Mahinda Congratulated the Sri Lanka Team after 3rd ODI but his famous bad luck brings Victory for Englishman in the next (4th) ODI while Dinesh gets a Golden Duck !

Sri Lankan Regime Head, Mahinda Rajapakse Congratulated the Sri Lankan Team after the 3rd ODI for having a 2-1 lead and also congratulated  Dinesh Chandimal for his  Century but you know what happened in the next match ?  Sri  Lanka were bowled out for mare 174  and  Dinesh Chandimal went for a duck.

He went to watch the 2007 World Cup Final, Sri Lanka were thrashed by Aussies. Then he went to watch the 2011 World Cup Final, Sri Lanka lost to India. So  This again and  again prove that he brings unluck for cricket !

Match Summary 

England 171 for 0 (Cook 95*, Kieswetter 72*) beat Sri Lanka 174 (Sangakkara 75, Anderson 3-24) by ten wickets - D/L

Alastair Cook made a mockery of his dour one-day reputation by galloping along to an extraordinary 75-ball 95, as England crushed Sri Lanka by ten wickets in the fourth ODI at Trent Bridge. The final margin was exactly the same as Sri Lanka themselves had inflicted on England in the World Cup quarter-final in Colombo back in March, and though this display hardly atoned for that drubbing on the game's biggest stage, it was nevertheless a hugely significant performance. The series is now squared at 2-2 with one to play, but more importantly, Cook has stated his credentials as a one-day cricketer in the plainest terms imaginable.

Admittedly, he will face tougher days at the crease, for Sri Lanka's bowlers performed dreadfully in defence of a substandard total of 174, serving up a diet of half-volleys, long-hops and leg-stump deliveries that fed every one of Cook's renowned strengths. But, as Mahela Jayawardene had demonstrated in his matchwinning displays at Headingley and Lord's last week, the secret to one-day opening is finding the gaps in the field. Cook struck 64 of his runs from 16 perfectly timed and placed fours, and he was only denied a century when Craig Kieswetter, at the behest of his captain, cleared the ropes twice in his last ten deliveries, as England hustled to victory in 23.5 overs.

This was England's first ten-wicket victory since South Africa played at the same ground in 2008, but the target on that occasion had been a meagre 83. Cook and Kieswetter's eventual stand of 171 (after a brief shower had shaved two overs off the chase) was England's highest for any wicket against Sri Lanka, and apart from anything else, it served to demonstrate just how inadequate their opponents' own batting had been earlier in the day.

After two matches played out in glorious sunshine at Headingley and Lord's, today's overcast conditions were a throwback to Sri Lanka's thumping defeat in the first match at The Oval. And once again, England's bowlers thrived in the swinging conditions. James Anderson reprised his new-ball performance in that Oval game to take 3 for 24 in eight overs, as Sri Lanka collapsed to 20 for 4 inside the first nine overs. Kumar Sangakkara prevented a complete meltdown with a gutsy 75, but only Angelo Mathews, who made 39 in a sixth-wicket stand of 72, could provide any lasting support.

Though it was overshadowed in the final analysis, Sangakkara's innings was as significant as Cook's in terms of timing. Following on from his majestic speech to the MCC at Lord's on Monday, he showed that his attack on the "cronies" who are ruining the game in his country had not distracted him from his principal role of run-scoring. After bearing the brunt of England's new-ball attack to reach an 80-ball half-century, he was last man out in the 44th over, caught off a leading edge to give Jade Dernbach his best ODI figures of 3 for 38.


The key bowler, however, was Anderson, who set the tone by extracting Tillakaratne Dilshan for a duck in the first over of the day. A full-length delivery swung just a fraction to graze the edge of the bat, and was easily pouched by Kieswetter behind the stumps. Three overs later, Tim Bresnan provided a variation on the same theme to dislodge Sri Lanka's form batsman, Jayawardene, for 9 - the ball nibbled off the seam and took the splice of a poorly-judged push outside off.

Within five deliveries, Anderson had struck again, as Dinesh Chandimal was pinned lbw for a duck by a full-length inducker, as if to suggest that Cook's invocation of the cricketing gods after Chandimal's Lord's century had paid dividends. And Anderson soon made it three in five overs, as Thilina Kandamby continued his poor series with a limp fence to second slip.

Stuart Broad's introduction to the attack started inauspiciously when he was edged second-ball through the vacant third slip for four, and his figures were starting to suffer at the hands of Suraj Randiv when he extracted a thin edge down the legside, to claim his first wicket of the series. He doubled his tally when Jeevan Mendis edged a lifter to the keeper, while Bresnan took the Catch of the Day award with a superb finger-tipped chance off Mathews, as he dived forward in his followthrough to scoop a leading edge.

With rain in the air and an onus on fast scoring to get ahead of the Duckworth-Lewis requirement, Cook was set on his way by three fours in the space of consecutive deliveries from Nuwan Kulasekara - two on a driveable length, and one ripe for a clip off the toes. Lasith Malinga then offered a rank long-hop that Cook carved past point, before Kulasekara's figures were further desecrated in a dreadful third over that went for 15 - seven in two balls to Cook, followed by a brace of boundaries for Kieswetter, whose method was agricultural but unquestionably effective in the circumstances.

Sri Lanka's bowling did not improve. Suranga Lakmal's line and length was non-existent as Cook cashed in on two half-volleys and a long-hop in the space of 10 deliveries to hurtle along to a 37-ball half-century, and England's only moment of alarm came when the clouds closed in midway through the eighth over. The 20-minute break served only to sharpen England's focus, and by the time Kieswetter slog-swept Randiv over midwicket for six to reach a 48-ball fifty, the only relevant target was the 20-over mark that would ensure a victory in the event of rain.

As with Mike Atherton's 98 not out on this ground against South Africa in 1998, Cook declined the opportunity to put personal milestones ahead of team glory as Kieswetter took control of the innings tempo in the final overs of the game. A second hundred in as many ODIs would have been richly deserved in the circumstances, but seeing as he has scored seven in his past 17 international innings, Cook will not be mourning the one that got away.

True Champion Kumar Sangakkara slams 'corrupt cricket' administration while O/L Failed sports Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage ordered an investigation into this great speech !

Kumar Sangakkara has made an extraordinary, scathing attack on the "partisan cronies" at Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) who have blighted the sport in his country and who led him to resign the captaincy after only two years in charge, following the World Cup final in April. Sangakkara was delivering the MCC Spirit of Cricket Lecture at Lord's on Monday.

In an hour-long speech that earned him a standing ovation, Sangakkara charted the unique history of cricket in his country, and called on SLC to root out its corrupt practices and recognise the huge role the sport now needs to play in promoting reconciliation at the end of a 30-year civil war.

Sangakkara pinpointed the country's most powerful moment of national unity - the World Cup final victory over Australia in 1996 - as the moment the sport's administration changed "from a volunteer-led organisation run by well-meaning men of integrity into a multimillion-dollar organisation that has been in turmoil ever since".

His speech could fetch him serious repercussions but the board's only response so far has been to state that it is unable to comment given that the team is currently on tour in England.

Sri Lanka's ongoing tour of England has been dogged by controversy ever since Sanath Jayasuriya, now an MP with the ruling UPFA party, was recalled at the age of 41 to play in the one-off Twenty20 and the first ODI at The Oval, despite having been out of the side for nearly two years. Without mentioning names, Sangakkara voiced his concern at the direction the sport in his country is now heading.

"Players from within the team itself became involved in power games within the board," he said. "Officials elected to power in this way in turn manipulated player loyalty to achieve their own ends. At times board politics would spill over into the team causing rift, ill feeling and distrust.

"Accountability and transparency in administration and credibility of conduct were lost in a mad power struggle that would leave Sri Lankan cricket with no consistent and clear administration. Presidents and elected executive committees would come and go; government-picked interim committees would be appointed and dissolved."

Last week, Sri Lanka's sports ministry dissolved SLC's interim committee, following allegations of financial mismanagement that left the co-hosts of the recent World Cup with a US$ 69 million bill. That announcement followed the ICC meeting in Hong Kong, at which a directive was issued, stating that cricket boards had to be free of political interference by June 2013, or face the prospect of sanctions.
"After 1996 the cricket board has been controlled and administered by a handful of well-meaning individuals either personally or by proxy, rotated in and out, depending on appointment or election," Sangakkara said. "Unfortunately to consolidate and perpetuate their power, they opened the door of the administration to partisan cronies that would lead to corruption and wanton waste of cricket board finances and resources.

"It was and still is confusing. Accusations of vote buying and rigging, player interference due to lobbying from each side and even violence at the AGMs, including the brandishing of weapons and ugly fist fights, have characterised cricket board elections for as long as I can remember.

"We have to aspire to better administration. The administration needs to adopt the same values enshrined by the team over the years: integrity, transparency, commitment and discipline.

"Unless the administration is capable of becoming more professional, forward-thinking and transparent then we risk alienating the common man. Indeed, this is already happening. Loyal fans are becoming increasingly disillusioned. This is very dangerous because it is not the administrators or players that sustain the game - it is the cricket-loving public. It is their passion that powers cricket and if they turn their backs on cricket then the whole system will come crashing down."

Crucially for the future of Sri Lanka, that public consists of supporters from both sides of the bloody civil war that was finally concluded last year. However, as has been seen by the numerous Tamil protestors who have made their presence known during the current Test and ODI series, there is a danger that the current state of the sport will breed disenchantment rather than foster unity.

"Cricket played a crucial role during the dark days of Sri Lanka's civil war, a period of enormous suffering for all communities," Sangakkara said. "But the conduct and performance of the team will have even greater importance as we enter a crucial period of reconciliation and recovery, an exciting period where all Sri Lankans aspire to peace and unity.

"It is also an exciting period for cricket where the reintegration of isolated communities in the north and east opens up new talent pools. The Spirit of Cricket can and should remain a guiding force for good within society, providing entertain and fun, but also a shining example to all of how we all should approach our lives."

Hot Angelina Jolie and Sarah Jessica are the highest paid U.S. actresses !

Angelina Jolie and Sarah Jessica Parker with annual salaries of $30 million each are the highest paid actresses in Hollywood according to a new ranking.

Jolie topped the Forbes.com list thanks to the worldwide success of her action film "Salt," which brought in $300 million, and "The Tourist," which also featured Johnny Depp and earned $280 million in global sales.

Much of Parker's hefty salary comes from reruns of her hit television show "Sex and the City, which she starred in and produced, and earnings from the second film from the series which generated $290 million.

"People may be surprised to see Sarah Jessica Parker up there but they may not realize that in addition to acting, she earns big from her perfumes and endorsement deals," said writer Dorothy Pomerantz of Forbes.com. "Also she's coming off of Sex and the City 2 which turned a healthy profit."

Jennifer Aniston and Reese Witherspoon were not far behind in the rankings with each actress bringing home $28 million.

Aniston film "Just Go With It" is her fourth highest earning film in the U.S.

The top 10 earning actress made a total of $218 million between May 2010 and May 2011, according to Forbes.com, which compiled the list by talking to producers, lawyers, agents and Hollywood insiders to estimate what each actress earned.



Last year's top earner, Sandra Bullock, has enjoyed a 12-month movie hiatus and dropped to No.9 with earning of $15 million.

Muralitharan Flip / Removes the Coin on the edge of a glass ( kept on a stump ) With the ball ! – Still Mulrali is the best !

Graeme Swann and Muttiah Muralitharan went head-to-head in the Rubicon 50p Challenge  on 8th June 2011, at Finchley Cricket Club Ground in London. The Challenge was to flip a coin, which is on the edge of a glass sitting on the last wicket. However, they have to do this with their off spin balling style. For those who know about cricket, you know that it is a huge challenge. England Off spinner, Graeme Swann and the world most wicket holder, Muttiah Muralitharan, got their turns of doing this game .

Ultimately, It is our legend Muttiah Muralitharan, who was able to do this. Finally, Muttiah wins 50 cents guys! What a marvelous game ah! Would you be able to do it?

Watch the video and give a try.

Even though this is a promotional video for Rubicon, There are no tricks or gimmicks. Muralitharan does this with his natural balling skills. Our Murli is always a proud to Sri lanka and Sri Lankans.

Strauss-Kahn faces Paris rape case - A new Case to be filed by French writer as former IMF chief plans counter-action against her.

Tristane Banon, a French writer, will file a legal complaint against former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn, alleging that he tried to rape her more than eight years ago.

David Koubbi, her lawyer, said the complaint related to an incident that took place when she went to interview Strauss-Kahn, a former French finance minister, in an apartment in Paris.

"Tristane Banon will file a complaint on Tuesday for attempted rape in Paris," Koubbi said.

A lawyer for Strauss-Kahn said he had been instructed to bring a counter-action against Banon for falsely accusing him. "The facts that she recalls are imaginary," said attorney Henri Leclerc.

Strauss-Kahn is currently facing sexual assault charges in a New York court. This case could collapse after prosecutors said they had doubts over the credibility of the accuser, a hotel maid.

Speaking of the case in New York, Strauss-Kahn's lawyers said Banon's complaint "comes at a time when the untruthful nature of the accusations he faces in the United States are no longer in any doubt".

Banon told the L'Express website that "today, seeing Strauss-Kahn freed [from house arrest] then afterward dining in a fancy restaurant with friends, that makes me sick".

In a February 2007 appearance on a television chat show, Banon spoke of how a senior politician had lured her to a virtually empty apartment with promises of giving her an interview, and then assaulted her. While the name of the politician had been censored from that broadcast, Banon later confirmed that she had been referring to Strauss-Kahn.

"I put down the recorder straight away to record him. He wanted to hold my hand while he replied, because he told me 'I wouldn't be able to manage unless you hold my hand'," she alleged in the original broadcast.

"Then the hand went to my arm, then a bit further, so I stopped straight away," she explained. "It finished very violently - as I told him clearly 'No, No!' - and we finished up fighting on the floor.

"There wasn't just a couple of blows. I kicked him, and he tried to unclip my bra, to open my jeans," Banon alleged, adding that she eventually escaped and considered pressing charges before abandoning the idea.

Anne Mansouret, Banon's mother and a socialist politician and blogger, confirmed to Rue89, a news website, that she had advised her daughter not to file a formal complaint at the time, for fear of hurting her career.

Koubbi, Banon's lawyer, said the alleged assault took place in early 2003, and not in 2002 as had been previously reported.

Before his arrest in New York, Strauss-Kahn, a Socialist heavyweight, polled as the person most likely to beat President Nicolas Sarkozy in the 2012 election.

Kenneth Thompson, the attorney who is representing the hotel maid accuser in New York, applauded Banon's decision to file her complaint.

Under French law, a complaint of attempted rape can be brought up 10 years after an alleged attack.

Chandimal's century seals crushing victory giving SL 2-1 lead in 5 ODI Series !

Sri Lanka 249 for 4 (Chandimal 105*, Jayawardene 79) beat England 246 for 7 (Cook 119, Pietersen 41) by six wickets

As South Africa's former coach, Mickey Arthur, once put it: "Mother cricket has a funny habit of biting you in the bum if you mess with it". Sri Lanka's 21-year-old matchwinner, Dinesh Chandimal, was clearly oblivious to those words of wisdom, as he and his fifth-wicket partner, Angelo Mathews, gave England a brief glimmer of an unexpected reprieve, before completing a crushing victory in the third ODI at Lord's.

In the end, victory was sealed with six wickets and ten balls to spare, but Chandimal's quest for a maiden Lord's century - which he sealed with a cathartic six over long-on in the 48th over, after Mathews had played out a maiden at the other end - left more than a few anxious faces up on the dressing-room balcony.

Mathews and Chandimal seemed oblivious to all the gesticulations from on high, and perhaps they had a point - despite the artificial drama, this was one-day cricket at its most one-sided. After choosing to bat first, England's 246 for 7 always seemed at least 40 runs below par, despite a determined 119 from 143 balls from England's captain, Alastair Cook, a player whose one-day credentials remain under severe scrutiny - not least from his No. 1 critic, Mike Atherton, whose post-match interview for Sky was noticeably terse after his recent denunciation of Cook as a "plodder".

Being a realist, Cook will himself know he still has plenty to prove. His guts and determination were not in question in this performance, but aside from another broken promise of an innings from Kevin Pietersen, no-one in the England team batted at anything like the tempo expected in modern-day one-day cricket. It is a moot point whether Cook was a factor in that failure or the only saving grace, but as Jayawardene and Chandimal later demonstrated, there's an art to unobtrusive run-making, and it's one that England's captain still has to master.

Jayawardene's preferred method is to caress rather than bludgeon, and that trait was on display once again as he took the lead in the first Powerplay, hoisting Sri Lanka to 61 for 1 in ten overs, compared to England's sluggish mark of 32 for 2 at the same stage. At the other end, Chandimal played the supporting role to perfection, before growing into his responsibility to see the game to its conclusion after each of the four current and former captains in Sri Lanka's line-up had departed the scene before him.

Despite an apparent susceptibility to the short ball, which England set about exploiting at regular opportunities, Chandimal announced his presence with two flashing boundaries in his first eight deliveries, then followed up by driving Bresnan on the up through extra cover for another four. He brought up his fifty from a steady 73 balls, then raised his aggression levels as the victory drew nigh, and that tantalising prospect of a century closed in.