Warriors v. Blues - ING Cup

[Go_The_Mighty_Magpies]

Steve Waugh won the toss and sent The Warriors in to bat.

In the 37th. over, they're 6/192 with Hussey 61 n.o.

[Donny]

After 40 overs, W.A. is 8/210. Hussey made 69.

MacGill has 3/39 from 6 overs and Lambert took 2/43 from his 10.

[Donny]

The Warriors made 237 from 49.1 overs. Aaron O'Brien took 2/14 at the death.

[Donny]

Mark Waugh went first ball, to Wates and Nicholson (yes, Nicholson) went shortly after for 1, also to Wates.

After 18 overs, it's 3/60 and Wates has 2/20 from 9.

[Donny]

5/110 in the 30th over. Waugh is 40 n.o. and has just hit his trade mark six.

[Donny]

7/137 in the 34th.over as Waugh falls to Hussey for 42.

[Donny]

Warriors home by 23.

They go clear on top of the ING ladder with 27 points.

Victoria is second with 19

NSW are on 14 and S.A. and Queensland equal on 13.

[Donny]

Umpiring blues for NSW - Fox


AN umpiring blunder could end up having dire consequences for NSW's shot at a record fourth straight one-day cricket title.

Western Australia dealt the Blues' ING Cup defence a major blow with a 23-run victory in Perth last night.

The margin was the same amount added by WA's Darren Wates and Michael Clark in a last-wicket stand after Wates was controversially ruled not out in the afternoon.

Legspinner Stuart MacGill should have ended the WA innings on 214 – but Wates refused to walk after television replays showed MacGill scooped a return catch.

The temperamental Test bowler was fuming that his former South Perth teammate stood his ground and that umpires Bruce Bennett and Richard Patterson did not dismiss him.

But Wates today said he initially thought he hit the ball into the ground.

“I immediately felt I had hit it into the ground and returned a bump ball to him, I was a bit alarmed at how vociferously they were appealing and remonstrating, considering my response,” he said.

“When I saw how confident they really were I wondered, but I wasn't sure and both umpires were quick to say bump ball .. so I just left it at that.”

Wates said it was unfair to single out that moment as the reason the visitors lost.

“You can look at many things, it is probably not fair to just compare one incident like that, you have to take the game across the whole 100 overs,” he said.

Blues captain Steve Waugh did not want to comment on the incident.

“What do you want me to say? I can't really comment on that,” he said post-match.

Meanwhile WA captain Justin Langer said his team was unable to see a replay of the incident because there was no vision in the changerooms at the time.

“It looked like they were disappointed with the result, but that's cricket,” Langer said.

The defeat left the defending champions needing results to fall their way to make next month's final.

NSW is in third place on the table (14 points from seven matches) behind WA (27) and Victoria (19) while Queensland (13) has a game in hand.

The Blues play the Bulls in Brisbane on January 30 and host South Australia (February 15) and Tasmania (February 22) in their last three matches of the competition.