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Momentum is with Pak
Fast track West Indies need Chanderpaul back in the XI |
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A dash of
Sherry
Our spin bowling options really good: Botha
Home Truths Short ones 5 Questions from Gulu
Great chance to beat India: Hussey
‘Don’t want to set a goal for myself’
Team Lotus appoints Chandhok
Pune Warriors registers all
30 players
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Momentum is with Pak
People turn around, take a look, and then get back to their chores. For them, the World Cup now has only passing interest. The vibrant city feels like a pressure cooker that has had the steam let out of it, with the home side no longer in business. But come tomorrow, and the pressure will be right back. Two distinct camps are ready for battle, and not just on the field. As the West Indies and Pakistan teams get ready for the first knockout game of the tournament, the people of the city are divided in loyalties. Many haven’t forgiven the West Indies for destroying their team for a paltry 58, while there are others who historically have not forgotten
Pakistan. But inside the quiet stadium, there are two professional sides going about their business. For each of the sides in the quarter-finals, all that was achieved or lost in the league stage is a thing of the past, and they are ready for what comes next. In terms of team news, the West Indies are back to full strength. “Chris Gayle and Kemar Roach participated in the exercise schedule. Gayle batted and Roach bowled and I am happy with the way they looked,” Sammy added. Sammy naturally wants to field the best possible team and while Roach’s inclusion does give him a teaser - given the way Ravi Rampaul bowled against India - he seems sanguine about his playing XI. That would also bring Shivnarine Chanderpaul back into action. “We want to field the best team and Chanderpaul has a big role to play,” Sammy says. Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi was at his brisk professional best. “Our bowling has been amazing throughout the tournament,” he said when asked about its merits. “All credit to them since they have played a great role in our
progress.” Asked if the West Indies’ decimation of Bangladesh led to any concern, Afridi was a tad dismissive. “That was Bangladesh, this is Pakistan. Also, this is a different match. There are no easy teams in a knockout stage. Every side has prepared well for the tournament and here, they will all play their best cricket.
Afridi was also pretty clear about his team choice, since he has no intention of changing a winning combination, especially one that stopped Australia’s sensational winning run. “I am happy with the winning combination, though we will decide in the evening.” Asked if a specialist off-spinner, in Saeed Ajmal, would be seen in action, given the number of left-handers in the West Indies team, Afridi was pretty much dismissive. “Yes, we have thought of it, but we do have another off-spinner in Mohammad Hafeez. As I said, I think the winning combination is the best one.” This also says that Dhaka won’t see Shoaib Akhtar in action. Shoaib himself looks to have reconciled to the fact that his Pakistan tenure is pretty much over. But this will be a match to watch. The West Indies have seen the ground, seem to be a little more familiar with the ground. Pakistan, on the other hand, are a better unit, man-for-man. In any case, Dhaka needs a big match, one more to keep the spirits of at least one of the two camps high. |
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Pak favourites against Windies
By Michael Holding
The most balanced team has been South Africa, and now it is a matter of putting it all together on the day. South Africa have the best bowling line-up, with two very good fast bowlers, an experienced medium-pacer and three spinners to pick from. Once again, I have to stress that Imran Tahir has given them a distinct edge. South Africa have been progressed smoothly, but if there is one player they would like to get more out of it is Graeme Smith. He has been totally out of sorts and that has put a lot of pressure on Hashim Amla. If Smith can sort himself out, and South Africa maintain their intensity, they will remain favourites. But let’s get down to immediate business, and that is today’s quarterfinal. West Indies have been very predictable with their batting, in that they keep falling apart. The top five batsmen have all performed to some degree, but West Indies need a player like Chanderpaul back in the XI. They need a player of his ability to spend time at the crease so that the flashier strokemakers can play around him. Sarwan attempted that in the last two matches but he has not been as reliable as Chanderpaul in that role. Devon Smith has acquitted himself well in the opener’s role. A lot depends on Chris Gayle and Kemar Roach at the start of both innings. If Roach is fit, he will automatically spearhead the attack and the way Andre Russell has performed in two games and the way Ravi Rampaul bowled on Sunday, these two must slot in. Russell also batted very well, and Rampaul was fast and furious against India. Pakistan look the better side because they haven’t had as much dilemma in selecting the XI. Kamran Akmal seems to have gotten over his wicketkeeping woes, temporarily, and should open given how bad Shehzad has been. The batting picks itself, and given that Wahab Riaz stepped up from the bench and did his job, there is no point dropping him for an unfit Shoaib Akhtar. The Mirpur surface has assisted turn traditionally, but we saw when West Indies and South Africa played there how the wickets were shared between pace and spin. It may be the case that we see more pace and bounce, now that Bangladesh, whose strength is spin, have been eliminated. Pakistan have been more consistent, though we know that both teams are capable of imploding and can be equally rubbish on the day. Final word? There is no doubt that Pakistan are the favourites. — PMG
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Winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing
By Navjot Singh Sidhu
We rate ability in men by not what they attempt but by what they achieve. And India have been poor finishers so far. For me, South Africa are the favourites to win this World Cup. And who made them the favourites? No one else but the Indians.
After letting South Africa win that game in Nagpur when almost everyone thought that India were on their way to scoring more than 400 runs, India have now created a colossal team. They have infused new life into the South Africans and now they are looking a very dangerous side. According to me, South Africa will easily beat New Zealand and roll into the semifinals. So, Pakistan and South Africa are almost certain to move into the semifinal round. And I will also say that Sri Lanka will overcome the English team in their quarterfinal match at Colombo on March 26. If that match was being played back in England then the Lankans would have found the going tough. But in their backyard, with quality spinners, they are almost certain of beating England and moving into the last four. Winning is not everything, it’s the only thing. India have lacked that killer instinct and the ability to finish matches. They have been like a marathon runner, who leads the race all the way only to throw it all away in the last hundred metres. The ending of the story is the most important part. Nobody reads a book to get into the middle. When the World Cup started India were expected to top their group and meet the weakest team in the quarters and Pakistan were expected to finish fourth in their group and meet the toughest side in the knock-out stage. But the opposite has happened. Pakistan will be taking on one of the weak teams whereas India will be meeting one of the strongest teams. As I have mentioned earlier, if India give the Australians a spinning wicket in Ahmedabad on Thursday then they are the favourites to win that game. If the Australians get a placid wicket then they will be the ones to go through. South Africa, Pakistan and Sri Lanka should get into the semi-finals with ease. The India-Australia match will be determined by the conditions on that particular day.
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Our spin bowling options really good: Botha
Dhaka, March 22 Vice-captain Johan Botha doesn’t seem too fazed though. “Our first call was to get to the quarter-finals,” he said at the Sher-e-Bangla Stadium here this afternoon. “We are looking forward to a really good game,” he added, referring to the match with New Zealand on March 25. South Africa have it all their way here. For one, they played their last game at the same stadium and ended Bangladesh’s dim hopes of making the grade. That has given them match practice, as well as familiarity with the ground, while New Zealand, who only flew in today, will have to begin from scratch. “I suppose it is an advantage,” Botha conceded. “It saves a day and a half in travelling time. It’s nice to stay on and we are pretty settled here. We also know the ground.” South Africa’s approach to the game, as with many other teams, has been to go in with a fast bowler on one end and a spinner on the other. “The best way to restrict runs in the initial overs is to get wickets, and our spin bowling options have really been good for us. I do the holding role while Imran Tahir and Robin Peterson have been taking wickets, which has worked well for us.” This is the business end of the World Cup and the sides are all focussed. “These are the last ten days of the tournament and there is no more scope to hold back,” Botha says. “You need to play the best possible team and play as well as you can. There will be quite a few close matches in the knockout stage. If you win, you can look ahead to the next round.”
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No injury worry for India
BY MS Unnikrishnan
At 37 degrees, Ahmedabad is on a boil, but both the Indian and Australian teams, ahead of their quarter-final clash here on Thursday, went through serious training sessions at the Sardar Patel Stadium at Motera here today. Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his boys limbered up with a football match before getting down to some serious net session while the Australians, with captain Ricky Ponting's job supposedly on the line, also had a full net session.
The good news emanating from the Indian team was that both Yuvraj Singh and Virender Sehwag were fit for the knockout quarter-final match. "We have no fitness problem. Yuvraj and Sehwag are fit for the match", declared Indian team manager Ranjib Biswas. Yuvraj suffered stomach upset during his outing against West Indies at Chennai on Sunday while Sehwag, who missed the match against the Caribbeans due to a knee injury, has recovered too. India need to iorn out the grey area in fielding and to some extent bowling, and they are working on them to match-up Australia in the quarter-final. The Australians are, however, dogged by an avoidable controversy as skipper Ricky Ponting's lean patch has become a bone of contention.But Mike Hussey asserted here today that the entire team were solidly behind their captain in his hour of trial. "Ricky has our 100 per cent support. He has been copping criticism for minor things,"Hussey said, two days before the quarter-final clash. "Champions rise in big matches and we will see him at his best against India", Hussey added. "We are fully prepared and hoping to go into the match with full freshness and fitness of both body and mind," Hussey said. "We will go hard for every single run to put pressure on the Indians. But it will be important for us to play a good rounded game as they have plenty of matchwinners in their side," he said. The prospect of facing off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin with the new ball after he opened the bowling against the West Indies didn't bother Hussey. "We have done our homework. We have played him in the past and watched him on television," he said. "We don't want to cloud our minds by thinking too much," he said. "I am sure our bowlers would like to bowl bouncers to the Indians and have them hopping around," he added. But the slow Motera pitch is more likely to aid the spinners than the pacers. Zaheer Khan opted out of the net session while Yuvraj and Sreesanth were missing from the team practice. The success of Ashwin against the Windies has given Dhoni many bowling options, though speculation is rife whether Suresh Raina would make the cut for the knock out match. |
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Great chance to beat India: Hussey
Ahmedabad, March 22 The two sides meet in a high-voltage quarterfinal clash at the Sardar Patel Stadium in Motera here on Thursday. "I don't really care (about general perception that Australia is no longer unbeatable). We have done particularly well in the sub-continent over the last few years. We have won quite a few series here. "We go into this game with a lot of confidence because we have played well against India in Indian conditions in the last few years and won. I think we have a great chance," Hussey told reporters here. "We are very excited to be here. We have a great match against India. It's going to be a great spectacle for the fans in a packed stadium. It's a blockbuster match. We are looking forward to it," said Hussey, who was included in the team as a replacement for injured left-arm pacer Doug Bollinger. Australia's 34-match winning streak in the tournament dating back to 1999 was snapped by Pakistan, who won their concluding Group A league clash in Colombo on Saturday, but the 35-year-old Hussey was optimistic about his team's chances and take that confidence further to retain their title. "This is a huge game for us. Teams who win their quarterfinals, win well and take that confidence into the semifinals. We believe if we beat India we will have a great chance to go on to win the tournament," he said. Hussey did not read too much into India's batting collapses against England, South Africa and the West Indies and said the Australians can put enough pressure on the home side's strong batting line-up and clinch the semifinal berth. "We have to put pressure on all the Indian batsmen; they are fantastic players, no question about that. We have done well against India in the past in one-day cricket. We are sure it will continue in the next game. "We have to go hard for every single run. It's going to be a tight game. We have to put pressure on the Indians. We have to really go hard and get as many runs and put the Indian fielders under pressure," said the left-handed batsman.
— PTI |
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‘Don’t want to set a goal for myself’
Sania, who got back into the top-100 in singles after the Indian Wells event, said she is happy to play competitive tennis and that she dares not think about rankings now. "For me to comeback to competitive tennis is a bonus. I never really thought I would be back playing. You know how bad my wrist was. Being out for 5-6 months last year was difficult mentally. I enjoy playing and obviously winning. But every time I set a goal for ranking, I get injured. I am getting a little superstitious. I don't think I want to set a goal," Sania said. "I don't think it (ranking) has anything to do with Sania Mirza. Today whether it is tennis or any global sport, literally anyone can beat anyone on that given day. I don't think anyone could have imagined (Roger Federer) losing twice in a day. He lost his singles and doubles on Monday. Tennis is like that. So, rankings have nothing to do with that." Sania said playing doubles has helped in improving her singles game and, after tasting success at Indian Wells, she and Elena are determined to play together for a long period. "In order to be a good doubles player, you need to be good at other things like net play and serve better. With this type of format where there is a super-tiebreaker, it can really slip either ways. "It is improving my singles as well. I always played good doubles, won a few smaller events. — PTI
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London, March 22 The 27-year-old Indian, who raced the first half of last season with Hispania, will return to the formula one seat joining Race Drivers Heikki Kovalainen and Jarno Trulli, Third Driver Luiz Razia and Test Drivers Davide Valsecchi and Ricardo Teixeira. "I've been talking to the team for quite a while about a role with them and I'm delighted we're now able to confirm that I will be driving for Team Lotus in 2011," Chandhok said in a statement. Chandhok seemed to have been left with few options earlier this month when Lotus named Luiz Razia as their third driver and said the Brazilian would take part in some practice sessions. However, the team announced today that the Indian will drive in Friday's first practice session of the season-opening Australian Grand Prix. "The details of exactly which sessions I will be in the car for are being worked out now and after having spent some time with them at the recent pre-season tests, I can see exactly how passionate everyone in Team Lotus is about taking this team back to the top of the F1 grid. "These are very exciting times for Team Lotus and it's a real honour to be able to play a part in helping shape this team's future. I want to thank Tony, Din, Nasa, Riad and Mike for having the faith in me to give me a chance to help the team develop and I'll do my best to repay that faith wherever I can," Chandhok added. — PTI
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Pune Warriors registers all
30 players
New Delhi, March 22 According to a media release, defending champions and runners-up Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians have got 24 and 23 players registered respectively. The Delhi Daredevils registered 29 players, and RCB has 25 players. Kochi Tuskers, Kerala Deccan Chargers and Rajasthan Royals have named 27 players for the cash-rich league. Preity
Zinta-Ness Wadia co-owned Kings XI Punjab have named 23 players for the coming edition. While Rajasthan Royals who were
penalised, financially exhausted their full purse, Mumbai Indians had only USD 1739 of their USD 9 million purse remaining. This is due to MI opting to retain four players - Sachin
Tendulkar, Kieron Pollard, Lasith Malinga and Harbhajan Singh for USD 4.5
million. Deccan Chargers had the maximum amount USD 1.49 million (left) after the buy-outs.
— PTI |
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Kolkata, March 22 Boasting the national team's trio of Bhutia, Rennedy Singh and N S Manju, the club will mark its debut when it takes on Langsing Sports Club on March 31 in a group A second Division League fixture. Unveiling the club jersey and logo, Bhutia said it was a historic occasion for him as he realised his dream of owning a club, which will be coached by Stanley Rozario. "As a national player for over a decade, I had a dream to own a football club. I see it fulfilled today. It's a historic day. I wish to make United Sikkim a big name in India," Bhutia said. — PTI
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business.
The tournament has panned out as the ICC would have wanted it to, with
the top eight teams in the quarterfinals and there have been few
surprises in that regard.
Dhaka, March 22
“We stand like every other team now,” says West Indies skipper Darren Sammy. “This is the quarter-final and a do-or-die match for the sides. The past is forgotten and we are looking forward to tomorrow.”
And so the long drawn out league phase is over, and we can get down to the real business. The tournament has panned out as the ICC would have wanted it to, with the top eight teams in the quarterfinals and there have been few surprises in that regard.
The knock-out phase begins today with Pakistan taking on the West Indies. When New Zealand’s Ross Taylor was bludgeoning the Pakistan bowling attack just a few days ago, no one could have imagined that Afridi’s team will go on and top their group. Yet this is exactly what they have done. For me Pakistan has been the surprise package of this World Cup. Even now they are the clear favourites against the West Indies and should become the first team to reach the semifinals.
New Delhi, March 22