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India Enter into Semi Final After beating Host South Africa In ICC World Twenty20 Cup Durban: Rudra Pratap Singh extended a tradition of an Indian truth about enzyte left-arm fastmedium bowler making a stunning impact in a big game at the Kingsmead Cricket Ground as Team India came up with a high-octane performance for the second night running to breeze into a semifinal date with Australia in the ICC World Twenty20 with a superb – run victory over South Africa. For the second night running, India was able to channelise its emotions and etch a stunning victory as it raced to the top of Group E and pushed the home side out of the tournament, carrying New Zealand into the semifinals after a triple tie. There was an enormous display of self-belief as India readied itself for a clash with Australia on Saturday. From a dismal 61 for four in the 11th over, India finished with a fighting 153 for five in 20 overs. It rallied through an 85-run partnership between a creative Rohit Sharma (50 not out, 40 balls, seven fours, two sixes) and a steady Mahendra Singh Dhoni (45, 33 balls, four four, one six). It still left the team with a much work to do when defending the score. Led by RP Singh, the bowlers and fielders did a terrific job of that. If RP Singh finished with four for 13 in four overs, Sreesanth and off-spinner Harbhajan Singh grabbed two wickets each while Irfan Pathan was at his economical best and Joginder Sharma filled his role as the fourth seamer adequately. Four years ago, Ashish Nehra had demolished England in an ICC World Cup game here with a fine exhibition of swing bowling at Kingsmead. He had finished with figures of six for 23 in his 10 overs. Tonight, it was 21-year-old RP Singh's turn to leave his imprint on the ground as he finished with four for 13 in his four overs. India turned out some attacking fielding in support of the bowlers. It almost as if they were paying a tribute to the side's best fielder, Yuvraj Singh who was out of the game with a sore elbow. Karthik's catch at second slip to dismiss Graeme Smith was a stunner, flying to his left to get both his hands to the ball that was screaming past him. Not long after, Rohit Sharma's fielding skills came to the fore. And it fetched him the man of the match award. Mark Boucher played RP Singh to the off side and set off for a single. The young Indian charged from his position on the 30-yard circle at cover, swooped on the ball and flicked it on to the stumps, catching the dangerous Justin Kemp short of his crease. South Africa lost its way under the pressure that India mounted on it. And it was a pity that Shaun Pollock's efforts with the new ball earlier in the day went waste.He does not need much more to inspire him than a new white ball, a lively pitch and lights at his home turf, the Kingsmead Cricket Ground. The Indian cricketers have known this for a while but were served a reminder in a four-over spell. Posted by ugyen at 6:05 PM 27 comments Links to this post Labels: India, South Africa, Worldtwenty20 cup | DiggIt! Del.icio.us|cricket Pakinstan Wins Over Bangaladesh in Tense Moment Cape Town: Cape Town: There were some nervous moments for Pakistan but they managed to keep their Super 8 slate clean by beating Bangladesh by four wickets at the Newlands cricket ground here on Thursday. Pakistan had already qualified for the semi-final stage of the ICC World Twenty20 Championship. Chasing a small target of 141 runs, Pakistan made a bit of a heavy weather of the chase, losing wickets at regular intervals but in the end, Imran Nazir and Kamran Akmal did the finishing job with one over to spare. Pakistan tried out a new opening combination on Thursday, getting Shahid Afridi to open with Nazir. While Afridi was reasonably successful, smashing 39 off just 15 balls with five fours and two sixes, Nazir had to retire hurt after just three balls. Nazir did come back after the fall of the fifth wicket and was unbeaten on 27. For Bangladesh left-arm spinner Abdur Razzak was the best bowler on the park, taking two wickets for 16 runs in his four overs. Left-arm spinner Shakib al Hasan was steady, bowling his four overs for just 17 runs. Mahmudullah bowled well for Bangladesh as well, taking one for 28 in his four overs. Mohammed Hafeez and skipper Shoaib Malik made 23 and 21 respectively while Salman Butt, batting at number three, made 20 off 27 balls. Earlier, Bangladesh lasted 19.4 overs thanks to opener Zunaed Siddique. After being asked to go in first, Bangladesh were bowled out for 140 runs. The target for Pakistan was quite small but but it was refreshing to see a mature response from Bangladesh. Most of the Bangladesh batters tried to take only the boom-boom route but Siddique, who made 71 runs off just 49 balls with six fours and three huge sixes, adopted a refreshingly different approach. One could clearly see that he was trying to achieve the balance between attack and defense, which is the key to success in this format of the game. He was willing to stay at the wicket and defy the bowlers, which made all the difference. Posted by ugyen at 5:57 PM 3 comments Links to this post Labels: Bangaladesh team, Pakistan team, Worldtwenty20 cup | DiggIt! Del.icio.us|cricket Thursday, September 20, 2007 Cape Town: Bangladesh lasted 19.4 overs in their Super 8 clash against Pakistan at the Newlands cricket ground here on Thursday, and opener Zunaed Siddique was solely responsible for that. After being asked to go in first, Bangladesh were bowled out for 140 runs. Pakistan will undoubtedly have the edge chasing a small target but it was refreshing to see a mature response from a Bangladesh batsman. Most of the Bangladesh batters tried to take only the boom-boom route but Siddique, who made 71 runs off just 49 balls with six fours and three huge sixes, adopted a refreshingly different approach. One could clearly see that he was trying to achieve the balance between attack and defense, which is the key to success in this format of the game. He was willing to stay at the wicket and defy the bowlers, which made all the difference. While there were the usual big hits for sixes and fours, Siddique was a revelation as he did not ignore the ones and the twos. The next best came from Aftab Ahmed, who made 15. To a large extent, Pakistan bowlers were clinical in their job. Barring Siddique, none of the Bangladesh batters were able to stand up to them. Mohammed Hafeez and skipper Shoaib Malik took two wickets each, while seamers Muhammed Asif, Shahid Afridi and Umar Gul claimed one wicket each. There were as many as three run outs in the Bangladesh innings. Bangladesh Pakistan Officials Posted by ugyen at 8:30 PM 1 comments Links to this post Labels: Bangaladesh team, Pakistan team, Worldtwenty20 cup | DiggIt! Del.icio.us|cricket India-South Africa gears up for another intense contest Durban: South Africa and India may have won intense games against New Zealand and England respectively on Wednesday but their ability to channelise emotions will be on test again when they come square up in the final group E game in the ICC World Twenty20 tournament at Kingsmed Cricket Ground on Thursday night. More than the home side, India will be challenged to overcome the heady feeling of thumping England by 19 runs. India needs to keep its wits about itself and secure a victory over South Africa to guarantee itself a semifinal place, the margin determining whether it tops the table or finishes second. A South Africa win take New Zealand along to the semis and send India home. The Indians, on a high last night after beating England comfortably, know that their task is cut out against South Africa's bowlers. The home side is well aware of the local conditions as it showed when stifling New Zealand after the Black Caps were off to a great start on Wednesday. With the Indian bowlers being just a shade above adequate, the onus will be on the batters to deliver again if the team is to extend its stay in South Africa. Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir have batted really well in the last two games and Yuvraj showed his ominous touch in making a 12-ball 50. Of the others, Robin Uthappa had one good knock against Pakistan while skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni knows that he has to lift the bar for himself and his team when gets to bat against South Africa which has a clutch of fastmedium bowlers who have all the ability to hit the deck and exploit the bounce that the Kingsmead pitch has offered the bowlers. If Dhoni has not landed the big hits so far, South African captain Graeme Smith is also due a big score and, with his Nemesis Zaheer Khan missing from the Indian ranks, may breathe easy in his quest for that elusive knock. The Indian bowlers will be well aware of the big hitting Justin Kemp's skill in this format as also those of Herschelle Gibbs and Mark Boucher. South Africa's allround superiority – and better fielding – will make it the favourite going into the match but the Indians know that they are within hailing distance of a semifinal place and can be expected to give the more experienced home side a run for its money. The good thing is that Dhoni has encouraged his players not to come under pressure in the run up to the game. The teams: South Africa (likely) Graeme Smith (captain), Herschelle Gibbs, AB de Villiers, Justin Kemp, Mark Boucher (wicket-keeper), Vernon Philander, Shaun Pollock, Johan van der Wath, Albie Morkel, Morne Morkel and Andre Nel. India (probable) Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain and wicket-keeper), Virender Sehwag, Gautham Gambhir, Robin Uthappa, Yuvraj Singh, Rohit Sharma, Irfan Pathan, Harbhajan Singh, Piyush Chawla, S Sreesanth and RP Singh. Source Posted by ugyen at 8:24 PM 1 comments Links to this post Labels: India, South Africa, Worldtwenty20 cup | DiggIt! Del.icio.us|cricket Aussies 10-wicket knockout punch to Sri Lankans Cape Town: Adversity brings out the best in the Australians. Facing a knock-out game and without their skipper Ricky Ponting – officially recognised as the best player in the world – Australia responded in a manner only the world champions can. Adam Gilchrist-led Australia knocked Sri Lanka out of the ICC World Twenty20 tournament by ten wickets at the Newlands cricket ground here on Thursday. Chasing a measly target of 102 runs, openers Gilchrist and Matthew Hayden knocked off the formalities in just 10.2 overs as the world champions sail into the semis. Hayden, bullying the bowling in his usual, inimitable manner, made an unbeaten 58 off 38 balls with seven fours and two sixes while his skipper was undefeated on 31 off 25 balls with four fours. So severe was the hammering administered to the Sri Lankans that they looked like schoolboys lost on a huge University playground through the Australian innings. In all fairness to the Lankan bowlers, there was really not much that they could have done with a score like that. It was only all about running up to the wicket, try and keep it in the right areas, and wait for the inevitable to happen. In any case, Hayden and Gilchrist have far too much of batting class to let the Lankans go unpunished after their spineless display. The usual pulls and drives and slashes were out on display, with just a little touch of arrogance. They toyed with the bowlers, really. If any bowler managed a few dot balls, the next delivery would just sail into one of the stands or crash into the hoardings. A completely one-sided contest! Earlier, the Stuart Clark-Brett Lee combo bowled Sri Lankans out for 101 in 19.3 overs, which is sure to send a few shivers down the spines of some other teams. Gilchrist, standing in for injured Ponting, chose to have a bowl and Lee struck in his first over itself, removing Sanath Jayasuriya for a duck. The Newlands pitch offered quite a bit of assistance to the seamers, and once 'Stuey' Clark arrived at the party, the Aussie fans gulped down their beers in glee. Posted by ugyen at 8:21 PM 1 comments Links to this post Labels: Australia, Worldtwenty20 cup | DiggIt! 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