ICC Champions Trophy 2009/10

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Fixtures

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Sri Lanka meets New Zealand today in Champions Trophy

JOHANNESBURG: ICC Champions Trophy – the mini World Cup of cricket – will open today in South Africa, where Sri Lanka is meeting New Zealand.

Pakistan''s only sports channel Geo Super will live broadcast all the matches from South Africa.

Eight best teams of the cricket world will battle for the trophy.

ICC Champions Trophy is believed to be second biggest event of cricket after World Cup.

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Younis not to play tomorrow’s match vs WI

JOHANNESBURG: Pakistan team captain Younis Khan has Tuesday announced not to play tomorrow’s match due to fracture in his hand’s finger.

Pakistan is playing its first match against West Indies tomorrow in ICC Champions Trophy.

Talking to media, Younis said he is raring to play match against India and rout it.

It should be mentioned here that doctors advised him to take four-week rest. He said he would be able to take part in the ICC Champions Trophy only after doctors’ advise.

Vice Captain Shahid Afridi will captain tomorrow’s match against West Indies.

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South Africa win toss and bowl against Sri Lanka

CENTURION: South Africa captain Graeme Smith won the toss and opted to bowl first in the opening 2009 ICC Champions Trophy match Tuesday against Sri Lanka at SuperSport Park.

Teams
South Africa: Graeme Smith (captain), Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis, AB de Villiers, JP Duminy, Mark Boucher (wk), Albie Morkel, Johan Botha, Roelof van der Merwe, Dale Steyn, Wayne Parnell

Sri Lanka: Tillakaratne Dilshan, Sanath Jayasuriya, Kumar Sangakkara (captain/wk), Mahela Jayawardene, Thilan Samaraweera, Thilina Kandamby, Angelo Mathews, Nuwan Kulasekara, Muttiah Muralitharan, Lasith Malinga, Ajantha Mendis

Umpires: Simon Taufel (AUS), Ian Gould (ENG), Steve Davis (ENG) and Tony Hill (NZ)
Match referee: Jeff Crowe (NZ)

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Sri Lanka amass 319-8 against Protease

CENTURION: Sri Lanka piled up 319 runs for the loss of eight wickets in the allotted 50 overs against hosts South Africa in the opening match of the sixth ICC Champions Trophy here on Tuesday.

Winning the toss, South Africa captain Graeme Smith put Sri Lanka into bat who after the early dismissal of veteran opener Sanath Jayasuriya, plundered a huge score to give the hosts a difficult target of 320 runs.

Opener Tillekaratne Dilshan smashed a brilliant century and made 106 from 92 balls with the help of 16 fours and a six while captain Kumar Sangakkara and former captain Mahela Jayawardene hit half centuries. They made 54 and 77, respectively.

For South Africa, seamers Dale Steyn and Wayne Parnell claimed three wickets each.

Teams
South Africa: Graeme Smith (captain), Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis, AB de Villiers, JP Duminy, Mark Boucher (wk), Albie Morkel, Johan Botha, Roelof van der Merwe, Dale Steyn, Wayne Parnell

Sri Lanka: Tillakaratne Dilshan, Sanath Jayasuriya, Kumar Sangakkara (captain/wk), Mahela Jayawardene, Thilan Samaraweera, Thilina Kandamby, Angelo Mathews, Nuwan Kulasekara, Muttiah Muralitharan, Lasith Malinga, Ajantha Mendis

Umpires:Simon Taufel (AUS), Ian Gould (ENG), Steve Davis (ENG) and Tony Hill (NZ)
Match referee: Jeff Crowe (NZ)

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Sri Lanka beat Protease by 55 runs under D/L method

CENTURION: Sri Lanka won the rain-affected Group B match on the Duckworth-Lewis method defeating South Africa by 55 runs in the opening match of the 2009 Champions Trophy here at SuperSport Park on Tuesday.

Chasing a Sri Lanka total of 319-8, South Africa reached 206-7 in 37.4 overs when rain stopped play.

As no more play is possible there the match was decided under D L method in Sri Lanka’s favour.

Captain Graeme Smith made 58 and Jacques Kallis scored 41 for South Africa while Ajantha Mendis captured three and Lasith Malinga and Angeelo Mathews took two wickets each.

Earlier, opener Tillakaratne Dilshan struck 106 runs as Sri Lanka made 319-8.
Dilshan hit 16 fours and one six in a 92-ball innings and his second-wicket partnership with captain Kumar Sangakkara reaped 158 runs on a slow, even-bounce pitch.

Dilshan finally departed off the first ball of the 29th over, caught at the boundary by Albie Morkel off the bowling of right-arm speedster Dale Steyn on a warm Highveld afternoon.

It was the third ODI century for the 2009 ICC Cricketer of the Year and Test Player of the Year nominee, whose career-best 137 came against Pakistan in
Lahore this year.

Wicketkeeper Sangakkara had departed two overs before Dilshan, caught and bowled by JP Duminy for 54 when he played too early on the leg side and got a leading edge.

The exploits of Dilshan and Sangakkara followed the early, cheap departure of the grand old man of Sri Lankan cricket, 40-year-old Sanath Jayasuriya, for 10 when trapped leg before by Steyn.

Mahela Jayawardene and Thilan Samaraweera proved a further thorn in South African flesh, adding 116 runs off 106 runs for the fourth wicket before they departed from consecutive Wayne Parnell deliveries.

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Champions Trophy: Pakistan play their first match today

JOHANNESBURG: Pakistan cricket team will play here today their first match in the ICC Champions Trophy against the West Indies.

Comparing with the West Indies without their star players, Pakistan is looked ahead of them with a clear difference in every department of the game.

West Indies are missing the services of their main players including Chris Gayle due to a conflict with their cricket board.

Considering both teams on paper, there is no comparison between the present West Indies squad and the experienced Pakistan team.

All players of the current West Indies team have played 174 One-day Internationals overall whereas only four Pakistan players have appeared in more ODIs - captain Younus Khan (191), vice-captain Shahid Khan Afridi (281) and two former captains Mohammad Yousuf (272) and Shoaib Malik (181).

The overall number of the matches played by the players of Pakistan team is 1,413.

In the West Indies team, the most matches were played by fast bowler Daren Powell who has played 55 One-day Internationals while Devon Smith (29) and Darren Sammy (26) are the only two other players with 25 or more matches.

In contrast, Pakistan’s two players Shahid Afridi and Mohammad Yousuf have played more than 200 One-day Internationals, three players – Younus Khan, Shoaib Malik and Kamran Akmal - have appeared in over 100 matches and five players – Rao Iftikahr Anjum, Imran Nazir, Misbah-ul-Haq, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan and Umar Gul – have played more than 50 matches.

The players of the current Champions Trophy West Indies team have made an aggregate of 1,601 runs in ODIs while the players of the Pakistan squad have scored 32,183 runs.

The aggregate runs made by six Pakistani players – Younus, Yousuf, Afridi, Imran, Kamran and Malik – is more than the aggregate by the entire West Indies team.

The current West Indian players have made five half centuries and one century overall while the Pakistan players have scored 232 fifties and 39 hundreds.

In bowling, the West Indians claimed only 181 wickets while Pakistan bowlers captured 719 wickets in One-day International cricket.

In view of these statistics, prospects of Pakistan’s success are looking bright.

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West Indies elect to bat against Pakistan

JOHANNESBURG: West Indies captain Floyd Reifer elected to bat after winning the toss against Pakistan in a Champions Trophy match here on Wednesday.

All-rounder Shahid Afridi led Pakistan in the absence of Younus Khan, who was ruled out of the match due to a finger injury.

West Indies: Floyd Reifer (captain), Darren Sammy, David Bernard, Tino Best, Travis Dowlin, Andre Fletcher, Nikita Miller, Dale Richards, Devon Smith, Gavin Tonge, Chadwick Walton.

Pakistan: Shahid Afridi (captain), Imran Nazir, Misbah-ul-Haq, Umar Akmal, Shoaib Malik, Rana Naved-ul Hasan, Mohammad Yousuf, Kamran Akmal, Umar Gul, Mohammad Aamir, Saeed Ajmal.

Umpires: Steve Davis (AUS) and Daryl Harper (AUS), TV umpire: Simon Taufel (AUS)
Match referee: Javagal Srinath (IND)

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Pak bowlers skittle out Windies for 133

JOHANNESBURG: Pakistan bowlers skittled out West Indies for 133 runs in 34.3 overs in the Group A match of the ICC Champions Trophy here at the New Wanderers Stadium on Wednesday.

Winning the toss, West Indies captain Floyd Reifer decided to bat first but their batsmen could not resist the Pakistani seamers and the West Indies lost their seven wickets for 47.

Later, their late-order batsmen took out the team from disaster and succeeded in taking the score to 133.

Number nine batsman Nikita Miller emerged as top scorer with 51 from 57 balls. He struck six fours and a six.

For Pakistan, seamers Mohammad Aamer and Umar Gul claimed three wickets each while spinner Saeed Ajmal got two wickets. Sahhid Afirdi and naved-ul-Hasan took one wicket each.

All-rounder Shahid Afridi led Pakistan in the absence of Younus Khan, who was ruled out of the match due to a finger injury.

West Indies: Floyd Reifer (captain), Darren Sammy, David Bernard, Tino Best, Travis Dowlin, Andre Fletcher, Nikita Miller, Dale Richards, Devon Smith, Gavin Tonge, Chadwick Walton.

Pakistan: Shahid Afridi (captain), Imran Nazir, Misbah-ul-Haq, Umar Akmal, Shoaib Malik, Rana Naved-ul Hasan, Mohammad Yousuf, Kamran Akmal, Umar Gul, Mohammad Aamir, Saeed Ajmal.

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