Chris Gayle blasts Brad Haddin on Twitter

Sydney: West Indies batsman Chris Gayle has blasted Brad Haddin on Twitter, saying he could bat better than the Australian wicketkeeper even with his non-preferred right hand.

With the dust yet to settle on their heated exchanges during the Sydney Sixers` convincing triumph over the Sydney Thunder in a Big Bash League clash at ANZ Stadium on Thursday, Gayle has told Haddin to stop worrying about his big pay cheque.

It comes after Haddin exaggeratedly blasted the explosive Jamaican for being all talk while failing to deliver on his hype and pay cheque at the Thunder, as per media reports.

In a loud-mouthed rant, Gayle this morning retorted, tweeting: “Haddin dig at him self to get back a test game! ScarFaceLine...“The World is Mine" I`m the world champion/ World Boss!”

“Also tell him stop watch my money and watch himself!! Not my fault he ain`t good as I am even if I bat right hand!!!”

The bad blood was sparked when Haddin was dismissed off Gayle`s bowling midway through the Sixers` comfortable run chase. Already angered by the amount of time Gayle was taking in between deliveries, Haddin ultimately holed out to Simon Keen on 18 runs.

Gayle leaned back in the middle of the ground, beat his chest and then broke into his trademark Gangnam Style dance. Haddin shook his head as he walked off then turned to Gayle to hand out his bat, implying he had done nothing with the willow earlier.

Haddin later said that Gayle has been all about talks so far this tournament and his team, Thunder haven`t won a game so far. Gayle has scored just 70 runs in five matches at an average of 14 as the Thunder head towards the Big Bash elimination.

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South Africa look to strengthen No.1 Test ranking

Dubai: South Africa will begin the New Year by aiming to strengthen their No.1 status in the ICC Test Championship Table, when they play a two-match series against New Zealand from Jan 2 at Cape Town.

South Africa currently lead the rankings with 123 rating points and have a five-point lead over second-placed England. Graeme Smith`s side retained the Test Championship Mace in December 2012 after it defeated Australia 1-0.

For South Africa to retain the No.1 spot, they just need a 0-0 result or better in the two-match series against New Zealand. South Africa could at best gain one rating point for winning the series 2-0 but could lose one point if they win the series 1-0.

In the event of the series ending at 1-1, South Africa would drop down to 119 points, just one ahead of England, currently placed at 118.

But if South Africa were to lose the Test series against New Zealand 0-1, they would also lose the top position to England - dropping seven points in the process to end on 116.

Then, South Africa`s final position on the table will depend on the result in the Australia-Sri Lanka series. Australia currently lead the series 2-0 and they could gain three rating points to end at 117 if they win the third Test starting in Sydney from Jan 3. New Zealand, on the other hand, would remain at No.8 on the table but would gain seven ratings to finish at 86.

In the event of South Africa losing both their Tests against New Zealand, they would lose eight ratings to fall to 115 ratings points to finish third on the table. A 2-0 win for New Zealand would push them up to 88 points but they would remain in eighth place.

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1st ODI: Dhoni’s ton goes in vain as Pakistan defeat India by 6 wickets

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Chennai: Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni`s heroic unbeaten century under pressure went in vain as arch rivals Pakistan held their nerve to clinch the first one day international with a comfortable six-wicket victory in a low-scoring contest here on Sunday.

India posted 227 for six after recovering from a precarious 29 for five one stage but that turned out to be insufficient for the Pakistanis who rode on Nasir Jamshed`s unbeaten century to overhaul the target with 11 balls to spare and take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

Dhoni played a captain`s knock with an unbeaten 113, his 8th ODI century, to script a brilliant Indian recovery after left-arm pacer Junaid Khan (4/43) exploited the overcast conditions to rip through the top-order and leave the hosts gasping for breath within the first 10 overs.

The Indian captain found an able ally in Suresh Raina (43) first and then Ravichandran Ashwin (31 not out) to take the score beyond the 200-run mark which looked doubtful at one stage following the top-order collapse.

Dhoni and Ashwin put on a record seventh wicket partnership of 121 runs but the Indian captain`s superlative knock off 125 balls lost much of its value as the Pakistani batsmen went about the task of chasing down the target without taking too many risks.

Younis Khan (58) and Shoaib Malik (34 not out) were the other notable performers for Pakistan.

The Pakistani innings started on a disastrous note as ODI debutant Bhuvneshwar Kumar produced a beauty to get rid of Mohammed Hafeez with the very first delivery of the Pakistan innings.

The ball came back sharply after pitching as Hafeez didn`t offer a stroke only to find his off-stump knocked back.

The youngster got rid of Azhar Ali a few overs later to reduce the visitors to 21 for two. But the experienced Younis Khan and Nashir steadied the Pakistan innings with a solid 112-run third wicket partnership.


Both Jamshed and Younis benefitted due to some horrendous decisions given by the Indian umpire S Ravi. Jamshed was lucky to get a reprieve on 24 when an inside edge was caught by Virender Sehwag in first slip off Ashwin but Ravi turned down the appeal.

Ravi also negated a plumb leg before decision against Younis when the right-hander missed a delivery from Ashwin in his bid to play the sweep shot.

Younis returned to the pavilion when Ashwin latched on to a low catch off Ashok Dinda, a decision which was referred to the TV umpire by on-field umpire Billy Bowden. But by that time, the visitors were already in a good position and just needed to bat sensibly to reach the target.

Jamshed, who grew in confidence as the innings wore on, was dropped by Yuvraj Singh when on 68 off Dinda much to the disappointment of a sizeable holiday crowd at the Chepauk.

Just when Pakistan seemed to be cruising along comfortably, Ishant Sharma enlivened the proceedings to some extent by getting rid of captain Misbah-ul Haq (16) with a slower ball which knocked down the off stump.

It was Malik, who hit the winning runs with a pull towards deep mid-wicket boundary off the first ball of the penultimate over.

Earlier, put into bat, India plunged into trouble straightaway with Gautam Gambhir (8), Virender Sehwag (4), Virat Kohli (0), Yuvraj Singh (2) and Rohit Sharma (4) returning to the pavilion in quick succession as Junaid got the ball to swing under overcast conditions.

The Pakistani pacers took advantage of the moisture on the track and troubled the top-order batsmen with the new ball. Once the ball got a little older, Dhoni and Raina applied themselves and started rebuilding the Indian innings.

The two teams will now travel to Kolkata for the second ODI to be held on January 3 while the third and final match will be staged at the Ferozeshah stadium in New Delhi on January 6.

Pacer Junaid had justified his captain Misbah-ul-Haq's decision to bowl first in damp conditions with struggling opener Sehwag becoming Junaid's first victim.

The Delhi batsman, considered a game-changer for his ability to take the attack to the opposition, swung it Pakistan's way after slogging for 11 balls to get four runs.

Sehwag was castled by a Junaid delivery that came in a shade after pitching.

The big four of the Indian batting order were all bowled, three of them by Junaid, who seemed unplayable getting the ball to move appreciably both in the air and off the pitch.

The proverbial promising batsman of the side, Rohit added another one to his growing list of failures, becoming Junaid's fourth victim after scratching around for 14 deliveries for his four runs.

Rohit's last six ODI innings now read a disappointing 4, 4, 4, 0, 0 and 5. In fact, the top five managed to pull off just two fours for the team.

At 29/5 in a little less than 10 overs, India were staring firmly down the barrel before Raina and Dhoni came together to repair the innings slowly and steadily.

The duo cautiously added 73 runs for the sixth wicket and defied Pakistani bowlers for a good 23 overs.

Dhoni got a life on 16 when in the 26th over rival skipper Misbah-ul Haq dropped him at midwicket of Mohammed Hafeez's bowling and the Indian, who smashed seven fours and three sixes, made it count.

Dhoni was suffering from dehydration and also battled cramps towards the end of India innings.

Meanwhile, Raina's patient innings came to an end when he lost his leg stump to Hafeez. But Dhoni was unfazed and, in fact, accelerated from that point, reaching his fifty with a whip over midwicket boundary off Umar Gul.

For a man not exactly known for solid technique, Dhoni was the lone Indian batsman to smash spin ace Saeed Ajmal for a six. A new ball had to be sought to replace the one which went out of the ground.

He also brought up his hundred in style, hoicking Irfan over cover in the 49th over, which produced 21 runs with Dhoni doing most of the scoring. For Pakistan, Junaid was the most successful bowler, grabbing 4/43 in his nine overs.

This was the first match played under the new ICC rules.

Under these rules, one new ball was used at each end, bowlers were allowed two bouncers an over, there was no batting Power Play, the bowling Power Play was completed before the 40th over, and at no stage in the innings more than four fielders were allowed outside the 30-yard circle.

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Former England captain Tony Greig passes away

Sydney: Former England cricket captain and noted commentator Tony Greig has passed away on Saturday. The 66-year former cricket was suffering from lung cancer but he died of a heart attack at his home in Sydney on Saturday morning.

"He was rushed into St. Vincent's hospital. The staff of the emergency department worked on Mr Greig to no avail," St Vincent's spokesman David Faktor told Sydney Morning Herald.

Born in Queenstown, South Africa, Greig qualified to play
for England due to his Scottish parentage. His father was a Scot.

Greig played 58 Tests for England and scored 3599 runs at an average of 40.43 with 148 being his best. He hit 8 centuries and 20 fifties during his international career.

He was also a capable bowler who had 141 Test wickets and 48 ODI wickets to his name.

The 6 feet 6 inches tall man was a charismatic cricketer who led England successfully in the mid-1970. Greig’s international career ended when he joined hand with Kerry Packer and even became a secret agent of Packer’s World Series Cricket.

After he was sacked as England captain he changed his base and started living in Australia.

Channel Nine, with which Greig had a long-term relation as a commentator, said in a statement: "Tony Greig is a name synonymous with Australian cricket - from his playing days as the English captain we loved to hate, to his senior role in the revolution of World Series Cricket, his infamous car keys in the pitch reports and more than three decades of colourful and expert commentary."

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India clinch a thriller to level T20 series 1-1

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India posted a competitive 192 riding on Yuvraj`s 36-ball-knock that included seven huge sixes, and then restricted the rivals to 181 for seven with the bowlers finding their mojo just in the nick of time.

Paceman Ashok Dinda scalped three for 36 including the important wicket of rival captain Mohammed Hafeez (55) in the penultimate over to turn the tide in India`s favour at the jam-packed Sardar Patel Stadium.

At one stage, Pakistan seemed to be well and truly on course to overhaul India`s challenging target but Dinda and Ishant Sharma kept their cool during the death overs to seal the issue in hosts` favour.

Needing 20 runs off the final over bowled by Ishant, Umar Gul and Shoaib Malik could manage only eight runs much to the delight of the home crowd and captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni whose leadership has been under the scanner for some time now.

Apart from Hafeez, who scored his runs off only 26 balls with six fours and three sixes, openers Nasir Jamshed (41) and Ahmed Shehzad (31) were the other notable contributors for the visitors.

Pakistan captain Hafeez came in at the fall of Shehzad`s wicket and took the Indian attack to the cleaners hitting five fours and three sixes. The two shots that stood out was a scoop off Bhuvneshwar Kumar`s bowling once he saw that the fine leg was up. The second was a six over extra cover off Ishant`s bowling.

He also hit a couple of boundaries off Ashok Dinda and the equation suddenly changed. When Umar Akmal was cleaned by Dinda, the pair had added 62 runs in 5.3 overs.


The Pakistan captain completed his back-to-back half century with a smash past the bowler. Hafeez completed the landmark in 23 deliveries with five fours and three sixes.

Shahid Afridi hit a four and six in his customary style before he was caught by Rohit off Bhuvneshwar's bowling. The UP lad learnt a tough lesson as he finished with poor figures of one for 46 in four overs.

As the match looked like slipping away from India's grasp, Dinda dismissed Hafeez and Kamran Akmal with slower deliveries to set up an exciting final over after which Ishant wrapped up the proceedings.

Pakistan started their chase in right earnest as openers Nasir Jamshed and Ahmed Shehzad added 74 runs for the opening stand.

It was the introduction of Ashwin that slowed down the proceedings. Skipper Dhoni dropped Jamshed on 40 off Ashwin but the opener couldn't capitalise on the miss as he tried to hit the offie over point but was holed out to Virat Kohli for 41. Jamshed hit four fours and a six.

Yuvraj, who could do no wrong today, was greeted with straight six by Umar but he got Shehzad stumped as the batsman was trying to give him the charge. Shehzad scored 31 off 29 balls with three boundaries and a six.

Earlier, a flamboyant Yuvraj muscled his way to a scintillating 72 as India scored a massive 192 for five after being put into bat.

Yuvraj's career-best T20 knock could not have come at a more opportune time as it lifted India to a defendable total after being pegged back by three quick strikes.

Ever since Yuvraj arrived on the wicket, Pakistani bowlers bled runs as the left-hander plundered seven huge sixes and four boundaries in his 36-ball blitzkrieg to entertain a jam-packed house.

With skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni (33) he added 97-runs for the fourth wicket as India put on board its highest total against Pakistan in T20 Internationals.

Pakistan spinner Saeed Ajmal bore the brunt of Yuvraj's fury as the Indian creamed four sixes off him with three coming in a row in the 19th over, which yielded India 22 runs.

Yuvraj was out in the last over off paceman Umar Gul, who was the most succesful bowler for Pakistan with four wickets at the expense of just 37 runs.

Earlier, India openers provided a fiery start, adding 44 runs inside five overs, but neither Gautam Gambhir (21) nor Ajinkya Rahane (28) could build on that.

The two openers were in good touch, driving and cutting elegantly. Rahane found boundries on the off-side despite facing a packed off-side field and also flicked confidently.

Gambhir was in much better form than Bangalore and his drives off Sohail Tanvir was a treat to watch but Gul removed both of them in space of two overs.

Gambhir departed after hitting Gul for three consecutive boundaries as he was foxed by a slower one. Gul returned and effected Rahane's dismissal with a catch in his follow through when the diminutive batsman miscued a pull shot.

Young fast bowler Mohammed Irfan was again impressive as he welcomed Yuvraj with a toe-crushing yorker.

The two quick wickets pegged India back, free-flowing runs stopped and pressure was on Yuvraj and Virat Kohli to wriggle the side out of the tight situation.

Kohli (27) too departed after getting his eye in when a confusion between him and Yuvraj resulted in his run out.

Dhoni arrived and meant business straight away, dispatching one from Shahid Afridi with a lofted drive to the fence. Yuvraj too started the fireworks, hitting a massive six off Afridi over mid-wicket to bring up India's 100 as India reeled off 17 runs in the 13th over.

Ajmal too got the same treatment by Yuvraj as one of his deliveries vanished in the crowd. Dhoni and Yuvraj continued in the same vein till the end and ensured the India have enough runs on the board to defend.

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