RCB won but out of Semis

Bangalore Royal Challengers captain Anil Kumble today rued that one bad game, against Victoria Bushrangers, did his side in as they crashed out of the Champions League Twenty20.Bangalore lost to Victoria in their first League B Super Eight match on Thursday and despite their eight-wicket win over Delhi Daredevils, Kumble's side were out of semi-final contention.

"I thought we played really well in this tournament. The boys showed lots of commitment but one bad game made all the difference. We lost to Victoria Bushrangers and that match cost us a semi-final place," Kumble said after the match.
Kumble, who celebrated his 39th birthday yesterday, praised Ross Taylor for the New Zealander's superb innings of 65.
"It's a great birthday present though we were playing for pride. Ross (Taylor) played an exceptional innings to take us to victory. Rahul (Dravid) and (Virat) Kohli chipped in," said Kumble.
"It was great to win before the home crowd who came out in large numbers though were out of semifinal contention before this match. We want to prove that this team can win matches," he added.

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Bad start to the Champions Trophy

In a warm up match against New Zealand at the Senwes Park in Potchefstroom , India lost by 103 runs , giving a bad start to their journey to Champ's trophy.

New Zealand, after winning the toss, elected to bat first, and did well to set challenging target of 302 Opener Jesse Ryder made 57 off 48 balls while Martin Guptill laid the foundation with his patient 63 from 79 balls. Neil Broom hit a fiery 66 off 46 down the order to help Kiwis to cross 300 run mark. From Indian Bowling, Yusuf Pathan and Amit Mishra were economically good ,Rests were below Average.

India got a good start with Dinesh Kartik and Rahul Dravid contributing 58 run Partnership for the First-wicket. Rahul Dravid too was aggressive hitting 37 off 34 balls with 6 fours. However, after the wicket of Dhoni, Wickets fell in quick succession and India at one stage was 130-7 . However, Abhishek Nayar managed to score 41 off 36 balls to help India cross 150 (*sad*) . Kiwis bowled really well. Bond , Oram and Vettori got two wickets each. India bowled out for 198.

This defeat against Kiwis is really a big concern. This again proves India needs Sachin Tendulkar to stabilize the innings. Hopefully, India will do better in next games ,with Sachin in yhe team.
The ICC Champions Trophy starts on Tuesday with South Africa taking on Sri Lanka at the SuperSport Park in Centurion.

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India wins ODI series 2-1

India won the one-day series against West Indies 2-1 after Sunday's fourth and final match was abandoned due to heavy rain.After West Indies were put into bat, skipper Chris Gayle went from the second ball of the day caught behind off Ishant Sharma for a duck.
Against some good Indian bowling, the home side reached 27 for one in the eighth over when play was stopped by a downpour.

Although the rainfall later ceased, there was too much water in the outfield for play to resume and after over two hours of waiting the game was abandoned.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni was named Man of the Series for scoring 168 in 3 matches.India won the ODI series in West Indies after seven years after Sorav Ganguly did for Man In Blue.Also note that it's Fifth cosecutive ODI series win for Team India under MS Dhoni.

Congrats Team India...and Dhoni !! Keep it up :-)

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IPL Match 59: RCB vs DC Final

The Anil Kumble-led Royal Challengers, Bangalore (RCB), which has won seven of its last nine matches, will take on the Adam Gilchrist-inspired Deccan Chargers in the final of the second edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) on Sunday evening.
The match will be played in the Bull Ring in the New Wanderers stadium in Johannesburg, South Africa.
The IPL in South Africa has been no less than a Bollywood flick. After all the action, drama and heartbreaks, Lalit Modi’’s brainchild will witness a fairy tale ending.


Last years bottom two teams made it to the top two this season, where the Deccan’’s story has many heroes, but none can surpass the contribution made by skipper Adam Gilchrist at the top and the purple cap holder R P Singh.

As for the Royal Challengers Bangalore, they gave the much surprised twist in the tale in the second semi-final. A victory against the Chennai Super Kings, which will taste even sweeter than the best of wine, brewed by this none other than team owner Vijay Mallya.With a nail-bitter all set to take place, all eyes will be on the star players from both sides.

For the Deccan Chargers, their strength lies in the explosive opening pair of Adam Gilchrist and Herchelle Gibbs, followed by a gutsy Andrew Symonds and hugely talented Rohit Sharma.
However, the team lacks the depth plus the inconsistency in the bowling department. The purple cap holder R P Singh has been the lone warrior for the Chargers. The team has the opportunity to keep the winning momentum going and shed the tag of underachievers. But, the threat of having lost badly to their opponents on Thursday is still fresh on the minds of the players.

The Royal Challengers Bangalore, after almost being down and out, scripted one of the most memorable turnarounds under Anil Kumble’’s leadership, which is undoubtedly one of their biggest strengths. However, inconsistency has been the team’’s prime enemy. But the team has an opportunity to prove the critics wrong by making use of Manish Pandey’’s sizzling form and their disciplined bowling attack led by their skipper.

The team will be a bundle of nerves with expectations rising, and once dubbed to be a Test team will go all out to win this prestigious T20 title.
As per the odds, a resurgent team Bangalore looks better after each outing, but they are not the favourites with the punters. After Gilly’’s flambouyant willow show against the Delhi Daredevils in the first semi-final, the odds tilt towards the Deccan Chargers at 1.80 and Bangalore will have to be content with 2.20.

The weather, which has been hold and cold in South Africa, is the key factor in today’’s grand finale. With a partly cloudy sky predicted and a minimal chance of rainfall, the blankets will be needed in the dug outs, as the minimum temperature moves a little further down at 6 degrees.

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