C
WWW.TIMESOFOMAN.COM M ON DAY, AUGUST 10, 2015
SECTION
SPOR YOUR GAME
S
Worker-inspired Kiwis win T20 tie
COLLINGWOOD URGES COOK TO CARRY ON Paul Collingwood has told England captain Alastair Cook to carry on in the job rather than step down amid the euphoria of an Ashes triumph. Cook was almost in tears after an innings and 78-run win over Australia. >C3
CRICKET
SCOREBOARD
The left-handed Worker smashed 62 from just 38 balls as New Zealand posted 198 for five, equalling the highest score in a T20 international in Zimbabwe, before the hosts limped to 118 for eight to lose by 80 runs
HARARE: George Worker hit an aggressive half-century on his New Zealand debut as Zimbabwe were severely outclassed in Sunday’s one-off Twenty20 international at Harare Sports Club. The left-handed Worker smashed 62 from just 38 balls as New Zealand posted 198 for five, equalling the highest score in a T20 international in Zimbabwe, before the hosts limped to 118 for eight to lose by 80 runs. With their top three all posting quick runs after they lost the toss and were asked to bat, New Zealand were dominant from start to finish in an entirely one-sided match, giving them the perfect send-off as they head to South Africa for two Twenty20 internationals and three one-day internationals. “The way the boys batted today was outstanding - everyone played their role and George Worker was outstanding on debut,” said New Zealand captain Kane Williamson. “The bowling performance was also the best of the tour, so I think we’ve progressed nicely with a new
FINE KNOCK: New Zealand batsman George Worker bats as wicket keeper Regis Chakabva looks on during the one-off Twenty20 cricket match against Zimbabwe at Harare Sports Club. – AFP
outfit and hopefully we can continue that in South Africa.” Worker came in at No. 3 after Williamson had ensured a brisk start, and added 49 with opener Martin Guptill in 33 balls, before putting on another 49 with Luke Ronchi for the fourth wicket at an even quicker rate. The 25-year-old had topped the run-scoring charts in last season’s Ford Trophy, but was a late addition to the New Zealand squad for the tour after Mitchell Santner was ruled out by a thumb injury. After striking four sixes and three fours, Worker finally perished when he advanced down the track and was bowled by Sean Williams, who was the only Zimbabwe bowler to escape major punish-
ment as he took 3 for 28 in four overs. The New Zealand total matched Pakistan’s 198 for four at the same ground in September 2011, while Worker’s score was the eighth highest by a player on T20 international debut and the third highest by a New Zealander. Zimbabwe’s reply never made it off the ground, with four of their top five failing to reach double figures as they slumped to 34 for four in the opening seven overs. Craig Ervine was the only batsman capable of taking on a threatening New Zealand bowling display, but his 42 made little impact on such a hefty target. Fast bowlers Adam Milne and Mitchell McClenaghan were men-
NEW ZEALAND M. Guptill c Sikandar Raza b Williams 33 K. Williamson c Ervine b Muzarabani 20 G. Worker b Williams 62 G. Elliott c Masakadza b Cremer 8 L. Ronchi c Ervine b Williams 29 C. Munro not out 23 N. McCullum not out 18 Extras (4-lb, 1-w) 5 Total (5 wkts, 20 overs) 198 Fall of wickets: 1-26 (Williamson), 2-75 (Guptill), 3-93 (Elliott), 4-142 (Worker), 5-157 (Ronchi). Did not bat: James Neesham, Adam Milne, Mitchell McClenaghan, Ish Sodhi. Bowling: Utseya 2-0-30-0, Muzarabani 3-0-34-1, Mpofu 3-0-24-0, Chibhabha 2-018-0, Williams 4-0-28-3, Cremer 3-0-28-1, Sikandar Raza 3-0-32-0. ZIMBABWE H. Masakadza c Ronchi b Milne 6 C. Chibhabha b Neesham 6 C. Ervine b Elliott 42 Sikandar Raza c Ronchi b McClenaghan 8 E. Chigumbura c Neesham b McCullum 2 S. Williams c & b Sodhi 16 R. Chakabva c Ronchi b Milne 13 G. Cremer c Neesham b McClenaghan 5 P. Utseya not out 2 C. Mpofu not out 6 Extras (4-b, 3-lb, 5-w) 1 2 Total (8 wkts, 20 overs) 118 Fall of wickets: 1-12 (Masakadza), 2-12 (Chibhabha), 3-25 (Sikandar Raza), 4-34 (Chigumbura), 5-64 (Williams), 6-89 (Chakabva), 7-101 (Cremer), 8-108 (Ervine). Did not bat: Taurai Muzarabani. Bowling: Milne 4-0-10-2, McClenaghan 4-0-33-2, Neesham 3-0-21-1, McCullum 4-0-25-1, Sodhi 4-0-15-1, Elliott 1-0-7-1. Toss: Zimbabwe Umpires: Langton Rusere (ZIM) and Russell Tiffin (ZIM) TV umpire: Jeremiah Matibiri (ZIM) Match referee: David Boon (AUS) Result: New Zealand won by 80 runs.
acing even on a relatively placid pitch, with Milne recording figures of 2 for 10 from four overs in his first game for New Zealand since the World Cup quarterfinal against West Indies in March. - AFP
Sangakkara is best batsman Sri Lanka has ever produced, says Jayawardene NEW DELHI: Former Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene has paid a fitting tribute to the retiring Kumar Sangakkara, describing him as the “greatest batsman” to have emerged from the island nation since their entry into international cricket. Sangakkara, who has 12,000 plus Test runs and 14,000 plus runs in ODIs, will retire from international cricket after playing the first two Tests against India in the three-match series starting Wednesday. “Let me put it straight. Kumar Sangakkara is the best batsman that Sri Lanka has ever produced. Aravinda De Silva will always be a sentimental favourite for most of the Sri Lankans including me but numbers alone make Kumar a phenomenal achiever. More than 60 international centuries (38 in Tests and 25 ODIs).Look at those staggering numbers,” former captain Jayawardene paid rich tributes to his long-time teammate in an exclusive interview to PTI. Jayawardene, who himself has close to 25,000 international runs, said that Sangakkara pushed the boundaries in real sense and has set imposing targets for the next generation of Lankan cricketers. “Kumar’s greatness was his
ability to score runs against any attack in all types of conditions. He really pushed his boundaries and have set some imposing targets for the next generation of cricketers. “In any international sport, there are only a few who attained greatness in every aspect, whether for your performance on the field or your conduct off it. Kumar was one such player. The void left by him will take some time to fill. I believe Sri Lankan cricket as a whole was blessed to have him. I consider myself lucky to have played alongside a champion performer like Kumar,” he said. While he was emotional about the farewell of his closest friend (they run a restaurant together in Colombo -- Ministry of Crabs), Jaywardene did not forget to mention that India will have an “upperhand” in the upcoming series. “It will be a competitive series but I guess India will have an upperhand as they have a more or less steady team. The Sri Lanka team on the other hand is going through a transition phase as some of the youngsters are settling down. Hopefully, the team will give Kumar a fitting farewell by winning the series,” said the 38-year-old Jayawardene. - PTI
INDIA VS SRI LANKA
Lot of expectations from Kohli, says Kaluwitharana COLOMBO: Eager to see how Virat Kohli shapes up as a leader, former Sri Lankan batsman Romesh Kaluwitharana said India’s new firebrand cricket captain looks hungry for wins but has to deal with a mountain of expectations as well. “For India, expectations will be high too. A lot of people back in their country have a keen interest and they will watch how Kohli shapes up as skipper. He will have to deal with all those expectations. I am sure the new captain wants to perform and is very hungry to win,” Kaluwitharana said. But the former wicketkeeper/ batsman, who is also the current Sri Lanka A coach and doubled up as the Board President’s XI coach during the three-day practice match here, said the upcoming three-Test series is also very important for the Sri Lankans. “This series is very important for Sri Lanka. We couldn’t do well against Pakistan in the last series and we need to find our way back because that will be a key factor regarding how we move ahead into the future. Also, Sri Lanka will give everything to win the series for Sangakkara,” he said. India drew their only practice match ahead of the Tests staring August 12 but Kaluwitharana said that result won’t count for much in the series. “You can say that they have had a bit of a break so it showed a bit. But overall these Indian cricketers put in performances through the year and that also shows in how they prepare,” said Kaluwitharana on Sunday. “They looked very balanced and focused ahead of this series and what will also be the start of the new season for them. I was particularly impressed with their bowling in this three-day match. The batsmen didn’t spend a lot of time
Eager to see how Virat Kohli shapes up as a leader, former Sri Lankan batsman Romesh Kaluwitharana said India’s new firebrand cricket captain looks hungry for wins but has to deal with a mountain of expectations as well in the middle but they were hitting balls in the nets as well. All in all, I think they are ready for the Test series,” he added. India scored 351 and 180 runs in their two innings in the practice match. Their bowlers did much better, restricting Board President’s XI to 121 and 200/6. Ajinkya Rahane scored a hundred on day one, and Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul and Cheteshwar Pujara were also among the runs. The bowlers impressed too, in particular Ishant Sharma and R. Ashwin. But loose dismissals of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Wriddihiman Saha in both innings left questionmarks even as the Indian team is looking to go in with five bowlers in the first Test. “The Indian team has been doing that for quite some time now, so it won’t be a surprise if they continue with that tactic,” said
Kaluwitharana, about the fivebowler theory. “While all their bowlers looked good here, it is tough to assume what the combination will be. Until we see the pitch in Galle, we cannot assume whether they will go in with three pacers or two spinners. Generally they do three pacers and two spinners. But they have this luxury because some of their bowlers can do well with the bat. Any team will want to assume this balance in Test cricket, if they can.” Five of the Lankan players involved in this match have also been called up for the Test series. Among them is uncapped fast bowler Vishwa Fernando, while Kaushal Silva and Upul Tharanga got runs in the second innings. Talking about his own wards, the coach said, “Yes, our Board President’s team took their time
in getting on with the game. But I thought the bowling was more impressive in both innings. Vishwa Fernando looks like a good prospect and with time he will get better. He needs to bowl more in the right areas and that will come with experience. I think he is a good find for Sri Lanka.” “I am happy with Tharanga and Silva getting runs, especially the latter as he is an opener. He will be a key player for Sri Lanka in the coming series. But I am not too worried about Lahiru Thirimanne not getting many runs. He is a fine act and has scored many runs previously. He has looked good and will be coming in form soon. He is always an asset to the team,” he added. While India have been busy with their preparations, focus among the locals is now slowly shifting to their heroic batsman Kumar Sangakkara, who is preparing to bid the
international scene farewell with the first two Tests in this series. He will retire from Test cricket after the second Test in Colombo, to be played at the P Sara Oval. “I think it is nice that he is playing his last series with India. We have always played a lot of cricket with our neighbours. Hopefully he can be a great strength for the Lankan team in the first two matches, like he has been throughout his career,” said Kaluwitharana. When asked about how Sri Lanka will cope with losing both Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene in quick succession, he replied, “We will definitely miss them. They are great players. “But Sri Lankan cricket has produced many of them over the years and as such this is a big opportunity for other players to step into their boots. “It is someone else’s time now.
We might not find two of the same calibre at the same time but with experience, I think we can find some really solid performers for the Test level.” Kaluwitharana said Sri Lanka has decent bench strength to choose from when the seniors call time on their careers. “Luckily for Sri Lanka, we have always had 3-4 keepers whenever you pick a side. So while they might not have played regularly until now, this is a big opportunity for them to step up. So we don’t really have to blood new players and that is something we are happy with. “We have Kusal Perera, Niroshan Dickwella and others who can make up the place. It’s about stepping up for these ready players and I am confident we will find the best player to replace him,” he added. — PTI