Play county cricket to improve, Zaheer advises young bowlers

Zaheer Khan was the leading wicket-taker in Division Two of the County Championship in 2006

Zaheer Khan, the Indian seamer, has singled out his stint with Worcestershire as the "turning point" in his career and encouraged young Indian bowlers to play county cricket to prepare themselves better for international cricket. Zaheer, who was the joint-leading wicket-taker in the 2011 World Cup won by India, joined Worcestershire in 2006 after a phase in which he had struggled with injury and was left out of the national team. He topped the Division Two wickets list that season, picking up 78 in 16 games at 29.07.

"In many ways it was [the turning point], Zaheer told the magazine GQ. "The stint at Worcestershire helped me understand the game, why I am playing and other things in terms of preparations for matches and bowling on different kinds of wickets.

"It was really important for me to play at the highest level, and to get back into the Indian side. I always knew I had the potential to perform but somehow I was not able to deliver. It was a great learning curve."

Upon his return to England in 2007, this time leading India's pace attack, Zaheer topped the wickets list again, picking up 18 wickets in the Test series, including nine in India's win in Trent Bridge.

Zaheer said county experience helped players become more independent and professional and said he'd spoken to some of India's younger bowlers, including Ishant Sharma, about playing county cricket. "I was advising all the young bowlers, like Ishant," he said. "When you are at home, in many ways you are taken care of. But when you play a county season you have to do everything yourself and still be prepared for the game. That brings in a great sense of professionalism.

"You also get a great understanding of cultures, and that definitely improves your social skills since you are out of your comfort zone. That itself is a great learning for any person, not just a cricketer."

Zaheer has been rested from India's upcoming ODI series in the Caribbean. Praveen Kumar, Ishant Sharma, Munaf Patel and R Vinay Kumar comprise the pace attack.

IPL considering CLT20 qualifying stage

Defending champions Chennai Super Kings have already qualified for the 2011 Champions League

The IPL governing council is considering holding an additional qualifying stage for the 2011 Champions League T20 a few days before the main event, which would give a fourth IPL team a chance to play in it.

"4th team may have the opportunity to play CLT20," Sundar Raman, the IPL chief executive, tweeted on May 22. "But they need to play a qualifier tournament a few days before CLT20 with 3 othr teams."

When contacted by ESPNcricinfo, Raman did not confirm or deny there were plans for a qualifying tournament, saying in an email, "we will inform the media on the developments around CLT20 soon", but a Cricket Australia official told ESPNcricinfo that the tournament would be formally confirmed at the end of the governing council meeting in Chennai on Sunday.

Meanwhile the Times of India reported on Tuesday that the three other teams in the potential qualifier would be the domestic T20 champions from New Zealand, Sri Lanka and West Indies, with the top two teams qualifying for the Champions League proper after a six-match tournament.

If the qualifier were to take place, that would turn the Champions League into a 10-team tournament from a 12-team one. Three teams from India, two each from Australia and South Africa and one from England would have guaranteed spots in the event. The competition for the remaining two spots would leave at least one of New Zealand, Sri Lanka and West Indies without representation, with two countries standing to lose out if the fourth IPL team qualifies.

According to the Times of India, one of the reasons for the qualifier is to make sure the strongest teams make it to the main event. Given the $1 billion ESPN Star spent on the television rights for the event, there is a concern about television ratings, which have been subdued compared to the IPL. So far most of the viewer interest has centered on the IPL teams, which is another incentive for more IPL participation.

Kolkata hold slight advantage

Match facts

Wednesday, May 25, Mumbai
Start time 2000 (1430 GMT)

	Gautam Gambhir has led Kolkata to great results. Can he take them to that final?

Big Picture

They might have lost the thriller in Eden Gardens to Mumbai Indians but it was Kolkata Knight Riders who were the better team until those dramatic few seconds. "Nothing has happened for which we have to keep our heads down," Gautam Gambhir said at the end of that game. "I have a lot of faith in Bala, that's why I gave him the final over. Nine times out of 10, in such a situation when 21 are needed in the last over, he would do the job for us." Indeed, it was just one of those days and it would be a mistake to conclude that Kolkata have lost momentum or that Mumbai have gained it from that match. If anything, it's Kolkata who will start with a slight edge in the knock-out game tomorrow for they are a better all-round side.

Mumbai are a puzzling team. They seem to be filled with batsmen all the way down to the order but yet, they rarely dominate an attack. Andrew Symonds seemed too rusty when he was playing, Kieron Pollard has rarely converted his starts and they keep going back to Sachin Tendulkar, Ambati Rayudu and Rohit Sharma with an odd contribution from the rest. Perhaps, Tendulkar's batting style best captures the situation: In five of the last six games, he has rarely gone over run-a-ball. Is it a worry that the middle and lower order won't survive his dismissal?

The best thing that has happened to Kolkata is the batting form of Manoj Tiwary and the bowling form of Iqbal Abdulla. The batting line-up looks so much assured because of it. Jacques Kallis, Gambhir and Yusuf Pathan come at 1, 3, and 5 and Tiwary's form at 4 has made it a really solid outfit. Shakib Al Hasan, Ryan ten Doeschate, Rajat Bhatia and Abdulla are very good lower order batsmen and add more solidity to Kolkata. The bowling too has a nice mix of pace, seam and spin.

And there is a further incentive that awaits the two teams: The winner qualifies to play in the Champions League.

Form guide (most recent first)

Kolkata Knight Riders: LWLWL
Mumbai Indians WLLLW

Team talk

Will Mumbai replace Ray Price with Andrew Symonds? Kolkata are unlikely to change their set up. Whenever they have played Shakib, he has always delivered.

In the spotlight

Jacques Kallis has been a solid contributor at the top. He is the rock around which Kolkata build their innings. Unlike many others, his arsenal has more big shots on the off side and he uses it to perfection. He didn't bowl in the last game but Gambhir might use him fo a over or two in the crunch game.

Harbhajan Singh played a neat cameo with the bat and is likely to be used again in a similar situation. His main job is as spinner and it will be interesting to see how he goes in the pressure game. He has the goods; will he deliver?

Prime numbers

• Ambati Rayudu has four fifties, just one behind the leader of the table S Badrinath who has five. Kallis too has four half-centuries
  
• Iqbal Abdulla has an economy rate of 6 in this IPL. Overall, across all editions, he has the third best economy rate (6.23)
  The chatter
  
  
  "The playoffs will be a different ball-game, there will be pressure on both sides as defeat will send them out. Today on the other hand, they (Mumbai) had nothing to lose, while we had to win to clinch a top-two slot. We have to do things the hard way. But we know they are beatable, if we play good cricket." ."
  Gautam Gambhir sets the agenda for the game

Raina stuns Bangalore to power Chennai into final

hennai Super Kings 177 for 4 (Raina 73*) beat Royal Challengers Bangalore 175 (Kohli 70*, Bollinger 1-20) by six wickets

	Suresh Raina slugged six sixes into the Wankhede stands

Match Meter CSK R Ashwin trapped Chris Gayle in the fourth over RCB Luke Pomersbach looted 17 runs off Dwayne Bravo in the 15th over and Virat Kohli took 19 runs off Albie Morkel in the 19th over RCB Mike Hussey and M Vijay fell cheaply and Chennai just reached 25 for 2 in six overs CSK Suresh Raina hit two sixes and a four to take 23 runs in the 13th over against Mithun CSK Raina plundered Zaheer Khan for 20 runs in the 17th over  Advantage Honours even

How did Chennai win this? How did Bangalore lose this? Chennai always seemed to be lagging behind but surged like a tidal wave towards the end, with the odd run-filled over now and then, to storm into their third IPL final in four seasons. At the forefront was the feisty Suresh Raina, who pulled out the big shots through the latter half of the chase to set up an improbable win. The defeat makes Bangalore's path to the final - and beyond - tougher. They will have to win the second Qualifier on Saturday, if they are to meet Chennai in the final at the MA Chidambaram stadium, where the hosts have been unbeaten all season.

Bangalore will look back and rue at a few poor overs. There were full tosses and length deliveries galore and Chennai capitalised in some style. Virat Kohli bowled a slew of full tosses in the ninth over to leak 16 runs, and Abhimanyu Mithun kept bowling length deliveries in the 13th over, bleeding 23 runs. It included a fabulously carved six over the covers as Raina went down on a bent knee, to follow his muscled heave over long-off. Even then, the equation - 82 from 42 balls - seemed a tough proposition and it got tighter when it came down to 58 from 24. Chris Gayle had led from front with a parsimonious spell that read 4-0-19-0 as he fired in the skidders and the occasional yorker to pin down Chennai.

But Raina wasn't done yet, and he ramped it up style in the 17th over, from Zaheer Khan, who had been exemplary in his opening three-over spell. Raina's two sixes over midwicket, a thumping pull and a clubbed swing, were sandwiched by a bottom-hand powered six over wide long-on by MS Dhoni, who however fell in the same over. Zaheer went for 20 runs in that over and Chennai had well and truly seized the momentum.

More agony awaited Bangalore in the 19th over, bowled by S Aravind. Albie Morkel crashed a slower ball over long-on and clubbed a full toss over long-off before Raina killed another full toss over the midwicket boundary. That 21-run over left Chennai needing 12 off the final over by Daniel Vettori and Morkel dragged a four to wide long-on, before walloping the fourth ball over midwicket to win the contest.

Until those frenetic end overs, Bangalore were well on their way to becoming the first team to enter the final. The big question before the game was whether Bangalore would deflate like cheap party balloons if Gayle went out early. They answered that in an emphatic manner, as Kohli powered them to a competitive total.

Bangalore were in danger of slipping into free-fall after Gayle fell cheaply, trapped by R Aswhin, but Kohli and Luke Pomersbach ensured they stayed afloat. While Kohli batted with calculated aggression, Pomersbach counterattacked, taking 17 runs in the 15th over, off Dwayne Bravo. A murderous heave to wide long-on, a slash to third man and a flat six over midwicket were the highlights. Kohli, though, was the person who sculpted and shaped Bangalore's innings. Two shots in particular reflected the assurance in his knock. In the 13th over, he sashayed back to a back-of-length delivery from Raina to unfurl a peachy punch to the cover-point boundary. Then, off the final ball of the 16th over, he leaned forward to play a classy lofted whip over wide long-on Ashwin. He went on to produce two more screaming sixes - over long-on and covers - off Morkel in the 19th over, to push Bangalore to a good total but Raina decided to gatecrash the party.

Amla, Kallis lead nominations for SA cricket awards

Hashim Amla scord five one-day centuries in the 2010-11 season

Hashim Amla and Jacques Kallis lead the nominations for this year's SA cricket awards, with three nominations each. The awards celebrate the achievements of South African cricketers over the last season. They will be presented at a gala dinner on June 7.

In the last season, South Africa played against Zimbabwe in a one-day series, against Pakistan in the United Arab Emirates, India at home and in the World Cup, where they were knocked out in the quarter-finals.

Amla has been nominated for the Test and one-day cricketer of the year awards as well as the overall cricketer of the year. In five Tests in the 2010-11 season, Amla averaged 64.25 and scored two centuries. He was equally impressive in the limited-overs format, averaging 60.61 and scoring five centuries in the 20 ODIs he played. Amla swept the awards last year, winning in all five categories he was nominated in.

Full list of nominees CSA umpire of the year: Johan Cloete, Shaun George, Adrian Holdstock MTN40 cricketer of the year: Faf du Plessis, Ryan McLaren, Imran Tahir Standard Bank Pro20 cricketer of the year: Albie Morkel, Makhaya Ntini, Owais Shah SuperSport series cricketer of the year: Vernon Philander, Jacques Rudolph, Imran Tahir Standard Bank international Pro20 cricketer of the year: JP Duminy, Rusty Theron, Lonwabo Tsotsobe Standard Bank one-day international cricketer of the year: Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers, Lonwabo Tsotsobe Castle Test cricketer of the year: Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis, Dale Steyn SA cricketer of the year: Hashim Amla, AB de Villiers, Jacques Kallis, Morne Morkel, Dale Steyn

Kallis scored 821 runs in five Tests in 2010-11, at an average of 136.83, including his first Test double-century. He also scored four other hundreds in the season, two of which came in the third Test against India in Cape Town in January. That performance has earned him the only nomination for the KFC so good award. He was slightly less prolific in one-dayers, averaging 38.90 in 11 matches, without scoring a hundred. He also took 10 wickets at an average of 24.50 in ODIs. Kallis previously won the cricketer of the year award in 2004.

Dale Steyn, Morne Morkel and AB de Villiers have also been nominated for the cricketer of the year award. The pace pair excelled with the new ball in all formats while de Villiers averaged 72.71 in Test cricket, 56.68 in ODIs and was given the added responsibility of keeping wickets in the limited-overs formats. Lonwabo Tsotsobe, who emerged as the third prong in South Africa's pace attack, has been nominated in the ODI and T20 cricketer of the year categories.

On the domestic front, Jacques Rudolph, who topped the SuperSport series batting charts and Vernon Philander, who was the leading wicket-taker in first-class cricket, have been nominated for awards. Imran Tahir, who became eligible to play for South Africa last season, led the SuperSport series wicket-takers list until his international call up and has also been nominated for two awards.

Retired international fast bowler Makhaya Ntini and England international Owais Shah are up against Albie Morkel for the Pro20 Cricketer of the year award.

Trevor Penney likely to be India fielding coach

Trevor Penney has worked with the Sri Lanka and England teams previously

Trevor Penney, the former Sri Lanka assistant coach, is one of the first men India's new coach Duncan Fletcher is likely to bring on board. A BCCI official told ESPNcricinfo Penney was likely to be appointed as India's fielding coach. Penney, 42, worked in a similar capacity, albeit in a part-time role, with Fletcher for England in 2005 before moving to Sri Lanka to be Tom Moody's assistant.

India have been without a fielding coach since Robin Singh was relieved from the post two years ago. Mike Young, who till recently was Australia's fielding coach, worked with India as a consultant for about a month in late 2009, but there were no permanent appointments made.

If appointed, Penney is likely to join the squad from the West Indies tour, which begins on June 4.

An excellent fielder during his 17-year playing career with English county Warwickshire, Penney remained fit enough to be named among England's substitute fielders for the 2005 Ashes, when he was 37 years old. He sparked controversy by coming onto the field repeatedly for England's fast bowlers.

When Moody decided to move to Western Australia after his Sri Lanka stint, Penney joined him there and later worked as Moody's deputy at IPL franchise Kings XI Punjab. Interestingly, Penney was named as one of the candidates for the post of Sri Lanka coach after Sri Lanka Cricket decided not to renew Trevor Bayliss' contract after the 2011 World Cup.