Yuvraj and Dhoni Shines , Huge target set for pakistan
Posted by Unknown Labels: Cricket, India vs Pakistan t20
"We should have got more runs. We got a good start, fantastic effort by the openers but then we kept losing wickets after that. We were short by 10 or 15 more runs which we should have got easily. 145 would have been a safe score on this track," Dhoni said at the post-match presentation ceremony.
Ajinkya Rahane's supreme timing was the feature of India's opening partnership, as he lofted Pakistan's bowlers over extra cover effortlessly, though they hit back after he fell upper-cutting to third man. Umar Gul and Saeed Ajmal were the architects of that comeback, after being struck for sixes in their respective opening overs. Gul was smashed over midwicket by Gambhir, but had Yuvraj Singh caught in the deep off a slower ball in his new spell before removing two in two towards the death. Ajmal was carted over extra cover by Rahane, but returned to dismiss MS Dhoni and Suresh Raina with quicker deliveries at a time when India would have backed themselves to reach a score of around or above 150. Gambhir had started picking up the pace but was caught short of the crease when attempting a second run in the 13th over. Sohail Tanvir returned a throw on the half-volley to Kamran Akmal, who collected well and dislodged the stumps. Kohli and Yuvraj began well but fell trying to heave the seamers over square leg - left-arm fast bowler Mohammad Irfan got rid of Kohli to bag his first international wicket
He was tried for corruption during his tenure as chief of a military tender board. This was the second court martial faced by Fonseka.
According to media reports, he was charged with favouring a company owned by his son-in-law, who is also an accused in a separate case filed in the high court on the same charges.
In the first court martial last month, the court ruled that Fonseka had indulged in politics while still in the army and stripped him of all his general's rank and medals won during military service.
Fonseka Wednesday said he was prepared to go to jail as he was brought to court to be present at the hearing of the election petition filed by him.
Fonseka challenged incumbent Mahinda Rajapaksa in the January presidential election and lost by nearly 60 percent of the vote.
He accused the of a political witch hunt by framing charges against him.
After picking up the prized wicket of batting legend Sachin Tendulkar, Pakistan's teenage pacer Mohammad Aamer is living a dream but he is still looking to have more fun.
The lanky left-armer made an impressive international debut at the World Twenty20 in England last June and is making waves at the ICC Champions Trophy in South Africa.
After Tendulkar, Aamer has now set his sight on another batting great - Australia captain Ricky Ponting.
"I was ecstatic after getting Tendulkar out. Now I want to realise another one of my dreams and that is to get the wicket of Ricky Ponting, who is another great batsman," said Aamer on Monday.
Pakistan are in a good position to reach the semi-finals of the ICC Champions Trophy after winning its first two matches against West Indies and India and will top the group with a win against the Australians.
Aamer said that Pakistani bowlers were ready to take on the Aussie batting, saying that his team is looking forward to ending the pool stage with another win ahead of the last-four stage.
"We are all very spirited and I'm confident that the team will also do well against Australia," he said.
Torrential rain in Johannesburg on Monday ensured that no result was possible in the game between Australia and India at the ICC Champions Trophy.
The result means that India needs to enjoy a big win against the West Indies and hope that Pakistan beats Australia if it is to progress to the semi-finals.
Australia was 234-4 in 42.3 overs when the rain came with Mike Hussey (67), Ricky Ponting (65) and Tim Paine (56) all making half centuries.
The final matches in Group A will be played on Wednesday.
The result means that India needs to enjoy a big win against the West Indies and hope that Pakistan beats Australia if it is to progress to the semi-finals.
Australia was 234-4 in 42.3 overs when the rain came with Mike Hussey (67), Ricky Ponting (65) and Tim Paine (56) all making half centuries.
The final matches in Group A will be played on Wednesday.
he ECB today announced that Yorkshire all-rounder Tim Bresnan and Middlesex batsman Eoin Morgan have been awarded Increment Contracts for the current contractual period (2008-2009).
The two players have reached the 20 appearance point threshold for the award of these contracts (5 appearance points are awarded for a Test appearance and 2 points for an ODI or International T20 appearance).
Tim Bresnan has played two Test Matches and nine One Day Internationals in the past 12 months and achieved the 20 point mark during the recent NatWest Series against Australia. Eoin Morgan, who has appeared in ten One Day Internationals and one T20 International in the same 12-month period, reached his 20 point total by playing against Sri Lanka in the ICC Champions Trophy on Friday.
The pair are the third and fourth players to earn Increment Contracts through England appearances during the contract period following on from the earlier award of contracts to Dimitri Mascarenhas and Graham Onions.
Australia recorded a 50-run victory over the West Indies in its opening match at the ICC Champions Trophy, although it was made to work hard for the win.
After losing Shane Watson to the opening delivery of the game, Australia’s captain Ricky Ponting made a brilliant 79 in difficult conditions.
But the West Indies stuck to its task and spinner Nikita Miller was particularly impressive, taking 2-24 in 10 overs, as it reduced Australia to 171-7.
Mitchell Johnson, who had survived a close appeal for caught behind, then transformed the match as he smashed 73 not out from just 47 balls to help it reach 275-8 off 50 overs.
In reply, Andre Fletcher (54) and Travis Dowlin (55) gave the West Indies an excellent base to build on, but it lost regular wickets and in the end fell 50 runs short of its target.
After losing Shane Watson to the opening delivery of the game, Australia’s captain Ricky Ponting made a brilliant 79 in difficult conditions.
But the West Indies stuck to its task and spinner Nikita Miller was particularly impressive, taking 2-24 in 10 overs, as it reduced Australia to 171-7.
Mitchell Johnson, who had survived a close appeal for caught behind, then transformed the match as he smashed 73 not out from just 47 balls to help it reach 275-8 off 50 overs.
In reply, Andre Fletcher (54) and Travis Dowlin (55) gave the West Indies an excellent base to build on, but it lost regular wickets and in the end fell 50 runs short of its target.
Pakistan beat rivals India by 54 runs in their ICC Champions Trophy Group A game at Centurion on Saturday.
The key to Pakistan's victory was an incredible 206-run fourth wicket partnership between Shoaib Malik and Mohammad Yousuf which provided the platform for an imposing total of 302 for 9.
India kept up with the required run rate until the final 15 overs but couldn?t find a match-winning partnership and ran out of wickets with just over five overs remaining.
The victory puts Pakistan top of Group A with two wins from two matches.
australian captain Ricky Ponting has said that he is worried about left-arm fast bowler Nathan Bracken's international prospects, who has been ruled out of the ICC Champions Trophy following a knee injury that has hampered him for some time.
Bracken was sent home as his degenerative condition had flared, and a knee specialist at home would be diagnosing his case to determine his immediate future.
"None of us know the extent of it just yet, we won't know until he has it looked at properly and maybe has surgery. He's no spring chicken, he's had it operated on before and I believe it's a degenerative type of condition," Ponting said.
Bracken, who is the highest ranked ODI bowler in the Australian team and has the ability to swing the ball both ways and change speed, has been an essential part of the squad over the last few seasons.
Bracken's absence will be a major blow to Ponting who relied on his steady bowling at the top of the order as a counter-balance to the attack of Brett Lee. Ponting further said that despite Bracken and Lee in their twilight years, Australia would be looking forward to continue with them till the 2011 World Cup.
"Brett by that stage will be 34 and Bracken 33, and you can have one of those guys as long as you don't have two or three," Ponting said.
"With Brett, if he actually makes it through we've got to make sure we look after him well because we've seen in England he can be a leading wicket-taker for us, especially in the conditions that we'll have in the next World Cup with his reverse swing bowling," he added.
Herschelle Gibbs had a successful fitness test on Saturday and will be available for selection for the Proteas' final Pool B match at the ICC Champions Trophy against England on Sunday.
Gibbs suffered a minor rib and intercostals injury during the warm-up match against the West Indies 10 days' ago and missed the first two Pool B matches against Sri Lanka and New Zealand.
On Saturday he batted and ran without any discomfort and was also put through a testing programme of reflex catches and diving saves by physiotherapist Brandon Jackson.
"It went very well," commented Jackson, "and he will definitely be available for selection."
AB de Villiers, who played the key innings in their victory over New Zealand, said the Proteas would not be getting ahead of themselves against England and would concentrate on their basics and game plan rather than worrying about side issues such as the net run rate.
"The most important thing for us tomorrow is to win, to focus on our basics and to carry out our game plan well," commented De Villiers.
"We can't be worrying about run rates. The important thing for us is to win and to get to four points on the log. If we get to 40 overs and we are close to winning the game, then we will definitely up the tempo a bit.
"It is a massive game for us. We normally come off when the pressure is there and we need to win. The same thing happened at the 2007 World Cup when we had a ‘must win' game against England and we managed to do it then and pull through.
"Hopefully we will pitch up tomorrow with the same kind of mindset. Everybody is keen to get into the semis, so we are going to give it our best shot.
"We have had a good record against England in the past apart from last year's series in England but we will be treating them just like we would any other side in the tournament."
De Villiers added that England had played good cricket in their last few matches, particularly Friday's match against Sri Lanka, and that they were well suited to South African conditions.
"The Wanderers wicket suited them. In addition they have just come out of a tough series at home and managed to win the last one there where they had similar conditions. But they played extremely well against a very strong Sri Lankan side and deserved their win.
"It is going to be a tough group for us and I think it is going to come down to net run rate. "
Gibbs suffered a minor rib and intercostals injury during the warm-up match against the West Indies 10 days' ago and missed the first two Pool B matches against Sri Lanka and New Zealand.
On Saturday he batted and ran without any discomfort and was also put through a testing programme of reflex catches and diving saves by physiotherapist Brandon Jackson.
"It went very well," commented Jackson, "and he will definitely be available for selection."
AB de Villiers, who played the key innings in their victory over New Zealand, said the Proteas would not be getting ahead of themselves against England and would concentrate on their basics and game plan rather than worrying about side issues such as the net run rate.
"The most important thing for us tomorrow is to win, to focus on our basics and to carry out our game plan well," commented De Villiers.
"We can't be worrying about run rates. The important thing for us is to win and to get to four points on the log. If we get to 40 overs and we are close to winning the game, then we will definitely up the tempo a bit.
"It is a massive game for us. We normally come off when the pressure is there and we need to win. The same thing happened at the 2007 World Cup when we had a ‘must win' game against England and we managed to do it then and pull through.
"Hopefully we will pitch up tomorrow with the same kind of mindset. Everybody is keen to get into the semis, so we are going to give it our best shot.
"We have had a good record against England in the past apart from last year's series in England but we will be treating them just like we would any other side in the tournament."
De Villiers added that England had played good cricket in their last few matches, particularly Friday's match against Sri Lanka, and that they were well suited to South African conditions.
"The Wanderers wicket suited them. In addition they have just come out of a tough series at home and managed to win the last one there where they had similar conditions. But they played extremely well against a very strong Sri Lankan side and deserved their win.
"It is going to be a tough group for us and I think it is going to come down to net run rate. "
Bangladesh has named its U19 squad to face England in a Test and one-day series in October.
The side will be captained by Mahmudul Hasan, who also played at the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup 2008, while Amit Majumder and Saikat Ali also return to the side having played in Malaysia in the last World Cup.
Bangladesh faces England in a Test and seven one-day matches.
The full squad is: Mahmudul Hasan (captain), Amit Majumder, Saikat Ali, Immamul Hossain, Tasamul haque, Sabbir Rahman, Mominul Haque, Abul Hasan, Kamrul Islam, Arman Badshah, Alauddin Babu, Mobassher Khan, Shaker Ahmed, Nur Hossain, Anamul Haque, Nurul Hasan
The side will be captained by Mahmudul Hasan, who also played at the ICC U19 Cricket World Cup 2008, while Amit Majumder and Saikat Ali also return to the side having played in Malaysia in the last World Cup.
Bangladesh faces England in a Test and seven one-day matches.
The full squad is: Mahmudul Hasan (captain), Amit Majumder, Saikat Ali, Immamul Hossain, Tasamul haque, Sabbir Rahman, Mominul Haque, Abul Hasan, Kamrul Islam, Arman Badshah, Alauddin Babu, Mobassher Khan, Shaker Ahmed, Nur Hossain, Anamul Haque, Nurul Hasan
Nepal has begun its preparations for the Pepsi ICC World Cricket League Division 5 with a series of training camps aimed at making the team ready for the event.
The tournament, which will be held in Nepal from 20-27 February, should be extremely competitive with the likes of Nepal, Singapore and USA all desperate to secure promotion to Division 4 and take a step closer to the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015.
All six regions in Nepal have been told by the Cricket Asssociation of Nepal to organise training camps as part of these preparations.
"The camps in the regions are organised to focus on the physical fitness of the cricketers" said CAN President Binaya Raj Pandey in an interview with the Hamalayan Times.
Nepal is also preparing for the ACC Twenty20 event which will take place in November.
The tournament, which will be held in Nepal from 20-27 February, should be extremely competitive with the likes of Nepal, Singapore and USA all desperate to secure promotion to Division 4 and take a step closer to the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015.
All six regions in Nepal have been told by the Cricket Asssociation of Nepal to organise training camps as part of these preparations.
"The camps in the regions are organised to focus on the physical fitness of the cricketers" said CAN President Binaya Raj Pandey in an interview with the Hamalayan Times.
Nepal is also preparing for the ACC Twenty20 event which will take place in November.
Sri Lanka hit back with two quick wickets after Pakistan's three debutant bowlers held its much-vaunted batting lineup to a modest 292 all out in the first innings of the first test Saturday.
Pakistan was 15-2 at the end of the opening day's play at Galle International Stadium. The test is the first between the sides since a deadly terrorist attack on the Sri Lanka team and its security convoy during a test in Lahore in March.
Sri Lanka seamer Nuwan Kulasekera bowled opener Sulman Butt in the second ball of the innings and later his partner Thilan Thushara trapped Khurram Manzoor lbw for two runs to leave the visitors on 5-2.
Captain Younis Khan and night-watchman Abdur Rauf were batting at the close.
Khan won the toss and opted to field. Mohammad Aamer, a 17-year-old left-arm seam bowler, provided Pakistan with its first breakthrough in the second over and eventually returned his side's best bowling figures of 3-74.
"I am happy with the way I bowled. I also bowled well in the Twenty20 but test cricket is the real game so I am particularly happy," he said.
He was confident that his team had enough batting to overtake the Sri Lanka total and said a 200-run lead would put pressure on the hosts.
Aamer bowled opener Malinda Warnapura (2) off the inside edge, and then shaped one away from the dangerous Kumar Sangakkara (9) to force a catch at second slip by Shoaib Malik to leave the host team struggling on 21-2.
Sri Lanka was steadied by a 75-run stand for the third wicket, with opener Tharanga Paranavitana batting calmly for his maiden test half-century.
Rauf, sight-arm seam bowler, claimed his first wicket when he dismissed Jayawardene (30) via a catch to wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal.
Thilan Samaraweera was dismissed for 31, caught by Akmal off Khan and Rauf returned to grab his second wicket when he had top-scorer Paranavitana caught for 72 by Misbah-ul-Haq at slip.
Paranavitana faced 125 balls, hitting 11 fours during his spell.
"I think this total is enough on this pitch, it's a bit hard to bat on because there is some seam movement," Paranavitana said. "I was able to go for some runs because I stuck to my basics."
It was the first time Paranavitana has played since suffering a chest wound in the Lahore attack.
"Though I received a gunshot I was lucky it did not affect my cricket. I was in hospital only for seven days," he said.
Anjelo Mathews, playing in his first test match, scored 42 runs.
Rauf recorded 2-59 while debutant offspinner Saeed Ajmal and Khan also captured two wickets apiece.
Pakistan handed first test caps to three players _ Aamer, Rauf and Ajmal _ while Sri Lanka allrounder Mathews played his first test for the hosts. Left-arm spinner Rangana Herath replaced Muttiah Muralitharan, who was ruled out of the match with an injured knee.
Hong Kong defeated China by 10 wickets in the main game at the ACC Women’s Twenty20 Championships on Saturday.
China made 74-9 off 20 overs, with Sun Mengyao (15) top scoring, before 42 not out from Keenu Gill from 43 balls helped her side home with 9.2 overs remaining.
"The gap is still there between us," said China’s coach Rashid Khan in an interview with the ACC website.
"The China players are a little intimidated by the Hong Kong team and when that ends they will be a lot closer."
In the other games of the day, Iran enjoyed a 19-run win over Bhutan, with Nasimeh Rahshetaei making 27 not out off 17 balls for Iran to help her win the Player of the Match Award.
In the other game of the day, Oman defeated Kuwait by three wickets.
China made 74-9 off 20 overs, with Sun Mengyao (15) top scoring, before 42 not out from Keenu Gill from 43 balls helped her side home with 9.2 overs remaining.
"The gap is still there between us," said China’s coach Rashid Khan in an interview with the ACC website.
"The China players are a little intimidated by the Hong Kong team and when that ends they will be a lot closer."
In the other games of the day, Iran enjoyed a 19-run win over Bhutan, with Nasimeh Rahshetaei making 27 not out off 17 balls for Iran to help her win the Player of the Match Award.
In the other game of the day, Oman defeated Kuwait by three wickets.
A very positive Thai side full of confidence, showed how much they've improved in the past twelve months to beat a capable Singapore side on the opening day of the ACC Women's Twenty20 Tournament.
Thailand's Pundarika Prathanmir hit a four off the first ball and then played the shot of the day as early as the fourth ball a back-foot drive through mid-off timed sweeter than a ripe mango. On a super-fast outfield any ball beating the infield went all the way.
Sonnarin Tippoch more cautious and more correct than in her previous outing for Thailand in the inaugural ACC Women's Tournament in 2007 but she still took advantage of anything loose, every single leg side full toss smacked to the mid-wicket boundary.
Singapore fielded well. Tanya Sen with her wicket to wicket slow-medium pacers bowled very well, just 3 runs and a leg-bye from her first three overs. "That kind of bowling is what is most effective at this level," said Mohideen Kader the Cricket Association of Thailand CEO who was watching from the sidelines.
Naruemol Chaiwai batted well for her 19 (28 balls, 2 fours) before being well stumped by Priyanjali Jain off Lakshimi Hariharan. 80 was their target on going in to bat but at 61 for 1 at the half-way point, it looked they would sail past that.
That they didn't was credit to some good Singapore bowling and the inability of the Thais to improvise and work the ball around the ground. From the 10th to the 17th over there was only one boundary for Thailand.
Singapore's slickness in the field was demonstrated by their captain's running-out of her opposite number in the final over followed by another three balls later. Thailand did manage 25 off their last five overs to take them to exactly 100 and set Singapore a challenging target.
"We should be able to defend 100," said Parn Poshyanonda, a CAT visitor. Singapore's captain Diviya G K was likewise confident of chasing 100, "we've got the batters." She was due to come into bat as the closer. "It's a must win game for us," said Diviya.
Thailand have a strong and varied bowling attack. Nattaya Boochatham's dismissal of Priyanjali Jain first-ball. Three overs later Nathakan Chantham struck from the Mines End.
Naruemol Chawai took a super catch close in, one-handed diving forward at silly mid-on to get rid of Annapurna Mukherjee and Singapore's first-ball of the over curse continued – three in a row falling that way. It looked like Diviya would have a lot to do when she came in. She came in with two wickets falling in two balls in the 10th over, one of them to an excellent catch by Maneerat Bevacqua at fine leg. Singapore were 38-5 at the half-way stage, needing 63 off the last 10 to win.
With Rajeshwari Pasupathy and Diviya at the wicket, the hitter and the grafter, Singapore still had hope.
For all their good work in the field, Thailand did drop four catches, Pasupathy being the beneficiary three times. Pasupathy hit the tournament's first six, a massive one soaring over mid-off and Singapore took 15 off the 16th over to give themselves a chance. 32 were needed off the last four overs but they just didn't have enough support for Pasupathy who, eventually fell for 24 (24 balls, 1 four, 1 six).
Thailand came back strongly in the field and the bowlers held their nerve at the death. "Our girls really came back well, our bowling was pretty good and I'm impressed with our girls," said the losing captain. Singapore will probably need to change their batting order if they're to maximize their potential.
As for Thailand, "We came to do well, we've done well, we can do even better," said their coach Tithi Kader.
ACC Women's Twenty20 Championship 2009
Singapore v Thailand at Selangor Turf Club
THAILAND WON BY 11 RUNS
Thailand won the toss and chose to bat
Thailand: 100 for 5 off 20 overs (L.Hariharan 2-19)
Singapore: 89 off 19.5 overs (S.Kosathong 3-24)
Player of the Match: Sonnarin Tippoch (Thailand)
For all the latest scores go to www.asiancricket.org
Thailand's Pundarika Prathanmir hit a four off the first ball and then played the shot of the day as early as the fourth ball a back-foot drive through mid-off timed sweeter than a ripe mango. On a super-fast outfield any ball beating the infield went all the way.
Sonnarin Tippoch more cautious and more correct than in her previous outing for Thailand in the inaugural ACC Women's Tournament in 2007 but she still took advantage of anything loose, every single leg side full toss smacked to the mid-wicket boundary.
Singapore fielded well. Tanya Sen with her wicket to wicket slow-medium pacers bowled very well, just 3 runs and a leg-bye from her first three overs. "That kind of bowling is what is most effective at this level," said Mohideen Kader the Cricket Association of Thailand CEO who was watching from the sidelines.
Naruemol Chaiwai batted well for her 19 (28 balls, 2 fours) before being well stumped by Priyanjali Jain off Lakshimi Hariharan. 80 was their target on going in to bat but at 61 for 1 at the half-way point, it looked they would sail past that.
That they didn't was credit to some good Singapore bowling and the inability of the Thais to improvise and work the ball around the ground. From the 10th to the 17th over there was only one boundary for Thailand.
Singapore's slickness in the field was demonstrated by their captain's running-out of her opposite number in the final over followed by another three balls later. Thailand did manage 25 off their last five overs to take them to exactly 100 and set Singapore a challenging target.
"We should be able to defend 100," said Parn Poshyanonda, a CAT visitor. Singapore's captain Diviya G K was likewise confident of chasing 100, "we've got the batters." She was due to come into bat as the closer. "It's a must win game for us," said Diviya.
Thailand have a strong and varied bowling attack. Nattaya Boochatham's dismissal of Priyanjali Jain first-ball. Three overs later Nathakan Chantham struck from the Mines End.
Naruemol Chawai took a super catch close in, one-handed diving forward at silly mid-on to get rid of Annapurna Mukherjee and Singapore's first-ball of the over curse continued – three in a row falling that way. It looked like Diviya would have a lot to do when she came in. She came in with two wickets falling in two balls in the 10th over, one of them to an excellent catch by Maneerat Bevacqua at fine leg. Singapore were 38-5 at the half-way stage, needing 63 off the last 10 to win.
With Rajeshwari Pasupathy and Diviya at the wicket, the hitter and the grafter, Singapore still had hope.
For all their good work in the field, Thailand did drop four catches, Pasupathy being the beneficiary three times. Pasupathy hit the tournament's first six, a massive one soaring over mid-off and Singapore took 15 off the 16th over to give themselves a chance. 32 were needed off the last four overs but they just didn't have enough support for Pasupathy who, eventually fell for 24 (24 balls, 1 four, 1 six).
Thailand came back strongly in the field and the bowlers held their nerve at the death. "Our girls really came back well, our bowling was pretty good and I'm impressed with our girls," said the losing captain. Singapore will probably need to change their batting order if they're to maximize their potential.
As for Thailand, "We came to do well, we've done well, we can do even better," said their coach Tithi Kader.
ACC Women's Twenty20 Championship 2009
Singapore v Thailand at Selangor Turf Club
THAILAND WON BY 11 RUNS
Thailand won the toss and chose to bat
Thailand: 100 for 5 off 20 overs (L.Hariharan 2-19)
Singapore: 89 off 19.5 overs (S.Kosathong 3-24)
Player of the Match: Sonnarin Tippoch (Thailand)
For all the latest scores go to www.asiancricket.org
majority of the players contracted to Cricket Australia have described England's Kevin Pietersen as the best batsman in the world outside Australia.
Pietersen, with 50 percent of the vote, was by far the most popular choice, reports The Age.
Sachin Tendulkar, Graeme Smith, Jacques Kallis and Kumar Sangakkara are no where close to him.
Apparently, the Australians fear Pietersen the most when it comes to an Ashes series. Batsmen want to be him, envying his audaciousness, and bowlers want to be a long way away from him.
Pietersen has made 963 runs at 53.50 against Australia, but it is the 29-year-old's attitude that attracts just as much admiration as his record.
His arrogrance has made him a divisive and abrasive character in dressing rooms, condemning him to a short and turbulent reign as England captain, but it has also made him a champion.
"He's the sort of player that is always taking the game forward. I'm not sure of his strike rate in Test cricket (63.35) but generally when he makes runs he gets them at a pretty good speed," said Australian captain Ricky Ponting.
"He's always putting it back on the bowler, the way he moves his feet, the way he walks across the stumps and does things, it's continually challenging the bowler. That in itself says a lot about you. You need great confidence to be able to do that, because if you get out doing that, at the end of the day you can punish yourself," he added.
Brett Lee was on the end of Pietersen's astonishing 158 to seal the 2005 Ashes, his debut series. Pietersen has made Muthiah Muralidaran laugh by reverse-sweeping the world's most successful spinner for six and pioneered the switch-hit, changing his grip to face up like a left-hander as the bowler approached.
Justin Langer sensed the England batsman's greatness as the Ashes turned to dust at the Oval.
"He's had the courage to play with conviction and aggression. That's what great players do," said the retired Australian opener recently.
Pakistan teenager Mohammad Aamer made an auspicious test debut by grabbing two quick wickets as Sri Lanka ended the opening session of the first test at 104-3 on Saturday.
The 17-year-old left-arm seam bowler gave his team the important first breakthrough in the second over of the match, justifying the decision of captain Younis Khan to bowl first after winning the toss at Galle International Stadium.
He bowled Sri Lanka opener Malinda Warnapura (2) off the inside edge, and then shaped one away from the dangerous Kumar Sangakkara (9) to force a catch at second slip by Shoaib Malik to leave the hosts 2-21.
He was unlucky not to have bagged a third when wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal dropped Mahela Jayawardene when he was yet to score.
Sri Lanka steadied with a 75-run stand for the third wicket, as opener Tharanga Paranavitana batted calmly for his maiden test half-century and combined with Jayawardene.
Another Pakistan debutant, right-arm seamer Abdur Rauf, claimed his first ever wicket when he dismissed Jayawardene (30) via a catch to Akmal.
At lunch, Paranavitana was unbeaten on 57 off 72 balls including nine boundaries while Thilan Samaraweera was not out 3.
Pakistan handed first test caps to three players - Aamer, Rauf and offspinner Saeed Ajmal - while Sri Lanka allrounder Anjelo Mathews played his first test for the hosts. Left-arm spinner Rangana Herath replaced spin great Muttiah Muralitharan who was ruled out of the match with an injured knee.
The test is the first between the sides since a deadly terrorist attack upon the Sri Lanka team and its security convoy during a test in Lahore earlier this year.
Back in contention for the Ashes with his first five-wicket haul on English soil, Australian pacer Brett Lee says he has finally mastered reverse swing, which the Englishmen had used with destructive precision during the 2005 series. "If you look back to 2005, what let us down and what affected us was reverse swing.
We couldn't work out a way to get it to swing," Lee said after picking up five wickets in a practice match against England Lions team. The 32-year-old, who was battling for his place due to indifferent form, finally got some breathing space after yesterday's performance.
Lee said reverse swing would play a "massive" role in the Ashes starting July 8 and contrary to what is said, he has no problems bowling with an old ball. "We wanted to get the ball to swing early on, try and rough it up and try to get the ball to come back in later on.
That worked a treat. I always enjoy bowling when the ball is like that," Lee was quoted as saying by 'The Daily Telegraph'.
The speedster, who took 5-21 in 40 balls and ended with 5-53 in the tour match, also got a word of praise from West Indian fast bowling legend Michael Holding. "I liked what I saw," Holding said.
"Everyone has been saying Brett Lee has been injured and coming back into the game he might not be on top of his game. He bowled the fastest ball of the match so far and he has bowled some very very quick spells," he added.
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