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Shahid Afridi, the Pakistan captain, has asked his team-mates to be united on the field and off it as they left Karachi to take part in the Asia Cup in Sri Lanka

Cricinfo staff12-Jun-2010Shahid Afridi, the Pakistan captain, has asked his team-mates to be united on the field and off it as they left Karachi to take part in the Asia Cup in Sri Lanka. The tournament, involving Pakistan, India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh will be the first assignment for Afridi’s team ahead of a busy summer in England, where they will play Australia and England.”What has happened cannot be changed,” said Afridi, referring to the turbulent last few months. “What we can do is ensure that past mistakes are not repeated. We cannot afford to be a bickering lot and the only way we can give our best is by staying united. What I want is that our team should be united on the field and off it.”I know the importance of having frequent team meetings. It’s also important for all the players to dine together as much as possible and discuss issues openly because these are the things that help boost team spirit.”The recent problems in the Pakistan team surfaced after their winless tour to Australia in 2009-10, following which, the PCB conducted an inquiry and punished several players. Mohammad Yousuf and Younis Khan were banned indefinitely, Shoaib Malik and Rana Naved-ul-Hasan for a year, while Afridi, Kamran and Umar Akmal were fined. No reasons for the penalties were forthcoming from the PCB at the time, but a leaked video later revealed the extent of discord within the team. However, all the players apart from Yousuf, who retired from international cricket, appealed against their punishments. The bans on Malik and Younis were overturned by an arbitrator; Afridi’s fine was removed while those of the Akmals were reduced. The selectors then included Malik, who had been slated for his attitude during the inquiry, in the squad for the Asia Cup, and recalled injury-prone fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar.Afridi said Pakistan’s squad for the competition in Sri Lanka was balanced. “We have a very solid bowling attack and the batting is also looking good. There is a lot of potential. What we need is to translate that potential into positive results and that’s only possible if each and every player gives his best for the team.”We have a long and challenging tour of England coming up but right now we are completely focusing on the Asia Cup, which is also an important assignment. A good showing in the Asia Cup would be a great start to our World Cup plans.”Pakistan’s first game of the Asia Cup is against Sri Lanka in Dambulla on June 15.

Steven Croft’s first 20-over half-century of the season set up Lancashire’s
thumping 50-run Friends Provident t20 win over Durham Dynamos at Old Trafford
this evening

22-Jun-2010
Scorecard
Steven Croft’s first 20-over half-century of the season set up Lancashire’s
thumping 50-run Friends Provident t20 win over Durham Dynamos at Old Trafford
this evening.The 25-year-old’s 68 off 45 balls, including seven fours and two sixes, was the
fourth of his career in this format. The Lightning comfortably defended their imposing 187 for 8 which also
included 36 off 26 from Australian overseas star Simon Katich and 32 not out off
19 from New Zealand all-rounder Nathan McCullum.Left-arm spinner Stephen Parry claimed 4 for 28 from his four overs as
Durham slumped to 137 all out in the 19th over. Liam Plunkett top scored with 31
off 24.Steve Harmison claimed a career best 5 for 41 from his four overs for Durham
and became the first man to take five wickets in this season’s competition. Peter Moores re-jigged his batting order by promoting Stephen Moore (21 off 12) to open and Croft to bat at three.Lancashire lost Tom Smith, Moore and Paul Horton in the first six overs to
Steve Harmison, Ben Harmison and Liam Plunkett but scored 55 runs.Croft and Katich shared a fourth wicket partnership of 67 in seven overs
through the middle of the innings.Croft flicked Ben Harmison into the seats under the Point – opened to the
public for the first time – before Katich swept Dale Benkenstein for another
maximum over square leg and Croft did the same to Ian Blackwell over
mid-wicket.Katich was bowled by Plunkett in the 14th over and Croft later edged Harmison
behind to Phil Mustard to leave the hosts at 163 for five in the 18th. Harmison then bowled Gareth Cross and Glen Chapple and had Sajid Mahmood caught at mid on by his brother in the last over of the innings.But Durham’s response got off to a disastrous start because they lost Blackwell
and destructive Kiwi batsman Ross Taylor within three overs. McCullum had Blackwell caught at backward point by Smith in the first and Taylor caught by Parry at short third man to leave the score at 13 for 2.Mustard hit 21 off 17 balls but was bowled by Mahmood in the sixth. And
although their run rate was reasonable they could not halt the flow of wickets. Parry had Ben Stokes and Benkenstein caught at long off and long on by Simon Kerrigan and Croft in successive balls to leave the score at 63 for 5in the eighth.Parry later had Gareth Breese lbw and Will Smith caught in the covers by Katich
with successive balls in the 12th. Plunkett and Ben Harmison (24) shared a consolatory ninth wicket partnership of 52 but Kerrigan and Chapple added further wickets.

Paceman Jack Brooks took two runs off the final ball as the Northamptonshire Steelbacks incredibly sealed their third tie in this season’s Friends Provident t20 against the Nottinghamshire Outlaws at Wantage Road

11-Jul-2010

ScorecardPaceman Jack Brooks took two runs off the final ball as the Northamptonshire Steelbacks incredibly sealed their third tie in this season’s Friends Provident t20 against the Nottinghamshire Outlaws at Wantage Road.Australia international David Hussey smashed 41 off 32 balls as the Outlaws recovered from 13 for three to post 144 for 7 off their 20 overs, with David Willey taking 3 for 33 for the hosts.Chaminda Vaas hammered 47 off 30 balls including six fours and one six before Brooks made two runs off the one ball he faced as the result between the two sides at Trent Bridge last month was repeated. Nottinghamshire won the toss and chose to bat, but they got off to an awful start when they lost their two openers in the fourth over.Alex Hales (3) launched Brooks high into the air and was caught at backward point by Willey before veteran Ali Brown (9) edged him to wicketkeeper Niall O’Brien two balls later.Matt Wood faced two balls without scoring before being caught behind by O’Brien off Chaminda Vaas, leaving the visitors on 13 for 3. Samit Patel and Hussey then led the recovery, adding 76 runs between them for the fourth wicket.Patel blasted 40 off 32 balls before he got underneath Willey’s delivery and was comfortably taken at extra cover by David Sales. Hussey then followed when he smashed Willey straight to Alex Wakely at long-off before the same bowler forced Steven Mullaney (12) to edge to O’Brien.Graeme White’s (2) attempted reverse sweep off Northants captain Andrew Hall in the final over went to Brooks at short third man, leaving Nottinghamshire skipper and wicketkeeper Chris Read unbeaten on 28.The Steelbacks chase got off to a solid start with Sales and Vaas making 40 together before Sales (9) edged a Darren Pattinson delivery on to his middle stump. Half-way into the hosts innings, O’Brien, who made 17, clouted Mullaney to Hussey at extra cover.Vaas was three short of his half-century when he went cheaply in the following over by top-edging Patel straight to Dirk Nannes at square leg. Nannes then trapped Wakely (19) lbw as the game moved towards a thrilling climax with Northants needing 38 from the last five overs.Chigumbura made 18 before his leg stump was taken out by White when his attempted reverse sweep went awry. The Steelbacks required ten as they moved into the final over, but they lost Hall (12), James Middlebrook (9) and Ben Howgego (1), all run out, before Brooks’ heroics.

A round-up of matches from the fifth day of the ICC World Cricket League Division Four

Cricinfo staff18-Aug-2010USA suffered their first defeat of the tournament as a clinical bowling performance from Italy consigned them to a 51-run defeat in Medicina. Italy’s batsmen did not fare too well after winning the toss, but they found their saviours in Andy Northcote and Peter Petricola, who lifted them to what proved to be a match-winning score of 212.Wickets tumbled early with Hayden Patrizi and Nic Northcote managing just three runs in between them. That brought Andy and Petricola together, and the pair added a decisive 111 for the third wicket. Andy scored a 108-ball 72 before Muhammad Ghous got the better of him, and things went downhill for Italy thereafter. Petricola also missed his ton, falling 15 short to the impressive Lennox Cush who snared three wickets. The tail managed to lift Italy to 212, a score their bowlers comfortably defended.USA’s chase was wrong-footed early when their in-form batsman Sushil Nadkarni departed for a duck. Italy’s seamers never released the pressure and soon USA were 26 for 4. A battling 51 from Aditya Thyagarajan, and a couple of reasonable contributions from the tail took them past 150, but the result was never in doubt after the early damage.Petricola, who was adjudged Man of the Match, was pleased to put it past the USA. “It was great to beat the USA today, a side that is particularly strong. I felt today was real team effort by us all in the field and it felt particularly great to bounce back after our first game defeat at the hands of Nepal.”Our batting showed good strength and depth and I’m proud of the fact I managed to add a few runs to our final total today. I was also happy with how we performed as a side in the field, we kept our bowling tight and I was thrilled with my team-mates overall performance,” he said.Tanzania‘s bowlers ensured that their side surged to their second win in two days, against Cayman Islands in Pianoro. It was a stop-start innings for Tanzania after they won the toss as batsmen either threw away solid starts or got out early. Four run-outs out of the nine wickets that fell added to the general chaos of the innings. Five batsmen managed to get past 29, but all of them succumbed for scores under 40, while the rest of the batsmen fell for single-digit scores. Still they managed to put 197 on the board, and their bowlers, fresh from a spirited defence of a poor score against Nepal, stuck to their task again.Khalil Rehmtullah was once again the hero, scalping 3 for 28, including two early wickets as Cayman Islands’ chase was stunted at the top. Saheed Mohamed and Ryan Bovell repaired the damage from 10 for 3 in a patient 80-run stand spanning nearly 20 overs, but just like the Tanzanian batsmen, they too chucked it after reaching 30s. Unfortunately for Cayman Islands, they did not have enough reserves to pick up the slack, and despite a stubborn 25 from Conroy Wright, they folded 43 short of Tanzania’s effort.Kassim Nasoro, leading the side today, was pleased that the side managed to pull off a win despite missing their regular captain. “I’m really proud of the way we played today. Having lost our captain Hamisi Abdallah this morning due to injury, we really came together as a side and our game plan paid off. Our bowlers kept things tight and the batsmen made a solid total that proved too hard for the Cayman Islanders to make, it feels great to have our second win of the tournament and hopefully our good run continues,” he said.Nepal put their forgettable outing against Tanzania behind them and trounced Argentina by eight wickets with a professional performance in Navile. Argentina’s innings, after electing to bat, never went into gear against a determined Nepal attack and, despite an attacking 83 off 73 balls from Alejandro Ferguson, they could only manage 193 in their 50 overs. The wickets were shared around, with Shakti Gauchan and Basanta Regmi picking two wickets in particularly niggardly spells.Mahesh Chhetri began Nepal’s chase in sedate fashion with a 60-ball 36, while his colleagues went after the bowling. His opening partner Anil Mandal struck 60 off 58 balls with seven fours and three sixes. After their exits, Pradeep Airee and captain Paras Khadka sealed the deal with a 92-run stand, with the latter on 53 off 40 balls when the winning runs were scored in the 33rd over.Man of the match Mandal was pleased that his side shrugged off the batting failures from the previous games. “I think we batted well compared to the previous two matches and I’m happy I was able to contribute to the team score. I felt we needed to see the new ball off first and once we’d settled in, I felt I could go back to my basic skills and hit the ball freely to put the runs on the board. I think we have to be even more focused tomorrow for the USA, they will come back stronger and we have to be ready to take on their bowling attack and ultimately claim victory,” he said.

Chennai Super Kings prevailed over Warriors in a tense league match, paving the way for both teams to reach the semi-finals

The Bulletin by Siddarth Ravindran22-Sep-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Chennai Super Kings’ openers, Michael Hussey and M Vijay, were involved in the biggest stand of the match•AFP

It’s not often that both contestants of a sporting encounter celebrate at the end of a match. That strange sight was on offer in Port Elizabeth after Chennai Super Kings prevailed over Warriors in a tense league match, paving the way for both teams to reach the semi-finals of the Champions League Twenty20 at the expense of Victoria.Chennai’s chances seemed to have evaporated when they stumbled to 136 after choosing to bat in a must-win match, but on a spin-friendly track their strategy of packing the team with slow bowlers paid off as they tenaciously defended that total to set up an all-IPL semi-final against Royal Challengers Bangalore in Durban.Briefly, midway through the chase, it looked as though an IPL team would break the hearts of the home crowd for the second day in a row but it was the Chennai fans who faced some panicky moments when Justin Kreusch and Mark Boucher revived the Warriors with a 44-run fourth-wicket stand.Two Boucher sixes off Shadab Jakati left Warriors needing a gettable 32 off three overs with seven wickets remaining and two set batsmen at the crease. Chennai’s edginess was shown by Muttiah Muralitharan’s tirade at S Badrinath after a run-out chance was muffled following some kamikaze running between the wickets in the 16th over.R Ashwin, battered in the Super Over against Victoria, then returned to virtually ensure David Hussey’s side will be returning home early. His carrom ball worked to perfection in the 18th over, foxing both Kreusch and Boucher, to swing the game Chennai’s way, though a four in between raised the biggest cheer of the day as it confirmed Warriors’ qualification – they needed 109 to seal a place in the final four. Chennai’s key bowlers, Doug Bollinger and Murali, then held their nerve against Warriors’ non-specialist batsmen to preserve their team’s 100% record of progressing from the league phase of every tournament they have played in so far.Victoria would never have felt more confident of making the semi-finals than when Warriors captain Davy Jacobs was batting in his usual thrill-a-minute style to power the chase of a seemingly inadequate target early on. Jacobs survived in the second over when the ball rolled off his bat onto the stumps and Warriors confidently progressed to 38 for 1 in the Powerplays, but Chennai clawed back after that.Shadab Jakati and Murali choked the runs, before Jacobs fell to a well-judged overhead catch from Michael Hussey at deep midwicket. Three overs later, Suresh Raina’s magic arm earned a wicket with his third delivery to further slow down the home team. In seven overs after the Powerplays, Warriors made only 28 and lost two major wickets, pushing the asking rate to double digits. The game then tilted the Warriors’ way before Ashwin’s intervention proved decisive.Chennai’s bowlers saved the blushes of a highly rated batting unit, which struggled against a disciplined home side. Warriors have five bowlers with international experience in their line-up but it was the sixth, medium-pacer Kreusch, who made the biggest impact. His no-frills wicket-to-wicket bowling fetched him three wickets and ruined the platform Chennai’s openers, Hussey and M Vijay, had constructed.The other impressive Warriors bowler was Johan Botha, one of the tournament’s most economical, who again handcuffed the opposition and dismissed Hussey in the 14th over, one ball after he reached his half-century, to change the course of the innings. From what was a potentially threatening 94 for 2, Chennai could only scrape 20 runs in the next five overs, when they should have been launching an all-out attack.Chennai’s openers had made a rock-solid start, setting up their side for what should have been a far more challenging target. Vijay was the dominant partner in a 63-run stand. Hussey was more circumspect early on, knocking the singles around – his first stroke of aggression as in the fifth over, charging down and lofting Lonwabo Tsotsobe towards long-on. A powerful reverse-sweep for four followed off Nicky Boje, before he started peppering his favourite midwicket region. There were only two dot balls in his final 21 deliveries.His dismissal, however, sandwiching those of Raina and S Badrinath to Kreusch, derailed Chennai. They got going again only in the 19th over, when MS Dhoni clubbed 17 runs off Tsotsobe, including a giant six over midwicket. In a low-scoring encounter, 136 proved enough.The result was a hard pill to swallow for Victoria, who are eliminated despite losing only one match in the tournament.

The allrounder James Hopes has been awarded the Queensland captaincy after Chris Simpson stood down

Cricinfo staff07-Sep-2010The allrounder James Hopes has been awarded the Queensland captaincy after Chris Simpson stood down on Monday night following two testing seasons in charge. Hopes will be the state’s 49th captain and will mix the job with his limited-overs appointments with the national team.Simpson, an offspinning allrounder, was a calm and thoughtful leader but struggled individually with bat and ball while in charge. Under his guidance the Bulls made two Pura Cup finals and won the FR Cup in 2008-09, but ultimately the side required someone who could provide guaranteed contributions in all formats.”I accepted the role because I felt we needed the stability now in the group,” Hopes said. “Chris has stood aside to concentrate on his one-day cricket, not ruling out the possibility of playing four-day cricket too I’m sure, so my appointment is one of stability. If you look at us, I’m probably the most senior player in the group but I’m also confident we have got the players in the squad that can take over if I am required for Australian duty.”Hopes averages around 30 with bat and ball in 61 first-class matches and also has the advantage of being a proven performer during 83 one-day internationals. He has captained Queensland in an FR Cup match and three Twenty20 games.No vice-captain has been appointed. Queensland’s first game of the season is a split-innings one-dayer against Tasmania at the Gabba on October 6.

Brett Lee, the Australia fast bowler, has staked his claim for selection into the national team for the ODI series against Sri Lanka starting later this month

ESPNcricinfo staff17-Oct-2010The fast bowler Brett Lee has declared himself ready for international cricket and has started his bid for a place in Australia’s limited-overs squad to take on Sri Lanka later this month. Lee made a successful comeback to senior cricket on Sunday, when he collected 2 for 37 for New South Wales against Western Australia in the Ryobi Cup.It was his first outing for his state team in almost a year, while he has not played for Australia in any format since last October. After missing the 2009 Ashes with a side strain, Lee has suffered injuries to his elbow, thumb and arm, but he has made himself available for Australia’s Twenty20 against Sri Lanka on October 31 and the three ODIs that follow.”I put my hand up, simple as that,” Lee said after his economical 11-over spell for the Blues. “I’m fit, I’m playing. If they feel that I’m ready, pick me. Pick me, I’m keen to play. I wouldn’t have played [the Ryobi Cup] if I didn’t feel I was ready to play at this level.”When you’ve had a bit of a break for a while, it’s refreshing to get out there and play. I’m just really trying to enjoy my cricket this year. I’ve trained really hard; I’m preparing the best I possibly can. Hopefully, the rest takes care of itself. It doesn’t matter who I’m playing for, I’ll always go out there and give it my best shot.”Although the World Cup early next year is the major goal for Lee, he has not set any timeline on ending his limited-overs career, although he retired from first-class cricket in February. His two wickets on Sunday came from the slower ball, while his slower bouncer also caused a run-out, but he was also happy with the speed he was able to generate.”On the slow wicket today, I felt like I hit my pace pretty well, which surprised me,” Lee said. “I didn’t think I would be at that level as yet, but the last two weeks I’ve worked really hard in the nets as far as getting that pace back to where I want it to be.”

Virender Sehwag continued toying with the bowling, Gautam Gambhir continued his return to form, after which Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar took India into a dominant position in the series-decider

The Bulletin by Sidharth Monga21-Nov-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were outOnce again, Virender Sehwag provided the impetus at the top•AFP

Virender Sehwag continued toying with the bowling, Gautam Gambhir continued his return to form, after which Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar took India to a dominant position in the series decider. As Dravid and Tendulkar accumulated risk-free runs after the openers’ aggressive start, the faces of the New Zealand players wore a resigned look for the first time on the tour.On the same flat pitch, New Zealand had been bowled out for 193, and were now looking at the prospect of having to bat out two days to save the match. They lost their last three wickets for 45 today, thanks to Ishant Sharma’s impressive spell. He got good bounce from lengths that weren’t quite short, and wasted little time in getting Brendon McCullum, who moved a bit more freely today. One thick edge flew past gully, but the delivery immediately after was closer to the body and took the edge through to the keeper. He had New Zealand down to 165 for 9, but some lusty hitting from Southee kept India in the field a little longer. After three sixes in three overs, one Southee mis-hit ended up with Sehwag, who then rushed to pad up.Sehwag was in the same rush with the bat, but he was helped by the opposition too. New Zealand bowled to Sehwag the reputation, not Sehwag the batsman, and paid the price. Chris Martin hit him on the finger with a short ball first up, but overdid the short bit on a sluggish surface. Sehwag pulled and upper-cut with ease, scoring 39 off the 23 short deliveries bowled to him. Martin did manage to get him to fend uppishly on one occasion, but there was neither short leg nor leg gully to take advantage.

Smart Stats

• Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar’s partnership was their 19th century stand in Tests, giving them three more than the next best pair.

• India have 42 century stands in home Tests since November 21, 2007, the most by any team at home over the same period.

• Ishant Sharma’s four-wicket haul was his first after 13 innings. His last four-wicket haul came against Bangladesh at Dhaka in January 2010. His bowling performance since November 2009 has been very ordinary though; he has 26 wickets in nine Tests at an average of 39.50.

• Harbhajan Singh has just 43 wickets in 12 Tests since November 2009, at an average of over 41 with one five wicket haul. In three away Tests, he has just four wickets at an average of over 100.

• Sachin Tendulkar made his 11th score of over 50 in Tests in 2010. He has six centuries and five fifties in the same period.

Martin had taken a quick five-for in Ahmedabad with traditional swing bowling, but barely pitched anything up to Sehwag here. That hit on the fingers only encouraged him to keep bowling short. In Martin’s second over, Sehwag pulled him for boundaries twice in front of long leg. It didn’t help that when Martin pitched up later, he was driven square for four.The pitch was so slow that Sehwag once swayed out of the line of a short delivery, and then nonchalantly, as an afterthought, sliced it over gully. He was waiting to tuck into the full ones, whipping the next length ball off the pads.At the other end Gambhir, who did the dirty work in Hyderabad by scratching through for his first half-century in 10 months, looked confident. His clips off the pads went where he wanted them to, the walk down the pitch to counter swing was back, and so was the steer to third man. However, the steer, when attempted a touch carelessly, would eventually cost him a century.Gambhir was getting the singles to give Sehwag the strike. It wouldn’t have been a good idea to keep Sehwag away from the strike. He welcomed Daniel Vettori with a six over long-on – a mere flick that went the distance – and then late-cut him for four delightfully. After lunch, he looked to keep feasting on the bowling, taking 17 off the first two overs after the interval.By the time the slowness of a Vettori delivery cost Sehwag his century, he had added 100 or more with Gambhir for the ninth time. Still, India needed to guard against the tendency to lose momentum once Sehwag gets out.Gambhir, although not trying to score at Sehwag’s pace, made sure nothing of the sort happened, allowing Dravid time to get going. He brought up his fifty with a loft over mid-on, and followed it up by going back and cutting the same bowler, Vettori, in his next over. Best of all, he charged at Williamson, then merely caressed him between mid-off and extra cover.With India one short of New Zealand’s score, Gambhir chased a wide delivery from Southee, and to his horror looked up and saw a fourth slip and a gully placed for that shot. It was an angry Gambhir that made the walk back, but a serene Dravid had quietly moved to 28 by then, without a shot that would draw attention.Dravid soon drew attention to himself with a lovely straight-drive just before tea. Post the interval, though, with Sehwag and Gambhir gone, New Zealand could bowl to a plan. The run-rate fell from 4.9 when Sehwag got out to around 3.5, but the two senior batsmen knew they had enough time on their hands.Without incident the two moved to a world-record 19th century partnership – except for a couple of blows Tendulkar took on the forearm, and an edge from Dravid that fell short of the keeper. Both men made half-centuries, making it 198 scores of 50 or more between them.

A round-up of the latest action from the Logan Cup, Zimbabwe’s domestic first-class competition

ESPNcricinfo staff06-Dec-2010Nick Compton carried his fine Twenty20 form into the first-class format as his first century of the season helped Mashonaland Eagles earn a draw against Southern Rocks at the Harare Sports Club. Rocks, however, took one point from the game after securing the first-innings lead.Compton, who was the leading run-getter in the Stanbic Bank 20 Series that Eagles won in November, came to the crease with his team in trouble at 61 for 5 in their second innings. By stumps on the third day, Eagles had lost another wicket and Compton was unbeaten on 44 with his team at 127 for 6. At that stage, Rocks were odds-on favourites to win the match, having taken a 36-run lead in the first innings. But Compton found an able partner in fast bowler Trevor Garwe, and the two defied Rocks well into the second season on the final day. When Garwe was out for 64, Eagles declared at 293 for 7, with Compton unbeaten on 136. Rocks needed 256 to win in half a day, and the match petered out to a draw.Rocks had taken the advantage on the first day, bowling Eagles out for 202 after putting them in to bat. Seamers Robertson Chinyengetere and Michael Chinouya took three wickets each as Eagles struggled to get going, with none of their batsmen reaching 50. Their bowlers responded well on the second day, reducing Rocks to 180 for 7 at one stage. Eagles seamer Innocent Chinyoka took 4 for 53 and Rocks needed Steve Tikolo’s 57 to give them a first-innings lead. Rocks bowlers then struck five early blows to give them a chance for their first win of the season, before Compton’s match-saving innings. Eagles stay above Rocks in the table, with two points compared to their one.Matabeleland Tuskers were hampered by incessant rain at the Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo as they tried to catch up with Mountaineers at the top of the table. The first and then the fourth day were completely washed out and neither team picked up any points.Tuskers elected to bat first and when play began on the second day, managed to reach 264 in their first innings, riding on Paul Horton’s 121. Tuskers’ bowlers then gave them a shot at the first-innings lead, reducing Mountaineers to 99 for 4 on the third day. But rain played spoilsport and ensured there was no more play in the match.

Central Districts have marched into the HRV Cup final after they beat Auckland by eight wickets, while Wellington won a thriller against Otago

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Dec-2010Central Districts marched into the final of the HRV Cup with a demolition of table-toppers Auckland in New Plymouth, chasing down the target of 181 with eight wickets to spare. Peter Ingram (46) and Jamie How (43) blazed away to an opening stand of 74 in seven overs after which Ian Blackwell took over. Blackwell smashed six sixes and four fours in his unbeaten 68 from 33 deliveries as CD cantered to victory in the 17th over.Auckland had got off to a poor start after opting to bat, reaching 58 for 3 in seven overs. They slipped further when Lou Vincent was bowled by Jacob Oram for 46 off 29. Rob Quiney and Colin Munro added 54 in 4.2 overs to take Auckland close to 150. Quiney hit five sixes in his 55 off 29. England left-arm spinner Michael Yardy led the CD bowlers with 2 for 18. The win took CD to second position behind Auckland, and the two will clash in the final on January 2.

Wellington had to wait till the penultimate ball of the match to win a thriller against Otago by three wickets at the Queenstown Events Centre. Chasing 148, Wellington managed to keep the required run-rate under control despite losing wickets at regular intervals. Opener Neal Parlane’s 39, and middle-order contributions from captain Grant Elliott and England import Luke Wright helped their cause. But it was up to No. 7 Marc Calkin and No. 9 Brett Lee, the Australia fast bowler, to finish the game. Calkin got 18 off 13 as Wellington got the 14 runs they needed off the last 11 balls.Otago had kept themselves in the game by chipping away at the wickets. Seamer James McMillan got two early scalps, and then Aaron Redmond sent nerves rushing through the Wellington dressing room, picking up a couple of wickets late in the innings with his legspinners. Redmond’s second scalp left Wellington at 134 for 7, but Brett Lee came in and hit a six to take some of the pressure off his team.Otago had reached their total of 146 largely due to Redmond’s 50 off 37 balls at the top of the order. Captain Craig Cumming got a quick 25 in the middle-order and Iain Robertson added a valuable 20 not out in the end.

Canterbury beat Northern Districts by 60 runs at the Village Green in Christchurch thanks to a blazing half-century by Peter Fulton and an all-round performance from Johan van der Wath. Fulton stuck around as Canterbury lost a few early wickets, including opening partner Rob Nicol in the first over, and then accelerated to reach 64 off 46 balls. van der Wath made sure Canterbury reached 163, smashing four sixes in his 31 off 13 balls.van der Wath then produced the goods with the balls, bowling a tight spell of four overs for 12 runs with three wickets to help bowl ND out for 103 in 18 overs. ND got off to a poor start to their chase as they lost both their openers, Brad Hodge and Daniel Flynn, within the first eight balls of their innings. Herschelle Gibbs followed, out for a duck to seamer Richard Sherlock, who took 3 for 28. ND were soon 37 for 5 after Kane Williamson and Brad Wilson fell without adding too many. BJ Watling tried to hold the innings together with his 20, but wickets fell consistently and ND couldn’t even bat out their overs.