Marsh takes Kings XI to thumping win

I missed the IPL Twenty-20 match between Kings XI Punjab & Deccan Chargers. It's not possible for me to watch all the IPL matches. Life is busy in US.

NDTV 24x7 covers all the matches so I watch their crisp coverage when I miss the matches. It's one of the channel available in the US though DirecTV.

Shaun Marsh made a telling IPL-debut, his compact defence and crunchy offence getting him 84 quick runs in a comfortable, seven-wicket win for the Kings XI Punjab.The knock was matched only by Rohit Sharma's 76, a 42-ball effort that revived Deccan Chargers Hyderabad and gave them a competitive score of 164-8 after their top order had fallen to luxurious strokes at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium.

That innings seemed sharp in contrast with Rohit's 76, which was pure counter attack batting with the tail on a two-paced wicket. Surprisingly, still, no seamer on the day walked away with good figures.

Shoaib can't play in IPL unless ban is lifted

Two days after being handed out a five-year ban for bringing cricket into disrepute, Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar on Thursday suffered another major setback with the Indian Premier League (IPL) also debarring him from taking part in the cash-rich event.

The IPL's Governing Council made it clear that Akhtar would not play in the Indian Premier League unless its counterpart, the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB), lifted the five-year ban on him.

Shoaib, who was banned after several run-ins with the board on disciplinary issues, had on Wednesday said that he intended to take the Pakistan cricket board to court if necessary. The bowler asserted that he had always thought of Pakistan's cricket interests and never gave in to the offers made by match fixers.

I received this latest update on cricket through NDTV 24x7. It is an excellent news channel for NRIs as it provides the most comprehensive news related to India. DirecTV makes it possible to access this channel in the US.