IPL 2013 Match 42 Pune Warriors v Chennai Super Kings

Chennai Super Kings 164 for 3 (Raina 63*, Dhoni 45*) beat Pune Warriors 127 for 9 (Mohit Sharma 3-21) by 37 runs

Chennai Super Kings continued with their formula of going at roughly a run a ball for the first 10 overs, keeping wickets in hand, and then exploding to take 10 an over off the last 10. On a pitch on which the ball seamed and bounced variably, they reached 55 for 2 after 10 overs, but Suresh Raina, S Badrinath and MS Dhoni looted 109 in the rest of the innings to set up an easy 37-run, sixth consecutive win, which kept them at the top of the table and Pune Warriors at the bottom.

With the ball seaming around, Super Kings lost their openers for 28 runs, that too thanks to generous umpiring. However, out came their crisis man Badrinath, and did his job without any fuss. He and Raina added 75 off 59, without taking risks, and picking the rate up progressively. Raina kept providing the odd boundary, and Badrinath found the gaps for ones and twos.

It was in the 13th over that the real charge began. Badrinath drove consecutive deliveries from Rahul Sharma down the ground and through point for fours to take his strike past 100. Raina's was already a healthier strike rate, but he accelerated by sending Kane Richardson over midwicket for a six in the next over.

Badrinath fell in the 16th over, but he and Super Kings will know he fell at just the right time, after just the right innings of 34 off 31. Dhoni came out and took four and six off the first two balls he faced. The six was a demoralising - for the fielding side - punch off the back foot, over extra cover.

Dhoni then took apart Ashok Dinda, a bowler he is often criticised for not giving enough chances. He took 25 off eight Dinda's deliveries, two of them swept boundaries, and one a six off the last ball of the innings. Seamlessly Raina went from being the dominant partner in the earlier partnership to taking back seat and watching Dhoni subdue the bowlers. Along the way he brought up his second half-century of the season.

The target was bigger than ever chased in Pune, which became more daunting because of the seam movement available. Mohit Sharma, the Haryana fast bowler who has been the find of the season for Super Kings, utilised it to end the chase for all intents and purposes with an unbroken four-over spell. With successive deliveries in his first over, he got rid of Aaron Finch and T Suman. He missed the hat-trick, but got Yuvraj Singh to edge behind, making it 43 for 4 in the fifth over. There was no way back from there.

IPL 2013 Match 41 Mumbai Indians v Kings XI Punjab

Mumbai Indians 174 for 3 (Rohit 79*, Smith 33) beat Kings XI Punjab 170 (Miller 56, Hussey 34, Harbhajan 3-14) by four runs
The glorious uncertainties of T20 cricket are also heavily reliant, sometimes, on mediocrity. Mumbai Indians were the relieved team at the end, having, only just, prevented Kings XI Punjab from pulling off a heist that, had it been achieved, would have left the hosts embarrassed.
 

Mumbai Indians had no business allowing the game to be decided off the last ball, after having dismissed a threatening David Miller which left Kings XI to chase 26 off the final two overs with just one wicket in hand. Kings XI still needed 17 in the last bowled by Dhawal Kulkarni. Six out of eight deliveries bowled in that over were full tosses, one of them was given a no-ball and another should have been - it was clearly above the waist - but wasn't, neither by Asad Rauf at square leg or AK Chaudhary at the bowling crease.

 

Praveen Kumar dispatched a juicy full toss on the pads for six off the penultimate ball to bring the equation down to five off the last delivery - also a full toss - but spooned a catch to Sachin Tendulkar. It completed a nerve-wracking win for the hosts, but left many wondering what might have been had the umpires, or even Kulkarni, who was fortunate not to have bowled to a more accomplished batsman, got their act right. The end had a touch of the bizarre, and was anti-climactic, as the umpires tried to double-check if the final delivery was a no-ball as Mumbai celebrated; it turned out to be comfortably below the waist with Kulkarni's foot well behind the line.

Kings XI Punjab raise no-ball issue with IPL Kings XI Punjab have reported to the IPL their concern with the fourth delivery of the final over of the match bowled by Dhawal Kulkarni. The delivery was a full toss above the waist, but was not adjudged a no-ball by the on-field umpires Asad Rauf and AK Chaudhary. It is understood that the Australian pair of David Hussey and Darren Lehmann have complained about the incident in their captain and coach report. According to the IPL rules, the team management has no further avenues to lodge any protest.

The most relieved of all of Mumbai's players, presumably, will be their captain Rohit Sharma. At the stroke of the midnight hour, he turned 26, and it would have been a birthday he wished he would have forgotten had Kings XI won.

 

 All the more because he had played a critical role in getting Mumbai to 174 after his team's scratchy start, with just 48 coming off the first nine overs. It is not often that Kieron Pollard plays second fiddle during the death overs of a T20 innings, but rotating the strike was all he needed to do as Rohit took over the role of aggressor.

 

So cleanly did Rohit - who scored his fourth half-century this season - strike the ball, he cleared the boundary by a distance his unusually subdued partner today has acquired a reputation to match, albeit with much lesser effort. During their unbeaten stand of 88, of which 72 were scored in the last five overs, Pollard scored at less than a run a ball and hit just one six and a four.

 

At the other end, Rohit looked a figure of assuredness, though against some insipid Kings XI bowling that included a spate of extras, full tosses and deliveries bowled down leg. In the final over of the innings, which went for 27, David Hussey, captaining in place of a dropped Adam Gilchrist, sinned by bowling length and was smashed by Rohit for three sixes, one ending in the top tier behind midwicket, and two fours. Just as some fortune for Mumbai in the final over of the chase, this too proved decisive.

 

Kings XI appeared to be in the game even after losing two early wickets and then Shaun Marsh to a stunning one-handed catch from Pollard on the long-on boundary. Hussey and David Miller counterattacked, the former helping snatch 32 in the last two overs of the Powerplay. The introduction of spin, Harbhajan Singh's miserly spell that included three wickets, and Hussey's dismissal slowed down the innings considerably, but Miller continued to give Mumbai a scare with timely blows over the fence, two of them off Pollard followed by one each off Mitchell Johnson and Kulkarni. His innings of 56 ended when he struck Johnson straight to extra cover in the 18th over, but little did anyone know what was in store.

IPL 2013 Match 40 RR v RCB

Rajasthan Royals 173 for 6 (Samson 63, Watson 41) beat Royal Challengers Bangalore 171 for 6 (Gayle 34, Watson 3-22) by 4 wickets

For the second time this season, Rajasthan Royals promoted a wicketkeeper to No. 3, and stunned the opposition to set up a win. Chasing 172, with Shane Watson, Brad Hodge and Owais Shah yet to bat, Kerala's 18-year-old Sanju Samson scored 63 off 41, leaving Royals 56 to get off 34 balls, which they chased, but not without the mandatory inexplicable drama that is the IPL's USP. Watson, who left the chase all but finished, had been instrumental in keeping Royal Challengers, who have now lost all their four away matches, down with the wickets of Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli among his three.

The game began with Royals presenting Gayle spin when hostile short bowling has only managed to trouble him. Gayle raced away, but Watson got him for 34 off 16 with an innocuous-looking delivery angling away from him. From 44 for 1 in four overs, Royal Challengers went without a boundary for 6.1 overs. The run rate fell, and when AB de Villiers and Kohli tried to correct it, they both holed out.

 

With the innings not going anywhere, R Vinay Kumar gave them a fighting target with three sixes of James Faulkner in the final over, two of those off slower balls. Faulkner had had a good birthday until then with two catches a run-out. Vinay would try to turn the game around in the last over of the next innings too, but that's for later.

 

In the chase, Royals stayed with their plan of using Watson lower down the order. Rahul Dravid and Ajinkya Rahane opened, and got them off to a swift enough start, but it was Samson who pinched Royal Challengers. There might have been the odd slog, but a major part of the innings relied on cricketing shots. The standout was successive sixes over extra cover to welcome Murali Kartik, who would have hoped he had not recovered from his illness in time for this match.

 

Those sixes took Royals to 60 for 2 in 7.2 overs, and the chase was on its way. Watson played the second fiddle while Samson went at it, reaching 25 off 21 by the time Samson fell. Watson and Hodge went about with the pursuit coolly until Hodge seemed to have killed off the chase with two sixes off Ravi Rampaul in the 18th over. If you thought 18 off 15 was the done thing, though, you haven't watched enough of IPL.

 

Watson top-edged RP Singh in the next over, but six off six was easy enough. However, Hodge tried to finish it off in one hit, and was bowled to leave five to get off four. Owais Shah then managed to get run out at the non-danger end, and we were smack in the middle of an IPL implosion. Back to the same last-over characters: Vinay and Faulkner.

 

Faulkner took the single, and then Stuart Binny pulled a four to beat the team that carries his home city's name.

2nd Test Day 5 Bangladesh v Zimbabwe

Bangladesh 391 (Shakib Al Hasan 81, Chigumbura 3-75) and 291 for 9 dec (Mushfiqur 93, Nasir 67*, S Masakadza 4-58) beat Zimbabwe 282 (Chigumbura 86, Mutumbami 42, Robiul 5-85, Gazi 4-59) and 257 (H Masakadza 111*, Rahman 4-63, Shakib Al Hasan 3-52) by 143 runs
Bangladesh beat Zimbabwe by 143 runs and levelled the two-match series 1-1, bringing parity after going down miserably in the first Test. It was Bangladesh's first Test win since August 2009, and their fourth victory overall. Their maiden Test win had come against Zimbabwe in 2005 before they beat West Indies 2-0 almost four years ago. The victory also brought a winning end to a season in which Bangladesh made progress as a Test side.

Zimbabwe's last-wicket pair of Hamilton Masakadza and Kyle Jarvis held up Bangladesh for 11.3 overs, but their resistance ended when Jarvis fell leglbw to Shakib Al Hasan 20 minutes before the tea break.

Bangladesh made it to the finish line with help from an unlikely quarter. Debutant Ziaur Rahman was hardly expected to be an influence with the ball but he picked up 4 for 63 with his medium pace, playing the role of the third seamer. Forced to give up pace bowling due to a debilitating knee condition, Rahman has played a lot of his recent cricket as a batting allrounder.

Zimbabwe gave a good account of their fighting ability too, but they failed to reproduce the impressive showing from the first Test. They were bowled out for 257, having extended the game beyond lunch.

Hamilton Masakadza was steadfast at the crease, reaching his third Test hundred with a massive six. The hundred came off 212 balls and included ten fours and four sixes. The unbeaten knock was far better than the numbers suggest, given that most of his runs came while batting with the tail.

For all of his effort, Masakadza could not have saved the Test on his own. The Bangladesh bowlers managed to get the required wickets easily: Shingi Masakadza missed a sweep shot just after the drinks break, Elton Chigumbura chipped one down short midwicket's throat and Richmond Mutumbami dragged the ball on to the stumps after the lunch break.

Ashraful took the wicket of the younger Masakadza, who made 24 off 90 balls. It was the first breakthrough of the morning, after 18.1 overs. Soon after, Chigumbura was caught by Robiul off Sohag Gazi's bowling. Mutumbami was dismissed by Ziaur Rahman, who also took the wicket of Graeme Cremer, edging the ball to Nasir Hossain at first slip.

Cremer and Mutumbami were expected to be stumbling blocks but the Bangladesh bowlers did not give in to Zimbabwe's resistance. Keegan Meth, batting with a right knee injury, was the ninth wicket to fall and the lbw decision went Bangladesh's way after a loud and prolonged appeal; not the first doubtful decision of the match.

Robiul, who was named Man of the Series, also reached another landmark in the Test. He became the first Bangladesh pace bowler to bowl more than 100 overs in a Test series, surpassing the record previously held by Khaled Mahmud, who bowled 99 overs in a three-Test series against Pakistan in 2003.

It was perhaps apt that the two teams ended on even terms. There were periods of attritional cricket and both teams made several mistakes. The umpiring was shoddy, too, but in the end, the series will be remembered for performances from Brendan Taylor and Robiul.

IPL 2013 Match 39 Delhi v Pune

Delhi Daredevils 164 for 5 (Warner 51*, Dinda 3-31) beat Pune Warriors 149 for 4 (Finch 37, Uthappa 37, Yadav 2-24) by 15 runs

A counter-attack in the middle order from David Warner and a miserly 18th over in the chase from Umesh Yadav gave some relief for Delhi Daredevils with a victory in the battle of the bottom-placed teams this season. The win was only their second, as the Pune Warriors bowlers faltered after making inroads into Daredevils' batting order and the batsmen struggled to step up when it mattered against some impressive fast bowling at the death in the chase. Warriors now find themselves at the bottom of the table in what is a third poor season in a row.

Raipur is further from Delhi than it is from Pune (1253 as opposed to 1025 kilometres), but on its IPL debut the crowd was overwhelmingly pro-Daredevils and got the result they desired. Warner restored their faith in the side with a surge he launched in the 13th over of the Daredevils innings, retaining the tone he set then during a stand of 51 with Kedar Jadhav that took his side to 164. Yuvraj Singh and Luke Wright looked on track to chase that down until they ran into Umesh, whose skillful use of alterations in length and pace accounted for both those wickets and all but consigned Warriors to their seventh defeat.

Warner was charged with the responsibility of leading Daredevils' recovery after the loss of Virender Sehwag and Unmukt Chand in a space of three deliveries. He did that successfully by reserving the harshest treatment for a spate of poor deliveries offered to him by the Warriors bowlers, who generously pitched on a length. And he was powerful enough to comfortably clear boundaries longer than there have been at other venues this season.
 

He began with a clean, straight six off legspinner Rahul Sharma, then pulled IPL debutant Kane Richardson over deep midwicket. Ashok Dinda's failed attempts at bowling the yorker resulted in three fours drilled down the ground in one over, before Richardson, in the penultimate over, was struck, again, over wide long-on and his head. The 19th over cost 21 runs, including another straight six by Jadhav, who, too, was severe on the length ball. The last five overs yielded 63 runs, 34 of those from the last two.

Robin Uthappa and Aaron Finch have been a productive opening pair and their 72-run stand gave Warriors a strong platform. Both were dismissed, Finch albeit unluckily, by deliveries bowled down the leg side by Irfan Pathan in the 11th over, but Yuvraj and Wright batted fluently. Yuvraj unleashed a stylish drive and cut off Irfan in his next over, collected a couple of boundaries past fine leg, while Wright flat-batted the seamers past the ropes on two occasions.
 

The stand was worth 50 in 45 balls at the start of the 18th over, when 37 runs were needed. Umesh began with two dot balls to Wright, one of them a yorker, before slipping in a slower one to deceive Wright, who holed out. Yuvraj was only able to score two runs off the next two, and top-edged one straight to deep square leg when Umesh dug in a short delivery to finish the over. Steven Smith can be a finisher, but 35 runs off two overs was a task that proved beyond him.

2nd Test Day 4 Bangladesh v Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe 282 and 138 for 4 (H Masakadza 46*) need another 263 runs to beat Bangladesh 391 and 291 for 9 dec (Mushfiqur 93, Nasir 67*, Shakib 59, S Masakadza 4-58)
The moment Ziaur Rahman hit Brendan Taylor's pad in front of the stumps and the umpire raised his finger, Bangladesh were closer to a rare Test win. At the end of the fourth day of the second and final Test, Zimbabwe were 138 for 4, chasing a 401-run target set up by Mushfiqur Rahim's 93.

The Zimbabwe captain's wicket was the one Mushfiqur would have wanted more than the seven runs by which he missed his third Test hundred. After umpire Ian Gould lifted his finger, it was easy to see and hear what it meant to the fielding side which was screaming for joy. Zimbabwe were 96 for 3, with their best batsman and captain out of the equation with a day remaining.

 

Malcolm Waller also fell to Ziaur for 15, missing a straightening delivery as his lack of footwork shackled him to the crease. Shingirai Masakadza was sent in as the nightwatchman at 118 for 4 with more than 15 overs remaining in the day, a strange decision but one which ultimately paid off. His elder brother Hamilton held his own at the other end, unbeaten on 46 off 94 balls.

 

Zimbabwe started the fourth innings positively but in the tenth over, Regis Chakabva played inside the line of a Shakib Al Hasan delivery which spun past to strike off. Vusi Sibanda fell soon after for a 50-ball 32, driving one straight to Sohag Gazi at short cover off Shakib.

 

Mushfiqur would thank his lucky stars that finally bowlers other than Robiul Islam stood up. Ziaur bowled a 10-over spell, mainly focused on being accurate. He hardly has pace like he did a few years ago, but managed to bring in his shoulders to generate speed. Shakib and Gazi bowled tightly too, both using a typical left-arm spinner and offspinner's line. There was hardly a loose ball.

 

Bangladesh declared about an hour after lunch on 291 for 9, going ahead of the home side by exactly 400 runs. Shakib, Mushfiqur and Nasir Hossain hit their second fifties of the game.

 

Nasir stretched the lead with the tail, making an unbeaten 67 and scoring most of the 40 runs that came after lunch. Apart from his effort, Bangladesh's dominance was also due to captain Mushfiqur's attentiveness to the situation.

 

He made 93 before being brilliantly caught at gully by Sibanda off Hamilton Masakadza, and his persistence was crucial to his side's staying power. Along with Nasir, he had to see off the first half-hour, which has often produced wickets in Harare. Though they hardly found boundaries because the home side had deep fielders on both sides, they played carefully. Zimbabwe bowled wide too, and the batsmen cut out the rash shots.

 

Mushfiqur and Nasir were happy picking up singles until the captain began to open up with a mistimed scoop and a slog-sweep - both off Elton Chigumbura. He had earlier hit a cover drive that sped to the boundary but the wicket had slowed down, and bounce was also on the low side. He and Nasir added 84 for the sixth wicket, back-to-back 80-plus partnerships for Mushfiqur, after his fifth-wicket stand with Shakib on the third evening.

 

Taylor missed the long hours put in by Keegan Meth, who is out with a right knee injury. He was seen sitting on the sidelines with his feet up and knee strapped. Hamilton Masakadza, bowling medium-pace, took three wickets but was never going to be as big a threat to the visitors. Kyle Jarvis did not bowl with the venom of the first Test, but Shingi Masakadza remained steady and picked up four wickets.

 

Had the Zimbabwe bowlers put up a better show even on the fourth morning, the Test match could have remained competitive. Bangladesh got most of what happened on the fourth day their way, though there again was the odd leg-before decision that they were denied. They would still take it, given they are closing in on a Test win for the first time in nearly four years.

IPL 2013 Match 38 Chennai Super Kings v KKR

Chennai Super Kings 200 for 3 (Hussey 95, Raina 44) beat Kolkata Knight Riders 186 for 4 (Bisla 92) by 14 runs

In the searing heat of Chennai, the home side, Chennai Super Kings, soared to the top of the table with a 14-run win over the defending champions, Kolkata Knight Riders. Michael Hussey and the newcomer Wriddhiman Saha stunned the visitors with a 103-run opening stand, Hussey continued hurting them even after the loss of Saha, and the run rate hovered around 10. Hussey missed the century by five runs, but he had set up a daunting task for Knight Riders, who had asked the hosts to bat first.
 

Sunil Narine and Jacques Kallis both registered their second-worst analyses in IPL, going for 35 and 51 respectively. Like in the final of the last IPL at the same venue, Manvinder Bisla scored 92 - he was out on 43 but not given, which kept Knight Riders fighting, but the target was too big, especially with next to little support from the other end.

 

Coming in ahead of M Vijay, who has scored only 122 runs in eight matches at a strike rate of less than a run a ball, Saha, the Bengal wicketkeeper-batsman, was the surprise package. And Hussey, he was just Hussey. He began with a flick off a loose delivery down the leg side, and then hit L Balaji three straight fours - two of them over extra cover, and one edged through slip.

 

Saha then went after his Bengal team-mate, Shami Ahmed, taking four, four and six in the fourth over. After Hussey took Narine apart in the fifth over, and Saha Kallis in the sixth, Super Kings had registered their best Powerplay of this season, 67 for 0. Hussey reached his fifty as early as the eight over, and despite the oppressive heat he kept converting every one-and-a-half into two.

Saha's wicket came and went, but the run rate refused to go down. Hussey's wicket came and went - agonisingly short of the milestone and off a long hop - but even that didn't slow the run rate down. When it did seem to slow down, MS Dhoni got a full toss off the last ball of the innings, and duly took six.

 

Knight Riders got a good start with an extras-ridden Dirk Nannes start, but Chris Morris soon removed Gautam Gambhir. Bisla, struggling at that time, got going with four fours off Morris in the fifth over, but at the other end Brendon McCullum played Mohit Sharma on to make it 63 for 2 after six overs.

 

An ideal period followed for Super Kings as Kallis and Bisla both struggled to hit the boundaries or alternate the strike, and by the time the next boundary was hit, a six off the last ball of the 10th over, the asking rate had reached 11.6.

 

The pressure resulted in mistakes, but in the next two overs Dhoni missed a stumping and the third umpire refused to acknowledge a run-out, a result of a canny deflection from Dhoni. Kallis soon fell to an ungainly ramp, leaving about 13 an over, whoch would soon cross 15. Bisla and Eoin Morgan gave it a fair go, brin ging it down to 29 off the last two overs, but Hussey once again killed it off with a direct hit from mid-on.

IPL 2013 Match 37 Mumbai Indians v RCB

Mumbai Indians 194 for 7 (Smith 50, Karthik 43) beat Royal Challengers Bangalore 136 for 7 (Kulkarni 3-19) by 58 runs
In five overs of high-quality fast bowling, easily the best cricket seen in this IPL, Mitchell Johnson and Lasith Malinga pushed Chris Gayle and Tillakaratne Dilshan into a corner with accurate, fast and hostile short-pitched bowling. They had been severely restricted, and Dhawan Kulkarni and Harbhajan Singh then came on to pin them and consign Royal Challengers Bangalore, the table leaders, to a 58-run defeat.

In Royal Challengers' previous match, Gayle had scored 175 and added 167 runs with Dilshan to encourage superlatives that would have you believe it was impossible to bowl to Gayle. Nobody told Johnson and Malinga, though. This was a similar pitch to the one in Bangalore where Gayle caused the mayhem. The outfield was similarly small, top edges flew for sixes here too, but unlike the opposition then, Johnson and Malinga had the pace, and they were prepared to bounce Gayle.

Gayle likes to bide his time, is unhurried, and plays percentage cricket, seemingly at will. He wasn't allowed to do any of that. He did play a superb pull early in the chase when Johnson bowled one into the ribs but he still managed to smack it to deep midwicket for six. Johnson didn't back off. He placed a deep midwicket, and went back to bouncing Gayle some more. Now he began to get it higher.

And Malinga, he has never been hit for a six by Gayle in the IPL. He wasn't about to today. However, Malinga's first over was dedicated to making life difficult for countryman Tillakaratne Dilshan. One swing-and-miss followed another as Malinga kept swinging it away from Dilshan. At 10 for 0 after two overs, the openers were shaken. Stirring was to begin soon.

First came the shot you will rarely ever see Gayle play: the ramp. Johnson got one to bounce disconcertingly towards the throat, and Gayle tried to clear slips with an open face. This one bounced extra, caught the glove, and just about cleared the slips. Dilshan immediately took a single to send Gayle back to face the chin music. Johnson continued with two more bouncers, Gayle pulled at both, but in a different postal code. Beaten by the bounce on both occasions.

In the next over, Malinga hit him on the left shoulder, the rear shoulder. This was no slower bouncer, Malinga bowled it like he meant to. He followed it up with a superb yorker. Thankfully, Mumbai didn't back off, as T20 generally encourages teams to do. Johnson got a third over. He beat Gayle with a left-armer's outswinger. Gayle was caught on the crease, expecting a bouncer. This was more Suresh Raina than Gayle. He was well and truly out of his comfort zone.

Gayle did get two fours off mis-hits in that fifth over, but still he was only 17 off 16, and Dilshan 13 off 14. This was a rude shock for Royal Challengers. On came Kulkarni, a lesser bowler of lesser pace playing his first game of the season. Bowling on a pitch he knows as well as the back of his hand, Kulkarni got bounce and away movement, Dilshan went after it, and Johnson completed a special catch at third man. You couldn't keep Johnson out of action.

In the next over, Rohit Sharma introduced Harbhajan Singh, who teased Gayle with flight and slow pace. Gayle slog-swept, got a thick edge, and it took the best of Ambati Rayudu - who had been run out earlier when a bowler inadvertently knocked his bat out of the crease - to take the catch at cow corner. It kicked off wild celebrations, and Harbhajan pulled out an improvised version of Gangnam-style.

Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers were too stunned, and followed shortish and wide deliveries and guided them to the keeper. Kulkarni had helped kill the game in the eighth over of the chase. To be fair to Gayle, though, he has been tested before, and he endures those spells even if it means he has to wait for 10 overs. Tonight, though, Mumbai had got the strategy and execution right. They didn't want to give Gayle that freedom, which usually comes with batting first. And they also put on 194 on the board, which meant the pressure of asking rate accumulated with every bouncer that beat him.

IPL 2013 Match 36 RR v SRH

Rajasthan Royals 146 for 2 (Watson 98) beat Sunrisers Hyderabad 144 for 9 (Sammy 60, Faulkner 5-20) by 8 wickets
The match had almost all the ingredients of an absorbing Twenty20 contest. Sunrisers Hyderabad lost their top order in a cycle-stand collapse, before Darren Sammy led a lower-order revival to push the score to 144. On a pitch assisting the seamers, Rajasthan Royals had to deal with a testing opening period of swing and seam, which the experienced duo of Rahul Dravid and Shane Watson negotiated. Watson, coming off a century in Chennai, paced his innings and powered Royals home with a blistering unbeaten 98.

Watson wasn't the only Australian making waves at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium. James Faulkner demolished the Sunrisers' top order during a five-wicket haul, the first of IPL 2013. Faulkner and the innocuous Ajit Chandila reduced Sunrisers to 29 for 6, raising expectations of early finish. The top six registered scores of 2,0,4,4,6,4 - leaving much responsibility on Sammy.

Kumar Sangakkara had dropped himself for three games owing to his indifferent form, but his return made no difference as he joined the early procession of wickets. After Akshath Reddy fell off a leading edge against Chandila, Sangakkara chased a wide delivery from Faulkner and edged to second slip for 4.

Though the pitch gave a lot of assistance to the seamers in terms of movement and bounce, the shot selection by the Sunrisers was poor. Shikhar Dhawan slashed straight to backward point and Karan Sharma, walking in unexpectedly at No.5 - just as Amit Mishra did in Chennai - succumbed to the pressure of needing quick runs by top edging Faulkner to fine leg. Thisara Perera perished to a one-handed slog down to long-on before Hanuma Vihari gloved Kevon Cooper down the leg side. It was the first time Royals had managed so many wickets in the Powerplay.

Sammy and Amit Mishra scripted Sunrisers' recovery with a stand of 58. Sammy made room against the seamers to clear cover and shoveled the ball over midwicket to give the innings some impetus. He hit the first six of the innings in the 13th, a pull off Siddharth Trivedi over deep midwicket. He celebrated his fifty - his first in T20s - in unique style, pulling out a baby pacifier tied around his neck sucking at it, for his baby daughter.

The seventh, eighth and ninth wickets added 115, giving the Sunrisers bowlers a fighting total to try and defend.

Watson and Dravid, however, used their experience to counter the swing and prevent the loss of early wickets. Several deliveries came back into the right-hander, but Watson ensured he played the ball late, dabbing it down to third man and behind point. He did offer some chances, though. On 16, an outside edge off Perera just beat a diving Sangakkara, and another just dropped short of Sammy at slip.

Royals had progressed to 53 for 1 after ten overs, with the asking rate passing nine. The partnership gathered pace in the second half of the innings, Dravid launching Royals' march with a six over long-on. A costly Ishant Sharma over, which leaked 20, included three fours and a six by Watson. The next, off Perera, went for 15 and hastened Royals' march to the target. Three powerful blows to deep midwicket, by Watson off Karan Sharma, sealed a clinical win.

2nd Test Day 3 Bangladesh v Zimbabwe

Bangladesh 391 and 163 for 5 (Shakib 59, Mushfiqur 50*, S Masakadza 3-33) lead Zimbabwe 282 (Chigumbura 86, Robiul 5-85, Gazi 4-59) by 272 runs
The second and final Test between Zimbabwe and Bangladesh continues to hang by the proverbial thread. Bangladesh are 272 runs ahead with five wickets in hand, but are some way from dominating the proceedings.

Zimbabwe fought back manfully in the second session, taking three quick wickets just before tea and adding two more in the final session. They were lucky too, being on the favourable end of two poor umpiring decisions and Shakib Al Hasan's appalling shot late in the day.

 

Shakib and captain Mushfiqur Rahim consolidated after Bangladesh had slipped to 65 for 4. The pair added 84 until Shakib got impatient, charged at Hamilton Masakadza's innocuous medium-pace and edged behind like he had in the first innings. He fell this time for 59 off 104 balls, and had looked mostly in command. He was, however, dropped twice in the same region, behind point, on 45 and 48 but ultimately it was his own poor thinking that brought about his downfall.

 

Mushfiqur remained solid till the end, remaining at the crease on 50 off 85 balls, tight in his defensive play. He was also mindful of variable bounce in the wicket, but took it ball by ball, rather than going after the bowling. It was quite different than the start of the Bangladesh second innings, which was nothing short of frenzy.

 

Tamim Iqbal was the first to suffer at the hands of the umpire. The Shingi Masakadza delivery which rose considerably didn't touch his bat as replays showed; in fact, the ball was quite far from the edge. But he was given the marching orders by umpire Tony Hill, who had earlier given two poor decisions in the Zimbabwe first innings too.

 

Within a few overs, umpire Ian Gould was in action, adjudging Mohammad Ashraful leg-before to make it 18 for 3 when the Kyle Jarvis delivery looked to be sliding down even on first viewing. The replays confirmed this notion. Jahurul Islam was the second wicket to fall, when he prodded at a ball that was quite away from his body, edging it on way to the wicketkeeper.

 

After tea, Mominul Haque gave away another good start and edged Shingi Masakadza to first slip to make it three for the fast bowler. The edge was easily caught by his brother Hamilton, the first instance in which both brothers were involved. Mominul had survived a dropped catch by Vusi Sibanda on 2 and a run-out in the 13th over, but he couldn't make that count.

 

Zimbabwe looked to be in the ascendancy with Shingi Masakadza bowling quite well. But they suffered without Keegan Meth's accuracy and were later stalled by the Shakib-Mushfiqur partnership. The home side had earlier taken some control of the game in the first session with the bat but gave it away soon enough.

 

Robiul Islam took five wickets, being Mushfiqur's go-to man at every juncture. In the morning session, he broke the vital sixth-wicket stand between Elton Chigumbura and Richmond Mutumbami. He continued to be very accurate, unusual for a Bangladesh fast bowler. The other rare trait in this series for him has been his willingness to keep bowling.

He found very little support from the two other seamers, as Mushfiqur insisted on using him in long spells. Sajidul Islam and Ziaur Rahman were hardly used, although the latter had Keegan Meth dropped at fine leg by Robiul.

 

Chigumbura hammered eight fours and a six in his 111-ball 86, but he couldn't complete the century after Robiul wrecked his off stump with a beautiful delivery. Before the dismissal, he got Zimbabwe past the follow-on mark and gave his bowlers a smaller deficit.

 

He added 85 for the sixth wicket with Mutumbami, who made 42. The pair began slowly, but Chigumbura started to find boundaries regularly. Mutumbami joined in, even hammering a six off Shakib.

 

Zimbabwe had gone off to a poor start to the day when Malcolm Waller holed out at deep square leg to a Sohag Gazi long-hop. It was a lucky day for Gazi who added the wicket of Meth, caught behind down the leg side. Gazi finished with four wickets, while Shakib took one. It was Shakib's show with the bat, though, that was crucial.

Zimbabwe 282 (Chigumbura 86, Robiul 5-85, Gazi 4-59) trail Bangladesh 391 by 109 runs

Zimbabwe conceded a lead of 109 runs in the first innings after they were bowled out shortly after lunch on the third day in Harare. Robiul Islam hastened the end, picking up five wickets and becoming the first Bangladesh quick to take back-to-back five-wicket hauls.

With most of the second session and the third session left to play, Bangladesh had a great opportunity to give Zimbabwe a large target to chase. The visitors would have to score quickly in the second innings, however, to give themselves enough time to take ten wickets.

 

Robiul was Zimbabwe's main threat as he worked through the entire innings, maintaining accuracy and bowling outswingers. He was used by his captain Mushfiqur Rahim at every opportunity, whether it was with the new or old ball, and before or after breaks.

 

Robiul had picked up two wickets on the second day, those of Regis Chakabva and Vusimuzi Sibanda early on. On the third morning, he broke the Elton Chigumbura-Richmond Mutumbami resistance, getting rid of both batsmen after they rescued the home side from a collapse. Robiul later dismissed Shingirai Masakadza to complete the five-for. He once again bowled the most number of overs - 33 - and was very much at home in the Harare conditions.

 

Sohag Gazi picked up four wickets, including the big one of Brendan Taylor, but he was lucky to get two of those wickets. Taylor had holed out for 36 on the second evening, but Gazi's next two wickets were down to the batsmen's mistakes. Malcolm Waller holed out to a long-hop on the third morning for 32, before Keegan Meth edged a ball going down the leg-side. Gazi rounded off the Zimbabwe innings by clean bowling Kyle Jarvis.

 

For Zimbabwe, Chigumbura's 86 was the key to avoiding the follow-on. He helped the team past the mark with a straight six off Robiul, and added eight boundaries during his attacking innings. He had help from Mutumbami, the newcomer showing enough patience to work out the Bangladesh bowling throughout the first session. Graeme Cremer held on after the lunch break but the Bangladesh bowlers let Zimbabwe add only 28 runs before shutting them out.


Lunch Zimbabawe 257 for 7 (Chigumbura 86, Robiul 4-72) trail Bangladesh 391 (Shakib 81, Chigumbura 3-75) by 134 runs

Elton Chigumbura kept Bangladesh at bay throughout the morning session, but was bowled by Robiul Islam at the stroke of lunch as Zimbabwe scored 99 runs for the loss of three wickets. They are 257 for 7, a significant recovery from their score of 158 for 4 at the start of the day. They are now behind by 134 runs in the first innings. Chigumbura, who scored 86 in 111 balls, was the main source of inspiration, and runs, in the sixth wicket partnership of 85 runs with Richmond Mutumbami.

Robiul took two wickets in the morning, breaking the Mutmbami-Chigumbura partnership, but

Chigumbura's highest Test score was vital to his team's cause.

 

Chigumbura first had to ride out the dismissal of Malcolm Waller, who was batting well on 32 before holing out to deep square-leg off Sohag Gazi early in the day. With Waller, he added 66 runs in a fifth-wicket partnership that had both batsmen playing positively. The dismissal was untimely, and quite undeserved of the long-hop served up by offspinner Gazi.

 

Bangladesh would have expected to roll over Mutumbami quickly, but the youngster showed gumption in what is only his second Test. He didn't take too long to get off the mark, and as soon as he settled down, helped out Chigumbura with the scoring too. He made 42 off 72 balls, though he survived after being given out leg-before in the 83rd over as Robiul had overstepped. He was dismissed soon after, by the same bowler when he left a straight delivery.

 

Chigumbura reached his second Test fifty soon after Waller's wicket, and soon after, blasted Robiul down the ground to take Zimbabwe past 191, the follow-on mark. He continued to find the boundaries and he ended the session with eight fours to his name apart from the six.

 

The Bangladesh spinners hardly made an impression on the batsmen, particularly struggling to hold a single mode of attack. It was either full outside offstump or attacking the middle and leg-stump. Shakib Al Hasan has looked rusty as he is coming off a long bowling break, while Gazi hasn't been able to bowl with much accuracy.  

 

Sajidul Islam was used for a few overs, but it was once again Robiul who had to call all the shots. He bowled a tidy six-over spell in the morning, and later with the second new ball, he took a wicket.

IPL 2013 Match 35 KKR v Kings Xi Punjab

Kolkata Knight Riders 150 for 4 (Bisla 51*, Mahmood 3-35) beat Kings XI Punjab 149 for 6 (Vohra 31, Kallis 2-14) by six wickets
"We know that we are in a desperate situation," Kolkata Knight Riders captain Gautam Gambhir said before the start of the match. With three consecutive defeats coming into this game, the defending champions Knight Riders campaign was in disarray. To add to that, in the lead-up to the game, their overseas allrounder Jacques Kallis - who hasn't missed a game since joining the franchise in 2011 - was a doubtful starter after twisting his right knee in the previous match. And one of their experienced local batsmen, Manoj Tiwary, had an injury to his right hand.

At a noisy Eden Gardens, Knight Riders injected some life into their campaign with a straightforward six-wicket win over Kings XI Punjab. Not only did Kallis play, he bowled a miserly spell, and took the wickets of two of the key Kings XI batsmen, besides chipping in with a steadying 37 after Knight Riders lost the big wickets of Gautam Gambhir and Yusuf Pathan as early as the second over. 

 

Tiwary wasn't fit enough to play, but that also worked in Knight Riders' favour as his replacement, Manvinder Bisla, shrugged off his indifferent form with an unbeaten half-century that confirmed the win. He was assisted by Eoin Morgan, the team's designated finisher, who came in and played a series of typically flamboyant strokes to hasten the chase and cut out the tension of a final-over finish.

 

There was something of a surprise early on when Adam Gilchrist walked out to the toss - "I managed to sneak in another selection," he joked, highlighting how close he is to losing his place after a sustained poor run this season. Gilchrist managed to make his highest score of the season, a run-a-ball 27, but it might still not be enough to save his place for the next game.

 

Gilchrist combined with Mandeep Singh to provide Kings XI their best start this year, before Kallis broke the opening partnership with his first delivery, getting Mandeep chipping to midwicket. That set up a trend of Kings XI batsmen getting starts without making a big score - Gilchrist holed out to midwicket soon after, Manan Vohra top scored with 31 before picking out the fielder at sweeper cover, David Hussey perished on 21.

 

Kallis and Sunil Narine choked the runs towards the end of the innings, and Kings XI only managed 20 runs from the 16th to the 19th over. Kings XI finished off with a flourish though as Gurkeerat Singh slammed a couple of sixes off L Balaji in the final over to lift the score to 149.

 

That began to look daunting after Azhar Mahmood dismissed Gambhir and Yusuf Pathan off successive deliveries in the second over. Kallis and Bisla, though, put the chase on track with a 66-run stand for the third wicket. Kallis was caught-behind attempting a dab in the 11th over, and Knight Riders could have been in big trouble if the bails had fallen after a Piyush Chawla delivery hit legstump with Morgan on 0. The bails didn't fall, and Morgan unfurled a series of big hits to hand Kings XI their second straight defeat.

2nd Test Day 2 Bangladesh v Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe 158 for 4 (Chigumbura 45*, Robiul 2-34) trail Bangladesh 391 (Shakib 81, Nasir 77, Mushfiqur 60, Chigumbura 3-75) by 233 runs
A mid-afternoon spell from Robiul Islam swung the second and final Test Bangladesh's way. The fast bowler troubled Zimbabwe considerably, but the visitors would have liked a few more wickets in the final session after the home side ended the second day on 158 for 4.

The game is increasingly becoming an engrossing contest, especially after the 61-run unbeaten fifth-wicket stand between Elton Chigumbura, who remained at the crease on 45, accompanied by Malcolm Waller, who was not out on 30. They forced the pace, after being held back considerably by Bangladesh's main bowler.

 

Robiul's first spell of 11 overs cost just 16 runs as he racked up six maidens. The reward was two wickets during that middle session, from which Zimbabwe haven't quite recovered. His two subsequent spells were disciplined, too, and it helped the other bowlers to merely keep to their task rather than bring out anything extraordinary. The day was always going to be Robiul's.

 

His work on the second day began with the bat in hand. Towards the end of the Bangladesh innings, he blasted two fours and two sixes in his 18-ball 24. He took 17 runs off a Graeme Cremer over as Zimbabwe struggled to close Bangladesh out. When he had the ball in hand, Robiul was in the zone.

 

He tested Regis Chakabva with his good length deliveries, pitching and moving away on most occasions. The odd delivery every over went straight on as both Chakabva and Vusi Sibanda hardly made an impression on the bowling. Chakabva was dropped on 6 by a diving captain Mushfiqur Rahim behind the wicket off Robiul. But he fell in the same bowler's next over. The ball didn't appear to take the edge, but the umpire adjudged him caught behind. Sibanda fell in Robiul's following over, his edge to the wicketkeeper thin but audible.

 

Robiul then had a battle to remember with Zimbabwe captain Brendan Taylor, the best batsman on show this series. He first bowled very full and straight, before resorting to the shorter deliveries. In the 17th over alone, he had Taylor gloving a bouncer awkwardly before edging a good-length ball short of first slip. Taylor played 34 deliveries from Robiul, scoring only six runs. Mushfiqur posted a third man to cut out Taylor's ramp shot against the short ball but Robiul probably overdid the short stuff.

 

Hamilton Masakadza fell to a Shakib Al Hasan delivery that didn't turn. It was the left-arm spinner's fourth ball in the game, and put the home side deeper into trouble at 45 for 3.

Taylor battled on after tea, opening up on more than one occasion during his partnership with Waller. They added 52 before the Zimbabwe captain holed out to deep square leg off Sohag Gazi.

 

Afterwards and till stumps, Waller and Chigumbura forced the issue with regular change of strike and boundaries which flowed more as the visitors tried to eke out a wicket in the last hour.

 

Earlier, Nasir helped Bangladesh add a further 91. He made 77 off 103, leading two important partnerships after the dismissal of the top six batsmen. He added 33 for the seventh wicket with Ziaur Rahman, before putting together 51 for the eight wicket with Gazi.

Nasir hit eleven boundaries, and his positive approach against the second new ball should encourage the other batsmen to not throw it away after getting a start. Nasir began slowly, but didn't let go of any opportunity to find the boundary until he was bowled around his legs by Cremer, becoming the ninth batsman out for 367. Robiul's hitting stretched the score to 391, and his bowling made sure Zimbabwe would have a hard time getting anywhere close.

Tea Zimbabwe 47 for 3 (Taylor 6*, Waller 0*) trail Bangladesh 391 (Shakib 81, Nasir 77) by 390 runs

Robiul Islam was the dominant figure for Bangladesh after Nasir Hossain helped them post 391 runs in the first innings. Zimbabwe went to the tea interval on 47 for 3 as they struggled to get off to a proper start.

Brendan Taylor was unbeaten on 6, alongside Malcolm Taylor who still hadn't opened his account. They have an uphill task to keep the home side on level terms with Bangladesh who are now clearly in the stronger position.

 

Robiul's work on the second day actually began with the bat in hand. Towards the end of the Bangladesh innings, he blasted two sixes and two fours in his 18-ball 24. He took 16 runs off a Graeme Cremer over as Zimbabwe struggled to close the Bangladesh out quickly. When he had the ball in hand, Robiul remained as confident. He tested Regis Chakabva with his good length deliveries, pitching and moving away on most occasions. The odd delivery every over went straight on, to keep the batsmen guessing.

 

Chakabva was dropped on 4 off Robiul when captain Mushfiqur Rahim moved late behind the wicket, but the Zimbabwe opener fell to the same bowler in the next over. The decision was worth another look as the ball didn't appear to take the edge, but the umpire adjudged him caught behind. Sibanda fell in Robiul's next over, his edge to the wicketkeeper thin but audible.

 

Robiul then went to work on Zimbabwe captain Brendan Taylor, first bowling very full and straight to him. The ball moved out slightly, and took the outside edge once in the 16th over when the ball fell short of Nasir at first slip. On the previous delivery, Taylor gloved a ball awkwardly to the offside but he was safe. The struggle continued as Taylor played out 27 deliveries from Robiul, scoring only three runs.

 

Masakadza at the other end fell to a Shakib Al Hasan delivery that didn't turn. It was the left-arm spinner's fourth ball in the game, and it put the home side deeper into trouble.

The trouble began for Zimbabwe earlier on, with Nasir's batting in the first session. He chaperoned the innings to an extra 91 runs on the second morning. He made 77 off 103 balls, adding 33 for the seventh wicket with Ziaur Rahman, before putting together 55 for the eight wicket with Sohag Gazi.

 

Nasir hit eleven boundaries in the process, and his positive approach against the second new ball should encourage the other batsmen to not throw it away after getting a start. Nasir started off slowly, but seized on all opportunities to find the boundaries. He was finally bowled around his legs by Cremer, the ninth batsman out.

 

Gazi batted as he usually does, subdued for most but suddenly bursting out with a mow over midwicket, and a blast over long-on. He was caught at long on off Cremer after making 21 off 42 balls. Before him, Ziaur was the first wicket to fall on the fourth over of the morning. The debutant was done in by a huge inswinger from Keegan Meth, Zimbabwe's best bowler of the innings.

 

Meth, however, was only able to bowl six overs after which he walked off with an injured right knee. He was seen icing the knee, much to the disappointment of his team-mates.

Lunch Zimbabwe 1 for 0 (Sibanda 1*) trail Bangladesh 391 all out (Shakib 81, Nasir 77) by 390 runs

A session of 91 runs was enough to sway the balance of the Test match and help Bangladesh to a total of 391. The Zimbabwe openers Vusi Sibanda and Regis Chakabva played out one over before lunch, which was bowled by Robiul Islam.

Nasir Hossain made the difference on the second day, chaperoning the innings to an extra 91 runs on the second morning. He made 77 off 103 balls, adding 33 for the seventh wicket with Ziaur Rahman, before putting together 51 for the eighth wicket with Sohag Gazi.

 

Nasir hit eleven boundaries in the process, and his positive approach against the second new ball should encourage the other batsmen to not throw away after getting a start. Nasir started off slowly, but didn't give away any opportunities to find the boundaries. He was bowled around his legs by Graeme Cremer, the ninth batsman out.

 

Gazi batted as he usually does, subdued for most but suddenly bursting out with a mow over midwicket, before holing out to long on off Graeme Cremer after making 21 off 42 balls. Before him, Ziaur was the first wicket to fall on the fourth over of the morning. The debutant was stung on the crease by Keegan Meth, Zimbabwe's best bowler of the innings.

 

Meth however was only able to bowl six overs after he walked off with an injured right knee. He was seen icing the knee, much to the exasperation of his teammates who struggled to pick up the last few wickets.

 

After the ninth wicket fell, Robiul went after Cremer by hitting him for two sixes and a four in an over, and ended unbeaten on 24 with two sixes and two fours.

IPL 2013 Match 34 CSK v SRH

Chennai Super Kings 160 for 5 (Dhoni 67*, Hussey 45, Mishra 3-26) beat Sunrisers Hyderabad 159 for 6 (Dhawan 63*, Ashish Reddy 36*) by 5 wickets
You can be hero and villain on the same night. Ask Amit Mishra and Ashish Reddy. Reddy scored a whirlwind 36 off 16 balls to help Sunrisers Hyderabad get 59 off the last four overs and give them something to bowl at. Mishra kept them alive with the wickets of Michael Hussey, M Vijay and Suresh Raina. However, Mishra, promoted to No.5, wasted 21 balls for just 15 runs, and dropped MS Dhoni even before he had opened the account. Reddy was given the last over to bowl with 15 to defend, and a now-rampaging Dhoni to face. Reddy completely froze, and bowled the most predictable slower balls imaginable for Dhoni to win it easily.

Spared villainy was Dwayne Bravo who bowled length in the final overs to allow Reddy those runs, but more crucially batted like a rabbit in the headlights, manufacturing - as the IPL's wont has been - a thriller out of nowhere. He played out a maiden from Karan Sharma - who registered this IPL's most economical four-over figures of 0 for 8 - in the 16th over. Then he holed out on the bowling of Ishant Sharma for a near game-changing 7 off 16.

 

The man who well and truly snatched heroism from villainy was Dhoni. He too began dozily, playing six dots before he top-edged Dale Steyn to long leg where Mishra missed him. How Dhoni made Sunrisers pay for it. Firstly, after Bravo's maiden left Super Kings needing 46 off last four, Dhoni hit two sensational and consecutive pulled sixes off Steyn, who at times bowled at close to 150 kph. One over midwicket, and the other dragged from wide outside off to clear long-on. This was brutal hitting against the best bowler in the world.

 

Bravo, though, turned it around again, and Sunrisers went to Steyn to bowl the 19th over with 27 runs to play with. Dhoni played another calculated over. Steyn bowled with third man and fine leg up to defend areas down the ground. Dhoni dabbed the first past short fine leg for two, and square-drove the second over point for four. The third one he slogged over deep midwicket. This was the first time Steyn was hit for three sixes in an IPL innings, and only the second time in any Twenty20 game. 

 

Steyn came back, though, with Ravindra Jadeja's wicket, and left Super Kings needing 15 to win off the last over. Darren Sammy, the IPL debutant, was the only man who had bowled earlier on the night and had an over to go. Cameron White, though, went to Reddy. Perhaps he was thinking if this was Reddy's evening, it might be his night too. It wasn't.

 

Reddy began with a back-of-the-hand slower ball that was almost off the pitch. He ran up again, and tried the same slower ball again. Dhoni missed, but it was not as though he had not picked it. Reddy had got lucky Dhoni didn't connect. Reddy, though, tried it again, and Dhoni smacked it clean out of the ground. Eight off four now. Reddy was clearly nervous. He tried the normal yorker now, and missed his line by feet. Five wides. Hang on. Dhoni admits to having touched it. So three off four now becomes four off three. Dhoni pulled the next slower ball to beat long-on and bring the win that put Super Kings level with Royal Challengers Bangalore at the top of the table.

 

Watching all this, Shikhar Dhawan would be wondering whatever happened to what should have been a special Sunrisers debut for him. He came out from a month in the cold storage, braved a blow in the unmentionables, scored a fifty to give Sunrisers a total to bowl at, but ended as a footnote on a night Dhoni went from 0 off 6 to 67 off 37.

2nd Test Day 1 Bangladesh v Zimbabwe

Bangladesh 300 for 6 (Shakib 81, Mushfiqur 60) v Zimbabwe

On a day of nerves from both sets of players, Zimbabwe walked out happier after they picked up enough wickets to justify their decision to bowl. At stumps, Bangladesh were 300 for 6, and it was hard to say whether they, too, would be pleased with the outcome.
 

The error-ridden day was not pretty to watch at times. The home side almost gave away a good start by their bowlers in the afternoon but fought back through two wickets in the final session. They have the advantage of sitting on a 1-0 lead, which would help them to assess the Test later on.

 

Keegan Meth continued to bowl with the same discipline as he had in the first Test, keeping the batsmen on a tight leash with his line, length and sudden bursts of big movement. Kyle Jarvis had quite a disappointing day as the team's best quick bowler in the first Test. He bowled too full, and at times too wide. He, however, picked up a wicket late in the day.

 

Elton Chigumbura took two wickets, both gifted through absurd shots by Mominul Haque and Shakib Al Hasan. Shingi Masakadza also took one wicket, that of Mohammad Ashraful and that, too, off a poor shot.

 

The visitors had three almost similar sessions, losing two wickets in each. Shakib and Mushfiqur Rahim helped the side to respectability through their 123-run fifth wicket stand after Bangladesh had slipped to 125 for 4 after lunch.

 

Shakib started off smoothly with three boundaries in his first 15 balls, but soon calmed down and supported Mushfiqur's recovery act. He reached his fifty off 84 balls, before launching into a bit of a four-hitting spree. But he fell in that trap, running out to Chigumbura late in the day to fall for 81 off 118 balls. He has now given away three opportunities to score Test hundreds in his last four Tests.

Mushfiqur, too, batted well, but just when he needed to see off the day, he fell leg-before to Jarvis around 20 minutes before stumps were drawn. He made 60 off 165 balls, an innings which was exactly what many before him could have done.

 

Tamim Iqbal's return to the line-up was important to the top-order but he was among the six batsmen to succumb to impatience rather than the bowling. He started off nervously before settling down and looking confident as he struck six boundaries. After spending some minutes on 49, the imminence of the landmark got the better of him. He rushed towards the non-striker's end, only to see Masakadza's direct hit catching him short.

 

Mominul, too, looked committed to a proper innings. But he, too, joined the soft-dismissal parade. In an attempt to keep a rising ball down, he chipped the ball down the throat of extra cover. It was yet another promising innings that was nipped in the bud. It all started with Jahurul Islam at the stroke of the first drinks break.

 

Jahurul and Tamim added 44 for the first wicket before the former holed out in the covers where Malcolm Waller ran back to complete the catch. Jahurul's restlessness was noticeable throughout his stay in the first hour, but here was a batsman who was again setting himself up for a big innings after blunting out the bowler's attempts.

 

But as has been his problem after battling out the initial foray, Jahurul tried to blast Meth down the ground and fell. He had earlier survived three chances, being dropped off Meth in the second over of the match as well as two run-out opportunities. Ashraful followed him back to the dressing room soon after to make it 58 for 2. He toed a pull off Masakadza and was easily caught at gully. His innings could have been even shorter than the 4 he made if Meth could have gathered the ball cleanly in the 18th over.

 

Tamim, too, could have been run out in the first overs of the first two sessions, and was also dropped catch in the slips. There were chances galore in the final hour of play too. Mushfiqur was dropped at square-leg by Graeme Cremer after he skied a pull before Brendan Taylor dropped Nasir Hossain at slip off Cremer. Ziaur Rahman survived a run-out chance in the 83rd over.

 

Zimbabwe's fielding was frustrating, but they will remain positive because of the conditions in Harare. Late in the second session and throughout the final session, legspinner Cremer found turn and bounce to his liking which would add to the general sense of advantage which the fast bowlers have felt on this wicket. They could still bank on Bangladesh's impatience in their bid to gain control.

IPL 2013 Match 33 KKR v MI

Mumbai Indians 162 for 5 (Smith 62, Rohit 34, Narine 3-17) beat Kolkata Knight Riders 159 for 6 (Kallis 37, Ojha 2-21) by 5 wickets
Harbhajan Singh went for 26 runs in a horror first over of the match, but he hit a six in the last over that broke the hearts of a packed Eden Gardens to top off Mumbai Indian's comeback in the match. From 46 for 1 after three overs of the match, Mumbai clawed their way back through Mitchell Johnson, Lasith Malinga and Pragyan Ojha who went for 72 runs in their 12 overs and took six wickets, including just three runs in the special last over bowled by Malinga.

Dwayne Smith then led the chase with batting more hit than miss, followed by handy contributions from Rohit Sharma and Kieron Pollard before Harbhajan redeemed himself for the night.
 

There was a measure of redemption for Rohit too, who was leading in the absence of Ricky Ponting who had sat himself out. Rohit went against the common knowledge that Yusuf Pathan has been going through a wretched time against pace, and instead provided him spin at the start. Yusuf tucked into Harbhajan who seemed to lose fresh chunks of confidence every ball.

 

Immediately partial redemption arrived for Harbhajan when Yusuf edged to him at slip the first legitimate delivery of pace he faced. Mumbai had got a toe in the door there, and little by little they shoved their foot in. Johnson got Yusuf, Ojha frustrated and got the other big two, Gautam Gambhir and Jacques Kallis, the latter once again for a pedestrian strike-rate, which often gets masked by Kallis' all-round ability and stylish stroke-play. Kallis wasn't available to bowl today, and the man substituting for him was involved in a crucial and unfortunate incident.

 

Coming together at 92 for 3 in the 12th over, Eoin Morgan and Manoj Tiwary tried to force the pace, but Johnson and Malinga proved to be too good towards the end. Morgan hit Johnson straight to midwicket, and Malinga's last over was a reminder of how impossible it was to hit him was when he was at his best. A mix of yorkers and slower balls had two sets of stumps demolished.

 

In the chase, it seemed like Mumbai were playing against one man, Sunil Narine, who took three wickets for 17, and turned the game around every time he was called upon, but the batsmen were smart and batted well against the others. Narine dismissed the birthday boy Sachin Tendulkar through the gate pretty early, but by then the scratchy Smith was beginning to time a few.

 

And Smith is a dangerous batsman that way. He can look scratchy before hitting a brief purple patch and taking the slightly relaxed opposition by surprise. As he did in this game, even with wickets falling at the other end. By the time he got out - in Narine's second over, in his second spell - he had clobbered 62 of Mumbai's 82 runs, and had left them 78 to get in nine overs.

 

Captain Rohit now targeted Sachithra Senanayake, who registered his most expensive Twenty20 figures: 1 for 50 in four overs. Two sixes in one over brought the target down to 56 off seven overs, an asking rate consistent with the one at the start of the innings. Normally, you would back the chasing side, but Narine still had two overs remaining, but even before Narine was called back a slice of luck awaited Mumbai.

 

For the second time this season, a Knight Riders fielder at long-off lost a catch in the lights, and this one proved to be mighty expensive. Pollard was missed by substitute Brendon McCullum, and he had brought the target down to 10 by the time he eventually got out. Narine, though, had his last say before retiring for the night, taking Rohit with the last ball he bowled, leaving Mumbai 28 to get off three overs.

 

Pollard looked assured for two overs, but was done in by an extremely slow delivery at the start of the last over, bowled by Rajat Bhatia. It was clear the trick had lost all its novelty when Harbhajan waited deep in the crease, and smacked a slow dolly over midwicket. Three off three was easy to get after that.

IPL Match 32 Delhi Daredevils v Kings XI Punjab

Kings XI Punjab 121 for 5 (Miller 34*) beat Delhi Daredevils 120 for 7 (Warner 40, Harmeet 3-24) by five wickets

Kings XI Punjab's campaign in IPL 2013 gathered pace with their second consecutive win, a stroll in the park compared to their adrenalin-charged chase against Pune Warriors.

A fine bowling effort from the Kings XI's seamers, backed by some sharp fielding, restricted the bottom-placed Delhi Daredevils to a modest 120, which the batsmen chased comfortably with three overs to spare.
 

Kings XI opted to bowl on a slow Kotla track and they didn't let partnerships to blossom, the highest being 39 between David Warner and Manprit Juneja. Mahela Jayawardene's promotion to the opening position clicked against Mumbai Indians, scoring 59, but today his innings ended at 4 when he edged Praveen Kumar to slip. Roelof van der Merwe's promotion to No.3 didn't work as he top edged Parvinder Awana to cover. It set a pattern for the evening as several batsmen from both sides perished to top edges.

 

Perhaps it was the slow nature of the Kotla track that prompted Kings XI to bring in the seamer Harmeet Singh, known for his back-of-the-hand slower balls. Playing his first game of IPL 2013, replacing Manpreet Gony, Harmeet was hammered for a four and a six by Virender Sehwag off consecutive balls in his first over. In his second, he frustrated Sehwag with his slower balls, forcing the batsman to improvise. Sehwag looked to open up, made room and ended up scooping the ball low to extra cover, where Mandeep Singh timed his dive well and took the catch.

 

Warner gave the innings some impetus with a flurry of boundaries in one over by Piyush Chawla, taking 16 off it. The stand between Warner and Juneja was the only period in which Daredevils had a semblance of control, until Harmeet steered the momentum Kings XI's way in his second spell. Juneja pulled a slower ball, bowled short, straight to fine leg, before Kedar Jadhav top edged to extra cover in the same over.

 

The boundaries dried up with the procession of wickets and it only increased the pressure on Warner. The drought lasted four overs before Warner clipped Praveen behind square leg, before the bowler knocked the base of the base off stump with a swinging yorker. In the end, Daredevils limped to 120, in contrast to the record-shattering pyrotechnics earlier in the evening by Chris Gayle and Royal Challengers Bangalore.

 

Adam Gilchrist fell three balls into the chase, trying to smash his way into form and convince his franchise he can still hold his position in the team, seeing how certain franchises are grappling with the issue of non-performing overseas captains. Mandeep gave the chase momentum with scoops and cuts off the seamers, but a promising knock was cut short thanks to a direct hit by Warner. A top edge sent back Manan Vohra and at 70 for 4 in the tenth over, Daredevils had narrowed the gap a bit. However, David Miller ensured no further jitters as he and David Hussey took Kings XI closer.

Kings XI Punjab: 1 Adam Gilchrist (capt & wk), 2 Mandeep Singh, 3 Manan Vohra, 4 Luke Pomersbach, 5 David Hussey, 6 David Miller, 7 Piyush Chawla, 8 Praveen Kumar, 9 Harmeet Singh, 10 Bhargav Bhatt, 11 Parvinder Awana

Delhi Daredevils: 1 Mahela Jayawardene, 2 Virender Sehwag, 3 Roelof van der Merwe, 4 David Warner, 5 Manprit Juneja, 6 Kedhar Jadhav (wk), 7 Johan Botha, 8 Irfan Pathan, 9 Ajit Agarkar, 10 Ashish Nehra, 11 Umesh Yadav