Standing less than six feet tall and with a short bustling run-up, Vernon Philander is not the prototypical fast bowler. But his accuracy, late movement away and surprising pace has catapulted him into the record books.
The 26-year-old, who made his debut against Australia last November, became the joint second fastest bowler to 50 test wickets on Monday when he bowled New Zealand's Doug Bracewell for a duck.
Philander finished with six for 81, which helped the Proteas bowl New Zealand out for 275, a deficit of 199 runs.
Philander's sixth five-wicket haul in just his seventh test matched that of England's Tom Richardson, who also achieved 50 wickets in the first innings of his seventh test, in 1896.
Australia's Charlie Turner holds the record having achieved his 50th wicket in his sixth test in 1888.
Philander played down his efforts, preferring instead to praise the entire bowling attack.
"Each wicket is important. It has come at a rapid pace, but I'll take it one pole at a time," Philander told reporters.
"Bowling form is like batting form. If things go for you, you make sure you keep doing it (and) that's what I'm doing.
"This attack gives me the freedom to do what I need to do. We've got guys who can keep it tight, they keep a hold on the game and give me the chance to strike all the time and to put my skill on show.
"It's a special squad and a special bowling unit that we have. It's all coming together."
Dale Styen was also a thorn in New Zealand's side, the fast bowler constantly testing their resolve outside off stump and saw two catches put down by JP Duminy and should have had another when Marchant de Lange totally misread a skied ball in the deep.
Morne Morkel also peppered New Zealand with short-pitched bowling off a length that contributed to the pressure.
"They're at you the whole time, it's a quality attack (and)there's no freebies out there," New Zealand batsman Daniel Flynn said.
"I think you'd find a lot of people would probably say they're the best seam bowling attack going around in world cricket at the moment.
"They all complement each other and they all come at you in their own different way, its hard to pick one out.
"Obviously Philander reaped the rewards but I think they complement each other and feed off each other."
Tuesday 27 March 2012
Gayle signs agreement, but no clarity yet
Chris Gayle has signed an agreement with the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB), but there is still no clarity on the explosive opener's return to the national side.
The agreement was brokered by CARICOM. Apart from the agreement, Gayle has written a 'side--letter' to the WICB, its contents however were not disclosed.
"Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves (of St Vincent) provided a copy of Gayle's 'side letter'. The matter was discussed and the Board will respond to the Prime Minister shortly," a WICB release said.
Gayle and WICB have been at loggerheads since last year when the left--handed batsman criticised the Board and coach Ottis Gibson in an interview.
The Board had asked Gayle to retract his statement or apologise for his remarks.
It was reported earlier that Gayle would do so.
The 'Jamaica Gleaner' reported that the agreement, which was drafted by CARICOM in a bid to solve the impasse between the former captain and the Board, had been signed by the WICB a few weeks ago.
Gayle is contracted to represent Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL--V from April 4 to May 27 and Somerset in England's domestic Twenty20 tournament later in the summer.
The agreement was brokered by CARICOM. Apart from the agreement, Gayle has written a 'side--letter' to the WICB, its contents however were not disclosed.
"Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves (of St Vincent) provided a copy of Gayle's 'side letter'. The matter was discussed and the Board will respond to the Prime Minister shortly," a WICB release said.
Gayle and WICB have been at loggerheads since last year when the left--handed batsman criticised the Board and coach Ottis Gibson in an interview.
The Board had asked Gayle to retract his statement or apologise for his remarks.
It was reported earlier that Gayle would do so.
The 'Jamaica Gleaner' reported that the agreement, which was drafted by CARICOM in a bid to solve the impasse between the former captain and the Board, had been signed by the WICB a few weeks ago.
Gayle is contracted to represent Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL--V from April 4 to May 27 and Somerset in England's domestic Twenty20 tournament later in the summer.
New Zealand cricket captain breaks arm
A broken bone in his left forearm forced New Zealand captain Ross Taylor out of the final Test against South Africa.
Taylor was on 18 on Monday when he was struck by a rising ball from Morne Morkel and rushed to hospital.
"An x-ray confirmed that Ross Taylor has a fracture of the ulna bone of his left forearm," New Zealand Cricket's medical director Ian Murphy said.
It was unclear how long Taylor would be sidelined with Murphy saying the skipper would see an orthopaedic surgeon "to determine the best course of action and length of time out of the game".
Taylor is scheduled to play for the Delhi Daredevils in the Indian Premier League starting next month, and New Zealand's next commitment after the South African series is a West Indies tour starting in late June.
After he was hit, Taylor attempted to continue and hit the next delivery from Dale Steyn for a single before saying he could not carry on and being taken to hospital.
Taylor was on 18 on Monday when he was struck by a rising ball from Morne Morkel and rushed to hospital.
"An x-ray confirmed that Ross Taylor has a fracture of the ulna bone of his left forearm," New Zealand Cricket's medical director Ian Murphy said.
It was unclear how long Taylor would be sidelined with Murphy saying the skipper would see an orthopaedic surgeon "to determine the best course of action and length of time out of the game".
Taylor is scheduled to play for the Delhi Daredevils in the Indian Premier League starting next month, and New Zealand's next commitment after the South African series is a West Indies tour starting in late June.
After he was hit, Taylor attempted to continue and hit the next delivery from Dale Steyn for a single before saying he could not carry on and being taken to hospital.
Saturday 24 March 2012
Bangladesh played like Australia: Afridi
Pakistan's flamboyant all-rounder Shahid Afridi paid rich tributes to Bangladesh, which lost by just two runs to his team in the Asia Cup finals, saying the minnows were as good as the mighty Australians in the clash.
"It seemed as if we were playing against Australia in the final. Bangladesh have matured a lot as a team and it felt good to win such a hard final," Afridi told reporters after reaching his hometown last night from Dhaka.
Mohammad Hafeez, Younis Khan, Saeed Ajmal, Sarfraz Ahmed and Asad Shafiq were the other members of the victorious Pakistan team to return from Dhaka.
Speaking loudly to make his voice audible to the media as hundreds of people gathered at the Karachi airport to give a warm welcome to their heroes, Afridi said Pakistan may have won the final but still needed to improve in many areas.
"We need improvement in some areas and we need to produce more players. I would urge the cricket authorities to lay lot of stress on our domestic cricket and implement a 10-year plan so that we can get maximum number of quality players," Afridi said.
The players were greeted by loud slogans and fans dancing to fast beats at the airport. Other members of the team will reach Lahore today.
Afridi said he was impressed by the performance put up by Bangladesh and felt the Bangladesh Premier League had helped them a lot.
"I think by holding the BPL they did well and their players fought hard. I think we also need to make our domestic cricket as competitive as possible. We can look at the examples of the IPL and BPL while counting the benefits of such events," Afridi said.
Afridi said he felt happy that whenever he produced good bowling spells, the team did well.
"It feels good that whenever I bowl well we tend to win matches. I was struggling before the final and I worked hard in the nets so I am happy I could perform in the final and win the man of the match award," he said.
Afridi said it was up to the selectors to decide if there was need for changes in the team for one-day internationals and Twenty20 matches.
"T20 cricket is a totally different format of the game but yes I think that when players like Ahmed Shahzad, Nasir Jamshed and others have done well they should be given chances in T20 cricket," he said.
Asked if he would be ready to captain the side again if the board offered him the job for ODIs and T20s, Afridi at first ignored the question and then walked away after thanking the media.
"It seemed as if we were playing against Australia in the final. Bangladesh have matured a lot as a team and it felt good to win such a hard final," Afridi told reporters after reaching his hometown last night from Dhaka.
Mohammad Hafeez, Younis Khan, Saeed Ajmal, Sarfraz Ahmed and Asad Shafiq were the other members of the victorious Pakistan team to return from Dhaka.
Speaking loudly to make his voice audible to the media as hundreds of people gathered at the Karachi airport to give a warm welcome to their heroes, Afridi said Pakistan may have won the final but still needed to improve in many areas.
"We need improvement in some areas and we need to produce more players. I would urge the cricket authorities to lay lot of stress on our domestic cricket and implement a 10-year plan so that we can get maximum number of quality players," Afridi said.
The players were greeted by loud slogans and fans dancing to fast beats at the airport. Other members of the team will reach Lahore today.
Afridi said he was impressed by the performance put up by Bangladesh and felt the Bangladesh Premier League had helped them a lot.
"I think by holding the BPL they did well and their players fought hard. I think we also need to make our domestic cricket as competitive as possible. We can look at the examples of the IPL and BPL while counting the benefits of such events," Afridi said.
Afridi said he felt happy that whenever he produced good bowling spells, the team did well.
"It feels good that whenever I bowl well we tend to win matches. I was struggling before the final and I worked hard in the nets so I am happy I could perform in the final and win the man of the match award," he said.
Afridi said it was up to the selectors to decide if there was need for changes in the team for one-day internationals and Twenty20 matches.
"T20 cricket is a totally different format of the game but yes I think that when players like Ahmed Shahzad, Nasir Jamshed and others have done well they should be given chances in T20 cricket," he said.
Asked if he would be ready to captain the side again if the board offered him the job for ODIs and T20s, Afridi at first ignored the question and then walked away after thanking the media.
Who are the Champions
A failed batting unit, a moderate total on the board, bowlers striving
to get wickets, but failing, and still Pakistan managed to hold the
trophy aloft. Last night’s game proved that if you have the
determination, you succeed in achieving your goal no matter what comes
in between. A nail-biting encounter that was decided on the last ball
of the match saw both the teams, Pakistan & Bangladesh, fight for the
glory. In the end one had to win & one had to lose. And this time,
Pakistan wrote its name in the book of winners. All those who watched
the match (I’m sure everyone did) would agree when I say, that it
was one match during which you could not have left your seat even for
a second. There was action on every ball! This match saw everything-
run outs, some spectacular catches, Afridi’s SIX and the list goes
on and on..
Pakistan’s victory would not have been possible without the
noteworthy performances of some players. Sarfaraz Ahmed’s knock of
46 runs made it possible for the Pakistan team to set up a respectable
total. A vital role was played by the ‘man of the crowd’ Shahid
Afridi who not only used the bat but also the ball to steer his team
to the title. He scored 32 runs and took one wicket. And this list
would be incomplete without the mention of the ‘Hero of the last
over’ AIZAZ CHEEMA. This guy knows how to bowl under pressure
situations. Four runs were required by Bangladesh off the last
delivery, Bangladeshi batsman Shahadat Hossain was unable to connect
Cheema’s yorker & Misbah-ul-Haq and his boys were celebrating!
But then who can forget the tears of the Bangladeshi team? We have won
the trophy but Bangladesh has won millions of hearts. Bangladesh’s
awesome performance changed the course of what was expected to be a
not-so-exciting and one-sided affair. Kudos to Bangladesh! Not taking
anything from the winners here, yes you guys have proven once again
that if there is unity, victory will come at your doorstep
automatically. So, stay united, keep practicing, keep winning & keep
bringing laurels home! PAKISTAN ZINDABAD!
Thursday 22 March 2012
Pakistan snatch Asia Cup in sensational final
Pakistan recorded a dramatic two-run victory over Bangladesh in a sensational final to win the Asia Cup one-day tournament for second time here at the Shere Bangla National Stadium on Thursday.
Earlier, they had become the Asia Cup champions in 2000.
It was looking that Bangladesh, playing the final for the first time in Asia Cup history, would win the title. They played extremely well – first restricting Pakistan to 236-9 in 50 overs with their accurate bowling and alert fielding and then batted with determination to reach very close to the winning target but lost the match just three runs short.
Chasing 237, the hosts needing nine runs in the last over, finished at 234-8 in 50 overs.
Their main scorers were allrounder Shakib Al Hasan (68) and opener Tamim Iqbal (60).
Tamim with Nazimuddin (16) provided a sound start making 68 for the first wicket and later Shakib and Nasir Hossain (28) added valuable 89 runs for the fourth wicket partnership.
For Pakistan, paceman Aizaz Cheema grabbed three wickets while fast bowler Umar Gul and off-spinner Saeed Ajmal each finished with two wickets.
Earlier, Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim won the toss and invited Pakistan to bat first, who set a moderate target of 237 runs for the hosts.
Wicketkeeper-batsman Sarfraz Ahmed top scored with an unbeaten 46, followed by Mohammad Hafeez (40), Shahid Afridi (32), Umar Akmal (30) and Hammad Azam (30) as no other batsmen could not enter into double figures.
Earlier, they had become the Asia Cup champions in 2000.
It was looking that Bangladesh, playing the final for the first time in Asia Cup history, would win the title. They played extremely well – first restricting Pakistan to 236-9 in 50 overs with their accurate bowling and alert fielding and then batted with determination to reach very close to the winning target but lost the match just three runs short.
Chasing 237, the hosts needing nine runs in the last over, finished at 234-8 in 50 overs.
Their main scorers were allrounder Shakib Al Hasan (68) and opener Tamim Iqbal (60).
Tamim with Nazimuddin (16) provided a sound start making 68 for the first wicket and later Shakib and Nasir Hossain (28) added valuable 89 runs for the fourth wicket partnership.
For Pakistan, paceman Aizaz Cheema grabbed three wickets while fast bowler Umar Gul and off-spinner Saeed Ajmal each finished with two wickets.
Earlier, Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim won the toss and invited Pakistan to bat first, who set a moderate target of 237 runs for the hosts.
Wicketkeeper-batsman Sarfraz Ahmed top scored with an unbeaten 46, followed by Mohammad Hafeez (40), Shahid Afridi (32), Umar Akmal (30) and Hammad Azam (30) as no other batsmen could not enter into double figures.
Asia Cup final: Pakistan restricted to 236-9 by Tigers
Pakistan were restricted by Bangladesh to 236 runs for nine wickets in 50 overs in the final of the Asia Cup one-day tournament here at the Shere Bangla National Stadium on Thursday.
After being put into bat by Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim, who always liked to chase throughout the tournament, Pakistan could not bat impressively against accurate bowling and alert fielding from the hosts.
Wicketkeeper-batsman Sarfraz Ahmed top scored with an unbeaten 46, followed by Mohammad Hafeez (40), Shahid Afridi (32), Umar Akmal (30) and Hammad Azam (30) as no other batsmen could reached double figures.
After being put into bat by Bangladesh captain Mushfiqur Rahim, who always liked to chase throughout the tournament, Pakistan could not bat impressively against accurate bowling and alert fielding from the hosts.
Wicketkeeper-batsman Sarfraz Ahmed top scored with an unbeaten 46, followed by Mohammad Hafeez (40), Shahid Afridi (32), Umar Akmal (30) and Hammad Azam (30) as no other batsmen could reached double figures.
Sunday 18 March 2012
West Indies end six-year losing streak to Australia
KINGSTOWN: West Indies clinched their first win in six years over Australia when they took the second one-dayer by five wickets on
Sunday.
In a match reduced to 40 overs a side because of rain, Australia struggled to 154 for nine with West Indies reaching their Duckworth-Lewis target of 158 with 10 balls remaining.
Kieron Pollard top-scored with 47, an innings which featured four huge
sixes.
Australia won the first game at the same Arnos Vale venue on Friday by 64 runs, their 15th win in their last 16 one-dayers against West Indies, a run stretching back to the 2006 Champions Trophy in India.
The final three games of the series take place in Saint Lucia on Tuesday, Friday and next Sunday.
Sunday.
In a match reduced to 40 overs a side because of rain, Australia struggled to 154 for nine with West Indies reaching their Duckworth-Lewis target of 158 with 10 balls remaining.
Kieron Pollard top-scored with 47, an innings which featured four huge
sixes.
Australia won the first game at the same Arnos Vale venue on Friday by 64 runs, their 15th win in their last 16 one-dayers against West Indies, a run stretching back to the 2006 Champions Trophy in India.
The final three games of the series take place in Saint Lucia on Tuesday, Friday and next Sunday.
Poor fielding lets Pakistan down against India
Pakistan were defeated by arch rivals India in a high-scoring encounter of the Asia Cup one-day tournament here at the Shere Bangla National Stadium on Sunday.
Chasing a huge target of 330 runs, India started on a disastrous note when they lost Gautam Gambhir for nought on the second ball of the innings by off-spinner Mohammad Hafeez. But thanks to an extraordinary batting display by the latter batsmen who completed the six-wicket win with 13 balls to spare.
However, Pakistan are through to final as they are leading the points table with nine against eight by India with one match left which will be played between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka on March 20.
India’s victory was owed very much to Virat Kohli who played a masterful innings of 183, his second hundred in the tournament.
During his 211-minute stay at the crease, he struck 22 fours and two sixes from 148 balls for his eleventh ODI century.
He was involved in two big partnerships: a133-run second wicket stand with Sachin Tendulakar (52) and then a 172-run third wicket with Rohit Sharma (68).
Tendulkar, who achieved a rare feat of a century of international centuries on Friday, completed his 96th ODI half-century with five fours and a six while Sharma hit five fours and a six in his 12th fifty in one-dayers.
Earlier, Pakistan openers Mohammad Hafeez and Nasir Jamshed hammered brilliant centuries to help Pakistan reach a formidable total of 329-6.
Batting first after captain Misbah-ul-Haq won the toss, both openers provided a solid start of 224 runs, their second century partnership for the first wicket in this tournament – just four runs short of Pakistan record set by Mohammad Hafeez and Imran Farhat against Zimbabwe at Harare last September.
Hafeez made 105 off 113 balls with nine fours and a six. This was his fourth ODI century while Nasir scored 112 from 104 balls with ten fours and a six for his maiden hundred in One-day International cricket.
Veteran batsman Younis Khan also batted well to hit 52 runs from 34 balls with six boundaries. This was his 47th half-century in one-day international career.
Chasing a huge target of 330 runs, India started on a disastrous note when they lost Gautam Gambhir for nought on the second ball of the innings by off-spinner Mohammad Hafeez. But thanks to an extraordinary batting display by the latter batsmen who completed the six-wicket win with 13 balls to spare.
However, Pakistan are through to final as they are leading the points table with nine against eight by India with one match left which will be played between Bangladesh and Sri Lanka on March 20.
India’s victory was owed very much to Virat Kohli who played a masterful innings of 183, his second hundred in the tournament.
During his 211-minute stay at the crease, he struck 22 fours and two sixes from 148 balls for his eleventh ODI century.
He was involved in two big partnerships: a133-run second wicket stand with Sachin Tendulakar (52) and then a 172-run third wicket with Rohit Sharma (68).
Tendulkar, who achieved a rare feat of a century of international centuries on Friday, completed his 96th ODI half-century with five fours and a six while Sharma hit five fours and a six in his 12th fifty in one-dayers.
Earlier, Pakistan openers Mohammad Hafeez and Nasir Jamshed hammered brilliant centuries to help Pakistan reach a formidable total of 329-6.
Batting first after captain Misbah-ul-Haq won the toss, both openers provided a solid start of 224 runs, their second century partnership for the first wicket in this tournament – just four runs short of Pakistan record set by Mohammad Hafeez and Imran Farhat against Zimbabwe at Harare last September.
Hafeez made 105 off 113 balls with nine fours and a six. This was his fourth ODI century while Nasir scored 112 from 104 balls with ten fours and a six for his maiden hundred in One-day International cricket.
Veteran batsman Younis Khan also batted well to hit 52 runs from 34 balls with six boundaries. This was his 47th half-century in one-day international career.
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