South Africa clinches series with big win

December 3, 2012

S_Africa_win

Perth, December 3: South Africa won the third Test by 309 runs on Monday to clinch back-to-back series in Australia, retain the No. 1 ranking and end Ricky Ponting’s career with a big defeat.

Robin Peterson dismissed Ponting (8) and skipper Michael Clarke (44) as South Africa finished off the Perth Test with a day to spare after battling to salvage draws in the first two Tests in Brisbane and Adelaide.

Australia, set an unlikely target of 632 to win, was out for 322 after a late cameo by No. 10 Mitch Starc, who ended unbeaten on 68 and shared an 87-run last-wicket stand with Nathan Lyon (31).

After resuming at 40-0, Australia’s day started in the worst possible way when David Warner (29) was removed by Vernon Philander on the second ball without addition to the overnight score.

Morne Morkel removed Shane Watson (25), also caught at slip by Graeme Smith, to bring Ponting to the crease.

South African lined up in a guard of honour as Australia’s all-time leading scorer made his way to the pitch, stopping momentarily to shake hands with Proteas captain Graeme Smith, with Australia at 81-2.

Ponting got off the mark with a trademark pull to the boundary off Morkel and drove another boundary in his only other scoring shot of a 23-ball innings, but was caught by Jacques Kallis trying to cut Peterson.

Every South African player ran to shake Ponting’s hand as the ex-Australia skipper left the WACA arena, where his Test career began in 1995. The scoreboard flashed up a message “Thanks Ricky” and the crowd stood to applaud him. Clarke gave Ponting a pat on the back as they crossed in the tunnel between the pavilion and field, then went out and hit the next two balls from Peterson to the boundary to be not out 8 at the interval.

Clarke and Hussey were starting to get settled in during the middle session. Clarke scored double centuries in the first two matches but when he was out and Hussey went soon after, the end was only a matter of time.

Starc combined with John Hastings (20) in a 31-run ninth-wicket partnership that ensured Australia avoided its second-worst ever defeat in terms of runs a 408-run loss to the West Indies in 1980 and his entertaining last-wicket stand with Lyon that only delayed the inevitable.



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News Network
June 24,2020

New Delhi, Jun 24: Star Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan deeply regrets his "silly mistake" of not reporting a corrupt approach by an Indian bookie to the ICC, leading to his one year suspension from the game.

Shakib was banned for two years, one year of it suspended, for failing to report corrupt approaches during an IPL edition by an alleged Indian bookie named Deepak Aggarwal.

"I took the approaches too casually When I met the anti-corruption guy and told them and they knew everything. Gave them all the evidence and they knew everything that happened," Shakib told Harsha Bhogle on 'Cricbuzz in Conversation'.

"To be honest, that's the only reason I was banned for a year, otherwise I'd have been banned for five or 10 years," he added on the ICC's investigation.

The 33-year-old, who was in brilliant form before the ban, amassing 606 runs in the 2019 World Cup in the UK, said he regrets how he went about the situation.

"But I think that was a silly mistake I made. Because with my experience and the amount of international matches I've played and the amount of ICC's anti-corruption code of conduct classes I took, I shouldn't have made that decision, to be honest."

Lesson learnt, Shakib's advice to all young criceters is to never take any such message lightly.

"I regret that. No one should take such messages or calls (from bookies) lightly or leave it away. We must inform the ICC ACSU guy to be on the safe side and that's the lesson I learnt, and I think I learnt a big lesson," he added.

The all-rounder, whose ban ends on October 29, said he became a bit arrogant and never felt he was doing anything wrong by not reporting the bookie's approach immediately.

"Because you do most things right in your life, you tend to get arrogant with some decisions. You may not realise but you're doing wrong by the books. It never came to my mind that I am doing something wrong

"It was just a feeling of 'okay, what's going to happen, leave it' and I continued with my life. But that's the mistake I made. And that happens," Shakib said.

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Agencies
March 15,2020

Chennai, Mar 15: Wicket-keeper batsman MS Dhoni has left the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) training camp following the postponement of the Indian Premier League (IPL) amidst the coronavirus scare.

The former India skipper had joined the CSK's camp earlier this month in order to practice for the upcoming IPL season.

CSK's official handle tweeted a video of Dhoni and captioned the post as: "It has become your home sir!" Keep whistling, as #Thala Dhoni bids a short adieu to #AnbuDen".

Thirty-eight-year-old Dhoni has been currently enjoying some time away from the game. He last played competitive cricket during the 2019 World Cup.

Dhoni had to face criticism for his slow batting approach during India's matches in the tournament.

Earlier this year, Dhoni did not find a place for himself in the BCCI's centrally contracted players list.

BCCI had released the list of central contract list of players for the period from October 2019 to September 2020.

On Friday, BCCI decided to postpone the IPL until April 15 as a precautionary measure against the coronavirus pandemic.

On Saturday, all the IPL franchises met in Mumbai to discuss as to how to go on with the tournament in the future.

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News Network
June 13,2020

Mumbai, Jun 13: Vasant Raiji, who was India's oldest first-class cricketer at 100, died in Mumbai in the wee hours of Saturday.

Raiji was 100 years old and is survived by his wife and two daughters.

"He (Raiji) passed away at 2.20 am in his sleep at his residence in Walkeshwar in South Mumbai due to old-age," his son-in-law Sudarshan Nanavati told PTI.

Raiji, a right-handed batsman, played nine first-class matches in the 1940s, scoring 277 runs with 68 being his highest score.

He made his debut for a Cricket Club of India team that played Central Provinces and Berar in Nagpur in 1939.

His Mumbai debut happened in 1941 when the team played Western India under the leadership of Vijay Merchant.

Raiji, also a cricket historian and chartered accountant, was 13 when India played its first Test match at the Bombay Gymkhana in South Mumbai.

Cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar and former Australian skipper Steve Waugh had paid a courtesy visit to Raiji at his residence in January when he had turned 100.

It has been learnt that the cremation will take place at the Chandanwadi crematorium in South Mumbai on Saturday afternoon.

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