Archive for ‘February 18th, 2009’

3 results.
Feb18

Swann puts England in commanding position

by wasim on February 18th, 2009 at 5:36 am
Posted In: Cricket, Cricket England

Graeme Swann’s off-spin proved the undoing of West Indies as England took command of the third test by bowling out the hosts for 285 on the third day on Tuesday.

England lost captain Andrew Strauss in reaching 31 for one in their second innings at the close, a lead of 312 runs with nine wickets remaining.

Swann became the first England off-spinner in 10 years to take five wickets in a test innings, completing figures of five for 57 on a ground where slow bowlers usually have little joy with his well-flighted and positive bowling.

Ramnaresh Sarwan’s stylish 94 was the only bright spot in a largely poor West Indies batting display but he was one of a number of batsmen who got out to loose strokes.

Chasing England’s 566 for nine declared, West Indies could ill-afford any recklessness but although they may have feared England’s pace bowlers being able to make the most of the ridge on the wicket it was Swann who proved their downfall.

After West Indies resumed on 55 for one overnight, the spinner made two breakthroughs before lunch.

Opener Devon Smith and nightwatchman Daren Powell resisted well for over an hour before left-hander Smith was bowled by Swann playing an awful shot across the line.

Powell, normally a tailender, produced his longest test innings before he edged a well-flighted, turning Swann delivery to Paul Collingwood at slip.

Ryan Hinds helped Sarwan add 70 for the fourth wicket until Andrew Flintoff moved a ball sharply away to have the left-hander caught for 27 by a diving Matt Prior behind the stumps.

Then Shivnarine Chanderpaul, so often the anchor of West Indian batting, made just one before he edged an outswinging half-volley from Broad straight to Prior.

Sarwan batted beautifully, timing the ball crisply, but having survived a risky single when Stuart Broad missed the stumps with the batsman stranded, he had another escape when Broad spilled a caught and bowled opportunity.

Just six runs short of his century, Sarwan came down the track in an attempt to drive Swann over the top only to loop the ball to Flintoff at mid-on who snaffled the chance.

With his next ball Swann dismissed Denesh Ramdin, gleefully taking a caught and bowled from a poor full-toss.

Flintoff removed Brendan Nash before Swann picked up his fifth wicket by trapping Sulieman Benn lbw.

With a tired bowling attack, Strauss decided to bat again and force West Indies to try and save the game batting last.
Strauss did not make it through the session, though, edging Fidel Edwards to Devon Smith at second slip.

Nightwatchman James Anderson entered the record books with his 46th test innings without making a duck but he was lucky to get through to the close as he was dropped by Hinds at third slip off Edwards.

The last off-spinner to take five wickets in a test innings for England was Peter Such against Australia in Sydney in 1999.

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Feb18

SEC charges Stanford firms in ‘massive’ CD fraud

by wasim on February 18th, 2009 at 5:48 am
Posted In: Cricket, Cricket West Indies

Federal securities regulators on Tuesday charged Texas financier Robert Allen Stanford and three of his companies with a “massive ongoing fraud” involving about $8 billion in certificates of deposit that drew thousands of investors with improbably high rates of return.

The allegations, the latest in a string of alleged financial scams uncovered amid the global recession, named Stanford, 58, his Antigua-based Stanford International Bank, and a pair of related U.S companies.

BACKGROUND: People either love or hate ‘Sir Allen’ Stanford

Also charged were James Davis, the bank’s CFO and a longtime Stanford friend, and Laura Pendergest-Holt, the bank’s chief investment officer.

U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor in Dallas approved a temporary restraining order, froze the defendants’ assets and appointed a financial receiver. Swarms of investigators gathered records at Stanford’s Houston office headquarters after the ruling.

“We are alleging a fraud of shocking magnitude that has spread its tentacles throughout the world,” said Rose Romero, the SEC’s Fort Worth regional director.

Stanford firm spokesman Brian Bertsch referred questions to Romero. The SEC says Stanford’s whereabouts are unknown.

Stanford International Bank is part of what an SEC complaint described as a “web of affiliated companies” created by Stanford, a cricket enthusiast listed on last year’s Forbes 400 list as having a $2.2 billion fortune.

The bank grew rapidly by touting an investment strategy that purportedly enabled it to achieve double-digit returns over the past 15 years. As a result, the bank offered purported certificate of deposit rates double those at conventional banks.

While the SEC called the bank’s claims “improbable and unsubstantiated,” the touted returns prompted $6.7 billion in CD sales to 50,000 customers by the end of 2007, the SEC charged in a court complaint.

Regulators accused the defendants of misrepresenting the CDs as safe by claiming the funds were invested in diversified liquid assets monitored by more than 20 analysts and audited by Antiguan authorities. But most of the money was invested in illiquid real estate and equities, Stanford and Davis were the only ones with full access, and Antigua never audited the bank, the SEC charged.

In one sign of the actual lack of safety, the SEC said the bank suffered at least $400,000 in indirect investment losses to the massive Ponzi scheme allegedly engineered by disgraced New York financier Bernard Madoff.

Atlanta lawyer James Dunlap is looking into potential investor suits. Dunlap said he was “swamped” with calls from investors around the world.

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Feb18

Pak selectors select five uncapped players

by wasim on February 18th, 2009 at 4:08 pm
Posted In: Cricket, Cricket Pakistan

The selection committee has announced the 15 member squad for the upcoming series against Sri lanka.

Squad: Younis Khan (capt), Salman Butt, Khurram Manzoor, Ahmed Shehzad, Shoaib Malik, Misbah-ul-Haq, Faisal Iqbal, Asim Kamal, Fawad Alam, Yasir Arafat, Danish Kaneria, Kamran Akmal (wk), Umar Gul, Mohammad Talha, Sohail Khan.

Surprisingly Nasir Jamshed was again ignored and despite the fact that Khurram was un impressive in the ODI series he again got selected.

Ahmed Shehzad’s innings of 146 in the practice match earned him the selection, one wonders why Azhar Ali’s 100 was ignored, almost everybody who batted on that pitch scored with the exception of Bazid Khan,  I still fail to understand why Nasir wasn’t allowed to bat in the practice match when he was being announced as the prime candidate for the opening position.Nasir has again become a victim of unfair selection policy.

It has also been reported that Younis was un happy over Shehzad’s selection.

Osman Sami uddin commenting in reference to Kamran Akmal wrote that the new captain Younis Khan will not carry passengers in the team like Malik did,  I commented in response that only the ethnicity of the passengers will change, the selection of Khurram, Asim and Faisal just proves my point and I hope Osman takes note of Younis khan’s insistence on playing Kamran Akmal.

Everybody is wondering on what base Faisal Iqbal keeps on getting selected, well folks in my opinion it is “Mammoo base” PCB administrators and selectors want Miandad to keep his mouth shut.

Asim’s selection has been made only to make a certain faction in the media and the country happy. I admit injustice was done with him 4 years ago but isn’t it too late to compensate.

The selectors ignored Tanvir for his lack of form. Yasir Arafat managed to earn their vote of confidence a head of the 16 year old Mohammad Aamer who has taken 42 wickets from 8 matches in the domestic season, Yasir is not a bad choice but Aamer could have made the difference.

The job of the selectors is to select the best available 15 players to the team management so that can make their own combination but Qadir has a unique way of enforcing his will he selects three or four undeserving players hence limiting the choice of the team management.

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