Sri Lanka

And years of torment for batsmen begins...

Thirty-six years ago today marked a seminal moment in Test cricket history. No amazing bowling feat, no batting records broken or remarkable matches. Rather, Muttiah Muralitharan was born in a small village near Kandy in Sri Lanka. A day that the majority of Test batsmen have probably wished never had happened. Muralitharan is the world’s leading Test-match bowler with 735 wickets, having overtaken a chubby Aussie in December 2007. Having endured numerous accusations surrounding his action, Murali has continually comeback to confound his critics and has now set his sights on reaching 1,000 Test wickets. Which isn't exactly wonderful news for the rest of cricket's Test playing nations.      

Elsewhere, in 1961 saw the Bay of Pigs Invasion, an unsuccessful attempt to oust Fidel Castro organised by the CIA. In 1964, a band called the Rolling Stones realeased their debut self-titled album, staying at number one in the U.K. charts for 12 weeks. Forty-four years later they’re still going, and looking as young as ever. Well, we say that...

In 1984, Police Officer Yvonne Fletcher was shot dead during a demonstration outside the Libyan People’s Bureau in London. While British journalist John McCarthy was kidnapped in war-torn Lebanon in Beirut in 1986.

And it's Abdur Razzak! as they say in Bangladesh to New Zealand batsman Roger Twose (40), India's Dinesh Mongia (31), Victoria Beckham (34), along with Sean ‘Sharpe’ Bean (49), author and Gooner Nick Hornby (51), rapper-come-actor Redman (38) and French tennis player and future star, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (23).

Ey Mon! I has just returned from mi Caribbean cruise ya now...

Well you can stop speaking like that for starters...

I kind of liked it...

Well I didn't, so what was the cricket like?

Amazing. The West Indies squared the series, their first win at Queen's Park since 2000, and the third highest run chase in Trinidad ever, leaving the Sri Lankans still searching for that elusive Caribbean triumph.

Wow! Some game. Who got the Windies runs?

Ramnaresh Sarwan ended his quest for a series century with an exemplorary 102 - he could've played Murali with his co..

[coughs] Now now keep it clean!

Sorry. Well Sarwan was man-of-the-match, series and general legend. He hit 57 in the first innings but more pleasingly was the return to form of Shivnarine Chanderpaul whose unbeaten 86 saw them home.

So Murali couldn't weave his magic once more then?

He never gave up but how ever many revs he gave his wrist or as big as his smile got, the West Indian batsmen combatted his devilish spin with assured accord, which was in stark contrast to the first innings when he picked up his 63rd five-wicket Test haul.

Any other highlights?

Apart from the exotic dancing, cocktails and late-night moonwalking then Thilan Samaraweera's hundred wasn't all that bad considering the amount of damage Fidel Edwards and Jerome Taylor did to the Lions top order.

What's your plans now then... Any other cricket trips?

I'm staying at home until the IPL starts in May but i'll be at Lords for the County Championship curtain raiser between the MCC & Sussex so we'll catch up then.... One Love, Every-ting is ganna be arie!

Enjoying the other cricket?

Yeah i'm the best in my office. Scored a ton this morning but I was caught off the dartboard.

Gutting. No I mean In the West Indies. Sri Lanka managed their first win on Caribbean soil in five attempts.

Not as good as my first win in the kitchen. It only took me a morning. Scores on the doors?

The Lions won by 121 runs. This new bloke Warnapura had a good one, scoring 182 runs in the match while captain Mahela Jayawardene got a century in the first innings but no such luck for the Windies.

What? No free rice & pea...

Funny.... Ramnaresh Sarwan did his utmost scoring 80 & 72 and he had some stubborn support from Dwayne Bravo, second dig, who helped himself to 83 but Man of the Match Chaminda Vaas ripped through the heart of the Islanders with 5-61 to go alongside his 3-48 in the first innings.

What was the weather like?

Beautiful, Calypso, Carnival...

So when's the next Test?

Starts on April 3rd but then there's the ODIs so it's shaping up to be hot, hot, hot...

Just like my rich vein of form in the office then....

I suggest you go back there...

Just like that!

Sri Lanka salvage some pride at the MCG

They can’t win all the time, but they sure know when the best time to lose is, when it doesn’t matter. As was the case today when Australia lost the final group game of the Commonwealth Bank Series to Sri Lanka, with the number one side in the world safe in the knowledge that they’d already qualified for the final.

But it at least it allowed Sri Lanka to salvage some pride with a 13-run victory, after their defeat to India the other day meaning that they’ll be at home sucking their thumbs when the two other sides contest the three-game finals.

Despite bowling Sri Lanka out for 221, Nathan Bracken with 4-29, Australia for once struggled with the bat as they lost their lost five wickets for just ten runs. Despite an opening stand of 107, including a typical quick-fire Gilchrist 83 from just 50 balls, the retiring wicketkeeper’s dismissal led to a batting collapse of English proportions as Clarke, Ponting, Symonds, Haddin and Hussey fell cheaply before Brad Hogg and Brett Lee gave Australia some hope with a knocks of 21 and 37 respectively, before Lee was bowled by Jayasuriya in the penultimate over to end the match.

India 180/3 (Gambhir 63* Tendulkar 63) beat Sri Lanka 179 (Kumar 4-31, Sharma 4-41) by seven wickets

India cruised into the final of the CB Series after an emphatic seven-wicket victory over Sri-Lanka in Hobart.

A century-stand between Sachin Tendulkar and the in form Gautam Gambhir saw India breeze past Sri-Lanka’s lamentable total of 179 for just the loss of three wickets with 17 overs to spare.

The Lions capitulated from 72/1 to 93/7 in just ten overs on a deck that could only be described as a batsman’s paradise. Only Chamara Kapugedera’s brave unbeaten 57 ensured the game went past the tea break.

The tall, pacy seamer, Ishant Sharma and the gentle swing of Praveen Kumar did all the damage, claiming four wickets apiece after Sanath Jayasuria and Kumar Sangakkara had seemingly set the platform for a strong total with a 50-run second wicket partnership.

Tendulkar wasted little time to get going, piercing the boundary on 11 occassions, as he raced to 63 off 54 balls before being snaffled by Chamara Silva off Muttiah Muralitharan.

The prolific left-handed, Gambhir, added the polishing touches to a convincing win, manoeuvring the ball around the outfield with consummate ease as he brought up his half-century off 72 balls.

Yuvraj Singh blasted a quickfire 36 to get in on the act, as the Indian’s made mincemeat of a disappointing Sri-Lanka effort.