All posts by h716a5.icu

Ian Bell proved his talents remain unimpaired after the Ashes but Jonathan Trott’s start for Warwickshire has yet to convince the sceptics

George Dobell at Edgbaston14-Apr-2014
ScorecardIan Bell proved his talents remain unimpaired after the Ashes•Getty ImagesSo, bit by bit, little by little, the shape of the new England team becomes just a little clearer.This was a day on which Sam Robson all but nailed down the role of opening batsman, the day that Moeen Ali emerged as the most credible spin option – or the least incredible, anyway – and the day that Chris Jordan reasserted his claims for one of the seam bowling positions. Indeed, in this form, it will prove hard to deny him the new ball.While there was little doubt that Ian Bell or Alastair Cook would retain their places, both they and the England selectors will sleep just a little easier knowing they have centuries under their belts. Indeed, in the case of Cook, it was only his second century since May. If only a wicketkeeper would emerge, or remain fit, the selectors’ job would largely be done.Here, in front of the watching national selector James Whitaker, Bell provided a reminder, if any was required, of his undoubted class. He left the ball well, defended stoutly, concentrated almost without aberration and, as ever, put away the poor ball with a grace granted to very few. This was the 46th first-class century of his career, his 20th for Warwickshire and his fourth against Sussex.Just as was the case against Australia last summer, Bell delivered when his side were under pressure. True, the Sussex attack – impressive though it is – might lack the potency of the Australian attack and true, the level of pressure on a quiet day at Edgbaston might not be comparable to that of an Ashes Test. But, on a pitch that continues to offer assistance to the bowlers and in a situation where his side’s reliance upon him was absolute, Bell provided an innings of character, class, composure and substance. His driving was a delight and the late cut he played off Jon Lewis was a thing of beauty.”In my early days, maybe I scored a lot of nice runs that looked good on the eye but really didn’t change the course of the game,” Bell said afterwards. “But in the last two, three or four years, I’ve started to score those [important] runs a lot more often.”The way last summer went against Australia really gave me a lot of confidence – I came in at 20 for 3 a lot – so it was nice to get back into that rhythm.”For Jonathan Trott, the future is less certain. While a thorough examination of the facts does not really support the theory that he was undone by the short ball in Australia, the line between perception and reality is sometimes blurred to the point of irrelevance.It will not be remembered that, in this game, he played the moving ball in Warwickshire’s first innings better than anyone, but it will be remembered that he was, in the second innings, struck twice by short balls from Jordan – once on the helmet, once on the shoulder – and that he fell when pulling another short ball directly to the man positioned for the shot at backward square leg. These are early days in the comeback, but this was not a performance that will have had Whitaker pencilling his name down on any team sheets.It would be cruel fortune if, in a match that has been enriched by Sussex’s excellent catching in the cordon, it was one of their missed chances that proved crucial. But the fact is that Bell was reprieved on 23 when Ed Joyce, at gully, was unable to cling on to a tough, low chance offered off the bowling of Jimmy Anyon. Had it been held, the match might well have been completed within two days.Joyce also put down a sharp chance offered by Jeetan Patel, on 28, off the deserving Jordan. It allowed Warwickshire’s eighth-wicket partnership to graduate, in the eyes of Sussex, from irritation to genuine threat with the bucolic Patel dominating a unbroken stand of 69. With a lead approaching 250 and two days to go, Warwickshire are right back in this game. Sussex looked weary, both with the ball and in the field, some time before the end.While the Sussex seam attack is excellent, their spin attack is modest and threatens to derail any aspirations they have on the Championship title. Ashar Zaidi may yet emerge as a good quality batsman who bowls useful spin in limited-overs cricket, but his low, slingy left-arm action will surely have little joy in the Championship. Luke Wells and Rory Hamilton-Brown, who were also pressed into service as spinners, are not the answer, either.When Bell came to the crease, Warwickshire were two wickets down and still 98-runs in arrears. Varun Chopra, who has not enjoyed a distinguished game, left one that swung back at him and Laurie Evans, his weight perhaps falling to the offside, edged a decent delivery that may have left him. Later Chris Woakes and Tim Ambrose were also beaten by deliveries that bounced and left them just a fraction. It was fine bowling.But with Rikki Clarke, Bell added 132 in 40 overs for the sixth wicket. Clarke, who has now added responsibility to his array of natural talents, resisted with admirable patience and waited for the over-pitched delivery before launching into those flowing drives.He sustained one sharp blow to the right hand off Jordan when on 49 that clearly caused him great pain and reduced him to something approaching a one-handed batsman afterwards. He went for an X-ray after play and may well have sustained a broken finger. His absence in the Warwickshire slip cordon, and with the ball, could yet prove crucial in this game.So, too, might be the absence of the heavy roller. Both sides have used their allocation in this game – Warwickshire before play on day two; Sussex at lunch on day one – and without its deadening effects, it may be that the pitch offers increasing help to spinners and seamers alike.”I always thought 200 would be a tough chase at Edgbaston with some deterioration,” Bell said. “It does spin towards the end and there will be some help for Patel.”Despite a first innings score of just 87, Warwickshire might even have their noses in front at this stage.

Virender Sehwag has no plans to end his career in the near future, and wants to play for “another two-three years” before considering retirement

Gaurav Kalra07-Dec-20147:43

‘Achieved all I want, now just enjoying my cricket’ – Sehwag

Virender Sehwag has no plans to end his career in the near future, although he last played for India nearly two years ago. Speaking to ESPNcricinfo, Sehwag revealed he was keen to play for “another two-three years” before considering retirement. The 36-year old said he was still “enjoying playing the game” and will have no regrets if the opportunity to play international cricket doesn’t come again.”As a cricketer, everybody has a dream to play for your country,” Sehwag said. “When I took up cricket seriously, I wanted to play for India. When my dream was achieved, I thought what next? Then a fellow cricketer told me, ‘playing for India is easy, playing for 10-15 years is difficult’. Then I changed my dream to play 100 Test matches. I achieved that as well. Now there is nothing to achieve, so I am just enjoying things.”Speaking before the World Cup probables – from which he was omitted – were announced, Sehwag was asked if he would be fine if the selectors don’t consider him for a national recall. He shrugged and cheekily said, “Yes, whose loss?”You should be happy in your life. Cricketers are worried about their milestones, worried that they should score 5000-10,000 Test runs but I am not fussy. I played 100 Tests and I am still playing the game, that’s what I want to do.”If I retire today or after two years, does it make any difference? Not in my life. Does it make a difference if I score 8000 or 10,000 runs in Test cricket? Not in anybody’s life. Even if I make 10,000 runs, who will be happy? Only me, maybe, because people don’t care about 8000 or 10,000 or 15,000 runs. It is about individual satisfaction.”Virender Sehwag: “Now there is nothing to achieve, so I am just enjoying things.”•ESPNcricinfo LtdSince being axed from the team after the second Test of Australia’s tour to India in 2013 in Hyderabad, Sehwag hasn’t made a compelling case for a comeback. In 12 first-class matches since, he has made 425 runs at an average of 25 with one century. Since his previous ODI in January 2013, he has scored 228 runs in 11 List A matches at 20.72 with two half-centuries.”My approach is the same. Yes, I am not able to give the kind of performances that I used to,” Sehwag said. “If you look at my first-class stats, if I score runs I score them quickly, if I get out, I get out quickly. I have never tried to change my game. In some matches, I told myself to give some time, scored just five runs in 36 balls on green wickets in Delhi where it is difficult to score. It happens. When you are growing older, you have the experience and that can help you score but it’s not possible to get a hundred every time you go out there.”While Sehwag will be batting in the middle order for Delhi this season, he says he would have no problems opening if asked to. “Last season I batted everywhere – opening, one down, two down and three down,” he said. “It doesn’t matter to me where I am batting. If the selectors ask me to open the batting, I will do that. When I started playing for India, I was a middle-order batsman, the team management asked me to open the batting and I did that. If somebody asks me to, I will, I have done it in the past. I open for Kings XI (Punjab).”While admitting that he “missed” being part of the India dressing room, Sehwag said he prays and hopes the team “wins whatever match they are playing in.””I fight with my sons when they say, ‘Dad you are not playing, (so) the Indian team should not win’. The priority is that the country should win, it doesn’t matter who is playing. I miss the dressing room but at least somebody else is playing and contributing to the team, winning matches. I am happy about that.”Having been on three previous tours to Australia, Sehwag said that India’s young batting line-up will need to be “given time” before they start delivering results. “I think we have a very good bunch of players, we have to give them time. On my first tours of England, South Africa and Australia, I managed to score a hundred but in the other innings I didn’t score runs. If you look at the old days also when players came in, they failed in 15 innings but they still played 100 Test matches.”

Kieron Pollard has been rested from the West Indies ODI squad for the three-match series against India, starting November 21, due to an injury

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Nov-2013Kieron Pollard, the West Indies allrounder, has been rested from the ODI squad for the series in India because of an injury. Kemar Roach has also been ruled out of the series, which starts on November 21, with a shoulder injury.West Indies recalled Kieran Powell, Veerasammy Permaul and Narsingh Deonarine, after they had not been chosen for the tri-series against India and Sri Lanka and the home series against Pakistan earlier this year. Powell, Permaul and Deonarine last played for West Indies in the ODIs against Zimbabwe and were not a part of the squad for the Champions Trophy.The trio had been part of the West Indies A squad that recently toured India, playing first-class and List A games against the India A side. Deonarine was second highest run-getter for West Indies A in the first-class matches – 276 runs in three games at an average of 46 – and scored a fifty in the only List A game he played on the tour. Permaul also had a good outing for West Indies A, finishing with ten wickets in two first-class games.The other notable inclusions in the squad were fast bowler Ravi Rampaul and wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin. Rampaul had suffered an ankle injury in the tri-series against India and Sri Lanka and was also sidelined for the home series against Pakistan. He returned to competitive cricket for Trinidad & Tobago in the Champions League T20. Ramdin, who has played just seven ODI games this year, had been dropped frequently due to indifferent form. His last ODI fifty was against India in December 2011.West Indies’ ODI form has been poor of late, with only seven wins in 20 matches this year. Their record away from home is worse, with five losses in as many games in 2013. Their last ODI series win was against Zimbabwe in February this year. In the previous series between India and West Indies, in India, the visitors lost 4-1.Squad: Dwayne Bravo (capt), Tino Best, Darren Bravo, Johnson Charles, Narsingh Deonarine, Chris Gayle, Jason Holder, Sunil Narine, Veerasammy Permaul, Kieran Powell, Denesh Ramdin, Ravi Rampaul, Darren Sammy, Marlon Samuels, Lendl Simmons

Chittagong Kings confirmed their place in the last four after a 33-run win over Duronto Rajshahi

The Report by Mohammad Isam13-Feb-2013
ScorecardChittagong Kings confirmed their place in the final four after a 33-run win over Duronto Rajshahi. Jason Roy and Ryan ten Doeschate set up the victory with a huge partnership that put Rajshahi’s fate in other teams’ hands.The Kings’ third-wicket pair added 117 runs, with Roy making 92 off 55 balls with eight boundaries and four sixes, while ten Doeschate made a 39-ball 65 with four boundaries and three sixes. Brendan Taylor had earlier given them a fine base to build on, hammering two fours and two sixes in a 21-ball 30, which ended when he holed out at square-leg off a top edge.Rajshahi began the chase promisingly as Charles Coventry carved and blazed at Shaun Tait. He smashed three fours and two sixes but Tait had the last laugh when he bowled the Zimbabwean opener for 24 off 15 balls.Dilshan Munaweera and Simon Katich then added 66 runs for the second wicket, setting up an exciting finish. However, after Munaweera fell on 35 in the 11th over, Rajshahi needed their big-hitters to fire. Katich made 53 off 39 balls, and had some luck after Taylor missed stumpings off Enamul Haque jnr in the eighth over.Ziaur Rahman helped out with two fours and two sixes but Tait made the difference by bowling him in the 15th over. Rajshahi’s spark ended there as their chase fizzled out. Jahurul Islam fell for 1 on such a crucial occasion, denting their hopes of a win.Tait’s fire apart, the final spell of Rubel Hossain, in which he gave away few runs and picked up two vital wickets made a lot of difference to the team’s fortunes as well as his confidence.

Stuart Barnes, the Bangladesh A coach, said that his side’s dismal performance at the Shafi Darashah tournament was down to the lack of first-class exposure

Mohammad Isam12-Aug-2012Stuart Barnes, the Bangladesh A coach, has said that his side’s dismal performance at the Shafi Darashah tournament was down to the lack of first-class exposure. Barnes, however, avoided commenting on the drama that surrounded the captain Shahriar Nafees being sent back home due to misconduct before the third group game in Bangalore.The second-string Bangladesh side started off the four-day competition on a positive note when they drew the opening game against Baroda Cricket Association XI but lost the other two group games – against KSCA Colts by five wickets and KSCA XI by 155 runs – to be eliminated from the group stage.Barnes had ten international cricketers at his disposal, which included seven who have played Tests for Bangladesh. But the players showed their lack of first-class match experience, failing to grind it out over a period of four days.”What I saw in India reflected the number of one-day matches compared to four-day matches that the players play here [in Bangladesh],” Barnes told ESPNcricinfo. “The batsmen need patience, discipline, and be mentally tough enough to be within their batting plan because their job is to bat all day. But in order to get to that point where they need to know how to bat all day, they need to practice it in matches domestically.””I was impressed with one or two aspects because it was clear to me that some were trying to do things differently. But the probability said that, because of the number of one-day matches that they play here, they weren’t just going to be able to switch to the different skill-set needed for four-day cricket. It was disappointing not to win any games but that was a fair reflection that they don’t know how to play the longer game yet.”One of the weaknesses that Bangladesh batsmen showed consistently during the tour, according to Barnes, was against offspin bowling. Bangladesh lost half of their wickets to offspinners. “We lost in different wickets, for different reasons. We lost 49% of our total wickets to off-spin, which surprised me initially but when you look at it closely, there aren’t many off-spinners in Bangladesh. The only difference in the wicket was the offspinner managing to get more bounce. We lost for skill reasons more than anything else,” he said.Doubts were raised about the atmosphere in the dressing room after the captain, Nafees, was sent back in the middle of the tour. Barnes, who was involved in the decision-making, did not comment on the issue. During the second game, Nafees had expressed his anger towards the Umpires after his dismissal, later to be warned by the match referee.”It’s important to have an environment that encourages players to learn, and not just about skills but about playing in different parts of the world. That incident was unfortunate but I won’t speak about it until I talk to my board directors here,” Barnes said.According to newspaper reports, some players also showed dissent towards the trainer during the A team’s camp in Khulna before they headed to India, but the team management didn’t inform the BCB nor take any disciplinary actions. “I had quite a big squad to work with in Khulna. My job as coach is to challenge players, observe how they react to being challenged. I’ve mentioned before that I’m very keen on fitness to improve but that doesn’t happen in a one-day series. I experienced different reactions of players to all my challenges. I am thick-skinned and it was just interesting to see how they react. I didn’t take anything personally. I’m looking for players who think on their feet quickly,” he said.The 42-year-old Englishman was impressed with Mominul Haque, Naeem Islam, Shahadat Hossain and Enamul Haque Jr for trying to take a different approach while batting. He told the batsmen that with their high strike-rates in first-class cricket, all they need to do is bat a little bit longer to increase their batting averages.”I honestly believe every player wants success. But the question is what the success looks like to them individually. Is it to improve their batting average over the next two years, by five runs. What I stressed to all the batters, their strike-rates suggest that if they bat another 20 balls per innings, their average would go up very easily. I believe players are motivated by different reasons,” he said.Bangladesh A’s next assignment is against the West Indies High Performance team in September. They will play a four-day game, three one-day matches and two Twenty20 games.

England have replaced Australia as the top ODI side in the ICC rankings after the annual update of the tables, while Australia have slipped to No. 4

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Aug-2012England have replaced Australia as the top ODI side in the ICC rankings after the annual update of the tables, while Australia have slipped to No. 4. It is the first time that England have achieved the top spot since the inception of team-ranking tables in 2002.England lead the table with 121 rating points, closely followed by South Africa, while world champions India are placed third with 120 points. Australia, who are eight points behind India, dropped to their lowest-ever ranking, after being the top ranked one-day side since September 2009. The change in the rankings has not affected the positions of teams below Australia.The ICC ranking tables are updated annually in August to reflect teams’ recent form. The updated tables only include results from matches played after August 2010, with older results from between August 2009 and July 2010 being discarded. The drop in case of Australia is significant as their successful run of 30 wins from 40 matches in 2009-10 is excluded from the updated tables.England, however, lost their top T20 ranking to South Africa to be placed a close second with only one rating-point difference between the two. The teams are followed by Sri Lanka, India and West Indies. Australia, who were sixth before the update, have dropped to ninth with 93 rating points – 2 below eighth placed Bangladesh.Like the Test championships tables, the ODI and T20 tables could also see a new leader when South Africa complete the limited-overs leg of their England tour.

Brazilian side Botafogo have signed Inter Miami midfielder Gregore as the Herons race to meet the MLS roster compliancy deadline.

Article continues below

Article continues below

Article continues below

Inter Miami in race to be MLS roster compliant

Herons transfer Gregore to Botafogo

Brazilian had hefty salaryWHAT HAPPENED?

After a report from The Athletic surfaced earlier this week, sharing that the Herons are currently in a race to meet MLS roster compliancy after over-spending this offseason, they made their first outgoing splash of 2024. The Brazilian returns home and Inter Miami are gearing towards being on-track for Tuesday's deadline.

AdvertisementGettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE

MLS roster regulations for the 2023 campaign can be found here, but simply put, the Herons needed to offload a major salary on their team to meet compliancy with the league rules. Gregore made a hefty sum via his contract with Miami in 2023, earning $961, 250 across the campaign. With his outgoing transfer, it's assumed Miami are on-track to meet MLS roster regulations. However, the league has not yet announced the numerical statistics to which each team must abide by in 2024.

As a result, Gregore's outgoing transfer may not be enough. The likes of Jean Mota, Robert Taylor, Coco Jean and Deandre Yedlin are all rumored to be available on the transfer market. However, the club expected to part ways with Coco Jean regardless of their status – with a potential contract termination even on the table.

DID YOU KNOW?

Gregore made 67 appearances for Miami after signing for the club in 2021.

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting

Getty ImagesWHAT NEXT FOR INTER MIAMI?

The Herons first regular game of the season will be against Real Salt Lake on February 21. The match will open up the 2024 MLS campaign for the league, with Lionel Messi and co. looking to start off their campaign with three points.

Tim Bresnan took 4 for 41 on his first outing since elbow surgery but Phil Mustard’s breezy 70 prevented Yorkshire taking full control

David Hopps at Chester-le-Street24-Apr-2013
ScorecardTim Bresnan celebrates the first of his four wickets on his first-class return from injury•Getty ImagesThe anticipation of an Ashes series can exhaust you before it has even begun. It is ten weeks before the first ball is bowled at Trent Bridge and already it is discussed on a daily basis. For Tim Bresnan, though, the attempt to force himself into Ashes contention really did start here. It has to be said it started rather well.After a second elbow operation in the close season, Bresnan’s opening first-class match of the season carried special significance. He spent much of his last year with England below par and needs to prove in the weeks ahead that injury will not reduce his impact for good; that – in his own words – he can bowl with beans again.Durham, as vulnerable as any batting side in the top division, were an appealing prospect so early in the season. As if to quicken Bresnan’s anticipation further, Australia had just named their Ashes squad. The announcement seems rather premature but presumably these days they have to allow several weeks to plan their way through Border Control.Bresnan sniffed the wind, muscled his way into the crease and, with his first Championship delivery of the season, sent Keaton Jennings’ off stump flying. It was some comeback and, as he leapt high into the air, some celebration. Figures of 4 for 47 as Durham’s first innings came to rest at 237 represented an impressive start. At the end of it all, the only possible conclusion was that he was in the category of ‘has beans’ rather than ‘has-beens’.”I had full beans,” he agreed. “No pain, decent rhythm. It felt good. That’s as close to 100 per cent as I’m probably going to get. I’m ready for England – I’ve just got to get my name on the sheet. It’s always nice conditions to bowl up here. There was a bit in the wicket and we were quite surprised when they batted.”Jennings is a 20-year-old South African, but his mother was born just up the road in Sunderland and in these parts that makes him local. His father is Ray Jennings, a former South Africa coach with a reputation as a bit of a stickler. If Keaton does not break his run of failures soon, Dad could be on the phone and it might not be pretty.Will Smith’s wicket was borne of desperation. Smith had added 86 with Dale Benkenstein and Bresnan felt he had suffered enough playing and missing for one day. He decided to bowl a bouncer and see what happened; Smith obligingly hooked it to Ryan Sidebottom at long leg. The wickets came in a rush, five within 10 overs with Bresnan removing Ben Stokes and Paul Collingwood for ducks.Not that it was an entirely satisfying day for Yorkshire. When the first day closed with Graham Onions’ successful lbw appeal, and the dismissal of Yorkshire’s captain Andrew Gale, Durham had three down for 57. A running mix-up had also cost Yorkshire the wicket of Phil Jaques as Onions, with one stump to aim at, threw down the wicket off his own bowling.When Durham were 112 for 7, Yorkshire had reason to expect something better, but while Bresnan, Ryan Sidebottom and Steve Patterson went for two runs an over, Liam Plunkett and Adil Rashid disappeared for more than six. Durham’s last three wickets added 125, with Phil Mustard hitting about him with a hearty glow before he was last out for 70. He clumped Bresnan over mid-on to bring up 200, he clumped Patterson in similar fashion for his fifty; he likes a clump more than most.Yorkshire will picture their seam attack without Bresnan in midsummer and feel a little queasy. Plunkett can most kindly be regarded as a work in progress. He can bowl a killer ball, as he underlined when he had Scott Borthwick lbw with the first ball of his second spell, but his return to his old Chester-le-Street stamping ground was not a happy one. His ten overs leaked 67 runs and Mustard at one stage took three boundaries from four balls. The triumphant homecoming will have to wait.

Saurashtra’s trio of spinners, Kamlesh Makvana, Vishal Joshi and debutant Dharmendrasinh Jadeja, earned their team a first-innings lead of 107 against Madhya Pradesh

Abhishek Purohit in Rajkot30-Dec-2012
ScorecardBefore this game started, Saurashtra’s only chance of achieving the outright win that would take them to the quarter-finals was believed to be their spin attack, considered to be better than Madhya Pradesh’s. Despite the absence of Ravindra Jadeja and Nayan Doshi, the trio of Kamlesh Makvana, Vishal Joshi and debutant Dharmendrasinh Jadeja showed why that belief was right, earning a first-innings lead of 107. MP’s dismal batting means they too will now have to push for an improbable victory, when a first-innings lead would have sufficed.As was the case on day one, the new ball was productive, with Jaydev Unadkat taking three wickets, including those of Devendra Bundela and Jalaj Saxena in inspired, extended spells of 6-3-7-2 and 6-3-13-1 on either side of lunch. Unadkat had earlier made 20 of the 30 runs he and Makvana added for the last wicket, and carried that confidence into his bowling.The difference between the two sides, however, was the quality of spinners, and the way they were played. There wasn’t a lot of turn from the dry Khandheri pitch, contrary to what was being expected by both sides before the start of the match. Still, Saurashtra’s spinners created chances, half-chances and plenty of excitement among the close-in fielders regularly. While MP’s spinners had been content with cutting down the runs, allowing the opposition to recover from 94 for 5, Saurashtra’s bowled a fuller length, drew the batsmen forward, put in more effort and flight in their deliveries, and generated more bounce. Also, while Saurashtra’s batsmen were prepared to grind it out and wait for runs, MP’s batsmen kept going for their strokes despite the situation demanding some caution.The initial incisions were made by Unadkat. Bowling flat out, he got the sort of lift and zip that had eluded Ishwar Pandey and Anand Rajan in the morning. Saxena did not help MP’s cause by flailing and getting beaten a couple of times outside off. Despite his partner Naman Ojha walking over for a word, Saxena proceeded to play the hook, on the hop, to an Unadkat bouncer, only to be caught at square leg. Rameez Khan played a sharp length delivery from the crease, and lost his off stump, which took such a blow it had to be replaced.Then came the most crucial part of the innings as MP’s best batsmen, Bundela and Ojha, fought. Unadkat reared a short delivery up at Bundela’s throat first ball, which the MP captain defended. The next ball was pitched up, produced an edge, but fell short of the cordon. Bundela responded with a clip to the deep-midwicket boundary.Ojha, a free-flowing batsman, took on spin soon after it was introduced in the 13th over, as he stepped out to lift left-arm spinner Jadeja over mid-on and mid-off. As lunch approached and Ojha continued leaving his crease and lofting the ball, Saurashtra already had a sweeper cover, long-off and long-on for him.Unadkat was at it again soon after lunch though. In the second over after the break, he zipped one across Bundela, which the batsmen could only edge on its way to the keeper. MP were now 57 for 3 and soon slipped to 73 for 4 when Ojha dragged a sweep into the keeper’s gloves down the leg side off Joshi.This was when the difference in the spin attack started to show. The tall Jadeja, the second-highest wicket-taker in the Under-25 CK Nayudu Trophy, put in a lot of work on the ball with an action that had him pivoting on the front foot like the classical spinners of old. He was accurate too, and after some time, had Satyam Choudhary and Udit Birla edging for an alert Shitanshu Kotak at slip to take his 101st and 102nd first-class catches. MP continued to sink, with Harpreet Singh slashing Makvana to second slip, a very sharp chance held nonchalantly by Rahul Dave. Similar chances had gone down in the Saurashtra innings.Unlike the Saurashtra lower order, the MP tail showed absolutely no fight. Anand Rajan drove at a flighted Joshi delivery and was bowled, Ishar Pandey slogged his first ball to midwicket, and Ajay Rajput his second to extra cover.Once again, when they needed to fire in a crunch game, MP came up short. They had batted poorly in the first innings of their quarter-final against Mumbai in the previous season and, this year, had also lost a thriller to them in the previous round.MP did send back Sheldon Jackson in the third over of Saurashtra’s second innings, but Pandey’s length ball barely got above the ankles. MP, who have to bat last, wouldn’t have liked that.

A round up of the fourth day of matches of the European Championship Division One Twenty20

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Jul-2011Group AGuernsey secured their spot in the semi-finals with a comfortable, six-wicket win over Gibraltar in St Peter Port. Guernsey’s bowlers kept Gibraltar in check and restricted them to a total of 116. Only three of the Gibraltar batsmen got into double figures. Guernsey’s reply started precariously and they were 10 for 3 in the early stages. An unbroken fifth wicket partnership of 78 (off 53 balls) between Jeremy Frith, who scored 44 (off 43 balls), and Ross Kneller, who contributed an aggressive 40 (off 29 balls), helped Guernsey reach their target with 15 balls remaining.Austria strolled to their third win of the tournament, after beating Croatia by 51 runs in Port Soif. Amar Naeem’s 100 (off 63 balls) which included 13 fours and three sixes, took Austria to an imposing 176 for 3. Croatia’s opening pair of Christopher Pavac and Craig Sinovich shared in a stand of 84 but enjoyed no support from the rest of the batting line-up. Sri Lankan born offspinner Lakmal Kasturiarachchige took 5 for 22 as Croatia were bowled out for 125. Naeem effected five stumpings to cap off a brilliant all-round performance.Italy qualified for the final four with a massive 98-run win over Norway in what was effectively a quarter-final in Castel. Damian Crowley and Peter Petricola’s third-wicket partnership of 107 was the backbone of the Italy innings. With none of their batsmen scoring at a strike rate of less than 100.00, Italy put on an impressive 185 for 2. Norway were never in the chase and went from being 8 for 3 to 87 all out. Andy Northcote took 2 for 8 and Gayashan Munsinghe 2 for 6.Group BDenmark cruised into the semi-finals after beating Germany by 92 runs in St Martin. Opener Freddie Klokker scored a quickfire 91 (off 62 balls) while Shehzad Ahmed chipped in with 30 (off 23 balls) and Michael Pedersen was unbeaten on 38 (off 33 balls). Denmark finished on 166 for 1. Bashir Shah ripped through the Germany batting line-up with 4 for 8 and Pedersen took 3 for 9 and Germany crashed to 74 all out. Milano Fernando’s 28 (off 21 balls) added some respectability to an otherwise dismal scorecard.Belgium inflicted a fifth consecutive defeat on Israel, who they beat by five wickets in St Brelade. Israel lost both their openers for ducks but 17 (off 21 balls) from Josh Evans and 26 (off 23 balls) from Eshkol Solomon put them back on track. Danny Hotz contributed 40 (off 45 balls) but Israel were bowled out for 106 in 19.3 overs. Evans made sure the Belgians wobbled in reply and his 3 for 14 threatened an upset. But, at 57 for 5, Simon Newport and Nadeem Khan put on a half-century stand for the sixth wicket and took Belgium home with two overs to spare.Jersey end off the semi-final line-up after an eight wicket win over France in St Clement. France began aggressively with openers Ramesh Sitathambaranthan and A Rehman Qureshit putting on 37 in 5 overs. Jersey’s medium pacers worked well to squeeze France for runs and they could only amass 98 for 7. The chase was a stroll for Jersey who reached the target with more than five overs to spare. Edward Farley’s 57 (off 42 balls) guided them to victory.