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Mumbai will host the 2011 World Cup final and Mohali one of the semi-finals, according to the allocation of India's share of matches announced on Wednesday.

India, which co-hosts the showpiece event with Sri Lanka and Bangladesh in February-March 2011, will organise 29 matches at eight venues, the Indian cricket board said in a statement.

The full schedule of the 14-nation tournament is due to be announced in Mumbai on November 9.

The Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, being renovated for the World Cup, will host three matches, including the final, while Mohali will stage one semi-final and two other games.

The one quarter-final alloted to India will be held in the western city of Ahmedabad, which will also host two more matches.

Delhi, Chennai, Bangalore, Nagpur and Kolkata will each stage four matches, including one featuring the home team.

Sri Lanka will host 12 and Bangladesh eight of the remaining 20 games in the 49-match tournament after Pakistan were removed as co-hosts by the Innternational Cricket Council due to security concerns.

Sri Lanka will stage the other semi-final and one quarter-final, while Bangladesh will host the opening ceremony on February 18 and two quarter-finals.

The 14 teams have been divided into two groups with the top four from each qualifying for the quarter-finals.

Group A features defending champions Australia, Pakistan, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Canada and Kenya.

Group B comprises India, South Africa, England, West Indies, Bangladesh, Ireland and the Netherlands

Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni shared a serene 148-run stand to help India win a battle of attrition on a sluggish track at the Feroz Shah Kotla and take a 2-1 lead in the seven-ODI series. Australia would perhaps rue the fact that they settled for 229 when they batted after winning an important toss.

"A total of 220 should be a good score on this pitch," Ponting had said and Australia's approach while batting reflected his mindset. Their bowlers did pick up three quick top-order wickets to leave India wobbling at 53 for 3 but Yuvraj and Dhoni batted with the knowledge that sufficient time spent at the crease would ensure a risk-free victory. The pitch was slow and not conducive to stroke making but it did not spin treacherously, despite the visibly dramatic wear and tear.

The game was evenly balanced mid way during the chase with India in consolidation mode at 101 for 3, but Yuvraj and Dhoni slowly and surely pulled India ahead. They batted with restraint while settling in on this track because, as Michael Hussey proved earlier during an unbeaten 81, batting got easier with more time spent on it.

They scored largely in singles and twos before Yuvraj attacked in the 34th over with 94 needed in 17 overs. He flicked for six and hit an extra-cover drive off Moises Henriques before he repeated the sequence next over with a bludgeoned six over long-on and a square-driven boundary against Adam Voges. The momentum shifted permanently after that and Yuvraj played several exquisite drives. He fell 29 runs short of the target but Dhoni struck a couple of boundaries to ward off any hiccups.

Australia had tried their best to apply the squeeze in the middle overs of the chase with the spin-seam combo of Nathan Hauritz and Doug Bollinger. The fast-improving Hauritz slowed his pace and punctuated his offbreaks with the one that went on with the arm. Dhoni chose to play Hauritz off the back foot while Yuvraj pressed forward. Bollinger, who replaced Ben Hilfenhaus, bowled a nagging line and length to strangle the batsmen. Peter Siddle, too, was economical and Australia's bowling, in the absence of Brett Lee and a quality spinner, was as tight as Ponting could hope for but perhaps they had erred in their conservative estimate of a total on this sluggish track.

Once Australia decided not to play specialist opener Shaun Marsh, and possessing a thin middle-order inexperienced in such conditions, they were going to depend heavily on Ponting, Hussey and Shane Watson to reach a competitive total. Their approach seemed to indicate wariness that a collapse was never too far away on a demanding surface. Ponting, who opened only for the second time in his 327-ODI career in Tim Paine's absence, and Watson didn't try anything fancy during a sedate but solid start before Hussey took charge of seeing Australia through to the finish.

Hussey's innings was tailored to the situation. He played numerous little dabs and nudges, cut and swept whenever he could, and never got ahead of himself at any stage. He did play a reverse sweep against Yuvraj but it wasn't a shot of flamboyance but one that exploited the gap in the field. He only hit three more boundaries - the first was a result of a misfield, the second came in the 48th over when he finally heaved one across the line and the highlight was the last, when he charged out to clatter Ashish Nehra over long-on in the 50th over.

Before Hussey played his characteristic innings, Ponting and Watson played uncharacteristic ones to give the innings a steady start. With swing out of the question, the Indian seamers tried to win lbw decisions by bowling as straight as possible and the spinners slowed their pace and kept to an off and middle stump line. Ponting began cautiously, taking care to get his bat in front of the pads, and dealt in singles. Watson also batted in a similar vein and just when he was beginning to cut loose, he fell to Yuvraj after he was beaten by flight and turn and dragged his back foot out of the crease. Hussey came to Australia's rescue with an assured knock but it wasn't enough to stop India from going ahead in the series.

Injured New Zealand batsman Jesse Ryder has come out in support of his limited-overs opening partner Brendon McCullum. McCullum recently lost the vice-captaincy against calls for him to move down the order - he averages 26.10 with just two half-centuries in 20 innings - but Ryder believes he should be persisted with at the top.

"I think he should stay up there and I don't see why people are saying put him back to seven because the records show that we do pretty well together up the top of the order," he told tvnz.co.nz. "It's not very often that we fail as a partnership and at this stage I think it's been really good."

Daniel Vettori, New Zealand's captain and a selector, has expressed his desire to push McCullum down the order in future in order to exploit the batting Powerplay.

Ryder and McCullum have opened together 19 times and have added a century on five occasions and the left-handed batsman was keen to continue his alliance. "It's good for both of us because our personalities combine well when we bat with each other out and he really is a calming influence on me," said Ryder, who has been ruled out of the upcoming limited-overs series against Pakistan in the UAE.

Ryder is undergoing rehab for his abdominal injury and is aiming to return to action for Wellington before Christmas.

England batsman Kevin Pietersen insists he is desperate to get back into action after falling out of love with cricket before being sidelined by an Achilles injury during the Ashes series.
He has said that his forced break from international cricket due to an Achilles injury had refreshed him at a time when he was beginning to fall "out of love with the game".

"The big thing is the mental rest," Pietersen told the Times. "This year has been one of the toughest of my career, with the captaincy debacle in January plus the injury. My Achilles won't hamper me any more and I definitely feel fresh mentally. I'll be starting off really enjoying myself -- and this year I haven't particularly enjoyed playing cricket because I was in pain and because of what happened in January. It's been a tough thing for me."

"I believe everything happens for a reason and these three months have happened to refresh me and knowing that I was sort of falling out of love with the game, it was a symbol or a sign for me to refresh and recharge my batteries."

Pietersen last played for England in the second Ashes Test at Lord's after which he had surgery on his Achilles. He then missed the following seven-ODI series against Australia, the ICC Champions Trophy in South Africa and the inaugural Champions League Twenty20, where he would have played for the Bangalore Royal Challengers.

England's next assignment is a tour of South Africa, which begins in the first week of November. Pietersen is expected to travel to South Africa on November 9 or 10 and, if fit, his comeback match could be the warm-up fixture against South Africa A in Potchefstroom on November 17.

"I can't wait," he said. "I haven't been at my best since India last year. Preparation is what I bank on and preparation has definitely been hampered because of external thoughts. These last three months have cleared my brain and my thoughts."

Australia will be without fast bowler Brett Lee and allrounder James Hopes for the third ODI against India in Delhi on Saturday. Lee had not recovered from his elbow problem while Hopes still had a hamstring injury.

"Both the guys [Lee and Hopes] are not playing tomorrow. Lee had a light training today and he looks 85% fine but there is still some pain in his elbow," Ponting said. "Hopes got through his bowling today but we have our fingers crossed. We hope he will be okay for Mohali after sitting out tomorrow."

There was some good news for the visitors, though, as wicketkeeper Graham Manou was expected to reach Delhi in time for the game as a replacement for Tim Paine, who broke his finger during the second ODI in Nagpur. "Graham [Manou] will arrive this afternoon. He has some international experience having played a few Test matches and also in Ashes," Ponting said.

While Australia have a replacement opener in Shaun Marsh to fill in for Paine, the absence of Lee is a major blow to a bowling attack that has struggled to contain the Indian batsman, especially during the final overs. In the first ODI in Vadodara, Harbhajan Singh and Praveen Kumar added 84 runs in 9.3 overs for the eighth wicket and, in Nagpur, India plundered 108 off the last ten overs to post 354, the highest total by any team batting first against Australia in an ODI.

Left-arm fast bowler Mitchell Johnson, who was also in doubt for the Nagpur ODI with an ankle strain, will play despite discomfort to bolster the attack in the remaining ODIs.

veteran opening batsman Sanath Jayasuriya will drop down the batting order in the one-day internationals to allow left-handed batsman Upul Tharanga to open with Tillakaratne Dilshan.



The 40-year-old Jayasuriya has opened batting in 387 of his 441 ODIs, scoring 12,738 runs as an opener with an average of 34.

It was announced that Kumble would be a member of the India team, who have won the Sixes just once, back in 2005, when this year’s tournament was launched last month. However, the squad has now added plenty of power to Kumble’s experience and heading the way is the 28-year-old Balaji.

The eight-Test, 30 ODI veteran is one of the great stories of Indian cricket in recent years. Having being a regular member of the national set-up in 2004 and 2005 he was struck down with stress fractures, sitting out cricket for three years before returning to take 11 wickets in the IPL last year, including a hat-trick. His return was made complete earlier this year, when was called into the national team in February against Sri Lanka.

Said Balaji: “Playing against Sri Lanka earlier this year gave me a taste of being back with an Indian team, so I am thrilled to be playing at the Hong Kong Sixes. Any team that has Anil has a chance to do very well and I am sure we can be real contenders for the Cup final.”

Along with Kumble and Balaji, also representing India is Kumble’s Champions League Twenty20 team-mate from the Bangalore Royal Challengers – Pandey.

The just-turned 20 Pandey stunned world cricket when he became the first Indian to record a century in the Indian Premier League (IPL), smashing 114 off just 73 balls against the Deccan Chargers earlier this year in South Africa in the tournament’s second edition. With the innings including 10 fours and four massive sixes, the athletic right-hand bat will relish the chance to tee off at the Kowloon Cricket Club’s short boundaries.

Said Pandey: “I have heard great things about the Hong Kong Cricket Sixes from Anil, who is an inspiration for all cricketers in Bangalore and India. I am thrilled to be coming to what I have heard is a very exciting event for the spectators and look forward to trying to put on a show for the Hong Kong fans at the Kowloon Cricket Club.”

The 2005 Player of the Tournament at the Hong Kong Sixes, Retinder Sodhi, will return once again, while also on the Indian squad are Sridharan Sriram, who has played eight ODIs, Stuart Binny, the son of former Indian all-rounder, Roger, and Jagadesh Arunkumar, the leading run-scorer in the domestic Karnataka Premier League Cup.

Captain Shahzada Saleem Ahmed, President of the Hong Kong Cricket Association, said: “This is a stronger India side than the 2005 Sixes champion team. If you were putting together the ideal side for the Sixes, combining the leadership of someone like Anil Kumble and the youthful energy and hitting power of Manish Pandey would be a dream comes true.

“Along with those players, we will also have the opportunity to see Balaji, Sodhi and Sriram, who are great talents and will put on a show at the KCC,” he added.

In a new innovation for 2009, the Hong Kong Cricket Sixes pools will be divided into Northern and Southern hemisphere groups. As such, India will take part in showpiece matches against geographical rivals Pakistan and Sri Lanka on day one, along with a round-robin match against defending champions England.

In keeping with last year when David Warner thrilled local crowds, Cricket Australia has announced a team of dynamic stars of the future will compete at the 2009 Hong Kong Cricket Sixes, to be played at the Kowloon Cricket Club on October 31-November 1.

First played in 1992, the Hong Kong Cricket Sixes is the longest-running international tournament of its kind and will this year celebrate its 15th edition. As such, the Sixes has been included by the International Cricket Council (ICC) as a ‘Catch the Spirit’ event to celebrate the global governing body’s centenary celebrations.

Warner starred at last year’s Sixes, including the final in which England won a record fifth title. Australia finished tied with England on 121 runs, but Stephen O’Keefe was run out attempting a second run from the final ball that would have given his team victory. England were confirmed as victors as they had lost fewer wickets (three wickets to one).

The power-hitting Warner went home from Hong Kong to terrorise South Africa in Twenty20 and ODI games in 2008-2009 Australian summer before returning to the spotlight for New South Wales in the current Twenty20 Champions League, where he is among the leading run-getters for the semi-finalists.

This year, it will be new crop of youngsters seeking to earn Australia’s first-ever victory in the Sixes – led by the rising trio of Michael Cranmer, Josh Hazelwood and Marcus Stoinis. All three were members of the Aussie team that finished equal fifth at the 2008 ICC Under-19 World Cup last year in Malaysia, where they played alongside another Twenty20 star, Phil Hughes.

In addition, the squad includes Simon Keen (22 years of age), Glenn Maxwell (21), Jeremy Smith (21) and former Queensland Sheffield player Greg Moller, at 26, the veteran of the side.

The team will be managed by John Davison, himself no stranger to the kind of big hitting required at the Sixes having set a then record for the fastest World Cup century, off just 67 balls, in 2003 against the West Indies.

Captain Shahzada Saleem Ahmed, President of the Hong Kong Cricket Association, said:
“With the confirmation of this great young Australian team, we have a strong line up of very competitive teams for the 2009 Hong Kong Cricket Sixes. All of them are capable of lifting the Butani Trophy as the winners in a week or so, so it is going to be another outstanding tournament.”

In a new innovation for 2009, the Hong Kong Cricket Sixes pools will be divided into Northern and Southern hemisphere groups. As such, Australia will compete against traditional rivals South Africa and New Zealand along with hosts Hong Kong on day one.

Ticket prices have been revised this year for the Sixes, allowing fans to purchase two-day passes for $HK680 for adults, a 13 per cent discount over last year, while children’s tickets will be available for $380, a reduction of 15 per cent.

To give spectators greater flexibility, for the first time single-day passes will also be available at $HK300 (Saturday)/$470 (Sunday) for adults and $180 (Saturday/$220 (Sunday) for kids. Tickets are on sale through HK Ticketing, the Kowloon and Hong Kong Cricket Clubs and Dot Cod restaurant in Central.

The host broadcaster for the 2009 Hong Kong Cricket Sixes will again be Taj TV-owned Ten Sports from Dubai, who will provide a live broadcast of the entire event into Hong Kong, the Indian subcontinent, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Australia and South Africa.

Additional coverage will also be seen in North America, the United Kingdom, Europe and China. The 2008 Sixes was broadcast to 80 million households worldwide.

Sri Lanka called up Thilina Kandamby to its Test cricket squad and the uncapped Chinthaka Jayasinghe and Muthumudalige Pushpakumara to its twenty20 squad on Tuesday for the tour of India next month.

Kandamby, a left-handed batsman, has recently performed well in limited-overs matches, while Pushpakumara and Jayasinghe are experienced domestic cricketers.

Pushpakumara has scored 241 runs in 18 domestic twenty20 matches at a strike rate of 106. Pushpakumara's offspin bowling has captured 26 wickets. He returns to the national squad after having failed to play a single game on a 2000 tour to South Africa.

Jayasinghe, a 31-year-old batsman, has a strike rate of 135 in a 22-match domestic twenty20 career.

The tour starts with a three-day practice against an Indian all-star XI on Nov. 11, followed by three Tests, five ODIs and two twenty20 games.

India 354 for 7 (Dhoni 124, Gambhir 76, Raina 62*) beat Australia 255 (Hussey 53, Jadeja 3-35) by 99 runs

Two uncapped players, left-hand middle-order batsman Thilina Kandamby and wicketkeeper-batsman Kaushal Silva, have been named in Sri Lanka's Test squad for the tour of India starting next month. Another major change in the 16-man line-up for the three-Test series was a recall for left-arm fast bowler Chanaka Welegedera after a two-year absence from the senior side. The notable absentees are opener Malinda Warnapura and middle-order batsman Chamara Kapugedera.

Kandamby has made it to the Test squad on the strength of his exceptional one-day form. Since his recall to the one-day side last year, Kandamby has been one of Sri Lanka's consistent performers scoring 618 runs from 17 ODIs at an average of 44.14 including five half-centuries.

Silva is highly rated by captain Kumar Sangakkara, who once said that it was the presence of the world's best Test wicketkeeper in the side, Prasanna Jayawardene, that was keeping Silva on the sidelines. A left-hand middle order batsman Silva has been a prolific scorer for Sinhalese Sports Club in the domestic circuit and captained Sri Lanka A against Pakistan A early this year.

Mumbai's Brabourne Stadium will host a Test for the first time since 1973 when Sri Lanka take on India for the third and final Test of their winter tour. The Tests will be followed by two Twenty20 internationals and five ODIs, four of them day-night games.

The series, from November 8 to December 27, begins with a three-day warm-up game against the Board President's XI at Mumbai's Bandra-Kurla Complex before the first Test in Ahmedabad, starting November 16. The second Test will be in Kanpur before the teams head back to Mumbai for the third game. The city's regular venue, the Wankhede Stadium, is currently being renovated for the 2011 World Cup.

Nagpur, which hosts the first Twenty20, Visakhapatnam and Delhi, the venues of the second and fifth one-dayers, will stage their first floodlit international fixtures. The series also marks the return of Kolkata's Eden Gardens as an one-day international venue after nearly three years - it hosts an ODI on Christmas Eve.

Does the audience have the stomach for a seven-match ODI series? The answer will play out during the next couple of weeks. However, if you do get beyond the initial apprehension, this series is extremely vital for both teams. For Australia, as Shane Watson has said, this is a warm-up for the World Cup, while for India, knocked out of the Champions Trophy early, this is a great chance to find the ideal XI and test their fast-bowling resources against a strong opponent.

Australia too have a few questions to answer: Will they give Shaun Marsh, who has had a successful stint in the IPL, an opportunity to open in the first ODI, or will they stick with Tim Paine who did a good job with Shane Watson against England? They might go with Paine at the top and push Marsh down. The middle order will miss the injured injured Michael Clarke, but Clarke has struggled in limited-overs cricket recently: his strike-rate in the 50-over format since the start of 2008 stands at a modest 66.81. However, his skills against spin bowling will be missed.

India will start the first ODI with a bit more hope than they did in the Champions Trophy: Virender Sehwag is back, and immediately the batting line-up looks much more potent. However, Yuvraj Singh is likely to sit out the first ODI due to a finger injury. With Rahul Dravid out, MS Dhoni can easily settle into the Dravid avatar that he has been doing so successfully in recent times: he doesn't hit out as violently as in his early days, and promotes himself when there is a good start so he can anchor the innings and allow the big hitters to express themselves. Expect the Australians to test out Suresh Raina with bouncers; among all the Indian batsmen in the fray, this series will be the biggest for Raina.

However, India will be a little uneasy about their bowling line-up. Munaf Patel should get a game, and it will be interesting to see whether Ishant Sharma, who has been struggling for quite a while now in limited-overs games, is included in the XI.

MS Dhoni said that most of the Indians had small niggles, but no serious injuries. He was also non-committal on Yuvraj's chances of being fit for the first ODI.