20 May, 2008
Sehwag the Delhi hero

Virender Sehwag's brief but explosive innings set the tone as the Delhi Daredevils raced to a five-wicket victory over Bangalore on Monday, winning with 10 balls to spare.

The result sees Bangalore's hopes of progressing to the semi-finals ended, but Delhi remains on course.

After restricting the hosts to 7-154 in its 20 overs, Delhi quickly set about chasing down that total, with Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir putting on 90 for the first wicket.

Sehwag was the first to go. The Delhi captain hit two fours, a six, and another four in succession and was aiming for the boundary again when he was brilliantly caught by Bharat Chipli at point, departing for 47 off just 19 balls.

Delhi added another 10 runs to their total before Gambhir was run out for 39, trying to beat Cameron White's throw to turn a single into two runs.

Tillakaratne Dilshan made only four off 10 balls before he was stumped by Shreevats Goswami and AB de Villiers soon followed him back to the pavilion, caught behind after scoring 21 from 25 balls.

After Dinesh Karthik went for just six, Shikhar Dhawan (16no) and Farveez Maharoof (13no) came in to carry Delhi over the line.

Delhi's fast pace was in contrast to Bangalore's innings. Opener Bharat Chipli made just two runs off the 10 balls he faced before sending a top edge into the hands of Rajat Bhatia, who held on despite losing his footing.

Jacques Kallis had done the early run-scoring for the hosts, but he went for 25 soon after, edging behind to Dinesh Karthik.

Captain Rahul Dravid then followed for just nine, clean-bowled by Dilshan, leaving Bangalore at 3-73 with more than 10 overs gone.

The run rate did not improve and Bangalore had barely passed the 100 mark when Goswami went early in the 16th over, out for 52 caught by Dilshan at point.

White, Balachandra Akhil, and Praveen Kumar all went cheaply as the hosts crumbled, but Misbah-ul-Haq did at least restore some pride towards the end, hitting 24 off the last over - including three sixes.

How long is this series going to go on for ?

Here are all the fixtures for 2008 Indian Premier League
IPL 2008 FIXTURE
Date Home Team Away Team Venue
Apr 18, 2008 Bangalore Royal Challengers Kolkata Knight Riders M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore
Apr 19, 2008 Kings XI Punjab (Mohali) Chennai Super Kings Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali, Chandigarh
Apr 19, 2008 Delhi Daredevils Rajasthan Royals (Jaipur) Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi
Apr 20, 2008 Mumbai Indians Bangalore Royal Challengers Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai
Apr 20, 2008 Kolkata Knight Riders Deccan Chargers (Hyderabad) Eden Gardens, Kolkata
Apr 21, 2008 Rajasthan Royals (Jaipur) Kings XI Punjab (Mohal)i Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur
Apr 22, 2008 Deccan Chragers (Hyderabad) Delhi Daredevils Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Uppal, Hyderabad
Apr 23, 2008 Chennai Super Kings Mumbai Indians MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai
Apr 24, 2008 Deccan Chargers (Hyderabad) Rajasthan Royals (Jaipur) Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Uppal, Hyderabad
Apr 25, 2008 Kings XI Punjab (Mohali) Mumbai Indians Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali, Chandigarh
Apr 26, 2008 Bangalore Royal Challengers Rajasthan Royals (Jaipur) M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore
Apr 26, 2008 Chennai Super Kings Kolkata Knight Riders MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai
Apr 27, 2008 Mumbai Indians Deccan Chargers (Hyderabad) Dr DY Patil Sports Academy, Mumbai
Apr 27, 2008 Kings XI Punjab (Mohali) Delhi Daredevils Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali, Chandigarh
Apr 28, 2008 Bangalore Royal Challengers Chennai Super Kings M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore
Apr 29, 2008 Kolkata Knight Riders Mumbai Indians Eden Gardens, Kolkata
Apr 30, 2008 Delhi Daredevils Bangalore Royal Challengers Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi
May 1, 2008 Deccan Chargers (Hyderabad) Kings XI Punjab Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Uppal, Hyderabad
May 1, 2008 Rajasthan Royals (Jaipur) Kolkata Knight Riders Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur
May 2, 2008 Chennai Super Kings Delhi Daredevils MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai
May 3, 2008 Deccan Chargers (Hyderabad) Bangalore Royal Challengers Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Uppal, Hyderabad
May 3, 2008 Kings XI Punjab (Mohali) Kolkata Knight Riders Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali, Chandigarh
May 4, 2008 Rajasthan Royals (Jaipur) Chennai Super Kings Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur
May 4, 2008 Mumbai Indians Delhi Daredevils Dr DY Patil Sports Academy, Mumbai
May 5, 2008 Bangalore Royal Challengers Kings XI Punjab (Mohali) M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore
May 6, 2008 Chennai Super Kings Deccan Chargers (Hyderabad) MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai
May 7, 2008 Mumbai Indians Rajasthan Royals (Jaipur) Dr DY Patil Sports Academy, Mumbai
May 8, 2008 Delhi Daredevils Chennai Super Kings Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi
May 8, 2008 Kolkata Knight Riders Bangalore Royal Challengers Eden Gardens, Kolkata
May 9, 2008 Rajasthan Royals (Jaipur) Deccan Chargers (Hyderabad Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur
May 10, 2008 Bangalore Royal Challengers Mumbai Indians M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore
May 10, 2008 Chennai Super Kings Kings XI Punjab MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai
May 11, 2008 Deccan Chargers (Hyderabad) Kolkata Knight Riders Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Uppal, Hyderabad
May 12, 2008 Kings XI Punjab (Mohali) Bangalore Royal Challengers Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali, Chandigarh
May 13, 2008 Kolkata Knight Riders Delhi Daredevils Eden Gardens, Kolkata
May 14, 2008 Kings XI Punjab (Mohali) Rajasthan Royals (Jaipur) Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali, Chandigarh
May 14, 2008 Mumbai Indians Chennai Super Kings Dr DY Patil Sports Academy, Mumbai
May 15, 2008 Delhi Daredevils Deccan Chargers Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi
May 16, 2008 Mumbai Indians Kolkata Knight Riders Dr DY Patil Sports Academy, Mumbai
May 17, 2008 Delhi Daredevils Kings XI Punjab (Mohali) Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi
May 17, 2008 Rajasthan Royals (Jaipur) Bangalore Royal Challengers Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur
May 18, 2008 Deccan Chargers Mumbai Indians Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Uppal, Hyderabad
May 18, 2008 Kolkata Knight Riders Chennai Super Kings Eden Gardens, Kolkata
May 19, 2008 Bangalore Royal Challengers Delhi Daredevils M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore
May 20, 2008 Kolkata Knight Riders Rajasthan Royals (Jaipur) Eden Gardens, Kolkata
May 21, 2008 Chennai Super Kings Bangalore Royal Challengers MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai
May 21, 2008 Mumbai Indians Kings XI Punjab Dr DY Patil Sports Academy, Mumbai
May 22, 2008 Delhi Daredevils Kolkata Knight Riders Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi
May 23, 2008 Kings XI Punjab (Mohali) Deccan Chargers (Hyderabad) Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali, Chandigarh
May 24, 2008 Delhi Daredevils Mumbai Indians Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi
May 24, 2008 Chennai Super Kings Rajasthan Royals MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai
May 25, 2008 Kolkata Knight Riders Kings XI Punjab Eden Gardens, Kolkata
May 25, 2008 Bangalore Royal Challengers Deccan Chargers M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore
May 26, 2008 Rajasthan Royals (Jaipur) Mumbai Indians Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur
May 27, 2008 Deccan Chargers (Hyderabad) Chennai Super Kings Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Uppal, Hyderabad
May 30, 2008 TBA TBA Final
May 31, 2008 TBA TBA Final
Jun 1, 2008 TBA TBA Final

21 May, 2008
Royals first into IPL finals

Yusuf Pathan has fired the Rajasthan Royals into the Indian Premier League semi-finals with an unbeaten 48 off 18 balls to fuel a six-wicket win over the Kolkata Knight Riders.

After Kolkata posted a disappointing 8-147 from its 20 overs, a double-wicket maiden from Umar Gul looked to have turned things in its favour.

But Pathan and Mohammad Kaif (34 off 31) steadied the ship and saw Rajasthan comfortably home.

With nine wins from their 11 games, Shane Warne's Royals are the first team to be assured of a semi-final place, while Kolkata is close to elimination.

Kolkata was in trouble early as Mohammad Hafeez tried to go over the top but only found Swapnil Asnodkar at mid-on off Munaf Patel.

Salman Butt (24 off 20) attempted to up the rate, but was trapped on his crease as Patel claimed his second wicket with a ball that kept low and struck the Pakistan opener on the pad.

Debabrata Das took no time to make his mark, striking a majestic straight six off Warne and pulling an even bigger maximum off a long hop from Pathan, who was promptly given a talking-to by his skipper.

Sourav Ganguly compiled an unusually subdued 32 off 34 before heaving a wide Siddharth Trivedi delivery to Kaif.

Debabrata (31 off 20) was dropped by Shohail Tanvir on the boundary but the Pakistani gained his revenge four balls later with a devastating yorker which rearranged his stumps.

Laxmi Shukla and Ajit Agarkar soon followed and Umar Gul smashed one six before joining them in the final over.

In reply, Asnodkar perished early but Graeme Smith and Tanvir were progressing nicely when Gul struck.

First Tanvir (13 from eight balls) holed out to Butt at mid-on, with the batsmen crossing as the ball was in the air leaving Smith (24 off 24) to face the rest of the over.

He was then the victim of a fine leg-side catch by wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha.

Shane Watson (19 off 15) took a liking to Agarkar but was bowled by a jubilant Ganguly, but that was as good as it got for the former India skipper, who was struck for successive sixes by Pathan as Rajasthan rallied.

When Kaif struck three consecutive fours of Dinda, the required rate went down to four an over and Pathan struck Gul for two fours and a six to see the Royals home with three and a half overs to spare.

22 May, 2008
Aussie blitz downs Indians

Shaun Marsh and Luke Pomersbach's 134-run partnership proved to be the difference as Kings XI Punjab held on to claim a thrilling one-run win over the Mumbai Indians.

The Australian duo of Marsh (81) and Pomersbach (79 not out) helped the Kings recover from the first-over loss of James Hopes as they posted the bulk of their side's daunting total of 189.

Mumbai refused to lie down, however, and the match could have gone either way in a breathless final over that saw the hosts lose three wickets to run-outs as they tried in desperation to scrape together the handful of runs they required for victory.

Vikrant Yeligati's dismissal while trying to steal a run that would have secured a draw brought the curtain down on an enthralling encounter, and ended the Indians' six-match winning run.

The win boosts second-placed Punjab's hopes of reaching the semi-finals while Mumbai is still in the frame to reach the knockout stage in fourth.

Punjab's innings got off to a stuttering start when Hopes was dismissed for a golden duck with just the third ball of the match, Shaun Pollock claiming the scalp as Pinal Shah took the catch behind the stumps.

The combination of Marsh and Pomersbach quickly steadied any early jitters among the visitors' ranks as the pair set about the Mumbai attack.

Marsh lofted a hooked six into the stands to take the score beyond 50 inside eight overs while Pomersbach was in equally aggressive mood and rattled off five fours and two maximums as he brought up his half-century in 38 balls.

Left-hander Marsh showed greater urgency on his way to his seventh Twenty20 fifty, achieving the feat three balls earlier than Pomersbach.

Their partnership came to an end in the 15th over when Marsh was caught at long off by Pollock off the bowling of Siddharth Chitnis just 19 runs shy of his century.

Yuvraj Singh (seven) and Mahela Jayawardene (one) failed to add much to the Punjab total and Pomersbach was left unbeaten on 79 alongside Irfan Pathan (nine) when the visitors ran out of overs.

Sachin Tendulkar led the fightback for Mumbai with a solid 65 before he was run out attempting a single in the 17th over, but long before then his team-mates just failed to do enough to back up their captain.

Sanath Jayasuriya (20), Dwayne Smith (20) and Abhishek Nayar (27) had solid if unspectacular innings while the middle order and the tail failed to fire as the pressure told in the final overs.

Pollock's dismissal at the hands of Yuvraj Singh for nought in the 18th over left the Indians with 17 balls to claim the 31 runs they needed for victory, but those left to bat failed to find the big strokes when it mattered most.

Siddharth Chitnis looked the man most likely to bring the Indians home, hitting a six and a boundary in a quickfire 15 from six balls before he was run out with the second ball of the final over to leave the hosts on 8-183.

Seven runs in four balls was certainly not an insurmountable task for the Indians' tail, but they could not hold their nerve.



22 May, 2008
Fleming fires, Kings fail

Bangalore Royal Challengers picked up only their third Indian Premier League victory with a 14-run win over Chennai Super Kings despite former New Zealand captain Stephen Fleming top-scoring for his side with 45.

Rahul Dravid's Royal Challengers - who already have no chance of reaching the semi-finals - looked to be on their way to their 10th defeat in the competition when they made just 8-126 from their 20 overs after opting to bat first.

But the home team managed only 8-112 in reply, with Anil Kumble claiming 3-14 and Dale Steyn 2-28.

The visitors must have feared the worst after being restricted to what was a new lowest score by a team who have batted out 20 overs in the IPL.

Dravid was the only Bangalore batsman to stick around for any period of time - long enough to notch 47 from 39 balls.

The former India captain received little in the way of support, with Praveen Kumar the next highest scorer among his team-mates with 21.

South African Albie Morkel was the pick of the Chennai bowlers, finishing with figures of 4-32 from his four overs.

Bangalore never looked like building a substantial total.

Openers Jacques Kallis (five) and Shreevats Goswami (10) fell cheaply and the wickets continued to tumble even when Dravid arrived and gave the innings a touch of stability.

Virat Kohli (10), Misbah-ul-Haq (four) and Mark Boucher (17) quickly came and went with Dravid watching on helplessly from the other end.

Dravid perished in the 17th over, caught at cover by Mahendra Singh Dhoni off the bowling of Morkel, with Praveen Kumar and Vinay Kumar (nought) falling in the final over.

Despite a solid opening partnership of 60 between Parthiv Patel and Fleming, the Super Kings never looked comfortable chasing 127.

Fleming top-scored for his team with 45 but, apart from Patel (24) and Suresh Raina (21 not out), nobody else contributed more than four as the hosts slumped to a meagre 112.

23 May, 2008
First IPL match washed out

Heavy rain caused the abandonment of Thursday's IPL clash between the Delhi Daredevils and Kolkata Knight Riders before a ball was bowled, the first match to be washed out in the tournament so far.

The weather left both teams frustrated as Kolkata were eliminated from the race for the semi-finals while Delhi need to beat Mumbai and hope the Indians lose their other two remaining games to have a chance of advancing.

Heavy rain lashed the Feroz Shah Kotla until around 9.15pm local time and despite the best efforts of the ground staff, poor conditions in the outfield made play impossible.

it bores me this comp for some reason

24 May, 2008
Lefties run hot for Kings XI

Shaun Marsh and Kumar Sangakkara both struck half-centuries as Kings XI Punjab heaped more misery on the Deccan Chargers in the Indian Premier League on Friday.

The Australian plundered 60 off 46 balls and the Sri Lankan 50 off 25 as Punjab recorded a six-wicket win.

The IPL's second-placed side - whose place in the semi-finals had already been secured - reached its 176-run victory target with just three balls to spare to finish on 4-178.

Rohit Sharma (50 off 27) and Marsh's fellow Australian Adam Gilchrist (50 off 42) had earlier helped Deccan to 4-175.

Sangakkara set about the run chase in explosive fashion, racking up nine boundaries and averaging two runs a ball before he was caught by Chamara Silva off Sharma.

Fellow opener Marsh was rather more sedate, taking 40 deliveries to reach his half-century, before eventually holing out to Herschelle Gibbs.

Yuvraj Singh (17) and Luke Pomersbach (13) came and went quickly, but Mahela Jayawardene (14) and Piyush Chawla (16), who claimed a six apiece off Scott Styris in the penultimate over, saw the hosts home.

Having been put in to bat by Punjab, opening pair Gilchrist and Gibbs put on 79 for the first wicket as Deccan looked to salvage some pride from a desperate tournament.

The South African was especially aggressive, bludgeoning three sixes and as many fours on his way to 44 off before he attempted one big swing too many and was bowled by Gagandeep Singh.

Gilchrist then played onto his own stumps from Ramesh Powar minutes after bringing up his third IPL half-century.

It was Sharma who really looked to take the innings by the scruff of the neck though, sending four maximums hurtling into the stands.

His whirlwind knock was ended by Vikram Singh before Silva added 23 runs from just 10 balls at the death, but they proved to be in a losing cause.

25 May, 2008
Smith smashes Super Kings

Graeme Smith smashed 91 to lead Rajasthan Royals to a thrilling 11-run victory over the Chennai Super Kings.

The South Africa captain guided the visitors to 5-211 - a total which proved just beyond the battling Super Kings, who finished on 7-201, despite half centuries from Parthiv Patel and Albie Morkel, and Suresh Raina's 45.

Chennai needed 15 off the last over for victory but Sohail Tanvir dismissed Morkel for 71 and Abhinav Mukund (nought) with the last two balls of the game.

The hosts' hopes of chasing down the daunting total suffered a setback in the second over when Stephen Fleming (seven) was run out by Tanvir's direct throw, but Raina soon took charge, smashing Munaf Patel for 19 runs off the third over.

He made 45 off 24 balls before he lobbed Shane Warne to deep midwicket where Mohammad Kaif took a simple catch.

Parthiv Patel injected some spark into the run rate with a quick-fire 54 off 40 balls before he came down the track to Warne and was stumped.

Morkel maintained the momentum and reached the third-fastest IPL 50 - off 26 balls - to keep Chennai in contention but the Super Kings' chances suffered a blow when MS Dhoni was caught by Kaif at long off attempting to loft Tanvir over the boundary.

Subramaniam Badrinath (one) soon followed after skying Patel down the throat of Taruvar Kohli at cow corner and Chennai's hopes disintegrated when Tanvir removed Morkel and then Mukund with the last two balls of the game.

Earlier, Rajasthan started with a bang and hit Makhaya Ntini for 12 in the first over - six of those coming from Swapnil Asnodkar's lofted maximum over long-on off a free hit.

Asnodkar continued to rack up the runs and tormented Gony by bludgeoning him around the park, scoring boundaries at regular intervals.

At the other end Graeme Smith followed suit and raced to 50 inside nine overs, steering Morkel to third man for a quick single to bring up his eighth Twenty20 half-century.

Kamran Akmal pummelled 53 off 28 balls to maintain the imposing run-rate in the final few overs, but Yusuf Pathan (six) mistimed a Morkel delivery and toe-ended to Muralitharan at long off.

Kaif added 10 before being mis-hitting Morkel to Abhinav Mukund at third man, and Kohli was run out with the final ball of the innings.

26 May, 2008
Knight Riders riding high

Sourav Ganguly's Kolkata Knight Riders finally gave their home fans something to cheer about by ending their Indian Premier League campaign with a thrilling three-wicket win over semi-finalists Kings XI Punjab.

With the visitors having already clinched a semis berth and the hosts out of contention, there was little resting on the match for either side.

Punjab will nevertheless have fancied its chances of victory after posting 6-174 - until then the highest IPL total at Eden Gardens - from its 20 overs.

But the Knight Riders - inspired by a brilliant unbeaten knock of 86 from 53 balls by captain Ganguly - had other ideas and stormed back to pick up their sixth win of the tournament in their 14th and final match.

Kings XI captain Yuvraj Singh won the toss and opted to bat first, with Kumar Sangakkara and Shaun Marsh leading the way for the visitors with scores of 64 and 40 respectively and Yuvraj himself contributing 27 before being run out.

James Hopes was dropped on 10 by Umar Gul at third man off the bowling of Ishant Sharma but the error did not prove costly as Gul made amends shortly afterwards to trap the opener leg before wicket for 13.

Marsh and Sangakkara shared an 83-run partnership for the second wicket which came to an end when the former smashed IPL debutant Ajantha Mendis to Aakash Chopra at long-off.

Sangakkara's fourth IPL half-century came off 37 balls before he fell lbw to man-of-the-match Gul playing across the line.

Yuvraj was put down on eight - again off Ishant - by India colleague Ganguly at deep mid-wicket after a collision with Chopra. He went on to make a typically breezy 27 from 18 balls but was run out in the 19th over by Wriddhiman Saha.

Irfan Pathan (seven) and Piyush Chawla (nought) perished to successive Gul deliveries in the final over as the Kings XI finished on 174 from their 20 overs.

The home team - Ganguly apart - struggled to stick around for long but Salman Butt, Gul (both 24), Saha (13) and David Hussey (12) at least reached double figures while the skipper prospered at the other end.

Despite having Kolkata reeling on 6-106 midway through the 16th over, however, Punjab was unable to finish the job off and was made to pay with Ganguly carrying his bat in style.

The opener's six with the third ball of the final over brought the hosts level and he sealed matters with the next delivery to see his team home with two balls to spare.




26 May, 2008
Chargers finish bottom

The Deccan Chargers were guaranteed last place in the inaugural IPL competition on Sunday after the Bangalore Royal Challengers chased down a victory target of 166.

Deccan's 165 all out was built on the foundation of a 101-run opening partnership between Adam Gilchrist (46) and Herschelle Gibbs (47).

But once the international duo departed, the home side struggled with only Rohit Sharma and Venugopal Rao reaching double figures.

Bangalore replied with a well-balanced scorecard - four players making over 30 - as it cruised to a five-wicket win with six balls remaining.

Rock-bottom Deccan started the day two points behind its opponent and seemingly intent on eradicating that gap.

Gilchrist and Gibbs looked in complete command against the Bangalore attack with Indian Test captain Anil Kumble coming in for some particularly rough treatment.

But just two balls after reaching a 100-run partnership, Gibbs perished when he charged down the track to Kumble, missed and saw his stumps shattered by wicketkeeper Shreevats Goswami.

The hosts needed captain Gilchrist to hang around but the Australian went with only eight runs added to the total, caught at long-off by Balachandra Akhil off the bowling of Vinay Kumar.

Rohit made a quickfire 17 and Rao a 12-ball 26 but the rest of the Deccan order failed to fire with man of the match Kumar the pick of the Bangalore attack with 3-27.

The early loss of Wasim Jaffer offered Deccan hope but Jacques Kallis (31), Misbah-ul-Haq (34) and Rahul Dravid (31) kept the scoreboard ticking over.

Cameron White and Akhil saw the visitors home with an unbroken partnership of 30. White ended on 31 not out while Akhil remained unbeaten on 27.

The victory takes seventh-placed Bangalore on to eight points from its 13 matches, while Deccan remains on four.

27 May, 2008
Royals win again

A final-ball fumble by Sanath Jayasuriya gifted the Rajasthan Royals a five-wicket win over the Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League on Monday.

With Rajasthan requiring two balls off the final ball for victory, Jayasuriya, standing at the bowler's end, bungled a routine run out when he dropped a throw from the outfield.

Sohail Tanvir had earlier recorded figures of 4-14 as the home side limited Mumbai to 7-145.

And Niraj Patel was the Royals' hero with the bat, cracking a fine 40 from just 29 balls to help his side to 5-146 and earn them their 11th win of the competition.

None of the Rajasthan batsmen were able to get into their stride early on as the form which has propelled them to the top of the IPL table threatened to desert them.

Kamran Akmal (18 off 16), Swapnil Asnodkar (17 off 18) and Shane Watson (18 off 19) all got starts, but were unable to push on.

But Ravindra Jadeja (23 off 20) and Patel in particular pulled them out of the mire, putting on an unbeaten 73 for the sixth wicket to see the Royals home - although the winning runs owed much to Jayasuriya's blunder.

Sent in, Mumbai made a promising start, openers Jayasuriya (38) and Sachin Tendulkar (30) putting on 71 for the first wicket.

Tanvir then took charge, removign Abhishek Nayar lbw for 25 and Shaun Pollock (nought) in successive balls, while Manish Pandey and Dwayne Smith were sent packing in the space of three balls in Tanvir's next over.

Pandey was bowled between bat and pad for three before Smith holed out to Niraj Patel at long off for eight.

Yogesh Takawale cut loose at the death with a rapid 24 off eight balls, but his contribution did not prove decisive.

28 May, 2008
Super Kings into semis

The Chennai Super Kings booked an IPL semi-final showdown with the Kings XI Punjab after they won their final round-robin match against the Deccan Chargers by seven wickets.

The Super Kings needed victory to assure their place and were made to sweat on victory, finally reeling in the home side's 8-147 when Suresh Raina clubbed a straight six from the second ball of the final over.

They will now travel to the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Saturday for the opportunity to play in the first ever Indian Premier League final.

Defeat for the Chargers completed a frustrating campaign when they failed to win at home and managed just two wins in 14 games to finish two wins adrift at the foot of the table.

The home side had laboured to their total of 8-147 with local duo Venugopal Rao (46) and Dwaraka Ravi Teja (40) leading another Chargers recovery mission after the top-order again failed to deliver.

Openers Adam Gilchrist (five) and Herschelle Gibbs (eight) fell cheaply, before Scott Styris' run-a-ball innings of 20 was ended when he slogged across the line and was bowled by Muttiah Muralitharan.

However, in front of their home crowd, Venugopal Rao and Ravi Teja combined for a 76-run stand from 50 balls to help set a competitive total.

Parthiv Patel (20) and Stephen Fleming (14) got the Super Kings off to a quick start and when captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni (37) was caught at long-off by Gibbs from the bowling of Pragyan Ojha, the visitors needed a manageable 33 from 28 balls.

Some tight bowling from Styris loosened the Super Kings' grip on the game, but Raina remained as a steady presence.

The India left-hander found the boundary regularly enough to keep his side in control of the game before supplying the killer blow in the final over, smashing a straight six off spinner Paidikalva Vijaykumar.

The shot also brought up his half-century, from 43 balls.

29 May, 2008
Marsh the man once more

Impressive Australian Shaun Marsh struck a century to confirm himself as the Indian Premier League's leading runscorer as the Kings XI Punjab coasted to a 41-run win in their top-of-the-table clash with the Rajasthan Royals.

The gloss of the encounter, the 56th and final match of a protracted round-robin series, was reduced by its dead-rubber status as both team's had already secured a place in the weekend's semi-finals.

And while defeat for Rajasthan did not prevent them from finishing as table leaders, perhaps worryingly for its hopes was the ease in which it was cast aside by the home team.

The Royals were without the inspiration of captain Shane Warne, who opted to rest his 38-year-old body, but in his absence Marsh led a demolition of their attack as the Kings XI posted a formidable 3-221.

The 24-year-old West Australian confirmed his rising talent as he struck his maiden Twenty20 century, ably assisted by countryman James Hopes (51) and a 16-ball 49 from Yuvraj Singh.

Marsh was not selected in the original player lottery, instead arriving at Mohali as a late purchase following the recommendation of Punjab coach Tom Moody - Marsh's coach at Western Australia.

It has proved an astute piece of business as Marsh, who was also the leading runscorer in the Australian Twenty20 competition earlier this year, has scored a competition-high 593 runs at an average of 74.12.

His latest innings was undoubtedly his best so far as he crunched 11 fours and seven sixes in his career-high 115 from 69 balls.

He combined with Hopes in an opening stand of 133 from 81 balls to set the hosts on their way, before Yuvraj's destructive knock.

At one stage he and Marsh traded sixes, with Yuvraj edging their own personal battle with a hat-trick of maximums to end the 18th over, bowled by Siddharth Trivedi.

Their stand, 80 from 34 balls, was ended in the final over when Marsh was caught in the deep off Shane Watson, before Yuvraj was run out off the final ball.

The Royals' reply was immediately undermined by the early dismissals of Mohammad Kaif (one) and Younis Khan (three).

With nothing riding on the game the visitors' batsmen seemed more intent on gaining some valuable time in the middle ahead of their semi-final against the Delhi Daredevils on Friday.

Niraj Patel did his hopes of playing in that game no harm with a breezy 57 at the top of the order while Yusuf Pathan chipped in with 39, including three sixes, as the visitors completed their 20 overs at 180 for seven.

Teenage leg-spinner Piyush Chawla was the pick of the Kings XI bowlers claiming 3-35 from four overs.

The Kings XI will play the Chennai Super Kings on Saturday for the right to play in the IPL's first ever final.




29 May, 2008
Jayasuriya does job

A half-century from Sanath Jayasuriya has helped Mumbai Indians finish their failed Indian Premier League campaign with a nine-wicket victory over Bangalore Royal Challengers.

Sachin Tendulkar's side exacted revenge for the loss his team suffered when Mumbai had hosted the Royal Challengers, but the win was inconsequential as they had no chance of advancing to the semi-finals.

Jayasuriya and Tendulkar put on 96 runs for the opening stand as the Mumbai Indians made light of a target of 123.

Jayasuriya clobbered four sixes and four fours in a typically belligerent batting display as Rahul Dravid's decision to again open the bowling with Anil Kumble backfired.

Kumble conceded nine runs in his first over and was quickly removed from the attack.

Kumble was at the receiving end as Jayasuriya completed his half century when he swung the leg-spinner for six over deep midwicket.

Jayasuriya finally fell for 54 when he miscued a short-arm jab off Dale Steyn to cover.

Tendulkar kept the other end secure with a display of controlled aggression. He struck four fours and a six in an unfinished knock of 40, ensuring victory when he swept Kumble for a couple of boundaries.

Bangalore had earlier failed to make good on a modest start. Dilhara Fernando had wrecked the Royal Challengers' top order with a three-wicket haul in his first two overs.

The Sri Lankan paceman vindicated skipper Tendulkar's decision to field first in a game reduced to 18 overs due to rain.

He then had the dangerous Misbah-ul-Haq dismissed for nought before returning in the final overs to claim the wicket of Vinay Kumar and finish with figures of 4-18 from four overs.

Dwayne Smith ensured wickets fell at regular intervals as the Royal Challengers stuttered and stumbled under the pressure of losing early wickets.

Smith finished with 3-26 from four overs.

31 May, 2008
Watson stars in Royals' victory

Shane Watson was the star of the first Indian Premier League semi-final as he steered the Rajasthan Royals to a 105-run win over the Delhi Daredevils.

Captain Shane Warne had feared a neutral venue could hamper the Royals, who topped the regular league table with 11 wins from 14 matches, but those concerns were quickly laid to rest by Watson as the Royals came through unscathed in a disappointingly one-sided affair.

The Australian all-rounder, who top-scored for the Royals with 52 off 29 deliveries, also dominated with the ball, dismissing the dangerous Virender Sehwag (three) and Gautam Ghambir (11) in quick succession to leave the Daredevils reeling.

Sehwag mis-timed a pull and was caught at deep square-leg by Sohail Tanvir, while Ghambir was caught in the covers while attempting a drive.

Those wickets coupled with that of Shikhar Dhawan (five) - Watson's third wicket - brought the Daredevils' chase to a standstill.

And when Dinesh Karthik (10) and Tillakaratne Dilshan (33) departed cheaply, it was all over bar the shouting.

Earlier Watson built impressively on the platform provided by openers Graeme Smith (25) and Swapnil Asnodkar (39) as the Royals finished with a competitive 192 for nine in 20 overs after being asked to bat first.

Asnodkar had stifled nerves at the start in typically explosive style as he put on 65 runs for the opening wicket with Smith.

The South African had seemed in considerable pain due to a hamstring injury and called for a runner in only the second over. But his stroke-making skills seemed unaffected as he hit Glenn McGrath for three consecutive boundaries in the third over.

The Daredevils had started with Mohammed Asif, just back from an elbow injury, but when the Pakistani proved expensive Farveez Maharoof was pressed into service.

The Sri Lankan delivered immediately, dismissing both openers, but those blows hardly stemmed the flow of runs.

Watson bailed his team out of trouble and together with a cameo from Yusuf Pathan (45) ensured a winning total for the Royals.

Rajasthan Royals v Delhi Daredevils 20/20 Scoreboard 30/05/2008

Rajasthan Royals innings

Smith c Dhawan b Maharoof 25 (21)
Asnodkar c Tiwary b Maharoof 39 (21)
Tanvir c Karthik b Maharoof 5 (5)
Watson st Karthik b Mishra 52 (29)
Kaif b Mishra 12 (11)
Pathan run out (Dilshan / Karthik) 45 (21)
Jadeja c Maharoof b Mahesh 7 (5)
Warne c Sehwag b Mahesh 0 (1)
Rawat c & b Mohammad Asif 2 (4)
Patel not out 0 (0)
Trivedi not out 1 (2)
Extras 4 (lb 1, w 3)
Total 192 (9 wickets; 20 overs)

FoW: 1-65 (Smith, 6.4 ov), 2-65 (Asnodkar, 6.6 ov), 3-76 (Sohail Tanvir, 8.5 ov), 4-128 (Kaif, 13.4 ov), 5-155 (Watson, 15.6 ov), 6-171 (Jadeja, 17.4 ov), 7-172 (Warne, 17.6 ov), 8-190 (Rawat, 19.3 ov), 9-191 (Pathan, 19.4 ov)

Bowling
McGrath 4-0-38-0 (1w)
Asif 4-0-32-1
Mahesh 4-0-50-2 (1w)
Maharoof 4-0-34-3
Mishra 4-0-37-2 (1w)

Delhi Daredevils innings

Gambhir c sub (Kolhi) b Watson 11 (15)
Sehwag c Tanvir b Watson 3 (4)
Dhawan c Jadeja b Watson 5 (12)
Tiwary c Asnodkar b Patel 0 (3)
Dilshan c Tanvir b Warne 33 (22)
Karthik c Kaif b Trivedi 10 (12)
Maharoof c Pathan b Warne 6 (6)
Mishra b Patel 2 (5)
Mahesh c Rawat b Patel 3 (10)
Asif run out (Pathan / Rawat) 3 (5)
McGrath not out 4 (3)
Extras 7 (lb 3, w 4)
Total 87 (all out; 16.1 overs)

FoW: 1-10 (Sehwag, 1.2 ov), 2-23 (Gambhir, 3.6 ov), 3-24 (Dhawan, 5.2 ov), 4-28 (Tiwary, 6.2 ov), 5-55 (Karthik, 9.5 ov), 6-75 (Maharoof, 12.1 ov), 7-76 (Dilshan, 12.5 ov), 8-77 (Mishra, 13.1 ov), 9-82 (Mahesh, 15.2 ov), 10-87 (Mohammad Asif, 16.1 ov)

Bowling
Tanvir 2-0-16-0 (2w)
Watson 3-0-10-3 (1w)
Patel 4-0-17-3
Trivedi 3-0-20-1
Warne 4-0-21-2
Jadeja 0.1-0-0-0

Rajasthan Royals won by 105 runs
Player of the Match: Watson

1 June, 2008
Super semi for Kings

Chennai Super Kings romped into the final of the Indian Premier League thrashing Kings XI Punjab by nine wickets in the second semi-final on Saturday.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni's team advanced to Sunday's summit clash with the Rajasthan Royals after a determined and disciplined effort saw them past Kings XI with some ease.

Chennai's speedsters set up the victory, reducing Punjab's famed batting line-up to 8-112, before Parthiv Patel (51 not out) and Suresh Raina (55 not out) saw them home with more than five overs to spare.

Dhoni handed Muttiah Muralidaran the new ball, but it was Makhaya Ntini who struck the first blow when he induced an edge from the bat of James Hopes (two), in the second over. It was the beginning of a dramatic slide for the Kings XI.

Manpreet Gony resumed his place opposite Ntini at the top of the bowling order after Murali's first over proved expensive and immediately struck, getting rid of the dangerous Kumar Sangakkara cheaply.

Yuvraj Singh came and went quickly and Shaun Marsh, the tournament's leading run scorer, played on to a delivery from Ntini leaving Punjab XI's batting order in tatters.

Significantly, it was the portly off-spinner Ramesh Powar who top-scored for Kings XI. He added a touch of respectability to the Punjab King's XI total by smashing a 21-ball 28. He flayed Lakshmipathy Balaji for three consecutive boundaries in the final over of the innings to get his team past the 100-run mark.

The absence of Stephen Fleming, who has returned home for the birth of his child, left Chennai looking decidedly brittle at the top, but the 113-run target - less than a run a ball from the start - never had the Super Kings under any sort of pressure.

Fleming's replacement at the top, Vidyut Sivaramakrishnan (six) departed early but Patel and Raina batted with poise as they calmly overhauled the target.

Patel flicked a Pathan delivery through mid-wicket to bring up his second half-century of the tournament, while Raina, who had hit a couple of big sixes, reached his with a boundary off Piyush Chawla.

Kings XI Punjabs innings
SE Marsh b Ntini 23 (17)
JR Hopes c Patel b Ntini 2 (5)
KC Sangakkara c Patel b Gony 3 (4)
Yuvraj Singh c Muralitharan b Gony 4 (8)
DPMD Jayawardene c Patel b Morkel 8 (10)
IK Pathan run out (Ntini/Gony) 3 (12)
WA Mota c Raina b Morkel 25 (26)
PP Chawla b Muralitharan 12 (15)
RR Powar not out 28 (21)
S Sreesanth not out 0 (2)
Extras 4 (b 2, w 2)
Total 112 (8 wickets; 20 overs) (5.60 runs per over)
FoW: 1-8 (Hopes, 1.3 ov), 2-11 (Sangakkara, 2.2 ov), 3-28 (Yuvraj Singh, 4.4 ov), 4-34 (Marsh, 5.5 ov), 5-40 (Pathan, 8.2 ov), 6-45 (Jayawardene, 9.5 ov), 7-63 (Chawla, 13.4 ov), 8-98 (Mota, 18.6 ov)

Bowling
M Muralidaran 4-0-19-1-4.75 (1w)
M Ntini 4-0-23-2-5.75
M Gony 4-1-14-2-3.50 (1w)
JA Morkel 4-0-27-2-6.75
L Balaji 4-0-27-0-6.75

Super Kings innings
PA Patel not out 51 (48)
S Vidyut c Mota b Pathan 6 (7)
SK Raina not out 55 (34)
Extras 4 (w 4)
Total 116 (1 wicket; 14.5 overs) (7.82 runs per over)
FoW: 1-14 (Vidyut, 2.2 ov)

Bowling
IK Pathan 4-0-24-1-6.00 (2w)
S Sreesanth 1-0-7-0-7.00 (1w)
RR Powar 3-0-28-0-9.33 (1w)
VRV Singh 2-0-14-0-7.00
JR Hopes 2-0-20-0-10.00
PP Chawla 2.5-0-23-0-8.11

2 June, 2008
Royals claim IPL title

Yusuf Pathan inspired the Rajasthan Royals to a three-wicket defeat of Chennai Super Kings in a thrilling Indian Premier League final on Sunday.

He firstly took three wickets to reduce Chennai to 5-163 and then smashed 56 - including four sixes and three fours - in a 39-ball innings.

Needing eight runs off the final over, Shane Warne and Sohail Tanvir (both nine not out) kept their cool to reach the target, with the latter grabbing the one run needed for victory off the final ball of the match.

Rajasthan made a shaky start as it chased down Chennai's target, losing Niraj Patel in the fourth over for just two runs off 11 balls.

He played Manpreet Gony on to his leg stump attempting a pull, but fellow opener Swapnil Asnodkar (28) looked in better touch.

He seemed to have the measure of Makhaya Ntini, hitting the South African for consecutive fours, but could not cope with the pace of Albie Morkel and slashed at a wide ball to Suresh Raina at point.

The Royals suffered a double blow as in the same over Kamran Akmal (six) went for a suicidal single after nudging to mid-on and was run out by Ntini's direct hit.

Pathan proved he was just as capable with the bat as with the ball, although he was lucky to be dropped by Raina in the 11th over on 13.

Raina's error proved costly as Pathan went on to smash Muttiah Muralitharan for back-to-back sixes.

Shane Watson chipped in with a quickfire 28 off 19 balls but succumbed when he came down the track to Muralitharan but missed and was bowled.

Needing 52 off the last five overs, Pathan launched Lakshmipathy Balaji for 12 off one over and then dished out the same treatment to Muralitharan, hoisting the spinner over midwicket to bring up his half century.

But Mohammad Kaif then lobbed Muralitharan into the hands of Mahendra Singh Dhoni at cover and Ravindra Jadeja followed the next ball when he lamely pulled Morkel straight to Kapugedera at mid-on.

Rajasthan's hopes were knocked when Pathan was run out by Raina's superb direct hit but Warne and Tanvir steered the Royals to victory.

Earlier, Chennai openers Vidyut Sivaramakrishnan and Parthiv Patel put on 39 before the former was dismissed in the sixth over. He tried to pull Pathan over deep midwicket but mistimed it and was caught by Jadeja sprinting in from the boundary.

Patel looked a touch nervy from the off and survived two decent lbw appeals, but he hit five fours in a 38-run innings off 33 balls before being caught behind by Akmal off Pathan.

Morkel attempted to accelerate the run rate and smashed two sixes before he became Pathan's third victim.

Aiming for a flurry of runs in the final few overs, Raina tried one shot too many and was caught on the long-off boundary by Jadeja off the bowling of Watson, and Chamara Kapugedera did not last long, adding just eight runs before lofting to Asnodkar at long on off Tanvir.

Dhoni smashed 29 off 17 balls, including a huge six in the last over, and Subramaniam Badrinath made six off the final two balls of the innings.

Chennai Super Kings innings
Patel c Kamran Akmal b Pathan 38 (33)
Vidyut c Jadeja b Pathan 16 (14)
Raina c Jadeja b Watson 43 (30)
Morkel c Kamran Akmal b Pathan 16 (13)
Dhoni not out 29 (17)
Kapugedera c Asnodkar b Sohail Tanvir 8 (12)
Badrinath not out 6 (2)
Extras (b 1, lb 2, w 3, nb 1) 7
Total 163 (5 wickets; 20 overs)

FOW: 1-39 (Vidyut, 5.2 ov), 2-64 (Patel, 8.6 ov), 3-95 (Morkel, 12.4 ov), 4-128 (Raina, 16.2 ov), 5-148 (Kapugedera, 19.1 ov)

Bowling
Tanvir 4-0-40-1 (1w)
Watson 4-0-29-1 (1nb, 1w)
Patel 2-0-14-0
Pathan 4-0-22-3
Trivedi 2-0-21-0
Warne 4-0-34-0 (1w)

Rajasthan Royals innings
Patel b Gony 2 (11)
Asnodkar c Raina b Morkel 28 (20)
Akmal run out (Ntini) 6 (7)
Watson b Muralitharan 28 (19)
Pathan run out (Raina) 56 (39)
Kaif c Dhoni b Muralitharan 12 (9)
Jadeja c Kapugedera b Morkel 0 (1)
Warne not out 9 (9)
Tanvir not out 9 (7)
Extras (b 1, lb 6, w 5, nb 2) 14
Total 164 (7 wickets; 20 overs)

FOW: 1-19 (NK Patel, 3.1 ov), 2-41 (Asnodkar, 6.1 ov), 3-42 (Kamran Akmal, 6.4 ov), 4-107 (Watson, 14.1 ov), 5-139 (Kaif, 16.6 ov), 6-139 (Jadeja, 17.1 ov), 7-143 (Pathan, 17.4 ov)

Bowling
Ntini 4-1-21-0
Gony 4-0-30-1
Morkel 4-0-25-2 (2nb, 3w)
Balaji 4-0-42 0 (1w)
Muralitharan 4-0-39-2