England win second Sri Lanka Test

COLOMBO: England defeated Sri Lanka by eight wickets in the second and final Test in Colombo on Saturday to level the series 1-1 and retain their number one Test ranking. The tourists bowled out Sri Lanka for 278 in their second innings and then chased down the victory target of 94 in the post-lunch session on the fifth day at the P. Sara Oval. Off-spinner Graeme Swann...

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10-wicket Swann brings England close to win

COLOMBO: England faced a modest target of 94 to win the second Test against Sri Lanka after they dismissed the hosts for 278 in their second innings just before lunch on the fifth day on Saturday. Off-spinner Graeme Swann picked up six wickets in the innings to finish with a match-haul of 10. England, who lost the first Test in Galle, need a win to level the two-match...

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Dinda destroys Mumbai as Pune begin on winning note

MUMBAI: Paceman Ashok Dinda bowled excellently well to help Pune Warriors upset Mumbai Indians by 28 runs in the third match of the Indian Premier League Twenty20 tournament here at the Wankhede Stadium on Friday. This was the first defeat for Mumbai Indians, who had won the opening match of the tournament on Wednesday. Chasing an easy target of 130, they were restricted...

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Rahane's 98 runs help Rajasthan win

JAIPUR: Ajinkya Rahane's 98 runs off 66 deliveries along with deadly bowling Kevon Cooper (4/26) helped Rajasthan Royals to a comfortable win in their opening match of 12th Indian Premiere League against King XI Punjab. Batting first, Rajasthan posted 191 for four and the Kings XI Punjab were restricted to 160 for nine in reply. Chasing a stiff target of 192, Kings XI...

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Kaneria 'unaware' of ECB corruption hearing

KARACHI: Former Pakistan cricketer Danish Kaneria said Friday he was in the dark about a disciplinary hearing in Britain over corruption that led to the jailing of an English county player. The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) announced on Thursday that the leg-spinner and his former Essex teammate Mervyn Westfield would face a hearing next month. Westfield was...

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Swann leads England charge against Sri Lanka

COLOMBO: Off-spinner Graeme Swann grabbed four wickets to leave a rejuvenated England on the brink of a series-levelling win in the second and final Test against Sri Lanka in Colombo on Friday. Sri Lanka, trailing by 185 runs on the first innings, ended the fourth day's play at 218-6 in their second knock, a lead of 33 runs with only four wickets in hand on a wearing...

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England miss chances in final S. Lanka Test

COLOMBO: Resolute batting by Sri Lanka and at least three missed chances in the field thwarted England on the fourth day of the second Test in Colombo on Friday. Sri Lanka, trailing by 185 runs, lost the openers as they took their second innings total from the overnight 4-0 to 84 for two by lunch on the slow wicket at the P. Sara Oval. Tillakaratne Dilshan was unbeaten...

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Delhi win by 8 wickets against Kolkata

KOLKATA: Dehli Daredevils beat Kolkata Knight Riders by 8 wickets with 5 balls remaining in T20 match of the 12th Indian Premier League here on Friday. A 12-over-a-side game kicked off after rain delayed the game for two-and a half hours. Irfan struck three sixes and two boundaries to help Delhi reach 100 with five balls to spare and make a winning start to their IPL...

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COLOMBO: Kevin Pietersen shrugged off a switch-hit controversy to smash an explosive 151 off 165 balls as England took charge of the second Test against Sri Lanka in Colombo on Thursday. The flamboyant Pietersen plundered 16 boundaries and six sixes in his 20th Test century as the tourists piled up 460 in their first innings before being all out just before stumps on the third day. Sri Lanka, trailing by 185 runs, were 4-0 from one over in their second knock at close with Lahiru Thirimanne and Dhammika Prasad at the crease. England, who lost the first Test in Galle by 75 runs, have two days to force a series-levelling win on the wearing P. Sara Oval wicket and retain their number one ranking. Pietersen was warned twice by the on-field umpires before the tea break for changing his stance to make a switch hit -- a right-hander playing a shot with a left-hander's grip. The warning from officials Bruce Oxenford and Asad Rauf came after bowler Tillakaratne Dilshan had to stop twice in his run-up as Pietersen turned around in his stance. The laws of the game state the switch hit is legal, but a batsman cannot change stance before the bowler has delivered the ball. Match referee Javagal Srinath of India said a third offence by any of the England batsmen in the innings would have resulted in five penalty runs being awarded to Sri Lanka. The incident marred an otherwise profitable day for the tourists, who finally came good with the bat after losing four Tests in a row in Asia this year -- the 3-0 rout by Pakistan and the Galle defeat. But England may feel that they ought to have punished the hosts more. Alastair Cook hit 94 and Jonathan Trott followed his 112 at Galle with 64, the pair sharing a second-wicket stand of 91 after skipper Andrew Strauss made 61 on Wednesday. Pietersen reached his hundred in the same over he was warned, executing a reverse sweep for two, and celebrated the landmark by pulling the next ball from Dilshan for a boundary. He had given England the lead with his third six, a straight drive off Suraj Randiv, which also brought up his half-century. The South African-born batsman had earlier smashed two fours and a six off three consecutive deliveries from Randiv, and also hammered Dilshan high over long-off. Pietersen, who put on 94 for the fourth wicket with Ian Bell (18), was dismissed in the final session when he was leg-before to Rangana Herath as he tried to sweep the left-arm spinner. Cook fell six short of his 20th century for the second time in four Tests when he edged off-spinner Dilshan to skipper Mahela Jayawardene at first slip. The 27-year-old had also fallen for 94 in the second Test against Pakistan in Abu Dhabi in January, when he was leg-before to another off-spinner, Saeed Ajmal. Trott added just two runs to his lunch score of 62 when he edged a sharp turning delivery from Herath to give an easy catch to Jayawardene in the slips.

LONDON: Mervyn Westfield and Pakistan leg-spinner Danish Kaneria are to face an England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) hearing over the corrupt activities that led to the English seamer's imprisonment. In February, the 23-year-old Westfield became the first county cricketer in England to be prosecuted for spot-fixing and was jailed for four months. Westfield was convicted...

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Pietersen puts England on top

COLOMBO: Kevin Pietersen shrugged off a switch-hit controversy to smash an explosive 151 off 165 balls as England took charge of the second Test against Sri Lanka in Colombo on Thursday. The flamboyant Pietersen plundered 16 boundaries and six sixes in his 20th Test century as the tourists piled up 460 in their first innings before being all out just before stumps on...

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Pomersbach back in IPL after depression

NEW DELHI: Australian Luke Pomersbach says he is ready to deliver in the new Indian Premier League (IPL) season after winning his battle with depression. The middle-order batsman, who has returned to play again for 2011 runners-up the Royal Challengers Bangalore, announced last year he was taking a break from cricket for his own well being. Pomersbach said he was now...

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Cook, Trott consolidate for England

COLOMBO: Alastair Cook and Jonathan Trott put on a 91-run stand as England closed in on Sri Lanka's first innings total of 275 in the second Test in Colombo on Thursday. Left-hander Cook made 94 and Trott was unbeaten on 62 as the tourists moved to 239 for two by lunch on the second day, trailing by just 36 runs with eight wickets in hand at the P. Sara Oval. Trott,...

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Cricket: Aamer appears in anti-corruption video

LONDON: Pakistani cricketer Mohammad Aamer has appeared in an official video from the Anti-Corruption and Security Unit of the International Cricket Council warning players of the dangers of corruption. The five minute video has been posted on the official ICC website. Highly-rated 19-year-old left-arm paceman Aamer was released from a UK jail in February after serving...

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