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World T20: Dominant Proteas thrash off-colour Sri Lankans

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Proteas

New Delhi: South Africa dominated with both bat and ball to outclass defending champions Sri Lanka by eight wickets in the final Group 1 match of the World Twenty20 at the Ferozeshah Kotla Stadium here on Monday.

Having bowled out the Sri Lankans for a mere 120 runs, the South Africans overhauled the target in 17.4 overs with the veteran Hashim Amla leading the way with a half century.

Amla remained unbeaten on 56 runs off 52 balls with five boundaries and a six.

The result of the match had no bearing on the overall picture of the tournament as both teams had already crashed out of the race for the semi-finals.

The Proteas, who have two wins and as many defeats in the group stage, thus finished their campaign in this edition of the tournament on the high.

The Sri Lankans, on the other hand, will probably heave a sigh of relief as they concluded a disappointing campaign. The defending champions have suffered three defeats with a lone win against minnows Afghanistan.

South African skipper Faf du Plessis elected to field first on winning the toss. His decision proved to be a correct one as the Proteas exploited helpful bowling conditions to bundle out Sri Lanka for a meagre 120 runs.

Farhaan Behardien (2/15), Kyle Abott (2/14) and Aaron Phangiso (2/26) were the pick among the Proteas bowlers while leg-spinner Imran Tahir (1/18) was unlucky not to get more wickets.

Experienced fast bowler Dale Steyn (1/33) surprisingly, gave away quite a few runs, although he did have some consolation in the form of a wicket.

The Sri Lankans were off to a good start with openers Tilakratne Dilshan and Dinesh Chandimal scoring at a brisk pace. Dilshan was the highest scorer among the Sri Lankan batsmen with 36 runs off 40 balls. Chandimal scored 21.

The duo added 45 runs before Chandimal went for a cover drive off Phangiso, only to miss the line as the ball crashed into the stumps. Phangiso then sent back Lahiru Thirimanne off the very next delivery with one that turned in sharply after pitching outside the off stump.

Dilshan and Milinda Siriwardana (15) tried to bring the Sri Lankan innings back on track with a 30-run partnership. But South Africa wrested back the advantage when a superb piece of fielding by Faf du Plesis caught Siriwardana short of his crease.

By the time Dilshan was trapped leg-before while attempting a sweep off Behardien, Sri Lanka were in trouble at 85/5. Dasun Shanaka remained unbeaten on 20 off 18 balls, but the rest of the Lankan tailenders were unable to hold their own against the Proteas bowlers.

The Proteas chase was off to a rocky start as de Kock was run out in the second over thanks to an accurate throw by Dilshan. Amla and du Plessis however, steered South Africa to saftey with a 50-run partnership.

The South Africa captain departed after scoring 31 runs off 36 deliveries, but the experienced AB de Villiers joined Amla in the middle to carry his team to victory.

De Villiers, who remained unbeaten on 20, smashed two sixes in his 12-ball knock and brought up the win by smashing a full toss from Suranga Lakmal over the midwicket fence.

Brief scores:

Sri Lanka 120 in 19.3 overs (Tilakratne Dilshan 36; Farhaan Behardien 2/15, Kyle Abott 2/14, Aaron Phangiso 2/26) vs South Africa 122/2 in 17.4 overs (Hashim Amla 56 n.o., Faf du Plessis 31; Suranga Lakmal 1/28)

(IANS)

West Indies beat South Africa to enter World T20 semis

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West Indies South Africa

Nagpur: The West Indies produced an all-round performance to outclass South Africa by three wickets in a Group 1 clash at the Vidarbha Cricket Association (VCA) stadium here on Friday to enter the semi-finals of the World Twenty20 cricket tournament.

Batting first, South Africa were never in control of the game as they lost wickets at regular intervals to post a meagre total of 122/8 in 20 overs.

In reply, riding on Marlon Samuels’ impressive 44, the West Indies batted sensibly as they chased down the target posting 123/7 in 19.4 overs.

Chasing a tricky target of 123, the West Indies lost hard-hitting opener Chris Gayle (4) in the very first over, thanks to pacer Kagiso Rabada who cleaned him up after the latter was hit for a boundary by the left-handed batsman.

After the loss of the first wicket, Johnson Charles (32) and Andre Fletcher (11) used their experience to good effect to hold on for a couple of overs but the sixth over saw some outstanding fielding followed by an electrifying throw by Rilee Rossouw ended Fletcher’s stay on the crease.

Despite the wicket of Fletcher, Charles played positively alongside incoming batsman Marlon Samuels to take team past 50-run mark.

But South Africa struck twice in quick succession dismissing Charles and Dwayne Bravo (8) to stay alive in the game.

But Samuels used his experience to good effect to take team close to victory line before getting himself out.

Next up, Carlos Brathwaite (10 not out) and Dinesh Ramdin (1 not out) remained unbeaten to take West Indies to triumph.

Imran Tahir (2-13) was the pick of the Proteas’ bowlers.

Earlier put into bat, South Africa got off to a disastrous start losing opener Hashim Amla (1), Faf Du Plessis (9) and Rossouw (0) to have team wobbling at 20/3 in three overs.

From there on, opener Quinton de Kock (47) and AB de Villiers (10) held on to help team go past the powerplay with 39/3 on board.

But next up, the Proteas received their biggest blow when de Villiers, trying to flick through midwicket, was cleaned up by a slower ball from Bravo in the eighth over.

The batting side failed to learn from the earlier mistakes on a wicket which looked tough for batting as part-time off-spinner Gayle, who had dismissed Rossouw, struck yet again in the ninth over to shatter David Miller’s stumps and have South Africa in a spot of bother at 47/5.

Incoming batsman David Wiese (28) and De Kock took their time in the middle without trying anything silly to help team go past 90-run mark in 15 overs.

But as De Kock was chipping in with ones and twos to get close to his second T20I fifty, Russell came in to get rid of the left-handed batsman to have the former three runs short off half-century.

With wickets falling at regular intervals, life became difficult for the Proteas batsmen to post a respectable total as tail-enders Chris Morris (16 not out) and Aaron Phangiso (4) helped team reach 122/8.

Chris Gayle (2-17), Dwayne Bravo (2-20) and Andre Russell (2-28) were the pick of the bowlers for the West Indies.

Brief scores: South Africa 122/8 in 20 overs (Quinton de Kock 47; Chris Gayle 2-17, Dwayne Bravo 2-20, Andre Russell 2-28) vs West Indies 123/7 in 19.4 overs (Marlon Samuels 44; Imran Tahir 2-13)

(IANS)

World T20: Root hits 83 as England stun South Africa

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Joe Root

Mumbai: Star batsman Joe Root smashed a match-winning 83 as a spirited England side chased down South Africa’s massive total of 229 to win a nail-biting contest by two wickets in the Group 1 clash in the World Twenty20 cricket tournament at the Wankhede Stadium here on Friday.

Batting first, the Proteas posted a commendable 229/4 in 20 overs, thanks to half-centuries each from Hashim Amla, Jean-Paul Duminy and Quinton de Kock.

In reply, England opener Jason Roy struck a quickfire 43 off 16 which was followed by Root’s 83 off 44 that helped team chase down the total as they posted 230/8 in 19.4 overs.

Chasing a massive target of 230, openers Roy and Alex Hales (17 off 7) got England off to a flying start scoring 44 runs in just two overs.

The run feast ended as Sean Abbott got the much needed breakthrough by getting rid of Hales in the third over.

This didn’t stop Roy from playing his shots as the right-handed batsman took on the bowling striking five fours and three sixes before giving his wicket away in the fifth over leaving his team at 71/2.

All-rounder Ben Stokes (15) who was promoted up the batting order, didn’t trouble the opposition much as he along with skipper Eoin Morgan (12) returned back to the pavilion in space of four overs to have England in a bit of trouble at 111/4 in tenth over.

From there, on Root did not allow the required run-rate to climb high as he kept on finding boundaries at regular intervals to bring up his half-century in 29 balls and take team past 150-run mark.

Jos Buttler (21) who was giving good support to Root was also dismissed to end the duo’s 75-run partnership for fifth wicket.

Root held on playing sensibly to take team past 200-run mark before giving away his wicket in 19th over.

Moeen Ali (12 not out) and Adil Rashid (0 not out) to take team past victory line.

Kyle Abbott (3-41) and Kagiso Rabada (2-50) were the pick of the South African bowlers.

Earlier on put into bat, openers Amla (58 off 31) and De Kock (52 off 24) got the Proteas off to a rollicking start, scoring 83 runs in the powerplay.

Playing a flurry of shots all round the ground, the left-handed De Kock brought up his half-century in just 21 balls striking seven boundaries and three sixes.

But just when he was looking good to take the game away from the opposition, off-spinner Ali struck in the eighth over to send him packing. Amla-De Kock added 96 runs for the first wicket.

Incoming batsman A.B. de Villiers (16) failed to make a big impact this time around as he got went out cheaply to have the Proteas reduced to 114/2 in ninth over.

The right-handed Amla after being dropped by Reece Topley when he was batting at nine off the bowling off Ali, proved to be a bit costly for the Englishmen as he went on to score his fourth T20I fifty off just 25 balls. He struck seven boundaries and three sixes.

Amla and skipper Faf du Plessis (17) were then dismissed in space of four overs but ensured team went past the 150-run mark.

Next up, Duminy (54) and David Miller (28) helped team post a goo total.

Ali (2-34) was the pick of the England bowlers.

Brief scores: South Africa 229/4 in 20 overs (Hashim Amla 58, Jean-Paul Duminy 54 not out, Quinton de Kock 52; Moeen Ali 2-34) vs England 230/8 in 19.4 overs (Joe Root 83, Jason Roy 43; Kyle Abbott 3-41, Kagiso Rabada 2-50)

(IANS)

India win by 337 runs, clinch series 3-0

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South Africa

New Delhi: India ended South Africa’s second innings at 143 runs to win the fourth and final cricket Test by 337 runs and clinch the series 3-0 at the Ferozeshah Kotla here on Monday.

This was the first series victory at home for Indian skipper Virat Kohli and his second consecutive one after the triumph in Sri Lanka in September.

India had won the first Test in Mohali and the third in Nagpur earlier in this series. With the series-win, India climbed to the second position in the International Cricket Council (ICC) Test rankings.

Off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin was the most successful among the Indian bowlers in the second innings with figures of 5/61.

Fast bowler Umesh Yadav bagged three quick wickets just after tea to return figures of 3/9. Left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja returned with 2/26.

Jadeja bowled 17 consecutive maiden overs in the second innings. He fell four maiden overs short of the existing record of former India spinner Bapu Nadkarni when Faf du Plesis walloped him to the long-on boundary.

A.B. de Villiers was the highest scorer for the visitors with 43. De Villiers consumed 296 deliveries during his marathon innings.

Usually known and revered for his ability to repeatedly hit bowlers out of the park in limited-overs cricket, the 31-year-old showed he is one of best when it comes to defensive batting as well.

Although Hashim Amla, du Plessis and J.P. Duminy fell at the other end, the experienced right-hander continued to hold back the Indian bowlers at the other end.

His lengthy partnerships with Amla and du Plessis gave the Proteas genuine hopes of snatching a draw before they suffered a dramatic collapse shortly after the tea break.

Resuming at the overnight score of 72/2, South Africa batsmen de Villiers and Amla continued their efforts to deny a victory to the hosts.

Du Plessis took 53 deliveries to open his account. He is now third on the list of batsmen consuming most number of balls before opening their account.

England’s John Murray (80 deliveries) holds the record in this dubious category which came against Australia in the Ashes series of 1962.

England’s Stuart Broad is second on the list with 62 balls which came against New Zealand in 2013. Grant Flower of Zimbabwe is fourth with 51 balls. He achieved the feat in the year 2000 against New Zealand.

Jadeja knocked back Amla’s off-stump in the morning session before du Plesis joined de Villiers in the middle and the duo ensured that the visitors did not lose any more wickets till lunch.

Amla scored 25 runs off 244 deliveries. The elegant right-hander has not been at his best in this series. But he played a captain’s innings when his team needed it the most and it needed a superb delivery from Jadeja to dislodge him.

The Kotla pitch became slow as the Test match progressed and lost most of its bounce which allowed the visitors more time to read the deliveries and play their shots.

Kohli used eight bowlers, including himself, in an attempt to dislodge the Proteas batsmen.

Jadeja struck another big blow to South African hopes when he trapped du Plessis leg before almost immediately after lunch with one that kept straight after pitching.

Ashwin sent Duminy back to the pavilion before the South African had opened his account to revive Indian hopes just before tea.

The Proteas hopes of avoiding defeat vaporised right at the start of the final session when they lost their last five wickets in the space of seven runs.

Dane Vilas was a bit unlucky when he was slightly late in bringing his bat down to an off-cutter from Yadav that moved sharply in from outside the off-stump. The ball took the edge of the bat before hitting the stumps.

Ashwin finally ended de Villiers’ marathon vigil in the very first ball of the next over when the South African was surprised by the extra bounce and was caught by Jadeja at leg slip.

An Indian victory was only a matter of time after that.

Yadav dismissed Kyle Abbott and Dane Piedt in quick succession before Ashwin bowled Morkel to send his team-mates and the crowd into raptures.

(IANS)

Amla dismissed but SA reach 94/3 at lunch on Day 5

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Amla

New Delhi: Ravindra Jadeja ended Hashim Amla’s dogged vigil with a beautiful delivery but AB de Villiers frustrated the Indian bowlers no end as South Africa crawled to 94/3 in 107 overs at lunch, raising visions of a draw in the fourth and final cricket Test here today.

The Proteas continued with their ‘Blockathon’ as they added only 21 runs in the first session of the final day consuming another 35 overs in the process.

Amla faced 244 balls for his ‘epic’ 25 before Jadeja bowled him with one that drifted in and then straightened to knock the off-stump.

AB de Villiers showed another side of his game as he gave Amla stiff competition in stonewalling, reaching unbeaten 26 off 203 balls with four boundaries to his credit.

If Amla was not enough, in came Faf Du Plessis (2 not out off 61 balls), who surpassed his skipper’s South African record of playing 46 dot balls before opening account. Du Plessis played 52 dots before taking a single of the 53rd delivery.

Du Plessis has done this kind of defending earlier in Adelaide (2012) when he batted close to eight hours (7 hours and 46 minutes) to score 110 and denied the Aussies what looked like an inevitable win. And his partner in crime was none other than ‘ABD’ who had played 220 balls for his 33 in that particular match.

Du Plessis in fact also surpassed Grant Flower (51 balls vs New Zealand in 2000) to become the third slowest player of all time to open his account

Amla’s strike-rate of 10.44 might have put everyone to sleep but his was a perfect example of how to save a Test match from a miraculously hopeless position. His innings might set future templates on how to save a match as the art of drawing a Test match has become virtually extinct.

Obviously, the drab Kotla wicket which became literally lifeless on the final morning did help but it is never easy to save a Test match by batting out more than 160 overs.

Such was the mindset of the South African batsmen that Jadeja has now bowled 16 consecutive maiden overs with his figures reading 35-28-10-1. Ashwin has 2/43 from 35 overs.

There was the odd good ball like the one that got Amla but both the Indian spinners’ limitations on slightly unhelpful pitch was thoroughly exposed. Ashwin went back to his old habit of trying too many variations without much success. When the pacers bowled, it did not carry to the wicketkeeper.

(Agencies)

Kohli, Rahane take India to 190/4

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Image Credit: BCCI.

Image Credit: BCCI.

New Delhi: Skipper Virat Kohli (83 not out) and Ajinkya Rahane (52 not out) took India to 190/4 in their second innings against South Africa at stumps on the third day of the fourth and final cricket Test at the Ferozeshah Kotla here on Saturday.

They forged an unbeaten 133-run stand for the fifth wicket after pacer Morne Morkel had struck early blows to leave India reeling at 57/4.

India now have a strong lead of 403 runs.

(IANS)

India again put South Africa in a spin bind

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Ravindra Jadeja

New Delhi: A five-wicket haul by Ravindra Jadeja and a well-deserved century by Ajinkya Rahane helped India to a strong position in the fourth and final cricket Test against South Africa at the Ferozeshah Kotla here on Friday.

Having dismissed India for 334 runs, the Proteas were bundled out for 121 in their first innings with Jadeja boasting figures of 5/30.

The Indians however, decided against enforcing the follow-on and will begin their second innings when play resumes on Saturday.

The hosts suffered a scare when Cheteshwar Pujara was hit by a Dean Elgar shot while fielding and was taken to the hospital with a minor injury. The Indian team management however, assured that he will be fit to play on Friday.

The Indian bowlers claimed as many as nine wickets in the final session of the day to push South Africa to the wall. Pacers Umesh Yadav (2/32) and Ishant Sharma (1/23) and off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin (1/12) were all among the wickets.

Earlier, Rahane notched up his fifth Test century to propel India to a big total. The Mumbai batsman scored 127 runs with 11 boundaries and four sixes before being dismissed by Dane Piedt.

Ashwin (56) also tormented the South African bowlers, scoring a half-century with six hits to the fence and a six. Rahane and Ashwin added 98 runs between them, the highest partnership of the series so far, to help the hosts post a big total.

The visitors rode on superb bowling from leg-spinner Imran Tahir and pacer Kyle Abbott to end India’s first innings just after the lunch break.

Tahir claimed the vital wicket of Rahane in the morning session for figures of 1/66 while Abbott sent back Ashwin and Ishant off successive deliveries to have a handosme return of 4/117.

Off-spinner Dane Piedt (5/40) did not manage to add to his tally on Friday.

The visitors then endured a difficult start to their first innings as Indian pacers Yadav and Ishant bowled with pace and aggression. The occasional delivery was keeping low, which complicated matters for the batsmen.

Openers Temba Bavuma and Elgar survived several close calls before the latter edged Yadav to wicketkeeper Wriddhhiman Saha.

That saw Hashim Amla join Bavuma in the middle and the duo ensured that the visitors did not lose any more wickets till lunch.

Jadeja came into his own when play resumed, bowling Bavuma in the very first over after the break. Amla continued his recent run of low scores, offering an easy catch behind the stumps while attempting to cut a Jadeja delivery that was spinning away.

The in-form Faf du Plesis virtually gifted his wicket to Jadeja with a miscued paddle-sweep before Yadav sent J.P. Duminy’s off-stump for a walk with a beautiful delivery that shaped slightly in after pitching.

The Proteas continued to lose wickets at regular intervals and by the time A.B. de Villiers holed out in the deep, their innings was virtually over.

(IANS)

Ajinkya Rahane shines but India falter to end Day 1 on 231/7

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ajinkya-rahane

New Delhi: Ajinkya Rahane stood tall amidst ruins with an unbeaten 89 as the much-vaunted top-order failed yet again with India reaching a shaky 231 for 7 against South Africa on the opening day of fourth and final cricket Test, here today.

Save for Rahane, who came back to form with a top quality unbeaten 89-run innings from 155 balls, and skipper Virat Kohli (44), who looked in good touch, the other specialist batsmen did not make use of a slow but decent enough track for batting after the skipper had won the toss.

Rahane’s innings had nine boundaries and two sixes and he is 11 short of a well-deserved fifth Test hundred.

Giving Rahane company was R Ashwin (6) when play was called off slightly early owing to bad light.

The tormentors for India were spinner Dane Piedt (4/101 in 34 overs), playing his first Test of the series, and pacer Kyle Abott (3/23 in 17 overs), who was economical as well as incisive with his swing bowling as South Africa sent down 84 overs during the day.

Rahane, who scored his first ever half-century on home soil, kept his cool even as wickets tumbled at the other end. For the record, this is only the third half-century by an Indian batsman in the series so far and eighth half-century of Rahane’s Test career.

The total was also the highest by any team in the series so far. There were only two significant partnerships — 70 between Kohli and Rahane for the 4th wicket and 59 for the 7th wicket between Rahane and Ravindra Jadeja (24).

While he played second fiddle to Kohli during their stand, Rahane took charge once Wriddhiman Saha (1) was castled by Abbott’s reverse swing.

Piedt, who came from round the wicket, fired at an angle which was dispatched for maximum over deep mid-wicket. His 50 came off 91 balls when he hit Piedt for a boundary as Jadeja also grew in confidence at the other end.

However, Morne Morkel, coming for his final spell of the day, got Jadeja to flick one as Dean Elgar snapped a smart catch at mid-wicket.

The team’s 200 came in the 74th over when Rahane hit an Imran Tahir half-tracker towards mid-wicket boundary and followed it up with a lofted hit over mid-on.

Skipper Kohli’s promising innings was cut short by a freak dismissal while Rohit Sharma’s indiscreet shot selection compounded the home team’s problems on a Feroz Shah Kotla track which was far better than the ones provided at Mohali and Nagpur.

(Agencies)

India, South Africa gear up for final Test

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amla

New Delhi: India aims to be “ruthless” in the final test against South Africa despite having taken a winning 2-0 lead in the four-game series,” captain Virat Kohli said on Wednesday.

“We want to be ruthless and will try to go 3-0 up,” Kohli said ahead of the match starting Thursday in Delhi. “We will not be experimenting just because we have won the series. We want to create a hard-working side with a winning culture. The team is in a good space and we will go all out for a win.”

India won the first test at Mohali by 104 runs, and the third at Nagpur by 124 runs. The second test at Bangalore was a rain-affected draw.

The Nagpur pitch, where South Africa folded for only 79 in the first innings, has been termed “poor” by match referee Jeff Crowe in his report to the International Cricket Council which awaits a reply from the Indian cricket board.

“I think the pitches have been discussed too much. No one talks about the Adelaide test (Australia vs New Zealand day-night game) which ended in two and a half days. People don’t talk about the number of times teams have been bowled out for less than 100 in South Africa but pitches are highlighted in India,” Kohli said.

Kohli, who will lead India for the first time on his home ground, said he was not giving a thought to whether the pitch at the Feroze Shah Kotla Stadium will also help turn as much.

“We’re confident of our abilities whether the game lasts three days or four or five. The pitch being different won’t change our mindset. We’ve come to win,” Kohli said.

South Africa captain Hashim Amla hopes to end the series on a high.

“Since we started this tour by winning the one-day internationals and Twenty20 series we would like to win this match and make it 2-1. We’ve got the England series very close, two weeks after we get back. It’s very important for us to get back to winning ways and cap it off well,” Amla said.

South Africa had won a five-game ODI series 3-2 and a three-game T20 series 2-0.

“It’s been a challenge against good bowlers on difficult tracks. It has been exciting with the games condensed into three days. But as a batsman, you are never settled,” he added.

Amla said pace bowler Dale Steyn would miss a third consecutive test owing to a groin injury he got during the opening test but that the team was not looking to experiment even though the series was already lost.

“It’s important to win and salvage some pride,” said Amla.

(IANS)

India win third Test, clinch series 2-0

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ashwin_india

Nagpur: India on Friday won the third Test by 124 runs, clinching the four-match series against South Africa 2-0 at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium here.

Resuming the day at 32/2, South Africa were bowled out for 185 in their second innings while chasing a target of 310 runs.

Off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin was the star, scalping seven wickets for 66 runs in 29.5 overs. Leg-spinner Amit Mishra also chipped in with three wickets.

(Agencies)

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