ICC World Cup 2011 updates: 14th March 2011

The 33rd match of the ICC World Cup 2011 was played between Pakistan and Zimbabwe at Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Kandy, Sri Lanka. The toss went into the favor of Zimbabwe and they chose to bat first.

Brendan Taylor and Regis Chakabva opened the batting innings for Zimbabwe. After hitting for a four, Brendan Taylor got out in the first over itself. In the next over, his opening partner Regis Chakabva got out by getting lbw. Zimbabwe were on deep trouble and their run rate dropped drastically. On the other hand when their total was only 12 runs, third wicket fell. After this fall, there were some good partnerships that followed. Even their run rate was back on track but not to good level. Craig Ervine scored an half-century. In 39.4 overs, Zimbabwe scored a total of 151 runs for the loss of 7 wickets (ZIM - 151/7, 39.4 over). The match turned into an D\L method. Umar Gul took 3 wickets for Pakistan.

Pakistan wanted to finish off the match as soon as possible and the target was an easy one for them. They gave an brilliant start. First wicket fell when Pakistan had scored only 17 runs it was Ahmad Shahzad. Second wicket partnership costed 82 runs. In just 34.1 overs, Pakistan put up a total of 164 runs for the loss of 3 wickets (PAK - 164/3, 34.1 over). It was an D\L method. Asad Shafiq was unbeaten scoring 78 runs.

Pakistan won the match by 7 wickets. Man of the match went to Umar Gul for his brilliant piece of bowling.

ICC World Cup 2011 updates: 14th March 2011

On 14th March 2011, match number 32 and 33 of the ICC World Cup 2011 was played. 32nd match was played between Bangladesh and Netherlands at Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium, Chittagong, Bangladesh. Netherlands won the toss and they elected to bat first.

The start was not so smooth and played very defensively. First wicket fell in the first delivery of the 10th over where they had scored only 28 runs. After this, the run rate was not pretty much stronger and the wickets started to fall at regular intervals. Ryan ten Doeschate played well and he remained unbeaten scoring 53 runs. Other batsmen failed to play for longer period and could not give a good support to Ryan ten Doeschate. In 46.2 overs, Netherlands were all out scoring only 160 runs (NED- 160/10, 46.2 over). Abdur Razzak took 3 wickets for Bangladesh. The run rate was only 3.45 runs per over put up by Netherlands.

Bangladesh needed only 161 runs to win the match in 50 overs with 10 wickets on hand. Tamim Iqbal and Imrul Kayes opened the batting innings for Bangladesh. Opener Tamim Iqbal departed without scoring any run by getting bowled in Mudassar Bukhari delivery. There was a good support given by Zunaed Siddique and Shahriar Nafees to Imrul Kayes which helped the Bangladesh team to win the match. Imrul Kayes was unbeaten scoring 73 runs. In 41.2 overs, Bangladesh chased the target successfully scoring a total of 166 runs  for the loss of 4 wickets (BAN - 166/4, 41.2 over).

Bangladesh won the match by 6 wickets. Man of the match went to Imrul Kayes.

ICC World Cup 2011 updates: Day 19

25th match of the ICC World Cup 2011 was played between India and Netherlands at Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi, India. Netherlands won the toss and they chose to bat first.

Netherlands opened its batting innings with the openers Eric Swarczynski and Wesley Barresi. They both started off well and they were slow & steady. They put up a partnership of 56 runs and the Indians were really pissed off to get their first wicket. After a long struggle, Indians managed to take their first wicket in 15.2 over. Once the break happened, the match turned in the favor of the hosts. They managed to take wickets by giving very less runs and  the interval of taking the wickets were large. The run rate kept on dropping for Netherlands. In 34.2 overs, Netherlands lost 6 wickets and scored 108 runs. They were all out in 46.4 overs, and put up a total of 189 runs (NED - 189/10, 46.4 over). Which means in 12.2 overs i.e, in 74 deliveries they scored 81 runs loosing 4 wickets. This clearly shows that Indians poor bowling performance. Zaheer Khan took 3 wickets for India.

Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar opened the innings for India. They opened their batting innings with a four and started belting the Netherland bowlers. At one point of time, Indians were looking like they were going to finish the match in 22-25 overs. But unfortunately after a superb start, Virender Sehwag got out and soon master blaster followed him. Yusuf Pathan, Gautam Gambhir and Virat Kohli did not make it big today. At this point of time, Netherlands were back with hopes as India lost 5 wickets only 139 runs. Now entire team were depending on MS Dhoni and Yuvaraj Singh, if they both failed then Netherlands had their best chance to win a match against India. Unfortunately, they could not succeed. Yuvaraj Singh and MS Dhoni stayed till the end and completed the innings successfully. Yuvarj Singh scored his half-century which was the 3rd one in this World Cup. In 36.3 overs, India scored a total of 191 runs for the loss of 5 wickets (191/5, 36.3 over). Pieter Seelaar took 3 wickets for Netherlands team.

India won the match by 5 wickets. Man of the match went to Yuvaraj Singh for his brilliant performance with bat (51*) and ball(2 wickets).

Indians have played against Bangladesh, England, Ireland and now on Netherlands in this World Cup. In all the games, opponents have clearly dominated Indian bowling attack. Being an Indian supporter, i don't really know where the hell are the good bowlers are gone. Zaheer Khan because of whom we lost 2003 World Cup against Australia is now again a part of Indian team but somehow managing to bowl and take wickets. He has got lot of attitude and does not respect his opponents and so is Sreesanth. Why BCCI are not considering these things because of which our bowling performance are diminishing day by day. First thing that has to be followed is discipline, i really want BCCI to act upon this matter. If there is no or less attitude, the more the performance will be. Anyways, what ever i have felt, i have spilled it out and i want my India to win the World Cup this time. 

ICC World Cup 2011 updates: Day 18

On the 18th day of the ICC World Cup 2011, Pakistan and New Zealand faced each other at Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, Kandy, Sri Lanka. Kiwis won the toss and they chose to bat first. Today an unbelievable batting performance in the World Cup history was been displayed by the Kiwis. In the last 4.1 overs i.e, in 25 balls, they scored 92 runs. The main player who was behind this was my all time favorite "Ross Taylor".

Martin Guptill and Brendon McCullum opened the batting innings for the Kiwis. Brendon did not stay long, he departed after thrashing Shoaib Akthar for a six. Jamie How came in to bat and he played really slow. He just scored 4 runs in 29 deliveries. Only Martin Guptill was playing at this moment. Ross Taylor entered the crease and he was very defensive at the start. Pakistan were dominant in bowling and they successfully removed 6 wickets in 45.5 overs giving away only 210 runs. At this point of time, New Zealand were in bad position as their run rate was less than 5 runs per over. After this, Jacob Oram and Ross Taylor just belted the Pakistani bowlers in all the ways as much as possible. They destroyed the Pakistani bowling attack, they both scored 85 runs partnership in just 22 deliveries, that means 3.86 runs per delivery. This was the major turning point for the Kiwis. Finally they ended up scoring a magnificent 302 runs in total loosing 7 wickets in 7 overs (NZ - 302/7, 50 over). Ross Taylor was unbeaten scoring 131 runs in 124 deliveries that included 8 fours and 7 sixes. Brendon McCullum had hit a six, Nathan McCullum 2 sixes and Jacob Oram 3 sixes. In total, Kiwis had hit 13 sixes in their batting innings. Only Umar Gul the economical bowler from Pakistan, his economy rate was only 3.2 runs per over and took 3 wickets.

Pakistan after the bad bowling performance, needed 303 runs to win the match. They could not go for big runs as they were loosing the wickets in quick successions. In 17.1 overs, they lost 6 wickets and scored a total of 66 runs only. Umar Akmal, Abdul Razzaq and Umar Gul some how managed to play for longer time and scored some useful runs. But they failed to make it big. Abdul Razzaq made his half-century. Finally Pakistan gave all its wickets to the Kiwis and ended their batting innings scoring a total of 192 runs in 41.4 overs (PAK - 192/10, 41.4 over). Tim Southee took 3 wickets.


New Zealand won the match by 110 runs. Man of the match was Ross Taylor who showed an brilliant batting performance and also took a catch.


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ICC World Cup 2011 updates: Day 17

Already 16 days has been passed since the ICC World Cup 2011 started. On the 17th day, only one match was played. It was between Canada and Kenya at Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi, India. The toss went into the favor of Kenya and they chose to bat first.

Morris Ouma and Seren Waters opened the batting innings for Kenya. In the second delivery of the innings, there was a big blow for Kenyans. Morris Ouma got duck out and departed from the field by giving a simple catch to Harvir Baidwan. After this fall, Kenya started to feel more and more pressure. Canada started to dominate the Kenyans, and they successfully managed to Seren Waters when Kenya total was just 7 runs.  There was small partnerships till 5 th wicket fell. After this Tanmay Mishra, Jimmy Kamande and Thomas Odoyo some valuable runs that helped Kenya to put up some useful total. Tanmay Mishra and Thomas Odoyo scored their half-centuries. Last wicket to fall was Thomas Odoyo who departed scoring 51 runs in the very last delivery of the innings. Kenya somehow managed to complete 50 overs and put up a total of 198 runs with the loss of 10 wickets (KEN - 198/10, 50 over). Henry Osinde was the most economical bowler in Canada side taking 4 wickets with an economy rate of 2.6 runs per over.

In reply to the Kenya, Canada started of its chase with its openers Ruvindu Gunasekera and Rizwan Cheema. Rizwan Cheema played some shots and likewise vanished sooner. He departed after scoring 17 runs in 13 deliveries that included 2 fours and a six. Zubin Surkari and Ruvindu Gunasekera did not bat for long. Ashish Bagai and Jimmy Hansra played very slowly and put up a partnership of 132 runs and they both scored their half-centuries. In 45.3 overs, Canada managed to chase the target successfully scoring 199 runs for the loss of 5 wickets (CAN - 199/5, 45.3 over). Ashish Bagai remained notout scoring 64 runs.

Canada won the match by 5 wickets. Man of the match was Henry Osinde.

ICC World Cup 2011 updates: Day 16 Match 2

On the 16th day of the ICC World Cup 2011, second match of the day was played between India and Ireland at M.Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru, India. The toss went into the favor of India and they elected to field first.

William Porterfield and Paul Stirling opened the batting innings for Ireland. Zaheer Khan started the bowling innings for India and he took Paul Stirling's wicket in the very first over itself. This gave some confidence to the Indians bowling. In the 3rd over, Zaheer Khan took his second wicket, this time it was Ed Joyce who gave an easy catch to MS Dhoni. Niall O'Brien came in and made a good partnership with the skipper William Porterfield. Indians started to loose control and Ireland started to dominate the match. It cost-ed 113 runs partnership before loosing the 4th wicket. After this breakage Indians somehow managed to take out remaining wickets restricting Ireland to put up a total of 207 runs on board (IRE - 207/10, 47.5 over). Ireland skipper William Porterfield scored 75 runs. Yuvaraj Singh took 5 wickets which supposed to be his best bowling figure. Zaheer Khan took 3 wickets.

India opened its batting innings with Virender Sehwag and master blaster Sachin Tendulkar. Sehwag could not stay for longer time and so was Gautam Gambhir. After the fall of 2 wickets, Virat Kohli came in to bat and put up some good runs. Even MS Dhoni, Yuvaraj Singh and Yusuf Pathan played some good knocks that helped India to add up required runs. By 46 overs, India scored 210 runs and lost 5 wickets (IND - 210/5, 46 over). Yuvaraj Singh was unbeaten scoring 50 runs and Yusuf Pathan unbeaten at 30 runs that included 2 fours and 3 sixes.

India won the match by 5 wickets. Man of the match was Yuvaraj Singh who played magnificently with bat and ball where he took 5 wickets, one catch and an unbeaten half-century.

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ICC World Cup 2011 updates: Day 13 Match 2

The second match was played between Pakistan and Canada at R.Premadasa Stadium, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Pakistan won the toss and they chose to bat first.

Mohammad Hafeez and Ahmad Shahzad opened the batting innings for Pakistan. They started off very well but they lost Mohammad Hafeez in the 1st delivery of the 4th over. But this did not stop them in getting good score. Once the second wicket fell, their run rate started to drop. Misbah-ul-Haq, Umar Akmal and Shahid Afridi put up some partnership that helped them to some how manage to score a decent total. Umar Akmal departed after scoring 48 runs where he failed to get his half century. After the break of these small partnerships, Canada managed to remove remaining wickets in quick succession. Finally Pakistan gave up scoring a total of 184 runs in 43 overs (Pak - 184/10, 43 over). Harvir Baidwan took 2 wickets for Canada.

Canada needed only 185 runs to win the match, but it was looking little tougher as the Pakistanis were dominant in bowling. Canada started off poorly and lost 2 wickets quickly. Fourth wicket partnership brought some hope for the Canadians. The partnership was of 60 runs, One the breakage of this partnership, Pakistan started to take remaining wickets easily. This was the turning point for Pakistan where their hopes came back when their skipper Shahid Afridi managed to take 4 wickets consecutively. In 42.5 overs, Canada lost all its 10 wickets and ended up scoring only 138 runs in total (CAN - 138/10, 42.5 over). Shahid Afridi looked very impressive with the ball as he took 5 wickets with an economy rate of 2.3 runs per over. A new record was set by the Pakistani skipper as he took 4 wickets in 3 matches consecutively in a World Cup.

Pakistan won the match by 46 runs. Man of the match went to Shahid Afridi for his 5 wicket haul.

ICC World Cup 2011 updates: Day 13 Match 1

Ahhh!!!! Thursday was the 13th day of the ICC World Cup 2011. On this day 2 matches were played, the first match played between South Africa and Netherlands at Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali, India. The toss went into the favor of Netherlands and they let the South Africans to bat first.

Hashim Amla and Graeme Smith opened the batting innings for RSA. They started off pretty decently and put up a partnership of 51 runs in 12.5 over. First man to get out was the skipper Graeme Smith where he was bowled out by Bernard Loots. It was not a big day for Jacques Kallis as he departed scoring only 2 runs. After the second fall, AB de Villiers came in to bat and partnered with Hashim Amla to put up a partnership of 221 runs. Hashim Amla scored 113 runs in 130 balls and AB de Villiers scored 134 runs in just 98 deliveries that included 13 fours and 4 sixes. After the fall of the both, JP Duminy came in and just quick fired to score a total of 40 runs in just 15 deliveries that included 2 fours and 4 sixes with a strike rate of 266.67 runs per ball. In 50 overs, RSA managed to score a total of 351 runs with the loss of 5 wickets (RSA - 351/5, 50 over). Ryan ten Doeschate took 3 wickets for Netherlands.

Netherlands needed 352 runs to win the match. As in the case of Ireland and England match, this match will not have that much hope as they were facing the most dominant team in the world. For the first 5 overs, Netherlands somehow managed to put up some runs without loosing any wickets. But after this they started to loose wickets and kept on loosing in regular intervals. Their asking rate kept on increasing and the South Africans looked dominant. By 34.5 overs, south Africans managed to remove all the wickets of Netherlands to end up their total score to 120 runs (NED - 120/10, 34.5 over). Imran Tahir took 3 wickets.

South Africa won the match by 231 runs. Man of the match was AB de Villiers for his magnificent century.

ICC World Cup 2011 updates: Day 10

On the day 10 of the ICC World Cup 2011, a match was played between Srilanka and Kenya at R.Premadasa Stadium, Colombo, Sri Lanka. The toss went into the favor of Kenya and they chose to bat first.

As Srilanka has many well recognized bowlers on their side, right from the start of the innings they dominated the Kenyans. In the second over, Kenya lost its first wicket. Morris Ouma was out by getting an lbw in Nuwan Kulasekara's over. In the third over, they lost one more wicket, at this point of time, they had scored only 8 runs and lost 2 wickets. Collins Obuya and David Obuya started to play well and showed some awesome performances. They both put up a partnership of 94 runs. Collins Obuya was bowled by Lasith Malinga after scoring 52 runs. After the break of this partnership, Kenya could not resist the Srilankan's bowling attack and they lost all the wickets scoring a total of 142 runs only in 43.4 overs. David Obuya scored 51 runs. Lasith Malinga took 6 wickets, in which 4 was bowled and 2 was lbw. He even took a hat-trick in this match.

Srilanka needed only 143 runs to win the match and it was not an tough chase for them at all. Upul Tharanga and Tillakaratne Dilshan opened the batting innings for Srilanka. They started off very aggressively reaching almost 9 runs per over. Tillakaratne Dilshan departed after scoring 44 runs in just 30 deliveries that included 8 fours. Later, Upul Tharanga and Kumar Sangakkara put up a unbeaten partnership of 74 runs and won the match for Srilanka. Upul Tharanga was unbeaten scoring 67 runs and the skipper was unbeaten at 27 runs. By 18.4 overs, Srilanka scored a total of 146 runs for the loss of 1 wicket.

Srilanka won the match by 9 wickets. Man of the match was Lasith Malinga.

ICC World Cup 2011 updates: Day 9 match 1

On the 9th day of the ICC World Cup 2011, 2 matches were played. First match was between Zimbabwe and Canada at Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium, Nagpur, India. Zimbabwe won the toss and chose to bat first.

Brendan Taylor and Charles Coventry opened the batting innings for Zimbabwe. In the very first delivery of the innings, Brendan Taylor returned back to pavilion as he was given lbw. Tatenda Taibu the most experienced played of the team came in to bat. Charles Coventry was also given lbw and he departed scoring only 4 runs from 10 deliveries. At this point of time, Zimbabwe were 7-2 after 3.3 overs. Craig Ervine came in and partnered with the skipper and put up a very good partnership of 181 runs. Craig Ervine departed after contributing 85 runs to his team in 81 deliveries that included 6 fours and 2 sixes. Tatenda Taibu scored a magnificent 98 runs and got out missing his century. After the major break, the lower order batsmen contributed their shares to the team's total. Finally, Zimbabwe put up a total score of 298 runs in 50 overs. Balaji Rao took 4 wickets for Canada.

Canada needed 299 runs in 50 overs to win the match. They start off pretty slow and lost their first wicket in the second over. They kept on loosing wickets in regular manner with the scoring run rate getting lesser and lesser. Not even a single batsmen could resist the Zimbabwe bowlers for longer time. By 42.1 overs, they lost all 10 wickets and scored only 123 runs. Ray Price and Graeme Cremer took 3 wickets each for the team.

Zimbabwe won the match by 175 runs. Man of the match was Tatenda Taibu.

ICC World Cup 2011 updates: Day 9 match 2

On the day 9, second match of the day was played between West Indies and Netherlands. Netherlands won the toss and chose to field first.

Devon Smith and Chris Gayle opened the batting innings for the WI team. Right from the start of the innings, the Caribbeans looked dominant. First wicket partnership was 100 runs for 16.3 overs. Devon Smith departed after scoring 53 runs and Chris Gayle departed after scoring 80 runs. Ramnaresh Sarwan was unlucky as he departed when he was at 49 and could not complete his half century. Kieron Pollard, the big man came in to bat and dominated all the bowlers. He just blasted out and scored a magnificent 60 runs in just 27 deliveries that included 5 fours and 4 sixes. His batting strike rate was 222.22. After 50 overs, West Indies landed up scoring a magnificent total of 330 runs for the loss of 8 wickets. Pieter Seelaar took 3 wickets and looked impressive with the ball as his economy rate was just 4.5 runs per over under this kind of circumstances.

Netherlands needed 331 runs to win the match. The start was pretty slow for Netherlands and they lost their first wicket in the second over itself. After this break, Caribbeans started to take wickets in regular manner and dominated the opponents in bowling. NED kept on loosing wickets and finally ended up scoring only 115 runs in 31.3 overs. Tom Cooper was unbeaten scoring 55 runs. Kemar Roach took 6 wickets and was very impressive with the ball. His economy rate was just 3.17 runs per over.

West Indies won the match by 215 runs. Man of the match went to Kemar Roach.

ICC World Cup 2011 updates: Day 8

On the 8th day of the ICC World Cup 2011, India played against England at M.Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru, India. Toss went into the favor of MS Dhoni and he chose to bat first.

The big guns Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar opened the batting innings for India. Sehwag hit 4 in the first delivery of the innings itself, it was an awesome start for India. Sehwag kept on firing and on the other end Sachin Tendulkar did not strike well. Sehwag departed after scoring 35 runs from 26 deliveries. Gautam Gambhir came in to bat and he also started playing well. Mean while Sachin took the responsibility and started hitting the ball. Gauti departed after scoring his half century and Yuvi came in to bat. Yuvaraj Singh partnered with master blaster and played some decent knocks while Sachin kept on hitting few sixes. Sachin Tendulkar looking to hit a big one, but at-last he changed his mind and tried to flick towards leg side which got edged and went straight to Michael Yardy who made no mistake. Master blaster Sachin Tendulkar went back to pavilion after scoring 120 runs in 115 deliveries that included 10 fours and 5 sixes. Yuvaraj Singh made his half century and returned back. Immediately Indian skipper MS Dhoni followed him. After this things changed, India lost remaining wickets and were all out in 49.5 overs with 1 delivery to spare. India scored 338 runs with the loss of 10 wickets. Tim Bresnan took 5 wickets.

England needed 339 runs to win the match, which is not an easy go for them. Andrew Strauss and Kevin Pietersen started the batting innings for England. They both started off well and right from the beginning boundaries kept on adding. After the fall of Kevin Pietersen and Jonathan Trott, Ian Bell came in and made a good partnership of 170 runs. This partnership took away India's hope of winning the match. In the 43rd over, Zaheer Khan came back and broke the partnership claiming both the wickets back to back. Andrew Strauss scored an amazing score of 158 runs and Ian Bell scored 69 runs. After this, things turned towards Indian side and they were looking stronger back with hopes. But this didn't last long as they started giving runs but at the same time taking wickets. When Piyush Chawla bowled the 49th over, he went for 2 sixes which almost turned the match towards England. But, he picked up his prey in the last delivery. At this point of time England were 325 runs with the loss of 8 wickets. They were in need of 14 runs in 6 deliveries with 2 wickets remaining. After a six was hit, England were little relieved and the hope for India was again gone as England needed only 4 runs from 2 deliveries. In the next delivery they made 2 more runs thus requiring only 2 runs from 1 ball to win the match. Last delivery Munaf bowled a good one and gave just only one run. Both the teams were releaved as the match did not go in to anyones favor.

Match was drawn and the points was shared by both the teams. Man of the match was Andrew Strauss.

ICC World Cup 2011 updates: Day 7 match 2

Second match of the day was played between Bangladesh and Ireland at Shere Bangla National Stadium, Mirpur, Bangladesh. Bengal tigers won the toss and elected to bat first.

Tamim Iqbal and Imrul Kayes started off the batting innings for Bangladesh. The opening was very aggressive, Tamim Iqbal was just firing. But this did not long last when his partner Imrul Kayes departed scoring 12 runs. At this point of time, Bangladesh total was 53 runs in just 6.3 overs. After this break, Bengal tigers start to feel the pressure and their scoring rate kept on decreasing with each fall. At 49.2 over, they lost all the 10 wickets and ended up scoring only 205 runs. Andre Botha took 3 wickets for Ireland and very impressive.

Ireland needed only 206 runs to win the match. Skipper William Porterfield and Paul Striling opened the batting innings for the Bangladesh. The start was slow as the asking rate was less than 4 runs per over. When Ireland were at 23 runs, they lost Paul Stirling and at 36 William Porterfield. Somehow they managed to score runs and kept the pressurs on Bangladeshis. When Ireland reached 151 runs, The Bangladesh supporters kept silent as Ireland came back strongly. Even Bangladesh team were loosing confidence, this thing ended when Shafiul Islam came back very strongly. He took Kevin O'Brien which was his first wicket of the day. The crowd just burst into cheers and the team was back on track. The hope of winning the match was back in them. Later the fall of 6th wicket, Shafiul Islam took remaining 3 wickets. In other terms i can say that he destroyed the lower batting lineup and ended up taking 4 wickets and became the most economical bowler in the match.

Bangladesh team won the match by 27 runs. Man of the match went to Tamim Iqbal for his good batting performance and a beautiful catch which took which was considered as the turning point for winning the match.

ICC World Cup 2011 updates: Day 7

On the day 7 of the ICC World Cup, 2 matches were played. First match was between Australia and New Zealand at Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium, Nagpur, India. Australia won the toss and let the Kiwis to bat first.

Martin Guptill and Brendon McCullum opened the batting innings for the Kiwis. The start was pretty impressive for the Kiwis, but this did not last long when Brendon McCullum gave a catch to Jason Krejza and departed after scoring 16 runs from 12 deliveries. After this Kiwis started to loose wickets quickly. It lost 7 wickets in just 17 overs scoring only 73 runs, when all hopes faded Jamie How and Nathan McCullum put up some good partnership and so did Daniel Vettori. From 17 overs, they sustained till 45.1 overs and lost all 10 wickets. This was a good comeback for them and ended up scoring 206 runs in total. Mitchell Johnson took 4 wickets and Shaun Tait took 3 wickets that help Aussies to destroy Kiwis batting lineup.

Australia opened its batting innings with the openers Shane Watson and Brad Haddin. They both started off very well and put up half centuries scoring 62 and 55 runs with a partnership of 133 runs. After the fall of the openers, Ricky Ponting could not stay long enough to finish off the innings. Later Michael Clarke and Cameron White stood till the end and completed the required runs and returned back victorious. By 34 overs, Australia scored a total of 207 runs with the loss of 3 wickets. 

Australia won the match by 7 wickets. Man of the match went to Mitchell Johnson for his brilliant bowling performance.

ICC World Cup 2011 updates: Day 6

On the 6th day of the ICC World Cup 2011, A match was played between South Africa and West Indies at Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi, India. The toss went into the favor of SA and they decided to field first.

West Indies opened its batting innings with Chris Gayle and Devon Smith. Chris Gayle scored 2 runs in the first 2 balls and in the third delivery, he gave an easy catch to Jacques Kallis who makes no mistakes. Darren Bravo came in to bat and put up a partnership of 111 runs that gave hope to the other batsmen. After the fall of second wicket, they lost 2 more wickets in quick intervals. One good partnership came after this, which was between Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Dwayne Bravo. After this break, West Indies struggled a lot to move forward and finally ended up loosing remaining wickets in 47.3 overs. West Indies put up a total score of 222 runs. Imran Tahir took 4 wickets and Dale Steyn took 3 wickets that helped them to restrict WI to 222 runs in total.

South Africa needed only 223 runs in 50 overs. Being one of the strongest team in the world at moment, this was not an difficult job for them. Hashim Amla could not make it big today and was Jacques Kallis. After the fall of 2 wickets, Graeme Smith hanged out at the crease for a while and departed after scoring 45 runs. JP Duminy came in to bat and partnered with AB de Villiers and put up a unbeaten 84 runs partnership. AB de Villiers scored his century and remained unbeaten at 107 runs. By 42.5 overs, South Africa scored 223 runs for the loss of just 3 wickets.

South Africa won the match by 7 wickets. Man of the match went to AB de Villiers for his century.

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ICC World Cup 2011 updates: Day 5

On the day 5 of the ICC World Cup 2011, Pakistan and Kenya faced each other at Mahinda Rajapaksa International Cricket Stadium, Hambantota, Sri Lanka. Pakistan won the toss and elected to bat first.

Pakistan opened the batting innings with its openers Mohammad Hafeez  and Ahmad Shahzad. The start was very poor and Kenyans looked dominant. In first 6.5 overs, Pakistan struggled a lot and scored only 12 runs and lost its openers. After this fall, Kamran Akmal partnered with Younus Khan and put up a partnership of 88 runs that gave some boost to other players in the team. After the break of this partnership, few more good partnerships added much of score to the total. Kamran Akmal, Younus Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq and Umar Akmal  scored half centuries. After completing 50 overs, Pakistan landed up scoring a magnificent 317 runs in total for the loss of 7 wickets. Thomas Odoyo took 3 wickets for Kenya.

Kenya needed 318 runs to win the match. But this was an very difficult target as the opponents are one of the strongest teams in the world. Kenyans started off good but with lesser run rate than the required rate. First wicket fell in 1st ball of the 10th over, this shows that they were in a situation such that they had to start scoring because of the asking rate that kept on increasing. After the fall of 1st wicket, Kenya started loosing wickets in regular intervals. Only Collins Obuya showed some resistance to the Pakistani bowlers and some good knocks. He scored 47 runs that included 3 fours and 3 sixes. But the Captain Shahid Afridi bowled well  and took 5 wickets in his 8 over spell and more over his economy rate was just 2 runs per over. In 33.1 overs, Kenya lost all its 10 wickets and ended up scoring 112 runs.

Pakistan won the match by 205 runs. Man of the match went to Umar Akmal for his brilliant batting performance where he scored 71 runs in just 52 deliveries and he took a catch and one run-out.

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ICC World Cup 2011 Opening ceremony

Today ICC World Cup 2011 opening ceremony was held at Dhaka, Bangladesh. All the 14 team skippers were in present in this ceremony. The stadium was filled with excitement with full colors and music. The main performers were Sonu Nigam, Runa Laila and the Canadian rocker Bryan Adams who rocked the stadium.

There would have been plenty of taught that had come in the minds of all the skippers. As of now, they should be having their own gaming strategies and plans prepared for this World Cup. Each players dream would be to lift the ICC World Cup along with their team members and return to their homes with glory.

In total 49 matches will be played in a span 6 weeks. The decider match i.e, the finals between the 2 glorious team performing in this World Cup will be played on 2nd April in Mumbai. One shall stand victorious while others shall fall.