Dhaka: The International Cricket Council`s Bangladeshi president has threatened to quit over the umpiring in his country`s World Cup quarter-final defeat to India, suggesting the match appeared to have been fixed.
Bangladeshi reporters in Melbourne after Thursday`s match at the MCG that he would raise the issue at the ICC`s next meeting, saying the umpires` decisions seemed to have been “pre-arranged”.

“As the ICC president, whatever I have to say I will say it in next meeting. It could happen that maybe I will resign,” Kamal said in comments aired on Bangladeshi television.

“There was no quality in the umpiring. It looked like they took the field after it (the outcome) was pre-arranged,” he alleged.

His comments came as protests erupted in Bangladesh after the cricketing minnows suffered a 109-run defeat by holders India, due in large part to a blistering knock by Rohit Sharma who top-scored with 137.

Sharma was caught at deep mid-wicket off the bowling of Rubel Hossain when he was on 90, only for the umpires Aleem Dar and Ian Gould to signal a no-ball for what appeared to be a legitimate waist-high delivery.

Bangladeshi fans were also furious at the dismissal of star batsman Mohammad Mahmudullah who was caught close to the boundary rope.

The match was the biggest in the history of the cricket-mad nation, marking the first time that Bangladesh had made the World Cup quarter-finals.

Many fans wept only after the defeat while protestors also burned an effigy of Dar, who hails from Bangladesh`s great rival Pakistan.

Kamal, whose position has been largely ceremonial since India`s Narayanaswami Srinivasan became the body`s chairman last year, said the ICC`s acronym seemed to stand for the Indian Cricket Council.

“I cannot represent the Indian Cricket Council. If someone has imposed a result on us, in that case no one can accept it,” added Kamal who is a minister in the Bangladeshi government.

Bangladesh`s exit dominated the front-page headlines on Friday with, many commentators blaming shoddy umpiring for the defeat.

“Tigers fall to controversial calls,” read the lead in the Dhaka Tribune while the the headline of the mass-circulation Bengali daily Kaler Kantha read: “The dream run ends in umpiring scandal.”

Has Rohit Sharma no-ball row taken the sheen off India’s quarter-final win over Bangladesh? in Sports on LockerDome

AFP

Sydney: Spinners Imran Tahir and hat-trick man Jean-Paul Duminy shared seven wickets between them to help a clinical South Africa outplay an unusually hapless Sri Lanka by 9 wickets and enter the cricket World Cup semi-finals, here on Wednesday.
Leg-spinner Tahir (4-26) looked like a man possessed while Duminy (3-29) bagged the second hat-trick of this edition — after England’s Steven Finn — as South Africa sent the Lankans packing for 133 in 37.2 overs in the first quarter-final of this edition.

South Africa, who are keen to shrug off their chokers tag, then came out to complete the batting job in 18 overs and register their first-ever knockout win in the 50-over showpiece event.

Quinton de Kock (78 not out) and Faf de Plessis (21 not out) stitched an unbeaten 94-run partnership to get the target without breaking a sweat. Hashim Amla (16) was the only casualty in an otherwise spotless innings.

But the day surely belonged to the spinning duo of Tahir and Duminy as they wrecked havoc over what was considered a strong Sri Lankan batting unit.

Electing to bat at the SCG, Sri lanka lost the plot from the very start after the Proteas pace attack dismissed the openers in double quick time to leave the islanders reeling at 4 for two.

But tweakers was introduced into the attack in the 14th over with Duminy getting the ball ahead of Tahir and the two spun a web around the Lankan batsmen.

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ICC Cricket World Cup 2015: Sri Lanka vs South Africa
Lahiru Thirimanne (41) shared a 65-run third wicket stand with the now retired Kumar Sangakkara (45), the veteran left-hander had decided to quit ODIs after the World Cup, to bring some stability to the Lankan innings but the Proteas spinners were relentless.

Tahir kept chipping in and off-spinner Duminy also joined forces after getting the dangerous Angelo Mathews out for 19.

Duminy got Mathews out off the final delivery of his eighth over and much to everybody’s surprise got two more scalps at the start of his ninth over to complete his first-hat-trick in ODIs, which was also a World Cup first for a Proteas bowler.

The batting bit seemed like a formality for the AB de Villiers-led side as they started the innings much before the scheduled break time. Breaking for dinner at 40 for 1, South Africa galloped to their target.

South Africa now await the winner of the New Zealand-West Indies last-eight clash, which is slated for Saturday in Wellington.

Sri lanka lost the plot from the very start after the Proteas pace attack dismissed the openers in double quick time to leave the islanders reeling at 4 for two.

Kyle Abbott got Kusal Perera (3) caught behind and then Dale Steyn sent the in-form Tilakaratne Dilshan packing for a nought.

But it was man-of-the-match Tahir who started the rot with a caught and bowled effort to send Lahiru Thirimanne (41) back in the pavilion after a hard-working knock.

Duminy after getting the wicket of Mathews on the final delivery of the 34th over got Kulasekara (1) caught behind and then trapped debutant Tharindu Kaushal plumb in front of the wicket at the start of the 35th over as the South African crowd went berserk at the MCG.

Sangakkara, who came into the match with record four consecutive ODI hundreds, was a mute spectator at the non-striker’s end to this abject surrender. The veteran left-hander, to his credit, tried to get some runs in the Lankan bag.

Sangakkara finally went to Morne Morkel, who had bowled well throughout and finally got the reward.

Rain did put a stop to all the madness after the ninth Lankan wicket fell but South Africa wasted no time in picking up the last scalp in Lasith Malinga when play resumed.

PTI

HOBART: Kumar Sangakkara created history by notching up a record fourth consecutive ODI century that powered Sri Lanka to a crushing 148-run win over Scotland in their final group league match of the ongoing ICC World Cup 2015 here on Wednesday.

Scorecard

In becoming the first man in history of One-Day Internationals to score centuries in four successive innings, the 37-year-old Sri Lankan veteran together with opener Tillakaratne Dilshan (104) helped the team put up a mammoth 363 for nine after electing to bat at the Bellerive Oval.

Full Coverage: ICC World Cup 2015

Set a daunting target in the group A match, Scotland’s innings ended at 215 in 43.1 overs, and the minnows have another match to play in the mega-event where they have failed to win a single game so far.

Sri Lanka are now second in the points table, behind New Zealand, with four wins in six games. However, the final positions in the group will be known only after the New Zealand-Bangladesh and Australia-Scotland games.

The 195-run partnership for the second wicket was Sangakkara and Dilshan’s 20th century stand in ODIs, leaving them second only to Indian legends Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly.

Playing in the last one-day tournament of his illustrious 15-year career, Sangakkara, in red-hot form in the mega-event, blazed his way to an enterprising 124 off 95 balls, while Dilshan struck a 99-ball 104.

Skipper Angelo Mathews (51) smashed the second-fastest half-century of this World Cup, off 20 balls. The Islanders though lost a series of wickets towards the end, denying them a 400-plus total.

The Scots were off to a disastrous start, losing three wickets with just 44 runs on the board in the 12th over. The game was as good at that point but Freddie Coleman (70) and skipper Preston Mommsen (60) shared 118 runs for the fourth wicket to steady the ship.

However, both batsmen got out after making fluent half-centuries, each hitting seven boundaries while defying the Lankan bowlers for a while.

Richie Berrington made 29 off 22 balls to delay the inevitable.

Among the Lankan bowlers, Nuwan Kulasekara returned figures of 3/20 and pace spearhead Lasith Malinga picked up 2/29. Making his debut, 23-year-old rookie fast bowler Dushmantha Chameera, too, finished with three wickets.
Earlier, Sri Lanka lost opener Lahiru Thirimanne (4) early but Dilshan, who registered his second century of the tournament, and Sangakkara stitched together a massive second wicket partnership to take the islanders to a commanding total even after the Scottish bowlers pulled things back a little in the end.

Leading the run-scorers’ chart, Sangakkara, who recorded his 25th ODI ton, has so far aggregated 496 runs in six innings with Dilshan a distant second with 395 in as many outings. India’s Shikhar Dahwan is third in the batsmen’s list.

Sangakkara has been on a rampage with tons coming against Bangladesh (105), England (117), Australia (104) and Scotland, and is now averaging a resounding 124 in the event.
The Scottish bowlers were in for a leather hunt as Dilshan, whose innings was laced with 10 fours and a six, combined superbly with Sangakkara, who hit 13 fours and four sixes in his knock.

Dilshan departed soon after registering his 22nd ODI ton but Sangakkara carried on in the same vein.

The left-handed wicketkeeper-batsman got stuck into tall medium-pacer Alasdair Evans (2/72) in the 36th over to smack a six and four boundaries.

But medium-pacer Josh Davey (3-63) made it count in the powerplays – 36 to 40 overs – to send back Mahela Jayawardene (2) and then Sangakkara to check the Lankan surge.

Mathews wielded the willow to smash a 21-ball 51. Striking four sixes against off-spinner Matt Machan in the 44th over, Mathews recorded the second fastest World Cup fifty after New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum’s 18-ball half-century against England.

The last-wicket pair of Nuwan Kulasekara (18 not out) and Dushmantha Chameera (12 not out) also did their bit.

Adelaide: Bangladesh rose to the occasion to knock England out of the cricket World Cup with a 15-run win in the Pool A encounter here on Monday, setting up a potential quarter-final clash with defending champions India.
Put into bat, Bangladesh rode on Mahmudullah’s resilient century to post 275 for seven and then put up a spirited bowling show to pack England for 260 runs in 48.3 overs.

Man of the Match Mahmudullah (103) struck his first ODI ton to lift Bangladesh from 99 for four to a respectable score after stitching a crucial 141-run fifth-wicket partnership with Mushfiqur Rahim (89).

England medium pacers James Anderson and Chris Jordan bagged two wickets each.
England started the chase on a decent note even after opener Moeen Ali (19) was run out but the top-order batsmen failed to convert their starts and let go of the advantage in the must-win game.

Bangladesh bowlers, ably led by Robel Hossian (4-53), struck at crucial junctures to put England in trouble.
Ian Bell tried to do the rescue act with a hard-working 63 but Hossian got the opener caught behind in the 27th over.

The middle-order wobbled only to be held by Jos Buttler (65), who fought hard but his seventh ODI fifty was not enough to save England’s fading fortunes.

Chris Woakes (42 not out) battled hard till the end but got little help from the tail as Hossain cleaned up the final two batsman with good seam movement.

Hossian got good support from captain and pace spearhead Mashrafe Mortaza (2-48) and Taskin Ahmed (2-59).

Buttler and Woakes, with their seventh-wicket 75-run partnership, looked like taking the Three Lions to a win at one stage, but Bangladesh were just unstoppable on a day that belonged to them.

Mahmudullah bettered Bangladesh’s previous individual best of 95 made by Tamim Iqbal against Scotland earlier the tournament.

He, along with Mushfiqur Rahim, who smashed his way to 89 off 77 balls, lifted Bangladesh from a sloppy start by adding 141 runs for the fifth wicket.

The partnership was another World Cup record for the Bangladesh side.

Paceman Anderson had provided England a fiery start by removing both the openers — Imrul Kayes (2) and Tamim Iqbal (2) — in his first two overs but the following batsmen showed a lot determination.

Mahmudullah first shared a 86-run stand with Soumya Sarkar (40) to stabilise the innings and then combined with Rahim to stitch up a decent total.

Mahmudullah’s 103 came off 138 balls with seven hits to the fence and two over it and Rahim punished the British bowlers by eight fours and a six.

Bangladesh could have scored more but Jordan bowled a fantastic penultimate over in which he gave away just three runs and took a wicket too.

PTI

Perth: Not too impressed with Virat Kohli’s abusive behaviour towards a journalist recently, former Indian cricketers Sunil Gavaskar and V V S Laxman on Thursday called on the star batsman to resolve the row amicably with the concerned scribe.
Gavaskar and Laxman admitted that dealing with the media was never easy but they have never lost their cool in public even at the worst of times.

“I just try to see myself in front of the mirror and try to remove from my system all those which bother me and try to be cool under severe pressure. I wish I could be as cool as M S Dhoni or a Laxman. May be a Bjorn Borg (legendary tennis player), so cool under immense pressure,” Gavaskar told NDTV.

“Media plays an important role. All the stakeholders — the players, administrators, media, fans and then the sponsors, they should work together to take cricket forward. Having said that the media should report as they see, the facts and not what they have heard, not speculative stories,” he added.

Laxman said the best way to end the row would be for Kohli to apologise to the concerned journalist.

“I think that is the mutual way to lay the matter to rest. Kohli can go up to the concerned journalist and say that ‘I mistook you as some other journalist’. Then the matter can be done and dusted,” he said.

“I have never lost my cool except on one occasion and that incident is known to everybody. But that was within the four walls of the dressing room, never in public,” Laxman added.

West Indian legend Brian Lara also felt that Kohli and the media should move ahead.

“It (relationship with the media) is very tough, never easy. I had run-ins with the media. These things may happen but I think both the parties should move ahead for the good of the game and concentrate on the World Cup,” he said.

“I am a West Indian and from the perspective of our team, I hope it distracts the Indian team. Kohli may be either perturbed or get more determined and I hope it (the row) affects him,” Lara said in a lighter vein.

PTI

Two games into their title defence, the Indian team has sent out a strong signal of their intentions to opposing teams vying to dethrone them. The surgical precision with which Indiadispatched Pakistan and South Africa suggests they are in no mood to relinquish their crown without giving it a real go.

After registering their 6th win over archrivals Pakistan at ICC’s flagship event, India ended their World Cup drought against Proteas by condemning them to a 130-run defeat. What fans witnessed at the MCG was a near-perfect cricket match from India as they outplayed the South African’s in all departments.

India – as the defending champions and brimming with confidence – march ahead in a bid to successfully stamp their authority on the tournament. Here are three talking points from India’s demolition job of South Africa in Melbourne.

Resurgence of Shikhar Dhawan

Shikhar Dhawan’s inclusion in India’s 15-man World Cup squad was never in doubt, especially since he along with Rohit Sharma was identified by the captain and management as India’s preferred opening combination.

Yet, the left-hander’s selection didn’t inspire much confidence since he had a torrid time with the bat on recent tours. However, the 29-year-old has responded to scathing criticism in the most exceptional manner. Having missed out on a century against Pakistan, ‘Gabbar’ appeared hungry for a three-figure score against the South Africans.

This World Cup has witnessed a different side of Dhawan for he has tried to build his innings playing with solidity and swagger. The southpaw’s form at the top is crucial to India’s hopes at the tournament. Dhawan’s game hinges a lot on confidence, which he now seems to have got back. This has been the biggest plus for India early on in the tournament.

Intensity of the Indian bowling attack

Bowling was supposed to be India’s weak link coming into the tournament. Evidence from the first two games suggests India’s bowlers have risen to the occasion. The bowling unit of Umesh Yadav, Mohammad Shami, Ravichandran Ashwin, Mohit Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja was forced upon the captain with injuries to Ishant Sharma and Bhuvneshwar Kumar. This makes their performance even more remarkable.

After easily dismissing Pakistan in the first match, Indian bowlers put on a clinical display against South Africa. Mohit Sharma’s inclusion in the team may have been fortuitous, but he has made a difference to India’s bowling. Against the Proteas, Yadav and Shami’s fastest deliveries were clocked at 147.0 and 143.7 km/hr. Their rhythm and consistent pace with the new ball has added a new dimension to the attack.

However, Ashwin has been India’s standout performer in the first two games and could be a trump card going forward. The bowling intensity of India has probably taken experts and even opposition camps by surprise.

Another failure of lower middle-order

It must be a matter of great relief to Indian fans that the team has finally put up big runs on the board after their failure to do so in the recently concluded tri-series against Australia and England. With a bowling attack that is not on par with the best in the world, it was imperative that India’s batsmen started the tournament with a bang.

Though there have been plenty of positives with regard to India’s batting, certain problems continue to persist. A glaring weakness of this famed batting line-up has been their inability to consolidate on solid foundations provided by the top order. Despite cruising through majority of the game, the final flourish as the innings tails continues to elude the defending champions. India have been restricted to 300 and 307 runs in their first two games when it looked certain they would post a score in access of 320. MS Dhoni has to shoulder part of the blame for this problem, which could cost his team dear in the knockout games.

Another key aspect to India’s strong show so far has been their fielding, especially outfielding. The fielders have complemented the bowlers, thereby adding pressure on the opposition. Inspired moments in the field help change the course of a match as Mohit Sharma’s run out of AB de Villiers showed against South Africa.

After a flawless display, one has to compliment the dedicated Indian fans for turning up in such large numbers at the Melbourne Cricket Ground to support the team. The official attendance at the MCG for India’s game against South Africa was 86876, which even bettered the 84336-strong crowd for Australia’s opener against England.

Perth; Chasing a modest 103 to win, India were 88 for one against United Arab Emirates in a Pool B cricket World Cup match, here today.

Opener Rohit Sharma (47) and Virat Kohli (27) were at the crease when the break was taken.

Brief Scores:

UAE: 102 all out in 31.3 overs (Shaiman Anwar 35, Ravichandran Ashwin 4/25).

India: 88 for 1 in 16 overs.(Shikhar Dhawan 14, Rohit Sharma 47 batting; Mohammad Naveed 1/35).

PTI