ICL T20 warm-up: Red hot RCB beat Stags

Vijay Mallya-owned IPL franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) began their Champions League preparations in style, beating the champions from New Zealand - Central Stags - by 22 runs in a practice match at the High Performance Centre in Pretoria on Tuesday.

The Bangalore team were too hot to handle in a one-sided affair in which the Stags elected to bowl after winning the toss. An opening partnership of 71 between Manish Pandey (40) and Rahul Dravid (38) put aside any apprehensions about how Indian teams would fair on hard, bouncy tracks here.

Robin Uthappa's 53 not out must have banged the national selectors' door again, who must be looking over their shoulder for an opener as the team struggled in Sri Lanka in the absence of Sachin Tendulkar and Gautam Gambhir.

Uthappa's fireworks were intensified by Cameron White's who came in to propel RCB to a formidable 172/2 with his 36-run whirlwind knock.

For the Stags, only George Worker and Seth Rance kittied wickets. Batting too looked pretty lethargic, with the skipper Jamie How struggling to just five runs in a 26-ball inning. Only Peter Ingram could add some momentum to the chase with his 63 runs.

In the absence of any support from the other end, Ingram couldn't win it for Stags against a backbreaking spell of 4 wickets for 9 runs in three overs by RCB all-rounder Dillon du Preez. The local player used the home conditions to his advantage by running through the Stags' top and middle order.

Continuous stutters prevented Stags from presenting any challenge and in the end, they could muster only 150/5, giving RCB a comfortable 22-run victory.

Kings lock horns with Stags

One team is loaded with star power, the other with commoners. One boasts of specialists who pride in demolishing the opposition, the other has six players who can bat and bowl. One is led by a T20 World Cup winning skipper, the other who has not even played five T20 international games.

It's an unequal battle and Jamie How and his Central Districts Stags would do well on Saturday if they can walk off the field with just their heads held high against the MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings at Kingsmead, Durban.

A look at the team composition is enough to give Chennai the winning points. Now it's just a matter of going out there and carving out a nice Net Run Rate. Even with six all-rounders, the stags just don't have enough fire power to challenge the Chennai batting line up that boasts of the likes of Mathew Hayden, Murali Vijay, Suresh Raina and the skipper himself.

Stags' pacer Michael Mason, Peter Ingram and captain How have limited experience at the top level, while another batsman Matthew Sinclair has sparked only in the longer version of the game. Their most influential player, Ross Taylor, changed his loyalties at the last moment and decided to represent Royal Challengers Bangalore instead of the home team. Clearly, he knows which team to back!

If Chennai win the toss, Dhoni is sure to elect to bat first on a Durban wicket known to help the batsmen in the early stages and the bowlers later as the ball gets old. The ball, however, may get battered before getting old with the burly Hayden determined to prove that his 'mongoose' bat is just the weapon of choice.

Vijay could be equally destructive at the top but with a more sober approach than Hayden, while Raina - who has gathered most of his runs with a big heave over the mid-wicket in the recent past - will be itching to demonstrate his skills again.

Skipper Dhoni, too, won't mind hitting a few lusty blows and S Badrinath will be the perfect foil to take the innings forward just in case the side loses a few quick wickets.

With Doug Bollinger, Albie Morkel, Muthiah Muralitharan, and all-rounder Justin Kemp in the side, Chennai has the potent bowling attack to defend any total their batsmen set during their outings in the middle.

This game is a sure-shot win for the Super Kings. All that the Stags can do is run for cover.

Middle-order props up CSK innings

A gutsy innings by S Badrinath saved the sinking ship of Chennai Super Kings to a certain extent after they got off to a dreadful start as their opener Mathew Hayden went for a golden duck while Suresh Raina too could not control a rising delivery and gave a simple catch in the slips in their opening game against Central Stags at Kingsmead, Durban on Saturday.

Earlier, the toss went in favour of Mahendra Singh Dhoni who had no hesitation in batting first.

The Chennai team will bank on it's powerful batting lineup to win their first match of the Champions League against a Kiwi team that has a lot of bits-and-pieces players who can spring a few surprises for the Indian champions.

TEAMS:

Chennai Super Kings: M Vijay, M Hayden, S Raina, S Badrinath, J Morkel, MS Dhoni (c/wk), S Anirudha, D Bollinger, R Ashwin, M Muralitharan, L Balaji

Central Stags: J How (c), P Ingram, G Worker, M Sinclair, B Griggs(wk), B Diamanti, K Noema-Barnett, D Bracewell, A Milne, M McClenaghan, M Mason

The dark horses of Champions League 2010

Central Districts

When Peter Ingram - also a rugby player until he broke his jaw during one of the trials - is not playing cricket, he teaches New Plymouth kids how to mould objects out of metal. When he needs to relax, Ingram picks up his gun, acquired six months ago, and hunts down pigs. "Once you shoot them, you cut them all the way down to the gut, cut off the head and carry it, and then skin it," he says. "It's beautiful to eat, it is very lean and has no fat. It relaxes me. Sometimes cricket can be pretty tough." Cricket shouldn't ideally be so tough for this right-hand opener, for his model is the master of minimalism, Virender Sehwag. Having reduced excessive feet movement, after watching Sehwag bat, Ingram has "averaged about 65 and scored heaps and heaps of runs". Five days younger to Sehwag, Ingram is known to be a clean hitter who turns his starts into massive scores, which are similar traits. He is yet to display those in his short international cricket, and the Champions League cannot be a bad time to start.

Guyana

Jonathan Foo is the latest addition to the list of exciting talent to emerge from Berbice. The lower order dynamo of Chinese descent became an instant hero during his first domestic event, the Caribbean T20 tournament. He warmed up to the format in his first two games, sealing tense chases with quickfire, unbeaten 20s. He lasted only five balls against Trinidad and Tobago, but managed to hit two sixes in a game of close margins. His best came in the decider where he lashed 42 off 17 balls, with three sixes and four fours, lifting Guyana from 85 for 8 in the 17th over to chase 135. His exploits have already evoked comparisons with Kieron Pollard, and if Foo can have the kind of impact the T&T allrounder created last year, West Indies cricket would have found its next hero.

South Australia

Tom Cooper has been around the world to play for South Australia in the Champions League. He's originally from New South Wales, but switched to the Redbacks and has just finished his first season with Holland. He could end up as more than a journeyman if his aggressive batting clicks consistently. The 160 he struck in a 50-over game against West Indies in 2008-09 is still being talked about.

Mumbai Indians

Ambati Rayudu is just 24 but he has already seen plenty of twists and turns in his brief cricketing career. At 16, he was touted as the next great Indian hope after he blasted 177 for India colts against England. At 21, he was almost finished as he chose to play in the rebel Indian Cricket League. In 2009, he returned to mainstream cricket when he accepted the BCCI's amnesty offer and he starred in the last year's IPL . Sachin Tendulkar empowered him with the responsibility of batting up order, ahead of the likes of Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard, and Rayudu delivered on numerous occasions.

Lions

Ethan O' Reilly's stature doesn't create the impression that he can generate a lot of pace but deception is his biggest advantage. A short, small-built right armer, O' Reilly moved from Eastern Cape to join the Lions last season, where he's clocked respectable speeds of 140-plus kilometers per hour. He took 11 wickets in eight matches during the Standard Bank Pro20 to help the Lions to their first final in three seasons. O' Reilly usually opens the bowling but he is often given at least an over at the death because of his ability to bowl full when it's most needed. His best performances of the season came against the Lions' arch rivals, the Titans, where he took 3 for 27 in the round-robin match and 2 for 18 during the first leg semi-final. The 24-year old has a good bouncer and knows how to make the ball swing and as a relatively unknown prospect could prove dangerous for the opposition.

Warriors

The name Ashwell Prince is not often associated with limited-overs cricket in a positive light, but he has worked hard to change that. The most significant sign of that can be seen in his strike rate. Prince has scored at rates of 109.80, 112.04 and 97.18 in his last three limited-overs series. They were all domestic competitions with the last two being forty-over versions, but Prince's aggressive intent has been clear. In the South African MTN40, he played four matches, scored 186 runs with a highest score of 128. That match-winning century came in the final of the competition against the Dolphins. He also scored a century for Lancashire in the Clydesdale Bank 40 and in the Standard Bank Pro20 he scored 112 runs in four matches with a top score of 69. Since his disappointing World Cup in the 2007, Prince has been regarded as a Test player but with the new-found confidence, experience and the ability to remain calm under pressure, Prince may prove to be the Warriors' knight in shining armour.

Victoria

Bryce McGain will always be associated with his unforgettable Test debut in Cape Town. But don't think that he can't bowl. While his hammering was an unfortunate end to his international ambitions, he remains a huge threat on the domestic scene with his thoughtful legbreaks. Depending on the situation, he can tease with flight or tie down with control. Attack him at your peril.

Wayamba

Jeevantha Kulatunga, Wayamba's big-hitting opener and occasional medium-pacer, had to wait 17 years after his first-class debut to make it to the Sri Lankan team. Two failures in a low-profile Twenty20 tournament in Canada and he was tossed back to the domestic circuit. That hasn't discouraged him, though, and he has been a key ingredient in Wayamba's successive triumphs in the domestic Twenty20s. Kulatunga was at his best in this year's Interprovincial Twenty20 tournament, bludgeoning 277 runs at 152.19 to bag the Player-of-the-Series award. He smashed the fastest Twenty20 century made in Sri Lanka, and his combination with Mahela Jayawardene at the top of the order proved to be the cornerstone of Wayamba's success. It earned him a place in the preliminary squad to the World Twenty20 in the West Indies but the presence of Jayawardene and Tillakaratne Dilshan meant there was no space for him to make an international return.

Chennai Super Kings

Shadab Jakati used the IPL ticket to get out of cricketing anonymity. His career might start and end with the IPL but he has been one of the pleasant surprises that the tournament has thrown up to the cricketing world. A left-arm orthodox spinner, Jakati excelled in the South African pitches, and was crucial to Chennai Super Kings' surge in the middle stages of the 2009 tournament. He announced himself with four-fors in back-to-back games, a remarkable achievement in Twenty20s. He was also a key figure in Chennai's winning campaign the following year, taking 13 wickets.

Bangalore Royal Challengers

Dillon du Preez is not extremely fast. He is not a glamour boy. In fact he was not even a permanent fixture in the Eagles team in his first three seasons. 2007-08 changed all that; he grabbed 55 wickets and stormed into public imagination. In 2008, he signed with Leicestershire as a Kolpak player. In 2009, he joined IPL and made a dream debut. He started with that rarest of Twenty20 beasts - the double-wicket maiden, and it included the scalp of Sachin Tendulkar. And when he removed JP Duminy in his next over, his figures read: 1.2-1-0-3.

Adaptability will be key in CLT20 - Kumble

Anil Kumble the Royal Challengers Bangalore captain, has said the speed at which teams adapt to the pitches in South Africa will be crucial to their success in a short tournament like the Champions League Twenty20. He also said it was too late to bring in Kevin Pietersen, who has no international commitments during the Champions League after being dropped from England's limited-overs squads.

The tournament will be played from September 10 to September 26 in South Africa. In most countries except England, the cricketing season usually kicks off in September or October, which means many sides will be rusty.

"It is the first tournament for a lot of teams," Kumble said after an interaction with more than 50 Bangalore fans on the eve of the team's departure from India. "In South Africa, it is the beginning of the season and it is the first game of the season for some of the players in RCB as well. The biggest challenge is how quickly you acclimatise to the conditions and the need to start well in the tournament."

Bangalore reached the finals of the IPL in 2009, when it was held in South Africa, and the team's coach and several players come from that country, giving them an advantage over other overseas teams. "We can take some confidence going to South Africa having done well there in IPL 2. Our coach Ray Jennings also understands the South African conditions well. With Jacques Kallis and Dale Steyn around, those conditions should suit our bowling as well."

The team's batting is bolstered by heavy-hitters such as Ross Taylor and Cameron White, but they will miss the services of World Twenty20 Man of the Series Pietersen, who was their big-ticket signing last year. "It's a bit too late," Kumble said. "We had to announce our squad about a month ago, which we did."

Most IPL players signed three year contracts in 2008 that come to an end after the Champions League. It has been nearly two years since Kumble, who will turn 40 in October, announced his international retirement and he was unwilling to commit on how much longer he would continue to play the IPL.

"Once you retire, you have to take it one step at a time," he said. "So you don't plan and say that I am going to play for the next three years. Hopefully I will be in good shape for the six games this month and we come back victorious. That will be a great motivation to get into the next year. To think of the next year is very premature."

A week ahead of the Champions League, the cricketing headlines are dominated by the spot-fixing controversy in London. Kumble was confident the right steps would be taken to avoid such episodes during the tournament in South Africa. "Every tournament, every international match that happens is under a perceived threat," he said. "I don't think we need to be worried about these things but we can't close our eyes. ACSU is there to deal with it."

CLT20 a chance for youngsters to shine - Jamie How

the Central Districts Stags captain, has said the Champions League Twenty20 is an opportunity for the youngsters in his side to stake claims for higher honours.

"It gives them the chance to show what they're made of on the international scene and perhaps if they perform well, they might even have a chance of being picked up for one of the IPL teams," How said ahead of the tournament that gets underway on September 10. "Both individually and as a team, we have a chance to pit our skills against the world's best, which is a very exciting prospect."

Central Districts qualified for the event by winning the 2009/10 edition of New Zealand's domestic HRV Cup. How was wary of the competition his side will encounter in the Champions League which features the top domestic Twenty20 sides from around the world. "Every team here is here on merit. The fact that they're here means that they are very good teams, winning or finishing near the top of their individual competitions. Each of the teams has its strengths and weaknesses and we just have to be able to deal with those."

The team will miss the services of two of their key players - Ross Taylor, who will turn out for his IPL side Royal Challengers Bangalore, and Jacob Oram who is out with a knee injury. How admitted his side would be hampered by their, and the injured allrounder Graham Napier's, absence. "Ross is certainly a big loss for us. He's one of our best players, and along with missing Jacob Oram and Graham, it's been a big loss, but it also gives someone else an opportunity to step into their big shoes."

How looked forward to the event and felt the youngsters in his side would enjoy playing in South Africa. "It's a wonderful experience for the younger guys who haven't been here, because it's a great country to tour. There are really great cricket facilities and exciting places off the field. And we're doing quite a bit of travelling - we play in Centurion, Durban and Port Elizabeth - so we'll see quite a bit of the country."

Efficient Warriors seal easy win over Wayamba

Juan Theron could do with a better nickname. He was anything but Rusty, taking two wickets in the first over of the match, and one in his first over back, hurting both Wayamba's start and comeback. On St George's Park's flat pitch, and with short boundaries, 154 proved to be a comfortable chase for an efficient Warriors side, who made it two in two for South African teams in Champions League Twenty20. The required run-rate, never a threatening proposition in the first place, fell under six in the 14th over.

Theron, with his efforts at the top and the end of the innings, provided the game-changing moments, reducing Wayamba to 2 for 2 and then ensuring only 43 came off the last six overs. Jeevantha Kulatunga, Wayamba's hard-hitting journeyman opener, counterattacked, scoring 49 off his team's first 69 runs, but missed support from the other end and the innings failed to get a fillip after he got out for 59, in the 15th over.

Warriors didn't need any solo heroics in the chase as Davey Jacobs, Colin Ingram, Justin Kreusch and Mark Boucher all made contributions. From the moment Ashwell Price walked across to the fifth ball of the innings and flicked it past midwicket for four, boundaries kept coming at the right times, either through improvisation or through correct hits straight down the ground.

After Prince's dismissal, Ingram and Jacobs added 52 risk-free runs in 34 legal deliveries. Left-hand batsman Ingram's high elbow and straight hits stood out, and so did Jacobs' square-cuts off Mendis. Those shots involved slight risk as Jacobs had to create room to those long hops. Two boundaries were followed by one that found its way through to the leg stump. Kreusch came in and hit the sixth and seventh balls he faced for boundaries through the on side. That brought the target down to 68 off 62, but a tight over from Rangana Herath produce a false stroke from Ingram.

Wayamba tried to create pressure, conceding just seven off the next two overs. With 54 required off seven overs, it seemed Wayamba were starting to slip their foot in the door. Kaushal Lokuarachchi then got one over too many, and Boucher slammed the door shut, hitting two massive sixes in a 21-run over.

A mark of the efficiency of Warriors's effort was that they hit seven sixes fewer than Wayamba, but played 17 fewer dot balls too. Kulatunga, though, was not responsible for the middling Wayamba innings, which got off to a poor start.

The Mahelas, Jayawardene and Udawatte, were both troubled by swing in the first over. Jayawardene edged the second ball he faced to second slip, Udawatte did the same to the third ball he faced but it fell short. He lobbed the next delivery, a short one, to midwicket, giving the Warriors a dream start. But Kulatunga was about to jolt them into action.

It started with a short and wide delivery from Lonwabo Tsotsobe. It was dealt with a powerful cut, with no effort to keep it down. Anything with a hint of width was going to be dealt with similarly. After two such boundaries, Tsotsobe overpitched, and was lofted straight down the ground. When he tried to cramp Kulatunga up with a short ball into his body, the pull shot nearly went out of the ground. Tsotsobe to Kulatunga: four balls, 18 runs, and Wayamba were 28 after 3.3 overs.

Kulatunga responded to the fall of his captain, Jehan Mubarak, with another counterattack, a six off Nicky Boje in the same over, taking Wayamba to 58 after nine overs. His solo received semblance of support from Kushal Perera, the left-hand wicketkeeper-batsman, who hit sweetly timed sixes in the 11th, 12th and 13th overs. Kulatunga responded with one in the 14th, taking Wayamba to 110, and a big score looked on the cards.

The game was about to turn, though. Tsotsobe earned a sense of redemption, removing Kulatunga with his first ball back. Theron came back too, getting Kushal with a slower ball. The two allrounders, Thisara Perera and Farveez Maharoof, holed out looking to hit Makhaya Ntini for sixes, and it was obvious then that Kulatunga's effort wouldn't be enough.

Balaji included, Chennai elect to bat

MS Dhoni stuck to his IPL strategy of batting first in Chennai's first Champions League Twenty20 fixture against the New Zealand domestic champions Central Districts.

It was a plan that worked well for Chennai during their victorious 2010 IPL campaign, especially in the semi-final and final where their bowlers defended modest scores. They did away with their three-spinner attack though, leaving out left-arm spinner Shadab Jakati for Lakshmipathy Balaji. Doug Bollinger, Matthew Hayden, Muttiah Muralitharan and Albie Morkel were the four overseas picks.

Dhoni's decision played into Central Districts' hands, their captain Jamie How revealing his side wanted to bowl first. They picked four seamers on a pitch that is likely to do a bit early on, after being under the covers in the morning. Despite the absence of Ross Taylor, who is playing for Bangalore in this tournament, How's side boasted of some international talent, including Mathew Sinclair, Michael Mason and Peter Ingram.

Central Districts: 1 Jamie How (capt), 2 Peter Ingram, 3 George Worker, 4 Mathew Sinclair, 5 Bevan Griggs (wk), 6 Brendon Diamanti, 7 Kieran Noema-Barnett, 8 Doug Bracewell, 9 Adam Milne, 10 Mitchell McClenaghan, 11 Michael Mason

Chennai Super Kings team: 1 M Vijay, 2 Matthew Hayden, 3 Suresh Raina, 4 S Badrinath, 5 Albie Morkel, 6 MS Dhoni (capt & wk), 7 Srikkanth Anirudha, 8 Doug Bollinger, 9 R Ashwin, 10 Muttiah Muralitharan, 11 Lakshmipathy Balaji

Davies sets England up for comfortable 24-run win

England's winning momentum showed no signs of abating as they took the opening one-day international at Chester-le-Street by 24 runs, but at least they were made to work a little harder by Pakistan. Steve Davies led the batting effort with a powerful 87 off 67 balls, his first international half-century, and was backed up by a composed 69 from Jonathan Trott as England piled up 274 for 6 in a match reduced to 41 overs by a wet outfield. For once the visitors' batting didn't implode as some spirited contributions kept them alive but they couldn't find the major stand required.

There are 12 ODIs between now and the start of the World Cup for England to finalise their plans but conditions in Durham during early September are a million miles away from anything they'll face in India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. However, this is a strong one-day unit being put into place and one of the few areas still containing some uncertainty, the wicketkeeper-opening batsman, was a success here with Davies' impressive effort.

His only previous ODI came as an emergency replacement for Matt Prior at last year's Champions Trophy when he faced Australia in the semi-final at Centurion. Here he timed the ball beautifully all around the wicket and was especially strong square through the off side whenever he was offered width during a lively 37-ball fifty. Unlike Craig Kieswetter, who often looked hyperactive at the crease and lost control of his shots, Davies remained still and composed until he fell cutting at Saeed Ajmal.

In their current frame of mind it would have taken a monumental effort from Pakistan to chase down the runs, but they at least gave themselves half a chance. Mohammad Hafeez and Kamran Akmal added 62 for the first wicket, Pakistan's best opening stand in any international since the Headingley Test against Australia, before Graeme Swann's usual party trick of a first over wicket when Hafeez was well caught at deep-square leg.

Despite all the allegations circulating in recent weeks players have insisted the matches will be played in the right spirit, but for a moment tensions nearly boiled over during Stuart Broad's second over. Kamran pulled out of his stance and pointed angrily towards Trott at mid-on then Andrew Strauss became involved before Billy Doctrove stepped in. The heated moment appeared to pass by the end of the over, but feelings were clearly running fairly high.

England's fielding wasn't quite at its best as Kamran was given two lives in two balls when he was missed by Strauss at point and Trott at long-off. This time the home side had breathing space, but Andy Flower and Richard Halsall, the fielding coach, will have noted the errors. Michael Yardy reasserted England's control when he had Mohammad Yousuf lbw coming too far across the crease and Swann won his duel against Kamran when the wicketkeeper couldn't clear long off having made his first half-century of the tour.

Umar Akmal hit 43 off 33 balls before trying to scooping Broad over the keeper and Asad Shafiq showed some spirit as he clubbed Tim Bresnan for four boundaries. But Shahid Afridi could barely middle the ball during a painful 25-ball innings and when he carved to cover it really was the end for Pakistan's slim chances.

It was England's efficient batting display which set up the victory and they'd been led off in style as the new opening duo of Davies and Strauss who added 78 in 12 overs. Mohammad Irfan's much-anticipated introduction into international cricket didn't quite go to plan as his first over was dispatched for 15. However, it was still a touch harsh when he was whipped out of the attack after one over and his replacement, Umar Gul, didn't do any better as his two-over burst cost 22 and he finished with 67 off six overs.

Shoaib Akhtar was the only paceman to offer any control and was unlucky not to claim success in an opening five-over burst that cost just nine runs. He received very little support, however, and despite his parsimonious efforts England had 63 on the board at the end of his opening spell. Davies was dropped at short cover on 21 when Afridi could hold a stinging drive and Strauss continued to show impressive intent - no doubt aware that scoring heavily off the spinners will be key in the World Cup - as he launched Ajmal over long-on for his second six, Ajmal, though, claimed revenge when Strauss missed a mighty sweep and he was given a send-off by the bowler for his troubles.

With Trott playing himself in and working the ball for ones and twos the onus was on Davies to keep the tempo high which he did successfully until he tried to cut Ajmal 13 short of his hundred. Pakistan were unlucky not to strike again shortly afterwards when Doctrove failed to spot Trott's edge off Ajmal on 26 and then lost the services of Irfan who limped off midway through his sixth over.

Paul Collingwood fell trying to take advantage of the batting Powerplay and Eoin Morgan edged a cut off Afridi, but Trott registered his first boundary off his 54th delivery when he back-cut Shoaib.

Trott then brought up his fifty from 64 balls and immediately stepped on the gas with the confidence of a man who is in the form of his life. A few lusty blows from Ravi Bopara ensured the momentum was all England's and they never really looked liked losing. It says everything about the last two weeks that there was even a sense of gratefulness just for something resembling a contest.

Suspended Pakistan trio return home

A couple of hundred protestors were at Lahore airport when the three Pakistan players at the centre of the spot-fixing scandal returned home on Saturday morning. Mohammad Amir, Mohammad Asif and Salman Butt left through a back exit away from the people carrying banners and waving shoes.

There was also support for the players inside the terminal with one sign saying: "Long live Salman Butt." As reported by ESPNcricinfo on Thursday, their return does not, however, mean they are cleared from the ongoing criminal investigation. Pakistan's interior minister Rehman Malik said the government of Pakistan would provide a written assurance that the players be made available if needed for further investigations.

"We have spoken to Scotland Yard, and the [Pakistan] high commissioner to the UK, Wajid Shamsul Hasan, has also been in talks with them and they have agreed that the players can return to Pakistan," Malik told ESPNcricinfo.

The trio were provisionally suspended by the ICC last Thursday and were quizzed by police the next day for their alleged role in bowling deliberate no-balls during the fourth Test at Lord's between England and Pakistan; an undercover sting operation by the tabloid News of the World apparently revealed that they had done so at the behest of Mazhar Majeed, an agent to the players. Majeed was arrested but released on bail while the players had their mobile phones confiscated. No charges have been pressed against them yet.

On Thursday, the PCB chief revealed that Wahab Riaz, the left-arm fast bowler, will be the fourth player to be interviewed by the police in relation to the scandal. Ijaz Butt sounded confident in his press conference at Gaddafi Stadium earlier that the three players would return to Pakistan soon and though he indicated that the criminal case against them might not be as strong, he did not say they would be cleared. The PCB's legal advisor Taffazul Rizvi confirmed to ESPNcricinfo that investigations will continue.

The players also have to respond to the suspension notices served to them by the ICC for which they have one more week left. That investigation and process is separate to whatever conclusion police officials reach.

Charged-up Lions stun sloppy Mumbai

Sachin Tendulkar the batsman nearly made up for Sachin Tendulkar the captain, but a charged-up Lions side completed a feel-good underdog win in a tense finish to kick off the Champions League T20. Their young opener, Jonathan Vandiar, and the experienced Neil McKenzie gave the star-studded but sloppy Mumbai Indians a rough welcome to the Highveld before Lions' enthusiastic bowlers and fielders did enough to keep the chase in check.

Tendulkar's 69 off 42, which was as good an innings as the fifties from Vandiar and McKenzie, left JP Duminy and Kieron Pollard 56 to get off 33. Shane Burger, gentle right-arm medium-pacer on the face of it, followed up the big wicket of Tendulkar with a pinpoint yorker to remove Pollard. What made that second wicket even more special was that it came at the end of an over in which Pollard smashed Burger all around his home ground. Thirty-one off the remaining three overs proved too much for Duminy.

The second-last ball of the match summed up a night on which Mumbai got almost every strategy wrong. With two sixes required to force a tie, Ryan McLaren played one along the ground. Clearly Mumbai didn't have much of a role for him as batsman, and they used him to bowl only the first over of the match that went for four runs and four leg-byes. The part-timers who were used instead went for 49 in four overs.

That shouldn't take away from the joy of the underdogs. At the heart of the Champions League is the charm of a low-key team giving an ensemble of millionaire superstars, bought in an auction, a hard time. The League's second season couldn't have asked for a better opener on that account.

In front of a decent home crowd, the Lions came so ready they even erred on the side of over-enthusiasm; Mumbai were slow in the field, bizarre in the tactics, and inexplicably subdued, starting with McLaren and left-arm spinner Ali Murtaza, choosing not to attack a nervous-looking home side with Zaheer Khan and Lasith Malinga.

As it turned out, Vandiar got over the nervous start, during which he ended up at the same end as his captain Alviro Petersen, but he beat his mate to the crease by a split frame to give himself a chance to make this his night. By the end of the innings, Mumbai would have wished Murtaza, the bowler who completed the run-out, had been slightly quicker in taking the bails off.

Vandiar kept swinging wildly during the Powerplay, edging and slogging his way to 18 off 23, but he transformed the effort when the field spread, scoring 53 off his last 26, to reach his highest Twenty20 score. The seasoned McKenzie, though, didn't need any crazy acceleration, starting his unbeaten 56 off 30 balls with a beautiful late-cut and finishing with brutal short-arm jabs.

Richard Cameron, playing one shot too many, followed Petersen soon and Lions seemed to have lost their way at 39 for 2 at the end of the Powerplay. The seventh over proved to be a turning point of sorts. Harbhajan Singh slipped while trying to bowl his first delivery, and then slipped his second attempt in short and wide. That boundary perhaps told Vandiar he didn't need to go across the line every time.

In the next few overs, Vandiar danced down the pitch to Zaheer, and lofted Duminy over cow corner for six. He then targeted the gentle pace of R Sathish and Pollard. The unsure swings had now turned into assured shots into vacant areas. If the six to bring up his fifty, over long-off, was a treat to watch, the one over midwicket, off Malinga, was plain audacious.

McKenzie was not indulging in anything audacious. He played smart, percentage cricket, letting Vandiar take charge. That didn't mean he was slow. By the time Vandiar got out in the 17th over, he had helped himself to 28 off 18. Tendulkar's inexplicable non-usage of McLaren continued, and McKenzie took full toll of Murtaza's wayward 18th over. Mumbai's fielders helped too, allowing two overthrows in the last three overs to let McKenzie retain strike. Thirty-nine came off those three overs.

Asoka de Silva tried to be a villain in the fairytale when he denied fast bowler Ethan O'Reilly's grandchildren the story of how grandpa got the greatest batsman of the day plumb lbw first ball. Tendulkar, on 6 at that point, went on to put on an exhibition, but his side was frustrated by a bubbly fielding effort. The excitement did get to Lions a bit as they conceded a few overthrows and dropped Tendulkar when on 34.

Tendulkar was taking Mumbai home smoothly when bowled by Burger. Pollard was taking Mumbai home brutally when bowled by Burger. That was the final touch of the individual that Lions needed on a night of their collective brilliance.

Kings lock horns with Stags

One team is loaded with star power, the other with commoners. One boasts of specialists who pride in demolishing the opposition, the other has six players who can bat and bowl. One is led by a T20 World Cup winning skipper, the other who has not even played five T20 international games.

It's an unequal battle and Jamie How and his Central Districts Stags would do well on Saturday if they can walk off the field with just their heads held high against the MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings at Kingsmead, Durban.

A look at the team composition is enough to give Chennai the winning points. Now it's just a matter of going out there and carving out a nice Net Run Rate. Even with six all-rounders, the stags just don't have enough fire power to challenge the Chennai batting line up that boasts of the likes of Mathew Hayden, Murali Vijay, Suresh Raina and the skipper himself.

Stags' pacer Michael Mason, Peter Ingram and captain How have limited experience at the top level, while another batsman Matthew Sinclair has sparked only in the longer version of the game. Their most influential player, Ross Taylor, changed his loyalties at the last moment and decided to represent Royal Challengers Bangalore instead of the home team. Clearly, he knows which team to back!

If Chennai win the toss, Dhoni is sure to elect to bat first on a Durban wicket known to help the batsmen in the early stages and the bowlers later as the ball gets old. The ball, however, may get battered before getting old with the burly Hayden determined to prove that his 'mongoose' bat is just the weapon of choice.

Vijay could be equally destructive at the top but with a more sober approach than Hayden, while Raina - who has gathered most of his runs with a big heave over the mid-wicket in the recent past - will be itching to demonstrate his skills again.

Skipper Dhoni, too, won't mind hitting a few lusty blows and S Badrinath will be the perfect foil to take the innings forward just in case the side loses a few quick wickets.

With Doug Bollinger, Albie Morkel, Muthiah Muralitharan, and all-rounder Justin Kemp in the side, Chennai has the potent bowling attack to defend any total their batsmen set during their outings in the middle.

This game is a sure-shot win for the Super Kings. All that the Stags can do is run for cover.

Sachin, you call that captaincy!

Sachin Tendulkar tried to make up for some stupid captaincy with yet another excellent batting display, but you can't always make up for the kinds of error you are not expected to make after having been in the business for 20 years.

Ryan McLaren sent down a perfectly good first over against the Lions, giving away just four runs, considering another four came off leg byes. Yet for some odd reason best known to the skipper he took the man off the attack and had four separate bowlers send down the next four overs from that end - Zaheer Khan, Lasith Malinga, Harbhajan Singh and surprisingly even JP Duminy.

Mumbai were playing five full-time bowlers and one really couldn't understand why Duminy had to be employed within the first 10 overs of an innings that was yet to get to a free-flowing stage considering the Lions were struggling at 39 for two after six overs. Duminy's over opened the floodgates as man of the match Jonathan Vandiar dispatched him with utter disdain and then along with Neil McKenzie set up a challenging total for the visitors.

Tendulkar's decision not to use McLaren's remaining three overs was further confounded when he failed to utilise the fourth over from Hrabhajan Singh, who went for 22 runs from his three overs. On the other hand, the pacers barring Malinga sent down one wayward delivery after another.

Zaheer looked completely out of sorts giving away 45 runs from his four overs, including 17 in his last over that virtually took the game away from the Mumbai Indians, while Kieron Pollard's two overs cost 21 runs.

The fielders too seemed to be affected by a paralysis as they too chipped in with overthrows and misfields. Ones became twos, twos became threes and even boundaries were given away generously. A whopping 57 runs came off the final five overs and that in the end proved to be the nail in Mumbai's coffin.

Clearly, Mumbai had no strategy in place and that was best highlighted when McLaren went for a single off the second last delivery of the game, when the team actually needed 12 off two deliveries to take the game into the super over.

When Mumbai took the field minus Dwayne Bravo and Saurabh Tiwary, it seemed like a brave decision, but in the end the IPL runners-up made it look foolhardy because of their sloppiness.

Bowling and fielding was rusty: Tendulkar

Mumbai Indians skipper Sachin Tendulkar on Friday admitted that he got out at the wrong time but said his side was "rusty" in their bowling and fielding in the first match of the Championship League here.

Mumbai Indians missed many chances and their sloppy fielding helped the Lions pile up a challenging 186 after invited to bat and Tendulkar said they have to work on their weakness before the next match.

"Our bowling and fielding looked rusty today. We need to pull up our socks before the next match. In Durban we need to be charged up. There is not much time, we have to prepare well," Tendulkar said after losing the match by nine runs.

Tendulkar said Mumbai Indians were on the track to chase down the target of 187 but his and Kieron Pollard's wicket made all the difference in the end.

"We probably gave 20 runs extra, all credit to Lions who batted well. They picked wickets too at crucial moments. We were on track. I thought my wicket and Pollard - we got out at the wrong time," he said.

His counterpart Alviro Petersen said it was an overall team effort and their preparation paid off in the end.

"I knew the boys will give 100 per cent, we got good runs on the board, and the bowlers backed it up. We set ourselves 160-170, and towards the end we managed more," he said.

"186 was a winning total, but Sachin batted well and gave us some nerves but the boys did well. We had plans for every batter, and Shane (Burger) did it well to double bluff him," he added.

Man of the Match Jonathan Vandiar, who scored 71 today, said he was under pressure but backed himself to bat through the innings.

"I was under pressure. But I knew I could bat through the innings. We were looking at 180, it was a good wicket and I enjoyed batting on it. First few overs it was holding up, but once you got yourself in, it was good to bat," he said.

CL T20: Mumbai lose opener by nine runs

A match-up between tournament favourites Mumbai Indians and underdogs Highveld Lions turned out to be a surprise but close tournament opener that saw the star-studded Mumbai side losing to the home team by nine runs at the New Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg on Friday.

Chasing 186 at the bullring surely was a big ask but when you have Sachin Tendulkar there to guide you, even big totals look meagre.

The master had to lead from the front and that's how it panned out for Mumabai Indians. An opening partnership of 83 runs put Mumbai on course for an amazing win. An failed attempt at a reverse sweep helped Lions see the back of Shikhar Dhawan who made a quickfire 32.

The sensation from the IPL, Ambati Rayudu, couldn't trouble the scorers much when a swift Alviro Petersen ran him out for just three runs.

Local boy JP Duminy strode into the middle and took off right away when he deposited a six deep into stands over the mid-wicket. At 131/2, it looked like the two would take Mumbai home but lightning struck right there as Shane Burger lived the moment of his life bowling out the little master who made a blistering 69 off 42 balls, studded with nine hits to the boundary.

Pollard took off from where he left in the IPL and after a couple of singles to get his eye in, the giant West Indian launched himself into Highveld Lions' attack with a six and a four. But a possible match-winning innings ended prematurely when the Caribbean marauder misread a slow yorker-length delivery to see his timber getting disturbed.

The match looked to be turning into a humdinger and all hopes rested on Harbhajan but the Lions brought out their yorkers and made life difficult for the Mumbai lower order who had shovel out deliveries.

A suicide attempt to turn a single into a double saw Sathish shaking hands with Harbhajan to find himself run out by a mile.

Earlier, whirlwind fifties from Jonathan Vandiar and Neil McKenzie helped Highveld Lions score 186/5 in 20 overs.

Vandiar scored 71 off 48 balls, while McKenzie matched the left-handed batsman with a quickfire 55 from 29 deliveries.

Alviro Petersen's (12) run-out gave Mumbai Indians an early breakthrough as both the openers were involved in a terrible mix-up that saw them running to the same end, resulting in the run-out with the score at 24.

One early wicket soon became two for MI with the introduction of left-armer Ali Murtaza who invited an error from Richard Cameron (9) whose attempt to hit a six resulted in a skier that was pouched safely by Zaheer Khan.

Loss of wickets, however, didn't hold hard-hitting Jonathan Vandiar back who went on the counter-attack, taking Harbhajan and Mortaza on, and the scoreboard soon raced to 81 in the 11th over.

But Lasith Malinga's introduction paid rich dividends as the Sri Lankan got the better of van Jaarsveld (13). That, unfortunately for MI, didn't affect Vandiar who kept swinging the willow to deal in fours and sixes, which swelled the Lions' scorecard to worrying figures for Tendulkar.

Malinga once again proved to be Mumbai's saviour-in-chief by removing danger-man Vandiar after he had massacred 71 runs in 48 balls, punctuated with four hits to the boundary and three over it. The yorker-specialist islander got rid of another Lion in the same over, giving Mumbai some home of restricting the Lions.

There was little respite, though, for Mumbai after Malinga's twin strike as McKenzie took over from where Vandiar left and cashed in on the momentum provided by Vandiar's blitzkreig.

It stayed at five wickets for Mumbai who failed to put a leash on Lions' score in the dying overs that saw Zaheer bleeding runs in his comeback match after an injury layoff.

McEnzie ended undefeated, punishing the Mumbai team for 55 runs off just 29 balls.

Lasith Malinga and Ali Murtaza bowled the only spells of substance but those too got lost among runs that haemorrhaged through other bowlers. While Malinga sent across a spell of 4-0-33-3, Murtaza's figures read 4-0-28-1.