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ScorecardAn incisive spell of 3 for 28 from offspinner Sunette Loubser, followed by a patient fifty from opener Lizelle Lee powered South Africa Women to a six-wicket win over Bangladesh Women in Benoni.Loubser took the middle-order wickets of Salma Khatun, Nuzhat Tasnia and Shaila Sharmin during a five-over period that cost only eight runs, to restrict Bangladesh to 149 for 8 in 50 overs. Chasing a low score, Lee hit seven fours during her 130-ball 77, and added 80 for the opening wicket with Trisha Chetty, who made 39, to all but secure the win for the hosts.South Africa, after choosing to bowl, were comfortable throughout the game, and a 108-ball 63 from Fargana Hoque did little to change Bangladesh’s fortunes. They had been put on the back foot in the 11th over, when Ayasha Rahman was run out for 13.Hogue aside, none of the other Bangladesh batters could produce big scores, as tight bowling from South Africa kept the run-rate under three an over to set up an easy chase.Offspinner Khadija Tul Kubra took three wickets for Bangladesh, including that of Lee, but couldn’t prevent defeat, as Alexis le Breton and Dane van Niekerk took South Africa home with 12.1 overs remaining.South Africa captain Mignon du Preez praised the opening pair of Lee and Chetty, who had laid the platform for the victory. “I’m really proud of the way Lizelle batted today,” she said. “It was quite difficult batting upfront and she and Trisha set us up for the target with a good opening partnership. She structured her innings really well and adapted with ease to the conditions. The rest of the batters in the order also chipped in.”The teams will play the second ODI at the Wanderers on Sunday.

Allrounder Eddie Richardson has been included in the Ireland squad ahead of their ODI against England in Malahide on September 3.Richardson, 23, the only new face in the 13-man squad, has worked his way through Ireland’s age-group levels, and was delighted at earning his first senior call-up.”I’ve worked really hard on my game, especially the last two years and it’s fantastic that the selectors have rewarded this with senior recognition,” Richardson said. “The difference this season is that I’ve been scoring runs as well as taking wickets. I’ve been bowling decently this past few years but to get into the Ireland team you have to be doing both, as it’s got so many talented all-rounders.”Richardson, a cousin of Ireland international John Mooney, has been in prolific form both domestically with North County as well as at Inter-Provincial level with Leinster Lightning. Phil Simmons, the Ireland coach, believed that the allrounder was fully deserving of his inclusion in the side.”He’s been very consistent at all levels and the selectors were especially impressed by his form in the RSA Inter-Provincial Series,” Simmons said. “His volume of runs and wickets has warranted selection. Eddie is a great advertisement for all Irish youngsters as he’s shown that if you put in the hard yards there will be rewards.”The squad will be led by William Porterfield and contains plenty of experienced players, including Trent Johnston and the O’Brien brothers.Squad: William Porterfield (capt), George Dockrell, Trent Johnston, Ed Joyce , John Mooney, Tim Murtagh, Kevin O’Brien, Niall O’Brien(wk), Eddie Richardson, Max Sorensen, Paul Stirling, Andrew White, Gary Wilson.

England’s selectors are likely to delay a decision on Kevin Pietersen’s availability for the third Investec Test at Old Trafford by naming him in an expanded squad on Sunday morning, which will include batting cover in case his calf strain does not recover.Pietersen has been undergoing extensive treatment since picking up the injury on the second day of the Lord’s Test, and is likely to be given another couple of days to show whether he will be able to get through five days in Manchester. Had these been back-to-back Tests, Pietersen would have been ruled out, but the 10-day break has worked in his favour.England, though, will not take any risks, and are unlikely to be overly concerned should Pietersen’s injury keep him out. He remains a crucial asset to the team, but apart from an important 64 in the second innings at Trent Bridge, has had a stuttering start to the Ashes series, and England will feel they can cover for his absence.James Taylor, currently playing for Sussex against the Australians, remains the leading candidate to provide batting cover (and come into the side if required), and was unbeaten on 64 at the end of the second day.It would be a quirk of fate if it were to be Taylor who replaced Pietersen, given the stories that emerged following his Test debut against South Africa, at Headingley last year, where he had an extended partnership with Pietersen, although may not have overly impressed his senior team-mate.After being abruptly dropped after his two appearances against South Africa, and not even named in the England performance squad at the start of the season, Taylor was told to churn out the runs at domestic level and work on some technical flaws which concerned the selectors, specifically his ability to handle deliveries outside off stump.His performances for Nottinghamshire, where he has made 824 runs at 58.85 in the Championship, mean he has done all he can at county level to make the selectors consider him again.The other batsmen who would perhaps come under consideration all have significant issues against a call-up. Eoin Morgan has yet to play first-class cricket this season (although he did train with England during the Lord’s Test), Ravi Bopara has picked up a side strain which has prevented him from bowling and playing in Essex’s recent Championship match against Leicestershire, while Nick Compton, dropped shortly before the Ashes began, is not a like-for-like middle-order replacement.Given England’s healthy position in the series, and the success of the bowling attack at Lord’s, there is no overwhelming need to tinker with the bowlers, although the conditions at Old Trafford will be taken into consideration. In the past, before the square was turned to face north-south instead of east-west, it was renowned for pace, bounce and, later in the match, spin.The pace element remains a slightly unknown factor on the new pitches – although last year’s Twenty20 against South Africa saw the ball flying through from the quicks – but there has been plenty of evidence that spin remains a key weapon. In Lancashire’s previous Championship game against Glamorgan, Simon Kerrigan, the left-arm spinner, took 12 wickets in the match.Kerrigan’s impressive Championship season where he has taken 44 wickets at 19.72 (making him the leading spinner in the country) continue to mark him out as an England player in waiting, but if a second spinner is required on this occasion it remains likely that the selectors would opt for Monty Panesar especially after his solid showing against the Australians at Hove.At home, however, and even taking into account Australia’s issues against spin, it will take an awful lot for England to select an attack with two spinners, especially while they continue to have an major impact with the reverse swing found by James Anderson and Tim Bresnan. Joe Root, with three important wickets in the series, has also shown he is a more-than-handy option with the ball.Probable squad Alastair Cook (capt), Joe Root, Jonathan Trott, Kevin Pietersen, Ian Bell, Jonny Bairstow, James Taylor, Matt Prior, Tim Bresnan, Stuart Broad, Graeme Swann, James Anderson, Steven Finn, Graham Onions

ScorecardWes Durston paced his innings very well•Getty Images

A little experience goes a long way. Before the second innings at Grace Road, Derbyshire gathered on the outfield and Albie Morkel, their second overseas player, gave a short speech insisting that no matter how hard Leicestershire came out in the Powerplay, the game was not over. His new team-mates certainly heeded those words.Chasing 174 to win, Leicestershire indeed produced a blazing start but, as Morkel had advised, Derbyshire sat tight and their spinners took chunks out of the middle order to leave the Foxes well short. Losing 6 for 36 killed them.David Wainwright, his career revitalised after a move from Yorkshire before last season, did most of the damage. He bowled Matthew Boyce, had Shiv Thakor caught at short midwicket and deceived Michael Thorney by one that held it’s line to take middle stump. Three wickets in six deliveries and Leicestershire were stuffed.Wainwright brought his first victim to the crease after holding a superb diving catch, running back and diving to his right from mid-on, to send Shakib Al Hasan back for just 4.The wicket heaped pressure on Australian Joe Burns, who was steering the chase well with 36 in 25 balls, including a sweetly-timed straight drive for six off Wes Durston. Burns charged at Dan Redfern’s offspin, was deceived by a flighted delivery well wide of off stump, and was stumped. 53 were needed from 39 balls but two wickets in the next over stretched the task and Leicestershire had nothing down the order.It was all a great waste after Josh Cobb – Leicestershire’s one-day captain – had provided the platform Morkel had warned of. Cobb has been in fine touch in the Yorkshire Bank 40 with 467 runs at 77.83 and here showed his intent dispatching the first ball of the innings for four. He took 15 off the fourth over and, even though he swung once too often and was caught well by a retreating cover, got his side to 54 in the sixth over. His team-mates then squandered the bright start.Leicestershire had scored 183 against Nottinghamshire on Friday but stumbled badly against a target set largely by a well-paced innings from Durston.Durston is a player living a second life in county cricket after Derbyshire offered him a way back into the first-class game three years ago. He’s repaid them, and in Derbyshire’s opening Flt20 a day previously had become their highest run-scorer in the format.Here he sat quietly for most of the innings, scoring at a run-a-ball for 14 overs before lifting Nathan Buck – whose four overs cost 48 – for six. He added another maximum off Anthony Ireland before being bowled to the penultimate delivery of the innings. It had been a very controlled, experienced innings – the type of cricket Derbyshire recognised he could produce.For the opening five overs Durston was happily watching from the non-striker’s end as Chesney Hughes drove, flicked and pulled with heart-warming West Indian flare. His longest strike, over midwicket, gave a small boy a nasty direct blow to the head; thankfully there was no damage.Hughes mistimed a pull to mid-on to bring the antithesis of West Indian flare – Shivnarine Chanderpaul – to the crease. But Chanderpaul’s unique method kept the scoreboard ticking healthily. He and Durston added 94 in 67 balls and without too much trouble Derbyshire had a very competitive total.

ScorecardJos Buttler’s brilliant invention gave England’s innings the kick it desperately needed•PA Photos

They may have won, but England left Trent Bridge with many questions still unanswered ahead of their Champions Trophy campaign. While a victory over New Zealand – on the face of it a comfortable victory – was welcome, it did little to answer some of the unsettling queries this series has thrown up.Most pertinently, they must ask themselves whether the outrageous contribution of Jos Buttler, in particular, and Eoin Morgan, in the dying overs of England’s innings, vindicated the sedate progress of England’s top-order in building the foundations of the late assault. Or whether the pair’s remarkable counter-attack simply masked the flaws in another worryingly passive batting performance. There is, no doubt, some truth in the former, but there may well be rather more in the latter.There are other questions, too. With James Anderson and Graeme Swann rested from this game but all but certain to play in the Champions Trophy, England provided opportunities to the likes of James Tredwell and Ravi Bopara. James Tredwell, in particular, was impressive which raises the conundrum of whether England might be best fielding two specialist spinners and which seamer would make way.And while Ravi Bopara was far from fluent with the bat, he did help eke out 57 runs for the fifth wicket and bowl the most economical spell of all the seamers. Once again, on the eve of a major event, England’s plans, their settled team and their role definition, are not quite so clear as they appeared a week ago.Certainly England would be wrong to congratulate themselves too heartily on a dead-rubber victory over a New Zealand side who started the series ranked No. 8. For most of their innings, England batted with little intent or flourish and the New Zealand bowlers controlled them as a collie might some sheep. New Zealand still won the series 2-1.Indeed, had it not been for the partnership between Buttler and Morgan – a ridiculous 62 runs from 22 legitimate deliveries – New Zealand would surely be celebrating only their second ODI whitewash (following the 3-0 victory in New Zealand in 1982-83) and England would be licking their wounds on their first home whitewash since Sri Lanka beat them 5-0 in 2006.Buttler remains a raw talent. Later he missed a relatively straightforward stumping off the bowling of Joe Root – Kane Williamson, on 14, was the fortunate batsman – that might, another day, have proved crucial. There will be days, too, when his high-risk approach with the bat does not pay off.But, when it does come off, it will be spectacular. Here, with an unbeaten 47 from just 16 balls, he delivered a most un-English display of hitting that made a nonsense of the prodding and poking from his colleagues that had preceded it. He turned this match on its head. Not just that, but he did it in a handful of overs. Very few players can do that. Even fewer of them are qualified to play for England.While his team-mates, the admirable Morgan apart, struggled with their timing throughout, Buttler batted with the power and invention that underlined the talent that has seen him fast-tracked into this England side.Not every stroke came off the middle of the bat – Buttler enjoyed a couple of fortuitous edges that ran to the boundary – but his boldness was rewarded and helped England plunder 76 from the final four overs. It was testament to a special talent, certainly, but also the nerve and hardwork of a young man who may well drag this England team into the modern age of limited-overs batting.Buttler signalled the attack by thrashing a length delivery – the third he had received from Kyle Mills – over midwicket for six before producing his trademark ramp shot to the next ball – a perfectly respectable delivery outside off stump – that brought four to fine leg. The next delivery was clipped through midwicket for another four before Buttler shaped to ramp again but, seeing the ball well outside off stump, instead lifted it over short third man for another four. It meant Mills’ over had cost 22 runs.With two more sixes in the final over off Tim Southee, Buttler faced the final ball of the innings requiring five runs to set a new world record for the fastest ODI half-century. He could manage only two, however, so Sanath Jayasuriya’s 17-ball record, set in Singapore against Pakistan in 1996, remains.Morgan, with 49 from 40 balls, also impressed. Having taken 16 balls to score his first eight runs, he struck three sixes – two over long-on and one over long-off – to add the impetus that England so dearly required.The ferocity of the counter attack – and its unconventional nature – appeared to unsettle New Zealand. Mitchell McClenaghan, who had been immaculate in claiming 3 for 23 from his first eight overs, conceded 20 from his final over, which included a succession of wides and no-balls.Until the sixth-wicket paid came together, the England innings had struggled to move out of second gear. Ian Bell laid something of a platform with an innings of 82 off 96 balls, but failed to fully capitalise and none of his top-order colleagues could stay with him or accelerate as required.McClenaghan, a scourge of England throughout the series, bustled in to trap Alastair Cook and Jonathan Trott with straight deliveries, while his third spell ended Bell’s innings when the batsman drove to mid off. Root, dropped on 10, could edge just one boundary in his 50-ball stay and Bopara, thrashing around like a drowning man, could not find it at all in his 38-ball stay as England made Williamson, the part-time offspinner, look like Muralitharan.New Zealand started their reply well. Martin Guptill, with unbeaten centuries in his previous two games, looked in fluent form and they raced to 70 for 1 before the end of the 10th over. While Stuart Broad, bowling with impressive pace, had Luke Ronchi caught at mid-on after he was late on an attempted pull, the seamers were, at that stage, proving expensive.The introduction of Tredwell made an immediate impact. He might have been unable to take a first-class wicket so far this season, but he produced a perfect off-break in his first over here to bowl Guptill, pushing forward, through the gate.Tredwell took some punishment later at the hands of the excellent Ross Taylor – who recorded a half-century in every game of this series – but eventually had his man caught on the midwicket fence (Steven Finn, realising he was going to topple over the boundary, throwing the ball to Tim Bresnan in the nick of time) and also had Brendon McCullum caught behind as he tried cut on too full for the stroke.Root also struck in his first over, defeating Williamson’s pull stroke with an off break, Colin Munro fell to his first ball, following one angled across him and, by the time Nathan McCullum was well caught by Broad running back at mid-off, the game was as good as won.New Zealand could leave Trent Bridge secure in the knowledge that they know their side and their method, but this was an evening that belonged to Buttler.

James Anderson has responded angrily to the suggestion that England have been involved in ball-tampering during the Champions Trophy.Bob Willis, the former England captain, sparked the controversy in his role as a TV commentator by saying there was no other reason for the umpires to change the ball as they did midway through Sri Lanka’s run chase at The Oval. Ashley Giles launched a strong defence yesterday and now Anderson has followed up in his newspaper column.”It’s very disappointing and frustrating that anyone, but especially a former England captain, should say these things, especially when we’re preparing for a massive game,” Anderson told the .”The fact is people can think what they like. We know the truth, I can state categorically that no one in the England team has ever tampered with a ball and we won’t allow comments made by someone like Bob Willis to worry us.England are always keen to try and get the ball to reverse swing, as they did against Australia in their opening match of the Champions Trophy, and Anderson is adamant it is all down to their own hard work and skill.”Reverse swing has been an issue in cricket for a while,” he added. “But just because one bowler or one team reverse a ball better than another on a given day doesn’t mean to say he or they have been tampering. It just means they’re more skilful.”I can assure you that if any of the England bowlers achieve it then it is within the letter of the laws. When we played Australia the square at Edgbaston was very dry and there were a lot of dry patches that got roughed up and resulted in scuffs on the ball.”At The Oval against Sri Lanka the other day there were nowhere near as many dry areas and that’s mainly why the ball didn’t reverse anywhere near as much.”

Match facts

Friday, April 26, 2013
Start time 2000 (1430 GMT)Will Manoj Tiwary and Yusuf Pathan get more bouncers from Kings XI Punjab bowlers?•BCCI

Big Picture

Kolkata Knight Riders have to be smarting from their last match against Kings XI Punjab. They had the game done and dusted when the Kings XI bowlers began to bounce Yusuf Pathan and Manoj Tiwary, and pulled off a heist. The pitch for the return match, in Kolkata, will not afford that kind of bounce, and Knight Riders will be keen to get their own back.However, this is no longer about just revenge. The defending champions are fading fast. After losing their last three matches, Knight Riders are languishing with just four points from seven games. Only Pune Warriors and Delhi Daredevils have been worse than them. The crown is slipping fast, and Knight Riders need to get a grip on it.Unlike Kings XI, for whom lesser names like Mandeep Singh and Manpreet Gony have been making contributions, Knight Riders haven’t had much of note from their non-internationals. Forget their choice of overseas players, forget Jacques Kallis’ strike rate of 106, forget whether Brendon McCullum should play or not, Knight Riders need contributions from Yusuf, Tiwary, L Balaji and others.Kings XI, on the other hand, have started to build momentum, with David Miller providing them that X-factor. Now for Adam Gilchrist to fire …

Form guide

Kolkata Knight Riders LLLWL (most recent first)
Kings XI Punjab WWLWL

Players to watch

Rest assured Yusuf Pathan won’t get to face much spin from Kings XI. Mumbai Indians gave him Harbhajan Singh in the last match and he feasted. Then he got out to the first ball of pace. Once called a “magical player” by his captain Gautam Gambhir, Yusuf last scored an IPL fifty in 2010, and his fielding against Mumbai cost his side crucial runs in a tight chase.Adam Gilchrist would have seen his Test captain Ricky Ponting sit himself out in the last match in Kolkata. It is not outlandish to think Gilchrist himself will be grappling with similar questions. He has scored just 67 runs in seven matches, and has even managed to drop a sitter, which would have cost them a match if it hadn’t been for one of the young batsmen, David Miller, who missed out on the first few matches possibly because Gilchrist had taken up one overseas slot. If Shaun Marsh is available, it will be a tough call to make for Gilchrist.

Stats and trivia

• Among bowlers who have bowled a minimum of 250 balls in the IPL, Sunil Narine is the only one to have an economy rate of under six: 5.54.
• Playing for Knight Riders against Kings XI, David Hussey averaged 32.33, but when playing for his new team against the old one he has managed an average of only 17.25. More significantly, the strike rate falls from 144.77 to 86.25.

Quotes

“Now we have got three of the most fancied teams in the competition in KKR, Mumbai and Chennai in a row. It’s a nice way to start this trip. We have made a step in the right direction.”

Group A

A career best 4 for 11 from left-arm seamer Suryakant Pradhan helped Odisha clinch a convincing seven-wicket victory over Delhi in Indore. After Delhi chose to bat, Pradhan destroyed their top order; they couldn’t recover from it and were eventually bowled out for 80 in the final over of the innings. No. 9 Pawan Negi was the top scorer with 20. In reply, Odisha lost their first wicket in the first over, but thereafter steadied themselves through patient knocks by Ankit Yadav (26), Arabind Singh (19) and Govind Podder (25), to reach the target in the penultimate over. With the win, Odisha moved above Gujarat to occupy the second-last place in the points table after three games.An unbeaten 16-ball 42 from Raiphi Gomez took Kerala to a narrow one-wicket victory (VJD method) over Vidarbha in a rain-shortened match at the Emerald High School Ground. Kerala, chasing 108 from 13 overs, lost wickets quickly and were in danger of being bowled out cheaply, but Gomez helped his side score 52 off 29 balls, with wickets falling all around him, to get them home in the final over. Besides him and Sanju Samson, no other batsman put up any resistance. Vidarbha’s innings revolved around a solid unbeaten 55 from Amol Ubarhande. He took them to 138 in 19 overs before rain delayed play. Kerala moved to the top spot of the table.

Group B

A responsible knock of 70 from Mohammad Kaif helped Uttar Pradesh to a 10-run victory over Karnataka in Indore. After UP were put in to bat, Kaif put on valuable partnerships of 51 (37 balls) and 70 (41 balls) with wicketkeeper Gaurav Tomar and Tanmay Shrivastava. Though they lost wickets towards the end of the innings, Kaif’s innings ensured they set their opponents a target of 164. In their chase, Karnataka were pegged back by early wickets – they were reduced to 31 for 3 in the sixth over. Lokesh Rahul (34), Stuart Binny (39) and Karun Nair (29) kept them in the hunt, but wickets fell towards the end and they fell short of their target. The win gave Karnataka third place in Group B, above UP.A solid top-order performance from Punjab, led by Ravi Inder Singh’s knock of 60, helped Punjab clinch a 25-run victory over Bengal in a Group B tie at the Holkar Stadium. The foundation of a strong total was laid by Ravi’s valuable stands of 46 with the captain Mandeep Singh, 39 with Gurkeerat Singh and 39 with Mayank Sidhana. Sidhana and Amitoze Singh accelerated towards the end of the innings to push their run-rate up, and get them to a competitive 168. Bengal lost wickets regularly in their chase, and the lack of a long knock or a partnership, despite a number of starts by batsmen, hurt them. The opener Shreevats Goswami was the top-scorer with 33; Bengal eventually limped to 143 for 8 in their 20 overs. Punjab took the top spot in the group with the win, with Bengal behind them at the second spot.

Bangladesh’s captain, Mushfiqur Rahim, is hopeful that opener Tamim Iqbal will play the Galle Test despite pain in his right hand. Tamim’s presence will bolster a top order that has had to be restructured after injuries to Shahriar Nafees and Naeem Islam, and the uncertainty over Tamim’s opening partner in the last two years.Thursday’s nets session was restricted by rain though, meaning the Bangladesh team management could not get an extended look at how the pain might affect his batting. “Tamim had an injury during the Bangladesh Premier League but hopefully he will be fit for the Test,” Mushfiqur said. “He is not 100% fit yet, but hopefully he will come good and play for us.” The team would have another look at where Tamim stands during practice on the morning of the Test, he said.Tamim has played through pain on previous occasions, most famously at Lord’s and in Manchester in 2010, scoring centuries in both Tests. But the team would also be mindful of his value at the top of the batting order, and will hope his playing doesn’t cause him any longer-term harm.Despite his inclusion, Bangladesh wouldn’t be guaranteed a strong batting performance if the batsmen who are strong at playing spin do not counter the threat of Rangana Herath. Mushfiqur acknowledged the importance of dealing with Herath: “The wicket will be good to bat on for the first two days, and then the ball will spin. We have that in the back of our minds. We have some good players of spin, and if they can show their potential, it will be a good Test series. He [Herath] is one of the leading wicket-takers for Sri Lanka in last two years. He is also their main bowler in the attack. We have played left-arm spinners but he is a different type of bowler, so hopefully we will take up the challenge against him.”Mushfiqur has given Mohammad Ashraful the task of batting at No. 3, a position that has not been secured by any of the five batsmen who have batted there since Habibul Bashar’s retirement five years ago. Mushfiqur said: “Ashraful will continue at No. 3, as he has done in the practice match. We need his experience and skills.”No. 3 is the best position, and it is for the team’s best player. If you take a look at other No. 3s around the world, they have great records. We lack in this area, but whoever plays at No. 3 will take the opportunity.” Mushfiqur was also open to the idea of having Mahmudullah batting up the order.There is no extra pressure on the team in the absence of the injured Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur said. “We have played without Shakib for parts of the series against West Indies, so nothing much has changed. I think a bit of pressure can be a good thing, and I am confident we, as a team, can handle it.”

Kapil Dev has once again expressed the view that India can win the World Cup. And emphasizing on the “team work” that the Indians have produced of late, Ravi Shastri is the latest to jump on this upbeat bandwagon. And of course all over the country, and one suspects abroad too, cricket followers are chanting the mantra that India will win the World Cup.

I wish I could share this optimistic mood when it comes to analyzing India’s chances at the World Cup. But I am afraid I remain pessimistic. With just over two months left for the mega-event to commence there are three very important factors that are governing my rapidly increasing negative mood ­ the past, the present and the future.Let’s quickly examine the past record of India in the World Cup. In 1975 and 1979, India were novices in the field and predictably enough were eliminated at the preliminary stage. If a Test nation suffers its most inglorious moment when it loses to an associate member, then, India suffered that humiliation when they went down to Sri Lanka in 1979.The unexpected triumph in 1983 still constitutes the greatest moment in Indian cricket. Outsiders at 66 to one, Kapil’s Devil’s, as they were imaginatively labeled, surprised the cricketing world. The one cautionary note that triumph served was that from then on great things would be expected every time from an Indian team in the World Cup.What’s that adage again about it being hard to reach the top but it being harder to stay there? Realistically speaking, the Reliance Cup in 1987 represented India’s best chance to win the title again. The team had huge factors in their favour. They were the defending champions, the nucleus of the trophy-winning side was still intact and they were playing at home in familiarenvirons.The build up to the title defence was terrific and the crowd was behind them to a man. A semifinal spot was theirs for the asking for starters, and they did well too in the preliminary stage winning five straight games following a one-run loss to Australia in the tournament opener. And then, as everyone knows, the dream run and the dream itself was shattered by England in the penultimate round.In Australiasia in 1992, India never had a realistic chance, though, few expected them to finish as low as seventh among nine teams in the preliminary stage. However, hopes were renewed four years later when India were co-hosts again.This time too the Indians flattered only to deceive, being outplayed by ultimate champions Sri Lanka in the riot-torn semifinal at Calcutta. And despite all the hype surrounding their campaign for the 1999 tournament in England there was again never any realistic chance of India making much progress. They just about made it to the Super Six stage and that remained the extent of their challenge.So the net result is that in seven competitions, India have finished winners once and semifinalists twice. The past then does not inspire confidence. Much the same sentiments can be expressed when it comes to the present.A lot has been made of the NatWest Trophy triumph in England and the sharing of the ICC Champions Trophy in Sri Lanka. Notable as these feats are, the fact remains that teams like Australia, West Indies, New Zealand, Pakistan and South Africa were not among the contestants in the NatWest Trophy while it must not be forgotten that the Champions Trophy was held in the sub-continent where India have always performed well.The conditions in South Africa are very different and to compound matters, India does not enjoy a very good record in that country. Yes, on present form, the team perhaps deserves a place in the Super Six, something confirmed by the latest team rankings but anything above that will have to be considered a bonus.And now to the future. India are in the much tougher Pool A. The other teams in the group are defending champions Australia, England, Pakistan, Zimbabwe, Holland and Namibia.The challenge of Holland and Namibia can be discounted. Associate members at the most have pulled off the upset victory in the World Cup ­ besides Sri Lanka defeating India in 1979, we have had Zimbabwe beating Australia in 1983, Zimbabwe upsetting England in 1992, Kenya shocking the West Indies in 1996 and Bangladesh surprising Pakistan in 1999 ­ but have not progressed beyond the preliminary stage. That still leaves four tough matches against Australia, England, Pakistan and Zimbabwe and India will have to win at least two of these to be in the running for a place in the Super Six.That’s easier said than done. Incidentally, the other group comprises South Africa, New Zealand, West Indies, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Canada and Kenya. So there you have it. On past record, present form and a cursory glance at the future (the draw for the World Cup) it is not going to be an easy passage for India. As I said, anything beyond the Super Six must be considered a bonus. But then in 1983 even qualifying for the semifinal was thought to be out of the question. So, then, what was that adage again about man living on hope?