Raut shepherds Rajasthan to victory

Deccan Chargers v Rajasthan Royals, IPL, Port Elizabeth

Rajasthan Royals 142 for 7 (Raut 36*, Carseldine 39) beat Deccan Chargers (Suman 41*) 141 for 5 by by three wickets

 

Yusuf Pathan was Man of the Match © AFP

Rajasthan Royals prevailed in a see-saw chase which included three wickets in two overs and 51 runs in seven. Disciplined spells of bowling were followed by some nerveless batting, though misfields and dropped catches from Deccan Chargers contributed to the close finish.

Yusuf Pathan, having starred with the ball early in the piece, took Rajasthan to within 11 of victory with two overs to go. Abhishek Raut, who played an anchoring role with an unbeaten 36 off 23 balls, was joined by Shane Harwood in the middle and Dwayne Smith fumbled a run-out chance with 10 needed off 10.

Some anxious moments ensued as Deccan argued that only one of the two runs that Raut and Harwood ran during the run-out attempt could be counted since the umpire had already signalled a referral at the end of the first run. But the deduction did not amount to much after Rohit Sharma failed to collect a ball and let it go for four instead. That eased the pressure on Rajasthan, who needed only two off the final over. Fidel Edwards bowled two dot balls but messed up a possible run-out of the third. Raut and Harwood took two singles to finish the game with two balls to spare.

But it had looked like Deccan had their fifth win in the bag when Rajasthan found themselves at 3 for 3 at the end of two overs. Graeme Smith slashed a catch to third man after having nearly got run out, following which Swapnil Asnodkar, again slow to react to a call, gave up his wicket as Lee Carseldine nearly reached his crease. Naman Ojha gave RP Singh a wicket-maiden after his struggle to pick the line ended with a catch to Herschelle Gibbs at point. At the end of three overs Rajasthan were 5 for 3, as opposed to Deccan who were at 27 for no loss at that stage.

Then Ravindra Jadeja and Carseldine added 51 in seven overs - Carseldine hitting five fours in 11 balls - but the two fell within four balls of each other. Rajasthan went into the strategy break marginally ahead of Deccan at the end of 10 overs - 60 to their 58 - but had lost two wickets less in hand. Shane Warne pushed Yusuf down the order and brought himself and Raut up in a move that worked. The over immediately after the strategy break was the most effective as Warne first pulled Venugopal Rao for a six to midwicket, was dropped off the next, slogged another six off the third before Raut joined in with a four to fine leg.

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Yousuf claims he has resigned from ICL

Mohammad Yousuf says he is available to play for Pakistan whenever his country needs him © Getty Images

Mohammad Yousuf has claimed that he has "resigned" from the ICL after he decided last month that his priority was to play for Pakistan. The move potentially paves the way for Yousuf's comeback to the national side, as the PCB recently announced it was willing to talk to players who leave the ICL before the end of May and consider their cases for an international return on an individual basis.

"I spoke to Younis [Khan] about a month and a half ago and I resigned from the ICL after that," Yousuf told Cricinfo. "We both talked about how the country comes first and playing for them is the priority so I decided. I am available whenever the country needs me."

Reports had been swirling around Pakistan since the end of March that Yousuf and a group of other players were considering quitting the ICL after the March-April edition of the league was suspended. ICL players including Yousuf and Abdul Razzaq sought out Younis last month to try and find a way back into the national set-up, after fearing that the ICL - or at least their future participation in it after the deterioration in Indo-Pak ties - might present a tenuous prospect.

It is believed that Younis made no recommendations or promises, only telling the players that the priority should be to play for Pakistan, whatever that involves. "Younis was of the view that as they hadn't come to him before they signed up for the ICL, he doesn't understand why they came to him when they wanted to leave it," a source present at the meetings told Cricinfo. "He also pointed out that he cannot guarantee selection as that is a decision in which other parties, and not just the captain, are also involved." After some consideration and communication with Pir Aftab Shah Jilani, Pakistan's sports minister, Yousuf resigned from the league, though no official public statement had been made, either by any of the players, or the ICL, until now.

There appears, however, to be some confusion over the exact nature of Yousuf's actions. Though Yousuf said his contract with the league was now "finished" the ICL maintains that he is still on contract, though he has been released to play for Pakistan. "Yousuf's ICL contract has not been terminated," Roland Landers, the ICL spokesperson, told Cricinfo. "We have given him a temporary release so that he can play for his country."

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