Cricket News in Brief – November 04, 2011 – Part 1
Sri Lanka manhandle Pakistan on the first day in the third Test as veteran Kumar Sangakkara and skipper Tillakaratne Dilshan crafted an astounding stand against the Pakistan bowlers.
After losing an early wicket of opener Tharanga Paranavitana on the penultimate delivery of the first over, Sri Lanka managed to make a superb comeback in the game by leaving Pakistan flabbergasted after posting 173 runs in the second-wicket partnership.
At stumps Sri Lanka had posted 245 runs for the loss of two wickets with Sangakkara standing on 112 runs with Mahela Jayawardene unbeaten on 32 runs.
From Pakistan pacer Umar Gul and spinner Saeed Ajmal grabbed one wicket each.
Pakistan’s former legendary Captain Imran Khan regrets Mohammad Amir’s sentencing after three Pakistan cricketers were found guilty of their involvement in the spot-fixing in a London Court on Thursday, November 03, 2011.
Imran while reacting to the sentencing of the three players, said, “It is a shameful and embarrassing day for us today as a nation. But my heart goes out to the families of these players. I realise what they must be going through right now."
Imran insisted that a radical change in the cricket structure of Pakistan was due to eliminate corruption from the sport.
Speaking on Amir, the legendary all-rounder said, “Amir is a young impressionable boy. I was impressed by his admission, he owned up and said he committed a mistake, so I feel sad and sorry for him and all the three cricketers but especially for Amir.”
England’s former Test captain Michael Vaughan feels that Pakistan’s spot-fixing trio of Salman Butt, Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif should have been banned for life by the International Cricket Council (ICC) after they were found guilty of all charges.
The ICC has banned Butt for ten, Asif for seven and Amir for five years from the sport.
Meanwhile, on Thursday, November 03, a London Court sentenced the players to jail after the jury found them guilty of taking bribes to defraud bookies in England.
However, Vaughan suggested that there were many other cricketers out there who had not been caught and were involved in fixing games.
AB de Villiers, the South African vice-captain in Test cricket has been cleared for selection in the forthcoming two-Test series against Australia in South Africa.
The batsman was ruled out of the One Day International (ODI) series against the Aussies after he sustained an injury to his hand in a training session with Royal Challengers Bangalore during the Champions League T20.
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