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India fail to read warning signals
Same squad for remaining ODIs
Tour on: India to play 2 Tests, 3 ODIs vs South Africa in Dec
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Chappell warns of bowlers becoming ‘endangered species’
Tharoor locks horns with Kerala cricket
Bopanna-Qureshi to reunite next year
Majithia, Raninder share stage at a shooting tournament
WORLD c’ships
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India fail to read warning signals
Mohali, October 20 While his poor performance at Rajkot and Pune was brushed aside as a mere kneejerk reaction, with Virat Kohli saying no one could be judged on the basis of a couple of failures, the Jaipur showing didn’t come up even for discussion as the epic chase pushed it into the background. It all, however, exploded in Mohali, with the lanky pacer conceding 30 runs and effectively the match in a matter of just six balls. “It’s not like he had a very bad game, he bowled well in the first few overs. He gave us the wicket when we really needed it. If someone is going through a bad period, that’s when the team backs him,” said Dhoni, defending the pacer. That may sound like the right thing to do, but not always, especially for someone as experienced as Ishant. For someone who has been around for more than five years and has played more than 50 Tests, the trouble often is more with the mind than skills. The Delhi pacer was in all probability low on confidence and he just froze under pressure when James Faulkner went after him. And that brutal assault will leave far more scars on his psyche than sitting in the dressing room and bowling in the nets, trying to sort out his problems and getting his confidence back, would have. The skipper, however, doesn’t seem to believe in virtue of sorting out the problems in solitude, away from the thick of the action and spotlight. “If you base everything on one or two games, the whole team will have to be changed. Their bowlers have also gone for runs. It would be unfair if you want to throw out bowlers from the playing XI after one or two games. People who are waiting can wait a little more. In India, once someone goes out of the side, people forget them and only talk about new people,” said Dhoni, indicating that he wouldn’t make any changes to the side if he had his way. Again a noble thought, but perhaps not practical. The Indian skipper also blamed the field restrictions rule for the plight of the Indian bowlers. “They are experienced, but if you look at the rule changes, no one is experienced; they are all new. Edges fly out of the boundary,” he said. What has compounded India’s problems is the inability of Bhuvneshwar Kumar to provide initial breakthroughs. And that has put other bowlers under a lot of pressure.
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Mohali, October 20 Under-fire Ishant had a forgettable outing in the third ODI here last night as he gave away 30 runs in one over to tilt the match in Australia's favour, but he still figured in the 15-member squad named by the selectors. MS Dhoni had, however, hinted that Ishant could retain his place when he said he would like to give struggling players a longer rope. Not only Ishant, who has conceded 189 runs for two wickets in the three matches for an economy rate of 7.87, the other two pacers — Bhuvneshwar Kumar and R Vinay Kumar — have also been found wanting, especially in the death overs. Though Bhuvneshwar's economy rate of 5.37 is the best among the three pacers, he has taken just one wicket in the three matches while conceding 145 runs. Vinay Kumar has taken five wickets but at the same time has given away 191 runs. The other pace options in the squad are Mohammed Shami and Jaydev Unadkat, both of whom have not been given a chance in the series yet. All the batsmen in the squad, except for Yuvraj Singh, have been among runs and thus retained their places. — PTI
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Tour on: India to play 2 Tests, 3 ODIs vs South Africa in Dec
Mumbai, October 20 “The BCCI president N Srinivasan and his CSA counterpart Chris Nenzani have in principle agreed for India to play three ODIs, a warm-up game and two Tests in South Africa in December,” a website reported. The series has already been curtailed after BCCI took exception to the Cricket South Africa's “unilateral” announcement of the itinerary in July. CSA, desperate to cut down the financial loss that it would incur if the series does not go through, has offered to send its CEO Haroon Lorgat on long leave due to the BCCI's differences with him. The series will be formalised when the BCCI's working committee meets in Chennai on October 26. Meanwhile, the BCCI is expected to take up the issue of former ICC legal Head and CSA advisor David Becker criticising BCCI's stand on the Future Tours Program. The BCCI reportedly suspects Becker of acting at the behest of Lorgat, a former CEO of the ICC. Becker has, however, denied this. Lucky to be alive, Ryder ready to return
Batsman Jesse Ryder will return to top-level cricket in New Zealand next week, ready to put behind him a year in which he served a six-month doping ban and survived an assault that left him in a coma with serious head injuries. The 29-year-old, who had been in self-imposed exile from the New Zealand team following another breach of team discipline, makes his return to the field for his new first-class side Otago against his former team Wellington next week. “After this year, you could probably say that I've been through the worst things you could go through, for my career at least anyway,” Ryder told Fairfax Media on Sunday. “The drug thing, that could have been my career over if I'd been given a two-year ban, which had been a possibility. Then with what happened in Christchurch, that too could have easily been the end of it for my career. “I wouldn't look at it like I've been given a second chance at life. I'm just lucky, I guess." Ryder spent almost a week in hospital in late March after an incident outside a Christchurch bar left him with a fractured skull and rib injuries. He was kept in an induced coma for more than two days. While he was recovering from the assault, he was informed he had tested positive for two stimulants which are banned in competition and handed a six-month provisional ban on April 19. Ryder said he had checked the weight-loss supplement on the Internet and sought advice, a fact that New Zealand's top anti-doping authority, Drug Free Sport NZ, took into consideration when imposing a six-month ban rather than a two-year penalty. “You do all the research and you find there is nothing wrong with the product.” — Agencies |
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Chappell warns of bowlers becoming ‘endangered species’
Chappell said the surge in boundaries and sixes may bring more “entertainment dollars” but it's not good for the game as the bowlers may be forced to using extreme methods like bodyline and chucking. “In short forms of the game there's a chance bowlers will become an endangered species if the trend of heavier and better bats and shorter boundaries continues. This tendency has led to a surge in boundaries in general and sixes in particular. While this may sound like a favourable result in a game competing for entertainment dollar, the long-term consequences may not be so desirable," Chappell said. “Bowlers need to be offered a crumb in the shorter forms of the game otherwise they'll revolt, as they have done in the past, using extreme methods like Bodyline and chucking. If these trends continue, sooner or later the bowlers are going to declare war,” he said. He said matches like the second ODI between India and Australia in Jaipur, which saw the home side recording the second highest ever successful run chase, have seen increasing “preference for power over artistry in batting”. “In second ODI between India and Australia, 64% of runs scored off the bat were accumulated in boundaries. Singles accounted for around 28% of the scoring — majority of which would have been at the easier end of the scale, with the infielders back on the 30-yard circle — and about 43% of the deliveries were dot balls. “This means a reduced reliance on fielding and running between wickets —two of the more exciting skills in the game. As the boundaries have been shortened and the bats have improved, the preference for power over artistry in batting has increased,” he said. — PTI
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Tharoor locks horns with Kerala cricket
New Delhi, October 20 The Thiruvananthapuram Lok Sabha member said KCA has brought disgrace to the state after the first semifinal (Oct 10-14) of the prestigious tournament was rained out and the ongoing final (Oct 17-21) has seen just 10 overs being bowled yet. “Who benefitted from the Rs.8 crores spent on the drainage system in the stadium,” tweeted Tharoor. Kerala Cricket Association has brought disgrace to the state with two major matches washed out. Consequent to this, Harbhajan Singh and Virender Sehwag's chances of making a comeback has almost disappeared, with just one day left to play. National selection committee chairman Sandeep Patil left Saturday evening and it is unlikely if selector Roger Binny will make it to the ground now. — PTI
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Bopanna-Qureshi to reunite next year
New Delhi, Ocober 20 The duo split after the Tour finals when Bopanna decided to partner Mahesh Bhupathi for the 2012 London Olympics. “It’s always a delight to partner with an old friend and specially someone with whom I have a great understanding with, on and off the court. I’ve always felt that we have a complementary playing style and the experience that we have playing with each other is an added advantage,” Bopanna said. The Indian has had quite an eventful 2013, reaching a career high of third in the ATP rankings in July post his successful stint at Wimbledon, making a semifinal appearance for the first time. He is also currently ranked fifth in the world. The Indo-Pak duo enjoyed a fantastic run. First partnering in 2007, they reached the 2010 US Open final, won the 2011 Paris Masters. — Agencies
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Majithia, Raninder share stage at a shooting tournament
Maine (Patiala), October 20 Majithia was invited by Raninder at the 10th Sardar Sajjan Singh Sethi Memorial shooting championship for shotgun at the New Moti Bagh Gun Club ranges at village Maine. Earlier this year, Majithia, president of Punjab Rifle Shooting Association (PRSA), and Raninder, president of National Rifle Association of India (NRAI), were involved in a tug of war to take control of NRAI. “I do not know if the participating shooters or the spectators are happy to see me here, but I am sure that the mediapersons are happy and have got their day’s news seeing me and Tikku (Raninder’s nickname) together at an event,” Majithia said. “I would want that every shooter from Punjab should do well and I would ensure to be in touch with the NRAI to get more help for our shooters.” The equation between the two young guns from the leading political parties in the state is being seen as an interesting development. Raninder said, “There shouldn’t be too much read into this meeting as it was only on the shooting range and there is nothing political about it. Please stick to sports as politics has no role here.” Meanwhile, the political equation brought the best between the two leaders. While Majithia said that he would approach NRAI time and again to get more facilities for Punjab shooters, Raninder promised all help to the PRSA for the betterment of the sport in the state.
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WORLD c’ships
Almaty, Ocober 20 While Sumit stunned ninth seed Petru Ciobanu of Moldova 2-1, Vikash got the better of Poland's Dawid Michelus by a similar margin to be just two wins away from ensuring a medal. Vikash opened the day for India and registered a hard-fought win over Michelus. Michelus won the opening round unanimously but the Indian came back strongly to clinch the second.In the intensely-contested final three minutes, Michelus began to lose the plot and ended up getting warned for head-butting and evasive tactics. That tilted the scales in Vikash's favour, handing him the victory. “It was a close bout no doubt but Vikash played aggressively and this win will definitely boost his morale. In the third round, Michelus was cautioned several times for his tactics but when he didn't relent then he was warned,” national coach Gurbax Singh Sandhu said. Vikash will face fifth seed Miklos Varga of Hungary in the last-16 stage on Tuesday. Next up was Olympian Sumit and he continued his ascending march by stunning Ciobanu of Moldova. “Sumit also endured a tough bout. The other guy was a southpaw and very tough. But Sumit used his uppercuts to good effect and strategised well in all the three rounds,” said Sandhu. Sumit will now face eighth seed Siarhei Novikau of Belarus in the pre-quarters tomorrow Mandeep Jangra (69kg) then took the ring against Serdar Hudaberdiyev of Turkmenistan and even he held a slender one-point lead after the opening round but a warning cost him dearly in the next. “Mandeep's opponent sustained a cut in the second round and Mandeep was warned after this and it was difficult to come back after that,” Sandhu said. On Saturday late in the evening session, national champion Satish Kumar (+91kg) also booked a prequarters berth when he defeated Tajikistan's Mirodzhidin Karimov 3-0 in the opening round. Satish will face Belarus' Yan Sudzilouski in the next round. With this, the number of Indian boxers in the pre-quarters has gone up to eight after Manpreet Singh (91kg), Manoj Kumar (64kg), Thokchom Nanao Singh (49kg) and Shiva Thapa (56kg) ensured their respective last-16 berths.Of the eight, Nanao, Shiva, Manpreet and Manoj will be in action on Monday. — PTI
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Signs have been there for a while. Unfortunately, the Indian team chose to ignore them, and conjured up different excuses every time questions were asked about Ishant Sharma’s poor showing right from the T20 game in Rajkot.
New Delhi, Ocober 20
New Delhi, October 20
