Dhoni relaxed about Gayle storm

India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni admitted there would be little he could do if rival skipper Chris Gayle was at his best during their opening World Twenty20 Super Eights clash against the West Indies.
Gayle hammered Australia for a blistering 88 in West Indies' seven-wicket win over Ricky Ponting's men and the left-handed opener has a well deserved reputation for an ability to make rapid scores against even the best attacks.
Having missed the 'dead' game against Sri Lanka with a knee injury, Gayle is expected to return for Friday's clash with defending champions India at Lord's.
"A player like Chris Gayle, you can't plan too much because you can't have players outside the field," Dhoni told reporters at Lord's on Thursday.
"He's a big six-hitter, he will take risks and he can get out. But, in this format, if he has good day you can be on the losing side," Dhoni admitted.
"But we have one or two players like that."
However, India will be without Virender Sehwag after the dynamic opening batsman was ruled out of the tournament with a right shoulder injury that sidelined him from the group stage.
"Sehwag is a very talented player, he can put pressure on when the ball is moving around," Dhoni said before stressing how well the talented Rohit Sharma had performed after stepping up into an opening slot alongside Gautam Gambhir.
"Rohit Sharma is filling his shoes. He's a part-time opener but he's doing really well. He was the best option and he grabbed the opportunity he got."
There is a belief that if a top side gets Gayle out cheaply then the game is all but won.
But Dhoni said the West Indies were much more than a one-man team.
"They've got quite a few big blokes who can hit sixes and push bowlers on to the backfoot.
"Dwayne Bravo is good, then there's Chris Gayle, Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Ramnaresh Sarwan. They've alo got bowlers who bowl at 140kph plus and use the slower ball and bouncer effectively."
India were given official clearance Thursday by the ICC to replace Sehwag with Dinesh Karthik and Dhoni said: "Dinesh Karthik has opened in Test matches and done well lower down the order in the IPL.
"He can do well in two slots and he can also replace me as a wicket-keeper."
India, initially suspicious of this format, won the inaugural World Twenty20 in South Africa two years ago after beating arch-rivals Pakistan by five runs in a thrilling final.
"We got loads of confidence from having won the last World Twenty20 but we can't rely on that," said Dhoni.

New boy Redmond boosts Kiwis

Late entrant Aaron Redmond smashed 63 off 30 balls as New Zealand hammered hapless Ireland for 198-5 in the World Twenty20 Super Eights game at Trent Bridge on Thursday.
Redmond, drafted into the injury-hit Black Caps squad on Wednesday night to replace the sick Jesse Ryder, made an immediate impact with a hurricane knock that contained 10 boundaries.
The 29-year-old contributed 40 in a first-wicket stand of 51 with stand-in captain Brendon McCullum after scoring 30 runs in the first two overs of the innings.
Scott Styris continued Ireland's leather hunt with 42 off 23 balls, adding 61 for the third wicket with Martin Guptill, who remained unbeaten on 45 with four sixes.
"I had been playing in the Bolton League. There were a lot of 50-over matches which were rain-affected, so it was good practice for this shortened version of the game," said Redmond.
"We have plenty of good players. I just go out there and bat. It was important to get a good start and put runs on the board. But we all miss Jesse. He's a good man."
Ireland spinner Kyle McCallan admitted that the minnows suffered a sluggish start.
"It was disappointing for us. We got off to a bad start from the very first ball," he said.
"It's not often we come up against batsmen of the calibre we have been facing here, but we didn't adapt as well as we could."
McCallan, who took 2-33 in his four overs, said he was enjoying the impact slow bowlers were having in the tournament.
"We make the batsmen put the pace on the ball, we can change it up and keep them guessing," he said.
"You have to accept that you are going to go across the ropes but it's how you deal with it that's important."
The Black Caps were once again without captain Daniel Vettori, who has yet to play in the tournament due to a shoulder injury, while frontline batsman Ross Taylor missed out due to a hamstring strain.
Ireland, a non-Test playing nation coached by former West Indian opener Phil Simmons, quaified for the Super Eights after a shock win over Bangladesh in the first round.
Sri Lanka and Pakistan are the other two teams in the group from which two will advance to the semi-finals.

Scoreboard
New Zealand
B. McCullum c West b McCallan 10
A. Redmond lbw b Cusack 63
M. Guptill not out 45
S. Styris c K. O'Brien b McCallan 42
J. Oram c Botha b Cusack 15
P. McGlashan b Johnson 5
J. Franklin not out 7

Extras b3, lb4, w4 11
Total for 5 wkts, 20 overs 198

Fall of wkts 1-51, 2-91, 3-152, 4-168, 5-176
Bowling
Connell 1-0-14-0,
Johnson 4-0-43-1,
K. O'Brien 4-0-31-0,
McCallan 4-0-33-2,
Cusack 4-0-43-2 (w3),
West 3-0-27-0 (w1)

Jayasuriya's future in his hands says captain

Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara wants star batsman Sanath Jayasuriya to carry on playing for just as long as he can after the veteran opener proved age was no barrier to success at the World Twenty20.
Aged 39 and the oldest player in the tournament, left-hander Jayasuriya ended a brief run of indifferent form with a sparkling 81 in Sri Lanka's 15-run win over the West Indies at Trent Bridge on Thursday.
Both sides were already through to the second phase Super Eights but the bonus for Sri Lanka was to see Jayasuriya, whose innings featured his trademark cuts for six over point, look back to his best in a stay of just 47 balls.
Jayasuriya called time on his Test career in 2007 but his latest knock was proof that the man whose aggressive batting revolutionised the one-day game during Sri Lanka's 1996 World Cup triumph, remains a potent forced in limited overs cricket.
"As a side, we have never had questions over what he can do," Sangakkara told reporters at Lord's on Thursday. "We were just waiting till he made his way into the tournament.
"It's great for his confidence and the team's confidence. He got the runs that we needed and the manner in which he got them," the wicket-keeper/batsman added.
"We need him to play the way he has played for years now.
"He's a match winner and as long as he's fit and willing to play for us, we are happy to have him. He'll be 40 soon. The decision is finally his.
"We are happy to have him in the side. He's won us lot matches and I am sure he will win a lot of games as well for us in the future.
"It doesn't matter how old you are," Sangakkara stressed. "In my view, if you are fit, scoring runs taking wickets and doing the hard work at training, that's what we require."
Sri Lanka, unbeaten at the tournament so far after wins over Australia and the West Indies, begin their second phase Super Eights programme against Pakistan at Lord's on Friday.
Meanwhile, Sangakkara tried to play down suggestions that Sri Lanka's early results made them one of the favourites.
"We've got lot of confidence form the last two games. But it's going to be a new game tomorrow (Friday). T-20 is very unpredictable."
"We can't look far ahead. First we have to qualify for semis and the first thing is we've got to win tomorrow. We are not looking too far ahead."
Spin has been a key factor both of Sri Lanka's wins and not just from off-break star Muttiah Muralitharan.
Mystery spinner Ajantha Mendis has proved arguably even harder to handle than Murali and Sangakkara said: "Spin has been our strength for years. Hopefully they can keep performing and add new variations to their armoury."

Mathews' super save legal, says MCC

Angelo Mathews's spectacular six-saving move against the West Indies in a World Twenty20 match has been deemed legal by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), the guardian of cricket's laws, who said it was "good for cricket".
Mathews was on the wide long-on boundary Trent Bridge on Wednesday when Ramnaresh Sarwan lofted a Ajantha Mendis delivery towards him.
He caught the ball inside the ropes before, realising his momentum would take him over the boundary, he flung the ball in the air.
Mathews's foot then went over the boundary and, seeing the ball was about to land over the rope and so go for a six, jumped up and hit it into play.
After watching several replays, third umpire Ian Gould informed on-field officials Billy Bowden and Simon Taufel that three runs only had been scored.
"The MCC Laws sub-committee had recently discussed fielding such as this and felt that such brilliant and quick-thinking acts should not be outlawed," said MCC assistant secretary John Stephenson said Thursday.
"MCC is happy with the Law as it is written and occurrences such as the one yesterday, while extremely rare, are good for the game of cricket as a whole. It is also pleasing that two of the committee's members were involved in making the correct decision on the field of play."
Mathews's move was deemed to have prevented a six as Law 19.3 states that a boundary will be scored when "the ball touches the boundary, or is grounded beyond the boundary or a fielder, with some part of his person in contact with the ball, touches the boundary or has some part of his person grounded beyond the boundary."
Sri Lanka beat the West Indies by 15 runs although both sides had already qualified for the second phase Super Eights after each defeating Australia.
Both teams begin their Super Eights programme at Lord's on Friday. Sri Lanka face Pakistan and West Indies take on defending champions India.

England face make or break Pakistan clash

England captain Paul Collingwood faces a test of his leadership credentials ahead of their ICC World Twenty20 clash with Pakistan at the Oval after their shock loss to the Netherlands.
Friday's stunning four-wicket defeat by the minnows in the tournament opener at Lord's means England cannot afford another reverse on Sunday if they are to progress to the second round Super Eight phase.
England, surprisingly, left out off-spinner Graeme Swann and all-rounder Dimitri Mascarenhas from their team that played the Dutch while star batsman Kevin Pietersen was ruled out with an Achilles tendon injury.
South Africa born shotmaker Pietersen, who remains doubtful for Sunday's match, is capable of clearing the ropes - something England lacked against the Dutch, with the visitors' scoring four sixes to the hosts' none.
But equally concerning for England was the way in which they were unable to defend a score of 162 for five, with the Dutch getting home off the last ball thanks in part to a series of fielding errors by England quick Stuart Broad.
"We're still in the tournament, we have 24 hours to get our heads around it and we have to play a hell of a lot better on Sunday.
"Pakistan are obviously a very good side," Collingwood told reporters at Lord's. "They got to the final of the last Twenty20 World Cup, they're very skilful and we're going to have to be at our very, very best to beat that side but we can do it."
England have often given the impression in recent years that their focus is solely on the upcoming Test series against Australia, which starts in July.
But Collingwood denied England were obsessed with the Ashes to the exclusion of all else.
"Absolutely not. We are an England team at the moment in a Twenty20 World Cup and that means a hell of a lot to all the players in there (the dressing room) and that's why they are all devastated.
"We are solely thinking about Twenty20 cricket, we are not thinking about the Ashes at the moment."
Pakistan will be playing their first match of the tournament proper on Sunday. They come into the game on the back of two heavy warm-up losses to South Africa (59 runs) and arch-rivals India (nine wickets).
But if any team in world cricket can find their form when needed with little in the way of prior warning then it is Pakistan.
"What happened in those two matches will not matter once the real thing starts," Pakistan coach Intikhab Alam told AFP.
"We may be slow starters but there is a lot of talent in the team that gives me confidence we will do well.
"We tried a lot of new things and new combinations in the two matches to get the mix right for the tournament, so the results there don't matter."
And Pakistan batsman Misbah-ul-Haq, like Alam speaking before Friday's stunning upset, said a tough warm-up programme could work in the side's favour.
"It's always good to play against in-form teams before a tournament because that allows you to get aware of your weaknesses."

Gayle storm blows away Australia

Leading from the front, the West Indies captain Chris Gayle did what he is best known for – taking away the match on his own – in the ICC World Twenty20 match against Australia at the Oval here on Saturday. The West Indies overhauled the target of 169 runs with seven wickets in hand in just 15.5 overs.
Gayle smashed 88 off 50 balls against Australia and along with Andre Fletcher shared the third highest partnership in the T20 internationals. The West Indies skipper hit six sixes and as many fours in his knock which dismantled the Australian bowlers both mentally and physically.
Before the tournament, the West Indies had been ridiculed for their captain's comments about the primacy of Twenty20 so there was a sense of anticipation over how they would fare in their preferred format but the West Indies skipper matched his words with his actions.
Earlier, Australia had to work hard for the runs as they posted 169 runs thanks largely to a good knock by David Warner. The West Indies bowlers gave the team a great start by pushing Australia on the backfoot from the word go. The pitch was a flat but Jerome Taylor and Fidel Edwards relished the challenge.
Taylor claimed two wickets in his opening over and if there had not conceded wides, Australia would have been 0 for 2. While the other batsmen were copping fiery treatment from the bowlers, Warner experienced the fielders' generosity. He played with a mix of aggression and caution. Along with Brad Haddin, he handled the repair work with a 66-run stand.
Warner scored 63 runs off 53 balls to keep Australia in the game. The Hussey brothers – David and Mike – also played their role scoring 27 and 28 runs respectively. But the Australian bowlers’ inability to stop Gayle will leave the team with the challenge of having to beat Sri Lanka in their next game in the group of death.

Yuvraj Singh, Ojha do the star turn for India

Left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha grabbed 4-21 as defending champions India overpowered Bangladesh by 25 runs in the World Twenty20 here on Saturday.
Gautam Gambhir hit 50 and Yuvraj Singh cracked a blistering 41 off 18 balls as India scored 180-5 after electing to bat in blustery conditions at the overflowing Trent Bridge.
Ojha then returned the best figures in the competition so far as Bangladesh faded after a rousing start to finish with 155-8 at the end of their 20 overs in the group A match.
Left-handed Gambhir, who began by cutting the second ball of the match from Mashrafe Mortaza for a boundary, held steady at one end for 17 overs before falling to off-spinner Naeem Islam.
But it was the other left-hander Yuvraj who set the innings alight with three boundaries and four sixes in a knock that included 19 runs in the 17th over bowled by Naeem.
Yuvraj's blitz helped India plunder 59 runs in the last four overs to set Bangladesh a tough victory target of just over nine runs an over.
The Tigers made a rollicking start in reply, scoring 74 runs by the eighth over for the loss of two wickets.
Opener Junaid Siddique led the early charge with 41 off 22 balls that included two fours and three sixes.
Pace spearhead Zaheer Khan, playing his first competitive match in a month due to a shoulder injury, was smashed for 20 runs in his first two overs.
The Hyderabad-based Ojha turned the game around with two wickets in his first over, the ninth of the innings, including that of Siddique who was caught in the deep by Harbhajan Singh.
Ojha, who had removed Shakib Al Hasan with his first ball, later had Mohammad Mahmudullah caught by Yuvraj and bowled Mashrafe Mortaza to effectively end Bangladesh's challenge.
Naeem, who took two wickets in India's innings, made 28 off 17 balls in the final overs to narrow the margin of defeat.
Naeem's bowling effort was, however, overshadowed by left-arm spinner Shakib, whose four overs cost just 24 runs for one wicket.
India's rising star Rohit Sharma put on 59 for the first wicket with Gambhir by the eighth over when he was bowled by Shakib for 36 after surviving a stumping chance off the previous delivery.
Sharma, who opened the innings in place of the injured Virender Sehwag, smashed three boundaries and two sixes during his 23-ball innings.
Skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni (26) helped Gambhir add 53 for the second wicket, but when he was bowled by Naeem in the 15th over, India only had 112 runs on the board.
Yuvraj took charge at that stage, pulling the spinners and seamers alike hard and high, to help India make a winning start in the 12-nation tournament.
Bangladesh play Ireland next at Trent Bridge on Monday, while India take on Ireland on Wednesday at the same venue.