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As Bengal left-arm spinner took six wickets, his side went on to win their Ranji Trophy league match against Assam at Kolkata on Monday.Overnight on 147/6, Assam collapsed in the face of sustained spin from Chatterjee and off-spinner Saurashish Lahiri (4-65). Barring the 83 from PK Das at the top of the order, none of the batsmen could even cross 50. The visitors were consequently bowled out for 206.Set a target of 157, Bengal reached it easily, losing only the openers along the way. Nikhil Haldipur made an unbeaten 51 and skipper Rohan Gavaskar 40 not out. Bengal collect eight points from this outright win.

The day night match at The Oval started with a succession of firsts for Surrey this season, it was at home and on time, the darkness and 100% cloud cover were in keeping with the spirit of things and there was life in the pitch.This was home, there was a nasty taste in the mouth from the weather and performance related problems of the last few weeks and messrs Bicknell and Tudor were in the mood to make somebody pay. The first four fast, straight overs produced three wickets and held a memory of the home sides great, though so far this year unrealised potential and a hope that given decent conditions and the change to adequately prepare their pitches Surrey’s season may take off once again.From the start it was nice to see proper cricket being played with Surrey deploying a slip cordon for their opening bowlers and the bowlers responding with good line and length. It wasn’t until the sixth over that the first boundary of the Hampshire innings was scored – a splendid cover drive by Robin Smith. The skies brightened throughout the Hampshire innings, but although Smith, Warne and Extras attempted to make a game of it, Hampshire, in poor form were always struggling. Warne top scored, despite riding his luck early and surviving not being good enough to touch several deliveries from the intermittently excellent Ben Hollioake he struck several magnificent fours from him.Stephenson, fifth out with the score on 38, was deeply disappointed to be given out caught behind.Warne in contrary to his reputation of this summer scored three excellent fours from Ben Hollioake to race ahead of Smith, the only other player to offer any resistance.Surrey’s reply began with Butcher driving the third ball of the innings from Mulally in the air to cover point, but from then on there was little or no difficulty with Ward batting steadily and Brown coming into form after a slow start. The enticing spectacle of Brown vs Warne was not long in coming, Warne was tidy and span the ball despite the early season wicket, but, with both batsmen able to choose the ball to play and Brown especially playing well against him there was little that even the great Australian could do to defend a pitiful total against a strong batting side.Given the poor historical record of the Surrey Southpaws against spin Ian Ward deserves some mention for his play against the strongest spin opposition Surrey will face this season, he scored four with the edge and the assistance of one of many appalling misfields from a dreadful attempted cover drive from Warne but otherwise his play against spin was blameless if you will forgive the crossbatted waft across a straight ball while trying to end it early and reducing Surrey to eighty one for three.Yet again Ali Brown got himself out trying to hammer a poor delivery from an average bowler out of the ground, Francis taking the catch this time at deep fine leg from the bowling of Mascarenhas. Hampshire did not seem eager to hurry the inevitable, taking their time about bowling the few overs necessary for Surrey to complete a routine rout – the only urgency to seek a result seeming to be on the behalf of their outfielders who seemed keen to bring about a speedy conclusion by a hapless performance. Overall it was hard to believe that this was the same Surrey team which lost badly against Glamorgan at the weekend or the result of Hampshire buying in, in Warne and Mullaly two excellent bowlers.There was almost an element of resignation in the long hop from Warne which Adam Hollioake pulled cleanly for four to win the match.

Mohammad Yousuf, the Pakistan batsman, has climbed to eighth place in the ICC player rankings for ODI batsmen after an excellent performance in the one-day series against South Africa. Yousuf scored a century and three fifties and averaged 71.50 in five innings in the series that Pakistan lost 2-3.Graeme Smith, the South African captain, also moved up two places to fourth on the list of top 10 one-day batsmen. Smith’s tally of 228 runs in five ODIs against Pakistan helped him move past Kevin Pietersen and Michael Hussey.Jacques Kallis, however, slipped in the rankings for both batsmen and allrounders following a poor series against Pakistan. Kallis scored only 27 runs in the first four ODIs before scoring 86 off 130 balls in the final match in Lahore. He took four wickets at an average of 36 apiece and an economy-rate of 6.00 an over. He is currently ranked 16th among ODI batsmen and fifth in the allrounders table.Kenya’s fast bowlers Peter Ongondo and Thomas Odoyo, along with Pakistani medium-pacer Iftikhar Anjum, achieved career-best ratings after impressive showings in their respective home series.Ongondo broke into the top 20 for the first time after claiming five wickets in four ODIs against Canada and Bermuda while Odoyo climbed 11 places to 38th position after taking five wickets against the same opponents. Anjum rose 18 places to 29th spot after finishing as the joint leading wicket-taker in the series along with Makhaya Ntini.

ODI Batsmen

ODI Bowlers

ODI Allrounders

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Nilesh Kulkarni’s match haul of ten wickets enabled Mumbai to storm to their first win of the season, steamrolling Gujarat by an innings and 163 runs at the Wankhede Stadium. Kulkarni snared 10 of the Gujarat 15 wickets to fall today, and along with offspinner Ramesh Powar who snapped up five in the second innings, gave Gujarat no chance. Gujarat, who were felled for 147 in the first innings, didn’t do much better in the second, rolling over for 193. Azharuddin Bilakhia stood out with a steady 88, including 11 fours, but Kulkarni and Powar shared nine wickets between them to seal the contest.
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Suresh Raina rediscovered his form with an excellent 124 at Chennai, enabling Uttar Pradesh to gain the first-innings lead against Tamil Nadu. Raina struck 20 fours in his 230-ball knock, one that spanned two minutes less than five-and-a-half hours, and received good support from Ali Murtaza in a 165-run stand. Ravichandran Ashwin was he lone bowling star for Tamil Nadu, toiling hard for 44.3 overs for his six wickets. Tamil Nadu replied with 63 for no loss at the end of the day with Anirudha Srikkanth finishing on a 67-ball 48.
A couple of half-centuries from ASK Varma and Prasad Reddy steered Andhra towards a big win on the third day at Anantpur. Varma followed up his first-innings century with a gritty 81, including nine fours and two sixes, while Reddy continued the good form he’s shown all season with a crucial 52. Syed Sahabuddin’s breezy 46 added to Karnataka’s misery, stretching the lead to beyond 400. Karnataka began their reply in sloppy fashion, losing two wickets for 35 before stumps.
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The Vadodara clash was poised on a knife edge at the end of the third day, with Baroda needing 84 more runs with five wickets in hand. Chasing 213, Baroda got off to a confident start with Connor Williams and Satyajit Parab adding 74 for the opening partnership but a glut of wickets changed the complexion of the contest. Amit Mishra, the legspinner, led Haryana’s fightback with 4 for 45 in 20 overs and set up an exciting finish. Earlier, Joginder Sharma, with a stroke-filled 65-ball 54, boosted Haryana to 210 in their second innings.
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Sourashish Lahiri led a solid middle-order performance as Bengal gained the upper hand against Maharashtra at Kolkata. Resuming on 199 for 5, Bengal extended their total to 325 thanks to Lahiri’s 54, including seven fours. Deep Dasgupta and Rohan Gavaskar chipped in with 49 and 38 respectively as Bengal gained a handy 110-run lead. Maharashtra replied in confident fashion, ending on 78 for 1 before the day was out.
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Pankaj Dharmani’s fantastic 151, along with Uday Kaul’s painstaking 71, rescued Punjab from dire straits at Jaipur. Punjab were reeling at 61 for 4, chasing Rajasthan’s healthy 332, but Dharmani stitched together a vital 51-run stand with Vipul Sharma before seizing the initiative with Kaul. Dharmani, a master of batting with the tail, cracked 16 fours in his unbeaten knock, while Kaul was the more patient partner, consuming 240 deliveries for his 70. Both were undefeated at the end of the day with the Rajasthan’s lead whittled down to just 21.
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Delhi were facing the humiliating prospect of an innings defeat, after being forced to follow-on, on the third day against Saurashtra at Rajkot. Resuming on 84 for 4 in their first innings, Delhi rode on half-centuries from Shikhar Dhawan and Rajat Bhatia apart from a 74-ball 43 from Ashish Nehra. But no-one went on to a big score, with four batsmen falling to the left-arm spin of Rakesh Dhruv, as Delhi failed to avoid the follow-on. They were in further trouble in the second innings, ending on a precarious 84 for 4 at stumps.

Kenya 214 and 198 (Tikolo 54, Utseya 4-35) beat Zimbabwe A 171 and 198 (Sibanda 58, Ongondo 4-31) by 43 runsKenya completed a three-match clean sweep by defeating Zimbabwe A by 43 runs at Harare Sports Club. By winning both three-day games and Saturday’s one-dayer – the last two matches against virtual full-strength sides – Kenya did themselves a power of good as well as adding to the problems faced by Zimbabwe’s board.The pitch at the country’s premier ground was poor throughout, and Kenya, who resumed on 142 for 4, failed to capitalize on a good start last night and were bowled out before lunch for 198. Prosper Utseya was the pick of the bowlers with 4 for 35.Chasing 242 to win, Zimbabwe A made good progress thanks to Vusi Sibanda (58) and Charles Coventry (48), but the pair received scant support, and Peter Ongondo (4 for 31) and Lameck Onyango (3 for 67) were instrumental in them being bowled out for 198.Zimbabwe were without Tatenda Taibu, their captain, who had returned home after his wife gave birth overnight, and he was replaced by Sibanda. The situation was further confused when Allan Mwayenga, who had come in for Andy Blignaut, was himself replaced by Ian Nicolson after leaving for South Africa with the Board XI side.The result means that Kenya now travel to Namibia on Friday for their Intercontinental Cup semi-final with Bermuda in confident mood, although the poor pitches in Zimbabwe have hardly helped the confidence of their batsmen.

Zimbabwe’s World Cup squad are to receive less than half the pay they were originally promised in their contracts, according to a report in today’s edition of . The report claims that Robert Mugabe, Zimbabwe’s president and the patron of the Zimbabwe Cricket Union (ZCU), has decreed that some players will lose as much as US$20,000 (about £12,400) from their original payout. And to make matters worse for players such as Andy Flower and Henry Olonga, who now both live in England, the majority of the money owed to them will be impossible to transfer abroad.First a little-noticed clause in the players’ contracts, stating that their fees would be cut by 19% if the ZCU’s income fell below a certain level, was invoked. This, combined with the horrendous state of inflation in Zimbabwe, and the conversion of their fees from American dollars to Zimbabwean ones at an unfavourable rate, all means that the players will eventually receive a meagre meagre sum. Add tax on top of that, and it’s no surprise that the players apparently feel as if they have been robbed.But where Flower and Olonga lose out even further is that they are no longer allowed to transfer their money out of the country. In order to access their foreign-currency accounts, they would have to fill out a form explaining how they are going to use it.One of the four Zimbabwe players who spoke to said: “We’ve been screwed. It’s daylight robbery.” The players in question asked not to be revealed as a legal battle is now likely, but another said: “It’s like they’re stealing our foreign currency and it’s only worth living in Zimbabwe if you can earn foreign currency.””We signed a contract and they agreed to pay us a certain amount,” said the third player. “Now we’re not going to get what they agreed. We have always been pay-as-you-earn individual employees. We’ve never been companies or corporate entities.”The other added: “This was the big payday for us, that only comes every four years. If your income is in Zimbabwe dollars, you just can’t make out. It’s scary. That’s why so many people are leaving the country.”Retraction: Zimbabwe players’ payments

*Hyderabad openers slaughter KarnatakaDaniel Manohar and A Nand Kishore both notched up centuries asKarnataka bowlers toiled in vain on Day One of their Ranji Trophyleague match against Hyderabad at Secunderabad.South Zone kicked off its Ranji campaign with this match, a fittinginauguration. Both Hyderabad openers looked in little trouble,prepared to take their time and ensure that a large first-inningstotal was not frittered away. Manohar, the slower of the two, madeexactly 100 off 295 balls, striking 11 fours in his knock.Nand Kishore, the more adventurous of the duo, hit 23 fours in hisknock of 136 off 266 balls. Karnataka did not help their cause toomuch by conceding as many as 39 extras in the day, with 21 no-ballsbeing bowled.At stumps, Hyderabad were 275 for no loss, with both Manohar and NandKishore looking hungry for more runs on Day Two.*Services hold on for tame drawBeing set a total of 312 for victory, Services played for safetyrather than victory, reaching a total of 244/6 by the close of play onDay Four of their Ranji Trophy league match against Haryana atFaridabad.Haryana’s overnight unbeaten batsmen added valuable runs with theremaining tailenders, and their innings closed at 220 all out.Services started shakily, losing two wickets for the addition of 32runs. PMS Reddy and Yashpal Singh, however, stabilised the innings.Reddy departed with the score on 128, having made 53. His partner wasdismissed less than 30 runs later, caught by Shafiq Khan off AmitMishra for 64. CD Thomson made a fine unbeaten 44 lower down theorder, ensuring, along with skipper Sanjay Verma, that Services didnot lose the match.Haryana, by virtue of their first-innings total, pick up five pointsfrom this match, while Services get three.*Jammu opt for cautionPunjab, looking to bowl out Jammy and Kashmir for less than 293, wereunsuccessful in their bid on Day Four of their Ranji Trophy leaguematch at Jammu.The home side, losing two wickets for 37 runs, shut shop and refusedto be tempted into trying for the target. Kavaljit Singh, playing atone-down, made a painstaking 89 off 263 balls, giving clear indicationof the plans of his team.He was ably supported by Dhruv Mahajan (46), but Punjab must havesniffed some chance of victory when Kavaljit Singh, the fifth wicketto fall, departed with the score on 187. The lower middle-order,however, kept out the bowling long enough to take the home side to211/6 at stumps.Jammu and Kashmir pick up five points by virtue of their first-inningslead, while Punjab pick up three.*Delhi draw with Himachal PradeshDelhi, by virtue of a first-innings lead, gained five points fromtheir drawn Ranji Trophy league match against Himachal Pradesh atBilaspur.Himachal Pradesh, staring the day at a strong 327/4, proceeded to add94 runs before declaring at 421/7. Rajiv Nayyar, who remained unbeatenon 84, was a figure of patience, grinding the Delhi attack for almost6 hours and 225 balls, hitting only four fours in his knock.Set a nigh-impossible total of 361 for victory, Delhi opted forbatting practice. Gautam Gambhir made 42 and Akash Chopra an unbeaten86 off 168 balls. Delhi reached 219/3 at stumps, with none of theHimachal Pradesh bowlers able to dent the batting line-up further.

South Africa will not sink into their shells against spin despite their aggression resulting in a third sub-par batting performance in the series. After limping to 184 and 109 in Mohali, South Africa managed to creep up to 214 in Bangalore but Hashim Amla said the team’s approach will not change in the next two matches.

Steyn uncertain for Nagpur

South Africa are still sweating over the availability of their premier pacer Dale Steyn, who sat out his first Test in six years after suffering a groin strain in Mohali.
Hashim Amla could not provide clarity on the severity of the injury or how soon Steyn could be back in action, but indicated South Africa would give the matter their full attention in the coming days.
“I’m not 100% sure what the exact prognosis is. But it would be great if he is ready for the next Test. It would be great to have the world’s No.1 bowler back in our team,” Amla said.
“If he was fully fit he would have played this Test. So I don’t think he is fully fit at the moment. I don’t know, I’m not sure, I haven’t touched base with the physio as yet. I didn’t want to until this game is done, which it is now. In the coming days, we will probably have a better idea. “

“You’ve got to be positive in everything you do. If the guys got out playing a positive shot, I am happy because at least he tried to take the game forward and tried to score runs. That’s the name of the game,” Amla saidDean Elgar, Faf du Plessis, Dane Vilas, JP Duminy and even AB de Villiers have all got out attacking this series instead of protecting their positions. Had they shown a bit more staying power, Amla believes South Africa could have made better use of conditions which had nothing sinister about them.”If I had won the toss, I would have batted first anyway. I think it was a good wicket,” he said. “We just didn’t get any partnerships going. AB was exceptional as always. Unfortunately no one stuck around with him long enough to post a big total.”In South Africa’s haste to get runs before getting out, they did not realise that the turn they were trying to get away from was not really there. They were playing for imagined conditions instead of the actual ones, and have already had four days to assess why they let mind get over matter.Now, they have a week to reverse that thought process, but Amla has cautioned against too much thinking before South Africa get to Nagpur. “We’ve had a lot of time to reflect but we don’t want to over-reflect,” he said.”It’s pretty simple: you try and be as positive as possible and sometimes it was the lack of turn that outdid us. You don’t overdo it, you try and keep the game as simple as possible. We’ve had three innings that haven’t gone to our plan and I am sure in the Nagpur Test, hopefully we come good. We have talked about it but you can’t over talk about something and complicate it more than it is.”An obvious complication is the composition of South Africa’s XI. For the first time since the retirements of Graeme Smith and JacquesKallis, it seems to lack something, especially as du Plessis and Amla himself are not firing. That leaves the top four shaky, but Amla dismissed any thoughts of change, especially in the top two, just yet.”I’ve always felt opening batting is probably the most difficult job in Test cricket. Sometimes you’ve got to field for 150 overs and thenyou’ve got 10 minutes to put your pads on. It is quite a demanding position to be in but Dean and Stiaan are our best openers and they will do a great job for us,” Amla said. “The fact that myself and Faf in this game haven’t got going, we only have ourselves to blame. No one else.”Still, Amla was careful not to condemn his team too much. He even left open the possibility that South Africa could have come back into the Bangalore Test. “Although we got bowled out for 220 odd and India were in a good position at the end for the day, Test matches are not always won on the first day. There was a lot of time left for us to claw our way back into the game. You never know what could have happened.”

Chris Rogers’ hopes of replacing Justin Langer in the first Test have ended after he had his appendix removed in Perth on Thursday night. The unfortunate timing of the illness leaves Phil Jaques in an almost untouchable position to join Matthew Hayden when Australia face Sri Lanka at the Gabba from November 8.Jaques (13 and 167) and Rogers (9 and 17) went head-to-head in the first Pura Cup match of the season but now only Jaques, Brad Hodge and maybe Michael Hussey are contenders. Rogers was admitted to the Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital and had his appendix taken out using a laparoscopic technique.A WACA spokesman said Rogers would stay in hospital for another night and would look to resume playing in two weeks. The recovery will prevent Rogers from appearing in the Pura Cup match against Victoria in Melbourne from next Friday, which is the last chance to impress ahead of the Sri Lanka series.The Willetton allrounder Matt Johnston has been included in the 13-man squad for Western Australia’s FR Cup match against Tasmania in Perth on Sunday. He has started well in the Perth grade competition, scoring 179 runs at 89.50 and taking 4 for 44 in his only bowl.”Matt has received a reward for displaying outstanding form,” the coach Tom Moody said, “and he now has an opportunity to show his wares once again on the interstate arena.” Ben Edmondson, who injured his hamstring in the Pura Cup contest, was replaced by Daniel McLauchlan while Darren Wates also came into the squad.Western Australia FR Cup squad Justin Langer, Luke Ronchi (wk), Adam Voges (capt), Shaun Marsh, Luke Pomersbach, Matt Johnston, Darren Wates, Sean Ervine, Shawn Gillies, Aaron Heal, Brett Dorey, Steve Magoffin, Daniel McLauchlan.