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GUYANA CHRONICLE Saturday May 24, 2014
Kings XI confirm pole position with tenth IPL win KINGS XI Punjab ensured they finish top of the table with their tenth win of the season, handing a comprehensive defeat to Rajasthan Royals. The result kept the final playoff spot open, with Mumbai Indians and Sunrisers Hyderabad’s hopes alive, along with Royals’, going into the final round of matches. (Scores: Kings XI Punjab 179 for 4 (Marsh 40) beat Rajasthan Royals 163 for 8 (Faulkner 35*, Karanveer 2-16, Dhawan 2-25) by 16 runs All of the Kings XI top six, without the rested Glenn Maxwell, contributed to push them to 179 for 4 after they were asked to bat. Virender Sehwag and Manan Vohra provided the initial boost, Shaun Marsh and Wriddhiman Saha kept them going in the middle stages, and David Miller and George Bailey powered
Leg-spinner Karanveer Singh finishes with impressive figures of 2 for 16 in four overs on his debut. away to a big finish. Barring a short-lived starting surge from Karun Nair, Royals were never allowed to get ahead in the chase. Ajinkya Rahane and Sanju Samson were tied down, before Rishi Dhawan broke through with the wickets of Rahane and Shane Watson off successive deliveries.
Leg-spinner Karanveer Singh, on IPL debut, struck twice in successive overs as Royals slid to 83 for 5 at the start of the 14th over, a position from which there was no coming back. Kings XI pulled ahead early when Sehwag started with three successive boundaries in the first over off seamer Vikramjeet Malik, who was
playing his first match of the season. Sehwag fell soon for 18 off 8, and Manan Vohra took over. Vohra was in superb touch again, a smooth pickup off Watson ending up way over the deep midwicket boundary. But Vohra ran himself out in careless fashion after Kings XI had built a solid base of 53 for 1 in six overs. There was little let-up in the scoring though as Wriddhiman Saha pulled and paddled Pravin Tambe for consecutive fours. Saha and Marsh kept finding at least a boundary an over against the leg-spinners Tambe and Tewatia. Even as Kings XI motored past 100, Marsh fell against the run of play, lofting Malik to long-on, before there was a short delay due to a drizzle. Only 20 runs came in four overs after the break, and Kings XI also lost Saha to a well-judged take on the straight boundary from
Simmons among the runs as Mumbai win
MUMBAI, India – West Indies batsman Lendl Simmons once again played a key role as Mumbai Indians beat Delhi Daredevils by 15 runs to remain in the hunt for a playoff spot in the Indian Premier League yesterday. Playing at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai piled up 173 all out off 19.3 overs after being sent in, and then restricted Delhi to 158 for four. The victory carried Mumbai fifth in the standings on 12 points, with a single match left to play in the preliminary round. Simmons struck a measured 35 to follow up his maiden Twenty20 century earlier in the week, posting 87 off 48 balls for the first wicket with Australian Mike Hussey who hit the top score of 56.
Lendl Simmons
The enterprising Trinidadian right-hander faced 25 balls and counted five fours before he was caught in the deep, mis-timing an attempted big hit off South Africa leg-spinner Imran Tahir and slicing a catch to Wayne Parnell at cover. A late call-up as a replacement for the injured Jalaj Saxena, Simmons now has 315 runs from just six innings. Captain Rohit Sharma then chipped in with 30 but
CRICKET QUIZ CORNER
(Saturday May 24, 2014) Compliments of THE TROPHY STALL-Bourda Market &The City Mall (Tel: 225-9230) & CUMMINGS ELECTRICAL CO. LTD-83 Garnette Street, Campbellville (Tel: 225-6158; 223-6055) Answers to yesterday’s quiz: 66 runs (CSK vs Kings XI Punjab) 40 matches Today’s Quiz: Who top-scored in the IPL 2010 final? How many runs he scored? How many sixes were struck in the IPL 2010 final? Answers in tomorrow’s issue
Mumbai lost their last eight wickets for 33 runs, as their innings tailed away badly. Simmons’ Windies teammate Kieron Pollard blasted the first ball he received back overhead for six off spinner JP Duminy but managed just 11 before edging a full-length delivery from left-arm seamer Jaydev Unadkat behind in the 15th over.
In reply Duminy topscored with 45 from 29 balls while England stroke-maker Kevin Pietersen hit 44 from 31 balls. However, Mumbai’s bowlers strangled the Delhi batsmen, and they were always behind the eight-ball. Delhi lie bottom of the table and have already been eliminated from playoff contention.
Cook praises ‘fantastic’ Jordan
LONDON, England (CMC) – England captain Alistair Cook has hailed the performance of Barbadian all-rounder Chris Jordan, and says it made the difference in his side’s comprehensive 81-run win over Sri Lanka on Thursday. Jordan, who was born in Barbados and played first class cricket for the island as recently as last year, smashed an unbeaten 38 from 13 balls and returned to snare three for 25 with his pace, as England took a 1-0 lead in the five-match one-day series. “It was a fantastic performance,” Cook said afterward. “To come in and whack it like he did – he hit a really clean ball, against a very good death bowler (Lasith Malinga) – was a credit. “That extra 30-odd we got in the last two overs gave us that momentum swing we really needed.” Jordan entered the contest in the 36th over after the England innings was reduced to 39 overs because of a rain interruption, and proceeded to dominate the Sri Lanka attack. He belted five fours and two sixes in an unbroken 54-run, seventh-wicket stand with Jos Buttler (26 not out), allowing England to gather a whopping 93 runs from the last seven overs. When Sri Lanka batted, Jordan rebounded from a weak start to claim the key wickets of Tillakaratne Dilshan for 33, and Dinesh Chandimal for eight. “He probably didn’t start off as well in the first two overs (with the ball),” Cook said.
Rahane off Tewatia. At 133 for 4 after 17 overs, Kings XI were still in need of a final assault, and Miller and
Bailey provided it. James Faulkner was taken for 23 in the penultimate over as 46 came off the last three.
GFF boss Matthias ... From Backpage
Congress have the ability to approve or disapprove, it seems that they are folks within the Congress, who are bent on doing much more than they are constitutionally required to do. “Some members it appears are not only very interested in approving the budget, but seeking to declare and design who must be in charge of spending the money. It is most ridiculous, most
unfortunate that for an entire year, persons were spending their effort and energy in not seeking to help football develop, but seeking to derail the process; disguised as Presidential caucuses, in their very nature, characteristics of coup. We would have none of that,” said Matthias. A contacted Lumumba, when told of Matthias’ declaration, said, “I will have to get on to the others and see where it goes.”
Lara, Botham to feature in all-star charity
BASSETERRE, St Kitts CMC – West Indies batting star Brian Lara and legendary England all-rounder Sir Ian Botham have been named as captains for an all-star charity Twenty20 clash, set to take place during this year’s Caribbean Premier League (CPL). The game, scheduled for August 12 at Warner Park here, is expected to bring together a several cricket celebrities, past and present, and will serve as a key plank in the buildup to the CPL final, four days later at the same venue. British media personality Piers Morgan has already been confirmed to play for the XI led by Sir Ian. “I know how important cricket is to everyone in the Caribbean, and CPL has done a lot to reignite the region’s love for the game,” Sir Ian said. “St Kitts is an amazing island of rare beauty, full of wonderful people and I’m excited to give something back to the country, through this charity match, as well as getting the chance to watch the closing stages of the CPL.” Lara, who quit international cricket in 2007, holds the West Indies record for the most Test runs, and also holds the record for the highest scores in Test and first class cricket. The Trinidadian said he was looking forward to the contest and to the start of the CPL, which bowls off July 11 in Grenada. “I’ve seen first-hand the impact CPL has had on the region. Players and fans love it, it’s great for our upand-coming talent, and it provides an economic boost as well,” the former West Indies captain said. “I’ve always believed in the importance of giving back to the Caribbean, and this match will be a great way to do that. It’s going to be fun to play with and against some old friends and reignite some old rivalries.” The game will form part of a hectic period in St Kitts as Warner Park will host the final six preliminary games of the CPL starting from August 7, and will also play host to the semi-finals carded for August 13 and 14. The CPL is in its second year and features six teams – defending champions Jamaica Tallawahs, last year’s losing finalists Guyana Amazon Warriors, Antigua Hawksbills, Barbados Tridents, St Lucia Zouks and Trinidad and Tobago Red Steel – playing 30 games across eight venues.