Pakistan v South Africa, 4th ODI, Multan

A clinical South Africa levelled the five-match series 2-2 with a seven-wicket win over Pakistan in Multan. The visitors boosted their chances of a comeback by restricting Pakistan to 230 after the hosts decided to bat on a flat surface.

Following that, Shaun Pollock and Graeme Smith effortlessly outclassed the opposition with a match-winning 159-run stand after Herschelle Gibbs got the ball rolling. Pakistan failed to really fire with the bat and they completely fizzled in the field, putting all the pressure on themselves going into the final ODI in Lahore.

The home side was put under the kosh by Gibbs, who exploited the Powerplays by using his feet against the pace bowlers to get width and elevation. Inside six overs the field was scattered - fine leg was in, mid-on up, a man square out on the off-side boundary - but Gibbs continued to make it look easy in the middle with 39 from 35 balls. A flustered Shoaib Malik called Shahid Afridi in the second Powerplay and the in-form man - enjoying an exceptional 2007 with bat and ball - - got Gibbs first ball courtesy Billy Bowden's error in judgment. The ball, fast and sliding down leg stump, caught Gibbs on the knee roll as he hopped up. Replays showed it would have missed leg stump.

If Pakistan thought they had made a breakthrough, they were to be sorely disappointed. As Mickey Arthur, South Africa's coach, suggested the day before, Pollock was promoted because of his ability to play spin well and score quickly. And that's what he did, cutting Afridi for repeated fours and sweeping Abdur Rehman's left-arm spin to minimise the spinners' effect. It didn't help Pakistan's cause that the ball didn't turn much, but Pollock rose to the occasion, hitting his 13th ODI half-century without any fuss.

There was simply no pressure on him. He found the gaps almost every time he played a shot but what stood out was his ability to pick up boundaries. Mohammad Asif returned for a second spell and was whipped off the pads before being driven through cover; then Pollock pulled him for four more. After dropping Smith and giving him his umpteenth life of the series, Umar Gul returned just to be slapped for four and six in successive balls by Pollock. With 12 to win and 14 for a hundred, Pollock holed out to long-off for 90 from 84 balls but there was little remorse as he walked off.

Smith, meanwhile, had been confident pushing off the front foot into the gaps as Pakistan's body language slumped. He struggled to sweep but was fluent when offered width. Smith only had seven boundaries in his 81 but it hardly mattered as he supported Pollock and held up one end.

Like he has all series, Smith grafted but with South Africa only chasing a moderate total his approach worked like a charm on an easy batting track. He fell with just three to win and fiercely admonished himself with his choice of shot, but South Africa wouldn't have complained. In a see-saw first half, a watchful partnership of 91 between Younis Khan and Malik lifted Pakistan from a precarious 38 for 3 before Andre Nel's double-strike brought the visitors back into the game.

Younis was forced to buckle down right from the start, after Afridi miscued his first delivery against Makhaya Ntini to a back-pedalling Andre Nel at mid-on for 0. Yasir Hameed's first aggressive shot, in the ninth over, was intercepted by a diving Gibbs at midwicket and Mohammad Yousuf's slowness resulted in his first failure of the series, as he was run out for the 35th time in his career.

Younis mostly waited, watched, nudged and steered, and at times preferred walking across and flicking the pace bowlers across the line as he chugged along to his first fifty of the series. While Younis used his feet and hit Johan Botha for six over long-on, Malik also ticked along to raise the run-rate to four an over. After inside-edging Botha onto his boot early in his innings, Malik settled down, dropping the wrists or tucking off his pads for singles. When Jacques Kallis was thrown the ball in the 32nd over Malik checked a drive to mid-off, falling for a 54-ball 45.

South Africa kicked down that window of opportunity, with Nel picking up Younis and Misbah-ul-Haq in the 38th over, both to loose shots. Kamran Akmal and Rehman then pushed Pakistan over 200 with some aggressive but chancy strokes in a 60-run seventh-wicket stand. South Africa aren't ranked No. 2 in the world for nothing, and they came out in ruthless fashion. Their aspirations of maintaining their record of never having lost a bilateral ODI series against Pakistan just got a whole lot easier.

Shoaib, Pollock, Oram join IPL: BCCI

Shoaib Akhtar, Shaun Pollock and Jacob Oram have joined the Indian Premier League (IPL), according to Lalit Modi, the IPL chairman and a vice-president of the Indian board (BCCI).

"To have Akhtar play for an India club team, together with a cricketer as talented as Pollock will be a dream come true for the cricket-loving Indian fans,"

said Modi.

"It also reiterates our commitment to create a tournament that will showcase some of the best talent in the world. I am very excited about the inaugural season of the IPL, which now looks all set to kick off in April 2008."

Pollock said that he had signed with the IPL because

"it's recognised by Cricket South Africa"

and

"looked forward to playing in the league"

. He had earlier been approached by the Indian Cricket League but declined the offer.

The US $3 million IPL now has 25 signees. They include Shane Warne, Glenn McGarth, Justin Langer, Mahela Jayawardene, Graeme Smith, Herschelle Gibbs, AB de Villiers, Ashwell Prince, Albie Morkel, Mohammad Yousuf, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Sanath Jayasuriya, Chaminda Vaas, Daniel Vettori, Stephen Fleming and Scott Styris.

The IPL, sanctioned by the International Cricket Council, is a Twenty20 competition that will feature eight franchises participating in a 56-game season. The top four teams will then face off in the semi-finals, with the winners contesting the championship match.

Disciplined bowling gives Pakistan the advantage on the first day of the second Test Against South Africa, Lahore

Ashwell Prince and Jacques Kallis hit half-centuries but Pakistan struck back with some disciplined bowling to restrict South Africa on day one of the second and final Test here Monday.

South Africa had posted 259-6 with Prince (63) and Kallis (59) leading the charge at the Gaddafi Stadium when bad light stopped play seven overs ahead of schedule.

Mark Boucher was unbeaten on nine and Andre Nel was yet to score.

It seemed AB de Villiers (45) would ratchet up the South African total but he fell to an unfortunate run-out, giving Pakistan some advantage as they seek to level the series.

South Africa won the first Test in Karachi by 160 runs.

Captain Graeme Smith plundered 46 runs but none of his teammates followed suit against the spin and pace attack of Pakistan.

Key batsman Kallis, who scored a masterly 155 and an unbeaten 100 in the first Test, was not in the best form as he nearly played on Danish Kaneria twice. He regained composure though and hit paceman Umar Gul for two consecutive boundaries to reach his 45th half-century.

Kallis added an invaluable 83 runs for the fifth wicket with Prince, who also defied the bowling with some resolute stroke play.

Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik, who once again went into the Test with just two seamers and two frontline spinners, did not introduce left-arm spinner Abdul Rehman until the 51st over.

Rehman, who took eight wickets in Karachi, was hit for a six by Kallis before Kaneria struck back, trapping the South African with a disguising googly.

Kaneria, who bowled a long spell of 27 overs on either side of lunch, was the best of the home bowlers with 2-73.

Earlier, Kallis added 53 runs for the third wicket with Smith after the tourists lost Herschelle Gibbs (13) and Hashim Amla (10).

Pakistan's pace duo of Gul and Mohammad Asif provided the early breakthroughs. Gul had Gibbs caught in the gully while Asif bowled Amla with an inswinger.

Smith, batting with confidence on 31 with South Africa 70-2 at lunch, drove Kaneria for a boundary before the leg-spinner had the last laugh with a sharp turner which went through bat and pad to hit the off-stump.

Prince and Kallis took the score to 160 before Kaneria claimed the prized scalp of Kallis to raise hopes of dismissing the tourists for a modest total.

Prince, however, kept one end intact and consolidated the South African innings. Rehman finally brought an end to Prince's innings when he beat the batsman in the air to hit the stumps.

Prince hit five boundaries in his stubborn three-hour knock.

The Lahore Test is the swansong for Inzamam-ul Haq who is retiring from Test cricket.

The 37-year-old veteran was brought into the team along with Mohammad Yousuf. Inzamam was unavailable for the first Test while Yousuf pulled out at the last minute citing a lack of match fitness.

South Africa remained unchanged, leaving veteran all-rounder Shaun Pollock on the sidelines. Pollock was dropped for the first Test -- the first time in his 107-Test career.