BedTea.in | Ravi Matah's Blog

Yusaf Pathan steered India to an improbable victory at Bangalore in their fourth ODI against New Zealand on Tuesday. Gautam Gambhir won the toss and put New Zealand in to bat bat who laid down a huge score of 315 runs. Chasing this mammoth score, India, at one stage were 188 for 5 having lost the top five batsmen. But Yusuf Pathan was was on a different pedestal altogether. He struck with confidence and stamped authority with his each shot. His 97 ball 123 runs were ample proof that Pathan has given a notice to the selection committee for the forthcoming World Cup.  

His century overshadowed a superbly-crafted 98 from James Franklin that had allowed New Zealand to reach a daunting total.

It rained for about an hour and when play resumed again, India needed 113 runs from 14 overs a difficult task which was made easy by Yusuf Pathan.  Yusuf launched a Daniel Vettori delivery into the stands beyond long-on and shot a delivery from Kyle Mills over the roof. 

In the  43rd over Pathan smashed Mills for three fours and slammed a six over midwicket. And when he brought up his maiden hundred with a pulled six, off Andy McKay in the next over, the game was almost over.  (more…)

Gautam Gambhir won the toss at Vadodra Cricket Stadium on Saturday and asked New Zealand to make first use of the pitch. But it was Zahir Khan and Munaf Patel who utilised the moist morning conditions. New Zealand could pile up only 224 runs and it was by no stretch of imagination a fighting score.

Gautam Gambhir

Gautam Gambhir made the chase look ridiculously easy and maintained his captaincy record also as he produced a Captain’s knock of 126 not out to wipe out the New  Zealand total of 224  runs for 9 wickets with more than ten overs to spare. He cracked his second century on the trot, to power India to a series-clinching nine-wicket victory over New Zealand in the third ODI at Vadodara today.

India  have taken an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match ODI series.

Gambhir, who smashed 16 boundaries with his flicks and drives in the 117 balls he faced, put on 115 runs for the opening wicket with Murali Vijay who made a slow 30 in 50 balls before being run out.

Kohli remained unbeaten on 63 in 70 balls with six fours and two sixes. He also hit the winning runs, a six over long on. (more…)

Gautam Gambhir won the toss and elected to field at the Sawai Man Singh Stadium at Jaipur in the 2nd ODI against New Zealand on Wednesday. India managed to restrict New Zealand to a score of 258 runs for 8 wickets  with Sreesanth doing most of the damage, who took 4 wickets for 47 runs. The bowlers having done their job, Gambhir replied with a chanceless 138* to guide India home. He was ably supported by Virat Kohli who got out at 64 and now has two centuries and a half-century on the trot. 

Gautam Gambhir

This was Gambhir’s first century in almost a year and it was decorated with 18 boundaries to the fence and a six. Gambhir was timing the ball to perfection and was well supported by an in-form Kohli at the other end, India’s hundred was up in the 20th over. 

Earlier, Sreesanth consumed Howe but Williamson and Guptill stood ground to produce a half-century stand and Munaf Patel then removed Williamson. Guptill played very well for his 70 runs but New Zealand did not get a rocking start and so could not reach the desired 300 run target. Ross Taylor was out to a ball which he misread from Yusuf Pathan and later R Ashwin removed Guptill. 

Styris powered his way to a breezy 59 off 56 balls with the help of five fours and a huge six, while Vettori contributed 31 off 32, an innings that included four hits to the fence.  (more…)

Daniel Vittori won the toss and opted to field in the 1st ODI between India and New Zealand played at Nehru Stadium at Gawhati today. Virat Kolhi slammed a thrilling century, the second in a row, to take India to 276 runs all out.

Virat Kohli

India were however biting their nails in the last few overs when the ninth wicket pair of McCullum and Mills slammed 67 precious runs and at one stage looked set to overhaul India’s score. At one stage, only 41 runs were needed off 31 balls, when McCullum was out caught. 

Virat Kohli completed his century with ten boundaries and Yuvraj Singh contributed 42 runs. Murli Vijai struck boundaries at ease and was ably supported by Gautam Gambhir who was in his usual self.

Murli Vijai scored 44 runs and when Gambhir was out, India were 92 for the loss of two wickets. Then it was Yuvraj’s turn to give suppport to Virat Kohli and both plodded along smoothly.

In their 88-run stand for the third wicket, Kohli was compact in rotating the strike while Yuvraj looked to score in boundaries before he edged one behind the stumps. (more…)

All that New Zealand did right was to have won the toss in the third and final Test played against India at Nagpur Stadium. Thereafter it was a pathetic display of cricket by New Zealand. After chosing to bat first, New Zealand were skittled out for a measely score of 193 runs.

Harbhajan Singh

India in turn, piled of a mammoth 566 for 8 declared which was studded by 191 runs by Rahul Dravid, 98 runs by Dhoni and the New Zealanders had an uphill task of scoring 373 runs in their second innings, and they failed miserably. 

Two Indian pacers and the spinning trio (Raina included) wrecked havoc for the batsman who could neither read the arm-ball nor could judge the turn well and surrendered their fight as soon as it had begun in asmuch as they lost the last nine wickets in just over a session of play.

India won the test match about an hour after the lunch break. Pragyan Ojha, Harbhajan Singh and Suresh Raina bowled and were adequately switched by skipper Dhoni, who in the end, called in Ishant Sharma, who cleaned up the tail by rattling the timber of Southee and Martin, twice in a span of two balls.  (more…)

Hyderabad. The second test between India and New Zealand ended in a draw on the fifth day on Tuesday. New Zealand had given India a target of 327 runs with not enough time left in the game to achieve it. India batted for 17 overs after tea wherein Sehwag was able to delight the crowd with a 50. Thereafter the two teams decided to call off the match.

Brendon McCullum

Brendon McCullum reaped rewards for his hard work and got third-highest score  in Tests in India. The game was headed for a draw the moment Zaheer Khan left the field again after bowling just three overs in the morning session.

New Zealand has now held India, the No. 1 side, to four consecutive draws.

India  had their chances to wrap up this match.  On one occassion, Cheteshwar Pujara dropped McCullum at forward short leg when the batsman was 148. Another chance India got to have a result in the match, was when  Kane Williamson was given out lbw erroneously to an off break which was sure to miss the leg stump but could not pressurize the New Zealanders later. (more…)

M.S.Dhoni won the toss and elected to bat in the first Test match of the three-match Test series at the Sardar Patel stadium in Motera, Ahmedabad, on Thursday. Dhoni was lucky on the Tenth occassion, having lost the toss nine times consecutively. Though India lost Gautam Gambhir early, Virender Sehwag slammed a quickfire century against New Zealand.

Virendra Sehwag

Sehwag batted agressively during the day and after luch  session he reached his 22nd Test century. Sehwag slammed 24 fours and a six for his 173 runs.

Sehwag scored an unbeaten 87 runs to dominate the first session and help India reach 127 for one at lunch on the first day of the first Test against New Zealand. Rahul Dravid  was the other not out batsman at the lunch break.

Sehwag and Dravid put on a 273 runs stand for the second wicket which has put India on a comfortable platform in this match.

The first session belonged to Sehwag who entertained the fans with splendid shots all around the Stadium. (more…)

India proved their dominance in Cricket by defeating Australia by 5 wickets in the second ODI match played at the flood-lit Stadium at Vishakapatnam. Captain M.S.Dhoni won the toss and elected to field at the YSR Reddy Stadium on Wednesday. Australia  lost two quick wickets as both openers were consumed by Ashish Nehra. This victory follows their win over Australia in the recently concluded Test series. 

Virat Kohli

Michael Clarke and Michael Hussey later saved the innings with a fine 144 run stand and after 45 overs Australia were 205 for 3. Australia looted 84 runs in the final five overs and Cameron White slammed 70 runs in his last 24 deliveries. 

Some big hitting by Cameron White (89 from 49 balls) was at display including a straight drive which went through umpire Billy Bowden. It took Bowden a fraction of a second to duck out of the line of the shot otherwise Bowden would have been history had the shot hit him on the head. 

Skipper Clarke and Hussey did the repair work, building their innings brick by brick. In the end Cameron White’s big hitting helped Australia in reaching a fighting total of 289 runs. 

Both White and Clarke were in a rampaging mood. Nehra, who had an impressive first spell, had his figures destroyed towards the end as he returned with 57 runs from his 10 overs. (more…)

Bangalore:  After a tight finish in Mohali a week ago, it was a one-sided game in Bangalore as India comfortably beat Australia by seven-wickets on day five of the second Test to win the two-match series 2-0 on Wednesday and register their first win here in 15 years.

Cheteshwar Pujara

India won the first Test at Mohali, thanks to VVS Laxman who played a splendid knock there to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. In the second test it was Sachin Tendulkar’s herioc 214 in the first innings and 53 not out in the second innings which spelt doom for Australia.

Earlier in the day, the Australians added 21 runs to their overnight score and ended up being dismissed for 223 at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.

Requiring 206 runs to win on the last day, India began the run chase from the word go and lost Sehwag early in the second innings. But Cheteshwar Pujara and Murli Vijay ensured building the foundation of India’s victory at Bangalore in front of a jam-packed Stadium. Pujara slammed chancelesss 72 on Test debut was bowled by Nathan Hauritz. He seems to have sealed his place as the one-down batsman for the Indian Team. (more…)

 No T20  match nor an ODI will give so much thrill to spectators within the stadium and Cricket lovers around the world as this Mohali Test match did. It was a  nail-biting atmosphere as India requiring 216 to win the match in the last innings, pulled off a spectacular victory to beat Australia by one wicket. 

VVS Laxman

VVS Laxman, despite, his backache remained unbeaten on 73 runs took India to a one-wicket win against Australia in the Mohali Test which ended like a live-wire. 

India has now taken a 1-0 lead in the series. It was Laxman and Ishant Sharma who put up a match winning partnership of 81 runs. 

Yesterday, India were 55 for the loss of four wickets and it was expected that Australia would finish the formalities by noon today and win the match, but that was not to be. India had struggled to reach 162-8 at lunch on the fifth day after resuming their second innings at 55-4. 

Zaheer Khan was caught by Michael Clarke for 10 runs at first slip off the bowling of Hauritz.  (more…)