Dilshan, Tharanga take Sri Lanka into quarterfinals

When Elton Chigumbura chose to bowl in Pallekele, to avoid his spinners having to struggle with a dew-soaked ball, little did he think his team would fail to take a wicket for 44.3 overs. But Tillakaratne Dilshan and Upul Tharanga batted forever, notching up the first double-century opening partnership in World Cup history, and their hundreds set up Sri Lanka's victory, officially securing their place in the quarter-finals.

The result was a foregone conclusion once Sri Lanka scored 327 but there was a flutter of hope in the Zimbabwe camp when Brendan Taylor was at the forefront of the pursuit. He combined orthodoxy and innovation during an aggressive half-century, taking advantage of a wayward Sri Lankan pace attack. The hosts gathered themselves, though, and struck twice at the other end after a century opening stand. Taylor eventually departed for 80 in the 25th over, and with him ended Zimbabwe's improbable chances.

The struggle of Zimbabwe's batsmen was in contrast to the ease with which Dilshan and Tharanga had entertained a packed house. They started at top speed, taking 84 of the first 11 overs by playing a shot a minute, and then shifted to a lower gear, bleeding Zimbabwe steadily and so easily through the middle overs. There were regular bursts of acceleration later in the innings and a concerted push during the final ten overs. At no stage were they bothered and rarely has a bowling performance looked so toothless - Chris Mpofu's shout after striking Tharanga's pad with the first ball of the game was the only appeal against the openers. Tired shots, rather than incisive bowling, brought about the dismissal of Tharanga and then Dilshan, and more middle-order wickets fell as batsmen came, swung and pushed the total beyond 300.

Tharanga threaded the fourth ball through point with a square drive and Sri Lanka were away. For the first time in the tournament Chigumbura did not use Ray Price with the brand new ball and gave the second over to Tinashe Panyangara. It was a costly decision as Dilshan ran amok, driving the full balls, and cutting and pulling the short ones to take 18 runs off the over.

There was no let-up in Sri Lanka's pace during the mandatory Powerplay, off which they scored 77. Dilshan and Tharanga slashed through point, pulled through square and then drove when the length was too full, punishing everyone who bowled at them. When Price was brought on in the fifth over, Dilshan skipped down and drove him inside out through cover.

Not until the 12th and 13th over was there spin from both ends and then Price bowled the innings' first maiden. The spin trio of Price, Prosper Utseya and Graeme Cremer began to exercise more control over the run-rate, which dipped below six for the first time in the 19th, but they failed to take a wicket. Tharanga and Dilshan seamlessly shifted to a lower gear and focused on accumulation.

Zimbabwe's spinners had conceded only 76 runs off 17 overs when Chigumbura gave pace another run by bringing himself on. Dilshan slapped a wide offering through cover to move to 99 and then reached his century off 95 balls, his first in World Cups. Panyangara returned and Tharanga immediately lofted over mid-off and pulled past fine leg. Sri Lanka took 30 off overs 31-33.

Tharanga and Dilshan broke Saeed Anwar and Wajahatullah Wasti's World Cup record of 194 for the first wicket and then became the first openers to score hundreds in the same World Cup innings. They reached 200 in 33.4 overs. During the batting Powerplay, taken in the 41st over, Tharanga's inside-out play through cover was exquisite. With the highest opening partnership in ODIs - 286 between Sanath Jayasuriya and Tharanga at Headingley 2006 - within striking distance, Tharanga holed out to deep cover, bringing Zimbabwe some relief. Dilshan followed in the next over, leaving the finishing touches to his well-rested team-mates.

As impressive as Sri Lanka's display was, Taylor played some of the best shots of the game. Using Malinga's pace, Taylor flicked a low full toss to the backward square-leg boundary, pushed a wide one through covers and chipped a short one over Kumar Sangakkara's head. There was only touch and timing in those shots, no power. Taylor got to his fifty off 39 balls and carried on batting aggressively.

Muttiah Muralitharan came on only in the 16th over, after the bowling Powerplay was completed, and in the 20th he spun a doosra on to Regis Chakabva's off stump, ending the opening stand on 116. Tatenda Taibu was bent on reverse-sweeping Murali whenever he could, and got away with it. He didn't get away with edging Angelo Mathew though, and Sangakkara dived to his right to take the catch inches off the ground.

Those two wickets set back Zimbabwe's chase considerably, and Taylor's dismissal was the definitive blow. On 80, he chipped a slower ball from Angelo Mathews straight to midwicket and the contest was over. Dilshan returned to torment Zimbabwe, picking up four batsmen - his finishing touches on a terrific game. And Murali, playing his final ODI in front of his home crowd, took the final wicket.

Amla insists India are under pressure

Hashim Amla, South Africa's opening batsman, said that the pressure is on India ahead of their marquee clash with South Africa in Nagpur on Saturday. "Being at home comes with a lot of expectation," he said. "I don't think the pressure is on us as much as it is on India."

South Africa and India's match is one of the most eagerly anticipated of the group stage, the juicy steak everyone has been looking forward to after three weeks of appetisers and the occasional chicken dish, still a main, but not the red-meat one. England have served up most of the white-meat, advertising fifty-over cricket with three delicious roasts so far, one where they got burnt by Ireland, one where they returned the favour to South Africa, and that tie with India - cooked just right.

Now it's time to sample one of the dishes that is considered a speciality in this tournament, two of the favourites, blended in one stadium. The teams have been on this menu before, little more than a month ago, when South Africa beat India 3-2 in a closely fought ODI series in South Africa. The ingredients were completely different, with pitches that favoured the local seamers being the biggest change. "We do take confidence from knowing that we've beaten India on our home ground but we are not naïve to think this will be the same," Amla said.

Nagpur's kitchen caters to other tastes entirely, with a pancake of a track that promises runs that will drip like an overflowing pot of honey. South Africa have sipped from those fountains before. Dale Steyn helped himself to 7 for 51 in the Test match and Amla scored his career-best 253 not out in February last year. "The last time I was here I had a good time," Amla said, holding himself back from licking his fingers or lips, which is what he may have needed to do given the aftertaste this venue must have left in this mouth. "We know the scores are generally quite high here, if I can score the same amount of runs I will be very happy."
   
The same amount may be too much to ask in a quick meal like a one-day international, but the substance of what Amla is saying is there. He hopes to spend as much time at the crease as possible, in keeping with South Africa's philosophy that at least one of their top six chefs must remain in the kitchen to marshal the rest. "You hope somebody in the top six bats a long time so others can bat around him. It is a considered effort. We want the batsmen to score the runs rather than have the tail-enders have to bat."

With the batsmen the ones that are being promised the best of the meal on offer in Nagpur, it leaves little to whet the appetite of the bowlers. India's attack has come under fierce criticism for being undercooked but Amla predicts that they will still bring their fair share of spice for the South Africans to deal with. "We rate their bowlers," he said. "Even though we won 3-2 they bowled very well in that series at home."

Although Amla referenced it himself, the snacks shared between India and South Africa a few weeks ago are still thought to have little bearing on this match. Even the way Yusuf Pathan proved himself, with a commanding innings in Centurion against short pitched bowling, is not something South Africa have pondered to any great detail. "We're not placing too much importance on individuals," Amla said, while explaining that South Africa is enjoying every meal to the fullest, tasting each dish before going on to the next.

They still know that on Saturday, the VCA will be a pressure cooker but Amla thinks that South Africa are not the ones who need to be worried about getting cooked to pulp. "We've played in front of big crowd before, it may take five or six overs to get used to the noise factor but it will be a lovely atmosphere." The dessert, for many, will be if these two meet in the final in three weeks time. It may make all the finger food in between worth it, particularly if they dish out a tasty course this time around.

Michael Hussey savours unexpected call-up

Michael Hussey qualified to be a teacher, but he's so level-headed it's hard to imagine him ever raising his voice at a student. So when he was ruled out of Australia's World Cup squad and spoke out strongly about why he felt he deserved to be picked, it was extra noteworthy. The man who doesn't sledge and doesn't criticise was not going to be silenced on this occasion. 

But the selectors had made their decision. Hussey was recuperating from surgery for a serious hamstring injury and with Ricky Ponting also recovering from his broken finger, the Australians were unwilling to risk taking two batsmen who were not fully fit. One month later Hussey has his opportunity, courtesy Doug Bollinger's ankle injury, and he's pinching himself ahead of Sunday's match against Kenya in Bangalore.

"I pretty much thought I wouldn't get another chance to play in a World Cup," Hussey said. "That was doubly disappointing because I had set myself the goal coming in to this year to be involved in the T20 World Cup, the Ashes and the World Cup. They were my three big goals to be part of those teams. When I was ruled it was a pretty bitter pill to take, but unbelievably I find myself here, so it's great news. 

"I found it pretty difficult to take for a while, but I then used all that energy and emotion to rehab and get better as fast as I could. The rule, we thought, was that if there was an injury I couldn't be the one to come in and replace. I don't know if the rules changed or if we misinterpreted them, but it was good news from my point of view to think that there was still a glimmer of hope that I could still be involved." 

Hussey had been focused on getting fit for Australia's one-day tour of Bangladesh, which immediately follows the World Cup. Now he finds himself parachuted in to the middle of a campaign that has started well, with victories over Zimbabwe and New Zealand, before the much-anticipated clash with Sri Lanka was washed out in Colombo. 

Victory over Kenya would confirm Australia's place in the quarter-finals, but their goal is to finish at the top of the Group A table, to give them the best chance of facing a weaker opponent in the sudden-death rounds. And as the business end of the tournament approaches, it will be important for Hussey to rush straight into the side and get acclimatised to the subcontinent conditions. 

It could be Hussey's brother David, or Cameron White, or Steven Smith, who makes way, but whatever the case, there will be plenty of attention on how Hussey performs. He said he had been overwhelmed with the positive feedback to his call-up, but all the same, the month-long debate about his place in the squad means that a couple of failures might not go down so well. 

"I don't want to try to put any extra pressure on myself," he said. "Similar to the Ashes, there's always so much speculation and so much pressure and so much hype and all of the distractions around the team. But for me I just try to put all of those things out of my mind and concentrate on what's important and that's doing my job in the team." 

And at 35, Hussey has no plans to call an end to that job just yet. Last year, he told ESPNcricinfo that his plan was to fight for a place in the World Twenty20, the Ashes and the World Cup, and then reassess. Now, he's starting to cast his eyes beyond the last one of those major events. 

"I'm pretty keen to keep playing," Hussey said. "The key factors for me are am I still contributing to the team, am I enjoying the contest out in the middle, and if I'm still enjoying playing for Australia and doing all the travel and the training and still trying to motivate myself to get better. At the moment I still feel like I'm ticking all those boxes. While I'm doing that I want to continue to play. It took me so long to get just one game for Australia, so I don't want to pull up stumps on anything too soon." 

Of course, there is a career in education he can eventually fall back on. But for now, there are plenty of opponents he'd still like to teach a lesson.

Vettori to miss Canada game

Daniel Vettori, the New Zealand captain, will miss his team's next game against Canada on March 13 because of a knee injury. Vettori hurt his right knee during the game against Pakistan and is now hoping to be fit for New Zealand's last league game against Sri Lanka on March 18 in Mumbai. 

"At the moment Dan's staying with us," opener Martin Guptill said. "I think he is probably going to miss the next game. But he is staying with us for the rest of the tournament which is good for us." Guptill said the team had not decided who will take Vettori's place yet. "Not too sure what they are going to do. We haven't had a selection meeting yet. The decision will be taken tomorrow." 

Vettori's movements appeared to be seriously restricted after a diving effort for an attempted catch at mid-on in the sixth over of Pakistan's innings, and two balls later he limped slowly from the field. At the time, he struggled to walk around the boundary, being helped along by the support staff, and had ice treatment in the changing room while the vice-captain Ross Taylor oversaw the 110-run win. 

Ellery Tappin, the New Zealand media manager, said Vettori had strained a ligament in his right knee. "It's not a tear or something significant. He is targeting the Sri Lankan game."

Australia's pace will be a big challenge - Waters

Seren Waters might sound like the name of a peaceful spa retreat in the rainforest, but he'll need every bit of his inner calm on Sunday when Shaun Tait is bearing down from 22 yards. As Kenya's opening batsman, Waters has the task of deflecting Tait's 150kph-plus offerings, and if he survives that he'll be rewarded by facing Brett Lee and Mitchell Johnson. Serenity now. 

"I don't think there is another attack in the world comparable to that," Waters said. "They've got three of the quickest bowlers in the world and they're coming one after the other, so there's no real respite. It's going to be an experience." 

An experience is one way of putting it. At the very least, it's something to tell his classmates when he heads back to Durham University, where he is studying human geography and has a full schedule of exams waiting for him in the middle of the year. 

Waters has played for Surrey's Second XI but his cricketing future, like many of the Kenyan players, is in some degree of limbo. The ICC's decision to cut the next World Cup to ten teams means that even though Waters is only 20, he is well aware that this could be his first and last 50-over World Cup. 

However, there may be a place for Kenya at World Twenty20 tournaments in the future, and if that happens then Waters will appreciate the experience of facing the likes of Tait. He nominates Shoaib Akhtar as the fastest bowler he has ever faced, having played Pakistan earlier in this competition, and is looking forward to testing himself against the Australians. 

"Throughout the tournament all of us have faced bowlers we've never faced before," Waters said. "We came up against [Lasith] Malinga, who is unique in what he does, and [Muttiah] Muralitharan. Facing Australia is going to be a big challenge, because three bowlers that are bowling about 150kph consistently is something that none of us will have ever faced before." 

The reality is that nothing is expected of Kenya on Sunday. They have played poorly in every match so far, even losing to Canada, and they face the very real prospect of completing a World Cup without winning a game for the second time in their history. In that environment, even a competitive effort against Australia would be seen as a victory of sorts. 

"The three Test nations we've played we haven't really come close to giving them a game, so we'd hope to give Australia a good game," Waters said. "Winning would be something you'd probably dream about. Realistically, having seen the way we've played so far it's probably something not many people are expecting. But to give them a good game is our target. Throughout my childhood they've been the best side in the world, so the opportunity to play them in the World Cup is pretty special." 

Adding to the challenge for Kenya, their most experienced player, Steve Tikolo, didn't train in Bangalore on Friday due to illness. The Kenyans have relied heavily on the veteran Tikolo over the years, but their future lies with young men like Waters. And Sunday's match looms as the biggest test of his short career.

Morgan ready to step into the breach

Eoin Morgan is all set to become only the fourth player to have represented two countries in World Cups. His has been as interesting a story as the club of three he joins: Kepler Wessels, Anderson Cummins and Ed Joyce. When he played in the West Indies for Ireland four years ago, he - and all his Irish team-mates for that matter - knew that Ireland was just a milestone along the way. The destination was always England. 

Four years on, having fulfilled his dream of playing Tests for England, Morgan had to live with the disappointment of missing out on the other, the World Cup, with a broken finger. Two weeks into the World Cup, when Morgan was planning to go for a Champions League football match later in the week, he got a call from coach Andy Flower. Kevin Pietersen was injured. Morgan was needed. Champions League games can wait. 

"Obviously a call from Andy couple of days ago was a great feeling," Morgan said before his first training session in the World Cup. "I have been part of the squad in the past. To come back in, and be part of the World Cup is very exciting." 

Morgan almost didn't make it, for the first diagnosis on the finger that he damaged during the one-day series in Australia was that it would need surgery. "The first day I arrived back in London, I saw a specialist," he said. "The first analysis was that we needed an operation, but we wanted to wait a week to see what the progress was, healing and all. After a week, he changed his diagnosis, and from there it has healed quite nicely. It's pretty strong at the moment." 

The recuperation time has been spent in training with Middlesex, and in many ways it has come as a welcome break from a tiring schedule. During that down-time, he watched Ireland, the team he last represented, beat England, the team he now represents, and refers to as "we" Mixed emotions there were none. "It was an outstanding innings by Kevin O'Brien. I was pretty distraught that we lost, and didn't get the result that we wanted. Ireland played really well." 

Morgan hasn't batted much at all during the break, but he doesn't feel concerned about it. "Personally I don't feel sort of undercooked or underprepared," he said. "I feel very fresh. After nets for a couple of days, my preparation will be pretty similar to what it has been in the past. So I feel ready, yeah." 

As expected, Morgan will walk into the side, and return to his favourite No. 5 position, from where he has scored two of his three England hundreds and averages 52.46 as opposed to 40.00 overall. "I mean I have been very successful at No. 5 in the past," he said. "So it's my favourite position to bat. I find coming in the middle overs, being a left-hander and playing spin okay, it's one of the better parts of my game. Yeah I love batting at No. 5." 

Being a good player of spin, Morgan brings value to the middle order. Moreover, this is his fourth trip to Bangladesh, which means he shouldn't need much adjustment. "The conditions are always challenging here," he said. "There is different bounce, there is turn in the pitches. The only thing I will have to adjust is to the heat. I hope I can produce some past sort of performances that I have here." 

Having had time to think about the ODI series in Australia, Morgan doesn't want to repeat mistakes he made in a disappointing series, in which he mae 106 runs at 17.66. "I didn't play that well," he said. "There have been a couple of games where I gave it away easily. I got out to bad balls. I can learn from that. It was a bad series for me." 

Even though he comes in as a result of a big loss to England, Pietersen, there is huge anticipation around the return of Morgan, who has been one of their best in ODIs over the last year or so. Morgan doesn't see that as pressure. "It doesn't really bother me. I don't dwell too much on it," he said. "I am just going to try and play the exact some role I did, and try and sort of execute my skills as much as I can. As long as England are winning, I don't care how much expectation is put on mine or anybody else's shoulders."

Sri Lanka aim to build momentum

Like all four major Test nations in Group A, Sri Lanka are on course to progress to the quarter-finals without any serious problems, and the chances of Zimbabwe providing an upset to create a modicum of the excitement witnessed in the other group is slim to none. However, for Sri Lanka it's an ideal time to produce a commanding all-round performance and build momentum ahead of the quarter-finals. 

There is a feeling that Sri Lanka haven't quite clicked yet. They have eased past Canada and Kenya - the latter thanks to Lasith Malinga's hat-trick - but came unstuck against Pakistan with an 11-run defeat. The clash against Australia was shaping up to be a cracker when the rain came and interrupted a well-paced innings by Kumar Sangakkara and denied the spinners their chance to shine. 

Zimbabwe shouldn't provide many problems having suffered a 10-wicket hammering at the hands of New Zealand in their last game. Their batting has lacked consistency and will face a tough examination from whichever combination of spinners Sri Lanka opt to field, while there's Malinga's toe-crushes to overcome as well. Ray Price and Prosper Utseya are good spinners themselves but desperately need the batsmen to back them up.