Razzak and Shakib maul Zimbabwe

Razzak and Shakib maul Zimbabwe

It was a commanding performance from Bangladesh, marshalled by left-arm spinner Abdur Razzak and captain Shakib Al Hasan as they drew level in the series against Zimbabwe. First up, Razzak's stellar effort of 5 for 29 restricted the visitors to 219 on a grassless track at the Shere Bangla National Cricket Stadium while the thunder during the chase was provided by Shakib. He smashed 105 off 69 balls, including 15 boundaries and three sixes, to take Bangladesh home in the 30th over.

Opting to bat on a grassless track, Zimbabwe were given the perfect start by Hamilton Masakadza and Chamu Chibhabha, who put on 59 for the opening wicket. The seamers were taken apart early on as Masakadza set the tone with a flurry of boundaries off Nazmul Hossain and Dolar Mahmud. While Nazmul was smashed for two fours to third man and square leg, Dolar was carted for three boundaries in the next over.

Shakib was forced to bring himself on as early as the fifth over to try put the brakes. And with more slow options in Naeem Islam and Razzak, the move paid off with the run-rate plunging from 7.25 to 5.3. Naeem provided the first breakthrough, removing the dangerous Masakadza with Bangladesh having taken the bowling Powerplay immediately after 10 overs.

The spinners kept the reins on Zimbabwe in the next passage of play, as the visitors managed just 37 in the next 10 overs. A frustrated Chibhabha was stumped off Mohammad Ashraful for 39 off 40 balls. A double blow followed in the very next over, as Razzak castled Brendan Taylor with his first ball and had Charles Coventry caught at slip for a duck four deliveries later.

The responsibility was on Taibu and Stuart Matsikenyeri to revive the visitors, and they put on 34 for the fifth wicket before Ashraful had Matsikenyeri caught behind for 14. Malcolm Waller began cautiously, but two fours off Nazmul Hossain in the 37th over meant a late charge was on the cards. Zimbabwe needed Taibu to stay till the end but Nazmul had him holing out to Raqibul Hasan at deep midwicket with the batting Powerplay yet to be taken.

Waller ended on 40 - hitting four fours and a six off Ashraful - becoming Razzak's third victim in the 44th over. There was to be no final thrust from the tail, with Shakib and Razzak completing formalities by the 48th over.

The Bangladesh openers began at a blistering pace as Tamim Iqbal and Junaid Sidique tore into the opposition seamers. Tamim set the tone with two delightful fours through deep midwicket and cover in the first over sent down by Kyle Jarvis. Elton Chigumbura was also shown no mercy as the first and fifth balls of the second over disappeared for sixes.

Junaid was playing like a batsmen possessed as he clubbed Jarvis for four fours in the next over. With 43 in three overs, it was turning out to be a riot, but Chigumbura, Zimbabwe's hero from the last match sent Junaid back to the pavilion with a meaningful stare after getting him caught and bowled. The good start was thrown away when Ashraful departed in Chigumbura's next over for 3, and Chamu Chibhabha had Tamim top-edging to mid-off off the first ball of the next over.

At 57 for 3, Shakib and Raqibul Hasan had to take up the responsibility to avoid Bangladesh going down 0-2. The batting Powerplay was taken after 10 overs, but Jarvis met with the same treatment, being hit for a four and six by Shakib off the first two balls. An odd boundary every over triggered off a vital revival phase for Bangladesh.

While Raqibul was more sedate, Shakib was scoring at almost a run-a-ball as the fifty partnership came up in a little more than ten overs. The introduction of spinners failed to turn the tide Zimbabwe's way. Shakib cut loose in Graeme Cremer's third over, hitting three consecutive fours, one off a free hit. There was no stopping him from there on as Price was taken apart in the next over for two fours and a six over long-on. With the seven-plus run-rate, Bangladesh were on course for a quick finish.

Sixteen runs off Chibhabha's seventh over took Shakib to 94, and Bangladesh 12 adrift off victory. Chibhabha's eighth was to be the last of the innings as Shakib got to his fourth ODI hundred with a four to third man and another four sent the crowd into raptures.

Big-hitting Dhoni helps level series

Big-hitting Dhoni helps level series


First, he consolidated the innings with Gautam Gambhir. Then, in tandem with Suresh Raina, he ripped the bowling to shreds. MS Dhoni's superb 107-ball 124 was the foundation for India's highest-ever total against Australia, a mammoth 354 for 7, and once Praveen Kumar and Ishant Sharma winkled out Australia's top three for just 45, the match was effectively over. Michael Hussey's 53 provided a lone note of defiance as India romped home by 99 runs, to leave the series all square as the teams packed their bags and headed to Delhi.

The match slipped out of Australia's grasp in the final 11 overs of the Indian innings. When the batting Powerplay was taken with the scoreboard showing 238 for 4, the run-rate had dipped close to six. But with 47 coming from those five overs, and the mayhem continuing unabated afterwards, Ricky Ponting's decision to bowl first in view of the dew factor didn't look too clever. Peter Siddle bowled with impressive pace and accuracy, while Nathan Hauritz was tidy, but the rest were taken to the cleaners on a day when Dhoni appeared to rediscover his big-hitting mojo.

It was no one-man show though, with Gambhir contributing 76 from 80 balls and Raina lashing 62 from just 50 deliveries. When Gambhir departed, run out by a direct hit from Hauritz at mid-off after Dhoni had miscued a slower ball from Siddle, the stage was set for a final onslaught, but few could have predicted how devastating it would be. The first five overs of the Dhoni-Raina partnership produced just 22 runs, but from the moment Dhoni slugged Siddle though cover to end the first over of the Powerplay, the wheels came off for Australia.

Raina kept heaving Mitchell Johnson through midwicket, and with Dhoni slapping one straight down the ground, 18 came from the over. Ben Hilfenhaus's return to the fray was greeted with an astonishing flat six over midwicket and two mighty wallops over long-off from the hapless Shane Watson took Dhoni to his century, his first against Australia, from just 94 balls.

Raina then took over, racing to his half-century from 42 balls in a Hilfenhaus over that went for 18. And though Johnson, who'd gone for 70 in his first nine overs, returned to dismiss both in the final over, the damage had been done, with the partnership worth 136 in just 93 balls.

They had started as explosively, with Virender Sehwag in terrific form. Hilfenhaus took the new ball in Brett Lee's absence, and Sehwag wasted no time, with a lofted cover-drive and powerful cut setting the scoreboard in motion. At the other end, Sachin Tendulkar got off the mark with a neat tuck off the pads for four, but when Siddle got one to dart away a touch after pitching outside off stump, he could only edge to first slip.


Prime Numbers

12

The number of times India have scored 350 or more in ODIs, which is the most by any team. South Africa have done it eight times, and Australia six.
354

India's total, which is their highest against Australia, and the highest by any team when batting first against them. The previous highest by a team batting first had been 343, by Sri Lanka in Sydney in 2003.
124

MS Dhoni's score, which is the highest by a captain in an ODI against Australia. The previous highest had been Sanath Jayasuriya's 122 in the match mentioned above. It's also the highest by a wicketkeeper against Australia,bettering Kamran Akmal's 116 not out in Abu Dhabi earlier this year. In fact, it's only the fourth century by a wicketkeeper against Australia.
99

The margin of victory, which is India's fourth-largest in terms of runs against Australia. It is their biggest win against them in more than eight years.
136

The partnership between Dhoni and Suresh Raina, which is India's second-highest for the fifth wicket against Australia.
87

The number of runs India scored in their last seven overs.




Sehwag though carried on undaunted, clipping Hilfenhaus for two leg-side fours, prompting Ponting to bring on Johnson in the seventh over. Siddle was bowling furiously quick, stinging Tim Paine's fingers with a misdirected bouncer, but it was all India as Sehwag clouted a slower ball from Johnson over long-on for six.

The next slower ball had a different outcome. This time, Sehwag could only find mid-off, and with 67 already on the board, Australia delayed the Powerplay by an over and called back Hilfenhaus. Yuvraj Singh, back in the side in place of Virat Kohli, promptly worked him through midwicket for four, and when Paine grassed a tough chance to his left with Gambhir on 20, it seemed as though it wasn't to be Hilfenhaus's day.

But the break for drinks changed that, with Yuvraj slamming the first ball, another slow one, straight back down the pitch. Hilfenhaus took it at shin height. The next ball struck Dhoni on the back of the helmet. By that stage, Ponting had turned to his slow bowlers. Hauritz had been lofted for a straight six by Yuvraj, but both he and Adam Voges were getting sharp turn and for a while, the Indians were reliant on singles and twos to keep the score ticking over.

But a Dhoni straight-drive off Hauritz and two impressive shots from Gambhir through the covers broke the boundary shackles, and with both men running brilliantly between wickets, the bowlers were never allowed to settle. Both took 55 balls for their half-centuries, and it took a moment of carelessness on Gambhir's part to end the partnership which was worth 119 from 113 balls. But with Raina filling the breach so effectively, India never flagged. As for Dhoni, he was simply unstoppable.

Praveen didn't start too well with the new ball, and it seemed that the mistakes of Vadodara were being repeated. But then he got a full delivery to swing and take the inside edge of Paine's bat. The leg stump went cartwheeling and India were on their way. Conscious of the asking rate, Ponting got going with a lovely off-drive off Ashish Nehra, prompting Dhoni to bring Ishant on in the 10th over.

The very first ball he bowled reared up at Watson, and was fended off the face to Tendulkar at slip. As Watson walked off, angry words were exchanged. The potentially decisive blow came from the other end, as Praveen nipped one back to strike Ponting right in front. At 45 for 3, Australia were on the ropes.

Hussey revived the innings somewhat with three consecutive fours through the off side when Harbhajan was introduced, but when Cameron White's stop-start innings ended with a tame clip to midwicket, the asking rate was on its way towards 10 an over. Ravindra Jadeja then bowled Hussey through the gate, bringing the curtain down on the contest long before the last ball was bowled.

Pietersen refreshed after injury break

Pietersen refreshed after injury break

Kevin Pietersen, the England batsman, has said that his forced break from international cricket due to an Achilles injury had refreshed him at a time when he was beginning to fall "out of love with the game".

"The big thing is the mental rest," Pietersen told the Times. "This year has been one of the toughest of my career, with the captaincy debacle in January plus the injury. My Achilles won't hamper me any more and I definitely feel fresh mentally. I'll be starting off really enjoying myself -- and this year I haven't particularly enjoyed playing cricket because I was in pain and because of what happened in January. It's been a tough thing for me."

"I believe everything happens for a reason and these three months have happened to refresh me and knowing that I was sort of falling out of love with the game, it was a symbol or a sign for me to refresh and recharge my batteries."

Pietersen last played for England in the second Ashes Test at Lord's after which he had surgery on his Achilles. He then missed the following seven-ODI series against Australia, the ICC Champions Trophy in South Africa and the inaugural Champions League Twenty20, where he would have played for the Bangalore Royal Challengers.

England's next assignment is a tour of South Africa, which begins in the first week of November. Pietersen is expected to travel to South Africa on November 9 or 10 and, if fit, his comeback match could be the warm-up fixture against South Africa A in Potchefstroom on November 17.

"I can't wait," he said. "I haven't been at my best since India last year. Preparation is what I bank on and preparation has definitely been hampered because of external thoughts. These last three months have cleared my brain and my thoughts."

Tendulkar should play fewer ODIs - Border

Tendulkar should play fewer ODIs - Border

Former Australian captain Allan Border has said Sachin Tendulkar should play fewer ODIs to prolong his Test career. Tendulkar, who is a few weeks away from completing 20 years as an India player, is one of the senior-most players on the international circuit. Sri Lanka's Sanath Jayasuriya is the only other current international who began his career in the 1980s.


Tendulkar has played 432 ODIs - second behind Jayasuriya's 441 - and 159 Tests since 1989. Over the last couple of years, he opted out of Twenty20 internationals to focus on the game's longer formats. He has, however, participated in both seasons of the IPL, as captain of the Mumbai Indians franchise.


"I have high esteem for Tendulkar and his achievements in international cricket," Border told PTI. "But I think it would be better for him to appear in fewer limited-over matches, including one-dayers. It would help him to prolong his Test career."

Border said it was a remarkable feat for anyone to sustain a 20-year career with injuries on the rise. Tendulkar's career has been plagued by injuries, the most notable being his troublesome tennis elbow. Recently, he had to miss the four-match ODI series in the West Indies due to a finger injury he picked up during the IPL.


"Representing your country for 20 years in international arena is not a small achievement," Border said. "There is always a lot of pressure on an international cricketer and I must say he [Tendulkar] has managed it beautifully. Like many others, his career was also disturbed by injuries. But even after many ups and downs, Tendulkar still has the same passion and love for the game."


Border himself lasted 16 years as an international player before retiring in 1994. His 156 Test appearances was a world record before Steve Waugh overtook him.

One-day ducks, and carrying the bat

One-day ducks, and carrying the bat

Q: I know that Courtney Walsh was dismissed for a duck most often in Tests. But who holds the record for one-day internationals?

A: The leader here is probably something of a surprise - it's Sanath Jayasuriya of Sri Lanka, who has been out for 0 no fewer than 31 times in one-day internationals. He has played 421 of them - more than anyone else - so I suppose he's had more chances. In second place is Pakistan's Wasim Akram, with 25 ducks, ahead of a further trio of Sri Lankans - Chaminda Vaas (25), Jayasuriya's long-time opening partner Romesh Kaluwitharana (24), and Muttiah Muralitharan (23). For a full list of the most ducks in ODIs, click here. You're right in saying that Courtney Walsh holds the Test record, with 43 ducks.

Q: Openers who aren't dismissed during a full innings are said to have "carried their bat". Where does this rather quaint terminology originate from? It seems to me that all players have to carry their bats, whether they last one ball or hundreds?

A: The expression "carry the bat" seems to date from the very early days of cricket, and used to refer to any not-out batsman, not just an opener, although that stricter interpretation was common by the early 20th century. Michael Rundell, in the Wisden Dictionary of Cricket, says the expression comes from a time when the outgoing batsman left his bat in the crease for the next man in, and so the last undefeated batsman actually did literally carry the bat off the field (dismissed batsmen were often said to have "thrown down their bat"). Coming up to date I can only recall one batsman who didn't carry a bat - Bob Willis once went out to bat in a Test for England without one, having forgotten it and left it in the dressing room.

Q: Brett Lee has taken 309 wickets in 74 Tests, without a ten-wicket haul so far. Has anyone got more wickets without taking ten in a match?

A: Brett Lee is only the second man to reach 300 wickets in Test matches without ever taking ten in one - the other is the aforementioned Bob Willis, who took 325 wickets in 90 Tests but never managed more than nine in a match, which he did three times. Several other people have pointed out that Lee has never taken more than five wickets in an innings, which is unique among bowlers with more than 300 Test wickets. Andrew Flintoff, with 206 wickets and a best of 5 for 58, is next on this particular list. For a full list of Test cricket's leading wicket-takers,

Q: I noticed that South Africa had five ducks during their 429 in the second Test against Bangladesh. Was this the highest total to include as many as five scoreless innings?

A: Yes, South Africa's 429 against Bangladesh in Centurion recently was indeed the highest Test total to include as many as five ducks. South Africa also held the previous record, with five zeroes in their 390 against England in Johannesburg in 1938-39. The overall Test record is six ducks in an innings, which has happened three times (and the highest total involved was 128, by Pakistan v West Indies in Karachi in 1980-81). For a full list of Test innings containing five or six ducks.

Q: I was sorry to learn of the recent death of Paul Hibbert, who I watched bat in his only Test. The newspapers mentioned that he once scored a century without any boundaries - how many others have done this?

A: The late Paul Hibbert made exactly 100 without a four for Victoria against the touring Indians in Melbourne in 1977-78, a feat that won him his one and only Test cap shortly afterwards, against India in Brisbane in the match you saw. Hibbert made 13 and 2, and wasn't chosen again, even though he was a consistent scorer for Victoria for several years. I only know of two other centuries that did not include a boundary: Alan Hill, who also blocked for Derbyshire, made 103 for Orange Free State against Griqualand West in Bloemfontein in 1976-77 without reaching the fence, while during Australia's 1926 tour of England, Bill Woodfull completed his century against Surrey at The Oval without hitting a four, but did hit one afterwards before he was out for 118. Wisden stated that Woodfull "observed special skill in placing the ball between short leg and mid-on, where most of his 72 singles were registered ... he hit only one four, and that, as it happened, was the last stroke he made". The highest Test score without a boundary is Geoff Boycott's 77 for England against Australia in Perth in 1978-79. His score did include one four - but it was all-run, and didn't actually reach the rope.

Q: Which cricketer scored Test centuries on two consecutive days in 1948?

A: The answer to this is India's Vijay Hazare, who made 108 of his eventual 116 on the third day of the fourth Test against Australia in Adelaide in January 1948, then made 102 not out in the follow-on on the fourth day, eventually being out for 145 on the fifth. As I mentioned in last week's column, Hazare also bowled Don Bradman in this match, so he could hardly have done more for his side - but Bradman had scored 201, and India still lost by an innings.

Cyclone scare looms over Chennai Test

Cyclone scare looms over Chennai Test

The first Test between India and England in Chennai, starting on Thursday, faces the strong possibility of rain disruptions and the fallout from a weakened cyclone over the state of Tamil Nadu over the next few days.
England arrived in Chennai on Monday to resume their tour of India but the team could be denied adequate practice if the rain persists in the city. Showers early this morning flooded the outfield at the MA Chidambaram Stadium and the Indians were forced to remain indoors. England are due to train later in the day but that may also be affected.
The official website of the Indian Meteorological Department has predicted thunderstorms with rain in Chennai on Wednesday and Thursday, suggesting that at least the first day of the Test could be affected. On Sunday, it said a depression over the Bay of Bengal had moved further westwards towards the Tamil Nadu coast but had weakened.
However, other weather sites are more optimistic - CNN has predicted showers only from Saturday.
"For the next 48 hours, there could be one or two spells of rain and cloudy weather will prevail due to activity of the North-East monsoon over Tamil Nadu," SR Ramanan, the Meteorological Centre regional director, told PTI. "There is no alert of low pressure or depression in the Bay of Bengal. This is only a normal monsoon activity. Gradual reduction of rainfall is expected from Thursday."
The weather will doubtless affect the pitch as well. The rainfall over the past month has complicated matters for the head groundsman, K Parthasarathy. "We need bright sunshine to prepare a good wicket but there has been a lot of rain," Parthasarathy was quoted as saying in the local newspapers.
The Test was originally scheduled for Mumbai but the terror attacks in the city and fears of player security prompted a complete overhaul of the venues for the Tests. England returned home midway through the one-day series after the terror strikes and while negotiations were on between the respective cricket boards to resume the tour, the players trained in Abu Dhabi. Unfortunately, rain disrupted their preparations for a day last week.
Chennai has had a history of washouts and rain-affected draws since 2003. Tests against Australia and Sri Lanka were drawn and a one-dayer with South Africa in 2005 was abandoned without a ball being bowled. The Challenger Trophy final the following year was also affected and the teams had to share the trophy.

Yuvraj and Ojha recalled for Tests

Yuvraj and Ojha recalled

Yuvraj Singh has been given one more chance to resurrect his stop-start Test career, after being selected in India's 15-man squad for the two-Test series against England starting December 11. Yuvraj, who muscled his way back into contention with two successive one-day hundreds against England last month, is expected to take Sourav Ganguly's place at No. 6.
The selectors have also recalled Pragyan Ojha, the left-arm spinner, and have retained M Vijay and S Badrinath as reserve batsmen. Ojha, yet to make his Test debut, toured Sri Lanka earlier this year, but lost his place to Amit Mishra, who made a strong debut against Australia in New Delhi. Vijay, an opener, was handed a debut in Nagpur against Australia after Gautam Gambhir was banned for one Test.
Yuvraj, a mainstay in India's one-day line-up, has had an inconsistent run in Tests, with 1050 runs in 23 games since his debut five years ago, However, his recent form against England prompted the chairman of selectors, Kris Srikkanth, to state that he's the frontrunner to take Ganguly's slot in the Test XI. Besides his two match-winning hundreds (138 not out and 118) in the first two ODIs, Yuvraj also picked up four wickets in the second match in Indore.
"I have got the opportunity," Yuvraj told news channel CNN-IBN. "I'm not thinking that I am filling in after someone's retirement. I always felt this is my place, and if I do well, I'll surely be there for a long time."
Badrinath and Vijay, who both play for Tamil Nadu, have had contrasting fortunes in their last Ranji Trophy game, against Andhra: Badrinath scored 121 and M Vijay lasted just eight balls before getting out for a duck. Vijay's splendid form this season, though, had earned him a last-minute call-up to the squad for the Nagpur Test against Australia.
Badrinath, who scored a hundred in Tamil Nadu's previous match against Uttar Pradesh, will be eager for a place in the starting XI for the first Test on his home ground in Chennai. He made his ODI debut during India's tour of Sri Lanka in August and was part of the Test squad against Australia, but was surprisingly dropped for the subsequent one-day series against England.
Left-arm fast bowler RP Singh, who had an indifferent ODI series against England, has been dropped. Ojha takes his place; he is expected to be the back-up spinner in the squad behind Harbhajan Singh and Amit Mishra - a tactic employed by India for the first three Tests in the previous series against Australia when they had the spin trio of Anil Kumble (now retired), Harbhajan and Mishra to choose from.
India squad: Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Yuvraj Singh, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (capt & wk), Harbhajan Singh, Amit Mishra, Zaheer Khan, Ishant Sharma, Munaf Patel, M Vijay, S Badrinath, Pragyan Ojha.