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Yorkshire sign up Gibbs for Twenty20 Cup

Yorkshire have signed South Africa's star One Day batsman Herchelle Gibbs for their Twenty20 campaign this season.

Gibbs on his day can be one of the most destructive batsmen in world Cricket, in 2006 he smashed 175 in an ODI against Australia, as a result South Africa managed to chase down what was a briefly a world record total of 434.

Gibbs has played for the Deccan Chargers in the IPL and he was part of their sucessful IPL team in South Africa last season.

Gibbs was also part of the Cape Cobras team that won the South African domestic Twenty20 tournament last year, as a result Gibbs managed to compete in the Champions league at the end of last year in India.

Yorskshire will be hoping that Gibbs can give them an electric start at the top of their innings and lay a platform for their middle order.

Their ultimate aim would be to qualify for the Champions League.

Collingwood made England Vice Captain

Paul Collingwood was yesterday named as England's Vice Captain for their tour of Bangladesh. Collingwood has a lot of experience leading England as a One Day Captain and he also is England's current Twenty20 skipper.

Collingwood led England to the Super 8 stages of the Twenty20 World Cup in England last summer.

Meanwhile England managed to draw a 2 match Twenty20 series with Pakistan in Dubai this weekend with Collingwood at the helm.

England's regular captain Andrew Strauss opted not to tour Bangladesh instead Strauss has chosen to take some rest before a tough 12 months of Cricket ahead.

Alastair Cook has been named as England's Captain in Strauss's absence.

England will have to play well in Bangladesh to ensure that the home side do not inflict what would be a huge upset.

England will then go to the Caribbean to competeting in the World Twenty20 tournament before hosting Pakistan and Bangladesh in a Test and One Day Series.

India hold on to edge out South Africa

India held on to seal an epic 1 run victory against South Africa in the 1st of 3 ODIS in Jaipur. South Africa's stand in captain Jacques Kallis won the toss and elected to field 1st and despite a superb start with the bat the hosts, India, kept losing wickets at regular intervals.

Kallis himself managed to pick up 3 wickets with his medium pace.

Suresh Raina however scored a brilliant half century which enabled India to post a very handy total of 298 from their 50 overs.

India appeared to be well on top as they removed Bootsman and Herchelle Gibbs early on in South Africa's reply.

Jacques Kallis did make a defiant 89 but once he was dismissed India appeared to be in control again, however a flurry of 6's from tailenders Dale Steyn and Wayne Parnell took the tourists to the brink of an upset before they lost by 1 run.

Razzaq guides Pakistan to victory

Star Pakistani all rounder hit a breath taking 46 not out form just 18 balls to help his team defeat England in the 2nd Twenty20 International in Dubai.

Pakistan who are the reigning Twenty20 World Champions won the toss and elected to field first, however a superb innings of 62 from 40 balls helped England post a competetive total of 149 from their 20 overs.

Pakistan appeared to be in trouble when their star batsman Shahid Afridi was caught on the boundary and they slumped to 78-5.

However Razzaq then came in and smashed 5 sixes as Pakistan clawed their way back into the contest and then managed to win the match with an over to spare.

Pakistan won the Twenty20 World Cup in England last year when they defeated Sri Lanka in the final at Lord's

This year's Twenty20 world cup tournament will be in the Caribbean in May, England are in the same group as Ireland and hosts the West Indies.

Pakistan win the toss and bat 1st

Pakistan have won the toss and decided to bat 1st in the 1st Twenty20 International against England in Dubai.

Pakistan stunned the Cricket world last year when they broke through and won the World Twenty20 tournament when it was held in England in the finals they beat Sri Lanka at Lord's.

Ironically England managed to beat Pakistan in their opening group game at the Oval but the hosts faield to reach the Semi Finals after a defeat to the West Indies in the Super 8's.

The previous Twenty20 World Cup was held in South Africa and Pakistan also reached the final of the event but lost in the championship match to their arch rivals India.

England also failed to make it out of the group stages in 2007.

These two teams will play one more game tomorrow in what is a highly anticipated 2 match series in Dubai.

The Twenty20 World Cup is in the Caribbean in May.

Australia thrash sorry West Indies in Melbourne

Australia have sealed a 4-0 series victory agaisnt the West Indies after beating the tourists by 125 runs in the 5th ODI in Melbourne.

The hosts batted 1st and posted a superb total of 324 from their 50 overs captain Ricky Ponting top scored with 61 while all rounder James Hopes chipped in with a very useful 57 from just 26 balls.

Opener Shane Watson who has been in terrific form all season also managed to hit 51.

In reply the West Indies never managed to get going only Kieron Pollard (45) and Daren Sammy  47 (not out) offered any real resistence.

The tourists were routed out for 199 as Australia sealed yet another comfortable victory. Ricky Ponting's men recently completed a 5-0 series clean sweep against Pakistan in an ODI series at home.

The West Indies were in a good postion to win the 3rd ODI when they bowled out for 225 but rain then forced the match to be abandonned.

India hold on to beat South Africa and level series

India have turned in a veru good performance to defeat South Africa in the 2nd Test Match in Kolkatta, Hashim Amla had made his 2nd century of the match making him the 1st South African to achieve that feat in a Test Match in India.

Amla was given good support by South Africa's number 11 Monre Morkel the duo batted for close to 20 overs however with just 3 overs left in the game Harbhajan Singh dismissed Morkel LBW to seal an innings victory for India.

South Africa had won the 1st Test Match of the series by an innings and 6 runs and had they won this match they would have then regained the number 1 Test ranking.

However with this victory India will now stay on top of the charts for now.

India gained the number 1 Test Match ranking for the 1st time in their history when they beat Sri Lanka 2-0 in a Test Series at home in December.

Amla continues great run

South Africa's Hashim Amla has continued his superb run of form in the 2nd Test Match against India in Kolkatta, the middle order batsman scored a career best 258 in the 1st Test Match which South Africa went on to win by an innings and 6 runs.

Amla then backed up that performance by scoring a century in the 1st innings of this Test Match, and he has now become the 1st South African to score a hundred in each innings, in a Test Match in India.

South Africa still appear to be heading for a defeat in this match but as long as Amla is out in the middle they will have the belief that they can escape with a draw and win the series.

Should India complete the job and win the match they will hold on to their number 1 ranking, however if South Africa manage to win the series then Graeme Smith's men will regain the number 1 Test Match ranking.

Rain halts India's charge

India had South Africa 111-3 when rain and bad light stopped play on day 4 of the 2nd Test Match at Kolkatta.

Shortly before the player had to leave the field, Amit Mishra had star batsman Jacques Kallis caught behind by captain and wicket keeper MS Dhoni.

South Africa managed to win the 1st Test Match by an innings and 6 runs and should they win this series they will become the number 1 ranked Test team in the world.

India beat Sri Lanka in a Test series at home 2-0 in December and as a result of that they became the number 1 ranked Test team for the 1st time in their history.

South Africa on the other hand drew a series with England at home 1-1 had South Africa won that series they would have regained their number 1 ranking.

India will be hoping that they can take the remaining 7 wickets tomorrow in order for them to stay at the top of the rankings.

English premiership team interested in IPL

It has been reported that an English Premiership side is interested in buying an IPL franchise, in the very near future.

The IPL currently has 8 teams but they are set to add two more franchises to the event and it is understood that a well known English Premiership team is very interested in buying one of the 2 new franchises.

Last year the Deccan Chargers captured the imagination of fans around the world as they won the title for the 1st time beating the Bangalore Royal Challengers in the final.

The year before the Rajasthan Royals beat the Chennai SuperKings led by MS Dhoni to win the inaugural tournament.

The Chargers will be hoping that they can become the 1st team to defend the title sucessfully when the event kicks off next month.

Adam Gilchrist is set to have his 2nd full season as skipper of the Deccan Chargers.

Deccan Chargers Threaten to sue IPL

The Deccan Chargers have said that they could sue the IPL or even boycott this year's event if their home games are not relocated to Hyderabad.

Following security concerns in Hyderabad the Charger's home games have been mainly relocated to Nagpur despite the fact that the AP government had given the IPL assurance that it was safe to play games in Hyderabad.

The Chargers have said that if their wishes are not met their is a possiblity they could boycott the event.

Last year the IPL was held in South Africa, and the Chargers led by the Australian legend Adam Gilchrist managed to win the title when the beat the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the final.

The year before however was a very dissapointing campaign for the Chargers who finished 8th place out of 8 teams in the tournament.

Should the dispute be resolved then the Chargers will be one of the favourites to win the title again this year.

Lee concern over future

Australian Pace sensation has expressed his concern over his future in the game after consistently struggling with injury.

Lee who is 33 now has been plagued by injuries over the last few years most recently in December of last year he picked up an elbow injury and has not played any International Cricket since.

The Australian played a big part in Australia winning a ODI series in England 6-1 last summer however a side strain forced him to miss the entire Ashes series which Australia lost 2-1.

Australia have been in great form lately on the International scence they beat the West Indies 2-0 in a Test series and backed this up by beating Pakistan by the same score, Ricky Ponting's men then whitewashed Pakistan 5-0 in an ODI series.

Australia currently lead the West Indies 3-0 in an ODI series with one game to be played which will take place on Friday.

India in command against South Africa

MS Dhoni and VVS Laxman both scored unbeaten centuries as India took total command of the 2nd Test Match against South Africa, at Kolkatta.

Dhoni was 132 not out and Laxman 143 not out when the hosts decided to declare on 643-6 giving them a 1st innings lead of 347.

Yesterday both Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag also scored centuries. South Africa are 1-0 up in the series after they managed to win the 1st game of the series by an innings and 6 runs.

India currently hold the number 1 Test Match ranking, which they attained after beating Sri Lanka 2-0 at home in December.

Given their position in the game India will be very confident that they can secure a series levelling win in Kolkatta which would see them hold on to the number 1 ranking.

Should South Africa pull off what would be a miraculous turnaround and win the game they would then attain the number 1 ranking.

Pakistan set for Twenty20's against England

Pakistan will play the 1st of two Twenty20 Internationals against England in Dubai on Friday, the clashes are highly anticipated and are likely to be watched by fans all around the world.

Pakistan are the reigning World Twenty20 champions after they managed to win the Cup when it was held in England last year, when they pulled off a shock victory against Sri Lanka in the final at Lord's.

However Pakistan did suffer 2 defeats earlier on in the tournament and one was a crushing loss to England in their 1st game at the Oval.

England themselves managed to reach the Super 8's but a loss to the West Indies stopped them from reaching the Semi Final.

The Twenty20 World Cup will be in May in the West Indies and these two games will serve as very good preparation for both teams ahead of that tournament.

Paul Collingwood will be England's skipper for these 2 games.

Dhoni makes it number 4

India's Skipper MS Dhoni made the 4th Test Century of his career, against South Africa in the 2nd Test Match of the series in Kolkatta as the hosts started to dominate the contest.

Dhoni looked to be somewhere neat his attacking best as he reached 3 figures against South Africa for the 1st time in his career, as India took their lead past 300.

South Africa won the 1st Test of the Series last week when the thrashed India by an innings and 6 runs. South Africa recently drew a Test Series against England in England 1-1.

India on the other hand, won a Test series 2-0 at home against Sri Lanka in December and that result saw India attain the number 1 Test Match ranking for the 1st time in their history.

The winner of this game will hold the number 1 ranking, but India will be confident with the position that they now find themselves in of going on to record a series levelling victory.

Laxman century puts India in command

VVS Laxman scored the 15th hundred of his Test Match career to put India in command of the 2nd Test Match against South Africa in Kolkatta.

Laxman reached his century shortly after tea as the hosts moved on to 555-6 and appeared to be in total control of the Test Match.

South Africa had batted 1st in this match and made a below par total of 296 all out, having been 251-3 at one stage.

India attained the number 1 ranking in Test Match Cricket for the 1st time in their history in December when they won a Test Series against Sri Lanka at home 2-0.

South Africa on the other hand recently drew a Test Series at home with England, had they won that series then they would have regained the number 1 Test ranking.

Australia are currently the 3rd ranked team in Test Match Cricket. India will be confident that they can go on and win this Test Match from the position that they find themselves in.

South Africa hit back against India

South Africa have fought back in the 2nd Test Match against India, in Kolkatta, the tourists batting 1st were bowled out for 296 and appeared to be in all sorts of trouble.

India then appeared to take control of the game as Sachin Tendulkar made 106 and Virender Sehwag 165, India were 232-2 at Tea.

However after tea the hosts lost 3 quick wickets and closed day 2 of the Test Match on 342-5.

South Africa won the 1st Test Match of the series by an innings and 6 runs, and should the tourists win the series they will then surpass India and become the number 1 ranked team in Test Match Cricket.

India attained the number 1 Test Match ranking for the 1st time in their history when they beat Sri Lanka in a Test Series 2-0 at home in December.

South Africa would have gained the ranking last month had they won their home series against England but the series was drawn, 1-1.

Brilliant Sehwag sets platform for India

Virender Sehwag has smashed yet another Test Match century to put India firmly in control of the 2nd Test Match against South Africa, in Kolkatta.

India managed to bowl out the tourists for 296, and despite losing Gautam Gambhir and Murali Vijay early on, Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar have taken the home side to 232-2 at Teat on day to with Sehwag unbeaten on 125 and Tendulkar 69 not out.

India were beaten in the 1st Test Match by an innings and 6 runs and should South Africa manage to win this series they would then become the number 1 ranked Test team in the world.

MS Dhoni's men gained the number 1 ranking for the 1st time in December when they defeated Sri Lanka in a home Test Series 2-0.

South Africa on the other hand drew a home Test series with England 1-1 last month had South Africa won that series they would have attained the number 1 ranking then.

India fight back against South Africa

Harbhajan Singh picked up 3 wickets as India produced a maginificant fightback against South Africa int he 2nd Test Match in Kolkatta.

South Africa won the 1st Test Match by an innings and 6 runs and should they win the series they will reclaim the number 1 Test Match ranking which India currently hold.

South Africa batted 1st and made a superb start as Hashim Amla and Alvro Peterson who was on debut both made centuries.

Just after Tea South Africa found themselves 251-3 and appeared to be cruising towards a very handy total.

Harbhajan Singh then came into the attack and picked up 3 quick wickets and in the end South Africa closed the day on 266-9.

India beat Sri Lanka 2-0 in a Test Series back in December, that result took them to number 1 in the Test rankings for the 1st time.

South Africa on the other hand drew a Test Series with England at home last month.

Ponting guides Australia to easy victory

Ricky Ponting scored the 29th ODI Century of his career to guide Australia to a comfortable 50 run victory over the West Indies in Brisbane.

Ponting scored 106 as Australia managed to post a daunting total of 324 at the Gabba.

Australia have been in good ODI form lately they beat Pakistan 5-0 in Australia just last month and at the end oof last year they managed to beat India 4-2 in India.

Dwayne Smith, Kieron Pollard and Narsingh Deonarine all made half centuries but they got not prevent the West Indies being kept down to 274 and thus losing the game by 50 runs.

The result puts Australia 3-0 up in the series with one game left to play, on Friday.

After the last ODI Australia and the West Indies will contest a 2 match Twenty20 International series. Last year the West Indies stunned Australia in the group stages of the Twenty20 World Cup at the Oval.

Laxman likely to play

India's star middle order batsman VVS Laxman is likely to be fit to play in the 2nd Test Match against South Africa at Kolkatta it is understood.

Laxman missed the 1st Test due to injury which India went on to lose by an innings and 6 runs, Rahul Dravid and Yuvraj Singh were also unavailable for the match due to injury.

India are currently ranked number 1 in the world in Test Match Cricket but they will lose that ranking should they lose this series to South Africa.

India earned the number 1 ranking last year in December when they managed to beat Sri Lanka 2-0 in a Test Series.

MS Dhoni's men are also ranked number 2 in the world in ODIS.

South Africa drew their recent Test Series at home to England 1-1.

Had South Africa won that series they would have regained the number 1 Test Match ranking.

Royals announce world's 1st Global Franchise

The Rajasthan Royals winners of the inaugural IPL Event in India in 2008 have announced that they are to merge with Trinidad and Tobago, Hampshire, and the Cape Cobra's and in doing so are forming the world 1st sporting Global franchise.

As a result each of these teams will mow carry the name Royals at the end of their name for their respective Twenty20 domestic leagues and they will wear the same kit.

The idea behind this move is primarily to give fans a team to support all year around rather than just for the duration of the Twenty2o tournament in their respective league.

Shane Warne is the captain and coach of the Rajasthan Royals and he is also a former coach of Hampshire.

Trinidad and Tobago meanwhile reached the final of last year's Champions league before losing to New South Wales in the final.

Ironically Trinidad and Tobago beat the Cape Cobras in the Semis last year.

Raina named in India's Test Squad

Sureh Raina has been named in India's squad for the 2nd Test Match against South Africa, the hosts were thrashed in the 1st Test Match by an innings and 6 runs in Nagpur.

India were clearly affected by the fact that they were without 3 of their star batsmen in the 1st Test, Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman and Yuvraj Singh.

Raina has been one of India's star players in recent times in limited over cricket and he has now played 87 One Day Internationals however he is yet to make his Test Match debut.

Raina has also played in the IPL for the past 2 seasons alongside India's captain MS Dhoni. India are currently ranked number 1 in the world in Test Match cricket but should they lose this series they will be overtaken by South Africa.

South Africa recently drew a Test Series at home 1-1 against England had they won the series they would have regained their number 1 ranking.

South Africa take a 1-0 lead against India

South Africa managed to complete a comprehensive 1-0 victory against India in the 1st Test Match at Nagpur.

The tourists batted 1st and made 558-6 they then bowled India out for 233 and made the hosts follow on. India did manage to make 319 following on but this still saw them lose the contest by an innings and 6 runs. One of the few positves for India would have been Sachin Tendulkar's innings in the 2nd innings the little maestro scored his 46th Test Match hundred before being bowled by Paul Harris for 100.

World number 1 bowler Dale Steyn did the damage with the bal lin the 1st innings as he picked up career best figures of 7-51.

It is the 1st time that MS Dhoni's has tasted defeat in a Test Match as Captain of India.

India are ranked number 1 in Test Match Cricket while South Africa are the 2nd ranked team, in the world, the winner of this series will take the number 1 Test Match ranking.

Australia cruise to 8 wicket victory over the West Indies

Australia have eased their way to an 8 wicket victory over the West Indies in the 2nd ODI at Adelaide, after bowling out the tourists for 170 the home side always appeared to be in control.

Left Arm pace bowler Doug Bollinger was the pick of the bowlers for Australia he picked up 4-28 to put Australia on course for victory.

Chasing 171 was never likely to prove too difficult for Australia, and they won the match by 8 wickets captain Ricky Ponting smashed an unbeaten 57 from just 55 balls.

Australia came into this series with a lot of confidence having beaten Pakistan in an ODI series 5-0 just last week.

This superb run of form in limited overs cricket will give the Australian the belief that they can win the world cup for the 4th time in a row next year.

The last World Cup was held in the Caribbean in 2007 and Australia managed to beat Sri Lanka in the final that time around.