T-20 World Cup 2010

Holders Pakistan crept into the World Twenty20 semi-finals thanks to a victory over South Africa and England's later win over New Zealand in St Lucia.

Pakistan, after two Super Eight losses, knew they had to beat the Proteas to keep their semi-final hopes alive.

And Umar Akmal and Shahid Afridi set up that win with some brutal batting as Pakistan hit 148-7 after a slow start.

South Africa stumbled to 137-7 in reply and that, combined with New Zealand's loss, saw Pakistan into the last four.

Their progress came courtesy of a better net run-rate than South Africa and New Zealand, who both bow out of the competition in the West Indies.

"I guess you run out of excuses, it was just not good enough again," said Smith, whose side have a poor record in major competitions.

"AB (de Villiers, who hit 53) was the only one who really played. That's been the story of our tournament - we have struggled to get it together in all three disciplines.

"You always say you've got to learn your lessons. You have to say, with the talent in South Africa, it's not good enough to perform at this level."

Pakistan captain Afridi was delighted with the way his side fought back after slumping to 18-3 in their innings.

"The boys performed really well," he said. "It was not a good start, but then Kamran Akmal, Umar Akmal and myself, those partnerships were good, and 140-150 is a good total on this track.

"I always believe a captain's performance is very important."

South Africa rarely looked capable of overcoming a Pakistan team that recovered impressively from a stuttering start after winning the toss and opting to bat in St Lucia.

Mishit hooks accounted for Salman Butt and Khalid Latif, the latter brought in at the expense of Mohammad Sami, as short deliveries from Dale Steyn and Jacques Kallis were skewed to mid-wicket, while Mohammad Hafeez added just one before missing a straight one from Charl Langeveldt.

At end of the seventh over Pakistan were 23-3 and on course for a paltry total of 66, but Kamran Akmal and brother Umar combined to emphatically expose the Proteas' selection of spinner Roelof van der Merwe ahead of paceman Morne Morkel, their leading wicket-taker in the tournament before play began.

Gros Islet, St Lucia: India doesn't need a miracle on Tuesday. They just need to get their basics right. When two players go for a catch, one needs to call out loud and clear. When they go for the extra run, make sure there is a second run. And when they bowl, they need to keep it straight.

Mathematically still in the fray for the last four stage, India take on Sri Lanka in their last Super Eight game on the placid track of St Lucia after being bounced out by Australia and West Indies in the earlier two games at Barbados. The Lankans, meanwhile, have one win and will eye a second to boost their chances of making it to the semis. However, they have been a one-man show so far. They've only won the games in which Mahela Jayawardene has fired. On Sunday he came a cropper against Australia and Sri Lanka went down by 81 runs. Hopefully the Indian team management has made a note of that.

India will also take heart from the fact that they are playing at the Beausejour Cricket Ground where they recorded two handsome wins, especially the one against South Africa on the Sunday before last. On that Sunday, who would have imagined that title contenders India would be almost packing their bags by the next weekend.

But the Men in Blue have paid for their perennial problem of playing on bouncy wickets. Cramped for time and space, they have injudiciously played the pull shot, though not being physically and technically well equipped to challenge such hostile deliveries. As the frazzled Indian stars may have realised by now, merely throwing the bat around at short balls, without getting inside the line or under the ball, won't fetch them the runs.

For India, Harbhajan Singh has been the star performer so far. He has not been among the wickets but undoubtedly he's been the best Indian bowler with all opposition batsmen playing him with respect.

It's time he gets some able support from another full-time spinner and India should drop Ravindra Jadeja and bring in Piyush Chawla. Pacer Ashish Nehra has been among the wickets but has leaked precious runs in the middle, while Zaheer Khan has failed to impress. There is a strong case to bring in R Vinay Kumar in place of Zaheer for the game against the Lankans.

England 153 for 7 (Morgan 40) beat New Zealand 149 for 6 (Taylor 44) by three wickets

England's cricketers maintained their impressive momentum with their third win in three Super Eight fixtures, as New Zealand were outmuscled in their must-win Group E finale in St Lucia, and sent packing from the tournament by a three-wicket defeat that was more emphatic than the final margin suggested. Chasing 150 for victory after another disciplined bowling display led by Tim Bresnan, England were able to overcome a mid-innings wobble and a late clatter of wickets to coast to victory with five balls to spare, as Bresnan put the seal on a fine day's work with 23 not out from 11 balls.

Thanks to Pakistan's earlier victory over South Africa, England's progress was assured before the match began, but for New Zealand, the stakes were utterly black-and-white. A victory would have propelled them into the semi-finals, but anything less would allow the defending champions, Pakistan, to come from nowhere in the Group and leap into the final four. In the end, that is exactly what transpired, as England's superbly balanced outfit made light of the absence of Kevin Pietersen to turn in a thoroughly professional victory.

As has become the norm for this tournament, England's openers refused to stand on ceremony as they set off to better New Zealand's effort of 149 for 6. Craig Kieswetter belted a four and a six in the first over, bowled by Nathan McCullum, before drilling the third ball of Kyle Mills' spell into the covers to depart for 15, while Michael Lumb took a shine to the extra pace of Shane Bond, milking 19 runs from his first two overs, including a brace of leg-side steers, a checked drive for six, and a loose flick that burst through Gareth Hopkins' webbing as he dived in vain to his left.

New Delhi: A day after his younger brother wrecked a nervy Afghanistan side with the ball on a bouncy Kensington Oval pitch, Albie Morkel used the bat to establish his credentials at the T20 World Cup in Barabados. While Morne took South Africa to the Super Eights, Albie got their Group E campaign off to a magnificent start by smashing a 18-ball 40.

It was Albie's innings on Thursday that proved to be the difference between South Africa and New Zealand. The fighting Kiwis ran the daunting 170-run total close in their chase but fell short by 13 runs. Had it not been for Albie's sensational cameo, it could have been a different result altogether.

Albie hit as many as five sixes -- three of Tim Southee in the 19th over -- during his 18-ball stay.

On Wednesday, Morne claimed three wickets in his first over against debutants Afghanistan and returned 4-20 to power an emphatic 59-run triumph.

The Morkel brothers play a huge role in adding balance to the talented South African side. Though both are all-rounders, older brother Albie is South Africa's power-hitter, while Morne is the prototype pacer who hits the deck hard.

South Africa will be relying hugely on the Morkel brothers from now on, with both hitting form in their respective stronger fields.

Albie will be key in adding impetus to the innings in the Caribbean. South Africa lack big hitters, especially lower down the order and Albie will be their go-to man. Graeme Smith may also promote Albie up the order, given his blazing form, to give him the maximum number of overs to show his prowess.

Morne with Dale Steyn and Charl Langeveldt form a deadly pace trio, with all three unleashing some lethal pace on the responsive West Indian pitches.

South Africa are once again out to get rid of the chokers tag and they are banking on the Morkels to break the jinx that has haunted their team for so long.

Australia 168 for 5 (White 85*, Randiv 3-20) beat Sri Lanka 87 (Johnson 3-15, Nannes 2-19)

Australia stormed to a resounding 81-run win that all but assured their semi-finals spot as Sri Lanka were steamrolled by extreme pace and sustained pressure, folding for 87. Dirk Nannes and Mitchell Johnson were the main destroyers of the Sri Lankan batting line-up, but the win was made possible by Cameron White's unstoppable 85 from 49 balls, which rescued his side from a perilous 67 for 5.

White was ably aided by Michael Hussey in an unbroken stand of 101 in less than ten overs, and when the Sri Lankan top order was bullied out by a formidable Australian pace attack in quick succession, the rest of the batsmen collapsed in a heap.

Australia had been in a similar situation against Bangladesh in the group stage, sinking to 65 for 6 before they were saved by a 74-run partnership between Hussey and Steven Smith. Today, they had White to thank, as he saw off the threatening Suraj Randiv, making the most of a missed chance on 23 to establish his dominance over the rest of the attack, as he passed 50 from 32 balls.

Shane Watson and David Warner have given Australia solid starts more often than not in this tournament, but today they were parted with the fifth ball of the innings, as Angelo Mathews snaked one in to rattle Watson's stumps via an inside edge. In an impressively-controlled opening spell, Mathews then deceived Brad Haddin, sent in ahead of Clarke with Australia one down, with a slower one that took the leading edge and looped up to give Sanath Jayasuriya an easy catch.

Australia were then under real pressure when Mahela Jayawardene held a blistering reflex take at slip when Warner nicked a flashing drive to Randiv's third ball of the match. In a dramatic over, Randiv then set Sri Lankan hearts racing when he beat David Hussey first ball with a flighted delivery that went the other way as the batsman drove on the walk, and Kumar Sangakkara whipped the bails off milliseconds later - not that it mattered, as the ball had also brushed the edge on its way through.

The hat-trick evaded him, but he topped off an outstanding spell when Clarke backed away to cut a turning ball and lost his off bail. Australia were 67 for 5 after 11 overs at that stage, and were in real danger of crumbling for an insubstantial total.

But Sri Lanka could not carry the intensity from their opening onslaught into the second half of the innings. After racing to his half-century, White led Australia's charge in the closing overs, lifting Welegedara down the ground with brutal hits from consecutive deliveries to move into the 70s.

With that, Hussey, who had nudged his way to 9 from 15 balls, took his cue, walking across his stumps to paddle a knee-high full toss from Lasith Malinga to fine leg. Hussey followed that up with a majestic lofted cover drive, before closing the over with an audacious sweep to a searing yorker. White took Australia past 150 with his fifth and sixth sixes in the penultimate over, and an incredible 91 runs came from the final seven overs.

Jayawardene has been Sri Lanka's linchpin at the top of the order in this tournament, and when he swivelled to pull Nannes handsomely over square leg it appeared that the stage had been set for another excellent knock. But Nannes dug the next one in even shorter, and the ball rose alarmingly to take the splice and balloon up to give Smith an easy catch at long leg.

It was pace and aggression that did for Sangakkara, too, as Shaun Tait sent down a brutish bumper that beat the attempted hook for pace, striking the glove on the way through to Haddin. The slide continued as Nannes fired one in at Jayasuriya's pads in his next over, beating an aimless swish to pin the batsman lbw to reduce Sri Lanka to 26 for 3 in the fifth over.

Watson was brought on in the last over of the Powerplay, and his medium-paced seamers proved to be a far more attractive prospect than the 90mph-plus barrage of Nannes and Tait. Dilshan responded with a caressed cover drive and a clean hit high over long on, and Mathews didn't miss out either, slamming Watson straight back over his head as 15 were taken from the over.

But they still had Johnson to contend with from the other end, and he made his intentions clear by banging his first two balls in before rolling his fingers over his third to induce an uppish cut from Dilshan. White at backward point went airborne to pull off a stunning catch inches from the turf, and when Mathews picked out Hussey on the cover boundary four balls later, Sri Lanka's short-lived counterpunch was nipped in the bud.

Sri Lanka were 67 for 5 after 10 overs - almost exactly the position in which Australia had found themselves in the first innings - but their middle order lacks White's power and Hussey's class, and from that point on the two sides went in opposite directions, Australia seizing back the game with a supremely confident fightback; Sri Lanka capitulating meekly in the face of sustained pressure. Such was the scale of the win, Australia are now virtually guaranteed a place in the semi-finals.

West Indies 169 for 6 (Gayle 98, Nehra 3-35) beat India 155 for 9 (Raina 32, Roach 2-38) by 14 runs

Chris Gayle finished agonisingly short of becoming the first man to make two international Twenty20 centuries, but by the time he was run-out, he had already swiped West Indies to a total that provided too tall for India's batsmen who yet again floundered against the short ball. The defeat leaves India facing an early exit for the third straight global tournament, and the same questions about batting technique which were raised followed the elimination from last year's World Twenty20 will be asked again.

After Gayle's slaphappy innings, in which almost all his runs came on the leg side, India's top-order weren't given anything to drive by West Indies' new-ball bowlers. They faced the barrage of bouncers promised before the match, and even the short deliveries of the gentle medium-pacers Darren Sammy and Dwayne Bravo discomfited them initially.

The home side's fielding was also a dramatic improvement to the error-strewn show against Sri Lanka, with Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard being exceptional. India's batting slide started with an athletic forward-diving catch by Pollard at square leg to dismiss opener M Vijay, who again failed to replicate his IPL form on the more demanding tracks in the Caribbean. Gautam Gambhir was also having a tough time, and just after edging a bouncer from Kemar Roach in the fifth over between slip and the keeper, he failed to evade a scorching short ball to glove to Denesh Ramdin.

Two overs later, Rohit Sharma, the only batsman to enhance his reputation in the pasting by Australia, was controversially dismissed after the ball lobbed off his arm to the keeper. He stood his ground and asked Billy Bowden to call for the third umpire. After consultation with Simon Taufel, Bowden upheld his original decision, and India were down to 38 for 3, and the asking-rate was in double digits.

Gros Islet: Their title defence virtually over, a beleaguered Pakistan will be out to salvage some pride, while South Africa will hope to put their Twenty20 World Cup campaign back on track in the Group E Super Eights stage match at the Beausejour Stadium on Monday.

With none of their players featuring in the third edition of the Indian Premier League, defending champions Pakistan entered the tournament as the only side without any fatigue factor but they looked rusty and now risk an early return home after losing their first two Super Eight stage matches to England and New Zealand.

The 2009 champions looked a rudderless lot under Shahid Afridi's timid captaincy and the burden of leading seemed to have bogged down the all-rounder who looked far from his flamboyance self.

The Pakistani batting order, barring Salman Butt, has looked patchy with batsmen like Mohammad Hafeez and Misbah-ul-Haq coming a cropper while the Akmal brothers -- Kamran and Umar -- also lacking consistency.

Their inability to chase down a meagre victory target of 134 runs in yesterday's cliff-hanger against New Zealand virtually put paid to their semifinal hopes and the batsmen would have to shoulder the blame for the team's pathetic display.

In contrast, their bowlers did a better job and restricting New Zealand to 133 was a commendable effort.

Unlike Pakistan, South Africa have everything to play for as a win might clear their semifinal passage.

Having beaten New Zealand by 13 runs in their first Super Eight match, South Africa showed a batting frailty against England yesterday that would keep them worried.

Chasing 169 for a win, only four batsmen reached double digit scores before they collapsed in 19 overs for just 129.

In the match against New Zealand, the entire top order had fired in unison but the same batsmen looked helpless against England's disciplined attack and it is something the Protea think-tank would have to sort out tomorrow.

One would expect the Protea bowlers to bend their back tomorrow and come to the aid of the team.

For South Africa, off-spinner Johan Botha has been virtually unplayable, taking wickets and hardly conceding boundaries but the Protea would need a big contribution from Dale Steyn and Charl Langeveldt up front to see them through against Pakistan.