Include T20 in Olympics

The former Australian wicket keeper Adam Gilchrist has written in his column in the Indian daily that cricket shoudl be included as part of the Olympics. He said the game should be brought back to spread the game of cricket to all participatin countries. There are more than 200 nations participating and reintroducing olympic again creates a chance to take the game to all these countries.

"We have a responsibility to grow our game in new territories and amongst the women of the world."

"I believe the Olympic Games is the vehicle the sport should use to aggressively sell the message of our sport to all 202 competing Olympic nations."

"So that our sport is strong and robust in countries where it is currently played, and exciting and ground-breaking in countries who haven't yet caught the 'cricket-bug'," he said.

Take it from someone who has won almost everything cricket has to offer -- the Olympics is the absolute pinnacle in sport."

"Cricketers won't care about the money. The chance to stand on top of the Olympic podium, to wear an Olympic gold medal and the pride of belting out your national anthem would be a life-changing money-can’t-buy experience," he said.

Champions League can go on--FICA!

The FICA (Federation of International Cricketers Association) has termed the schedule of Champions League as legally correct. They find no issue according to "the relevant clause (in Participating Nations' Agreement) 2.6 states that a member shall not participate in any cricket match, other than a warm-up match organised by IDI for an event, without IDI approval from the period of five days prior to the first match of the ICC event and five days after the event," said Chairman of FICA, Mr. May.

"However this clause interestingly is not included in the Player Terms for the Event - therefore the restriction does not apply to individual players," he further added.

There is no response from ICC yet.
(Source: Internet)

ICC Not Happhy with Champions League Schedule

ICC is not happy with the scheudle of the Champions League. The committee has sent a letter to the Champions League committee asking for an explanation and asked them to reshedule the event.

As per ICC rules, no international events should be played seven before and after the ICC event. With the Champions Trophy scheduled between September 11 and 28, the Champions League starts on Septmber 29--next day after the CT final. This is not allowed as per ICC rules.

We have to wait and see what Champions League committee is planning to do.

Champions League in September with $5 Million Prize Money

The Champions League involving four countries--Australia, England, South Africa and India will be played in September. The top 2 teams from each country's domestic T20 tournament will qualify for this tournament with the winner walking away with $5 Million.

Already, Rajasthan Royals lead by Shane Warne and Chennai Super Kings XI lead by Mahedra Singh Dhoni have qualified from IPL.

The complete detail is yet to be confirmed, but Cricket Australia are currently drawing up the regulations which will deal with the issues of Indian Cricket League players and potential conflicts for players involved with more than one team.

The event will conduct 15 matches in 10 days. The prize money will be distributed to the first four positions.

The teams qualified are:

Western Australia from Australia
Victoria from Australia

Dolphis from South Africa
Titans from South Africa

Rajasthan Royals from IPL, India
Chennai Super Kings from IPL, India

England's domestic T20 will begin next week and the two teams will be finalized soon.

This event throws up a number of potential conflicts, not least involving an players linked to the unofficial ICL. Chris Read, Vikram Solanki, Stuart Law, Niall O'Brien and Paul Nixon all appeared in the ICL, and if their counties qualify their inclusion will be a major conflict with the Indian board.

The other issue that will occur is involving players who are contracted to more than one of the teams involved, for example Mike Hussey who played for Chennai in the IPL and is also from Western Australia. The clash could also happen with overseas players in county cricket, for example David Hussey, who plays for Nottinghamshire and Victoria.

We have to wait and see what decisions are taken for the issues relating to ICL.

IPL Awards!

Various awards were given during the presentation ceremony after the final game, which was won by Rajasthan Royals. The match went till the last ball and Balaji off Chennai Kings could have become a hero but he missed the chance by giving away all the 8 runs. Sohail Tanvir and Warne finished the final runs! Tanvir required to score 1 run of the last ball and he did it by pulling it between mid on and mid wicket. Victory to Rajasthan Royals!

The awards given during the presentation ceremony are:

DLF Maximum Sixes Award: Yousuf Pathan - 4 sixes - Rajasthan Royals (India)

Orange Cap: Shaun Marsh - 616 runs - Kings XI Punjab (Australia)

Purple Cap: Sohail Tanvir - 22 wickets - Rajasthan Royals (Pakistan)

Best Under-19 Player: S Goswami - Bangalore Royal Challengers (India)

Man of the Final: Yousuf Pathan - Rajasthan Royals (India)

Man of the Series: Shane Watson - 472 runs & 17 wickets - Rajasthan Royals (Australia)

Fair Play Award: Chennai Super Kings

Runner of IPL: Chennai Super Kings - INR 2.4 Crores

Winner of IPL: Rajasthan Royals - INR 4.8 Crores

Click here to read the scores!

Click here to read the ball-by-ball commentary!

Match 59: Final: Rajasthan Roayls Win the First IPL!

Rajasthan Royals win the last ball thriller and clinched the first IPL trophy by 3 wickets! The last over required 8 runs and the last ball required 1 run which Sohail Tanvir scored by puling it between mid wicket and mid on.

Click here to read the Ball-by-Ball Commentary

Match 59 - Final

Venue: Mumbai

Date: June 1, 2008

Teams: Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals

Captains: Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Shane Warne

Toss: Rajasthan Royals and decided to field

Result: Rajasthan Royals won by 3 wickets with 0 balls remaining

Man of the Match: Yousuf Pathan off Rajasthan Royals (India)

Score:

Chennai Super Kings 163 for 5 in 20 overs (PA Patel 38, S Vidyut 16, SK Raina 43, JA Morkel 16, MS Dhoni 29 not out, CK Kapugedera 8, S Badrinath 6 not out, Extras-7 (b 1, leg bye 2, wide 3, no ball 1), Sohail Tanvir 4-0-40-1, SR Watson 4-0-29-1, MM Patel 2-0-14-0, YK Pathan 4-0-22-3, SK Trivedi 2-0-21-0, SK Warne 4-0-34-0) lost to Rajasthan Royals 164 for 7 in 20 overs (NK Patel 2, SA Asnodkar 28, Kamran Akmal 6, SR Watson 28, YK Pathan 56, M Kaif 12, RA Jadeda 0, SK Warne 9 not out, Sohail Tanvir 9 not out, Extras-14 (b 1, leg bye 6, wide 5, no ball 2), M Ntini 4-1-21-0, M Gony 4-0-30-1, JA Morkel 4-0-25-2, L Balaji 4-0-42-0, M Muralitharan 4-0-39-2)

IPL Final: LIVE COMMENTARY AND SCORES: RAJASTHAN WIN THE IPL IN LAST BALL!

Well, it was a perfect start for the final, yes, the closing ceremony was brilliant. Already a wonderful performance!

The news from the center is that, Rajasthan Royals have won the toss and asked Chennai Super Kings to bat first.

There is no change in the Chennai side and for Rajasthan Royals, Kamran Akmal comes in place of injured Greame Smith.

Squad:
Chennai Super Kings: PA Patel (Wicket Keeper), S Vidyut, SK Raina, MS Dhoni (captain), CK Kapugedera, S Badrinath, JA Morkel, M Gony, L Balaji, M Muralitharan, M Ntini

Rajasthan Royals: Kamran Akmal (Wicket Keeper), SA Asnodkar, YK Pathan, M Kaif, SR Watson, NK Patel, RA Jadeja, SK Warne (Captain), SK Trivedi, MM Patel, Sohail Tanvir

Commentary:

Over 1 :

0.1 Tanvir to Patel: No run - Big shout for LBW, pitched outside the line of off stump and swung away ; good decision by Bily;
0.2 Tanvir to Patel: wide: down the leg side; first run to Chennai Super Kings
0.2 Tanvir to Patel: No run: pitched outside the off stump and swung away; left to keeper
0.3 Tanvir to Patel: No run: pitched outside the off stump and swung away; left to keeper
0.4 Tanvir to Patel: No run: pitched up on the off stump, driven to point; couldn't place it in the gap
0.5 Tanvir to Patel: FOUR: pitched on the leg stump, flicked to fine leg boundary
0.6 Tanvir to Patel: One Run: pitched on the leg stump, flicked to fine leg, single
End of Over 1: 6 runs
Score: 6 for 0 (Patel 5 off 6 balls (1 x 4, 0 x 6), Vidyut 0 off 0 balls (0 x 4, 0 x 6)
------
Over 2:
1.1 Watson to Patel: No run: Pitched up, played uppish, straight to fielder at mid off
1.2 Watson to Patel: 1 run: Pitched on the leg, played to fine leg for a single
1.3 Watson to Vidyut: No run: Pitched on the, tapped it to cover; tries for a single, but Patel sends him back
1.4 Watson to Viyut: 1 run: short ball on the leg stump, pulls it in the air, bounces well before the fine leg fielder, goes for an easy single
1.5 Watson to Patel: No run: short ball on the leg stump, Patel ducks, straight to keeper
1.6 Watson to Patel: FOUR: pitched on the off, Patel goes over fielders head at covers for a boundary
End of Over 2: 6 runs
Score: 12 for 0 (Patel 10 off 10 balls (2 x 4, 0 x 6), Vidyut 1 off 2 balls (0 x 4, 0 x 6)
---
Over 3:
2.1 Patel to Vidyut: No run; plyaed to point
2.2 Patel to Vidut: 1 run: straight drive, single taken;
2.3 Patel to Patel: 1 run: played to point, single taken.
2.4 Patel to Vidyut: 1 run: came down the track and hit it to mid off, well fielde, saved boundary,
2.5 Patel to Patel: 1 run: played to third man for a single
2.6 Patel to Vidyut: No run: came down the pitch, tried to pull, went straight to bowler
End of Over 3: 4 runs
Score: 16 for 0 (Patel 12 off 12 balls (2 x 4, 0 x 6), Vidyut 3 off 6 balls (0 x 4, 0 x 6)
---
Over 4:
3.1 Watson to Patel: 1 leg bye: pitched on the leg stump, shout for leg before, batsman go for a single
3.2 Watson to Vidyut: No run: bouncer, tried to hook, misses it
3.3 Watson to Vidyut: FOUR: gives room and hits the short ball pitched on the off over cover boundary
3.4 Watson to Vidyut: No run: tries to cut the ball, takes inside edge, Kamal does a good stop
3.5 Watson to Vidyut: 2 runs: comes down the track, hits it over fielders head, but this time fielder is placed in the boundary; they for 1
3.6 Watson to Vidyut: SIX: gives room for himself, short ball pitched on the off stump, slashes it; takes the proper edge as it was played intentionally to third man and it clears the boundary by inches for the first six!
End of Over 4: 13 runs
Score: 29 for 0 (Patel 12 off 13 balls (2 x 4, 0 x 6), Vidyut 15 off 11 balls (1 x 4, 1 x 6)
--
Over 5:
4.1 Patel to Patel: 1 run: played to third man
4.2 Patel to Vidyut: 1 run: played to third man
4.3 Patel to Patel: FOUR: gives room, slashes it over third man boundary
4.4 Patel to Patel: No run: pitched up and plyaed with soft hand, tries for a single, Vidyut rightly says no
4.5 Patel to Patel: 2 runs: bowled on the leg stump, glanced it to fine leg, goes for quick 2
4.6 Patel to Patel: 2 runs: comes down the track, hits it over fielders head in mid on;
End of Over 5: 10 runs
Score: 39 for 0 (Patel 21 off 18 balls (3 x 4, 0 x 6), Vidyut 16 off 12 balls (1 x 4, 1 x 6)
---
Over 6:
5. 1 Pathan to Vidyut: No run: played to point
5. 2 Pathan to Vidyut: OUT: comes down the track, hits it in the air, Jadeja at mid wicket comes running forward and takes a good catch;
Vidyut (c) Jadeja (b) Pathan - 16 off 12 balls, 1 x 4, 1 x 6
5.3 Pathan to Patel: No run: Big shout of leg before, looks close, but umpire not convinced
5.4 Pathan to Patel: 1 run: short ball on leg stump, played it to mid wicket
5.5 Pathan to Raina: 1 run: off the mark, played to mid wicket
5.6 Pathan to Patel: 1 run: played with soft hand to mid wicket, runs the first faster, but decided to stay with one.
End of Over 6: 3 runs
Score: 42 for 1 (Patel 23 off 21 balls (3 x 4, 0 x 6), Raina 1 off 1 ball
---
Over 7:
6.1 Trivedi to Patel: 2 runs
6.2 Trivedi to Patel: FOUR: Comes down the track, hits it over mid on
6.3 Trivedi to Patel: 1 run: played it to square leg
6.4 Trivedi to Raina: 1 run: upper cut to third man
6.5 Trivedi to Patel: down the track, hit it hard to mid off, well fielded, Patel goes for a run but looking at the fielding by Pathan, comes back, almost chance for a run out, but he is back on time 6.6 Trivedi to Patel: 1 run: slashed to mid off
End of Over 7: 9 runs
Score: 51 for 1 (Patel 31 off 26 balls (4 x 4, 0 x 6), Raina 2 off 2 balls)
---
Over 8:
7.1 Warne to Patel: 1 run: swept to mid wicket
7.2 Warne to Raina: 1 run: played to long on
7.3 Warne to Patel: leg bye: tried to sweep, takes the edge and goes to third man
7.4 Warne to Raina: 1 run: short ball, did not utilize it well, played it to deep midwicket
7.5 Warne to Patel: 1 run: flighted delivery on the off, plays it across to deep mid wicket
7.6 Warne to Raina: 1 run: played it to long
End of Over 8: 6 runs
Score: 57 for 1 (Patel 33 off 29 balls (4 x 4, 0 x 6), Raina 5 off 5 balls)
---
Over 9:
8.1 Pathan to Raina: 1 run: played it to square leg
8.2 Pathan to Patel: No run: gives room, slashes it back to bowler
8.3 Pathan to Patel: 1 run: playes in the air to long off
8.4 Pathan to Raina: 1 run: tapped to square leg
8.5 Pathan to Patel: FOUR: Played it across and hits it between mid wicket and long on
8.6 Pathan to Patel: OUT: comes down but it takes the edge, Akmal takes it on second attempt, but Patel is coming back to crease seeing the fumble, appeal for caught behind and Patel walks by himself
Patel (c) Akmal (b) Pathan 38 off 33 balls (5 x 4)
End of Over 9: 7 runs
Score: 64 for 2 (Raina 7 off 7 balls)
---
Over 10:
9.1 Warne to Raina: No run
9.2 Warne to Raina:2 runs
9.4 Warne to Raina: SIX: hit it over mid wicket
9.5 Warne to Raina: 2 runs: short ball on the leg, pulls it to deep midwicket
9.6 Warne to Raina: 1 run: played to mid wicket
End of Over 10: 11 runs
Score: 75 for 2 (Raina 18 off 13 balls (1 x 6), Morkel 0 off 0 balls)
---
Over 11:
11.1 Pathan to Raina: 1 run
11.2 Pathan to Morkel: No run
11.3 Pathan to Morkel: No run
11.4 Pathan to Morkel: No run
11.5 Pathan to Morkel: No run
11.6 Pathan to Morkel: 1 run
End of Over 11: 2 runs
Score: 77 for 2 (Raina 19 off 14 balls (1 x 6), Morkel 1 off 5 balls)
----
Over 12:
11.1 Warne to Morkel: No run
11.2 Warne to Morkel: 1 run
11.3 Warne to Raina: 1 run
11.4 Warne to Morkel: SIX: Huge six over mid wicket
11.5 Warne to Morkel: No run, on the leg stump, not called a wide
11.6 Warne to Morkel: wide: on the leg stump, but this time it is called a wide
11.6 Warne to Morkel: 1 run: played to long off
End of Over 12: 10 runs
Score: 87 for 2 (Raina 20 off 15 balls (1 x 6), Morkel 9 off 10 balls (1 x 6))
---
Over 13:
12.1 Pathan to Morkel: 1 run
12.2 Pathan to Raina: 1 run
12.3 Pathan to Morkel: SIX: hit it over mid wicket, Watson tries to catch it, it is over his head, he tries with his one hand, it slips from his hand and goes over boundary
12.4 Pathan to Morkel: OUT: tries to pull, but takes the edge, goes in the air behind wicket keeper, Akmal, short third man and short fine leg come for the catch, Akmal takes it but rolls over the short third man fielder. Looks like somebody is injured; Pathan takes his third wicket.
Morkel (c) Akmal (b) Pathan 16 off 16 balls (2 x 6)
12.5 Pathan to Dhoni: 1 run: driven to long on, off the mark
12.6 Pathan to Raina: 1 run: played to mid off
End of Over 13: 10 runs
Score: 97 for 3 (Raina 22 off 17 balls (1 x 6), Dhoni 1 off 1 balls)
---
Over 14:
13.1 Trivedi to Raina: 2 run: played in the air over cover, Watson does a good job in cutting the boundary
13.2 Trivedi to Raina: 1 run: 100 for Chennai Super Kings
13.3 Trivedi to Dhoni: 1 run: played to mid off
13.4 Trivedi to Raina: SIX: short ball, he pulls it, went high in the air, thought someone would catch it, but it just goes over fielders head
13.5 Trivedi to Raina: No run: expects a bouncher, but it was a slower short ball, Raina ducks and realizes later that it was slower ball
13.6 Trivedi to Raina: Warne talks to Trivedi: 2 runs, chipped to long; Dhoni is quick and wanted to 2 and they take it easily.
End of Over 14: 12 runs
Score: 109 for 3 (Raina 31 off 21 balls (2 x 6), Dhoni 3 off 2 balls)
---
Over 15:
14.1 Warne to Dhoni: No run
14.2 Warne to Dhoni: No run
14.3 Warne to Dhoni: SIX: hits it over long on, good battle
14.4 Warne to Dhoni: 1 run: short ball, pulls it to mid wicket, straight to fielder
14.5 Warne to Raina: No run: played to extra cover
14.6 Warne to Raina: 1 run: played to long on, Dhoni wants 2, but Raina says no, good call.
End of Over 15: 8 runs
Score: 117 for 3 (Raina 32 off 23 balls (2 x 6), Dhoni 10 off 6 balls (1 x 6))
---
Over 16:
15.1 Tanvir to Raina: No run: slower ball
15.2 Tanvir to Raina: 2 runs: played straight to long off, Dhoni is quick and comes back on time
15.3 Tanvir to Raina: 2 runs: played to deep square leg
15.4 Tanvir to Raina: FOUR: straight driver, bisecting the long off and long on. Great short.
15.5 Tanvir to Raina: 1 run: played to extra cover
15.6 Tanvir to Dhoni: 1 run: short ball, pulled to deep mid wicket
End of Over 16: 10 runs
Score: 127 for 3 (Raina 43 off 27 balls (1 x 4, 2 x 6), Dhoni 10 off 7 balls (1 x 6))
---
Over 17:
16.1 Watson to Dhoni: 1 run: pulled to mid wicket
16.2 Watson to Raina: we need some big overs here. OUT: He tries to clear long off boundary, but couldn't clear it, straight to fielder
Raina (c) Jadeja (b) Watson 43 off 30 balls (1 x 4, 2 x 6)
16.3 Watson to Dhoni: 1 run
16.4 Watson to Kapugedera: No run: tries to cut to point, but is beaten, straight to keeper
16.5 Watson to Kapugedera: No run: played to cover
16.6 Watson to Kapugedera: 1 run
End of Over 17: 3 runs
Score: 130 for 3 Dhoni 12 off 9 balls (1 x 6)), Kapugedera 1 off 3 balls
---
Over 18:
17.1 Tanvir to Kapugedera: 1 run: slower ball, played across to mid wicket
17.2 Tanvir to Dhoni: 1 run
17.3 Tanvir to Kapugedera: 1 run; Warne should be happy with singles going and not boundaries
17.4 Tanvir to Dhoni: 1 run: full toos on the hip height, definite no ball, but not called
17.5 Tanvir to Kapugedera: 1 run: short ball, slower, played to long on
17.6 Tanvir to Dhoni: FOUR: full toss, again it was not called no ball, but Dhoni puts it between mid wicket and long on
End of Over 18: 9 runs
Score: 139 for 3 Dhoni 18 off 12 balls (1 x 4, 1 x 6)), Kapugedera 4 off 6 balls
---
Over 19:
18.1 Watson to Kapugedera: No run: good bouncher
18.2 Watson to Kapugedera: wide; tough call
18.2 Watson to Kapugedera: no ball: 2nd bouncer and hence called no ball
18.2 Watson to Kapugedera: 1 run: played to extra cover, yorker length
18.3 Watson to Dhoni: 1 bye: slower ball, Dhoni misses; bad bounce, fumble, they go for a single
18.4 Watson to Kapugedera: 2 runs: short ball, hits it over bowler, good fielding by Jadeja with one hand, just an inch before boundary
18.5 Watson to Kapugedera: 1 run: yorker lenght, tries to hit it, but takes the bottom of the bat and stays in the crease and they go for a single
18.6 Watson to Dhoni: 2 runs over cover
End of Over 19: 9 runs
Score: 148 for 4 (Dhoni 20 off 14 balls (1 x 4, 1 x 6)), Badrinath 8 off 11 balls
---
Over 20:
19.1 Tanvir to Kapugedera: OUT: Tries to hit it over long on, but was caught
Kapugedera: (c) Jadeja (b) Tanvir 8 off 12 balls
19.2 Tanvir to Dhoni: 2 runs: yorker length, Dhoni comes back for 2
19.3 Tanvir to Dhoni: SIX: slower ball, pickes it well and hits it over long on, huge six
19.4 Tanvir to Dhoni: 1 run: tries to slog, but goes straight to mid wicket
19.5 Tanvir to Badrinath: FOUR: straight drive, bisecting the diving long on and long off fielders, great short
19.6 Tanvir to Badrinath: 2 runs: full toss, plays across and tries to hit it over mid wicket, but it goes high in the air and lands safely and they run 2
End of Over 20: 15 runs
Score: 163 for 5 (Dhoni 29 off 17 balls (1 x 4, 2 x 6)), Badrinath 6 off 2 balls (1 x 4))
---
Chennai Super Kings Score Board:
Parthiv Patel: (c) Akmal (b) Y Pathan 38 off 33 balls - 5 x 4
Vidyut: (c) Jadeja (b) Y Pathan 16 off 14 balls - 1 x 4, 1 x 6
Raina: (c) Jadeja (b) Watson 43 off 30 balls - 1 x 4, 2 x 6
Morkel: (c) Akmal (b) Y Pathan 16 off 16 balls - 2 x 6
Dhoni: 29 not out off 17 balls (1 x 4, 2 x 6)
CK Kapugedera: (c) Jadeja (b) Tanvir 8 off 12 balls
S Badrinath 6 not out off 2 balls (1 x 4)
Extras: (bye: 1, leg bye: 2, wide: 3, no ball: 1) 6
Total: 163 for 5 in 20 overs

Fall of Wickets:
1 - 39 (Vidyut - 5.2 oves); 2 - 64 (Patel - 8.6); 3 - 95 (Morkel - 12.4) 4 - 128 (Raina - 16.2); 5 - 148 (Badrinath - 19.1)

Score at the end of overs:
1 - 6 for no loss; 2 - 12 for no loss; 3 - 16 for no loss; 4 - 29 for no loss; 5 - 39 for no loss; 6 - 42 for 1; 7 - 51 for 1; 8 - 57 for 1; 9 - 64 for 2; 10 - 75 for 2; 11 - 77 for 2; 12 - 87 for 2; 13 - 97 for 3; 14 - 109 for 3; 15 - 117 for 3; 16 - 127 for 3; 17 - 130 for 4; 18 - 139 for 4; 19 - 148 for 4; 20 - 163 for 5

Bowling Figures:
Sohail Tanvir = 4 - 0 - 40 - 1
SR Watson = 4 - 0 - 30 - 1
MM Patel = 2 - 0 - 14 - 0
Y Pathan = 4 - 0 - 22 - 3
Trivedi = 2 - 0 - 21 - 0
Warne = 4 - 0 - 34 - 0
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
COMMENTARY:

Over 1:
0.1 Ntini to N Patel: No run: bouncer, well directed
0.2 Ntini to N Patel: No run: played to point
0.3 Ntini to N Patel: No run: played to cover, Dhoni fielding it well
0.4 Ntini to N Patel: 1 run: played to third man
0.5 Ntini to Asnodkar: 1 run: played to square leg
0.6 Ntini to N Patel: No run: played to cover
End of Over 3: 2 runs
Score: 2 for 0 (N Patel 1 off 5 balls, Asnodkar 1 off 1 balls)
---
Over 2:
1.1 Gony to Asnodkar: No run: edge, straight to fielder in 2nd slip
1.2 Gony to Asnodkar: 2 runs: plays it across, tries to slog
1.3 Gony to Asnodkar: FOUR: short ball on the off stump, he cuts it over point in the air, just few inches away from point fielder Raina, lucky Asnodkar
1.4 Gony to Asnodkar: 1 run: played to Raina again, he dives to avoid the single, it goes from his hand they go for a single
1.5 Gony to N Patel: 1 run: tries to pull, but hits glove and roles within the crease and they go for quick single
1.6 Gony to Asnodkar: FOUR: played it to point, beats the diving Vidyut in the boundary
End of Over 2: 12 runs
Score: 14 for 0 (N Patel 2 off 6 balls, Asnodkar 12 off 6 balls)
-----
Over 3:
2.1 Ntini to N Patel: No run: tried to pull the short ball, but it was quick, hits him in somepart of the body
2.2 Ntini to N Patel: No run: he moves towards leg stump, but Ntini bowls on the off stump and it swings away, thought Billy would give it wide, but he didn't
2.3 Ntinit to N Patel: No run: against tries to pull, but hits him in some part of the body
2.4 Ntini to N Patel: 1 bye: he tries to slog, but it swings a lot, Parthiv misses inspite of a dive
2.5 Ntini to Asnodkar: FOUR leg bye:
2.6 Ntini to Asnokar: No run
End of Over 3: 5 runs
Score: 19 for 0 (N Patel 2 off 10 balls, Asnodkar 12 off 8 balls)
---
Over 4:
3.1 Gony to N Patel: OUT: tries to pull, but takes the inside edge and drags to stump
N Patel (b) Gony 2 off 11 balls
3.2 Gony to Akmal: 1 runs
3.3 Gony to Asnodkar: 2 runs
3.4 Gony to Asnodkar: FOUR: short ball, pulled to long on, over fielders head
3.5 Gony to Asnokdar: 1 run to third man
3.6 Gony to Akmal: No run
End of Over 4: 8 runs
Score: 27 for 1 (Asnodkar 19 off 11 balls - 3 x 4, Akmal 2 off 2 balls)
---
Over 5
4.1 Ntini to Asnodkar: No run
4.2 Ntini to Asnodkar: FOUR: pitched up, tries to hit it over long on, but it goes over cover
4.3 Ntini to Asnodkar: 1 run, over point to third man
4.4 Ntini to Akmal: No run:
4.5 Ntini to Akmal: FOUR: tries to hit it over long on, but it takes edge and beats the fine leg who is near the circle
4.6 Ntini to Akmal: No run
End of Over 5: 9 runs
Score: 36 for 1 (Asnodkar 24 off 14 balls - 4 x 4, Akmal 5 off 5 balls - 1 x 4s)
-----
Over 6:
5.1 Gony to Asnodkar: 2 runs: played to third man, poor fielding by Vidyut
5.2 Gony to Asnodkar: 1 run: played to deep cover, a fielder is placed
5.3 Gony to Akmal: 1 run: played straight, Gony couldn't stop in the follow up, one run
5.4 Gony to Asnodkar: No run, played to point, Raina throws at non-strikers end, not necessary
5.5 Gony to Asnodkar: No run, played to mid off, Akmal goes for the run, but Asnodkar says no, chance for a run out, Muralitharan misses a direct hit, which would have put Akmal in trouble
5.6 Gony to Asnodkar: 1 run: played to third man
End of Over 6: 5 runs
Score: 41 for 1 (Asnodkar 28 off 19 balls - 4 x 4, Akmal 6 off 6 balls - 1 x 4)
---
Over 7:
6.1 Morkel to Asnodkar: OUT: drives to point, but Raina takes hip level catch, danger man goes
Asnodkar (c) Raina (b) Morkel 28 off 20 balls - 4 x 4
6.2 Morkel to Watson: No run: bouncer
6.3 Morkel to Watson: 1 run: quick singl
6.4 Morkel to Akmal: OUT: hits to mid on and goes for a quick single, not required at this moment, a very risky single, Ntini hits direct at the stumps and no need to to third umpire, Billy raises the finger
Akmal run out (Ntini) 6 off 7 balls - 1 x 4
6.5 Morkel to Watson: 1 run
6.6 Morkel to Pathan: 1 run: plays to cover, tries for single, but Watson says no, Dhoni tries for run out and hits at the stump, but no proper backing, 1 over throw
End of Over 7: 3 runs
Score: 44 for 3 (Watson 2 off 3 balls, Pathan 1 off 1 ball)
---
Over 8:
7.1 Balaji to Pathan: No run: beaten
7.2 Balaji to Pathan: No run
7.3 Balaji to Pathan: 1 run: pulled to mid wicket
7.4 Balaji to Watson: No run, played to bowler
7.5 Balaji to Watson: 2 runs: pulled to mid wicket, short ball, Vidyut is very slow in the wicket
7.6 Balaji to Watson: FOUR: pulled to mid off, almost kind of a striaight drive
End of Over 8: 7 runs
Score: 51 for 3 (Watson 8 off 6 balls, Pathan 2 off 4 balls)
---
Over 9:
8.1 Morkel to Pathan: No run: bouncer
8.2 Morkel to Pathan: wide: bouncer
8.2 Morkel to Pathan: 1 leg bye; another short ball; chaos on the field, Pathan goes for pull, hits the helmet, pops up in the air, caught by Parthiv, umpire Billy did not signal leg by, which means it is off the bat and should be given out.
8.3 Morkel to Watson: wide, down the leg stum
8.3 Morkel to Watson: FOUR: played little wide of mid won
8.4 Morkel to Watson: 1 run: late cut to third man
8.5 Morkel to Pathan: 2 runs: tries to hit over long on, goes high in the air, no fielder is there, safely lands
8.6 Morkel to Pathan: No run
End of Over 9: 10 runs
Score: 61 for 3 (Watson 13 off 8 balls (2 x 4), Pathan 4 off 8 balls)
---
Over 10:
9.1 Balaji to Watson: 1 run: late cut to third man
9.2 Balaji to Pathan: FOUR: comes down the track, lofts over mid wicket for a boundary
9.3 Balaji to Pathan: No run: low full toss, hits back to bowler, well fielded
9.4 Balaji to Pathan: FOUR: short ball, pulled very well, went like a bullet to mid wicket
9.5 Balaji to Pathan: 1 run: driver to mid off
9.6 Balaji to Watson: FOUR: no third man, a late cut to third man, good shot
End of Over 10: 14 runs
Score: 75 for 3 (Watson 18 off 10 balls (3 x 4), Pathan 13 off 12 balls (2 x 4))
---
Over 11:
Muralitharan to Pathan: No run: tries to sweep, doosra, appeal for leg before, Billy says not out
Muralitharan to Pathan: No run: played to mid wicket
Muralitharan to Pathan: 2 runs: DROPPED: lofts it over mid on, goes high in the air, Raina caught it but couldn't hold on to it. Could be the turning point
Muralitharan to Pathan: No run: on the pads
Muralitharan to Pathan: 1 run: played to long on
Muralitharan to Watson: 2 runs: played wide of long on
End of Over 11: 5 runs
Score: 80 for 3 (Watson 20 off 11 balls (3 x 4), Pathan 16 off 17 balls (2 x 4))
---
Over 12:
11.1 Morkel to Pathan: 1 run
11.2 Morkel to Watson: 1 run
11.3 Morkel to Pathan: No ball: 2 runs: Chipped to third man in the air, fielder dives, but the ball comes out of the hand and they run 2
11.3 Morkel to Pathan: FREE HIT: tries to slog, misses
11.4 Morkel to Pathan: 1 run
11.5 Morkel to Watson: 1 run
Celeberities watching the game: Mr. and Mrs. Tendulkar, Amir Khan
11.6 Morkel to Pathan: No run
End of Over 12: 7 runs
Score: 87 for 3 (Watson 21 off 12 balls (3 x 4), Pathan 20 off 21 balls (2 x 4))
---
Over 13:
12.1 Muralitharan to Watson: 1 run
12.2 Muralitharan to Pathan: No run, beaten
12.3 Muralitharan to Pathan: 1 run: comes down the track, ball hits bat, pad, and they go for the run
12.4 Muralitharan to Watson: 1 run, played to mid wicket
12.5 Muralitharan to Pathan: SIX: Comes down the track, lofts over long on, huge six, fifty parternship
12.6 Muralitharan to Pathan: SIX: Another huge six over long on, bigger than the previous one
End of Over 13: 15 runs
Score: 102 for 3 (Watson 23 off 14 balls (3 x 4), Pathan 33 off 25 balls (2 x 4, 2 x 6))
---
Over 14:
13.1 Gony to Watson: 3 runs
13.2 Gony to Pathan: No run, DROPPED: caught and bowled chance, towards the left of Gony, hits the hand, but couldn't hold on to it; 2nd life; first on 13 and the second on 33
13.3 Gony to Pathan: No run: slower ball
13.4 Gony to Pathan: 1 run: gives room, drives to mid off
13.5 Gony to Watson: No run: tries to steer to third man, but misses it
13.6 Gony to Watson: 1 run: yorker length
End of Over 14: 5 runs
Score: 107 for 3 (Watson 28 off 18 balls (3 x 4), Pathan 34 off 28 balls (2 x 4, 2 x 6))
---
Over 15:
14.1 Muralitharan to Watson:OUT: bowled
Watson (b) Muralitharan 28 off 19 balls - 3 x 4
14.2 Muralitharan to Kaif: 1 run
14.3 Muralitharan to Pathan: 1 run
14.4 Muralitharan to Kaif: 2 runs: played to wide of long off
14.5 Muralitharan to Kaif: No run
14.6 Muralitharan to Kaif: 1 run
End of Over 15: 5 runs
Score: 112 for 4 (Pathan 35 off 29 balls (2 x 4, 2 x 6), Kaif 4 off 4 balls)
---
5 overs 52 runs
Over 16:
15.1 Balaji to Kaif: 1 run: to third man
15.2 Balaji to Pathan: FOUR: full toss, hit back to bowler, Ntini dives to save it, tries to push it inside the boundary, the ball rolls over to boundary
15.3 Balaji to Pathan: No run
15.4 Balaji to Pathan: SIX: Full toss, lofted over long off, great short, his 3rd six
15.5 Balaji to Pathan: 2 runs: waist height full toss, not called no ball, hits high in the air, no one is there in mid wicket
15.6 Balaji to Pathan: No run: short ball, Pathan tries to pull it, but misses it, goes to keeper
End of Over 16: 13 runs
Score: 125 for 4 (Pathan 47 off 34 balls (3 x 4, 3 x 6), Kaif 5 off 5 balls)
---
Over 17:
16.1 Muralitharan to Kaif: SIX
16.2 Muralitharan to Kaif: No run
16.3 Muralitharan to Kaif: 1 run
16.4 Muralitharan to Pathan: SIX, full toss, over long, reaches his 50 in 35 balls with 3 fours and 4 sixes
16.5 Muralitharan to Pathan: 1 run
16.6 Muralitharan to Kaif: OUT: Comes down the track, doosra, lobs it to cover to Dhoni
Kaif (c) Dhoni (b) Muralitharan 12 off 9 balls (1 x 6)
End of Over 17: 14 runs
Score: 139 for 4 (Pathan 55 off 38 balls (3 x 4, 4 x 6), Kaif 5 off 5 balls)
---
Ove4 18:
17.1 Morkel to Jadeja: OUT: tries to pull short ball, didn't time it well, goes in the air, caught by Badrinath
Jadeja (c) Kapugedera (b) Morkel 0 off 1 ball
17.2 Morkel to Watson: No ball, 1 run:
17.2 Morkel to Warne: FREE HIT: 1 run:
17.3 Morkel to Pathan: 1 run: chance for run out, missed, takes edge and goes to fine leg, Muralitharan picks the ball, Pathan comes back for 2, Warne says no, he is half way through the pitch, Patel does a bad throw
17.4 Morkel to Warne: OUT: pushes to point, Pathan calls for the run, Warne goes for it, a direct hit by Raina sends Pathan to pavilion, third umpire not referred, crucial break through
Pathan run out (Raina) 56 off 39 balls - 3 x 4, 4 x 6
17.5 Morkel to Tanvir: Wide
17.5 Morkel to Tanvir: 1 run
17.6 Morkel to Warne: 1 leg bye, appeal for leg before, turned down
End of Over 18: 7 runs
Score: 146 for 7 (Warne 1 off 3 balls, Tanvir 1 off 1 ball)
---
Over 19: (18 runs required of 12 balls)
18.1 Ntni to Warne: 1 run
18.2 Ntini to Tanvir: 1 run (16 off 10 balls)
18.3 Ntini to Warne: 1 run
18.4 Ntini to Tanvir: 2 runs, played wide of long on, well fielded by Badrinath
18.5 Ntini to Tanvir: 1 run: full toss, hit it to long on, did not connect it right, Badrinath did not come on time to catch it, takes it in one bounce
18.6 Ntini to Warne: FOUR: gives room and places it in the gap between cover and long off
End of Over 19: 10 runs
Score: 156 for 7 (Warne 7 off 6 balls (1 x 4), Tanvir 5 off 4 balls)
---
Over 20:
19.1 Balaji to Tanvir: 1 run, low full toss, played to long on
19.2 Balaji to Warne: No run: Yorker length, Warne misses, Parthiv collects it and comes running to the stumps
19.3 Balaji to Warne: 1 run, low full toss, comes down the track, bowled little wide of the batsman, played straight to covers to Dhoni
19.4 Balaji to Tanvir: WIDE and Bye: two runs, easy take was missed by Parthiv
19.4 Balaji to Warne: 1 run: to point
19.5 Balaji to Tanvir: 2 runs: well fielded at deep midwicket, but bad throw, Parthiv did not collect it well, but no over throw, backed well
19.6 Balaji to Tanvir (1 ball, 1 run): 1 run: short ball, pulled to mid wicket
End of Over 20: 11 runs
Score: 164 for 7 in 20 overs (Warne 9 off 9 balls (1 x 4), Tanvir 9 off 7 balls)
---
Rajasthan Royals Scoreboard (164 to win in 20 overs)
N Patel: (b) Gony 2 off 11 balls
Asnodkar: (c) Raina (b) Morkel 28 off 20 balls - 4 x 4
Akmal: run out (Ntini) 6 off 7 balls - 1 x 4
Watson (b) Muralitharan 28 off 19 balls - 3 x 4
Pathan run out (Raina) 56 off 39 balls - 3 x 4, 4 x 6
Kaif (c) Dhoni (b) Muralitharan 12 off 9 balls (1 x 6)
Jadeja (c) Kapugedera (b) Morkel 0 off 1 ball
Warne: 9 not out off 9 balls - 1 x 4
Tanvir: 9 not out off 7 balls
Extras (bye 1; leg bye 6; wide 5; no ball 2) - 14
Total 164 for 7 in 20 overs

Fall of Wickets:
1 - 19 (Patel - 3.1 overs); 2 - 41 (Asnodkar - 6.1); 3 - 42 (Akmal - 6.4 overs); 4 - 107 (Watson - 14.1 overs); 5 - 139 (Kaif -16.6); 6 - 139 (Jadeda - 17.1); 7 - 143 (Pathan - 17.4 overs)

Scores at the end of over:
1 - 6 for no loss; 2 - 14 for no loss; 3 - 19 for no loss; 4 - 27 for 1; 5 - 36 for 1; 6 - 41 for 1; 7 - 44 for 3; 8 - 51 for 3; 9 - 61 for 3; 10 - 75 for 3; 11 - 80 for 3; 12 - 87 for 3; 13 - 102 for 3; 14 - 107 for 3; 15 - 112 for 4; 16 - 125 for 4; 17 - 139 for 5; 18 - 146 for 7; 19 - 156 for 7; 20 - 164 for 7

Bowling Figures:
Ntini = 4 - 1 - 21 - 0
Gony = 4 - 0 - 30 - 1
Morkel = 4 - 0 - 25 - 2
Balaji = 4 - 0 - 42 - 0
Muralitharan = 4 - 0 - 39 - 2

Match 58, Semi Final 2: Chennai Storms into Finals! To meet Rajasthan!

Chennai Super Kings beat Kings XI Punjab for the third consecutive time in the IPL and entered the grand finale. The cool man admitted that he was under pressure but couldn't show it outside. He wanted his bowlers to see a confident man in the field.

Winning the toss and deciding to bat first, Kings XI Punjab failed to capitalize on the crucial toss. The much expected fight in a neutral venue did not go well as expected.

Chennai Super Kings had an easy target in hand to enter the finals and they did it withe ease. Chasing 113 in 16 overs is an easy task unless the batsmen make mistakes or the bowlers are too good in their line and length. Dhoni's team ensured that they did not make the mistakes they committed against Bangalore Royal Challengers while chasing an easy target of 127.

Vidyut got out in the 3rd over for 6 with a four. That was the only wicket to fall and we couldn't see the aggressive Yuvaraj after that. Both Patel and Raina played well to ensure that their team moved to the final stage of the game.

Both of them scored 50 in this short run chase which ended in the 15th over. Patel was the first to cross fifty in 47 balls with 8 fours and followed by Raina in 32 balls with 3 fours and 4 sixes.

Raina took little risk every now and then. He hit his first six of VRV Singh over long on. The short ball pitched on the off stump was sent over long for a six. He game room for himself and that helped him to clear the boundary.

It was strange that Sreesanth bowled just one over. I think the he was not utilized properly in this game. One of the top five most wicket takers in this IPL, it was surprising that Yuvi did used him for just one over.

His second six went out of the ground. That was really huge. The short ball from Hopes was hit over mid wicket. Pathan's short ball was his third six over mid wicket. His fourth six came off Piyush Chawla's flight deilvery which was swept over mid wicket. The next ball was a four and that was his fifty. He chipped the 5th ball of the 15th over to make the winning boundary. He was awarded the DLF Maximum Sixes Award.

They both added 102 runs for the unbeaten second wicket in 75 balls.

Read: Man of the Match List

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Read: Semi Final 1: Rajasthan Royals v. Delhi Daredevils

Earlier, Kings XI did not start well. They lost wickets at regular intervals. Interesting, Dhoni opened his bowling attack with Muralitharan. He bowled just one over and conceded 7 runs. The first ball was a full toss and Marsh smashed hit through cover. Marsh scored 23 in 17 balls with 3 sixes and a six, couldn't continue his form. The pull of a short ball from Ntini, got the inside edge and dragged the ball to the stumps. Hopes was caught behind of Ntini in the second over. Sangakkar walked on his own though umpire did not give him out. He was caught behind of Gony in the 3rd over and Punjab was struggling at 11 for 2.

Most runs in the power play came in the 4th over bowled by Nitni where Marsh hit a six of an edge, which went over the keeper's head. Another edge went to fine leg boundary.

Gony and Muralitharan sent Yuvaraj back to the pavilion. It was a short ball and Yuvaraj pulled it with full power towards mid wicket. Muralitharan intercepted it near the ring and took a brilliant catch. In the next over Marsh was bowled.

At the end of power play, Kings XI were 35 for 4. Pathan and Jayawardane steadied the innings for the next overs, but the poor calling had Pathan run out. Jayawardane played the ball towards cover point boundary where Ntini brilliantly stopped the ball but couldn't control crossing the boundary. He intelligently rolled the ball inside the playing area and came back to pick it up. Pathan who looked for the third was first acknowledged by Jayawardane, but later sent him back, but by that time it was too late. Ntini sent a good one bounce throw to bowler Gony and he did the rest. Pathan was in the middle of the pitch and couldn't do much.

In the next over, Jayawardane tried to steer the ball to third man, edged the ball to Parthiv Patel off Morkel.

At the end of 10 overs, Kings XI were 45 for 6 almost ruined their chances to final. Chawla was bowled by Muralitharan's flight delivery. Powar though tried to hit the ball many times couldn't connect most of the deliveries. But, he hit a six of Morkel in the 19th over and then 3 consecutive fours of Balaji in the 20th over. The last 2 overs added 28 to the total and helped Kings XI to cross the 100 mark.

Mota was the 8th wicket to fall. In the last ball of the 19th over, Mota tried to loft the ball over long on, but it ballooned in the air. Raina came running from long and took a stunning diving catch.

Kings XI ended their innings with 112 for 8, Ramesh Power top scoring with 28 not out off 21 balls with 4 fours and a six.

Ntini was given the man of the match award, his second in IPL, for his good bowling performance and also for the good intelligent fielding and thorw which ran out Irfan Pathan.

Match 58 - Semi Final 2
Venue: Mumbai
Date: May 31, 2008
Teams: Chennai Super Kings and Kings XI Punjab
Captains: Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Yuvaraj Singh
Toss: Kings XI Punjab and decided to bat
Result: Chennai Super Kings won by 9 wickets with 31 balls remaining
Man of the Match: M Ntini off Chennai Super Kings (South Africa)
Score:

Kings XI Punjab 112 for 8 in 20 overs (SE Marsh 23, JR Hopes 2, KC Sangakkara 3, Yuvraj Singh 4, DPMD Jayawardene 8, IK Pathan 3, WA Mota 25, PP Chawla 12, RR Powar 28 not out, S Sreesanth 0 not out, Extras-4 (b 2, wide 2), M Muralitharan 4-0-19-1, M Ntini 4-0-23-2, M Gony 4-1-14-2, JA Morkel 4-0-27-2, L Balaji 4-0-27-0) lost to Chennai Super Kings 116 for 1 in 14.5 overs (PA Patel 51 not out, S Vidyut 6, SK Raina 55 not out, Extras-4 (wide 4), IK Pathan 4-0-24-0, S Sreesanth 1-0-7-0, RR Powar 3-0-28-0, VRV Singh 2-0-14-0, JR Hopes 2-0-20-0, PP Chawla 2.5-0-23-0)

Read: Semi Final 1: Rajasthan Royals v. Delhi Daredevils

Read: Man of the Match List

Read: Points Table

Read: IPL Scores Table!

Middle Order Did not Click: Sehwag

In the post match confernece, the Delhi skipper mentioned that his team's poor performance of middle order batsman costed the match. The Delhi Daredevils dream of entering the finals was shattered after their bowling and batting department collapsed.

He backed his bowlers by saying that they cannot do anything when the batsmen were going against them. "I never once thought the match was in our grasp. After the first three overs when their openers started the assault, whatever our bowlers could do, they tried. But when the batsmen are hitting the bowlers like that, it's difficult. Even veteran McGrath conceded 14 runs in an over," he said.

He further said, "the middle order didn't click for us in the past matches which cost us. The top three batsmen had a lot of pressure and it's not easy to go and perform in all the matches. So if we had a strong middle order batting line-up maybe it would be a different scenario."

He should be ready to focus on the next tour of India and then the next season of IPL.

Read: Semi Final 1: Rajasthan Royals v. Delhi Daredevils

Fleming Not Available for Remaining Maches for Chennai!

Stephen Fleming has gone back to New Zealand to see his new born baby. The Chennai Super Kings opener who got his chance to play for Chennai after Hayden returned to Australia for the West Indies tour, scored 196 runs in 10 matches. Though he did not score in many matches, his experience definitely added value to Chennai team.

Chenni has entered the semi-finals by beating Hyderabad Deccan Chargers in the do or die match. Fleming will be missing an important match and crucial game for Chennai. If they beat once again Kings XI, he will also be missing the final game against Rajasthan Royals.

As per team management, there is no time to get a foreign replacement. So, it has decided to provide opportunity to the existing players.

Congratulations Mr. Stephen Fleming!

Match 57, Semi Final 1: Rajasthan Enters Final!

In the first knock-out stage, Rajasthan beat Delhi and entered the finals of the first IPL season. They have beaten comfortably and will wait for a day to see who their opponent will be.

Put into bat, Royals started their innings with the openers crossing 50 for the first wicket. In the crucial game, both Smith and Asnodkar played sensibly and added 65 for the first wicket before Maharoof provided the break through by dismissing Smith caught by Dhawan for 25. In the same over, Asnodkar got out caught by Tiwari for 39 off 21 balls with 6 fours and a six. Though McGrath gave good start for Delhi by just giving 1 run in the first over, he was not able to sustain it. He went for 7 runs including a four in his second over and then for 3 continuous fours by smith.

Asnodkar was dropped on 23 by Maharoof in the fine leg when he tried to pull Mahesh. In the same over he hit a six and a four as Rajasthan reached 58 for no loss in 6 overs.

Sohail Tanvir was sent as number 3 for maintaining the tempo, but he fell chepaly for 5 for Maharoof. Watson and Kaif added 52 runs for the 4th wicket in 29 balls. Dangerous batsman Watson once again proved that he is there for scoring runs as quick as possible. He scored 52 off 29 balls with 4 fours and 3 sixes.

Watson went over Mahesh with 2 sixes and a four to score 21 runs in an over. Kaif was bowled by Mishra for 12, once again did not scorre for his team.

Yousuf Pathan continued with ihs form scoring 45 off 21 balls with 3 fours and 4 sixes. His innings along with Watson proved vital for Rajasthan and Delhi should accpet that they both took the game away from Delhi Daredevils.

Rajasthan ended their innings with 192 on the board. Maharoof finished with 3 for 34 in his 4 overs.

Read: Man of the Match List

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Delhi started with their star openers Sehwag and Gambhir. The start was not as good as Delhi would have expected. Sehwag was caught by Kohli off Watson for 3. Gambhir followed him soon in the last ball of the 4th over leaving Delhi struggle at 23 for 2.

Dhawan and Tiwari were not able to withstand the pressure and the huge run chase. They fell for 5 and duck respectively. Dilshan scored 33 and provided some resistence. Karthik, who scored 50 and took Delhi to semi-finals added 10 this time.

All batsman except Gambhir, Dilshan and Kathik, got out for single digit score and that did not do any good for Delhi.

They were bowled out for 87 in 16.1 overs and denied themselves a chance to enter finals.

SR Watson was declared man of the match for his 52 and 3 wickets.

Match 57 - Semi Final 1
Venue: Mumbai
Date: May 31, 2008
Teams: Rajasthan Royals and Delhi Daredevils
Captains: Shane Warne and Virendra Sehwag
Toss: Delhi Daredevils and decided to field
Result: Rajasthan Royals won by 105 runs
Man of the Match: SR Watson off Rajasthan Royals (Australia)
Score:

Rajasthan Royals 192 for 9 in 20 overs (GC Smith 25, SA Asnodkar 39, Sohail Tanvir 5, SR Watson 52, M Kaif 12, YK Pathan 45, RA Jadeja 7, SK Warne 0, M Rawat 2, MM Patel 0 not out, SK Trivedi 1 not out, Extras-4 (lb 1, wide 3), GD McGrath 4-0-38-0, Mohammad Asif 4-0-32-1, VY Mahesh 4-0-50-2, MH Maharoof 4-0-34-3, A Mishra 4-0-37-2) beat Delhi Daredevils 87 all out in 16.1 overs (G Gambhir 11, V Sehwag 3, S Dhawan 5, MK Tiwary 0, TM Dilshan 33, KD Karthik 10, MF Maharoof 6, A Mishra 2, VY Mahesh 3, Mohammad Asif 3, GD McGrath 4 not out, Extras-7 (lb 3, wide 4), Sohail Tanvir 2-0-16-0, SR Watson 3-0-10-3, MM Patel 4-0-17-3, SK Trivedi 3-0-20-1, SK Warne 4-0-21-2, RA Jadeja 0.1-0-0-0, Yuvaraj Singh 1-0-20-0)

Read: Man of the Match List

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The second semi final is between Kings XI Punjab and Chennai Super Kings in the same ground.

Semi Finals Matches!

The first of the semi final match will be held on May 30 and the second semi final on May 31.

1st Semi Final: Rajasthan Royals v. Delhi Daredevils at Mumbai
2nd Semi Final: Kings XI Punjab v. Chennai Super Kings

Match 56: Marsh's Century Helps Kings XI Beat Rajasthan Royals!

Marsh scored the 6th century of the IPL tournament this year. This is first century in the T20. He reached his 50 in 27 balls and touched the 3 figures in 58 balls. He hit 11 fours and 7 sixes in his 115.

Warne and Smith did not play in this match and Watson lead the team. The bowling attack was not that great as Marsh scored all over the ground. The first wicket added 133 runs in 82 balls. Hopes was the first to go caught by Salunkhe off Yousuf Pathan for 51 off 35 balls with 7 fours and a six.

Yuvaraj Singh missed the half century by a run. He smashed quick fire 49 in 16 balls with 2 fours and 6 sixes.

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Though this match is not important in terms of points or securing place in the semi-finals, it is important in terms of playing the semi-finals with a positive mind set and the record of winning.

Rajasthan manged to score just 180. Yousuf Pathan provided good entertainment in the end stage with his 39 off 15 balls with 3 fours 3 sixes. Patel, who opened the innings with Kaif scored 51 off 39 balls with 10 fours.

Match 56
Venue: Mohali
Date: May 28, 2008
Teams: Kings XI Punjab and Rajasthan Royals
Captains: Yuvaraj Singh and SR Watson
Toss: Rajasthan Royals and decided to field
Result: Kings XI Punjab won by 41 runs
Man of the Match: SE Marsh off Kings XI Punjab (Australia)
Points: Kings XI Punjab-2; Rajasthan Royals-0
Score:

Kings XI Punjab 221 for 3 in 20 overs (SE Marsh 115, JR Hopes 51, Yuvaraj Singh 49, L Pomersbach 1 not out, Extras-5 (lb 1, wide 3, nb 1), MM Patel 4-0-37-0, SR Watson 4-0-40-1, Pankaj Singh 3-0-48-2, D Salunkhe 3-0-23-0, SK Trivedi 4-0-48-0, YK Pathan 2-0-24-1) beat Rajasthan Royals 180 for 7 in 20 overs (M Kaif 1, NK Patel 57, Younis Khan 3, SR Watson 22, YK Pathan 39, Kamran Akmal 24, M Rawat 23 not out, D Salunkhe 6, Pankaj Singh 1 not out, Extras-4 (lb 3, wide 1), IK Pathan 4-0-10-1, S Sreesanth 3-0-44-1, JR Hopes 3-0-29-2, RR Powar 1-0-7-0, VRV Singh 4-0-32-0, PP Chawla 4-0-35-3, Yuvaraj Singh 1-0-20-0)

Read: Man of the Match List

Read: Points Table

Read: IPL Scores Table!

Match 55: Mumbai Wins Easily!

In a math which is of less importance to both the teams, except for the difference in Prize Money for a spot between 5th and 6th. Mumabi by winning this game against Bangalore captured the 5th spot, one above Kolkata Knight Riders.

Put into bat, Dravid's team once again failed in a rain delayed match. The rain reduced the match to 18 overs a side. Boucher and Goswami opened the innings, but nothing changed. The first boundary came in the 4th over. Boucher and Misbah got out in the same over, Fernando picked the wickets. Boucher scored 18 and Misbah got out for 0.

White who hit two fours and a six in Kulkarni's over became dangerous, but got out in the next over for 26. Dravid was bowled by Smith for 11.

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Chasing a score of 123 in 18 overs, Jayasuriya and Tendulakar once agains started well. Jayasuriya scored 54 off 37 balls with 4 fours and 4 sixes. Tendulkar was not out on 40 in 43 balls with 4 fours and a six. Uthappa not out on 19 off 16 balls with 2 fours and a six.

Match 55
Venue: Bangalore
Date: May 28, 2008
Teams: Bangalore Royal Challengers and Mumbai Indians
Captains: Rahul Dravid and Sachin Tendulkar
Toss: Mumbai Indians and decided to field
Result: Mumbai Indians won by 9 wickets with 12 balls remaining
Man of the Match: CRD Fernando off Mumbai Indians (Sri Lanka)
Points: Mumbai Indians-2; Bangalore Royal Challengers-0
Score:

Bangalore Royal Challengers 122 for 9 in 18 overs (MV Boucher 18, SP Goswami 20, Misbah-ul-Haq 0,R Dravid 11, CL White 26, V Kohli 0, B Akhil 5, P Kumar 8, R Vinay Kumar 23, A Kumble 0 not out, Extras-11 (wide 10, nb 1), SM Pollock 4-0-23-0, A Nehra 3-0-21-1, CRD Fernando 4-0-18-4, DS Kulkarni 3-0-34-0, DR Smith 4-0-26-3) lost to Mumbai Indians 126 for 1 in 16 overs (ST Jayasuriya 54, SR Tendulkar 40 not out, RV Uthappa 19 not out, Extras-13 (lb 2, wide 11), A Kumble 4-0-45-0, DW Steyn 4-0-14-1, P Kumar 2-0-21-0, R Vinay Kumar 3-0-25-0, B Akhil 3-0-19-0)

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Match 54: Chennai Enter Semi finals! Mumbai Out!

In the crucial do or die situation, Chennai Super Kings today beat Deccan Chargers and stormed into the semi finals. With this victory, Chennai has went to third place behind Rajasthan Royals and Kings XI. The last position is occupied by Delhi Daredevils.

Mumbai has one more match to be played against Bangalore Royal Challengers, which is insignificant to both the teams in terms of qualifying for the semi-finals.

Deciding to bat first, Deccan Chargers started their innings slowly. They lost Gibbs in the 3rd over, trying to cut it over point, he was caught at third man for the second time.

Gilchrist trying to slog was also caught at third man in the next over. End of 10 overs, Deccan were 57 for 2.

Styris was bowled by Muralitharan for 20 in the 11th over. Venugopal Rao played his usual agressive innings. He started little slow because of the fall of 3 wickets in 11 overs for 57 with just 57 on board.

The 14th over bowled by Balaji gave momentum to Deccan Chargers. Venugopal hit him for a six over extra cover. Teja hit a four of the last ball to score 14 runs in that over and take the score to 85 for 3 at the end of 14 overs.

The 15th and 16th over added 8 and 11 runs respectively. End of 16 overs, Deccan Chargers were 104 for 3.

The 18th over by Balaji added 15 to Deccan's total including a six and four by Teja.

Chennai is known for hat-trick now. It recorded a team hat-trick with Teja getting out in the 3rd ball off Morkel caught by Mukund. The next ball was a run out of Venugopal Rao. Going for the second run, he was short by a milli-metre. Yadav was bowled in the next ball, losing his leg stump. Three balls, three wickets.

But, RP Singh hit a six of the last ball in the 19th over which took the score to 140 for 6. The last over by Balaji added 7 to the total with 2 wickets to his credit. Deccan Charges finished their 20 overs with 147 for 8.

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Chennai started well with a 26-run first wicket partnership. Fleming trying to square cut the ball, was caught behind of a thick outside edge of Vijaykumar.

At the end of power play, Chennai were cruising well with 44 for 1. Patel and Raina added 34 for the 2nd wicket in 31 balls.

Patel was caught at extra covers off Sarvesh Kumar by Shahid Afridi for 20. Dhoni promoted himself up the order one more time and he played sensibly. Dhoni was dropped the first ball he faced by Sarvesh Kumar on his own bowling and it went for a four. The next ball took outside edge and went for another four, Dhoni 8 off 2 balls.

When the score was on 115 in 15.1 overs, Dhoni tried to attack Ojha and went over long on, but was caught by Gibbs. He scored 37 off 25 balls with 4 fours and a six. Though the intention was right, but it put pressure on Morkel and Raina in the next few overs.

Last 4 overs required 31 runs. Styris bowled a very good over and Chennai scored just 3 runs.

28 required of 18 balls. Ohja's over added 11 to the total including a boundary over mid wicket. Equation reduced to 17 of 12 balls.

The caught and bowled chance was missed by RP Singh of the first ball. It bounced from his hand and went to mid on and the fielder had enough time to hit the stumps and he missed it. Two chances in one ball to send Raina to pavilion missed.

Three runs were scored in the next ball. The boundary was saved in the point. The fourth ball took the inside edge of Morkel and went to fine leg boundary.

Last over required 7 runs and Vijaykumar had the ball. The first ball was a single by Morkel and the next ball was a huge six over long on by Raina to give victory and semi-final birth to Chennai. It means, Mumbai has no more chance of entering semi-finals. With that winning six, Raina reached his 50 in 43 balls with 5 fours and 2 sixes. He was rightly declared man of the match.

Match 54
Venue: Hyderabad
Date: May 27, 2008
Teams: Hyderabad Deccan Chargers and Chennai Super Kings
Captains: Adam Gilchrist and Mahendra Singh Dhoni
Toss: Hyderabad Deccan Chargers and decided to bat
Result: Chennai Super Kings won by 7 wickets with 4 balls remaining
Man of the Match: Suresh Raina off Chennai Super Kings (India)
Points: Chennai Super Kings-2; Hyderabad Deccan Chargers-0
Score:

Hyderabad Deccan Chargers 147 for 8 in 20 overs (AC Gilchrist 5, HH Gibbs 8, SB Styris 20, Y Venugopal Rao 46, DB Ravi Teja 40, Shahid Afridi 1, AS Yadav 0, RP Singh 10, PP Ojha 1 not out, Extras-16 (b 1, lb 8, wide 7), M Ntini 4-0-24-1, M Gony 4-0-21-1, JA Morkel 4-0-37-2, M Muralitharan 4-0-22-1, L Balaji 4-0-34-2) lost to Chennai Super Kings 148 for 3 in 19.2 overs (PA Patel 20, SP Fleming 14, SK Raina 54 not out, MS Dhoni 37, JA Morkel 12 not out, NK Patel 40 not out, Extras-11 (lb 3, wide 8), RP Singh 4-0-32-0, DP Vijaykumar 3.2-0-32-1, Shahid Afridi 3-0-19-0, PM Sarvesh Kumar 2-0-18-1, PP Ojha 4-0-28-1, SB Styris 3-0-16-0)

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Chennai in Do-or-Die Match!

In the crucial encounter today in the IPL league match, it is almost like a quarter final for Chennai. They have to win their game against Hyderabad Deccan Chargers, who has nothing to lose regardless of the result.

The last ball defeat for Mumbai Indians has pushed Delhi Daredevils into Semi-Finals.

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Delhi has 15 points from their 14 games. But Chennai and Mumbai Indians have one game left. Chenni has 14 points and Mumbai has 12 points. If Chennai win their game against Deccan Chargers, they will qualify to Semi-Finals with 16 points regardless of a win to Mumbai, which would end ther 14 games with 14 points.

If Chennai loses and if Mumbai wins, then net run rate comes into play. If Mumbai lose thier last match against Bangalore Royal Challengers, Chennai qualifies as they are already leading in points.

Let us see whether Chennai Super Kings lead by Indian Skipper Dhoni can withstand the pressure and enter the last four. Please remember that in the last encounter in Chennai between these two teams, Deccan beat Chennai by 7 wickets with 12 balls to spare.

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Match 53: Rajasthan Win the Last Ball Thriller! One More Last Ball Loss for Sachin!

What a match! The last ball win is always a good food for eyes and emotions in cricket, especially when the home team wins it!

In a tight game where it is crucial for Mumbai, lost the game in the last ball, one more time! Last time it was against Kings XI where they did not score the run, and this time, they gave 2 runs off the last ball.

Last over requiring 15 runs, with two inexperienced international players in the crease. Fernando, the Sri Lankan fast bowler had the ball in hand.

First ball was a single by Patel on a full toss. The second ball took inside edge of Jadeja and went to fine leg where Nehra did a wonderful diving stop to save the boundary, but the batsmen run three.

11 required off 4 balls; Patel hit a six over long on. It was pitched up and it was lofted over long on.

5 required off 3 balls; Single was scored off next ball; 4 required off 2 balls.

1 run scored off a full toss by sending it to third man; they run the first run faster but couldn't come back for two.

3 runs required of the last ball; Fernando bowled down the leg and it was declared wide. Poor bowling from an experienced bowler.

2 runs required of last ball; Tension everywhere!

Patel tried to pull it, but the mistimed shot went left of Fernando who could have stopped it easily and in fact could have run out one of them and saved the game for Mumbai. He missed it and the ball went to long on. The batsman run for a single and return for second. The ball thrown to Jayasuriya at the bowlers end, where he misses to collect it cleanly and they complete the second run. The ball pops out of Jayasuriya's hand and the run out chance was missed. Nothing was going in favor of Mumbai. If Fernando or Jayasuriya picked the ball neatly, it would have been in favor of Mumbai or at least would have gone for bowl-out.

Now, Mumbai has to win their next game against Bangalore Royal Challengers and have Chennai lose their game against Deccan Chargers.

For once thought to be an easy target of 146, Rajasthan messed it up with poor shot selection. Kamran Akmal got out in a peculiar fashion. The ball was hit to point by Asnodkar and they wnet for the run. Pandey hit the stumps direct at the striker's end where Akmal was trying to ignore the ball, jumped in the air and the bat was also not grouded.

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Patel top scored with 40 not out for Rajasthan and Jadeja scored 23 not out.

Earlier, put into bat, Mumbai started the innings slowly. Jayasuriya was not able to time the ball and lot of shots was mistimed. The ball did not come to the bat and that added to the problem for hte batsman.

Jayasuriya scored 38 and Sachin 30. At the end of 10 overs, Mumbai were 60 for no loss. They lost wickets going for runs in the next 10 overs and were struggling at 120 for 7 in 19 overs. It was the last over which turned the match and gave hope to Mumbai. Takawale, the Mumbai wicket keeper scored 25 runs in the last over bowled by Watson.

The first ball was a top edge of the bouncer and went over keeper's head for a four. The second ball was another bouncer and called no ball and one run scored. Raje scored a single to give strike to Takawale.

Third ball was a six over long off. The slower ball was picked very well. Fourth ball was a boundary at backward point. The fifth took an edge and went over keeper's head for anothe rboundary. Last ball was a full toss and sent over ponit for hat-trick four. 25 runs in the last over and took the total to 145.

Sohail Tanvir once again bowled a superb spell containing Mumbai Indians in the early part of the innings. He has been chosen as the man of the match and will be given the Purple Cap for securing most wickets in the IPL as of this match.

With this win at home, Rajasthan Royals have won 6 out of 7 of their matches at home, which is a record in the IPL.

Match 53
Venue: Jaipur
Date: May 26, 2008
Teams: Rajasthan Royals and Mumbai Indians
Captains: Shane Warne and Sachin Tendulkar
Toss: Rajasthan Royals and decided to field
Result: Rajasthan Royals won by 5 wickets with 0 ball remaining
Man of the Match: Sohail Tanvir off Rajasthan Royals (Pakistan)
Points: Rajasthan Royals-2; Mumbai Indians-0
Score:

Mumbai Indians 145 for 7 in 20 overs (ST Jayasuriya 38, SR Tendulkar 30, AM Nayar 25, RV Uthappa 3, DR Smith 8, SM Pollock 0, M Pandey 3, YV Takawale 24 not out, RR Raje 1 not out, Extras-13 (lb 6, wide 6, nb 1), Sohail Tanvir 4-0-14-4, SR Watson 3-0-30-0, Pankaj Singh 2-0-25-0, YK Pathan 3-0-9-0, SK Trivedi 4-0-31-2, SK Warne 4-0-30-1) lost to Rajasthan Royals 146 for 5 in 20 overs (Kamran Akmal 18, SA Asnodkar 17, YK Pathan 2, SR Watson 18, M Kaif 12, RA Jadeja 23 not out, NK Patel 40 not out, Extras-16 (b 4, lb 6, wide 5, nb 1), SM Pollock 4-0-26-0, A Nehra 3-0-18-0, CRD Fernando 4-0-27-2, DR Smith 2-0-16-0, AM Nayar 1-0-4-0, RR Raje 4-0-37-1, ST Jayasuriya 2-0-8-0)

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Match 52: Ganguly Steers Last Over Victory for Kolkata!

From nowhere, skipper of Kolkata Knight Riders Sourav Ganguly, the prince of Kolkata and also fondly called as "DADA" pulled the game in favor of his team. With 71 runs required of last 5 overs and with 5 wickets in hand, Kolkata lost Akash Chopra in the 3rd ball. But, Umar Gul, the new batsman in the crease initiated the attack with two continous sixes of the 5th and 6th ball.

Last 4 overs required 57. Ganguly opened up in this over by Chawla. He hit him for a six in the first ball over long on. The second ball was a four to square leg. The third ball was another six over mid wicket. Ganguly fires! Brings the crowd alive!

39 required off 18 balls. Sreesanth bowled the first three balls sensibly giving away just two singles. Umar Gul too the chance and hit him for a four to mid wicket. The slower ball was picked well by Umar and sent for six and hte last ball was a leg bye to fine leg. Poor bowling.

23 required of 12 balls. Umar Gul got out in the 3rd ball caught at long off by Powar off VRV Singh. Ganguly hit a four of the next ball.

Last over, 15 required, 3 wickets in hand. Pathan bowling to Ganguly. Six off the first ball! WoW! What a shot! Six over deep square leg. The next ball was a full toss at waist level, but not called a no-ball. It went to mid wicket for two runs.

7 required of 4 balls. Ganguly gives room and the ball pitched outside off was lofted over bowlers head for a six! That was a super shot and turned the match in favor of Kolkata!

1 required of 3 balls. Next ball was easily pushed to cover and an easy single taken and victory to Kolkata. Sharukh Khan should be a happy man with his team winning again!

Umar Gul declared man of the match for taking 4 wickets and scoring 24 off 11 balls with 1 four and 3 sixes and giving a chacne to KKR.

Though this win is not going to change anything in the semi-final chances for both the teams, it is very important in terms of boosting the morale for the players. Kings XI already qualified for semi-finals and Kolkata is not part of it.

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Earlier, Marsh scored 40 off 31 balls with 3 fours and 2 sixes. Sangakkara top scored with 63 off 45 balls with 7 fours and 2 sixes. Yuvaraj Singh once again failed with his bat scoring just 27 off 18 balls with 3 fours and a six.

Umar Gul picked 4 wickets giving just 23 runs in his 4 overs.



Match 52
Venue: Kolkata
Date: May 25, 2008
Teams: Kolkata Knight Riders and Kings XI Punjab
Captains: Sourav Ganguly and Yuvaraj Singh
Toss: Kings XI Punjab and decided to bat
Result: Kolkata Knight Riders won by 3 wickets with 2 balls remaining
Man of the Match: Umar Gul off Kolkata Knight Riders (Pakistan)
Points: Kolkata Knight Riders-2; Kings XI Punjab-0
Score:

Kings XI Punjab 174 for 6 in 20 overs (SE Marsh 40, JR Hopes 13, KC Sangakkara 64, Yuvraj Singh 27, DPMD Jayawardene 11 not out, IK Pathan 7, PP Chawla 0, TM Srivastava 1 not out, Extras-11 (lb 1, wide 10), Umar Gul 4-0-23-4, I Sharma 4-0-49-0, BAW Mendis 4-0-24-1, AB Dinda 2-0-18-0, DJ Hussey 4-0-36-0, LR Shukla 2-0-23-0) lost to Kolkata Knight Riders 175 for 7 in 19.4 overs (SC Ganguly 86 not out, Salman Butt 24, DB Das 0, DJ Hussey 12, LR Shukla 5, WP Saha 13, A Chopra 2, Umar Gul 24, I Sharma 0 not out, Extras-9 (lb 5, wide 4), IK Pathan 3.4-0-36-0, S Sreesanth 4-0-33-2, RR Powar 2-0-14-0, VRV Singh 4-0-28-2, PP Chawla 4-0-36-2, JR Hopes 2-0-23-1)

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Match 51: Bangalore Win One More!

Akhil's quick fire 27 off 7 balls with 2 fours and 3 sixes helped Bangalore Royal Challengers had the last laugh. The last 5 overs required 60 runs, with 2 runs per ball.

Dravid hit 3 continuous fours of Bangar and got out in the next ball. He scored 31 off 21 balls with 3 fours and a six. Kohli hit a four off the last ball to reduce the targt to 43 from 4 overs.

White hit a boundary off the first ball of Vijaykumar's over and the next ball was a six over long on. Singles were take rest of the overs and target reduced to 29 from 18 balls.

Kohli hit a four of the first ball of Vaas and got out immediately. Akhil hit 2 fours in the same over and reduced the target to 16 off 12 balls.

Akhil hit 3 sixes in the 19th over of Silva to give victory to Bangalore Royal Challenger with 6 balls to spare.

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Earlier, Jaffer coming after injury, couldn't find his form as he lost his wicket for 5 runs. Kallis and Misbah-ul-Haq scored 31 and 34 respectively.

Deccan Chargers had a good start with a 101-run first wicket partnership off 68 balls. Gilchrist scored 46 off 37 balls with 4 fours and 2 sixes and Gibbs scored 47 off 34 balls with 6 fours and 2 sixes.

Surprisingly, Dravid had Kumble open the bowling with the new ball for Bangalore. You should say that it worked for him.

Venugopal Rao fired a 26 off 12 balls with 2 fours and 2 sixes.

Match 51
Venue: Hyderabad
Date: May 25, 2008
Teams: Hyderabad Deccan Chargers and Bangalore Royal Challengers
Captains: Adam Gilchrist and Rahul Dravid
Toss: Hyderabad Deccan Chargers and decided to bat
Result: Bangalore Royal Challengers won by 5 wickets with 6 balls remaining
Man of the Match: R Vinaykumar off Bangalore Royal Challengers (India)
Points: Bangalore Royal Challengers-2; Hyderabad Deccan Chargers-0
Score:

Hyderabad Deccan Chargers 165 all out in 20 overs (AC Gilchrist 46, HH Gibbs 47, RG Sharma 17, LPC Silva 0, Y Venugopal Rao 26, DB Ravi Teja 7, AS Yadav 8, SB Bangar 0, WPUJC Vaas 0, RP Singh 1, DP Vijaykumar 0 not out, Extras-13 (lb 3, wide 8, nb 2), A Kumble 4-0-33-1, DW Steyn 4-0-19-2, JH Kallis 1.2-0-19-0, V Kohli 3.4-0-25-2, R Vinay Kumar 4-0-27-3, B Akhil 3-0-39-0) lost to Bangalore Royal Challengers 171 for 5 in 19 overs (JH Kallis 31, W Jaffer 5, Misbah-ul-Haq 34, R Dravid 31, CL White 31 not out, V Kohli 9, B Akhil 27 not out, Extras-3 (lb 3), WPUJC Vaas 4-0-36-1, RP Singh 3-0-15-0, SB Bangar 4-0-30-1, DP Vijaykumar 4-0-29-0, Y Venugopal Rao 1-0-18-0, DB Ravi Teja 2-0-19-1, LPC Silva 1-0-21-0)

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Match 50: Mumbai Stunned! Delhi Wins and retains Semi-Finals Chance!

In a crucial encounter, Delhi won their match against Mumbai Indians and retained their chance for semi-finals. Now, their only hope is that Chennai should lose their match against Deccan Chargers.

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Sehwag did not help with the bat, but Dinesh Karthik proved that he is worth for Delhi and helped see through the victory. He played brilliant shots--pull, scoop over fine leg and took the match away from Mumbai. Dinesh scored his first 50, and he scored 56 not out off 32 balls with 4 fours and 3 sixes.

For Mumbai, Jayasuriya once again played a firing knock. He scored 66 off 42 balls with 6 fours and 5 sixes. Uthappa scored 46 not out off 23 balls.

Match 50
Venue: Delhi
Date: May 24, 2008
Teams: Delhi Daredevils and Mumbai Indians
Captains: Virendra Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar
Toss: Delhi Daredevils and decided to field
Result: Delhi Daredevils won by 5 wickets with 1 ball remaining
Man of the Match: KD Karthik off Delhi Daredevils (India)
Points: Delhi Daredevils-2; Mumbai Indians-0
Score:

Mumbai Indians 176 for 8 in 20 overs (ST Jayasuriya 66, SR Tendulkar 18, DR Smith 17, RV Uthappa 46 not out, AM Nayar 1, SM Pollock 16, SD Chitnis 3, P Shah 0, A Nel 0, Extras-9 (lb 1, wide 7, nb 1), GD McGrath 4-0-39-0, B Geeves 4-0-50-1, MF Maharoof 4-0-27-1, VY Mahesh 4-0-36-4, A Mishra 4-0-23-1) lost to Delhi Daredevils 179 for 5 in 19.5 overs (G Gambhir 19, V Sehwag 18, S Dhawan 27, MK Tiwary 36, TM Dilshan 0, KD Karthik 56 not out, MF Maharoof 20 not out, Extras-3 (lb 2, wide 1), SM Pollock 3-0-33-0, A Nehra 3.5-0-30-1, A Nel 3-0-31-1, DS Kulkarni 3-0-26-0, DR Smith 3-0-22-2, ST Jayasuriya 4-0-35-0)

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Match 49: Rajasthan Royals Continue Winning! Chennai miss the thriller!

In the crucial match, Chennai Super Kings has lost an opportunity one more time to confirm their birth to the semi-finals. They lost the easy target of 128 against Bangalore Royal Challengers and they lost this match by 10 runs against Rajasthan Royals.

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One more match for Chennai with last over requiring 15 runs. They won one of the three such matches. They won against Delhi when M Gony hit Shoaib Malik for 15 runs. They scored only 4 runs including one waist height no ball and lost two wickets.

JA Morkel top scored for Chennai with 71 off 40 balls with 6 fours and 4 sixes. Parthiv Patel scored 54 off 40 balls with 5 fours and 2 sixes. SK Raina added 45 off 24 balls with 6 fours and 2 sixes. Sohail Tanvir picked 3 wickets for 33 runs.

For Rajasthan, after deciding to bat, Smith scored a brilliant 91 off 51 balls with 9 fours and 4 sixes. The first wicket added 127 in 11.1 overs and Asnodkar scored 41 of those in 27 balls with 5 fours and 2 sixes. Kamran Akmal fired a quick fire 53 off 28 balls with 4 fours and 3 sixes.

JA Morkel picked 2 for 35 in 4 overs and has been declared man of the match.

Now, Chennai has only two options to enter semi-finals:

Delhi Daredevils has to lose their match against Mumbai Indians or Chennai has to win their last match against Deccan Chargers!

Match 48
Venue: Chennai
Date: May 24, 2008
Teams: Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals
Captains: Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Shane Warne
Toss: Rajasthan Royals and decided to bat
Result: Rajasthan Royals won by 10 runs
Man of the Match: JA Morkel off Chennai Super Kings (South Africa)
Points: Rajasthan Royals-2; Chennai Super Kings-0
Score:

Hyderabad Deccan Chargers 175 for 4 in 20 overs (GC Smith 91, SA Asnodkar 41, Kamran Akmal 53 not out, YK Pathan 6, M Kaif 10, T Kohli 3, Extras-7 (lb 5, wide 1, nb 1), M Ntini 4-0-43-0, M Gony 3-0-32-0, JA Morkel 4-0-35-2, M Muralitharan 4-0-31-0, L Balaji 3-0-45-0, SK Raina 2-0-20-1) beat Chennai Super Kings 201 for 7 in 20 overs (PA Patel 54, SP Fleming 7, SK Raina 45, JA Morkel 71, MS Dhoni 12, S Badrinath 1, M Gony 2 not out, A Mukund 0, Extras-9 (b 1, lb 2, wide 3, nb 3), Sohail Tanvir 4-0-33-3, YK Pathan 3-0-31-0, MM Patel 4-0-55-1, Pankan Singh 4-0-30-0, SK Warne 4-0-35-2, D Salunkhe 1-0-14-0)

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Match 48: Kings XI Enters Semi-Finals! Still No Luck for Deccan Chargers!

Kings XI beat Deccan Chargers by 6 wickets and confirmed their place in the semi-finals. Though Deccan Chargers had no chance of entering the last four teams, they were playing for gaining some pride by winning their last few matches.

Chasing the target of 176, Marsh, who won his 4th man of the match award in this match, smashed another 50 to his credit. Sangakkar and Marsh added 84 for the first wicket. Sangakkara scored 50 off 25 balls with 7 fours and 2 sixes. Vijaykumar once again proved costly. He went for 24 runs in his 2 overs. Venugopal Raowent for 23 in his 2 overs.

Yuvaraj Singh trying to for a six was caught at deep mid wicket for 17. The danger batsman Pomersbach was caught by Sharma at long on for 13.

Jayawardane and Chawla scored the remainig runs. Though Deccan Chargers had a ray of hope when the required runs equated to 27 off 18 balls.

RP Singh bowled a tight over and gave 6 runs. Two overs, 21 required. Styris once again did not bowl well in the crucial stage. He should have used his experienced and helped Deccan Chagers, but once again he failed. I think he should not be retained towards the end. He conceeded 16 runs including 2 sixes.

Last over required 5 runs and Kings XI did not make mistake in scoring them. They finished it in 3rd ball.

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Earlier, put into bat, Deccan Chargers had a good start, the best for them in this IPL. Gilly and Gibbs added 79 in 67 balls for the first wicket. Gilly reached his 50 in 42 balls with 6 fours and a six.

Gibbs was the first man to get out bowled by Gangandeep Singh for 44 off 34 balls with 3 fours and 3 sixes.

Rohit Sharma once again proved his class with another half-century. He hit four sixes and won the maximum sixes award.

With this win, Kings XI secured their place for the semi-finals. They are in second position below Rajasthan Royals. Though both of them have same points, Rajasthan is leading the table with higher net run rate.

Match 48
Venue: Mohali
Date: May 23, 2008
Teams: Kings XI Punjab and Hyderabad Deccan Chargers
Captains: Yuvaraj Singh and Adam Gilchrist
Toss: Kings XI Punjab and decided to field
Result: Kings XI Punjab won by 6 wickets with 3 balls remaining
Man of the Match: SE Marsh off Kings XI Punjab (Australia)
Points: Kings XI Punjab-2; Hyderabad Deccan Chargers-0
Score:

Hyderabad Deccan Chargers 175 for 4 in 20 overs (AC Gilchrist 50, HH Gibbs 44, RG Sharma 50, Y Venugopal Rao 2, LPC Silva 23 not out, SB Styris 1 not out, Extras-5 (lb 4, wide 1), S Sreesanth 4-0-29-1, VRV Singh 4-0-40-0, RR Powar 4-0-20-1, PP Chawla 4-0-31-0, Gangandeep Singh 3-0-33-1, Yuvaraj Singh 1-0-18-0) lost to Kings XI Punjab 178 for 4 in 19.3 overs (SE Marsh 60, KC Sangakkara 50, Yuvraj Singh 17, LA Pomersbach 13, DPMD Jayawardene 14 not out, PP Chawla 16 not out, Extras-8 (lb 3, wide 5), RP Singh 3.3-0-37-0, DP Vijaykumar 2-0-24-0, Y Venugopal Rao 2-0-23-0, SB Styris 4-0-36-1, RG Sharma 4-0-25-1, PP Ojha 4-0-30-2)

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