3rd ODI: Australia win by 7 Wickets! Wins Series!

West Indies batsmen could not utilize the good start as the middle order fell like nine pins. Gayle was unluck to get run out as the ball touched Johnson's hand at hit the stumps. The bowling was not that great, but the batsmen threw their wicket trying to maintain the run rate. From 159 for 2 in the 33rd over, they lost the remaining 8 wickets for 64 runs. They did not play the full quota of 50 overs as their innings ended in 48 overs.

The come back all rounder Watson scored a wonderful century to take Australia home comfortably and win the series.

Match: 3rd ODI
Venue: National Cricket Stadium, St George's, Grenada
Date: June 29, 2008
Teams: West Indies and Australia
Captains: CH Gayle and Ponting
Toss: Australia won the toss and decided to field
Result: Australia won by 7 wickets with 57 balls remaining
Series: Australia leading 3-0
Man of the Match: SR Watson off Australia
Score:

West Indies 223 all out in 48 overs (CH Gayle 53, XM Marshall 35, RR Sarwan 31, S Chanderpaul 32, DJ Bravo 7, ADS Fletcher 12, D Ramdin 21, DJG Sammy 3, DBL Powell 2, FH Edwards 7 not out, SJ Benn 1, Extras--19 (lb 6, w 10, nb 3), B Lee 9-1-36-1, NW Bracken 9-0-26-3, MG Johnson 8-1-41-1, JR Hopes 3-0-23-0, A Symonds 7-0-42-2, SR Watson 5-0-23-1, MJ Clarke 7-0-26-0) lost to Australia 227 for 3 in 40.3 overs (SE Marsh 0, SR Watson 126, RT Ponting 69, MJ Clarke 11 not out, A Symonds 8 not out, Extras--13 (lb 2, w 9, nb 2), FH Edwards 6-0-35-1, DBL Powell 6-0-33-0, SJ Benn 10-1-59-0, DJ Bravo 9-0-47-0, DJG Sammy 4-0-20-1, CH Gayle 5-0-26-1, XM Marshall 0.3-0-5-0)

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2nd ODI: Australia keep winning!

Rain stopped the play, but West Indies was not near the target as per the D/L method. At the end of the 27th over, rain stopped play and WI were 58 for 6 and the target was revised to 204 in 41 overs. WI needed 146 in 14 overs. Loss of wickets early part of the innings made WI suffer at the end. If they had retained the wickets in tact, the target would have been easier.

Michael Clarke bagged the man of the match for his 56 and taking 3 wickets.

Match: 2nd ODI
Venue: ArnNational Cricket Stadium, St George's, Grenada
Date: June 27, 2008
Teams: West Indies and Australia
Captains: CH Gayle and Ponting
Toss: Australia won the toss and decided to bat
Result: Australia won by 63 runs (D/L method)
Series: Australia leading 2-0
Man of the Match: MJ Clarke off Australia
Score:

Australia 213 for 5 in 50 overs (SE Marsh 12, SR Watson 0, RT Ponting 13, MJ Clarke 56, MEK Hussey 62, CL White 40 not out, JR Hopes 17 not out, Extras--13 (b 3, w 9, nb 1), JE Taylor 10-2-47-2, DBL Powell 10-2-29-1, DJ Bravo 10-2-35-1, DJG Sammy 5-0-18-0, KA Pollard 2-0-11-0, SJ Benn 10-0-54-1, CH Gayle 3-0-16-0) beat West Indies (revised target 204 in 41 overs; target changed at the end of 27th over after rain stopped play; WI were 58 for 6 in 27 overs) 140 for 8 in 41 overs (XM Marshall 0, CH Gayle 10, ADS Fletcher 19, S Chanderpaul 45 not out, DJ Bravo 3, PA Browne 1, KA Pollard 0, DJG Sammy 9, DBL Powell 21, SJ Benn 23 not out, Extras--9 (lb 2, w 2, nb 2), B Lee 7-1-25-1, NW Bracken 9-0-32-0, MG Johnson 4-0-14-1, SR Watson 7-1-22-2, JR Hopes 8-3-19-1, MJ Clarke 6-0-26-3)

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1st ODI: Australia win comfortably!

Australia beat West Indies comfortably by 84 runs in the first ODI of the five match series. They bounced back from the T20 defeat and proved that West Indies is not yet an equal side for them. SE Marsh bagged the man of the match in his debut game for his 81 off 97 balls with 7 fours and a six. Sure that IPL would have given him a world of confidence in addition to the chance for playing for his nation.

Match: 1st ODI
Venue: Arnos Vale Ground, Kingstown, St Vincent
Date: June 24, 2008
Teams: West Indies and Australia
Captains: CH Gayle and Ponting
Toss: West Indies won the toss and decided to field
Result: Australia won by 84 runs
Series: Australia leading 1-0
Man of the Match: SE Marsh off Australia
Score:

Australia 273 for 8 in 50 overs (SE Marsh 81, SR Watson 31, RT Ponting 5, MJ Clarke 9, MEK Hussey 44, BJ Haddin 50, CL White 8, JR Hopes 9, B Lee 12 not out, MG Johnson 3 not out, Extras--21 (b 3, lb 5, w 13), JE Taylor 7-0-30-1, CH Gayle 10-0-55-1, FH Edwards 3-0-22-0, DJ Bravo 8-0-54-2, SJ Benn 10-0-39-1, RR Sarwan 5-0-34-1, DJG Sammy 7-1-31-2) beat West Indies 189 all out in 39.5 overs (XM Marshall 6, CH Gayle 20, RR Sarwan 2, ADS Fletcher 26, DJ Bravo 33, KA Pollard 11, D Ramdin 31, DJG Sammy 33, JE Taylor 11, SJ Benn 7, FH Edwards 1 not out, Extras--8 (w 8), B Lee 9-1-37-2, NW Bracken 5.5-0-31-4, MG Johnson 7-0-42-1, JR Hopes 5-0-14-0, MJ Clarke 4-1-15-1)

Click here to read T20 Match Result!

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T20: West Indies Register their First Win of the Tour!

West Indies finally saw some happy moment of the entire series after beating Australia in the shorter version of the game! They beat the touring Australians by 7 wickets with 11 balls remaining. In the rain preventing the full quota of 20 overs, each side got a chance of 11 overs. Marshall and Bravo helped the chase with quick scoring.

Match: T20
Venue: Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados
Date: June 20, 2008
Teams: West Indies and Australia
Captains: DJ Bravo and Ponting
Toss: West Indies won the toss and decided to field
Result: West Indies won by 7 wickets with 11 balls remaining
Man of the Match: XM Marshall off West Indies
Score:

Australia 97 for 3 in 11 overs (SE Marsh 29, L Ronchi 36, SR Watson 17 not out, DJ Hussey 0, CL White 10 not out, Extras--5 (lb 2, w 2, nb 1), JE Taylor 2-0-23-0, SJ Benn 2-0-19-0, FH Edwards 2-0-12-0, KAH Roach 3-0-29-2, DJ Bravo 2-0-12-1) lost to West Indies 102 for 3 in 9.1 overs (XM Marshall 36, WKD Perkins 9, D Ramdin 8, DJ Bravo 28 not out, ADS Fletcher 7 not out, Extras--14 (b 6, lb 1, w 7), B Lee 2-0-26-0, MG Johnson 2-0-30-0, SR Watson 2.1-0-17-1, JR Hopes 2-0-14-0, CL White 1-0-8-0)

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Australia v. WI, 3rd Test: Katich's Century Helps Australia Sweep Series!

Though Australia did not bat well in the first innings and gave a good chance to West Indies to equal the series, Simon Katich's century helped Australia to gain huge lead in the 2nd innings. Jaques also scored a century in the Australian 2nd innings which provided a strong foundation to Australia's lead. Jaques and Katich added 223 for the first wicket.

Test: 3
Venue: Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados
Teams: Australia and West Indies
Captains: Rickey Ponting and Chirs Gayle
Toss: West Indies won the toss and decided to field
Match Result: Australia won by 87 runs
Series Result: Australia won the series 2-0 (2nd Test Drawn)
Man of the Match: SM Katich off Australia
Man of the Series: S Chanderpaul off Wst Indies
Score:

Australia 1st Innings 251 all out in 67.1 overs (PA Jaques 31, SM Katich 36, A Symonds 52, BJ Haddin 32, FH Edwards 3 for 55, JE Taylor 3 for 46, DJ Bravo 3 for 61)
West Indies 1st Innings 216 all out in 58.5 overs (XM Marshal 39, S Chanderpaul 79 not out, DJ Bravo 29, B Lee 3 for 64, MG Johnson 4 for 41)
Australia 2nd Innings (lead by 35 runs) 439 for 5 declared in 145 overs (PA Jaques 108, SM Katich 157, PT Ponting 39, MJ Clarke 48 not out, BJ Haddin 45 not out, SJ Benn 3 for 154)
beat West Indies 2nd Innings (475 target) 387 all out in 105.4 overs (CH Gayle 26, XM Marshall 85, RR Sarwan 43, S Chanderpaul 50, DJ Bravo 69, JE Taylor 31, B Lee 2 for 109, SR Clark 3 for 58, B Casson 3 for 86)

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5th ODI: New Zealand Wins the Match and Series!

Good news for New Zealander! Though they have lost the test series, they have won the one-day series 3-1 with one match abandoned due to rain. They beat England very comfortably by 51 runs margin. With Collingwood not available due to his 4 ODI ban, they were short by an all-rounder.

Match: 5th ODI
Venue: Lord's, London
Date: June 28, 2008
Teams: England and New Zealand
Captains: Kevin Pietersen and Daniel Vettori
Toss: England won the toss and decided to field
Result: New Zealand won by 51 runs
Series: New Zealand won the series 4-1 with one match abandoned
Man of the Match: SB Styris of New Zealand
Man of the Match: TG Southee of New Zealand
Score:

New Zealand 266 for 5 in 50 overs (JM How 22, BB McCullum 23, LRPL Taylor 4, SB Styris 87 not out, DR Flynn 35, JDP Oram 52, GD Elliott 23 not out, Extras--20 (lb 13, w 7), RJ Sidebottom 10-0-52-0, JM Anderson 10-1-46-1, SCJ Broad 10-1-50-2, LJ Wright 6-0-36-0, GP Swann 10-0-33-2, RS Bopara 1-0-6-0, OA Shah 3-0-30-0) beat England 215 all out in 47.5 overs (IR Bell 27, AN Cook 24, KP Pietersen 6, RS Bopara 30, OA Shah 69, LJ Wright 6, TR Ambrose 2, GP Swann 12, SCJ Broad 5, RJ Sidebottom 10 not out, JM Anderson 2, Extras--22 (b 1, lb 10, w 10, nb 1), KD Mills 9-1-55-2, MR Gillesie 9.5-2-29-2, JDP Oram 6-0-22-0, TG Southee 9-0-49-3, DL Vettori 10-1-32-3, SB Styris 4-0-17-0)

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New Rule for Tied Games!

The bowl-out used in T20 is undergoing a change. The possibility of replacing the bowl-out with a one-over eliminator in the case of a tied game will be discussing during the ICC Committee meeting.

Under the rules for the new tie-breaker, each team will nominate three batsmen and one bowler. Each side bats one over, with the innings being declared closed if it loses two wickets. If the teams finish tied on runs scored in that one over, the side with the higher number of sixes in its full innings and in the one-over eliminator will be declared the winner. If the teams are still tied, the one with the higher number of fours in both innings will win.

The on-going Asia Cup is the first instance to introduce this new scheme. The final of the Asia Cup will have this new rule, if it ends in a tie. If approved, it will also be applicable in the semi-finals and final of the Champions Trophy later this year and the World Twenty20 in England next year.

4th ODI: New Zeland Wins the Thriller! Leads the Series!

New Zealand won the 4th ODI thriller by one wicket. The last five overs required 19 runs with 2 wickets in hand. In the 46th over, 5 runs were scored. The new equation was 24 balls and 14 runs, 2 wickets in hand. Collingwood gave just two runs and had Southee run out.

With 18 balls remaining, 12 runs required. Swann bowled a beautiful maiden over containing Gillespie.

12 balls, 12 runs, 1 wicket.

Collingwood gave away 9 runs including a six in the third ball. Mills hit a six over mid wicket that gave a chance to New Zealand.

It is a tense moment as the team needed 3 runs in the last 6 balls, but only one wicket in hand.

Wright had the ball in hand and Mills scored a run in the first ball. The next four balls were contained and no runs were scored by Gillespie. The 5th ball was a base ball stroke, but it hit the non-striker Mills.

Last ball, two runs, 1 wicket. Gillespie connected the ball this time and ran for a single. An attempt was made to run out, but no one was backing up and the pair completed the winning run. Celebrations in New Zealand camp!!!

Match: 4th ODI
Venue: Kennington Oval, London
Date: June 25, 2008
Teams: England and New Zealand
Captains: Paul Collingwood and Daniel Vettori
Toss: New Zealand won the toss and decided to field
Result: New Zealand won by 1 wicket with no ball remaining
Series: New Zealand leading 2-1 with one match abandoned
Man of the Match: SB Styris of New Zealand
Score:

England 245 all out in 49.4 overs (IR Bell 46, LJ Wright 18, KP Pietersen 0, RS Bopara 58, PD Collingwood 14, OA Shah 63, TR Ambrose 6, GP Swann 3, SCJ Broad 5, RJ Sidebottom 8 not out, JM Anderson 11, Extras--13 (lb 4, w 6, nb 3), KD Mills 10-1-44-2, MR Gillesie 9.4-2-58-2, TG Southee 10-1-47-3, JDP Oram 10-0-46-1, DL Vettori 8-1-34-0, GD Elliott 2-0-12-0) lost to New Zealand 246 for 9 in 50 overs (JM How 37, BB McCullum 1, LRPL Taylor 6, SB Styris 69, DR Flynn 12, JDP Oram 38, GD Elliott 24, DL Vettori 6, KD Mills 25 not out, TG Southee 6, MR Gillespie 4 not out, Extras--18 (b 4, lb 3, w 11), RJ Sidebottom 10-0-55-2, JM Anderson 10-0-39-1, SCJ Broad 10-0-39-0, LJ Wright 2-0-8-0, GP Swann 10-1-49-2, PD Collingwood 7-0-40-1, RS Bopara 1-0-9-0)

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3rd ODI: First Win for New Zealand

New Zealand registered their first win against England! The match was a low scoring affair, but New Zealand bowlers were able to restrict England within 182.

Match: 3rd ODI
Venue: County Ground, Bristol
Date: June 21, 2008
Teams: England and New Zealand
Captains: Paul Collingwood and Daniel Vettori
Toss: England won the toss and decided to field
Result: New Zealand won by 22 runs
Man of the Match: KD Mills of New Zealand
Score:

New Zealand 182 all out in 50 overs (JM How 10, BB McCullum 17, LRPL Taylor 8, SB Styris 4, DR Flynn 2, GD Elliott 56, GJ Hopkins 7, DL Vettori 18, KD Mills 47, TG Southee 0, MR Gillespie 0 not out, Extras--15 (lb 6, w 7), JM Anderson 10-0-61-3, SCJ Broad 10-4-14-2, CT Tremlett 10-1-24-1, LJ Wright 6-0-34-2, PD Collingwood 10-0-33-1, GP Swann 4-0-10-1) beat England 160 all out in 46.2 overs (IR Bell 20, LJ Wright 2, KP Pietersen 4, RS Bopara 27, PD Collingwood 34, OA Shah 0, TR Ambrose 0, GP Swann 29, SCJ Broad 17, CT Tremlett 3, JM Anderson 0 not out, Extras--24 (lb 8, w 15, nb 1), KD Mills 10-0-42-2, MR Gillesie 8-3-15-0, TG Southee 10-2-38-4, GD Elliott 5.2-2-9-2, DL Vettori 9-1-32-1, SB Styris 4-0-16-1)

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2nd ODI: England's Uses Delay Tactics; Rain Prevent Result!

Rain prevents result for the 2nd ODI. New Zealand had a bright chance of winning this game and equaling the series, but the delay tactics by England prevented the chance. Chasing a revised target of 160 in 23 overs, when rain prevented New Zealand victory, they needed 33 in 4 overs with 8 wickets in hand. Easy chance in hand prevented by rain and England.

Match: 2nd ODI
Venue: Edgbaston, Birmingham
Date: June 18, 2008
Teams: England and New Zealand
Captains: Paul Collingwood and Daniel Vettori
Toss: New Zealand won the toss and decided to field
Result: No result (rain abandoned the match)
Series: England leading 1-0
Man of the Match: None
Score:

England 162 all out in 24 overs (24 overs a side) (IR Bell 0, LJ Wright 52, KP Pietersen 13, RS Bopara 10, PD Collingwood 37, OA Shah 18, AD Mascarenhas 23, TR Ambrose 1, GP Swann 1, SCJ Broad 1, JM Anderson 0 not out, Extras--6 (b 1, lb 2, w 2, nb 1), KD Mills 5-1-24-2, TG Southee 5-0-35-2, MJ Mason 2-0-24-1, GD Elliott 5-0-23-3, DL Vettori 5-0-27-0, SB Styris 2-0-26-0) match abandoned due to rain New Zealand (revised target 160 in 23 overs) 127 for 2 in 19 overs (JM How 16, BB McCullum 60 not out, LRPL Taylor 25, SB Styris 19 not out, Extras--7 (lb 4, w 3), JM Anderson 3-0-16-0, SCJ Broad 3-0-28-1, PD Collingwood 4-0-23-4, LJ Wright 3-0-20-0, GP Swann 5-0-26-0, AD Mascarenhas 1-0-10-0)

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1st ODI: England Post Easy and Big Win!

England beat New Zealand by a huge margin of 114 runs in the first ODI. Having lost the test series, New Zealand could not come back in the entire tour. They have to increase their morale to keep winning and never lose the confidence. They should treat the past as past and focus in the remaining games to get some pride out of this tour.

Match: 1st ODI
Venue: Riverside Ground, Chester-le Street
Date: June 15, 2008
Teams: England and New Zealand
Captains: Paul Collingwood and Daniel Vettori
Toss: New Zealand won the toss and decided to field
Result: England won by 114 runs
Man of the Match: KP Pietersen of England
Score:

England 307 for 5 in 50 overs (IR Bell 46, LJ Wright 11, KP Pietersen 110 not out, RS Bopara 4, PD Collingwood 64, OA Shah 49, TR Ambrose 1, Extras--22 (lb 3, w 9, nb 10), KD Mills 10-1-59-0, TG Southee 10-1-68-1, MJ Mason 10-0-62-1, DL Vettori 10-0-38-1, SB Styris 8-0-63-1, LRPL Taylor 2-0-14-0) beat New Zealand 193 all out in 42.5 overs (JM How 20, BB McCullum 36, JAH Marshall 4, LRPL Taylor 20, SB Styris 18, DR Flynn 34, GJ Hopkins 25, DL Vettori 8, KD Mills 17, TG Southee 6, MJ Mason 0 not out, Extras--15 (lb 12, w 3), JM Anderson 8-0-45-0, RJ Sidebottom 8-1-43-0, SCJ Broad 8-2-16-2, GP Swann 10-1-45-2, LJ Wright 6-0-17-1, PD Collingwood 2.5-0-15-4)

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T20: England win the T20 against New Zealand!

England won the only T20 match of the tour against New Zealand. Put into bat, New Zealand made 123 which is an easy target in any T20. England reached the target with a loss of just one wicket.

Match: T20
Venue: Old Trafford, Manchester
Date: June 13, 2008
Teams: England and New Zealand
Captains: Paul Collingwood and Daniel Vettori
Toss: England won the toss and decided to field
Result: England won by 9 wickets with 15 balls remaining
Man of the Match: IR Bell of England
Score:

New Zealand 123 for 9 in 20 overs (JM How 1, BB McCullum 24, JAH Marshall 13, LRPL Taylor 25, SB Styris 10, PG Fulton 0, DR Flynn 23, DL Vettori 11 not out, KD Mills 12, MJ Mason 2, Extras--2 (lb 1, w 1), SCJ Broad 4-0-17-2, JM Anderson 4-1-25-2, LJ Wright 4-0-32-1, PD Collingwood 2-0-17-1, GP Swann 4-0-21-2, AD Mascarenhas 2-0-10-0) lost to England 127 for 1 in 17.3 overs (IR Bell 60 not out, LJ Wright 24, KP Pietersen 42 not out, Extras--1 (w 1), KD Mills 3-0-30-0, MR Gillespie 4-1-25-0, MJ Mason 3-0-18-1, DL Vettori 4-0-27-0, SB Styris 2.3-0-10-0, DR Flynn 1-0-7-0)

Champions Trophy Groups Decided!

Champions Trophy groups have been decided. The eight teams are divided into two groups in the champions trophy to be played in September in Pakistan.

Wondering in which group India is playing? It is a tough group, yes, the group has Australia, Pakistan and West Indies.

The Group B has England, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and South Africa.

The schedule is yet to be derived. The matches will be played in Lahore, Karachi and Rawalpindi with the final to be played in Lahore.

Match 4 of Tri-Series: Pakistan Wins Kitply Trophy! Stuns India!

Pakistan have beaten India in the final of the Kitply tri-series tournament!

Click here to read the 1st match details: Pakistan v. Bangladesh

Click here to read the 2nd match details: India v. Pakistan

Click here to read the 3rd match details: India v. Bangladesh

Match Details:

Trophy: Kitply Cup - Tri-Series in Bangladesh
Match #: 4 (Final)
Venue: Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur
Date: June 14, 2008
Teams: India and Pakistan
Captains: Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Shoaib Malik
Toss: Pakistan won the toss and decided to bat
Result: Pakistan won by 25 runs
Man of the Match: Younis Khan of Pakistan
Man of the Series: Salman Butt of Pakistan

Score:

Pakistan 315 for 3 in 50 overs (Salman Butt 129 retired hurt, Kamran Akmal 15, Younis Khan 108, Misbah-ul-Haq 33, Shahid Afridi 10 not out, Shoaib Malik 11 not out, Extras--9 (b 2, lb 4, w 2, nb 1), P Kumar 10-1-37-0, I Sharma 10-0-57-1, IK Pathan 10-0-59-2, PP Chawla 10-0-85-0, V Sehwag 3-0-26-0, YK Pathan 2-0-11-0, Yuvaraj Singh 4-0-23-0, SK Raina 1-0-11-0) beat India 290 all out in 48.2 overs (G Gambhir 40, V Sehwag 2, RG Sharma 24, YK Pathan 25, Yuvaraj Singh 56, SK Raina 24, MS Dhoni 64, IK Pathan 28, P Kumar 5, PP Chawla 2, I Sharma 0 not out, Extras--20 (lb 7, w 11, nb 2), Umar Gul 9-0-57-4, Sohail Tanvir 10-1-60-1, Iftikhar Anjum 10-0-58-2, Shahid Afridi 9.2-0-56-2, Shoaib Malik 4-0-28-0, Fawad Alam 6-0-24-1)

Click here to read the 1st match details: Pakistan v. Bangladesh

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Click here to read the 3rd match details: India v. Bangladesh

Match 3 of Tri-Series: India beat Bangladesh, Enter Final!

In a match where Bangladesh to enter the final, had to beat India and restrict them within 177 while chasing.

Gambhir's century saw the Indians through to the finals without any trouble. Both Sehwag and Gambhir started the chase and built a strong foundation. Sehwag could have gone to score a century, but his rash hook of a short boall found the only fielder outside the ring in the deep square leg.

Click here to read the 1st match details: Pakistan v. Bangladesh

Click here to read the 2nd match details: India v. Pakistan

For Banglasdesh, Raqibul Hasan top scored with 89 while RP Singh took 3 for 46 in his 10 overs.

Gambhir was awarded the man of the match for his wonderful 107 not out off 101 balls with 13 fours and a six.

Match Details:

Trophy: Kitply Cup - Tri-Series in Bangladesh
Match #: 3
Venue: Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur
Date: June 12, 2008
Teams: India and Bangladesh
Captains: Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Mohammad Ashraful
Toss: Bangladesh won the toss and decided to bat
Result: India won by 7 wickets with 89 balls remaining
Man of the Match: Gautam Gambhir of India
Score:

Bangladesh 222 all out in 49.5 overs (Tamim Iqbal 0, Shahriar Nafees 9, Mohammad Ashraful 36, Raqibul Hasan 89, Mushfiqur Rahim 6, Alok Kapali 20, Mahmudullah 24, Farhad Reza 5, Mashrafe Mortaza 13, Abdur Razzak 8 not out, Dolar Mahmud 0, Extras--12 (lb 2, w 10), P Kumar 10-2-32-1, RP Singh 10-1-46-3, IK Pathan 8.5-0-48-2, PP Chawla 10-0-42-1, Yuvaraj Singh 2-0-10-0, YK Pathan 2-0-9-1, V Sehwag 7-0-33-0) lost to India 223 for 3 in 35.1 overs (G Gambhir 107 not out, V Sehwag 59, RG Sharma 26, Yuvaraj Singh 26, SK Raina 0 not out, Extras--5 (w 5), Mashrafe Mortaza 8-0-33-0, Ferhad Reza 5.1-0-45-1, Dolar Mahmud 4-0-42-1, Abdur Razzak 10-0-48-1, Mahmudullah 7-0-42-0, Alok Kapali 1-0-13-0)

Click here to read the 1st match details: Pakistan v. Bangladesh

Click here to read the 2nd match details: India v. Pakistan

Ponting crosses10,000 Runs in Test Cricket!

Ricky Ponting, the Australian captain crossed the 10,000 run mark in test cricket. He reached 10,000 run mark during his 65 in the 2nd test. He required 61 to reach the five digit mark and he did that a two of Sarwan's delivery.

He reached this milestone in his 118th test and 197th innings. He has joined the 10,000 club with 7 other players across the world. Leading the table are:

1. Brain Lara - 11953 in 131 Test, 232 Innings with 34 hundreds and a highest of 400 not out (Retired)
2. Sachin Tendulkar - 11782 in 147 Test, 238 Innings with 29 hundreds and a highest of 248 not out
3. AR Border - 11174 in 156 Test, 265 Innings with 26 hundres and a highest of 205 (Retired)
4. SR Waugh - 10927 in 168 Test, 260 Innings with 32 hundreds and a highest of 200 (Retired)
5. SM Gavaskar - 10122 in 125 Test, 214 Innings with 34 hundres and a highest of 236 not out (Retired)
6. R Dravid - 10098 in 122 Test, 210 Innings with 25 hundreds and a highest of 270
7. RT Ponting - 10042 in 118 Test, 198 Innings with 35 hundreds and a highest of 257

Congratulations Ponting! You have come a long way and proved that you are one of the Best Batsman in the World!

Match 2 of Tri-Series: India Crush Pakistan! Huge Defeat!

India stopped the winning streak of Pakistan! India famous for stopping these kinds of records, once again proved that they are on top.

Deciding to bat first, India posted a mamooth total of 330. It looked like they were continuing their form from the IPL's T20.

Gambhir and Sehwag added 155 for the first wicket, though Sehwag survived a close caught behind, which the TV replay showed Kamran Akmal picked the ball from the ground.

Sehwag scored 89 off 76 balls with 13 fours and a six. He won both the man of the match and the award for fastest fifty scoring in 42 balls.

Gambhir scored run-a-ball of 62 runs with 6 fours. Yuvaraj Singh who bagged the award for scoring maximum sixes, scored 55 off 54 balls with 3 fours and 3 sixes.

Yousuf Pathan and Rohit were not able to score much on the slow wicket. Dhoni scored a quick 24 with 5 fours and Raina fired two good sixes. Wahab Riaz was the costly bowler conceding 86 in his 10 overs picking 2 wickets. The bowling attack was not that decent as Pakistan gave away 38 runs in extras including 20 wides and 9 no balls.

Click here to read the 1st match details: Pakistan v. Bangladesh

Chasing 331, from the beginning, Pakistan was on the back foot. Praveen Kumar rattled the top order and picked all the first 4 wickets. He picked his first two wickets in the successive balls to send Salman Butt, caught brilliantly at short cover by Rohit. He dived to his left to take an one-handed stunning catch! Next ball, Younis Khan trying to steer it to third man, took outside edge and was caught behind.

Yousuf was judged leg before off Praveen and Kamran Akmal was caught at mid on by Yousuf Pathan.

Shoaib Malik, the skipper was in the field alone fighting the Indian bowling attack. He scored 53 off 67 balls with 3 fours and a six. Shahid Afridi, who did not see much success in IPL, should have played a sensible innings. He threw his wicket by stepping out of Piyush Chawla, who bowled well to get him stumped. He then took a godo return catch to send Tanvir back to pavilion.

Praveen Kumar and Piyush Chawla picked 4 wickets each while Ishanth Sharma and Yuvaraj Singh picked 1 each.

Match Details:

Trophy: Kitply Cup - Tri-Series in Bangladesh
Match #: 2
Venue: Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur
Date: June 10, 2008
Teams: India and Pakistan
Captains: Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Shoaib Malik
Toss: India won the toss and decided to bat
Result: India won by 140 runs
Man of the Match: Virendra Sehwag of India
Score:

India 330 for 8 in 50 overs (G Gambhir 62, V Sehwag 89, Yuvaraj Singh 57, YK Pathan 3, RG Sharma 9, MS Dhoni 24, SK Raina 26, IK Pathan 18, P Kumar 6 not out, PP Chawla 0 not out, Extras--38 (b 5, lb 4, w 20, nb 9), Umar Gul 10-0-61-3, Sohail Tanvir 9.4-0-57-1, Wahab Riaz 9.2-0-86-2, Iftikhar Anjum 10-0-63-0, Shahid Afridi 10-0-52-2, Younis Khan 1-0-2-0) beat Pakistan 190 all out in 35.4 overs (Salman Butt 9, Kamran Akmal 38, Younis Khan 0, Mohammad Yousuf 11, Misbah-ul-Haq 24, Shoaib Malik 53, Shahid Afridi 23, Sohail Tanvir 6, Umar Gul 7, Iftikhar Anjum 16 not out, Wahab Riaz 0, Extras--3 (lb 3), P Kumar 9-1-53-4, I Sharma 6-0-28-1, IK Pathan 6-0-38-0, PP Chawla 8.4-0-40-4, Yuvaraj Singh 4-0-17-1, YK Pathan 2-0-11-0)

Click here to read the 1st match details: Pakistan v. Bangladesh

3rd Test: England Win Series in Style! Beat New Zeland by an Innings and 9 Runs!

In the third and final test of the series, New Zealand started with the final test with the hope to level the series. But, it went against them and they lost the series 2-0 with the 1st test drawn.

New Zealand won the toss and put England to bat. Though Vettori's team picked the first 5 top order wickets for 86, Pietersen played an innings of his life. Strauss (37), Cook (6), Vaughan (16), Bell (0), and Collingwood (0) failed miserably giving a bright chance to New Zealand.

But, Pietersen along with Ambrose built the innings slowly and steadily. They both added 161 runs for the 6th wicket. Pietersen got out caught behind of O'Brien for well made 115 off 223 balls with 14 fours. Ambrose fell after adding 15 to the England total. At this stage of the game, New Zealand still had a good chance with England struggling 262 for 7.

On could easily say that it is one of those matches were the bowling team did not put pressure on the tail enders or bwol on the right areas. Broad and Anderson added66 for the 7th wicket in which Broad scored an useful 64. Milis and O'Brien picked 3 and 4 wickets respectively. England finished their 1st innings at 364.

New Zealand batting struggled like England at the beginning losing 6 wickets for 93, but like England, they were not able to bounce back. How top scored with 40. Taylor (21) and Hopkins (15) were the other two digit scorers.

Anderson was in song. The similar dismissal of Redmond and McCullum were master piece. He pitched up and middle stump and left the batsman. Both of them missed the line and the off stump uprooted. He picked all the 6 wickets that fell at the end of Day 2.

On Day 3, Sidebottom picked a wicket and Broad picket 2. Anderson added one more to his tally to finish his figures at 7 for 43 in his 21.3 overs which had 8 maidens.

Click here for 1st Test Results!

Click here for 2nd Test Results!

England forced the follow on with a lead of 241 runs. New Zealand, though did a better job than the first innings, but could not make up the last 9 runs deficit to make England bat again.

McCullum scored 71 and Oram was not out on 50. Flynn scored 49. But all these were not enough to avoid the innings defeat. Sidebottom picked 6 wickets in the 2nd innings, Anderson and Broad picked 2 each.

Anderson was declared man of match; Strauss and Vettori were decalred joint winners of Man of the Series.

Test: 3
Venue: Trent Bridge, Nottingham, England
Teams: England and New Zealand
Captains: Michael Vaughan and Daniel Vettori
Toss: New Zealand won the toss and decided to field
Match Result: England won by an innings and 9 runs
Series Result: 2-0 (England won the series; first test drawn)
Man of the Match: JM Anderson off England
Man of the Series: AJ Strauss of England and Daniel Vettori of New Zealand
Score:

England 1st Innings 364 all out in 126.5 overs (AJ Strauss 37, KP Pietersen 115, TR Ambrose 67, SCJ Broad 64, JM Anderson 28, KD Mills 3 for 76, IE O'Brien 4 for 74)

New Zealand 1st Innings 123 all out in 46.3 overs (JM How 40, JM Anderson 7 for 43, SCJ Broad 2 for 10)

Beat New Zealand 2nd Innings (follow on--trail by 241 runs) 232 all out in 72.3 overs (BB McCullum 71, DR Flynn 49, JDP Oram 50 not out, RJ Sidebottom 6 for 67, JM Anderson 2 for 55, SCJ Borad 2 for 77)

Click here for 1st Test Results!

Click here for 2nd Test Results!

Tri-Series - Kitply Cup - Bangladesh, Pakistan and India - Points Table

Below is the points table of the three nation tournament involving host Bangladesh, Pakistan and India.

Team	P	W	L	T	NR	Pts	NRR	For	Aga
Ind	2	2	0	0	0	10	+2.373	553/85.1	412/100.0
Pak	2	1	1	0	0	5	-0.778	423/90.0	493/90.0
Ban	2	0	2	0	0	0	-1.789	385/90.0	456/75.1

Match 1 of Tri-Series: Pakistan Win Easily!

The first match of the tri-series hosted by Bangladesh started today with Pakistan taking the host. The match was reduced to 40 overs a side because of the rain.

Bangladesh never showed any fight in chasing the target of 234. In fact I started asking myself whether Bangladesh knew that they are playing an ODI game and not a test match. If they knew, whether they knew that they are playing a 40 over match.

Ashraful, the skipper scored 56 not out, but he too never showed any aggressiveness. They finished their innings at 163, losing the match by 70 runs.

Wahab Riaz and Afridi picked 3 wickets each and Umar Gul took 2.

Earlier, put into bat, Pakistan posted 233 on the board in 39.3 overs losing all their wickets. It was a challenging total, not impossible. Salman Butt scored 70 and Mohammad Yousuf scored 59. The slow bowlers in the middle of the innings curtailed Pakistan to a moderate target.

Match Details:

Trophy: Kitply Cup - Tri-Series in Bangladesh
Match #: 1
Venue: Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur
Date: June 8, 2008
Teams: Pakistan and Bangladesh
Captains: Shoaib Malik and Mohammad Ashraful
Toss: Bangladesh won the toss and decided to field
Result: Pakistan won by 70 runs
Man of the Match: Salman Butt of Pakistan
Score:

Pakistan 233 all out in 39.3 overs (Salman Butt 70, Kamran Akmal 25, Younis Khan 0, Mohammad Yousuf 59, Shahid Afridi 20, Shoaib Malik 9, Misbah-ul-Haq 39, Fawad Alam 2, Sohail Tanvir 2, Umar Gul 0 not out, Wahab Riaz 0, Extras--7 (lb 1, w 6), Mashrafe Mortaza 7-0-36-2, Shahadat Hossain 6-0-46-0, Dolar Mahmud 4-0-27-1, Abdur Razzak 7.3-0-35-3, Mahmudullah 7-0-39-0, Alok Kapali 8-0-49-3) beat Bangladesh 163 for 8 in 40 overs (Tamim Iqbal 29, Shahriar Nafees 9, Mohammad Ashraful 56 not out, Raqibul Hasan 8. Alok Kapali 0, Mushfiqur Rahim 15, Mahmudullah 7, Mashrafe Mortaza 0, Dolar Mahmud 0, Abdur Razzak 26 not out, Extras--13 (w 12, nb 1), Umar Gul 7-1-28-2, Sohail Tanvir 8-0-41-0, Wahab Riaz 7-2-22-3, Shahid Afridi 8-1-19-3, Fawad Alam 6-0-34-0, Salman Butt 3-0-19-0, Younis Khan 1-1-0-0)

2nd Test: England win by 6 Wickets

New Zealand messed up their batting in the second innings, which resulted in England leading the series 1-0. After deciding to bat first, though New Zealand struggled losing 4 wickets for 123 runs. Taylor's briliant 154 helped New Zealand to post a decent total on the board. Mill's added 57 to his part and took New Zealand to 381.

England's first innings was not that great. The first four players 135 runs in total and then no one touched double digit except Broad, who scored a decent 30. Vettori picked 5 wickets. England were all out for 202 giving 179 runs lead to New Zealand.

Read here for 1st Test Results!

With the lead of 179 in hand, any team would have tried to add another 200 to 250 and put pressure on the last innings. But, wonderful bowling by Panesar helped England bundle the New Zealand for 114. Panesar picked 6 wickets giving away 37 runs in his 17 over spell which had 5 maiden overs and giveen as the man of the match. JM How was the top scorer for New Zealand with 29.

Chasing 294, England should thank Strauss this time for leading the fight with a wonderful century. The jouney was easy for them and target never looked dangerous. He was supported well by skipper Vaughan (48), Pietersen (42).

Test: 2
Venue: Oldtrafford, Manchester, England
Teams: England and New Zealand
Captains: Michael Vaughan and Daniel Vettori
Toss: New Zealand won the toss and decided to bat
Match Result: England won by 6 wickets
Series Result: 1-0 (England leading the series; first test drawn)
Man of the Match: MS Paensar off England
Score:

New Zealand 1st Innings 381 all out in 90.3 overs (JM How 64, AJ Redmond 28, LRPL Taylor 154, JDP Oram 38, KD Mills 57, RJ Sidebottom 2 for 86, JM Anderson 4 for 118)

England 1st Innings 202 all out in 83.3 overs (AJ Strauss 60, MP Vaughan 30, KP Pietersen 26, SCJ Broad 30, KD Mills 2 for 38, IE O'Brien 3 for 49, DL Vettori 5 for 66)

New Zealand 2nd Innings (lead by 179 runs) 114 all out in 41.2 overs (JM How 29, JAH Marshall 28, RJ Sidebottom 2 for 26, MS Panesar 6 for 37)

lost to England 2nd Innings (target 294 runs) (AJ Strauss 106, AN Cook 28, MP Vaughan 48, KP Pietersen 42)

Read here for 1st Test Results!

Australia v. WI, 2nd Test: Chandrapaul and Sarawan Help WI to Draw!

Ponting described the Australian bowling attack was not better and that was the reason for not picking the wickets on the final day to clinch the test.

Of course after losing two main bowlers to retirement--McGrath and Shane Warne, Australian bowling attack was not that same.

Though Brett Lee was there as the main strike bowler and Stuart Clarke picked 5 wickets in the first test, the attack did not go beyond that.

In the first innings, Kaitch and Michael Clarke scored 113 and 110 respectively and helped Australia to declare at 479.

Chandrapaul scored 107 not out and helped West Indies avoid the follow on, but WI still conceeded 127 run lead to Australia.

Australia declared their 2nd innings at 244 and set a target 372 for West Indies.

West Indies struggled by losing the first two wickets with 19 on the board. Smith and Marshall were dismissed for a duck and 5 respectively. For the third wicket, Mortan and Sarwan added 65. Lee dismissed Mortan for 14. Sarwan and Chandrapual fought through the innings and ensured that WI did not lose the test. Though they did not go for winning or even tried to attack Australian bowling, they were able to manage the decent pace attack. They played 53 overs together in which they added 143 runs for the 4th wicket. Sarwan scored a wonderful century, his 11th in test cricket.

Chandrapaul was declared man of the match for his century in the first innings and test saving innings with his 77 in the second innings.

Test: 2
Venue: Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, Antigua
Teams: Australia and West Indies
Captains: Rickey Ponting and RR Sarwan
Toss: Australia won the toss and decided to bat
Match Result: Match Drawn
Series Result: Australia leading 1-0 (2nd Test Drawn)
Man of the Match: S Chandrapaul off West Indies
Score:

Australia 1st Innings 479 for 7 declared in 136 overs (SM Katich 113, RT Ponting 65, MJ Clarke 110, BJ Haddin 33, B Lee 63 not out, MG Johnson 29 not out, JE Taylor 3 for 95)
West Indies 1st Innings 352 all out in 107 overs (XM Marshal 53, RS Sarwan 53, S Chandrapaul 107, DJ Bravo 45, B Lee 5 for 59, MG Johnson 2 for 72, MJ Clarke 2 for 20)
Australia 2nd Innings (lead by 127 runs) 244 for 6 declared in 61.5 overs (PA Jaques 76, MEK Hussey 40, PT Ponting 38, A Symonds 43 not out, FH Edwards 2 for 28, JE Taylor 2 for 33)
Drew with West Indies 2nd Innings (372 target) 266 for 5 in 93 overs (RR Sarwan 128, S Chandrapual 77 not out, B Lee 3 for 51)

Click here to read 1st Test Result!

Click here to read 3rd Test Result!

Warne Rules Out Come Back!

Everything related to Shane Warne's return to test cricket is in compltely confused state! He said he would consider coming back for 2009 Ashes if "Stuart MacGill is injured and not able to bowl and Ponting ask his help."

When asked about Warne's return, Ponting said he was not aware about Warne's return. Warne did not speak to him about it. He said, Warne's return is not possible as he has already retired.

"I've got no interest at all at this stage," Warne told AAP. "I'm very happily retired, I'm comfortable where I am at the moment."

He was the captain and coach of the IPL winning team of Rajasthan Royals. The winning of IPL and the success of bringing the team together for the should have made him to think about coming back to test cricket.

I actually said I was happily retired and if Stuart MacGill broke his leg - which he hasn't, he's retired - and there was no other spinner in Australia and if Ricky Ponting asked me, I'd consider it," Warne said. "If that's coming back out of retirement, I'm not sure. I don't think it is."

Ponting has not called Warne. "I'm sure if I rang him and said, `I'd like you to come back in South Africa and India,' he would probably put his hand up," Ponting said in the Courier Mail. "Warney made it pretty clear that if there was absolutely no one else around, he might consider it.

He further added, "I haven't entertained the idea of asking Shane to come out of retirement, no. He's probably hoping I have, but I haven't just yet."

Click here to read about Warne's come back Story!

Click here to read about Stuart MacGill's retirement Story!

Stuart MacGill Calls it a Day!

The Australian leg spinner Stuart MacGill has called it a day. Yes, he has announced his retirement from test cricket. He is the third cricketer from Australian cricket to announce retirement in the last few months. Adam Gilchrist and Brad Hogg are the others.

He has cited injury as the reason and could not come back. He also said that he would like to contribute to the Australian cricket by taking wickets but he is not sure whether he can do it now. He also said that he should be able to remove the top 5 batsman, but he is not sure whether he can do it now.

His Batting career, a snap shot:

Type	M	I	NO	R	HS	Avg
Test	44	47	11	349	43	9.69
ODI	3	2	1	1	1	1.00

Read as:
M - Matches; I - Innings; NO - Not Out; R - Runs; HS - Highest Score; Avg - Average

His Bowling career, a snap shot:

Type	M	I	B	R	W	Avg
Test	44	85	11237	6038	208	29.02
ODI	3	3	180	105	6	17.50

His best bowling were:

In Test, Best Bowling in an innings: 8 for 108
In Test, Best Bowling in a Match: 12 for 107

He has acquired 5 wickets in an innings 12 times and 10 wickets in match twice.

Read as:
M - Matches; I - Innings; B - Balls; R - Runs; W - Wickets; Avg - Average

Good luck MacGill!