Player of the Decade

[Sachinism]

Any positive comments folks :icflove:

No :punter:

[pappu_kanghi]

^^ Funny Ponting smiley.

[CSK Fan]

^^ Funny Ponting smiley.

Thats our ICF mascot

[Sachinism]

Cricinfo Awards 2009 http://www.cricinfo.com/awards2009/content/site/awards2009/readers_choice.html place your votes

[urbestfriend]

When has Afridi scored 151 against saffers in T20 :hehe:

[Shane]

Afridi for his 151 :hehe: in the T20 WC

[Aaku]

:hehe:

[StriKe]

Afretard 151 :hehe:

[Malcolm Merlyn]

afretard 151:hehe:

[Lord]

that must be the score of 3 innings 1,5 and 1.:hehe:

[Sachinism]

It was probably 51, typo I guess

[Sachinism]

Test Batting

Ramnaresh Sarwan 106 v England third Test, St John's A day after it became public that he had lost the million dollars he had made from the Stanford 20/20 for 20, Sarwan scored a responsible century to save West Indies against England and salvage their 1-0 lead in the series. Needing to bat more than four sessions, the rest of West Indies' top order wasted starts, but Sarwan adopted a positive attitude even in defence. He was compact and controlled at the crease, and determined not to give his innings away, as he had done with a wild slog on 94 in the first innings. Phil Hughes 115 v South Africa second Test, Durban In just his second Test, following up after a fourth-ball duck on debut, Hughes played a major role in the swift revenge Australia exacted for their home series loss to South Africa, by scoring two centuries in Durban. Hughes had been targeted by South Africa coach Mickey Arthur in the press over his shortcomings against short bowling, but Hughes seldom looked troubled during his 151-ball stay at the crease in the first innings, taking full advantage of a low Kingsmead pitch and inoffensive South African bowling. Daniel Vettori 118 v India first Test, Hamilton At 60 for 6 in the first session of the series against India, New Zealand were facing humiliation in Hamilton when out came their most reliable batsman, Vettori. Along with Jesse Ryder, he went about rebuilding the innings, at a quick pace. Vettori drove beautifully down the ground and through the covers and he swept and dabbed effectively against Harbhajan Singh. By drinks in the second session, with the recovery staged and Vettori nearing one of his three hundreds of the year, the DJ at Seddon Park was playing "Bridge Over Troubled Water". Gautam Gambhir 137 v New Zealand second Test, Napier This was a match-saving 643-minute marathon, after India were left with two days and a session to bat if they were to save the Napier Test (and with it, their ambition of winning a series in New Zealand for the first time in 40 years). No man has batted longer in the second innings in close to 10 years. It was the fifth-longest effort in second innings in all Test cricket, and made all the more remarkable by the normally impulsive nature of the batsman in question. Mohammad Yousuf 112 v Sri Lanka first Test, Galle Going into the Test, Yousuf had not played Test cricket for 19 months, had only trained casually, and had had little batting practice (and that was with his club side). Pakistan were 55 for 3, and soon to be 80 for 4, after their bowlers had restricted Sri Lanka to 292. After close to three hours of typically serene batting, Yousuf put Pakistan in a position to dominate. When he got to his century, his first in and against Sri Lanka, and 24th overall, he did the sajda, but it was the bowling that had been brought to its knees. Fawad Alam 168 v Sri Lanka second Test, Colombo Fawad had never opened in a first-class game till this match, and there was nothing to suggest a big debut century on its way: his big shuffle left him suspect against the moving ball, he had scored 16 in a total of 90 in the first innings, and Pakistan were trailing by 150 when they started the second innings. In scoring 168, Fawad showed that he could make up for faulty technique with temperament. He put Pakistan in a position from where they could control the game - though only for them to collapse again and lose the series 0-2. Andrew Strauss 161 v Australia second Test, Lord's Days after England had saved the Cardiff Test by the skin of their teeth, they stunned Australia at Lord's. At the forefront was the captain, scoring an unbeaten 161 out of 364 for 6 on the first day. It was not just Strauss's runs, it was his stoic batting that averted what very nearly was a middle-order collapse. And he managed to score at a strike rate of 60-plus. That the innings came at Lord's, where England had not beaten Australia for 75 years; that it came with the series still alive; and that most of it involved blunting the attack before it could dictate terms to England, made it a major turning point in the series. Jonathan Trott 119 v Australia fifth Test, The Oval Debuts don't come much better than ones that produce decisive centuries in an Ashes decider. More so when your team needs a win and Australia can retain the urn with a draw. In just those circumstances, at 39 for 3 in the second innings, out came Trott. He left at 373 for 9, having scored 119 off 193 in the knock of an instant veteran. His skill, determination and confidence made the men around him in England's middle order look like international novices, and his nerveless shot selection provided the scaffolding for a series of carefree cameos at the other end. Chris Gayle 165* v Australia second Test, Adelaide Gayle spent much of 2009 being panned for his supposed lack of interest in Test cricket, and derided for supposedly not being a good leader, and his side was being made fun of after they caved in in the first Test against Australia. They had a 35-run lead in the second with two days and two innings to go in the match, and it seemed at that point that there was enough time only for West Indies to lose the match - a fate many touring sides have met in Australia after getting a slender first-innings lead. But the fourth day was when Gayle showed he cared - for Test cricket, for his team, for high-level competition. He carried his bat through, playing with utmost discipline, and made sure his team would not lose. The next-best score in the innings was 27. Rahul Dravid 177 v Sri Lanka first Test, Ahmedabad There was some swing in the air early on the first morning and India thought it was excuse enough to be 32 for 4. Dravid then played a knock - both unlike him and typical of him - that rescued India, and ultimately saved the Test. Without it, India wouldn't have gone on to be the No. 1 Test team by the end of the year. It was typical Dravid because it came in a crisis. It was unlike him because he almost outpaced Yuvraj Singh, and kept up with MS Dhoni: he kept finding the boundary, getting to 50 in 79 balls, 100 in 158, and 150 in 216. Dravid's pace - 110 of his 177 came in boundaries - allowed India's run-rate to stay over four almost through the day. Umar Akmal 129 v New Zealand first Test, Dunedin So you're a 19-year-old Pakistani making your Test debut in New Zealand, on a windy day, with your side 85 for 5 and Shane Bond bowling at a scorching pace. Bring it on, you say, and smack 129 runs in 160 balls, pulling sensationally, cutting and driving emphatically, slog-sweeping Daniel Vettori disdainfully: basically asking your senior and more accomplished team-mates what the fuss is all about. You also score a much more mature 75 in the second innings, but are let down by the rest again and end up on the losing side. Virender Sehwag 293 v Sri Lanka third Test, Mumbai Even a bad back couldn't slow Sehwag down at the Brabourne Stadium. He scored at such breathtaking pace that India made their highest innings score ever - 726 - in well under two days. Throughout the second day of the Test, when Sri Lanka tried to plug one hole, Sehwag rushed in through the other. For the most part it was no monotonous power-hitting but a delightful and clever exercise in finding the gaps in defensive fields. Think Twenty20 highlights, but with the batsman playing lovely inside-out chips, straight lofts, reverse-sweeps to beat leg-side fields, and flicks to beat off-side fields. Once he saw himself in, the longest he went without a boundary was 12 balls.

[Sachinism]

Test Bowling

Jerome Taylor 5 for 11 v England first Test, Jamaica On the fourth afternoon in Jamaica, the Test was meandering aimlessly and inevitably towards a draw. After two slow innings, West Indies had managed a 74-run lead. England looked like they would play out a safe draw. Enter Taylor, with the spell of a lifetime. He bowled full and fast and attacked the stumps. After each wicket the crowd went mad, recreating the atmosphere from West Indies' heyday of the mid-1980s. Nine overs, five wickets, 11 runs, and England had lost by an innings. Mitchell Johnson 4 for 25 v South Africa first Test, Johannesburg Australia's revenge for the series loss at home to South Africa was set in motion by a hostile Johnson. His last act of the home series had been Graeme Smith's wicket, sealing the Sydney win. It took him five deliveries to remove the South Africa captain here, setting the tone for the rest of the series. His figures of 18.1-7-25-4 gave Australia a decisive 244-run lead in the first innings. South Africa would not come back in the series until the dead rubber. Zaheer Khan 5 for 65 v New Zealand third Test, Wellington India had all but won their first series in New Zealand in 40 years, but having failed to capitalise on starts in the final Test, their batsmen had left the door slightly ajar. Zaheer slammed it shut with a clinical and clever five-for. He was relentless from the first ball. Operating mostly from a short run-up, he seemed to bowl within himself and yet worked up a brisk pace. He found the perfect length, and some swing, and with the Wellington wind behind him, he charged in, mixed in the short deliveries smartly, and changed his line of attack to keep the batsmen guessing. It proved all too much for New Zealand, who folded for 197, conceding a 182-run first-inning lead. Rangana Herath 4 for 15 v Pakistan first Test, Galle A 15-minute delay in calling him up from club cricket in England and Herath would have gone to the gym and not taken the call asking him to return to Sri Lanka and replace Muttiah Muralitharan in the line-up for the Galle Test. He wouldn't have bowled the first ball on the fourth day, with Pakistan's last eight wickets needing just 97 runs. That first delivery was an arm ball that got Mohammad Yousuf lbw. Three balls later he got Salman Butt, and it was game on. His spell of 11.3-5-15-4 engineered a collapse, the likes of which Pakistan would be struggling with for the rest of the year. Andrew Flintoff 5 for 92 v Australia second Test, Lord's When it came to a sense of occasion and an ability to stir the crowds, not many did it better than Flintoff. In his final Test act at the home of cricket, he broke England's 75-year Lord's curse with his first five-wicket haul since the Ashes-clinching Oval Test of 2005. It was, unquestionably, a performance that enhanced his already mythical status within English cricket, but more pertinently it gave them a critical 1-0 lead. He steamed in from his favoured Pavilion End, as 25,000 screaming voices drowned out the pain in his knee. Only a famous exit from Lord's would do and he duly obliged with the wickets of Phil Hughes, Simon Katich, Brad Haddin and two tailenders. James Anderson 4 for 55 v Australia second Test, Lord's Anderson turned in a performance befitting his recently acquired mantle of England spearhead, maintaining a threatening line and swinging the ball just enough to create angst among the opposing batsmen. With Flintoff conceding barely two per over at the other end, Anderson created a pressure atmosphere in which the Australians cracked spectacularly. They lost six wickets for the addition of just 49 runs, and were eventually left trailing by 210 runs to start their Ashes slide. Stuart Broad 5 for 37 v Australia fifth Test, The Oval Broad produced a performance better than Flintoff's at Lord's to prise away, finger by finger, Australia's grip on the Ashes. Responding to England's first-innings 332, the Aussies collapsed from 73 for 0 to 160 all out. The star of England's show was Broad, who responded with a full and straight 12-over spell that perfectly exploited a pitch that was showing increasing signs of uneven bounce. He claimed the first four wickets to fall for eight runs in the space of 21 deliveries, and wrapped up his second five-wicket haul in consecutive innings by yorking Brad Haddin. Sreesanth 5 for 75 and 1 for 47 v Sri Lanka second Test, Kanpur Playing his first Test in 19 months, Indian cricket's prodigal son returned in style with a five-for, and six wickets overall, to consign Sri Lanka to an innings defeat on a flat Kanpur track. For nine successive overs in the first session, and for seven on the trot in the second, Sreesanth ran in hard, hit the deck, and found life in a slow pitch. If he troubled the batsmen with seam movement in the morning, he found some reverse swing post-lunch, severely testing the batsmen with a cluster of good deliveries and then invariably picking up a wicket with one slightly wide of the stumps. Shane Bond 5 for 107 and 3 for 46 v Pakistan first Test, Dunedin Finally back in New Zealand whites, hurling that red thing in anger on a flat pitch, Bond rattled the Pakistan middle order with pure pace during a seven-over spell of 3 for 25. It took him his first spell to graduate from the early 140s to close to 150kph, but once he got there, he mixed bouncers, legcutters and yorkers dangerously to scythe through Pakistan's middle order. The wicket of Mohammad Yousuf summed up his performance: in one over Bond gave him a bouncer at 151 that just missed the edge, followed by a yorker at 149 and a legcutter at 144 just outside off; the next ball, he dived low and forward during his follow-through to take a return catch. Graeme Swann 5 for 54 v South Africa second Test, Durban Swann, easily the spinner of the year, had spent the year away from the spotlight, doing his bit and then being sidelined by various star performers. In the last two Tests of the year, though, he grabbed the spotlight by the throat. Swann's penchant for taking wickets in the first over of his spells continued here, as he sent South Africa - behind by 231 runs with little over four sessions to go in the match - to defeat, turning around a game that looked to be shaping inevitably into a draw. Thirteen Swann deliveries later, 27 for 0 had become 37 for 2, and everything had changed. He finished with his fourth five-for of the year, more than any other bowler, and his second Man of the Match in a row.

[Sachinism]

ODI Batting

Charles Coventry 194* v Bangladesh fourth ODI, Bulawayo In an unglamorous series, Coventry, a man with few international credentials, equalled the record for the highest ODI score. It was a superbly paced innings. Coventry provided the impetus after the early dismissal of Mark Vermeulen, then tempered his aggression when wickets tumbled around him in the middle overs, before finishing off with an awesome display of power hitting. What made it more astonishing was that the next highest score was 37. It was his first ODI century, and he had never before made over 106 in any form of senior cricket. Tamim Iqbal 154 v Zimbabwe fourth ODI, Bulawayo There were more batting heroics to come in the match after Coventry's fireworks: a cool-headed hundred from Tamim, who set a record for the highest ODI score by a Bangladesh batsman, guided the visitors to a series win. Two things that stood out in Tamim's innings were the calmness he displayed, even when the required-rate started to soar, and the clean straight hitting - each of his six sixes was in the arc between long-on and long-off. Thilan Samaraweera 104 v New Zealand Compaq Cup, Colombo Samaraweera's career Test averaged soared past 50 in 2009 but he hadn't quite convinced people about his one-day skills. His chance came in this game, after the more flamboyant batsmen in his team had fallen to New Zealand's pace attack, leaving Sri Lanka at 38 for 4. Samaraweera responded with an innings that showed off his temperament and class, confirming he had turned a corner in his stop-start career. The placement and rotation of the strike were the highlights of his superlative century. His previous ODI highest in a 11-year career had been 38. Shoaib Malik 128 v India Champions Trophy, Centurion In one of the most hyped matches of the year, India's bowlers had reduced Pakistan to 65 for 3 after being carted for 51 off the first seven. Malik and Mohammad Yousuf soaked up the pressure and milked the bowling in the middle overs. Once he was well set, Malik toyed with the unimaginative Indian attack - going over extra cover, beating third man on both sides, and also hitting the odd straight shot. He went on to his fourth ODI century against India and guided Pakistan to what proved a winning total. Paul Collingwood 46 v Sri Lanka Champions Trophy, Johannesburg Collingwood anchored England's chase aggressively after they had slipped to 19 for 2 chasing 213 against higher-ranked Sri Lanka. It was an unlikely innings from Collingwood, coming at a little under a run a ball and featuring three leg-side sixes, and it did both: settle England's nerves and raise their intensity as they pulled off one of the upset wins of the tournament, getting to the target with 30 balls to spare. Owais Shah 98 v South Africa Champions Trophy, Centurion After a forgettable one-day series against Australia, Shah turned in a revelatory performance against South Africa. He launched himself into top gear with a brilliant 98 from 89 balls, which included five fours and six sixes. After bringing up his half-century from a measured 63 deliveries, Shah crashed 45 runs from his last 21 to leave England well placed to pull the rug out from under the feet of favourites and hosts South Africa. Graeme Smith 141 v England Champions Trophy, Centurion South Africa had entered the Champions Trophy as favourites, but after a loss to Sri Lanka they were facing the ignominy of exiting yet another global tournament on home soil at the very first hurdle. After England piled on 323, Smith let loose with a flurry of boundary-hitting to single-handedly keep South Africa in the hunt. After he got to his hundred, Smith was visibly struggling with cramps, and the asking rate was spiralling out of control. Denied a runner by Andrew Strauss, a hobbling Smith was finally ninth man out for 141; the next highest score in the innings was 36. Grant Elliott 75* v Pakistan Champions Trophy semi-final, Johannesburg New Zealand are habitual semi-finalists in global tournaments, but Elliott - with the help of Daniel Vettori - took them a step further in the Champions Trophy with this assured, unbeaten innings. He guided a thin batting line-up, blighted by injuries, to a modest target that was made more formidable than it looked by the variety in Pakistan's bowling attack. Till the batting Powerplay was taken in the 43rd over, Elliott barely played a forceful shot, but he kept the required rate at a manageable level. All this after passing a last-minute fitness test for a hand injury. Shane Watson 105* v New Zealand Champions Trophy final, Centurion Watson's best innings at international level, a century that earned him his second Man-of-the-Match award in successive Champions Trophy finals, was the key to yet another global title for Australia. In the face of a hostile opening spell from Kyle Mills and Shane Bond, Watson went into Test mode, playing them out as if in the first session on a green-top under overcast skies. Once the opening bowlers were taken off, Watson turned it on - from 7 off 28 he motored along to 49 off 72 - to take the game away from New Zealand. Sachin Tendulkar 175 v Australia fifth ODI, Hyderabad It was the India of the 90s all over again: Tendulkar almost chased 351 on his own, but with the target in sight, he got out and the rest choked, falling short by three runs with two balls to go. Wickets kept falling around him but Tendulkar gave the bowlers only one half-chance all through his innings. All night they couldn't get an uncouth shot out of him. He came out of a relatively lean patch, kept the pace up without taking undue risks, and played mostly regular cricket shots; and though support wasn't always forthcoming from the other end, Tendulkar took the fight to the opposition, counterattacking each time a wicket fell. Tillakaratne Dilshan 160 v India first ODI, Rajkot In an astonishing one-dayer, Dilshan powered Sri Lanka as they went after India's almost insuperable 414. With a full-throttle approach his only option, Dilshan came out with genuine intent and no little menace. He pulled and cut anything short or wide, and drove precisely down the ground when the ball was pitched too full. Just for variety, he threw in a couple of scoops as well, each evading the fielder placed at short fine leg to stop it, and sprinted to 160 off just 124 deliveries. When he was dismissed, Sri Lanka's chances were bright: they needed 76 off 65 deliveries. But in the event they fell short by four runs. Kumar Sangakkara 90 v India first ODI, Rajkot There was another innings as vital as Dilshan's in Sri Lanka's chase during the Rajkot run-fest - that of his captain, Kumar Sangakkara, who hit 90 off only 43 balls, helping Sri Lanka stay abreast of the steep asking rate. Initially, he whacked the spinners around - Suresh Raina was taken for three sixes - as he bounded to 50 off 24 deliveries, but the most breathtaking part of his innings came when he belted 21 off a Zaheer Khan over to pilot Sri Lanka past 300 in the 36th over. Gautam Gambhir 150* v Sri Lanka fourth ODI, Kolkata Gambhir's second 150 against Sri Lanka in 2009 took India to a 316-run target against Sri Lanka - their second largest successful chase at home - with room to spare. With Virat Kohli he put on 224 runs (125 of those run between the wickets) after India had stumbled at the start. Gambhir ran the ball off the face of the bat, placed it into gaps for twos, and paced the innings so well that the asking rate, formidable to begin with, did not once go over 6.7. And he made sure he was there till the end.

[Sachinism]

ODI Bowling

Ishant Sharma 4 for 57 v Sri Lanka second ODI, Colombo Ishant's composure at the death in a thrilling encounter against Sri Lanka fetched him his third four-wicket haul and India a 15-run win that gave them a 2-0 lead in a series they eventually won. Ishant got Jayasuriya early in Sri Lanka's chase of 257, but Sri Lanka came back into it, and with 70 needed off 47, six wickets left to take and the batting Powerplay in operation, the game was anybody's. Ishant then struck with a decisive three-wicket burst. He had Chamara Kapugedera caught behind, and though under fire from Thilina Kandamby, who kept picking off boundaries, he sealed one end off. Farveez Maharoof was bowled off a yorker, and Thilan Thushara was deceived by a slower one to put India on course. Kyle Mills 4 for 35 v Australia first ODI, Perth Mills wrecked Australia to set-up a nailbiting win for New Zealand on a track Ricky Ponting had described as ideal for batting. Using the early movement, he persisted with a line in the corridor outside off to keep the usually attacking Australian openers in check, and forced errors that cost them their wickets. A set Brad Haddin was bowled off an inside edge, and the innings ended for 181 when Mills beat Mitchell Johnson's attempted swipe. The score was Australia's lowest at home in the year, and Mills played a significant hand in overhauling it, making a patient 26 in a game that was decided on the last ball. Andrew Flintoff 5 for 19 v West Indies fifth ODI, St Lucia England had Flintoff to thank for their maiden ODI series win in the West Indies. In a truncated 29-over fixture, he dismissed opener Lendl Simmons and Ramnaresh Sarwan in the space of five deliveries; but the highlight was a hat-trick, only the third by an England bowler in ODIs: Denesh Ramdin bowled, Ravi Rampaul lbw, and Suliemann Benn yorked, to wrap up a 26-run win. Roelof van der Merwe 3 for 46 v Australia fourth ODI, Port Elizabeth For a spinner to take 3 for 46 in 10 overs on a track full of runs is a terrific feat, and thanks to van der Merwe, South Africa took their first win in three successive bilateral ODI series against Australia. Herschelle Gibbs' century had propelled the hosts to 317, but Australia's top order had delivered a fitting reply with each of the top three making fifties. Van der Merwe, playing in just his third ODI, castled Michael Clarke and deceived Callum Ferguson and Michael Hussey, completely altering the game in five overs. Dale Steyn knocked off the tail to seal a series win with a game to spare. Shahid Afridi 6 for 38 v Australia first ODI, Dubai On a wicket where the ball gripped and turned, Afridi tore through Australia after their top order had negotiated the pace bowlers with comfort. Extracting turn and bounce and pushing through the odd googly, he took six wickets, with good support from Saeed Ajmal. Such was their dominance that Australia lost eight wickets for 27, to be bowled out for 168. Afridi's effort was the first six-wicket haul of the year, and the fifth-best ODI bowling performance against Australia. He finished the series as the leading wicket-taker, with 10 at 17.10 Michael Clarke 3 for 15 v Pakistan third ODI, Abu Dhabi Clarke led by example as captain and produced a series-turning performance. His 66 had enabled Australia to reach a competitive 198 on a slow, turning track, but it was his contribution with the ball that proved decisive. Pakistan's openers had added 95 and seemed set to give their team a 2-1 lead but were undone by spin. Clarke struck with his first two balls, inducing Misbah-ul-Haq to commit an error while going for a big one, and bowling Ahmed Shehzad with an arm ball. Shahid Afridi fell four overs later, sucked in by a flighted invitation from Clarke, and Pakistan had been reduced to 123 for 5. The captain then ceded the floor to the specialist bowlers to complete the job. Australia took a 2-1 lead, and the rubber was sealed four days later. Doug Bollinger 5 for 35 v Pakistan fourth ODI, Abu Dhabi Bollinger was awarded his Test cap in January, and he made his mark in only his second ODI, in May. A steady line and length, slight variations in pace and an ability to bowl to his fields are his strengths, and he made the best use of them to seal the series. He tempted Salman Butt into playing an expansive drive, only to be caught behind; surprised a well-set Shoaib Malik with one that nipped in; and slipped in a quicker one to get Shahid Afridi, who was on 40, to mistime a pull, before finishing off the tail. Harbhajan Singh 5 for 56 v Sri Lanka Compaq Cup final, Colombo Harbhajan had been India's best spinner for a long time, but more for his ability to dry up runs than for his wicket-taking. But in a crunch game, where Sri Lanka looked poised to upset the win-the-toss-win-the-match trend at the Premadasa Stadium, Harbhajan delivered, cutting through the line-up to give India a 46-run win. Brought on when the Sri Lankan openers had delivered a blistering reply to India's 319, Harbhajan enticed Tillakaratne Dilshan with an open off-side field, got him to cut, and bowled him with one that spun in. He then got rid of Mahela Jayawardene with a doosra in his next over, and dealt the clinching blow at the death, dismissing the only man who stood between victory and defeat - Thilina Kandamby. Harbhajan's pumped-up performance marked the end of India's years of struggle in tournament finals. Gavin Tonge 4 for 25 v Pakistan Champions Trophy, Johannesburg A second-string West Indies team, filling in for striking players, threw up a couple of gems. Kemar Roach had been an instant revelation, but it was the Leeward Islands fast bowler Tonge who left Pakistan bewildered in what had for the most part been a one-sided game. Making the batsmen play was Tonge's strategy and it paid off: Imran Nazir was bowled off a full delivery, Kamran Akmal undone for by seam and carry, and Shoaib Malik drawn into a fatal drive. Tonge showed some aggression too, smacking Mohammad Yousuf in the ribs and having him caught behind. Thanks to that venomous spell, Pakistan were at one point reeling at 76 for 5, before an unbeaten sixth-wicket stand helped them overcome a paltry 133. Ian Butler 4 for 44 v Pakistan Champions Trophy semi-final, Johannesburg Butler's best bowling performance came just when it mattered for New Zealand. They were underdogs against Pakistan, but a disciplined display, led by his four-for, helped them keep the opposition down to a total New Zealand eventually chased down. Butler kept it in the channel outside off, and his consistency earned him the wickets of three frontline batsmen, two of whom were dismissed cheaply. Shoaib Malik was caught at slip; a fullish delivery proved too tempting for Kamran Akmal, who holed out at sweeper cover; and the dangerous Shahid Afridi was caught behind trying to nibble one to third man. Kyle Mills 3 for 27 v Australia Champions Trophy final, Centurion Mills' opening spell provided Australia with their first real challenge in a global tournament final since the 1996 World Cup. In defence of a sub-standard total, Mills bowled with determination, sticking to immaculate lengths with the right degree of swing and movement to confound the batsmen. Ricky Ponting fell to one such delivery that cut in to trap him in front, and at 6 for 2, New Zealand were in with a chance. Though Shane Watson and Cameron White put on what proved to be a match-winning stand, Mills kept trying, and he dismissed White and Michael Hussey in his next spell. Doug Bollinger 5 for 35 v India sixth ODI, Guwahati The previous game had yielded close to 700 runs, but when provided with a more testing surface it was India who wilted. Australia were missing four key players at the start of the series, and went on to lose four more during the seven games, but Bollinger showed admirable spirit and skill to clinch the series with a game to spare. On a track that suited his style, he found his mark immediately, nipping out two wickets early and snapping two dangerous partnerships later. The pitch was by no means a green-top; there was just a hint of movement which Bollinger and his new-ball partner, Mitchell Johnson, exploited, bundling India out for 170. The difference in quality was evident: only one India seamer managed a wicket.

[Sachinism]

T20 Batting

Tillakaratne Dilshan 96* v West Indies World Twenty20 semi-final, The Oval Dilshan powered Sri Lanka to the final of the World Twenty20, smashing 96 off 57 balls, the tournament's highest score. Despite his opening partner Sanath Jayasuriya struggling to 24 off 37, Dilshan led his team to 73 in 10.3 overs. None of the others made more than 12 and Dilshan was responsible for nearly 61% of Sri Lanka's 158. David Warner 89 v South Africa first Twenty20, Melbourne Warner, a 22-year-old left-hander, was the first player since John Hodges and Tom Kendall, in the first-ever Test in 1877, to play for Australia without having any first-class experience. That didn't matter a jot in Twenty20, though: Warner exploded against the South Africans, clearing the MCG's formidable boundaries six times with immense power in this innings, which came off 43 balls. Tom de Grooth 49 v England World Twenty20, Lord's The damp-squib opening fixture of the World Twenty20 eventually was the match of the tournament. Set a target of 163, de Grooth was the rock of the Dutch chase, with 49 off 30 balls. Far from losing steam like everyone expected them to, Netherlands were fired to 116 by de Grooth by the 13th over, before he was dismissed. From there on, it was only a matter of his team-mates keeping their nerve. Chris Gayle 88 v Australia World Twenty20, The Oval Those who were at The Oval on June 6 are unlikely to ever forget Gayle's assault. He ransacked the Australian attack, clobbering 88 off 50 balls, to make short work of the target of 170. He picked out Brett Lee for special treatment, and the two sixes - onto Harleyford Road and the top of the Bedser Stand - in the space of three deliveries were among the most monstrous hits you're likely to see. Shahid Afridi 51 v South Africa World Twenty20, Nottingham Pakistan needed an extraordinary performance to prevent 11 fit, in-form and clinical South Africans from realising their goal of a first major tournament final. And Afridi provided it. His innings was a deadly blend of aggression and maturity, kept a hostile attack at bay, and gave Pakistan 149 to defend. He then took 2 for 16, dismissing Herschelle Gibbs and AB de Villiers, to help secure a final berth by seven runs

[Sachinism]

T20 Bowling

Umar Gul 4 for 8 v Australia Only Twenty20, Dubai Shane Watson had muscled to 33 off 13 balls when Gul was introduced into the attack. Watson didn't last another delivery; Gul trapped him lbw in the fifth over. That wicket triggered a collapse and Gul was brought back for his second over only in the 15th of the innings, whereupon he proceeded to snuff Australia out. He picked up three more wickets and finished with 4 for 8 to dismiss Australia for 108. Trent Johnston 3 for 20 v Bangladesh World Twenty20, Nottingham Bangladesh were favourites, after India, to qualify from their group to the second stage of the World Twenty20, but their passage was ambushed by a three-wicket burst from Trent Johnston. He ripped through the top order, dismissing Junaid Siddique, Mohammad Ashraful and Shakib Al Hasan, to reduce Bangladesh to 50 for 3 in the eighth over. Ireland had wrested the momentum and never lost it. Ajantha Mendis 3 for 20 v Australia World Twenty20, Nottingham Australia had never played Mendis before. They had prepared for him, but even the best-laid plans fail. Mendis bowled Ricky Ponting with one that went the other way, halting a promising innings of 25 off 15 balls. He then trapped Shane Watson lbw, and breached Michael Hussey's defences. His spell of 3 for 20 helped limit Australia to 159 for 9, a total Sri Lanka overhauled with an over to spare. Wayne Parnell 4 for 13 v West Indies World Twenty20, The Oval A 19-year-old novice up against one of the world's most intimidating openers. In his first over, Parnell hit Andre Fletcher's off stump with a fast and straight delivery. In his next, he ran in to Chris Gayle, unfazed, and forced a mis-hit, leaving West Indies on 13 for 2 chasing 184. Parnell returned at the death, and with his second ball got rid of the dangerous Kieron Pollard before dismissing Jerome Taylor off the fourth. His figures, at that point, were 4 for 4 in 2.4 overs. Umar Gul 5 for 6 v New Zealand World Twenty20, The Oval New Zealand were already struggling at 72 for 4 after 12 overs when Younis Khan brought a sixth bowler into the attack - Gul. His impact was instantaneous and devastating: Gul dismissed Scott Styris and Peter McGlashan with his third and fourth deliveries, sent Nathan McCullum's leg stump cartwheeling in his next over, and ended with the dismissals of James Franklin and Kyle Mills - again off consecutive balls - in his third. New Zealand were shot out for 99 and Daniel Vettori said he had "never ever seen someone reverse the ball after 12 overs".

[Karan114]

Any positive comments folks :icflove:

What remaining positivity I had left after hearing this ***** got the player of the decade award was demolished by the poyzzz gifting him his 39th century, helped along by being dropped on 0 :((:((:((

[S.Bond]

well well, ponting deserved that onealognside kallis... both were just toooo good this decade... MCgrath, lara and warne didn(y played all 10 years but are still in the top 10 just tell us ow good they were...

[S.Bond]

What remaining positivity I had left after hearing this ***** got the player of the decade award was demolished by the poyzzz gifting him his 39th century' date=' helped along by being [b']dropped on 0 :((:((:((

you mean he didn't deserved his hundred because he was dropped on 0???