Indian Team Celebration after winning the T20 World Cup

Best Bowling Figures in ODI.

8th December 2001, Sinhalese Sports Club Ground, Colombo. First Match of the Triangular Series between Sri Lanka & Zimbabwe. Sri Lanka team was lead by Sanath Jayasuriya & Zimbabwean team was captained by Stuart Carlisle. Sanath Jayasuriya won the toss & elected to field first. Dion Ebrahim & Grant Flower opened the Innings for Zimbabweans. Dion Ebrahim was out for first ball of the innings of Chaminda Vaas. Vaas bowled a inswinging yorker. Ebrahim was out LBW for 0. His first over was a maiden wicket over. Then Carlisle came to bat in at number 3. Both Carlisle & Grant Flower tried to build a patnership. Vaas in his 3rd over got the wicket of Grant Flower bowled with an inswinger. He was out for 1 run off 11 balls. Andy Flower the wicket keeper-batsman came into bat at number 4. In the same over Andy Flower was out with a beautiful outswinger from Vaas. Andrew Flower tries to push it on the off but gets the out side edge and a very easy catch to Sangakkara behind the stump. He was out for 0 off 2 balls. The Zimbabwean score was 11 runs for 3 wickets.

Craig Wishart came to bat at number 3. Both Carlisle & Wishart survived for few overs. Vaas in his sixth over got the wicket of Carlisle who made 16 off 33 balls with 3 fours. Carlisle was trying to play a big shot he got a leading edge & was caught at third man by Suresh Perera. Next Ball to Craig Wishart ball wraps him on the pad & he is LBW out for 6. Next man is Tatenda Taibu Vaas on a Hatrick. Vaas pitches on the off stump and swings in as Taibu lift his bat above and tries to leave it but unfortunately gets hit on his pad plumb LBW. Vaas gets his hatrick. Vaas figures are 6 overs 3 maidens 6 wickets. He only conceeded 12 runs in his first 6 overs. Vaas gets his seventh wicket of Heath Streak LBW for 0. Vaas got his eighth wicket in his eighth over with the wicket of ML Nkala for 1 caught by Sangakkara. This is new world record no bowler in One Day Internationals has taken 8 wickets in an innings. Muralitharan took the next two wickets in his single over. Zimbabwe were all out for 38, which is also the third lowest score in One Day Internationals.

Sri Lanka chased that Target of 39 in just 4.2 overs with the lose of 9 wickets. Jayasuriya was not out on 13 & Marvan Atapattu was not out on 23. Chaminda Vaas was given the Man of the Match. His figures were 8 overs 3 maidens 19runs & 8 wickets. This is still a record in ODIs no bowler has taken 8 wickets.

Highest One Day Internationl Individual Score

21st May 1997, MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai, India. Day & Night Match between India & Pakistan. Indian Team was captained by Sachin Tendulkar & Pakistani side was captained by Rameez Raja. Pakistan captain Rameez Raja had won the toss & elected to bat first. Saeed Anwar & Shahid Afridi opened the batting for Pakistan. Pakistan lost their first wicket that of Afridi very early on in the innings when the Pakistan score was just 8 runs. Saeed Anwar & Rameez Raja, who came in at number 3, controlled the innings to a healthy patnership of 89 runs. Due to some problem Shahid Afridi was the runner for Saeed Anwar starting from 18.6 overs untill the end. Rameez Raja was out for 22 runs off 51 balls. Saeed Anwar was looking well set for a big score. Then came Ijaz Ahmed to bat at number four. Anwar & Ijaz had a good patnership of 116 runs. Ijaz was playing well but failed to capitalise on the start & was out LBW for 39 off the bowling of Kumble.

Saeed Anwar reached his century. He was just blasting the Indian bowlers. He was hitting sixes of Kumbles bowling. Finally he was out for 194 off 146 balls. His knock included 22 fours & 5 sixes. He was at the wicket for 206 minutes. Pakistan at the end of 50 overs made 327 for the loss of 5 wickets. Inzaman-ul-Haq was not out for 39 off 33 balls.

India in their innings were all out for 292 off 49.2 overs. Rahul Dravid was the top scorer he made 107 off 116 balls. Aaqib Javed was the pick of the Pakistani bowlers he took 5 wickets for 61 runs of his 10 overs. Man of the Match was given to Saeed Anwar for his brilliant knock. Saeed Anwar played 247 matches in his ODI career & he had 28 Man of the Match Awards in ODI's playing for Pakistan. This knock of Saeed Anwar is still a record highest individual innings in ODI's. Who will be the next batsman who will score 200 in ODI's. Will it be Adam Gilchrist, Shahid Afridi, Dhoni, Jayasuriya, Sehwag, Lara, Ganguly, Symonds or the run machine Sachin. Post your comments below.

Sir Donald Bradman the Greatest Test Batsman in the World

Sir Donald George Bradman also known as "The Don" was born on August 27, 1908, Cootamundra, New South Wales, Australia. Don made his Test debut for Australia at the age of 20 against England in 1928 in the First Test of the Five Match Test Series. In his first Test played at the Exhibition Ground, Brisbane he made 18 in the First Innings & 1 in the Second Innings. England won that Test match by 675 runs.In Don's Second Test match against England in the 3rd Test Match of the Series played on Melbourne Cricket Ground he made his Maiden Test Century in the Second Innings of Australia he was out for112 off 281 balls which included 7 fours made in 246 minutes.The first hundred in which was many to follow. England won that match by 3 wickets.

When Sir Don used to play Test Cricket only four countrys used to play Test Cricket at that time They were England, West Indies, South Africa & India. Against England he played 37 Tests in which he made 5028 runs at an average of 89 which included 19 Centurys & 12 half Centurys. His Highest Test score against England was 334. Against West Indies he played 5 Tests he made 447 runs against them at an average of 74 including two Centurys. Highest score of 223 against the West Indians .Against the South Africans he played 5 Tests he made 806 runs at an average 201, including 4 Centurys. Highest score of 299 Not Out against them. Against India he played 5 Tests he made 715 runs at an average of 178, including 4 Centurys & 1 Half Century & Highest score of 201 against the Indians.

In a career span of 20 years for Australia he played 52 Test matches he made 6996 at a Batting Average of 99.94 which included 29 Centurys & 13 Half Centurys. And a Highest score of 334 against England. In his last Test match played against England in the fifth Test in the Five match Test series, played at Kennington Oval, London he was out for a duck. This was the end of a great career. Though many have surpassed the number of centuries he had made but no batsmen has been able to match his career average of 99.94. I think this record Batting average will stay for a long time this will be a unbrekable record.

Sir Donald Bradman was selected as one of the five Wisden Cricketers of the Century in 2000. He died on Feburary 25, 2001, Adelaide, Australia. He was 92 years of age. Sir Don used to say in modern day cricket Sachin Tendulkar plays like me.

Record Patnership for any wicket in Tests.

In the First Test match of the Two match Test Series Between Sri Lanka and the South Africa played at Sinhalese Sports Club Ground, Colombo on 27th to 31st July, 2006. South Africa won the toss & elected to bat first. They were bundled out for 169 in their First Innings. Muralitharan & Dilhara Fernando taking 4 wickets each.Sri Lanka in their First Innings lost their first two wickets early when the score was 14.Kumar Sangakkara was on the other end not out he was joined by Captain Mahela Jayawardene.They both formed a huge patnership of 624 runs for the third wicket.That is a world record patnership for any wicket in Test Cricket History.Surpassing the previous record, held by two Sri Lankans Roshan Mahanama & Sanath Jayasuriya, of 576 runs against Indians in the year 1997 for the second wicket.

They added 624 runs for the 3rd Wicket in 157 overs. In which Kumar Sangakkara contributed with 285 runs and Mahela Jayawardene made 309. Both of them maintained a run rate of 3.97 runs per over.Finally Kumar Sangakkara was out for 287 off 457 balls in 675 minutes which included 35 fours. And Captain Mahela Jayawardene was out for 374 off 572 balls in 752 minutes with 43 fours and one six.Mahela Jayawardene's 374 was the highest score by any batsman in the year 2006 & also the fourth highest Individual score by any batsman in Test Cricket History.

Sri Lanka declared their First Innings for 756 runs for the lose of 5 wickets. South Africa in their second innings were All Out for 434. With contributions from J.Rudolph 90, Mark Boucher 85, Andrew Hall 64, Captain Ashwell Prince 61. For the Sri Lankans Muttiah Muralitharan took 6 wickets. Sri Lanka won that match by an innings and 153 runs. Man of the match was given to Captain of Sri Lanka Mahela Jayawardene.