Sehwag on fire, floodlights on the blink
Plays of the day from game two of the Asia Cup, between Bangladesh and India in Dambulla
Siddarth Ravindran in Dambulla
16-Jun-2010
Harbhajan Singh bamboozled Shakib Al Hasan, showing just why he enjoys bowling in Sri Lanka • Associated Press
Bangladesh in a tearing hurry
India's fast bowlers were perhaps expecting to be eased back into top-flight cricket and the tournament against the lightweight Bangladesh side. They were in for a shock as Tamim Iqbal and Imrul Kayes came out punching. Kayes cracked three fours off Zaheer's first over, and Tamim cut and flicked Praveen for plenty, which meant Bangladesh were 35 for 0 in 2.4 overs.
India's fast bowlers were perhaps expecting to be eased back into top-flight cricket and the tournament against the lightweight Bangladesh side. They were in for a shock as Tamim Iqbal and Imrul Kayes came out punching. Kayes cracked three fours off Zaheer's first over, and Tamim cut and flicked Praveen for plenty, which meant Bangladesh were 35 for 0 in 2.4 overs.
Shakib is bamboozled
Harbhajan Singh usually enjoys bowling in Sri Lanka, as 47 wickets and an economy-rate of 3.93 indicate. Today was no different; the highlight of his spell being the delivery that tricked Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan. A flighted ball, Shakib moved forward and played for the spin, but the ball fizzed straight on through the bat-pad gap to knock back the stumps.
Harbhajan Singh usually enjoys bowling in Sri Lanka, as 47 wickets and an economy-rate of 3.93 indicate. Today was no different; the highlight of his spell being the delivery that tricked Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan. A flighted ball, Shakib moved forward and played for the spin, but the ball fizzed straight on through the bat-pad gap to knock back the stumps.
Sehwag the destroyer
Seeing Virender Sehwag derail the opposition with his batting is a common sight, but seeing him spin out the opposition is a rare occurrence. He ran through the tail today, nipping out three wickets in four deliveries, the grin on his face getting wider with each scalp. Sehwag finished with 4 for 6; in 17 deliveries he had taken as many wickets as he had in the past 17 months.
Seeing Virender Sehwag derail the opposition with his batting is a common sight, but seeing him spin out the opposition is a rare occurrence. He ran through the tail today, nipping out three wickets in four deliveries, the grin on his face getting wider with each scalp. Sehwag finished with 4 for 6; in 17 deliveries he had taken as many wickets as he had in the past 17 months.
Bad floodlights stop play
Lasith Malinga had already complained about the quality of the lights at the Rangiri Dambulla Stadium in the opening match, and there was more floodlight-related trouble today. Two of them didn't work for a while due to a generator outage, causing India's chase to be interrupted midway through the 10th over. The players took their dinner, during which the problem was sorted.
Lasith Malinga had already complained about the quality of the lights at the Rangiri Dambulla Stadium in the opening match, and there was more floodlight-related trouble today. Two of them didn't work for a while due to a generator outage, causing India's chase to be interrupted midway through the 10th over. The players took their dinner, during which the problem was sorted.
A decision after much deliberation
After Virat Kohli was beaten by the turn, wicketkeeper Mushfiqur Rahim quickly took off the bails just as Kohli was dragging his foot back into the crease. It took plenty of replays to determine whether Kohli had made his ground or if he had been caught on the crease. As the third umpire Ranmore Martinesz deliberated, a section of the crowd started to scream "Out, out", promptly countered by chants of "Not out" from another set of fans. The matter was resolved when Martinesz sent Kohli on his way.
After Virat Kohli was beaten by the turn, wicketkeeper Mushfiqur Rahim quickly took off the bails just as Kohli was dragging his foot back into the crease. It took plenty of replays to determine whether Kohli had made his ground or if he had been caught on the crease. As the third umpire Ranmore Martinesz deliberated, a section of the crowd started to scream "Out, out", promptly countered by chants of "Not out" from another set of fans. The matter was resolved when Martinesz sent Kohli on his way.
Siddarth Ravindran is a sub-editor at Cricinfo