Well there’s something different. Yesterday we had a game in Delhi abandoned due to rain. Today a match in Kolkata was abandoned due to a dust storm. This worked in favor of the Chennai Super Kings who won on Duckworth/Lewis. Actually, however, they should probably credit their win to Makhaya Ntini who took one of those odd hat tricks much beloved of statisticians. Ntini dismissed Ganguly with the final ball of his third over, and was then taken off. When he came back again some time later he dismissed Debabrata Das (breaking an 86-run partnership) and the dangerous David Hussey with his first two balls.

The win rescues Chennai’s faltering season and puts them back level with Punjab, though having played one game more. Kolkata are not out of things yet, but if, as expected, Mumbai beat the Chargers today, then the league will start to look like there is a real four and four split.

There was more nonsense talked about the IPL on Test Match Special this lunch time. The question I wanted to ask these jingoistic twits is this: if the standard of play in English Twenty20 cricket is so superior to that seen in India, how come in the recent World Cup England finished bottom of their Super Eight group (with a record of 0-3) and India won the tournament? Of course I know the answer. They’ll whine that it is all the fault of having too many overseas players in English cricket. But I think I know the real answer. If the current English players share the view of the TMS commentators that there is no skill and no tactical complexity in the Twenty20 game then it is no wonder they keep losing.

I was, however, cheered tremendously by listening to Tony Cosier wipe the floor with Aggers during the tea interval. Unlike Aggers, who was only in India for a few days and seems to have kept his eyes closed during any games he saw, Cosier has been out there for a month and commentating. Unsurprisingly, his view of the IPL was very different. I have only one small complaint about what he said. It is not yet certain that the Royals and Kings XI are through to the semi-finals. For the numerically-minded, Cricinfo’s stats expert explains how things could still go horribly wrong.