Sri Lanka beats West Indies by 15 runs

Sri Lanka have beaten West Indies by 15 runs having restricted them to 177/5 at the end of 20 overs.

Sri Lanka produced a wonderful batting display and made 192-5 in its Twenty20 World Cup game with West Indies at Trent Bridge. Openers Sanath Jayasuriya (81) and Tillakaratne Dilshan (74) flayed the West Indies bowlers to all parts of the ground as they put on 124 for the first wicket.

It was a good effort from a West Indies side which was without Gayle. Simmons played a good knock at the top of the order followed by a superb inning from Dwayne Bravo who scored 51 off 38 balls. At the end, they fell 15 runs short and if they reflect on the match, they would realise that they conceded as many runs in the field today with missed opportunities and fumbles at the boundary. It was a good game of cricket with over 360 runs being scored but the star of the show was Sanath Jayasuriya who played one of the best innings in the tournament so far.

Lendl Simmons, who took 4-19, was the only bowler to avoid punishment, as Sri Lanka hit 23 fours and six sixes. WI made a good fist of the chase inspite of not having Gayle. Bravo and Sarwan fought valiantly but it was too bigger a bridge to cross for the Windies. SL though will be pleased with their performance today with Jayasuriya coming back to form.

Bangladesh pick two new batsmen for World T20

Only two new faces this time. Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) announced a 15-member final squad for the ICC World T20 Cricket to be held in June next in England, reports UNB. BCB selected two uncapped top-order batsmen and recalled three bowlers for the World Twenty20 championships in England next month.

Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) chief selector Rafiqul Alam said Shamsur Rahman, 20, and Mohammad Mithun, 18, had been rewarded for their good batting form in domestic cricket.

"Shamsur has been batting tremendously in recent years," said Alam. "He can bat at number three which has been a weak link in our batting. He is also a brilliant fielder.

"Mithun also scored heavily in the leagues. He is a hard-hitting batsman and can also double up as wicketkeeper," he said.

The selectors recalled experienced left-arm spinner Abdur Razzak, who was reported for a suspect bowling action in November and suspended by the International Cricket Council (ICC).

Razzak, 26, reworked his action and was cleared to play international cricket in March.

"Razzak is our top spinner and has got a lot of wickets. He is an obvious choice in the team," said Alam of the bowler, who has 111 wickets in 81 One-Day Internationals and seven wickets in five Tests.

Seamers Shahdat Hossain and Syed Rasel were also recalled, while frontline batsman Mohammad Ashraful was retained as captain.

Bangladesh are drawn with Ireland and India in the preliminary round of next month's event which will be played in London and Nottingham from June 5-21.

Bangladesh's squad: Mohammad Ashraful (capt), Mashrafe Mortaza, Tamim Iqbal, Junaid Siddique, Raqibul Hasan, Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim, Naeem Islam, Abdur Razzak, Shahadat Hossain, Syed Rasel, Mohammad Mahmudullah, Rubel Hossain, Shamsur Rahman and Mohammad Mithun.