Sehwag wins series for India with record 219 - India vs West Indies 2nd ODI 2011

It took nearly four decades for a batsman to score the first double-century in one-day international cricket but less than two years for the second. Virender Sehwag, the batsman most touted to break Sachin Tendulkar's record for the highest individual ODI score, didn't merely break it - he shattered it and raised the bar so high that it's hard to imagine anyone, apart from Sehwag himself, raising it higher.

Unlike Tendulkar in Gwalior, Sehwag wasn't running out of time as he raced towards 200 in Indore. He got there in the 44th over and had made 219 off 149 balls by the time he was dismissed in the 47th. And in one of cricket's stranger coincidences, both ODI double-centuries were scored in the same Indian state - Madhya Pradesh - at venues less than 500 kilometres apart.

Sehwag's performance led India to 418 for 5, their highest ODI total, and sealed victory in the five-match series against West Indies. It was an innings characteristic of Sehwag's approach to batting. He hit his second ball for four and simply did not stop. He took plenty of risks too, surviving two run-out chances and two dropped catches, but thundered on, ensuring India's run-rate stayed above seven after the 15th over. Sehwag's only out-of-character moment came in the 20th over, when he dived to avoid being run out. Sehwag never dives. It was a sign that he was determined to stay the course. He went to 50 off 41 balls, to 100 off 69 balls, to 150 off 112 and past 200 off 140. The record was broken with a withering cut that sped to the backward-point boundary, and he celebrated with an aggressive fist-pump before breaking into a smile.

Before this game, and after each of the previous three, Sehwag had admitted that the top-order failures, which he contributed to, were the reason India had struggled in their chases. Sehwag had made a duck in the previous match in Ahmedabad, where India lost, but led by example today.

India did two things differently at the Holkar Cricket Stadium. They chose to bat for the first time in the series and also opened with their strongest combination, Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir, pushing Parthiv Patel down the order. The upshot of those decisions was an opening partnership of 176 that began smoothly, picked up speed, and gathered the momentum of a runaway train before it was eventually ended, inevitably, by a run-out.

A strong crowd continued the trend of resurging attendances during the home ODIs and they cheered the first boundary in the second over, when Sehwag flicked Ravi Rampaul's first ball for four - a welcome he would give several other West Indian bowlers. Sehwag looked dangerous from the start. Gambhir did not. After making only 3 off 15 balls, Gambhir finally had the width he needed and cut Kemar Roach to the point boundary.

Both batsmen could have been dismissed on 20, though. Sehwag had given up hope of making his ground but Kieron Pollard missed the stumps from point, and Andre Russell dropped Gambhir on his follow through. Gambhir began to steer, cut and drive through the off side frequently, going over fielders' heads and placing wide of the boundary riders. Seven of his first nine fours were in this region. India ended the mandatory Powerplay on 63 for 0.

The field spread after that but it didn't matter. Sehwag and Gambhir scored 45 runs between overs 11 and 15. This passage began with Sehwag hoisting the offspinner Sunil Narine's first ball over the long-on boundary. He then launched Darren Sammy's first inside out over extra cover. This passage ended with Sehwag hammering Narine again, this time into the stands beyond deep midwicket.

The field came in for the bowling Powerplay and Gambhir immediately cut Roach through point, and then dabbed for a single to reach his half-century off 51 balls. The smash-and-dab combo was a feature of the partnership. Sehwag got to his hundred with a fierce cut, hit in the air, brushing the fingertips of the leaping fielder at point before speeding to the boundary. The next ball, he ran Gambhir out, to a direct hit from Samuels. Visibly upset with himself, Sehwag continued to punish West Indies.

When he was hitting fours, Sehwag preferred to go square of the wicket, flicking and glancing the numerous deliveries he received on the pads. When he wanted six, he usually went straighter, targeting the arc between midwicket and long-on. He hit 25 fours and seven sixes in all. On 170, in the 38th over, Sehwag spooned Rampaul towards cover, where Sammy dropped a dolly, leaving the bowler distraught.

The rest of the innings was a blur of boundaries and landmarks. Suresh Raina got to his half-century off 42 balls. India reached 300 in 39.1 overs. Sehwag broke his personal best - 175 against Bangladesh in the World Cup - with a flick to the square-leg boundary. He went past 8000 ODI runs with a chip over the fielder at short fine leg. That shot took him from 191 to 195, and soon he was cutting Russell to send India into rapture. When Sehwag was dismissed - lofting Pollard to the substitute Anthony Martin at long-off - most of the West Indian fielders came from far and wide to shake his hand.

Sehwag did not come out to field - the only blot on his performance - and watched from the dressing room as West Indies' top-order batsmen crashed and burned amid a flurry of shots. India's debutant legspinner Rahul Sharma struck with the last ball of each of his first three overs in international cricket, bowling Marlon Samuels, Danza Hyatt and Pollard to leave West Indies reeling at 100 for 5.

Rahul, who's been in India's squads since the home ODIs against England but stayed on the bench, bowled a variety of deliveries. He sent down legbreaks, googlies and topspinners at varying speeds, but it was the one delivered quicker that brought him success.

Samuels tried to cut a fast topspinner but bottom-edged it on to his stumps. Hyatt then stepped out of the crease, but was yorked by a fast legbreak. The ball pitched outside leg stump and spun between the batsman's pads to bowl him. Pollard was the next to go, swinging across the line and missing a topspinner that clipped off stump.

After losing more wickets, West Indies decided to bat out time instead of playing shots, and the match ended in stark contrast to how it began - tamely. Denesh Ramdin, however, made 96, his best score and the highest by a West Indies wicketkeeper in ODIs. His 64-run partnership with No. 11 Sunil Narine merely kept India on the field longer than they would have liked.

India vs West Indies 2nd ODI 2011

After a thrilling finish in the first ODI, India and West Indies now play in the second ODI at Visakhapatnam on 2nd December. Unlike recent matches in India, 1st ODI was a low-scoring match and bowlers played really well. The venue for 2nd ODI has been considered as a batting friendly pitch and even the score just over 250 may not be a challenging one. The batting must be productive if the team wants to win the match. Here are the match details:

2nd ODI: India v West Indies at Visakhapatnam
Date: Dec 2, 2011
Time: 14:30 local (IST) | 09:00 GMT


India relies on the spinners in absence of several senior players like Dhoni and Tendulkar. It was Rohit Sharma who saved the firs match. The top order batsmen must perform if they want a decent score. Parthiv Patel has got an excellent opportunity to remain in the team as Dhoni is absent. West Indies on the other hand seems to be heavily relying on Darren Bravo. Other player too need to perform.

Watch the 2nd ODI live - You can watch the second ODI live for free on BCCI.tv. Live video as well as highlights are available on the site. For more details India vs West Indies 2011 - Live.

Indian Team For India vs Australia - 2011

India have already announced the test squad for their upcoming Australia tour. The team will be touring Australia for our tests which will be followed by tri-series between Australia, India and Sri Lanka. You can check-out the fixtures here. After the two practice matches, first test will be on Boxing day (26 Dec) at MCG.

MS Dhoni (capt & wk), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Virat Kohli, R Ashwin, Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Varun Aaron, Rohit Sharma, Pragyan Ojha, Praveen Kumar, Ajinkya Rahane, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Zaheer Khan (subject to fitness)

Indian captain MS Dhoni and Sachin Tendulkar will join the team after their res from ODI series against West Indies. Sill no Yuvraj and Harbhajan in the side whereas Zaheer Khan is under the probable. Khan's fitness will be checked in Ranji Trophy matches.

R Ashwin and Pragyan Ojha got their place in the team after their heroic performance in the home against West Indies. As only two-spinners could travel to play in Aussie pitch, Harbhajan couldn't make his place. Wriddhiman Saha is taken as the reserve Wicket-Keeper in the series. Suresh Raina couldn't manage his place on the side whereas leg-spinner Rahul Sharma also axed from the side. Sharma was called for WI series but didn't got chance in any matches.

Collingwood Eyes England Comeback

London Former England one-day captain Paul Collingwood is hoping stints at domestic level in Australia and India can help him force his way back into his country's limited overs set-up.

Collingwood, now 35, retired from Tests after the triumphant Ashes series last winter and has not played for his country since the World Cup in March.

However, he believes he can still play a role for England both in one day internationals and in the Twenty20 format.

England's selectors have brought in a handful of promising younger players in recent months as they look to the future, but Collingwood aims to make his case with spells in the Big Bash - Australia's domestic Twenty20 tournament - with Perth Scorchers, followed by the Indian Premier League, where he represents Delhi Daredevils.

"I still have the ambition to play one-day and T20 for my country," Collingwood said.

"If I have a really good six months you never know what can happen. I'll be out in Australia for six or seven weeks playing against some of the world's best cricketers then playing in the IPL."

"This is an exciting opportunity for me. Although I'm 35 it is a fresh challenge. I'm looking forward to playing in the Big Bash, it's a big stage and that is where you want to be."

Source:- http://cricket.yahoo.com/

Kohli And Rohit steered to Win as India go 2-0 up

Despite shoddy catching and phases of wayward bowling, West Indies managed to strike enough blows to ensure India had a fight on their hands in Visakhapatnam. Virat Kohli batted fluently at one end, but there was no stability at the other until Rohit Sharma, who played a pivotal role in India's victory in Cuttack, joined him in an unbroken partnership of 38.

West Indies were riding a wave of momentum after Ravi Rampaul's pyrotechnics with the bat and they did not wait long to celebrate in the field. Roach struck with the second delivery of the second over, Darren Sammy diving to his left at slip to catch Parthiv Patel. They could have had Virender Sehwag four balls later but this time Sammy dropped the edge.

India got going with a couple of streaky boundaries: Gautam Gambhir flicked Rampaul in the air but wide of the fielder at square leg, and Sehwag unintentionally slashed over the cordon. Rampaul retorted by smacking Sehwag on the back of the helmet with a bouncer, before Gambhir threw a counterpunch with a cover drive.

Gambhir's end in the seventh over came unexpectedly. He moved back and cut Rampaul hard towards short cover where the shortest fielder in the game, Adrian Barath, timed his jump perfectly and plucked the speeding ball out of the air with one hand. India were 29 for 2.

Kohli was scoreless for eight balls before driving Andre Russell on the up to the cover boundary. His second four was a top edge over the keeper but the third was more authoritative: a carve to the point boundary.

Sehwag was dropped again, off Sammy in the 12th over, when Darren Bravo moved forward too slowly at third man and couldn't reach the sliced ball in time. Sammy's disappointment was evident as he trudged off the field because of a drizzle moments later. Bravo was poor in the field as soon as play resumed as well, misfielding a Kohli bottom edge as the ball sped past the wicketkeeper towards the boundary.

It was the beginning of a streaky, eventful passage of play. Kohli successfully cut Russell over the outstretched arm of the leaping Kieron Pollard at point, and then failed to connect with a swivel pull as the bowler strayed down leg side. Denesh Ramdin did not catch the ball cleanly and the umpire did not signal leg-byes, which meant West Indies had dropped another catch. A few overs later, Kohli would be let off again, this time by Marlon Samuels, who couldn't hold on to a caught-and-bowled chance as he dived to his right.

Sehwag was barely noticeable during all this excitement. During the bowling Powerplay, he tried to loft Samuels inside out but Russell was too quick at wide long-off. Sehwag was out for 26, having faced only 35 balls even though he batted into the 17th over.

Rohit had a painful start to his innings, as Rampaul thudded a short ball into his glove, but he responded with an audacious pull over the midwicket boundary. It was the start of a partnership that could decide the game.

West Indies 269 in 9 overs (Rampaul 86*, Simmons 78, Yadav 3-38) v India

Lendl Simmons brought up 1000 ODI-career runs during his half-century © AFP

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Umesh Yadav and Vinay Kumar, India's new-ball attack, exploited rare seam-bowling conditions on the subcontinent and cut through the West Indian top order. Under cloudy skies, on a cracked pitch that had bounce, they used consistent outswing to help reduce West Indies to 149 for 8 despite defiance from Lendl Simmons. The end should have quickly followed, but it didn't, because Ravi Rampaul's record-breaking innings at No. 10 ensured he would have a strong target to defend.

Rampaul's unbeaten 86 was the highest score by a No. 10 in one-day internationals. His partnership of 99 in 14 overs with last man Kemar Roach was the third-highest for the final wicket. He stunned India and rendered their bowlers bereft of ideas. It had seemed a matter of when, and not if, West Indies would be dismissed. In the end, they never were, and finished on 269 for 9.

A drizzle in Visakhapatnam forced the toss to be delayed by 30 minutes, but when it eventually took place, Virender Sehwag won and chose to chase. The floodlights were on at 2.45 pm as play began in front of a strong crowd and Yadav didn't take long to give them reason to roar. In the second over, he produced a delivery that angled in to the right-hand batsman, pitched on a good length, bounced sharply and seamed away late to graze Adrian Barath's outside edge en route to the wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel.

Simmons also had a nervy start, surviving a close lbw shout from Yadav and edging Vinay wide of a diving second slip. He then square drove Vinay with flair to the point boundary. It was how Simmons would bat, trying to play his shots despite surviving a close call every now and then.

A feature of Yadav's bowling was how upright the seam was before the ball hit the pitch and moved away. He induced an outside edge from Marlon Samuels, on 2, only for Rohit Sharma to drop a sitter at second slip. Sehwag, because of all the movement, had a third slip and he was rewarded for this attacking field when Samuels edged Yadav again. This time Suresh Raina dived to his right and took a low catch. West Indies were 25 for 2.

Simmons continued to attack, stylishly whipping Yadav to the square-leg boundary, and walking out of his crease to drive Vinay on the up through extra cover to bring up 1000 career runs, before flaying the next ball through point for four. There was promise from Darren Bravo, who flicked and straight drove Varun Aaron for fours. It proved false, though, for Bravo lofted a length ball from Vinay to mid-on - a soft dismissal. Vinay hurt West Indies again two balls later by finding Danza Hyatt's outside edge before he had scored.

Only after Denesh Ramdin - Yadav's third wicket - departed with his team reeling at 63 for 5, did things begin to look up for West Indies. Kieron Pollard found the boundary frequently and Simmons reached his half-century by dabbing Ravindra Jadeja past slip to the third-man boundary. Pollard then brought up the 50 partnership by launching the offspinner R Ashwin over the straight boundary, and followed up with another one over wide long-on next ball. Another slump was around the corner, though.

The ball after Pollard hit his second six, he was caught by the wicketkeeper off Ashwin, after the ball grazed the glove and lobbed up off the pad. Darren Sammy and Andre Russell came and went, and it was then that Rampaul made his entrance at 149 for 8. He swept Ashwin for four and clubbed him over long-on, before targeting Jadeja and scoring two more boundaries on the leg side. Between those shots, Simmons had been run out for 78.

The boundaries were small but Rampaul would have cleared larger ones today. He hit half a dozen sixes and as many fours, most of them swung with power over and through the leg side. Ashwin and Aaron suffered the most. Rampaul was barely troubled and brought up his half-century off 35 balls. In Roach, he had a sensible partner who simply rotated strike.

There was a certain inevitability about how the innings ended, with Rampaul slamming Aaron over the straight boundary. He walked off the field with a composed look on his face, knowing the job was only half done.

Ponting half-century to steers Australia

After nearly two years without a Test hundred, Ricky Ponting gave himself every chance of completing one on home soil with an assured half-century that provided a solid platform for Australia at the Gabba. On an eventful day on which Daniel Vettori ran himself out on 96 and Michael Clarke was bowled off a no-ball, Australia finished in a reasonable position at 3 for 154, but New Zealand knew a couple of early wickets on the third morning would put them on top.

New Zealand had done well to post a competitive 295, thanks largely to Vettori and Dean Brownlie, who in his second Test remained unbeaten on 77. But after Australia lost both their openers cheaply, including the debutant David Warner in the second over of the innings, their recovery was encouraging for the home fans, though it was not without its nervy moments.

Ponting was nearly run out before he had scored when he was called through and then sent back by Usman Khawaja, who himself was caught short due in the first over after tea. Kane Williamson's direct hit had Khawaja on his way for 38, a disappointing end to a promising innings, and it was hard to avoid thinking that Ponting's call for the tight single was to blame, although a split-second hesitation from Khawaja also played a part.

Source:- http://www.espncricinfo.com/

Afridi's five wicket to win 1st ODI of Bangladesh

Pakistan's battery of spinners used the considerable bounce and turn in the Mirpur pitch to exploit the inadequate temperaments and techniques of Bangladesh's batsmen, routing them for 91 to set up what should have been a facile victory in the first of three one-day internationals. It wasn't. Pakistan made a mess of chasing the small target, which Bangladesh defended spiritedly. They lost more wickets and took longer than they would have liked, as the match sparked to life before victory was finally achieved with plenty of overs to spare.

To subdue and wreck Bangladesh, Misbah-ul-Haq used four spinners - Mohammad Hafeez, Shahid Afridi, Shoaib Malik and Saeed Ajmal - for 22.3 out of 30.3 overs, and they had combined figures of 8 for 56. Though Afridi emerged the star, taking his seventh five-wicket haul in ODIs, the Bangladesh innings was rotting before he came on to bowl. Pakistan's chase had also begun to rot when Afridi came to bat at 63 for 5 in the 18th over. His innings wasn't pretty, but it cured Pakistan of the yips and secured the series lead.

Source:- http://www.espncricinfo.com/