Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

	David Hussey’s valiant 71 included only seven runs behind the wicket and 45 in front of square on the leg side © Cricinfo Ltd

Incisive new-ball spells in helpful conditions by Irfan Pathan and Sreesanth ensured several trends continued – Kings XI Punjab maintained their momentum with a fourth successive win while the Kolkata Knight Riders slumped to their fourth straight defeat. Both innings were characterised by late bursts. Punjab hit 21 off their final over which put the match just beyond the reach of Kolkata, who scored 75 off overs 15 to 19, but still fell nine short after a sluggish start.After Sreesanth removed Sourav Ganguly, slashing to Pathan at third man, Pathan struck twice in one over to leave Kolkata reeling. Pathan has always been a dangerous bowler when he gets the ball swinging back into the right-hand batsman and Mohammad Hafeez and Brad Hodge fell in the space of five balls. Sreesanth added Debradata Das to make it 29 for 4 after five overs, the most wickets to fall in that space of time in the tournament, and when VRV Singh bowled Laxmi Ratan Shukla at 50 for 5, Kolkata seemed to be heading for a massive defeat. David Hussey and young Wriddhiman Saha, however, had other ideas.The pair started slowly, playing out a couple of overs before Hussey took Gagandeep Singh, who had bowled two very tidy overs, for 17 runs, including a massive six over long-on. There was another quiet over before the pair really turned it on. The big hits were complemented by agile running between the wickets and they brought the equation down to 55 off 18 deliveries. James Hopes, back after missing three games, served up several full tosses which were promptly deposited into the crowd and when Gagandeep was taken for 18 in the penultimate over, the equation had come down to 19 off the last six balls, after Hussey was dismissed for a 46-ball 71.Pathan kept his nerve and sent down a mix of yorkers and low full tosses and despite some big swings only four runs came off the first three balls. There was no fairytale ending for Kolkata.After Punjab chose to bat, several of their batsmen failed to capitalise on their starts – three of their top five got into double digits but didn’t make it to 20. Hopes, coming in for Ramnaresh Sarwan, carved a few powerful boundaries square on the offside before top-edging Ashok Dinda to mid-on. Yuvraj Singh looked imperious, as in the previous game, plundering 14 off an Hafeez over before over-balancing to be stumped and Mahela Jayawardene lofted a huge six over midwicket before miscuing a bouncer from Umar Gul to mid-on.Shaun Marsh, fresh from his match-winning IPL debut against Deccan Chargers, kept his composure at the other end to make a pleasing 40. There were some crisp drives in his knock, with one through the covers off Dinda early on standing out. He was stumped, missing a flighted delivery from Hussey, as Kolkata started to gain the upper hand. When Karan Goel was run out a couple of overs later, Punjab had slid to 106 for 5 from 82 to 1.Kumar Sangakkara, who retired on 10 with a side strain, returned to lead the fightback with Pathan. He again demonstrated the importance of timing and placement in Twenty20 before departing for 28, bowled by Gul, who at US$150,000 is providing competition to Shane Watson for being the bargain buy of the IPL. Pathan remained unbeaten on 24, but the acceleration at the end was provided by Piyush Chawla, who hit three fours and a six off Ishant Sharma’s final over.It has been a stunning resurgence from Punjab, who after being bottom of the table after two games are now tied for top spot. Kolkata, though, have gone in the opposite direction, dropping from table-toppers to four points behind the teams in the semi-final places.

	James Sutherland: “As I understand it, the franchisees are starting to ask questions already” © Getty Images

In an action-packed first week of the Indian Premier League most of the reaction has been positive, but James Sutherland, the Cricket Australia chief executive, has spoken out about the problems already facing the competition. Sutherland, who remains unconvinced that Twenty20 is good for the game, has questioned the sustainability of the lucrative six-week tournament.”It’s all very well to have a whole lot of hype around a competition,” Sutherland told . “In order for it to be sustainable it needs to have its own virtual cycle that keeps all the parties happy.”It’s nice to pay the players well and get big money from television rights and sponsorships, but ultimately you’ve got to provide a return for the owners or in this case the franchises. As I understand it, the franchisees are starting to ask questions already.”Sutherland said a lot of tickets to games had been given away and there were also other promotional costs. “It’s going to be a long six weeks for the franchisees if they struggle to sell tickets,” he said. “I think in Hyderabad for the first game they only had a third of the ground full.”Sutherland said the IPL “would have to be” under financial pressure. “You look at the number [cost] for the franchises, somewhere between $70 million and $100 million and they pay the players on top of that,” he said. “Explain it to me how they get their return.”Australia’s international contingent at the event will head back to Brisbane next week for a pre-series camp for the West Indies tour. The players are due to arrive in Queensland on May 4 and will spend almost a week fine-tuning, although no practice matches have been scheduled by the coach Tim Nielsen.The chances of Australia’s one-day players appearing in next year’s version of the IPL are virtually non-existent as the postponed trip to Pakistan will be held at the same time. “There’s absolutely no possibility of a window that compromises the Future Tours Programme and our international commitment,” Sutherland said.”It’s just simply there was no other window, no alternative. We had long and challenging meetings with Pakistan trying to get them to understand we’ve got a very busy schedule coming up and the only window available to us was the ones that we announced.”

The round started without high-profile players such as Misbah-ul-Haq, Kamran Akmal, Mohammad Amir, Nasir Jamshed, and Yasir Shah , who had all been released to play in the Bangladesh Premier League. National Bank of Pakistan, who drew with Water and Power Development Authority, continued to top Pool B with 33 points, while United Bank Limited lead Pool A with 32 points. FATA, though, are yet to break their duck this season, with two losses and three draws in five matches.Azhar Ali, Pakistan’s ODI captain made his first hundred of the season, setting up SNGPL’s innings-and-119-run win against Port Quasim Authority after a shouldering some heavy workload in international cricket in the last three months. Azhar struck 15 fours, shaking off the rust accumulated during the England series.Fawad Khan, the FATA captain, gave his team something to cheer about as he struck a century before lunch on the first day against Lahore Whites, a rare feat in the competition. Fawad played 46 first-class games for Abbottabad before joining FATA in 2013. However, he made his debut for FATA only this year. He had also played one match for North West Frontier Province.Mohammad Amir-less Sui Southern Gas Corporation managed to salvage a draw after being asked to follow on by United Bank Limted, who posted 514 on the back of five half-centuries. Sui Southern Gas were bowled out for 244 in the first innings but showed more fight in the second dig, opener Babar Azam showing the way with 90. The side is placed third in the Pool A table, with one win and four draws. Amir, who had been released to play for Chittagong Vikings in the BPL, is likely to miss at least two more rounds.

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsColin Munro smashed one four and seven sixes in his unbeaten 14-ball 50•Getty Images

An abject Sri Lanka collapse full of witless batting, a clinical performance by New Zealand’s seamers, and a fast start from Martin Guptill, all featured in Sri Lanka’s final heavy defeat of the tour. Their embarrassment was enhanced a little here for having come in front of an Auckland crowd of over 17,000, and by Colin Munro, who bludgeoned the second-fastest half-century in T20s to close out a match that had never really been in doubt for New Zealand. He was unbeaten on 50 from 14 balls, having hit seven sixes and a four. Sri Lanka’s 142 for 8 on a flat track, and on one of the smallest grounds in the world, was gunned down with nine wickets and ten full overs to spare.Seduced by the short boundaries, Sri Lanka’s batsmen aimed slog after slog at the straight fence, and fell predictably, and in quick succession. New Zealand put zippy balls just short of a length – a clear bowling plan, given the ground’s odd dimensions – and the visitors just failed to adapt. Grant Elliott was the most accurate bowler, and took 4 for 22 from his full quota, but so intent did Sri Lanka’s batsmen seem on holing out, almost anyone could have taken those wickets.Angelo Mathews played a familiar lone hand, sporting a familiar look of frustration at his teammates’ incompetence. His 81 not out from 49 balls comprised well over half of Sri Lanka’s score. He was the only batsman to attempt to build an innings, instead of bash one.It’s not often that a batsman hitting 63 from 25 balls in a modest T20 chase will be outshone, but a rapid Guptill was made to look almost pedestrian by Munro. Having arrived at 89 for 1 in the seventh over, Munro blasted his second ball, off Thisara Perera, into the stands beyond wide long on, then savaged the legspin of Vandersay. Kane Williamson gave Munro the strike in the first ball of the eighth over, and he sent the ball hurtling over the deep midwicket boundary three times in four balls. That over cost 27. Having already been at the end of Guptill’s brutality, Vandersay had earlier bowled an over that conceded 20. His two overs went for 41. None of Sri Lanka’s four bowlers had an economy rate of less than 11.Munro wrapped up the victory with a four and two more sixes in Dushmantha Chameera’s third over. He reached fifty and moved New Zealand to their target with his last six, over deep midwicket. His 14-ball half-century is only slower than Yuvraj Singh’s 12-ball fifty against England, in the 2007 World T20.Sri Lanka’s spectacular nosedive began in the second over. Danushka Gunathilaka had earlier made room to scythe Adam Milne through the offside, but aimed an ungainly heave across the line soon after. The ball passed some distance from the bat and splayed his stumps.At the other end, Dilshan was playing his own ugly innings, mistiming and top-edging slogs, and missing attempted scoops over the shoulder. But he survived longer than two incoming batsmen, which is to say, until the 10th over. Before Dilshan was out reverse-sweeping, for 28 from 26 balls, Dinesh Chandimal and Shehan Jayasuriya had both been caught attempting expansive strokes for 2 and 3 respectively.Milinda Siriwardana – who has usually been an intelligent reprieve from Sri Lanka’s batting madness this tour – could not resist a slog himself as he was out first ball. He was caught just outside the circle at long on. With the score at 66 for 5 in the 11th over, Mathews might have expected a little help for rebuilding from Kithuruwan Vithanage and Thisara. They were both caught at the straight boundary for single figure scores, off Elliott’s bowling.Mathews had moved his innings into gear with two straight sixes off the spin of Mitchell Santner, but largely respected the quicks until the back end of the innings. Even then, he picked the hittable deliveries intelligently. He launched Trent Boult down the ground in the 15th over, then when Boult return to close out the innings, Mathews made room and slapped him through the offside twice. By far the largest partnership of the innings was Mathews’ 39-run stand with no. 10 batsman Vandersay.

Dale Steyn has said that the notion he is coming towards the end of his international career due to his recent run of injuries is “absolutely ridiculous” and added he is desperate to help lead the recovery of South Africa’s fortunes.With Steyn being ruled out of the final Test against England in Centurion, due to the shoulder injury he sustained in the opening match of the series in Durban, it means he will have missed six of South Africa’s last eight Tests.Amid the problems swirling around South African cricket – including the doubts over AB de Villiers’ future – the long-term prognosis for Steyn has been questioned but he has no intention of packing it in.”It’s absolute rubbish,” Steyn told . “I played 48 Tests in a row, didn’t miss a single one, and now suddenly I’m an injury liability at the age of 32? It’s ridiculous. Injuries can happen to anybody but I’m still one of the fittest players in the squad and I have many, many overs left in me.””The Test team is going through some huge changes and I want to help lead the way as one of the senior players. This is no time to turn your back and walk away, that’s the last thing on my mind.”Steyn said that he retains ambitions in all three formats of the game but for now his immediate aim is to regain fitness for the World T20, which he concedes may be his last global limited-overs event, and that he will not be rushing back for the ODIs against England if not fully ready.”I’d love to be involved in the ODI series against England but I’m not going to rush back from injury, like I did in India, and make it worse. I’m desperately keen to be fit and play in the T20 World Cup in India in March. It might be my last World Cup so I’d like to help win the bloody thing.”

India’s Varun Chakravarthy has strengthened his reign at the top of the ICC T20I bowling rankings, while Tilak Varma has climbed two places up to fourth in the batting list, after the first three T20Is of the ongoing series against South Africa. Despite scoring just 69 runs across three innings, Abhishek Sharma continues to lead the batting charts.Chakravarthy has been India’s best bowler in the series so far, taking six wickets at an average of 9.83 and an economy of 5.36. Tilak Varma, on the other hand, made a valiant 34-ball 62 in the second T20I, when no other batter crossed 30. His more tempered knock in the next match, 26* off 34, guided India to victory in a small chase.Quinton de Kock’s 90 in the second match helped him jump 14 spots, up to the 53rd spot among batters. Aiden Markram’s 69, when South Africa folded for just 117 in the third match, helped him climb eight places up to the 29th spot.

Full rankings tables

• Click here for the full team rankings

• Click here for the full player rankings

Arshdeep Singh – Player of the Match for his spell of 2 for 13 in Dharamshala – moved four spots up to 16th. Marco Jansen shifted 14 spots up to 25th, while Lungi Ngidi moved 11 spots up to 44th.There were also gains for a few New Zealand players in Test rankings: Devon Conway’s 60 and 28 in the second Test against West Indies helped him move seven places up, to 34th. Mitchell Hay’s 61 on debut – also the highest score in the match – landed him in the joint-78th spot.Jacob Duffy’s 5 for 38, in the second innings of the same Test, pushed him up by 15 spots to a career-best 48th in the bowling list.

The introduction of new squad rules concerning home-grown players and the well-documented state of Liverpool’s finances means that Rafael Benitez (or whoever is manning the Anfield hot-seat next season) will probably have to utilise some of the vast wealth of youth talent currently available at Anfield next season. A once-fertile youth system has undergone something resembling a drought over the last ten years, but the current crop of youngsters emerging at Liverpool have managed to invoke the excitement that was last seen around the time of the first-team graduations of the likes of Robbie Fowler, Steve McManaman and Steven Gerrard.

Amongst this crop, I believe that the following five starlets are most likely to make a first-team breakthrough next season.

Daniel Ayala – Defender – 19 years

Strong and tall, the Sevilla-born defender Daniel Ayala was thrown into the deep end a few times for Liverpool last season and excelled on each occasion. Deployed as a substitute against both Tottenham and Chelsea, Ayala admirably managed to quell the attacking threats posed by the likes of Jermain Defoe and Didier Drogba. The young Spaniard also started during 4-0 romps against both Burnley and Stoke City, impressively marking his first competitive starts for the club with clean sheets.

The decline of Jamie Carragher and injury proneness of both Daniel Agger and Martin Skrtel means that Ayala is likely to feature more prominently next season. With his contract recently extended until 2012, Ayala is assumed to be highly-rated by the Anfield management. Carragher himself has praised the 19-year-old, informing the club’s official magazine that, “He’s only played two games but we’ve had two clean sheets. It was a lot more difficult at Burnley because we were under pressure in the first half but for a young lad to come in, in what was again a makeshift defence in only his second senior start, he did very, very well. Although the result makes it look easy, it certainly wasn’t.”

Lauri Dalla Valle – Forward – 18 years

Compared to a young Fernando Torres, it is safe to say that the young Finn is one of the most exciting prospects at Liverpool. Being likened to the darling of the Kop is high praise indeed, but Dalla Valle’s pace, work-rate and finishing ability all bear testament to this sentiment.

Upon arrival from Finnish side JIPPO in 2008, Dalla Valle fired in 20 goals in 28 outings for the club’s U18 side. Having been subsequently promoted to the reserve side, the Finn took to reserve team football like a duck to water, most notably firing in a 32 minute hat-trick in the 5-1 FA Youth Cup drubbing of Leicester City at the Walkers Stadium. The dearth of striking options in the absence of Torres means that Dalla Valle may get the chance to showcase his talents for the first-team next season.

Martin Kelly – Defender – 20 years

A key member of Gary Ablett’s title-winning reserve side of 2007/08, local lad Martin Kelly certainly possesses the quality to establish himself within Rafael Benitez’s first team next season. Having made his senior debut as a substitute in a Champions League clash with PSV during 2008, Kelly made his first start against Lyon last year, deputising for the injured Glen Johnson. Kelly’s confident and assured display on the right-hand side of Liverpool’s defence saw the defender named as man of the match on the club’s official website.

Following a return from injury, Kelly made his Premier League debut, coming on as a substitute during the 4-1 demolition of relegated Portsmouth. The elegant defender is capable of playing in a range of positions across the back four, and is highly-rated by Rafael Benitez and his team. Expect to see more of the 20-year-old next season.

// <![CDATA[

document.write('’);

// ]]>

Dani Pacheco – Forward – 19 years

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Cheekily poached from Barcelona in the summer of 2007, Dani Pacheco looks destined to forge a stellar career at Anfield. The 19-year-old made a series of cameos for the first team last season, notably coming close to scoring with his first touch upon his Liverpool against Fiorentina last year.

The creative forward, who operates just behind the main striker, is equally gifted with his goalscoring and chance-creating abilities. Whilst bereft of height, Pacheco possesses great vision and technique, as well as an eye for goal. The undisputed star of the reserve side, Pacheco has drawn admiration from Rafael Benitez, with the former Valencia manager stating that, “He is a player with talent and if he can keep working hard, he will use it more effectively. Sometimes players with talent are a little bit inconsistent, so if he works hard, like he is doing now, he can be very, very important. Everybody can see him playing really well with the reserves, scoring fantastic goals and getting a lot of assists. He is a player who can make a difference in the final third, which is what the fans like.”

Jack Robinson – Defender – 16 years

At the tender age of 16 years and 250 days, Jack Robinson is the youngest player to have ever played for Liverpool’s first-team. Having made Anfield history during the side’s 0-0 draw with Hull City, great things are expected from the Warrington-born defender.

Yet to feature for the club’s reserve side, Robinson has become a key member of Rodolfo Borrell’s U18 team. The left-back is noted for his sweet left foot and quality in the final third, as well as assuredness in defence. The departure of Fabio Aurelio means that Emiliano Insua is now the only recognised left-back within Liverpool’s first-team squad; in the instance that Aurelio isn’t replaced, it is likely that Robinson will feature more frequently for the first team next season.

Follow me on twitter at www.twitter.com/zarifrasul

Stoke City boss Tony Pulis is content to remain patient in his efforts to strengthen his Potters squad this summer.

Rumours of a number of comings and goings from the Britannia Stadium are doing the rounds, with Pulis playing a waiting game to try and secure his top targets.

He told the club's official website:"It's the phoney season with transfers at the moment, so there is a lot going on beneath the surface, but few people are making a move.

"We are aware of who is and who isn't available, but agents and players are still dipping their toes in the water and not committing themselves just yet. That will change as time goes on.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

"It's just a case of everyone being patient and then hoping we can get who we want when people start making firm decisions."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email

Thierry Henry understands Arsenal captain Cesc Fabregas' reported desire to return to Barcelona this summer.

Henry, the club's all-time leading goalscorer, left the Gunners to join Barca himself back in 2007.

The new Red Bulls New York striker has watched on with interest this summer while Fabregas has been the subject of one unsuccessful bid from the Spanish champions.

The 23-year-old midfielder is reported to have told manager Arsene Wenger of his desire to return to his former club and Henry can understand the lure of Barcelona.

"It is hard because the guy is from Barcelona. I wouldn't like to be in his shoes that's all I can say," he told BBC Radio Five's Sportsweek programme.

"I wouldn't like to be in his position because he is from there and he loves Arsenal. I don't know what to say about this because I don't want to talk for him.

"But as an Arsenal fan, for me, I want him to stay at Arsenal, but I would also understand if he goes back home."

Henry was unveiled by the Major League Soccer side on Thursday after being released by Barcelona and the former France striker has revealed he hopes to return to Arsenal one day.

The record-breaking 32-year-old scored 226 during 369 appearances during eight seasons with the north London club.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

"What I want to do is when I retire, I don't know how, but I want to come back to Arsenal," he explained.

"I have just come here (New York) to play and to compete and win another title. After everything is done then I will think about it.

"Whatever it is I want to come back (to Arsenal), maybe as a waterboy, I just love this club."Subscribe to Football FanCast News Headlines by Email

If we thought the signing of Hernandez this summer was surprising then the arrival of Bebe has more than trumped that. While Hernandez showed in the World Cup and in pre-season that United have unearth themselves another gem, what should we make of our new £7.4m signing Tiago Manuel Dias Ferriera?

Reading the forums there seems to be a mixed response to his arrival. While the anti-Glazer brigade show their discontent and believe that due to our finances we have had to lower ourselves to moving for relative unknowns; others have expressed delight and excitement at the prospect of what Bebe will bring to the table in the final third. I personally find myself somewhere in between, because for every gamble we have taken on the likes of Solskjaer and say Hernandez, we have had the likes of Mame Diouf come through.

It is rumoured that it was Carlos Queiroz who alerted Sir Alex of his abilities and versatility. While our former assistant has rarely failed with his past recommendations, you do wonder whether a player whose only experience has come in the Portuguese third division can make an immediate impact in the Premier League, or whether United will need to farm him out on loan in order to get notable experience before moving in and around the first team squad at Old Trafford. Bebe’s arrival certainly represents a risk, but it could prove one that could ultimately save the club millions in the future.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Has Sir Alex pulled another rabbit out of the hat, or given the financial state of the football club is it simply a gamble that we now have to take in the transfer market as we are priced out from more established names?