All posts by h716a5.icu

Half-centuries from Darren Bravo and Devon Smith took West Indies to 134 for 2 on a rain-affected first day of the first-ever Test at the Pallekele Stadium

The Bulletin by Andrew Fernando01-Dec-2010
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Darren Bravo reached his third half-century in as many Tests•AFPHalf-centuries from Darren Bravo and Devon Smith took West Indies to 134 for 2 on a rain-affected first day of the first-ever Test at the Pallekele Stadium. Play began in dramatic fashion when Suranga Lakmal removed Chris Gayle with the day’s first delivery but only 40 overs were possible in the day. A wet outfield delayed the start of the match, and a heavy burst of rain just after lunch and bad light in the evening contributed to the shortened day.Darren Bravo continued to impress on his maiden tour, stroking three boundaries to get his innings started. A glide through cover off Angelo Mathews was followed by a controlled edge behind point, before a wristy flick from middle stump in the next over signaled the confidence Darren had gained from his impressive half-centuries in each of the previous matches. The runs flowed either side of the wicket for Darren, with an elegant drive after lunch standing out, as he stood tall to crack the over-pitched delivery through extra cover. He continued assuredly alongside Smith, negotiating the Sri Lanka attack with little fuss for the majority of the day and brought up his third fifty in as many matches with a pair of delicate boundaries off Dilhara Fernando; the first, a late dab through the slips, followed by a leg glance to the fine leg boundary.Devon Smith made use of some wayward bowling to race to his own half-century after tea, in his first Test innings in almost eighteen months, before he was dismissed by Ajantha Mendis on 55. Smith had played Mendis with assurance until his dismissal, working him comfortably for singles despite the turn on offer and twice dispatching him to the fence when he pitched too full. He punished the quick bowlers as well, glancing Suranga Lakmal for four when he erred down the leg side and crashing a misdirected bouncer from Dilhara Fernando to the wide long-on boundary. The leg-break that has proved so productive for Mendis throughout this tour proved to be Smith’s undoing however, as he misread the straightening delivery after Mendis had bowled a succession of offspinners at the batsman.Fernando was wayward through the day as he struggled to find a consistent length, but created opportunities nevertheless, particularly in the evening. His awayswingers shaved Smith’s outside edge on occasions, and even prompted an unsuccessful review from the Sri Lankans, just minutes before the batsman finally fell to Mendis. Bravo then edged Fernando to second slip in his next over, only for Mahela Jayawardene to spill the straightforward chance, reprieving the batsman on 55.Although the swing and seam movement that Kumar Sangakkara expected when he chose to field was less pronounced than he would have liked, there was considerable turn for Mendis and Tillakaratne Dilshan. Rangana Herath was not bowled today, but the spinners are likely to play a major role as the Test wears on.

Kamran Akmal replaces his brother Adnan in Pakistan’s squad for the ODI series against New Zealand, while Misbah-ul-Haq also finds a place

ESPNcricinfo staff12-Jan-2011Wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal has finally returned to a Pakistan squad, picked on Wednesday for the ODI series against New Zealand. The squad for Pakistan’s last assignment before the 2011 World Cup is effectively a shadow squad for the tournament; Akmal changes places with his younger brother Adnan, who misses out.Test captain Misbah-ul-Haq, who played only two ODIs last year, against South Africa in the UAE before he was dropped for the final three, also returns. That means no place for the veteran Mohammad Yousuf, who has been effectively dropped from both Test and ODI cricket over the last month or so. His chances of appearing in the World Cup, at this stage, appear slim. Opener Ahmed Shehzad returns to the side, suggesting he is a serious contender for a World Cup berth.Kamran has not been part of the national side since the summer tour of England and his absence had been surrounded by confusion, which his return does little to clear up. Speculation linking him to the spot-fixing scandal has been rife, but in October he received written clearance from the ICC stating that he had no ongoing cases against him in the ICC.. Since then, he has been scoring heavily on the domestic circuit. However, he was not “given clearance” to play the Tests and Twenty20s in New Zealand by the PCB’s integrity committee, which did not provide details about why that decision was taken.The 19-year-old Shehzad, who made a promising debut last year against Australia in the Middle East, played all three Twenty20 games against New Zealand, scoring 83 runs at an average of 27.66 and a strike-rate of 150.90, with a top score of 54.Misbah made 14 and 17 in his two ODIs against South Africa and did not feature in the Twenty20 games against New Zealand. Shahid Afridi has been retained as captain. Pakistan will play six one-dayers against the hosts, with the first game taking place in Wellington on January 22.Pakistan ODI squad: Shahid Afridi (capt), Muhammad Hafeez, Kamran Akmal (wk), Younis Khan, Misbah-ul-Haq, Asad Shafiq, Umer Akmal, Abdul Razzaq, Abdul Rehman, Saeed Ajmal, Shoaib Akhtar, Umer Gul, Wahab Riaz, Sohail Tanveer, Tanveer Ahmed, Ahmed Shehzad

Rangers could bank £3.9m if they overturn their 1-0 semi-final first leg deficit to reach the Europa League final, according to The Rangers Review.

The lowdown

The Glasgow giants shipped a narrow defeat in the first leg last week after Angelino’s 85th-minute winner for their German hosts.

Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side are very much the underdogs in the tie, ranking a full 19 places below opponents RB Leipzig in the UEFA club coefficient ranking, although their hopes of making it to the Seville showpiece are far from dead.

On Thursday, they will welcome Leipzig to Ibrox, where they boast a strong record. The Gers have only lost five of their last 33 European matches on home soil.

The two teams are battling to face either West Ham United or Eintracht Frankfurt (who lead 2-1 heading back to Germany) in the final.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/rangers-news-4/” title=”Rangers news!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

The latest

In addition to the near-£4m incentive for beating Leipzig, Jonny McFarlane outlined for The Rangers Review (and on Twitter) how winning the tournament would also be quite lucrative.

Whichever club prevails in Seville on 18 May will receive €8.6m (£7.2m) in prize money. They would also set up a meeting with the winners of the Champions League in the UEFA Super Cup, a fixture projected to earn them €3.5m (£2.9m).

Perhaps the biggest reward, though, is Champions League group stage qualification for 2022/23, which is said to be worth a whopping €15.6m (£13.1m).

The verdict

This would be huge for Rangers. For instance, it can help them finance incoming transfers in the summer and also enable the club to present more lucrative contract offers to current players who might be considering a departure from Ibrox.

Perhaps above all else, it would help them to overcome the considerable losses they have incurred in recent times.

In the first six years under the current regime, the club has lost a cumulative £73.5m. In the most recent accounts, Rangers were £23.5m in the red, feeling the effects of the pandemic.

The benefits of this deep European run should not be underestimated, and there could be some huge windfalls to come their way if Van Bronckhorst and co can overturn the 1-0 deficit against Leipzig on Thursday night.

In other news, Tom English calls one Rangers man ‘nowhere near good enough’

Celtic will prioritise a move for a new striker in the summer transfer window, according to journalist Pete O’Rourke. 

The lowdown: Injury-hit department

Albeit goals have been in rich supply at Celtic Park this season as Ange Postecoglou’s side sit top of the table having found the back of the net on 81 occasions, ten more than Old Firm rivals Rangers, the attacking department hasn’t been without its issues.

Top scorer Kyogo Furuhashi has missed 30 matches across all competitions whilst Greek marksman Georgios Giakoumakis has also been absent for seven fixtures due to a hamstring and knee issue.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/key-latest-celtic-updates-5/” title=”Key latest Celtic updates!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

This has meant Postecoglou has had to be inventive with his options at times this term, a dilemma that could be rectified in the market this summer…

The latest: Signings expected

Speaking to The Transfer Tavern, O’Rourke has stated that additions can be expected in the striker department as the Bhoys boss looks to bolster the Parkhead ranks.

“There are times they’ve had to play Abada as a lone striker in some games so I think Postecoglou, to build on the good work he’s already doing, will be looking for striking reinforcements with Maeda coming in January.

“I am sure he’ll be looking at other potential targets to enhance his attacking options.”

The verdict: Exciting times

On the brink of recapturing the Scottish Premiership, already with the League Cup trophy in the cabinet and facing the likely possibility of UEFA Champions League group stage football next season, it’s no surprise that Postecoglou would already be considering reinforcements.

Despite the January capture of Daizen Maeda, the Hoops squad is still somewhat short of natural striker options and therefore a signing would be welcomed, especially with the prospect of facing Europe’s elite looming.

Already linked with Caen striker Alexandre Mendy, an attacking arrival could be imminent once the 2021/22 season has been drawn to its successful conclusion.

In other news: Club chief confirms Celtic interest in ‘class’ left-back, find out more here.

Plays of the day from the second day between Australia and England at the MCG

Andrew Miller and Peter English at the MCG27-Dec-2010Mitchell’s foot-fault
With Australia enjoying a relatively fruitful spell with the ball, Mitchell Johnson found Matt Prior’s outside edge on 5, and Prior trooped off for a routine caught-behind. However, just as he was leaving the square, Aleem Dar – who had earlier attracted the unwarranted wrath of Ricky Ponting – gestured for him to hold on for a moment, and sent the decision upstairs for a second opinion. Sure enough, Dar’s suspicion that Johnson had over-stepped was confirmed by the TV replay, and Prior returned to the crease as England’s next batsman, Tim Bresnan, retreated to the dressing-room for a sit-down. “Mitch has just found out why the coaches keep rabbiting on at training about not bowling no balls,” tweeted Australia’s manager, Steve Bernard. “The frustrations of a bowler’s life.” It was Australia’s 17th overstep of the series. England, by contrast, have done so just five times.Bell bombs
If the clamour for Ian Bell’s promotion was justified by the latest episode of Paul Collingwood’s troubled series, then his eventual appearance at No. 6 led to a rare and, frankly, unexpected failure. A Johnson short ball kept climbing high above Bell’s eye-line, and an uncontrolled hook was top-edged to Peter Siddle at square leg. He departed for 1 from 13 balls, his first single-figure score of the series, but with the lead already pushing 200, it wasn’t exactly make or break. The Bell of old would have cashed-in in such circumstances, and doubtless attracted accusations of soft runs. The new model Bell saves his runs for when they really matter …Trott shot
Jonathan Trott’s remarkable appetite for runs against Australia continued with his third century in five Ashes Tests, and even on a day when the Aussie bowlers found a touch of assistance in the conditions, his technique and temperament could not be rattled by any of the men at Ponting’s disposal. Aside from a Johnson lifter that spat at his gloves, and a tight run-out reprieve on 48, his only true moment of discomfort came in the 105th over, when he wafted a drive at Ben Hilfenhaus and inside-edged the ball straight onto the side of his knee. To a massive roar of approval from the success-starved Aussie crowd, Trott went down in the crease as if spanged by a crowbar, but after a lengthy bout of physio he resumed with only one aim in mind.Tactical success
On a frustrating day for Ponting, a couple of things did go right. Ponting is often criticised for his tactics but he twice pulled the right rein with his bowling changes. Siddle was told to run in shortly after being involved in a Kevin Pietersen-inspired argument with Dar, and he collected Pietersen lbw in his first over back. Johnson came on in the same session and in his opening over tempted Collingwood to hook to Siddle at fine-leg. Not much went right for Ponting over the rest of the day.Frugal figures
Siddle started the morning with two wickets and was almost impossible to get away until Pietersen broke free briefly. Pietersen collected a crisp straight drive for four the ball before flicking past midwicket for a second boundary, and then added a quick single. When Trott ran a three from the final ball Siddle had given up 13 runs in six deliveries, after allowing only 18 from his previous 16 overs. At the end of the day he had 3 for 58 from 26.

Leeds United’s desperate quest to remain in the Premier League took another worrying twist after they dropped into the relegation zone with only four games left to play.

Jesse Marsch and his side were beaten 2-1 by Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium, whilst relegation rivals Everton managed to see off Leicester City on Sunday afternoon.

The American head coach displayed his intentions with his team selection, opting for young striker Joe Gelhardt over Rodrigo, but his plans were soon shattered by the Whites’ captain for the day Luke Ayling and his actions.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-leeds-united-news-transfer-rumours-gossip-and-much-more” title=”Read the latest Leeds United news and rumours!”]

Around the 25th minute mark, the right-back put in a horrific lunge on Gabriel Martinelli, who had been running rings around him in the game’s early phase and following a VAR review, he received his marching orders.

Such a moment saw Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher describe the tackle as “disgusting” before labelling the 30-year-old veteran an “idiot” [Super Sunday, 14:55pm], considering just how much was at stake for the Yorkshire outfit and the fact that he was wearing the armband.

Meanwhile talkSPORT reporter Alex Crook claimed it was “disgraceful,” also suggesting that it was a potential “leg-breaker.”

A subsequent three-game ban, which has no chance of being overturned, means Ayling’s season is now over and it could even be the last time he ever plays in the English top flight.

He certainly betrayed his manager’s selection and trust in him and with his likely replacement, Stuart Dallas, out injured for the season, it has left the 48-year-old in a precarious and sticky situation heading into Chelsea in midweek.

If anything, Marsch’s men were better after he left the pitch, holding the Gunners to only a 2-1 win after Diego Llorente found the net in the second half.

As per SofaScore, Ayling had only managed 24 touches from his 27 minutes on the pitch, the fewest of any starter, including goalkeeper Illan Meslier (48). He had also only made 17 accurate passes and just one tackle.

LeedsLive reporter Beren Cross graded the former Arsenal graduate a 2/10 and wrote: ‘An entirely unnecessary, needless and irresponsible challenge on Gabriel Martinelli in the corner when the team were already in disarray and the forward was going nowhere. Will be kicking himself.’

If the Whites are indeed relegated in a few weeks’ time, then this moment will certainly be looked back upon as a pivotal one in their downfall. Ayling badly betrayed his manager and let down the travelling Elland Road faithful.

AND in other news, Leeds now plotting bid for “fabulous” £45k-p/w target, Orta should “take him all day”…

Melbourne and Sydney will each host two teams in next summer’s new Big Bash League, and the Ryobi Cup will be pruned to squeeze the revamped Twenty20 competition into the calendar

Brydon Coverdale08-Feb-2011Melbourne and Sydney will each host two teams in next summer’s new Big Bash League, and the Ryobi Cup will be pruned to squeeze the revamped Twenty20 competition into the calendar. Cricket Australia’s board decided on Tuesday that Etihad Stadium in Melbourne’s Docklands and Sydney’s Homebush Stadium would join the six major Test grounds in headquartering Twenty20 teams, with Geelong’s bid rejected.However, although the limited-overs competition will suffer with the introduction of the Big Bash League, the board has for the time being kept its hands off the Sheffield Shield. The first-class tournament involves every team playing each other twice, culminating in a five-day final, and after Australia’s Ashes failure it would have been a controversial move to cut any rounds or the decider from the Shield.But if the Twenty20 competition expands beyond eight teams after next summer, something will have to give. Cricket Australia’s chief executive James Sutherland said for the time being the full Shield schedule was safe, and there were other options if more calendar time was required to play all three competitions.”It may well be that the Big Bash does expand and there are various options for us that can be considered as part of that process,” Sutherland said. “There’s absolutely no reason why the cricket season has to go for five and a half months or whatever it is. It can go for longer. We can play first-class matches in September in northern Australia or other parts of Australia if we want to extend the programme and ensure a full programme of one-day cricket or Shield cricket. There’s a huge range of possibilities.”For now, the Ryobi Cup has been trimmed to eight rounds plus a final, instead of the existing ten. That will provide scope for the eight-team Big Bash League, which Cricket Australia could have used to grow the game in Victoria’s major regional city of Geelong. However, a lack of floodlights at Geelong’s Skilled Stadium, together with the desire to push into Melbourne’s western suburbs, quashed that bid.”They were all very close calls,” said Mike McKenna, the Cricket Australia marketing manager in charge of the Big Bash League. “In terms of a lot of the measurements the venues were very even. The difference for us was the size of the market that we’re going to be serving with two teams in Melbourne, the growth of those markets, particularly the very strong growth predicted in the west of Melbourne, and the team that will play out of Etihad Stadium will be serving that audience.”In New South Wales, the Kogarah Oval and Sydney Showgrounds were overlooked as the board opted for teams at the SCG and the ANZ Stadium at Homebush. The eight city-based teams will reveal their names and colours in the coming weeks, while private backers will also be sought for two new sides, with the existing state cricket associations each set to take charge of only one outfit.The other major step will involve the distribution of players among the teams, and despite initially considering a national draft, Cricket Australia now believes free agency is a more likely scenario. Teams will be keen to secure their homegrown stars, but there is unlikely to be an IPL-style system in place where a handful of marquee talents are automatically tied to their local city.And fans will be disappointed if they expect to see stars like Ricky Ponting and Shane Watson in the Big Bash League. There are no plans to introduce a window free of international cricket during which the tournament could be played, and next summer Australia are likely to be playing Test cricket during much of the time when the Twenty20 competition is run, in December and January.”As we map out the Future Tours Programme … it’s pretty clear to me that there’s unlikely to be really clear windows for Australian players to play the full period of the Big Bash League,” Sutherland said. “There may be opportunities through the Big Bash League for them to play a week or two, or maybe the finals, but to my mind, looking at the schedule into the future, I think it’s probably unlikely at this stage.”

William Porterfield, the Ireland captain, has said his team need to put Wednesday’s victory over England behind them as they take on India in another high-profile match on Sunday

Sharda Ugra in Bangalore05-Mar-2011Like everyone in the world of work, William Porterfield is heading into a weekend and wants to forget about what the middle of the week was like. Unlike for everyone else, Sunday will not be a day of rest for him, and he thinks putting the past behind is mandatory. “First of all, we have to put Wednesday behind us,” the Ireland captain said, just over 24 hours from the time he will walk out with India captain MS Dhoni for the toss of the World Cup game at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.Porterfield’s Wednesday was made up of the match that has put Ireland’s cricketers on the front pages of their newspapers back home and top of the mind of the cricketing public, particularly in the heated heart of the tournament’s biggest hosts. A match that should have been a regulation two points for one team has suddenly turned into a contest between a high-profile, high-coverage outfit regarded as among the biggest favourites to lift the World Cup and a squad who, from the tournament’s warm-up games up to Wednesday, have never left the field without a scrap. Victory over their historic and cultural rivals England on Wednesday has suddenly made Ireland genuine contenders for a quarter-final spot but Porterfield wants to brush all that under his team’s suddenly-airborne carpet.”We put in a good performance on Wednesday and created a wee bit of history there. Now we’ve got to start all over again,” Porterfield said. His voice carries the vocabulary and echo of Ireland’s strong, north-western ‘Derry’ accent that makes listeners from other parts of the cricket world lean forward, mouths open, in an attempt to both concentrate and comprehend. There is possibly no other cricket captain in the world who speaks in Porterfield’s quick bursts of rapid speech or can use the word ‘wee’ on the way to sounding tough and purposeful.He said, “We have a bigger challenge ahead of us, we’re playing India, we must take good things from the [Wednesday] game and the biggest things for ourselves is to go out fresh on the pitch and concentrate on what’s at hand.”Ireland’s captain William Porterfield said he uses his bowlers depending on who is performing on the day•AFPThe team, he said, wouldn’t be daunted by going out before a 39,000-strong crowd in Bangalore because their opening World Cup game in Dhaka had given them useful practice. “When we started the competition we knew we were playing two of the home nations in the group stage and they were going to be massive games.” Indian support in Bangalore he thought would be similar to the “pretty fanatical supporters” Ireland had encountered in Dhaka. “I don’t think that India’s going to be too different from that; there’s going to be a few more in tomorrow [Sunday] night than what there were in Bangladesh.” He paused for the briefest of seconds saying. “India in India is a pretty special occasion but it’s a challenge we are looking forward to.”What Ireland have braced themselves for is the possibility of a large 300-plus chase and Porterfield said it was why his team had chosen a long batting line-up, something facilitated by their many bowling options. The return of Andre Botha, their best death-overs bowler who was out of the England game due to an nth hour groin injury, would help the balance of the team but his absence now is not seen as critical as it may have been before the England match.”It didn’t really affect us because we’ve got so many options with the ball. Whoever comes up with the goods on the day, we just go with that. It could be that someone doesn’t bowl, but as long as the team is doing well players just have to deal with that.” He mentioned Paul Stirling’s ten overs versus England as an example of making the team’s options work. “He too pace off the ball, and bowled very well for us and it has kind of gone without mentioning. He took 1 for 45 off his ten through the middle overs which was crucial in helping restrict England.”Stirling is Porterfield’s opening partner, and was used as a bowler in the England match ahead of the team’s regular batting allrounder Kevin O’Brien, who went on to have what Porterfield would no doubt call a “wee” hand to play in the victory. With a poker face, Porterfield went on, “I don’t think Kevin was too upset with that [not bowling]. He would take 100 off 50 balls and not having to bowl any day.”Questioned several times about the pressure of the crowd, Porterfield was quick, bald and revealing in his summary of what he expected. “If you can’t go out there and get up for a game in front of 40-50,000 people, then I think there’s something wrong with you. Whether they are for you or against you, it doesn’t matter.”Win or lose on Sunday, Porterfield would want his team to hijack the name that the US’ University of Notre Dame gives all its sports teams. They call them the Fighting Irish.

Should Australia’s new captain Michael Clarke encounter trouble in the field against Bangladesh, he will have no qualms about summoning Ricky Ponting for advice

Daniel Brettig in Mirpur08-Apr-2011Should Australia’s new captain Michael Clarke encounter trouble in the field against Bangladesh at the Shere Bangla Stadium on Saturday, he will have no qualms about summoning Ricky Ponting from his fielding position for advice.The brief limited-overs tour of Bangladesh provides the chance for Clarke and Ponting to set the ground rules for a most uncommon relationship in recent Australian cricket history – that of the former and current captains working alongside one another. Ponting has said he will be happy to “sit in my corner” and speak when spoken to, but Clarke said there would be no deliberate distance between the two.”Ricky’s advice has always been very helpful to me, whether that be as his deputy or now as the captain,” Clarke said. “I’ve said openly to Ricky that his experience and knowledge of the game is something we [the team] will continue to need, especially me as an inexperienced captain. I’ve been fortunate enough to captain Australia in a few one dayers and Twenty20s, and one Test match, but his knowledge is going to be crucial to the team going forward.”Our relationship has always been very strong on and off the field, and I’m certain that won’t change. It was good to see him make some runs, he looks in really good nick, after scoring that hundred against India in the recent World Cup. I’m confident he’ll come out tomorrow and score some more runs for us.”Whatever his words of support for Ponting, it’s clear Clarke would like to kick start the process of lifting a team that slipped up badly towards the end of his predecessor’s reign. “The one thing I’m trying to bring to this team is for us to be a bit more consistent with our play,” he said. “Over the last couple of years we’ve played some really good cricket, but in patches.Clarke is looking forward to the added responsibility. “There’s obviously added pressure as the captain but I look forward to that. We have a very good squad with a lot of talent, and we can be very successful going forward. Hopefully we can start the tour well by winning.”A lack of centuries at the World Cup – Ponting’s rousing effort in their quarter-final loss to India was their only ton of the tournament – and a decline in fielding standards, said Clarke, are among his chief concerns.”When Australian one-day teams have had success, somebody in the top four has gone on to make a big score,” he said. “We only scored one century through the World Cup, so we’ll be focussing on someone from the top order going on to make a big score in all three games [against Bangladesh].”Discipline is still the key with the ball – to hit the right areas with the new ball, to change the pace, to use the bouncer, and the yorker at the death are areas we’re working on as a bowling unit. And the focus is also on improving our standards in the field. I think our fielding has been pretty inconsistent over the last 12 to 18 months and it’s important now to continue working hard on that part of our game.”

ESPNcricinfo previews the IPL match between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Pune Warriors in Bangalore

Sidharth Monga28-Apr-2011Match factsFriday, April 29, Bangalore
Start time 2000 (1430 GMT)Yuvraj Singh will look for more support from his batting line-up•Associated PressBig pictureTime is running out for Pune Warriors. With four losses out of six matches, they have severe catching-up to do in their remaining eight games. And it all has to start with snapping a four-match losing streak they have accumulated. In their last three matches they have been 17 for 4, 40 for 4 and 41 for 4. The batting order is surely not ideal: Yuvraj Singh at No. 5 always runs the risk of being wasted, Mithun Manhas and Mohnish Mishra in the top four make it one non-international batsman too many, and Callum Ferguson definitely should not be on the bench considering their batting failures.Royal Challengers Bangalore, on the other hand, have started a turnaround of sorts with Chris Gayle’s arrival. They have seven points after seven matches; 14 after 14 can get them through to the qualifiers. However, they will want more than that, and will be aiming at four wins at least in the remaining games.Form guide (most recent first)Bangalore WWNLL (fourth in points table)
Pune LLLLW (ninth in points table)Team talkPune will need to find a way to get Ferguson in. Given that they have five specialist bowlers doing a good job for them, they can easily bring him in ahead of Mitchell Marsh, who replaced Nathan McCullum for Pune’s last game.Bangalore will want to persist with their winning combination.Predict the playing XIs for this match. Play ESPNcricinfo Team selector.In the spotlightJesse Ryder has got off to good starts, but has also fallen to the short ball on more than one occasion. Expect more of that from Zaheer Khan & Co.Tillakaratne Dilshan scored a golden duck in the previous game, and will look to pull his weight in what is, on paper, one of the most destructive opening combinations in the IPL.Prime numbers Virat Kohli, with 227 runs to his name, is 43 short of claiming the orange cap

Rahul Sharma’s 6.04 an over is the fourth-best economy-rate among bowlers who have bowled a minimum of 10 overs. Daniel Vettori, Yusuf Pathan and Doug Bollinger are ahead of him The chatter”We didn’t apply our brains while batting. We kept on making the same mistakes again and again.”