Dhoni confident of semi-final berth

Chennai Super Kings skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni said his team still had a chance of making it to the Indian Premier League (IPL) semi-finals despite a shock defeat to Bangalore Royal Challengers.
`I don`t want to leave anything for our last game against the Deccan Chargers, but we would like to beat Rajasthan Royals here on Saturday and qualify for the semi-finals,` he said.
Dhoni said a couple of partnerships would have helped Super Kings to pull through after Stephen Fleming and Parthiv Patel had provided them a solid start.
Sharing his thoughts on the dramatic collapse, the skipper admitted that poor shot selection led to loss of wickets.
`It was a gettable total. We changed the batting order according to the situation. If the players thought in the middle as much as they thought in the dressing room, we would have won,` he said.
Challangers captain Rahul Dravid gave full credit to his bowlers, particularly Anil Kumble, while admitting that his batsmen did not perform.

`We played well in our first match against Chennai in Bangalore but could not finish and the same thing happened to the Chennai team today. Anil (Kumble) was brilliant and turned the tide in our favour,` he said.
`Even in the last two overs, one could not say as to who will win. When we got Fleming, we had a chance but Suresh Raina is known for big hitting. It is good to have won a match after five straight losses,` he said.
`It has not been a good season, but we have to show some responsibility. Hopefully, the same team will do well in the next season,` he said.

Sachin unhappy with umpiring

Mumbai Indians captain Sachin Tendulkar has expressed disappointment with some of the umpiring decisions that were taken during their clash with KingS XI Punjab in Mumbai on Thursday.

Mumbai's first innings saw some of the decisions which seemed to be incorrect that included run-outs of D Smith and S Chitnis. And in their second innings, there was another such decision which went against Mumbai's favour. Kings XI Punjab's Luke Pomersback was not given out in spite of a direct hit by Shaun Pollock which TV replays clearly showed him out.

"The world saw it, I need not say anything on this," said Sachin Tendulkar.

Royal Challengers stun Chennai by 14 runs

Chennai Super Kings batsmen perished under pressure as Anil Kumble's three-wicket haul helped Bangalore Royal Challengers register a 14-run win, their first victory after five consecutive defeats, in the Indian Premier League match on Wednesday.

Chasing a modest target of 127 to win, the home batsmen spoilt a good platform provided by openers Stephen Fleming and Parthiv Patel to manage only 112 runs for the loss of eight wickets.

The defeat at the MA Chidambaram Stadium meant that Mahendra Singh Dhoni's men, with 14 points from 12 matches, will have to wait further to book their semi-final berth.

Kings XI Punjab halt Mumbai's winning run

Kings XI Punjab halted Mumbai Indians' winning streak with a thrilling one-run victory off the last ball in the Indian Premier League at the Wankhede Stadium on Wednesday.
In a thrilling final phase of the match, the home team - chasing the visitors' 189 for four - were dismissed for 188 after losing their last six wickets in three overs and one ball in a dramatic change of fortunes.

Seemingly cruising to a comfortable victory with captain Sachin Tendulkar (65) leading from front, Mumbai Indians suddenly lost the plot and a clutch of wickets (mostly to run-outs and the list included their skipper) to end up on the losing side.

From 159 for three in 16.5 overs, the home team slumped to 188 all out when last man Vikrant Yeligati was run out at the non-striker's end by a superb piece of fielding by Punjab XI skipper Yuvraj Singh when two runs were needed off the final ball

Australia to launch Indian-style Twenty20 league

BIG business could be asked to tender for domestic Twenty20 franchises within a year as Australian cricket prepares for a revolutionary overhaul.

Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland yesterday confirmed plans for Australia to host its version of the Indian Premier League as early as the 2009-10 season.

Sutherland said CA wanted to upgrade its two-week Big Bash domestic Twenty20 competition, and one way to tap into the game's latest cash cow would be to follow the lead of the IPL.

As revealed in the Herald Sun last week, CA is considering allowing teams to be privately owned franchises with salary caps and overseas talent to ensure lucrative TV coverage appeals internationally.

"In our review, leading into the 2009-10 season we will be launching our own Twenty20 competition that we believe will really significantly enhance what already is a good, strong KFC Big Bash competition," Sutherland said.

CA is frustrated that it does not share in the spoils of the IPL, despite providing some of the competition's drawcards.

There is a possibility governing boards will receive a handout if the IPL finds an exclusive spot in the international fixture next year.
This would mean nations would need to be reimbursed for missing out on revenue from Test and one-day international series.

But a sure way to tap into the Twenty20 boom is to host a major tournament, which England is also considering in conjunction with billionaire Allen Stanford.

"We are under no illusions that our market is a different size.
''We need to tailor our product to our market, but we still see a tremendous benefit of being able to play Twenty20 that will bring new people to the game," Sutherland said.

Speaking at the launch of next summer's international program, Sutherland also said:

THE traditional New Year's Test in Sydney, against South Africa, will begin a day later than usual on January 3 so players would have more rest after the MCG Test.

A TWENTY20 "Champions League" tournament featuring the two best teams from Australia, England, South Africa, India and Pakistan could still be held later this year.

CRICKET Australia was working with the CSIRO to find a ball suitable for staging Test cricket at night.

All is not well between SRK and Ganguly

The differences between Kolkata Knight Riders' owner Shah Rukh Khan and its skipper Sourav Ganguly have come out in the open after the team's poor performance against the Rajasthan Royals cost them their chance to feature in the top four teams. Sourav Ganguly spoke to Times Now and said, "I have seen the reports and I will clarify his stand in the controversy later." Refusing to comment on the issue and not denying any such reports could hint at a possible rift between the two. However, owner Shah Rukh Khan has not reacted to reports over possible rift between the two. Has the peace in the Kolkata Knight Riders' camp been shattered? Are 'Dada' Sourav Ganguly and 'Badshah' Shah Rukh Khan not getting along with each other anymore? Yes, say insiders. The two power centres in the Kolkata team are not seeing eye to eye on many issues. The problem apparently started with the entertainment tax that Shah Rukh Khan is paying for the matches being played at the Eden Gardens. The Bollywood star wanted Ganguly to speak to West Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya and try and get it abolished. The Kolkata captain, who is known to be close to the CM, has refused to oblige, at least till now. Interestingly, it is learnt that Eden Gardens is the only stadium where an IPL team is paying entertainment tax. That is not all though. The bigger bone of contention is KKR's sudden dip in form and its poor performance in the last few games, harming their semifinal chances. Shah Rukh, sources say, is not too happy with this change of fortunes although he hasn't expressed his feelings openly. Ganguly, on the other hand, has not been too pleased with the team composition right from the beginning. The differences surfaced during the auction itself, with Sourav wanting more batsmen while the team management was more keen on bowlers. The problems magnified when coach John Buchanan was given more powers than the captain himself. To add fuel to the fire, Shah Rukh announced that the coach will take all the decisions for the team next year onwards, upsetting Ganguly in the bargain. Ganguly has apparently already begun showing his discontent: he preferred to go back home after the last match rather than stay back for a press conference to annouce Knight Riders' tie-up with a website. Said an insider, who was present at the event, "Shah Rukh did pass some caustic remarks saying, 'I thank all my teammates for being at the press conference but who can forget Dada who is missing from the event'." The duo also had a spat when Khan was keen that his team fielded first in the last game against Chennai; Ganguly, however, preferred to bat first. Eventually, the Knight Riders lost by 3 runs on Duckworth-Lewis following a rain interruption.

Jaipur Polish Off Kolkata

Yusuf Pathan and Mohammad Kaif drummed up a crucial unfinished 81-run partnership as Rajasthan Royals confirmed their semi-final berth by cantering to a six-wicket victory over a lacklustre Kolkata Knight Riders here on Tuesday.Pathan (48 not out off 18 balls) and Kaif (34 not out off 31 balls) took the game away from the Knight Riders during their rollicking 42-ball stand after the hosts posted a modest 147 for eight in the face of a disciplined bowling performance from the league leaders.Pathan, who played a hurricane knock studded with five fours and three sixes, ended the game in style with an overboundary off pacer Umar Gul as the Royals reached 150 for four with 21 balls still remaining in the Eden Gardens game.