Cricket Aus Chairman's XI v Eng XI Tour Match Day 2/2

England XI 212 for 7 dec (Ballance 55) and 47 for 1 drew with CA Chairman's XI 254 for 8 dec (Swann 4-56)

It says much for England's lacklustre performance in Alice Springs that there were times when it was hard to tell which team was the No. 2 ranked Test side and which was populated with players as green as the lush outfield at Traeger Park.

Perhaps it was natural that England produced such a less than intense performance in this match. This two-day game was, in reality, little more than a practice session and some of England's players might have been understandably reluctant to fully extend themselves a few days ahead of the second Test.

 

But there were several players for whom this game presented an opportunity. The fringe batsmen were fighting to earn the final place in the top six; the fast bowlers were fighting for the position of third seamer. Even Monty Panesar might have felt he had a chance of staking a claim for a place in the side.

 

Yet few players made persuasive cases for their advancement and, as England head into the second Test on Thursday, they do so with an uncomfortable number of awkward questions to answer. Thrashed in Brisbane and shocked by the departure of Jonathan Trott, it is hard to avoid the conclusion that England's tour is veering alarmingly off course.

 

Whereas in 2010-11 they had a settled team - Steven Finn was the only man dropped during that series - this time they have doubts about two of the top three, their No. 6 and their third seamer. For a side that prides itself on planning and preparation, that is an uncomfortable place to be.

 

A couple of issues were resolved, though. On the evidence of this game, it seems most unlikely that Finn or Boyd Rankin - both of whom were out-bowled by 21-year-old Simon Mackin, a man without a first-class appearance - will be considered for Adelaide.

 

Tim Bresnan will be assessed by England's medical staff on Sunday and, unless his readiness is thought to be beyond reasonable doubt, Chris Tremlett will surely remain the third seamer in the second Test. Both Rankin and Finn bowled themselves out of contention in Alice Springs. Finn, a shadow of the menacing fast bowler that he has shown glimpses he can be, may well have bowled himself out of contention for the series.

 

Having wasted the new ball through a surfeit of short balls - the Chairman XI's openers were hardly required to play a shot in the first 40 minutes of play - the pair were thrashed around the ground by 20-year-old tailender, James Muirhead. On a brutally hot day, England looked weary and fed-up some time before the Chairman's XI earned a 42-run first innings lead.

 

It would be a huge risk to pick Monty Panesar, too. While his bowling improved after a rusty start - his first delivery for England since the Auckland Test in March was a full toss - he looked nervous and fallible in the field. To plunge him into the unforgiving atmosphere of an Ashes Test would verge on the reckless.

 

At least Graeme Swann enjoyed a decent day. Against batsmen determined to attack him from the start, he claimed three wickets to failed attempts to hit him over the top and then had 16-year-old Jake Doran, who had earlier pulled Panesar to the boundary, taken at short-leg.

 

A couple of the Chairman's XI players will have done their reputations no harm. Steven Cazzulino and Ashton Turner were patient, Josh Lalor - a player of Aboriginal descent - attacked effectively, while Marcus Harris, who punished Rankin and Finn with a series of cuts and pulls, looked a fine player who could go on to enjoy a decent career.

 

But Mackin is the one to watch. He dismissed Joe Root with a brute of a ball that reared from just back of a length and took the glove on its way to the keeper. It was a wicket that exposed not just the poor length of England's bowlers, but the trouble Root has in dealing with the pace and bounce of these wickets. Gary Ballance was also beaten outside off stump by Macklin and looked relieved to reach stumps, though Michael Carberry acquitted himself pretty well.

 

This match was never just about the result. And, in terms of spreading the reach of the game, it should probably be deemed a success: nearly 3,500 spectators attended and the England players took the time to coach groups of local kids. In terms of preparation for the second Test, however, England found little to reassure them.

Cricket Aus Chairmans XI v Eng XI Tour Match Day 1/2

CA Chairman's XI 16 for 0 trail England XI 212 for 7 (Ballance 55) by 196 runs

Like many before them, several of this England squad arrived in Northern Territory looking for a land of opportunity, only to find it can be a harsh, unforgiving place.

This part of Australia is undeniably beautiful. But it can also be brutal. And, as England may be discovering, a single mistake can have disastrous consequences. Coming back from the Test defeat in Brisbane, if they could do it, might prove as great an achievement as anything in their recent history.

 

This two-day game against modest opposition should have been a chance for batsmen to find form and bowlers to find rhythm. Instead it has probed at weaknesses and provided another reminder of the poor form of some in the squad. It has been, to date, something of a wasted opportunity for England.

 

Certainly the continuing struggle of Matt Prior, with the bat at least, has extended well beyond the 'blip' phase. Not only has he scored just 56 runs in six first-class innings on this tour but, since mid-May, he has batted 24 times in first-class cricket and not made a half-century. Indeed, he has scored just 351 runs at an average of 16.71.

 

Quite where things have gone wrong for Prior is unclear. In May he was presented with England's Player of the Year award for the previous 12 months and there has been no absence of hard work since.

 

But the man who was, not so long ago, talked about as a possible No. 6, is currently batting with the tentative uncertainly of a No. 8; pushing at balls in hope, rather than waiting with confidence. Here, after a couple of characteristically flowing strokes, he perished to an outside edge after flirting with one he would have been well advised to leave alone.

 

Joe Root's dress rehearsal as No. 3 - he opened here but is most likely to take Jonathan Trott's position in the second Test in Adelaide - was also underwhelming. Not for the first time, he perished attempting a back foot force and slicing to gully. It is not a low risk stroke on Australia's quick wickets.

 

Perhaps such an assessment undersells the performance of this Chairman's XI attack. On a pitch offering assistance throughout, the inexperienced seamers acquitted themselves impressively, maintaining a probing line and length and benefiting from a painfully slow outfield that gave batsmen little value for their strokes. Simon Mackin, a towering 21-year-old with Western Australia, was the pick, though Jake Doran, the 16-year-old keeper, will also remember the day with fondness after taking a fine, low catch to dismiss Ian Bell.

 

The one England player who enhanced his reputation was Gary Ballance. On the thin evidence available, it seems likely that Ballance will make his Test debut in Adelaide and bat at No. 6. Here he showed admirable patience in compiling a half-century - it took him 124 balls to get there - though how meaningful runs against the Chairman's XI spinners are ahead of a Test against Mitchell Johnson and co is debateable.

 

Ballance is not, at this stage, the finished article. For a start he is, by England's high standards, below the required fitness levels. But he has an excellent record, is highly regarded and, crucially, is the man in the right position at the right time. His chance of going on to make an unarguable case for selection was ended after a mix-up with Bell but, perhaps due as much to the failures of others as his own success, he looks to be in pole position. Opportunity knocks for him.

 

Meanwhile Michael Carberry clipped a half-volley to midwicket, Bell edged a decent one that he could have left and Ben Stokes' pleasing innings was ended by an outstanding catch at short leg.

 

Jonny Bairstow also batted nicely but it is hard to avoid the conclusion that he does not feature particularly prominently in the England management's plans. Not only was he obliged to bat at No. 7 - surely too low for someone being considered for a spot in Adelaide - but the declaration also came before he had an opportunity to press his claims.

 

Both Steven Finn and Boyd Rankin then bowled with admirable pace, but neither made the batsmen play enough. Rankin, in particular, overdid the short ball. Neither have, to date, done their chances of usurping Chris Tremlett as third seamer much good.

 

There was, at least, encouraging news off the pitch. The sight of Kevin Pietersen and Stuart Broad working together in the nets - Pietersen as coach; Broad as batsman learning to combat the short ball - would have been impossible not so long ago. Pietersen, underlining his reaffirmed commitment to the team ethic, also appeared as 12th man in the dying overs of the day as Root was suffering from stomach trouble. He is expected to be fine in the morning.

 

Tim Bresnan would appear to have a much better chance of playing in the second Test, having performed creditably for the England Performance Programme in Queensland. He will join the Test squad on Sunday and undergo an assessment by the medical team. If he is deemed fully fit - and it is likely he will be - then he will be added to the squad for the rest of the tour.

 

But it was the batsmen, not the bowlers, who let England down in Brisbane. Bringing in Bresnan would be like calling the coast guard for a house fire.

 

The rest of the EPP squad - Tymal Mills, Moeen Ali et al - will next meet the full Test squad ahead of the Perth Test. There are no plans for any of them to be added to the Test squad at this stage, though they will be utilised as net bowlers in Perth.

3rd ODI India v West Indies

India 266 for 5 (Dhawan 119, Yuvraj 55) beat West Indies 263 for 5 (Samuels 71, Powell 70, Darren Bravo 51*) by five wickets
India have been masterful while chasing in ODIs this year, and against a moderate total and a mediocre West Indies attack, they ambled to victory in the series-deciding third ODI in Kanpur. Shikhar Dhawan hit his fifth ODI hundred of his magical year and the struggling Yuvraj Singh hit his first ODI half-century in 11 innings as India cruised to their sixth successive one-day series win of the year.
 

With a 9am start on a hazy winter morning, the talk at the toss was about how the first hour would be a challenge for the batsmen. West Indies negotiated that phase well losing only one wicket, and half-centuries from Kieran Powell and Marlon Samuels took them to a strong 164 for 2 when the batting Powerplay was taken. Perfectly placed then for the power-hitters to come; they nearly squandered that advantage by losing three quick wickets, but Darren Sammy and Darren Bravo provided the late flourish to lift them to 263. 

Smart stats Virat Kohli was Ravi Rampaul's 100th ODI wicket. Rampaul was playing his 80th match, making him the sixth fastest to the landmark among West Indies bowlers. Curtly Ambrose and Ian Bishop, who took 61 matches, are the fastest. Shikhar Dhawan hit the fifth ODI hundred of his career and all of them have come in 2013. He leads the list of batsmen with most centuries in international cricket this year. The West Indies batsmen made eight fifty-plus scores in this series, the most they have hit in any three-ODI series. The 129-run partnership between Dhawan and Yuvraj Singh was the highest for the third wicket at this venue, beating the 105 added by Chetan Sharma and Navjot Sidhu against England in 1989. Darren Bravo scored his third half-century of the series and became the first West Indies batsman since Ramnaresh Sarwan in 2011 (also against India) to hit three or more fifty-plus scores in an ODI series. India achieved the highest successful run chase at Green Park, Kanpur, beating the 256 they chased against England in 1989. The series victory was India's sixth in a row in ODIs, equalling their longest sequence of series wins before this, starting with the bilateral series in Sri Lanka in 2008 and ending with the Compaq Cup tri-series in 2009.

That proved too little, especially as only Ravi Rampaul and Sunil Narine posed any threat with the ball. Jason Holder had a disappointing day, with Dhawan feasting on the poor lines to take five fours in his first two overs to propel India along early.

 

Dwayne Bravo and Sammy were tame, and midway through the chase - when Dhawan and Yuvraj were killing off the chase - West Indies had turned to the innocuous duo of Veerasammy Permaul and Lendl Simmons.

 

There was briefly some hope for West Indies early on, when Rampaul dismissed two of India's red-hot top three early.

 

He couldn't get the wicket of Dhawan, though, and Dhawan scored big. As usual, the innings was studded with breathtaking cuts and drives through the off, and without really seeming to make the effort, he had 20 fours to his name was scoring at over a run a ball.

 

While it was Dhawan's innings that made the game safe, Yuvraj's will gladden Indian fans. A destructive batsman with a penchant for the big stage, Yuvraj hasn't been among the runs in recent months, even during the Australia series which was a bowlers' bloodbath.

 

Australia turned to Mitchell Johnson to dismiss him early several times, and West Indies hoped Narine would have a similar impact.

 

Yuvraj wasn't comfortable against Narine today either, misreading him several times, but he managed to ride out that difficult phase and cashed in against the lesser threats in the attack.

 

Even though Dhawan and Yuvraj were dismissed with India just under 50 away from the target, it only afforded the chance for India's other out-of-form batsman, Suresh Raina, to play a pressure-free cameo on his birthday, with the result never in doubt.

It was far easier batting in the evening than in the first hour.

 

India's new-ball bowlers posed plenty of questions for West Indies' openers, who were regularly beaten by the movement.

 

Even as late as the 12th over, India had three slips in place.

 

Powell had grabbed the chance offered by Chris Gayle's absence with a half-century in Visakhapatnam, and built on that with another solid score. He was a bit loose outside off early on but settled in as the innings progressed, showing off his driving skills, with a square drive off Mohit Sharma in the sixth over a highlight. He had reached 70 by the 30th over, but miscued a sweep off R Ashwin - the fifth time in a row that the opener has gone past 40 without reaching triple figures.

 

His 117-run partnership with Samuels had set West Indies up for a strong total. Samuels was nervy early on, extremely reluctant to get on the front foot against the fast bowlers, and played and missed often. After his initial struggles, he was more at ease against the spinners, stepping out to launch Ashwin onto the temporary roof in the stands beyond long-on. He was reprieved on 60 when Virat Kohli put down a chance at first slip, but was bowled soon after by Ashwin.

 

That was in the first over of the batting Powerplay, and with Simmons and Dwayne Bravo failing, West Indies had suddenly slipped to 196 for 5. However, Darren Bravo made his third consecutive half-century and Darren Sammy's all-power game worked again this time as they threw the bat around to put on 67 in little over eight overs. It proved to be too little against India's formidable batting though.

2nd ODI Pakistan v South Africa

45 overs Pakistan 262 (Shehzad 102, Steyn 6-39) beat South Africa 261 for 6 (Amla 98, De Villiers 74, Junaid 3-42) by one run
Junaid Khan defended nine runs off the final over to ensure Pakistan secured a first ever bilateral ODI series win over South Africa. In a rain-reduced affair, which was curtailed to 45-overs a side, Ahmed Shehzad's century provided Pakistan with a challenging total. South Africa, playing in their 500th ODI, looked well set to chase it down courtesy Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers, but the pressure got the better of them once again and they fell one run short.
 

A 110-run fourth-wicket partnership between Amla, whose 98 was crafted from patience, and de Villiers, who provided a dazzling display of innovation with 74, brought South Africa's required run-rate down to less than a run a ball.

 

With the equation in their favour, it seemed South Africa would better their poor record batting second - they have not won a match chasing since March this year - in the decider of the three-match series against Pakistan. But Amla and JP Duminy were dismissed in the space of three balls, new batsmen were at the crease, Saeed Ajmal turned the screws in the penultimate over, Junaid produced a full bouquet of yorkers, and Pakistan claimed a historic victory.

 

There were times when it seemed they would not get there. After Junaid did the early damage and got rid of Graeme Smith, South Africa laid a foundation through Amla and Quinton de Kock, who provided a mix of fortitude and flair to keep South Africa on track. Amla was happy to let de Kock execute the meaty swings while he dropped anchor.

 

Shahid Afridi's golden-arm broke through their partnership when de Kock tried to clip the ball over midwicket and found silly mid-on instead. Afridi also claimed the big scalp of Jacques Kallis but by then Amla had reached fifty and South Africa were set.

 

With de Villiers joining him, South Africa had their two top ODI batsmen in operation and they seemed certain to take them over the line. De Villiers attacked from the get-go, driving Bilawal Bhatti through extra cover, and then accelerated off Mohammad Hafeez, Ajmal and Anwar Ali.

He danced down the track, he cut, he brought up his half-century with a fierce pull, he swept and got down on on knee to impersonate Brendon McCullum's paddle. And then he perished trying to repeat it. Afridi took the catch at deep square leg.

 

Still, South Africa seemed in control. They required 36 runs off 38 balls and Amla was still there. He was soon in the nineties. He was the man who could withstand the Ajmal stranglehold, but he showed he was human too. He tried to reach the milestone with a six over square leg but top-edged to Hafeez and that was the start of South Africa's end. Ajmal's job was done, Junaid followed up well and South Africa's soft underbelly was exposed again. 

 

The questions surrounding their batting may drown out any thoughts of their bowling, which stands in line for much praise and some concern. Dale Steyn recorded career-best figures of 6 for 39 and bowled the poisoned-tip any spearhead should.

 

Steyn claimed the early wickets of Nasir Jamshed and Mohammad Hafeez - who he has now accounted for him 15 times in 23 matches across formats - and came back to puncture Pakistan at the end. What he lacked was support from an attack that had been changed to include the fit-again Lonwabo Tsotsobe and Ryan McLaren. The seamers struggled to fine their lines while there was little on offer for the slower bowlers, making them fairly ineffective.

 

Once Steyn had had his way with the top order, Pakistan rebuilt through Sohaib Maqsood and Shehzad. They rotated strike well and did not force boundaries, instead waiting for Jacques Kallis to overpitch, JP Duminy to offer flight or Ryan McLaren to allow them to get under the length.

 

Maqsood threw it away, trying to launch McLaren over extra cover and finding Amla, but Shehzad plugged on. He crossed 1000 ODI runs, survived while Misbah-ul-Haq was caught down the leg side off Imran Tahir and, after 108 balls at the crease brought up his third ODI century. He looked set for many more but was run-out when Umar Akmal was ball-watching when he called for a single.

Akmal made up for that mistake by providing the lower-order flourish which took Pakistan to a competitive total. He was the anchor of the 82 runs they scored in the last 10 overs.

 

He took on McLaren and Steyn with extravagant shots and even though he was Steyn's fifth wicket, he had done enough to roll out the canvas on which the bowlers could paint a memorable win.

1st ODI Pakistan v South Africa

Pakistan 218 for 9 (Ali 43*, Bhatti 39, Steyn 3-33) beat South Africa 195 (Kallis 50, Duminy 49, Bhatti 3-37) by 23 runs

The debutants Anwar Ali and Bilawal Bhatti had been selected primarily to bowl Pakistan to victory. They did that with five wickets between them, headlined by Bhatti's superb use of the yorker at the death. They were not expected to bat Pakistan to a win, but they did that too, with a 74-run partnership for the eighth wicket that breathed life into an innings that was gasping for air.
 

Pakistan were floundering at about three runs an over for two-thirds their innings before the rookie pair got together to post a defendable total. The buoyancy that stand gave Pakistan was evident in the field. They put in a disciplined performance to strangle South Africa, and even though Jacques Kallis, who was playing in his first ODI in a year and nine months, scored a half-century, the hosts could not find their way back.

 

With a modest total to defend, Pakistan needed to make early incisions and Junaid Khan bowled Hashim Amla behind his legs in the third over. Misbah-ul-Haq immediately brought on Mohammad Hafeez to trouble Quinton de Kock but the offspinner got the better of Graeme Smith, when the Test captain reached forward to play him on the leg-side and was stumped.

 

South Africa's oldest and youngest players put on the team's highest partnership - 42. Kallis appeared in particularly good nick, hitting Junaid when he was too full and too short, launching Hafeez over midwicket and pulling Bhatti. He ushered de Kock through nervous periods but the left-hand batsman eventually played a lazy drive and was bowled through the gap between bat and pad.

 

Still, South Africa had no reason to be concerned, until AB de Villiers was bowled by Shahid Afridi, playing on the back foot when he should have been forward. Kallis was also bowled, by an Anwar Ali delivery that kept low and ricocheted off the toe end of his bat. Anwar also had David Miller caught behind to finish with 2 for 24. South Africa were 123 for 6.

 

With the big-hitter dismissed, Pakistan gave away only 26 runs in the next seven overs, before Misbah brought Saeed Ajmal back on. The plan worked as Vernon Philander looked to defend but was surprised by one that leapt up and took the edge to give backward point a catch. Duminy had to hold it together but was caught behind reverse-sweeping Ajmal.

 

South Africa's tail wagged vigorously but Bhatti saved his best for last. Pinpoint yorkers got rid of both Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel to give Pakistan their first ODI win at Newlands, a South African fortress.

 

In hindsight, South Africa paid for the many chances they missed in the field. Despite the seamers employing tight lines and using the short ball well, it took South Africa 15.2 overs to make the first breakthrough. By then Nasir Jamshed, who was let off three times, and Ahmed Shehzad had posted 49. Steyn dropped Jamshed at fine leg and the batsman was well short of his ground twice while attempting singles, but South Africa could not pull off any direct hits.

 

Steyn eventually accounted for Jamshed, chasing and edging a ball outside off, and his bunny Mohammad Hafeez, but it was only when Shehzad, Misbah-ul-Haq and Umar Akmal had been dismissed that South Africa dictated proceedings. At 98 for 5, Pakistan could not get out of first gear and Sohaib Maqsood's efforts to do so only created more chances.

 

He offered Imran Tahir a return catch, which the legspinner dropped, skied one between cover and mid-off that neither Smith nor Philander moved to take, and was dropped by de Villiers at long-off. Kallis eventually claimed Maqsood, when he slogged to mid-on.

 

Instead of folding from 131 for 7, after Afridi was dismissed, Pakistan ended up accumulating their most important runs. Bhatti and Anwar were together for 11.4 overs, responsibly rotated strike, got a little lucky, and accelerated at the right time.

 

Anwar took three fours off Kallis' eighth over and Bhatti brought out his power-hitting against Morkel. Both men have first-class centuries to their name and showed the potential to become the seam-bowling allrounders Pakistan have missed for some time.

2nd ODI India v West Indies

West Indies 289 for 8 (Sammy 63*, Simmons 62, Powell 59, Darren Bravo 50, Ashwin 2-37) beat India 288 for 7 (Kohli 99, Dhoni 51*, Rampaul 4-60) by two wickets

Chasing 289 on an outfield that looked like it was wet because of persistent rain and not dew, West Indies had it all to lose, and some of their batsmen tried their best to do so. Ultimately, the cool head of deposed ODI captain Darren Sammy prevailed to level the series 1-1. Kieran Powell and the brothers Bravo threw their wickets away, and Lendl Simmons tried to do so unsuccessfully, but Sammy timed the final assault well to carry a stumbling West Indies to their first win of the tour.

It was the West Indies bowling towards the end of the Indian innings that had kept them alive in the series. India were 194 for 3 when the 36th over began with Virat Kohli looking set for an 18th ODI century. However, Ravi Rampaul, Jason Holder and Sunil Narine pulled them back, and Kohli fell for 99. Narine bowled his last five overs, coming back in the 37th over, for just eight runs, bowling two maidens, and Rampaul took the wickets. Despite MS Dhoni's assault towards the end, a total of 95 meant a manageable chase, which became easier as the dew got heavier and heavier.

 

The balls must have felt like bars of soap to India, had to be changed on three occasions, and skidded on, thus negating the slowness of the surface that had pulled India back in the first innings. West Indies, though, were benevolent. Darren Bravo was dropped three times in four deliveries before he went to cut a length ball from R Ashwin, thus succeeding at what he had set out to do with the first cut. That ended West Indies' best partnership of the tour, an even 100, and left Powell kicking the ground in disgust at the other end.

 

Soon, though, Powell would show an equal lack of situational awareness. In the 26th over and the 27th over, both the wet balls were changed for drier ones. And once again, Powell had the best seat in the house to learn from his partner's mistake. Lendl Simmons went driving at the first ball of the 26th over, but the drier ball gripped and turned past the bat. The second took the edge, and fell short of slip. Powell, though, wasn't observing, and premeditated a skip-and-defence to the first dry ball he faced, missing the line of the ball by at least six inches, and getting stumped by a mile. That was R Ashwin's second wicket, who bowled 10 overs for 37, a big achievement for a spinner in wet conditions.

 

At 123 for 2, West Indies needed 166 in 28 overs; at 185 for 4, the 109 required off 15.3 overs against the wet ball seemed even more manageable. Somehow, though, they managed to throw it away on both occasions, this time Dwayne Bravo pulling to the only man in the deep. Sammy, though, came out and showed his team-mates how to do it.

 

Sammy began with two singles, then played out a maiden from Ravindra Jadeja, but that didn't fret him. His partner at the other, Simmons always tried a big shot whenever he faced a few dots. Sammy, though, knew he could wait out his time. Unlike in the Tests, he backed his game here.

 

The maiden that Sammy was played out was at the start of the Powerplay. There was a concerted effort from Sammy and Simmons to not lose a wicket in the Powerplay - India had lost two for 15. West indies too managed just the 15, but they had wickets in hand to score 86 off 10 overs with the wet ball.

 

Sammy began the assault in the 41st, taking 12 off Mohammed Shami, and it was clear West Indies were edging ahead. Simmons, though, nearly threw it away in the 42nd, but was dropped by Yuvraj Singh at long-on. You can't be sure if the wetness of the ball caused that slip, but you can be certain it proved critical, a night before India discuss Yuvraj's shaky position for the tour of South Africa.

 

Sammy at the other end kept backing himself to clear the field whenever he wanted to, but he also played with the field, beating short fine leg on more than occasion while dragging short balls from outside off. Every time an attempted yorker went too full, Sammy put it into the crowd. He hadn't budgeted for one final brain fade, though.

 

It had come down to 22 off 19 when Jadeja got one to skid and trap Simmons in front. The game was still in West Indies' grip, which was tightened with a four and a six from Sammy in the next over. This is where Jason Holder and Sunil Narine went for the glory, and made it four off nine with two wickets in hand.

 

However, Sammy made sure he crossed over before Narine's top edge was caught, and took a single to keep strike for the last over. The field came up, but the runs were scored, and Kohli's effort earlier in the day - which could have made him the first man to have scored five centuries each in consecutive years - was overshadowed.

1st Ashes Test Day 4

Aus 295 & 401-7 dec beat Eng 136 & 179 by 381 runs

England slumped to a humiliating 381-run defeat in the first Test as Mitchell Johnson once again blew their fragile batting away.

Facing a target of 561 to win, or two days to bat through for the draw, England disintegrated from 142-4 to 151-8 and then 179 all out late on the fourth day to go behind in an Ashes series for the first time in seven years.

Only captain Alastair Cook with 65 offered any prolonged resistance as his side lost four wickets for nine runs in 18 frantic mid-afternoon minutes at the Gabba.

Poor shots cost Kevin Pietersen and Matt Prior but Johnson was rampant as he finished with 5-42 to go with his 4-61 in the first innings.

This was sweet revenge indeed for the left-arm fast bowler, a figure of fun when he recorded figures of 0-170 here three years ago but man of the match this time around.

It was England's second biggest defeat in Ashes cricket in Australia, in terms of runs, and leaves them with several critical issues to address before the second Test begins in 11 days.

Australia had lost seven of their last nine Tests coming into this game, and had not won in the five-day format since last January.

But they have dominated the last three days at a ground that has not seen an Australian Test defeat in 25 years, and appear a side transformed from the unsettled, insecure unit that has struggled badly for so much of the past 12 months.

With only a two-day game against a weak opposition in Alice Springs to come before the second Test in Adelaide, it is England - 3-0 victors in the corresponding series three months ago - with all the headaches.

Cook and Pietersen had begun the day looking comparatively comfortable, the pitch still doing little to assist the bowlers despite the emergence of a few cracks.

They had taken the overnight score of 24-2 up to 72 when Pietersen tossed all that diligence away by taking the short-ball bait from Johnson and pulling straight to substitute fielder Chris Sabburg at long leg.

It was a dismal way to get out in the circumstances, even if England's task was already near impossible.

Pietersen had fallen for the same obvious trap in the Sydney Test on England's last tour down under, and can expect more of the same as this series continues.

Cook was contrastingly cautious. His half century - the third slowest of his Test career - came off 158 balls and was greeted with the most muted of acknowledgments.

He and Ian Bell then dealt extremely well with a nasty spell of fast bowling from Johnson and Ryan Harris, swaying from the path of the short stuff and keeping hands low.

It took some surprise extra bounce from Peter Siddle to have Bell caught behind by Haddin for 32 with the score on 130, and although a spectacular sub-tropical storm then saw the outfield covered in hail and puddles, it delayed play for just an hour and a half - an inconvenience to Australia rather than a lifeline for England.

If anything it interrupted Cook's previously excellent concentration.

In the second over after the restart he tried to cut Nathan Lyon but was caught behind for 65, and in that moment any crazy hopes of a rescue act to match that of three years ago finally disappeared.

In the off-spinner's next over, Matt Prior played needlessly at a ball outside leg stump and deflected it straight to leg slip for a paltry four, leaving his side 146-6.

That became 151-7 when Stuart Broad gloved the rampant Johnson down the leg-side, and when Swann went for a second-ball duck - chasing a wide one and edging it to Steve Smith at third slip - England had lost four wickets for nine runs.

Another rain shower briefly delayed the inevitable, but when play resumed in the late afternoon sun, Ryan Harris had Chris Tremlett caught by George Bailey at short leg for seven.

And although Joe Root hung around for 86 balls for a 26 not out, Johnson caught and bowled James Anderson for two to trigger wild celebrations among his team-mates.

1st Ashes Test Day 3 Aus 295 & 401-7 dec v Eng 136 & 24-2

Blistering centuries from captain Michael Clarke and opener David Warner punished England's weary bowlers on day three as Australia moved to within touching distance of winning the first Test.

Warner's 124 off 154 balls - his first ton in Ashes cricket - and Clarke's 113 off 130 allowed the home side to declare after tea on 401-7 and set England a monstrous 561 to win.

Analysis

Michael Vaughan Ex-England captain & Test Match Special summariser

"I can't remember two days as bad as this from this England team - they have been nowhere near the standard we expect. But the Australians have played a great brand of aggressive cricket.

"The crowd have helped Australia - they have been hostile and England just haven't had any answers. The cracks that we thought were in the England team, but which were hidden because they won 3-0 in the summer, are wide open now."

Given an hour to survive, England lost Michael Carberry for a duck and Jonathan Trott for a tortured nine as they slumped to 24-2 by the close.

No side in history have scored more than 418 in the fourth innings to win a Test, and with the forecast good for the remaining two days Alastair Cook's men will have to bat out a near-impossible 183 overs to save the match.

And the manner in which they batted against Mitchell Johnson and Ryan Harris on Saturday evening suggested they will be fortunate to take it into a fifth day.

Carberry was a little unlucky to play on to Harris. But Trott looked utterly hapless against the predictable barrage of deliveries aimed at his body, his dismissal pulling Johnson straight to deep square leg as humiliating as it was inevitable.

Warner and Clarke had earlier put on 158 runs for the third wicket, with Graeme Swann (2-135) coming in for particularly chastening punishment.

Clarke's century was his 25th in Test cricket and his 11th as captain, and means that he now averages more than Sir Don Bradman at this ground.

England had given themselves brief hope by dismissing both Chris Rogers and Shane Watson in the first 35 minutes after Australia resumed on 65-0, both men caught playing ambitious back-foot shots.

They then tried to rough up Clarke with the same short, fast stuff that accounted for him in the first innings.

But neither Stuart Broad nor particularly the pedestrian Chris Tremlett could match the pace and aggression shown by Johnson and Harris on the second day, and the Australian skipper settled in by pulling away two fours.

It was the start of a sustained assault that picked up pace before lunch and then accelerated after as the heat built and England's bowlers tired.

Warner led the way, piling first into Tremlett and then attacking Swann with lusty relish to race into the 90s.

He was fortunate to escape on two occasions against James Anderson while on 99, but went to his century in the next over when he cover-drove Joe Root away to deafening appreciation from the Gabba crowd.

Australia's leading Test century-makers

41 - Ricky Ponting (168 Tests)
32 - Steve Waugh (168)
30 - Matt Hayden (103)
29 - Don Bradman (52)
27 - Allan Border (156)
25 - Michael Clarke (98*)
24 - Greg Chappell (87)
23 - Justin Langer (105)

Warner ripped off his helmet and leapt in the air to celebrate, and when Swann was recalled to the attack from the Vulture St End went after him again.

Clarke joined the assault, with brutal force to flay a six over long-on and with delicate panache to cut him behind point for more.

In three overs in the middle of the afternoon, Swann went for 38 runs, the 150 partnership coming up at almost a run a ball.

When first-innings destroyer Broad came back, Warner clouted him back over his head for another six, only to snick one behind to Matt Prior three balls later to fall for 124 and give Broad his 50th Ashes wicket.

The damage had been done. While Tremlett had Steve Smith caught behind for a duck, Clarke continued to use his feet beautifully to Swann and went to his own 100 with a controlled drive as the Gabba once again rose.

He celebrated with relish, kissing the badge on his helmet and pointing his bat at the home dressing-room, knowing that his innings had almost certainly crushed any faint hopes England had of saving the game.

Swann had posted his own unwanted century before he finally had any success, Clarke bowled as he went down the track once again, and although George Bailey's scalp then gave him his 250th Test wicket there were few smiles.

Analysis

Geoffrey Boycott Ex-England batsman & Test Match Special summariser

"Jonathan Trott has a problem and it was a continuation of the first innings. He showed he had a problem with a short ball and he decided to play his shots but he's not the sort of player to be positive and play the pull and hook shot. He's a player who is quiet at the crease and scores his runs. Taking on the fast bowler doesn't work for him."

Brad Haddin and Johnson continued the cruel massacre against the second new ball and took the lead past the 517 that England famously made to save the corresponding Test three years ago.

Johnson heaved Tremlett for a straight six over long on before Haddin went to his second half-century of the game with a single off the 49th ball he faced.

Clarke declared as the score passed 400, knowing England's chances of batting out the 198 overs left in the match were remote.

Sure enough, both Carberry and Trott fell before Cook (11) and Kevin Pietersen (three) clung on to the close.

Even then it took fortune to see them survive, Pietersen calling his captain through for an insane single that would have seen him run out had Warner taken the ball cleanly by the stumps.

It summed up the horrors of the day for the tourists, second best by a distance throughout to a team they beat 3-0 only three months ago.

2nd T20 South Africa v Pakistan

Pakistan 176 for 4 (Akmal 64, Steyn 2-29) beat South Africa 170 for 4 (Amla 48, Afridi 3-28) by six runs

A 102-run stand between Mohammad Hafeez and Umar Akmal allowed Pakistan to put on their most competitive batting display in limited-overs matches against South Africa in the last month and break a six-match winless streak. With both batsmen enjoying their first half-centuries in 13 innings, South Africa were required to chase the second-highest total in T20s at Newlands.

The hosts started as though they would get there but their innings was halted by Pakistan's spinners, led by Shahid Afridi who took the first three wickets. Bilawal Bhatti, in just his second match, showed the variations needed to stem the run flow of runs so that even a 34-run blitz in two overs by David Miller and JP Duminy at the end was not enough, with Sohail Tanvir bowling low full tosses at the death.

The example for seamers was set by Bhatti, who used both the yorker and the slower ball bouncer to good effect, unlike South Africa's seamers. They lacked the control that is usually provided by Lonwabo Tsotsobe. Morne Morkel and Dale Steyn started well but both fell into an over-reliance on the short-ball.

This time, Pakistan's openers were able to deal with them comfortably. They saw off the barrage and attacked the rest. Nasir Jamshed showed ominous signs when he tore into both South Africa's front-liners.

Ahmed Shehzad was equally confident but he slashed at Wayne Parnell's first ball and was caught at slip. That over turned into a wicket maiden as Mohammad Hafeez gave himself time to settle in.

The next shot in anger was off a free-hit, when Parnell overstepped and Hafeez sent his bouncer into the stands. Jamshed tried to charge Aaron Phangiso, off the first ball of spin he faced, and was stumped, to allow South Africa to pull Pakistan back to a scoring rate of under six an over before Hafeez really got going.

He beat Steyn at short third man to hit his first four, played a delicate leg glance off David Wiese and then launched Phangiso for two straight sixes down the ground. Akmal started his boundary count with a similar shot. Hafeez brought up his half-century - the first of this marathon limited-overs series against South Africa - with a sweep off Duminy.

With the spinners nothing but cannon fodder, Faf du Plessis brought back Wiese but he could not land two balls in the same area. Morkel's third over was similarly wayward. He pitched it up and Akmal hit him for six, he went short and wide and Akmal did the same, just with a different shot. Parnell was also unable to contain and it was only when Steyn came back that runs dried up.

Hafeez was caught at mid-of, trying to hit Steyn over the top and that slowed Pakistan down. They promoted Shahid Afridi up the order in the hope of finishing strongly but he was horribly out of touch. He played and missed at most of the next over before handing back to Akmal.

While Afridi was a liability to Pakistan at the end, and they managed just 31 runs in the last four overs, he made up for it with the ball.

Hashim Amla and Quinton de Kock seemed up for the task as they motored their way to 49 runs in the first five overs. De Kock played the expansive shots, a drive through extra cover, a pull off Junaid Khan, while Amla accumulated runs with the fine-tuned placement and timing he is known for.

Saeed Ajmal kept things quiet in the last over of the Powerplay before Bhatti continued his impressive start to international cricket. Nine runs came off their first two overs and it was enough to prompt de Kock into going for a big shot.

He tried to slog sweep Afridi's first ball but did not get enough on it and Jamshed took a good catch at fine leg to give Pakistan their first breakthrough. Bhatti kept up the strangulation with an array of short balls and varied pace to frustrate du Plessis.

In Afridi's next over, de Plessis pulled to deep midwicket to take the catch. With AB de Villiers still at the crease, South Africa's hopes stayed alive. But when he tried to be innovative against Afridi, he failed. De Villiers stepped outside the leg stump and was bowled.

South Africa needed 90 runs off 51 balls and despite Amla and Duminy's efforts to work the ball around and find the occasional boundary, the required run-rate became too great. Miller and Duminy turned it on against an out of sorts Junaid Khan as the end approached to leave themselves with 17 runs to get off the last over.

Tanvir took the pace off while keeping his length full to ensure Pakistan squared the series and moved up to No.4 on the rankings. South Africa have dropped from second to third.

1st Ashes Test Day 2 (Aus 295 & 65/0 Eng 136 lead 224)

Australia 295 & 65/0 lead England 136 by 224 runs (stumps day 2)

England suffered a calamitous second afternoon as they collapsed from 82-2 to 136 all out to hand Australia total control of the first Test.

Having earlier dismissed the hosts for 295, England lost six wickets for nine runs in 10 extraordinary overs as a rampaging Mitchell Johnson ran amok through the wreckage of their top order.

Only Michael Carberry with 40 offered any meaningful resistance as Johnson (4-61) and the excellent Ryan Harris (3-28) made the most of some ill-judged strokeplay and feeble defence.

By the close, Australia had added 65 without loss to lead by 224 runs with three full days left in which to push for victory.

Not since Melbourne in 1990, when they lost six wickets for three runs, have England fallen apart in such dramatic fashion.

Three years ago at this ground they ceded a first innings deficit of 221 runs before piling on 517-1 in their second to save the match in style.

But their batting today does not appear to have the form or depth it did in that record-breaking campaign.

They have failed to pass 400 in their last 17 Test innings and, barring a meteorological miracle, are likely to go to Adelaide for the second Test behind in an Ashes series for the first time in seven years.

England had wrapped up the last two Australian wickets in the first hour for the addition of just 22 more runs, Brad Haddin the last man out for 94 after Stuart Broad had taken his sixth wicket of the innings in having Harris caught behind.

That total of 295 appeared well below par on a pitch that looked built for batting, but after a relatively serene start England lost Alastair Cook and Jonathan Trott in a manner that suggested the Australian top order were not the only batsmen struggling with the same issues that bothered them last summer.

Harris was bowling full to England's captain, hoping to draw him into an injudicious push, and with the score on 28 that well-worn tactic paid dividends once again when Cook played with feet rooted and edged to Haddin for 13.

Trott had issues against the short ball in the Ashes series in England, and, as soon as he came in, Johnson was recalled to the attack to test him once again.

The left-arm paceman had been rapid yet expensive in his first six overs, going for 32 runs as he strayed down the leg-side.

But he struck a minute before lunch when Trott moved too far to the off-side to deal with a short one and tickled a clear inside-edge down the leg side to Haddin on 10.

It transformed not only Johnson's mood but the course of the innings.

Kevin Pietersen, in his 100th Test, had already had one life when Peter Siddle dropped a sharp caught-and-bowled chance when he was on eight.

But parsimonious Australian bowling - just 27 runs were scored in the hour after lunch - paid off when Pietersen, having been marooned on 18 for 13 dot balls, tried to thump Harris through mid-wicket and instead picked out a stretching George Bailey.

Carberry played with admirable poise on his return to the Test arena. But after Nathan Lyon tied him down, Johnson roughed him up by coming around the wicket and had him caught in the slips with a rapid one across his bows.

Next to go was last summer's rescue act Ian Bell, fending Nathan Lyon to Steve Smith at short leg for five, before Matt Prior went the very next ball to the same combination.

The Gabba, library-quiet just a few minutes before, was suddenly a bear-pit.

Broad survived the hat-trick ball but Graeme Swann went for a duck, again taken at short leg off a nasty short one, as Johnson's pace and aggression proved too much.

And although Broad (32) and Tremlett (10) briefly halted the carnage, both fell quickly after tea to leave England trailing by a monstrous 159 runs.

Chris Rogers (13) and David Warner (45) then made batting look straightforward again as they settled in against a flat-looking attack.

And Michael Clarke's men will be confident they can take their first Test win in 10 attempts when the pair resume on Saturday morning.

2nd T20 Sri Lanka v New Zealand

Sri Lanka 143 for 2 (Dilshan 59*, Kusal 57) beat New Zealand 142 for 7 (Ronchi 34*, Devcich 30) by eight wickets

Kusal Perera and Tillakaratne Dilshan struck 96 rapid runs together, as Sri Lanka comfortably hunted down New Zealand's modest 142 for 7 to take the series 1-0. Both hit half-centuries, and while Kusal's was the more belligerent, and the more attractive, Dilshan again whet his increasing appetite to bring chases home. He was unbeaten on 59 off 49 balls - his seventh international fifty in eight innings - after Kusal had walloped 57 from 37.

Miserly debutant Ramith Rambukwella had been the only man to deliver four overs in a row for Sri Lanka, as Dinesh Chandimal made fine use of the Twenty20 bowling stocks at his disposal. All seven bowlers were called upon, injected in short spells and replaced swiftly when the batsmen showed signs of comfort. New Zealand did not suffer a collapse, but partnerships were prevented, and on a tacky surface, Sri Lanka's controlled showing prevented even the in-form Nathan McCullum from doing unmanageable damage at the death.

Though Kusal's innings was emphatic, it had its share of good fortune. He lofted his second ball high over the long-on boundary, but two deliveries later, should have been trudging back to the dugout, when he pulled Mitchell McClenaghan to Andrew Ellis, at backward square-leg. Ellis shelled that chance, perhaps because the ball was hit so hard, but Colin Munro did not have that excuse on the long leg boundary, when he too spilt one, with Kusal on 39.

In between the drops, Kusal's strokes veered from excellent to extraordinary. A swinging length ball from Kyle Mills was launched into the sightscreen before he leant back to the next delivery and eased it between point and cover. A good eye and lightning bat speed are the pillars of his batting, and though there were plays and misses as well, the balls he hit almost invariably sped off the bat.

Even in his short international career, though, he has tended to perish attacking, and despite two let offs, he did so again. Having crossed 50 off 31 balls - his second Twenty20 half-century - he came down the pitch to send Rob Nicol high into the air, off his top edge. Nicol moved a few meters to his left to complete the catch.

In what is developing into a trend, for Dilshan, he was the slower of the two batsmen, whose partnership propelled Sri Lanka well beyond the asking rate and to eventual victory. There were no flashy strokes in his fifty, only measured attacks on poor bowling. Showing respect to New Zealand bowlers he did not fancy, he made sure he would be around to soak up the large crowd's applause at the end.

Hamish Rutherford had waited all tour for a match, but lasted only four balls, nicking Nuwan Kulasekara's first ball - an away-swinger - to the keeper. Charging down the pitch to miscue an Angelo Mathews' short ball, Neil Broom failed to impress in his first match for New Zealand in three-and-a-half years.

The early strikes forced caution into New Zealand's batting, and perhaps they reasoned they would make amends with violence later on, as they had in the ODIs. Only, no pair truly established rhythm at the crease, and the bowling changes brought wickets as well as a subdued run rate. Until the 16th over, New Zealand did not score at much more than a run-a-ball.

McCullum had been a high-impact batsman during the ODIs, and though flashes of that form bore two fours in the penultimate over, the tackiness of the surface and a controlled death-overs showing from Sri Lanka prevented him from truly freeing his arms. He was run out going for an ambitious second in the final over, before a hitherto expensive Lasith Malinga trapped Nicol in front.

Rambukwella produced exactly the sort of spell he had been picked for, conceding less than five an over with his tight offspin. He rarely departed from the length ball, pitched outside off stump, but his skill was tweaking the manner in which the ball arrived. Some were flighted, others were slow and flat, but most were darted in - sometimes after a pause in his delivery stride.

Sri Lanka's eight-wicket win was an apt reflection of their dominance over a severely depleted New Zealand side, and the hosts protect their No. 1 ranking as well. This match was supposed to be the second in the series, but Tuesday's game was rained out, turning this into a one-off. 

1st ODI India v West Indies

India 212 for 4 (Kohli 86, Rohit 72) beat West Indies 211 (Darren Bravo 59, Raina 3-34, Jadeja 3-37) by six wickets

Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli continued their prolific runs to set up India's chase with effortless half-centuries after India's spinners, led by Ravindra Jadeja and Suresh Raina, had taken eight wickets to bowl West Indies out for a below-par total in Kochi.

Shikhar Dhawan was caught behind off a rising Jason Holder delivery in the fourth over, but Rohit and Kohli were unfazed by the dual nature of the pitch, and kept scoring freely throughout their 133-run partnership in 21.4 overs.

It was Kohli who did the bulk of the scoring in the first 10 overs, hitting five boundaries against Rohit's one. But as soon as Sunil Narine was introduced in the 11th over, Rohit took over the role of aggressor. The next seven hits to the boundary came from Rohit's bat, as he used a wide array of shots - from powerful slog-sweeps to deft late-cuts - to zoom past Kohli. 

During the course of his innings, he went past Misbah-ul-Haq to become the leading run-scorer in 2013, but just when a century looked certain, he pulled one straight to deep midwicket to be dismissed for 72, with his tally of international runs since October standing on 859.

Kohli had been happy to turn over the strike to Rohit during their partnership, but he switched gears as a struggling Yuvraj Singh - not Raina - joined him in the middle. A couple of powerful pulls were unleashed against the fast bowlers - the second one making him the joint-fastest to reach 5000 ODI runs along with Viv Richards, in 114 innings. But just like Rohit, he too was dismissed when a hundred appeared for the taking.

India needed 20 runs at that stage off 18.4 overs, which despite a brief flutter, was not enough for the West Indies to defend. Apart from Rohit and Kohli, none of the batsmen from either team found it easy to bat.

For Indian bowlers though, the Kochi pitch brought a respite, soothing the wounds they endured during the series against Australia last month, as they finally exerted some control over the batsmen.

West Indies had recovered from the loss of Chris Gayle in the first over to get to 63 for 1 after ten overs when spin was introduced. Jadeja, who had been left out of the Tests to nurse his injured shoulder, took only four balls to make an impact. Johnson Charles, trying to whip a flighted delivery to the leg side, got a leading edge towards Jadeja, who dived full length to his left to pull off a one-handed blinder.

Smart stats Virat Kohli completed 5000 ODI runs in this match, in his 114th innings, equalling Viv Richards' record as the fastest batsman in ODIs to 5000 runs. For India, Sourav Ganguly was the previous batsman fastest to 5000 ODI runs, having reached the landmark in 126 innings. Kohli has won five Man-of-the-Match awards in ODIs in 2013, the most by any batsman this year. Tillakaratne Dilshan and Misbah-ul-Haq are next in that list with four awards each. Ravindra Jadeja has become the leading wicket-taker in ODIs in 2013 going ahead of Saeed Ajmal. Jadeja has taken 49 wickets at 22.22 from 29 ODIs this year as opposed to Ajmal's 48 wickets at 19.77 from 25 ODIs. Click here for a list of the leading wicket-takers in ODIs this year. Rohit Sharma has become the highest run-scorer in ODIs this year. He has scored 1143 runs at 60.15 from 23 matches. Kohli is joint-second in that list; he has scored 1119 from 26 innings at 55.95 and is tied with Misbah. The 133-run partnership between Kohli and Rohit in this match was the second highest for India for the second wicket against West Indies. Raina's bowling figures of 3 for 34 were his best in ODIs and the first time he took three wickets in an innings. His previous-best ODI figures also came against West Indies, in Indore in 2011, when he took 2 for 17.  West Indies' opening partnerships have added all of 85 runs in their last ten ODIs against India in India. The highest they have put together for their first wicket in the last ten ODIs is 34, added by Kirk Edwards and Dwayne Smith in the 2011 World Cup league match.

That the ball had stopped a touch on the batsman was an indication for MS Dhoni to introduce spin at both ends. Raina didn't have to wait for long either. 

His eighth delivery barely bounced, hitting the base of the middle stump to dismiss a well-set Marlon Samuels.

Raina added two more wickets - Lendl Simmons was adjudged lbw to one which was probably spinning down the leg side while Narsingh Deonarine had himself to blame for playing across the line to a straighter one - and ended up with his best ODI figures of 10-1-34-3.

Darren Bravo, though, fought back with 59 off 77 deliveries. He manoeuvered the strike around in company of Simmons - both adding 65 for the fourth wicket - while being severe on anything that was pitched up. 

Twice, he hit flighted deliveries from Jadeja into the stands. However, he too was dismissed by one that stayed low from Mohammed Shami during the Powerplay. 

His dismissal signaled the end of resistance from West Indies as the rest of the batsmen could only manage 28 more runs. Jadeja finished with three wickets that also propped him up to the top of the ODI wicket-takers' charts this year.

Spin was thought to be a factor at the start of the match because of the presence of cracks on the pitch. West Indies chose to bat, hoping to build the pressure in a format they are more comfortable with.

The change to coloured clothing was supposed to bring relief for Gayle, who had endured a difficult time in the Test series with a top score of 35. But he didn't give himself a chance to settle. He dabbed the second delivery of the match towards the non-striker and called straightaway for a risky single. 

Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who has dismissed Gayle four times this year already, sprinted to his right, swiveled and threw down the stumps at the non-striker's end, catching Gayle well short.

But as Gayle tried to make his ground, he took a tumble and injured his hamstring that is likely to keep him out for up to four weeks.