World Cup 2011: SL president invites Kiwi premier to semi final

Updated at: 1358 PST,  Sunday, March 27, 2011

The Sri Lankan president has invited the New Zealand prime minister to watch the semi final.President Mahinda Rajapaksa has extended an invitation to New Zealand Prime Minister John Key to watch the World Cup semi final between Sri Lanka and New Zealand on Tuesday, March 29.Sri Lanka and New Zealand have already faced each other in the group stage when Sri Lanka defeated the Kiwis. Both sides have also encountered in the semi final of the 2007 World Cup that was also ended in the victory of the Asian side.

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Security stepped up as India-Pakistan clash nears

Updated at: 1358 PST,  Sunday, March 27, 2011

MOHALI: Security was ramped up at the Punjab Cricket Association stadium on Sunday as India staged their first training session ahead of the high-profile World Cup semi-final against Pakistan.The match, the first between the arch-rivals on Indian soil since the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, gained an added security headache Sunday when Pakistan's Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani confirmed he will attend Wednesday's clash.Police were out in greater numbers in and around the ground on Sunday and there were even "media security officers" escorting reporters into the ground.Meanwhile, the security presence was equalled only by the increaesed number of television trucks parked side by side outside the Stadium, all eager to beam back pictures of such stars as local hero Yuvraj Singh and Sachin Tendulkar.India were due to train later Sunday but both television reporters and eager fans desperate for a glimpse of their favourites, could be disappointed if, as has happened before, some players decide to opt out of a practice session.Pakistan, the 1992 champions, were put through their paces once again by coach Waqar Younis in an early morning training stint that started with a lively football match.Coming back to the PCA Stadium was proving particularly pleasant for Pakistan manager Intikhab Alam, who earlier in his career coached a Punjab team featuring both Yuvraj and India off-spinner Harbhajan Singh.I am nostalgic, I remember this place very well," former Test leg-spinner Alam told the Sunday Pioneer.The two years I spent here earned me friends for life. It feels great to come back.Alam's relaxed mood was in keeping with that of his team.Opening batsman Mohammad Hafeez said on Saturday neither he nor his Pakistan colleagues had any qualms about security, saying: "We have no fear or a feeling of (any) shortcoming when it comes to security.That's not our job; our job is to play cricket. To provide security is the responsibility of the ICC (International Cricket Council) and the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India).We are very happy and we are enjoying ourselves very much.Around 3,000 police will patrol Wednesday's match with some 2,000 expected to be deployed in and around the 30,000-capacity PCA Stadium on matchday.An estimated 1,000 police have already descended on the luxury Hotel Taj in nearby Chandigarh where both teams are staying, a force which includes Indian army commandos.The game, which takes place in the border state of Punjab, has already sparked a flurry of political activity.Faharullah Babar, a spokesman for Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari responded to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's "cricket diplomacy".It was decided in response to the Indian Prime Minister's invitation that Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani will visit India to witness the semi-final cricket match," he said.Elsewhere the frantic scramble for hotel rooms and tickets showed no signs of slackening, even though the PCA had insisted as early as Tuesday that the 14,000 available tickets had been sold, with the rest in the hands of the ICC.However, there have been numerous reports of a thriving black market in tickets with prices rocketing so that a 5,000-rupee ($112) ticket was being sold for as much as 25,000 rupees ($560)For a match as big as this one, we cannot do anything about black market tickets," said PCA joint secretary GS Walia.As far as we are concerned, we only gave the tickets to those who stood in the queues and bought them. We cannot keep track if they sell these in (the) black (market

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Tickets not available for Indo-Pak tie

Updated at: 1546 PST,  Sunday, March 27, 2011

NEW DELHI: Cricket fans at Mohali are complaining about the unavailability of tickets at the counters on Sunday.The fans are angry and allege that the tickets are now being sold at a high price in the black market.However, there have been numerous reports of a thriving black market in tickets with prices rocketing so that a 5,000-rupee ticket was being sold for as much as 25,000 rupees.For a match as big as this one, we cannot do anything about black market tickets," said PCA joint secretary GS Walia.As far as we are concerned, we only gave the tickets to those who stood in the queues and bought them. We cannot keep track if they sell these in (the) black (market)

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Misbah backs Akhtar factor against India

Updated at: 1522 PST,  Sunday, March 27, 2011

MOHALI: Pakistan batsman Misbah-ul-Haq believes fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar has a key role to play in the World Cup semi-final against India -- even if the paceman doesn't take the field.The 35-year-old Akhtar has said he will retire after the World Cup and has only featured in three matches at the tournament to date.But he remains capable of working up fearsome speed and may have one last shot at India when Pakistan face their arch-rivals on Wednesday.Shoaib Akhtar is a class bowler," said Misbah on Sunday.He has performed for Pakistan on a number of occasions including the 1999 World Cup (when the team lost to Australia in the final).And Misbah said that, at the very least, he would help Pakistan's batsmen get ready for the challenge of facing India's seamers.Batsmen get to prepare well against pace bowling when they face him at the nets. If he does play in the coming matches, I feel it will give us a psychological advantage.When it comes to India-Pakistan matches, Misbah is currently associated with the 2007 World Twenty20 final in Johannesburg The now 36-year-old Misbah rescued Pakistan from the depths of 77 for six and his 43 almost guided Pakistan to victory in the first World Twenty20 final.With three balls left, and six runs needed to win, he was last man out when he tried to lap Joginder Sharma over short fine leg and was caught by Shanthakumaran Sreesanth.Asked if he wanted to put that right, Misbah said: "Every game is a new game and it's not because of that, that this is a special game.This is a World Cup semi-final, I really want to play well.Misbah, one of two former captains in the side along with Younis Khan, praised skipper Shahid Afridi for the way he'd led the side to the semi-finals.Leg-spinner Afridi is the tournament's leading bowler with 21 wickets and Misbah said: "I think the important thing is his aggression and the other thing is that he has led the team by example.He is performing really well, just taking wickets at the right time, so that really helps the team when the captain is performing like that. Everybody is standing behind him at the World Cup.There were concerns that having two ex-captains in a Pakistan team traditionally renowned for its volatility could prove divisive but Misbah insisted: "I think there are always differences in opinion but we always talk to the captain about what he thinks. He's really good at that.He listens to the players, especially the senior players and the coaches, we just decide everything with a good co-ordination, and that's why everything is going well and the team is performing well.Misbah added it was also good to have veteran manager Intikhab Alam, the former Pakistan captain, on board given his experience in helping the team win the 1992 World Cup in Australia and the 2009 World Twenty20 in England.That's a positive thing we have, the last two World Cups, 50 overs and 20 overs, we've won when he was with the team so he has a good experience of how to perform in pressure situations.No Pakistan batsman has yet made a hundred this tournament with Misbah's unbeaten 83 in the 11-run win over Sri Lanka, who face New Zealand in the other semi-final, their highest individual score.Our batsmen not making big scores is not a concern because we are winning. We will be happy if we win the World Cup without a single individual hundred," Misbah insisted.

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Maldives releases cricket WCup terror suspect

Updated at: 1502 PST,  Sunday, March 27, 2011

COLOMBO: Maldives police said Sunday they had released a man suspected of plotting an attack on the cricket World Cup taking place in South Asia.Maldivian national Iqbal Mohamed, 42, was arrested on March 10 as he arrived at Male International airport from Pakistan following a tip-off from the international police body Interpol.Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik and Interpol chief Ronald Noble announced the arrest last week, with Malik saying a "serious attempt" at an attack had been foiled.He (Mohamed) is no longer in our custody. He was released over the weekend on a court order," police spokesman Ahmed Shiyam said by telephone from the capital Male.Shiyam declined to give the reason, but local media reported that a court had refused to extend Mohamed's detention and ordered his release late Friday.Mohamed fled to Pakistan in 2007 after allegedly being involved in a bomb attack in Male. Maldivian police then sought France-based Interpol's help and issued a red notice for his arrest.At the time of his arrest, Interpol said their officers based in Sri Lanka's international airport had detected him while scanning passenger lists for terror suspects during the ongoing cricket World Cup.Police in the three World Cup host countries of Sri Lanka, India and Bangladesh have thrown blanket security for the tournament, which ends in Mumbai on April 2.

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Taufel, Gould to umpire India-Pakistan clash

Updated at: 1421 PST,  Sunday, March 27, 2011

NEW DELHI: Australia's Simon Taufel and Ian Gould of England were on Sunday named as the umpires for Wednesday's highly-charged World Cup semi-final between India Pakistan.Sri Lanka's Ranjan Madugalle will be match referee with New Zealand's Billy Bowden and Australian Rod Tucker acting as the third and fourth umpires respectively.For Tuesday's first semi-final between Sri Lanka and New Zealand in Colombo, Steve Davis of Australia and Aleem Dar of Pakistan will be the on-field umpires.Chris Broad is the match referee with South Africa's Marais Erasmus and Billy Doctrove of West Indies, the third and fourth umpires respectively.The International Cricket Council said that officials for the final will be made later in the week

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Gilani, Manmohan meeting would improve ties: Indian HC

Updated at: 1530 PST,  Sunday, March 27, 2011

ISLAMABAD: Indian High Commissioner Sharat Sabharwal said the meeting between the Prime Ministers of India and Pakistan in Mohali would help improve ties, Geo News reported He was talking to media during a friendly cricket match between Indian High Commission and Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry.He pointed that visas were being issued to Pakistanis for the match.Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani accepted the invitation of his Indian counterpart Dr Manmohan Singh to watch the cricket World Cup semi-final match between Pakistan and India in Mohali on March 30.According to official sources, Prime Minister Gilani will informally meet Manmohan Singh during the match and a formal meeting will be held after the match in which bilateral matters will come under discussion.

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india vs pakistan 2011 amir fight shastri

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Sachin will have to wait for 100 international tons: Afridi

Updated at: 2113 PST,  Saturday, March 26, 2011

Karachi, (PTI): Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi predicted that Indian batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar will have to wait until after the World Cup to reach the milestone of scoring 100 international centuries.Sachin will have to wait until after the World Cup for his 100th international century because we are not going to allow either him or any other Indian player to play a big innings," Afridi said.Tendulkar has been in prolific form in the World Cup and completed 18,000 runs in One-dayers in the previous game against Australia. He needs just one more hundred to complete 100 international centuries, the first by any batsman.Pakistan will take on India in the second semifinal of the World Cup to be held in Mohali on March 30 and Afridi said he was confident of his side beating India.It is a game of cricket and both teams can lay claim they will win the semi-final but given our current form I am confident we can beat India," Afridi said.Admitting that his team-mates wanted to face India in the semi-finals, the skipper said, "The players wanted this clash and we are looking forward to it. We know the expectations are high but at the end of the day I have told the players that the team, which controls and keeps its nerves in such a high tension match, will prevail.Afridi also felt that the pressure on India would be far more in the semi-final as compared to Pakistan, as they would be playing in front of their home crowd.Normally whenever both teams play there is great pressure because of the high expectations of the people but this time India are playing in front of their home crowd and the pressure will be greater on them," he said.Stating that his players were under no pressure because of the fact that Pakistan had never beaten India in a World Cup match before, Afridi said, "That is history and this team has a habit of changing history. More importantly the winning momentum we have got it allows the players to be better prepared for the big match.The flamboyant all-rounder also made it clear the players were not feeling the pressure of having to go and play in India after a gap of nearly four years"We have a young team and many of our players have not played in India before but it is not a problem for them because they have become used to playing even home matches abroad. I am confident they can handle the pressures of playing in India.Afridi, meanwhile, also appealed to the fans to treat this high-profile clash between the neighbours as just another cricket match.

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Sri Lanka demolish England to storm into semis

Updated at: 2113 PST,  Saturday, March 26, 2011

COLOMBO: Openers Tillakaratne Dilshan and Upul Tharanga powered Sri Lanka into semi-finals, hitting brilliant hundreds in a comprehensive 10-wicket triumph against hapless England in the last of the World Cup quarter-finals here at the R Premadasa Stadium on Saturday.Sri Lanka will now play the first of two semi-finals here on March 29 against New Zealand who knocked out South Africa in Dhaka on Friday while arch-rivals Pakistan and India meet in the second semi-final in Mohali a day later.Dilshan finished with a 115-ball 108 not out, spiced with 10 boundaries and two sixes, while Tharanga notched an unbeaten 102 off 122 deliveries, studded with 12 fours and one six, as the duo easily reached the 230-run target with 10.3 overs to spare.It was the second 200 plus partnership in the tournament as the pair also scored 282 for the first wicket against Zimbabwe in the group stages at Pallekele.Dilshan was the first to reach his hundred, his 10th in one-day cricket and second in this tournament, cutting Swann to the cover boundary for his ninth boundary.Tharanga completed his 11th century, and also his second in this World Cup, with the winning boundary off Chris Tremlett.Earlier, captain Andrew Strauss won the toss and decided to bat first on a slow, flat pitch.but England made a poor start losing both openers for 31 However, Jonathan Trott (86) rescued them with a cautious innings of 86, adding 64 runs for the third wicket with Ravi Bopara (31) and 91 for the fourth with Eoin Morgan (50) as England made 229 for six in their 50 overs.Trott’s 86 was his 11th fifty in one-day internationals and the fifth half-century in the tournament. But he was unable to lift the innings in the final overs as England managed just 23 in the batting power-play.Trott fell in the 49th over, caught off Muralitharan who finished with 2-54, after a 115-ball innings which featured just two boundaries.It will be Sri Lanka's third successive World Cup semi-final, having finished runners-up to Australia in the last edition held in the Caribbean four years ago.

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Updated at: 1945 PST,  Saturday, March 26, 2011

MOHALI: Mohammad Hafeez is confident Pakistan can overcome India when the arch-rivals meet in the World Cup semi-finals on Wednesday thanks to the "strongest bowling attack in the world Pakistan, the 1992 champions, possess a bowling line-up for pretty much all conditions despite missing the new ball duo of Mohammad Aamer and Mohammad Asif, both banned following last year's spot-fixing scandal in England."We believe that we have the strongest bowling attack in the world at the moment," said Hafeez on Saturday.That is the key. Our bowling is our strength and our batsmen are just supporting them in whatever way is required.Umar Gul is arguably the most skilled exponent of reverse-swing at this tournament while Hafeez, who took the new ball alongside him in the 10-wicket quarter-final thrashing of the West Indies, is a more than handy off-spinner.Left-arm pace comes in the shape of Wahab Riaz, with all-rounder Abdul Razzaq providing seam support while Saaed Ajmal's off-spin is a potent weapon.And then there is the leg-spin of Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi who is the tournament's top bowler with 21 wickets at an average of just 10.71 apiece.Meanwhile fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar, who will retire after the World Cup waits in the wings."At the moment, we definitely rely on our bowling but we know we are capable enough as batsmen to achieve any total, whatever our bowlers give us," added Hafeez.The pitch for India's five-wicket quarter-final win over Australia in Ahmedabad offered plenty of assistance to spinners, an area where the co-hosts clearly had an edge on the beaten champions.But Hafeez said whatever kind of surface was prepared in Mohali would suit Pakistan."We really don't care about the pitch, whatever it will be, we are good enough to perform to the best of our ability."Matches between India and Pakistan are always special affairs.And the context of a World Cup semi-final in the border state of Punjab merely heightens the frenzied atmosphere, particularly as India-Pakistan fixtures have become increasingly rare for political and security reasons.

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Trott steers England to 229 against Sri Lanka

Updated at: 1736 PST,  Saturday, March 26, 2011

COLOMBO: A superb 86 by Jonathon Trott helped England set a target of 230 runs for Sri Lanka in the final World Cup quarter-final here at the R. Premadasa stadium on Saturday.After captain Andrew Strauss won the toss and decided to bat, England made a poor start losing both openers for 31 but Trott rescued them with Ravi Bopara (31) and Eoin Morgan (50) as his team made 229 for six in their 50 overs.Trott’s 86 was his 11th fifty in one-day internationals and the fifth half-century in this tournament. He added 64 runs for the third wicket with Bopara and 91 for the fourth with Morgan to
anchor England to a fighting total on a slow wicket.Sri Lanka went into the match with three frontline spinners -- Muttiah Muralitharan, Ajantha Mendis and Rangana Herath -- who made it tough for the batsmen to score with their tight line and length.Morgan was dropped three times -- on 16, 33 and 34 – while television replays showed he was also lbw to Lasith Malinga, a decision Sri Lanka did not appeal.Strauss struggled against some accurate bowling by part-time off-spinner Tillakaratne Dilshan, who bowled the second over of the innings.Ian Bell (25) became the third batsman to be promoted to open the England innings in the tournament and got off to a confident start but chipped one straight to Thilan Samaraweera off Angelo Mathews England kept the same side which beat the West Indies in their last Group B match, still keeping paceman James Anderson on the bench and playing with two off-spinners in Graeme Swann and James Tredwell.Sri Lanka included left-arm spinner Rangana Herath for paceman Nuwan Kulasekara as the only change in the squad which beat New Zealand by 112 runs to give them three frontline spinners.The winners of the match will play against New Zealand at the same venue on Tuesday in the first semi-final.

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South Africa will rise from ashes, says Smith

Updated at: 1705 PST,  Saturday, March 26, 2011

DHAKA: Outgoing one-day captain Graeme Smith, devastated by South Africa's sudden World Cup exit, has predicted the national team will quickly overcome their latest debacle.The Proteas collapsed from a winning position to hand New Zealand a dramatic 49-run victory in Friday's quarter-final at the Sher-e-Bangla stadium in the Bangladesh capital.The Black Caps, restricted to 221-8 after taking first strike, bundled out South Africa for 172 after they were sailing merrily at 108-2 by the 24th over.South Africa, often regarded as the best team never to have won the World Cup, have now lost in three semi-finals, two quarter-finals and once in the first round.But Smith, who will stand down as one-day skipper but remain the leader in Test cricket, was confident the team will taste success again."This is an exciting period for South African cricket," he said. "We have the players and the talent. Hopefully in future we will go all the way."South Africa deserves to win the World Cup." Friday's defeat lent credence to the widespread belief that South Africa are cricket's biggest chokers, and Smith was at a loss to pinpoint the reason for the failure."It is really hard to describe what happened," said Smith, mystified by a World Cup record which shows South Africa having failed to win any knockout game in the tournament since their 1992 debut."Your guess is as good as mine. It's been happening since 1992. We just weren't good enough, but we have to take it forward and not get bogged down."There will be a new coach and new captain. We are disappointed but nothing I say is going to change that for fans back home."Smith said his team threw away a great opportunity."We had the opportunity to close out the game after we kept them down to 221 and can only blame ourselves," he said. "We let ourselves down, we let our fans down."South Africa had topped the tough Group B with five wins from six matches in the league, but fell just when the pressure of a knock-out situation came along."I can't fault the way we played in the tournament," added Smith. "We trained hard and gave our best."We certainly bowled well in this game, but New Zealand squeezed us when the ball became soft. We needed to show composure at that stage. It is difficult to recover on wickets like this." "One must give credit to New Zealand for the way they played," said Smith. "Ryder set up the 200 which I thought was very gettable. But they stuck to the task in the field."They certainly deserved to win."

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Vettori eyes big finale for little guys

Updated at: 1601 PST,  Saturday, March 26, 2011

DHAKA: New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori dismissed suggestions on Saturday that reaching the World Cup semi-finals should be the limit of his team's ambitions."I look at it as an achievement for a country so small that we make so many semi-finals. That's a better way to look at it for a country of four million people," he said. "People may put negative stamps on it but I think it's an achievement for a country like ours."New Zealand came from behind to upset South Africa by 49 runs in Friday's quarter-final at the Sher-e-Bangla stadium, their fourth win over the fancied rivals in six World Cup encounters.Vettori's men, restricted to 221-8 after taking first strike in the day-night match, bundled out South Africa for 172 in an exciting finish.It will be New Zealand's sixth appearance in the semi-finals, where they await the winners of Saturday's match between Sri Lanka and England in Colombo."I think the reputation we have is that we can beat any team on a given day," said Vettori."But consistency has avoided us a lot of the time, so it's our big chance in the semi-finals to go one or two better."Vettori said beating South Africa in a crunch game boosted morale, and praised his side for fighting till the end."Something around 250 would probably have been a really good score, but we knew 221 was defendable and the way we bowled, and particularly the way we fielded, got us through to the victory.""I think when we got de Villiers and Kallis out, we all started to believe we could go all the way, the captain said."Their top four batsmen have proved themselves for a long, long time and have an excellent track record. They also had a long tail. So we had to take wickets."South Africa, often regarded as the best team never to have the World Cup, have lost in three semi-finals, two quarter-finals and once in the first round.

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England win toss, elect to bat against Sri Lanka

Updated at: 1339 PST,  Saturday, March 26, 2011

COLOMBO: England captain Andrew Strauss won the toss and chose to bat in the last of the World Cup quarter-finals against Sri Lanka here at the R. Premadasa stadium on Saturday.England kept the same side which beat the West Indies in their last Group B match, still keeping paceman James Anderson on the bench and playing with two off-spinners in Graeme Swann and James Tredwell.Sri Lanka included left-arm spinner Rangana Herath for paceman Nuwan Kulasekara as the only change in the squad which beat New Zealand by 112 runs to give them three frontline spinners The R. Premadasa stadium pitch is likely to help batsmen but will take slow turn as the match progresses.The weather could play a major role with rain expected in the evening.Sri Lanka: Kumar Sangakkara (captain), Mahela Jayawardene, Upul Tharanga, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Thilan Samaraweera, Chamara Silva, Angelo Mathews, Lasith Malinga, Muttiah Muralitharan, Ajantha Mendis, Rangana Herath.England: Andrew Strauss (captain), Eoin Morgan, Jonathan Trott, Ian Bell, Ravi Bopara, Matt Prior, Tim Bresnan, Graeme Swann, James Tredwell, Luke Wright, Chris Tremlett.Umpires: Billy Doctrove (WI) and Simon Taufel (AUS), TV umpire: Tony Hill (NZ)
Match referee: Jeff Crowe (NZ)

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Sri Lanka, England quarter-final today

Updated at: 0835 PST,  Saturday, March 26, 2011

COLOMBO: Soon after the Sri Lanka team returned to the dressing room following a practice session on the eve of their quarterfinal against England, skipper Kumar Sangakkara exited the enclosure.Rather than walking towards the media centre for the customary interaction, he headed straight to the wicket. Sangakkara first tapped the surface to check the firmness and then had a word with the ground-staff. However, he would know that more than the nature of the 22-yard strip, the decisive factor in Saturday’s quarterfinal would be handling pressure.While Sri Lanka would have to live up to the expectations of 20 million nationals 35,000 of who would be vociferously supporting the team from the stands England would have to deal with the challenge of fielding 11 physically and mentally fit cricketers.Sangakkara tactfully avoided questions on home pressure. “That’s the way cricket is played here. World Cup or not, we get a packed house here; it won’t be different tomorrow,” the left-hander said on Friday.Though the hosts were relieved to hear about Muttiah Muralitharan’s recovery from a hamstring strain, they still have a few areas to ponder on, going into the key clash. The lower-middle order, for instance, has proved to be a big headache.Thrice in six league matches, a flurry of wickets have fallen in the death overs. With the top-four coming good on each of the three occasions, it didn’t affect the outcome of any game. But, in the event of the top-four failing to click, the lower-middle order will certainly be exposed.England, on the other hand, are hoping for a less-than-dramatic match for a change. Thanks to the numerous close finishes, they have surprisingly emerged as the most entertaining outfit in the tournament. To add to their injury woes, Michael Yardy’s depression has kept England in the limelight.“We have had a lot of injuries, lot of people coming and going, and I think that tests your resolve as a group. Also, the core of the side has to be able to welcome other people in and make them feel part of the side. That’s something we are good at,” said skipper Andrew Strauss.Whether they are good at pulling off another surprise on Saturday remains to be seen.

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ICC President Sharad Pawar praises Bangladesh for its wonderful hosting

ICC President Sharad Pawar has praised Bangladesh for its hosting of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011.Pawar, who was in attendance at the New Zealand-South Africa game on Friday, said: "It has been wonderful to experience the hospitality of the people of Bangladesh.I'd like to thank the Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, Finance Minister, Abul Maal Abdul Muhith, Sports Minister, Ahad Ali Sarker, and the Government of Bangladesh for their support and cooperation in so successfully hosting the ICC Cricket World Cup opening ceremony and all of the matches in Bangladesh."The manner in which the whole country has embraced the World Cup has been a joy to behold. The passion that the people of Bangladesh have for cricket is wonderful."I have also been very impressed with the facilities here in Dhaka. The Sher-e-Bangla Stadium is a world-class venue that all of Bangladesh should be proud of."All eight matches in Bangladesh were well-attended and even those that did not feature the home team were played out in front of big crowds. The people came in and appreciated the good performances and enjoyed the game."Immense credit must go to the President of the Bangladesh Cricket Board, AHM Mustapha Kamal, his team at the BCB, the Local Organising Committee, the Government of Bangladesh and, of course, the people of this beautiful country."An event of the scale of the ICC Cricket World Cup poses many logistical and operational challenges for host nations and I am pleased to say that the cricket community in Bangladesh has not merely met those challenges but has exceeded them."I am sure cricket in Bangladesh has a positive and prosperous future and we look forward to returning to the country for the ICC Women's World Cup Qualifier later this year and the ICC World Twenty20 in 2014."

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New Zealand stun South Africa to reach semis

Updated at: 2101 PST,  Friday, March 25, 2011

DHAKA: New Zealand in an astonishing effort defeated South Africa by 49 runs with 6.4 overs to spare to move into semi-finals of the World Cup in the third quarter-finals of the World Cup here at the Sher-e-Bangla stadium on Friday.Chasing a not so difficult target of 222, South Africa were all out for 172 runs in 43.2 overs.It was the fifth defeat in as many World Cup knockout matches for the South Africans since their first appearance at the 1992 tournament.South Africa were cruising to victory at 108 for two with their premier batsman Jacques Kallis well set on 47.But Kallis was magnificently caught on the boundary by Jacob Oram off Tim Southee, JP Duminy was bowled for three and AB de Villiers run out two balls later for 35.New Zealand, who had fielded tenaciously and bowled with spirit, piled on the pressure with medium-pacer Oram bowling snapping up two more quick wickets.Faf du Plessis, who was dropped by Oram on 29, hit the New Zealander for six off the next ball before holing out to Southee for 36. Morne Morkel was the last man to fall for three as South Africa were dismissed for 172 off 43.2 overs.Jesse Ryder anchored the New Zealand innings with 83, his maiden World Cup half-century. But although the Kiwis became the only team in the tournament to bat through their overs against South Africa their eventual total of 221 for eight seemed well short of a challenging total.New Zealand, who have now reached the semi-finals six times, will meet the winners of Saturday's quarter-final between Sri Lanka and England in Colombo next Tuesday.

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Sania, Shoaib in loyalty battle on Indo-Pak 'war'

Updated at: 2002 PST,  Friday, March 25, 2011

NEW DELHI: A mini-battle of loyalty is simmering between star couple Sania Mirza and Shoaib Malik as India gear to take on Pakistan in a high-voltage World Cup semi-final clash next week.Sania, India's top-ranked women's tennis player, will be rooting for her country despite her marriage to former Pakistan cricket captain Shoaib Malik."I support India and Shoaib will support Pakistan as usual! The war is on," Sania wrote on her Twitter account from Miami where she is taking part in a WTA event.India booked a last-four World Cup berth against their arch-rivals after beating defending champions Australia by five wickets in the quarter-final in Ahmedabad on Thursday.Pakistan made the semi-finals with a 10-wicket mauling on West Indies the day before.Sania, 24, married Shoaib in Hyderabad in April last year amid a lot of hype surrounding the love-struck cross-border sport stars.Sania said she would have love to catch the semi-final action in Mohali next Wednesday but for her professional commitments.The last time they played in Mohali I watched the match live. What a semi-final on the line. Wish I could be there," read another tweet from the tennis star.Shoaib and Sania's sporting marriage is unprecedented in the perennial rivalry between the South Asian nations, and some right-wing Hindu groups in India had denounced the union, accusing Sania of betraying her country.

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Pak team arrives in Delhi for Mohali match

Updated at: 1818 PST,  Friday, March 25, 2011

NEW DELHI: Pakistan cricket team reached here to play their arch rivals India in the semi-finals of the World Cup 2011.The team left Dhaka this morning for the Indian capital from where it will go to Mohali where the semi-finals will be played on March 30.Captain Shahid Afridi said, while talking with Geo News before the departure at the Dhaka airport, that Indian team is difficult but his players’ morale is high.Pakistan team will stay at Delhi for a few hours then proceed to Mohali.

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