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Sri Lanka captain Sanath Jayasuriya has a 50/50 chance of playing in the ICC Champions Trophy after dislocating his shoulder during his side’s 27-run victory against South Africa in the Morocco Cup 2002 final.Jayasuriya fell awkwardly after taking a tumbling catch at mid-on and had to be carried off the field before being transported by ambulance to the local hospital for x-rays.Sri Lanka face Pakistan in the first game of that 12-team tournament starting on September 12, and physio Alex Kontouri will not know the full extent of the injury until after further analysis in Colombo."The bone popped out of his main shoulder joint, but luckily for him it wentback pretty quickly, which saves some of the potential damage that could have been done," said Kontouri."We have to go back to Colombo and do a MRI scan before we will be able fully to assess the injury," he said. "There is no major damage at the moment, but it is a tricky joint so we will have to wait and see.""The worst-case scenario is 12 weeks but hopefully it will be much shorter thanthat," he added. "One thing about him is that he is a quick healer and a gutsy guy, he doesn’t mind playing with pain and if he has half a chance of playing he’ll definitely be there."The good news is that it is his right shoulder so the injury will not affect his throwing or bowling. In the batting department his greatest problem is going to be the horizontal shots like the cut and pull, where he has to elevate his arms."Jayasuriya, although disappointed to have had to watch from the sidelines, was delighted with his side’s performance."It was very unfortunate but I’m glad we achieved our main objective of winning the tournament," he said. "We didn’t get as many runs as we wanted, but we still thought that 235 was a competitive target and the bowlers did really well.”Dav Whatmore was delighted. "I am very pleased to see the way the team responded after the first match,” he said. “There has been a real desire to get out there and compete as well as they can."He reserved special praise for pace bowler Pulasthi Gunaratne: "He improvedwith every game and was confronted with a couple of real pressure situations. For someone who has only played in a handful of games he showed a lot of maturity.Whatmore hopes the win will help Sri Lanka in the ICC Champions Trophy. “Beating Pakistan in our last game was a help and we now have to take our form into that tournament."South Africa captain Shaun Pollock rued the loss of an important toss. "Our best chance of winning the game was to bat first, but we had discussed a strategy for batting second if we lost the toss."We are very disappointed, as we want to win every tournament we participatein. But we didn’t bat very well, losing wickets at vital times and putting ourselves under pressure. But at the end of the day we are looking at the World Cup, which will not be played in similar conditions and we will therefore not be reading too much into this.”Coach Eric Simmons identified South Africa’s batting as the major problemarea. "The batsmen didn’t adapt well to the conditions, making the same mistakes over and again, but there were lots of positives and we can learn from the experience move forward."

BRISBANE, Oct 19 AAP – Rookie quick Damien MacKenzie became Queensland’s unlikely hero against NSW today as the Bulls snatched valuable first-innings points in a tense Pura Cup clash at the Gabba.The match finished in a draw, but that result had been apparent since the third day when the main prize centred on the dogfight for first innings points.MacKenzie, who admitted he “didn’t deserve to bowl” yesterday, broke the back of the Blues with three quick wickets as they were rolled for 443 in reply to Queensland’s 5-507 declared.The Bulls then made the most of batting practice in sapping heat to reach 1-216 in their second innings when the captains agreed to an early finish, with Brendan Nash following his 176 with an unbeaten 81.Jimmy Maher (60) and Martin Love (56 not out) joined in the runs as both teams conserved some energy for tomorrow’s ING Cup one-day match at the Gabba.The day promised more for the Blues and they looked likely to take some rare points from Brisbane when they crept to 5-405 on a morning with temperatures soaring past 30 degrees.But MacKenzie (3-98), who wasn’t bowled during yesterday’s final session because of a wayward spell, claimed the wickets of Brad Haddin (23), captain Simon Katich (43) and Stuart MacGill (zero) in 19 balls to leave the Blues in deep trouble.The 22-year-old enticed Haddin into a careless catch to Andrew Symonds at deep point before Katich, who thumped consecutive boundaries off MacKenzie, chipped a slower ball to Maher at short cover.When MacGill was trapped LBW with the very next ball, NSW was gone and MacKenzie had redeemed himself despite conceding 48 runs from his seven overs today.”It’s been a mixed two days for me and I probably didn’t deserve to bowl yesterday after the way they came out,” MacKenzie said.”But I just tried to relax today and the ball was starting to go a bit Irish (reverse swing) and I was starting to get it fairly straight.”MacKenzie’s breakthroughs were the first real triumphs for the bowlers in a match dominated by the batsmen, including Nash, Lee Carseldine (124 not out) and NSW pair Matthew Phelps (147) and Michael Clarke (134).Phelps’ innings ran over three days before finally coming to a halt early today when he provided a regulation edge to wicketkeeper Wade Seccombe from the bowling of impressive quick Ashley Noffke (2-90 from 39 overs).Haddin then ignited the slow tempo with 23 from 26 balls, including five boundaries, before he went for one aggressive shot too many.While Queensland reflected on a tough but satisfying start to its chase for a fourth consecutive Pura Cup crown, the Blues would also be happy with some of the positive points to emerge from the match.They had been easybeats in some previous visits to the Gabba but the likes of Phelps and Clarke showed encouraging fight under new captain Simon Katich, who endured a trying time in the field against the Bulls batsmen.NSW quick Doug Bollinger (0-96 and 0-55) deserved a wicket during an encouraging debut, bowling Nash today with a no ball.The diminutive Queenslander had scored just eight when Bollinger took his off bail, only to watch the ball race to the boundary.

The first day’s play in the three-day tour match between MCC and Sri Lanka has been washed out by steady rain. The match, now reduced to two days, will start on Friday.The wash-out is just the latest of numerous disruptions that Sri Lanka have had to endure during preparations before and in between the three Test matches. The game against MCC is their last before the third and final Test, which starts at Old Trafford next Thursday.MCC have picked what is effectively an England hopefuls team, which was nominated by the national selectors. Five members of the MCC side have already played for England, while another three were members of the ECB Academy squad in Australia last winter.

Any doubt to the ability or character of Jacques Rudolph was laid to rest this weekend when playing in the Transco Lancashire League the 21 year old Northern Titans opener set a new club record for Lowerhouse with his third century in as many matches.Following the selection debacle in Australia many thought that Rudolph’s confidence had been shattered. With the start of the English season it appeared to be true, but hard work and hours of practice has paid off. A 154 not out on Saturday and a 115 on Sunday followed his 149 not out the previous weekend.Pierre Joubert is back in the runs after a 69 and a 102 not out over the weekend. He also took 1/17 and 2/31 with the ball.Martin van Jaarsveld with a 45 failed on Sunday with a duck, but made up for it bowling his team to victory with 5/24 after 1/74 on the Saturday.Con de Lange improved with the bat scoring 45 and 11 and took 2/84 and 4/37 with the ball.Andrew Hall continues his form with a 77 not out and a 27 and taking 2/18 and 0/17.Paul Adams only playing once over the weekend was once again in the wickets with 4/87 but only managed one off the bat.Andre Seymore could not take any wickets and scored 37 and 12.Goolam Bodi making a late start in the league could not get a run but took 3/91.During this weeks County Championship matches low scores seemed to be the order of the day for the South Africans.A pair for Andrew Gait in a loss for Derbyshire against Durham.Two innings of one run each for Mark Davis in a Sussex draw against Kent. Davis took 2/40 and 0/3 with the ball.Nottinghamshire registered a win against Glamorgan with Nicky Boje scoring a duck and a two not out. Greg Smith managed 14 not out and Kevin Pietersen 31. Boje only bowled one over in the match while Smith returned figures of 0/28 and 1/50. Pietersen did not bowl.Sven Koenig on the winning side for Middlesex against Gloucestershire scored 59 and 38.Leicestershire and Hampshire drew with Neil Johnson scoring four and 25 but unable to get a wicket. It was left to Nic Pothas with a 63 to flutter the home flag. He however followed the half century up with a duck in the second innings.The weekends Norwich Union matches showed a slight improvement for the South Africans but for some a weekend to forget.Gait made his third duck of the weekend in another loss for Derby against Lancashire.Warwickshire went down to Leicestershire with Shaun Pollock getting out for a duck and Neil Carter for two. Pollock took 1/34 and Carter 1/35.Davis did not bat and took 2/24 as Sussex beat Northamptonshire.Sven Koenig failed, scoring four, as Gloucestershire turned the tables on Middlesex.Boje 39 and 1/31, Smith 4 and 0/44 and Pietersen 36 were on the losing side as Glamorgan beat Nottinghamshire.Neil Johnson, with a 83 and no wickets, and Nic Pothas one not out also had to be content with a loss for Hampshire against Essex.

England international cricketer Ben Hollioake has been killed in a car accident in Perth overnight.The English camp playing in the second Test against New Zealand at the Basin Reserve had just resumed their first innings when news first came through and it has shocked the side.England’s team management will request that the England flag at the Basin Reserve be lowered to half-mast at lunch-time today and both teams will observe a minute’s silence before play tomorrow morning in tribute to Hollioake.New Zealand Cricket chief executive Martin Snedden said: “On behalf of NZC I would like extend our deepest sympathy to the family, friends and team-mates of Ben Hollioake following his tragic death this morning.”As well as being a talented cricketer, from all accounts Ben was a much loved member of the England squad whose contribution in all areas will be sorely missled.”Our thoughts and prayers go out to Ben’s family and friends at this very sad time.”According to reports, Hollioake was driving a Porsche which crashed on Mill Point Road in South Perth. The car spun out of control and hit a brick wall just after the Kwinana off ramp.A 22-year-old woman was also in the car and received head and chest injuries.West Australia police inspector Greg Medhurst said Hollioake had died at the scene of the accident while the female passenger was taken to Royal Perth Hospital.Another police spokesman, Constable Raphael Perez said Hollioake’s Porsche failed to negotiate a bend and hit a pylon which rolled the vehicle.He confirmed members of Hollioake’s family were following his vehicle and were on the scene immediately. He was identified straight away and the family were now receiving counselling and treatment for shock.Hollioake, who played for Surrey, had a 75-match first-class career and was a member of the England one-day squad which was recently beaten 3-2 in New Zealand but he did not play in the series due to a knee injury.He left the side at the end of the series when England embarked on the Test programme.Hollioake, born in Melbourne on November 11, 1977, made his Test debut in 1997 for England in the same game as his older brother Adam, in the fifth Test against Australia at Trent Bridge in Nottingham. It was the only occasion in the 20th Century that brothers made their Test debuts together.At 19 years, Hollioake was the youngest player to represent England since Brian Close in 1949.He only played two Tests and was regarded as more of a one-day specialist. He made his One-Day International debut in 1997 scoring 63 at Lord’s against Australia in the third match of the series.He was named the Young Cricketer of the Year by the Cricket Writers’ Club that season.In 20 ODIs he scored 309 runs at 20.60 and scored two 50s. His first game 63 remained his highest score.He played sparingly until last summer when he was recalled to the side for the triangular tournament against Pakistan and Australia, scoring 37 not out against Australia at Bristol and shared a 70-run stand with Owais Shah in 7.2 overs against Pakistan at Headingley.That saw him included in the squad selected to tour Zimbabwe, India and New Zealand as part of England’s build-up to next year’s World Cup.In his first-class career he scored 2794 runs at 25.87 and took 126 wickets at 33.45.

LAHORE-Inzamam-ul-Haq (unconquered at 159, 25 fours, 1 six) and Imran Nazir (127) made the most of the placid strip, scoring a hundred apiece and posting an attractive 204 for the third wicket partnership to take Pakistan to a commanding position. At stumps on day one, Pakistan had reached an imposing 355 for 4, and with Inzamam unbeaten, the Black Caps would not be expecting anything but more of the same in the morrow.The Black Caps, flattened by the Inzamam and Yousuf Youhana onslaught, the last 10 overs with the new ball yielding 66 runs, were finally given some reprieve when Youhana threw it away with one delivery to go for close. Needless shot at a time when Youhana, otherwise in cracking form, should have put down the shutters.Before Youhana’s hara-kiri, Inzamam and he, by far the most accomplished Pakistani batsmen, kept one foot firmly on the accelerator, adding 94 runs in a rapid-fire stand for the fourth wicket in only 76 minutes off 112 deliveries.After having made his hundred, Inzamam went after the tiring Kiwi attack with relentless gusto, clubbing Chris Martin and Daryl Tuffy for three fours apiece in one over. This was exhilarating stuff, more so as Youhana too went for his strokes.In this first-ever Test series in May in Pakistan, the Black Caps clearly looked out of sorts due to intense heat, with the mercury touching 38 Celsius at high noon. It could have been worse, but breeze in the earlier part of the day and overcast conditions at close definitely made things slightly less intense. So did water breaks after every 10 overs. But it were the Pakistani batsmen who made them all hot under the collar, with some spectacular strokemaking.In a bid to conserve energy, captain Stephen Fleming kept on rotating his bowlers. He used six of them in all, but none was to get him another breakthrough after the first two wickets, when Afridi went first ball and Daniel Vettori accounted for an in-form Younis Khan, until McMillan got Nazir much later. Martin then got him the scalp of Youhana at the close.However, by the time McMillan got Nazir, 200-odd runs had already been added for the second wicket, and Inzamam was in full cry at 98.Inzamam reached his 16th Test hundred by viciously pulling Vettori through mid-wicket for a four. And then went on a rampage, racing to his third score of 150-plus. He looked in terrific form as he belted the ball to all parts of the ground. A good sign for Pakistan, as he was finding it difficult to make a sizable score this year, with the exception of 99 against Sri Lanka in the Asian Test Championship in a lost cause.But in making this hundred, he looked every inch his domineering self, a class act indeed for whom vagaries of form were only a temporary aberration. Inzamam required 191 balls and 239 minutes, with 14 fours and one six, to post his fourth hundred against the Kiwis. The next 50 runs he made off just 49 deliveries with nine fours. The Black Caps must have rued the dropped chance off him, albeit a difficult one, by Lou Vincent in covers off Vettori.Before that, Imran Nazir had reached his second Test hundred in only his sixth Test, in the process proving a point to the selectors and critics alike. The 20-year old destroyed the Kiwi attack in his typical swashbuckling style. He needed just 171 balls to reach the landmark, and when he was eventually out to a breathtaking one-handed catch at mid on by Richardson off Craig McMillan, he had made 127 (204 balls, 291 minutes, 18 fours, 3 sixes).As Imran and Inzamam plundered runs off a hapless Black Caps attack, it seemed that they would make many more than 204, the highest third wicket partnership at Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore eclipsing Englishmen Ken Barrington and Mike Smith’s partnership of 196 runs way back in 1967. The Black Caps attack seemed resigned to the rough treatment, and the runs were being gathered at will.Inzamam clobbered Brooke Walker for a six over long, and then swept him to fine leg and pulled the next delivery to mid-wicket for two fours to go into the 90s and bring up Pakistan’s 250 at the same time. Imran also flicked him delicately to the long-leg fence for 19 in the over.But soon after Imran got out; at 261 for three there was to be no respite for the Black Caps as Youhana, already enjoying the best of form, strode to the middle.All this when the day had not started well for Pakistan, as Shahid Afridi was dismissed on the third ball of the morning by Daryl Tuffey when he went fishing the very first delivery he faced and ‘keeper Robbie Hart took his first catch within minutes of making his debut. In walked Younis Khan and along with Imran started to develop a good partnership. Both played some fine shots. Younis got a life on 17 by Matt Horne off the bowling of Chris Martin. He made only 10 more, when he was given caught at first slip by Fleming off Vettori; the television replays showed that it was off the pads. The stand yielded 56 runs.Earlier, Pakistan skipper Waqar Younis won the toss and decided to bat first; all-rounder Wasim Akram was left out of the eleven with leg-spinner Danish Kaneria given an opportunity as the pitch was expected to be spinner-friendly. New Zealand also played two spinners in Vettori and Walker; the Kiwis also included Mark Richardson, who will partner Matt Horne as opener.

Indian captain Sourav Ganguly set Chepauk afire on Tuesday. He didpretty much what he wanted with the India B attack to score anelectrifying 142 off 106 balls as India Seniors finished with therecord total of 392 for six in 50 overs in the Challenger Series matchat the floodlit MA Chidambaram stadium.The total compiled by India Seniors was the highest in domestic oneday cricket. The previous highest was 379 for eight by Wills XIagainst Hyderabad at Rajkot in the Wills Trophy tournament in 1995-96.In reply, India B with Sachin Tendulkar getting a sparkling 77 andDinesh Mongia a superb 102 stayed in the fight for some time but inthe face of an unlikely target, they faltered and were all out for 362in 46.4 overs go give India Seniors a 30 run victory, their first inthe competition. Yesterday, India Seniors had lost to India A by fourwickets. Tomorrow, India A take on India B in the final round robinmatch before the two top teams meet in the final on February 15.Electing to bat on winning the toss, India Seniors were of to flyingstart straightaway with Ganguly and Shiv Sundar Das getting to anearly rhythm against Dodda Ganesh and Surendra Singh. The left armpacer Surendra Singh from Jammu & Kashmir, failed to make animpression. In the fifth over of the day, Ganguly was caught whilehooking at a short pitched bouncer. The ball was judged to be a noball by the square leg umpire and Ganguly got a reprieve.Das (25, 35 balls, 3 fours) was the first batsman to be dismissed,bowled by JP Yadav in the 11th over. That was the only success India Ahad in the first 15 overs.Ganguly was in his stride early, sweetly timing his strokes on theoff-side to the ropes. In the 14th over of the innings bowled byNikhil Chopra, Ganguly struck two mighty blows into the fence, thesecond one sailing over the long-on for a six.VVS Laxman batted confidently until Tendulkar made one ball to spinsharply in to him and he was comprehensively bowled. Laxman made 36runs off just 40 balls with the help of five boundaries.Thereafter it was all Ganguly. Md Kaif was struck high and handsomeover long-off by Ganguly who thus got his hundred in just 95 balls. Inthe following over from the pavilion end, Sachin Tendulkar got some ofthe Ganguly medicine, a six over long-off that hit the top of theroof.Left-arm orthodox spinner Sukhbinder Singh came onto bowl replacing anexpensive Mohd Kaif at the far end to bowl the 31st over of theinnings. It turned out to a most eventful over.The first ball of the Sukhbinder over was fended of defensively. Thenext six balls read like this: 6, 6, 4, 6, 6, 4. There were two noballs in that making it an eight ball over. The last ball too was hithigh into the sky and JP Yadav stood under it and took a well judgedcatch. There were 34 runs off the over along with the wicket ofGanguly. Talk about an eventful over.Ganguly scored 142 runs off just 106 balls including ten boundariesand nine sixes. The six he hit off Mohd Kaif high and out of thestadium over the square-leg was easily vintage Ganguly. India Seniorswere 246/3 off 31 overs at the fall of Ganguly.Virender Shewag was bowled for a duck by Surendra Singh who alsoaccounted for the dangerous looking Yuvraj Singh, who started off abit tentatively but blossomed into some good form, striking the ballcleanly to the fence. Before being well caught by Tendulkar at longon, he had made 51 runs off 53 balls with five boundaries in it.Hemang Badani, Yuvraj Singh and Vikram Rathour then played explosivecricket but the afternoon belonged to Ganguly for his thunderousinnings.Badani made 70 in 65 balls including a six and five boundaries. He waswell caught by Chopra off the bowling of Ganesh in the 47th over,India Seniors were 342/4 at that stage. Earlier on Badani had twoescapes in one over. First a diving Kaif dropped him at long-on andthen Dahiya missed an easy stumping off Nikhil Chopra. Badani’sinnings was a masterly one, with a handsome six over long-on offChopra.In the last ten overs, India seniors made merry, scoring 104 runs totake their total to 392/6 at the end of 50 overs. Vikram Rathourplayed a cameo of an unbeaten 30 off just 11 balls, including foursixes.When India B batted, Sachin Tendulkar led India B’s chase as they wentafter an improbable target. He cut loose in the fifth over, bowled bySrinath, flicking and pulling the India fast bowler for consecutivefours. Mohanty was also not spared, a pull off the front foot and acracking square cut was just a warning of things to follow.JP Yadav played some crisp strokes to make 24 runs off just 26 balls,before being run out by a direct hit from Yuvraj Singh. Amay Khurasiawas distinctly unlucky to be given out lbw, the ball being a bit toohigh to hit the stumps. Sukhbinder Singh was sent in next.Ganguly came in to bowl and Tendulkar dismissed him twice to the fencewith disdain. Sukhbinder played a rousing square drive for four, butwas caught by Das off the last ball of the over. Sukhbinder made justfive runs. India B were now 90/3 in 12 overs.Tendulkar was in tremendous form, as he made the India Senior bowlerslook ordinary on a batting paradise of a pitch. The stadium filled upconsiderably and the crowd cheered every stroke from Tendulkar’s bat.There was a chilling silence for a moment when Tendulkar pulledSrinath in the air to the square leg fence; they erupted into aexplosive cheer when Shewag spilled the catch.India B lost Tendulkar in the 19th over, when he was caught by Gangulyat mid-wicket off Nehra. Tendulkar played a pull shot in the air andstraight at Ganguly’s throat. He made 77 runs of just 59 balls with 13fours. India B were reduced to 132/4 at that stage.Even after Tendulkar’s departure, India B did not give up. CaptainRobin Singh and Dinesh Mongia, both left handers, ran like haresbetween wickets and picked up the odd boundary in the over.Robin Singh walked out to a round of thunderous applause. More thangoing in for big shots he and Mongia relied on quick running. The 37-year-old Robin made his much younger partner run like crazy betweenthe wickets. In the process, they survived a close run out appeal.Robin got his half century and then Mongia reached his hundred. Butafter the fifth wicket stand had realised 152 runs off 20.4 overs,Mongia lofted Nehra to Shewag in the country. The dashing 23-year-oldleft hander from Punjab faced just 87 balls for his 102, hitting tenfours and two sixes.Shortly afterwards Robin Singh for a second run was run out for agallant 64. The veteran from Tamil Nadu faced only 66 balls and hitfour boundaries. In the next over, Dahiya was bowled by Ganguly andIndia B’s slim hopes receded.Md Kaif revived these hopes by some clean hitting. He hit three foursand two sixes in rushing to 40 off just 21 balls. He and Nikhil Chopra(15) added 41 runs for the eighth wicket off only 2.5 overs. But thenChopra and Kaif were both run out in quick succession and Badanibrought the match to a conclusion by taking a fine low catch todismiss Ganesh.

In the recent fifth and final Test at Kingston (Jamaica), South Africa failed to chase a victory target of 386 runs in the fourth innings. In the history of cricket, only two teams have successfully chased a target of more than 386 runs. India made 406 for four to win against the West Indies at Port of Spain in 1975-76 and Australia made 404 for three to beat England at Leeds in 1948. Incidentally, India also holds the record for highest fourth innings total – to tie a match (347 against Australia at Madras in1986-87) and – to lose one (445 against Australia at Adelaide in 1977-78).How has Pakistan done in a fourth innings chase?Pakistan’s record of chasing a target in the fourth innings has remained dismal throughout. In fact, they even failed to reach targets as low as the 146 set by South Africa at Faisalabad in 1997-98 and 159 set by Australia at Sydney in 1972-73. The only time Pakistan could reach a fourth innings target of over 300 runs and win the match was at Karachi against Australia in 1994-95, recording a narrow one-wicket victory. On scrutiny one finds that 14 of Pakistan’s 67 defeats could be attributed to their batsmen’s inability to reach the target set by the opponents. The details in chronological order are:

Virender Sehwag could be a doubt for the Champions League T20 after he strained a ligament in his left ankle during India’s final Super Eights match in the World Twenty20 against South Africa in Colombo.Sehwag went off the field during South Africa’s innings and did not return. It was reported that he would need two weeks of rest. Sehwag had given up the Delhi Daredevils captaincy for the Champions League, which begins on October 9, but remained a key member of their squad. Delhi are scheduled to open their campaign on October 13 in Centurion.Sehwag had a poor World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka, scoring only 54 runs in three innings at a strike rate of 112 and was left out of the group game against England. India failed to qualify for the semi-finals despite winning four out of five matches, exiting the Super Eights on net run-rate.

An amazing, unbroken, seventh wicket partnership of fifty-five runs between Jimmy Maher (52*) and Andy Bichel (40*) has seen Queensland scramble home in a Mercantile Mutual Cup thriller against the Tasmanian Tigers here at the ‘Gabba ground in Brisbane tonight. The Bulls’ win came after a fluctuating contest in which the advantage tilted from one side to the other around a series of annoying stoppages for rain.In a game in which batting was made treacherous as the result of days of heavy rain in Brisbane, the Tasmanians were held to a moderate 8/134 from thirty-nine overs after being invited to bat by rival captain Stuart Law. It looked to have given the home team a decisive advantage by the time it began its chase. But the complexion of the match changed several times during the evening, particularly after the Queenslanders crashed to scorelines of 3/2 and 7/67 at different moments.The Bulls opted to take into the evening session a reshuffled batting line-up but the strategy proved far from successful. Regular opener Matt Hayden (16) was joined by wicketkeeper Wade Seccombe (0) at the outset but the wicketkeeper-batsman was dismissed from the third ball of the second over for a duck. Lee Carseldine (0) then joined Hayden and immediately headed back to the dressing room given out lbw without playing a shot. Queensland was suddenly reeling at 2-0, the tight medium pace of Shaun Young (3/16 from six overs) having accounted for both wickets. Late inclusion Clinton Perren (0) joined Hayden but, on the other side of a short rain delay, edged a ball to the waiting slips cordon and incredibly became the third player to be sent back to the pavilion without a run against his name.The regular opening pairing of Hayden and Maher finally restored some sanity to the innings with a defiant stand of forty-three before the former was run out. More handy runs were added to the total by Maher and Law (11) before a series of bowling changes turned things back Tasmania’s way again. Medium pacer Scott Kremerskothen (1/33 from five overs) continued his reign as the competition’s leading wicket taker by snaring the prize scalp of Law in the seventeenth over.Debutant Brendan Nash (1) then became yet another of the match’s run out victims as he set about trying to inspire the acceleration in the run scoring that the Bulls required by this stage to overhaul the revised target of 119 off twenty-eight overs. He pushed a little too hard as it turned out, trying to take a risky second run to Young at fine leg following a misfield.When James Hopes (0) fell lbw to Adam Polkinghorne (1/22 off four overs) only minutes later, the Tasmanians looked to have the game – one crucial to their Mercantile Mutual Cup hopes – in the bag.Yet, with Maher still at the crease and the hard-hitting Bichel joining him, the Bulls were about to inspire another twist. Maher reverted to the role of anchoring as Bichel launched a sizzling attacking spree, charging bowlers, spraying shots around the ground liberally, and even nearly claiming the jackpot of $210,000 for hitting the advertising signs at long off. In the twinkling of an eye, he combined with Maher to bring the game back under the control of the Bulls, and chalked up the winning runs with a hit to third man with some ten deliveries still remaining.Maher’s innings – which helped in no small measure to break the Bulls’ sapping one-day losing streak – was also a beauty and ended in a fitting display of emotion when he embraced Bichel enthusiastically at the conclusion of the game.Earlier, Bulls’ paceman Michael Kasprowicz (3/22 off eight overs) made a welcome return to form as he helped put the skids under the Tasmanian top and middle order. Around a defiant innings from former Queensland Colts captain Shane Watson (28*), the Tigers were never really able to engender significant momentum into their display with the bat. In the end, the visitors’ inability to mount one or two sizeable partnerships proved crucial.