Kevin Pietersen Warned Over Switch Hit

Umpires warned England batsman Kevin Pietersen twice for changing his stance to attempt a switch-hit during the second Test against Sri Lanka on Thursday.

The flamboyant Pietersen was spoken to by Bruce Oxenford and Asad Rauf after bowler Tillakaratne Dilshan had to stop twice in his run-up as the batsman turned around in his stance.

The laws of the game say that the eye-catching switch-hit — a right-hander playing a shot with a left-hander’s grip — is legal but a batsman cannot change stance before the bowler has delivered the ball.

The 31-year-old Pietersen, who smashed an explosive 151 off 165 balls studded with 16 fours and six sixes, played down the incident, which ended with him walking up to the umpires to clarify the warning.

“There was no altercation at all,” he said.

“I was just finding out what it was and they were telling me what it was.

“It was just timing. No drama, no issue.”

Match referee Javagal Srinath of India confirmed that Pietersen had been warned twice for time-wasting under Law 42.10.

A third offence by any of the England batsmen would have resulted in five penalty runs being awarded to Sri Lanka.

Oxenford explained the ruling and emphasised the International Cricket Council (ICC) was not trying to discourage switch-hitting.

“The ICC think switch-hitting is an excellent innovation,” the Australian official said.

“But when the bowler sees intent on the part of the batsman prior to delivering the ball and stops, we can get a stalemate situation.

“The bowler won’t deliver because he wants to change his field if he thinks the batsman is going to switch-hit.

“When we get to that situation the way to move forward is to give the batsman an informal warning, then a formal one for time-wasting.

“If it happens again, it’s a team warning under time-wasting by the batting side and it’s an automatic five-run penalty.”

England, who lost the first Test in Galle, need a win to draw the two-match series and retain their number one Test ranking.

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Real Stroll Chelsea Squeeze Through To CL Semis

Nine-time champions Real Madrid and Chelsea both booked their places in the Champions League semi-finals on Wednesday but in vastly different fashions.

Real beat the surprise packages of the competition APOEL Nicosia 5-2 at the Bernabeu – Cristiano Ronaldo scoring a double to take him to 49 goals for the season – and an 8-2 aggregate win to seal a semi-final meeting with four-time winners Bayern Munich.

Chelsea, though, look far from being able to cope with holders Barcelona in their last four meeting if they repeat their performance in the wobbly 2-1 home win – 3-1 on aggregate – over a Benfica side that was down to 10 men after 40 minutes.

The visitors played the more fluent football and deservedly equalised six minutes from time before Chelsea’s Portuguese substitute Raul Meireles sealed the Blues place in the last four for the sixth time in nine years.

It will be their fifth semi-final meeting with Barcelona, with the Catalans holding a 3-1 advantage.

Lampard, though, refused to accept that the match would be too big a challenge for them.

“You have to respect Barcelona because they are the best side in the world,” said Lampard.

“They will obviously start as favourites but we have a lot of self belief and we believe we can beat them.” Chelsea had looked to be cruising when Javi Garcia bundled over Ashley Cole in the penalty area and Frank Lampard squeezed home the resulting penalty in the 21st minute despite keeper Artur getting a hand to it.

It was the England veteran’s 22nd Champions League goal and 184th for the club.

The odds were stacked further against Benfica in the 40th minute when their skipper for the game Uruguayan Maxi Pereira went in studs showing on Jon Obi Mikel and was sent off for a second bookable offence.

The hosts should have made it 2-0 in the 50th minute and only Brazilian midfielder Ramires will know how he failed to tap into an empty net from a yard out after being set up by Salomon Kalou.

Despite the one man disadvantage it was Benfica who produced the best football and it was little surprise when Javi Garcia levelled with six minutes remaining.

However, Meireles broke free in stoppage time as Benfica pressed all their players forward and the Portuguese international made no mistake with a rising effort from the edge of the area.

“It was a tough game and having won 1-0 away it presented us with a bit of a conundrum,” said Lampard.

“It is a relief to get through as they’re a good side and deserve respect.”

“We didn’t want to be too gung ho.” Benfica boss Jorge Jesus was left disappointed and feeling that the wrong team was going to play Barcelona.

“We’ve been the better team in both legs and I’m very proud of my players,”he said.

“We played with 10 men for the best part of an hour and made Chelsea look ordinary. We were penalised by the referee, unjustly I feel.” Ronaldo’s double may have taken him to one shy of the half century mark, but it is still nine behind great rival Barcelona’s Lionel Messi.

His second-half free kick was almost as sublime as Brazilian star Kaka’s first-half effort a curling shot from out on the left.

However, the Cypriot side – who confusingly had their own Kaka playing in the game as well – bowed out far from humiliated and delighted to have come to the Bernabeu and scored twice, something many La Liga teams would kill for.

Real coach Jose Mourinho was happy with his team’s performance but reserved most of the praise for his opponents.

“I can’t criticise my team, we are here on merit (the semi-finals),” he said.

“For APOEL to get to the quarter-finals is the biggest achievement of this season’s Champions League, bigger than if ourselves, Bayern or Barca win the competion, so I am happy for them.”

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Mohommad Amir Appears In Anti Corruption Video

Disgraced Pakistan cricketer Mohammad Amir has appeared in an official video from the Anti-Corruption and Security Unit of the International Cricket Council warning players of the dangers of corruption.

The five minute video has been posted on the official ICC website.

Highly-rated 19-year-old left-arm paceman Amir was released from a UK jail in February after serving half of a six-month sentence for his part in the spot-fixing scandal during the Lord’s Test between England and Pakistan in 2010.

His former teammates Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif are serving sentences of 30 and 12 months respectively, handed down by a British court in November, after the trio were found guilty of corruption and receiving illegal money.

The ICC also banned all three players, with Amir receiving the minimum five-year punishment after he was found guilty of deliberately bowling no-balls as part of a plan orchestrated by Butt and agent Mazhar Majeed, also now serving a jail sentence.

Last month Amir gave a broadcast interview in Urdu to ex-England captain Michael Atherton where he said former Pakistan skipper Butt had betrayed their friendship by luring him into the scandal.

However, in the ACSU video Amir, speaking in clear English, made no specific references to other cricketers but instead issued a general warning.

“Prison is a bad place for everyone,” he said.

“Don’t make the mistakes which I did. I was stupid I didn’t tell anybody because I didn’t have courage…If someone comes to you go straight to team management and ICC team.”

Amir said his “life had been ruined “ in a couple of hours as a result of being put under pressure by senior players to deliberately bowl no-balls at Lord’s although he accepted his mistake.

“I always knew this was cheating at cricket but I was under pressure but I accept my mistake,” he added.

“When I was in ICC hearing, I knew I was totally embarrassed. I wanted to tell the truth but I didn’t have courage…When the police put me in handcuffs I was literally crying.” There is no suggestion Amir’s participation in the ACSU video will lead to a reduction of his ban, which was imposed by an independent disciplinary tribunal.

But it can be seen as part of the “rehabilitation” that outgoing ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat has said the bowler should undertake while banned.

“I would prefer that the starting point should not be about whether we (ICC) could reduce the sentence,” Lorgat said last month.

“If Mohammad Amir stands up and delivers a message of caution about this murky world, people are going to sit up and listen,” the South African added.

“That is one example of rehabilitation.”

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Strauss and Cook Hit Intrepid Half Centuries To Lift England

Under-pressure skipper Andrew Strauss and Alastair Cook hit gutsy half-centuries as England made a confident reply to Sri Lanka’s 275 in the second Test in Colombo on Wednesday.

The left-handed openers compiled a 122-run partnership as England combated Sri Lanka’s pace and spin attack to reach 154-1 by stumps on the second day at the P. Sara Oval in Colombo.

Strauss, under fire for his batting and leadership skills, roared back to form with 61, before he attempted to cut off-spinner Tillakaratne Dilshan and edged a catch to the wicket-keeper in the final session.

It was his best score on England’s forgettable Asian sojourn so far this year, in which they were routed 3-0 by Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates before losing at Galle in the first Test.

Cook returned unbeaten on 77, but was fortunate to be still there after Lahiru Thirimanne floored a sharp chance at forward short-leg off Rangana Herath when the batsman was on 20.

Jonathan Trott was the other batsman at the crease, on 15, as the tourists trailed by just 121 runs on the first innings with nine wickets in hand.

England’s batting finally prospered in a match they must win to level the series and retain their number one ranking. Even a draw will see Strauss’ men slip to second spot behind South Africa.

Strauss showed no signs of strain after falling for 26 and 27 in the first Test, which Sri Lanka won by 75 runs to take the lead in the short two-match series.

But the England skipper’s dismissal against the run of play left him without a century in 24 innings and just one three-figure knock in his last 49 innings.

Strauss hit four boundaries, his only false shot before his dismissal coming on 23 when he edged Herath, but the ball fell just short of Mahela Jayawardene in the slips.

Off-spinner Graeme Swann, who claimed four wickets in Sri Lanka’s innings, was delighted at his team’s batting response.

“It was important to start well and the score speaks for itself,” said Swann.

“We are in a good position, but we’re not completely there. We need to push past their score. We’ve got to look for 400.”

Swann also backed Strauss, saying the long-awaited century from the skipper was not far away.
“He proved himself today,” the spinner said.

“He got another good start and he will be kicking himself he got a half-century and did not go on.

“The hundreds will come. Every time he bats he gets a start. He’s probably in one of those patches when you don’t quite perform as you want to.”

England’s openers resisted the temptation to play the dangerous sweep shot till the 39th over, when Strauss swept a wide ball from Suraj Randiv for a single, underlining the captain’s growing confidence.

As the batsmen pushed on, Cook was even emboldened to execute a reverse sweep off Herath which raced to the fence to bring up his 14th century partnership with Strauss.

Cook has so far hit seven boundaries, while Trott, who scored a century at Galle, looked solid as he played out the day.

Earlier, Sri Lanka added 37 runs to their overnight score of 238-6 before they were all out 30 minutes before lunch. Swann claimed three of the four wickets to fall in the morning.

Angelo Mathews, who scored 57, said Sri Lanka needed to take early wickets on Thursday to prevent England from running away with the game.

“This won’t be an easy wicket to bat on, so it is important we restrict England,” he said. “We must not allow the batsmen to settle tomorrow.”

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BCB Chief Aims To Convince Foreign Teams To Tour Pakistan

Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) President Mustafa Kamal is on a special mission here in India, which is to try and convince the other nations to tour Pakistan.

“I am in India to witness the IPL,” he said on Tuesday while talking from his Mumbai hotel as he prepared to leave for Chennai.

“Due to political reasons, the Indian team is not touring Pakistan. But I shall try to convince the other boards like South Africa, England etc to send their teams to Pakistan,” he said.

“For how long can we neglect Pakistan? How long can they host their ‘home’ series at neutral venues?” he asked. “We cannot ignore Pakistan like this.”

According to Mustafa, Bangladesh does not have any issue relating to neutral or non-neutral match officials for the Pakistan tour, but the BCB obviously is looking for whole-hearted support from the ICC regarding the tour.

“Our team will tour Pakistan. I don’t know when it would happen. What if we go there only and other boards continue to ignore Pakistan,” he said. “I shall take up this issue in the ICC board meeting. I want a full-fledged approval from the ICC for the tour,” added Mustafa.

“Yes, we have received security report from government of Bangladesh (the report has not been prepared by the BCB). It is a neutral report. It is neither positive nor negative,” he informed.

Since the Lahore attack, Pakistan have had to play all their ‘home’ matches on foreign soil, mostly in the United Arab Emirates, and their share of 2011 World Cup games was moved out of the country for security reasons.

“So far no player or support staff has expressed concern over touring Pakistan. Their views will only be obtained once the Pakistan tour is confirmed,” disclosed the BCB chief.

After witnessing the opening ceremony in Chennai, Mustafa will also watch the KKR match against Delhi Daredevils in Kolkata on Thursday before returning to Dhaka.

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Pakistan StuffUp For Tough Asia Cup Qualifiers In Lahore

The training camp of the national Under-22 football team for the upcoming AFC Asia Cup qualifiers began at a ground of a private school here on Tuesday.

Pakistan have been placed in Group ‘B’ with Saudi Arabia, Syria, Kyrgyzstan, Palestine and Sri Lanka for the qualifiers to be held in Kuwait from June 23 to July 3, 2012.

Probables:

Goalkeepers: Muzammil Hussain, Saqib Hanif, Tanveer Mumtaz, Jahangir.

Defenders: Manzoor Ahmed, Faisal Iqbal, Mohammad Osman, Naveed Ahmed, Shahram Babar, Ahsan Ullah, Bilal Butt, Abdul Salam.

Midfielders: Saddam Hussain, Mohammad Adil, Mohasin Ali, Kaleem Ullah, Mahmood Khan, Imran Ali Khan, Sher Mohammad, Junaid Qadir, Osman Zulqarnain, Bilawal-ur-Rehman, Waleed Nadeem.

Forwards: Abdul Salam, Muhammad, Mansoor Khan, Usama Haleem, Saeed Sarwar, Malik Mohammad Haman Ali, Zakir Lashari.

Head coach: Zavisa Milosavljevic; Assistant manager/ assistant coach: Gohar Zaman; Assistant coach: Nasir Ismail; Goalkeeper coach: Aslam Khan. Physio: Dr. Kamran Mehdi.

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Slighted Shoaib Malik In Demand Again

Shoaib Malik’s Asia Cup snub triggered rumours that he might have played his last international.
However, a solid show on the domestic circuit, including a triumphant Super Eight T20 Cup campaign has not only helped regain the selectors’ trust but also attract county cricket offers.

Malik was dropped from the national team after repeated failures but he bounced back strongly, bagging the man-of-the-tournament award while leading PIA to the National One-Day Cup – scoring 353 runs while taking 14 wickets – and scored a useful half-century in the final of the Twenty20 event.

“The coach and the selectors are very impressed by Malik’s show,” an official close to the team management told The Express Tribune. “Malik’s experience is an added advantage and he’s likely to make a comeback.”
Meanwhile, Malik has also attracted Hampshire and Essex’s interest for their domestic Twenty20 event. Nothing, however, has been confirmed as the negotiations go on.

‘Not looking beyond comeback’
Malik, while refusing to comment on the county offers, said he was eyeing a comeback.
“Making a comeback is my priority,” said Malik. “I’ll keep on working hard in order to achieve that. I’ve made myself available for selection and will only opt for other opportunities according to the team’s schedule.”

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Bangladesh PM To Decide On Tour

The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has handed Prime Minister Hasina Wajid the task of approving the team’s proposed tour of Pakistan.

The decision is likely to be taken by Thursday as the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) tries to stay optimistic after statements coming from the BCB have all but washed away any hopes of the tour actually going ahead despite a clearance by their security team.

“Earlier, the BCB was really eager to send its team,” PCB Chairman Zaka Ashraf told The Express Tribune.
“However, things have gone down after their loss in the Asia Cup final and now they’re saying that they need to get the prime minister’s approval on the matter before confirming the tour.

“The tour still hangs in the balance but even if Bangladesh do not come to Pakistan, we won’t be dejected. We’ll look at other options to bring international cricket back to the country.”

A British universities team is currently on a tour of Pakistan and with the matches shown live on television, Ashraf has used this opportunity to show the world ‘how safe Pakistan is for cricket’.

Zaka reiterates desire to launch PPL
Meanwhile, the PCB chief also reiterated his desire to launch the Pakistan Premier League in the wake of the snub handed out to the Pakistan players by the IPL organisers once again.

“The companies that have been involved with the IPL as well as the Bangladesh league will give us a presentation this month and we can take things forward from there.”

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