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Gordon Muchall posted a century for Durham on another weather-affected day of their Championship Division One match at Nottingham, while England allrounder Ben Stokes’ scored 61 on his return to first-team action

Press Association27-May-2014
ScorecardGordon Muchall scored his first hundred in three years•PA PhotosGordon Muchall posted a century for Durham on another weather-affected day of their Championship Division One match at Nottingham, while England allrounder Ben Stokes’ scored 61 on his return to first-team action.Day three saw Muchall enjoy a productive time as he moved from an overnight 24 to 158 not out, his first hundred in three years, coming off 189 balls and featuring 22 fours and a six. But for a second successive day, play was limited by the conditions and the contest looks set for a draw, with Durham currently on 335 for 4 in their first innings, 42 runs behind their opponents.Rain meant play did not start until 1.30pm and it came to an end early due to bad light. In the 58 overs that were completed, Stokes was another to enjoy some time in the middle on his return from a wrist injury as he notched a half-century.Meanwhile, Stokes’ international colleague Stuart Broad, who is playing in his first match in nearly two months as he continues to manage patella tendonitis in his right knee, got further bowling time under his belt for Nottinghamshire. He is still yet to take any wickets in this encounter, though, finishing the day with 0 for 68 from 16 overs.Durham, resuming on 78 for 2, lost their first wicket on 131 when Keaton Jennings was caught low down behind by Chris Read off Andre Adams. Stokes stepped in and his partnership with Muchall bore plenty of fruit as they put on a 133-run stand for the fourth wicket.Stokes then departed on 61 as he was well caught on the boundary by Michael Lumb off Samit Patel. At the close of play, Muchall’s partner at the crease, Paul Collingwood, was on 36 not out, with Durham eyeing another couple of batting points, weather permitting, on Wednesday.

Kolkata Knight Riders’ Sunil Narine cannot bowl in the Champions League T20 final on Saturday, after he was reported for a second time in two matches for a suspect action

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Oct-20141:38

Kalra: Narine will be under intense scrutiny

Sunil Narine has been barred from bowling for Kolkata Knight Riders in the Champions League T20 final on Saturday after being reported for a second time in two matches for a suspect action. He was reported by the umpires after Thursday’s semi-final against Hobart Hurricanes, which Knight Riders won by seven wickets. He had also been reported following their final group match, against Dolphins, when the umpires questioned his quicker delivery.ESPNcricinfo understands that this time the umpires, Rod Tucker, S Ravi and Vineet Kulkarni, had noted in their written complaint that several of the 24 deliveries Narine bowled against Hurricanes were suspect. “It was three deliveries in the last match. But this time all his four overs were reported,” an official privy to the complaint said.No official from Knight Riders’ management responded to queries, so it is not yet known whether the franchise might appeal against the penalty.According to a Champions League T20 release, the umpires reviewed footage of the semi-final and “felt that there was a flex action in Narine’s elbow beyond the acceptable limit when bowling during the match”. He had already been on the tournament’s warning list and, since he had not subsequently had his action cleared, is now automatically banned from bowling further in the tournament.Knight Riders will now be “advised” to send Narine to the Sri Ramachandra University in Chennai – which has been accredited by the ICC as a testing centre for suspect bowling actions – to have his action tested.The bowling ban will not affect his West Indies duties, though – it is confined only to the Champions League T20 and other BCCI-organised tournaments, including the IPL.Darren Sammy, Narine’s West Indies team-mate, came out in support of him on Thursday, prior to him being reported a second time. “I am not worried. Narine is a champion. Whether they stop him from bowling the faster ball, he is still the most dangerous spinner in the world,” Sammy had said. “I believe that he will still be a great asset to us. He will do whatever he has to do and have all his different tricks up his sleeves by the time the World Cup is here. I still feel he will be our a champion spinner.”Narine is the fourth bowler to be reported in the Champions League – the others are Lahore Lions’ Adnan Rasool and Mohammad Hafeez, and Dolphins’ Prenelan Subrayen. However, he is the first bowler to be reported a second time. This comes at a time when the ICC has been stepping up its action against suspect bowling actions, with several spinners being called and suspended from bowling in international cricket.It comes as a big blow to Knight Riders, as they look to extend their T20 winning streak to 15 and secure the double of winning the IPL and the Champions League T20 in the same year.

The 64-match tournament will be held across 11 cities and 12 stadiums from June 14 to July 15. Goal has the full lowdown on every location…

GettyLuzhniki Stadium – Moscow

Capacity: 80,000

The Luzhniki Stadium is home to the first game of the tournament on Thursday June 14 between host nation Russia and Saudi Arabia and will ultimately play host to the final on Sunday July 15. It has the largest capacity of all the World Cup 2018 stadia.

It first opened in 1956 and began refurbishment works to increase its capacity in 2013, with the athletics track removed, stands moved closer to the pitch, and two extra tiers added. The historical outer facade has been kept and incorporated into the new structure.

After the World Cup, the Luzhniki Stadium will continue to be the home ground for all Russia national team games. 

GettyWhat games are being played at Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow?

Russia vs Saudi Arabia (June 14)

Germany vs Mexico (June 17)

Portugal vs Morocco (June 20)

Denmark vs France (June 26)

Round of 16 match 3 (July 1)

Semi-final 2 (July 11)

Final (July 15)

AdvertisementLaurence Griffiths Getty ImagesSpartak Stadium – Moscow

Capacity: 45,000

Built in 2014, the Spartak Stadium is home to Russian Premier League side Spartak Moscow and was one of four stadiums used in the 2017 Confederations Cup, which was won by Germany.

The stadium's facade is made up of hundreds of small diamonds representing the Spartak logo and can also be changed depending on whichever team is playing. After the 2018 World Cup, the stadium will be the centre of a new residential development that will be built around it. 

GettyWhat games are being played at Spartak Stadium in Moscow?

Argentina vs Iceland (June 16)

Poland vs Senegal(June 19)

Belgium vs Tunisia(June 23)

Serbia vs Brazil(June 27)

Round of 16 match 8 (July 3)

Getty ImagesSt Petersburg Stadium – St Petersburg

Capacity: 67,000

Built on the site of the former Kirov Stadium on Krestovsky Island, the St Petersburg Stadium hosted the opening match and final of the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup.

The seven-storey stadium is one of Russia's most modern arenas. It includes a retractable roof and sliding pitch to be able to host other sporting events.

Following the World Cup it will continue to be the home of Zenit St Petersburg, as well as hosting concerts and a variety of other sports events. It will also be one of the grounds used in the Euro 2020 finals.

GettyWhat games are being played at St Petersburg Stadium?

Morocco vs Iran (June 15)

Russia vs Egypt (June 19)

Brazil vs Costa Rica (June 22)

Nigeria vs Argentina (June 26)

Round of 16 match 7 (July 3)

Semi-final 1 (July 10)

Third-place play-off (July 14)

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Fisht Stadium – Sochi

Capacity: 48,000

The Fisht Stadium was originally built for the 2014 Winter Olympics as an indoor arena hosting both the opening and closing ceremonies, before being reconstructed specifically for this year's World Cup. 

Named after Mount Fisht, the exterior resembles a snow-capped peak and hosted matches during last summer's Confederations Cup.

During the 2018 World Cup, Sochi will be the Russia national team's training camp and where they've played some of their competitive and friendly matches. 

GettyWhat games are being played at Fisht Stadium in Sochi?

Portugal vs Spain (June 15)

Belgium vs Panama (June 18)

Germany vs Sweden (June 23)

Australia vs Peru (June 26)

Round of 16 match 2 (June 30)

Quarter-final 4 (July 7)

ESPNcricinfo previews Hampshire’s prospects for 2014

George Dobell26-Mar-2014Last year 4th, CC Div 2; Lost in semi-final, FLt20; Lost in semi-final, YB40.2013 in a nutshellAfter winning four trophies in four years, for Hampshire to end a season empty-handed was something of a disappointment. Their limited-overs cricket remained impressive, however. No team lost fewer games in the FLt20 – their semi-final defeat was only their second loss in the campaign with Michael Carberry, with four 50s and a hundred, prolific throughout – and they also finished top of their YB40 group, only to lose to Glamorgan at the semifinal stage. Again Carberry was prolific, with Jimmy Adams also enjoying an excellent competition.Only in the Championship was their form disappointing. While the batting remained reliable, with both Liam Dawson and James Vince passing 1,000 runs, the bowling lacked bite and was overly reliant on James Tomlinson. On pitches offering them little, the seamers David Balcombe and Chris Wood endured a tough season, while Danny Briggs’ spin continued to look more suited to limited-overs cricket. He was the most economical of any bowler to deliver more than 40 overs in the FLt20, but his strike-rate in the championship left Hampshire looking toothless at times. For a club of Hampshire’s ambition and resources to finish mid-table in the second division and spend another season fighting for promotion will sting.2014 prospectsWhile a couple of prominent senior players – Dimitri Mascarenhas and Neil McKenzie – have departed and will be missed, Hampshire have underlined their ambition by strengthening in the off-season. Matt Coles, who has joined from Kent, and Kyle Abbott, a South African quick who is the primary overseas player, should add some bite with the ball, while Will Smith, who has arrived from Durham, will add some experience with the bat. Glenn Maxwell will join them for the T20 Blast.With Carberry unlikely to retain a place in the Test side, it may well prove that Hampshire are largely unsettled by England call-ups and will enjoy the benefit of a settled line-up. The spin bowling still looks one potential area of concern, but with an experienced opening pair anything less than promotion will be a disappointment and there is no reason why they should not continue to push for limited-overs success.The challenge off the pitch remains just as important. The building of a hotel – which will also contain the new media facilities – has run into yet more trouble and, at the time of writing, there remains doubt whether it will be ready for the Test against India.Key playerA great deal is expected of Kyle Abbott. The 26-year-old South African seamer has signed for most of the season with the hope that he will add potency to the bowling attack. He may well: he has an exceptional first-class record and something of a point to prove having earned his way to the fringes of the national side. But he has never experienced anything like the volume of cricket he will face in England and, at some stage, could be recalled by Cricket South Africa with a view to managing his workload.Bright young thingJames Vince is fast developing into one of the most exciting prospects in the English game. As the national side looks to rebuild, he could well find himself involved in any of the formats, though it was his first-class batting that excelled in 2013. He not only scored heavily – passing 1,000 Championship runs for the first time – but scored at such a rate – 64.16 runs per 100 balls in the Championship – that his side were given more time to bowl out the opposition. He is not the finished article and may have to curb some of the looseness if he is to prosper at the highest level, but, at 23, Vince has the class and the range of stroke to suggest he could be a valuable player for Hampshire and England for much of the next decade.Captain/coachDale Benkenstein has joined the club from Durham, where he did a fine job, as first team coach. Giles White remains as director of cricket role and will oversee cricket at all levels throughout the club. Jimmy Adams continues as captain, with Vince promoted to vice-captain.ESPNcricinfo verdictHampshire are strong promotion candidates and contenders in both limited-overs competitions. But doubts remain about the depth of the bowling attack – particularly the spin bowling attack – which could remain an issue in the Championship.

Northamptonshire’s first taste of Division One cricket in a decade is rapidly turning sour. Given 76 overs in which to secure a draw in a badly rain-affected match, they instead crashed to 151 all out in 49.2 overs

Jon Culley at Trent Bridge14-May-2014
ScorecardRiki Wessels blazed 158 to begin Notts perfect day•Getty ImagesNorthamptonshire’s first taste of Division One cricket in a decade is rapidly turning sour. Given 76 overs in which to secure a draw in a badly rain-affected match, they instead crashed to 151 all out in 49.2 overs, a third defeat in four following last season’s euphoric campaign, when they combined promotion with victory in the Friends Life t20.Peter Siddle, the Australian fast bowler, took 4 for 61 and Ajmal Shahzad 4 for 46 as Nottinghamshire picked up their second win of the season to climb to fourth in the early table.Effectively half of the first three days had been lost to the weather and Nottinghamshire began the final day only 11 runs ahead at 259 for 5 in their first innings but a whirlwind 158 off 152 balls by Riki Wessels allowed them to declare with full batting points, a lead of 161 and two sessions plus 30 minutes in which to test Northamptonshire’s resolve.The visitors failed miserably and David Ripley, Northamptonshire’s director of cricket, was left to reflect that his side must learn lessons quickly to bridge the gap between the divisions.”We dominated with the bat at times last year and we’ve now got to earn the right to do that,” he said. “We need to invest more time in getting in because 30s and 40s are not going to win you matches. In the second innings today, there were a lot of batsmen who got starts but we never built any partnerships.”There is a gap in quality. There are sides, like Nottinghamshire, Sussex, Durham and Somerset who have cemented their position in the first division and the challenge for us is to become one of those sides because we want to be playing against these kind of opponents every week.”The big difference is in the back-up seamers. As one quality bowler comes off another one comes on, and you don’t get many overs off. That’s something we have to try to adjust to but we have to do it a bit quicker because we are four games in now.”But I think we have enough quality to compete in this division and we’re just not able to show it at the moment. In this match we have had our moments but have not been able to capitalise as Notts did. They got a foothold in the game today and ruthlessly hammered home their advantage.”Their foothold came from Wessels, 78 overnight – having been dropped, to Northamptonshire’s lasting regret, on just 22 – and it was after completing a 124-ball hundred that he really opened up, blasting his next 50 runs off just 20 deliveries.He had spectators in the Fox Road stand ducking for cover with a series of meaty leg-side blows, including one run of five sixes in the space of seven balls faced from the Pavilion End, four in five balls off Hall and one off Mohammad Azharullah, before showing he could also clear the longer boundary with a clip over midwicket for his eighth maximum when Maurice Chambers came on at the Radcliffe Road end.Ajmal Shahzad aided the cause with 36 off 25 balls and the two added 107 in just 51 deliveries before Wessels at last found a fielder, at wide long-on, prompting the declaration.Northamptonshire reached lunch only one down but after Stephen Peters, the captain and their best hope of plotting a path to survival, fell into a trap set by Siddle and flicked a ball off his legs straight to Andre Adams at short square leg, the innings followed a depressingly familiar pattern.Two more wickets in Siddle’s spell reduced them to 62 for 4. Adams held a return catch off a leading edge to remove Rob Newton, Siddle caught Ben Duckett, also off his own bowling, before Shahzad removed Hall – the man who had let Wessels off the hook at first slip on Tuesday – via a catch at the wicket as the South African followed one that swung away.Shahzad matched Siddle in claiming four wickets in the innings, taking out David Murphy’s middle stump and trapping Maurice Chambers in front, either side of another caught and bowled, popped back by Steven Crook to Samit Patel off a full toss.Things can only get better, Northamptonshire will hope. The start of the new NatWest T20 will be seen as a chance to rekindle form. Ian Butler, the New Zealand seamer who signed after three previous deals for overseas players fell through, will make his county debut in their T20 opener against Yorkshire at Headingley and face Middlesex in the Championship at Wantage Road on Sunday.

Jason Gillespie, the former Australia fast bowler and popular coach of Yorkshire, has ruled himself out of the running for an England coaching job

Daniel Brettig01-Feb-2014Jason Gillespie, the former Australia fast bowler and popular coach of Yorkshire, has ruled himself out of the running for an England coaching job following the resignation of Andy Flower.It took only a matter of hours following the news of Flower’s exit for Gillespie to be mentioned as a strong possible contender for the role of managing England. His positive effect on the Yorkshire dressing room and uncomplicated coaching style has raised comparisons with his fellow South Australian and adopted northerner Darren Lehmann.But Gillespie told ESPNcricinfo he was adamant that his immediate future lay with Yorkshire. He expressed a desire to move into international coaching in time but did not wish to entertain leaving the county job in which he has mentored the likes of Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow and took the club to a second-place finish behind Durham in the 2013 Championship.”I’m 100% committed to Yorkshire, really want to work with our players and support staff to achieve success at our County,” Gillespie said. “We believe our club is moving in the right direction on and off the field and I am excited to be part of it. I am learning a lot about coaching and people where I am now. I love my job, I would look at an international opportunity down the line but not at this stage.”Apart from his desire to carry on with Yorkshire, Gillespie also has a young family to consider – the significant amount of global travel entailed in an ECB job is also likely to factor into his thinking. Gillespie had previously applied to be Australia’s bowling coach in a post-playing career that has also taken him to Zimbabwe.

England were hoping to find something a little different from their next generation but as well as Moeen Ali played the way England Lions collapsed after tea in Pallekele revealed similar flaws

Alex Winter in Pallekele12-Feb-2014
Scorecard0:00

Moeen Ali’s drives ‘worth the admission fee alone’

England were hoping to find something a little different from their next generation but the way England Lions carelessly collapsed after tea on the opening day in Pallekele suggested their wider pool of players are capable of the same fallibility as their senior colleagues.A commanding position at tea was flipped into a slippery situation with the loss of two wickets in two overs. Two more strikes in the half hour after the restart and England’s strong standing had been swept from them. It was all very “England”.Moeen Ali played like a dream but slapped the first ball of the evening session – a long hop from left-arm spinner Chaturanga de Silva – to cover. Next over, Jonny Bairstow was given out lbw, fifth ball for nought – he would have looked happier had he been given a parking ticket with a flat tyre in the rain – and Chris Woakes popped up a leading edge to a diving mid-on. A second questionable decision, this time for caught behind, ended James Taylor’s stay.The collapse of 4 for 35 in 12 overs left England just short of 300 with their last pair at the crease when the day ended and Sri Lanka A cock a hoop. Their afternoon performance, where they were almost run ragged as England took tea at 206 for 3, did not warrant such a scoreboard.They chose to bowl first, a decision far too keen on the grass left on the wicket, and after lunch even their two best operators, offspinner Tharinda Kaushal and seamer Dhammika Prasad, failed to find any control. It was a session when the Lions moved smoothly into a firm position and the slick strokemaking of Moeen was responsible for most of it.Moeen Ali showed the sort of grace that won him the PCA Player of the Year award•Getty ImagesEngland have observed Moeen for some time and his outstanding season in 2013 – his 1420 runs were the most by anyone in domestic cricket – has proved convincing, with a call up to this tour and selection for the World T20 squad next month.He plays such beautiful strokes that his place in any side could be assured by the soothing pleasure gained by watching him. He is so relaxed at the crease, standing tall and motionless, bat hanging a foot off the ground, front foot turned slightly towards cover, until the delivery stride where an inch step of the back foot gets him going.From there he has got all the shots. Plenty were on display in a breezy 62 in 60 balls – the half-century also coming at better than a run-a-ball. He began by flicking Kaushal past midwicket, two straight drives followed off Ishan Jayaratne – an expensive first-change seamer – the second so graceful a turquoise-winged bird felt it necessary to fly over the ball as it crossed the boundary.It felt unfair that it did not last longer, particularly after a top-edged pull the ball before tea landed short of mid-on, running in. Surely, that was all the luck he needed? Not so, as Upal Tharanga got down low to his right to catch Moeen the ball after tea.It ended a rollicking period of scoring between Moeen and Taylor, who was hardly noticed in the stand of 92 in 110 balls – just fewer than five an over was the progress throughout the afternoon.Taylor’s style is not as pretty as Moeen, but he also played plenty of strokes pleasing on the eye. He was keen to lean a good way outside of his off stump to drive and used his feet well to the spinners, following Moeen’s lead. He appeared within his rights to be aggrieved at being given out when his side were looking to him to take them up to 300. Crisis was averted to an extent with a nudging innings from Scott Borthwick, topped with a lofted drive for six over long-off.It was certainly a card Sri Lanka A were looking for having decided to bowl first. With grass left on the wicket – locals reliably informed that not a blade would remain for a full international – they went into the field hoping to test their young attack, one of whom, Vishwa Fernando, a left-arm seamer, travelled with the Sri Lanka Test squad to Bangladesh despite having only played 15 first-class matches and with only 37 wickets at 37.62 to his name.Fernando went wicketless in his 15 overs but his new ball partner, Prasad, was excellent, finding plenty of movement with the new ball and some bounce too, one early delivery rising over Sam Robson’s attempted push off the back foot. He probed away persistently but having been replaced, Jayaratne struck immediately when Alex Lees was caught on the crease. Such is life.

Younis Khan extended his good run of form with a century for the Pakistani side against the United Arab Emirates in a tour game in Abu Dhabi

ESPNcricinfo staff09-Oct-2013
ScorecardYounis Khan extended his good run of form with a century for the Pakistani side against the United Arab Emirates in a tour game in Abu Dhabi. The Pakistanis finished the first day of the two-day game at 317 off 86 overs, scoring runs at nearly 3.70 runs per over. The tour game is a preparatory exercise for the Pakistan side ahead of the Test series against South Africa, which starts next week.Batting first, the Pakistanis lost Khurram Manzoor* for 1, but wicketkeeper Adnan Akmal and Younis then added 188 runs for the second wicket. Akmal remained unbeaten on 71 off 136 balls with nine fours, while Younis scored 103 off 160 balls before retiring hurt.Misbah-ul-Haq got a start, reaching 27 off 44 balls but couldn’t carry on for a big score. Abdur Rehman also made a fifty, scoring 52 off 71 balls.The spinners had most success in the UAE attack. Offspinner Nasir Aziz, left-arm spinner Ahmed Raza and right-arm slow bowler Rohan Mustafa all took two wickets apiece, with Aziz grabbing his wickets in quick succession towards the end of the Pakistani innings.*

The BCCI has offered an informal interaction between some of the Indian cricketers and their Australian counterparts, in order to help the players recover from the tragedy of Phillip Hughes’ death

Amol Karhadkar29-Nov-2014The BCCI has offered an informal interaction between some of the Indian cricketers and their Australian counterparts, in order to help the players recover from the tragedy of Phillip Hughes’ death.With Hughes’ funeral on Wednesday, the Brisbane Test which was originally scheduled to start on Thursday has been postponed. It is possible that the opening Test could be pushed back by three days and then the scheduled nine-day break between the second and third Test be cut down to four days.Many Indian players have been in touch with their friends in the Australian cricket fraternity following the unfortunate incident, and the BCCI is understood to have informed Cricket Australia that the board would be willing to go the extra mile to “speed up the healing process”.”If some of our boys mingling with the Australian players is going to help them get back on track, we will immediately facilitate it,” a board insider told ESPNcricinfo.The BCCI has also passed a message to all the members of the squad that anyone who wishes to attend Hughes’ funeral would be able to do so. Some of the India players, including those with Mumbai Indians – the IPL team Hughes was a part of – and some of those who toured Australia with the India A side, were friends with Hughes. If those players would like to pay their tributes to Hughes, the Board, according to an official, “will facilitate the trip to Macksville”. However, the full squad is unlikely to go down to Macksville.Meanwhile, the BCCI expects the reworked Test series itinerary to be finalised in the next 24 hours. CA officials informed the BCCI during discussions on Saturday that the new schedule will be confirmed on Sunday after their deliberations with various stakeholders, and most importantly, with the players.

Plays of the Day from day three of the Kolkata Test between India and West Indies

N Hunter in Kolkata08-Nov-2013The delivery
Shane Shillingford to R Ashwin. Being an offspinner himself, you would expect Ashwin to read his opponent’s hand better than most. But even Ashwin was confounded by Shillingford’s doosra, as he played forward to a well-flighted delivery that pitched on a length, on an off stump line, before straightening. Shillingford had bowled with a scrambled seam and imparted enough revolutions on the delivery to draw an appreciative glance from Ashwin, even as he got beaten. That it was him who eventually bowled Ashwin would have given Shillingford immense satisfaction, considering he had caused much distress to the Indian through the morning.The no-brainer
Want to get rid of the West Indies opener? Bowl him a bouncer. If it was Kieran Powell who attempted an unnecessary pull against Mohammed Shami in the first innings, today it was the turn of his opening partner Chris Gayle to try the same against Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Gayle had got off the blocks in confident fashion. He had already hit two boundaries in that Bhuvneshwar over, the second one slipping through a closely-knit off-side cordon comprising a short-extra cover, cover and mid-off. However on the final ball of the over, Bhuvneshwar sent down a short-pitched delivery that was wide of the off stump. But Gayle quickly moved to his left and attempted a suicidal pull. It was a poor shot and Gayle realised it even before his top edge landed safely in the hands of the square-leg fielder, Virat Kohli.Ojha knees one for four
Powell charged Pragyan Ojha, punching a powerful drive straight back at the bowler. The ball ricocheted off Ojha’s bent knee and sailed through the covers. Normally you would expect the ball to stop after travelling a short distance. However, to everyone’s surprise, the ball kept travelling quickly towards the ropes, forcing Sachin Tendulkar (wide mid-off) and Ashwin (deep square leg) to chase hard. The fast outfield beat the pair.The run that wasn’t
Powell pushed a fuller delivery from Ashwin into the vacant midwicket region and set off for a single confidently. However, he had to abruptly jump back into the crease because his partner, Darren Bravo, had raised the red flag straightaway. Bravo did not even take a forward step as he raised his hand to signal a firm no. Powell, annoyed, raised both his hands at missing out on what was an easy run. Perhaps Bravo was yet to recover from his run-out in the first innings, when he had attempted a careless single and was sent back by Shivnarine Chanderpaul.Llong and short shrift
Nigel Llong’s decision to send Sachin Tendulkar on his way on Thursday had already caused a furore in Kolkata, the story and picture of Tendulkar walking back shaking his head splashed across the front pages. On Friday Llong backed the bowler yet again in another doubtful decision. Shami swung the ball into the back pad of Marlon Samuels and appealed for an lbw; Samuels was looking down to adjust his thigh pad when he suddenly heard the roar go up around the ground and realised he’d been given out. He stood there, stunned, and then looked towards Llong, pointing to his thigh to indicate how high the ball had hit him. Replays showed the ball would also have gone down leg.Dhoni’s eagle eye
Veerasamy Permaul would have felt the tension and nervousness as he took the guard to face his first delivery from local boy Shami. The whole of Eden Gardens cheered as one as Shami started his run-up. He had already broken through the defences of Darren Sammy and Shillingford. And when Shami successfully curved the ball in for the third time in the over, to Permaul, the crescendo rose to ear-drum busting levels. As Shami and Kolkata appealed, pleaded with, begged umpire Kettleborough to raise his finger, Permaul had moved out of his crease. One man who did not get carried away was Indian captain and wicketkeeper, MS Dhoni, who sensing an opportunity threw the ball under-arm to break the stumps and run Permaul out. Both the Indian team and Eden Gardens enjoyed a laugh as an embarrassed Permaul walked back.