender Sehwag said bowling the last over with Shoaib Malik was a collective decision, even though it boomeranged with Chennai Super Kings batsmen milking the required 15 runs for a thrilling four-wicket win.

Super Kings' seventh wicket pair of S Badrinath and Manpreet Gony held on their nerves to smash the required runs off Malik's over but Sehwag said it was a collective decision to let Malik bowl the last over.

"I consulted my team-mates and they said either me or Malik should bowl (the last over). I thought he would do a better job than me, so I gave it to him," Sehwag said at the post-match press conference here.

"Such things happen in Twenty20, sometimes you are hit and sometimes you are not," he added.

Sehwag said 187 was not a small total and his batsmen, especially Gautam Gambhir and Shikhar Dhawan, batted well but in the end he felt the absence of a fifth bowler.

"187 is not a small score. Gambhir and Dhawan batted superbly and then V Yo Mahesh and Pradeep Sangwan did their job while bowling. Everything was going to our plan till the 15th over (of Chennai innings). At the end we lost at the last over," he rued.

Sehwag admitted his side felt the absence of a specialist fifth bowler which cost them dear.

"If we had a specialist fifth bowler, we would have saved 30-40 runs, we miss a fifth bowler. We are including a specialist spinner in the next match," said Sehwag.

With Thursday's loss, the Daredevils slumped to the fourth position of the IPL points table but Sehwag said they are still in the competition.

"We lost a match today but it happens in cricket we will bounce back," he said.

Sehwag said there was nothing wrong in the game plan but it happened that they had to lose in the last over.

"Our top order was batting beautifully and bowlers bowled well, it so happen that we had to lose in the last over."

Super Kings player Albie Morkel, who faced the media instead of captain MS Dhoni, said they were hopeful of Gony and Badrinath getting the required 15 runs in the last over.

"In Twenty20, getting 15-20 runs from the last over is not that difficult. Moreover, a spinner was bowling (the last over) and Gony had hit two sixes in the last match in the last over. So we thought we were in for a win," he said.

Talking about hitting Sehwag for three successive sixes, he said, "It was satisfying, He was doing all the hitting all the while. Today it was my turn.

"Our top order also fired today and that set up the chase," added the South African.

Dhoni being named the man of the match was a surprising decision as Morkel took two wickets and scored 30 valuable runs to help the Super Kings chase the challenging total successfully.

Asked whether he was surprised that Dhoni got the man of the match award instead of him, Morkel said, "No, he got it. He is a great player and I hope he keeps on giving match winning performances in the remaining matches."

Chennai edge out Delhi in last-ball finish (Delhi Daredevils Innings Highlights - IPL 28th Match)

2008-05-08T12:56:00.001-07:00

Chennai kept their nerves as S Badrinath and Manpreet Gony emerged unlikely heroes to edge out Delhi in a last-ball finish at the Feroz Shah Kotla on Thursday.

Delhi appeared to have missed a trick as captain Virender Sehwag used up frontline bowlers Glenn McGrath and Mohammad Asif as Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik was left to bowl the final over with 15 runs to get. Gony was up to the task, smashing the first ball for a towering six before a wide dampened Delhi's hopes.

Gony struck another boundary next ball but boiled down to the final ball as Badrinath was on strike with a run to win. Shikhar Dhawan nearly pulled off a sensational catch in the deep but the Chennai dressing room erupted as the ball trickled out of the fielder's hands to hand Chennai their first win after three straight defeats.

Earlier, Delhi opener Gautam Gambhir smashed 80 from 49 balls to lift his side to 187-5 before Chennai began their pursuit in fine fashion, with openers S Vidyut and Stephen Fleming flaying the Delhi attack.

Delhi pulled back with quick wickets before Albie Morkel got Chennai back on track, smashing captain Virender Sehwag for 23 runs in an over that included three consecutive sixes.

Put in to bat in the return leg by MS Dhoni, Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir provided the home side with a rollicking start before Chennai bowlers Manpreet Gony and Albie Morkel struck in succession to remove Sehwag (23) and AB de Villiers (0) to pull the hosts back. But Gambhir, along with left-hander Shikhar Dhawan wrested the initiative back with a 121-run third-wicket partnership.

Delhi, having by far the best top order in the tournament, once again profited from them as Gambhir notched up his third half-century of the tournament, once again becoming the leading run-scorer while Dhawan, too, reached yet another fifty in the competition.

Laxmipathy Balaji, playing his first game after a prologned battle with injury, marked his return to top-flight cricket with two wickets in the final stages, while Albie Morkel chipped in with two wickets as well.

Chennai, who lost three in three after winning their first four games, were thrown off kilter by the departure of Matthew Hayden, Mike Hussey and Jacob Oram, which prompted them to revise their startegies as they won the toss and opted to field.

Delhi had won their first leg match against Chennai by eight wickets. Both teams went into the match with eight points. But while Delhi have played six matches so far, Chennai have figured in seven.

Delhi and Chennai both have eight points each.

The teams:

Delhi: Virender Sehwag (capt), Gautam Gambhir, Shikhar Dhawan, AB de Villiers, Shoaib Malik, Dinesh Karthik, Manoj Tiwary, Pradeep Sangwan, Yo Mahesh, Glenn McGrath, Mohammad Asif.

Chennai:Mahendra Dhoni (capt), Parthiv Patel, Stephen Fleming, Suresh Raina, Arun Karthik, Abhinav Mukund, Manpreet Goni, Albie Morkel, Joginder Sharma, Sudeep Tyagi, Muttiah Muralitharan.

No royal treatment for the Royals (Mumbai Indians v Rajasthan Royals, IPL Match 27)

2008-05-07T14:06:00.001-07:00

Resurgent Mumbai Indians excelled with a superb all-round display to stun table-toppers Rajasthan Royals in their track and recorded a comprehensive seven-wicket victory, their third successive after four straight losses, in the Indian Premier League at the DY Patil Stadium on Wednesday.

Helped by some pathetic batting display by the visiting team, who went into their seventh tie with five successive wins behind them, the hosts bowled purposefully and fielded brilliantly to skittle out Rajasthan Royals for a meagre 103 in 16.2 overs.

The only way Rajasthan could win from that position when the asking rate was just over five was to trigger a dramatic collapse, which did not happen, and Mumbai Indians romped home by making 104 for three wickets in 15.1 overs to keep themselves firmly in the hunt for a semi-final berth.

Mumbai end Jaipur's win streak, start theirs (Mumbai Indians v Rajasthan, IPL Match 27)

2008-05-07T14:01:00.001-07:00

The first half of the inaugural Indian Premier League turned out to be a nightmare for the costliest team, Mumbai, but with the second half has also come a giant-killing win streak.

After beating Kolkata and Delhi, the Shaun Pollock led side put it across Jaipur by seven wickets, also bringing to an end Jaipur's five-match unbeaten run at the DY Patil stadium here on Wednesday.

Jaipur went to Mumbai to rack up another to their applecart. The home side, however, are rolling their own juggernaut, as their bowlers put up a solid effort to skittle the visitors out for 103, before the batsmen clinically finished off the proceedings with 4.5 overs remaining.

Ashish Nehra led the Mumbai bowling attack with 3-13, while Dhaval Kulkarni, Dwayne Bravo and Rohan Raje picked up two apiece.

The IPL has thrown some interesting battles within battles. Whether it's been countrymen taking on each other or old foes taking their rivavly to another level. The Mumbai versus Jaipur fixture was no different on Wednesday.

First, the two retired international stalwarts — Shaun Pollock and Shane Warne — squared off at the toss, and just as the former called the coin right and asked Jaipur to have a bat, the second battle had already begun.

The former South Africa captain was charging in at his successor Graeme Smith, the latter, batting a yard outside his crease, hell-bent on sending the metronome on a leather hunt.

Mumbai, who have had to make do without Sachin Tendulkar so far in the tournament, were going nowhere up until the last week but have seen a quiet resurgence. Pollock led the way, outsmarting Smith for five before Ashish Nehra cleaned up Yusuf Pathan.

Swapnil Asnodkar (39) and Shane Watson got the momentum back on the visiting side, adding 53 for the third wicket before the Australian all-rounder was bowled by Dwayne Bravo for 32, which triggered a mini-collapse with Mohammad Kaif and Ravindra Jadeja falling in quick time.

The Mumbai bowlers needed all of 16.2 overs to dismiss their opponents for their lowest score. Jaipur were all out for the first time in seven games.

Teams:

Mumbai: Shaun Pollock (captain), Yogesh Takawale, Sanath Jayasuriya, Dominic Thornely, Robin Uthappa, Dwayne Bravo, Abhishek Nayar, Saurabh Tiwary, R Raje, Dhaval Kulkarni, Ashish Nehra.

Jaipur: Shane Warne (captain), Swapnil Asnodkar, Yusuf Pathan, Shane Watson, Mohammad Kaif, Ravindra Jadeja, Shane Warne, Mahesh Rawat, Siddharth Trivedi, Munaf Patel, Sohail Tanvir.

Mumbai Indians thrash Rajasthan Royals by 7 wickets (Mumbai Indians v Rajasthan Royals, IPL Match 27)

2008-05-07T13:58:00.001-07:00

This was a match which promised high-pitched drama even if the romance of a Tendulkar v Warne battle was not destined to be, but the contest fizzled out so soon after play began that the packed stadium could only have been left ruing at what might have been.

With his groin problem still persisting, Tendulkar skipped this match too, which meant that Mumbai Indians were under even greater pressure playing a side that had won five matches on the trot. But Rajasthan Royals, riding high after a string of impressive victories, were made to look like mendicants by some superb bowling and fielding by the home team.

Victory for Mumbai came in a cakewalk by an emphatic seven-wicket margin, with Robin Uthappa in the vanguard with some dashing strokes and a few interesting eyeball-to-eyeball confrontations with Shane Watson.

A paltry target of 104 was never likely to seriously test the Mumbai batting, and after a couple of tight opening overs, the runs came at a fairly rapid clip to finish this much-touted contest prematurely. Watson bowled aggressively to pick up two wickets, and Warne created a brief flutter by taking a wicket with his first delivery, but ultimately the Rajasthan team just did not have enough runs in the kitty to defend.

Shaun Pollock, the genial South African who got the captaincy deservedly if belatedly in Tendulkar’s absence, won an important toss, made the right decision to field first, and then perhaps did the biggest favour for his side by getting rid of Graeme Smith who had been the bulwark of the Royals in previous games.

Hyderabad beat Chennai to score second win (Afridi's two huge sixes against CSK)

2008-05-06T13:05:00.001-07:00

Deccan Chargers, Hyderabad beat Chennai Super Kings by seven wickets at the M Chidambaram Stadium on Tuesday to keep their hopes alive in the Indian Premier League.

It was only the second win in seven matches for the Hyderabad team while the loss meant, Chennai have now faced defeat in their last three games after wins in their first four.

The departure of Australians Matthew Hayden and Michael Hussey and New Zealander Jacob Oram, all having to report on national duty, hasclearly affected the team's morale.

Chasing 145 to win, the Deccan Chargers lost South African Herschelle Gibbs (10) early but stand-in captain Adam Gilchrist (54) put on 54 runs for the second wicket with New Zealand allrounder Scott Styris (36) to lay the foundation.

Gilchrist's was a trademark knock, coming off just 36 balls with six boundaries and two huge sixes off South African paceman Makhaya Ntini.

Styris then combined with Rohit Sharma (23), the tournament's highest scorer so far, to put on another 47 runs for the third wicket.

And he and Shahid Afridi (with an aggressive 20 not out off just six balls with two boundaries and two sixes) ensured no further damage was done as the Hyderabad team coasted home with two overs to spare.

Earlier, a disciplined show by the bowlers and some excellent fielding allowed Deccan Chargers restrict Chennai Super Kings for a modest 144 for seven wickets.

Playing without their regular captain VVS Laxman, nursing a hand injury, the Deccan bowlers responded well after their Gilchrist won the toss and asked the hosts to take first strike of the pitch.

P Vijaykumar removed Parthiv Patel (4) in the first over and his bowling colleagues ensured that the hosts subsequently did not get enough partnerships to keep going.

For the Chennai side, Suresh Raina (32), captain MS Dhoni (23) and Albie Morkel (29 not out) did bulk of the scoring.

Things could have been worse for the Chennai side had not Morkel and Manpreet Gony (15 not out of 6 balls) unleashed some lusty shots towards the fag end of the innings to swell the tally.

Morkel's unbeaten 29 came off 19 balls and included two sixes besides a boundary.

RP Singh was the pick of the Chennai bowlers, claiming two for 12 in his three overs.

After Vijaykumar drew the first blood with his sixth delivery, RP Singh soured former India opener Krishnamachari Srikkanth's son Anirudha's (1) IPL debut.

Stephen Fleming (14) was contemplating steading the ship but an airborne Rohit Sharma intercepted his full-blooded drive off Scott Styris to cut short his stay, while Herschelle Gibbs pulled off a blinder to remove S Badrinath for a duck.

Raina was looking dangerous but Sanjay Bangar halted him in his stride and Pragyan Ojha then removed Dhoni (23) to nip the hosts' hopes of a massive total in the match.

Gilly leads from front (IPL Match 26: R.P Singh Shatters J.Sharma's Stumps)

2008-05-06T12:28:00.001-07:00

Stand-in skipper Adam Gilchrist led by example as bottom-placed Deccan Chargers humbled Chennai Super Kings by seven wickets with two overs to spare for their second win in the Indian Premier League on Tuesday night.

Leading the side in absence of injured regular skipper VVS Laxman, Gilchrist won the toss, marshalled his bowlers well and then top-scored for the side with a 36-ball 54 to guide the team to a morale boosting win.

Chasing 145, Deccan Chargers cantered to 148 for three in 18 overs with Scott Styris (36 not out), Rohit Sharma (23) and Shahid Afridi (20 not out) making impressions with the bat.

Tuesday's loss completed a hat-trick of defeats for the Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led side, which has been clearly hit by the exit of the Australian duo of Matthew Hayden and Mike Hussey, apart from the big-hitting Kiwi Jacob Oram.

Chargers claw up to sixth place (IPL Matc 26: Chennai Super Kings v Deccan Chargers)

2008-05-06T12:10:00.001-07:00

Some fantastic catching and Adam Gilchrist's trend-setting leadership helped Hyderabad trump Chennai by seven wickets on Tuesday night.

Call it a blow, or even a blessing in disguise, Deccan Chargers captain VVS Laxman ruled himself out at the last minute, putting Gilchrist at the wheel here at the Chidambaram Stadium.

Gilchrist called the toss right, put Super Kings in, held them down to an underpar 144, and scaled down much of the target himself with a quick 54.

It meant that Hyderabad have now climbed up to sixth place after being eighth for much of the IPL, while Chennai remained at fourth spot with their third successive loss.

Hyderabad's win was made possible by three terrific catches and some poor shots by Chennai's batsmen in the first ten overs of play.

Parthiv Patel fell in the first over, mistiming a hook to deep square leg. RP Singh ran down all the way from long leg and barely got to the ball to finish a fine catch.

Anirudha Srikkanth, son of former India opener Krish Srikkanth, fell to the short ball and miscued it to point.

Stephen Fleming then played a fearsome drive but Rohit Sharma at cover timed his jump to perfection, holding on to the catch.

Next, S Badrinath mistimed his cut shot off Shahid Afridi and Herschelle Gibbs at point flung himself to his left to finish a spectacular air-borne catch. At 4-43 in the seventh over, Hyderabad had Chennai on a leash.

The introduction of left armer Pragyan Ojha tied Chennai down further. The spinner varied his pace and length, finishing with cheap figures of 4-0-22-1, the wicket being the valuable one of MS Dhoni.

Suresh Raina was his fluent self in his 32 (21 balls, 5x4), and but for some happy hour slogging from Albie Morkel and Manpreet Gony, Chennai would have struggled to set Hyderabad a target of even six runs an over. Morkel even slogged Ojha for a six that went 124 metres over midwicket.

Gilchrist led the chase from the front. His 54 (36 balls, 7x4, 2x6) ensured there were no starting problems. His innings was ended by a sharp catch at point by S Badrinath, who barely cupped his hands around a screaming square cut hit straight to him. Styris and Rohit kept the supply of runs from drying up. But with the finish getting a bit tight, Afridi came out and hit Joginder Sharma for 6, 4, 6 and 4 off consecutive balls to finish off the win.

Kings XI win by 6 wickets against Challengers (IPL 25th Match: bangalore challengers innings highights)

2008-05-05T12:01:00.001-07:00

Kings XI Punjab win by six wickets against Bangalore Royal Challengers in the 25th IPL match at M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore on Monday. The visitors easily chased the target of 127 runs set by the Bangalore team with a loss of four wickets wickets in 18.2 overs. This was the fifth successive win for Kings XI Punjab.

Opener Shaun Marsh was the top scorer for the Punjab team scoring 39 runs off 34 balls, which included four boundaries and one six. Ramnaresh Sarwan was the second top scorer, adding 31 runs to the Punjab team total.

For the Challengers, Zaheer Khan and Praveen Kumar took two wickets apiece.

Earlier, put in to bat by Kings XI Punjab skipper Yuvraj Singh, Bangalore Royal Challengers were bowled out for a paltry 126.

Leg-spinner Piyush Chawla was the pick of the Kings XI bowlers, taking three wickets for 25 runs in his four overs. However, it was pacer Sreesanth (16/2) who started the demolition in the very first over. He picked up opener Wasim Jaffer (0) with a perfect away swinger in the fourth ball and then cleaned up debutant Cameron White (0) with a delivery that nipped back after pitching.

Irfan Pathan and VRV Singh, took a wicket each for the visitors.

For the hosts, Rahul Dravid played a captain's knock of 60 off 51 balls that was studded with nine fours and a lone six. He shared a crucial 54-run stand with Virat Kohli (34 off 36 balls) after the team was reduced to 15 for three in 3.3 overs.

Five of the Royal Challengers batsmen failed to open account. Apart from Dravid and Kohli, no other Royal Challengers' batsmen got into double figures.

Mohali thrash Bangalore by six wickets (Royal Challengers Full Highlights Vs Kings XI)

2008-05-05T11:46:00.001-07:00

Match 25 is something that Bangalore will like to forget quickly as they were drubbed by six wickets by Mohali, who registered their fifth consecutive win in the Indian Premier League. After Rahul Dravid played the lone hand to take Bangalore to 126, Mohali cruised to victory with eight balls to spare at the Chinnaswamy stadium on Monday.

Bangalore defending the modest total started off well with Zaheer Khan scalping James Hopes in the second over for five. But Ramnaresh Sarwan, making a comeback, along with Shaun Marsh batted the home side almost out of the game with a 54-run stand. Sarwan slammed four fours and one six in his 31 before Praveen Kumar got him caught behind.

And when skipper Yuvraj fell for one, Bangalore's hopes came to life again but Marsh continued his prolific form to come up with another impressive show. The Aussie hit four boundaries and one six in his 34-ball 39 before he was cleaned up by Zaheer in the 15th over. But it proved a little too late in the day for Bangalore as Mahela Jayawardene (17 not out) and Irfan Pathan (17 not out) scored the required runs without much trouble.

After Bangalore were put in to bat on a pitch that assisted seamers, the home team got off to a disastrous start. S Sreesanth's early strikes and an unfortunate run out reduced them to 15-3 in the fourth over. With three of his top four batsmen falling for no score, Dravid stemmed the rot as he along with the young Virat Kohli strung a 54-run stand. And after Kohli fell in the 13th over, Piyush Chawla removed Misbah-ul-Haq (eight) and Praveen Kumar (zero) in a space of two deliveries and then cleaned up Zaheer in his next over as Dravid watched his team crumble from the other end.

With no Mark Boucher in the side, the Bangalore captain realised that time had come to put some quick runs on the board as signs of getting bowled out within the 20 overs loomed large. Dravid clobbered three boundaries in the 18th over to reach his first fifty in the competition in 44 balls. And it looked like the skipper will lead his side to a respectable total when a superb inside-out hit by him off Pathan saw the ball sail over the extra-cover fence, much to the crowd's delight. But Dravid top-edged the next ball to Jayawardene at third-man and with it went Bangalore's hope of a challenging total.

The home side were unable to recover from the early jolts as Sreesanth (2-16), Chawla (3-25) and Pathan (1-13) came up with fantastic spells to put the shackles on the scoring.

Yuvraj's decision to field was justified in the first over itself as Sreesanth bowled a deadly opening over to set the cat among the pigeons in the Bangalore camp.

Sreesanth induced Wasim Jaffer to edge the fourth ball of the game to wicketkeeper Uday Kaul, who took the place behind the stumps in the absence of Kumar Sangakkara and then swung the next ball in to clean up Aussie Cameron White, whose first knock in the IPL lasted only one ball. A misunderstanding between Kohli and Jacques Kallis saw the later being the run-out in the fourth over with Bangalore in tottering at 15-3.

Kohli and Dravid batted with caution ensuring there were no further hiccups at the start as Bangalore lingered to 50 in the 10th over. Kohli trying to get a move on failed to pull off the attempted big shots as Mohali kept a tight leash on the scoring-rate. India's under-19 captain got a reprieve when James Hopes floored a skier off Sreesanth's last ball of the game but it did not prove costly as an ordinary shot off Pathan in the next over ended Kohli's tenure for 34, which took 36 balls.

Bangalore now after five losses are at the bottom of the points table with only Hyderabad, who have played one less game, below them. On the other hand, Mohali after a poor start in the competition are at the top of the table along with Jaipur.

Tanvir bowls Rajasthan to victory (2nd Innings highlights Rajasthan Royals Vs Chennai)

2008-05-04T16:43:00.001-07:00

Rajasthan Royals scored a comprehensive eight-wicket victory over Chennai Super Kings in their Indian Premier League match in Jaipur on Sunday and moved into the top of the table.

Needing just 110 to win, the Rajasthan team reached the target for the loss of only two wickets and with 5.4 overs (34 balls) to spare.

The win was the Shane Warne led team's fifth straight after their opening loss at the hands of Delhi. The Chennai team, meanwhile, suffered their second straight reverse, after the loss against Delhi in their last match, after winning their first four matches.

South African captain Graeme Smith (35 not out) and Swapnil Asnodkar (32) put on 78 runs for the opening wicket to put the result beyond doubt, if any.

Earlier, a sensational best ever bowling spell of Twenty20 cricket by Pakistani left-arm pacer Sohail Tanvir (6/14) helped Rajasthan Royals skittle Chennai Super Kings for a paltry 109.

Tanvir's unbelievable 4-0-14-6 figure was also the best of the IPL so far.

He was ably supported by Munaf Patel (2 for 16), Shane Watson (1 for 19) and captain Shane Warne (1 for 29) in completely destroying the Super Kings batsmen after their captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni won the toss and elected to bat.

Tanvir started on a sensational note removing Parthiv Patel (0) LBW from his first ball with the visiting opener plumbed in front of wicket failing to fend off a delivery which swung in after pitching at the off stump.

The Pakistani pacer then castled New Zealander Stephen Fleming for a duck for another LBW verdict to send both the Super Kings opener back to the hut in the very first over of their innings with scoreboard reading 1 run for two wickets.

Tanvir, who swung the ball both ways, did not stop there and he had S Vidyut in the third over caught out Shane Watson for five to send the visitors reeling at 11 for three and end his own opening spell of two overs with an unbelievable 2-0-2-3.

He returned for the second spell in the 17th over from the first ball of which he sent Super Kings top scorer Albie Morkel' (42) stumps cart-wheeling to end a 44-run sixth wicket partnership -- highest for the Chennai side -- with Suresh Raina (27).

Sensational Best -Sohail Tanveer (IPL 24th Match: Rajasthan vs Chennai 1st Inning Highlights)

2008-05-04T16:20:00.001-07:00

Riding on a sensational best ever bowling spell of Twenty20 cricket by Pakistan left-arm pacer Sohail Tanvir (6/14), Rajasthan Royals cantered to an easy eight wicket victory over Chennai Super Kings in an Indian Premier League match here on Sunday.

After Tanvir's unbelievable 4-0-14-6 rocked the Super Kings innings to skittle them out for a paltry 109 after visiting team captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni elected to bat first, Rajasthan Royals were never in trouble and they romped home with 34 balls to spare.

Set 110 for a win, home team openers Graeme Smith (35 not out; 44 balls, 4x4) and Swapnil Asnodkar (32; 30 balls, 5x4) put on 78 runs for the first wicket to set up the win and place his team on top of the table.

Smith hit the winning runs off Muttiah Muralitharan for a two to bring up 110 for the home side's fifth win on the trot and hand Dhoni's team second consecutive loss after four consecutive victories.

For Super Kings, S Vidyut and Muttiah Muralitharan claimed a wicket apiece conceding 22 and 20 runs respectively.

Jaipur take top spot after Tanvir heroics (IPL Match 24: Sohail Tanvir Bowls 6 wickets world record)

2008-05-04T16:13:00.001-07:00

Sohail Tanvir's wrong-footed swingers demolished the powerful Chennai Super Kings on Sunday night.

The Rajasthan Royals left-armer had figures of 6-14 --- the best in all T20 cricket --- and helped dismiss Chennai for 109 runs here at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium.

The Royals chased down that total with minimum fuss in an eight wicket win, with thirties from Graeme Smith and Swapnil Asnodkar. They now lead the pack in the Indian Premier League, with five wins from six games, displacing Delhi Daredevils.

Tanvir's dream spell got off to a flier in the first over of the match. He had two LBWs --- Parthiv Patel off the first ball, and Stephen Fleming off the fifth.

The Pakistan seam bowler then added S Vidyut in his second over, poking one to slip into Shane Warne's hands at a time when Jaipur turned the heat on, operating with two slips till the tenth over of the innings.

Tanvir came back for a second spell in the in the seventeenth over and delivered two slower ones to castle Albie Morkel and Muttiah Muralitharan.

At this stage, four balls into his third over, Tanvir's figures read 5-2, and Chennai at 96-9 were down and out.

Tanvir then bowled out Makhaya Ntini off his last delivery in the game to complete his sixer. It beat the previous record of 6-15, created by Sanjeewa Abeywardene for Panadura SC vs Sri Lanka Air Force in 2005.

Both sides have come into this game with eight points each. A win would take them to ten --- more than any other side in the IPL.

Chennai had elected to bat on a wicket that had a lot of bounce. In between Tanvir's wickets, S Badrinath was beaten by Shane Watson's extra bounce, and skied a return catch.

Then Warne brought himself on, and struck the blow that hurt Chennai the most. He got Super Kings captain MS Dhoni to drive with the spin and edge it to slip. It was a classic leg spinner's dismissal.

It was Munaf Patel's turn to get among the wickets. Two poor shots, first from Suresh Raina and then from Joginder Sharma --- who hadn't batted in the IPL thus far --- gave Munaf two wickets in an over.

Jubilant Mumbai Indians upset Delhi Daredevils (IPL 23rd Match: delhi daredevils innings)

2008-05-04T16:07:00.001-07:00

The Mumbai Indians finally did it on Sunday evening and achieved their second win of the DLF Indian Premier League as they thrashed the Delhi Daredevils by 29 runs at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai. So far, this is the biggest upset of the tournament. The lowest placed team in the IPL table dethroned the Daredevils from the top spot.

Defending a total of 162 runs on a flat wicket of DY Patil Stadium, Mumbai Indians knew they had to come off good with the ball and their bowlers did not disappoint them. Delhi Daredevils, for the first time in the tournament, were all out while chasing.

Stand-in captain Shaun Pollock led from the front and lived up to his reputation of a terrific all-rounder. He added quick 33 runs and picked wickets of Shikhar Dhawan (1) and Shoaib Malik (24). His captaincy deserves special accolades too, as he put in all his international experience to the hilt and shepherded his side to win. He, undoubtedly, was the Man of the Match.

Ashish Nehra, who is looking to make a comeback after a prolonged injury, was equally impressive as he picked three wickets of his statemate Gautam Gambhir (1), Rajat Bhatia (9) and Pradeep Sangwan (2).

Virender Sehwag, the captain of Delhi and the hero of their last match against Chennai Super Kings was looking murderous as he smashed 40 runs off 20 balls. Dominic Thornely offered a full toss to Sehwag, who lofted it only to be caught by Shaun Pollock at short mid-wicket. Despite losing the match, he has now become the top scorer and a proud owner of the 'Orange Cap'.

Another threat, AB de Villiers, however, was unfortunate as a straight shot from Sehwag caressed pacer Dhawal Kulkarni's fingers and hit the stumps at the non-striker's end. De Villiers, by that time, was way out of his crease and consequently had to walk back.

Dinesh Karthik and Shoaib Malik (24) then tried to mend the innings but Pollock removed the latter and broke the partnership.

Earlier, Mumbai Indians batting failed to fire in unison yet again when Delhi Daredevils put them in to bat and restricted them to a total of 162 at the loss of eight wickets.

Yo Mahesh was pick of the bowler for Delhi for he picked three wickets. He scalped Jayasuriya and Takawale's wickets after the duo gave a steady start to the Mumbai Indians and were heading towards the total. Jayasuriya, in particular, looked threatening as he made 34 runs in 16 balls before Mahesh's quick delivery sent his off stump cartwheeling.

Robin Uthappa and Dominic Thornely tried to consolidate their innings as they hit the Delhi bowlers for a few boundaries. But Uthappa perished to Pradeep Sangawan for 22 runs while Thornely failed to read Rajat Bhatia and went back adding 30 runs. No other batsmen could contribute anything substantial, except Pollock, who quickly added 33 runs to the team's total.

Pollock leads from the front (IPL-Match-23 Mumbai Indians Vs Delhi Daredevils)

2008-05-04T15:41:00.001-07:00

Skipper Shaun Pollock led from the front as Mumbai Indians defended a small total with verge and vigour to stun table-toppers Delhi Daredevils by 29 runs for their second successive win in the Indian Premier League at the D Y Patil Stadium here on Sunday.

After being restricted to a none-too-tall 162 for eight, the home team, at the bottom of the league chart going into the match, bowled with purpose and struck blows at timely intervals to skittle out the Delhi team for 133 in 18.5 overs.

The bowling heroes for the struggling home team, who brought up the rear going into their sixth match, was stand-in captain Pollock (2 for 16) and discarded India pacer Ashish Nehra, who took 3 for 25 which included two off successive balls.

The superb display by the senior bowlers inspired youngster Dhawal Kulkarni to grab the last two wickets and finish with 2 for 18.

Mumbai Indians register second win in IPL (Mumbai Indians v Delhi Daredevils - IPL 23rd match)

2008-05-04T15:31:00.001-07:00

Praising his teammates for defending a low total and stunning the high-flying Delhi Daredevils in the IPL clash on Sunday, Mumbai Indians captain Shaun Pollock said the players have finally come to terms with the Twenty20 format.

After leading the side to their second successive win that followed four straight losses, Pollock said, "We played very well in the last two games. Our juniors have started performing and the seniors are doing well. The players have now begun to understand the game."

Skippering the side in absence of regular skipper Sachin Tendulkar, Pollock led from the front as the hosts shocked Delhi Daredevils by 29 runs at the D Y Patil Stadium on Sunday.

For Pollock, who shone both with the bat and the ball, the icing on the cake was his Man of the Match award.

The Mumbai Indians, put in to bat, scored 162 for eight and then dismissed their chart-topping rivals with a performing top-order led by Captain Virender Sehwag, for only 133 runs to inflict on the visitors only their second defeat in six matches.

Pollock said he felt 162 was a competitive total.

"I thought 162 was competitive. We bowled very well, took some good catches. We kept to the task and the crowd also supported us very well. At times I found it difficult to communicate to my players because of the noise, but the crowd support also lifted us," said the former South African captain who top-scored with 33 and bowled superbly to take 2 for 16.

Pollock said that it was important for the team to get in-form rival openers Gautam Gambhir and Sehwag out.

"For us it was important to get Gautam and Sehwag. Once we dismissed Sehwag we knew we had a chance," he said.

About the decision to bring on Dominic Thornely, who struck pay dirt by dismissing Sehwag with a low full toss, Pollock said that he felt it would be good to bring on bowlers who took the pace off the ball on this wicket.

"The lack of pace proved very effective," he pointed out.

'Kings' on cloud nine (IPL Match 22 Kings XI Punjab Vs Kolkata Knight Riders)

2008-05-03T15:39:00.001-07:00

A world record sixth wicket stand of 104 between David Hussey and Wriddhiman Shah went in vain as Kings XI Punjab romped home to their fourth win on the trot by handing a nine-run defeat on Kolkata Knight Riders in a thrilling Indian Premier League tie on Saturday.

The match before a packed PCA Stadium went down the wire even after Irfan Pathan and S Sreesanth wrecked the Knight Riders' top order only to see Hussey and Shah producing a sensational 104 off 55 balls - a world record in Twenty20 cricket.

Kings XI prevail in close contest (Kings XI Full Highlights vs Kolkata Knight Riders)

2008-05-03T15:31:00.001-07:00

A gutsy fight-back took Kolkata Knight Riders close to an unlikely win, but Kings XI Punjab were better on the day, winning by nine runs at Mohali's PCA Stadium.

To put the result into perspective, it all came down to how each time batted in their last over. Kings XI looked like they would make an under-par when Piyush Chawla smashed 21 from their last over, from Ishant Sharma, to take his team to 178-6.

With David Hussey and Wriddhiman Saha matching each other six for six, Kolkata reduced the equation to 19 from six balls, to be bowled by Irfan Pathan. But they made just nine, and slumped to their fourth straight loss in the Indian Premier League.

The two teams came into this came with contrasting fortunes. The Knights had lost three after winning their first two games, while the Kings had lost two and then won three.

Kings started off on a steady note, with the young Shaun Marsh providing an impressive 40. However, their run rate stalled around the time Kumar Sangakkara retired hurt with a side strain and Saha picked up two stumpings --- of captain Yuvraj Singh and Marsh.

Umar Gul turned in inexpensive figures of 4-0-27-2, picking up Mahela Jayawardene and Sangakkara, who came out to bat with a runner.

A score of 160 would not have been enough on a wonderful batting wicket. And that's where Chawla's assault beefed up the score, making it appear a little more attractive.

When Kolkata batted, Sreesanth and Irfan Pathan got the ball to move about. Pathan's sharp in-swinger to the right-hander troubled Kolkata's batsmen, as did Sreesanth's outswinger. Kolkata were soon reduced to 5-50 in the 10th over --- and the game seemed done and dusted.

In walked Hussey and Saha. With Sreesanth and Pathan done with their initial spell, the duo butchered the lesser bowlers. Gagandeep Singh went for 4-0-43-0, James Hopes 3-0-35-0, Chawla 1-0-16-0, and it had Kolkata sniffing a win.

The two added 100 in 52 balls, Hussey reaching his fifty in 38 balls and Saha in 28. But Pathan was hard to get away in the final over.

With the now, Kings XI now rest at No. 4 in the points table, ahead of Kolkata who have now fallen to No. 5.

Punjab see off tame Knight Riders (IPL - 22nd Match - KXI Punjab v Kolkata KR)

2008-05-03T15:24:00.001-07:00

Kings XI Punjab recorded a comfortable victory over the Kolkata Knight Riders on Saturday, winning by nine runs after an early Kolkata collapse.

Having made 178 for six off their 20 overs, Punjab soon began dismantling the Kolkata batting order. Sourav Ganguly went for just five, caught at third man off Sreesanth, and Mohammed Hafeez quickly followed for 13 when he was bowled by Irfan Pathan.

When Hodge was trapped lbw for just one, Kolkota were floundering at 25 for three and it got worse as Debabrata Das fell victim to Sreesanth for 5.

Kolkata were scratching out runs, mainly in singles, but it was clear by the mid-point of their innings that the required run rate - hovering around 18 - was out of reach.

David Hussey (71) and Saha (59no) restored some pride with a sixth-wicket partnership of 104, but it was too little too late.

Punjab set themselves up for victory with a scrappy innings.

Shaun Marsh was the high scorer with 40, but it was the quick-hitting of his team-mates that was the secret to Punjab's success.

James Hopes smashed four fours from the first 11 balls his faced on his return, but was caught by Brad Hodge from the 12th.

Kumar Sangakkara came in but was soon struggling after swinging awkwardly at a delivery, and he retired hurt in the sixth inning.

Yuvraj Singh followed with an explosive but brief appearance, hitting 14 off three balls before he was stumped off the next delivery for 17.

Wicketkeeper Prasanta Saha claimed another victim, stumping Marsh, soon after.

Ganguly saved Umar Gul for the later stages and got quick reward as he got the wicket of Mahela Jayawardene, out for 10 off Gul's second delivery. The paceman surrendered only one run from an excellent first over.

After receiving treatment, Sangakkara re-emerged but saw his partner Karan Goel run out for six.

Sangakkara was eventually bowled by Gul, but ended a dogged effort with a respectable 28.

Piyush Chawla came into swing the bat with free abandon, and he accounted for 20 of the 21 runs Punjab scored off the final over, reaching his total of 21 off just seven balls.

Nerveless Kumble secures Bangalore win (Royal Challengers Highlights vs Deccan Chargers)

2008-05-03T15:21:00.001-07:00

Bangalore Royal Challengers produced a disciplined bowling display at the death to claim a three-run win over Deccan Chargers and move off the foot of the IPL table on Saturday.

The Royal Challengers claimed four wickets for just five runs in the space of nine balls to limit their opponents to 153 for six and record only their second win in IPL.

VVS Laxman and Rohit Sharma shared a stand of 96 - Sharma becoming the highest run-scorer in the IPL with 235 - but it was not enough as the Royal Challengers' total of 156 for eight proved sufficient.

Praveen Kumar recorded figures of three for 23 and Zaheer Khan two for 24 before Sanjay Bangar hit two sixes off the final over from Anil Kumble to take the clash down to the final ball. But Kumble held his nerve to secure victory.

The Royal Challengers certainly had their bowling attack to thank for victory after earlier struggling to get the better of the Deccan spinners.

Wassim Jaffer and Virat Kohli shared a second-wicket partnership of 72 after Bharat Chipli (10) went early, but found it hard to cope with the loss of Jaffer for 44.

Jacques Kallis (six) and Kohli (38) were then deceived by the spin of Pragyan Ojha and RP Singh respectively in the space of four balls.

Misbah-ul-Haq (three) and Mark Boucher (16) also went cheaply, the former falling victim to a Shahid Afridi quicker delivery and Boucher slicing on to his stumps.

Rahul Dravid though offered some resistance towards the end of the innings, making Scott Styris pay for dropping him on 12 by cracking two maximums from the New Zealander's last over on his way to a rapid 26.

The Chargers started the run chase at a leisurely pace and Adam Gilchrist (10) was well caught by Jaffer right on the boundary rope as he looked to up the tempo.

Gibbs pulled a short delivery for four to get off the mark, but that was as good as it got for the South African before he was on his way back to the pavilion for six.

Sharma though continued his impressive form after a brief delay due to floodlight failure.

He clipped an effortless six off his pads and followed that shot up with two quickfire fours, one punched through square leg and the second cut past point, while Laxman played the spin of Kumble expertly.

But Sharma eventually holed out for 57 and Laxmen fell lbw to Kumar for 52 as the Royal Challengers' accurate and ecomonical bowling proved decisive.

Royal Challengers beat Deccan Chargers by 3 runs (Last 4 balls of Deccan Chargers Innings)

2008-05-03T15:14:00.001-07:00

Royal Challengers Bangalore pacer Praveen Kumar took three wickets to help his team pull off a narrow three-run win against Deccan Chargers in a nail-biting match of the Indian Premier League at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Saturday.

Praveen returned figures of three for 23 even as the hosts successfully defended their modest total of 156 for eight to claim their second win in the tournament while the fine half-centuries by Deccan Chargers skipper VVS Laxman and Rohit Sharma went in vain.

Laxman (52) and Sharma (57) put on 96 runs for the third wicket to provide a ray of hope when Deccan Chargers appeared to be in trouble after losing two quick wickets.

Dravid credits bowlers for narrow win (Bangalore Royal Challengers v Deccan Chargers - IPL 21st match)

2008-05-03T15:13:00.001-07:00

Having won a game after losing three on the trot in the Indian Premier League, a relieved Bangalore Royal Challengers' captain Rahul Dravid credited his bowlers for the narrow victory against Deccan Chargers on Saturday.

"We are very happy, we've finally won before home crowd. It is a big relief. We have been losing close matches," Dravid said after their three-run victory over the Hyderabad side here.

"We thought we were 15 runs short (while batting) but the bowlers held on to their nerves to set up the win," he said.

The former India captain also praised Wasim Jaffer for his "sensible" knock today, though many think the opener is not suitable for the slam-bang version of cricket.

"Jaffer played sensible cricket and his knock was crucial to our victory. He is now showing his worth in this version of the game," said Dravid.

A disappointed Deccan Chargers skipper VVS Laxman rued losing too many wickets ater the 16th over as the main cause of their loss.

"It was a big disappointment to lose a close match. We were in the game till the 16th over but after that we lost too many wickets," he rued.

"Rohit Sharma's dismissal was the turning point," he added.

The sylish left-hander said his side will have to pull up their socks and play to their potential in the remaining matches of the Twenty20 tournament.

"We have not been playing to our potential so far. We have to improve and do better in the second phase."

Sehwag leads Daredevils to victory (Chennai v Delhi Daredevils: Short Highlights)

2008-05-03T15:08:00.001-07:00

Virender Sehwag condemned the Chennai Super Kings to their first defeat in the IPL as his quick 71 led the Delhi Daredevils to an eight-wicket victory on Friday.

Set a target of 170 for victory, Sehwag wasted little time and he needed only 41 balls to reach his total, smashing seven fours and four sixes as he tore through the Chennai attack.

He was eventually out in the 12th over, slashing at a Joginder Sharma delivery to be caught at backward point by Muttiah Muralitharan, but with Delhi already within 55 runs of victory at that point, the damage had been done.

Gautam Gambir completed a half-century of his own as Delhi feasted on the Chennai bowling, but he was out for 50 when he sent an inside edge on to his own stumps off Manpreet Gony.

Chennai managed to slow the run rate significantly in the later stages, but they could do nothing to prevent Shikhar Dhawan (19) and AB De Villiers (26) scoring the remaining runs needed for victory with six balls to spare.

Chennai had earlier made 169 for six after winning the toss and electing to bat.

S Vidyut's first half-century of the tournament provided the backbone of the innings as he made 54 of 37 balls, hitting seven fours and one six.

Vidyut had come in after Yo Mahesh, the young Chennai native bowling for Delhi, had removed the off-stump of opener Stephen Fleming to dismiss the New Zealander for 13.

Fellow opener Parthiv Patel survived two dropped catches before being caught at third man by Mahesh after slashing at a Virender Sehwag delivery.

After veteran Glenn McGrath finally dismissed Vidyut, Mahendra Singh Dhoni contributed 32 before he was caught by Shoaib Malik off Mohammed Asif, but with wickets in hand in the late overs, Chennai could swing their bats and Albie Morkel came in to make 28 off just 16 balls to keep the score moving along.

McGrath was the pick of the bowlers for Delhi, taking one for 21 from his four overs.

Daredevils trip Super Kings (delhi daredevil innings last over 14 runs)

2008-05-03T14:57:00.001-07:00

Skipper Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir put on a century partnership for the first wicket to power Delhi Daredevils to a commanding eight-wicket win against hitherto unbeaten Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League Twenty20 tournament on Friday.

After restricting Chennai Super Kings, who won the toss and decided to bat first, for 169 for six in 20 overs, the Daredevils knocked off the runs in 19 overs after Sehwag (71) and Gautam Gambhir (50) provided them a solid start with a 115-run stand off just 68 balls.

For Super Kings, it was their first loss in five matches while Daredevils chalked up their fourth win.

The two teams, along with Rajasthan Royals are tied on eight points after five games apiece.

Super Kings suffer first defeat (DareDevils Beats SuperKings)

2008-05-03T14:55:00.001-07:00

Chennai Super Kings have had an unbeaten run in the Indian Premier League so far. Their winning streak came to an end at the hands of Delhi Dare Devils on Friday as they lost by eight wickets.

Dhoni’s side did not look at their best as they were restricted to 169. Some disciplined bowling from Delhi Daredevils ensured that MS Dhoni and his men didn't really cut lose.

There was no Matthew Hayden and Mike Hussey and their absence was felt when the Super Kings batted. Earlier, Hayden would provide the big boost at the top of the order and Hussey could carry the momentum in the middle overs.

However, the absence of the Australian stars allowed local boy Vidyut Sivaramakrishnan to get a game. He did not disappoint as he hit a quick-paced century at the MA Chidambaram Stadium.

At No.3, Sivramakrishnan, was in his element from the word go. Familiar with his home conditions, he used aggression to take on the likes of Glenn McGrath and Mohammad Asif. Along with Dhoni he added 57 for the third wicket.

Stephen Fleming and Parthiv Patel managed to get off to a decent start, but neither of them could really push the scoring rate up.

Vidyut was dismissed by McGrath in the 15th over. His innings of 54 came off 37 balls and was studded with seven hits to the fence and a six. Later, Dhoni and Albie Morkel tried to consolidate the innings. They enjoyed moderate success.

Dhoni, however, couldn't carry on all the way. He looked well set on 32. A mistimed hit off Asif gave Shoaib Mailk an easy catch and it ended Dhoni's stay at the wicket.

But some hard hitting by Morkel in the end saw Chennai set up a challenging target for Delhi. Earlier Super Kings's Fleming, who was playing his first IPL game, lost his stump in the very first ball but was lucky not be given out due to a no-ball from Yo Mahesh.

Fleming then slammed Mahesh for two successive boundaries but failed to connect the fourth ball that saw his off-stump fly. It was Gujarat opener Patel's turn to take over after his partner's dismissal. He along with Vidyut used the field restrictions well and continued generating runs by hitting in the gaps.

19th Match IPL DC Vs KXIP HQ PT2

2008-05-03T14:10:00.001-07:00

19th Match IPL DC Vs KXIP HQ

2008-05-03T14:03:00.003-07:00

IPL 19th Match Deccan Cs v KXI Punjab - Deccan Batting

2008-05-03T14:03:00.001-07:00

IPL:19th Match Deccan Chargers Highlights

2008-05-03T13:39:00.001-07:00

IPL: Match 18 Rajasthan v Kolkata Riders - Short Highlights

2008-05-03T13:37:00.001-07:00

Warne - Ganguly Incident - 18th Match IPL

2008-05-03T13:35:00.003-07:00

IPL 18th Match - Rajasthan Royals v Kolkata Knight Riders - Awesome Catch by Smith but Not Out

2008-05-03T13:35:00.001-07:00

IPL:18th match Kolkata Knight Riders Highlights

2008-05-03T13:30:00.003-07:00

IPL:18th match Kolkata Knight Riders Highlights

2008-05-03T13:30:00.001-07:00

Gambhir, McGrath shine in Daredevils' win (Delhi Daredevils Wickets vs Royal B Challengers)

2008-04-30T14:08:00.001-07:00

Riding on a brilliant half-century from Gautam Gambhir, the Delhi Daredevils defeated bottom-placed Bangalore Royal Challengers by 10 runs in an Indian Premier League (IPL) match here on Wednesday night.

Chasing a target of 192, the Challengers could only make 181 for five wickets from 20 overs at the full-capacity Ferozeshah Kotla Stadium.

The Daredevils moved to the second spot in the IPL standings after their third victory from four matches while the Royal Challengers' misery continued as they were left languishing at the bottom of the standings of the eight-team league after four losses from five matches.

Gambhir, who struck 86 off 54 balls, was the hero of the day as he helped the Daredevils post a challenging total. Shikhar Dhawan with his well-struck 50 from 33 deliveries gave him support as the Delhi team rediscovered their momentum after losing their last match against Kings XI Punjab in Mohali on Sunday night.

Chasing 192 was always going to be tough for the visitors and they failed to get a good partnership going. Jacques Kallis was the top scorer with 54 while skipper Rahul Dravid made 38.

For the Daredevils, Glenn McGrath (4-29) was the top performer with the ball.

Put into bat, the stage was set for Daredevils batsmen to fire on a good batting track. Much was expected from Daredevils skipper Virender Sehwag (24) who shone albeit momentarily.

Gambhir started the fireworks in the second over as he hit Zaheer Khan for three consecutive boundaries. In the next over, he was again severe on South African pacer Dale Steyn, hitting the pacer for two sweetly-timed boundaries.

Gambhir's big hits inspired Sehwag and again Zaheer was on the firing line. Sehwag spanked his first three deliveries for 6, 4 and 4 to get the partisan crowd swaying.

The Kotla track is never known to assist seamers and by now Dravid that his decision to bowl first had backfired.

The Challengers skipper replaced Zaheer with Vinay Kumar but the result was the same, as he could not find any solution to stop the Daredevils openers from playing their shots.

It was the fielders who gave the Bangalore team their first breakthrough when Ross Taylor's direct throw from point found Sehwag short of ground in the fifth over.

Dhawan joined the party in the middle and did not take much time to settle down. Dhawan and Gambhir applied themselves cleverly and found the gaps at a rapid pace.

The duo added 98 runs for the second wicket and left Dravid struggling for ideas.

Vinay Kumar gave Dhawan width and the Delhi batsman's delicate cuts raced onto the boundary.

Dhawan adapted well to the slow deliveries of Kallis and hit the South African for a huge six. However, Kallis had the last laugh after Dravid took a stunning catch at the midwicket to end the young batsman's 33-ball innings.

Gambhir on the other end was in fine touch. His boundaries were a treat to watch. His knock finally came to an end in the 19th over after he miscued Zaheer's delivery and Parveen Kumar lapped up the resultant catch at deep midwicket. But by then the Delhi opener had set the stage for his team's win.

No more a youngsters' game (IPL 17th Match | Dare Devils vs Royal Challengers - Presentaion Ceremony)

2008-04-30T13:35:00.001-07:00

Glenn McGrath shattered the twin myth that Twenty20 is essentially a youngsters' game with an obvious bias towards batsmen as the beanpole Aussie claimed IPL's first four-wicket haul to guide Delhi Daredevils to a 10-run win against Bangalore Royal Challengers on Wednesday.

Chasing 192 for victory, the Bangalore outfit came close to the target, thanks to efforts by Jacques Kallis (54 off 44 balls) and Rahul Dravid (38 off 30 balls), but it did not prove enough in the end as they ended up on 181 for five.

Glorious Gambhir, precise McGrath ensure Delhi win (Gautam Gambhir Innings 86(54)) [Dehli Daredevils] [30/04/08]

2008-04-30T13:33:00.001-07:00

Gautam Gambhir led a charge of the home brigade while Australian great Glenn McGrath turned out to be a lethal one-man army as Delhi scored an impressive 10-run victory over Bangalore in an Indian Premier League (IPL) match here on Wednesday.

Gambhir struck a robust 86 to help Delhi post a daunting total of 191-5 and McGrath grabbed 4-29 to restrict the opposition as the home team registered their third win in four matches.

Put in to bat on a good batting strip at the Ferozeshah Kotla ground, Delhi did not have to look beyond their home grown heroes as they notched up a huge total and then piled up the pressure on a struggling team that had won just one out of four previous matches.

Gambhir was the pick of the batsmen, scoring a superbly-paced 86. The southpaw timed the ball beautifully and was equally at ease playing both pace and spin, his 11 fours and one six bearing testimony to his fluency during the 54-ball knock. He was out, caught in the deep, when he failed to control a pull shot off Zaheer Khan but only after he was involved in two useful partnerships with Shikhar Dhawan (50) and skipper Virender Sehwag (24).

Gambhir was in full flow with Dhawan at the other end. Not only were the two left-handers quick to dispatch anything loose but also made some good deliveries look really bad, once together taking 19 runs off an over from veteran left-arm spinner Sunil Joshi.

Dhawan struck three sixes and four boundaries during his 33-ball innings and fell to a brilliant one-handed catch by Bangalore skipper Rahul Dravid off Jacques Kallis. The former India skipper showed superb reflexes in diving to his right at mid-wicket.

Dhawan’s dismissal was followed by those of Shoaib Malik and Dinesh Karthik even as Gambhir hung on to ensure a big total.

Earlier, Delhi had got off to a quick start, Gambhir and Sehwag taking the team past 50 in the fifth over itself. Sehwag, who struck 24 off 12 deliveries with one six and three fours, was run out just when it seemed that the home side would run away with the match right at the beginning.

On the other hand, Bangalore got just the kind of start a team dreads while chasing a big total. McGrath had Praveen Kumar caught at mid wicket and followed it up with the important scalps of Wasim Jaffer and a dangerous looking Ross Taylor as Bangalore were reduced to 48-3 in the fifth over.

Jacques Kallis (54 off 44) and Rahul Dravid (38 off 30) then added 87 runs for the fourth wicket before Dravid too fell in trying to go after McGrath, who was brought back earlier than expected in a bid to break the threatening partnership.

Mark Boucher then struck two fours and two sixes in a brisk 31 off 17 balls but the match was all but lost by then.

Delhi made one change in their playing eleven with Daniel Vettori getting his second game of the competition. The Kiwi skipper will be leaving for the England tour after this game. Farveez Maharoof, who had an average outing in Delhi's previous game had to sit out, while there was no place for AB de Villiers, who joined the team after their loss to Mohali on Sunday.

Bangalore made two changes as R Vinay Kumar and Sunil Joshi came in place of Bharat Chipli and Balachandran Akhil.

Delhi Daredevils: Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag (capt), Shikhar Dhawan, Shoaib Malik, Manoj Tiwary, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Rajat Bhatia, Daniel Vettori, Yo Mahesh, Mohammad Asif, Glenn McGrath.

Bangalore Royal Challengers: Wasim Jaffer, Rahul Dravid (capt), Ross Taylor Jacques Kallis, Virat Kohli, Mark Boucher (wk), Praveen Kumar, Zaheer Khan, Sunil Joshi, Dale Steyn, R Vinay Kumar.

Mumbai Indians notch up their first win (IPL 16th Match Kolkata KR v Mumbai Indians - Mumbai Batting)

2008-04-29T18:14:00.001-07:00

Mumbai’s all-round bowling performance allowed them to restrict the dangerous Knight Riders to just 137-8 from their 20 overs, a total the Indians overhauled for the loss of just three wickets with eight balls remaining thanks to a remarkable partnership between Robin Uthappa and Dwayne Bravo.

Mumbai’s victory took its impetus from the bowling display. Shaun Pollock, who may have to get used to the captain’s job, as Tendulkar’s groin is taking time to heal and Harbhajan has been sent to Siberia, took the symbolic and actual responsibility of the first over. He did not disappoint, which is more than can be said for anything Ganguly (4) has done in the IPL. The left hander edged Pollock’s third delivery and a diving Jayasuriya at third slip brought about his opposing captain’s end.

From that moment, it seemed Mumbai may have seen a turn in their fortunes. If Ganguly’s wicket seemed big, however, it paled to the emotions the City team expressed two ballslater.

Teams throughout the IPL watched Brendon McCullum (1) massacre Bangalore and shuddered, so when Pollock rapped him on the pad, and the finger slowly went up, the relief was immense. He was batting out of his crease, but the ball was dead straight, and the Mumbai cause had new life.

There followed a crime, as Mohammad Hafeez to push a Jayasuriya delivery to off side, run, then stop, leaving Ponting stranded and run out by a mile for a pitiful 19 off
31 balls. Hafeez compounded the error by getting out two balls later, edging the highly impressive Jayasuriya behind. Knowing Mumbai’s penchant for self-destruction, there was a suspicion that 137 may well prove to be enough.

That suspicion was only increased into a presumption as Mumbai came to bat, and soon found themselves down at 25 for three in the fifth over. Rahane, Luke Ronchi’s replacement as opener, tamely played an Agarkar delivery into the hands of mid off, while M Pandey scored a Mumbai duck special, chopping a A Dinda’s wide delivery onto his own stumps.

Ishant Sharma the proved a little too much for Jayasuiriya, and after having been luckily edged for four, the India fast bowler crashed his next delivery into Jayasuriya’s stumps in the fourth over to leave Mumbai reeling.

What followed the three quick wickets was a singular display however. Uthappa and Bravo faced the prospect of scoring 113 runs at 7.26 per over with the entire upper order gone. Instead of caving in however, the two built a combined innings that was full of the maturity and patience that is not supposed to win Twenty20 games. Uthappa ended with 37 off as many deliveries, but it was Bravo who took the responsibility on, and his 62 off 52 may be one of the best knocks the IPL has seen so far.

Starved Mumbai's team effort ensures facile win (IPL 16th Match Kolkata KR v Mumbai Inds - Kolkata Batting)

2008-04-29T18:10:00.001-07:00

Mumbai finally produced a spirited team effort that helped end their drought in the Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Eden Gardens here on Tuesday. A seven-wicket win over Kolkata came after a four-match losing streak that had buried Mumbai at the bottom of the points table.

Dwayne Bravo, Robin Uthappa, Sanath Jayasuriya and Shaun Pollock all played their parts to aptness as Mumbai put behind a forgettable phase that included their stand-in skipper, Harbhajan Singh, being barred from participation in the tournament after their third match.

Chasing a target of 138 too had not looked easy for Mumbai as they lost three quick wickets, but a 113-run unbroken partnership between Bravo (64) and Uthappa (37) ensured that a fine bowling performance led by Jayasuriya and Pollock did not go waste.

Bravo generally offered a straight bat and excelled playing the lofted drive during his 53-ball knock in which he slammed eight fours and a six. On the other hand, Uthappa was not averse to playing square of the wicket despite being dropped early on at point, smashing five fours during his run-a-ball knock.

The duo struck in tandem after Ajit Agarkar, Ishant Sharma and Ashoke Dinda picked up a wicket each to reduce Mumbai to 25-3 in the fifth over.

Earlier, veteran all-rounders Jayasuriya and Pollock put their experience to good use as they restricted Kolkata to 137-8. Jayasuriya returned the best figures of the tournament (3-14) after Pollock had done the initial damage (2-27).

Jayasuriya, who was named ‘man of the match’, had David Hussey and Ajit Agarkar caught by Ashish Nehra at long-on in identical fashion. Between those two dismissals, he also removed Mohammad Hafeez while Ponting was run out as Kolkata slipped from 74-3 in the 12th over to 77-6 in the 14th and then to 90-7 by the 16th over.

Laxmi Rattan Shukla then produced a brisk knock of 40 from 22 deliveries, sending the ball to all parts of the ground much to the delight of the home crowd. The former India all-rounder, who had scored a similar 42 against Chennai, struck four fours and two sixes during his crucial knock and made batting look easy on a slow but bouncy pitch.

Earlier, Pollock, leading the team since Harbhajan Singh’s ouster from the tournament because of a ban, produced an inspired first over in which he dismissed openers Brendon McCullum and Sourav Ganguly.

Pollock had Ganguly caught by Jayasuriya at slip immediately after the left-hander had dispatched a delivery from the South African to the mid-wicket boundary with a short-arm pull. Pollock then trapped McCullum leg-before as he shuffled across.

Debabrata Das was the third batsman to be dismissed, his flurry of shots on the leg side getting him 29 off 19, but a slash outside off giving Dwayne Bravo a wicket in his first over. Robin Uthappa, fielding at point, accepted the catch gleefully and followed it with a trademark bow.

Going into the match, Mumbai had yet to earn a point after four outings while Kolkata were third on the points table with two wins from three matches.

Mumbai have had to do without skipper Sachin Tendulkar thus far but Pollock did a fine job in marshalling his resources.

Teams:

Mumbai: Sanath Jayasuriya, Robin Uthappa, Shaun Pollock (capt), Abhishek Nayar, Dwayne Bravo, Pinal Shah (wk), Manish Pandey, Ashish Nehra, Dhaval Kulkarni, Dilhara Fernando.

Kolkata: Sourav Ganguly (capt), Brendon McCullum (wk), Ricky Ponting, Debabrata Das (wk), David Hussey, Mohammad Hafeez, Laxmi Rattan Shukla, Ajit Agarkar, Murali Kartik, Ishant Sharma, Ashok Dinda.

Mumbai Indians get off the mark (Short Highlights - IPL 16th Match)

2008-04-29T18:09:00.001-07:00

Mumbai Indians on Tuesday left behind on-field disappointments and off-field controversies to pull off their maiden win with an emphatic seven-wicket decimation of Kolkata Knight Riders in an Indian Premier League outing.

After restricting Knight Riders to a modest 137 for 8, the visitors overcame early jolts to coast to a comprehensive victory with eight balls to spare to bag their first two points after losing four matches at a stretch.

Dwayne Bravo (64 not out; 52 balls, 8x4, 1x6) and Robin Uthappa (37 not out, 37 balls, 5x4) took the game away from the Knight Riders with a 113-run unfinished fourth wicket stand as the Mumbai Indians reached 138 for 3 in 18.4 overs to hand the hosts their second defeat in four matches.

Bhajji banned, to lose Rs 3 crore; Sree warned (Bhajji addressing the media after ban)

2008-04-28T16:18:00.001-07:00

The IPL has banned volatile off-spinner and Mumbai Indians' stand-in skipper, Harbhajan Singh, for 11 IPL matches after finding him guilty of physically assaulting fellow Indian cricketer and Team Mohali bowler Sreesanth after an IPL game on Friday evening. According to IPL commissioner Lalit Modi, Harbhajan has also been fined 100% of his match fee for his conduct on the field.

The ban implies that Harbhajan stands to lose as much as Rs 3 crore as he will only be paid for the two matches that he played in the T20 league. Sreesanth too was given a warning on the basis of his behaviour in previous matches. Harbhajan's attack, however, was found to have been "unprovoked".

There could be further trouble for "bad boys" Harbhajan and Sreesanth as BCCI too has launched a probe into the spat which will examine the backdrop to the assault.

Mumbai Indians coach Lalchand Rajput was also found guilty of "conduct flouting the spirit of the game". "It's a Level 2 offence. He was fined 50% of his match fee as well. In the video footage, Lalchand was standing right behind Harbhajan and he could have stopped the incident from happening. He didn't take any step to restrain him from behaving like that. Instead, he stood there and was found laughing in the tape," a top BCCI official told TOI.

The ugly incident between Harbhajan and Sreesanth occurred a few minutes after the Mumbai team lost to Team Mohali. Images of a profusely weeping Sreesanth were aired on TV after the fiasco. Footage made available to the match referee Farokh Engineer shows Harbhajan shaking hands with Team Mohali members after the match.

Said Modi: "Then, the video shows Harbhajan slapping Sreesanth instead of giving him a handshake. I would like to make it clear to all players that the cricket board is not going to spare anyone who crosses the limit." Modi added that Harbhajan had accepted he slapped the pacer under no provocation and the match referee states this in his report.

"As a penalty for the Level 4.2 offence committed by Harbhajan Singh, we hereby order that Singh be banned for the rest of the league matches of the first IPL event," he said while announcing Engineer's verdict here in a city hotel on Monday, after the IPL inquiry committee examined the footage of the incident and consulted representatives from both teams.

"Harbhajan Singh will also be fined 100% of his match fee that may have been paid or may hereafter be paid to him in respect of the remaining matches only. That does not take into account any of the two earlier matches (prior to Friday) that he may have played," Modi added.

Engineer, who conducted the hearing, said: "Harbhajan accepted his guilt. It can happen to any cricketer and I am glad that Harbhajan knows where he has gone wrong." The former Indian cricketer then announced: "Sreesanth has been warned to behave well on the field."

Later, while addressing the gathering, Harbhajan hugged and shook hands with the Kerala fast bowler.

Bhajji has learnt lesson; he will behave: Modi (Lalit Modi announcing the ban on Bhajji)

2008-04-28T16:16:00.001-07:00

Off-spinner Harbhajan Singh was on Monday banned for 11 Indian Premier League (IPL) matches and fined 100 per cent of his last match fee for slapping his fellow Team India player Sreesanth.

Harbhajan, stand-in captain for Mumbai Indians, was found guilty of slapping Kings XI Punjab pacer Sreesanth after a match between their teams in Mohali on Friday. Mumbai Indians team manager Lalchand Rajput was fined 50 percent of his match fee, for he was a witness to the incident but didn't take appropriate action.

Will the spat between Indian players dent IPL’s image? CNN-IBN asked IPL Commissioner Lalit Modi. “It won’t impact IPL’s image. Harbhajan crossed the laksman rekha (the limit) but there is a positive spin to this. Players are taking this tournament to be their own and they are fighting for it as if they would be fighting for their own team,” he said.

Asked if the incident in Mohali reflected on Indian cricketers, Modi said: “Indian players take the game very seriously and they are very passionate about it.”

“An ugly incident like this shouldn’t have happened but on the field players become aggressive and it happens in all games. Players though should control their aggression and be gentleman like.”

Dhoni dazzles at Chinnaswamy (Bangalore RC v Chennai SK - Chennai Batting)

2008-04-28T16:10:00.001-07:00

Chennai Super Kings kept their unbeaten record intact as they beat home team Royal Challengers, who suffered a dramatic batting collapse to go down by 13 runs in a pulsating Indian Premier League match on Monday.

Super Kings skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni hit a blistering 65 of 30 balls to help his team to a challenging score and then put his thinking cap on, rotating his bowlers cleverly to script their fourth win in a row.

Dhoni spoils Steyn’s party (Chennai Super Kings Celeberations after Winning - Awesome)

2008-04-28T16:05:00.001-07:00

South African paceman Dale Steyn flew into town on Sunday evening. Twenty-four hours later he showed no signs of jetlag or wear and tear.

Opening the attack for the Royal Challengers, Steyn was on the ball right away. He probably was running on the high of Friday, when the Titans, the side he represents in the domestic circuit, beat the Dolphins in the ProT20 final.

MS Dhoni spoiled Steyn’s party towards the end taking 23 runs off the penultimate over of the innings to breathe life into his team’s outing. Dhoni’s 50 came off 24 balls. Mike Hussey initially took up the challenge of repairing the damage caused by some fantastic bowling by the Royal Challengers pacemen. Dhoni gave the finishing touches to the innings in style.

In the last over bowled by Zaheer Khan, Dhoni took 14 runs off the second, third and fourth balls before perishing in search of a great finish. He had smashed 65 runs in 30 balls by then to take the fight to the Challengers’ camp. Hussey perished off the last ball of the innings after taking the bull by the horns when it looked like his side was running out of steam after a stuttering start.

It wasn’t smooth sailing for the Chennai Super Kings all the way. Steyn’s first delivery clocked 143 on the speed gun. Parthiv Patel glanced to fine leg to put the imposing Matthew Hayden on strike. The Australian couldn’t be the bully he loves to play.

Leaving the ball is not something Hayden does often. Such was Steyn’s impact on the first few overs of this game that the Washington Redskins, the hottest cheerleaders rooting for the Royal Challengers, had a genuine reason to gyrate.

In his first two overs Steyn gave away just eight runs as the ball made very little contact with the bat. The atmosphere turned electric and smelling blood, Zaheer Khan got into the act. It was in his second over that Zaheer got into the groove.

He bowled four dot balls to Hayden and then came around the wicket to the left-handed opener. Hayden tried to strike out only to find an edge as the ball went to the third man boundary. Hayden tried a similar heave the next ball. He paid the price as the ball ricocheted on to his stumps off the bat. Shortly, after hooking Praveen Kumar for a six to fine leg, Parthiv fished outside the off-stump to give Jacques Kallis a regulation catch in the slips.

Soon disaster struck again. Raina, who gamely tried to turn the tide, turned blind for the second but was sent back by Hussey. Jaffer’s throw was good enough for Mark Boucher to knock off the bails before Raina made his ground. By now Rahul Dravid and his boys were charged up.

By the end of the 10th over the Super Kings weren’t able to accelerate enough. They were 65 for 2. Skipper MS Dhoni walked in to cheers from the sporting crowd. Hussey and Dhoni kept the scoreboard ticking. In the 16th over Hussey smashed B Akhil for two consecutive sixes.

In the next over off Kallis, Hussey helped himself to two boundaries, one off an edge that beat the keeper. Dhoni then finished the over with a six that landed in the stands at long off.

(MS Dhoni showed why he is considered a fine Captain) Chennai Highlights vs Royal Bangalore Challengers

2008-04-28T16:00:00.001-07:00

MS Dhoni showed why he's considered a fine captain. On Monday evening, the Chennai captain put the game past Bangalore twice in one game.

First, it was his explosive 65 that amped up Chennai's score to 178 when it looked good for just 150. Then, having dropped Muttiah Muralitharan to play five seamers, he rotated his bowlers purposefully to cut Bangalore short by 13 runs at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.

It was a hard-fought win decided in the last over --- a rarity in the IPL, where most games had been decided in the first half.

It meant that the Super Kings recorded their fourth win, while for Rahul Dravid's Royal Challengers suffered their third loss, both in four games.

Bangalore looked solid in their chase with crisp fifties from Wasim Jaffer and Ross Taylor. But in thirty minutes of madness, the Royal Challengers imploded, going from 102-1 to 165 all out.

Manpreet Gony impressed again, picking up 3-38 for Chennai. But it was P Amarnath, who dismissed both Jaffer and Taylor. With pressure mounting, Joginder Sharma removed Jacques Kallis caught behind and
Gony came back for a second spell, dismissing the dangerous Mark Boucher caught at third man and the out-of-form Dravid LBW.

Jacob Oram's yorkers were hard to get away, and it call came down to the last over when Bangalore needed 17 with a wicket left. Dhoni turned to Joginder again, and he did what was needed.

Earlier in the day, Chennai batted sedately till the 15th over when Dhoni cut loose. His late charge made the difference in the final analysis.

First it was Michael Hussey who took the lead in accelerating the score. However, in the period Hussey moved from 45 to 47, Dhoni jumped from 16 to 65 before the two got out to the last two deliveries of the innings.

Dhoni was severe on Dale Steyn, hitting him for four fours and a huge six over midwicket. It took him to a fifty in 24 balls.

The explosive finish hurt a good start by Bangalore's seam bowlers, who had done well to dismiss Parthiv Patel and Matthew Hayden cheaply.

Zaheer Khan finished with 3-38 but the rest of the bowlers weren't as impressive.

Gilchrist ton crushes Mumbai - (IPL T20 GILCHRIST: 100 RUNS IN 41 BALLS)

2008-04-28T15:55:00.001-07:00

Adam Gilchrist couldn't have chosen a better stage than this to come good. Playing in a packed spanking new stadium, he stunned the Mumbai Indians with a blitzkrieg century to script a ten-wicket win in just 12.4 overs.

Gilchrist scored 109 not out off just 48 balls, getting to his century off only 42 deliveries, overtaking teammate Andrew Symonds' effort off 48 balls.

VVS Laxman kept Gilchrist company with a knock of 36 not out, but it was Gilchrist's game. He hit ten sixes and nine fours during his stay on the crease.

Abhishek Nayar and Dwayne Bravo got Mumbai Indians to something of a total as they carried their side to 154-7 in a game they need to win to get some points on the board.

Nayar scored 34 balls off 19 balls with three sixes and one four, while Bravo scored the same number of runs in one ball lesser, with the aid of one six and three boundaries.

For Hyderabad, RP Singh returned figures of 2-15 while Sanjay Bangar and Shahid Afridi also got two wickets each.

Visiting skipper VVS Laxman took the first step right, winning the toss the electing to field.

Mumbai were rocked by the Harbhajan Singh controversy, were again denied the services of Sachin Tendulkar, and will also miss Harbhajan, who has been suspended, pending the IPL match referee's inquiry on Monday.

Shaun Pollock led the skipper for the home team for this match.

Hyderabad decided to rest Chaminda Vaas and called up his Sri Lankan teammate Nowan Zoysa.

Teams: Mumbai Indians: Shaun Pollock (capt), Luke Ronchi, Sanath Jayasuriya, Robin Uthappa, Ajinkya Rahane, Dwayne Bravo, Abhishek Nayar, Musavir Khote, Ashish Nehra, Dhawal Kulkarni, Siddharth Chitnis.

Hyderabad Deccan Chargers: VVS Laxman (capt), Adam Gilchrist, Shahid Afridi, Andrew Symonds, Rohit Sharma, Arjun Yadav, Sanjay Bangar, Nuwan Zoysa, RP Singh, Pragyan Ojha, D Kalyankrishna.

Shahid Afridi Fastest 100 on 37 Balls | Watch it Now

2008-04-28T15:48:00.003-07:00