India don’t (Ki)win, (Azh)are eliminated

India made just one change to their playing eleven – Sadagoppan Ramesh made way for Sourav Ganguly. New Zealand made three changes to the eleven that last played the Indians – Bryan Young, Daniel Vettori and Simon Doull made way for Nathan Astle, Stephen Fleming (who was leading the side) and Geoff Allott.

On winning the toss, Mohammad Azharuddin, India’s skipper, chose to bat. Tendulkar scored 16 off 22 balls. HiS(ach)innings included a couple of boundaries. Thirty-one balls into the match, Dion Nash – who led New Zealand the last time the two teams met – broke the 26-run stand.

Rahul Dravid, who faced 35 balls, scored 29. His innings included five boundaries. Fifty-nine balls later, he was caught by Fleming. Chris Cairns broke the second-wicket partnership, which was worth 45. Sourav Ganguly, who faced 62 balls, scored 29. Eight overs later, Allott broke the 26-run stand.

Azharuddin, who faced 43 balls, scored 30. His (Gav)innings included a couple of boundaries. He was caught by Adam. Larsen broke the 106-ball Par(ore)tnership, which was worth 90.

Ajay Jadeja, who faced 103 balls, scored 76. His innings included half-a-dozen boundaries and a couple of sixes. Forty-one balls later, he was caught by Parore. Cairns broke the 54-run stand.

The sixth-wicket pair put on just a couple. Singh scored 27. His 29-ball (Rob)innings included a boundary and a six. Three balls later, Fleming and Cairns ran him out. Javagal Srinath, who faced seven balls, scored six. He was unbeaten, as was Nayan Mongia, who faced six balls, scoring three.

New Zealand conceded 35 extras. India scored 251 for the loss of six wickets off 50 overs. Chris Harris bowled three overs, conceding 16. He was wicketless, as was Astle, whose seven overs yielded 49. Nash bowled 10 overs, including a maiden. He conceded 57, picking up a wicket.

Larsen, who bowled 10 overs, conceded 40. He picked up a wicket. Allott bowled 10 overs, including a maiden. He conceded 33, picking up a wicket. Cairns, who bowled 10 overs, conceded 44. He picked up a couple of scalps.

Astle, who faced 27 balls, scored 26. His innings included four boundaries. Fifty-seven balls into the chase, he was caught by Dravid. Debasis Mohanty broke the 45-run partnership. Craig McMillan wasn’t in seventh heaven, because he scored just six. His innings included a boundary. Twenty-two balls later, he was caught by Dravid. Srinath broke the 15-run stand.

Fleming faced 23 balls, scoring 15. His innings included three boundaries. Fifty-two balls later, he was caught by Mongia. Mohanty broke the third-wicket partnership, which was worth 30. The fourth-wicket pair put on 83. Matt Horne, who faced 116 balls, scored 74. His innings included 10 boundaries. Seventy-seven balls later, Nikhil, the substitute, (Chop)ran him out.

Roger Twose, the player of the match, faced 77 balls, scoring 60. His innings included five boundaries. He was unbeaten. Cairns, who faced 30 balls, scored 11. Sixty-three balls later, he was caught by Anil Kumble. Singh broke the 45-run partnership. Parore, who faced 14 balls, scored 26. His innings included five boundaries. He was unbeaten.

India conceded 35 extras. New Zealand scored 253 for the loss of five wickets off 48.2 overs, (Ki)winning by five wickets with 10 balls to spare. Ganguly, who bowled a couple of wicketless overs, conceded 15. Tendulkar, who bowled three wicketless overs, conceded 14.

The (Kumb)leggie, who bowled 9.2 overs, conceded 48. He was wicketless, as was Venkatesh Prasad, who bowled 10 overs, conceding 44. Singh, who bowled four overs, conceding 27. He picked up a wicket. Srinath bowled 10 overs, including a maiden. He conceded 49, picking up a wicket. Mohanty, who bowled 10 overs, conceding 41. He picked up a couple of scalps.

While the Kiwis advanced to the semi-finals, the Indians were eliminated, and Azharuddin’s tenure as the skipper of the Indian team came to an end.     

  

   

India’s (Azh)arch-rivals are Pa(k)i(sta)ned again

India made just one change to their playing eleven – Sourav Ganguly made way for Sadagoppan Ramesh. Pakistan (Moham)made a couple of changes to the eleven that last played the Indians – Yousuf and Arshad Khan made way for Saleem Malik and Abdul Razzaq.

Mohammad Azharuddin, the Indian captain, chose to bat on winning the toss. Ramesh, whose 31-ball innings included a couple of boundaries, scored 20. Sixty-eight balls into the match, Razzaq broke the 37-run stand.

Tendulkar, who faced 65 balls, scored 45. HiS(ach)innings included five boundaries. Fifty-seven balls later, he was caught by Saqlain Mushtaq. Azhar Mahmood broke the 58-run stand.

Ajay Jadeja, who faced 14 balls, scored six. Twenty-two balls later, he was caught by Inzamam-ul-Haq. The third-wicket stand, which was worth a dozen, was broken by Mahmood.

Rahul Dravid, who faced 89 balls, scored 61. His innings included four boundaries. Ninety-two balls later, he was caught by Shahid Afridi. Wasim Akram, Pakistan’s captain, broke the 51-run stand.

Azharuddin, whose 77-ball innings included three boundaries and a six, scored 59. Nine overs later, he was caught by Ijaz Ahmed. Akram broke the 60-run partnership. Singh, whose 21-balls (Rob)innings included a six, scored 16. Seven balls later, he was caught by Akram. Shoaib Akhtar broke the nine-run stand. Nayan Mongia, who faced four balls, scored six. He was unbeaten.

Pakistan conceded 14 extras. India scored 227 for the loss of six wickets off 50 overs. Saqlain, who bowled 10 wicketless overs, conceded 67. Akhtar, who bowled 10 overs, conceded 54. He picked up a wicket, as did Razzaq, whose 10 overs yielded 40. Mahmood, who bowled 10 overs, conceded 35. He picked up a couple of scalps, as did Akram, whose 10 overs yielded 27.

Afridi, who faced five balls, scored six. His innings included a boundary. Fifteen balls later, he was caught by Anil Kumble. Javagal Srinath broke the 19-run stand. Ahmed faced 24 balls, scoring 11. His innings included a four. Forty-three balls later, he was caught by Azharuddin. Srinath broke the 25-run stand.

The third-wicket pair put on eight. Malik, whose 19-ball innings included a boundary, scored six. Twenty-five balls later, Venkatesh Prasad trapped him leg before wicket. Saeed Anwar, whose 44-ball innings included six boundaries, scored 36. Twenty-three balls later, he was caught by Azharuddin. Prasad broke the 13-run stand.

Mahmood, who faced 17 balls, scored 10. His innings included a boundary. Forty balls later, he was caught by Mongia. Kumble broke the fifth-wicket stand, which was worth 13. Khan, who faced 37 balls, scored 34. His (Mo)innings included a couple of boundaries and a six. Ten overs later, he was caught by Tendulkar. Prasad broke the 46-run partnership.

Razzaq, whose 12-ball innings included a six, scored 11. Twenty-nine balls later, Srinath broke the 24-run stand. Inzamam, whose 93-ball innings included a boundary, scored 41. Twenty-seven balls later, Prasad trapped him leg before wicket, breaking the 29-run stand.

The ninth-wicket pair put on just a run. Saqlain, who faced four balls, didn’t open his account. Five balls later, he was trapped (Kumb)leg before wicket. Akram faced 16 balls, scoring a dozen. His innings included a boundary. Six balls later, he was caught by Kumble. Prasad broke the four-run stand. Akhtar, who faced three balls, did not open his account. He was unbeaten.

India conceded 13 extras. Pakistan, who were dismissed for 180 off 45.3 overs, lost by 47 runs. Singh, whose eight overs included a maiden, conceded 31. He was wicketless, as was Debasis Mohanty, who bowled 10 overs, including a couple of maidens. He conceded 31.

Kumble, who bowled 10 overs, conceded 43. He picked up a couple of wickets. Srinath bowled eight overs, including a maiden. He conceded 37, picking up three scalps. Prasad bowled 9.3 overs, including a couple of maidens. He conceded 27. His fifer earned him the player of the match award.

  

India (Azh)are routed by Australia

India made one change to their playing eleven – Sadagoppan Ramesh made way for Robin Singh. Australia made four changes to the (Reiff)eleven that last played the Indians – Brendon Julian, Damien Martyn, Brad Young and Michael Kasprowicz made way for Tom Moody, Shane Warne, Paul and Glenn McGrath.

Put in to bat by Mohammad Azharuddin, India’s captain, the Aussie openers put on 97 off 121 balls. Adam Gilchrist, who faced 52 balls, scored 31. His innings included a boundary. He was caught by Debasis Mohanty off the bowling of Sourav Ganguly.

Mark Waugh, whose 99-ball innings included eight boundaries and a six, scored 83. Sixty balls later, he was caught by Venkatesh Prasad. Singh broke the 60-run stand. Ricky Ponting, whose 36-ball innings included a four and a six, scored 23. Three balls later, Singh broke the one-run stand.

Steve Waugh, Australia’s captain, faced 40 balls, scoring 36. His innings included three boundaries. Sixty-seven balls later, he was caught by Anil Kumble. Mohanty broke the 60-run stand. The fifth-wicket pair put on 13. Darren Lehmann, who faced 33 balls, scored 26. His innings included a couple of boundaries. Thirteen balls later, he was run out by Ajay Jadeja.

Michael Bevan, whose 27-ball innings included a boundary and a six, scored 22. Thirty-three balls later, he was caught by Nayan Mongia. Prasad broke the 42-run stand. Moody, whose 20-ball innings included three boundaries, scored 26. He was unbeaten, as was Shane Warne, who didn’t face a ball.

India conceded 35 extras. Australia scored 282 for the loss of six wickets off 50 overs. Sachin Tendulkar bowled a wicketless over, conceding four. Kumble, who bowled 10 overs, conceded 49. He was wicketless, as was Javagal, whose 10 overs included two maidens. He conceded (Srina)thirty-four.

Ganguly bowled five overs, conceding 31. He picked up a wicket, as did Mohanty, who bowled seven overs, conceding 47. Prasad bowled 10 overs, conceding 60. He picked up a wicket. Singh bowled seven overs, conceding 43. He picked up a couple of scalps.

Tendulkar, who faced four balls, did not open his account. An over into the chase, he was caught by Gilchrist. Glenn McGrath broke the one-run stand. Rahul Dravid, who faced six balls, scored just a couple. Eleven balls later, he was caught by Gilchrist. McGrath broke the nine-run stand.

Ganguly, who faced a dozen balls, scored eight. Five balls later, Damien Fleming broke the two-run stand. Jadeja, who faced 138 balls, scored 100. His innings included seven boundaries and a couple of sixes. He was unbeaten.

Azharuddin, who faced nine balls, scored three. Sixteen balls later, he was caught by Steve Waugh. McGrath broke the five-run stand. Singh faced 94 balls, scoring 75. His innings included five boundaries and three sixes. He was caught by Reiffel. Moody broke the 187-ball stand, which was worth 141.

India’s sixth-wicket pair put on 23. Mongia, who faced nine balls, scored just a couple. Twenty-nine balls later, Bevan ran him out. Srinath, who faced a couple of balls, did not open his account. Four balls later, he was caught by Gilchrist. Steve Waugh broke the five-run stand.

Kumble, who faced six balls, scored three. Ten balls later, he was caught by Gilchrist. Steve Waugh broke the six-run stand. Prasad, who faced nine balls, scored just a couple. Three overs later, Fleming broke the 12-run stand. The last-wicket pair put on just a run. Mohanty, who faced three overs, did not open his account. Four balls later, Warne and Gilchrist ran him out.

Australia conceded 10 extras. India, who were dismissed for 205 off 48.2 overs, lost by 77 runs. Mark wasn’t in seventh heaven, because he bowled a wicketless over. Warne, who bowled 6.2 overs, conceded 49. He was wicketless, as was Reiffel, whose 10 overs included a maiden. He conceded 30.

Moody, who bowled 10 overs, conceded 41. He picked up a wicket. Steve, who bowled two overs, conceded eight, He picked up a couple of wickets. Fleming bowled nine overs, including a maiden. He conceded 33 and picked up a couple of wickets. The man nicknamed Pigeon bowled 10 overs, including a maiden. He conceded (McGra)thirty-four, picking up three scalps. He was adjudged the player of the match.   

   

   

India advance; England (Azh)are beaten

India made just one change to their playing eleven – Robin Singh made way for Nayan Mongia. England made three changes to the eleven that last played the Indians – Nick Knight, Vince Wells and Ian Austin made way for Nasser Hussain, Adam Hollioake and Alan Mullally.

Thanks to the inclement weather, the reserve day was used. Alec Stewart, England’s captain, chose to field upon winning the toss. Seventy-seven balls into the match, Sadagoppan Ramesh, who faced 41 balls, was caught by Graeme Hick for 20. He scored a couple of boundaries. Mullally broke the 49-run stand.

The second-wicket pair put on 44. Sourav Ganguly, the player of the match, scored 40 off 59 balls. His innings was laced with half-a-dozen boundaries. Fifty-one balls later, Mark Ealham ran him out. Tendulkar, who faced 40 balls, scored 22. HiS(ach)innings included a couple of boundaries. Seventy-three balls later, he was caught by Hick. Ealham broke the 46-run stand.

Rahul Dravid, who faced 82 balls, scored 53. His innings included six boundaries. Thirty-eight balls later, he was caught by Ealham. Andrew Flintoff broke the 35-run stand. Mohammad Azharuddin, India’s skipper, faced 35 balls. He scored 26. His innings included three boundaries. Four overs later, he was caught by Nasser Hussain. Ealham broke the 14-run stand.

Nayan Mongia, who faced five balls, scored just a couple. Seventeen balls later, Mullally broke the 21-run stand. Javagal Srinath, who faced a couple of balls, scored a run. Three balls later, Darren Gough broke the one-run partnership. 

Ajay Jadeja faced 30 balls, scoring 39. His innings included five boundaries. A couple of overs later, he was caught by Angus Fraser. Gough broke the 18-run stand. Anil Kumble, who faced eight balls, scored six. He was unbeaten, as was Venkatesh Prasad, who faced three balls and scored a couple.

England conceded 21 extras. India scored 232 for the loss of eight wickets off 50 overs. Adam Hollioake bowled five overs, conceding 34. He was wicketless, as was Fraser, whose 10 overs included a couple of maidens. He conceded 30.

Flintoff bowled five overs, conceding 28. He picked up a wicket. Mullally bowled 10 overs, conceding 54. He picked up two wickets. The ninth over of the Indian innings – Mullally’s first, called by Pakistani umpire Javed Akhtar – was a seven-ball over. Gough bowled 10 overs, conceding 51. He picked up a couple of scalps, as did Ealham, whose 10 overs included a couple of maidens. He conceded 28.

Stewart, who faced nine balls, scored just a couple. Nineteen balls into the chase, he was caught by Azharuddin. Debasis Mohanty broke the opening stand, which was worth a dozen. Hick, who faced a ball, didn’t open his account. The next ball, Mohanty broke the one-run stand.

The Chennai-born batsman, who faced 63 balls, scored 33. His (Hussa)innings included three boundaries. Ninety-five balls later, Ganguly broke the 59-run stand. Graham Thorpe, who faced 57 balls, scored 36. His innings included seven boundaries. Twenty-seven balls later, Srinath trapped him leg before wicket, breaking the nine-run stand.

The fifth-wicket pair put on 37. Flintoff faced 21 balls, scoring 15. His innings included a boundary and a six. Forty-seven balls later, he was trapped (Kumb)leg before wicket. Hollioake, who faced 13 balls, scored six. Twenty-six balls later, Kumble trapped him leg before wicket, breaking the sixth-wicket stand, which was worth a dozen.

Ealham, who faced three balls, did not open his account. Six balls later, he was caught by Azharuddin. Ganguly broke the one-run stand. Neil Fairbrother, who faced 62 balls, scored 29. His innings included a couple of boundaries. Eleven balls later, he was caught by Mongia. Ganguly broke the one-run stand.

Gough, who faced 25 balls, scored 19. His innings included a boundary. Thirty-three balls later, he was caught by Kumble. Prasad broke the 29-run stand. Fraser faced 17 balls, scoring 15. His innings included three boundaries. He was unbeaten. Mullally, who faced a couple of balls, did not open his account. Srinath was in seventh heaven, because he broke the eight-run stand.

The Indians conceded 14 extras. England, who were dismissed for 169 off 45.2 overs, lost by 63 runs. Prasad bowled nine overs, including a maiden. He conceded 25 and picked up a wicket. Srinath bowled 8.2 overs, including three maidens. He conceded 25 and picked up a couple of wickets.

Mohanty and Kumble, who bowled 10 overs each, picked up a couple of wickets apiece. While the former conceded 54, the latter, whose spell included a maiden, conceded 30. Ganguly, who bowled eight overs, conceded 27. He picked up three scalps. Sri Lanka were also eliminated. The Indians advanced to the Super Six.     

   

   

India’SLosing streak is finally (Azh)arrested

India made three Ch(opr)anges to their playing eleven – Nayan Mongia, Nikhil and Ajit Agarkar made way for Robin Singh, Anil Kumble and Venkatesh Prasad. Rahul Dravid kept wicket in Mongia’s stead.

Sri Lanka (Mahana)made four Chan(dana)ges to the eleven that last played the Indians – Avishka Gunawardene, Upul, Hashan Tillakaratne and Ruwan Kalpage made way for Sanath Jayasuriya, Romesh Kalwitharana, Roshan and Muttiah Muralitharan.

On winning the toss, Sri Lankan skipper Arjuna Ranatunga inserted India, whose openers put on six. Sadagoppan Ramesh, who faced four balls, scored five. His innings included a four. Five balls into the match, he Vaas dismissed by Chaminda.

The second-wicket stand was worth 318. Rahul Dravid, who faced 129 balls, scored 145. His innings included 17 boundaries and a six. The off-spinner (Muralitha)ran him out 269 balls later. Sachin Tendulkar faced three balls, scoring just a couple. Jayasuriya was in seventh heaven, because he broke the 20-run partnership. 

The fourth-wicket pair put on five off four balls. Ajay Jadeja faced four balls, scoring five. He was caught by Pramodya Wickramasinghe off his own bowling. The next ball, Singh was caught by Aravinda de Silva off the bowling of Wickramasinghe for a first-ball blob.

Sourav Ganguly, the player of the match, scored 183. His 158-ball innings included 17 boundaries and seven sixes. Thirteen balls later, he was caught by Chandana, the substitute. Wickramasinghe broke the 23-run stand. Mohammad Azharuddin, India’s captain, was in seventh heaven, because he scored a dozen. His innings included a six. He was unbeaten, as was Javagal Srinath, who did not face a ball.

Sri Lanka conceded 21 extras. India scored 373 for the loss of six wickets off 50 overs. Mahela Jayawardene, who bowled three wicketless overs, conceded 21. De Silva, who bowled four wicketless overs, conceded 23. Upashantha and Muralitharan bowled 10 wicketless overs apiece. While the former conceded 80, the latter conceded 60. 

Jayasuriya, who bowled three overs, conceded 37. He picked up a wicket. Vaas, who bowled 10 overs, conceded 84. He picked up a wicket. The medium-pacer, who bowled 10 overs, conceding 65. He picked up three Wick(ramasingh)ets.

The Sri Lankan openers put on five. Thirteen balls into the chase, Jayasuriya wasn’t in seventh heaven, because he scored (Srina)three. The Karnataka fast bowler ran him out. Kaluwitharana, who faced 15 balls, scored seven. His innings included a four. Fourteen balls later, Srinath trapped him leg before, breaking the eight-run stand.

Marvan Atapattu scored 29. His run-a-ball innings included five boundaries. Fifty-nine balls later, Debasis Mohanty broke the third-wicket partnership, which was worth 51. Jayawardene, who faced five balls, scored four. His runs came by way of a boundary. Anil was in seventh heaven, because he trapped him (Kumb)leg before wicket, breaking the five-run stand.

De Silva, who faced 74 balls, scored 56. His innings included seven boundaries. Seventy-six balls later, Singh trapped him leg before wicket, breaking the fifth-wicket partnership, which was worth 68. Ranatunga, who faced 57 balls, scored 42. His innings included seven boundaries. Thirty-eight balls later, Singh broke the sixth-wicket stand, which was worth 34. 

Vaas, who faced four balls, scored a run. Thirteen balls later, he was caught by Ramesh. Singh broke the six-run partnership. Upashantha faced 17 balls, scoring five. Twenty-six balls later, he was caught by Azharuddin. Singh broke the 16-run stand.

The ninth-wicket pair put on just a run. Roshan Mahanama, who faced 45 balls, scored 32. His innings included three boundaries. Three balls later, Tendulkar ran him out.

Wickramasinghe, who faced six balls, scored a couple. He was unbeaten. Six balls after Mahanama’s dismissal, Muralitharan, who faced three balls, was caught by Tendulkar. He scored four. His runs came by way of a boundary. Singh broke the 12-run stand.

India conceded 31 extras. The then defending champions, who were dismissed for 216 off 42.3 overs, lost by 157 runs. Ganguly bowled five overs, conceding 37. He was wicketless, as was Venkatesh Prasad, who bowled eight overs, conceding 41.

Mohanty, who bowled five overs, conceded 31. He picked up a wicket. Srinath, who bowled seven overs, conceded 33. He picked up a wicket. Kumble, who bowled eight overs, conceded 27. He picked up a wicket. Singh, who bowled 9.3 overs, conceded 31. He achieved a five-wicket haul, becoming the second Indian to do so in a World Cup.  

       

India savour (Azh)aromp over Kenya

India made three changes to their playing eleven – Robin Singh, Anil Kumble and Venkatesh Prasad made way for Sachin Tendulkar, Nikhil Chopra and Debasis Mohanty. Kenya (Moham)made a couple of Ch(udasam)anges to the eleven that last played the Indians – Dipak and Sheikh made way for Sandeep Gupta and Alpesh Vadher.

Put in to bat by Kenya’s skipper Aasif Karim, India’s openers put on 50 off 64 balls. Sourav Ganguly scored 13. His 26-ball (Mart)innings included three boundaries. Suji trapped him leg before wicket.

The second-wicket partnership was worth 42. Sadagoppan Ramesh, who faced 66 balls, scored 44. His innings included seven boundaries. Sixty-one balls later, Steve Tikolo ran him out.

Rahul Dravid, who faced 109 balls, scored 104. His innings included 10 boundaries. He was unbeaten, as was Tendulkar, who scored 140 off 101 balls. His innings included 16 boundaries and three sixes. The latter was adjudged the player of the match.

Kenya conceded 28 extras. India scored 329 for the loss of two wickets off 50 overs. Joseph Angara and Karim bowled seven wicketless overs apiece. While the former conceded 66, the latter conceded 52. Maurice Odumbe, who bowled eight wicketless overs, conceded 59.

Tikolo and Thomas Odoyo bowled nine wicketless overs apiece. While the former (whose spell included a maiden) conceded 62, the latter conceded 59. Suji bowled 10 overs, including a couple of maidens. He conceded 26 and picked up a scalp.

Sixty-seven balls into the chase, Ravindu Shah, who scored nine off 29 balls, was caught by Singh, the substitute. His (Rob)innings included a boundary. Debasis Mohanty broke the 29-run stand.

Gupta, who faced the next ball, was trapped leg before wicket by Mohanty for a blob. Kennedy Otieno, who faced 82 balls, scored 56. His innings included five boundaries. A hundred balls later, he was caught by Ajit Agarkar. Chopra broke the 118-run stand.

Tikolo, whose 75-ball innings included half-a-dozen boundaries and a six, scored 58. Twenty-seven balls later, Mohanty trapped him leg before wicket, breaking the 18-run stand. Odumbe faced 28 balls, scoring 14. His innings included a boundary. Forty-seven balls later, He was caught by Singh. Mohanty broke the 28-run stand. 

Karim, who faced 15 balls, scored eight. His innings included a boundary. Twenty-six balls later, Javagal Srinath broke the 16-run stand. Odoyo, whose 55-ball innings included included a couple of boundaries and as many sixes, scored 39. Twenty-seven balls later, Agarkar broke the 24-run partnership.

Vadher, who faced 13 balls, scored six. His innings included a four. He was unbeaten, as was Suji, who faced four balls and scored a run. India conceded 44 extras. Kenya scored 235 for the loss of seven wickets off 50 overs, losing by 94 runs. Tendulkar, who bowled an over, conceded 23. He was wicketless, as was Ganguly, whose nine overs yielded 47. Agarkar, who bowled 10 overs, conceded 35. He picked up a wicket.

Chopra bowled 10 overs, including two maidens. He conceded 33, picking up a wicket. The Karnataka pacer bowled 10 overs, including three maidens. He conceded (Srina)thirty-one, picking up a wicket. Mohanty, who bowled 10 overs, conceded 56. He picked up four scalps.     

    

   

India (Azh)are upset, Zimbabwe upbeat

India made just one change to their playing eleven – Sachin Tendulkar made way for Sadagoppan Ramesh. Zimbabwe made a couple of changes to the eleven that last played the Indians – Craig Wishart and Andy Whittall made way for the latter’s cousin Guy and Stuart Carlisle.

On winning the toss, Mohammad Azharuddin, India’s captain, put Zimbabwe in to bat. Although Neil Johnson’s 10-ball innings included a four, he wasn’t in seventh heaven, because he was caught by Nayan Mongia. Sixteen balls into the match, Javagal Srinath broke the 12-run stand.

Paul Strang, who faced 26 balls, scored 18. His innings included a four. Forty-three balls later, Ajit Agarkar broke the 33-run stand. Murray, whose 40-ball (Goodw)innings included three boundaries, scored 17. Sixty-nine balls later, he was caught by Robin Singh. Sourav Ganguly broke the 42-run stand. 

Grant Flower, the player of the match, scored 45. His 89-ball innings included four boundaries. Fifty-nine balls later, he was caught by Mongia. Ajay Jadeja broke the 57-run stand. His older brother Andy scored 68. His 85-ball innings included a couple of boundaries. He was unbeaten.

Alastair, Zimbabwe’s skipper, scored 24. His 29-ball innings inC(ampbe)luded three fours. Fifty-six balls later, he was stumped by Mongia. Anil Kumble broke the 60-run stand. Whittall, who faced eight balls, scored four. Thirteen balls later, Kumble was in seventh heaven.

Carlisle, who faced a couple of balls, scored a run. Four balls later, the Karnataka pacer broke the (Srina)three-run partnership. Heath Streak, whose 18-ball innings included a couple of boundaries, scored 14. Twenty-eight balls later, he was caught by Mongia. Venkatesh Prasad broke the 30-run stand.

Brandes, who faced five balls, scorEddo. Eight balls later, he was caught by Mongia. Prasad broke the ninth-wicket stand, which was worth six. Henry Olonga, who faced four balls, scored a run. He was unbeaten. India conceded a whopping 51 extras. Zimbabwe scored 252 for the loss of nine wickets off 50 overs.

Singh, who bowled a couple of wicketless overs, conceded 11. Jadeja, who bowled four overs, conceded 22. He picked up a wicket. Ganguly, who bowled five overs, conceded 22. He picked up a wicket. Agarkar, who bowled nine overs, conceded 70 and picked up a wicket.

Kumble, Prasad and Srinath bowled 10 overs each, picking up a couple of scalps apiece. While the leggie conceded 41, Prasad and Srinath, whose spells included a maiden each, conceded 37 and 35, respectively.

Eleven balls into the chase, Ganguly, who scored nine, was caught by Brandes. His eight-ball innings included a couple of boundaries. Johnson broke the 13-run stand. Rahul Dravid, whose 14-ball innings included a couple of boundaries, scored 13. Twenty-nine balls later, he was caught by Grant. Streak broke the 31-run stand.

Although his 11-ball innings included a boundary, Azharuddin wasn’t in seventh heaven, because he was caught by Campbell. Fourteen balls later, Streak broke the 12-run stand. Ramesh, whose 77-ball innings included three boundaries and a six, scored 55. He was caught by Goodwin. Grant broke the 113-ball stand, which was worth 99.

Jadeja, whose 76-ball innings included three boundaries, scored 43. Twenty-seven balls later, he was trapped leg before wicket by Streak, who broke the 19-run partnership. The sixth-wicket stand was worth a run. Agarkar, who faced five balls, scored a run. Six balls later, he was run out by Goodwin.

Mongia, whose 24-balls innings included a couple of boundaries and a six, scored 28. Forty-five balls later, Whittall broke the 44-run stand. Singh, who faced 47 balls, scored 35. His innings included a boundary. Twenty-one balls later, he was caught by Campbell. The eighth-wicket partnership, which was worth 27, was broken by Olonga.

Srinath, whose 12-ball innings included a couple of sixes, scored 18. Three balls later, Olonga broke the three-run stand. Kumble, who faced a ball, scored a run. He was unbeaten. Prasad, who faced a ball, didn’t get off the mark. The ball after Srinath’s dismissal, Olonga was trapped leg before wicket by Prasad.

Zimbabwe conceded 39 extras. India were dismissed for 249 off 45 overs. The latter lost by three runs. Brandes, who bowled three overs, conceded 27. He was wicketless, as was Strang, who bowled eight overs, conceding 49. Whittall bowled four overs, conceding 26. He picked up a wicket.

Johnson, who bowled seven overs, conceded 51. He picked up a wicket. Grant, who bowled 10 overs, conceded 33. He picked up a wicket. Olonga, who bowled four overs, conceded 22. He picked up three scalps, as did Streak, who bowled nine overs, conceding 36.     

    

India (Azh)are beaten by SA

India made just one change to their playing eleven – Sadagoppan Ramesh made way for Sachin Tendulkar. South Africa, who last played the Indians a couple of years ago, made three changes to the eleven that played that match. The three proud sons of the Rainbow Nation – Andrew Hudson, David Richardson and Rudi Bryson – made way for Herschelle Gibbs, Mark Boucher and Nicky Boje.

On winning the toss, India’s captain, Mohammad Azharuddin, chose to bat. Tendulkar, whose 46-ball innings included five boundaries, scored 28. He was caught by Boucher. Ninety-three balls into the match, Lance Klusener broke the 67-run stand. Rahul Dravid, whose 75-ball innings included five boundaries, scored 54. Klusener broke the 130-run stand, which lasted 157 balls.

India’s third-wicket pair had no reason to be in seventh heaven. A couple of overs later, Sourav Ganguly – who scored 97 – was run out by Jonty Rhodes and Jacques Kallis, the player of the match. His 142-ball innings included 11 boundaries and a six. Ajay Jadeja, whose 14-ball innings included a couple of boundaries, scored 16. Twenty-eight balls later, he was caught by Gary Kirsten. Allan Donald broke the 31-run partnership.

Azharuddin scored 24. His run-a-ball innings included a couple of boundaries. Seven balls later, he was caught by Boje. Klusener broke the fifth-wicket partnership, which was worth a dozen. Robin Singh, who faced three balls, scored four. He was unbeaten, as was Nayan Mongia, who faced a couple of balls, scoring five. His innings included a boundary.

South Africa conceded 25 extras. India scored 253 for the loss of five wickets off 50 overs. Boje and Hansie Cronje, the South African captain, bowled five wicketless overs apiece. While the former conceded 31, the latter conceded 24. 

Shaun Pollock, who bowled 10 overs, conceded 47. He was wicketless, as was Kallis, whose 10 overs included a maiden. He conceded 43. Donald, who bowled 10 overs, conceded 34. He picked up a wicket. Klusener, who bowled 10 overs, conceded 66. He picked up three scalps.

Sixteen balls into the chase, Gibbs, whose eight-ball innings included a boundary, had no reason to be in seventh heaven – he was trapped leg before wicket by Javagal, who broke the (Srina)thirteen-run stand.

Kirsten, who faced 22 balls, scored three. Twenty-five balls later, Srinath broke the nine-run stand. Boucher, who faced 36 balls, scored 34. His innings included four boundaries and a six. Forty-three balls later, Anil Kumble broke the 46-run partnership.

Daryll Cullinan faced 35 balls, scoring 19. His innings included three boundaries. Seventy balls later, He was caught by Singh. Ganguly broke the 48-run stand. Cronje faced 30 balls, scoring 27. His innings included three boundaries. Seventy-eight balls later, he was caught by Jadeja. Ajit Agarkar broke the 64-run stand. 

The sixth-wicket pair put on 47. Kallis, who faced 128 balls, scored 96. His innings included seven boundaries. Venkatesh Prasad and Srinath were in seventh heaven, because they ran him out. Rhodes, who faced 31 balls, scored 39. His innings included five boundaries. He was unbeaten, as was Klusener, who faced four balls, scoring a dozen. All his runs came by way of fours.

India conceded 17 extras. South Africa scored 254 for the loss of six wickets off 47.2 overs, winning by four wickets with 16 balls to spare. Singh bowled a couple of wicketless overs, conceding 10. Tendulkar, who bowled four wicketless overs, conceded 22. Prasad, who bowled 8.2 wicketless overs, conceded 32.

Ganguly, who bowled four overs, conceded 16. He picked up a wicket. Agarkar, who bowled nine overs, conceded 57. He picked up a wicket. The (Kumb)leggie, who bowled 10 overs, conceded 44. He picked up a wicket. Srinath, who bowled 10 overs, conceded 69. He picked up a couple of scalps.  

     

  

India suffer A(z)ha(a)r(udd)in the S(emi-fina)L

India made one change to their playing eleven – Venkatapathy Raju made way for Aashish Kapoor. Sri Lanka made one to theirs as well – Ravindra Pushpakumara made way for Pramodya Wickramasinghe.

Indian skipper Mohammad Azharuddin won the toss and inserted the Sri Lankans. Romesh Kaluwitharana, who faced a ball, didn’t open his account. He was caught by Sanjay Manjrekar. Javagal Srinath broke the one-run stand.

The second-wicket pair didn’t open its account. Jayasuriya, who faced (Sana)three balls, scored a run. He was caught by Venkatesh Prasad off the bowling of Srinath. 

Asanka Gurusinha, who faced 16 balls, scored a run. He was caught by Anil Kumble. The Karnataka pacer broke the third-wicket stand, which was worth (Srina)thirty-four. Aravinda de Silva, the player of the match, faced 47 balls, scoring 66. His innings included 14 boundaries. Kumble broke the 50-run stand.

Arjuna Ranatunga, Sri Lanka’s captain, scored 35 off 42 balls. HiS(ach)innings included four boundaries. The fifth-wicket stand, which was worth 83, was broken by Tendulkar, who trapped him leg before wicket.

A couple of balls into the 38^th over, Roshan Mahanama, who scored 58 off 101 balls, retired hurt. His innings included half-a-dozen fours. The sixth-wicket pair had put on 14 at that point.

Kumar Dharmasena, who faced 20 balls, scored nine. Tendulkar broke the sixth-wicket partnership, which was worth 24. Hashan Tillakaratne, who faced 43 balls, scored 32. His innings included a four. He was caught by Tendulkar. Prasad broke the 30-run stand.

The eighth-wicket pair put on eight. Chaminda, who faced 16 balls, scored 23. His innings included three fours. He Vaas run out by Azharuddin. Wickramasinghe, who faced nine balls, scored four. He was unbeaten, as was Muttiah Muralitharan, who scored five off four balls.

India conceded 17 extras. Sri Lanka scored 251 for the loss of eight wickets off 50 overs. Ajay Jadeja bowled five wicketless overs, conceding 31. Kapoor bowled 10 wicketless overs, conceding 40. Prasad bowled eight overs, conceding 50. He picked up a wicket. 

Kumble bowled 10 overs, conceding 51. He picked up a wicket. Tendulkar’s 10 overs included a maiden. He conceded 34 and picked up a couple of wickets. Srinath bowled seven overs, including a maiden. He conceded 34 and picked up three scalps.

Navjot Singh Sidhu, who faced eight balls, scored three. He was caught by Jayasuriya. Vaas broke the eight-run partnership. Tendulkar, who faced 88 balls, scored 65. His innings included nine boundaries. He was stumped by Kaluwitharana. Jayasuriya broke the 90-run partnership.

Azharuddin, who faced six balls, didn’t open his account. Dharmasena broke the one-run stand with a catch off his own bowling. Manjrekar, who faced 48 balls, scored 25. His innings included a four. Jayasuriya broke the fourth-wicket stand, which was worth just a couple.

Vinod Kambli, who faced 29 balls, scored 10. He was unbeaten. The fifth-wicket pair put on nine. Srinath faced six balls, scoring as many. His innings included a boundary. He was run out. Jadeja, who faced 11 balls, was dismissed for a blob by Jayasuriya, who broke the five-run partnership.

Nayan Mongia, who faced eight balls, scored a run. He was caught by Jayasuriya. de Silva broke the seventh-wicket stand, which was worth five. The eighth-wicket pair didn’t open its account. Kapoor, who faced a ball, didn’t get off the mark. He was caught by de Silva off the bowling of Muralitharan. Kumble, who didn’t face a ball, was unbeaten.

Sri Lanka conceded 10 extras. India scored 120 for the loss of eight wickets off 34.1 overs. Wickramasinghe, who bowled five wicketless overs, conceded 24. De Silva bowled a couple of overs, conceded just three and picked up a wicket. Vaas bowled six overs, including a maiden. He conceded 23 and picked up a wicket.

Dharmasena, who bowled seven overs, conceded 24 and picked up a wicket. Muralitharan bowled 7.1 overs, conceded 29 and picked up a wicket. Jayasuriya bowled seven overs, including a maiden. He conceded a dozen and picked up three scalps.

Play couldn’t be continued because the crowd was rioting. Match referee Clive Lloyd awarded the match to the Sri Lankans.

India knock (Azh)arch-rivals Pakistan out

While India made no changes to their playing eleven, the Pakistanis made seven changes to theirs – Ghulam Ali, Asif Mujtaba, Moin Khan, Wasim Akram (who was leading the defending champions at this edition of the tournament), Zafar Iqbal, Naeem Ashraf and Nadeem Khan made way for Ijaz Ahmed, Saleem Malik, Javed Miandad, Rashid Latif, Mushtaq Ahmed, Waqar Younis and Ata-ur-Rehman.

On winning to bat, Mohammad Azharuddin, India’s skipper, chose to bat. Tendulkar, who faced 59 balls, scored 31. HiS(ach)innings included three boundaries. Ata-ur-Rehman broke the 90-run stand.

Sanjay Manjrekar, who faced 43 balls, scored 20. He was caught by Miandad, who was playing his final One-day International. The 48-run stand was broken by Aamer Sohail, Pakistan’s stand-in captain. Navjot Singh Sidhu, who scored 93, bagged the player of the match award. His 115-ball innings included 11 fours. Mushtaq broke the 30-run partnership.

Azharuddin, who faced 22 balls, scored 27. His innings included a boundary and a six. He was caught by Latif. Waqar broke the 32-run stand. Vinod Kambli scored 24. His 26-ball innings included a boundary. Mushtaq broke the fifth-wicket stand, which was worth 26. 

The sixth-wicket pair put on 10. Nayan Mongia, who faced three balls, scored as many. He was run out. Anil Kumble, who faced six balls, scored 10. His innings included a couple of boundaries. He was caught by Miandad. Aaqib Javed broke the 24-run stand. 

Ajay Jadeja, who faced 25 balls, scored 45. His innings included four boundaries and a couple of sixes. He was caught by Sohail. Waqar broke the 19-run stand. Javagal Srinath, who faced four balls, scored a dozen. His innings included a couple of boundaries. He was unbeaten, as was Venkatesh Prasad, who didn’t face a ball.

Pakistan conceded 22 extras. India scored 287 for the loss of eight wickets off 50 overs. Malik bowled five wicketless overs, conceding 25. Sohail, who bowled five overs, conceded 29. He picked up a wicket. Aaqib, who bowled 10 overs, conceded 67 and picked up a wicket. 

Ata-ur-Rehman, who bowled 10 overs, conceded 40 and picked up a wicket. Waqar bowled 10 overs, included a maiden. He conceded 67, picking up two wickets. Mushtaq bowled 10 overs, conceding 56. He picked up a couple of scalps.

Saeed Anwar, who faced 32 balls, scored 48. His innings included five boundaries and a couple of sixes. He was caught by Kumble. Srinath broke the 84-run stand. Much has been written about the showdown between Sohail and Prasad. The former faced 46 balls, scoring 55. His innings included nine boundaries and a six. The second-wicket stand was broken by the latter.

Ijaz, who faced 23 balls, scored a dozen. His innings included a boundary. He was caught by Srinath. Prasad broke the nine-run stand. Inzamam-ul-Haq faced 20 balls, scoring a dozen. His innings included a four. He was caught by Mongia. Prasad broke the 10-run partnership.

The fifth-wicket pair put on 52. Malik faced 50 balls, scoring 38. His innings included four fours. He was trapped (Kumb)leg before wicket. Latif, who faced 25 balls, scored 26. His innings included a boundary and a couple of sixes. He was caught by Mongia. Venkatapathy Raju broke the 47-run stand. 

The seventh-wicket stand was worth a run. Mushtaq, who faced a couple of balls, didn’t open his account. He was caught by Kumble off his own bowling. Miandad scored 38, which was, incidentally, his age at that point. His 64-ball innings included two boundaries. He wasn’t in seventh heaven, because he was run out.

The ninth-wicket pair didn’t open its account. Ata-ur-Rehman, who faced a ball, didn’t score and was trapped (Kumb)leg before wicket. Waqar, who faced 21 balls, scored four. He was unbeaten, as was Aaqib, who faced 10 balls, scoring six.

India conceded nine extras. Pakistan, who scored 248 for the loss of nine wickets off 49 overs, lost by 39 runs. Tendulkar bowled five overs, conceding 25. He was wicketless, as was Jadeja, whose five overs yielded 19.

Srinath, who bowled nine overs, conceded 61. He picked up a wicket. Raju, who bowled 10 overs, conceded 46. He picked up a wicket. Kumble, who bowled 10 overs, conceded 48. He picked up three scalps, as did Prasad, whose 10 overs yielded 45.

India advanced to the semi-finals.   

   

India advance, Zimbabwe (Azh)are beaten

India made a couple of changes to their playing eleven – Manoj Prabhakar and Salil Ankola made way for Navjot Singh Sidhu and Venkatapathy Raju. Zimbabwe made four changes to the eleven that last played the Indians – David Houghton, Ali Shah, David Brain and John Rennie made way for Craig Evans, the Strang brothers (Paul and Bryan) and Charlie Lock.

Andy Flower, Zimbabwe’s skipper, won the toss, (Sach)inserting the hosts. Tendulkar, who faced a dozen balls, scored three. Heath Streak broke the five-run stand. Sanjay Manjrekar, who faced 18 balls, scored a couple. He was caught by Alastair Campbell. Lock broke the 20-run stand.

Mohammad Azharuddin, India’s captain, faced 10 balls, scoring just two. He was caught by Campbell. Bryan broke the seven-run stand. Sidhu, who faced 116 balls, scored 80. His innings included five boundaries. He was caught by Streak. Paul broke the fourth-wicket partnership, which was worth 142.

Vinod Kambli, who faced 110 balls, scored 106. He scored 11 fours and was caught by Grant Flower. The 45-run stand was broken by Lock. Ajay Jadeja, the player of the match, faced 27 balls, scoring 44. He scored three boundaries and a couple of sixes. He was unbeaten, as was Nayan Mongia, who faced nine balls, scoring six.

Zimbabwe conceded four extras. India scored 247 for the loss of five wickets off 50 overs. Guy Whittall bowled three wicketless overs, conceding 19. Grant, who bowled three overs, conceded 16. He was wicketless, as was Campbell, whose three overs yielded 13. Stephen Peall bowled six wicketless overs, conceding 35. 

Bryan bowled five overs, including a maiden. He conceded 22 and picked up a scalp. Paul Strang, who bowled 10 overs, conceded 55 and picked up a wicket. Streak bowled 10 overs, including three maidens. He conceded 29 and picked up a wicket. Lock bowled 10 overs, including a maiden. He conceded 57 and picked up a couple of scalps.

Grant, who faced 42 balls, scored 30. His innings included a boundary. He was caught by Azharuddin. Raju broke the 59-run stand. The second-wicket pair didn’t open its account. Andy Waller, who faced 36 balls, scored 22. His innings included a four. He was caught by Tendulkar off the bowling of Anil Kumble.

Campbell faced 55 balls, scoring 28. His innings included four boundaries. Jadeja broke the 37-run stand with a catch off his own bowling. The fourth-wicket partnership was worth three. Whittall, who faced 29 balls, scored 10. He was run out.

Evans, who bowled five overs, scored six. His innings included a four. He was caught by Javagal Srinath. Jadeja was in seventh heaven. Streak, who faced 39 balls, scored 30. His innings included three boundaries. Raju trapped him leg before wicket, breaking the 62-run stand. Andy, who faced 40 balls, scored 28. His innings included a four. Raju broke the five-run stand.

Paul, who faced 21 balls, scored 14. His innings included a boundary. Srinath broke the 20-run stand. The ninth-wicket stand was worth just a couple. The Karnataka pacer trapped Bryan, who faced (Srina)thirteen balls and scored three, leg before wicket.

Peall, who faced 14 balls, scored nine. His innings included a couple of boundaries. He was caught by Raju. Kumble broke the 12-run stand. Lock, who faced four balls, scored a couple. He was unbeaten.

India conceded 25 extras. Zimbabwe, who were dismissed for 207 off 49.4 overs, lost by 40 runs. Tendulkar bowled six overs, conceding 23. He was wicketless, as was Venkatesh Prasad, whose seven overs yielded 40. Jadeja bowled seven overs, conceded 32 and picked up two wickets. 

The (Kumb)leggie bowled 9.4 overs, including a maiden. He conceded 33 and picked up a couple of wickets. Srinath bowled 10 overs, including a maiden. He conceded 36 and picked up a couple of scalps. Raju bowled 10 overs, including a couple of maidens. He conceded 30 and picked up three scalps.

India advanced to the quarter-finals.