Shehzad, Misbah star in Pakistan win

The innocuous practice game had more reasons to be forgotten than to be remembered despite the centuries by Ahmed Shehzad and Misbah-ul-Haq and Junaid Siddique's brave approach. Pakistan beat Bangladesh convincingly by 89 runs at the Shere Bangla Stadium in Mirpur and it was a game that reminded Bangladesh of holes in their system and gave the young Pakistan batsman ideal practice ahead of their first big tournament.

The Pakistan dressing room went through a nervy first 90 minutes before settling in with the 152-run stand between Misbah and Shehzad, but the battle for the 'story of the day', as far as the locals were concerned, would be a tight contest between the ticket bungle-up and Bangladesh's four dropped catches.

When Shehzad walked in with Mohammad Hafeez to open the innings, the ground was half-full with most of the ticket-holders left stranded at a nearby indoor stadium with vouchers in hand. Shehzad cut and drove with ease though wickets fell quickly for Pakistan. After Hafeez drove straight at Mahmudullah at cover, Kamran Akmal and Younis Khan succumbed as soon as spin was introduced, Kamran miscuing a drive and Abdur Razzak foxing Younis for 5. 

The game changed as soon as Misbah took over, with each left-arm spinner looking more ineffective than the other. Razzak and Suhrawadi Shuvo bowled a poor line and their frustration was compounded by dropping catches off each other at long-off when Shehzad was on 42 and 56. Hafeez too had a let-off when Siddique dropped him on 16, a simple chance at midwicket, while Mohammad Ashraful found Shahid Afridi's skier at mid-off hard to handle. 

"The four dropped catches were a bit disappointing. Razzak has never been our best fielder but the others were really disappointing," Jamie Siddons, the Bangladesh coach, said. "I'm glad it was a practice game and not the 19th." 

Shehzad's batting gave Pakistan hope as it reaffirmed his position at the top of the order alongside Hafeez, who did a fine job in New Zealand. Shehzad latched into anything short and there were many opportunities. He hit nine boundaries and a six in his 122-ball 103. "I think he looked really good and he has been doing well since the New Zealand tour where he got a century in the last game," Pakistan's coach Waqar Younis said. "He is in superb touch, and for a young man to be so responsible at such a big stage, it was great."

It was Misbah's timing, however, that caught the eye, his run-a-ball 100 had four big sixes and eight boundaries. He was severe on the spinners, cutting and punching the ball with ease, a handy lesson for batsmen on both sides. 

Bangladesh's chase had a terrible start when Tamim Iqbal played down the wrong line to Abdul Razzaq's first delivery of the innings. Siddique's courage to open up his game was a surprise. Some of his boundaries were exquisite, mainly forcing the ball down the ground but even making room to hit Razzaq over covers. But he holed out to Asad Shafiq off Wahab Riaz, whom Siddique had struck for a six over square-leg an over ago. His 28-ball 38 included six boundaries and the six, and he added with Imrul Kayes, who made 39.

Bangladesh's experiment to use Mushfiqur Rahim at No. 4 failed and so did Ashraful after he struck a boundary off his first ball. Razzaq picked up Shakib and Ashraful after he took out Tamim. Once the game slipped out of Bangladesh's grasp, they used a longer batting line-up to give their batsmen a go before the big game against India on February 19. The result ensured a few more tense net sessions for Siddons and Shakib.

Botha and O'Brien secure tight victory

Ireland secured an impressive four-wicket victory against Zimbabwe to highlight their potential for making a mark on the World Cup. Kevin O'Brien guided them home with three balls spare as he struck an unbeaten 62 after adding 99 with Andre Botha (79) to form the backbone of the chase. 

It meant Elton Chigumbura's 81-ball 103 went in vain and completed back-to-back warm-up defeats for Zimbabwe who were comprehensively beaten by South Africa in Chennai. They weren't helped when Ed Rainsford was forced out of the attack after his first delivery when he was struck on the leg by a straight drive, leaving the bulk of their bowling once again in the hands of the spinners. But in the absence of key batsmen Ed Joyce and William Porterfield, Ireland showed fine composure having lost Paul Stirling in the first over.

Alex Cusack gave the innings an early foundation with his 47, but at 127 for 4 in the 32nd over Ireland still needed a substantial partnership to overhaul the target. Botha provided the anchor while O'Brien brought the muscle to their fifth-wicket partnership as they kept up with the required rate. O'Brien twice cleared the ropes but lost his partner with 19 needed and Gary Wilson followed to provide a few late nerves until John Mooney helped see Ireland home. 

Zimbabwe's top order had struggled, slipping to 12 for 3 and then 100 for 5 as Trent Johnson took 2 for 9 in five overs. Chigumbura and Prosper Utseya added 54 as Ireland used a variety of bowling options and Chigumbura then took charge with the lower order for company. He hit eight fours and three sixes as 90 runs came from the last seven overs, but it still didn't prove enough. 

"It was the worst fielding performance we have produced since I took over as coach," said a disappointed Alan Butcher afterwards. "It was diabolical and unacceptable and I told the players that. We didn't score enough runs and it was actually a good effort to get so close to victory given how poorly we fielded."

For Chigumbura it was a day of mixed emotions: "I'm pleased to have scored the hundred and to get back to form - hopefully I can carry it on for the rest of the tournament. But we will have to improve as a team and it was very disappointing to field like we did and to lose."

Dhoni hints Kohli will play instead of Raina

The most heated debate in recent weeks about the composition of the Indian team for the World Cup has been who among Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina will make the final XI. MS Dhoni gave the first clear indication of the Indian team's decision when he said, after the warm-up match against New Zealand, that the in-form Kohli is likely to play at No. 4 in the opening match against Bangladesh. 

"Right now it is a matter of deciding slots; it's the No. 4 slot where Virat Kohli needs to bat with Gautam [Gambhir] at No. 3, because to perform to his potential Virat needs to bat up the order," Dhoni said in Chennai. "Raina has done well for us batting at No. 5 and No. 6, still there's a bit of a chance that Virat may get an edge over Raina seeing the current form that he [Kohli] is in." 

A starting spot in the World Cup will be a reward for Kohli, who has soared to second spot in the ICC one-day batsmen rankings on the back of several outstanding series. His journey to becoming a first-choice player began with the chances he got in the absence of some of the senior players from one-dayers over the past year. He backed up a match-winning hundred against Australia, in October, with plenty of runs in the home series against New Zealand, before looking the most assured of the India batsmen against the pace of Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel in the South Africa one-day series. He was also fluent in both of India's warm-up matches, making 21 against Australia and a brisk half-century against New Zealand.

Raina has been a regular with the Indian side for a couple of years now, but his patchy recent form seems set to cost him his place at the start of cricket's marquee tournament. He has only one half-century in his previous 21 innings, and even the 25-ball half-century he hammered against New Zealand on Wednesday hasn't, apparently, been enough to convince the team management. 

Another middle-order batsman whose recent form hasn't been great is Yuvraj Singh, who didn't bat in the warm-up against New Zealand. With India playing only four specialist bowlers, and Virender Sehwag's shoulder problem still preventing him from sending down his offspinners, Yuvraj's regular contributions with the ball will be important to the balance of the side. "Once Yuvraj gets going in a series, he makes it a point that India wins that series; that's definitely a big positive," Dhoni said. "Also being a proper left-arm spinner, he has been contributing in all the games right from South Africa, taking the ball away from the batsmen. It's another big asset that he has got which gives him an edge over the others." 

Yuvraj's batting form is shaping up as a big factor in deciding which of Kohli and Raina will play. He will start out the World Cup at No. 5, but could move up a slot if he hits form. If that happens, Kohli looks likely to have to vacate not just the No. 4 spot but a place in the team itself as the management rates Raina as a better player in the lower order, in the subcontinent. "Once Yuvraj gets going and he scores one or two fifties, that will be the time when we will be in a dilemma," Dhoni said, "because that No. 4 slot is very important for us, and if Virat is to bat at No. 5, 6 or 7 then his performance will get affected, because he's the kind of player who likes to spend a bit of time initially and then look to go after the bowlers."

Cheema's onslaught gives England a big scare

Rizwan Cheema gave England a massive scare in their opening World Cup warm-up match against Canada, as he blazed 93 from 70 balls from No. 7 to give life to a faltering run-chase at Fatullah and raise the very real prospect of an embarrassing upset. However, five wickets for Stuart Broad on his return to competitive action, allied to a greater knowhow at the death, enabled England to defend their middling total of 243 despite being outgunned on the boundary count. Having recovered from 28 for 5 inside the eighth over, Canada's challenge finally ended on 227, with 23 balls left unused. 

It was a sloppy display from England at an admittedly outlandish venue, although one that they ought to have been familiar with, having launched their tour of Bangladesh on the same ground in February last year. But it was Canada who looked the most at home in the conditions, as Cheema made light of a dramatic top-order collapse, which included first-over wickets for both the fit-again Ajmal Shahzad and Broad, who had not bowled in a match since tearing stomach muscles at Adelaide in December, but who ended up being England's saving grace with match figures of 5 for 37. 

There had been no inkling of the drama to come when Canada lost half of their batsmen in the space of 44 balls, including the veteran John Davison, whose whirlwind century against West Indies in 2003 is the stuff of World Cup legend. However, Cheema has previous in that regard as well. At King City in August 2008, also against West Indies, he had battered the bowling to all parts in a 69-ball 89, and this time he produced ten fours and five sixes, including two in an over from the otherwise impressive Broad. While he remained, Canada held out hope of a major scalp, but with his hundred in sight, he took the aerial route once too often, and picked out Ian Bell at long-off. 

Still their challenge was not finished, as Chohan - who had earlier impressed with the ball - dug in for a spirited 44 from 74 balls to take the game right down to the wire. Canada entered the final ten overs needing 47 to win, and a clumping Chohan six off James Tredwell took the requirement down below 20. But Tredwell extracted Harvir Baidwan for 14, via a catch to Paul Collingwood, before Broad returned to seal the deal, striking with the first ball of his ninth over to trap Chohan lbw. 

If England seemed an unsettled outfit, that fact was telegraphed at the toss, when Kevin Pietersen was revealed as Andrew Strauss's 13th opening partner, and England's 21st in ODI cricket since the 2007 World Cup. Though Pietersen made an indifferent 24 from 27 balls in his new role before chopping on to Chohan, the message from the England management was that this tactic was intended to be a permanent measure for the duration of the World Cup. 

The timing of the reshuffle is hardly opportune - Pietersen has only ever opened in six of his 223 List A matches, and never at international level, while England's first World Cup fixture is looming against Netherlands at Nagpur in less than a week's time - but in the absence of Eoin Morgan in the middle order, the team think-tank has decided that an injection of urgency in the opening overs is the best way to balance the loss of such a pivotal player. 

England won the toss and batted first, only for Strauss to fall to a strangle down the leg side in the second over of the game. However, Jonathan Trott, whose berth at No. 3 seems set in stone, did what he does best, anchoring the innings with an unhurried 57 from 81 balls, while Matt Prior - the man who opened the batting in Australia last month - showed he was unaffected by a reversion to the lower order, as he upped the tempo with a fluent 78 from 80 balls in the latter stages of the innings. 

In between whiles, England allowed themselves to get bogged down against Canada's nagging repertoire of spin and medium pace. Chohan and Baidwan claimed three wickets apiece, while the legspin of Balaji Rao proved tidy in a ten-over spell that conceded 38 runs and claimed the scalp of Collingwood, whose 9 from 21 balls was another scratchy affair that ended with a wild charge down the pitch and a routine stumping. 

When Luke Wright was trapped lbw for a five-ball duck, England were dicing with humiliation at 158 for 7, but Prior and the lower-order boosted their total with some urgent strokeplay. Broad, back in the side after a two-month lay-off following his torn stomach muscle in the Adelaide Test, clubbed 22 from 27 balls to help hoist the total to 243. At 28 for 5 in reply, it looked like being more than enough. But in the end, England barely bellyflopped over the line.

Ponting wants batsmen to improve against spin

Ricky Ponting has said that Australia's batsmen will have to step up their game if they are to win the World Cup after their dramatic collapse in the warm-up match against India in Bangalore. Chasing 215 to win, Australia were 118 for 1 at one stage, but the middle order disintegrated in stunning fashion to be shot out for 176 on a turning track. 

Ponting blamed the "under-prepared" pitch for the batting debacle. "It was an unusual ODI wicket, I don't remember the last one-day wicket I've played on that spun that much," Ponting said after the 38-run loss. "You have to find a way sometimes to combat good spin bowling on tough conditions like that. Who knows as the tournament goes on, we could face conditions like that somewhere else, and I would like to think that we can play a lot better. Otherwise, we can't win. Hopefully some of the younger guys in the middle order can learn a little bit about starting in tough conditions." 

Australia lost their last nine wickets for 58 runs but Ponting said he wasn't overly concerned as he felt the pitch made batting an arduous task. "Yes, we were disappointing and should have played better, but by the same token even the Indian batsmen would have found it difficult to bat in those conditions. I have played a lot of one-day cricket here in India and Sri Lanka, but I don't think I have ever played in an ODI game with so much spin. We only arrived here two days back and will get more practice as things move on."

Though Australia's batsmen wilted, their seamers, led by the impressive Brett Lee, turned in a good show to restrict India. They also conceded 25 wides but Ponting said that the bowlers know their job. "It's unacceptable to bowl that many wides in one-dayers but the bowlers know that, we know that. Lee and Mitchell Johnson were terrific, John Hastings bowled very well and we still should have chased that many runs. We were 1 for 100 when Tim [Paine] and I were in ..." 

Ponting also spoke about his spinners and how he plans to use them in the World Cup. They rested Steve Smith and played Jason Krejza yesterday, but Ponting assured that Smith will be one of the key players for Australia in the tournament. "Smith will definitely bowl a lot of overs in the tournament. Jason Krejza will learn from his outing today, [Michael] Clarke can bowl when needed but Smith will play a lot." Cameron White, the other batsman who can bowl some spin, has already admitted he is no longer an allrounder and will play as a pure batsman. "Just lost a bit of confidence as a bowler to be honest," White said. "I am just concentrating on my batting and enjoying that role." 

Ponting's batting was one of the major positives to emerge for Australia. He made 57 before becoming the seventh wicket to fall, stumped after missing a slog sweep against Harbhajan Singh. Ponting had suffered a finger injury during the Ashes and didn't play in the seven-match ODI series against England. In the absence of Michael Hussey, there will be immense pressure on Ponting to deliver and he was happy that he could spend some time in the middle. "My fingers are ok. It was nice to spend 80-odd minutes in the middle. It was my first game in six weeks. I certainly wasn't at my best but it was difficult out there and I should be better for the outing. 

"I have to be a consistent run-scorer. I certainly wasn't that in the summer. It was nice to get some runs but it doesn't count for much. The runs I score in the bigger games will be important. I am feeling good; I have worked as hard as I can since my finger surgery. I feel good with my body and felt good with my batting tonight. Hopefully I can get some more runs in the next warm-up game and carry that form through the tournament."

Chawla turns it around

Let's give Piyush Chawla his due: he spun the ball with control, stuck to a disciplined line, and firmly wrenched the match out of Australia's grasp. It was a match-winning performance in his first-ever one-dayer in India, when anything less would've have probably hurt his ambitions, especially given the raging debate that had erupted in the wake of his selection to the Indian World Cup squad. 

Though a performance like today's in a warm-up is not enough justification for his inclusion, Chawla at least showed visible signs that he has been working hard on getting his legbreak right. In the past he has struggled to spin the delivery Shane Warne built his legend on, and being just 22 then, Chawla was reluctant to admit his limitation. Having recently returned to the national team after a three-year hiatus, he appears to be steadily regaining lost ground. 

Chawla had watched Jason Krejza turn the ball big in the afternoon and when his turn came to bowl, Australia were a comfortable 72 for 1. Shane Watson and Tim Paine had taken advantage of the hard ball and the absence of swing in the first ten overs to give Australia a confident start. Chawla's first ball slipped down the leg side for five wides. The dew, perhaps. He rubbed his palms dry and started afresh. The legbreak came out nicely, but Paine safely left it alone. He worked on that delivery for the next four overs, keeping Ricky Ponting busy without ever giving him width. 

With a small target to defend, Dhoni knew he had no option but to attack, and that pressure could only be built through the various spinners at his disposal. Along with Chawla, the trio of R Aswhin, Yuvraj Singh and Harbhajan Singh tied down the Australians with smart variations. The batsmen were kept hungry with barely a bad ball on offer. 

Chawla found his voice immediately in his second spell. The reputation of Michael Clarke as one of the better players of spin had already taken a beating when the Australian vice-captain failed badly during the Test series in India last year. Chawla was aware of Clarke's tendency to charge to kill the spin. So he pushed in a couple of sliders, then followed it with a fast-ish leg break. Clarke tried cutting with hard hands, only to play on.

Chawla's biggest victory though was to keep Ponting silent. "That is probably the best I've seen him bowl," Ponting said in praise of Chawla. "He spun the ball a bit more tonight. His control was pretty good. He along with the other spinners did a good job and some of our new batsmen found it difficult. You can see that from the low scores in the middle order as it was hard to start against that spin bowling tonight." 

The handsome crowd, who had started to fill in an hour before the match started, played the supporting act. Their roars enlivened the atmosphere. Chawla kept his emotions in check. Two perfect legbreaks with successive deliveries got the better of Cameron White and David Hussey. Desperate, Callum Fergusson tried to take on the lethal legbreak and was bitten. 

As Ponting admitted, it was a lesson for his batsmen to understand the conditions today. "It was an unusual one-day wicket. I don't remember the last wicket that spun that much. But you have to find a way sometimes to combat good spin bowling in tough conditions like today." 

In contrast, Dhoni was a happy man, saying he was confident Chawla would perform even if he had gone wicketless on his return to international cricket in the final match of the ODI series in South Africa in January. "His first game after returning to play for the country was under pressure, which is quite acceptable," Dhoni said. "[Today], it was a wicket which was turning a bit and he made the batsmen really think hard about the variations that he has got." 

Dhoni agreed it was a tough wicket to bat on, but felt the Australians succumbed to pressure and that was the turning point. "Initially, when the fast bowlers were on the ball was coming on nicely but once we got couple of wickets in the middle, the ball was spinning. And once you are under pressure and you want to win the game desperately the pressure keeps mounting . It may have happened with the Australian side."

At the same time he pointed out that such a turner would be hard to find during the World Cup. "This is a sort wicket to be provided in Test matches, where the ball took spin after two hours," Dhoni said. Yet, Chawla, for one, would not mind such a pitch.

'Sri Lanka will play seven batsmen' - Bayliss

Trevor Bayliss, the Sri Lanka coach, has given some insight into the XI his side will field during the World Cup, saying they would stick to a combination of seven batsmen and four bowlers, since it has served them well in home games. Sri Lanka experimented with playing six batsmen and five bowlers on their 2010 tour of Australia, with allrounders Angelo Mathews and Thisara Perera batting at Nos. 6 and 7, but reverted to a seven-four formula for the home series against West Indies. 

"We've got eight batters [in the 15-man squad] and in the last two or three years we've played a seven-four combination with (Angelo) Mathews in the top six being a bowler as well," Bayliss, who will quit the Sri Lanka job after the World Cup, said. "I can't see it changing just at the moment. In Australia we played six-five but seven-four seems to be the way we play our best cricket in Sri Lanka." 

That means Thisara Perera may not find a place in the XI, since he has been a bit inconsistent with the bat, and may not make the cut as a seamer ahead of Nuwan Kulasekara and Dilhara Fernando. Bayliss, however, said Perera would play some part in the campaign. "Thisara Perera's been very impressive through the Asia Cup and the tri-series we played before Christmas, up in Dambulla, against India and New Zealand. Ever since then he is taking wickets. 

"He is a big fellow, very athletic in the field, got strong arms and as you know he can whack the ball out of the stadium. He is an important part of our squad and I am sure that at some stage during this World Cup he will find form." 

The other decision Sri Lanka have to make is which four bowlers to play. Lasith Malinga and Muttiah Muralitharan are the two sure starters, if they are fit, while Fernando and Kulasekara are the two other fast-bowling options with Rangana Herath and Ajantha Mendis the other two spinners in the fifteen.

Fernando took four wickets in Sri Lanka's 158-run win in the warm-up match against Netherlands, and while Bayliss was satisfied with his performance, he suggested he may only be used in a three-seamer attack. "Dilhara is a guy who cops a little bit of criticism but if he can bowl more like the way he did [in the warm-up match] more often I am sure that criticism will disappear. That's the type of bowling we want to see from him in this World Cup and if he does that and backs up Lasith Malinga and Nuwan Kulasekara then we'll be putting in very good bowling performances." 

In the home series against West Indies, Sri Lanka opted for two spinners, and Bayliss said Mendis and Herath would have to battle it out for the second spot. He explained Muralitharan's absence from the warm-up game by saying, "Murali is getting towards the end of his career and we want to make sure that he is mentally and physically fresh to play the game we want him to play." 

Sri Lanka are being touted as one of the favourites to win the World Cup, with their one possible weakness being the inexperience in the middle order, but Bayliss was quick to defend his batsmen. "The middle-order guys get a bit of a raw deal. They are asked to perform when the top order don't. You've got seven batters in the team and it is up to every one of those seven to do their job in the line-up and that includes the openers, the top order and the middle order."