Match Analysis

New Zealand had South Africa reeling at 88 for 6 but their bowlers were unable to deliver the fatal blow, allowing South Africa to steal a first-innings lead

No matter how many batsmen Pakistan play, middle-order collapses seem to haunt them, much to Misbah-ul-Haq's chagrin. Finally, with Pakistan playing only six batsmen, Misbah and Umar Akmal gave the team a spine

They came to the Asia Cup after five games in 10 days in Australia and had their first practice the day of their first game. But it was the loss of their two allrounders that proved too big a blow for Sri Lanka to adjust to

New Zealand appeared to be well placed at 133 for 2 but Dale Steyn and Vernon Philander combined brilliantly to rip out the heart of the home side

Gautam Gambhir and Virat Kohli have had significantly different, if not contrasting, fortunes coming into the Asia Cup. But their partnership has remained solid as ever

The opening day of Asia Cup's 12th edition in fact remained as exciting as the corresponding game from 2010, when a scintillating Shahid Afridi century almost overturned the hosts Sri Lanka

Ross Taylor and Brendon McCullum are naturally aggressive but must learn from Jacques Kallis to wait for run-scoring opportunities as they attempt a record chase

A demotion to No.6 in a stop-start career was one last chance for Jacques Rudolph to revive his Test career. In this Test, he has grabbed his opportunity

The fact that South Africa have never lost a Test when Graeme Smith has scored a century, is testament to his prowess as a batsman

New Zealand's batsmen survived a technique-testing new-ball burst but squandered the advantage due to some poor shot selection

The legspinner showed signs of frustration early on, but recovered to bowl an accurate spell

After a cagey beginning, New Zealand decided to depend on aggression rather than the pitch to make inroads, with Chris Martin leading the way. Once conditions started helping, their bowlers had South Africa in trouble

Mahela Jayawardene doesn't hold back on the odd show of theatrics. Given the troubled circumstances, his style of captaincy is responsible for Sri Lanka's reversal of fortunes

The fight that Upul Tharanga, Nuwan Kulasekara and Dhammika Prasad showed in Brisbane has let Australia know that the finals are not over. Sri Lanka are enjoying their tour and won't want it to end in defeat

Towards the end of a long and failure-filled tour, India managed to lift themselves and conjure a scarcely believable victory

Sri Lanka's captain erred in his use of Lasith Malinga and in the timing of his Powerplay

Dileep Premachandran on Mahela Jayawardene's Sabina Park epic