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‘India messed up with declaration’
Sehwag Leading Cricketer in World
ICC considering ‘cooling’ period for ICL players
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Resurgent India blank Malaysia 3-0
Saina out, Kashyap and Pawar advance
Al Muharraq halt Dempo winning streak
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‘India messed up with declaration’
Wellington, April 8 India's late declaration in the third Test meant that the side won the series 1-0 instead of 2-0.
"As predicted, India should never have messed with the Wellington Weather Gods. Even in hindsight there was no need to gamble by batting on and on. They had plenty of runs and only needed plenty of playing time. In the end they ran out by about 30 minutes. Anyway that's India's miss," Crowe said. "They are at the height of their powers with a few years to come so India no matter where they tour will always be contenders for the world crown. They just need to take more notice of weather forecasts," Crowe wrote in his column for 'Cricketnirvana'. Unlike many, Crowe feels the pitches for the Test series were the best that New Zealand has produced in a while. "Looking back on the tour, it was colourful and entertaining. Despite the weather showing an inconsistent nature at times, the pitches were very good, probably the best ever produced in this country," he said. "Batsmen prospered in the main with India's vaunted line up rarely tested," he added. Crowe lauded the Indian batting line-up, particularly openers Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir. "Virender Sehwag may have missed out on a big one in the Tests but he thrived in the ODIs and continues to show why he is the most feared in world cricket today. "Gautam Gambhir was a magician during the Tests - 445 runs at 89, batting just 5 minutes inside 1000 minutes in total. He grew an extra leg with his heroics and enabled India to always be in charge through the series. Most admirably, he proved he can adjust to pressure situations as he did in Napier," Crowe said. Crowe said the senior trio of Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar and VVS laxman also proved their worth. DTL were outstanding. Dravid 314 runs at 62, Tendulkar 344 at 68 and Laxman 295 at 73, were as great as their reputations demanded. "They were consistently superb and the only blemish was that Dravid didn't post another ton. He deserved too, as he was efficient and the perfect foil for the other more aggressive stroke makers. DTL may never bat in NZ again but the way they batted throughout will be remembered forever," he said. On Tendulkar, Crowe said India were lucky to have a batsman, who is the only one in the world capable of matching Sir Don Bradman's greatness. "(Mahendra Singh) Dhoni and his men will go on to great things while Sachin Tendulkar continues to play. They are lucky to have the only man who can match Don Bradman as the greatest batsman of all time," he said. "While Sachin Tendulkar walks out to bat as a proud Indian, his team will continue to be revered by all who watch and feared by all who oppose him," he added.
— PTI |
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Sehwag Leading Cricketer in World
London, April 8 India's rich vein of form found ample reflection in Wisden's first ever Dream XI which include Sehwag, Dhoni, Sachin Tendulkar, Harbhajan Singh and Zaheer Khan. India has the largest representation in the Test squad, followed by Australia (Ricky Ponting and Mitchell Johnson) and South Africa (Graeme Smith and Dale Steyn) who have two each. Flamboyant batsman Kevin Pietersen is the lone English player in the XI, while the West Indies is represented by run-machine Shivnarine Chanderpaul. Smith is Dhoni's deputy in the side. The three selectors who picked the squad were former India captain Ravi Shastri, retired West Indian pacer Ian Bishop and former New Zealand stumper Ian Smith. "The criteria for selection are simple: the best eleven to play a Test match, no matter the opposition, guided by performances in 2008, and taking into consideration the amount of Test cricket they played in the year, the quality of their opponents, and that indefinable blend of class and form," Wisden said. It turned out to be a double delight for Sehwag who became the sixth player to be adjudged the Leading Cricketer in the World, an award instituted in 2004. The five previous winners have been Ricky Ponting, Shane Warne, Andrew Flintoff, Muttiah Muralitharan and Jacques Kallis. "Virender Sehwag had to beat off the strongest of challenges by Graeme Smith to become the Leading Cricketer in the World for 2008. Sehwag did so by taking the task of opening Test innings to a new level," Wisden observed. "He sought, and often achieved, mental domination from the first ball by scoring faster than any other opening batsman has ever done on a regular basis in Test cricket," it said. In the Test XI, Gautam Gambhir's name was also considered to be Sehwag's opening partner before the selectors opted for Smith. Australian captain Ricky Ponting got the votes of both Shastri and Smith for the number three slot even though Bishop preferred South African Hashim Amla. Besides batting at number three, Ponting would field at second slip, beside Smith at first, it said. Tendulkar got the backing of Shastri and Smith to be the number four batsman even though Bishop rooted for South African A B de Villiers.
— PTI |
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ICC considering ‘cooling’ period for ICL players
Karachi, April 8 Pakistan Cricket Board chief operating officer Salim Altaf said the International Cricket Council was considering a 'cooling' period for players who part ways with unrecognised tournaments like ICL before they can return to international cricket action. Altaf said the 'cooling' period clause was included in the proposed regulations/law draft which is to be discussed at the ICC executive board meeting in Dubai later this month. "There is a suggestion that a player who has played in an unauthorised tournament should have a 'cooling' period of six months or one year before he can be allowed to return to international cricket," Altaf told PTI. He said the new regulations governing unauthorised tournaments would become a law from June 1, once the governing board approves it. "But there is a clear message from the ICC they want to discourage and stamp out unauthorised events which are held without consent or permission of their home boards," Altaf said. He said the Pakistani players presently signed up with the ICL might also have to spend a 'cooling' period before returning to the national team. Altaf said the reason the board had decided to drop three ICL players from their provisional squad of 30 for the Twenty20 World Cup was because the ICC executive board had yet to give a clear ruling on the issue. "We have also asked the ICL to send us some clarifications as we can only consider those players for national selection who end their contracts with unauthorised tournaments permanently and not temporarily," he said. Sources in the board told PTI that the chief selector, Abdul Qadir, had been taken to task for naming the three ICL players - Abdul Razzaq, Rana Naved and Imran Nazir - in the provisional squad for the Twenty20 World Cup.
— PTI |
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Resurgent India blank Malaysia 3-0
Ipoh (Malaysia), April 8 Arjun Halappa (19th minute) and captain Sandeep Singh (31) sounded the board to put India 2-0 ahead by breather and GS Chandi then rounded off the tally with his 62nd minute strike to complete the rout. After their 2-2 draw against a lowly Egypt in the opener, Harendra Singh's wards badly needed a win to stay afloat in the tournament and it was not a cakewalk considering Malaysia had maintained a clean slate so far, having beaten Pakistan and Egypt. In contrast, India's performance in the drawn match against Egypt was nothing to write home about and Sandeep Singh and his men had their task cut out today. To their credit, the Indians showed lot of purpose today and while they managed to bring down the Malaysian citadel thrice, their own defence did a tidy job, keeping the opponent strikers at bay. India play New Zealand in their next match tomorrow.
— PTI |
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Jeev paired with Woods at Augusta Masters
Augusta (Georgia), April 8 Jeev, who has made the cut at the both his previous appearances at the Masters has already played practice rounds with two-time British Open champion, Padraig Harrington and Australian legend Greg Norman, besides meeting another legend Arnold Palmer at the Augusta National Golf Club. “I’m excited about that and looking forward to it. It’ll be great to have the opportunity to play with Tiger and it’ll be interesting. I’ll be a little nervous but I’ll try to make the most of it and enjoy it. It is a pleasant surprise,” said Jeev, who has in the past played with Tiger, but in Asia. The 37-year-old Jeev, who was fourth at the WGC-PGA Championships at Doral last month and tied ninth at the PGA Championship last year, where Harrington won, believes he has the game to win a Major. No Asian has won a Major and Jeev strongly believes he can break that run. “It’s great to come back to the Masters. Every time you are here, it’s different. I’m excited and it’s something really special. I’m happy with the game. I’m playing well and we’ll see what happens,” said the world No.31. “My next goal will be to win a major. I think I’ve got the game to win a Major. I feel it all depends on the mindset and how you deal with the pressure. A lot of it comes down to the short game. I feel I do have the game and hopefully before my golfing career is over, I will have a Major under my belt. “The top-10 at the PGA Championship and the fourth in Doral, those results have given me more confidence. I’ll slowly work on finishing better than fourth. One day, you’ll never know what will happen.” Jeev’s international wins include six on Asian Tour, four in Japan and two in Europe.
— IANS |
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Saina out, Kashyap and Pawar advance
New Delhi, April 8 World number eight and seventh seed Saina put up a brave effort but eventually ran out of steam against defending champion Jiang Yanjiao of China, losing 21-14,14-21,12-21 in a 40-minute battle in the women's singles event. World number 13 and third seed Chetan Anand also suffered a straight-game defeat against little known Kozai Kazuteru of Japan to crash out in the first round. The Indian lost 13-21 19-21 to Kozai in a 30-minute battle.
— PTI |
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Al Muharraq halt Dempo winning streak
New Delhi, April 8 Dempo struck first when Brazilian midfielder Roberto Mendes Silva 'Beto' fired in a volley in the 75th minute. However,the defending champions, desperate to register their first win in this year's campaign, managed to level score through Abdulla Al Dakeel in the fifth minute of second half stoppage time. Despite the draw Dempo,on seven points, lead the charts followed by Al Maged on four, according to information received here. The Syrian club defeated Jordan's Al Faisaly 2-1 in another Group E encounter. Al Muharraq, after three successive draws, are on three with Faisaly bringing up the rear on one point.
— PTI |
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A resurgent India blanked Malaysia 3-0 to put their Azlan Shah Cup campaign back on track and stay on course for a place in the final of the hockey tournament.
Arjun Halappa (19th minute) and captain Sandeep Singh (31) sounded the board to put India 2-0 ahead by breather and GS Chandi then rounded off the tally with his 62nd minute strike to complete the rout.
