Bresnan reprimanded for breaching ICC Code of Conduct

England's Tim Bresnan has been officially reprimanded for breaching the ICC Code of Conduct during his side's tied match against India in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 in Bengaluru on Sunday. Bresnan pleaded guilty to contravening Level 1 offence (Section 2.1.2) of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Team Officials which relates to "abuse of cricket equipment or clothing, ground equipment or fixtures and fittings".

The incident took place on the last ball of the 48th over when Bresnan, after he was clean bowled by Piyush Chawala, hit the stumps with his bat. As Bresnan accepted the decision without contest, there was no need for a hearing. Commenting on his decision, Mr Roshan Mahanama of the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Match Referees, said: "While giving my verdict, I took into account that Bresnan admitted his mistake, apologised for his action and that it was his first offence. "Further, it was encouraging to note that Bresnan on his own initiative met the umpires concerned and reiterated that his action was unintentional. "However, there is no room for this type of action in our great sport and cricketers are always expected to play the game in the true spirit of cricket. These cricketers are role models of millions of aspiring cricketers."

All Level 1 breaches carry a minimum penalty of an official reprimand and/or a maximum penalty of the imposition of a fine up to 50 per cent of a player's match fee. The charge was brought by on-field umpires Billy Bowden and Marais Erasmus, third umpire Rod Tucker and fourth umpire Aleem Dar who are all from the Emirates Elite panel of ICC Umpires. Meanwhile, the England team was fined for maintaining a slow over-rate in the same match. The fines were imposed by Mr Mahanama after Andrew Strauss's side was ruled to be one over short of its target at the end of the match when time allowances were taken into consideration.

In accordance with the ICC Code of Conduct regulations governing minor over-rate offences, players are fined 10 per cent of their match fees for every over their side fails to bowl in the allotted time, with the captain fined double that amount. As such, Strauss was fined 20 per cent of his match fee while his players received 10-per-cent fines. The offence is contrary to Article 2.5.1 of the code which relates to minor over-rate offences. The penalty was accepted by England without contest so there was no need for a hearing.

Source: http://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/37267/bresnan-reprimanded-for-breaching-icc-code-of-conduct

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Cup force with us now, says ton-up Strauss

England captain Andrew Strauss said his side's sensational tie with India proved they were a World Cup force to be reckoned with after his superb century so nearly saw the visitors to victory. England, chasing what would have been a new World Cup winning total batting second of 339, finished on 338 for eight in reply to co-hosts India's 338 all out at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, with Strauss making 158.

His was the first World Cup hundred by an England captain and the highest World Cup score by any England batsman, surpassing Dennis Amiss's 137 against India at Lord's in the competition's inaugural fixture back in 1975. England's performance was an improvement upon their lacklustre six-wicket opening win over the Netherlands, where Strauss made 88. "Coming into this game after the Holland performance, it was a great bounce-back and showed everyone around the tournament that we're going to be a force to be reckoned with," said Strauss. When Ian Bell (69) and Strauss, who put on 170 for the third wicket, fell in successive balls to left-arm quick Zaheer Khan, the match swung back the way of India, who'd earlier seen cricket great Sachin Tendulkar become the first player to score five World Cup hundreds.

England had a poor batting powerplay towards the finish, losing four wickets for 25 runs in five overs. And it needed tailenders Graeme Swann and Ajmal Shazhad to secure only the fourth tie in World Cup history, as 13 runs came off the final over. This was the match a World Cup full of lopsided early encounters desperately needed and Strauss said: "We've got to celebrate the fact it was an unbelievable game of cricket -- probably the best advert for the 50-over format you could possibly get." Strauss has now scored five of his six ODI hundreds in the past two years. But he was in no doubt Sunday's innings was the best of the lot. "Given the importance of the game, against India in India in the World Cup, it was obviously crucial one of our players went on and got a big score.

"It was an innings I'm very proud of. It would have been great to have been not out at the end and seen the boys home. "It was my best one-day knock." Asked what he told his players during the interval between innings, Strauss replied: "I said 'Lads, that is an unbelievably flat wicket -- we can chase this." However, he was left lamenting England's poor powerplay performance, saying: "We got ourselves in a position at 41 or 42 overs where we just needed to have a good powerplay, and we were there. "But these powerplays can affect you both ways -- and unfortunately, it affected us in the negative way. "Then in the end, we did pretty well to scramble a tie out of it. "There were some great performances on both sides. "When we take stock of this game we'll probably both say: 'Look, we've got a point' -- which is an important point -- and go on and play better as the tournament goes on."

Source: http://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/37255/cup-force-with-us-now-says-ton-up-strauss

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India captain Dhoni 'rages against the machine'

India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni hit out at the controversial Umpire Decision Review System (URDS) after a key decision went against his side in their dramatic World Cup tie with England. England, replying to India's 338 all out after Sachin Tendulkar's record-breaking fifth hundred in World Cup cricket, finished on 338 for eight following a magnificent career-best 158 from captain Andrew Strauss. Left-handed opener Strauss shared a vital third-wicket partnership of 170 with Ian Bell (69).

But their stand was worth just 52 when left-arm spinner Yuvraj Singh thought he had Bell lbw on review for 17, with replays showing the ball would have hit the stumps. Bell had started to walk off but because New Zealand umpire Billy Bowden's verdict was not out, the decision was returned to him by Australian replay official

Rod Tucker and the Kiwi deemed Bell to be too far down the pitch. However, a capacity crowd of mainly passionate India fans were left bemused having seen Bell 'dismissed' on the Chinnaswamy Stadium's giant replay screens.

Bell himself clearly thought he was out, walking off the pitch before his clearly unexpected reprieve and Dhoni too couldn't understand why he was allowed to continue his innings. India have stood alone amongst major nations in refusing to use UDRS in Tests after getting on the wrong side of the system during a series away to Sri Lanka in 2008 where several reviews went against them. "The adulteration of technology with human thinking meant we didn't get that (Bell) wicket," said Dhoni.

He was unhappy with the instruction to umpires at this World Cup that says if a batsman is more than 2.5 metres down the pitch he should be given not out, unless the ball would have hit middle stump. It was not certain if Bell's middle stump would have been knocked over but Dhoni said: "If Hawkeye says it's good and going to hit middle stump, I see no reason why the distance matters. "Simon (Taufel) once gave me out (like that) in the Champions Trophy. If I can be given out, why not any other batsman? It is pretty difficult for me, what I saw was ball hitting the stumps." Dhoni praised left-arm quick Zaheer Khan for a burst of three wickets for one run in six balls, including two in two to get rid of Bell and Strauss, that swung the match back India's way when England were on course for victory. "Well you know the way they were going, I think they got off to a very good start, I think Andrew (Strauss) batted really well.

There was a time I think where it seemed they were going to chase the score in 48, 49 overs," he said. He added: "We could not win the match, but England too could not finish the game, both teams were facing defeat or victory at some point." England needed 14 off the last over, from seamer Munaf Patel, but managed just 13 despite a third ball six from tailender Ajmal Shahzad. But Dhoni said it was India's fielding, long their Achilles heel, that had cost them a second victory of this tournament to set alongside their 87-run opening win over fellow co-hosts Bangladesh. "We could have fielded better. With this tie, everyone in the team will realise that even one run is important," said the captain.

Source: http://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/37253/india-captain-dhoni-rages-against-the-machine

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The Indian twelfth man

If there is ever a bible written for sports fans, one of the first commandments has to be: "Thou shalt watch a cricket match that India plays in India." Based on the evidence of the World Cup, the Bangladesh fans are perhaps just as passionate as the Indian ones, but then the Bangladeshi team does not give them opportunities to cheer as much as the Indian team does to its fans. It is an accepted fact - and it is of course true - that it is because of the Indian cricket fan's unbelievable passion for the game that India is the engine that drives world cricket today.

However, it is only when you see it from up close that you get a sense of the proportions of that passion, the cheerful insanity of it. And you watch abstract notions c

ome alive - for instance, the oft quoted fact of the crowd in India acting as the 12th man for the team. It works, and how! When the team is on song, there is non-stop bedlam. Every piece of work that is not terrible is cheered fit to bring the roof down if there is one.

And you can see players growing in confidence before your eyes. In India's thrilling tie against England, there was a point during the Strauss-Bell stand, when England seemed to be cruising to victory. The crowd lost its voice

a little, though not completely. And then, Zaheer Khan struck to get Bell out - which opened the floodgates and seemed to lend an extra decibel to forty thousand voice-boxes in the Chinnaswamy Stadium. When Strauss departed off the next ball, the noise level might have reached all the way to Delhi. With the mood of the crowd, the energy-level of the Indian team too underwent a sea-change. Suddenly, every fielder was attacking the ball.

The Indians were running like the wind, often with the man nearest to the one who was fielding also running to back up - just in case there was a mis-field. The fielders were geeing each other and the bowler up with constant encouragement and the team looked transformed from a beaten lot to one with a strong sense of urgenc

y and purpose. What the crowd also did, by its unstinting, unflagging support of the team, and by lifting the team's performance - was help paper over some disturbing weaknesses in the Indian side.

For starters, the bowling. A team that scores 338, does not have too many excuses if it can't defend it. True, the pitch was flat, but the bowling lacked penetration. There was a boundary ball virtually every over. One could argue that England's bowling was as bad, since India scored the same amount of runs as England did. However, for one thing the Indians have a higher pedigree in the batting department than any other team in the World Cup, and for another India's batsmen had to take a lot more risk to get to the total of 338 than the English batsmen.

The Englishmen were given generous lines, and helped by fielding that was safe but hardly electric - with the occasional fumble not too far away - and that is something the Indian team should be concerned about. The current Indian team resembles the kid in the playground who owns the bat. He comes and bats with a lot of energy and enthusiasm, but doesn't have the patience to bowl or field. Consequently, India have assembled a batting line-up that is the world's best - especially on sub-continental pitches. But the bowling and fielding continue to be sub-par. Given the performance against England, India will need Zaheer Khan to be inspirational for almost every match, and to ask that much of one bowler is neither fair nor realistic.

There were some mitigating circumstances for the loss - the pitch was flat and Andrew Strauss played his greatest ever ODI innings - but the fact remained that a better bowling attack would perhaps not have allowed Strauss to develop his innings into one of the best ever, or at the least, cut down his batting partners if he seemed immovable. It is critical that these questions get asked by the Indian team of itself, that they not be lost in the euphoria of a come-from-behind performance. Because if India get their bowling act together, they are likely to be unstoppable in the 2011 World Cup. After all, they will always be playing 12 versus 11.

Source: http://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/37241/the-indian-twelfth-man

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Tough to improve fielding, says India skipper Dhoni

India's sloppy fielding nearly cost them defeat against England but skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni admitted it would be difficult to lift standards in his ageing side. India racked up a huge score of 338 in their clash on Sunday in Bangalore, helped by a century from Sachin Tendulkar, but the match ended in a dramatic tie after England skipper Andrew Strauss hit 158. The host nation's powerful batting line-up has fired in both World Cup matches so far but there are growing concerns about their bowling and fielding after conceding 283 in their win against Bangladesh and 338 against England. Dhoni said it would be tough to boost fielding standards due to the make-up of the squad after a cumbersome fielding performance. "I don't think we can improve the fielding very much because we have got quite a few slow fielders in the side," he said. "But as far as the bowling department is concerned I think we have got a talented group so hopefully in the coming games we can improve a lot." Tendulkar is the oldest player in the squad, at 37, with Virender Sehwag and Zaheer Khan both 32 but a number of other players are also nearing 30. Giving his reaction to the sensational tie, Dhoni said: "I am not disappointed, not excited. I have got mixed feelings. There were times when we could have lost, and times when we could have won the match." "It was a thrilling match because both the teams were facing defeat or victory at some point. All credit to England for the way they batted," he added. Asked about his frequent discussions with Sehwag during the England innings, Dhoni said he consulted senior players for the good of the team. "There are quite a few decisions you have to make. We have some experienced guys and we are always trying to make the best decisions for the team," he said. "I always let the fast bowlers set the field when they are bowling. It's only when they don't work I set my own." Asked about the inclusion of leg-spinner Piyush Chawla, Dhoni said he was not sure whether three seamers would have given the right balance. He said paceman Ashish Nehra needed to be 100 percent fit to be considered for selection.

Source: http://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/37269/tough-to-improve-fielding-says-india-skipper-dhoni

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Ervine, Taibu star as Zimbabwe score 298/9

Nagpur: Canada fought their way back into their World Cup tie against Zimbabwe by picking up wickets at regular intervals at Nagpur's Vidarbha stadium on Monday.

Earlier, steely counter-attack by Craig Ervine and Tatenda Taibu had put Zimbabwe in pole position to consolidate and move towards a competitive total.

Harvir Baidwan sent back Charles Coventry as Zimbabwe lost their second wicket.

Opening batsman Brendan Taylor was trapped leg before wicket for a golden duck by Khurram Chohan after Zimbabwe captain Elton Chigumbura won the toss and elected to bat first.

Both teams will be desperate for a win after losing their opening fixtures to more fancied opponents.

While Canada received a sound thrashing at the hands of Sri Lanka by 210 runs at Hambantota, Zimbabwe went down by 91 runs in their match against four times World Champions Australia at Ahmedabad.

Teams:

Zimbabwe: BRM Taylor, CK Coventry, T Taibu, CR Ervine, E Chigumbura (capt), SC Williams, GA Lamb, P Utseya, AG Cremer, RW Price, CB Mpofu

Canada: NR Kumar, JM Davison, R Gunasekera, A Bagai (capt), AS Hansra, ZE Surkari, TG Gordon, Rizwan Cheema, Khurram Chohan, HS Baidwan, WD Balaji Rao

Source: http://cricketnext.in.com/news/zimbabwe-elect-to-bat-against-canada/54799-13.html

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Bangalore: James Anderson might have returned the worst bowling figures by an Englishman in the World Cup but skipper Andrew Strauss remains confident about the pacer rediscovering his form in the coming matches of the mega event.

Andreson's 1/91 in 9.5 overs against India on Sunday was the worst bowling performance by an English bowler in World Cup, overtaking Derek Pringle's none for 83 against the West Indies in 1987.

India posted a mammoth 338 in the match and England managed to tie the game riding on Strauss' brilliant 158-run knock.

Strauss said it would be unfair to write off Anderson just yet.

"Opening the bowling out here is hard work, and bowling most of your overs in powerplay is not easy," Strauss said of Anderson.

"Jimmy's got a lot of skills. Anyone who writes a guy of that quality off is pretty naive."

Anderson has been struggling for form, going wicket-less for 72 runs in his 10 overs against the Netherlands in the opening match.

Source: http://cricketnext.in.com/news/strauss-comes-to-andersons-defence/54807-13.html

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Only Indian bowlers can deny Sachin WC

For the last two decades, Indian cricket has gained immeasurably from Sachin's presence- on and off the field. Sachin Tendulkar, gifted with talent and temperament, has reached almost all heights that can be scaled in the record books of cricket but the only thing that is missing from the cabinet of the living legend is a World Cup trophy.

Prior to the World Cup, all the pre tournament hype for India revolved around only one man - the little master: Sachin Tendulkar. Each and every Indian player came out and said that they wanted to win the tournament for the maestro.

On Sunday when Sachin took guard, everybody in the ground and millions watching on television could have sensed how desperate Sachin was to lift the cup and that his passion was still the same for the game.

Although he started slowly but when he got his eye in he cleared the boundary with ease and the England bowlers had no answer to his shots, the way he clobbered Paul Collingwood and Graeme Swann out of the park, fans were reminded of the young Sachin. One thing was clear on Sunday that he more than anyone in the team wants to win the coveted trophy and he can pace the innings the way he wishes and can slaughter any top class bowler.

But the Indian bowlers and fielders had some other plan, they were simply out of sorts and when they took the field inspite of being charged up to take the game to the opposition, they were restless and lethargic on the field.

Once again it was the bowling that led Team India and their fans down. Likes of Munaf Patel, Harbhajan Singh, Piyush Chawla, Yuvraj Singh were hammered all over the ground by some classy batting by Andrew Strauss, Jonathan Trott and Ian Bell.

Though Zaheer Khan was the pick of the bowlers for India but he too was expensive giving away 64 runs in his 10 overs but made up for it by picking up three crucial wickets.

Both the Indian games were an action replay of each other. On one hand where batting was just a class apart, bowling was well below par and wayward. Indian bowlers should take the England tie as a wake up call otherwise forget about the Cup, India won't be getting beyond the quarter final stage.

The key in saving India on both occasions was the lack of depth in the opposition's batting. This surely won't be the case against South Africa, who will have AB de Villiers walking in at 5 and Duminy at 6. Pakistan will have the likes of Misbah, Afridi and Razzaq in the lower order to hammer the opposition bowling. Likes of Sri Lanka and Australia also have good depth down the batting order and if bowlers continue with the same line and length, surely an early exit is on the cards for the Indians.

Talking about Sachin, critics and many people believe that Sachin plays for records. Are you kidding me here? Man who gives everything on the filed - play day in and day out and walks to the crease like it was his last match surely does not run after records.

What else do you expect from a man who is going out in the middle and scoring a century at less than a run a ball? He scored a classy 120 off just 115 balls that included 5 massive sixes and it was mainly due to his efforts that India were able to up the ante in the middle overs and reach a formidable target of 338.

But thanks to the Indian bowlers and fielders they ruined the day for the master with their pathetic bowling and fielding. If the performance of the bowlers is not up to the mark, it's surely not Sachin's headache. It's high time India know about their responsibilities and start giving more than 100 per cent if they really want the World Cup to be won for the little master.

Source: http://cricketnext.in.com/blogs/abhisheknandwani/2684/62252/only-indian-bowlers-can-deny-sachin-wc.html

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Legends analyse Ind-Eng tie

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Strauss benefits as Team India turns deaf

Bangalore: The Indian team seems to have a 'hearing problem' in addition to its bowling and fielding woes which led to its failure to defend a strong score of 338 in the World Cup match against England here last night.

Much has has been spoken and written about how poor bowling and fielding in addition to a late batting collapse that resulted in the fall of India's last seven wickets for 33 runs and nearly enabled England to win.

But two huge blunders committed by skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his bowling spearhead Zaheer Khan appear to have gone unnoticed in the debate and discussion over the tied match.

England skipper Andrew Strauss, who was the architect of India's agony by hitting his highest ODI score of 158, should have been out when he has scored a mere 13 if wicket-keeper Dhoni, Zaheer or close-in fielders had appealed for a caught behind at that point. Strauss clearly nicked a Zaheer delivery but there was no appeal by the Indians.

98 runs later, the England skipper had another stroke of luck when he again edged Zaheer to Dhoni with his score at 111 but none of the Indians on the field appealed.

Some of the television commentators, who heard the replays of the clear nicks, thought that the Indian players probably did not hear the edges because of the crowd noise -- an unconvincing argument given the fact that Indian cricketers are used to noisy, boisterous crowds everytime they set foot on the field. No cricket ground in the world has as vocal spectators as Kolkata's Eden Gardens where over one lakh fans turn out for big matches.

Source: http://cricketnext.in.com/news/strauss-benefits-as-team-india-turns-deaf/54802-13.html

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Bangladesh score dramatic win over Ireland

Dhaka: Bangladesh stung flat-footed Ireland to resurrect their World Cup campaign with a 27-run victory in front of some 25,000 boisterous home fans on Friday.

Bangladesh, bowled out for 205 after taking first strike in the day-night match, hit back to dismiss the leading non-Test nation for 178 in 45 overs at the packed Sher-e-Bangla stadium.

Former captain Mohammad Ashraful, who scored just one run, turned an unlikely hero with the ball by claiming two top-order wickets with his part-time off-spin.

Skipper Shakib Al Hasan also picked up two wickets with left-arm spin before seamer Shafiul Islam polished off the tail in quick time with 4-21 from eight overs.

Bangladesh, who had lost their first match to India last week, lapped up the pressure in a game they had to win to stay in contention for the quarter-finals from Group B.

But the co-hosts, who play all their league matches at home, must still beat the Netherlands and at least one of the established teams among England, South Africa and the West Indies.

The win helped Bangladesh avenge two successive defeats by Ireland in major events, having lost during the 2007 World Cup in the Caribbean and again in the 2009 World Twenty20 in England.

"It was a good game. I thought we played really hard cricket although we didn't bat well. Our bowlers and fielders showed great character and our support was excellent," said Shakib.

Disappointed Irish skipper William Porterfield said a poor batting display cost his side a crucial win.

"It's not hard to work out where we lost the game. We never settled down with the bat. The first 50 overs was pretty good," he said.

But he added: "You can't afford that many soft dismissals."

Shakib turned to spin after just one over from Shafiul, bringing on left-armer Abdul Razzak in the second over and off-spinner Naeem Islam in the third.

The move paid immediate dividends as Paul Stirling was stumped off Razzak for nine, before Irish captain William Porterfield fell to Shakib's first delivery for 20.

Ed Joyce and Niall O'Brien carried the score from 36-2 to 75 when Ashraful struck with the first delivery of his second spell.

Joyce, the former England batsman, made a fluent 16 when he was beaten in the air by a flighted ball and gave a delighted Ashraful an easy return catch.

Ashraful then bowled Andrew White for 10, while Shakib claimed his second wicket when Niall O'Brien fell to a diving catch by Tamim Iqbal at deep mid-wicket after making 38.

Kevin O'Brien slammed three fours and a six in 37 during a sixth-wicket stand of 41 with Andre Botha when he pulled Shafiul to mid-wicket to reduce Ireland to 151-6 in the 37th over.

Shafiul, who had recovered in time from a shoulder injury to play the key match, claimed three of the last four wickets to send Ireland crashing.

Earlier, seamer Andre Botha picked up three wickets and George Dockrell and Trent Johnston claimed two each to bowl out the hosts in 49.2 overs.

The hosts made a blistering start, racing to 49 without loss by the end of the fifth over, 37 of those runs coming from the blade of Tamim.

But the advantage was soon lost as four wickets fell for 33 runs in the next 10 overs.

Man of the match Tamim, who top-scored with 70 against India, began by taking 10 runs in Boyd Rankin's opening over and stroked seven boundaries in his 44 off 43 balls.

Mushfiqur Rahim and Raqibul Hasan lifted the hosts with a 61-run stand for the fifth wicket, before tailender Naeem Islam boosted the total with a defiant 29 towards the end.

Source: http://cricketnext.in.com/news/bangladesh-score-dramatic-win-over-ireland/54709-13.html

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Tamim Iqbal living his WC dream

Dhaka: Think World Cup openers and the names flow easily - Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Kevin Pietersen, Andrew Strauss, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Chris Gayle.

Add to the elite list Bangladesh's Tamim Iqbal, who is just as explosive at the top of the order and as integral to the team's cause as any of his contemporary superstars.

If Bangladesh are to progress far in the showpiece event, much will depend how the left-hander, one of the most exciting prospects in world cricket, fares.

Tamim, who turns 22 in March, went into the World Cup determined to be his team's top scorer in every match, and he has so far kept that promise in the two matches Bangladesh have played.

Tamim made 70 during a losing, but spirited chase of India's mammoth 370-4 in the opener, before scoring 44 off 43 balls in his team's modest, but winning, 205 against Ireland.

A diving catch on the mid-wicket fence to dismiss Ireland's Niall O'Brien, ensured that Tamim won the man of the match award even though seamer Shafiul Islam stole the limelight with his 4-21 burst.

Tamim, who speaks as freely as he bats, admitted the award surprised him.

"I think I got the nod for that catch," he said. "Shafiul deserved it more, but whoever judged it, thank you for that."

Tamim bruised his left-hand while taking the catch, but precautionary x-rays and scans cleared him of any serious damage, even though he had injured the same hand last year.

"He has just damaged some soft tissues in his left hand and should be okay within two or three days," said team manager Tanjeeb Ahsan.

The sigh of relief in the Bangladeshi camp, preparing to face the West Indies at the Sher-e-Bangla stadium on Friday, could be heard across Dhaka.

Tamin, younger brother of Bangladesh international Nafis Iqbal and nephew of former Test captain Akram Khan, became a household name soon after making his one-day debut in February, 2007.

A month later and playing only his fifth match, Tamim hit a half-century to fashion Bangladesh's stunning win over India in the World Cup in the Caribbean.

The sight of the teenager dancing down the wicket to smash Indian pace spearhead Zaheer Khan for a six was one of the most memorable moments of that tournament.

Tamim made 53 and 84 on his Test debut against New Zealand in Dunedin in early 2008, but it was on the tour of England last year that the world took notice of this gifted batsman.

He scored 103 in the second innings of the Lord's Test and followed that with another century in the next Test at Old Trafford, but could not prevent England from winning both matches.

In 19 Tests, Tamim has made 1,445 runs at an impressive average of 40.13 with four centuries. He also has 2,754 runs in 91 one-dayers at a strike rate of almost 80 with three hundreds.

Tamim's immediate target is to score a World Cup century in his home town of Chittagong, where Bangladesh take on England on March 11 and the Netherlands on March 14.

"That's one place I really want to do well," he said.

Millions of home fans will hope he delivers on that promise too.

Source: http://cricketnext.in.com/news/tamim-iqbal-living-his-wc-dream/54804-13.html

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Aus to tour Bangladesh after WC

Dhaka: Australia will play three one-day internationals in Bangladesh soon after the World Cup, but the brief tour does not include any Test matches, the Bangladesh Cricket Board said.
Australia will arrive in Dhaka on April 4, just two days after the World Cup final in Mumbai, and will play the one-dayers on April 9, 11 and 13 at the Sher-e-Bangladesh stadium.

Source: http://cricketnext.in.com/news/aus-to-tour-bangladesh-after-wc/54805-13.html



The first two matches will be played during the day, but the third game will be a day-night affair, a BCB release said on Monday.The series will be preceded by a practice match in Fatullah on April 7.
Australia's first tour of the South Asian nation since 2006 was due to include two Test matches, but these were cancelled by mutual agreement of the two boards.

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Canada's Nitish becomes youngest WC player at 16

Nagpur: Canada's 16-year old schoolboy Nitish Kumar on Monday became the youngest cricketer to make his World Cup debut when he was drafted into the playing XI against Zimbabwe in a group match here.
Nicknamed 'Tendulkar', Nitish was born in May, 1994, four and half years after Sachin Tendulkar's international debut against Pakistan in 1989.

Interestingly, Nitish will open the innings with the oldest player of the World Cup, 40-year-old John Davison who is playing his third World Cup.
Canada now has the oldest and youngest player in the tournament with their difference of age being 24 years.
"The first time I saw Nitish was 10 years back when he was only six. I was amazed to see a six-year-old's control over his shots. Even at that age, he could hit pull shots and I felt he was a special talent," Davison, the team's best player had said about Nitish on the eve of the match.
Asked about how fascinating it will be to open the batting with someone who is two and half decades younger than him, Davison replied in jest, "We balance out the average age of the team."
Nitish plays for Toronto Cricket Skating and Curling Club which has the best turf wickets in the country. In fact at that very club ground, India and Pakistan used to have their annual ODI series Sahara Cup during mid-90's.
Before Nitish, the youngest player to debut in a World Cup was Ireland's George Dockrell at 18 years and 213 days.
Nitish has so far played five ODIs for Canada and made his debut against Afghanistan.

Source: http://cricketnext.in.com/news/canadas-nitish-becomes-youngest-wc-player-at-16/54801-13.html

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