Harbhajan doubtful for 1st test

Harbhajan Singh,a terror for Aussies was doubtful for 1st test between Australia and India due to injury.According to reliable sources he himself noted that he was not cent percent fit to play.Before few days ago,Ricky Pointing stated the danger caused by Bajji in before series and how dreadful he is for them.The injury was caused during Champions Trophy itself.We all know what happened during 2007 T20 world cup when Sehwag hided his injury before selection.This time everybody is talking about this series and importance of Bajji in this series.But it was quit disappointment for Indian fans.Bajji took 357 wickets in 85 tests with average 0f 31.62.His best of 15 wickets in a match was against Australia.

Chennai trashed Warriors in final

Chennai Super Kings 132 for 2 (Vijay 58, Hussey 51*) Warriors 128 (Murali 3-16, Ashwin 2-16) by 8 wickets

Davy Jacobs had started off imperiously and catapulted Warriors to 45 in the sixth over. Then R Ashwin got one to turn quickly towards the leg stump, Jacobs went for the reverse sweep, but was trapped in front.After Jacobs fell, Muttiah Muralitharan suffocated the Warriors with his skill, and L Balaji maintained the pressure with a disciplined spell in the middle, keeping the Warriors to 128, which was never going to be enough.Ashwin continued to tease them with his variations and Muttiah Muralitharan came on in the 10th over to harass them with his ability.

He kept his doosras to a minimum, and ripped offbreaks across at varying pace. Success came in the 14th over: Mark Boucher, who has fallen most to Muralitharan than any other bowler in his career, was bowled, and Justin Kreusch was beaten by the dip and flicked straight to midwicket.

The only chance for Warriors after that effort was take early wickets. They didn't. M Vijay and Michael Hussey shut them out of the contest with assured knocks. Both play spin well. Vijay used his feet to repeatedly drive inside out while Hussey, as ever, worked the angles. There was a brief moment at the end when Vijay and Suresh Raina fell in quick succession and all wondered, 'Hold on, do we have a twist here?' The equation jumped from a comfortable 26 from 31 deliveries to 13 from 12. However, Hussey and Dhoni calmly escorted Chennai home. A score of 128 wasn't enough to test Chennai. Jacobs' wicket was the key.

Warriors through to finals

Warriors 175 for 6 (Jacobs 61, Ingram 46, Harris 3-16) beat South Australia 145 for 7 (Ferguson 71, Tsotsobe 2-16) by 30 runs

Southern Redbacks comprehensively defeated by 30 runs.

Warriors captain Davy Jacobs' blistering 61 and his 105-run second-wicket stand with Colin Ingram (46), Warriors posted a challenging 175 for six and then restricted South Australia to 145 for seven. Earlier, opting to bat, Jacobs led from the front with the quick-fire half-century and together with Ingram set the tone for the competitive score with the century plus second-wicket partnership that came off just 72 balls. Jacobs' quick-fire 41-ball innings was decorated with 10 boundaries and a six, while Ingram struck three fours and a six during his stay.

Nicky Boje came up with a short little seven-ball 22 run unbeaten cameo in the end to take Warriors beyond the 170-run mark. Medium-pacer Daniel Harris pulled South Australia back into the match with figures of three for 18 from his four overs, while Shaun Tait scalped two victims for 37.South Australia's chase never got going as they lost wickets upfront to find themselves in a precarious position and eventually fell short by 30 runs. Callum Ferguson fought a losing cause for South Australia with a quick-fire 71 that came off just 49 balls but his heroics were not enough to take his side into the summit clash.

Raina's 94* take Chennai to finals

Chennai Super Kings 174 (Raina 94*, Vijay 41) beat Royal Challengers Bangalore 123 (Pandey 52, Bollinger 3-27) by 52 runs according to D-L method
Suresh Raina's unbeaten 48-ball 94, followed by a clinical bowling display helped Chennai Super Kings beat Royal Challengers Bangalore by 52 runs (Duckworth/Lewis method) and qualify for the Champions League Twenty20 final. Opting to bat, Chennai rode on an 81-run second-wicket partnership between Raina and Murali Vijay to post an imposing 174 for four after a long rain-interruption reduced the match to a 17-over-a-side affair.Vijay also made a 32-ball 41. The Indian Premier League champions then came out with a disciplined bowling performance and restricted Bangalore to 123 in 16.2 overs as Manish Pandey's fighting 52 off 44 balls went in vain.Paceman Doug Bollinger scalped three wickets for 27 runs, while Sri Lankan spin wizard Muttiah Muralitharan bagged two for 38. Chennai thus became the first Indian Premier League side to enter the summit stage of the show-piece event and now take on the winner of the second semi-final between South Australia and Warriors.Chasing 176 to win, Bangalore were off to a wobbly start as they lost two quick wickets in the form of experienced Rahul Dravid (0) and Robin Uthappa (4) in the second and third over respectively. Dravid's mistimed drive off left-arm pacer Bollinger went aloft and Albie Morkel tumbled forward to pouch a nice catch.Morkel then struck in the next over when he got some away movements. Uthappa came forward half-heartedly and finally gave an easy catch to Vijay.RCB's New Zealander import Ross Taylor then decided to take an attacking strategy and cracked a superb four off Bollinger in the fourth over, but the bowler took revenge in the very next ball. Taylor went for an ambitious pull on backfoot but failed to connect it properly and Vijay took another easy catch.Virat Kohli (14) then returned to the dugout leaving RCB struggling at 37 for four. Kohli tried to flick from the leg stump but played the Lakshmipathy Balaji slower a bit early and Ravichandran Ashwin took a diving catch at midwicket.Cameron White (13) and Dillon du Preez (1) also failed to give company for long to Pandey, who was waging a solitary battle on the other end. Pandey cracked four fours and two sixes before Bollinger bowled him out in the 14th over.

Chennai beat Warriors, Both qualify for semis

Chennai Super Kings 136 for 6 (Hussey 50, Vijay 35, Kreusch 3-19) beat Warriors 126 for 8 (Jacobs 32, Ashwin 3-24)

Chennai Super Kings defeated Warriors by 10 runs in a crucial Group A match and qualified for the semi-finals of the Champions League Twenty20 cricket tournament. Electing to bat, Mike Hussey (50 off 39) and Murali Vijay (35 off 27) shared a 63-run opening stand before skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni came up with a late 21-ball 31 to guide Chennai to 136 for six in their alloted 20 overs.

Chennai bowlers then rose to the occasion and restricted the Warriors to 126 for eight. With this victory, Chennai have secured a place in the first semi-final against fellow Indian Premier League side Royal Challengers Bangalore in Durban on Friday.Even though Warriors lost the match, they too have qualified for the last four stage, pipping Victoria Bushrangers on net run-rate. Chasing the modest 137, Warriors needed 109 to book their their place in the semis and they finally went on to score 126 for eight.Warriors will face South Australia Redbacks in the second semi-final on Saturday. For Warriors, Justin Kreusch turned out to be the hero as he first picked up three wickets for 19 and then scored valuable 25 with the bat to help his side's cause at the St George's Park.Warriors' chase never got going as they were dealt with the first blow in the fourth over in the form of Ashwell Prince. Prince fell to a one-handed blinder from Justin Kemp in the slip off off-spinner R Aswin.From there on, the home team found runs hard to come by against the Chennai slow bowlers, which eventually resulted in the dismissal of Warriors captain Davey Jacobs (32). Jacobs was pounced by Hussey at deep midwicket off left-arm spinner Shadab Jakati as the right-hander went for a slog-sweep.

The slow bowlers again came to the party as part-time spinner Suresh Raina had Colin Ingram caught by S Badrinath at the midwicket boundary. But after a fine showing with the ball, Kreusch also shone with the bat with a valuable 26-ball 25 and together with Mark Boucher (25) added 44 runs to guide Warriors into the semifinals even though the South African side lost the encounter.Needing, 46 off the last four overs, Boucher relived the pressure with two sixes off Jakati. But just when it seemed the Warriors will cruise home, Chennai picked up two wickets in a span of three balls to bring the match into balance.First Kreusch departed, stumped by Dhoni off Ashwin and then three balls later Boucher was caught at long-on by Kemp. New man in Johan Botha, somewhat, changed the complexion of the match when he struck Doug Bollinger for two boundaries in the penultimate over, but it was not to be Warriors' day as he perished in search of a non-existent double.

Udana hat-trick earns win for Wayamba

Wayamba 144 for 6 (Mubarak 30, Mason 2-16) beat Central Districts 70 (Griggs 19, Mendis 3-14, Udana 3-22) by 74 runs

Isuru Udana took a hat-trick as the Wayamba Elevens finished their Champions League Twenty20 campaign with a 74-run win over the Central Stags on Wednesday.

Wayamba could only score 144 for six in their 20 overs but it proved enough as Udana and unorthodox spinner Ajantha Mendis sent the New Zealand team plunging to 16 for five. They were all out for 70 in 15.3 overs, the lowest total of the tournament.The win at St George's Park enabled Wayamba to climb off the bottom of the Group A table. Both teams had lost their first three matches.The first blow was struck by Mendis, who shared the new ball with Udana. Mendis trapped Stags captain Jamie How, the team's leading run-scorer, leg before wicket.

Left-armer Udana, 22, who played for Sri Lanka in the 2009 World Twenty20 in England, deceived Brad Patton with a slower fourth ball of the next over, with the batsman playing too early and popping the ball up in the air for wicketkeeper Kushal Perera to run around to take an easy catch.Mathew Sinclair over-balanced and was stumped off a leg- side wide and George Worker played down the wrong line to be bowled by a delivery which slanted in to complete the hat-trick.

Udana finished with three for 22 and Mendis with three for 14, while left-arm spinner Rangana Herath had the most economical figures of the tournament, two for seven off four overs.

England crush Pakistan to a series win

England 256 for 6 (Morgan 107*, Shoaib 3-40) beat Pakistan 135 (Broad 3-25, Swann 3-26) by 121 runs

Morgan with his century lead England to last match win against Pakistan.

England completed a clean sweep of their 2010 home series when they defeated Pakistan by 121 runs in the fifth and final One-Day International on Wednesday. Pakistan, set 257 to win the match and the series, tumbled from 63 without loss to 135 all out after batting under the lights in the day-night match on a warm evening at the Rose Bowl.Off-spinner Graeme Swann, a crucial figure in England's Ashes plans this year, gained prodigious turn to finish with three for 26 from nine overs. Each of his victims was bowled. During a long and tiring season to be followed soon by the Ashes defence in Australia, England defeated Bangladesh and Pakistan in successive Test series.They won a One-day series against Australia and two Twenty20 matches against Pakistan followed by a 3-2 win in the five-match 50-overs series which was overshadowed by a corruption scandal which erupted in the final Test at Lord's.Test captain Salman Butt and his two leading pace bowlers Mohammad Aamer and Mohammad Asif have been suspended from all cricket after an investigation into a British newspaper report which alleged they had arranged for deliberate no-balls to be delivered during England's only innings.Pakistan, under One-day captain Shahid Afridi, bounced back from a two-game deficit in the 50 overs series with wins at the Oval and Lord's.

They bowled with great spirit and skill again on Wednesday but were thwarted by a match-winning 107 not out off 101 balls from Eion Morgan, who displayed all the steely application and ability to improvise which have made him such an outstanding one-day batsman. Morgan came to the crease with England becalmed on 59 for three with Paul Collingwood was also back in the pavilion, nursing a migraine after retiring ill on five.

Challengers made thier way to semis

Royal Challengers Bangalore 160 for 4 (Kohli 49*, Pandey 44) beat Lions 159 for 6 (Petersen 45, Vinay Kumar 2-23, Kumble 1-13) by six wickets

Anil Kumble was always confident that his Royal Challengers Bangalore team would reach the semi-finals of the Champions League Twenty20 tournament.

Now that they are in the last four he is looking forward to the next challenge, which will come in Durban on Friday night.Bangalore, runners-up in Group B, could meet either South Africa's Warriors or fellow Indian Premier League team Chennai Super Kings, who meet in a Group A decider in Port Elizabeth on Wednesday."I'm very happy that we reached the semi-finals," said Kumble. "It's nice to go back to Durban."

Who would he prefer to play against?

"It doesn't matter, it'll be nice to meet anyone... but I hope Chennai gets there."

If Chennai do finish ahead of the Warriors, it would mean two IPL sides playing against each for a place in the final, which would be two more IPL teams than reached the same stage in the first Champions League, played in India last year.Bangalore had some anxious moments before getting past the Highveld Lions at the Wanderers Stadium on Tuesday night.The Lions, playing at their home ground, made a flying start, reaching 57 for two after the six Powerplay overs. But Kumble bowled superbly, conceding only 13 runs in four overs and taking the key wicket of rival captain Alviro Petersen, who made an elegant 45.The runs dried up for the Lions, who finished on 159 for six, probably 20 runs too few on a good batting pitch.Although Bangalore also struggled in the middle overs, Virat Kohli's unbeaten 49 off 29 balls took the Challengers to a six-wicket win with six balls to spare.It was especially satisfying for Kohli, who was dismissed off the last ball for a thrilling 47 when Bangalore went down by two runs against the Mumbai Indians in their previous match, in Durban on Sunday.

"I was really happy to be there at the end," said Kohli after his man of the match effort on Tuesday. He hit two sixes and a four off successive balls from Ethan O'Reilly in the 17th over, which yielded 19 crucial runs.Bangalore and the Lions were playing for second place in the group after the South Australian Redbacks completed the group phase unbeaten after a 15-run win over Guyana in the early game of Tuesday's double- header at the Wanderers.

Guyana lost all their matches.The Redbacks win meant they qualified to play the runners-up in Group A in the second semi-final at Centurion on Saturday - and enabled them to stay at their Johannesburg base for the rest of the tournament with Centurion a short coach ride away.

The winners of the Warriors-Chennai match on Wednesday will finish top of Group A. If the Warriors win it will mean Chennai will be eliminated as they need two points to draw level with Australia's Victoria Bushrangers.But if Chennai win they will be top on run rate, with run rate deciding whether the Warriors or Victoria go through in second place.

Yuvraj Singh dropped, Cheteshwar Pujara gets maiden call-up

Yuvraj Singh will have a lot to prove when he leads the Rest of India side in the Irani Cup. On Monday, the national selection committee dumped the left-hander, a move that indicated that the days of Yuvraj Singh living on reputation rather than form were over, at least in the Test squad. Yuvraj hasn't scored an international century in over a year and his fitness has come under the scanner over this year, a period during which he has struggled with injuries.

Selection committee chairman Krish Srikkanth said the criteria for selecting the team was performance and fitness. "We don't have to give any particular reason (for dropping Yuvraj). I think, performance and fitness... everything is taken into account. That itself answers the question," Srikkanth said.

Srikkanth said by virtue of his fine performance in the domestic circuit, Pujara has powered his way into the national squad. "Pujara has done very well in the domestic circuit in the last couple of seasons. He is a good player and also did well in the 'A' series. With the sheer weightage of his performace he has muscled his way into the team. You will have to give credit to his domestic performance," he said. "We have given weightage to performance in domestic A series and it is not that overall performance of every player hasn't been taken into account. We have consulted (coach) Gary Kirsten and MS Dhoni and ultimately, this was the consensus," the chairman of selectors added.

While Pujara's inclusion was the story of the day, the exclusion of young seamer Abhimanyu Mithun was the only other talking point as the selection committee banked more on experience than on current form with the ball. Getting the nod was S Sreesanth, Zaheer Khan, coming back after a shoulder injury. Ishant Sharma, spinners Amit Mishra, Pragyan Ojha, Harbhajan Singh retained their places. Murali Vijay, in his limited appearances, has done enough to merit his reserve opener role .

Sreesanth, on his part was delighted to get another opportunity. "I am sure I will be able to perform well against Australia. I will give my full effort," Sreesanth said. "I have not played against Australia in Test matches. Australia is a top Test side but I am hoping for a good performance in the series," he said.

Srikkanth said they have selected a balanced team. "We have a strong batting line-up backed by some good bowling. We are confident of doing well against Australia," he said.

As the team assembles in Mohali to test the Aussie might, a certain Yuvraj will be herding the rest of fringe players in Jaipur at the same time and battle Mumbai in a match that is relegated into the shadows.

India squad

MS Dhoni (capt. & wk), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Suresh Raina, Cheteshwar Pujara, M Vijay, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Ishant Sharma, Pragyan Ojha, Sreesanth and Amit Mishra

Rest of India squad

Yuvraj Singh (capt.), Abhinav Mukund, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli, S Badrinath, Saurabh Tiwary, Parthiv Patel (wk), Piyush Chawla, R Ashwin, Jaydev Unadkat, Umesh Yadav, R Vinay Kumar, Manish Pandey, Abhimanyu Mithun and Ravindra Jadeja

Pakistan square the series

Pakistan 265 for 7 (Hafeez 64, Swann 4-37) beat England 227 (Strauss 68, Gul 4-32) by 38 runs

Pakistan recovered from a terrible start to their day to complete a spirited victory in the fourth one-day international against England at Lord's on Monday.

Their 38-run win with 3.5 overs to spare under the floodlights in the day-night match squared the series at 2-2 with the final match scheduled for Southampton on Wednesday.

When play began Pakistan's troubled tour had taken another turn for the worse after the England and Wales Cricket Board threatened legal action against Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Ijaz Butt.Butt had suggested in a television interview that England had been paid to lose Friday's match at the Oval.

England captain Andrew Strauss said his team had "strong misgivings" about completing the series and match referee Jeff Crowe had to step in after an altercation at the nets between Jonathan Trott and Wahab Riaz.

Against this background of acrimony and distrust, Pakistan reached 265 for seven due primarily to Abdul Razzaq, who hit 44 not out from 20 balls including 40 off the last 10. The Pakistanis scored 83 from the final 10 overs.Strauss put his concerns to one side with 68 from 72 deliveries, cutting and carving the ball through the off-side with familiar assurance on his home ground in an opening partnership of 113 with Steve Davis (49).He struck Shoaib Akhtar's first delivery of the innings to the boundary and reached his half-century off as many balls before Akhtar got his revenge when the left-hander cut a wide delivery tamely to Fawad Alam at backward point.

Pakistan fought back with the wickets of Trott (4), Paul Collingwood (4) and Ian Bell (27). Bell, who missed the test series with an ankle injury, replaced Ravi Bopara.Akhtar, now 35, responded to the situation and the increasingly vocal support of the Pakistan fans with a mixture of express deliveries and clever changes of pace to finish with three for 59 from his 10 overs.

Umar Gul, Pakistan's hero at the Oval, bowled with equal fervour at the Pavilion end for figures off four for 32 from 8.1 overs. England's last five wickets fell for 30 runs off as many deliveries.

Victoria crush Wayamba

Victoria 108 for 2 (Hussey 47*, Finch 38*) beat Wayamba 106 (Jayawardene 51, Mubarak 41, Siddle 4-29) by eight wickets

Wayamba's Champions League hopes crashed in Centurion against a top-quality fielding effort from Victoria that was backed by purposeful bowling and batting. Victoria looked like the side more hungry to succeed in a must-win game for both teams and Wayamba paid the price, losing five batsmen for ducks as they spluttered to 106. Things could have been far worse but for a brief period of sublime strokeplay from Jehan Mubarak and a nervy half-century from Mahela Jayawardene. Those two contributed 95, and extras, at six, was the next highest score in Wayamba's listless innings.Victoria's intensity was epitomised by the second over of the game. James Pattinson struck with his first ball in the tournament, yorking Jeevantha Kulatunga for his second successive duck. Mahela Udawatte, returning to the side after missing the previous game, began with a confident drive on the move that would have eased his nerves in normal circumstances. No such luck today: Clint McKay, fielding well inside the circle at mid-off, scampered to his right and dived full length to stop the shot. Udawatte's disappointment at being denied four quickly gave way to shock as McKay sat up and threw down middle stump at the striker's end, beating the batsman's scramble to the crease.Pattinson finished off the over with three teasers outside Jehan Mubarak's offstump to complete the maiden. Nine for two in two overs, even before Wayamba knew what had hit them.Wayamba's two best batsmen then sparked a brief recovery. Mubarak started well, clipping Pattinson twice to the leg-side boundary, before exploiting Peter Siddle's errant lines to pick up fours either side of the wicket. John Hastings' slow bouncers had completely undone Chennai Super Kings in the previous game but Mubarak had no trouble against them, pulling two sixes in his opening over.Jayawardene was not at his best, and began with a nervous top-edged six over third man while looking to swing Dirk Nannes across the line. There was more good fortune outside the off stump, as he thick-edged Siddle and McKay for boundaries. In completely contrasting fashion, the pair had raised 72 in 8.3 overs and for the first time in the tournament, Wayamba seemed to be coming into their own. Victoria, though, were not yet done.Andrew McDonald prised Mubarak out with an off-cutter in the 11th over. Kushal Perera was sent back by Hussey's excellence in the field, plucking a screamer that was flying to his right in the covers. Matthew Wade contributed his bit - a nifty stumping to send back Shalika Karunanayake, and a regulation catch when Thisara Perera edged Siddle. Hastings then pulled off the third fielding highlight of the evening, tumbling low at point to catch Isuru Udana inches from the ground. In 3.2 overs, Wayamba had gone from 81 for 2 to 95 for 7, and even a fast-improving Jayawardene could not save them from there. Siddle and Nannes hit the stumps at will to hasten the end, raising visions of McKay's spark of brilliance earlier in the day, as Wayamba's batting fell by the wayside.Their bowlers did not fare much better. Brad Hodge and Wade did not contribute much, but there was no stopping Hussey, who waded into the bowling with the rampant confidence of a man who had just thumped 22 runs in a Super Over. So dominant was his batting, it allowed Finch a rare night of non-violence as he purred along at a run-a-ball. So inept were Wayamba, despite Finch's not-so-aggressive innings, the game ended with 40 balls to spare.

Effort by Dravid & Kohli wasted

Mumbai Indians 165 for 7 (Tiwary 38*, Steyn 3-26) beat Royal Challengers Bangalore 163 for 5 (Dravid 71*, Kohli 47, Bravo 2-23) by two runs

Mumbai Indians pulled off a sensational two runs win over Royal Challengers Bangalore in a crucial Group B match on Sunday but still got knocked out of the Champions League Twenty20 cricket tournament on net run rate.

Although Mumbai registered their second victory in the tournament, the Sachin Tendulkar-led side will have to pack their bags and return home as Bangalore and Highveld Lions have a better net run rate with one match still to go. Mumbai's prospect has also been marred by South Australia Redbacks, which has already booked their place in the last four stage from Group B with three out of three wins.

Incidentally, the match between Bangalore and Lions have turned out to be a decider as whoever wins the encounter will progress to the semi-finals along with Redbacks.In Sunday's Indian Premier League derby, Rahul Dravid's unbeaten 58-ball 71 and Virat Kohli's 24-ball 47 went in vain, as chasing a competitive 166, Bangalore managed 163 for five in their allotted 20 overs, thereby falling short by two runs. Needing 13 runs off last over, Kohli struck two fours off Zaheer Khan but in the end it was not enough to guide Bangalore home as he was caught in the final delivery by Ambati Rayudu.Bangalore produced a disciplined bowling performance upfront before Saurabh Tiwary and Dwayne Bravo stitched a quickfire 64-run sixth wicket stand to take Mumbai past the 150-mark. In deep trouble, Tiwary (38 not out) and Bravo (29 off 23) came to Mumbai's rescue with the 64-run stand after the Sachin Tendulkar-led side were down 84 for five at one stage. The duo's pyrotechnics helped Mumbai piled up 65 runs off the last five overs.

Tiwary hit three fours and a six in his 30-ball unbeaten stay while Bravo decorated his innings with three boundaries and two sixes. For Mumbai opener Shikhar Dhawan top-scored with 41 off 37 balls which was studded with two fours and as many sixes. Dale Steyn was the pick of the bowlers for Bangalore with figures of three for 26.Chasing the competitive total, Bangalore started on a positive note with Dravid and Kallis picking up 40 runs of the first five overs. Dravid was at his elegant best, picking up boundaries at ease with classical cricketing strokes while Kallis (15) complemented him well before debutant pacer Abu Nechim Ahmed caught the South African plumb in front of the wicket.Bravo gave Mumbai more reasons to cheer in the next over when he had Robin Uthappa caught by Dhawan at deep square leg but not before the right-hander was dropped by JP Duminy in the previous delivery. The two quick wickets stemmed the run flow and resulted in the downfall of another batsman.

Needing 95 off 10 overs, the pressure seemed to have crept up on Ross Taylor (9) as he went for a huge heave over midwicket only to give a skier to Ambati Rayudu behind the stumps off Bravo. But Dravid was rock solid at the other hand as he brought up his fifty in 39 balls.

However with boundaries drying up, the pressure finally crept up on Bangalore batsmen as Cameron White departed cheaply, clean bowled by Harbhajan with a gem of an yorker. With 40 needed of last three overs, Virat Kohli closed the gap with a huge six off Nechim's first ball. But the right-arm pacer from Assam came back strongly to concede just six runs of the next five deliveries.But just when it seemed that Bangalore were going out of the encounter, came in a brilliant Kohli who struck three consecutive fours off Lasith Malinga to reduce the equation to 13 off the last over. Kohli nearly pulled off the match for Bangalore, but a a clever Zaheer spoiled his heroics as the Bangalore outfit eventually fell short by just two runs.

Highveld Lions crushed the West Indian team by nine wickets

Lions 149 for 1 (Cameron 78*, Petersen 57*) beat Guyana 148 for 9 (Jacobs 34, O'Reilly 4-27) by nine wickets

Ethan O'Reilly ripped through Guyana's batting as the Highveld Lions crushed the West Indian team by nine wickets in the Champions League Twenty20 tournament at the Wanderers Stadium on Sunday.

Opening bowler O'Reilly took 4/27 as Guyana struggled to 148/9 in their 20 overs. The Lions raced to victory with 4.5 overs to spare as captain Alviro Petersen (57 not out) and pinch-hitter Richard Cameron (78 not out) put on an unbeaten 133 for the second wicket.

It kept the Lions in contention for a place in the semifinals. A win against the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the final Group B match at the Wanderers on Tuesday will clinch it for the South African side.

O'Reilly dismissed opening batsmen Travis Dowlin and Sewnarine Chattergoon in an opening spell of 2/22. He came back later to bowl Jonathan Foo and Royston Crandon with fast, full deliveries.

The key wicket of the day, though, belonged to fast bowler Craig Alexander, who had Guyana captain and star batsman Ramnaresh Sarwan superbly caught at backward point by a leaping Jean Symes. Sarwan had looked in ominous form as he made 21 off 16 balls.

"The guys play for each other," Petersen said of his team's success. He praised Cameron's powerful hitting for enabling the Lions to improve their net run rate, which could be a factor in they lose to Bangalore.

"After the tenth over we knew we could push the run rate up. Richard played beautifully."

Cameron's runs were scored off 41 balls with six sixes and five fours. It was another disappointing result for Guyana, who have lost all three of their matches. "We need to work harder on our game," said Sarwan.

Victoria won in Super Over.

Chennai Super Kings 162 for 6 (Vijay 73, Hastings 2-22) tied with Victoria Bushrangers 162 (D Hussey 51, Finch 41, Raina 4-26, Murali 2-17). Victoria won in Super Over.

Opener Murali Vijay's breezy 73 went in vain as Victorian Bushrangers snatched a dramatic win over Chennai Super Kings in a keenly contested Champions League Twenty20 Group A match that had to be decided via the Super Over. Riding on Vijay's 53-ball innings, Chennai Super Kings posted 162 for six in 20 overs but then Victoria Bushrangers also managed the exact score and the encounter had to be stretched into the Super Over.

With 12 runs required from the last over to win, Victoria lost two wickets in the form of Clint McKay (10) and Dirk Nannes (0) as medium pacer Suresh Raina scalped two wickets in successive deliveries. However, Raina could not stop the Australian side from equalling CSK score although they lost the 10th wicket in the form of Bryce McGain (0) in the last ball of the 20th over.

In the Super Over, Aaron Finch and David Hussey hammered spinner R Ashwin to gather 23 runs from the six balls with the help of three huge sixes. In reply, Vijay and Suresh Raina could manage only 13 runs off McKay.

Earlier, Chasing 163 to win, Victoria started on an attacking note with opener Finch taking on Chennai bowling attack head on. 23-year-old Finch, who cracked four fours and three sixes during his brief but pacy innings, struck two successive fours in the third over off paceman Doug Bollinger.

Chennai got their first success when Ashwin removed dangerous looking Finch in the fourth over. Finch mistimed a flick, the ball ballooned towards short cover and Ashwin took a diving catch after a short sprint.

The Australian side suffered another loss in the fifth over when Brad Hodge (6) fell prey to Bollinger and returned to the dugout, leaving Victoria at 49 for two. But from this condition captain Matthew Wade (31) and captain David Hussey took the initiative away from the Chennai camp with their attacking performance.

David scored 51 off 45 balls with the help of four fours and a six.

The duo badly battered medium pacer Lakshmipathy Balaji in the seventh over and took 17 runs off the six balls with the help of four fours before rain interrupted the game for a few minutes.

Victoria was comfortably placed at 91 for two after the 10th over. But legendary Sri Lankan spinner Muttiah Muralitharan was the man who then changed the colour of the match by scalping two wickets in successive deliveries in the 12th over in the form of Wade and Andrew McDonald (0).

With 23 runs to defend in the Super Over, Victoria went to the master of slower balls, McKay, who didn't need to do anything clever. McKay and Hastings, though, had to produce some of the best slower balls earlier in the night to keep the target to manageable proportions.

Jacobs, Prince take Warriors to third win

Warriors 181 for 4 (Jacobs 74, Prince 64, Noema-Barnett 2-28) beat Central Districts 175 for 3 (How 88*, Noema-Barnett 53*, Botha 1-16) by seven wickets

Davy Jacobs and Ashwell Prince shared a 147-run opening partnership as the Eastern Cape Warriors beat the Central Stags by six wickets in a Champions League Twenty20 match at St George's Park on Saturday.

The South African champions had to make the highest successful run chase of the tournament after the Stags made 175 for three in their 20 overs. It was the third win three matches in Group A for the Warriors.Jamie How, the Stags captain, batted through the innings for the New Zealand side for the second match in succession, following his unbeaten 77 against the Victoria Bushrangers on Wednesday with 88 not out on Saturday, but once again it was not enough to provide his inexperienced team with a winning platform.Warriors captain Davy Jacobs again set the pace for his team, smashing two fours and two sixes off successive balls from Doug Bracewell in the fourth over to get his team off to a flying start.

While Jacobs played the big shots, hitting six sixes and five fours in his innings of 74 off 47 balls, the left-handed Prince provided ideal support, making 64 off 50 balls with four fours and two sixes.Earlier How struck his runs off 57 balls with 12 fours and three sixes. He and Kieran Noema-Barnett (53 out out) put on an unbeaten 100 for the fourth wicket off 61 balls to put the Warriors under pressure.

Fast bowlers Rusty Theron and Makhaya Ntini, two of their leading performers in earlier matches, conceded 47 and 52 runs respectively in their four overs.

Finally Gul's 6 wicket haul gave struggling Pakistan a win

Pakistan 241 (Fawad 64, Anderson 3-26) beat England 218 (Morgan 61, Strauss 57, Wright 48*, Gul 6-42) by 23 runs

Umar Gul took six wickets in a devastating display of quick bowling as Pakistan kept the one-day cricket series alive with a 23-run victory over England at the Oval on Friday.

Fawad Alam made 64 as Pakistan set England a seemingly unimposing total of 242 for victory.

The hosts began their run chase in confident fashion with opener Andrew Strauss making 57 from 54 balls, but they lost five wickets for 68 runs as Pakistan tightened the screw.

Eoin Morgan, in tandem with Luke Wright, steadied the England ship but Gul, who had earlier claimed the wickets of Strauss and Michael Yardy, tore through England's lower order.

He dismissed Morgan and Tim Bresnan in the same over, before taking the wickets of Stuart Broad and Graeme Swann to leave the tourists on the brink of victory.

Abdul Razzaq finished off the job with the wicket of James Anderson to leave the five-match series poised at 2-1 in England's favour.

England's bowlers quickly took the fight to their opponents, reducing Pakistan to 31-3.

Alam and Asad Shafiq steered Pakistan out of immediate danger, adding 64 runs before the latter was caught off the bowling of Swann.Alam dug in and scored 64 before he was caught by Strauss at midwicket having lifted the tourists to 181-6.Anderson and Bresnan, who claimed three wickets apiece, cleaned up the tail and England began their run chase brightly.Openers Strauss and Steven Davies put 35 on the board before Abdul Razzaq up-rooted Davies's off stump and Shoaib Akhtar ensured Jonathan Trott quickly followed him back to the pavilion with a difficult, inswinging yorker.England collapsed to 103-5 before Morgan and Wright brought some stability, adding 98 runs without loss.

Southern Redbacks clear the path for semis

South Australia Redbacks 155 for 2 (Klinger 69*, Harris 57) beat Royal Challengers Bangalore 154 (Taylor 46, du Preez 46, Christian 4-23, Tait 2-23) by eight wickets

Skipper Michael Klinger and Daniel Harris produced a 124-run opening partnership to help Southern Redbacks inflict a humiliating eight-wicket defeat on Royal Challengers Bangalore and qualify for the Champions League Twenty20 semi-final.

Southern Redbacks first came out with a disciplined bowling display to restrict the Bangalore side to 154 in 19.5 overs on a slightly slow Kingsmead pitch and then achieved the target with nine balls to spare in the Group B encounter.Klinger scored an unconquered 69 off 57 balls with the help of nine fours and a six, while Harris came out with a brilliant 57 off 38 balls. Southern Redbacks scored 155 for two in 18.3 overs, with Callum Ferguson (21 off 14) giving company to Klinger.Chasing 155 to win, both the openers started on an attacking note. Neither Klinger nor Harris faced any problem in tackling the Bangalore bowling attack and kept sending the ball to the fence in regular intervals.

Klinger cracked a four in the second ball of the innings off medium pacer Praveen Kumar, while Harris cracked three fours in the sixth over off Dillon du Preez to add to the frustration of RCB skipper Anil Kumble. Kumble tried out five bowlers, including himself, but all his efforts went in vain as the bowlers, including pacer Dale Steyn, proved quite ineffective and expensive on the Kingsmead pitch.Southern Redbacks reached 50-run mark in the sixth over and then riding on the rampaging form of the two openers they crossed 100-run mark in the 12th over. To the end of the match, the Australian side lost two quick wickets in the form of Harris, who adorned his innings with seven fours and two sixes, and Graham Manou (0).Harris returned after a misunderstanding with his skipper while Manou feel to Kumble after facing three balls but that could not stop them from registering their third successive win in the tournament. Earlier, Preez and Ross Taylor scored an identical 46 to help Bangalore overcome a mid-innings slump and post 154 after Kumble opted to bat.

Taylor, who cracked eight fours and a huge six during his 28-ball stay, steadied the RCB innings in middle overs while Preez capitalised on his home condition when the team was struggling at 76 for five in 10.5 overs. Preez struck one four and four sixes during his 25-ball innings and with Cameron White (25) produced a crucial 58-run partnership to pull the team out of the pit.

Flintoff retires from all cricket

Andrew Flintoff has announced his retirement from all cricket after giving in to his long-standing knee injury.Flintoff retired from Test cricket after last year's Ashes victory and underwent knee surgery straight away. He hoped to return to action this season, but that was ruled out last month and he then aimed for Twenty20 stints in Australia and the IPL. However, his latest meeting with the surgeon has led to what has long seemed the inevitable decision.England's captain, Andrew Strauss, gave a warm tribute to Flintoff ahead of the third ODI against Pakistan at The Oval, the scene of Flintoff's last hurrah in the 2009 Ashes, when his direct-hit run-out of Ricky Ponting turned the tide of the decisive fifth Test. "I would just like to say on behalf of the England team we would like to congratulate Andrew on an outstanding career," he said. ""The impact he has had on English cricket has been immense.Flintoff finishes his career with a tally of 3845 runs in 79 Tests, at an average of 31.77 with five centuries and a best of 167 against West Indies at Edgbaston in 2004. He also claimed 226 wickets at 32.78, with three five-wicket hauls, the last of which came on an emotional final morning against Australia at Lord's in 2009. In 141 ODIs he finished with 3394 runs and 169 wickets respectively.

Thunder Pollard demolished Guyana

Keiron Pollard produced a scintillating 72 off 30 balls as Mumbai Indians defeated an improved Guyana by 31 runs to keep their semifinal hopes alive in the Champions League Twenty20 cricket tournament. Pushed up the order, Pollard hammered Guyana bowlers for nine sixes and a boundary to pile up a mammoth 85 runs off the last five overs and muscle Mumbai to 184 for four at the Kingsmead here after they were down at 99 for three at one stage.

Pollard's task was made easy by the 82-run opening stand between Sachin Tendulkar (48 off 39) and Shikhar Dhawan (39 off 37). Although Tendulkar was not at his elegant best, he and Dhawan ensured that Mumbai were off to a decent start but their innings, which was crawling along at one stage, got fillip only after Pollard's entry in the late overs.

Towards the end, JP Duminy also came up with a vital six-ball 14-run contribution to help his side's cause. For Guyana, leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo was the pick of the bowlers, picking up three wickets for 34 runs.

Chasing the challenging target, a star-less Guyana struggled from the onset and could only manage 153 for six in their 20 overs. With the convincing win in their must-win Group B match, Mumbai has imbibed some life back in their Champions League campaign, which was devastated by defeats in the opening two matches against Highveld Lions and South Australia Redbacks.

Guyana, on the other hand, faces the ignominy of early exit with two defeats from as many outings. Guyana's had a horrible start to their run chase as they lost Sewnarine Chattergoon early when he gave a simple catching practice to Duminy at first slip off Lasith Malinga.

Struggling to find the fence, Tim Dowlin was the next to depart after giving a skier to Saurabh Tiwary off Dwayne Bravo. Even though Guyana's captain and most-experienced batsman Ramnaresh Sarwan produced some resistance with a 38-ball 46, the West Indian outfit was never in the reckoning.And once Sarwan fell to Harbhajan Singh in the 15th over caught by Malinga, victory was just a formality for Mumbai. Narsingh Deonarine (27) and Christopher Barnwell (25) also chipped with useful contribution for Guyana.Bravo and Harbhajan scalped two wickets apiece for Mumbai, giving away 18 and 32 runs respectively. Earlier, opting to bat, Tendulkar and Shikhar Dhwan went about their business out with a purpose from the word go.Tendulkar made his intentions clear with a smashing pull to the midwicket boundary of Crandon in the second over.Dhawan, who so far had a forgetable outing in the tournament, got off the blocks with a huge six over square-leg boundary off Paul Wintz and then Tendulkar finished off third over with another pulll to the midwicket fence. After the initial burst, even though the duo managed to rotate the strike with ones and twos, they found boundaries hard to come by.Desperate to broke the shackles, Tendulkar was handed two lives by the butterfingered Guyana fielders as the champion bastman went for big hits in the ninth over. Crandon was the guilty fielder on the first occasion as he made a mess of a regulation running catch at long-on off Christopher Barnwell. If that was not enough, in the very next ball Tendulkar was handed another life when a running Jonathan Foo dropped a difficult one at deep square leg.

Tendulkar was utlisised those chances to perfection with back-to-back boundaries off Bishoo in the first two deliveries of the 11th over before falling to the leggie two balls later. The Mumbai skipper's scratchy innings finally ended when Bishoo foxed him with a delivery that spun away and wicketkeeper Derwin Christian did the rest. Bishoo turned out to be the star bowler for Guyana, striking twice in the 15th over as Mumbai batters went for big shots.

He had Dhawan in the second ball of the 15th over, caught by Crandon and then three deliveries later got the wicket of Saurabh Tiwary, who was holed out at deep midwicket by Barnwell.

But just when it seemed Mumbai was losing their way, came in Pollard, who single-handedly changed the complexion of the match with his power hitting. Brutal Pollard used his long handle to great effect and clobbered Barnwell for two sixes and then destroyed the figures of young Bishoo, picking up 19 runs of his final over with two huge hits over the fence and a boundary.

The imposing West Indian brought up his fifty in style, casually lofting a Crandon delivery over the long on boundary. Not a single Guyana bowler was spared by Pollard as he went about his business with utmost ease. He finished off the innings in style, dispatching Wintz over long-off.

Finch stars in Victoria victory

Victoria 166 for 3 (Finch 93*, Rance 1-30) beat Central Districts 165 for 5 (How 77*, Worker 29, Siddle 2-30) by seven wickets

Aaron Finch stole the show with a breezy unbeaten 93 and single-handedly powered Victorian Bushrangers to a sensational seven-wicket win over Central Stags in their second Group A match of the Champions League Twenty20.

Finch was at his destructive best as he clobbered the bowlers for 11 fours and three sixes en route his 60-ball match-winning innings. The 23-year-old right-hander was ably supported by skipper David Hussey and Andrew McDonald, who made an identical 17-ball 18.

Chasing Central Stags' challenging 166-run target, Victoria rode on Finch's brilliance to romp home in 19.4 overs and bring back their campaign on track after the opening 28-run loss against Warriors in the Twenty20 event.

For Central Stags it is their second consecutive defeat in the tournament after their 57-run loss to Chennai Super Kings and now stands in the brink of elimination. Earlier, riding on captain Jamie How's unbeaten 77, Central Stags overcame a scratchy start to post a competitive 165 for five.

How decorated his 55-ball unconquered stay at the crease with 10 fours and three sixes. Victoria started their chase on a steady fashion with Rob Quiney and Aaron Finch adding 40 runs in 4.3 overs. But if not for butterfingered wicket-keeper Tim Weston the scenario could have been different as he dropped a regulation catch off Quiney in the fourth over.

But it was not to be Quiney's day as he failed to cash in on the opportunity and clipped one straight to Michael Mason at short-fine leg off Seth Rance in the next over. Rance seemed to emerge as the lucky bowler for Central Stags as his next over too produced a wicket but this time, courtesy a run out. Victoria wicket-keeper Mathew Wade was the unlucky batsman in contention who fell to a mix up with Finch.

Finch, however, remained steady at the other hand and dealt mostly in singles and twos with occasional boundaries in between. Together with captain David Hussey, he stitched a 51-run third wicket stand to keep the Australian side in the reckoning.

Poor fielding was the order of the day for the Kiwi side as Woker dropped dangerman Finch on 43 off his own bowling. But just when it seemed the match was slowly going away from Central Stagss grip, Doug Bracewell came up with the big wicket of Hussey, caught by Weston of a short delivery.

Finch and Andrew McDonald tried to use their long handle to the maximum with Victoria needing 48 of the last four overs. The duo hit some lusty blows and managed to bring down the equation to 25 off the last two overs.

Finch was at his attacking best as he welcomed Mason with a lofty hit over extra cover in the penultimate over to bring down the asking rate. With 12 runs needed of the last over, Finch edged Bracewell to the third-man boundary in the opening ball and then after two singles, the right-hander finished the run-chase with a lofty hit over long-on.

Electing to bat, How led from the front with an unbeaten 77 to take Central Stags to a challenging score after they were two wickets down in the opening over of Peter Siddle. How took the onus on himself to guide his team out of danger and build two crucial partnerships - first with George Worker (29 off 25) and then with Brendon Diamanti (19 off 11) to take the Kiwi side past 150-mark.

Together with Worker, How first resurrected the Central Stagss with a 48-ball 53-run fourth wicket stand and then added a quickfire 33-ball 66 along with Diamanti to give his bowlers a defendable score. But irrespective of the scorecard, it was Victoria's bowlers who maintained control over the major part of the proceedings.

A determined How's blazing blade spoiled their party in the end with Central Distrcist piling up 67 runs in the last six overs. For Victoria, Peter Siddle, who returned after a seven-and-a-half months' lay-off, was exceptional upfront, picking up two Central Stagss batsmen in the very first over of the match.

Raina and Vijay trashed Wayamba

Chennai Super Kings 200 for 3 (Raina 87, Vijay 68) beat Wayamba 103 (Ashwin 4-18, Morkel 3-22) by 97 runs

Suresh Raina and Murali Vijay scored breezy half centuries as Chennai Super Kings crushed Wayamba by 97 runs to register their second consecutive win in the Champions League Twenty20 cricket tournament. With two victories out of as many matches in Group A, Chennai had inched a step closer towards the semifinal race while Wayamba faces the ignominy of elimination.Sent into bat, Raina scored a blistering 44-ball 87 while Vijay made 68 off 48 deliveries to enable Chennai post a formidable 200 for three in their alloted 20 overs. Raina and Vijay complimented each other well and shared a 137-run second wicket stand that came off just 72 deliveries.Raina bejeweled his innings with six boundaries and as many sixes while Vijay found the fence nine times and crossed it once. For Wayamba Chanaka Welegadara picked up two wickets for 47 runs off his four overs.Chasing the huge target, Wayamba never got off their hooks and were finally bundled out for 103 in 17.1 overs. Wayamba's struggle can be gauged from the fact that only four of their batsmen - Shalika Karunanayake (25 not out), Ajantha Mendis (15), Isuru Udana (14) and Mahela Jayawardene (10) - got double figures.

R Aswin (4/18) and Albie Morkel (3/22) were the wrecker-in-chief for Chennai, picking up four and three wickets respectively. Wayamba had a horrible start to their run chase as they lost two of their top-order batsmen inside the third over with just 18 runs on the board.Morkel was the successful bowler on both the occasions. While he had opener Jeevantha Kulatunga for a first ball duck in the second delivery of the innings, captain Jehan Mubarak outside edged one straight into the gloves of his Chennai counterpart Mahendra Singh Dhoni in the third over.As if that was not enough for the struggling Wayamba, their most-experienced batsman Jayawardene once again disappointed as he upper-cut one straight to Muttiah Muralitharan at third man off Doug Bollinger with the scoreboard reading 18 for three. Morkel scalped his third victim of the day in the form of Janith Perera, who produced a leading edge straight into the palms of Muralitharan.

Off-spinner Ashwin then joined the party and cleaned up both Kaushal Lokuarachchi and Thisara Perera within a span of four balls to spell the doom for the Sri Lankan side. Laxmipathy Balaji and Muralitharan too registered their name in the scoreboard with the wicket of Isuru Udana and last man Chanaka Welegadara.

Test Championship moves a step closer

The International Cricket Council will mull the introduction of a new four-year league and a playoff series to decide the world's test champion as part of a raft of measures to boost interest in the sport.The league would determine the top four teams to contest a playoff, and the first playoff tournament had been requested for 2013, the ICC said in a statement on Wednesday.

Test cricket, which has struggled to maintain its profile since the advent of Twenty20 cricket, currently has a rankings system but no tournament to determine the top test nation.

An ICC working group had also proposed a similar four-year league for one-day matches, the first from April 2011 to April 2014. It would run separate to the World Cup, the ICC said.

The proposals signalled the ICC's intention to keep all three formats amid calls for one-day internationals to be reduced or scrapped altogether."Restructuring international cricket is a significant strategic challenge and one that must be dealt with," ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat said."Protecting and promoting all three formats at international level is viable and I believe the (working group) has shown itself to be forward thinking in tackling the challenges."

Other proposals included reducing the number of teams competing at the World Cup to 10. The 2011 edition to be held in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh will see 14 teams compete.

The ICC will also examine expanding the World Twenty20 to a 16-team competition and introducing a rankings system.

Mumbai lost 2 in a row

South Australia 182 for 5 (Harris 56, Klinger 50) beat Mumbai Indians 180 for 7 (Tiwary 44, Rayudu 38, Pollard 36) by five wickets.

The Mumbai Indians were left kicking themselves on Tuesday. They lost their second successive match, one that they should have won to South Australia to keep their hopes alive in the Champions League. Even though the side led by Sachin Tendulkar put up a challenging 180 on the board, the match went into the final over, thanks to an embressing display in the field. They dropped as many as four catches, in addition to some sloppy fielding, to let the Australians sneak home with 5 wickets to spare.The fielders were equally matched by the bowlers who allowed the Australian team to get off to a good start. The number of full tosses bowled was a shocker in itself. Michael Klinger and Daniel Harris, the South Australia openers, made the most of the opportunities provided by putting on a 112-run stand for the first wicket.The duo began cautiously, but gradually brought out their array of strokes to remian in the hunt. Ali Murtaza finally broke the partnership when he removed Harris (56), but that didn’t stop the flow of runs. The lower middle-order made useful contributions to seal the match with 3 balls to spare.

Earlier, Mumbai Indians did well to reach 180 after a slow start. They were struggling at 100 for 4 after 14 over when Saurabh Tiwary and Keiron Pollard brought out some huge strokes to provide the late thrust.

Jacobs and his bowlers help Warriors outplay Victoria

Warriors 158 for 6 (Jacobs 59, Boucher 31, McDonald 2-22, Nannes 1-25, McKay 1-27) beat Victoria 130 for 9 (Hussey 29, Theron 3-22, Ntini 2-33) by 28 runs

Skipper David Jacobs smashed a classy fifty but Warriors suffered a mini-collapse to post a competitive 158 for six against Victoria in their second match of the Champions League twenty20 tournament here on Monday. Jacobs blasted a 39-ball 59 bejeweled with nine fours and a six, while Mark Boucher (31) and Johan Botha (20) made some useful contributions down the order to help the Warriors cross the 150-mark.

For Victoria, Andrew Mc-Donald was the pick of the bowlers, scalping two wickets, while Dirk Nannes, Clint McKay and Shane Harwood took one each. Electing to bat, Warriors were off to a rollicking start as openers David Jacobs and Ashwell Prince picked up fours at will to race away to 54 in first five overs. Jacobs started the proceedings, clubbing three fours off Dirk Nannes in the first over, before clobbering another boundary in the second ball off Shane Harwood.

Prince then brought up his first four, sending Harwood across the short fine leg boundary as Warriors raced to 29 in first two overs.Nannes and Clint McKay tried to slow things down by bowling two tight overs but Jacobs was simply unstoppable as he blasted three fours and a six to score 19 runs in the next over, bringing up his team's fifty on the way. Jacobs and Prince kept the scoreboard ticking, taking some quick singles and converting ones into twos. The Warriors skipper brought up his fifty with a four off Andrew McDonald in the seventh over but a mix-up drew curtains to his innings in the 10th over. Four balls later, McDonald removed Prince as all of a sudden the Warriors slipped to 83 for two. Warriors then lost two more quick wickets in Colin Ingram (8) and Justin Kreusch (1) within a space of five balls as Victoria came back into the match.

Ingram perished when his swipe shot off Harwood found Maxwell at long-on, while Justin was done in by a quick stumping by Matthew Wade off McDonald. Mark Boucher and Johan Botha (20) then brought up the hundred in the 13th over but runs dried up for the Warriors with the bowlers keeping in tight.A beautiful catch by Rob Quiney at the boundary line brought an end to Botha's innings. Boucher, who blasted two fours before being dropped by Maxwell in the 15th over, also failed to raise the tempo and was cleaned up by Nannes in the 19th over.

England move to 2-0 lead in 5-match series

England 295 for 6 (Strauss 126, Trott 53) beat Pakistan 294 for 8 (Kamran 74, Broad 4-81) by four wickets

Andrew Strauss delivered the perfect riposte to those questioning his place in England's One-day team with a polished 126 to help his side to a four-wicket win over Pakistan in Leeds on Sunday. After Pakistan, hopeless in the Twenty/20 internationals, had scored a testing 294 for eight, England were always close to their near six an over target as they moved 2-0 up in the five-match series.

Captain Strauss was the backbone and though it proved a nervous finale after the opener departed with 47 runs still needed, Michael Yardy and Tim Bresnan brought England home with three balls to spare. Despite the defeat Pakistan will have been pleased with their display, not least in the field where they were much improved.

They also produced one of their best batting displays of their long tour of England after winning the toss on a rare sunny morning in Leeds.

Kamran Akmal (74) and Mohammad Hafeez (43) built an opening stand of 122 in 23 overs with Akmal in particular punishing some loose England bowling with a slew of boundaries.

Challengers off to a flying start

Royal Challengers Bangalore 106 for 1 (Kallis 43*) beat Guyana 103 (Kallis 3-16) by nine wickets

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) began their Champions League T20 campaign with a bang, beating Guyana by nine wickets in a one-sided clash at Centurion on Sunday.

Chasing a victory target of 104, the Bangalore side rode on quality knocks from South African veteran Jacques Kallis (43 n.o) and Rahul Dravid (33). Robin Uthappa too chipped in with a handy 25 towards the end.

In the other match, Michael Klinger gatecrashed a South African party at the Champions League Twenty20 tournament on Sunday and led South Australia Redbacks to a 11-run victory over Highveld Lions.

Skipper Klinger and Callum Ferguson added 97 runs for the third wicket as the slow-starting Redbacks finished with a run flourish to amass 178-6 off 20 overs before a large crowd at sun-drenched SuperSport Park.

Lions, shock conquerors of Sachin Tendulkar’s Mumbai Indians in the first match on Friday, lost opener Jonathan Vandiar just four balls into the innings and only captain Alviro Petersen passed 50 in a 167-8 tally.

The party-pooping Redbacks halted a good start by South African franchises in the 16-day extravaganza with Eastern Cape Warriors proving far too strong for Wayamba Elevens of Sri Lanka in Port Elizabeth on Saturday.

Opener Klinger struck 78 off 48 balls, including five sixes and six fours, before a flat, back-foot strike aimed at long-on was spectacularly caught by Petersen just short of the boundary rope.

Redbacks tame Lions

South Australia Redbacks 178 for 7 (Klinger 78, Ferguson 47) beat Lions 167 for 8 (Petersen 56, Tait 3-36) by 11 runs

Highveld Lions skipper Alviro Petersen had made it clear on Friday itself that his team preferred to chase a target.Our batting is our strength, he had explained in the post match conference that followed his sides defeat of the Mumbai Indians.On Sunday,at a packed,colourful Centurion,Petersen walked the talk by inserting the South Australian Redbacks in,but then save for his own batting,the rest of the chase was a nonstarter.It all boiled down to a 11-run defeat for the South African team,a scoreline that doesnt reflect the picture properly as it was actually a heavier defeat than that.

The Redbacks,powered by a 48-ball 78 from opener Michael Klinger that saw him strike as many six fours and five sixes and his 97-run third-wicket association with Callum Ferguson (47,27b,7x4),made 178 for six,using the short boundaries to good effect.The Lions,in reply,got off to a furious start,Petersen (56,35,7x4,1x6) leading the charge.Until he was there the Lions way ahead of the asking rate but once he was trapped in front by an incutter from Daniel Christian,the trouble began.

For the Redbacks,the bowling was good and the fielding outstanding,as can be expected from any Australia side it seems,and although the express Shaun Tait went for 36 from his four overs,his three blows played its part in the eventual result.

Chennai Super Kings beat Central Stags by 57 runs

Subramaniam Badrinath struck an unbeaten 52 to save the batting blushes before a disciplined effort by the bowlers as Chennai Super Kings spank Central Districts by 57 runs in a Champions League Twenty20 match. Badrinath's counterattacking 52 from 42 balls was mainly responsible for CSK reaching 151 for four after they were down five for two in the second over and 48 for three at halfway mark after electing to bat.

He got ample support from Srikkanth Anirudha (42) and the duo shared 73 runs from 49 balls for the fourth wicket to take CSK score past 150 on a spongy Kingsmead pitch which saw odd balls kicking up to trouble the batsmen. Later CSK bowlers complemented the good work done by their batsmen by skittling out Central Districts for 94 in 18.1 overs to start their campaign on a winning note.

Chasing 152 for a win, the New Zealand champion side initially looked like they would stand up for a challenge but after they lost their first wicket in the fourth over they were never in the chase. Pacer Laxmipathy Balaji was the most successful CSK bowler with three for 20 from his four overs while Muttiah Muralitharan, Ravichandran Ashwin and Doug Bollinger claiming a wicket apiece.

Opener Peter Ingram was the first Central Districts batsman to go in the fourth over for six as he top-edged an Albie Morkel delivery to Suresh Raina at cover at team score of 12 for one. He was earlier dropped while on one in the second ball of their innings by Ravichandran Ashwin.

Next over, George Worker fell to Balaji for four and at team score of 22 for two with Muralitharan taking an easy catch at mid-on. CSK captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni introduced off-spinner Ashwin in the sixth over and got the result immediately in the form of Jamie How's wicket.

The captain of the New Zealand champion side, who was dropped by Raina when on five, misread a delivery which straightened up before cleaning up his off-stump. Central Districts were reeling at 35 for three at that stage.

Sri Lankan spin wizard Muralitharan then claimed two wickets in the space of three balls to leave Central Districts run chase in tatters as they were reduced to 37 for five in the eighth over. Mathew Sinclair (10), who hit Ashwin for a six in his first delivery, followed suit his captain soon as he fell to a superb catch by Matthew Hayden at slip while attempting a reverse sweep off a Muralitharan delivery.

Muralitharan, who recently retired from Test cricket, scalped his second wicket two balls later with Noema-Barnettas (0) edging a sharp turning delivery for Dhoni to take a fine catch behind the stumps.

Warriors started with easy win over Wayamba

Mark Boucher led a solid batting display with a sparkling 26-ball unbeaten 40 as Warriors spank Wayamba by seven wickets in a Champions League Twenty20 match on Saturday.

Chasing a modest 154 for a win, the Warriors were never in trouble as they were nicely placed at 93 for three in the 11th over before wicketkeeper-batsman Boucher and Justin Kreusch (37 not out) took them to a comfortable win with 10 balls remaining.The duo shared a 63-run stand for the unconquered fourth wicket from 44 balls. Boucher, who played for Bangalore Royal Challengers in the Indian Premier League, struck four fours and two sixes during his 26-ball stay while Kreusch hit three fours in his 29-ball innings.Boucher smashed two sixes and a four in three successive balls in the 14th over off leg-spinner Kaushal Lokuarachchi who was playing for Sri Lanka national team till 2007. Kreusch hit the winning runs - a four off Chanaka Welegedara - to take the home side to 156 for three in 18.2 overs.Opener and captain Davey Jacobs contributed 26 while one down Colin Ingram chipped in with a solid 28-ball 34 at a lively St Georges' Park pitch. Warriors, the South African Twenty20 champions, made a flying start in their run chase though they lost opener Ashwell Prince in the third over.They scored at a brisk rate with Jacobs and Ingram taking the Wayamba bowlers to task notching their 50 runs in the sixth over. For Sri Lanka, Chanaka Welegedara, Rangana Herath and Ajantha Mendis took a wicket apiece.The trio bowled well but the other three bowlers Farveez Maharoof, Thisara Perera and Lokuarachchi were expensive. Earlier, opener Jeevantha Kulatunga struck a strokeful 59 to help Wayamba reach 153 for nine after the Sri Lankan champion side were reduced to 50 for three in the ninth over after electing to bat

England winning journey continues

England 274 for 6 (Davies 87, Ajmal 4-58) beat Pakistan 250 (Kamran 53, Anderson 2-35) by 24 runs

England's winning momentum showed no signs of abating as they took the opening one-day international at Chester-le-Street by 24 runs, but at least they were made to work a little harder by Pakistan. Steve Davies led the batting effort with a powerful 87 off 67 balls, his first international half-century, and was backed up by a composed 69 from Jonathan Trott as England piled up 274 for 6 in a match reduced to 41 overs by a wet outfield. For once the visitors' batting didn't implode as some spirited contributions kept them alive but they couldn't find the major stand required.There are 12 ODIs between now and the start of the World Cup for England to finalise their plans but conditions in Durham during early September are a million miles away from anything they'll face in India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. However, this is a strong one-day unit being put into place and one of the few areas still containing some uncertainty, the wicketkeeper-opening batsman, was a success here with Davies' impressive effort.His only previous ODI came as an emergency replacement for Matt Prior at last year's Champions Trophy when he faced Australia in the semi-final at Centurion. Here he timed the ball beautifully all around the wicket and was especially strong square through the off side whenever he was offered width during a lively 37-ball fifty. Unlike Craig Kieswetter, who often looked hyperactive at the crease and lost control of his shots, Davies remained still and composed until he fell cutting at Saeed Ajmal.Umar Akmal hit 43 off 33 balls before trying to scooping Broad over the keeper and Asad Shafiq showed some spirit as he clubbed Tim Bresnan for four boundaries. But Shahid Afridi could barely middle the ball during a painful 25-ball innings and when he carved to cover it really was the end for Pakistan's slim chances.It was England's efficient batting display which set up the victory and they'd been led off in style as the new opening duo of Davies and Strauss who added 78 in 12 overs. Mohammad Irfan's much-anticipated introduction into international cricket didn't quite go to plan as his first over was dispatched for 15. However, it was still a touch harsh when he was whipped out of the attack after one over and his replacement, Umar Gul, didn't do any better as his two-over burst cost 22 and he finished with 67 off six overs.Shoaib Akhtar was the only paceman to offer any control and was unlucky not to claim success in an opening five-over burst that cost just nine runs. He received very little support, however, and despite his parsimonious efforts England had 63 on the board at the end of his opening spell. Davies was dropped at short cover on 21 when Afridi could hold a stinging drive and Strauss continued to show impressive intent - no doubt aware that scoring heavily off the spinners will be key in the World Cup - as he launched Ajmal over long-on for his second six, Ajmal, though, claimed revenge when Strauss missed a mighty sweep and he was given a send-off by the bowler for his troubles.With Trott playing himself in and working the ball for ones and twos the onus was on Davies to keep the tempo high which he did successfully until he tried to cut Ajmal 13 short of his hundred. Pakistan were unlucky not to strike again shortly afterwards when Doctrove failed to spot Trott's edge off Ajmal on 26 and then lost the services of Irfan who limped off midway through his sixth over.Paul Collingwood fell trying to take advantage of the batting Powerplay and Eoin Morgan edged a cut off Afridi, but Trott registered his first boundary off his 54th delivery when he back-cut Shoaib.Trott then brought up his fifty from 64 balls and immediately stepped on the gas with the confidence of a man who is in the form of his life. A few lusty blows from Ravi Bopara ensured the momentum was all England's and they never really looked liked losing. It says everything about the last two weeks that there was even a sense of gratefulness just for something resembling a contest.

Mumbai Indians lost their 1st match

Highveld Lions 186 for 5 (Vandiar 71, McKenzie 56*, Malinga 3-33) beat Mumbai Indians 177 for 6 (Tendulkar 69, Burger 2-33) by nine runs

Sachin Tendulkar the batsman nearly made up for Sachin Tendulkar the captain, but a charged-up Lions side completed a feel-good underdog win in a tense finish to kick off the Champions League T20. Their young opener, Jonathan Vandiar, and the experienced Neil McKenzie gave the star-studded but sloppy Mumbai Indians a rough welcome to the Highveld before Lions' enthusiastic bowlers and fielders did enough to keep the chase in check.Tendulkar's 69 off 42, which was as good an innings as the fifties from Vandiar and McKenzie, left JP Duminy and Kieron Pollard 56 to get off 33. Shane Burger, gentle right-arm medium-pacer on the face of it, followed up the big wicket of Tendulkar with a pinpoint yorker to remove Pollard. What made that second wicket even more special was that it came at the end of an over in which Pollard smashed Burger all around his home ground. Thirty-one off the remaining three overs proved too much for Duminy.The second-last ball of the match summed up a night on which Mumbai got almost every strategy wrong. With two sixes required to force a tie, Ryan McLaren played one along the ground. Clearly Mumbai didn't have much of a role for him as batsman, and they used him to bowl only the first over of the match that went for four runs and four leg-byes. The part-timers who were used instead went for 49 in four overs.That shouldn't take away from the joy of the underdogs. At the heart of the Champions League is the charm of a low-key team giving an ensemble of millionaire superstars, bought in an auction, a hard time. The League's second season couldn't have asked for a better opener on that account.

In front of a decent home crowd, the Lions came so ready they even erred on the side of over-enthusiasm; Mumbai were slow in the field, bizarre in the tactics, and inexplicably subdued, starting with McLaren and left-arm spinner Ali Murtaza, choosing not to attack a nervous-looking home side with Zaheer Khan and Lasith Malinga.As it turned out, Vandiar got over the nervous start, during which he ended up at the same end as his captain Alviro Petersen, but he beat his mate to the crease by a split frame to give himself a chance to make this his night. By the end of the innings, Mumbai would have wished Murtaza, the bowler who completed the run-out, had been slightly quicker in taking the bails off.Vandiar kept swinging wildly during the Powerplay, edging and slogging his way to 18 off 23, but he transformed the effort when the field spread, scoring 53 off his last 26, to reach his highest Twenty20 score. The seasoned McKenzie, though, didn't need any crazy acceleration, starting his unbeaten 56 off 30 balls with a beautiful late-cut and finishing with brutal short-arm jabs.Richard Cameron, playing one shot too many, followed Petersen soon and Lions seemed to have lost their way at 39 for 2 at the end of the Powerplay. The seventh over proved to be a turning point of sorts. Harbhajan Singh slipped while trying to bowl his first delivery, and then slipped his second attempt in short and wide. That boundary perhaps told Vandiar he didn't need to go across the line every time.In the next few overs, Vandiar danced down the pitch to Zaheer, and lofted Duminy over cow corner for six. He then targeted the gentle pace of R Sathish and Pollard. The unsure swings had now turned into assured shots into vacant areas. If the six to bring up his fifty, over long-off, was a treat to watch, the one over midwicket, off Malinga, was plain audacious.McKenzie was not indulging in anything audacious. He played smart, percentage cricket, letting Vandiar take charge. That didn't mean he was slow. By the time Vandiar got out in the 17th over, he had helped himself to 28 off 18. Tendulkar's inexplicable non-usage of McLaren continued, and McKenzie took full toll of Murtaza's wayward 18th over. Mumbai's fielders helped too, allowing two overthrows in the last three overs to let McKenzie retain strike. Thirty-nine came off those three overs.Asoka de Silva tried to be a villain in the fairytale when he denied fast bowler Ethan O'Reilly's grandchildren the story of how grandpa got the greatest batsman of the day plumb lbw first ball. Tendulkar, on 6 at that point, went on to put on an exhibition, but his side was frustrated by a bubbly fielding effort. The excitement did get to Lions a bit as they conceded a few overthrows and dropped Tendulkar when on 34.Tendulkar was taking Mumbai home smoothly when bowled by Burger. Pollard was taking Mumbai home brutally when bowled by Burger. That was the final touch of the individual that Lions needed on a night of their collective brilliance.