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New ideas needed, says Dravid
Stalwarts predict start of new era for Pak
We have only ourselves to blame
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High security makes entry of fans difficult
Aussie board endorses agreement with cricketers
Asia win Dynasty Cup Golf
Sanam wins singles title
Dippenaar shines in friendly tie
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New ideas needed, says Dravid
New Delhi, April 17 "We have to think about it. We are not playing well in one-dayers. Our performance has not been good. India has to think about the strategy," Dravid said after India crashed to a 159-run defeat in the sixth and final one-dayer to lose the series 2-4. "We are very disappointed. But its very difficult to pinpoint any particular reason. It's rather a combination of reasons. We must comeback with new ideas. "We must give a good long and hard look at the way we play the one-dayers," a visibly disappointed Dravid said. Dravid refused to blame the pitch for today's loss though added that winning the toss had its own advantage. Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul Haq won the toss and elected to bat on a flat track on which the visitors piled on 303 for eight in 50 overs. India, in reply, were seen having problem in adjusting to the pitch before they were bowled out for 144. "I don't want to use it (pitch) as an excuse. But of course it's a definitely good toss to win. "But then they won two games despite losing the toss whereas we could not manage that." Dravid also dismissed the theory that India paid the price for taking Pakistan, who had come here after a poor show in Australia, lightly in both the Tests and one-day series. "We never took them lightly. We played them three to four times since our tour of Pakistan last year. So we knew how they had developed over the past few months. They are a very strong team in the ODIs." The Indian captain agreed that the outcome of the series could have been different had India got a good start, in both batting and bowling. "A good start always makes a difference. Veeru (Virendra Sehwag) gave a good platform in the first two matches. He is an attacking player and you cannot expect him to do that everytime." In the last match, he said "the first few overs were really important. We did not get any crucial wickets in the first few overs. "Credit to Inzamam and Younis Khan, they batted well to take the side past the 300 mark. Our batting in the initial overs certainly cost us." Dravid, who was made the captain for the last two matches after Ganguly faced a six-match ban for the team's slow over rate in the fourth one-dayer, said "I think the absence of one or two individuals from the team does not make much difference." When asked that since India were playing in one-dayers without a genuine all-rounder, was it making the difference between winning and losing? Dravid said "certainly". "An all-rounder definitely helps. It obviously makes a difference in the one-dayers. "But it's not easy to find someone like Kapil Dev. But there is opportunity who plays domestic cricket. Hopefully we will be able to fine one some day," he said. Looking back to the previous season, the stylish Karnataka bastman said "the one-day season was quite ordinary. And in Test except for the home series against Australia we did quite well. "We are looking forward to the next season hoping for better results." On the crowd trouble during the match, Dravid said "it is disappointing to see bottled being thrown. Crowd disappointment is understandable but there are other ways to show frustration than throwing in bottles". For Inzamam, it was a memorable moment since his side, which faced a lot of flak at the start of the series, could now return home with their heads high. "It was a big series against India, the victory is big achievement," he said. "The boys have worked very hard during this tour, we maintained the belief in our ability even when critics back home gave us no chance." "The team at my disposal is inexperienced but talented. The way the team worked hard, it showed on the results. We on the last four one-dayers to win the series," the 35-year-old said. "We played the series under a lot of criticism. It was very nice to end the series on a high note," Inzamam said. On performance of players like Shoaib Malik and Younis Khan, he said "Malik did well in the one-dayers and Younis in the Tests. They are senior members of the side and this is the time for them to perform." Inzamam said the decision to send Shahid Afridi as an opener in the series in India was taken after seeing the conditions here. Afridi had batted down the order in the one-day series in Australia. "He is a very flexible player. So he can be fitted in any place. We also took the decision seeing the wickets here." Inzamam, who did not come to the field during India's batting today, said he was suffering a back problem and was hoping to be fit after three weeks of rest. The Pakistan captain said he had no problem with the itinerary for the series even though it had come for flak from various quarters. "Its okay. Only that the travel arrangements gave me a sore back," he said in lighter vein. About today's bottle-throwing incident, Inzamam said "such things do happen in cricket. But overall, we got very good response in India and people showed a lot of interest in the game."
— PTI |
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Stalwarts predict start of new
era for Pak
Karachi, April 17 "Pakistan is no more a one-man team. You had Younis Khan marshalling the
troops when Inzamam-ul-Haq was in the dressing room, you had Rana Naved-ul-Hasan excelling on docile pitches in the absence of Shoaib Akhtar and Mohammad Sami and finally you developed six excellent batsmen from Shahid Afridi and down. I think this is an excellent combination and from now, this team should only improve," said 35-year-old Basit Ali, who scored 858 runs in 19 Tests and 1,265 runs in 50 one-day internationals. "This (tour) has to be the start of the Pakistan's preparations and build-up for 2007 World Cup." But he added "I think this series has started the end of Sachin Tendulkar's career. He got some runs but he clearly lacked in confidence and his usual near perfect stroke selection was also poor. In this series he was clearly a shadow of Sachin we know. Maybe Pakistan planned well against Sachin but he was unable to get out of the web like he has done in the past." Sachin Tendulkar scored 124 one-day runs in the series at 24. In the Test series, the little master scored 255 at little over 50 but more surprisingly failed to get the record 35th Test century.
— PTI |
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We have only ourselves to blame
The disappointment of losing four successive games and subsequently the series is huge, but we have only ourselves to blame. The saddest part of the last two losses is the fact that we lost our grip on both games within the first 15 overs itself. In Delhi we gave 100 runs in 15 overs and then lost our top order even before the field restrictions were taken off.
The same thing happened in Kanpur, where we lost four quick wickets at the beginning itself and when we bowled we were hit out of the ground by a rampaging Shahid Afridi. Once you give up the advantage at the start of the game it is very difficult to come back, and that is why we lost both these games by huge margins. Pakistan took the edge by playing aggressively at the start of both innings, and eventually this aggression won the day for them. It has become a cliché to say that the toss was crucial, but on a newly-laid wicket it was doubly crucial. We could see the wicket cracking up before our eyes, and by the end of the match it was looking really ragged at the two ends. Having said that, it would be dishonest to put the entire blame on the pitch. We knew that it would deteriorate rapidly, which is why we should have restricted the visitors to 250. Moreover, there was no real problem while batting because though the ball was keeping low, it was not unplayable. At the end of the day, we will have to concede that Pakistan played better cricket than us because they had better plans than us for the first 15 overs. Once they got a good start, it was only a question of consolidating at the end. Credit must also be given to Inzamam-ul-Haq who showed that he is a cool customer right through this tour. He has bailed out the side from really difficult situations and led a young side by taking on a lot of responsibility. He also read situations well, and even today he knew that if he stood there for 50 overs, Pakistan would get to a good total. We must examine our game carefully to analyze where we are going wrong. It was a very important series and all of us were really geared up for it. Unfortunately, we had to settle for a draw in the Tests and swallow defeat in the one-dayers, despite leading in both forms of the game. The other sad part of today’s loss is that it was the last game we were playing under John Wright. He is a wonderful human being and has been one of those responsible for many of the successes we have tasted in the last five years. He introduced many new things into the system, and he really changed the way many of us in the team approached the game. We had a small farewell for him yesterday, and I wish him all the best for the future, and hope he has a great life with his sons back home in New Zealand. A new coach will be joining us in the new season, and while we will miss the reassuring presence of John, I hope we get a quality replacement who will guide us, hone us and take us to the next level.
— (Gameplan)
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Outgoing coach disappointed
New Delhi, April 17 “It was a tough way to finish, it was disappointing,” he said at a post-match press conference and advised the players, “Every loss is tough ,but learn from them and move on.”
Talking about his last series as coach, he said, “We did not get any momentum going. We had a great opportunity at Mohali, but we lost it. This series loss will make the selectors and my successor do some rethinking about the slump in the form of the team.” Though he refused to be specific about his stint as the Indian coach, looking back, he said he would not have done the things differently, but admitted, “I should have insisted about what I wanted.” In the same context, he also said, “You have to accept the system put in place and work in that system as you cannot change things overnight. But you have to make the people realise about those changes.” The soft-spoken coach also talked about his relationship with Indian captain Sourav Ganguly, whom he described as ‘a quality player’, and said he missed him in the last two matches. When asked to suggest a name as his replacement, the New Zealander said, “I do not think it is my role to suggest the new coach,” and added, “There is a robust process and after
shortlising, I think the best person will be selected.” The former New Zealand captain, talking about the players who came in the team during his tenure, but did not stick around, said, “You always feel for players who come in, but do not perform and there is no nice way to tell them that they were not selected.” He was all praise for the Indian cricket fans, saying, “The passion of the Indian fans is very valuable and special. I feel they always deserve a good fighting team and it has been an honour and privilege to be the coach of this team.”
— UNI
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High security makes entry of fans difficult
New Delhi, April 17 All roads led to the Kotla as the fans made a beeline quite early in the morning in the wake of the security advisory issued by the Delhi police, asking people to take their seats by 8 am in view of the visit by the Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf to the stadium to watch the match. “I am waiting here since last night. I want to get in as one of the firsts so that I can have a good place to enjoy the match,” said Rajeev, a cricket fan. But entering the stadium was never easy since all fans had to go through metal detectors and being frisked at several points as hundreds of policemen guarded vantage points. The fans had to produce their tickets, besides some identity proof, as the personnel of several security agencies were in no mood to take any chances. No one was allowed to carry any object, including mobile phones, inside the stadium. “I faced a lot of problem since I did not know that we cannot take our phones in,” said Sanjay, who had come from Patna to watch the match. “They (security personnel) did not allow me to get in with the phone. They said I must leave it outside for getting entry,” he said. But he was not alone to face the problem due to stringent security measures. Even journalists, who reached the venue in full strength much before the start of the match, were not allowed to take their phones in and many even did not bring their laptops for fear of not being allowed to carry these inside.
—PTI |
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Aussie board endorses agreement with cricketers
Melbourne, April 17 “It pays Australian elite cricket players well, it encourages young, up-and-coming athletes to choose cricket as their professional sporting career option and it offers Australian cricket improved ability to more aggressively drive participation in the game at a community level,” Merriman said in a press note. “Above all, it is an agreement which allows all Australian cricket stakeholders to continue to work together to ensure cricket retains its position as Australia’s favourite sport”, he added. The CA said the next step was to document the proposed agreement. The head body said once it was finalised, a joint CA/ACA communication programme would ensure international and state players, national and state administrators, media and other stakeholders understand the detail of how the new agreement would operate from July 1 this year. CA directors also discussed at a meeting issues relating to next southern summer’s Australian cricket programme, which would feature tours by South Africa and the West Indies. It expected touring details to be finalised shortly and announced within the next month. The meeting also endorsed targets for a new four-year Australian cricket strategy, developed in close consultation with state cricket associations and others during the last nine months, designed to ensure cricket continued to be Australia’s favourite sport. The board endorsed David Boon’s reappointment as a selector for a further two years. Current selectors Trevor Hohns and Andrew Hilditch were appointed for two-year terms last year. —
AFP |
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Dippenaar shines in friendly tie
Port-of-Spain, April 17 Dippenaar’s form put him in a position to replace the injured Jacque
Rudolph in the South African squad for the third Test against the West Indies,
starting on Thursday in Barbados. He struck 20 boundaries and two sixes off 252 balls in a day-long stand that lasted 341 minutes. Together
with Herschelle Gibbs, who made 81, the pair added 124 runs for the
third wicket.
— AFP |
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Asia win Dynasty Cup Golf
Shenzen, April 17 The final scoreline read 14 to 9 in Asia’s favour, as debutants Mardan Mamat and Angelo Que emerged as Asian team’s heroes. Another debutante Amandeep Johl of India shared the spoils with Hiroyuki Fujita. Asia, led by Hsieh Min-nan, claimed six out of the 12 singles and halved four to win the competition in convincing fashion after trouncing Isao Aoki-led Japan on a glorious final day shootout at Mission Hills Golf Club. “I played fantastic golf. I was five under and he was six under for the round and it was really good golf. I knew we had won the cup on the 13th hole and that took the pressure off,” said Randhawa, the former Asia number one on Order of Merit. The ace Indian golfer also rated the win above the previous one in 2003, saying the standard of the event had gone up in the last couple of years. “I have always said Asian players are strong and we showed them again. Perhaps now, we need to go to Japan and play in conditions which are favourable to them, but this does not take anything away from what we have achieved with the two wins. Compared to 2003, this is fantastic. This event has grown by five times in two years,” he said. China’s Zhang Lian-wei once again proved to be the talisman for the team, winning his singles encounter against Japan’s Shigeki Maruyama on the final day, to keep his unbeaten record intact in the biennial event. Zhang defeated Maruyama 3 and 2 in a clash of the titans singles match, which left the Chinese number one with the brilliant statistics of played six, won six. Just as he did two years back, Zhang formed an unbeatable partnership with compatriot Liang Wen-chong in the Foursome and Fourball matches on the first two days and proved too strong in singles. “I am really happy to have won all my six matches in this competition. I just love matchplay events and I am confident of teaming up with Liang Wen-chong. We are just a good partnership,” said Zhang, a five-time winner on the Asian Tour. Zhang was all square with Maruyama with six to play and stormed to victory with a birdie on 13, and an eagle two on the par four 15th by holing his second shot. A par was enough to secure the match on 16. His point was part of a memorable final day performance by the Asian team, who dominated the singles to win the second Dynasty Cup. “This is also a great event for us to get together and play Japan and I am really looking forward to playing again in 2007. I am glad to repay the captain’s faith as I was a wildcard and I am looking forward to two years’ time. This is a great event,” added the Chinese star.
— PTI |
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Sanam wins singles title
New Delhi, April 17 Ranked 93, the 16-year-old eighth seed outclassed Abdullah, ranked 24, in straight sets 6-4,6-2 in the final. Sanam won the doubles titles yesterday partnering compatriot Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan. They beat Elbert Sie of Indonesia and Shunai Uzawa of Japan 6-3, 6-2. With this double crown, Sanam’s ranking would climb to within the top 40 in the world, according to information received here today. Sanam joinded the elite club of Asian junior champions from India, which included players like Sania Mirza, Isha Lakhani, Arunprakash, Sunil Kumar, Sandeep Kirtane and Asif Ismail. Secretary general of AITA Anil Khanna congratulated Sanam on his performance. |
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