ICC World Twenty20 2010 / Fixtures

Date and Time	Match	Weather
Fri Apr 30 17:00 GMT | 13:00 local 22:30 IST	1st Match, Group B - New Zealand v Sri Lanka Providence Stadium, Guyana	23 - 32° C Forecast Scattered Thunderstorms Click here for 10-day-Forecast
Fri Apr 30 21:00 GMT | 17:00 local 02:30 IST +1d	2nd Match, Group D - West Indies v Ireland Providence Stadium, Guyana	23 - 32° C Forecast Scattered Thunderstorms Click here for 10-day-Forecast
Sat May 1 13:30 GMT | 09:30 local 19:00 IST	3rd Match, Group C - Afghanistan v India Beausejour Stadium, Gros Islet, St Lucia	N/A
Sat May 1 17:30 GMT | 13:30 local 23:00 IST	4th Match, Group A - Bangladesh v Pakistan Beausejour Stadium, Gros Islet, St Lucia	N/A
Sun May 2 13:30 GMT | 09:30 local 19:00 IST	5th Match, Group C - India v South Africa Beausejour Stadium, Gros Islet, St Lucia	N/A
Sun May 2 17:30 GMT | 13:30 local 23:00 IST	6th Match, Group A - Australia v Pakistan Beausejour Stadium, Gros Islet, St Lucia	N/A
Mon May 3 13:30 GMT | 09:30 local 19:00 IST	7th Match, Group B - Sri Lanka v Zimbabwe Providence Stadium, Guyana	N/A
Mon May 3 17:30 GMT | 13:30 local 23:00 IST	8th Match, Group D - West Indies v England Providence Stadium, Guyana	N/A
Tue May 4 13:30 GMT | 09:30 local 19:00 IST	9th Match, Group B - New Zealand v Zimbabwe Providence Stadium, Guyana	N/A
Tue May 4 17:30 GMT | 13:30 local 23:00 IST	10th Match, Group D - England v Ireland Providence Stadium, Guyana	N/A
Wed May 5 13:30 GMT | 09:30 local 19:00 IST	11th Match, Group A - Australia v Bangladesh Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados	N/A
Wed May 5 17:30 GMT | 13:30 local 23:00 IST	12th Match, Group C - Afghanistan v South Africa Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados	N/A
Thu May 6 13:30 GMT | 09:30 local 19:00 IST	13th Match - TBC v TBC (A1 v D2) Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados	N/A
Thu May 6 17:30 GMT | 13:30 local 23:00 IST	14th Match - TBC v TBC (C1 v B2) Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados	N/A
Fri May 7 13:30 GMT | 09:30 local 19:00 IST	15th Match - TBC v TBC (A2 v C2) Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados	N/A
Fri May 7 17:30 GMT | 13:30 local 23:00 IST	16th Match - TBC v TBC (B1 v D1) Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados	N/A
Sat May 8 13:30 GMT | 09:30 local 19:00 IST	17th Match - TBC v TBC (A1 v B2) Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados	N/A
Sat May 8 17:30 GMT | 13:30 local 23:00 IST	18th Match - TBC v TBC (D2 v C1) Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados	N/A
Sun May 9 13:30 GMT | 09:30 local 19:00 IST	19th Match - TBC v TBC (C2 v D1) Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados	N/A
Sun May 9 17:30 GMT | 13:30 local 23:00 IST	20th Match - TBC v TBC (B1 v A2) Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados	N/A
Mon May 10 13:30 GMT | 09:30 local 19:00 IST	21st Match - TBC v TBC (A1 v C1) Beausejour Stadium, Gros Islet, St Lucia	N/A
Mon May 10 17:30 GMT | 13:30 local 23:00 IST	22nd Match - TBC v TBC (B2 v D2) Beausejour Stadium, Gros Islet, St Lucia	N/A
Tue May 11 17:00 GMT | 13:00 local 22:30 IST	23rd Match - TBC v TBC (B1 v C2) Beausejour Stadium, Gros Islet, St Lucia	N/A
Tue May 11 21:00 GMT | 17:00 local 02:30 IST +1d	24th Match - TBC v TBC (D1 v A2) Beausejour Stadium, Gros Islet, St Lucia	N/A
Thu May 13 15:30 GMT | 11:30 local 21:00 IST	1st Semi-Final - TBC v TBC Beausejour Stadium, Gros Islet, St Lucia	N/A
Fri May 14 15:30 GMT | 11:30 local 21:00 IST	2nd Semi-Final - TBC v TBC Beausejour Stadium, Gros Islet, St Lucia	N/A
Sun May 16 15:30 GMT | 11:30 local 21:00 IST	Final - TBC v TBC Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados	N/A

Final Chennai Super Kings Vs Mumbai Indians

Chennai Super Kings

Mumbai Indians

Match scheduled to begin at 20:30 local time (15:00 GMT)

Current time: 13:31 local, 08:01 GMT

	Chennai Super Kings squad
MS Dhoni*†, R Ashwin, HK Badani, S Badrinath, GJ Bailey, L Balaji, DE Bollinger, C Ganapathy, MS Gony, ML Hayden, MEK Hussey, SB Jakati, AB Karthik, JM Kemp, JA Morkel, M Muralitharan, M Ntini, PA Patel†, NLTC Perera, SK Raina, T Thushara, S Tyagi, M Vijay

	Mumbai Indians squad
SR Tendulkar*, AN Ahmed, DJ Bravo, S Dhawan, JP Duminy, CRD Fernando, Harbhajan Singh, ST Jayasuriya, Z Khan, DS Kulkarni, R McLaren, C Madan, I Malhotra, SL Malinga, AG Murtaza, GR Napier, AM Nayar, KA Pollard, AT Rayudu, R Sathish, KS Sahabuddin, R Shukla, AP Tare†, SS Tiwary

Can Chennai ground high-flying Mumbai?

Match facts

Sunday, April 25
Start time 2000 (1430 GMT)

	The biggest question on the eve of the final: Will Sachin Tendulkar play or not? © Indian Premier League
Related Links Analysis : All-round strength gives Mumbai the edge Matches: Chennai Super Kings v Mumbai Indians at Mumbai Series/Tournaments: Indian Premier League Teams: Chennai Super Kings | India | Mumbai Indians

Big Picture

Pitches have tired, outfields have grown barer during an unforgiving Indian summer, but for 45 days the players have braved sapping conditions, excruciating travel (made more excruciating by security concerns), IPL parties, inane interviews and columns, explosions outside the stadium just before a match, injuries, cramps, fines and reprimands to keep this league rolling. On the way some of them have played in the breathtaking environs of Dharamsala, many of them have put in special performances, some of them have announced themselves, some have shown aspects of their game others didn't know existed, some have found second winds. Two teams, though, have one final issue to settle before we move onto more pressing matters like the World Twenty20 and ascertaining how clean the IPL is.

The image of the third IPL, though, will remain MS Dhoni upper-cutting himself in the jaw like a pumped-up boxer, upon having hit a match-winning six from Dharamsala into McLeodganj. Nobody has seen Dhoni react so emotionally on a cricket field, and Dhoni has quite a body of work behind him to draw that cool, composed image from. And about a fortnight ago, when Dhoni's team was asphyxiating a Mumbai Indians chase in the merciless Chennai humidity, Sachin Tendulkar, short on fluids, retired hurt, saw what resembled a choke and came back to try and win what was then just another match for Mumbai, with their semi-final place not under much doubt. Both men, one perhaps India's greatest cricketer, one who has the makings of India's greatest captain, represent how much this means to their teams.

Form guide (most recent first)

Mumbai WLWWW
Chennai WWLWL

Team talk

There's no decision yet on whether the injured Tendulkar will play, but if he can hold the bat, expect him to open for Mumbai. "It's his call," was all their coach, Robin Singh, could offer. "If he is not available, we have our back-up plans." Kieron Pollard is fit. Mumbai will be tempted to think about Ali Murtaza ahead of Abhishek Nayar because of the nature of the pitch. In that light, JP Duminy weighs over Dwayne Bravo.

Mumbai (probable) 1 Sachin Tendulkar (capt.), 2 Shikhar Dhawan, 3 Saurabh Tiwary, 4 Ambati Rayudu (wk), 5 Kieron Pollard, 6 JP Duminy, 7 Ali Murtaza/Abhishek Nayar, 8 Harbhajan Singh, 9 Dilhara Fernando, 10 Zaheer Khan, 11 Lasith Malinga

On a turning pitch, Chennai have no reason to divert from the three-spinner attack.

Chennai (probable) 1 Matthew Hayden, 2 M Vijay, 3 Suresh Raina, 4 MS Dhoni (capt. & wk), 5 S Badrinath, 6 Albie Morkel, 7 S Anirudha, 8 R Ashwin, 9 Doug Bollinger, 10 Muttiah Muralitharan, 11 Shadab Jakati

Previously…

Mumbai 3 Chennai 3
On a flat pitch at the Brabourne Stadium, Chennai failed to defend 180, but on a more difficult Chennai pitch, they defended 165 with aplomb.

In the spotlight

Law of averages says Matthew Hayden is due a single-handed match-winning blast. In an illustrious career, a Man-of-the-Match performance in a big tournament final is missing. In 12 innings since his Mongoose-charged 93, Hayden's top score has been 35, and his strike-rate has been 117.2. Neither Chennai nor Hayden expects this, and he will want to set things right.

Dhoni v Tendulkar Twenty20 games, if not won by a single-handed blasts, usually come down to captains, finals more so than others. These two captains also happen to be important batsmen of their line-ups. If Tendulkar has been remarkably consistent, setting up matches, Dhoni has been mercurial, retrieving lost matches. That holds true for their captaincy too.

Lasith Malinga and Zaheer Khan have been the understated stars of Mumbai's campaign. Of all teams of the IPL, you don't want to be needing 10 an over against Mumbai: these guys are mean, accurate and wily. It will be interesting to see how Dhoni, Hayden and Co. go against these yorker machines. They do tend to make a bit of a mockery of spinning tracks.

Prime numbers and trivia

• Suresh Raina, with 1318 runs to his name, has overtaken Adam Gilchrist as the leading scorer in all IPL matches. Tendulkar is fifth with 1122 runs.
• Raina also holds the record for most catches, 26, for a non-wicketkeeper.

Chatter

"We have been doing well with our fast bowlers, so how does it concern me?"
Mumbai coach Robin Singh is confident the pitch won't hamper their fast-bowlers-based attack
"It gives us a slight edge that Mumbai have never been in a final before, and we have."
S Badrinath looks to draw on the experience of having lost the final in the first IPL. He is never the one to try mindgames

Bangalore crush Deccan by nine wickets

Royal Challengers Bangalore 86 for 1 (Dravid 35*) beat Deccan Chargers 82 (Kumble 4-16) by nine wickets
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

	Anirudh Singh made nearly half of Deccan's runs © Indian Premier League
Related Links Players/Officials: Anirudh Singh | Anil Kumble Matches: Royal Challengers Bangalore v Deccan Chargers at Mumbai Series/Tournaments: Indian Premier League Teams: Deccan Chargers | India | Royal Challengers Bangalore

In a yawn-inducing crawl, Deccan Chargers meandered to 82, the lowest total of the season, and Royal Challengers Bangalore knocked it off without much fuss to book their spot in the next Champions League.

Not many people bothered to turn up for the game, nine Deccan batsmen scored less than five runs and a dull, almost anaesthetic, atmosphere prevailed through their innings. Adam Gilchrist's early dismissal set the tone for the innings: It was a slow gentle full toss from Anil Kumble and while it was in its trajectory you felt it was going to be smashed for a six but Gilchrist contrived to hit it to deep backward square-leg where Jacques Kallis took a neat catch.

It was that kind of a dull and dreary night. Perhaps the loss in semi-final had sapped Deccan, perhaps it was just one of those nights when nothing went right for them and it made for almost painful watching experience.

Bangalore ticked off all the boxes that were required of them: Kumble showed his intent by opening against Gilchrist, Praveen Kumar mixed his cutters with slower ones in a tight spell, and Dale Steyn, though not as pacy as he has been in this tournament so far, was accurate to keep the batsmen in check. Monish Mishra played all around a straight delivery from Praveen to be trapped in front and Rohit Sharma threw his wicket away with a lame pull shot to mid-on.

Match Meter RCB Adam Gilchrist combusts: It was a gentle full toss from Anil Kumble but Gilchrist swings it to deep backward square-leg fielder. It sets the tone for Deccan's abysmal batting performance RCB Rohit Sharma throws his wicket away: Rohit pulls a short-of-length delivery lamely to mid-on and the innings never recovered after that. RCB Andrew Symonds falls: Symonds had just been reprieved by Dale Steyn at the fine-leg boundary but he falls off the next delivery. He backed away to try thrash a Steyn delivery but ends up edging it behind Advantage Honours even

Much depended on Andrew Symonds at that stage and he even got a reprieve when Steyn ran in too much at fine-leg to drop a catch but he fell on the very next delivery. He backed away to try force Steyn through the off side but edged it behind to the keeper to leave Deccan struggling at 27 for 4 in 6.1 overs. And it soon turned to 35 for 5 when a clueless Dwayne Smith had his Richard Blakey moment against Kumble: It was a slider that came in from just outside off but Smith stabbed at thin air and looked slightly sheepish when he lost his off stump.

It was only due to Anirudh Singh, one of many changes in the Deccan set-up for this game, that Deccan avoided complete embarrassment. He probably would pick a sliced square-drive over backward point off Steyn as his top shot though a thumping drive over covers off a slower one from the same bowler too caught the eye. There was even a six against Nayan Doshi, who made an impressive IPL debut, but Anirudh mainly dealt in nudged singles. When he fell in the 16th over, bowled by Kallis, Deccan lost their only hope of reaching 100.

Rahul Dravid and Kallis ensured Bangalore got off to a solid start and once they achieved it, it was always going be a just a stroll in the park for them. Though Kallis fell in the eight over, Dravid guided Bangalore through in the company of Kevin Pietersen.

IPL players' salaries face taxman's scrutiny

	Ravindra Jadeja admitted to negotiating with two franchises to play IPL's third season for a fee of $450,000 © Getty Images
Related Links In Focus: The IPL Mess Series/Tournaments: Indian Premier League Teams: India

The Indian taxman's scrutiny of the mess surrounding the IPL is not necessarily limited to the league's officials, franchise owners/managers and partner companies. It is understood the income-tax department is also acting on information of certain players receiving illegal payments from their employers.

A specific episode under assessment goes back to August 2009, when the IPL announced an amnesty scheme for players linked with the unauthorised Indian Cricket League (ICL). Former ICL players who had no international cricket experience were allowed to be signed on by IPL franchises for an annual fee of between Rs 8-20 lakh ($18,000-45,000).

There are reports that at least two franchises breached this salary cap and paid individual players in excess of IPL stipulations. The extra payment was made in cash. It is believed in some cases the quantum of 'black money' payments was substantial and almost doubled the cricketer's fee.

The IPL imposes salary caps on various categories of cricketers. The ICL amnesty scheme is one example. Players from the Indian squad that won the 2008 ICC Under-19 World Cup were also restricted in what they could earn in a season, depending on their first-class or international experience.

Yet, as became evident during the recent Ravindra Jadeja investigation, this regulation was not considered sacrosanct. The Rajasthan Royals cricketer admitted to negotiating with two franchises to play IPL's third season for a fee of Rs 2 crore ($450,000). Under the IPL rules, he was entitled to only Rs 40 lakh ($90,000). It is unclear how the incremental payment would have been made, had the deal gone through.

Suspicions of a tax dodge by cricketers, with the active collaboration of their franchises, may only be the tip of the iceberg. The issue of salaries and salary ceilings is likely to enmesh the IPL in greater controversy in the coming months. In some respects, it is a microcosm of all that is wrong with the manner in which the league has been run. There are perceptions of the law having been broken - as in the case of the cricketers under scrutiny - as well as conflict of interest issues. Whether irregularities or merely angularities, the IPL will need to address these.

When the IPL began in 2008, each team was allowed to spend $5 million a year to hire cricketers. For the 2011 season - and beginning with the big auction planned for October 2010, which will see franchises populate their squads for the 2011-13 period - this limit has been raised to $7 million.

The idea behind a salary cap was to equalise competition and not give an opportunity to any one franchise, with extensive cash resources, to buy out the best players and use money power to dominate the tournament.

The logic was strong and the precedent of the English Premier League (EPL) was there to learn from. In the EPL, teams like Aston Villa and Fulham tend to do well and finish in the first half of the table - but they never win. On the other hand, a Manchester United and a Chelsea are in serious contention for the title year after year. The difference between the two sets of teams is their bank balance.

At least in the early years of the IPL, the league authorities were concerned about games or even a full season becoming lopsided and final positions predictable. Today this 'equalisation' principle is in danger of being subverted by not just cash payments - over and beyond official salaries - but also other perquisites offered by some franchises to key cricketers. This has been particularly so in case of franchises wholly or largely owned by business corporations.

BCCI officials have been worried about instances of regular 'jobs' being offered to cricketers by the mother company of their franchise. Earlier this week, another conundrum was thrown up when England batsman Kevin Pietersen was announced as the ambassador of the Whyte & Mackay brand of whiskeys.

At one level, this is a perfectly understandable endorsement arrangement. Pietersen is one of the finest cricketers in the world. He has name recall in India, is of South African origin and plays for England. All of these are markets Whyte & Mackay executives said they were focused on, and the Pietersen stamp would help.

However, Pietersen bats for the Bangalore Royal Challengers in the IPL. The Bangalore IPL franchise has been bought by the same business group that owns Whyte & Mackay. Is there a conflict of interest here?

It's a tricky question and it is plausible that the two motivations - hiring Pietersen as a player for a cricket team and as an ambassador for a whisky brand - are different.

Nevertheless the IPL is also at the cusp of fervid inter-season lobbying and negotiation as teams try and retain talent and persuade star cricketers to possibly drop out of the October auction and stay on with the old franchise. Salaries will be discussed; the equivalent of loyalty bonuses and golden handcuffs could figure in the conversation.

How does Pietersen's endorsement of a sister brand of the Royal Challengers fit into this? Will it give other cricketers and other franchises ideas? How does it square up with IPL's 'equalisation' norm? At some stage before Season IV, those questions will have to be clarified.

Bollinger charges Chennai into final

Chennai Super Kings 142 for 7 (Badrinath 37, Harris 3-29) beat Deccan Chargers 104 (Symonds 23, Bollinger 4-13) by 38 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

	S Badrinath's partnership with MS Dhoni proved crucial in the outcome © Indian Premier League
Related Links Features : Chennai play all the right cards Players/Officials: Srikkanth Anirudha | Ravichandran Ashwin | Subramaniam Badrinath | Doug Bollinger | MS Dhoni Matches: Chennai Super Kings v Deccan Chargers at Mumbai Series/Tournaments: Indian Premier League Teams: Chennai Super Kings | Deccan Chargers | India

Chennai Super Kings, boosted by a determined display from their bowlers led by Doug Bollinger, put an end to Deccan Chargers' run of five consecutive wins to qualify for the IPL final for the second time and confirm their place in the Champions League Twenty20. They overcame a poor start, aided by a measured partnership from MS Dhoni and S Badrinath, and a late surge from S Anirudha helped post 142 in tricky conditions. Bollinger and R Ashwin then crippled Deccan in their chase, and the rest contributed to chip away at the middle order, to seal a hard-fought win.

Deccan, given their successful run, would have backed themselves to overhaul Chennai's score comfortably. The conditions were aiding swing and movement, and the pitch was taking turn, but that had little to do with their slow start to the chase. Adam Gilchrist and Herschelle Gibbs, both searching for form, batted in a manner contrary to their reputation, preferring caution over attack in the Powerplay. Bollinger varied his lengths and Ashwin, like he has for much of the tournament, altered his pace and flight to again prove economical. While Deccan's approach, for the most part, remained restrained, a significant number of dot balls in the first six overs were failed attempts at the big shots.

The only convincing shot to the boundary was a straight six from Gilchrist off Ashwin, but Bollinger ended the misery with a double-strike in the sixth over. Gilchrist flicked straight to midwicket and T Suman, whose promotion to No.3 had triggered a turnaround in Deccan's fortunes this IPL, cut straight to point. The Powerplay yielded just 23, the second-lowest in the tournament, and it was only a matter of time before the frustration set in.

Rohit Sharma has often had to rescue Deccan from trouble, but he added to their woes by lofting Albie Morkel to long on with the field spread out. Equally dispiriting for Deccan was Gibbs' lack of conviction. Dropped from the team for his problems at the top, Gibbs had been recalled at the expense of an allrounder for his experience and game-changing ability. But the shortage in confidence was evident, for, in the wake of an escalating required-rate and the attacking field with a slip and leg slip in place, he struggled to pierce the in-field, particularly against spin. Several deliveries were defended either side of the pitch, interspersed with a streaky boundary, and his downfall came in the 11th over when he played on to Shadab Jakati.

Match Meter DC Chances squandered: Catches off Hayden and Raina are dropped, but the batsmen fail to take advantage. Vijay, too, is dismissed; Chennai are 29 for 3. DC CSK A steady recovery: Dhoni and Badrinath add 52 in 51 balls, with just four fours. Tackling the difficult conditions well, they ensure a steady run-rate. DC Badrinath falls: Badrinath is stumped in the penultimate over, and is visibly upset. A score in excess of 140 appears unlikely. DC CSK The surge: Anirudha smashes two big sixes, one off RP and the other off Harris in the final over to take Chennai to a respectable score. CSK Slowness hurts: Gilchrist and Gibbs begin too slowly. Bollinger removes Gilchrist and Suman in the sixth over, Deccan limp to 23 in the Powerplay. CSK The final nail: At 82 for 5 in the 16th over, Deccan still have an outside chance but when Symonds is caught in the deep, there is no hope. Advantage Honours even

The match was not over, with Andrew Symonds striking Jakati for consecutive fours in an over which fetched 17. But when he, in an act of desperation in the 16th over, slogged Ashwin to deep midwicket, Chennai were virtually through. Bollinger returned to nip out two more in his next spell and sealed Deccan's fate.

Dhoni's decision to bat on a testing pitch was prompted by his faith in the top order to handle the conditions, but it let him down despite being given chances. Matthew Hayden was dropped twice, Suresh Raina once, but those reprieves amounted for little as both fell in tame fashion to give Deccan the early edge. In between, M Vijay had played back to a full delivery to be caught plumb, and Chennai limped to 29 for 3.

Dhoni and Badrinath were cautious in their approach, but ensured the run-rate didn't slip. Badrinath dropped anchor and Dhoni, amid the spate of cuts, dabs and nudges, stepped up to find the boundary. Their partnership of 52 comprised just four boundaries, three of which were from Dhoni's bat. He smashed Harmeet Singh and RP Singh through the off side and charged to drive Pragyan Ojha down the ground. But another aggressive maneuver from Deccan, who fielded a slip for Harmeet's legcutters, earned them their fourth wicket as Dhoni slashed one straight to Rohit.

Badrinath did his best to prevent the innings from stagnating. He launched Ojha for a straight six and slugged Symonds over mid-on for a boundary before being stumped in the penultimate over.

Thanks to a combination of some power hitting and streaky batting, Chennai managed to score 46 off the last five overs. Anirudha, replacing Sudeep Tyagi, targeted RP and Harris to strike a couple of sixes to lift his team to 142 - a major recovery considering Deccan's meek reply, which left them hunting for consolation in Saturday's third-place playoff against Royal Challengers Bangalore.

Teams target Champions League berth

Match facts

Deccan v Bangalore, third-place playoff, Mumbai
Saturday, April 24
Start time 2000 (1430 GMT)

	Adam Gilchrist has failed to fire with the bat, and has one final shot before the tournament concludes © Indian Premier League
Related Links Matches: Royal Challengers Bangalore v Deccan Chargers at Mumbai Series/Tournaments: Indian Premier League Teams: Deccan Chargers | India | Royal Challengers Bangalore

Big Picture

Here we go again. Royal Challengers Bangalore and Deccan Chargers, face to face, one final time this year, to decide who will qualify for the Champions League. Although Bangalore mainly have themselves to blame for playing on Saturday, and not Sunday, Deccan have been an important part of their slide in the second half of the tournament.

After Deccan's choke against Rajasthan Royals in Nagpur, Adam Gilchrist said the tournament had become simpler for them. It was a straight equation: win each of the seven games to come. Quite similar to Steve Waugh's words less than halfway through the 1999 World Cup, which were immortalised by his team's ultimate success.

Eleven years ago, in a Super Six match at Headingley, South Africa had Australia down, should have eliminated them, but left the job unfinished. And then on that unforgettable day at Edgbaston, Australia knocked their benefactors out en route to going unbeaten for seven matches. This is not quite the World Cup, and Deccan's dream run didn't reach the final, but Bangalore - like South Africa - should have finished Deccan twice in the league stage. Now Deccan stand in their way of a Champions League slot. Will DY Patil Stadium be Bangalore's Edgbaston?

The resemblance is made all the more striking by the foreign cores of these teams: Bangalore (Jacques Kallis, Dale Steyn, Ray Jennings) are predominantly South African, and Deccan (Gilchrist, Andrew Symonds, Ryan Harris, Darren Lehman) Australian.

Form guide (most recent first)

Bangalore Royal Challengers LLWLW
Deccan Chargers LWWWW

Team talk

The teams may have lost their semi-finals, but this is a match just as serious, and they should play their best XIs. The best XI for Deccan should be easier to choose: they have won five of their last six matches. Bangalore, though, have questions. The way they have played around with Manish Pandey's place in the team, and with that his confidence and his form, has been one of their tactical blunders. Will they play him, and if they do, will they open with him?

Previously

Deccan 4, Bangalore 2
Deccan are becoming a bogey opposition for Bangalore: Last year's final, followed by two matches this year that Bangalore should have won. But Deccan hung on, much like they did for the majority of the tournament. In the first game, Suman played a responsible hand; in the second, Bangalore choked while chasing a small total.

In the spotlight

It all began going downhill for Jacques Kallis after Bangalore's defeat against Deccan in Nagpur. His 37-ball 27, captain Kumble said, put pressure on the rest of the line-up. Since then Kallis' scores have read 0, 14 and 11. He is threatening to end the tournament on a low after perhaps being the best player in its first half. Saturday's match is one last shot at redemption.

While many point to Adam Gilchrist as the inspiration behind Deccan's success, Gilchrist the batsman has been their biggest failure, wasting an overseas player's slot for an average of 19 runs per innings. His hitting has promised a lot, but he has rarely lasted the Powerplay overs. It's not certain if Gilchrist gets a chance to play, or wants to play, in the next season, so this could be his last opportunity to set a few records straight.

Prime numbers

• Robin Uthappa is the leading six-hitter of the tournament. With 27 sixes, he is three ahead of M Vijay, his closest rival still alive in the tournament. Suresh Raina has 19, Saurabh Tiwary 18. With 64 sixes in three years, Gilchrist leads the tally overall.

• Deccan have played three matches at DY Patil this year, and have lost all three while chasing.

The chatter

"We want to pick ourselves up for Saturday's match. We would love to play in the Champions League again."
Adam Gilchrist sets the agenda

"That [Champions League slot] would be a consolation for us, but the big prize is winning the IPL and we have missed out on that."
Anil Kumble knows where it is at

Board top brass skips awards night

	Lalit Modi wants more time to prepare his documents for the meeting © AFP
Related Links News : Meeting valid, no conflict of interest - Manohar News : BCCI talks tough on action over IPL News : Modi mails take the fight to BCCI In Focus: The IPL Mess Series/Tournaments: Indian Premier League Teams: India

The IPL Awards Night was held at a Mumbai hotel on Friday evening with several senior BCCI officials missing, in another sign of the deepening rift between IPL commissioner Lalit Modi and his colleagues in the BCCI. There were unconfirmed reports that Modi had requested a postponement of Monday's IPL governing council meeting but the BCCI did not appear inclined to entertain any such request.

The awards ceremony went ahead in the absence of BCCI president Shashank Manohar, secretary N Srinivasan and IPL vice-chairman Niranjan Shah. Those who attended included team owners Vijay Mallya (Royal Challengers Bangalore), Preity Zinta (Kings XI Punjab), Shilpa Shetty and Raj Kundra (Rajasthan Royals), Gayatri Reddy (Deccan Chargers) and Jai Mehta (Kolkata Knight Riders). Sunil Gavaskar, a member of the IPL Governing Council, attended, though many of his colleagues did not.

At the awards Modi thanked the BCCI, among others, for making his "seven-year-old dream" come true. "I thank the BCCI, the franchises, the players, the sponsors and most of all the millions of fans for helping create the most successful cricket league in the world, for making the IPL what it is today."

Shah indicated that the BCCI would take a hard line with Modi. "The IPL is far bigger than any one individual," he told BBC Sport. "Everyone has to fall in line with the rules of the institution. The meeting is on, whether Mr Modi is there or not. We need to draw a line under this matter."

A PTI story quoted sources as saying Modi had, for the second time in three days, sought a postponement of Monday's meeting, citing his hectic schedule of the past few weeks leading up to Sunday night's tournament final. The meeting was called to address the wide range of allegations of financial impropriety against the league and its commissioner and it is widely speculated that Modi will be ousted from his post at the meeting.

"I need to prepare the documents to support my replies to all the questions," the report quoted Modi as saying in a mail to the BCCI. "I have worked for you (BCCI) for five long years without taking any money, consider giving me just five days for the documents."

Modi had made a similar request on April 21, which was firmly turned down by BCCI president Shashank Manohar. A BCCI source told Cricinfo there would be no change in that stand.

There were also reports - which Modi has denied - that he was contemplating taking the BCCI to court over the legality of the meeting.

If Modi skips the meeting, the governing council meeting is expected to pass a resolution to remove him from the post of IPL commissioner and chairman. He had insisted through the week that he would not resign in the wake of the controversy tarnishing the IPL.

The IPL jury awards:

Best Debut Performance - Kieron Pollard (Mumbai Indians), Best Batsman - Sachin Tendulkar (Mumbai Indians), Best Bowler - Pragyan Ojha (Deccan Chargers), Best Dramatic Performance - Harbhajan Singh (Mumbai Indians), Most Consistent Performer - Jacques Kallis (Royal Challengers Bangalore), Best Breakthrough Performance 2008 - Brendon McCullum (Kolkata Knight Riders), Best Breakthrough Performance 2009 - Anil Kumble (Royal Challengers Bangalore), Best Fielder - AB de Villiers (Delhi Daredevils), Best Ground - Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore, Best Stadium Experience - DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai.

1st Semi-Final: Royal Challengers Bangalore v Mumbai Indians at Mumbai, Apr 21, 2010

Bangalore

Mumbai Indians

Live cricket score and commentary for Indian Premier League, 1st Semi-Final: Royal Challengers Bangalore v Mumbai Indians at Mumbai, Apr 21, 2010

Match scheduled to begin at 20:00 local time (14:30 GMT)

Current time: 15:57 local, 10:27 GMT

	Royal Challengers Bangalore squad
A Kumble*, B Akhil, KP Appanna, MV Boucher†, R Dravid, D du Preez, SP Goswami†, JH Kallis, V Kohli, B Kumar, P Kumar, A Mithun, EJG Morgan, MK Pandey, KP Pietersen, SPD Smith, S Sriram, DW Steyn, LRPL Taylor, RV Uthappa, RE van der Merwe, R Vinay Kumar, CL White

	Mumbai Indians squad
SR Tendulkar*, AN Ahmed, DJ Bravo, S Dhawan, JP Duminy, CRD Fernando, Harbhajan Singh, ST Jayasuriya, Z Khan, DS Kulkarni, R McLaren, C Madan, I Malhotra, SL Malinga, AG Murtaza, GR Napier, AM Nayar, KA Pollard, AT Rayudu, R Sathish, KS Sahabuddin, R Shukla, AP Tare†, SS Tiwary

Road to the semi-finals: MI

Full Match: IPL 2010 MATCH51 - KXIP vs DC, 2010-04-16

Government says all aspects of IPL under scrutiny

	The Kochi controversy has snowballed into a major political issue, prompting a massive probe into all aspects of the IPL © Indian Premier League
Related Links News : Modi aims to resolve crisis, meets Kochi chairman News : Indian minister quits over Kochi franchise deal News : Rescheduled BCCI meeting to probe allegations Match home : Kochi franchise shareholding controversy Series/Tournaments: Indian Premier League Teams: India

A day after the resignation of Indian minister Shashi Tharoor, the IPL and the BCCI remain at the centre of a growing political and financial controversy that echoed in the national Parliament. Amid a growing call for closer regulation of cricket in India, and reports of various government agencies investigating the IPL's financial transactions in a coordinated operation, the BCCI has rescheduled its working committee meeting to May 2.

In Parliament the finance minister, Pranab Mukherjee, made a brief intervention in a heated debate on the IPL controversy to say that the "concerned department" - which is probably the income-tax department - was already looking into the IPL's funding. "Some members raised the issue of the IPL and wanted to have the probe in all its aspects. In fact, I want to assure them that all aspects of the IPL, including the source of funding, how they have been invested, will be looked into," Mukherjee said.

Media reports have suggested that the Corporate Affairs ministry is also planning, pending the cabinet's approval, an investigation of the manner in which the IPL franchises are run. This ministry's involvement will be mandated given that there are several listed companies among the IPL franchise owners; it is also expected to look at the mechanism of the Kochi deal.

Three years since its inception, the IPL has been a money-spinner on many counts. The first set of eight franchises were sold in a high-profile auction that earned $700 million. Those numbers were trumped by the two new franchises added this year, that fetched over $700 million between them. Additionally, the BCCI signed a contract worth $1.63 billion for the sale of TV rights, in 2009. The league was recently valued at a mind-boggling $4.13 billion. All components that add up to this figure are now set to come under the scanner.

CNN-IBN, quoting Government sources, reported that the Revenue Secretary and Enforcement Directorate will be briefing Income Tax officials on Monday on how to speed up investigations. The outcry against the IPL came on a day a leading financial daily published a report leveling allegations against Modi, a report Modi has denied.

The speed of the developments suggests that the BCCI could have taken a decision - or be presented with a fait accompli - before it meets on May 2. That meeting will be preceded by one of the IPL's governing council, where the first moves will be taken to set the house in order.

"The working committee meeting has been postponed because all things have to be discussed in the governing council meeting first," Rajiv Shukla, the BCCI's media and finance committee chairman, told PTI. "There is no point in having a working committee meeting before that. All the allegations and other issues will be discussed in the governing council, the date for that meeting will be announced soon."

Modi's fate could be decided by his mentor Sharad Pawar, nominally the head of the Mumbai Cricket Association but whose influence in the game extends beyond even his other avatar as the ICC's president-elect. When contacted by Cricinfo, Pawar said he was part of the ICC and could not comment on the BCCI or the domestic league. When it was put to him that he had been the BCCI president when the IPL was set up, Pawar said: "That was three years ago, now I'm with the ICC."

The BCCI's first official response to the controversy, which broke last weekend when Lalit Modi disclosed the details of the Kochi franchise ownership, was a statement on April 13 that a meeting of the IPL Governing Council would be convened "within 10 days to discuss all the issues and take a decision". It is now clear that deadline will not be met, though no explanation has been given for the delay.

The controversy was triggered by an update on Lalit Modi's twitter account that questioned the ownership structure of the Kochi consortium, particularly the nature of equity owned by Sunanda Pushkar, who is a friend of Shashi Tharoor, a cabinet minister in the Indian government. Pushkar has since given up her stake in the franchise, while Tharoor was forced to resign from his office, over allegations of conflict of interest in his mentoring of the consortium.

One fallout of Modi's Twitter revelation was to swing the spotlight on the IPL's financial dealings, and on Sunday the BCCI said it had received a summons from the income-tax department to furnish complete details of all eight original Indian Premier League franchises, who were successful bidders for the city-based teams in January 2008, on April 23. The taxmen have already carried out inspections of the IPL's offices and Modi's residence in Mumbai and also the Kings XI Punjab franchise office in Mohali.

"Day before yesterday they had asked for details only about the two new franchises - their shareholding patterns, addresses, player auction and bidding process. Now they want us to furnish all the details about the eight other franchises too," the BCCI's chief administrative officer, Ratnakar Shetty had said.

PCA investigates claim that players took call to play

	The bomb blast did not lead to the game being called off © Associated Press
Related Links News : IPL semi-finals moved to Mumbai News : Eight injured in blasts outside Chinnaswamy stadium Players/Officials: Eoin Morgan | Kevin Pietersen Matches: Royal Challengers Bangalore v Mumbai Indians at Bangalore Series/Tournaments: Indian Premier League

The Professional Cricketers' Association is investigating claims that players were left to take the decision to go ahead with Saturday's IPL match between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Mumbai Indians following two low-intensity bomb blasts outside the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore.

The Daily Telegraph quoted Ian Smith, the PCA's legal adviser, as saying the PCA were looking for more details about what led to Saturday's match going ahead, and were looking at a claim from a non-Indian player that the decision was left to the players themselves.

"The immediate worry for us, and I have heard this direct from one of the players, is that after the initial explosion and a sweep of the stadium, the decision that the game should go ahead was taken by the players," Smith said. "From what I have been told, the Indian guys said very quickly that they felt unfazed. But the foreign guys then felt under pressure to agree with their colleagues. The idea that you can determine whether conditions are safe by a referendum of the players is outrageous.

"They were out in the middle warming up when the bomb went off. We don't know who provided them with the information on which they made their decision."

JP Duminy, who plays for Mumbai, told Cape Times that Bangalore "were upset with the situation". "We were told to go back into the change rooms [after the blasts], and the security tried to keep everything low-key," he said. "They said everything was fine and that the game will go ahead. Bangalore were upset with the situation and had to be convinced to play the game. My team was always going to play."

Smith said he hadn't been able to speak to any of the six English players - Paul Collingwood, Eoin Morgan, Owais Shah, Michael Lumb, Kevin Pietersen and Ravi Bopara - involved in the IPL, but had been in email communication and advised them wait for a full report from the ICC's security experts Nicholls Steyn Associates and Reg Dickason, security adviser to the Federation of International Cricketers' Associations.

The semi-finals of the IPL have now been moved out of Bangalore and will be played at the DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai instead. While pleased with the shift, the PCA said it wasn't happy about the relocation being announced before the players had left Bangalore.

"Players I have spoken to today are experiencing quite a few problems and some are currently caught up in traffic trying to reach the airport, which isn't ideal," Angus Porter, the PCA chief executive, told Cricinfo. "We are pleased that the semi-finals have been moved to Mumbai, but making it public before the players have left Bangalore has left us a little uneasy. We will be very glad when they reach Mumbai.

When asked if the events of the last 48 hours went against pre-tournament agreements, Porter said, "The security plans have varied with how they have been implemented and we are concerned with how some aspects have been delivered.

"But what I do want to add is that this isn't a time to hit the panic button about the 2011 World Cup. Security around international teams is generally easier to deliver, rather than when individual players are out there representing sides such as at the IPL."

Kolkata get consolation win against second-string Mumbai

Kolkata Knight Riders 135 for 1 (McCullum 57*, Ganguly 42) beat Mumbai Indians 133 for 8 (Tiwary 46, Kartik 2-20, Bond 2-24) by nine wickets
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

	Brendon McCullum starred with an unbeaten 57 © Indian Premier League
Related Links Features : Kolkata fail to live up to promise Matches: Kolkata Knight Riders v Mumbai Indians at Kolkata Series/Tournaments: Indian Premier League Teams: India | Kolkata Knight Riders | Mumbai Indians

As soon as Dwayne Bravo, leading Mumbai Indians in the absence of a resting Sachin Tendulkar, chose to bat Kolkata Knight Riders were officially knocked out, the only team to have not made the semi-finals in any of the IPLs. If they had batted first and beaten Mumbai by around 175 runs, Kolkata could have improved their net run-rate and entered the last four. In their last league match, with little to play for, Kolkata produced their biggest win of the season, smartly using the slow pitch to keep Mumbai to a below-par target. Sourav Ganguly then played the cleanest innings on the tricky surface to take them home without hiccups.

In the only dead rubber of the 56-match league, Mumbai rested five first-choice players, and their second-rung side struggled right from the first over. Shane Bond removed the openers for not much, and the back-up bowlers assumed control with clever variations of pace. Saurabh Tiwary's 37-ball 46 and Ambati Rayudu's 15-ball 27 were exceptions in the general go-slow innings that struggled to stay above six runs an over.

Bond's extra bounce consumed Aditya Tare and Shikhar Dhawan in the first three overs, both batsmen edging while going for the upper-cut. In partnership with JP Duminy, who struggled against the slower cutters, Tiwary provided some momentum. Yet Duminy's struggle meant only 63 runs came in 10 overs while Tiwary was at the wicket. After Murali Kartik's spin, Jaydev Unadkat and Ashok Dinda harassed Duminy with slower ones. Finally in the 13th over, with the score on 77, Duminy swung wildly and was cleaned up by Unadkat.

Match Meter KKR Bond takes two in two overs: On a slow pitch, Bond beats the Mumbai openers for the bounce, sending them both back inside three overs. KKR Duminy, Saurabh fall quickly : After a steady partnership, both Duminy and Saurabh Tiwary fail to push the run-rate and are dismissed in the 13th and 14th overs. KKR Wickets fall at the death: In the last three overs, Kolkata manage to get three wickets, which means Mumbai never get the fillip they are looking for. KKR Ganguly, McCullum finish it off: With a 97-run first-wicket stand, Ganguly and McCullum ensue their season finishes on a high. Advantage Honours even

Saurabh, though, managed to get power and timing behind his shots and had adjusted to the pace of the pitch. But with the run-rate still hovering at six, he tried to go for the big hit, and hit Kartik straight to midwicket. The score was still 77. Bravo didn't make much of the opportunity, and was stumped soon.

The way Rayudu responded to 89 for 5 after 15.4 overs belied the way other batsmen, except for Saurabh, had made the pitch look difficult. He clipped, cut, chipped and lofted with ease, but the lower order struggled around him, and Mumbai were still defending a below-par total.

It was Ganguly, though, who played the ideal innings on the sluggish surface. He committed early to few shots, and made sure all poor deliveries were scored off. And Ali Murtaza helped him with one in the first over of the chase: a long hop that Ganguly hoisted for six. With Harbhajan Singh absent, Mumbai went to quicker bowlers in the Powerplay overs. In the fourth over, Ganguly played his trademark inside-out lofts off Dilhara Fernando, one for a four over extra cover, the next for six over mid-off.

Ganguly was once again at his best when he chipped Duminy for two inside-out fours over extra cover in the 10th over, moving to 38 off 27, taking Kolkata to 71. Brendon McCullum, 30 off 29 by then, hadn't looked comfortable, struggling to get the timing right. Yet he slugged it out, never mind an inconsequential match, and after Ganguly got out in the 14th over, McCullum made sure he was there till the end, getting only his third IPL fifty since that 158 in the first-ever IPL match.

Ganguly may have not seen Kolkata all the way, but it was his positive innings that set up the tricky chase, and he got a healthy applause when he walked back. He took a moment to raise his bat to his beloved crowd. Could this be his last innings for Kolkata Knight Riders?