ASIA CUP CRICKET - ZIMBABWE TOUR

Raina to lead Team India

Kohli Vice-Captain As Top Players Are Given Break For Tour OF Zimbabwe

Chennai: The top Indian players haven't got much time to rest over the past few months. And post July, it won't get any easier for them with back-to-back series, starting with the Asia Cup.

         So, the BCCI has gone for the wise option of resting their top players for the Zimbabwe tri-series starting from May 28, also featuring Sri Lanka.With Dhone, Yuvraj Singh, Harbhajan Singh, Ashis Nehra, Sachin Tendulkar and Gautam Gambhir not playing, Suresh Raina has been made the Indian skipper. Raina had led India 'A' earlier and looked comfortable at the Chennai Super Kings box seat when Dhoni missed a week's actionof IPL.

         Most of the players who have come close to doing well in the IPL have made the cut either in India team for the Zimbabwe tour or the 'A'; series in England, barring Robin Uthappa.

        Uthappa was brilliant in some of the matches for Royal Challengers Bangalore as they went on to clinch a Champions League berth, but the selectors, surprisingly, didn't think it good enough to keep him among the elite on Indian cricket.

         However, there were reports later that Uthappa had suffered an injury that ruled him out. Another consistent performer in the IPL not to have made the cut inboth the sides was Tamil Nadu's S. Badrinath, Skipper Dhoni had praised his efforts time and again as CSK went on to win the tournament, but Krishnamachari Srikanth & Co. Who met at the cooler climes of Kodaikanal, probably felt that the Tamil Nadu player is not a future India material in the limited-overs version of the game.

            The likes of S. Sreesanth, Irfan Pathan and RP Singh have also been ignored while Pankaj Singh, who only played two matches in the IPL. Meanwhile, in the India 'A' team that was announced for the England, Bipul Sharma, a former ICL player, made the cut. Bipul is the first to have palyed in the rebel league who has got an India call-up.

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T20 ICC WORLD TWENTY20 WEST INDIES 2010 - Super Eight: ENG Vs SA

T20 ICC

World Cup

Twenty20

West Indies

KP Steals Show As England Beat SA

Bridgetown: Kevin Pietersen laid the platform for a commanding 39-run victory over his native South Africa as England took a giant stride towards the World Twenty20 semifinals here on Saturday. Pietersen's high-class 53 was at the heart of England's 168 for seven against the land of his birth at the Kensington Oval.

       The star batsman was named man of-the-match for the second time in as many fixtures after his unbeaten 73 in a six-wicket Super Eights win over defending champions Pakistan on Thursday. Peitersen, whose innings helped has struggled with both form and fitness at international level for over a year, with a right Achilles injury ruling him out of the majority of the 2009 Ashes series win over Australia.

         "I've had a really rough last 12-14 months soit's nice to be back again," Pietersen said. England Twenty20 captain Paul Collingwood was delighted by a dominant display that delighted the massed ranks of England fans in the crowd.

         "There are a lot of England fans in here and I wanted us to put on a good performance and we've done that," he said. South Africa captain  Graeme Smith said his side had been well beaten.

           "Credit to England, they were far better than us today, especially in the first 10 overs. "In general it was a very disappointing da for us and we have to make sure we bounce back."

            South Africa suffered a dramatic top-order collapse against England spinners Graeme Swann (three wickets for 24 runs) and Michael Yardy (two for 26). The Proteas lost four wickets for 19 runs as 34 for one was transormed into 53 for five.

         Left-arm quick Ryan Side bottom (three for 23) ended the match with an over to spare by bowling Morne Morkel as South Africa were dismissed for 129. Victory left England with two wins from two second round matches. 

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T20 ICC WORLD TWENTY20 WEST INDIES 2010 - Super India Vs WI

T20 ICC

World Cup

Twenty20

West Indies

WIND OFF INDIA'S SAILS

Batting let us down yet again: Dhoni

Barbados: The Indian team had banked on their batting to deliver. It didn't and now MS Dhoni's boys are on the verge of elimination from the T20 World Cup.

      Dhoni didn't hide his disappointment at the poor show of his team's batting line-up in both their defeats in the Super Eights stage. "Batting hasn't been up to the expectation. It is supposed to be our strength, and we should chase 170 in these condition,"Dhone really sounded disapponted, trying to come to terms with a crushing defeat which has made things really difficult for them.

       India play Sri Lanka in their last game and there are too many its and buts for them to go through. The skipper didn't blame his bowlers for the loss. Despite 170 runs being conceded, the captin said: "The bowlers did a decent job, barring a few bad overs here and there. I won't say the bowlers lost us the match," he added.

       Dhoni, though, said that they would love to give their best in the last game. "We are hoping to give our best in the next game. It's definitely disappointing but we have to pick ourselves up," Captain Cool was trying his best not to show the pain of losing yet again at the Super Eight stage.

       West Indian skipper Chris Gayle looked relieved after the win, more so, because of the match winning innings he played. "Good win, just what we needed after the first loss," he said.

       Talking sbout his own effort, Gayle said, "I was under pressure. It's not only cricket, but I had to see to it that I didn't let my rfans down, who have had so much confidence in me. So it was important to play well myself."

 

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