All About Latest Sports Action: MCG repeated at Lord’s

Quite a few scenes witnessed at Lord’s on June 21, 2009 resembled to the ones at the Melbourne Cricket ground (MCG) on March 25, 1992. There was only a change of personnel besides the venue of course.

It was Imran Khan whose team had staged a comeback from nowhere to win the World Cup against all odds in 1992 and now it was the side captained by Younis Khan having exceeded all expectations by annexing the Twenty20 crown.
Younis had been talking of Imran from the moment he was handed over the leadership earlier this year. The enterprising right-handed batsman has tried himself to model on the legendary all-rounder who’s also considered the greatest-ever captain produced by the country.

But even Younis, an optimist of the highest order, himself had never spoken of claiming the World Twenty20 title in England in the summer of 2009. His cherished goal remained winning the World Cup in 2011.
All About Latest Sports Action: MCG repeated at Lord’s

All About Latest Sports Action: South Africa choke again to let Pakistan enter final

History repeated itself at Trent Bridge on June 18 when South Africa crashed in the semifinals of the ICC World Twenty20 and Pakistan lived to the reputation of bringing about the downfall of the team of the moment.

South Africa, with their terrific all-round performance, had proved themselves the team of the tournament. They had remained undefeated and there was very little chance of them biting the dust as far as this event was concerned.

All About Latest Sports Action: South Africa choke again to let Pakistan enter final

All About Latest Sports Action: Dismal India squander yet another opportunity

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

It’s very difficult to describe or assess India’s dismal performance in the ICC World Twenty20 2009. The tournament will conclude with the final on June 21 but it’s all over for the defending champions who couldn’t even find their way into the semifinals.

It’s beyond my comprehension how the free-flowing Indian batsmen got so much entangled against the South African spinners while chasing a low score of 130. It should have been a cakewalk win for the Indians, particularly after the brilliant start provided by the opening pair of Gautam Gambhir and Rohit Sharma.

All About Latest Sports Action: Dismal India squander yet another opportunity

All About Latest Sports Action: India knock themselves out

"Curse the excessive betting, blame the infighting or hold the board officials responsible it can’t hide the fact that the strongest outfit to have entered the competition has been knocked out in an unceremonious manner.

India stood head and shoulders above any other side in the shortest version of the game and probably it was a combination of too many factors that prompted their early exit against the run of play.

It was not for the first time that the Indians have been knocked over far too earlier than anticipated. They have perished this way more often than not whenever they were installed as the favourites or billed as the most potent side."
All About Latest Sports Action: India knock themselves out:

All About Latest Sports Action: Pakistan, India jolted

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Pakistan and India, the finalists of the inaugural ICC World Twenty20 in 2007, had to bite the dust in their opening Super Eight fixtures at Lord’s on June 12. The weather and the settings were about perfect but both the sub-continental teams jeopardized their chances of making into the semifinals by crashing to defeat after being in dominating position for sometime.

India, the defending champions and the hot favourites, were brought down to earth by the West Indies while Pakistan, the runners-up in South Africa, were laid low by the rampaging Sri Lanka.

All About Latest Sports Action: Pakistan, India jolted#links#links

All About Latest Sports Action: New Zealand, South Africa off to flyer

Both New Zealand and South Africa got off to a flying start to their Super Eight campaign in the ICC World Twenty20 2009 crushing Ireland and England respectively at Trent Bridge on June 11.

The victory in the opening Super Eight game provides the much needed insurance to New Zealand and South Africa ahead of the knockout stage of the competition. They can still force their way into the semifinals if they lose one of their next two games.
All About Latest Sports Action: New Zealand, South Africa off to flyer

Match Preview: India vs Ireland

Ground reality and Pitch

The Trent Bridge cricket ground is home to the Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club. The stadium is considered to be one of the best grounds in the world to watch a cricket match due to the excellent facilities available here. Trent Bridge also features in Indian history with the cricketing great Sachin Tendulkar passing the 11,000 mark in test cricket at this ground. The pitch at Trent Bridge is tilted more in favour of the batsmen with an even bounce on offer.

Temperatures: Min - 8 C Max - 15 C | Conditions: Showers expected

Team updates - India: The sub-continent team has the batting prowess to erect a mountain of runs or scale down any challenging total even in the absence of their explosive opener Virender Sehwag, who has been injured. But their bowling - both at start and at death - is a cause of concern as they have conceded too many runs in the in the first six overs, with field restrictions in place, and also proved uneconomic towards the close. With a berth in the Super Eight Stage already in their pocket, defending champions India will look to sort out their bowling woes when they take on fellow qualifiers Ireland in the final Group A league match in the World Twenty20 Championships at Trent Bridge.

Team updates - Ireland: The Irish cricket team have been known for their surprises ever since their stunning win against Pakistan in the 2007 World Cup at the Caribbean. In a group that provided the team the best chance to qualify to the next round, Ireland made good use of it, beating their fellow minnow Bangladesh and making it to the super 8 stage. The O'Brien brothers showed their skills with the bat against Bangladesh with a combination of the hard hits and subtle strokes. Ireland would hope for the brothers to fire again against a formidable Indian bowling line-up. Although it is an inconsequential match, the Irish would have to play their best cricket against a strong Indian outfit.

X Factor:
Bat - Rohit Sharma and the O'Briens: Rohit Sharma displayed his class against the Bangladesh team and also against Pakistan during India's warm-up clash with their arch rivals. Looking in good touch, India would look at the youngster to fire in the absence of Virender Sehwag. Meanwhile, Niall O'Brien and Kevin O'Brien were in the league of their own during the Irish match against Bangladesh. Their efforts with the bat led to the Bangladeshis being shown the doors. Ireland would bank on the O'Brien brothers to fire again and put up a good show going into the super 8's.

Ball - Pragyan Ojha and Trent Johnston: The talened left-arm spinner made his mark with brilliant bowling for Hyderabad during the IPL. He carried on his form with a career best of 4/21 on his T20 debut match against Bangladesh. He would play a pivotal role for India during their super 8 campaigns. Trent Johnston looked good with the ball against the Bangladeshis, picking up wickets for Ireland up-front. He would play an important role with the ball for the Irish team during their super 8 encounters.

Numbers game:
4: The number of sixers by Yuvraj Singh during India's first match against Bangladesh. Only Chris Gayle and AB de Villiers have scored more sixers in the tournament than Yuvraj, having 6 sixers each in their tally.
6.0: With figures of 4/21 against Bangladesh, Pragyan Ojha holds the best bowling strike rate of 6.0 in the current edition of the World T20.
Sound Bytes:
He is a good batsman - that I can say - but all of a sudden comparing him to Yuvraj Singh, there is a big gap in the middle. We all know Yuvraj has proved himself. He is one of the biggest hitters and hits sixes quite consistently. He [O'Brien] is a talented cricketer but he is well below Yuvraj when it comes to hitting big sixes in this format: Indian captain MS Dhoni commenting on the hard-hitting Kevin O'Brien.

Teams:
India (From): Gautam Gambhir, Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, Mahendra Singh Dhoni(w/c), Ravindra Jadeja, Yusuf Pathan, Irfan Pathan, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Ishant Sharma, Praveen Kumar, Rudra Pratap Singh, Pragyan Ojha

Ireland (From): William Porterfield(c), Jeremy Bray, Niall Obrien(w), Gary Wilson, John Mooney, Kevin Obrien, Trent Johnston, Kyle McCallan, Regan West, Alex Cusack, Andre Botha, Boyd Rankin, Peter Connell, Paul Stirling, Andrew White

Match Preview: Sri Lanka vs West Indies

Ground Reality
Trent Bridge has been a good wicket so far in the tournament, with a slight bias towards batsmen. A safe score here would have to be one in excess of 170-175. As is usual in England, rain and thunder are forecast for the day, but so far the tournament has been fortunate to not be too affected by the rains. If this match does get affected, it would be less harmful than would have been expected since both teams are already through to the next stage.

The Teams They were both expected to fight it out for the second qualifying spot in the 'Group of Death', but due to their superb displays against Australia, they have the luxury of treating this match as a warm-up/practice match and trying out new combinations and players. Both teams will make the Super Eights, and the result of this match is immaterial.

Sri Lanka: They put up a thoroughly professional performance to outclass the Australians, and they'll be well pleased with the form of Dilshan and Sangakkara. The heartening aspect for them is that Jayawardene has recovered from his injury in the IPL. The trio are the lynch-pins of the Lankan batting, and much will depend on how they fire. Their bowling is amongst the best in the tournament, and they will be pleased that Ajantha Mendis showed his class in the match against Australia. It showed the value of handling a world-class bowler in the correct fashion - something the Kolkata Knight Riders might want to keep in mind.

West Indies: Although they won convincingly against Australia, too much of their success depends on Chris Gayle. Ideally, they might want to consider not playing him in this match, to give the opportunity for some others to stand up and take the pressure. In the Super Eights, there will surely be a match where Gayle might fail, and then if the remaining players have already had a taste of what it is like to bat in the absence of Gayle, they will be better suited to handling the pressure in a match that is more important. None of their bowlers were particularly impressive against Australia, and they should look at ways for their bowlers to hit their stride before the second phase.

1 - Sanath Jayasuriya's ranking for Sri Lanka in T20 Internationals on the following parameters: Most Runs (343), Highest Strike Rate (150.43 for a minimum of 50 runs scored), and Highest Score made (88). The old warhorse may not be in the best touch, but his value to his side is undisputed.

2.1 - The ratio of the number of runs Chris Gayle has in T20 Internationals against the second highest scorer for the West Indies - Dwayne Smith. Gayle has 349 runs, while Smith has 166. Ironically enough, Smith has not even been picked in the West Indian squad.

Soundbytes:
"The pressure will no doubt be a bit less. But international cricket is serious business, there is no question of taking it easy" - Kumar Sangakkara on the West Indies match.
"Once I can clear the boundary I am satisfied with that, it doesn't matter how far it goes." - Chris Gayle

Teams:
West Indies (From): Chris Gayle(c), Xavier Marshall, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Dwayne Bravo, Keiron Pollard, Denesh Ramdin(w), Darren Sammy, Lionel Baker, Sulieman Benn, Fidel Edwards, David Bernard, Andre Fletcher, Lendl Simmons, Jerome Taylor

Sri Lanka (From): Sanath Jayasuriya, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Kumar Sangakkara(w/c), Mahela Jayawardene, Jehan Mubarak, Angelo Mathews, Thilan Thushara, Isuru Udana, Muttiah Muralitharan, Ajantha Mendis, Lasith Malinga, Indika de Saram, Farveez Maharoof, Nuwan Kulasekara, Chamara Silva

All About Latest Sports Action: Pakistan’s Super Eight entry threatens fancied teams

There were a lot of discussions and debates on whether or not Pakistan would be able to force their way into the Super Eight, after having succumbed to a humiliating defeat at the hands of hosts England in their opening game.

My reply to all the queries in this regard was simple and straightforward. I told everyone, on and off the record, that I would be surprised if Pakistan didn’t accomplish their goal. The assessment was not based on any cricketing knowledge or anything like that. It had to do something with history and past record.


All About Latest Sports Action: Pakistan’s Super Eight entry threatens fancied teams

Match Preview: Newzealand vs South Africa

New Zealand (Playing XI): Brendon McCullum(c), Martin Guptill, Neil Broom, Ross Taylor, Scott Styris, Jacob Oram, Peter McGlashan(w), Nathan McCullum, Kyle Mills, Brendon Diamanti, Ian Butler

South Africa (Playing XI): Graeme Smith(c), Jacques Kallis, Herschelle Gibbs, AB de Villiers, Jean-Paul Duminy, Mark Boucher(w), Albie Morkel, Roelof van der Merwe, Johan Botha, Wayne Parnell, Dale Steyn

Team Information: Diamanti, Broom and Mills come in for New Zealand while Ryder, O'Brien and Franklin miss out due to injuries. South Africa have fielded the same eleven.
New Zealand have won the toss and elected to field
Ground Reality and Pitch:

Named after its founder Thomas Lord, the Lord's cricket ground also known as 'The Mecca of World Cricket', is owned by the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is home of the ECB. The three T20 World Cup matches played in the ground so far has seen the teams batting first score in excess of 160. Once again, the pitch is expected to favour the batsmen.

Temperatures: Min - 12 C Max - 16 C Conditions: Showers expected

Team Updates:
South Africa: The Proteas have by far been one of the best sides in the tournament. They began from winning all their warm-up matches and carried on to drub the Scottish team in their first match of the tournament. With a wide range of players at disposal, the South Africans are spoilt for choice with their team selection. Graeme Smith and Kallis looked in good touch during the match against Scotland while de Villiers, coming in the middle order, displayed his class with a splendid fifty. South Africa would count on their batsmen to produce a similar effort against the Kiwis and count on the likes of Dale Steyn, Botha and van De Merwe to fire with the ball.
New Zealand: The Kiwis had a truncated encounter against Scotland with their match being reduced to a 7 overs a side affair. They survived a scare after coming close to losing the match against the Scots. While their bowling was average, The likes of Jesse Ryder, Brendon McCullum and Ross Taylor shined with the bat. New Zealand would count on these three and the likes of Martin Guptill and Jacob Oram to fire with the bat. With the Kiwi captain Daniel Vettori likely to be out of the match due to a shoulder injury, the bowling department should pull their socks up and display a determined approach against the formidable batting line-up of the Proteas.
Numbers game:
2-1: South Africa have 2 victories against New Zealand in T20 Internationals while the Kiwis have managed one victory against the Proteas.
111.11: Graeme Smith's batting strike rate vs New Zealand in T20 games.

Pakistan handle Netherlands scare, stay alive

It was a comprehensive routing of a hapless Netherlands outfit, Pakistan were superior in all departments and notched up a crushing win to knock the Dutch out of the tournament. Still it was quite a pleasure to see the Orange brigade in action and they will be better off for the experience gained.

Kamran Akmal:T20 is a fun game. Very happy with the keeping and I worked very hard with the fielding coach on my keeping.

Younis Khan: It was all about the partnerships, everybody thought we will field first but we batted. We were positive all the way.

Smits: We did not play that well today, Afridi was outstanding today. We should have restricted them to 150. Batting did not come off today, congrats to Pakistan. It is a privilege to be here and we managed to make an impact in the tournament.

Kamran Akmal is the Man of the Match for his all-round performance today

Sloppy Pakistan face litmus test

Who'd have thunk it, that Pakistan and Netherlands would be taking on each other in a group game in which Pakistan might do and still die? Such has been the way with this strangest of groups but clarity has now emerged. Netherlands, to progress and thus consign Pakistan to a fate they seem worryingly resigned to, can afford to lose, but by no more than 24 runs. If Pakistan chase, then they must do so with roughly three overs to spare.

The problems are Pakistan's. Not for a moment since they landed in England have they looked like a team that is playing in a World Cup. Younis Khan's bizarre, careless dismissal of the format and the tournament seems to have filtered through to the side. Anyway you'd think, given their lack of international games recently, that Pakistan would be itching to rip through a Ramadan 20/20 night tournament in Karachi's Pakistan Chowk, let alone a World Cup. The attitude is, however, only the most overarching concern: on the field, they are the worst fielding side, have an unsettled batting order and are rusty with the ball. Beyond that, they're fine.

Netherlands, on the other hand, have accorded this tournament the respect it deserves and have shown, with that fabulous opening win, just why the format is celebrated. As well as skill, the Netherlands will remind one and all, Twenty20 rewards discipline, hard work and bravery. The problem for them, of course, is to recreate the intensity of Friday, something which often proves beyond associate nations and lower-ranked sides.

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All About Latest Sports Action: Ireland throw Bangladesh out of competition

Ireland had stunned everyone by making it to the Super Eight of the 2007 World Cup in the Caribbean and they have done it again in the shortest version of the game.

What a great start they have made in the ICC World Twenty20 2009, hammering Bangladesh by six wickets with 10 deliveries remaining. They have progressed to the next round of the competition, alongwith the defending champions India, from Group A.


All About Latest Sports Action: Ireland throw Bangladesh out of competition

Sri Lanka eliminate Australia from World Twenty20

NOTTINGHAM: Skipper Kumar Sangakkara and Tillakaratne Dilshan hit robust half-centuries as Sri Lanka sent Australia packing from the World Twenty20 with a six-wicket win on Monday.

Australia, asked to bat by Sangakkara in his first match as captain, managed only 159-9 in good batting conditions as mystery spinner Ajantha Mendis and fast bowler Lasith Malinga claimed three wickets each, AFP reports.

Opener Dilshan then plundered 53 off 32 balls and left-handed Sangakkara made an unbeaten 55 to fire Sri Lanka home with six deliveries to spare.

Jehan Mubarak hit 21 not out to keep his captain company till the end, which came when Mitchell Johnson sent down a wide off the first delivery of the final over.

Ricky Ponting’s men, beaten by the West Indies in their first match, bowed out of the tournament with their fifth successive Twenty20 defeat and ample time in hand to prepare for next month’s Ashes series.

Sri Lanka and the West Indies, who take the two Super Eights places from the group, play each other in the inconsequential last league match on Wednesday.

‘It’s disappointing to go out of the tournament and I can’t explain why,’ said Ponting.

‘The training was spot-on and there was a good attitude in the group. But in the big moments we haven’t been able to play and we made too many mistakes.

‘We knew that it would be a huge challenge against their spinners. We knew we had to play them well. We didn’t do that and Sri Lanka deserved to win the game.

‘Now we have to move on as quickly as possible and focus on the Ashes.’

Sangakkara said it was crucial to have confidence they could win.

‘It was a great performance. When you play against Australia the key is to believe you can win,’ he said.

‘Our strength has always been spin bowling and we played two guys whom the Australians haven’t seen much of. So their batsmen couldn’t really target one single bowler.

‘Now we want to beat the West Indies in the final group match. We can’t afford to be complacent.’

Mendis, who turns the ball both ways without a visible change in his bowling action, wrecked the top order in a match Australia had to win to stay in the competition.

Slinger Malinga took care of the lower order as Australia collapsed to 94-6 in the 15th over, before David Hussey and Johnson led a late revival.

The pair put on 41 off 21 balls for the seventh wicket with Hussey hitting 28 off 22 balls and Johnson smashing 38 off 13 with two fours and as many sixes.

Sri Lanka were playing their first international match since the terror attack on their team bus in Lahore on March 3 which left seven players injured and killed eight Pakistani security-men.

Sangakkara’s team was greeted to Trent Bridge by some 100 people waving banners in protest against what they claimed was killing of innocent Tamils by the Sri Lankan armed forces in the war against the Tamil Tigers.

Ireland upset Bangladesh to reach Super Eights

NOTTINGHAM: Ireland sealed a place in the Twenty20 World Cup Super Eights when Kevin O’Brien’s unbeaten 39 from 17 deliveries helped them to a six-wicket win over Bangladesh on Monday.

The result means Bangladesh, who were beaten by India in their opening game, have no chance of progressing from Group A, Reuters reports.

Ireland, a non-Test playing nation who also made it through the opening stage of the one-day World Cup in 2007, restricted Bangladesh to 137 for eight in their 20 overs at Trent Bridge.

‘We didn’t make anywhere near enough runs,’ Bangladesh’s Australian coach Jamie Siddons told reporters. ‘The par score on that flat wicket was 170. The cooler heads prevailed and under pressure our guys weren’t up to it.’

Ireland reached 138 for four with 10 balls remaining following an aggressive exhibition of hitting from O’Brien. He struck four fours and two sixes after coming in with the match closely poised.

Man of the match Niall O’Brien, Kevin’s brother, had laid the foundations for Ireland’s victory with an innings of 40 from 25 balls, including three sixes.

‘It’s always nice to bat well when there are 10-15,000 people cheering you on,’ said Niall O’Brien.

‘It doesn’t feel like an upset to us as we came here expecting to beat Bangladesh and we have done it again.’

Australian-born Trent Johnston earlier claimed three for 20 that helped to limit Bangladesh in their innings.

Bangladesh’s total might have been even lower had it not been for the 20 runs that Mashrafe Mortaza struck from the last over, bowled by Alex Cusack.

Twenty20 nothing serious: Younus

LONDON:Pakistan captain Younus Khan was left struggling to explain his side's lack luster display after their comprehensive 48-run loss to England in the ICC World Twenty20.

Sloppy fielding by the 2007 finalists helped England to a competitive 185 for five at the Oval on Sunday, featuring 58 from Kevin Pietersen, while the Pakistan reply never got going.

Three wickets in the power play left Pakistan well behind the run-rate and Younus, who finished unbeaten on 46, could only watch from the other end as a succession of batsmen came and went.

‘I would never had thought we would end up chasing 185,’ Younus told reporters.

‘Our fielding was bad and we easily gave away 20-25 runs.

‘This is a matter of concern for us. I have no idea why our fielders are unable to field properly. It is not as if we are not working hard butwe are not just getting it right for reasons unknown to me.’

Pakistan,whose homeland has become a virtual no-go zone for the rest of world cricket following the armed attack on the Sri Lanka team bus in Lahore in March, have been starved of international competition in recent months.

And now they must not only beat the Netherlands, shock four-wicket winners over England in Friday's tournament opener, they must do so by a large margin at Lord's on Tuesday if they are to join the hosts in the Super Eights.

We will have to do it because if we don't we will be out of the competition,’ said Younus of the need for a big win against the Dutch.

‘Hopefully the senior guys will come forward and do a job for our team.

It's the only chance we have. The onus lies on the senior guys like Shahid Afridi, Misbah-ul-Haq, Shoaib Malik and myself.’

Butwhile the rest of the world's leading sides treat Twenty20 almost asseriously as nearly all other international cricket, Younus wasconscious of the founding principle behind its creation as aprofessional sport.

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All About Latest Sports Action: England get lifeline as Pakistan’s batters collapse

By Syed Khalid Mahmood
Pakistan’s batsmen were found wanting once more in the conditions that were not ideal for batting. The extra bounce of the Kennigton Oval pitch undid the stroke-makers who are more comfortable in doing the business on the placid sub-continental pitches where they take things for granted.

No matter how batting friendly the pitches may be in England the ball is always going to do something in the air and the bounce can vary. The Pakistan batsmen have often struggled whenever the ball has moved and what happened on June 7 was reflective of their mindset.


All About Latest Sports Action: England get lifeline as Pakistan’s batters collapse

All About Latest Sports Action: Yuvraj, Ojha prevent catastrophe of 2007

By Syed Khalid Mahmood

Bangladesh may be a soft opposition for other teams but they have always been a formidable opponent for India, who have had the knack of failing against the weakest of outfits.

Bangladesh had spoiled India’s party in the 2007 World Cup in the Caribbean and Rahul Dravid’s team, rated as one of the favourites to lift the trophy, was back home even before the second round.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s lads are the firm favourites to annex the ICC World Twenty20 title for the second time running and there are very few people who’ll dispute India being the strongest team to have taken the field in the competition.


All About Latest Sports Action: Yuvraj, Ojha prevent catastrophe of 2007: "Bangladesh may be a soft opposition for other teams but they have always been a formidable opponent for India, who have had the knack of failing against the weakest of outfits."

Eng stay alive, transfer scare on Pak

That was a lousy effort from Pakistan to say the least. Pakistan gave away far too many runs due to some misfields and the dropped chances didn't help either. When they came out to bat, they had no plans at all and it all went haywire. They never really got going and that has cost them big here. They have a very bad net run rate and now they have to beat Netherlands by a big margin to ensure a place in the next round.

Luke Wright: The way we performed today was exceptional. It was a tough day on Saturday, we took a few things to notice, and I think we came out very well tonight. The guys really did very well and we are happy to have won big here.
Luke Wright is the Man of the Match

Paul Collingwood: The way the boys came out and batted was commendable. We really did well. Today, we came out very strongly. (On Mascarenhas opening the bowling) we will see how the conditions go through the tournament and then decide how to go about giving him the new ball.

Younis Khan: I think chasing 185 is always difficult and we lost early wickets. We dropped too many catches and we need to work on our fielding a lot. We are looking to do well against Netherlands as we need to win well against them to have a good net run rate.

Desperate England face unpredictable Pakistan today

Ground reality and Pitch:
Home to the Surrey County Cricket Club, Kennington Oval was the first ground in Britan and the second in the world after the MCG to host a test match. The Oval holds the record for the largest playing test area in England. The pitch here has traditionally assisted the seamers during the initial phase. However, diligent batting has seen teams post good totals on this ground.

Temperatures: Min - 08 C Max - 17 C Conditions: Partly cloudy

Team Updates:
England: A stunning loss to the minnows Netherlands puts England in a must win situation against Pakistan. Though the England openers Bopara and Luke Wright put on a hundred partnership against the Dutch, The English middle order failed miserably as England ended up with a score of 162/5. Even their bowling and fielding was below average during the match with Stuart Broad being the main culprit. They would have to pull their socks and put up a determined show in order to stay in the tournament.

Pakistan: Having lost two matches in the warm-up games against South Africa and arch-rivals India, Pakistan would be coming into the match trying to put up a better show. They would have to fire in all departments against an English side who would be looking to come back hard after their loss to the minnows. The 17 year old Ahmed Shehzad and the wicket-keeper Kamran Akmal look to be in good form. However the middle order as well as the Pakistan bowling have scope for improvement.

Numbers game:
2: England's losses to minnows in the Twenty20 World Cup. While they lost to the Dutch in the 2009 edition, Zimbabwe had beaten the team during 2007.
1: The number of T20 wins for Pakistan against England. England and Pakistan have faced each other only once in the 20 over format of cricket.

Sound Bytes:
We're still in the tournament, we have 24 hours to get our heads around it and we have to play a hell of a lot better on Sunday. Pakistan are obviously a very good side. They got to the final of the last Twenty20 World Cup, they're very skillful and we're going to have to be at our very, very best to beat that side: England captain Paul Collingwood

Teams:
England (From): Ravinder Bopara, Luke Wright, Kevin Pietersen, Owais Shah, Paul Collingwood(c), Eoin Morgan, James Foster(w), Stuart Broad, Graeme Swann, James Anderson, Ryan Sidebottom, Robert Key, Dimitri Mascarenhas, Graham Napier, Adil Rashid
Pakistan (From): Salman Butt, Ahmed Shehzad, Kamran Akmal(w), Younis Khan(c), Shoaib Malik, Misbah Ul-Haq, Shahid Afridi, Yasir Arafat, Sohail Tanvir, Umar Gul, Rao Iftikhar, Fawad Alam, Saeed Ajmal, Mohammad Aamer, Shahzaib H

Match #4 Preview: India vs Bangladesh

Ground Reality and Pitch:
The Trent Bridge cricket ground is home to the Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club. The stadium is considered to be one of the best grounds in the world to watch a cricket match due to the excellent facilities available here. Trent Bridge also features in Indian history with the cricketing great Sachin Tendulkar passing the 11,000 mark in test cricket at this ground. The pitch at Trent Bridge is tilted more in favour of the batsmen with an even bounce on offer.
Temperatures: Min - 8 C Max - 14 C Conditions: Showers expected

Team Updates:
India: A close knit unit led by an intelligent captain MS Dhoni, the men in blue are a formidable bunch of boys setting new standards for India in world cricket. With Gambhir and Sehwag at the top and the Pathan brothers in the lower middle order, batting has always remained the strength for the sub-continent team. The likes of Raina, Rohit Sharma and Yuvraj Singh along with the 'Mr Cool' captain MS Dhoni, lend a steady hand in the middle order. To add to that, the bowling department has the likes of RP Singh, Praveen Kumar, Harbhajan and Ojha, whose traits with the ball can trouble the best of batsmen. Over all, India seems to have the most balanced line-up coming into the T20 World Cup.

Bangladesh: The main strength of the team lies in their ability to surprise the opposition. Always the under-dogs, Bangladesh are known to upset the major teams. Led by a young captain Mohammad Ashraful, Bangladesh has a unit of young players like Shakib Al Hasan, Junaid Siddique and Raqibul Hasan, who have the ability to post big scores on their own. The bowling department has the likes of Mashrafe Mortaza, Rubel Hossain and Abdur Razzak who have the ability to put the opposition batsmen in a spot of bother.

X Factor:
Raina, Rohit Sharma: Suresh Raina and Rohit Sharma have been good form during their stint with their respective franchisees in the IPL. Apart from their batting, the duo have shown their ability to perform tricks with the ball. Constantly knocking on the doors of test cricket, the pair have the ideal opportunity to showcase their talent during the World T20 Championships.

Numbers game:
0: India and Bangladesh have never faced each other in a T20 encounter.
194.73: Yuvraj Singh's strike rate during the 2007 edition of the World T20.
7: The number of wickets taken by Abdur Razzak during the World T20 2007.

Sound Bytes:
As we prepare for the World Twenty20, we are a superbly unified team. The team spirit is good as it has ever been, with each individual supporting each other, both on and off the field. Recent reports in the Indian media of a rift between myself and Sehwag amount to nothing but false and irresponsible media: MS Dhoni reading out a press statement after there were reports of a rift between him and Sehwag.

Teams:
India (From): Gautam Gambhir, Rohit Sharma, Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, Mahendra Singh Dhoni(w/c), Yusuf Pathan, Irfan Pathan, Harbhajan Singh, Praveen Kumar, Rudra Pratap Singh, Ishant Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, Pragyan Ojha, Zaheer Khan, Virender Sehwag
Bangladesh (From): Tamim Iqbal, Naeem Islam, Mohammad Ashraful(c), Junaid Siddique, Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim(w), Mohammad Mahmudullah, Mashrafe Mortaza, Abdur Razzak, Shahadat Hossain, Syed Rasel, Rubel Hossain, Raqibul Hasan, Mithun Ali, Shamsur Rahman

Match #3 Preview: West Indies vs Australia

Officially known as the Kennington Oval, the stadium is home to the Surrey County Cricket Club. The Oval was the first ground in Britain and the second in the world after MCG to host a test match. The pitch at the Oval has traditionally assisted the seamers during the initial phase. However, diligent batting has seen teams post good totals on this ground.
Temperatures: Min - 11 C Max - 15 C Conditions: Showers expected
Team Updates:

Australia: In the T20 format, where the line between the genius and the merely talented often gets blurred, Australia form a formidable opposition for any team. With a batting order comprising Ponting, Clarke, Haddin, the Husseys and Warner - they have a potential match-turner at every position from 1 to 7. Also, Brett Lee has made a successful return, while Nathan Bracken is amongst the most miserly bowlers around. Australia have the necessary fire power to leave out the likes of Symonds.

West Indies: They have the power hitting of Chris Gayle, the smoothness of Sarwan and the reliability of Chanderpaul while batting, and the raw pace and aggression of Fidel Edwards and Jerome Taylor while bowling. They will also be carrying a lesser weight of expectation than the other major teams, and thus be under comparatively lesser pressure. The Twenty20 format also plays to their strengths, since of late, they have been better in short bursts than for sustained durations of play.

Players to watch:
David Warner: The explosive Australian made his mark with the Delhi side during the IPL 2009. With the ability to explode with the bat and clear boundaries at will as well as produce a moment of genius on the field and manufacture a wicket with his fielding ability alone, David Warner would play a key role for the Austrailan side.

NZ scrape home after a scare

A rather easy victory in the end for New Zealand as they cantered home by 7 wickets. It was a good batting display by Scotland when they were sent in by McCullum, as they posted a good total of 89 in this truncated match. New Zealand started the chase well and with Ryder and the skipper in full flow and a late onslaught by Taylor they achieve the target with an over to spare.

Butler: We were just trying to restrict the boundaries. The next game is a massive one for us.
McCullum: At half time we were obviously pretty nervous. Full credit to the way they batted. When you're chasing a total that big, you haven't got anytime to get yourselves in. Jesse hit the ball incredibly well. We saw how dangerous our batting can be.
Gavin Hamilton: We weren't upto it in the field. We had a plan in terms of coming out in the second half but we didn't put it together. I'm not going to criticize our bowlers.
Ian Butler is the Man of the Match

Minnows Netherlands upset the hosts

It was a breathtaking display by Netherlands to notch up one of the biggest upsets in the tournament. England have only themselves to blame for their loss as atleast 6 lives were given to ten Doeschate alone. ten Doeschate survived them all and took Netherlands to a famous win.

Broad had 3 clear chances to hit the stumps in the final over, amazingly he fluffed them all. If you field as England did today, then you are bound to lose and that is what has happened.

What a magnificent start to the World cup, the rank minnows Netherlands winning against a sloppy England. It was a match to remember for the ages as the fortunes fluctuated from one side to the other. Reekers blazed away at the start and Tom de Grooth notched up a cameo to keep the Dutch in the hunt. Then Schiferli and ten Doeschate finished it off in a heartbreaking last over.

Tom de Grooth: You just play your game and luckily it came off. We set out a few months ago to achieve a few things..we wanted to beat a big nation and we did that.

Jeroen Smits: This is something special. I think I can sleep well tonight. I think after the first 10 overs we fought back quite well. We played with our heart, we had some luck and we deserved to win. We were always ahead of the D/L score and we were in control. Those two last overs...it was difficult... we did well. We're looking forward to the final, it's on the 21st of June, my birthday, I"m looking forward to it.

Collingwood: I give a lot of credit to Holland, they played exceptionally well. We were expected to win today, Holland came out and put in a major performance. We struggled to hit the big shots, Holland played with no fear and they were better than us today. We have to pick ourselves off the floor and be ready for the game against Pakistan.

Tom de Grooth is the Man of the Match for his innings of 49

Match #1 Preview: England vs Netherlands

Ground Reality and Pitch:

Named after its founder Thomas Lord, the Lord's cricket ground is owned by the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is home of the ECB. Known as 'The Mecca of World Cricket', Lord's would play host to 8 matches during the World Twenty20. The pitch is expected to have a consistent bounce, assisting the batsmen and the bowlers in equal proportion. However, the cloudy conditions at the ground might provide assistance to the faster bowlers during the initial period.

Team Updates:

England: The hosts England open the ICC World Twenty20 against Netherlands at Lord's. England head into this tournament without star all-rounder Andrew Flintoff. However, Ravi Bopara's form and Kevin Pietersen's recent outings in the middle are encouraging signs for the English side. With home conditions on offer, the bowling line-up consisting the likes of Stuart Broad and James Anderson would hope to get amongst the wickets. Never having won a major ODI tournament, England would look for a convincing win to start their campaign.

Netherlands: The Dutch have the services of the talented all-rounder Ryan ten Doeschate, who impressed all with his show during the Intercontinental cup. Another star in the line-up is the left-arm pacer Dirk Nannes who made his mark in the IPL 2009 with his impeccable line and length, forcing Delhi to leave out the experienced McGrath from the side. The minnows would hope for a good show from the duo as they attempt an upset against England.

Numbers game:

1: The number of wins for England during the first edition of the World T20.

0: The number of T20 games played by England against Netherlands.

42: Ryan ten Doeschate's batting average in T20 games.

4/11: Dirk Nannes' best figures in Twenty20.

Sound Bytes:

The belief and the freedom to go out there and express yourself is important in this form of the game so hopefully that gives the boys a bit more of a licence: Paul Collingwood

Twenty20 is a funny game, all it takes is for a couple of us to fire and we will be challenging the big boys: Dirk Nannes

Teams:

England (From): Ravinder Bopara, Luke Wright, Owais Shah, Kevin Pietersen, Paul Collingwood(c), Eoin Morgan, James Foster(w), Stuart Broad, Graeme Swann, Ryan Sidebottom, James Anderson, Robert Key, Dimitri Mascarenhas, Graham Napier, Adil Rashid

Netherlands (From): Darron Reekers, Alexei Kervezee, Bas Zuiderent, Ryan ten Doeschate, Jeroen Smits(w/c), Daan van Bunge, Tom de Grooth, Mudassar Bukhari, Dirk Nannes, Edgar Schiferli, Pieter Seelaar, Peter Borren, Maurits Jonkman, Eric Szwarczynski, Ruud Nijma

ICC World Twenty20 2009: Team Preview: South Africa

Many feel South Africa were robbed of a rightful semi-final berth in the inaugural edition. To recap, they played five matches and won four of them. Their only loss came against India, but it was enough to deprive them of a semi-final spot on net run-rate. Ironically, they ended the tournament with a better winning percentage than any other team, including India. With a history littered with so-near-yet-so-far stories, South Africa will be hoping that their recent resurgence continues into this World Cup too.

Strenghts: The team as a whole has been in terrific form recently, and the players' confidence will be very high. Their winning spree has also inculcated a self-belief and a 'can do' attitude in the side. Their team seems to blend its different parts seamlessly together, living out the maxim 'the whole is greater than the sum of the parts'. Their side is packed with all-rounders - some of them of exceptional quality, some of the bits-and-pieces variety - but all effective in their own domains. So they have Kallis to play anchor and support bowler, Albie Morkel for explosive finishes and flexible bowling, van der Merwe for lower order support and spin, Ontong for bits-and-pieces batting and bowling and Boucher as an excellent wicket-keeper batsman. To top it all, JP Duminy has been coming on nicely as a bowler and Botha has shown that he's no rabbit with bat in hand.

Weaknesses: They have a reputation for 'losing it' in the big moments, and choking during big matches. Even though the current side has not displayed that tendency so far, their history is littered with matches where even some of their greatest players failed to seize the day that counted.

Their most potent bowler is Dale Steyn, and although nobody will be taking him lightly, he is yet to prove as effective in Twenty20 cricket as he has been in Test matches and ODIs. Every team that has serious ambitions of lifting the trophy, will look to have in its ranks at least one bowler who can guarantee four spotless overs alongwith being a wicket-taking option. India have Zaheer Khan, Sri Lanka have Malinga, Australia have Brett Lee, Pakistan have Sohail Tanveer - but Steyn, though he has undoubted class, hasn't yet developped into that kind of a T20 bowler.

Opportunities: Their growing stature in world cricket was slightly dented with their home series loss to Australia, and they were brought rudely back to earth after the heady Australian tour. This is the perfect opportunity to get back some of the lost lustre. Some of the young guns have not yet established themselves as certainties in the squad and this could be the stepping stone they want. A good performance here will almost certainly guarantee that they come into the selectors' radar for ODIs at the very least.

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Symonds sent home in disgrace after incident involving alcohol

LONDON: Australian all-rounder Andrew Symonds is being sent home from the World Twenty20 tournament in England for disciplinary reasons, Cricket Australia (CA) said on Thursday.

CA chief executive James Sutherland told a hastily-arranged news conference in Melbourne broadcast on national television that Symonds had been ordered home for alcohol related issues.

‘The decision has been made after Andrew, in the last 24 to 48 hours, has broken a number of team rules,’ Sutherland said.

‘In isolation those breaches are not significant but in the context of the commitment that Andrew has made to his team mates and Cricket Australia over the last six to 12 months they are the final straw.’

Symonds was a notable absentee from Australia training at The Oval in London where captain Ricky Ponting held a news conference.

‘He has let himself down, his team mates down and Cricket Australia down,’ Ponting said. ‘There is no doubting his credentials as a player but there are a number of his own commitments that he has broken over the last 24 or 48 hours.

‘This decision is all about the bigger picture, all about having the best team we can possibly have and bringing on the next generation of Australian players.’

CA said it was seeking clarification from the International Cricket Council about whether they can name a replacement for Symonds in their Twenty20 squad.

Sutherland said Symonds was expected to fly back to Australia immediately and his international career remains in doubt with his contract due to expire at the end of this month.

Symonds had been offered a new deal but Sutherland said that was now under review.

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ICC WT20 Warm Up Matches Results

June 2009
Date	Time (GMT)	Match Details	Venue
Mon 01	12:30	Australia v Bangladesh, 1st warm-up match, ICC World Twenty20 Warm-up Matches, 2009 Australia won by 38 runs	Nottingham
Mon 01	12:30	Ireland v Netherlands, 2nd warm-up match, ICC World Twenty20 Warm-up Matches, 2009 Match tied (Ireland won by super over)	London
Mon 01	16:30	India v New Zealand, 3rd warm-up match, ICC World Twenty20 Warm-up Matches, 2009 New Zealand won by 9 runs	London (D/N)
Mon 01	16:30	Pakistan v South Africa, 4th warm-up match, ICC World Twenty20 Warm-up Matches, 2009 South Africa won by 59 runs	Nottingham (D/N)
Tue 02	12:30	Ireland v West Indies, 5th warm-up match, ICC World Twenty20 Warm-up Matches, 2009 West Indies won by 9 wkts	London
Tue 02	12:30	Bangladesh v Sri Lanka, 6th warm-up match, ICC World Twenty20 Warm-up Matches, 2009 Sri Lanka won by 4 wkts	Nottingham
Tue 02	16:30	Australia v New Zealand, 7th warm-up match, ICC World Twenty20 Warm-up Matches, 2009 Australia won by 7 wkts	London (D/N)
Tue 02	16:30	England v Scotland, 8th warm-up match, ICC World Twenty20 Warm-up Matches, 2009 England won by 6 wkts	Nottingham (D/N)
Wed 03	12:30	Netherlands v Scotland, 10th warm-up match, ICC World Twenty20 Warm-up Matches, 2009 Netherlands won by 7 wkts	London
Wed 03	12:30	South Africa v Sri Lanka, 9th warm-up match, ICC World Twenty20 Warm-up Matches, 2009 South Africa won by 6 wkts	London
Wed 03	16:30	India v Pakistan, 12th warm-up match, ICC World Twenty20 Warm-up Matches, 2009 India won by 9 wkts	London (D/N)
Wed 03	16:30	England v West Indies, 11th warm-up match, ICC World Twenty20 Warm-up Matches, 2009 England won by 9 wkts	London (D/N)

Complete Schedule of ICC World Twenty20, 2009

Date	Time (GMT)	Match Details	Venue
Fri 05	16:30	England v Netherlands, 1st Match, Group B, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	London (D/N)
Sat 06	09:00	New Zealand v Scotland, 2nd Match, Group D, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	London
Sat 06	12:30	Australia v West Indies, 3rd Match, Group C, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	London
Sat 06	16:30	India v Bangladesh, 4th Match, Group A, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	Nottingham (D/N)
Sun 07	12:30	South Africa v Scotland, 5th Match, Group D, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	London
Sun 07	16:30	England v Pakistan, 6th Match, Group B, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	London (D/N)
Mon 08	12:30	Bangladesh v Ireland, 7th Match, Group A, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	Nottingham
Mon 08	16:30	Australia v Sri Lanka, 8th Match, Group C, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	Nottingham (D/N)
Tue 09	12:30	Pakistan v Netherlands, 9th Match, Group B, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	London
Tue 09	16:30	New Zealand v South Africa, 10th Match, Group D, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	London (D/N)
Wed 10	12:30	Sri Lanka v West Indies, 11th Match, Group C, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	Nottingham
Wed 10	16:30	India v Ireland, 12th Match, Group A, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	Nottingham (D/N)
Thu 11	12:30	D1 v A2, 13th Match, Group F, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	Nottingham
Thu 11	16:30	B2 v D2, 14th Match, Group E, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	Nottingham (D/N)
Fri 12	12:30	B1 v C2, 15th Match, Group F, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	London
Fri 12	16:30	A1 v C1, 16th Match, Group E, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	London (D/N)
Sat 13	12:30	C1 v D2, 17th Match, Group E, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	London
Sat 13	16:30	D1 v B1, 18th Match, Group F, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	London (D/N)
Sun 14	12:30	A2 v C2, 19th Match, Group F, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	London
Sun 14	16:30	A1 v B2, 20th Match, Group E, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	London (D/N)
Mon 15	12:30	B2 v C1, 21st Match, Group E, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	London
Mon 15	16:30	B1 v A2, 22nd Match, Group F, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	London (D/N)
Tue 16	12:30	D1 v C2, 23rd Match, Group F, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	Nottingham
Tue 16	16:30	D2 v A1, 24th Match, Group E, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	Nottingham (D/N)
Thu 18	16:30	1st Semi-Final, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	Nottingham
Fri 19	16:30	2nd Semi-Final, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	London (D/N)
Sun 21	14:00	Final, ICC World Twenty20, 2009	London