Yuvraj returns to form as India thrash England

Rajkot: Yuvraj Singh marked his return to form with a swashbuckling unbeaten 138 as India recorded its biggest victory by runs against England by spanking the hapless visitors by 158 runs in the series-opening cricket one-dayer here on Friday.
After rattling up a record total of 387 for five at home, he hosts then bundled out England for 229 in 37.4 overs in a lop-sided contest to take a 1-0 lead in the seven-match series.
India's previous best victory margin by runs against England was 86 at Sydney in 1985 and their biggest margin is 257 runs against Bermuda at Port of Spain in 2007.
Yuvraj's ninth ODI hundred spurred India to post its second-highest ODI total ever -- well behind their 413-5 against Bermuda in the 2007 World Cup but ahead of its previous home record of 376-2 against New Zealand in 1999.
Clobbered by the in-form Indian bastmen, the English attack conceded more runs than ever in one-dayers, surpassing the 353-6 against Pakistan at Karachi in 2005. India's highest previous total against England was 329-7 at Bristol in August 2007.
Yuvraj defied a troublesome back to roar back into form in great style as he plundered runs at will, belting as many as 16 boundaries and six sixes during his 78-ball massacre.
The dashing Virender Sehwag (85), Gautam Gambhir (51), Suresh Raina (43) and captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni (39) were the other notable performers after England captain Kevin Pietersen put India in to bat on a belter of a track at the Madhavrao Scindia stadium.
England could never really recover from a disastrous start as they kept losing wickets at regular intervals with only Pietersen standing bravely amidst the ruins with a
belligerent 63 and Ravi Bopara (54 not out) hitting some lusty shots.
But with the asking rate climbing steeply, the game gradually slipped out of England's reach even before the halfway stage of the game.
The two teams will now travel to Indore for the second match to be played on Monday.
Yuvraj, batting with a belt around his waist and with Gautam Gambhir as his runner for the major part of his dazzling knock, reached his hundred off just 64 balls with 11
fours and four sixes, narrowly missing out on overhauling Mohammed Azharuddin's 62-ball century record.
The 26-year-old batsman, struggling in Ranji Trophy after a poor run in the Challenger Series prior to this tie, got to his second fifty off only 22 balls with six fours and two sixes. His effort powered India to its best-ever score at this ground, overtaking New Zealand's 349 for nine made against hosts in November 1999.

Good Day For Ind At Nagpur On Opening Day

Nagpur:There couldn't have been more perfect a beginning to international cricket at the VCA Jamtha Stadium here. Sourav Ganguly's farewell and VVS Laxman's 100th Test had already built up the stakes, before Sachin Tendulkar made it consummate with a magnificent 40th Test hundred.
India closed the opening day of the fourth and final Test against Australia on 311-5 with the retiring Sourav Ganguly batting on 27 and captain MS Dhoni four not out, after Dhoni's decision to bat first on a batting paradise nearly backfired. But Laxman's calm 64 and Tendulkar's classy 109 steadied India with their 146-run fifth wicket stand before both fell in the final session of play.
A freak two-wicket burst from debutant Jason Krejza before lunch after being hammered around the park was not enough to slow down Tendulkar, whose latest milestone became his 10th century against the Australians.
The Australians have a reputation of giving it back to their opponents on the field. Michael Clarke was helped on to his century in the previous Test in Delhi by three dropped chances. Australia returned the favour to Tendulkar through Mitchell Johnson and Brett Lee, who grassed sitters when the batsman was on 85 and 96 respectively.
Australia seemed to have lost the initiative as getting rid of Tendulkar on the back of Laxman's wicket would have put on added pressure. However, Johnson's strike towards the end of day's play still keeps the game intriguingly poised.
It could have been worse for the Australians had a belligerent Virender Sehwag not thrown away his wicket for 66. The opener tore into Lee and Johnson, who went for five runs an over in their respective opening spells, which also gave a significant boost to debutant Murali Vijay at the other end.

The Tamil Nadu batsman didn't quite make the impact Gautam Gambhir has throughout the course of the series, but his contribution was no less significant. Vijay made a composed 33 and added 98 runs for the first wicket with Sehwag, who sped to a half-century in 45 balls, before a sharply rising delivery from Shane Watson forced Vijay to fend it off to the wicketkeeper.
Rahul Dravid's increasing hesitance at the beginning of his innings is a worrying sign for the Indians. His dip in form has been significant over the last two years, and his uncomfortable lunge to drop the ball down off Krejza only managed to creep up to his glove, and an easy catch to Simon Katich gave the off-spinner his maiden wicket in Test cricket.
But Sehwag was in no mood to step off the gas. He continued to treat the spinner as a practice bowler, but the easy runs made him complacent as he went for a cut too close to his body to drag the ball back onto his stumps.
As has been a trend all through this Border-Gavaskar series, Tendulkar and Laxman were again up to the task to not let the situation spiral out of hand. They forged a dogged 61-run stand on a wearing fifth day wicket in Bangalore, and joined hands to add 52 to put the third Test in Delhi beyond Australia's reach. They were at it again, with Tendulkar shedding caution for daredevilry, while Laxman remained at ease with the bowlers, particularly Johnson, keeping it wide of the stumps.
Figures of 3-138 with an economy rate of a shade under five doesn't quite reflect on the impact Jason Krejza had on the opening day. Not only with wickets, Krejza seemed to have benefited from Bishan Bedi's briefing in Delhi, as he gave the ball significant loop which got him appreciable purchase in terms of turn and bounce.
However, Krejza's exploits also give inkling on the pitch, which assisted spin on day one and is bound to keep Harbhajan Singh and Amit Mishra interested.