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Match facts

Friday, November 27, 2009
Start time 14.30 (12.30GMT)

Big picture

Six wins from seven starts … a statistic that looked like an anomaly is starting to take on a life of its own, as England continue their improbable dominance of South Africa in 50-over cricket. At Centurion on Sunday, Paul Collingwood marked his national-record 171st appearance with a sublime allround performance, as England exacted satisfying vengeance for their humiliation in the previous week’s second Twenty20.Their seven-wicket victory showcased the unfamiliar vein of confidence that is running through the squad at present, and while Andrew Strauss has made caution a watchword throughout his impressive tenure as England captain, it’s fair to suggest that they have got their opponents a little bit rattled at present.Mickey Arthur, South Africa’s coach, has not been short of a word or two in this series, but his attempts at psychological warfare have so far fallen on impassive ears. Jonathan Trott, the principal object of his ire, ignored the boo-boys and fronted up with a critical 87 to anchor England’s run-chase at Centurion, and though Arthur’s other target, Adil Rashid, has been rather subdued in his two appearances to date, he can hardly be regarded as a pivotal figure in England’s plans just yet.The same, however, cannot be said of Jacques Kallis, whose absence with a rib fracture has necessitated something of an overhaul of South Africa’s team balance, especially after he had been earmarked to open the batting alongside Graeme Smith. Hashim Amla proved an able understudy in the Centurion match, but as Arthur himself admitted, there’s no way to replicate the experience and allround ability that Kallis provides for the side. Herschelle Gibbs has earned a reprieve from the selectors and could yet play, but the call-up for the swift but erratic Morne Morkel underlines the concerns about the lack of penetration in South Africa’s attack.England had plenty concerns at the start of the tour when they were barely able to rustle up 11 fit men, but one by one the wounded are returning to the fray. Stuart Broad has overcome his shoulder problem and seems likely to slot in in place of Sajid Mahmood, while Graeme Swann has resumed training after a side strain, and could yet replace Rashid, unless the management take a punt on the uncapped offspinner, James Tredwell. Meanwhile, the unexpected success of Tim Bresnan as a new-ball sidekick to James Anderson has expanded the options available to his captain.

Form guide

(last five completed matches, most recent first)
Stuart Broad is back in the reckoning for England•Getty Images

South Africa – LWWLW
England – WLLWW

Team news

Alviro Petersen produced a composed half-century at Centurion to enhance his claims to a middle-order berth, but Gibbs’ return to the set-up highlights the concerns about South Africa’s middle-order inexperience. It would not be a surprise to see him reintroduced, along with the promising left-arm seamer, Wayne Parnell, who made his name during last summer’s ICC World Twenty20, but has been out of the reckoning lately with an ankle injury. Charl Langeveldt has a shoulder problem, and could also miss out.South Africa (possible) 1 Graeme Smith (capt), 2 Hashim Amla, 3 AB de Villiers, 4 JP Duminy, 5 Herschelle Gibbs, 6 Alviro Petersen, 7 Mark Boucher (wk), 8 Ryan McLaren, 9 Roelof van der Merwe, 10 Wayne Parnell, 11 Dale SteynEngland’s decision to push Trott up to No. 1 paid handsome dividends at Centurion, and they are sure to repeat the experiment on his old home ground at Newlands, with Joe Denly and Alastair Cook missing out once again. Broad’s return will bolster the lower-order batting, and allow Sajid Mahmood to slip out of the firing line after a difficult couple of weeks. Swann could also return as the frontline spinner, although Tredwell remains on standby.England (possible) 1 Andrew Strauss (capt), 2 Jonathan Trott, 3 Kevin Pietersen, 4 Paul Collingwood, 5 Eoin Morgan, 6 Matt Prior (wk), 7 Luke Wright, 8 Stuart Broad, 9 Tim Bresnan, 10 Graeme Swann, 11 James Anderson

Watch out for

Jonathan Trott grew up in Cape Town and played his early cricket in the shadow of Table Mountain, but his excitement about returning to his old stamping ground has been tempered this week by his touching, if slightly over-egged, claims that Birmingham is now the centre of his universe. No matter what his true feelings may be, he will surely seek to bury them in order to continue the domineering run of form that has marked him down as one of the key batsmen to watch for the rest of the winter.AB de Villiers launched his international career against England back in 2004-05, and his recent promotion to No. 3 in the ODI side reflects the fact that he has since developed into one of the most exciting batsmen in the world game. Against England, however, he hasn’t quite been able to display the full extent of his talents. Collingwood’s pluck in the gully sawed him off for 2 on Sunday, taking his tally in 12 matches against England to an unworthy 182 runs at 16.54. His time will doubtless come, but will it be now?

Stats and trivia

• If Gibbs does play at Newlands, he will have happy memories of the last time he faced England on his home ground, in 2004-05. Back then he scored a century in a total of 291 for 5, as England in turn were bowled out for 183.
• Newlands is, by some distance, South Africa’s favourite home venue in ODI cricket. In 27 matches since 1992, they have won 24 and lost just three, most recently against West Indies in the opening match of the 2003 World Cup.

Quotes

“South Africa are going to come back hard at us, there’s no doubt about that. They are always competitive anyway, but they won’t have enjoyed losing that first game.”
“Jacques is a two-in-one cricketer, and his skills affect the balance of the side. We will either be one batter light or a bowler right, and that’s going to be our challenge.”
South Africa’s coach, Mickey Arthur, acknowledges a huge hole in his team’s resources

Thilan Thushara, the Sri Lankan fast bowler, has been ruled out of the ongoing three-Test series in India because of a shoulder injury. He will be replaced by Dilhara Fernando, who is expected to join the team on November 18.”Thilan Thushara will return to Sri Lanka due to a shoulder injury, and he will not be match fit for approximately two to four weeks,” Sri Lankan Cricket said in a statement. “Dilhara Fernando will replace him.”Thushara hurt his shoulder after crashing into Kaushal Silva during training on Sunday and the injury did not heal in time for him to play the first Test in Ahmedabad. The decision to replace Thushara with Chanaka Welegedara was taken five minutes before the toss.The expected duration of Thushara’s recovery will rule him out of the one-dayers and Twenty20 internationals that follow the Test series. Fernando’s call-up meant that he would fly to India earlier than planned for he was part of the limited-overs squads. Nuwan Kulasekera is the other reserve fast bowler currently in the Test squad.

Clint McKay is used to grabbing his chances when they arrive. In November 2006, having been stripped of his state contract during the off-season, McKay was called up for his first-class debut when Victoria lost nearly all their contracted fast bowlers to injury. Fast forward three years and having played two ODIs in India in November, a Test debut awaits McKay, again due to a spate of injuries.The hamstring stiffness suffered by his Victoria team-mate Peter Siddle has opened the door for McKay, 26, to become Australia’s 412th Test cricketer when he takes the field against West Indies in Perth on Wednesday. But Siddle’s twinge is just the latest in a growing list of injury concerns among Australia’s bowlers.Seven specialist fast men hold Cricket Australia contracts and five of them – Siddle, Ben Hilfenhaus (knee), Brett Lee (elbow), Stuart Clark (back) and Nathan Bracken (knee) – are sidelined, while another, Shaun Tait, is now a limited-overs specialist. That has left Mitchell Johnson and Doug Bollinger as the only new-ball options left from the original squad, and the captain Ricky Ponting said McKay deserved to join them at the WACA.”He’s the next best bowler in the country,” Ponting said. “His form in all forms of the game the last couple of years has been outstanding. I was really impressed with what he did for us in the one-day games in India and how composed he was under pressure, and how well he was able to execute his skills. He’s a very skilful bowler and these conditions here I think will really suit him.”Ponting has seen more of McKay than he has of some other young state players; McKay’s Victoria debut coincided with a rare Tasmania appearance for Ponting three years ago. He didn’t get Ponting out but he did perform well and soon became a first-choice member of Victoria’s attack. That in itself was a change for McKay, who had just started a teaching degree after being dumped from the state squad. A baggy green was nothing but a distant dream.”It’s been a strange career for me so far,” McKay said on the eve of his Test debut. “I actually got contracted about five years ago and going through without playing a game and losing my contract during the year, I didn’t know where my career was going.”I sort of sat down and talked to a few people and did a bit of thinking myself on what I wanted to achieve out of the game. Thankfully it all turned around. I did a good pre-season, got back and actually played a few games. To get back and tomorrow realising your dream is coming true is a … big thrill. I can’t wait to get out there.”McKay has already fitted in well to international cricket, having been handed his first one-day opportunities on the tour of India last month. On debut in Hyderabad, he held his nerve to dismiss Sachin Tendulkar with a slower ball in the 48th over after the master had made 175, and McKay finished with 3 for 59 to help Australia to victory.He’s not an express bowler like Johnson or even Bollinger, but what McKay should add to the team is bounce – he stands at 194cm, taller than both the left-armers – and consistency. Although his experience at the WACA is limited, McKay knows the temptation to bowl extra short must be avoided, and he will be aiming for a fuller length to allow the ball to shape.”I definitely try to swing it a little bit away,” McKay said. “I think trying to use my height a little more and get a bit more bounce, hopefully out here it’ll be nice and bouncy and go to my advantage.”It definitely has been a whirlwind couple of months, but so far, so good. Everything’s gone to plan and gone really well. I feel like I’m bowling the best I’ve bowled coming into this game. You don’t know until you get out there but at the moment I’m confident in what I’m doing, so everyone’s backing me and it’s been great to be around the team.”While McKay is a certainty to make his Test debut, there remains a chance he could be joined by a second newcomer at the cap presentation. The Tasmania fast bowler Brett Geeves and the New South Wales legspinning allrounder Steven Smith will be fighting for a place in the team if Nathan Hauritz fails to recover after hurting his finger at training on Tuesday.

Windward Islands were on top against Combined Campuses and Colleges in Bridgetown after bowling them out for 158. Left-arm seamer Keon Peters and offspinner Shane Shillingford grabbed three wickets each and were well supported by Darren Sammy, who chipped in with 2 for 23. No CCC batsman managed to reach a half-century; wicketkeeper Chadwick Walton reached 42 and was supported by Nekoli Perris in a 61-run stand for the sixth wicket. Both were dismissed by Shillingford to precipitate a quick end to the innings from there on. In reply, Windwards recovered well from the early loss of opener Tyron Theophile to post 89 for 2 at stumps, with Devon Smith unbeaten on 38.Jamaica suffered an early jolt in their innings but fought back to end the day on even terms against Guyana in Barbados. Fast bowler Brandon Bess picked up his best figures in first-class cricket, snapping four wickets, and had Jamaica in trouble at 39 for 3 at one stage. Opener Brenton Parchment held firm with 49 and was backed up by a stoic 43 from Brendan Nash; the pair added 42 for the fourth wicket. But the star for Jamaica was Wavell Hinds, who finished the day unbeaten on 71 and took his team to 239 for 6. Hinds was involved in a 73-run association with Nash and added a further 36 with Dave Bernard. There was more help from wicketkeeper Carlton Baugh, who partnered him to stumps, making 29.A four-wicket burst from Pedro Collins handed Barbados the advantage against Trinidad and Tobago on the first day at the Kensington Oval. However, T&T were steered out of trouble to a more respectable position, as they reached 271 for 9. After Collins had nabbed the first three wickets for just 26, Sherwin Ganga stepped up to the challenge and was ably assisted by the others. He first partnered opener Justin Guillen (47) in a 66-run stand to stabilise the innings, and then accumulated the runs with Denesh Ramdin, Imran Khan, Rayad Emrit and Dave Mohammed who chipped in with important contributions. But Barbados had the last laugh, for Ganga was dismissed for 99, run out by Ryan Hinds who pulled off a brilliant one-handed save and threw down the stumps to find him short. Ganga fell agonisingly short of a maiden first-class century, not for the first time. His previous best was 98.

Virender Sehwag, the Indian opener, has said he “would love” to bat at No.4, even though he may have to wait until Sachin Tendulkar, who occupies that slot, ends his career. Sehwag was speaking at the ESPNcricinfo Awards ceremony in Jaipur, where he won the prize for best Test innings for the second year running. His audacious 293 against Sri Lanka in Mumbai was chosen over four other nominations shortlisted for the award.”I would love to bat at number four. I know I would not get that till Sachin retires. But I can wait,” Sehwag said, despite his enormous success at the top of the order. “I still would like to bat in the middle order. It’s difficult to field one-and-half days and then come out to bat in 10 minutes. When you bat at No. 6 like (MS) Dhoni, it allows you some rest. I have been successful as an opener but who knows, maybe I would have been more successful in the middle order.”Sehwag’s brutal innings against Sri Lanka included 40 fours and seven sixes, and set up an innings win for India, propelling them to the No.1 ranking in Tests. He had tremendous success in 2009 – an average of 108.98 in six Tests – and in the four Tests he’s played this year, he’s already managed two centuries. Sehwag said his form would only get better in the years to come. “I’m 31 and I think I’m playing well. And I would get only better in the next three-four years.”Sehwag defended his naturally aggressive approach to batting, saying there were risks involved even if he opted to play more cautiously. “People say I take too many risks. But the fact is, there is risk involved in every shot. You can get out trying to defend a ball as well. At times, people tell me to leave ball outside the off-stump. But some of them can jag back and get you out if you don’t play shots. I think if you think so much, you simply cannot bat,” he said.”In my case, it would become risky if I try to become defensive, since my technique is not that good. I think in a different way. When I grew up, I tried to score off every ball, be it a 10-over-match, a 20-over or even a Test match. If I stay in the wicket for say about 30 minutes, I want to make the most of it and score maximum runs possible. You never know when you get out, try to score as much possible before that.”Sehwag added he wished to play 100 Tests for India before retiring from the format. “I want to play 100 Test matches and once I have done that, I may retire from Test cricket,” he said.

In a financial year in which many counties have faced financial difficulties, and Kent suffered heavy financial losses, Northamptonshire have announced a small pre-tax profit for 2009.Mark Tagg, the chief executive, attributed the surplus to the revenue generated from the tour match against Australia during the Ashes last year and the county’s run to the domestic Twenty20 finals day.”With additional revenues coming to the club from the ECB and with the rewards of hard work involved in maximising the impact of the Australian fixture together with the Twenty20 successes, we were able to withstand a downturn in revenues which have been felt across the sports entertainment world,” he said.”We have used potential profits to reinvest in players such as Ian Harvey, who was brought in specifically to compensate for the loss of David Sales for the whole season and to cover for injuries and the loss of Niall O’Brien to Ireland during the summer.”In a trend being witnessed across the county game as counties strive to secure international fixtures and their financial futures by meeting the standards set by the ECB for hosting international matches, Northants have continued to develop their Wantage Road home ground, with new stands being built and the construction of new floodlights planned.

While IPL officials and the franchise owners are working overtime on security issues surrounding the tournament, the players and support staff are dealing with another hurdle: The lack of breathing space between the Deodhar Trophy, the inter-zonal one-day tournament, and the IPL has left some teams worried that their Indian players may not be available for the pre-season training camp and will be denied sufficient mental and physical rest.The Deodhar Trophy runs from March 6-9 and the IPL starts three days later.”It is unfortunate. We are particularly hard-hit because we are playing the first game (on March 12) unlike other teams who have at least two more days before starting their campaign,” Joy Bhattacharjya, director of operations of Kolkata Knight Riders told Cricinfo. His concerns are understandable: ten of the 16 Indians in his 23-man squad will be featuring in the five-zone Deodhar Trophy, to be played in Vadodara.Before that, on March 2, the Bengal state side play the final of the Vijay Hazare Trophy against Tamil Nadu. The next day, the KKR squad is due to start its training camp in Cuttack and it will reach Mumbai on March 8, with the entire squad assembling two days later.Kolkata have been busy after a season in which they finished last; first, they replaced one World Cup-winning coach, John Buchanan, with another in Dav Whatmore. Locals like batsman Manoj Tiwary were bought during the trading window as Whatmore put the new structure in place. But Whatmore may not have enough time to work with his players.”Most of the other teams have set combinations with stable line-ups. People like us who haven’t been successful have to work hard,” Bhattacharjya said. “Also when and where will our coach get to have a look at first-timers like Manoj Tiwari and Harshad Khadiwale? Our line-up has four or five first XI changes. Even Cheteshwar Pujara, a consistent performer on the domestic circuit, hasn’t played a lot for Kolkata, so he will need to be present at the training camps to understand the team planning. But that won’t be happening.”The BCCI cannot be blamed for the scheduling clash. In fact, the Deodhar Trophy, the annual zonal one-day tournament, originally played on a league basis, was converted into a knockout tournament this year exclusively to make sure the IPL schedule (March 12-April 25) would not be disrupted. The IPL itself had to be advanced by a month in order to avoid any clash with the ICC World Twenty20, to be played in May this year in the Caribbean. All this had a domino effect on the Indian domestic schedule and the BCCI had no option but to come up with a crammed calendar, despite concerns from coaches and players, whose major concern was exhaustion and absence of any time for recovery.Some other teams, though, see the positives in the tournament schedule. Darren Lehmann, team director of Deccan Chargers, said he would be happy for his players to participate in the domestic event. “We are more than happy if our players take part in any domestic event. That will not impact our plans in any way,” Lehmann said. But Deccan had worked hard to work out winning strategies that allowed them to bounce back from being the eighth-ranked team after the first IPL to the title last year.Delhi’s stance is similar. Amrit Mathur, Delhi’s chief operating officer, felt that playing the Deodhar Trophy can be seen as match practice though he acknowledged that some could use a rest. “It actually goes player by player,” Mathur said. “For example, Rajat Bhatia is in the Deodhar squad and that is good as he is playing in a competitive match whereas Dinesh Karthik, who has just finished playing the ODI series against South Africa, after playing in the better half of the domestic season, might’ve have done with some rest.”Some like Chennai are more blunt and say teams have to accept the fact that the international calendar is crammed already and the domestic calendar gets extended as a result. “You maintain your form by playing matches. More than preparatory camps if they are playing the right form of cricket. If they were playing four or five-day games it might have affected the team’s plans,” a Chennai source said.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Junaid Siddique was caught via Alastair Cook’s boot as England chipped away at Bangladesh•Getty Images

It has been a grinding effort from England but, led by Graeme Swann and Stuart Broad with two wickets apiece, they gained momentum as the fourth day, making regular inroads into Bangladesh’s batting order to set up the prospect of 2-0 series win. The home side limped to 172 for 6 – a lead of 95 – as their resistance began to falter after Tamim Iqbal was dismissed for a belligerent 52. Shakib Al Hasan remained unbeaten on 25 and it will be down to him to try and give his side something to defend on the final day.After battling hard during the first three days Bangladesh’s resistance is finally starting to crack with England able to apply pressure. However, once again it wasn’t a faultless performance from the visitors who batted ponderously during the morning and then spurned a number of chances, some easier than others, in the field.With the ball beginning to turn appreciably, Tamim was given three lives off James Tredwell in his short, but enterprising innings when Bangladesh came out to bat for the second time with a deficit 77. The first came in Tredwell’s opening over as he immediately found some purchase off the wicket to graze the edge of Tamim’s bat, but the deflection bounced out of Matt Prior’s gloves and a tumbling Paul Collingwood on slip could not hold on either.Unperturbed by Imrul Kayes’s unlucky dismissal – bowled after the ball ricocheted off his thigh pad – Tamim continued in a positive vein but almost paid the price when, on 26, he charged down the track to Tredwell and slammed the ball very hard at a catchable height back to the bowler. However, the ball slipped through his fingers, and with Junaid Siddique trundling along steadily at the other end, Bangladesh had reduced their deficit to four when Tamim was dropped the third time – and this one was by far the easiest of the lot. He swished wildly and the ball looped gently towards Jonathan Trott at point but he somehow managed to let the ball slip through his fingers.Tamim’s luck finally ran out shortly after he had brought up his second half century of the match as he slashed at Swann and Broad held on to a regulation chance at point. Jahurul Islam strode out to the middle on a pair in his first Test, with Bangladesh at 86 for 2, and got off the mark in emphatic style by lofting his sixth ball over long on. His next scoring shot was another six as he mowed Tredwell back over his head.In the second unlucky dismissal of the day, Junaid – who had settled in nicely – went back to Tredwell and forced the ball firmly off the back foot and straight onto Cook’s foot at silly mid off. The ball popped gently back to Tredwell and Junaid fell to a singularly peculiar caught and bowled. Mahmudullah, who scored a defiant 59 in the first innings, was soon undone by an impressive piece of bowling by Bresnan, who had been moving the ball both ways and shaped one away to take a thin outside edge as Bangladesh slipped to 130 for 4.England sensed their opening, and after a brief period of resistance Jahurul was completely outfoxed by Swann as he stepped out to drive but the ball dipped, gripped and turned through the gap between bat and pad and crashed into the off stump. He bristled with intent in his 43 but appeared only to have two modes – total defence or all-out attack.Mushfiqur Rahim, who has been a solid presence in the middle order throughout England’s tour, strode to the middle with his side in dire need of a stabilising partnership at 156 for 5. With Shakib starting to settle at the other end, captain and vice-captain buckled down but with just over three overs remaining Broad snapped their resistance in the midst of an aggressive final spell.Finding considerable reverse swing, he had a very strong lbw appeal turned down but steamed in to bowl Mushfiqur, via an inside edge, with his very next ball, and Bangladesh were tottering at 169 for 6. Shafiul Islam survived the 12 deliveries he faced before the close, and Shakib remained defiant, but it’s a tough battle ahead.England had extended their lead to 77 in the morning, as their innings was finally wrapped up for 496. Bresnan took his ninth-wicket partnership with Tredwell to 47 in a turgid first hour of play before he fell for 91, skipping down the pitch to Abdur Razzak in the first real display of intent only to be beaten in the flight and by the turn as the ball bit into the surface.His dismissal enlivened what had been a grinding effort from England, as the batsmen had been content to settle for a run rate of under three an over. After Bresnan departe Tredwell started to up the ante, with a brace of boundaries off Shakib, who completed a marathon 66 overs. By the end of the day Shakib was again trying to thwart England, this time with the bat, and he will need a captain’s performance to stave off defeat.

Match facts

Royal Challengers Bangalore v Mumbai Indians, Bangalore
Saturday, April 17
Start time 1600 (1030 GMT)Jacques Kallis is competing with Sachin Tendulkar for the orange cap•Indian Premier League

Big Picture

Royal Challengers Bangalore may have – for all practical purposes – made it through to the semi-finals, thanks to a healthy net run-rate, but have every reason to go all out against Mumbai Indians in their last league match. They are one of the few teams to have beaten Mumbai this season, and they will want to convert it into some sort of a hold, for another meeting between the two teams in immediate future cannot be ruled out. Moreover, if they lose, Bangalore leave themselves open to being No. 4 in the table, which would mean a semi-final against Mumbai, and back-to-back matches against a team who have just beaten them. Mumbai will want to forget all the permutations and maintain a winning run.

Form guide (most recent first)

Bangalore WLWLL
Mumbai Indians WWLLW

Team talk

It’s time for both teams to iron out final creases in their combinations before they get into knock-out territory. Bangalore have to decide between Ross Taylor and Cameron White, Praveen Kumar and Pankaj Singh, and Manish Pandey and any other opener. They are likely to continue trusting Taylor and Pandey, and Pankaj – after taking 2 for 27 in his only match of the season – could get another chance to present his case.Mumbai need to decide on which two overseas players to pick out of Dwayne Bravo, JP Duminy and Ryan McLaren. They have also broken up a successful opening combination, and might go back to Shikhar Dhawan after Sanath Jayasuriya and Chandan Madan didn’t perform. Ali Murtaza is giving R Sathish a run for the bowling allrounder’s slot, and the absence of a proper wicketkeeper could be a problem, with Ambati Rayudu, Aditya Tare and Madan being lotteries behind the stumps.

Previously…

Bangalore 3 Mumbai 2
Their earlier encounter was one-way traffic, with R Vinay Kumar and Dale Steyn slicing open Mumbai’s batting, and Jacques Kallis and Pandey leading the chase.

In the spotlight

Jacques Kallis followed up his captain’s criticism with 4-0-19-1 (Shane Watson’s wicket) and a duck in a simple chase against Rajasthan. Good enough on the day, but not the Kallis that set the first half of the tournament alight. It also meant that he didn’t follow the time-honoured tradition, one he and Sachin Tendulkar have been following, of taking the orange cap off each other’s head every time they bat.Dale Steyn has been terrorising batsmen with his pace, bounce and movement. In the first match against Mumbai, he went for only 26 in four overs and took three wickets. But even during that spell, Tendulkar clipped three boundaries off the three balls he faced from Steyn. In fact, Steyn’s previous tête-à-tête with Tendulkar was disastrous too, figures of 0 for 89 during the double-century in the Gwalior ODI. Add the century in the Kolkata Test, and Steyn’s beauty to get Tendulkar in Nagpur seems like an age ago. Can Steyn pull one back in Bangalore?

Prime numbers and trivia

• Kallis has scored ten fifty-plus scores in the IPL (all seasons), Tendulkar is joint-second with eight. At 15 half-centuries, Kallis is five behind the overall Twenty20 record held by Brad Hodge.
• Across all three IPLs, Harbhajan Singh has been the stingiest bowler, conceding an average of 6.41 an over. Anil Kumble is a close third, with 6.52.
• Bangalore has been the most boundary-happy venue this year, with 57.66% of the runs scored there coming in boundaries. Only Cuttack has a higher ratio – 59.76%.
• Mumbai have been the best batting side in the last six overs, scoring at 11.04 an over, and the best bowling side too, conceding 8.12 an over. Not surprisingly that difference of 2.79 is the highest, with Bangalore’s 1.19 being a distant second.
  

  The chatter

  “Our goal this time is to go one step further than what we did last season.”

  “I was never in doubt [that others apart from me are performing too]. People questioned me, but I was never in doubt.”

Sreesanth, the India fast bowler, will not captain Kerala in the 2010-11 domestic season but has been included in a list of 24 probables for the same. Allrounder Raiphi Gomez replaces Sreesanth at the helm with batsman Robert Fernandez as his deputy. The reason for a change in leadership was the uncertainty over Sreesanth’s availability.”We need a captain who can lead the side for a few years at least to help develop our young team,” TC Mathew, the Kerala State Cricket Association secretary told Cricinfo. “The last time Sreesanth was appointed he had to leave after the first Ranji Trophy match because he had to join the Indian team last year. So we felt the need to appoint Gomez, who has been leading right from age-group cricket.”A significant exclusion from the list is medium-pacer and India’s first Test cricketer from Kerala, Tinu Yohannan. He played three Ranji Trophy Plate League games last season and went wicketless.Sreesanth was only marginally better, grabbing one wicket in three games while conceding 146 runs at over four-an-over.Kerala drew their first two games Ranji Trophy last season before losing the next two to Jammu and Kashmir and Haryana by substantial margins.Kerala probables list: Raiphi Gomez (capt), Robert Fernandez (vice-captain), Sreesanth, Rohan Prem, Abhishek Hegde, Karimuttathu Rakesh, VA Jagadeesh, Sony Cheruvathur, Sachin Baby, Arun Paulose, Sebastian Antony, Padmanabhan Prasanth, Sambasiva Sarma, CP Riswan, Arjun NK, Jineesh, Ramesh Kumar, Surjith, Kanakkatharaparambu Sreejith, Sunil Thomas, Chandra Tejas (wk), Prasanth Pramaeswaran, Manu Krishnan, Nizar Niyas.