Category Uncategorized

Just four games into IPL 2025, CSK have tried 17 players and all seven overseas options in a bid to find a winning combination

Deivarayan Muthu05-Apr-20252:54

Fleming: CSK still ‘trying to get opening combination right’

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) have responded to their early-season defeats – they have now lost three in a row in IPL 2025 – by ringing in the changes, but they are still struggling to find their best combination. It’s a “conundrum”. So says head coach Stephen Fleming, who is concerned by the lack of balance in the squad and the dearth of firepower in the batting line-up.Four games into IPL 2025, CSK have cycled through 17 players, including all seven overseas options, which is a departure from their usual strategy of continuity in selection. No other side has used as many players this season.”Yeah, that [finding the balance] is the conundrum at the moment,” Fleming said at the press conference after CSK’s loss to Delhi Capitals (DC) on Saturday. “To get more solidity at the top we have to remove obviously an overseas player, so we’re grappling just with the combination that we need. When it doesn’t go right, you pore over it and analyse that and see if it was the right call.”Related

• Rayudu: 'CSK will come back strong once they get their combination and personnel right'

• Weary and battered CSK seek urgent revival against PBKS

• Ashwin's YouTube channel 'to step away from covering CSK games'

• KL Rahul: 'Back to enjoying my cricket, not thinking about taking it deep'

• KL Rahul shines as DC outclass CSK in Chennai

CSK have the worst scoring rate in the powerplay among all ten teams this season at this stage, and in order to remedy that, they brought in Devon Conway and reunited him with Rachin Ravindra at the top at the expense of Rahul Tripathi against DC. They also swapped out allrounder Jamie Overton for an Indian seamer in Mukesh Choudhary. The changes didn’t work out, however, with Conway compounding CSK’s powerplay troubles with another low score and Choudhary leaking 50 runs in his wicketless spell of four overs.”We felt that our batting in the powerplays has been below par and going too hard was probably not the way, particularly on our wicket, which is a little bit tricky,” Fleming said. “So we’re looking just to settle that with guys that have been in good form and have done it before, so that’s the theory behind that and that’s what we’ll possibly continue with.”But it just comes down to run production. You can have all the tactics you like, if you’ve got a couple of players in form they can cover for others. But at the moment we’re just not quite getting the big individual scores we need so that the cameos can do their part; we’re getting starts but not quite enough.”After crashing to their biggest-ever defeat at Chepauk in terms of runs, in late March against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), CSK seemed dreadfully off the pace and out of depth in another chase, this time against DC in a day game on Saturday. They managed only 69 for 4 in ten overs in pursuit of 184, and by the time MS Dhoni walked out to bat in the next over, the asking rate had almost touched 12. Vijay Shankar had a particularly tortured stay in the middle while Dhoni also failed to bring out the big hits in the face of a mounting asking rate.”The attempt was that we went out… a combination of they bowled well, I think the ball started to grip a little bit more,” Fleming said. “Well, we understood it was going to be good for the first half and then gradually get slower, so we were keen to bat and then take pace off the ball and they did it really well. Vijay Shankar struggled to get timing all the way through his innings. But that period from 12 to 16 was difficult for all, it was tough to watch and certainly tough to be out there, so the game was just slipping away and even with intent and different methods to do it, it was just too big a scale.”Noor Ahmad has a chat with MS Dhoni•AFP/Getty Images

CSK have now failed to chase 180-plus targets in their last ten attempts, dating back to 2020. Fleming admitted that it’s another worry and called for more contributions from the top order.”Yeah, whenever you’re not doing something well, it concerns me,” Fleming said. “That’s the job. So we’re looking to find the formula that will get us over the line. We’re certainly well aware of the [180-plus] chasing stat.”We are focusing hard bowling-wise to restrict teams below that [180], but we do need to be better with the bat. There’s no doubt about it. We need to have one or two players in the form, predominantly the top three or four, and you look at the teams that are going, well, you’ll see that the majority of the runs are getting scored through there, through the top four, so we need a bit more production there, and that then allows the more power-hitters or the players to finish off the coming in the right spots.”We’re having to introduce players, just not quite at the right time, and we’ve got [Shivam] Dube as well, who’s close [to returning to form], but just not quite getting the job done.”

MatériaMais Notícias

O Botafogo está a passos largos para anunciar mais um reforço para 2019. E trata-se de mais um meio-campista: Alex Santana, que pertence ao Internacional e que atuou pelo Paraná no último Campeonato Brasileiro. A informação inicial foi divulgada pelo jornalista Thiago Franklin e, em seguida, confirmada pelo LANCE!.

Para chegar aos finalmente do acordo, o Internacional tenta inserir um jogador do Botafogo no acordo e transformá-lo em troca. Rodrido Lindoso, cujo vínculo com o Glorioso encerra em dezembro, é um do nome que agrada ao Colorado.

RelacionadasBotafogoApós falecimento na família, Valencia volta ao Rio: ‘Esse ano será o meu’Botafogo06/01/2019BotafogoJogador de confiança de Zé e único ‘cão de guarda’: permanência de Jean é essencialBotafogo06/01/2019BotafogoAtacante do Bota sub-20 pede desculpas a jovem do Cuiabá após agressãoBotafogo06/01/2019

Alex Santana é observado pelo Botafogo há alguns meses. O meia foi o destaque de um combalido Paraná ao longo de 2018 e, inclusive, foi o autor do último gol sofrido por Jefferson na carreira, pela 37ª rodada do Brasileirão – na ida, também marcou contra o time de Zé Ricardo, na estreia do treinador.

Botafogo e Internacional, cabe destacar, já realizaram uma operação nesta janela de transferências. O meia Gustavo Ferrareis chegou por empréstimo de um ano ao clube da Estrela Solitária, que, até este momento, também já anunciou o goleiro Diego Cavalieri, o volante Alan Santos e a renovação de empréstimo de Jean, junto ao Corinthians.

LINDOSO É O MAIS LONGEVO DO ELENCO

Aos 29 anos, Lindoso é um jogador fundamental na equipe de Zé Ricardo, que, durante o último Brasileiro, o testou mais avançado, como meia. Com a aposentadoria de Jefferson, o volante passou a ser o atleta do atual elenco que mais vezes vestiu a camisa da Estrela Solitária: foram 165 jogos, com 17 gols marcados. Pode ser que o Alvinegro renove o seu contrato para que seja cedido ao Inter por empréstimo e ainda gere lucro aos cariocas, futuramente.

MatériaMais Notícias

Há exatos cinco anos, a Portuguesa iniciava um calvário em sua história ao ser punida no STJD por escalação irregular do meia Héverton diante do Grêmio, na última rodada, e rebaixada para a segunda divisão nacional. Na sequência, vieram três rebaixamentos consecutivos, dois em nível nacional – à Série C, em 2014, e à Série D, em 2016 – e um no Paulistão, caindo para aSérie A2 em 2015, onde permanece. A Lusa iniciará um novo ano com realidade difícil: segue sem estar em uma divisão nacional e tentará voltar à elite paulista asfixiada por dívidas.

– Peguei o clube em uma situação dificílima, praticamente do zero. Com uma sucessão de dívidas trabalhistas, fiscais, cíveis, que envolvem desde ações movidas por ex-jogadores até empréstimos feitos por ex-presidentes. Acreditamos que o valor da dívida gire em torno de R$ 350 milhões – expôs ao LANCE! atual presidente, Alexandre Barros, que assumiu o cargo no início do ano passado.

RelacionadasGaleria PremiumLéo Silva, Kannemann, Sornoza… Confira o Vaivém deste sábadoGaleria Premium15/12/2018Futebol NacionalDo ‘caso Héverton’ à ausência de divisão: a derrocada da LusaFutebol Nacional10/12/2018

Mesmo tendo bens penhorados e contas bloqueadas, o clube busca formas de continuar recolhendo os cacos do fatídico 16 de dezembro de 2013 e para voltar a ganhar projeção no cenário nacional.

CANINDÉ É LOCAL DE EVENTOS E DEVE ABRIGAR UMA ‘FEIRINHA’

O Canindé se tornou uma das formas de a Lusa garantir renda. O estádio, que tem área de 42.350 metros quadrados, passou a ser alugado para eventos como festas e “raves”.

Já outra medida tomada no clube causou controvérsias entre os sócios. As piscinas do parque aquático cederão espaço a uma futura “feirinha”. O dirigente disse que foi uma forma de lucrar com um local que estava ocioso:

-Um dos compromissos que tive no início de mandato foi a reabertura de uma piscina, porque o parque aquático estava há sete anos inutilizado. Mas, quando vi, os tubos estavam penhorados e também deteriorados. Agora, teremos esta diminuição da área do espaço, mas acreditamos que esta feirinha vai nos ajudar a honrar nossos compromissos financeiros.

Contudo, o clube ainda passa por problemas burocráticos para iniciar a “Feira da Madrugada”.

-O maior deles é a liberação do alvará da empresa “Feira da Madrugada”. Existe o projeto e a gente quer cumprir o mais cedo possível.

Segundo a assessoria do clube, a Portuguesa também aluga outros terrenos, como uma churrascaria, o Village Canindé, além de um ginásio na Marginal Tietê, cedido a uma igreja evangélica. Porém, a agremiação lida com um grande obstáculo: os valores que entram na conta do clube são penhorados.

A Portuguesa ainda é assombrada pelo risco de o Canindé ir a leilão para saldar as dívidas protestadas em juízo. Aos olhos de Alexandre Barros, esta ameaça será frequente:

– A gente sabe que um juiz pode decretar o leilão a qualquer momento. O estádio está em garantia. Temos de fazer acordos trabalhistas com jogadores que entraram com ações contra o clube. Como o senhor Rogério Pinheiro, que recebe R$ 50 mil por mês. Ou senhor Marcos Vinícius, Ricardo Oliveira, Thiago Barcelos, que foi um que nunca atuou como profissional na Portuguesa, mas ganha dinheiro às custas do clube.

BLOQUEIOS AFETAM PLANEJAMENTO DA SÉRIE A2 E PAGAMENTO DE SALÁRIOS

A penúria financeira trouxe sequelas dentro de campo. O planejamento para a Série A2 do Paulistão renderá desafios:

– Já estamos atrás dos demais clubes que disputam a Série A2 do Paulistão, porque temos 100% da cota de TV bloqueada. Nossa receita é a que fica menor por conta de bloqueios – afirmou Alexandre Barros sobre o valor repassado pela emissora que detém os direitos da competição para cada clube, que é de R$ 1 milhão.

De acordo com o mandatário, a ajuda financeira atual no clube acontece também graças ao carinho da torcida:

– Temos ajudas de associados, de torcedores apaixonados, parcerias, propagandas e permutas.

O LANCE! apurou que houve atrasos salariais para funcionários. O dirigente confirmou o problema, mas assegurou que na sua gestão tem batalhado para solucionar o problema:

– Quando assumimos o clube, eram nove meses de salários atrasados. Reduzimos para atraso de um mês. Dentro de dois dias, vamos quitar o mês de novembro. Depois, programaremos o mês de dezembro e o décimo-terceiro. Com alguns jogadores que foram embora, nós fizemos um acordo.

O volante Matheusão confirmou que houve atraso no pagamento de jogadores:

-Não é aquilo de estar em dia (nos salários dos jogadores). Tem alguns atletas que estão há três meses sem receber. Eu estou há dois meses.

Porém, o jogador, que é formado nas categorias de base, frisa que o clube vem tendo melhoras pontuais:

-Acho que mudou em relação à estrutura, à qualidade de alimentação. Melhorou muito. Sei porque jogo desde os oito anos aqui.

Um dos remanescentes do elenco que disputou a Série A2, Jonatas Paulista minimizou a questão salarial:

– Estas situações acontecem em todo o futebol brasileiro. Tem time multimilionário que está assim. Aqui já aconteceu, mas foram poucos dias.

SÉRIE A2 DO PAULISTA: REFORMULAÇÃO PARA OBTER O ACESSO

Em meio às adversidades, a Portuguesa aposta nas mudanças para voltar a subir degraus no futebol. A reformulação foi a tônica para a Série A2 do Paulistão de 2019. Além de restarem apenas seis jogadores do elenco deste ano, a confiança passa pelo novo técnico:

-Contratamos o Luís Carlos Martins, pródigo em acessos. Já estamos montando um elenco experiente na divisão. É claro que prometer um acesso ninguém pode. Mas vamos nos empenhar muito – afirmou o presidente da Portuguesa.

Martins recebeu o apelido de “O Rei do Acesso” pelos recorrentes feitos de ascender de divisão: Comercial, Guaçuano, Matonense, União Barbarense e Mirassol, além de, em nível nacional, fazer América-RN e Oeste subirem de patamar.

Matheusão vê com otimismo as mudanças na Portuguesa. Além disso, traz motivos para o torcedor confiar na volta à elite do Paulistão:

-O Luis Carlos (Martins) chegou, trouxe muitos jogadores experientes, que conhecem bem a disputa da Série A2. Na disputa deste ano, a gente tinha um elenco muito limitado, com muitos jogadores da base. Faltou um pouco de experiência para buscar algo maior.

Já para Jonatas Paulista, estar entre os remanescentes torna-se um desafio:

– A gente sabe que quem ficou foi escolhido a dedo. Por isso, a responsabilidade e as cobranças vão ser maiores. Mas o grupo vem sendo montado, a estrutura está boa e a gente tem conversado bem com nosso novo técnico.

COBRANÇA ‘DE SÉRIE A’

Passados cinco anos, a sensação entre os jogadores é de que a torcida da Portuguesa mantém sua confiança e cobra um resgate no gramado:

-Para quem é de São Paulo, percebe o quanto é difícil jogar aqui na Portuguesa. O clube vem caindo muito, são muitos rebaixamentos seguidos, o primeiro do jeito que foi. É uma exigência maior, a cobrança é muito grande. Mas eu, por ter vindo da base, sou visto com um pouco mais de carinho – declara Matheusão.

Aos olhos de Jonatas Paulista, os jogadores têm de ver pelo lado positivo:

– Isso é bom. Um clube sem cobrança não se motiva a brigar pelo acesso. E aqui a pressão é que nem a de Série A.

Entre os torcedores, há aqueles que sofrem muito com o estágio em que o clube se encontra. É o caso de José Maria Oliveira, sócio da Portuguesa há cinquenta anos.

– Estou muito chateado com o que se passou com a Portuguesa. criei dois filhos dentro do Canindé. Eles eram torcedores da Portuguesa, não conseguem torcer para mais ninguém – contou à reportagem.

VIRAR A PÁGINA DO ‘CASO HÉVERTON’?

Enquanto torcedores ainda cobram explicações sobre 2013, o presidente Alexandre Barros não considera o “caso Héverton” o pontapé inicial para a crise que hoje assola a Portuguesa. Ele foi categórico:

-Na verdade, a Portuguesa deixou de ser aquela equipe que brigou por títulos nos anos 1990. De 2000 para cá, foram anos vivendo de lampejos. Campanhas fracas na elite, idas para a Série B e até quase caindo para a Série C. O último grande momento foi a “Barcelusa” de 2011 (time que fez campanha marcante na Série B nacional, içando o clube de volta à elite). Em 2013, quando veio o “caso Héverton”, a Portuguesa já tinha sérios problemas financeiros, no ano em que fez uma campanha em que se arrastou na elite.

Cinco anos depois, o desejo no Canindé é dar o primeiro passo para uma reação:

– A gente pensa em fazer uma boa campanha na Série A2. Honrar a camisa que veste e ir subindo de jogo em jogo. O Luís Carlos (Martins) está buscando pouco a pouco montar uma equipe bem forte. E eu garanto que a gente quer colocar a Portuguesa no lugar de onde nunca devia sair, que é o cenário nacional – garante Matheusão.

já Barros espera que as boas notícias venham dentro e fora de campo:

-Tenho de me pautar dia após dia. Teremos duas competições em 2019, a Série A2 e a Copa Paulista. Vamos nos empenhar, mas, é óbvio que ao torcedor só interessa a vitória, os títulos. Agora, nosso grande objetivo é estancar ao máximo nossas dívidas e não aumentar as ações trabalhistas.

Passados cinco anos, o desafio é amenizar as cicatrizes da Lusa. Para voltar a disputar a principal competição nacional, a Lusa precisa conquistar vaga na Série D – a quarta divisão – e o ingresso a ela depende de desempenho no Paulistão ou na Copa do Brasil.

Shane Watson has signed a three-year deal with the Brisbane Heat on the second-last day of the initial Big Bash League contract window

ESPNcricinfo staff19-Jul-2012

Shane Watson has signed a three-year deal with the Brisbane Heat on the second-last day of the initial Big Bash League contract window. Watson, who is originally from Queensland, was on the Sydney Sixers’ roster last year and although his international commitments are expected to limit his BBL availability, he said he was keen to work with the Heat coach Darren Lehmann whenever possible.”Boof [Lehmann] is a great bloke and has made a really big impact as a coach since he went down that path,” Watson said. “I know the Queensland boys have really enjoyed their cricket under him and it seems a really great fit for me to join the Heat and get to work with him.”My priority will be to play as much cricket for Australia as I can this summer but the BBL is an exciting thing to be a part of. I love T20 cricket and I’m looking forward to being back home playing in front of friends and family.”There were several other moves on Thursday, with the Melbourne Renegades hitting back at the Adelaide Strikers after they poached Andrew McDonald and Shaun Tait from the Renegades over the past fortnight. The Renegades have picked up three men who performed solidly for the Strikers last season: Daniel Harris, who was the Strikers’ second-leading run scorer; Aaron O’Brien, who was their top wicket taker; and the batsman Tom Cooper.In other moves, the Sydney Thunder lost Doug Bollinger to the Hobart Hurricanes, while the Thunder picked up Ryan Carters from the Renegades and Cameron Borgas from the Strikers, and signed Jason Floros. The wicketkeeper-batsman Daniel Smith, who played for the Thunder last summer, has moved to the Sixers.The Sixers also re-signed Mitchell Starc and Nic Maddinson, while the Melbourne Stars were happy to lock in six key bowlers: James Pattinson, Clint McKay, Jackson Bird, James Faulkner, John Hastings and Clive Rose. The Hurricanes, as well as signing Bollinger, confirmed that Timm van der Gugten would be part of their squad this year.The Strikers picked up the allrounder Michael Neser from the Brisbane Heat and the batsman Nathan Reardon from the Renegades. The eight teams have until the end of Friday to confirm at least 14 players for the 2012-13 tournament.

Sri Lanka’s cricketers are set to receive their outstanding salaries by the end of February after a Sri Lankan bank agreed to release 600 million rupees (approx US$5.07 million) to Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) to meet this commitment, the country’s sports ministry has said.The state-owned Bank of Ceylon agreed to provide the funds following discussions between its officials and the Sports Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage. The minister subsequently instructed SLC “to pay the pending salaries up to the month of February to its contracted cricketers by February 28, 2012,” according to a statement from the ministry. The minister also stated that payments from March 2012 onwards would be paid on time.The players have been owed more than half their dues since the 2011 World Cup. Two months ago the ICC paid 42.36% of the fees due to the players from the World Cup to September 30, 2011. The payment of US$2 million was made directly into the players’ bank accounts, instead of routing it through Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC), on December 16.In addition, the statement said that Aluthgamage had, in writing, “instructed the officials of SLC not to overlook contract payments in the future and Sri Lanka Cricket should take the full responsibility to ensure that the player payments are made on time in the future.”The Ministry had previously told the players that that they would be fully paid by January. The team is currently involved in a tri-series in Australia that also features India.SLC ran into financial problems after running up debts of close to $70 million to finance the building of two international stadiums in Hambantota and Pallekele, and to renovate the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, for the World Cup. All three stadiums have since been handed over to the military because the board was struggling to maintain them.

The Mumbai side that will face Madhya Pradesh is almost unrecognisable from the team that played Rajasthan last year, due to injuries and unavailability of players

Abhishek Purohit in Indore01-Jan-2012

Multiple champions in an away knockout game against underdogs with nothingto lose and everything to gain. Mumbai have been in this situation before.Eventual winners Rajasthan knocked them out of the Ranji Trophy lastseason in the quarter-final in Jaipur, their new-ball pair of Pankaj Singhand Deepak Chahar utilising the opening session to run through a line-upthat included Wasim Jaffer, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma and AbhishekNayar.The stage has shifted to Indore this season but an in-form new-ball duo,TP Sudhindra and Ishwar Pandey, again awaits Mumbai in anotherquarter-final on a pitch expected to aid the quicks in the first session.This is where the similarities end.The Mumbai side that will face Madhya Pradesh is almost unrecognisable from the team that played Rajasthan.Rahane and Rohit are in Australia on national duty. Nayar has lost hislatest battle with injuries and has been withdrawn from the squad. AjitAgarkar is still miffed after being dropped against Orissa; the man he wasdropped for, Aavishkar Salvi, got injured during Mumbai’s previous gameagainst Punjab. To top it all, wicketkeeper-batsman Sushant Maratheinjured his groin while diving to collect a delivery in the Punjab match.Mumbai have been used to the absence of Sachin Tendulkar and Zaheer Khanbut missing so many first-choice players is almost like playing with asecond XI.Jaffer, the captain, said that all the injuries had playedhavoc with the balance of the team. “It has troubled the composition ofthe team. We could have played Nayar as the third seamer and Marathe asthe opening batsman. The balance has been missing.”But you don’t win the Ranji Trophy 39 times if you don’t have theresilience to fight adversity. After Salvi and Marathe pulled out on thefirst day, a nine-man Mumbai demolished Punjab by nine wickets. Jaffer saidMumbai would have to make the most of what they have got in terms ofresources. “I think we have still got good quality in the team,” Jaffersaid. “Whatever newcomers we have got, they have done well. Onkar Gurav[Marathe’s replacement] has played before. This is not his first game. Soat least temperament-wise he won’t be struggling.”With the batting as well as the pace bowling thin on experience, Mumbaicould even go in with three spinning allrounders in Ramesh Powar, AnkeetChavan and Iqbal Abdulla, leaving one of Balwinder Sandhu or KshemalWaingankar to partner Dhawal Kulkarni with the new ball.The pitch, which had a fair sprinkling of grass today over a slightlydry-looking surface, was a matter of keen interest for the Mumbai campwith several of their players inspecting it along with coach SulakshanKulkarni. Jaffer said that was because Mumbai needed to be sure what theywould do if they won the toss. “The pitch could still end up lookingcompletely different in the morning. It should help the seamers in thefirst session and then it will probably ease out to becomebatsman-friendly.”Jaffer was mindful of the threat posed by Sudhindra and Pandey – who have57 wickets between them this season – but said that the MP attack heldlittle danger otherwise. “Apart from those two, not many have takenwickets for them. If we negate them, we will be in a good position. It’s aknockout game and will probably go on the first innings.”If Mumbai bat first tomorrow, Jaffer will hope that it is not decided by the firstsession again.

The debutant batsman Peter Handscomb showed impressive composure to keep Victoria steady on the second day at the Gabba, where they chipped away at Queensland’s first innings of 355

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Oct-2011
ScorecardChris Rogers made 72 for Victoria•Getty Images

The debutant batsman Peter Handscomb showed impressive composure to keep Victoria steady on the second day at the Gabba, where they chipped away at Queensland’s first innings of 355. But despite Handscomb’s half-century, the Bushrangers faced a tough challenge to take first-innings points, still trailing by 143 runs at the close of play, with only the bowlers still to bat.The last two recognised batsmen were at the crease, Alex Keath on 16 and Ryan Carters on 4, as Victoria reached 5 for 212 at stumps. They had lost Handscomb for 71 late in the day when he edged Ben Cutting to slip, to give Cutting a well-deserved second wicket, as he finished the day with figures of 2 for 37 from 20 overs.Batting at No.3, Handscomb had stayed at the crease for four and a half hours and put on a valuable 90-run stand for the second wicket with Chris Rogers, who eventually lobbed a return catch to the legspinner Cameron Boyce for 72. Scott Walter picked up two wickets, including Victoria’s captain Andrew McDonald for 33, after he finished unbeaten on 14 in Queensland’s innings earlier in the day.The Bulls resumed at 6 for 306 and added 49 to their overnight total, with Peter Siddle collecting two wickets on the second morning. Darren Pattinson finished with 3 for 75.

The contrast could not have been more obvious. Six Leicestershire players swaggered in for the media briefing behind their captain Matthew Hoggard, who was grinning from ear to ear, trying his best to appear excited and interested. After seeing that the reporters were sitting about 20 feet from his table, he even implored them to “shout” out the questions, before realising that there were microphones in place.A couple of hours later, a pale-looking Mahela Udawatte trudged in, his only accompaniments being Ruhuna coach Sumithra Warnakulasuriya and a weak promise of a possible late appearance by Sanath Jayasuriya.Given the gregarious mood Hoggard was in, it did not take him long to move beyond the standard phrases which press conferences are routinely littered with. “We are the underdogs. Everyone expects us to go home,” Hoggard said. Why should a side that has just won a gruelling domestic Twenty20 tournament – after 16 league matches and a tied semi-final decided by an eliminator – be treated as the underdog? Hoggard had an answer. “We do not have too many star players,” he said.”But we have got some good solid match-winners. We have Andrew McDonald, Abdul Razzaq. It’s going to be an interesting tournament. India is a tough place to come and get results. Two games [per side for the qualifiers] is a bit of a lottery but it also takes only two good games to take it away from the opposition. We have come with high hopes.”Leicestershire have sufficient reason to hold sky-high expectations. They had a loss of £400,000 last year and Mike Siddall, their chief executive, admitted earlier that it has been a financial struggle for the club. They stand to gain substantially if they can make it through to the main draw of the Champions League Twenty20.Money was the last thing on Hoggard’s mind though. “You don’t play for money. It is a challenge for us to come here and test ourselves at this level against competitive and top sides from around the world. The money looks after itself.”Testing themselves against top T20 opposition is something that Sri Lankan sides haven’t found too easy in the previous editions of the Champions League but Udawatte was hopeful of a turnaround this time. “We’ve got a good side of youngsters as well as experienced players like Sanath,” Udawatte said. “Batting is our strength but we have also got some decent spinners and fast bowlers.”It is the bowlers that are absent though that are a cause of worry for coach Warnakulasuriya. “We are missing out on Chanaka Welegedara, Suraj Randiv and Shaminda Eranga who are all doing national duty against Australia. The bowling department is a bit weak.”Not having heard such an honest admission throughout the day, all the reporters suddenly went very quiet. Udawatte tried looking at some positives. “We are really lucky to have Sanath. He is always giving good ideas in the dressing room.”The mood wasn’t getting uplifted so easily though. And when it was finally announced that Jayasuriya was not going to make an appearance after all, the briefing ended in disappointed groans.

Scorecard UAE recovered well from their loss in the first 50-over game against Kenya, putting in a team effort to register a four-wicket win in the Intercontinental One-Day Cup in Nairobi, as a century from Kenya opener Rakep Patel went in vain.After Kenya were asked to bat, Patel – who was very highly rated by the previous Kenya coach Eldine Baptiste – built the host’s total almost single-handedly with a knock of 124 off 154 balls. He struck nine fours and six sixes before being run out in the final over of the innings. Only Tanmay Mishra offered Patel adequate support, scoring a half-century in a 111-run stand for the third wicket, as Kenya posted 230 for nine. Saqib Ali was pick of the UAE bowlers, claiming three middle-order wickets while conceding only 28 in an eight-over spell.UAE lost Bakthiyar Palekar early on in the chase, but were steadied by Arshad Ali and Amjad Ali who added 85 for the second wicket. Kenya fought back with three wickets in the space of 17 runs, including that of Amjad Ali for 60, before another half-century stand between Shaiman Anwar and Khurram Khan put them back on course. Anwar fell with his side 46 short of victory, but Khurram saw the chase through, finishing unbeaten on 65 as UAE won with 20 balls to spare.

Fast bowler Hamid Hassan was among the wickets again as Afghanistan took control of the match after making Canada follow on

ESPNcricinfo staff05-Aug-2011
ScorecardA strong bowling performance from Afghanistan helped them take control of their Intercontinental Cup match against Canada at King City. After no play was possible on the second day due to rain, fast bowler Hamid Hassan ran through the Canada batting line-up on the third day, allowing Afghanistan to enforce the follow-on. Canada struggled in their second innings and had managed a lead of 13 at stumps, with just three wickets in hand.Hassan, who picked up four wickets on day one to leave Canada tottering at 21 for 4, continued in the same vein on the third day, picking up three early wickets to leave Canada in a shambles at 70 for 7. Only No. 7 Zeeshan Siddiqi offered some resistance with a half-century, before offspinner Mohammad Nabi struck to pick up the final three wickets as Canada were bowled out for a paltry 130, 163 runs adrift of Afghanistan’s first-innings total of 293.Afghanistan captain Nawroz Mangal had no hesitation in enforcing the follow-on. Once again Hassan struck early as Canada stumbled to 30 for 3. However, their middle order showed more fight; Hamza Tariq made an aggressive 52 with four fours and three sixes, while there were handy contributions from Zubin Surkari (35) – who was dismissed for obstructing the field – and Siddiqi (23). Harvir Baidwan (29*) and Tariq put on the most substantial partnership of the innings for Canada – 81 for the seventh wicket – before Tariq was dismissed in the penultimate over before stumps to leave Canada at 176 for 7, a lead of just 13.