The Deccan Herald
Ali & Cush Carn Victoria
Wickets Galore in Melbourne as Gamblers Walk Home in Disgust
Karnataka captain Dale Benkenstein was lucky enough to win the toss under cloudy skies at Melbourne, and decided to have a bowl as Khalid Ali and Aditya Jones thought they would get some swing into it. Ali broke through in his second over with a peach of a delivery that had Schiller bowled - gone for 4 (13 for 1). Yapp and Carver built a decent partnership for the home side, and Benkenstein made a controversial choice in bringing in part-time spinner Lennox Cush after only about seven overs. It paid off, though, because with only three balls gone of his first over, Carver tried to drive a slower ball but missed and got the inside edge through to keeper Sanjay Borde, and the umpire had no choice but to award him the wicket (49 for 2). However, Beasley and Yapp were hard to grind themselves on, and they built up a very good partnership in the next ten overs or so. After 20 overs - most of whom were bowled by Lasith Malinga, as he was smacked for 49 runs off 7 overs, the score was 100 for 2, and Victoria had recovered from their slump.
They thought. Lennox Cush, however, had his mind set otherwise. Coming in from the Great Southern Stand, he got one ball to bounce nastily off the footmarks, as Beasley was deceived by it and was left wondering how that one could have hit his pad. Gone he was, though, and Cush picked up his second wicket (103 for 3). Malinga bowled another poor over at Yapp before Cush came in again from the other end. Bowling to Hodge, he had frustrated him with a couple of early balls, and now he stepped onto the front foot and tried to loft him. He was comprehensively beaten and Sanjay Borde enjoyed his second dismissal (109 for 4). After Benkenstein realised Malinga wasn't going to do much, Khalid Ali got chucked the ball again, and he didn't disappoint as he removed Yapp, the most dangerous of the Victorian players, for 66 as he got the outside edge to a diving first slip Sean Maxwell (119 for 5). Dros looked considerably worried when he came to the crease, and he was undone by a 95mph ball outside off with outswing that had him look daft (119 for 6). Ian Harvey tried to get some runs up on the board by hitting a single off the last ball of the over, but became too cheeky and was stumped for 3 (122 for 7). Moss managed to block some balls, but with the last ball of Cush's day, he grabbed his fifth wicket and put in a major application for the Man of the Match award (122 for 8).
With the innings in shambles, Rummans tried not to rotate the strike but to protect Welsford at the other end. It nearly worked, as Jaminda Sigera served up some true pies for him to hit at, but he came back in the thirtieth over and had Rummans caught in the deep by a diving Cush (him yet again! 138 for 9). Malinga was set to wrap up the tail and with Welsford and Harwood in there, both fairly high on the rabbit-scale, Malinga saved some grace by having Welsford caught in the slips (138 all out).
The chase was always going to be easy, but Karnataka's batsmen wanted a good net run rate to catch up with the big boys in the league. As such, wickets fell regularly, with captain Benkenstein gifting one early to Shane Harwood off his own bowling - gone for 4 (14 for 1). Abhijit Kale paired up well with Sanjay Borde, Karnataka's most promising batsman, and they both went at about a run-a-ball until Borde gloved a Harwood bouncer to the keeper, being gone for 15 (54 for 2). The away side did not despair and fought on with their almost suicidal batting, Maxewll smacking three fours off Dros's dross before becoming too cheeky and mistiming a square cut, caught lbw (74 for 3). Kale was trapped into the same mistake by all-rounder Ian Harvey in the next over, gone for 41 (78 for 4). Zenon Keegan tried to build a decent partnership with Khanderao Rangnekar, but after punishing a ball from Welsford for four, he tried the same stroke and was well held at point by Ian Harvey (96 for 5). Aditya Jones, who had done a reasonably good job with the ball, stepped onto the crease and hit runs about at will. Together with Rangnekar, they scored 31 in a little less than 5 overs, before Rangnekar was caught at point (127 for 6). Still, Lennox Cush and Aditya Jones kept it going, and Karnataka won by 4 wickets with over 27 overs to spare.
Victoria 138 (30.5 ovs, Yapp 66 - Cush 5/36 [10], Ali 3/13 [5], Jones 0/24 [5]) lost to
Karnataka 140/6 (22.3 ovs, Kale 41 [40], Jones 27* [19] - Harwood 3/30 [6]) by 4 wickets
Match Star Points:
Lennox Cush (Karnataka) 3
Khalid Ali (Karnataka) 2
L Yapp (Victoria) 1
Karnataka Star Points:
Lennox Cush 3, Khalid Ali 2, Aditya Jones 1
