After a glut of one-sided snooze-fests, the IPL produced the kind of upset the Twenty20 format is made for, with the tenth-placed Kings XI Punjab producing a strong performance to trounce the table-toppers, Mumbai Indians

The Bulletin by Nitin Sundar10-May-2011
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsSachin Tendulkar’s dismissal was the beginning of a spectacular collapse•Associated Press

After a glut of predictable snooze-fests, the IPL produced the kind of upset the Twenty20 format is made for, with Kings XI Punjab, placed tenth at the start of the game, producing a strong performance to trounce the table-toppers, Mumbai Indians. Punjab came out determined against Mumbai’s gun bowlers – Lasith Malinga and Harbhajan Singh – and scrapped their way towards a solid base, before Munaf Patel’s five-for kept them to 163. In reply, Mumbai combusted in a rash of ridiculous shots to concede two points on a platter, keeping Punjab’s campaign alive.It was the kind of score Punjab would have taken at the toss, given how badly out of form their batting had been in recent games. It gave them the rare luxury of something to bowl at, and they responded with purpose and vigour. Aiden Blizzard produced three edgy boundaries in the first over from Praveen Kumar, but things went rapidly downhill from there for Mumbai’s batsmen. Sachin Tendulkar guided an innocuous delivery from Praveen straight to backward point in the third over, before Adam Gilchrist pulled off an alert stumping to send Rohit Sharma on his way. When Blizzard was adjudged out nicking a leg-side ball from Praveen in the fifth over, Mumbai had slumped to 27 for 3, and there was no middle-order counter-attack to put them back on track.Even a couple of dropped chances and a missed run-out did not spark a revival, and the exit of Andrew Symonds, Ambati Rayudu and T Suman in successive overs set up a happy evening for the Mohali faithfuls.Punjab’s defiance was captured earlier in the day, in the way Gilchrist fronted up to Lasith Malinga. The bowler of the tournament screamed in for the second over of Punjab’s innings, and delivered it full and wide of off stump. The out-of-form Gilchrist rolled back the years by moving across and slicing it through point. The next ball was hit even more fiercely, but it found the fielder. Buoyed by the confidence of having middled two balls, Gilchrist took guard outside the crease for the next delivery. It was a yorker, followed by a bouncer that clattered Gilchrist on the back of his helmet. He was stunned for a moment and floored for a minute, but he got a new helmet and carried on. Punjab were not going to flinch today.Paul Valthaty did his bit to kick-start the innings before perishing in Munaf’s first over, pulling him straight to deep midwicket. Gilchrist carried on though he was clearly not at his best, struggling to pick Harbhajan’s straighter ones, and to adapt to the drop in pace once Malinga exited the attack. Symonds let him off on one of those indiscretions, when Gilchrist drove Dhawal Kulkarni uppishly into the covers. Gilchrist celebrated by launching Rohit Sharma for a straight six, while Shaun Marsh checked in by creaming Kulkarni twice through the off side.Malinga returned and produced the breakthrough, hurling down another pacy bouncer which Gilchrist feathered behind. Marsh had found his range by then, and seamlessly took charge of the innings along with Dinesh Karthik. Blizzard made things easier for Punjab, dropping Karthik when he top-edged Kieron Pollard. Karthik capitalised by sweeping and reverse-sweeping Suman for successive fours in the 14th over, as Punjab coiled for the final assault. It was the cue for the Munaf show to begin.Marsh welcomed Munaf to the crease by crashing the first ball of his second spell through the covers, before imparting a violent thump to another half-tracker, to send it sailing along towards the deep midwicket fence. Pollard had his own ideas, though, running at full tilt, diving to his right and intercepting the ball with both hands, to pull off one of the best catches of the tournament. That sparked Mumbai’s best phase in the game, as Munaf used clever changes in length and pace to cut through the lower order. He dismissed David Hussey for a duck, before foxing Karthik and Ryan Harris into scooping catches into the outfield. Munaf’s efforts had restricted Punjab to just 39 off the last five overs, but Mumbai’s spectacular batting collapse meant it counted for nothing.

Sri Lanka will step up their preparations for the first Test against England when they face a strong Lions side at Derby

Andrew McGlashan18-May-2011Sri Lanka will step up their preparations for the first Test against England when they face a strong Lions side at Derby. It’s a sign of the depth in English cricket that a formidable second team can be drawn up and they should give the tourists a good idea of their readiness for Cardiff.Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakkara, along with the other three players who spent an extra week at the IPL, have arrived so the visitors are now at full strength. Facing the likes of Steven Finn, Ajmal Shahzad and Graham Onions, who has made an impressive return to action after a career-threatening back injury, will be a good test of adjustment for them on a Derby pitch that often offers help to the pace bowlers.Regardless of their form, however, Jayawardene and Sangakkara will line up in the Test side alongside Tillakaratne Dilshan, Tharanga Paranavitana and Thilan Samaraweera. This match will help Stuart Law, Sri Lanka’s interim coach, and the selectors decide who will be the final specialist batsman – presuming that is the balance they opt for.Against Middlesex, at Uxbridge, they went for two spinners on a flat surface but the Test attack may only include one slow bowler. Suraj Randiv, the tall offspinner, will be given a chance to press his claim after Rangana Herath and Ajantha Mendis did the job in the opening match. Herath’s useful batting could edge the stakes in his favour.That leaves the quick bowling. Dilhara Fernando is pencilled in with the new ball and Chandaka Welegedara took five wickets in the match against Middlesex. The one to watch, after a hint from Law, is Nuwan Pradeep who has been called a slightly less slingy Lasith Malinga. England’s analysts, one of who was at Uxbridge, will no doubt be compiling a library of footage ahead of the Test series.The England selectors will also be watching closely. There is a long season ahead and a pool of reserve talent will come in handy. At least one of the Lions will be appearing in Cardiff with a replacement needed for Paul Collingwood at No. 6, while there is also a pace-bowling vacancy due to Tim Bresnan’s torn calf.The contest between Ravi Bopara and Eoin Morgan has been billed as a shootout for the batting slot, ahead of the squad announcement on Sunday morning, but this England set-up doesn’t operate in that way. They’ll know who they want in the Test team. The smart money is on Bopara and plenty of things favour him. He has overcome a tricky start to the season to score 408 Championship runs with two hundreds and chip in with nine wickets for Essex, while twice turning down IPL advances.Morgan has spent the last six weeks in India with limited success for Kolkata Knight Riders, hitting one fifty in 12 innings. He returned to the UK on Saturday and was at Uxbridge the following day netting against his Middlesex team-mates (and Angus Fraser). He’ll cling to the knowledge that he was England’s most recent stand-by batsman in Australia, but it’s more than four months since their last Test match in Sydney and things change.Meanwhile, a replacement for Bresnan is tough to call, but the selectors are likely to want a like-for-like option who can swing the ball so Shahzad, who played one Test against Bangladesh last year, is a strong candidate. Finn played three Ashes games but with Stuart Broad and Chris Tremlett there are already two tall quicks available.Beyond the immediate battles there is further interest from the Lions line up. James Taylor, the Leicestershire batsman, has another chance to impress, as does James Hildreth who will captain the side. One of those is likely to be in contention when England’s one-day squad is selected in late June. That might also apply to Samit Patel, who has been given another chance after some harsh reminders about his fitness requirements during the winter.

Mohammad Amir, the banned Pakistan fast bowler, has confirmed that he played for Addington in a Surrey Cricket League Division One match on June 4

ESPNcricinfo staff08-Jun-2011Mohammad Amir, the banned Pakistan fast bowler, has confirmed that he played for Addington in a Surrey Cricket League Division One match on June 4 but said that he took part only because he was told playing would not violate his ICC ban. His comments come in the wake of revelations in the that the ICC is investigating whether he violated his five-year ban for spot-fixing by turning out for Addington.”I was informed by club representatives before the game that it was a friendly match, being played on a privately owned cricket ground,” Amir told . “I asked the club representatives if the match fell under the jurisdiction of the ECB and they informed me that the match did not. I spoke to several club representatives about the issue and they all told me that it was a friendly match and therefore would not contravene my ban from the ICC. I was informed that I was fine to play.”Amir also denied that he had signed any registration documents with the club and insisted that he would never have taken the risk of playing had he known it was an official match.”I would not be stupid enough to knowingly play in a match that I knew would contravene my ban. Wherever I am going to play cricket, the world will know about it. I would not be stupid enough to play in a match where I knew that I would be taking a risk”.Amir was central to Addington’s 81-run victory in the game, against St Luke’s CC. He surprisingly opened the innings and scored 60 before returning figures of 4 for 9 in seven overs.This is not the first time Amir has appeared in a game which has had to be investigated by cricket authorities. Earlier this year in January, when he was under provisional suspension and still awaiting punishment for the Lord’s scandal, he turned out for a Rawalpindi club to play a friendly game. That prompted the ICC and PCB to investigate the nature of the game before the former eventually concluded that it was an unofficial game and the club wasn’t registered with the Rawalpindi cricket association; Amir was thus found to have not broken the ICC’s anti-corruption code of conduct.

Zimbabwe have named their squads for the limited-overs tri-series against Australian and South African A sides, and for a two-day warm-up match preceding their four-day games against Australia A

ESPNcricinfo staff24-Jun-2011Zimbabwe have named their squads for the limited-overs tri-series against Australian and South African A sides, and for a two-day warm-up match preceding their four-day games against Australia A which will set a benchmark ahead of their Test return.Brendan Taylor, who has just been unveiled as the new national captain, will lead in the one-day games while batsman Vusi Sibanda has been put in charge of a second-string side to play the warm-up at Kwekwe Sports Club, starting on July 11.A 32-man squad had been in camp since early June, and despite a spate of injuries the team’s backroom staff were upbeat ahead of the start of a season in which Zimbabwe’s Test readiness will be tested.”I am pleased with the way the players have responded to the training programme,” said national coach Alan Butcher. “Of course, there was some grumbling here and there at first but with the passage of time they all got used to it. The mood in the camp right now is very good. There has been a very great improvement in their physical fitness and technical awareness.”With a few exceptions, the players are all looking physically fit and strong and are playing lots of cricket among themselves. We have been working hard on both the bowling and batting departments for the last six weeks and it looks good. The guys are bowling a bit quicker in the nets.”But we cannot be able to judge the progress made so far unless we play other opposition. The proof will be in the pudding when we start playing more against other sides. South Africa and Australia have named strong sides and it’s going to be some tough cricket. “But it’s good for us ahead of our first Test match in six years,” said Butcher.Assistant coach Stephen Mangongo echoed Butcher’s sentiments. “The intensity has been excellent and I am happy some of our key players like Hamilton Masakadza and Brendan Taylor are getting it right,” he said.”It’s good that our core players are showing this form and are able to stay at the crease for long periods. We need that form and hopefully our confidence levels will improve too,” added Mangongo. “These guys have been pushing hard and the more they feel the pressure from the new players the higher they feel the need to raise their game.”Everyone knows that you have to be on top of your game to be selected. It’s not about the names and this is the challenge that most of the players have been facing in the last six weeks. Each player has to prove himself.”One player who appears to have done enough to further his case for selection is 21-year-old left-arm seamer Brian Vitori, who has been included in the limited-overs squad. “He has shown great promise and is doing quite well with the new ball,” said Mangongo.Zimbabwe had also been sweating on Keegan Meth’s fitness after he pulled out of a two-day practice game last week after bowling only two overs. His injury was apparently not as serious as previously thought and he has also been included in the squad of 15. Another unexpected name on the team lists is that of allrounder Malcolm Waller. Waller was not part of the original 32-man training squad and was said to have been playing club cricket overseas.Zimbabwe XI limited-overs squad Brendan Taylor (capt), Regis Chakabva, Tendai Chatara, Elton Chigumbura, Craig Ervine, Hamilton Masakadza, Keegan Meth, Christopher Mpofu, Forster Mutizwa, Raymond Price, Vusimuzi Sibanda, Tatenda Taibu, Prosper Utseya, Brian Vitori, Malcolm Waller.Zimbabwe XI two-day warm-up squad Vusimuzi Sibanda (capt), Regis Chakabva, Chamunorwa Chibhabha, Elton Chigumbura, Kyle Jarvis, Gregory Lamb, Shingirai Masakadza, Tinotenda Mawoyo, Natsai Mushangwe, Forster Mutizwa, Njabulo Ncube, Tinashe Panyangara, Malcolm Waller.

A round-up of the first day’s matches in the ICC Under-19 World Cup Qualifier

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Jul-2011In a thrilling finish, Joshua Hall hit the penultimate ball of Ireland Under-19s’ innings for four to give them a one-wicket victory against United States of America Under-19 on the opening day of the ICC Under-19 World Cup qualifying tournament in Dublin. After stuttering early in their chase of 178, Ireland had recovered through a couple of solid lower-order partnerships and had brought the equation down to six runs required off 21 balls with three wickets in hand. But a wicket fell in the 47th over and then Adam Coughlan, who had led Ireland’s recovery, was trapped lbw by seamer Mital Patel to bring USA back into the game. Ireland needed just three runs off 15 balls then but then next 13 deliveries yielded just one run before Hall’s boundary.USA had managed their total of 177 thanks to some lower order contributions after they were 82 for 5 at one stage. Jodhbir Singh was their top-scorer with 36. In the chase, Ireland collapsed to 86 for 6 before Coughlan and Graeme McCarter began the comeback.Nepal Under-19s spinners Rahul Vishwakarma and Prithu Baskota ran through Afghanistan Under-19s batting line-up to deliver their team a win. Nepal had been bowled out for 154 in 44.3 overs but left-armer Vishwakarma’s 4 for 23 and offspinner Baskota’s 3 for 19 helped them skittle Afghanistan for 112. Afghanistan had made a decent beginning to their chase with Hashmatullah Shaidi and Shir Shirzai putting together a 53-run stand for the second wicket. After that though, wickets fell in clusters, and in the end the victory margin was 42 runs. Nepal had reached their total thanks mainly to opener Subash Khakurel’s steady 54, the only half-century in the match.Canada Under-19 prevailed in a closely-fought encounter against Scotland Under-19 in Dublin. They were boosted by a century from opener Nitish Kumar, who smashed 11 fours and two sixes in his 93-ball knock. Nitish’s partnership of 78 with Kyle Edghill and a quickfire 44 from Rayyan Pathan, off just 24 balls, took Canada to a challenging 212 in 35 overs.Seamer Jobanjot Singh’s early strikes hurt Scotland in their response but the middle order stepped up. Freddie Coleman made a quick 36, Mathew Cross made scored 21 at better than a run a ball, Peter Ross contributed 43 and Aman Bailwal gave Scotland hope by top-scoring with 63. With Bailwal at the crease, Scotland were very much in it but when he fell with the score on 201 in the penultimate over, the lower order didn’t last long and the innings folded for 206 with two balls to spare. Jobanjot finished with four wickets.Namibia Under-19 eased to an 89-run win over Papua New Guinea Under-19 at the Hills Cricket Club Ground. There was no standout performer in Namibia innings but the team was helped by a series of valuable contributions: a quick 49 from opener Justin Baard, a steady 44 from captain Stephen Baard, 44 from Zhivago Groenewald who smashed four sixes and an unbeaten 33 from Christopher Coombe. The effort propelled Namibia to 232, a score their bowlers comfortably defended. Coombe and Groenewald shared six wickets in the chase and an unbeaten 41 from Toua Tom at No.9 was the only significant resistance from a PNG batsman. PNG were bowled out for 143.Kenya Under-19 thrashed Vanuatu Under-19 at the Merrion Cricket Club Ground. Opener Kennedy Ochieng made 85 and was assisted by Duncan Allan, who made 47 in 38 balls, and a half-century from wicketkeeper Irfan Karim. Their contributions took Kenya to 238 for 4 in 38 overs, and proved too much for Vanuatu. Allan struck two early blows in the chase and though the middle order attempted a recovery, the target proved well beyond the batsmen. Nalin Nipiko top-scored with 25, but the batting could not withstand the offspin of Rahul Vishram, who took 4 for 9. Vanuatu were skittled out for just 102.

Two bowlers who have been injured for most of the last two seasons helped Hampshire to their first Championship win of the season and inflicted a serious blow to Durham’s title hopes

13-Aug-2011
Scorecard
Two bowlers who have been injured for most of the last two seasons helped Hampshire to their first County Championship win of the season and inflicted a serious blow to Durham’s title hopes.With two innings forfeited in the rain-ruined match at Chester-le-Street, Durham were set what looked a generous target of 276 in 82 overs. However, the title hopefuls were all out for 225 with Dimitri Mascarenhas taking six wickets for 62 runs and Kabir Ali 3 for 69.Although he was playing only his third championship game in two years following his Achilles injury, Hampshire must have sensed conditions were tailor-made for Mascarenhas when they declared on 275 for 7. The former England one-day allrounder’s medium pace always proves very effective in the north-east whenever there is any moisture around and in his first eight overs he took 3 for 11.Although Michael Di Venuto had less than his share of the strike, he had faced 23 balls when he tried to cut a ball which was moving into him and edged to second slip to depart for 1. In the last over before lunch Mark Stoneman padded up to a swinging delivery from Mascarenhas and was leg before wicket.Then, straight after the break, Gordon Muchall played back to a ball which skidded on to him and lost his off stump. Will Smith made 31 before edging Ali to first slip and Durham were rocking on
79 for 5 before Dale Benkenstein and Phil Mustard revived them with a stand of 45.Both batsmen were on 28 when Benkenstein drove at left-arm seamer Chris Wood and Hampshire’s acting captain Jimmy Adams took a fine catch high to his left at wide mid-off.With Callum Thorp coming to the crease there were still 45 overs left and survival was not really an option. He took 10 off Wood’s next over, prompting the introduction of legspinner Imran Tahir.
Thorp hit him for two fours in each of his second and third overs to move to 29 off 22 balls at tea and with Mustard on 36 Durham were 163 for 6, still needing 113 off 37 overs.The target was down to 88 when Thorp departed for 43, replicating Ian Blackwell’s dismissal by trying to pull a short ball wide of leg stump from Ali, only to glove it to wicketkeeper Michael Bates.
In the next over Mitch Claydon drove at Mascarenhas and also edged to Bates, who completed his maiden first-class half-century in the morning.It was as good as over for Durham when Mustard fell for 56, cutting low to Michael Carberry at backward point. Finally Rushworth hooked Mascarenhas to long leg and Durham had taken only two points from the match. They lead by eight points from Lancashire, but their three title rivals can all overtake them next week, when Durham are not in action.Hampshire took 18 points but are still 32 adrift of safety and faced an unwelcome coach trip to Aberdeen after the match for a Clydesdale Bank 40 League match against Scotland, knowing the ground had been far too wet to stage today’s game against Leicestershire.

A round-up of the matches from the fourth day of the Faysal Bank T20, 2011

ESPNcricinfo staff28-Sep-2011Nauman Habib and Umar Gul bowled Peshawar Panthers to a 28-run victory over Islamabad Leopards on Wednesday. Habib picked up three early wickets and Gul one to reduce Islamabad to 19 for 4 in the fourth over chasing 151. Islamabad captain Naeem Anjum fought bravely to make 40 and add 57 for the sixth wicket with Sajid Ali (24). But with opener Afaq Raheem (32) the only other batsmen to reach double-figures, Islamabad’s challenge fizzled out once Gul removed Sajid. Habib finished with 4 for 17 while Gul took 3 for 27. Gul also made a quick 20 to provide a rapid finish to Peshawar’s innings. Aftab Alam was the top scorer with 36.Faisalabad Wolves eased to a comprehensive win over Multan Tigers at the National Stadium in Karachi. Opener Asif Ali top-scored with 44 and was part of a 57-run opening stand with Asif Hussain which set the foundation for a competitive score. Khurram Shehzad contributed 43 and despite a spate of run-outs down the order, Faisalabad were in a good position at the innings break. Multan built their chase steadily and were well placed for a take-off at 63 for 1 in the 10th over but when Gulraiz Sadaf (32) and Zain Abbas (28) fell in successive overs after a promising stand, their hopes began to fade. Saeed Ajmal was outstanding, with figures of five runs in four overs and three wickets that shut Multan out of the contest.The Afghan Cheetas put up a good fight but were unable to overcome Rawalpindi Rams at the National Stadium in Karachi. Samiullah Shenwari and Najibullah Zadran struck half-centuries, and in quick time, splitting six sixes between them, to help their team post 162. Brief contributions from the top order help lay a good foundation and the pair added 78 for the fourth wicket. Rawalpindi were off to a flier in the chase, Awais Zia smashing 60 in 41 balls, striking 10 fours and a six. His top-order partners didn’t give him company for long but the blistering start meant there wasn’t really a great risk of the required rate getting out of hand. Umar Amin joined Zia in a crucial stand, adding 55, and received good support from Hammad Azam, who saw his team through with seven balls to spare.

ESPNcricinfo previews the Kolkata Knight Riders v Warriors CLT20 match

The Preview by Nikita Bastian30-Sep-2011

Match facts

Kolkata Knight Riders v Warriors, October 1, Bangalore
Start time 2000 (1430 GMT)Johan Botha is among the most economical bowlers in Twenty20 cricket and is closing in on 1000 runs•AFP

Big Picture

Kolkata Knight Riders have finally arrived. After an unconvincing win against Auckland in the Champions League T20 qualifiers and three consecutive losses, the team clicked against Royal Challengers Bangalore on Thursday. The bowlers prised out six wickets in the first 15 overs and kept the run rate below 7.00, before the inevitable late surge. The top order, apart from a few unsightly swings from Brad Haddin early on, were efficient.The question though remains, has it all come together a little too late for the Knight Riders? It’s still down to net run rates and other results going their way. They have all but wiped out their negative net run rate by easing past Royal Challengers, but, to have any chance of a semi-final berth, will need another big win against a team that has looked the best unit in the CLT20 so far: Warriors. In game one, against Royal Challengers, Warriors showed they had the temperament to fight their way out of a tough situation. In their second match, they blew away South Australia. A win here will all but guarantee them a place in the semi-finals.In an aside, Mark Boucher had made it clear he wants to use the tournament as a platform to re-launch his international limited-overs career. With South Africa wicketkeeper AB de Villiers picking up an injury on Wednesday during a practice session with Royal Challengers, Boucher will be eager to make a difference in this match.

Watch out for …

Johan Botha followed up his match-turning partnership with Ashwell Prince against Royal Challengers with a stifling three-over spell against South Australia, in which he picked up Michael Klinger’s wicket and conceded only 11 runs. He boasts of the best economy rate (200 overs minimum) in the shortest format – 6.01 – and is 24 runs short of 1000 Twenty20 runs. Will he get past the landmark on Saturday?Returning after a nasty concussion, Gautam Gambhir looked scratchy in the short time he spent at the crease in Knight Riders’ previous two matches. Against Royal Challengers though, he seemed to regain his touch, manoeuvring the spinners with ease and stroking sixes down the ground. His return to form is a big boost for a side that’s fighting for survival.

Team news

Knight Riders got their opening combinations just right on Thursday – Jacques Kallis bowling up front and Haddin at the top of the batting order worked well. They have finally seem to found some rhythm, so it seems unlikely that they will tamper too much with their XI. One change they will ponder is whether to bring back the experienced L Balaji for Jaydev Unadkat, who went for plenty against Royal Challengers.Warriors made only one change in their last match, playing Kelly Smuts in place of Justin Kreusch down the order, and are unlikely to tweak their line-up much here either. The big-hitting Craig Thyssen has been dismissed cheaply in both games, but as he hasn’t had much of a chance to get going, he should play.

Stats and trivia

• So far in the tournament, JJ Smuts has the most runs from boundaries in an innings – 52 off his 88 runs against South Australia came in fours and sixes
• Kallis and Gambhir’s century partnership against Royal Challengers is the second-highest for any wicket in the tournament

Quotes

“Brett and Kallis bowled tremendously in the first six overs [against Royal Challengers]. But we have concerns regarding our bowling at the death and that needs to be addressed.”
“We would like to finish first.”

An inexperienced West Indies top order rose to the occasion to trigger a strong comeback in Mirpur after Bangladesh had enjoyed the better of the drawn first Test in Chittagong

The Report by Siddhartha Talya29-Oct-2011
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Kieran Powell made a fluent half-century•Associated Press

An inexperienced West Indies top order rose to the occasion to trigger a strong comeback in Mirpur after Bangladesh had enjoyed the better of the drawn first Test in Chittagong. On a track that promised plenty of runs and just as much discouragement for the bowlers the trio of Kieran Powell, Kraigg Brathwaite and Kirk Edwards struck half-centuries to lay the foundation for a substantial first-innings score. But the performance was undermined, somewhat, when Bangladesh grabbed three wickets in the final session to give themselves hope of thwarting a West Indian attempt to bat them out of the Test.It didn’t take long for the Bangladesh bowlers to discover that there was no swing, hardly any movement off the pitch and not much turn. It didn’t help that the hosts were also missing Elias Sunny, who grabbed seven wickets on debut in the opening Test on a supportive pitch, due to a stomach upset. The attacking fields quickly grew defensive, spin was introduced as early as the sixth over and opportunities created were largely a result of the batsmen’s own misjudgement. The West Indies approach was cautious for much of the day, largely devoid of risks and reliant on quiet accumulation.A back injury to Lendl Simmons meant a game for Powell, and he, along with Brathwaite, shrugged off some early moments of discomfort to bat out an entire session with assuredness and solidity. Both were just a Test old before this game but capitalised on a flat track to help themselves to individual landmarks that should only boost their future Test prospects. There was little room for error on the part of the seamers early on and the pair was prompt to dispatch any bad balls that came its way. Rubel Hossain and Shahadat Hossain were often guilty of bowling too short, and kept providing periodic openings for the batsmen to break free.Brathwaite was also at ease when the ball was pitched up. He drove Shahadat through the covers and past mid-on, worked the strike by clipping the ball through the leg side and later slashed him through point. He’d been a little vulnerable against Rubel, who persisted with an off-stump line against him and should have had him when he cut one just wide of gully before lunch. He finally had his man, who chased a slightly wide delivery once too often, caught on 50.At the other end, Powell looked more fluent. His shots lack flourish but the stand-out feature of his batting is his timing. His maiden half-century was laced with languid punches and drives through the off side with a minimum of effort and unlike Brathwaite, who was restrained against spin, Powell was more authoritative in his treatment of the slower bowlers. He got going, pulling Shahadat through square leg before driving a meaty full toss, stood tall to crack the ball through the gaps on the off side and reached forward to drive the spinners when they pitched up. He looked good for much more than 72 – after adding 100 with Brathwaite and 55 with Edwards – but was bowled playing inside the line to debutant left-arm spinner Suhrawadi Shuvo.Edwards had been scratchy in Chittagong but was at greater ease against the minimal turn and made a committed effort to use his feet, get to the pitch and play through the line. He collected plenty of runs, driving through mid-on, when the slow bowlers offered flight and even stepped out to clear the in-field on one occasion. Like the others, he was more confident against pace. Rubel was pulled for successive fours, Shahadat clipped through fine leg. Shahadat was taken for runs by Marlon Samuels as well, after Bangladesh fought back post tea.West Indies had been going along well at 180 for 2, Darren Bravo having settled in with a couple of boundaries. But like Powell he too misread a straighter one, and was trapped lbw by offspinner Nasir Hossain who kept the batsmen in check through his round-the-wicket line. Among the spinners, he managed to turn the ball the most and got some extra bite with the second new ball that was enough to induce an edge from Shivnarine Chanderpaul that was feathered to the keeper. Nightwatchman Kemar Roach had no answer to an arm ball from Shakib Al Hasan two overs later, and the two quick wickets just prior to stumps kept a check on a far-improved West Indies batting effort.

Dwayne Bravo, the West Indies allrounder, has picked up an ankle injury and will miss West Indies A’s two four-day matches against Bangladesh A this month

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Nov-2011Dwayne Bravo, the West Indies allrounder, has injured his ankle and will miss West Indies A’s two four-day matches against Bangladesh A this month. Bravo, who was named captain of the A side for the series, picked up the injury during the team’s warm-up session the day before the first four-day game, which is scheduled to start in Antigua on November 5, and has travelled back to Trinidad & Tobago. Veerasammy Permaul will take over the captaincy of the West Indies A team, while a replacement player has not yet been named.Bravo’s career has been blighted by injury in the past few years, since he suffered a serious ankle injury in 2008 which kept him out of the game for eight months. He suffered a big blow this year when his World Cup ended due to a knee injury he sustained in West Indies’ first game of the tournament. He returned for the home one-day series against Pakistan but asked for a break after the first two ODIs against India in June to work on his game.Since then Bravo has turned out for Chennai Super Kings in the Champions League T20 and for Trinidad & Tobago in the Regional Super50 tournament. The matches against Bangladesh A were to be his first first-class matches since the Tests in Sri Lanka last year but his return to the longer format has now been delayed further.