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Warriors up against Chennai
Mascarenhas fiver wins it for Kings XI
Shakib the hero as Knight Riders win |
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Gilchrist lauds bowlers, Marsh after crucial win
IOA hails boxers’ qualification
The original batman of Indian cricket
Mauritian boxers train at NIS
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Pune, April 13
The Warriors started the tournament on a positive note, notching up wins in their first two matches, till Kings XI Punjab disturbed the momentum. The Super Kings, on the other hand, have not been their usual self at the start, but the thrilling win over Royal Challengers Bangalore yesterday when they chased down 206, should come as a shot in the arm for the visitors. True, the Subrata Roy Sahara Stadium is set to be packed to the brim by Warriors fans, but going by Chennai's depth and variety, the visitors are not likely to be too worried about that. As far as captaincy is concerned, Ganguly led the side well, but is yet to fire with the willow. Considering that they are not a side packed with experienced international stars, it is important that Ganguly takes the lead himself and inspire the rest who follow him in the batting line-up. The top-order hasn't fired yet and quicker the likes of Jesse Ryder, Robin Uthappa, Manish Pandey and Angelo Mathews get into the groove, the better it will be for the Warriors in the nine-team T20 tournament. Their batting may not seem that formidable but Pune surely have a pretty good bowling attack in Ashok Dinda, Ashish Nehra and leg-spinner Rahul Sharma.
The Warriors were bundled out for 115 in 19 overs against Kings XI Punjab. In stark contrast, the Super Kings batted with aplomb as they successfully chased a mammoth target at the Chepauk stadium. While Murali Vijay hasn't really done anything of note till now, his opening partner Faf du Plessis has proved to be one tormentor for the bowlers. Du Plessis cracked 71 off just 46 deliveries while skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni contributed 41 off 24 that also marked his return to form after a quite start to the tournament. Albie Morkel and Dwayne Bravo, too, were in their elements as they pummeled the RCB attack. The defending champions would be hoping to continue the momentum against the Warriors. The Warriors are placed third on the points table with two wins from three matches, while the Super Kings are on fifth position with as many wins as the hosts from four games. — PTI
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Mascarenhas fiver wins it for Kings XI
Mohali, April 13
Mascarenhas picked up five wickets as Kings chased down a rather paltry 116 with ease. And the good news for the home team didn't stop just there as their most prolific scorer over the past four seasons, Shaun Marsh hit a solid half-century to lead the chase. But their reply started on the worst possible note as Paul Valthaty was cleaned up by Ashok Dinda off the very first ball. Captain-cum-coach Adam Gilchrist was then joined by Shaun Marsh and the two steadily built up the platform required for the chase. But just when the chase was heading into the realms of a formality, Angelo Matthews got rid of Gilchrist, who was brilliantly caught by Steve Smith on point. Punjab boy Mandeep then joined Marsh and the two batted with purpose, before Mandeep edged a delivery from Rahul Sharma to send a simple catch to Steve Smith. Surprisingly, Piyush Chawla came out to bat, but the leggie made a handsome contribution of 21 as he and Marsh saw the Kings home for their first win of the season. Earlier, Dimitri Mascarenhas picked up five wickets as Kings XI Punjab restricted the Pune Warriors to a meager 115 all out in 19 overs. Winning the toss, Gilchrist opted to field first on a pitch that had been exposed to brazen weather a day before. Sourav Ganguly came out to bat with Jesse Ryder, but the two faced some awkward moments from the word go as Praveen Kumar got the ball talking. The ball was nipping back and the life in the pitch seemed to have infused some fresh air to the Kings attack as well. But somewhat ironically, the first breakthrough came via a run out after Ryder was left stranded due to a misunderstanding with Ganguly. Team Pune were looking to bounce right back as Ganguly was then joined by the in-form Marlon Samuels. But Mascarenhas had other plans. He first got rid of Ganguly as a leading edge flew into the hands of Shaun Marsh, and then in the same over, got rid of Samuels with a delivery that dipped just a little, but enough to rattle the stumps. That wicket had the crowd roaring, and it didn't subside till the very end. SCOREBOARD
Kings XI Punjab
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Shakib the hero as Knight Riders win Kolkata, April 13
Chasing 132 for a win, the Knight Riders lost captain Gambhir early, but the innings was steadied by Jacques Kallis and Manvinder Bisla. The two batted sensibly and ensured that the lower order, despite losing wickets regularly, didn’t have too much to do. Earlier, Kolkata Knight Riders bowlers led by left-arm spinner Shakib Al Hasan restricted Rajasthan Royals to 131 for five on a difficult Eden Gardens track. Opting to bat on a slow Eden strip, Royals made a cautious start before the skipper Rahul Dravid broke the shackles along with Ajinkya Rahane. But the KKR slow bowlers with wrecker-in-chief Shakib (3/17) broke the 45-run opening partnership as the Royals found it difficult to break free. Ashok Menaria (1) and Rahul Dravid (28) were also dismissed in quick succession as Royals were reduced to 49 for three in the ninth over. Owais Shah was the top-scorer for Royals with 31 from 33 balls (3x4) as the former England batsman along with Shreevats Goswami put on 59 for the fourth wicket to repair the top-order damage. There were only two sixes in the visitors innings, something that summed up the nature of the track. In what is seen as his last appearance at the majestic Eden Gardens, Dravid showed flashes of brilliance from his golden days. He even came down the pitch on more than one occasion and hit Kallis on the rise during his delightful but short innings. The old and young combination of Dravid and Rahane seemed in little trouble after a tentative start as they broke free in Narine's first over, hitting the West Indian off-spinner for 10 runs. Dravid was at his best against Kallis as Rajasthan Royals raced to 45 for no loss after six overs. — Agencies SCOREBOARD Kolkata Knight Riders
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Gilchrist lauds bowlers, Marsh after crucial win
Mohali, April 13
“Dimitri was spot on all through his spell. He put the ball in the right areas and was extremely well supported by the rest of the bowlers as well,” Gilchrist said. He went on further to laud the coming-back to form of fellow Aussie Shaun Marsh. “Shaun had missed the last game due to a back problem. He went to Mumbai to get some treatment and it is wonderful to see him back in form. He is such a beautiful player to watch and played an amazing innings today. I have been told that he happens to be the most successful player in the IPL if you take certain things into account,” he said. Gilchrist also admitted that the weather had played a big role in his decision to field first as the wicket seemed to have changed somewhat in character after the rain the previous night. Azhar coming in
Gilchrist also cleared the air on the impending arrival of Azhar Mahmood, who had not been able to join the squad due to some problems with his visa. “I have been told, just a little while back that Azhar’s visa issue has been sorted out and he should be coming in by a flight tomorrow itself.” Mahmood, who will be the only former or present Pakistan player to be part of this year’s IPL, had been bought by Kings XI at the player auction for the 2012 season. The all-rounder is sure to add some much-needed firepower to the side as he has steadily built a reputation in the shortest version of the sport over the years. |
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IOA hails boxers’ qualification
New Delhi, April 13 The IOA also lauded Geeta for becoming the first Indian woman wrestler to qualify for the Olympics. She, along with two other grapplers, Amit Kumar and Yogeshwar Dutt, made the cut at the qualifying event, also held in Astana. “The performance of the Indian sportspersons in the Olympic qualifiers has been very encouraging and we are hopeful that at the London Games, the Indian medal tally will be better”, IOA acting president VK Malhotra said here today. He said it was a matter of pride that teenagers Shiva Thapa, Sumit Sangwan and wrestler Geeta not only qualified for the Olympics, but also won gold medals in their respective categories. Shiva will be the youngest boxer and Geeta will be the first woman wrestler to represent the country in Olympics; which was a big achievement. Malhotra hoped that more Indian wrestlers will make the cut for the Olympics as there are still two more qualifying events---in- China (April 27-29) and Finland (May 4-6). Malhotra said it was a matter of pride that Vijender Singh has earned the distinction of being the first Indian to have qualified for three successive Olympics.
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The original batman of Indian cricket
Chandigarh, April 13 Serving the sports industry for the past 40 years, Somi adds all his experience and strategies to give a batsman his main weapon, a bat. Owner of Jalandhar-based, BAS (Beat All Sports) sports equipments company and the main manufacturer of Sachin’s bat, has rightfully earned respect among the cricket fraternity. “They deserved the best. I just add a flavor to it. We have been into this business for many years. From Navjot Singh to Yuvraj, Sachin to Dhoni everyone has used the bats manufactured by us” said Kohli. Adding further, “Sachin made a world record and scored his 50th Test century from our bat. It’s still with him and is the most successful bat in the world. I have repaired it twice, once in Chandigarh and once in Jalandhar, before he went to South Africa. His bat weighs around 12.50 to.80 gms, and he has great knowledge of the willow. He loves to play with short-handed and bent toe bats” added Somi. The story is no different, when it comes to MS Dhoni, “He is like a family member. He first visited my place after playing the JP Atray tournament and stayed here for a while. When I first introduced him to wife, she subsequently asked me, ‘Dhoni who?’. After his 148-runs against Pakistan from our manufactured bat, he called and asked my wife, “Aunty remember me? Dhoni this side”, and she just replied, ‘Now the world knows you’”, said Somi. Adding further “Dhoni also prefers to play with a short-handed bat that weighs around, 12.20 to .80 gms”. Talking about the great sportsmanship of Yuvraj Singh, he added “During his initial days, he used to play with our manufactured bat but, moreover, he is a great man with big heart. I still remember, once on my way to Mohali, I started discussing the right kind of bat for him and after the discussion he just said, ‘Make a good bat for Sachin, so he can make more records,” said Somi.
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Mauritian boxers train at NIS
Patiala, April 13 Executive Director of NIS Dr LS Ranawat, informed that this team would be here for about two weeks and this programme would certainly benefit both Indian and Mauritian boxers. “It is for the first time in the Indian history that as many as seven boxers- L. Devendro Singh (49 kg), Jai Bhagwan (60 kg), Manoj Kumar (64 kg) and Vikas Krishan (69 kg), Shiva Thapa (56 kg), and Vijender Singh (75 kg) and Sumit Sangwan (81 kg) - have qualified fort the Olympic games which has attracted the attention of the world, especially the neighbouring countries. Therefore, these players are here so that they can train with tough sparring partners before competing in the African Olympic qualifier,” he added. All Mauritian boxers are of international repute, including Beijing Olympics bronze medalist Bruno Julie, and they began their training at NIS today with not only the ones who have qualified for the Olympics but a much larger number of players, including Balwinder Beniwal, Santosh, Sunil, Amanpreet Singh and Chhote Lal. They will soon be joined by the Indian players who are currently in Kazakhstan. Appreciating the sports infrastructure at NIS, Julie said he was extremely excited about his training and competition session because Indian players have mastered latest techniques and training with them suddenly gives more exposure. “This exposure will not only help us during the qualifiers but will be all the more beneficial during the Olympics itself,” he added.
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Pulled up by skipper Sourav Ganguly following a lacklustre showing in their previous outing, Pune Warriors batsmen would look to put up a much better display when they take on the formidable Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League, here tomorrow.
The Warriors started the tournament on a positive note, notching up wins in their first two matches, till Kings XI Punjab disturbed the momentum.
Nehra attributed their seven-wicket loss yesterday to fielding lapses and the failure to play the full quota of 20 overs, and the Warriors would do well to avoid repeating the same mistakes.
