India v Pakistan: ICC World Twenty20 warm-up result with scores

Rohit and Gambhir script emphatic win


Finally India and Pakistan played out a one-sided Twenty20 game. Filling in for Virender Sehwag as opener, Rohit Sharma continued to give India a combination dilemma and made the chase seem like an afternoon walk in a London park. A target of 159, with extra bowlers available by the virtue of this being a 13-a-side game, was by no means an easy one, but Gautam Gambhir and Rohit managed with the ease that belies the tension an India-Pakistan match brings.Rohit was in the mood for some fun, hitting Ajmal inside-out and pulling Afridi over midwicket. When he got out for a 53-ball 80, India needed only 19 runs in four overs.

Praveen Kumar and Shehzad set the agenda early. Praveen followed two bouncers with an outswinger to clean up Shahzaib Hasan. Akmal then crashed the first ball after the wicket through the covers for four. In the next over, Shehzad hit RP Singh for three boundaries, an over during which he was also dropped by Harbhajan Singh at short midwicket.

Dhoni quickly called on the raw pace of Ishant Sharma and the effect was immediate. First Suresh Raina ran out Akmal through superb work at cover, and Shehzad top-edged a pull in the same over. The panic set in when a promoted Shahid Afridi went boom first ball he faced from Irfan and managed just an outside edge to Dhoni - 45 for 1 had become 45 for 4.

Shoaib Malik counterattacked, but fell soon. Either side of Malik's dismissal, no boundary was hit for 42 balls until Misbah made room and lofted Ojha to wide long-on in the 13th over. By the time Younis fell for a run-a-ball 32, the two had been added 50 in 45 balls. Arafat and Misbah provided the final impetus, scoring 29 in the last two overs, but it proved to be way below-par on the night.

Scorecard:
Pakistan 158 for 6 (Misbah 37*(30), Younis 32(32),Arafat-25*(16) Ishant 1-11(4))
India 159 for 1 (Rohit 80(53), Gambhir 52*(47),Aamer-18/1(3))
India won by 9 wickets (with 18 balls remaining)

ICC World Twenty20: England Vs West Indies Practice Match Result & score

Wright and Bopara crush West Indies

	Ravi Bopara showed his flair during a 35-ball 60 as England raced to victory

England have comfortably had the better of West Indies throughout their early-season exchanges and the theme continued at Lord's. They raced to a nine-wicket win with 32 balls remaining on the back of an electric opening stand of 119 between Luke Wright and Ravi Bopara. Wright finished with 75 from 38 deliveries.England hit their stride with the bowlers and fielders also doing their jobs to hold West Indies to 144

Scorecard:
West Indies-144/6(20/20)
Sarwan-46*(34), Marshal-35(33), Rashid-1/20(4)
England-145/1(14.4/20)
Bopara-60(35), L. Wright- 75*(48),Chandarpaul-1/17(2)

England won by 9 wickets (with 32 balls remaining)

Australia Vs New Zealand: T20 World Cup Practice Match scores

New Zealand 147 (19.5/20 ov)

McGlashan- 49 (35), Styris- 42(28), Jhonson- 4-20(4),Hauritz- 2-35(4)

Australia 151/3 (19.2/20 ov)

Ponting- 56(40), Clarke-49*(35), Franklin- 2-27(4),Vettori- 1-28(4)

Australia won by 7 wickets (with 4 balls remaining)

England Vs Scotland : T20 World Cup Practice Match

Scotland 136/5 (20/20 ov)

Smith-45(32), Coatzer- 34(34), Hamilton- 20(20), Collingwood-2-18(3)

England 141/4 (19.0/20 ov)

Pieterson- 53*(39), Bopara- 32(29), Collingwood-23*(17). RA Haq- 2-19(4)

England won by 6 wickets (with 6 balls remaining)

79 players shun ICL to join BCCI

The BCCI today granted amnesty to 79 players and 11 former cricketers, as they decided to cut-off their ties with the rebel board, the Indian Cricket League.

The decision was immensely motivated by the time-bound amnesty that the BCCI had offered to all these players.

"By snapping ties with ICL, the cricketers immediately became eligible for domestic cricket and would also be considered for international matches once they complete their one year cooling off period," the BCCI said.

"The BCCI, after scrutinising their requests has written to the concerned state associations that these players are eligible to play in the domestic tournaments for this year", Board secretary N Srinivasan said.

Reetinder Sodhi, Rohan Gavasakar, Hemang Badani, Deep Dasgupta were some former International players who decided to cut-off their ties.

Erapalli Prasanna, Ajit Wadekar, Sandeep Patil, Balwinder Singh Sandhu and Madan Lal, who were assigned as coach to different teams have also decided to join hands with the mainstream league.

"We still have 40-50 players, out of the original 140-odd, on our roster and as and when the need arises we would recruit fresh talent. The League is on. We are not closing down. The next season is in October-November and it's still early days", an ICL official said.

Tendulakar thinks INDIA carries the ability to retain T20 World Cup title

Master blaster Sachin Tendulkar on Tuesday emphasized that the Indian squad has all the qualities to retain the Twenty20 cricket World Cup due to commence from Friday in England.

Commenting on India's performance at the Twenty-20 level, he said that the Indian team looks absolutely balanced.

"I think we have an explosive batting line up and a good bowling attack. On the whole, you can see the team is quite nicely balanced. I don't see any reasons why we cannot live up to the expectations," Tendulkar said.

Further, he exuded confidence of India defending the title won in 2007.

"Obviously in cricket no one can guarantee you what's going to happen as the game is full of uncertainties. But going by our strength and the balance, we stand a very good chance and I have confidence in our team," he added.

T20 World Cup- Practice Match Score India Vs New Zealand & Pakistan Vs South Africa

NZ Vs IND

New Zealand
170 for 7 (Taylor 41(33), McCullum 31(19), Franklin 27*(17), Ishant 4-25(4), Harvajan1-22(4))
India
161 for 6 (Raina 45(24), Jadeja 41*(41), R Sharma 36(20) Vettori 3-24(3))

NewZealand won by nine runs

SA Vs PAK
South Africa
186 for 7 (Smith 70(52), Gibbs 42(23), Ajmal 2-24(4)Afridi 2-34(4))
Pakistan 127
(Shehjad 31(26)_,Botha 2-20(4), Steyn 2-19(4))

South Africa won by 59 runs

Ireland Vs WestIndies T20 World Cup Practice Match

Ireland 130/7 (20/20 ov)

Bray-30(29), Mooney-23(20), Benn:2-24(4).

West Indies 134/1 (16.0/20 ov)

Gayle-88(56), Sarwan-25(23), MaCallan:1-30(3).

West Indies won by 9 wickets (with 24 balls remaining)

Bangladesh Batsmen did welll but Bowlers made them dissapoitned in both T20 world cup practice matches in England

Bangladesh Vs Sri Lanka
Bangladesh -151/6 Over - 20; Rahim 35, Roqibul 38*, Shakib 23, Ashraful 16, Tamim 15;
Sri Lanka-152/6 Over - 19.4; Jayawrdane 43, Shakib 2/18, Mashrafe 2/30;
SL won by 4 wkts (Warm-up T20 Match, Venue: Trent Bridge; Toss: BAN; Date: 2 June 2009; )


Australia Vs Bangladesh
Australia - 219/6 Over - 20; Watson 52, Riyad 4/37
Bangladesh -181/7 Over - 20; Shakib 54, Riyad 31*, Ashraful 26, Jhonson 3/21;
Australia won by 38 runs (Warm-up T20 Match, Toss: AUS; Venue: Trent Bridge; Date: 1 June 2009 )

Dhoni confident India can retain T20 title

India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni is confident his team can retain the ICC World Twenty20 in England next month.

"I've got a team with outstanding talent. If we play to our potential, we can defend our title," Dhoni told reporters in the western Indian city of Mumbai, ahead of the team's departure for England on Friday.
"We're going to give it our best shot. Each player wants to do something special," said Dhoni, under whose captaincy India won the inaugural ICC World Twenty20 in South Africa in 2007. "Being defending champions doesn't put any additional pressure on us," said Dhoni, whose team is accustomed to the high expectations of a cricket-obsessed nation. "It's just an add-on pressure that we can handle."
"One cannot keep thinking about the outcome of matches, we can only focus on our preparation.""The IPL has really helped young players get accustomed to pressure situations, and international cricket is all about handling pressure.”
“We have Rohit Sharma and Yuvraj Singh who have taken hat-tricks in the IPL. We also have Suresh Raina. Yusuf Pathan is there too," said the Indian skipper, who acknowledged the IPL for harnessing some of India’s talented cricketers.

He also seemed optimistic about the inclusion of Ravindra Jadeja in the squad saying, “We have someone like Ravindra Jadeja with limited international experience but with high talent. He has played against some top fast bowlers and spinners in the IPL and has learned to handle pressure."

ICC World Twenty20: Our main goal is to reach the Super Eights - Ashraful

	Mohammad Ashraful is aiming for a repeat of Bangladesh's upset win over India in the

Ashraful has said Bangladesh's main objective is to qualify for the Super Eights of the World Twenty20 which begins on June 5. They play their first game on June 6 against India, the current champions, whom they famously beat in the 2007 World Cup.

"In this form of the game any side can beat the other," Ashraful told reporters at Lord's. "We defeated the West Indies in the last World T20 in South Africa and progressed to the Super Eight. Our main goal is to repeat that and if we beat India, who are the world champions, in the first match then we will fancy our chances of doing well against the top sides and making the semi-finals even."

Barring the upset win over West Indies in the last World Twenty20, Bangladesh had a disappointing tournament, losing their other four games by fairly convincing margins. However, Ashraful, who had a poor run himself, averaging 17.40 in five games, was confident of putting up a better show this time. "We have come here one week early, had three games against New Zealand, Holland and Scotland and the boys have done well," he said. "We are confident and there are two tough games against Australia tomorrow and Sri Lanka the day after. So that's a nice build-up to the main tournament."

One of the Bangladesh players who has impressed in the warm-ups has been the seamer, Rubel Hossain. He returned figures of 4 for 19 against Holland, and 5 for 16 against Scotland. "He has taken nine wickets in two matches and is bowling really well. He has an awkward action and has bit of extra pace," Ashraful said of Rubel.

He also backed his deputy Mashrafe Mortaza to come good after a disappointing solitary game in the IPL, where he conceded 58 runs in four overs for Kolkata Knight Riders, including 27 in the decisive final over of the contest. "It was only in the last over that he did badly. Otherwise I thought he was okay. But I know he'll be back. He is that type of a player. He always does well against India."

Ireland is the other team that Bangladesh must face in the group stage, and having lost to them at the 2007 World Cup they might have reason to be cautious. But Ashfraful was confident of averting a repeat. "I think if we play our best cricket then we should not have a problem against Ireland because we have more quality in the side."

Bangladesh take on Australia in their next warm-up game on Monday.

Sri Lanka in England 2009: Sri Lanka cancel Oxford visit over security fears

Less than three months after their team bus came under terrorist gunfire in Lahore, members of the Sri Lankan cricket team have withdrawn from a scheduled visit to Oxford due to security concerns.

Muttiah Muralidharan, Kumar Sangakkara and team manager Brendon Kuruppu informed the Oxford Union debating society on Friday they feared a backlash after a front-page story in The Times in which it was claimed that 20,000 Tamil civilians had been killed in recent hostilities between government troops and LTTE.

The Sri Lankans arrived in England this week ahead of the World Twenty20; their first international assignment since the attack outside the Gadaffi Stadium, which claimed the lives of eight security and transport personnel and wounded seven players and coaching staff. Muralitharan, who is himself a Tamil, had been due, along with Sangakkara and Kuruppu, to deliver an oration at the Oxford Union - following in the footsteps of US presidents and other heads of state - but the visit was scrapped due to uneasiness over security arrangements.

Bangladesh carries their form against Scotland T20 World Cup warm up as they won by 6 Wkts

Scotland -141/7 Over - 20; Mccaullum 50, Hamilton 44, Rubel 5/16, Masrafe 1 wkt, Riyad 1 wkt;
Bangladesh-142/4 Over - 18.4; Riyad 46*, Roqibul 15*, Shakib 36, Tamim 33;
Bangladesh won by 6 wkts (Warm-up T20 Match, Venue: Wormsley; Toss: Bangladesh; Date: 29 May 2009 )

Bravo leads West Indies to first win in T20 warm up match

West Indies recorded their first victory of a depressing tour as they saw off the challenge of Scotland by 14 runs at Wormsley. Their impetus, once again, was provided by Dwayne Bravo, who continued his fine form from the IPL with an aggressive 51 not out from 30 balls in a total of 143 for 6. He came to the crease at 60 for 2 in the 11th over after the demise of Andre Fletcher, who made 42 from 34 balls, and then it was over to Darren Sammy with the ball, who took 3 for 25 in three overs to derail Scotland's prospects in the run-chase. Two early run-outs had already set them back, and though Colin Smith made a run-a-ball 40, when he and Neil McCallum fell in consecutive deliveries, the latter to yet another run-out, there was no way back, despite two sixes in six balls for Jan Stander.

Bangladesh doing well in their practice matchs for T20 World Cup in English condition

Score of 2nd Warm Up Match Vs Netherlands

Bangladesh - 206/6 Over - 20; Ashraful 69, Mahmud Ullah 54, Roqibul 27*, Mushfique 24, Junaed 17, Shakib 4, Tamim 2, Shamsur 0*;
Netherlands-142/10 Over - 16.3; Rubel 4 wkts, Shakib & Masrafe 2 wkts each, Razzak 1 wkt;
Bangladesh won by 64 runs( Warm-up T20 Match ;Toss: Netherlands; Venue: Canterbury; Date: 28 May 2009: )

T20 World Cup- Warm up Match Score ( BAN Vs NZ )

BAN - 146/6 Over - 20; Zuned 3, Tamim 19, Ashraful 13, Shakib 35, Riyad 43, Mushfiq 1, Mashrafe 15*, Naeem 11*,
NZ- 147/6 Over - 20; Guptil 61, McGlashan 35, McCullam 14*, Ashraful 1 wkt, Riyad 1 wkt;
NZ won by 4 wkts( Warm-up T20 Match; Toss: Bangladesh ; Venue: Wormsley Cricket Ground; Date: 26 May 2009)

Bangladesh lost in a close T20 warm up match

A rally by the bowlers ensured a last ball finish but the Tigers are still smarting from the fact that they let slip an opportunity to beat New Zealand in the first of the additional practice matches at Wormsley Cricket Ground on Tuesday.

“It was a good outing in the park for us against some quality players but I think we let ourselves down in the last five overs when only 33 runs came. We had wickets in hand and still about 15-20 runs short,” said captain Mohammad Ashraful after the four wicket loss.

Bangladesh, opting to bat, were nicely placed at 87 for 3 after 11 overs but then the runs dried out, especially after the departure of Shakib Al Hasan who made 35 off 27 with some spanking pulls and drives. Ashraful (13) himself flicked a six and square cut for a four off the bowling of paceman Ian Butler but was out in the same over when a ball jagged back from outside off to hit his stumps.

“We had a plan going and Tamim started brilliantly. We just couldn’t maintain the momentum after we were 40/1 in 5 overs. It is not easy to defend 146 but the bowlers brought us back into the game. I am happy with the spirit we showed out there and the way we fought till the last ball. We have to improve in all areas and that’s what practice matches are for. From that perspective this was a good start and now we’ll be able to better assess where we are,” added Ashraful.

Tamim had helped himself to a 13-ball 19 with a four boundaries which included a drive through covers and a straight one that never left the grass. That showed the intent which Ashraful, Shakib and Mahmud Ullah had continued to display before they got out. Mahmud Ullah (43 off 41; 4x4) came in at five and worked the ball beautifully and hit boundaries when the opportunity came. Just when he started to open up Shakib fell at long on when Nathen McCullum dived forward and took a stunning catch off a flat hit. The same fielder had dropped an easier catch of Shakib off the previous ball.

The conditions, for the first time since they landed here was typically English. It had drizzled the night before and there was quite a strong chilly breeze blowing across the lush valleys of the Wormsley Estate. The sun did come out after the match got underway but the wind remained. Still the Bangladesh players appeared undeterred by the weather.

“We are adjusting well I think. We had two tough lengthy training sessions and the pitch and the conditions are becoming familiar. That’s the whole idea behind arriving early in England. It was disappointing to lose because I thought we had a really good chance but we are more confident after this game,” said Shakib who had struggled with a pelvic injury during the last couple of months.

“I am getting better. I was a bit jittery while facing the first few balls but then it became easier. The bowling also came good after the first over,” said Shakib.

New Zealand had been given a flying start by opener Martin Guptil who made 61 off 41 balls. Guptil preferred the onside and hit three sixes. The Black Caps had raced to 59 without loss before Ashraful gambled by bowling the ninth over and had Neil Broom lbw off his fifth delivery. The spinners then tied the score down. Shakib was outstanding and had figures of 4-0-15-1 after going for 7 in his first over. He also removed Guptil when the right-hander was beaten by the flight and turn having stepped out and was bowled. Two run outs also put pressure on the New Zealanders. Both were outstanding work from Naeem Islam. First was a direct hit at the non-striker’s end from point to send back number three Scott Styris and then a fast return from the deep to the ‘keeper to leave Daniel Vettori short while attempting a two.

Naeem however, was guilty of bowling a wide off his first ball that went for four when he came to bowl in the 17th over. New Zealand got 11 from it.

“That was crucial because they were not finding things easy. Still I believe we could have bowled better. We did not hit the right length often enough and there were some fumbles in the field. We had the game till the final over from (Syed) Rasel and the top-edged six McCullum hit would have been a catch any other day but the wind took it over long off,” said vice captain Mortaza.

New Zealand required 12 from the last six balls and singles came off the first three before McCullum’s sixer off the fourth. Two were needed from the last delivery and McCullum (15 not out) scampered for the runs after playing the ball to the left of Mortaza at long off.

There is practice scheduled for the Tigers at Wormsley from 2pm local time (7pm Bangladesh Standard Time) today but the morning weather doesn’t inspire confidence. It is gloomy with light rain falling. Tomorrow the team travels to Kent for the second warm up against Holland. The match will start at 3pm local time (8pm Bangladesh Standard Time).

Wasim Akram Says "Pak favorites to win Twenty20 World Cup"

Former captain Wasim Akram has said that Pakistan are favorites to win the next Twenty20 World Cup beginning in England from June 5.

Akram said Pakistan has the best track record in the Twenty20 format of the game as compared to other international teams, which makes it the favourites to win the coveted title.

“Pakistan has the best winning ratio of all the teams in the Twenty20 cricket. If they keep that consistency then they can get the coveted title in England,” The Daily Times quoted Akram, as saying.

Pointing towards the team’s stupendous performance against Australia in the Twenty20 match in Dubai last month, Akram said team Pakistan posses a strong bowling line-up that could create trouble for even the world’s best team.

“I thought Australia would thrash them in the one-off Twenty20 match in Dubai but it was the other way round, with Umar Gul, Shoail Tanvir and Rao Iftikhar Anjum, Pakistan have the best bowling attack backed by quality spin of Shahid Afridi,” he said.

Akram added that batting was the worrying factor for the team, as the senior players were struggling with their rhythm.

“Batting can let Pakistan down, as it has always done in the past, so there will be more responsibility on Younis Khan, Shoaib Malik, Misbahul Haq and Shahid Afridi,” he said.

Commenting on the defending champion India’s chances of winning the trophy once again, Akram said Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s dream of winning the championship for the second time could suffer, as the Indian players would be going into the event after a hectic season.

“I think Pakistan has played less cricket and will be fresh, while Indian players could be fatigued after playing in the Indian Premier League (IPL),” Akram added. (ANI)

PCB clueless over being denied place in Champions League T20 competition

PCB is clueless as to why it has been discarded from Twenty20 competition of Champions league to be held in India in October.

When enquired about Pakistan’s failure to get itself inducted in the multi-million-dollar tournament, all senior officials of the PCB kept on passing the responsibility on each other, and expressed their ignorance about the issue.

When quizzed about the whole issue, the PCB chairman Ijaz Butt said one should contact senior Board officials in Lahore to get more information.

Earlier, the Champions League chief, Lalit Modi had declared that Pakistan would not be able to take part in the seven-nation cricket extravaganza because Pakistan cricketers are prohibited to travel to India due to government restrictions.

“Unfortunately, the Pakistan government won’t give them (the players) clearance to come to India, and since Saturday was our cut-off date, it’s not possible to have a team from Pakistan this year,” Modi had said. (ANI)

Ipl 2009 Winner Deccan Chargers

Bangladesh Squad reaches England as the first team for T20 World cup

Bangladesh Squad for T20 WC

Mohammad Ashraful Captain Age 24 years 301 days Batting Right-hand bat Bowling Legbreak		Abdur Razzak Age 26 years 323 days Batting Left-hand bat Bowling Slow left-arm orthodox
Junaid Siddique Age 21 years 186 days Batting Left-hand bat Bowling Right-arm offbreak		Mahmudullah Age 23 years 89 days Batting Right-hand bat Bowling Right-arm offbreak
Mashrafe Mortaza Age 25 years 211 days Batting Right-hand bat Bowling Right-arm fast-medium		Mithun Ali Age 19 years 80 days Batting Right-hand bat
Mushfiqur Rahim Wicketkeeper Age 20 years 245 days Batting Right-hand bat		Naeem Islam Age 22 years 124 days Batting Right-hand bat Bowling Right-arm offbreak
Raqibul Hasan Age 21 years 208 days Batting Right-hand bat Bowling Legbreak		Rubel Hossain Age 19 years 123 days Batting Right-hand bat Bowling Right-arm medium-fast
Shahadat Hossain Age 22 years 270 days Batting Right-hand bat Bowling Right-arm medium-fast		Shamsur Rahman Age 20 years 333 days Batting Right-hand bat
Shakib Al Hasan Age 22 years 41 days Batting Left-hand bat Bowling Slow left-arm orthodox		Syed Rasel Age 24 years 305 days Batting Left-hand bat Bowling Left-arm medium-fast
Tamim Iqbal Age 20 years 45 days Batting Left-hand bat Bowling Slow left-arm orthodox