Zaheer remains India's pace enforcer
With 12 wickets so far, Zaheer Khan is the leading fast bowler at the World Cup and India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni's go-to man when the going gets tough for the hosts.
At the World Cup, where there have been constant question marks over the staying power of India's attack, Dhoni has turned to the burly left-armer whose mastery of the ball is matched by the ferocity of his character. The 32-year-old, however, prefers to keep a low profile. "I'm enjoying the space I am in," he said.
"There's a lot more responsibility and I have no issues going to sleep with this pressure. I'm ready for the next day. I have to lead by example, which I find challenging." The bowler's calm disposition was on show during the tied game against England in Bangalore.
Zaheer was taken for 40 runs in his first five overs by rampaging England batsmen but he did not lose heart. Bowling in his second spell, an inspired Zaheer cleaned up Andrew Strauss and Ian Bell off successive deliveries to bring India back into the game. His 12 wickets from five games put him ahead of fast bowling rivals Dale Steyn of South Africa, who has 10, and fiery Australian Shaun Tait on eight.
Zaheer's control, nagging line and length and ability to reverse swing the old ball have often led to comparisons with legendary Pakistan left-armer Wasim Akram.
Zaheer may not be as skilled as Akram but he has definitely carried India's pace attack, grabbing 264 wickets from 187 one-day internationals at an average of just over 29.
That Zaheer is indispensable was evident in the three-wicket defeat against South Africa. The Baroda seamer gave away just four runs in what turned out to be penultimate over of the match before Zaheer's pace partner Ashish Nehra conceded 16 to let the game slip from India's hands. Dhoni summed up Zaheer's effectiveness.
"It's not that whenever Zaheer plays, he gets wickets," said Dhoni. "But with his amount of experience, he always has a back-up plan ready in case the first strategy doesn't work."
Zaheer's journey to the top has not been without its share of ups and downs. A shoulder surgery in 2009 threatened to cut short his career but he fought back to emerge as a stronger and more competitive bowler.
Ponting happy with Tait's wayward brilliance
Australia captain Ricky Ponting is prepared to tolerate Shaun Tait's waywardness if the fast bowler keeps taking wickets at the World Cup.
Tait, who now restricts himself to one-day matches after an injury-plagued career, has a 'slingshot' action which can be hard for batsmen to face. But he can also be way off target too.
Tait's career was arguably encapsulated in champions Australia's group win over New Zealand in Nagpur where his first over-and-a-half cost 19 runs, including wides and no-balls. However, the 28-year-old old South Australia speedster then dismissed Kiwi dangerman Brendon McCullum and finished the match with figures of three wickets for 35 runs in seven overs.
"You probably do treat him a little bit differently than others because he's an out and out wicket-taking bowler, that can deliver the unplayable ball quite a few times through his 10-over spell," said Ponting.
"You give him a licence to run in, bowl fast and take wickets. The best illustration of Shaun as a bowler was the New Zealand game. I think he was halfway through his second over and he had none for 19 and in three or four overs he had three for 30 or whatever it was. That's the sort of impact he can have on games."
Australia, bidding for a fourth straight World Cup and fifth in all, are now the only unbeaten side at this tournament and are already through to the quarter-finals ahead of their group match against Canada on Wednesday.
They round off their Group A campaign against Pakistan in Colombo on Saturday in what is expected to be their first major test after a match against co-hosts Sri Lanka was washed out last weekend.
Ponting though insisted Australia's focus was firmly on the present. "We haven't looked that far ahead. We want to win every game that we play and we want to continue to improve on each performance as we go through this tournament," he said.
"One of our great keys to success in previous World Cups is we've been able to build our way up through tournaments and when the semi-finals and final have come around is generally when we've been playing our best cricket."
Ponting added the Canada match represented a last chance for Australia to fine tune their plans. "From now on, I don't think we can afford to be experimenting too much, we have to get down to playing a brand of cricket that's going to hold up in big games," the star batsman explained.
Windies must beat England, says Bangladesh coach
Bangladesh coach Jamie Siddons said on Sunday it was vital for the West Indies to beat England if his team is to have a realistic chance of reaching the World Cup knockout phase.
Bangladesh, who moved to four points after their stunning win over England on Friday, must defeat both the Netherlands on Monday and South Africa in Dhaka on Saturday to cement a place in the quarter-finals.
But a win over the Dutch can also see the Tigers through if England, who have five points, lose their last match to the West Indies in Chennai on Thursday. Siddons, delighted with his team's showing against England, was realistic enough to admit it would be difficult to repeat the feat against power-packed South Africa.
"We have to beat the Dutch and then if England lose to the West Indies, we have a chance. Otherwise it will be very difficult," Siddons said on the eve of the match.
"If England win, we can't get in unless we win against South Africa, which is a very difficult task. I am not going to guarantee that we will win against South Africa. Also our run-rate is very poor."
Bangladesh are currently fifth in group B with a net run-rate of -1.241, which is even lower than sixth-placed Ireland's -0.444 Siddons, a former Australian first-class batsman, said it was next to impossible to improve run-rates on Bangladeshi wickets.
"The run-rate thing is really difficult here, because our wickets aren't really 300-run wickets," he said. "Our wickets and our grounds are very different to those in India and Sri Lanka. The thing about run-rates is you have got to restrict the opposition. But scoring 300 and keeping them to 150 is not realistic. Not on our wickets."
Bangladesh's run-rate plunged after they were shot out for their lowest total of 58 by the West Indies, who then romped home by nine wickets in 12.2 overs.
Siddons insisted his team will not take the Netherlands lightly, even though the Dutch have lost all their four matches so far. Bangladesh have played them just once before in Glasgow last year in a rain-shortened 30-over game which the Dutch won by six wickets.
"They could be a very dangerous side for us," Siddons said of the Netherlands. "We have to respect them and play good cricket to beat them. We have watched a lot of videos of the Dutch and will do that again tonight to make sure we have not missed anything. But I think we have got the firepower to take care of them."
Siddons insisted his team had moved on from the dramatic two-wicket win over England when Mohammad Mahmudullah and Shafiul Islam hammered 58 runs for the ninth wicket to see the Tigers home.
"Don't forget this team (England) drew with India and beat South Africa. And we beat them. It gives us a great deal of confidence. We are ready to go again," the coach said.
Styris to replace Vettori
Scott Styris is happy to step into Daniel Vettori's bowling shoes for tomorrow's World Cup match against Canada
Scott Styris is happy to step into Daniel Vettori's bowling shoes for tomorrow's World Cup match against Canada in Mumbai.
Vettori will sit out the match after injuring his knee in the win over Pakistan but is hoping to be fit for next weekend's match against Sri Lanka.
Styris says he'd love to bowl a few more overs in Vettori's absence.
He says he likes having the ball thrown to him and be asked to do a job for the team.
Jesse Ryder is expected to replace Jamie How in the batting line-up but it's unclear who will come in for Vettori.
India eye Dutch feast on way to quarters
India will look to wrap up a convincing victory over rock-bottom Netherlands in the World Cup on Wednesday and virtually make sure of their quarter-final berth.
India are the only team who have yet to taste defeat in their group and that record is unlikely to be broken against the under-performing Dutch who have still to register a win.
The host nation are on top of Group B with five points. England have as many points but have played a game more and have a worse run rate while West Indies and South Africa have four points each.
But thanks to some topsy-turvy results in the group and the tied game against England, India are technically not assured of a place in the last eight as yet.
A strong performance against the Dutch will not only give India a strong net run rate but also pave their way to the knockout round.
The only weak link for the Indians has been their bowling which has been exposed time and again.
India's frontline bowlers failed to find much success against a spirited Ireland and had it not been for a five-wicket haul by part-time spinner Yuvraj Singh, they could have been in trouble.
Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, however, tried to play down the indifferent form of his bowlers.
"We are showing signs of improvement, which is good," he said.
"I feel it's important to peak at the right time because it's a long tournament so definitely what we have seen is slow and gradual improvement on the bowling side."
Yuvraj's show with the ball might tempt Dhoni to leave out an off-colour leg-spinner Piyush Chawla and bring in attacking off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin.
Former Australian Test batsman Mark Waugh said India's strong batting compensated for their lack of specialist bowling options.
Writing in the Times of India, he said: "The batsmen compensate their bowling arsenal and on paper, under these conditions, they possess one of the best batting line-ups in the tournament."
"India do have the option of going in with five bowlers in place of the four that they usually prefer. I do not, however, think that is necessarily the right way to go about it because Yuvraj Singh can do a good job as a fifth bowler and bowl his quota," he added.
The home side are unlikely to be tested against the Netherlands, who ran England close in their opener, thanks to a sparkling 119 from Ryan ten Doeschate, but have since struggled.
The Dutch scored an impressive 292 against England but slumped to a huge 215-run defeat to the West Indies and lost by 231 runs against South Africa.
Skipper Peter Borren said Wednesday's game at New Delhi's Feroz Shah Kotla stadium would be a tough proposition.
"India are a tough side as their batting line-up has some unbelievable cricketers," said Borren.
"It's going to be a real challenge for us to play against them in India. Hopefully, we can do a little bit better against India than we did against South Africa."
Sri Lanka anxious to avoid Zimbabwe slip-up
Sri Lanka cannot afford to be complacent in their World Cup clash against lowly Zimbabwe on Thursday, knowing an upset would leave them in danger of missing out on the knockout phase.
The 1996 winners and 2007 runners-up have five points from four games and need a win to ensure they reach the quarter-finals. They face extra pressure because their last match is away against New Zealand in Mumbai.
Sri Lanka captain Kumar Sangakkara realises the importance of victory over Zimbabwe, against whom Sri Lanka have won all four World Cup matches in previous tournaments.
"Our focus is on the immediate game so it doesn't really matter where you finish up. You need to beat every single team to get into the final, and to win the World Cup," said Sangakkara, whose team lost to Pakistan and saw their match against Australia abandoned due to rain.
Sri Lanka piled up 332-7 in their big win over Canada but failed to chase down Pakistan's 277-7, before knocking Kenya over for a paltry 142 with paceman Lasith Malinga taking a career-best 6-38, including a hat-trick.
Sangakkara defended his batsmen, especially opener Tillakaratne Dilshan.
"In cricket you have instances where not everyone shines every day. You always get matches where certain people shine and some don't," said Sangakkara, who was 73 not out when the rain washed out the Australia match.
"I think batsmen go through certain phases. The most important thing at all times in high-performance situations is to maintain equilibrium, make sure that your emotions remain the same at all times."
"Dilshan has been our best performer over the last few years. He has won us so many games so we just want him to go out and we want him to be focused and keep his aggression," he said.
The skipper said he was surprised at his team's World Cup schedule but insisted playing New Zealand in India would not be a problem.
"You can't change things beyond your control. It was a surprise that that was the only game we are playing outside our country being the host."
"Usually, the host nation plays at home, but that's the way the game goes."
Sri Lanka are likely to bring in paceman Dilhara Fernando for his first match in the World Cup.
Zimbabwe, smarting from their ten-wicket defeat against New Zealand, hope Vusimuzi Sibanda, a replacement for the injured Sean Williams, bolsters the batting line-up.
Captain Elton Chigumbura said the side needed to eradicate batting errors.
"It is always hard against a bigger team. The way we started with our batting (against New Zealand), it is always hard to come back from losing three to four quick wickets in the first 15 overs."
"It is more about the technical errors, so we need to overcome those errors and be up to the challenge."
Zimbabwe, with two points from three matches, need a win to maintain a realistic chance of reaching the quarter-finals.
Timeline of the ICC World Cup problems
The Cricket World Cup has been plagued with problems in the build-up and during the Feb. 19-April 2 event which only started in India on Saturday.
Here is a timeline on the problems which have cropped up in the tournament so far.
Jan. 27: Eden Gardens is stripped of its only match involving the host nation (India vs England on Feb 27) because the International Cricket Council do not feel it will be ready in time after undergoing a construction facelift.
Feb. 18: Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium is given a scare ahead of its preparation to stage the April 2 World Cup final, when the city's top fire chief says "the renovated stadium has many loopholes in its fire safety mechanism" and refuses to approve it.
Organisers hastily fix the problems and it is declared safe days later.
Feb. 21: KyaZoonga -- the official website selling World Cup tickets -- crashes before the site even goes live for the sale of 1,000 tickets for the final. The ICC later says that 10 million tried to access it in 20 minutes.
Feb. 24: Police launch a baton charge on fans who have spent the night queuing for tickets for the India-England match at Bangalore.
A leaked ICC letter criticises the Indian governing body, the BCCI, over its ticketing policy. It says that the competition sponsors are beginning to become concerned about the hitches. The BCCI responds that "these things happen in India".
March 2: BCCI writes an open letter to the ICC criticising its "inadequate" umpire decision review system and attacking the governing body's general manager Dave Richardson for comments about Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
March 8: Police launch baton-charge in Nagpur on fans seeking tickets for the India vs South Africa match on March 12. The police action is defended by Dhoni: "They (police) should not be projected in a bad light all the time."
Sell more tickets to public, says Bidari
BANGALORE: City police commissioner Shankar Bidari has a solution to the cricket ticket mess - sell at least 50% of them to the public and do the sale in a transparent manner.
In a draft proposal to the government, Bidari said the Karnataka State Cricket Association give details of ticket sales to police personnel before opening the counters. At least 18,000 tickets should be sold to the public, he added.
Bidari said the system of issuing tickets should be transparent. "Let the proposal come back after gazette notification. It's wrong on my part to comment on it till then," he said.
Sources said the proposal was a fallout of the fiasco during two cricket matches in Bangalore -- India v/s England and India v/s Ireland. The issue cropped up even in the legislative assembly and people alleged that very few tickets were sold to those who queued up. The stadium has a capacity of 38,000 and can accommodate about 42,000, as per PWD estimates.
Police have also proposed many other measures that KSCA should follow during IPL and international matches in Bangalore. The notification is expected to be issued in the next two days, sources added. This could perhaps be on the the lines of the recent Delhi High Court ruling that the Delhi and District Cricket Association should not issue more than 10,000 passes for a match in the 41,000-capacity Ferozeshah Kotla Stadium.
Bookies and punters appear unstoppable
JAIPUR: Despite police efforts to eliminate the bookies and punters in the state they appear unstoppable. Various areas where police had busted betting rackets are being watched. Almost every cricket match sees betting rackets busted. However, bookies, ignoring police efforts, are busy betting on matches which do not attract customers in India.
"For cricket buffs the interest is generated only when India is playing, but for us every match is a money spinner. The results of South Africa and England was unprecedented. You witness many ups and downs in every match," a Jodhpur-based bookie said.
Confirming bookies are showing interest in all matches, police in Ajmer said, "On Saturday night a betting racket was busted in which bets were taken on Sri Lanka versus Australia match and we have arrested a bookie. "We seized around Rs 3 lakh from his possession when we raided a house in the Subash Nagar area," they added.
It will take another month to know the cricket world cup winner, but the punters in the state have given odds in favour of India as they offer lowest return for India winning the cup.
"The price of India winning the cup is Rs 3.20, South Africa winning the world cup is Rs 4.0, Australia Rs 5.30, Sri Lanka 5.30, Pakistan Rs 7.30, England Rs 13.0, West Indies Rs 22.0 and New Zealand Rs 24. If that is to be believed India which has the lowest betting price will win the cup," a Churu-based bookie said.
Elaborating the mathematics behind it, he said, "If New Zealand wins the world cup I will pay you Rs 24 on your every Rs 1, that means I am dead sure that New Zealand is not winning thus I will retain your Rs 1 and will earn. There would be many who will play for the win of Australia and if Australia does it I will have to pay them on the rate of Rs 5.30 on per Rs 1 they have put on Aussies victory."
Bangladesh skipper media row just not cricket, says board
CHITTAGONG: Bangladesh captain Shakib Al Hasan was banned on Monday from writing his newspaper column after a public row with former players over the team's World Cup performance.
Shakib fired back at criticism from ex-captains and other leading players by complaining that they sounded like "common fans" who should know better than sniping at the current team.
He also reminded them of their own failings as players in his comments for a leading Bengali daily.
The Bangladesh Cricket Board stepped in with a blanket ban on any of their squad writing a newspaper column during the February 19-April 2 tournament which the country is co-hosting with India and Sri Lanka.
"Yes, we have asked team management to stop players writing columns to let them concentrate on the game," Manzur Ahmed, the chief executive officer of the BCB, said.
"We are preparing media guidelines for players and will see if they can write (columns) after the World Cup," he added.
Former captain Roquibul Hassan had already responded to Shakib's comments made in Sunday's edition of Prothom Alo.
"It shows a great audacity and a great insult to senior players. He doesn't know the history of Bangladesh cricket and that is the saddest part," he told the daily New Age.
Bangladesh, facing a rampant West Indian attack, were all out for their lowest ever one-day international total of 58 in their third Group B game in a nine-wicket defeat on Friday.
The defeat sparked a national debate and fury among fans with security stepped up by the Bangladesh authorities after the West Indies team bus was stoned, mistaken for the home team's vehicle.
Apart from Shakib, none of the Bangladesh team has a newspaper column after opener Tamim Iqbal put his on hold until after the tournament.
Dismissals ended hopes of massive upset, says Porterfield
Ireland captain William Porterfield identified the dismissals of himself and Niall O’Brien as the two turning points in Ireland’s defeat to India yesterday in Bangalore.The run out of O’Brien ended a third wicket stand of 113 in the 27th over and Porterfield failed to survive the first ball after the second drinks break as Ireland looked to a total in excess of 250 after batting first. They were all out for 207 with 13 balls unused.
“The position we got ourselves into just before the run out and then my own wicket were two key points in the game because we were putting ourselves in a very good position to get to that total (250-260),” said the captain.
“If we had batted to the 35th over then we knew we had the firepower in the hutch to come in and score pretty quickly and we would have set ourselves up.
“We never fell behind a good run rate and even though we lost a few quick wickets after the run out, myself and Cusi (Alex Cusack) put ourselves in a good position. Unfortunately, we lost that wicket straight after. Right up to that drinks break, I think we were 160 after 37 and that's still a decent position.”
Although Ireland couldn’t pull off the shock to end all shocks, Porterfield admitted he was proud of his team.
“There were a lot of key moments during that game where it would have been easy to sit back and go 'oh we're playing India and we're on the back foot' but we fought back from nine for two, then lost three quick wickets through the middle and fought back again.
“Then we came out after half-time and fought right from the start and put a bit of pressure on India. They still had the firepower in the hutch at the end when Yusuf Pathan came in and cleared the ropes but the way we fought and the way we fielded and bowled throughout, it's great credit to the lads and, yeah, I'm proud of the team.”
He paid tribute individually to George Dockrell and Boyd Rankin.
“George just thrives on the big game atmosphere.
“Boyd’s been working really hard in the nets he’s as fit and strong as I’ve seen him,” added the captain.
ICC tweaks 2.5 metre DRS rule for 'consistency'“The position we got ourselves into just before the run out and then my own wicket were two key points in the game because we were putting ourselves in a very good position to get to that total (250-260),” said the captain.
“If we had batted to the 35th over then we knew we had the firepower in the hutch to come in and score pretty quickly and we would have set ourselves up.
“We never fell behind a good run rate and even though we lost a few quick wickets after the run out, myself and Cusi (Alex Cusack) put ourselves in a good position. Unfortunately, we lost that wicket straight after. Right up to that drinks break, I think we were 160 after 37 and that's still a decent position.”
Although Ireland couldn’t pull off the shock to end all shocks, Porterfield admitted he was proud of his team.
“There were a lot of key moments during that game where it would have been easy to sit back and go 'oh we're playing India and we're on the back foot' but we fought back from nine for two, then lost three quick wickets through the middle and fought back again.
“Then we came out after half-time and fought right from the start and put a bit of pressure on India. They still had the firepower in the hutch at the end when Yusuf Pathan came in and cleared the ropes but the way we fought and the way we fielded and bowled throughout, it's great credit to the lads and, yeah, I'm proud of the team.”
He paid tribute individually to George Dockrell and Boyd Rankin.
“George just thrives on the big game atmosphere.
“Boyd’s been working really hard in the nets he’s as fit and strong as I’ve seen him,” added the captain.
The ICC has made a slight but significant alteration to the 2.5m rule, the most controversial segment of its decision review system (DRS) used in this World Cup, to enable more consistent application by the umpires. The change to the DRS rule No. 3.3 - which expands the umpire's scope for interpretation - follows its contrary usage in the first two weeks of the competition.
An ICC spokesperson confirmed to ESPNcricinfo that the umpires have "changed the protocol" in the clause to ensure a "consistency" of on-field umpires when using the DRS pertaining to not out lbw reviews.
A directive has gone out from the ICC's Umpires & Referees manager to all umpires that if an lbw appeal shows that even though there may be a distance between the stumps and the point of impact of 2.5m or greater, the on-field umpire can think of reversing the decision even if the replay shows that the ball is hitting "any part of the middle" stump.
The previous rule required that the leg-before could be reversed - by the on-field umpire - only if the replay showed that the ball was hitting the middle stump dead centre. This change in the 'protocol' was brought into play in the India v Ireland match in Bangalore, when umpire Rod Tucker reversed his lbw decision against Alex Cusack off the bowling of Yuvraj Singh. Tucker was heard on the stump microphone asking third umpire Marais Erasmus to let him know whether the ball was hitting "any part of the middle stump." The third umpire, it was confirmed, was also required to give the on-field umpire "all relevant information" during an lbw review and not merely specific pieces of information during the DRS process.
Teams had also been informed of this alteration in the rule and Yuvraj said later that while he "did not understand the 2.5 rule much", he knew it had been what he called "removed." He said the current rule stated that if, "the ball is hitting the line, it's out... I was just discussing it with Dhoni, so I took the referral."
The application of the same 2.5m rule had led to two contrasting reviews under the DRS last week, one involving Ian Bell - in England's match against India - and the other the Zimbabwe captain Elton Chigumbura against New Zealand. Both batsmen were struck well forward from the stumps but the not out decision against Bell's was not overturned while Chigumbura was declared out.
The 2.5m clause was included in the DRS rules following the expert view that the ball-tracker technology, in this case Hawk Eye, lost its accuracy when the distance between the point of impact and the stumps was greater than 2.5m.
Pressure not problem, says Smith as Proteas crash
South Africa captain Graeme Smith hit back at claims his side had 'choked' again at the World Cup after a dramatic six-run loss to England on Sunday. Defeat ended the Proteas' unbeaten start to the tournament and raised fresh questions about their nerve in tight games.
Needing just 172 to win, they were cruising at 63 without loss. But they then lost three wickets for 19 runs and three more in the middle of their innings for no runs with the score on 124.
"That's not predictable at all, is it?" said a sarcastic Smith, when questioned about South Africa's composure. "Pressure? We've handled ourselves in some tough situations over the last few years, I don't think pressure is our weakness."
Smith has always insisted that his team's fighting credentials were proved beyond doubt in 2008/09 when he led South Africa to their first Test series win in Australia.
Sunday's defeat, completed when Stuart Broad bowled Morne Morkel with 14 balls to spare, revived memories of South Africa's two 1999 World Cup matches against Australia.
They lost a group game from a strong position and were then knocked out by the eventual champions on run-rate after a semi-final tie where victory was within their grasp.
South Africa exited the 2003 tournament after failing to understand the Duckworth/Lewis system in a match with Sri Lanka they needed to win, and were thrashed by Australia in a lopsided semi-final four years ago in the Caribbean.
The Proteas, like England, have never won the World Cup and Smith said: "It's obviously disappointing not to get over the line. We've got to learn from today, and pick ourselves up to play India."
Unusually for a one-day international, the pitch at the Chidambaram Stadium gave the bowlers and plenty of assistance. "There was a lot on offer for bowlers today, reverse-swing and inconsistent bounce," Smith said.
"There are a lot of batters' days in one-day cricket; I suppose this was a bowlers' day. It wasn't easy to bat on. I thought Faf (du Plessis) and AB (de Villiers) hung in there really well. If they could have hung in a few more overs it would have been terrific - I think we'd have got home," added Smith, who said he didn't wish to be drawn on his dismissal, the first South African wicket to go down.
Smith only exited after a review, requested by England after he was originally given not out caught behind off spinner Graeme Swann. It took several minutes to overturn Indian umpire Amish Saheba's original decision. The South Africa captain paid tribute to Broad (four wickets for 15 runs) and James Anderson for their command of reverse swing.
"I don't think there are many batters in the world who have really mastered the art of playing reverse swing when it's going both ways. Credit to them for the skill they showed. They were able to create a lot of pressure on the guys. I thought 170 was a good total for us to chase. But unfortunately we weren't good enough today."
I don't want any more cliffhangers: Strauss
Captain Andrew Strauss praised England's character after a tense six-run win over South Africa reignited their World Cup campaign but said he did not want any more cliffhangers.
England, just days after a shock three-wicket loss to minnows Ireland looked all but beaten as the in-form Proteas advanced to 63 without loss, chasing 172 for victory at the Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Sunday.
The Ashes heroes had tied with India earlier in the tournament.
"We've been involved in three outstanding games of cricket and we've done our best to advertise the 50-over format, but I would like them to be less close," Strauss said after another nail-biting encounter.
England, with fast bowler Stuart Broad taking four wickets for 15 runs, engineered a South Africa collapse on a pitch that gave the bowlers plenty of help and became trickier for batting as the match wore on.
England made a dreadful start after Strauss won the toss and batted, with the skipper and fellow opener Kevin Pietersen both falling to Robin Peterson's left-arm spin in the first over of the match.
Peterson reduced England to 15 for three but man-of-the-match Ravi Bopara, recalled in place of Paul Collingwood, made 60 and shared what turned out to be vital stand of 99 with Jonathan Trott (52).
"It wasn't one of our best wins ever. To lose three wickets early on a wicket like that was criminal," Strauss said.
"Trotty and Ravi got us back in the hunt, Swanny (off-spinner Graeme Swann, who took one for 29) bowled outstandingly well and Broady and Jimmy (Anderson) picked up wickets at crucial times.
"We need to show a lot of character," added Strauss, out for a third-ball duck. "I'm delighted for the bowlers, who'd been under the pump."
"If we can get our batting and bowling right in one match, we will be a hard side to beat.... You're not going to defend 170-odd very often so you need things to go your way."
Bopara, dropped after seeing England home with the bat in their opening win over the Netherlands, said the individual honours should have gone to Broad, who ended the match when he had Morne Morkel caught behind.
Bopara, in at 15-3, said: "When me and Trotty got together we realised it wasn't a great wicket and thought 200 would be a good score."
"We fell short, but we knew it would turn and reverse."
The match started to go England's way when they took their first wicket as South African captain Graeme Smith was given out caught behind off Swann following a lengthy review.
"We were absolutely certain he gloved the ball," Strauss said. "I was fielding at slip and there was a sound."
England, who like South Africa have never won the World Cup, next play co-hosts Bangladesh in Chittagong on Friday.
Asked how England were shaping up, Strauss said: "We've been involved in tight games, we've won two, tied one, lost one - in that way it's encouraging."
"But we certainly don't want to put ourselves in that position every time."
England, just days after a shock three-wicket loss to minnows Ireland looked all but beaten as the in-form Proteas advanced to 63 without loss, chasing 172 for victory at the Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Sunday.
The Ashes heroes had tied with India earlier in the tournament.
"We've been involved in three outstanding games of cricket and we've done our best to advertise the 50-over format, but I would like them to be less close," Strauss said after another nail-biting encounter.
England, with fast bowler Stuart Broad taking four wickets for 15 runs, engineered a South Africa collapse on a pitch that gave the bowlers plenty of help and became trickier for batting as the match wore on.
England made a dreadful start after Strauss won the toss and batted, with the skipper and fellow opener Kevin Pietersen both falling to Robin Peterson's left-arm spin in the first over of the match.
Peterson reduced England to 15 for three but man-of-the-match Ravi Bopara, recalled in place of Paul Collingwood, made 60 and shared what turned out to be vital stand of 99 with Jonathan Trott (52).
"It wasn't one of our best wins ever. To lose three wickets early on a wicket like that was criminal," Strauss said.
"Trotty and Ravi got us back in the hunt, Swanny (off-spinner Graeme Swann, who took one for 29) bowled outstandingly well and Broady and Jimmy (Anderson) picked up wickets at crucial times.
"We need to show a lot of character," added Strauss, out for a third-ball duck. "I'm delighted for the bowlers, who'd been under the pump."
"If we can get our batting and bowling right in one match, we will be a hard side to beat.... You're not going to defend 170-odd very often so you need things to go your way."
Bopara, dropped after seeing England home with the bat in their opening win over the Netherlands, said the individual honours should have gone to Broad, who ended the match when he had Morne Morkel caught behind.
Bopara, in at 15-3, said: "When me and Trotty got together we realised it wasn't a great wicket and thought 200 would be a good score."
"We fell short, but we knew it would turn and reverse."
The match started to go England's way when they took their first wicket as South African captain Graeme Smith was given out caught behind off Swann following a lengthy review.
"We were absolutely certain he gloved the ball," Strauss said. "I was fielding at slip and there was a sound."
England, who like South Africa have never won the World Cup, next play co-hosts Bangladesh in Chittagong on Friday.
Asked how England were shaping up, Strauss said: "We've been involved in tight games, we've won two, tied one, lost one - in that way it's encouraging."
"But we certainly don't want to put ourselves in that position every time."
Hosts switched off before lights come on
All it took was a shade under two hours of ruthless, one-sided cricket, in the sweltering mid-afternoon heat to bring a raging party on the streets of Mirpur to a screeching halt. For days after the win over Ireland, the locals danced in a trance-like state in and around the Sher-e-Bangla. On Friday evening though, they snapped out of it when bliss was replaced with a large dose of reality check, all thanks to party-poopers Darren Sammy, Sulieman Benn and Kemar Roach.
Despite being bowled out for 58 in front of 25,000 spectators, it may still not be the end of the road for Bangladesh. But the fact that their next two matches will take place away from Dhaka will cause Shakib and his pressure-cooked men to heave a sigh of relief when they finally leave the burden of expectations— and the demise of local hope behind in the cricket crazed capital city. Viv Richards and Virender Sehwag: Two magnificent strikers
Every true cricket lover worth his salt has a favourite player. Since the game thrives on its ‘characters’, it is these who generally become personal favourites. But not always so, since the choice of a favourite often follows no rational path and is not the outcome of an informed, fully-deliberated-upon or well-considered decision. It is often instinctive.
What ‘connects’ a player to his fan is often indefinable. His sheer greatness as a player with mind-boggling career achievements, like Gavaskar in the past or Tendulkar today? Matinee-idol looks, (allied with immense talent) like Salim Durrani or Ravi Shastri? A single great on-field performance like Bob Massey or Narendra Hirwani? Or sustained, consistent spectacularly entertaining match-winning efforts over a number of years, like those of Viv Richards or Virender Sehwag?
Maybe none of these factors matter. For instance, for no fathomable reason, one of this writer’s favourite childhood cricketing heroes was the little-known Barry Knight, England’s medium-paced all-rounder who toured India under Ted Dexter in 1961-62. More understandably, the other was Chandu Borde, India’s leg-spinning batsman who had some outstanding performances in the sixties.
To an entire cricketing generation of the past, Viv Richards was as much an idol as Virender Sehwag is to the present. Richards was, and Sehwag is, a magnificent striker of the ball, the former seemingly with a more bludgeoning strike, a more muscular approach, the latter relatively more ‘silken’; both blessed with “an instinctive identification of length” that allowed them to play the ball very late. One factor common to both: an incredible capacity to reduce bowlers to a state of utter helplessness and hopelessness. Perhaps no other batsmen have had such a vastly demoralising effect on bowlers as these two great players.
A remarkable feature of all their great innings has been the fact that once they got going, the identity of the batsman at the other end was forgotten and made irrelevant. This piece is being penned without any reference to statistical manuals or scorecards — the dry print would detract from the memory of outstanding knocks played by both these great batsmen.
Richards’ 189 against England at Old Trafford in 1984, for instance, was a classic, regarded by many as the greatest one-day innings ever played. He single-handedly carried the West Indies to victory. Chasing 267, West Indies were 103 for 7 when Richards decided to take matters into his own powerful hands.
He added over a hundred runs for the last wicket, with number 11, Michael Holding contributing just 7 runs. Memory, sometimes, plays tricks, the figures may be inaccurate, but not the etched visual of the incredulous looks of disbelief on the faces of the English cricketers and crowd, as the match was snatched from them by the one-man demolition squad.
Sehwag’s powerhouse double hundred against Sri Lanka at Mumbai in a Test match a couple of years ago was reminiscent of that Richards innings. On both occasions, the bowlers didn’t know where to bowl and the fielders became helpless bystanders.
One remembers Richards as a particularly dominating on-side player. Sehwag’s off-side driving is perhaps relatively more classical, especially when he gets into line and resists the temptation of playing away from the body. Neither is a “slogger”. There has been a certain elemental soundness to their methods which explains their phenomenal success in all forms of the game.
Get real, World Cup is a flop without India
Asked about the ticketing mess, Haroon Lorgat dutifully recited the politically correct spiel about fans, but then could not resist the temptation of patting himself. Commenting on the health of world cricket, the ICC chief announced that the 50-over game is far from dead --- suggesting that the fr enzy for tickets is evidence that the World Cup, and cricket, remain popular.A sober assessment of the World Cup presents a picture starkly different from what Lorgat would have us believe. The tournament, at least till now, is only about India, everything else is peripheral. Fans are queuing up (and getting lathi-charged), sponsors are investing serious money and the media is going crazy because of Indian cricket. Without India, the World Cup is a dud, a flop film which has no takers.
The commercial appeal rests solely on their fortunes, remove India from the equation and the tournament could crash in less time than it takes Harbhajan Singh to bowl an over. As things stand, all of India wants to see a triumphant MS Dhoni in Mumbai a month from now.
This extraordinary hope and hype seems to be working for the present. India's two top stars --- Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar --- have scored commanding hundreds, and despite the bowling stutters (against Bangladesh and England) the feeling is that all is well.
But India's cricket muscle cannot hide the fragile nature of the ICC and World Cup. The need to spread the game is an admirable objective but if this translates into quality being compromised, the result is a big zero. New Zealand beat Kenya in less than 10 overs, and in other matches the level of play was no better than a DDCA 'B' Division contest.
Ireland did stun England but the truth is Zimbabwe, a full ICC member, can't match up to other Test teams. What is worse, the matches featuring unfancied teams lack intensity and hold little interest for fans. For instance, standards touched such a low that Canada could not compete with Zimbabwe and were thrashed by a massive margin.
So, forget the larger picture about cricket and its future --- just sit back and celebrate the magic of Indian cricket.
Ponting expects severe test from Sri Lanka
Australian captain Ricky Ponting expects Sri Lanka to come out firing after their defeat to Pakistan and give the defending champions the first severe test of their World Cup credentials.
Ponting, in charge for the past two of Australia's three successive World Cup triumphs, said his team had yet to be given a thorough examination.
"We really haven?t been pushed too much yet. The Zimbabwe game was obviously a very easy win," said Ponting, adding that Australia picked off the runs easily against New Zealand in their second game.
Ponting is confident his batsmen can cope with Sri Lankan spearhead Lasith Malinga, who took a career-best 6-38, including a hat-trick, against Kenya on Tuesday.
"We have played a fair bit against Malinga over the years. He had a great game the other day, and he looks like he?s in pretty good form. He was one of the main focuses for us in the team meeting.
"We talked about the right way to go about playing him. His bowling in the middle overs and with the older ball is particularly good, so we have to make sure we don?t let him take wickets and have the impact on the game."
Ponting said Sri Lanka, Australia's beaten opponents in the 2007 World Cup final, would be determined to win after defeat against Pakistan.
"Sri Lanka were one of the favourites coming into the tournament and although they?ve lost that one game against Pakistan, I don?t think that changes anything at all. They?re a well-skilled and well-drilled team," said the Australian captain.
Sri Lanka are considering playing all three of their specialist spinners -- Muttiah Muralitharan, Ajantha Mendis and Rangana Herath -- in an attempt to outspin the defending champions but Ponting is unfazed.
"It certainly hasn?t spun anywhere near as much as in the past and the teams that have batted second have had a bit more of a chance in the game."
Ponting said long gaps between matches had helped his players stay fresh.
"A break never hurts anybody. We have started the tournament well, and all our guys are nice and fit, so we didn?t really need the break," said Ponting.
Australia have four points from two games, with Pakistan sitting on top of Group A with six points after three wins from three matches.
India should play 3 all-rounders, 2 bowlers in Wc 2011 next matches
Former Indian captain Kapil Dev on Thursday said that a combination of three all-rounders and two genuine bowlers would have been an ideal combination but the team can still win the ongoing World Cup with hard work.
"Ideally there should have been three all-rounders and two genuine bowlers but since we don't have them we have to work hard to win. If you don't think you can win, then you must stop playing," Kapil said.
"We don't have a potent bowling attack but that does not mean we cannot win. If you lose heart how will you win?" he asked
Kapil said Indian bowlers were not up to the task against England in their tied World Cup match against England and advised Mahendra Singh Dhoni's men to improve their performance in the coming games.
"It is easy to talk but I think the players in the middle also know about their weakness and try to work on that. It is important to learn from your past experiences rather than cribbing on the result.
"You can not always be on the winning side some day you might even lose the game, the team which plays good will win," Kapil said on the sidelines of the release of a book -- World Cup: A Pictorial Journey.
City to get a new, bigger cricket stadium
BANGALORE: Chief Minister B S Yeddyurappa on Thursday said the State government is keen to build a sophisticated cricket stadium with a capacity of about one lakh on the outskirts of the city.“The KSCA stadium has delivered to the need of the cricket fans for several decades. But since the number of cricket fans has increased in leaps and bounds, the present infrastructure is found to be inadequate in terms of seating capacity. I am of the view that Bangalore needs a bigger and more sophisticated stadium which should become a reality in about two years from now,” the chief minister said, in response to the complaint raised by Opposition Congress and JD (S) members on the alleged maladministration by the Karnataka State Cricket Association during the recently held world cup match.Seeking to defend the KSCA management, the chief minister said the authorities had told the police officers as well as the government that the number of tickets available to the local people would be limited as most of the tickets have been sold in Kolkata where the match was to have been played as per the original schedule. “The seating capacity of Kolkata stadium is about a lakh and odd where as the KSCA’s capacity is about 48,000. This is also one of the reason why there was shortage of tickets as told by the management of the stadium,” Yeddyurappa said.On the issue of alleged maladministration and insult of the MLAs by the KSCA authorities, the chief minister said, “I will convene a meeting of the opposition members, the officials as well as the management of the KSCA.Let us list out the issues and discuss in detail. Let them (KSCA management) put across their point of view and let us them our requirement. But let us not send across a wrong message from this house so as to cast aspersion on the KSCA authorities.” Earlier, P M Ashok and N L Narendra Babu (Congress) criticised the KSCA for maladministration and corruption.“It is alright that BBMP corporators were given tickets. But why this stepmotherly treatment to legislators?,” Ashok asked. Babu objected to the police lathi charge on cricket fans who were standing in queue to buy tickets.According to Ashok, realtors and hoteliers like Dayananda Pai and Sadananda Maiyya were given tickets worth several lakhs but not to the local people.“There seems to be no truth in what Anil Kumble says that majority of tickets were given to Kolkata. Then what happened to the tickets? This needs to be probed by a house committee,” he demanded.Ashok levelled allegations against Kumble and Srinath of favouring Tamil Nadu Cricket Association President Srinivasan and betraying the interests of the state
No issue with UDRS, say WI, Bangladesh captains
DHAKA: The Indian cricket board is backing captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni over his controversial statement about the implementation of the Umpire Decision Review Decision (UDRS) after a decision went against them in the thrilling tie against England but not many skippers in the World Cup are willing to throw in their hats in the ring.
West Indies captain Darren Sammy refused to be drawn into the affair saying, "You have to ask the BCCI to answer this not me".
About his view on UDRS Sammy said, "I think it's a good asset to have in today's game as it minimizes errors. It brings out the correct decision most of the time. I've have no problems with it. It's a good addition to the game."
Bangladesh skipper Shakib Al Hasan, too, felt that the UDRS is more beneficial than detrimental. "I have no complains, I don't know about the others," he said.
"Technology helps, maybe not 100 per cent of the times. I still feel we should use it," added Shakib.
Dhoni had said that "adulteration of the technology with human intervention wasn't good for the game".
India on its part hasn't approved the use of UDRS stating that the technology isn't true at all times.
West Indies captain Darren Sammy refused to be drawn into the affair saying, "You have to ask the BCCI to answer this not me".
About his view on UDRS Sammy said, "I think it's a good asset to have in today's game as it minimizes errors. It brings out the correct decision most of the time. I've have no problems with it. It's a good addition to the game."
Bangladesh skipper Shakib Al Hasan, too, felt that the UDRS is more beneficial than detrimental. "I have no complains, I don't know about the others," he said.
"Technology helps, maybe not 100 per cent of the times. I still feel we should use it," added Shakib.
Dhoni had said that "adulteration of the technology with human intervention wasn't good for the game".
India on its part hasn't approved the use of UDRS stating that the technology isn't true at all times.
India seek bowlers to halt Irish charge
While all eyes will be on the batsmen as India look to tame 'giant-killers' Ireland on Sunday at the batting paradise called the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, it is actually the bowlers who hold the key to victory.
With the focus back on the venue which has thrown up two of the most memorable matches ever seen at the World Cup -- featuring an eye-watering 1332 runs in just two games -- yet another run feast is expected.
However, no one will be willing to bet that India have an easy ride ahead of them.
Ireland have earned the respect of the cricketing fraternity after their shock three-wicket win over England -- the same team against whom India managed to eke out a tie off the very last ball of the match.
With all four innings passing the 300-run mark, batsmen will be licking their lips in anticipation. But the team that will come up trumps is the one which has the hungrier bowlers.
The intelligent bowler, willing and able to vary his line and length, use subtle changes in pace, bowl to his field and, most importantly, bowl to take wickets rather than contain the batsmen, is what both teams need.
This is where Zaheer Khan's and Harbhajan Singh's years of international experience will be invaluable for India. Ireland on the other hand have to draw on the learnings from a smattering of ODIs and some county exposure.
Indeed it was Zaheer's magical spell with the old ball in the batting powerplay on Sunday that revived Indian fortunes as he halted the English juggernaut by taking three wickets with a good length delivery, a yorker and a slower ball.
Beside Harbhajan's regular deliveries, his topspinner and 'doosra' will be quite bewitching to the Irish batsmen, who showed their lack of ability to deal quality spin bowling in the way they played Graeme Swann.
Ashish Nehra, if fit, has the ability to swing the ball and to bowl accurate yorkers and will come in handy especially when batsmen are looking for big hits.
Ireland, on the other hand, have an arsenal of all-rounders who can turn their arm over if called upon but do not really have the ability to pose much of a threat to the likes of Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar.
Boyd Rankin, Ireland's leading wicket-taker during the 2007 World Cup, is the only bowler who has the ability to trouble the Indian batsmen with his pace and bounce.
Their spinners -- the 18-year-old George Dockrell and the 20-year-old Paul Stirling -- are blossoming talents but their mental toughness will be put to test against the Indian batsmen, who are probably the best player of the turning ball in world cricket.
Indeed, Tendulkar alone has been playing international cricket since before both of them were born and in that time has given the best of spinners nightmares.
The only edge Ireland hold over India is in the fielding department.
While the Irish have backed their bowlers to the hilt by chasing down every ball and going after every catch, the Indians have been generous hosts by gifting runs and lives to their opponents.
The Irish are riding high on confidence and they will be looking for a win to not only to move one step closer to a quarter-final berth but also to prove their performance against England was no fluke.
Elephant Capital exiting Global Cricket Ventures
AIM-listed India-focused private equity firm Elephant Capital is on its way to exit its controversial investment in Global Cricket Ventures (GCV), a company that was a sub-licensee of World Sports Group which, in turn, held the online and mobile broadcast rights to the Indian Premier League (IPL) and has reported or anticipates future write downs across its portfolio, it said in its preliminary financial results for twelve months ended August 2010.
Last June, the Board of Control for Cricket in India had decided to rescind its global media contracts with World Sports Group and this decision affected the business of GCV. Consequently, the board of Elephant Capital has decided to dispose off its investment in GCV and accordingly to adjust the valuation of this investment for the August 2010 statement of financial position. Elephant Capital had invested £5.9 million in GCV whose value is pegged at just £1.9 million.
The investment was seen as controversial as one of the lead executives of Elephant Capital, Gaurav Burman, (one of the heirs to the Burman family that run Dabur Group in India) is the son-in-law of Lalit Modi, the former boss of the hugely successful T20 club cricket tournament IPL. Modi is facing allegations of irregularities in running IPL and Elephant Capital’s investment in GCV was also under the scanner.
Among its other portfolio firms, clinical research company ClinTec, in which the investment was as recent as August 2010, the recent performance has fallen short of expectations as pipeline projects were slower to come on stream than envisaged, and as some projects were delayed or cancelled.
Among its other portfolio firms, clinical research company ClinTec, in which the investment was as recent as August 2010, the recent performance has fallen short of expectations as pipeline projects were slower to come on stream than envisaged, and as some projects were delayed or cancelled.
“The board has made no adjustment to the valuation of this investment for the August 2010 statement of financial position, since underperformance materialised post this date but in the interim results for February 2011, would expect to make a write down in the region of £2.1 million. The board continues to believe that ClinTec's business model is sound, and is hopeful that this investment will generate value for us over time,” according to a statement by Elephant Capital’s chairman Pramath Raj Sinha.
Encapsulating the performance of the PE firm during the year, the board chairman said, “In summary, this has been a busy but disappointing year for Elephant Capital. We have fully exited one of our investments at a good rate of return and, since the start of the period, have made three additions to the portfolio. It is clearly disappointing to be writing down several of our investments, but we believe that going forward, we have set the portfolio on a sounder footing.”
During the last year, Elephant Capital invested in three firms including children book firm Amar Chitra Katha Pvt Ltd that brings out popular series besides GCV and ClinTec. In the same period, the investment firm exited from IT education services firm NIIT, generating an IRR of 23%.
For the year ended August 2010, the PE firm had revenues (through investment and other income) of £771,000 compared to £871,000 the year ago with total net loss of £2.2 million compared to £5.9 million. The loss per share accordingly declined from 12pence to 5pence a share.
Meanwhile, Obopay- a privately held California based company specialising in mobile phone payment technologies in which Elephant Capital invested in 2007, has continued to develop its emerging markets operations but the roll out in India has been slower than what Elephant Capital had envisaged.
Elephant Capital had invested £1.2 million across two funding rounds in July 2007 and April 2008 and holds 1.2% (on a fully diluted basis). It also subscribed to warrants at the time of its investment, but chose not to exercise them and as a result, these warrants have lapsed last December. Elephant Capital has written off the value of these warrants, which represents a loss of value of £106,000 even as this write down has been offset by foreign exchange gain and value of anti-dilution shares.
Elephant Capital is also a minority investor in three listed firms Mahindra Forgings and Nitco Ltd besides EIH Ltd that runs the luxury hotel chain Oberois. This set of companies were affected by the correction in Indian stock markets with the value of Elephant Capital’s investments in these firms declining by a third since August 31 when it was legged at £12.9 million to £8.5 million as of February 21.
ICC awards Cricket Scotland for its development programme
New Delhi, Mar 1 (PTI) In an attempt to recognise the effort of non-cricketing nations in the promotion of the sport, ICC today awarded Cricket Scotland for the Best Overall Cricket Development Programme. Mazhar Khan of the Emirates Cricket Board received the Lifetime Service award while Japan Cricket Association was awarded the Best Women's Cricket Initiative for its outstanding work. Suriname Cricket Association won the Best Spirit of Cricket Initiative for organising a charity cricket tournament with all proceeds going towards local orphanages. Neil Saint, of France Cricket, has been honoured with the Volunteer of the Year Award for his dedication and contribution to cricket in France in 2010. Bermuda won the Photo of the Year for the second time in a row for a picture, entitled 'Stay Focused' clicked by Fiona Holmes. Other winners this year include, Cricket Papua New Guinea (PNG) and Cricket Ireland - jointly awarded the honour of Best Promotion and Marketing Programme. Cricket PNG also took home the Best Junior Participation Initiative for its efforts in growing the game across the country and in schools. Reiterating the need to recognise the effort of people leading the development of cricket around the world, International Cricket Council Acting Global Development Tim Anderson said, "It's great to again see such outstanding initiatives and people leading the development of our Great Sport around the world. They deserve this recognition. "Congratulations to all the award winners, and to those who were not successful this time around, your continued dedication to cricket's growth is really making a positive difference," Anderson said. ICC President Sharad Pawar, alongside former heads of the Council David Morgan, Ehsan Mani and Malcolm Gray besides Keith Bradshaw, the Secretary and Chief Executive of Marylebone Cricket Club, formed the judging panel for this years awards.Bresnan punished for hitting wicket
CRICKET: England all-rounder Tim Bresnan has been reprimanded by the International Cricket Council after Sunday's tie with India.
The Yorkshireman took five wickets and scored 14 vital runs as England chased down 338 to tie with the hosts in Bangalore.
But he hit his stumps with his bat after being bowled by Piyush Chawla with the last ball of the 48th over.
Bresnan pleaded guilty to a level one offence under the ICC Code of Conduct relating to "abuse of cricket equipment or clothing, ground equipment or fixtures and fittings."
The minimum penalty for a level one breach is an official reprimand and the maximum is a fine of up to half a player's match fee.
Roshan Mahanama of the ICC's elite match referees panel said: "I took into account that Bresnan admitted his mistake, apologised for his action and that it was his first offence."
England were also punished for a slow over-rate, with captain Andrew Strauss fined 20 per cent of his match fee and the rest of the side 10 per cent.
But he hit his stumps with his bat after being bowled by Piyush Chawla with the last ball of the 48th over.
Bresnan pleaded guilty to a level one offence under the ICC Code of Conduct relating to "abuse of cricket equipment or clothing, ground equipment or fixtures and fittings."
The minimum penalty for a level one breach is an official reprimand and the maximum is a fine of up to half a player's match fee.
Roshan Mahanama of the ICC's elite match referees panel said: "I took into account that Bresnan admitted his mistake, apologised for his action and that it was his first offence."
England were also punished for a slow over-rate, with captain Andrew Strauss fined 20 per cent of his match fee and the rest of the side 10 per cent.
Ian Bell hails England’s resolve
England are still to convince they can be genuine contenders to win the World Cup but they have proved they will not disappear without a fight, the fate of so many recent campaigns.
The team’s supposed weakness, their batting minus the talents of Eoin Morgan, has proved to be their strength, chasing 293 to beat Holland before Sunday night’s epic 338 to tie with India.
The men at the top of the order, notably Andrew Strauss who is now the tournament’s leading run-scorer, have rescued a bowling attack that has been savaged twice by batsmen from two ends of the cricketing spectrum — Sachin Tendulkar and Ryan ten Doeschate.
In the past, England teams have wilted under such onslaughts and when presented with targets around 300. Two years ago in India, when they lost five-nil, they conceded totals 387 and 292 and surrendered limply both times.
Then, of course, Strauss was out of the one-day side, deemed to not possess the aggression to master run-chases or target-setting from the top of the order.
By adding a new range to his strokes he provides an inspiration for the rest of the team.
Cricket stumps Bollywood
The tie between cricket and Bollywood has turned into a no-contest. Forget fielding potential biggies, Bollywood has refused to take strike!
Some would say this was inevitable. Others would say Bollywood could have done better and released a few movies even while the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 was on. Responses would vary, but that takes nothing away from the hard fact that Bollywood will release merely two films in March. With the World Cup unfolding its hypnotic magic across several venues in the sub-continent, the industry has clearly run away from risking the money-making potential of films by releasing them during the tournament's tenure. When the World Cup takes place, it simply rules. That Bollywood — even Bollywood — has had to take the escape route by lining up its releases for April, shows the impact of the tournament on the common man.
Not everybody would agree that this needed to happen. But most believe that cricket on a grand stage plays havoc with the industry's release timings. Add to that, exams that will place during March, and you have a situation in which the new releases are faced with the threat of running inside half-empty theatres.
Trade analyst and critic Taran Adarsh says, "WC and exams play the spoilsport during the release of a film. The proof is the latest Vishal Bharadwaj release, which opened in theatres on the same day as India took on Bangladesh. It did not get a good opening anywhere." Is not releasing the films during such cricketing extravaganzas a smart move? "After WC, there will be IPL. From July to August, we will have rains. Then we have the Shraddh and Ramzaan time, when films don't get released. You cannot be scared. But yes, this year, just two films are releasing during WC and the situation is worse than ever."
Trade analyst Vinod Mirani believes that the combo of cricket and exams is lethal. "The WC no doubt affects the sales of a film. But I think not everyone is glued to cricket. I feel more than cricket in seclusion, it's the combination of exams and cricket which is resulting in just two releases in March." Film critic, Deepa Gahlot, agrees, "Exams play havoc. When it's a big film, there's more at stake. The small budget ones have smaller fears. I think people should take advantage of this lull. If their films are good, they should be released during this time. I think this whole cricket fever is highly overrated."
Gahlot's theory seems to gain support from producer Vashu Bhagnani, who had released the Salman Khan film Biwi No 1 in 1999 which turned out to be a huge hit. "I do agree that whenever India plays, it definitely affects the movie sales. I released Biwi No 1 during the WC. No doubt it did great in the morning and night shows. But the afternoon and evening shows went for a toss." He adds, "When one releases one's film during this period, one fights with cricket. After the WC ends, many films get lined up for release. There's a lot of Mathematics involved."
Anupam Kher, who is acting in one of the two March releases, also believes that a good film can do well if released during a lull. He says, "Ours is a great script, and the film has been made on a very small budget. It is our chance to prove our point because there are no real competitors. We can't be frightened. There is a possibility of us doing well but, yes, it has to be good film." Komal Nahta, trade analyst, agrees that script has to be good. "Cricket does affect films. Biwi No 1 clicked, but it was an exception. But yes, the other side of the whole thing could be bad scripts too. No one accepts that their film is bad and when it doesn't work, they blame it on cricket."
That WC has had a psychological impact on the producers' shows in the statistics: that is the ultra-abnormal figure of two releases in March. Exams have made their contribution as well. Many would say that this is a case of over-reaction. Some would insist that the forthcoming releases aren't good enough to capitalise on the lull.
25 black maketeers in net
BANGALORE: A Rs 1,600 ticket being sold for Rs 8,000. With the cricket fever raging and people out to make a fast buck, selling tickets in black was rampant around the stadium. When TOI reporter went around the stadium, at least five men asked whether a ticket was needed."We have Rs 1,600 tickets. The rates are Rs 8,000-10,000," they said.
But soon the black marketeers fell into the police net police arrested 25, recovered 25 unsold tickets and cash Rs 82,000 from them. " Policemen in mufti caught the ticket sellers red-handed,'' said city police commissioner Shankar M Bidari.
Meanwhile, continuing their raids, Central Crime Branch (CCB) police on Saturday arrested two more bookies for allegedly indulging in cricket betting business.
Police said the accused are Dinesh Kumar alias Dinesh (36) of Tyagarajanagar and V Vadivelu (34) of Jayanagar. Police recovered Rs 2 lakh in cash, eight mobile phones, an LCD TV and a sheet of paper containing the names of other bookies and the money invested by them. Police, are looking for other bettors whom they identified as Narahari alias Benaka, Soni, Mukesh, Harish, Sibu and Akkipet Babu.
Police said prime accused Dinesh Kumar and his associates have been into cricket betting business for the past 10 years.
On Friday, CCB police raided a house in Vyalikaval and arrested three bookies including Ravi alias Fighter Ravi and seized property worth over Rs 1 crore including cash Rs 20 lakh from them.
ANALYSIS-Cricket-India's weakness exposed when not holding a bat
India snatched a thrilling tie against England on Sunday but their tag as World Cup favourites is starting to face increasing scrutiny as the humdinger exposed serious chinks in their armoury when they are not batting.
India's batting line-up is arguably the best on paper and, more importantly, in top form as they notched up scores in excess of 300 in their first two games of the tournament.
But take away the bat, and it is a whole different story.
While it may sound harsh, it was more a case where England threw the match away rather than India grabbing a point in the run-feast which ended with a dramatic tie off the last ball in Bangalore -- leaving both teams stranded on 338 runs.
The featherbed of a batting pitch meant that bowlers on either side were always going to suffer.
But Tim Bresnan's career-best haul of five for 48 for England highlighted the lack of bite the Indian bowlers had in their own backyard.
If not for India's pace spearhead Zaheer Khan, who claimed three quick wickets in England's batting powerplay to wrest the initiative back, the visitors would have cruised to victory despite chasing a daunting 339 victory target.
Munaf Patel, who partnered Zaheer with the new ball, spinners Harbhajan Singh and Piyush Chawla posed no threat to the English batsmen, who put up partnerships of 68, 43 and 170 for the first three wickets to almost take their side home.
For the second straight match, the experienced Indian bowling put up an insipid performance. They conceded 283 runs against Bangladesh, failing to bowl out a side filled with average batsmen just finding their way in world cricket.
It is not that India have a lot to choose from with the bench strength consisting of the wayward Shanthakumaran Sreesanth, the injury-prone Ashish Nehra and the inexperienced Ravichandran Ashwin.
While Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni chose to credit the opposition's batting and put some of the blame on the pitch, he admitted that a lack of choices limited his bowling attack.
"You have to manage the resources. It's not that the bowlers are not good. Maybe this was a game where the conditions didn't really suit them," Dhoni said.
FIELDING HOWLERS
"At times when you play international cricket, the opposition team also plays well and I think it was an example where the England team batted really well."
However, he was more direct when it came to the Indian fielding which put down at least two chances.
"India has many strengths but fielding is definitely not one of them," Dhoni said.
While most would call the DRS howler the turning point, when England's Ian Bell bizarrely survived an lbw appeal while on 17, the most decisive moment was perhaps when Harbhajan dropped Andrew Strauss when he was on 22. Strauss went on to score 158.
Even the excellent fielders like Virat Kohli put down a regulation slip catch, while Yuvraj Singh missed a couple of run-out opportunities and the reliable Sachin Tendulkar misfielded a couple to concede boundaries.
Usually the exceptional fielders make up for the weak links in the team but in India's case it seems like the only way to win is to bat themselves out of trouble.
Luckily for India, they have a couple of seemingly easy games against Ireland and Netherlands to get their act right before they face South Africa, who will ruthlessly exploit India's mistakes.
"Being human beings you always commit mistake and the longer you can delay the mistakes the better cricketer you can be," Dhoni said.
With the hopes of more than one billion plus fans resting on their shoulders, Dhoni's men know that they can not afford many more mistakes over the next five weeks if they are to triumph on home soil.
AIR expects to earn Rs. 8 crore ad revenue from ICC World Cup
New Delhi: All India Radio (AIR) expects to earn Rs. 7-8 crore in advertising revenue from its coverage of the ongoing Cricket World Cup, but the public service broadcaster’s news division is complaining that live commentary is eating into current affairs programming and news bulletin time.
AIR, which typically charges Rs. 300 for a 10-second ad spot during regular programming, is earning Rs. 7,000-10,000 for the same spot during matches.
“If team India performs well, the figure can escalate by 20-30%,” said an AIR official, who did not want to be named as he is not authorized to speak to the media.
Cricket is India’s most popular sport, and the International Cricket Council (ICC) World Cup, held every four years, is its biggest tournament, pitching top teams from around the world against each other. India, along with Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, is co-hosting this year’s edition, which began on 19 February.
AIR will air 35 of the 49 matches that will be played during the World Cup, and has paid ICC around Rs. 1 crore—at $6,250 (Rs. 2.8 lakh) per match—for broadcasting rights. It has made additional investment in hiring 20-25 commentators, inviting experts and setting up commentary boxes at match venues.
The broadcaster earned Rs. 4-5 crore in ad revenue from 18 matches in the 2007 World Cup. “This time, we are excited and confident of earning more revenue because many of the matches are happening in India,” said the AIR executive.
Rajeev Shukla, deputy director of sports at AIR, said the World Cup commentary, both in Hindi and English, covered 70 stations to reach 95-98% of India’s population. “We are very happy with the response and the feedback that we are getting is positive,” he said.
But AIR’s news services division, which puts together more than 500 bulletins every day in 82 languages or dialects, of which 89 are broadcast from Delhi, is unhappy.
“In Delhi alone, 12-15 news bulletins apart from programmes on current affairs and personal finance will not be aired throughout this cricketing season,” said a news division official who refused to be named, saying the issue is sensitive. “We had made a special programme on the Rail Budget (of 25 February), but it was cancelled because of cricket commentary.” The executive said AIR’s news audience is complaining.
But other officials said the broadcaster shouldn’t miss on a rare chance to earn ad revenue.
“We hardly get any advertising on radio and it would be silly not to encash the World Cup,” said the first executive cited above.
“This (World Cup) is an important event and it’s our duty to air it,” said Shukla. He, however, added that the finance minister’s Union budget speech on 28 February will be broadcast live.
Companies and brands such as ITC Ltd, Bharti Airtel Ltd, Lava International Ltd and Coca Cola have already started advertising during AIR’s World Cup coverage.
“Given AIR’s wide reach, it makes sense for brands to advertise, especially if they want to look beyond just the metros,” said Basabdatta Chowdhuri, chief executive of Madison Media, an arm of marketing communications group Madison Communications Pvt Ltd. “Also, AIR’s cricket commentary has always been very impressive and, invariably, the inventory goes full.”
Although both AIR and the Doordarshan network of television channels are public service broadcasters under the autonomous Prasar Bharati, the two have entered into separate deals with ICC.
The Sports Broadcasting Signals (Mandatory Sharing with Prasar Bharati) Act 2007 mandates that live television and radio feeds should be shared with Doordarshan and AIR for events deemed important for the nation by the government.
AIR has purchased the exclusive rights for World Cup’s radio broadcasting as no private radio broadcaster is allowed to uplink signals for news or live commentary in India.
“According to the current regulations, no private radio channel can beam current affairs programmes or live commentaries in the country since these come under the category of news,” said S. Keerthivasan, business head, radio and entertainment business, HT Media Ltd, which operates the Fever 104 FM brand. “That’s a reason why we cannot purchase rights for the matches.”
Kiwis save their best for Australia: Hussey
New Delhi: The ICC Cricket World Cup is well on its way and though I do wish I was there in the middle of all the action, I’m wishing the boys all the best from afar. It’s just one of those things and the selectors do have the best interests of the team at heart. One would think that it would be hard to see one’s younger brother playing but it isn’t. Not at all. David has an important role in the side and is playing well, and I’m really happy for him.
Even though they lost the warms-ups and got off to a slow start against Zimbabwe in their first match, I fully believe the team will go far. Australia take their preparations very seriously and one has to remember that it takes some time getting accustomed to the conditions going to India from Australia. I’m confident that they will keep improving as they go along. In the end, against Zimbabwe, there were some pretty good performances especially from the top four batsmen and it was a good result. To their credit, Zimbabwe did bowl and field brilliantly.
The match against New Zealand on Friday is going to be great one. Not only will it be an emotional one in the backdrop of the terrible earthquake in New Zealand, it will also be played for the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy. This is a bit different than having a head to head series but I’m all for it. There has always been a great rivalry between the two sides with this trophy being one of the most hard-fought through the years. It’s been shared quite a few times so I hope Australia win it.
Having said that, any match against New Zealand is always a tough one as they tend to do their best against us. Moreover, they will be looking to win to bring some joy back home. Australia will, on the other hand, also be looking forward to putting in a good performance.
Where the Ricky Ponting incident in Nagpur is concerned, one could see his frustration after his dismissal. The dressing room is the one place that we can go to and let emotions pour. It’s hard being in the public eye all the time and for us it is a sanctuary. It is unfortunate that something was accidentally damaged but I do empathise with Ricky.
A lot has been said about Australia not being the powerhouse it was during the last decade and a half but I don’t feel that’s true. If one looks back to 2006, we had a lot of injuries in the ICC Champions Trophy in South Africa but still won! Now, the whole country is behind them watching and hoping, not just for a good performance against New Zealand on Friday but the whole competition. We really don’t want to see them back home until after the tournament!
England can hurt India on turner, says Bopara
Ashes-winning England have spinners who can cause a headache for India if Sunday's World Cup match is played on a turning track, batsman Ravi Bopara said on Thursday.
"If it is a spinning deck we have got our own spinners who can cause problems. A pitch that spins is going to cause trouble for any team. It is going to cause problems for India as well," said Bopara.
"A lot is going to depend on the conditions. If the conditions don't suit spin we don't have to worry about it. It is going to be a good game."
India are expected to include a second specialist spinner against England, especially after the success of their slow men against defending champions Australia in a warm-up game at the same venue.
England, who meet India in the day-night match in Bangalore on Sunday, are seeking their second successive victory after having defeated the Netherlands in Nagpur on Tuesday.
Off-spinner Graeme Swann was England's most successful bowler with 2-35 off 10 tight overs, but their overall bowling performance was below par as they conceded 292 against the non-Test-playing nation.
"We were not our usual self the other day. But there are a lot of positives from that game, particularly the chase," said Bopara. "A total of 293 is a big score against any side, especially in India where the wickets get slower and lower. It is harder to bat. We batted brilliantly especially at the top."
Bopara also played a key role in England's big chase, smashing a 20-ball 30 with one six and two fours."It (the knock against the Netherlands) does help the confidence. I felt a bit relaxed when I went in the other night. We always knew we were going to win the game, but I had to ensure I was there till the end to finish it off."
India boast of exciting stroke-players in Virender Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar and skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, but Bopara said his team had plans to keep pressure on the hosts' batting line-up.
"This is one of our toughest challenges in this tournament. We know what the Indian batsman are capable of, but we do have our plans to keep them quiet," said Bopara, who has so far scored 1,170 runs in 55 one-day internationals.
"Every match is big for us. Even the game the other night was big. Playing India in India is going to be huge. It's going to be massive for the fans. All the boys are looking forward to it. We have plans against each bowler and batsman but it is how the batsmen feel on the day. We generally play aggressive cricket. We know in places like Bangalore, there can be high totals like 270-300." Bopara said he was looking forward to playing a big match before a sizeabale holiday crowd.
"I have played in this atmosphere before in the IPL (Indian Premier League). It is very, very noisy. You struggle to have a conversation with a player on the field but it is fun," he said.
"The crowd are enjoying it. At the end of the day you are an entertainer and you want them to enjoy. When you set yourself high standards you don't drift away. The crowd does pump you up."
Bopara, who replaced injured Eoin Morgan at the last moment for a place in the World Cup squad, said he was keen to make the most of the opportunity.
"It is a big opportunity to get back into the side. I have got two opportunities so far, one in the warm-up game and then in the opening match," Bopara said, adding his Indian idol was Tendulkar.
Bats signed by Tendulkar up for auction on eBay
Aiming to cash in on the interest generated by the ongoing Cricket World Cup, online market place eBay India has started auctioning bats autographed by master blaster Sachin Tendulkar for charity. Two cricket bats signed by the cricket maestro would be on auction and the proceeds would go for charitable purposes eBay India on Tuesday said.
"All the proceeds from the charity auction will benefit Make-A-Wish Foundation India, which is dedicated to granting the most cherished wish of children who live with life threatening illnesses," it noted.
The auction of the first bat signed by Tendulkar began yesterday and would be on till March 3. The minimum bid starts at Rs 1,001.
"The second cricket bat, also autographed by Sachin Tendulkar, will be on auction from March 3-13," the statement said.
The Cricket World Cup began in the sub-continent on February 19 and ends on April 2. Court bans illegal telecast of World Cup cricket matches
NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court has restrained around 144 cable operators across the country from telecasting the ongoing cricket World Cup, which they did by unauthorisedly accessing signals of ESPN Software India Pvt Ltd (ESIPL).
The court was hearing a suit filed by the company seeking an order to restrain cable operators from unauthorisedly broadcasting the tournament.
The ICC Cricket World Cup, being co-hosted by India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, is being telecast on ESPN, STAR Sports and STAR Cricket channels from Feb 19 to April 2.
Allowing ESIPL's plea against the unauthorised accessing of telecast signals by cable operators, Justice Gita Mittal said: "After this order, anyone showing the broadcast of ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 through any unauthorised means or any other channel will be held in contempt of court and liable for prosecution."
The court, in an order delivered Friday and made available Monday, asked all cable operators to file a status report within a week's time.
ESIPL in its suit claimed that the defendants, approximately 144 cable operators, are taking unauthorized connections and they are unauthorisedly accessing signals of the plaintiff without taking a licence from the company.
The court gave permission to ESIPL to take action against all other cable operators not party to the suit but unauthorisedly utilising the feed of ESPN, STAR Sports and STAR Cricket without licence.
The court said: "Restrained the 144 named cable operators from transmitting and/or telecasting in any manner whatsoever without licence from ESS (ESPN STAR Sports) the telecast of ICC Cricket World Cup 2011."
The cable operators have been restrained from telecasting or transmitting any other channel or in any other manner infringing the copyright or re-broadcast right of ESPN STAR Sports.
The court issued injunction against unnamed cable operators indulging in the illegal telecast and told police to render assistance to ESIPL to enforce the order.
Win against England could take India to quarterfinals: Shastri
Mumbai: Asserting that MS Dhoni's men had the potential to go all the way in the ongoing World Cup, former India all-rounder Ravi Shastri today said the team's next match against England is crucial as a win could secure a quarterfinal berth for the country.
"India have a very good chance...I don't think they (Indian team) would look at any competition. This Indian team, if they play to its potential, it can beat anybody," Shastri told reporters during a promotional event for Audi car.
"Victory against England will make it two-out-of-two and we would be almost certain to make it to the quarterfinal. You can play freely. So the next match is very important to get a win on the board," he added.
India, who defeated Bangladesh by 87 runs in their first match at Dhaka, will face England on February 27 in Bangalore.
Asked what would be his advice to the Indian squad, he said, "Enjoy your cricket. Don't let the pressure get to you. Understand your role. Go and play to the best of your ability. That's the way you get the crowd on your side which helps you to raise the bar."
Recalling the country's victory in the 1985 World Championship of cricket, Shastri, who was named Champion of Champions for his 182 runs and eight wickets and was presented with an Audi 100 car for his efforts, said win in that tournament proved that India's performance in the 1983 World Cup was not a fluke.
He further said his winning the Audi paved the way for an amendment to the tax laws, which allowed those who won a car in world events to bring it duty free.
Indian Batsman Rights Early Wrong to Blow Away Bangladesh
Of all the ways players can embarrass themselves in cricket, few are worse than being implicated in a running mix-up that leads to a teammate’s dismissal. Add in the victim/teammate being a national idol, and the match the opening contest of the World Cup, and you have some idea of how Virender Sehwag will have felt when his fellow batsman, Sachin Tendulkar, was dismissed early in India’s game on the turf of its co-host, Bangladesh, in Mirpur on Saturday.
The run for which Tendulkar called might have put Sehwag in danger himself. But Sehwag’s failure to move at all made it inevitable that Tendulkar would be stranded and thrown out, as he was by almost the length of the pitch.
For Sehwag, the best thing he could have done after that would have been to prolong his batting for as long as possible. Not only would that postpone the inevitable awkward conversation with Tendulkar, but it would give him the chance of doing something spectacular to make up for his mistake.
That is what Sehwag did, and how.
It helps that Tendulkar has an even-keel temperament, was far from guiltless in his own dismissal, and above all is a team player. “It’s O.K.,” Sehwag, in comments after the match, said Tendulkar had told him. “What’s important is to win the game for the country. It’s not important who is performing.”
But even the angriest egotist would have to have admitted that by going on to score 175 runs, Sehwag more than made up for that early mishap. That his score fell short of erasing Tendulkar’s own record, 200, for the highest ever innings in a one-day international, felt right.
Sehwag did, however, play an innings that could hardly have been bettered even by Tendulkar. Those 175 runs did much more than postpone an awkward conversation. They meant that India took the first and potentially trickiest step on what its players hope will be a triumphant march to the final in Mumbai on April 2. India will not again have to leave home. Its remaining five pool matches are in India, as will be any quarterfinal or semifinal.
As Shakib al-Hasan, Bangladesh’s captain and the bowler who eventually dismissed Sehwag, said, “He took the match away from us.”
After winning the toss, Shakib chose to field, saying that he would be happy to chase a total of about 260. Sehwag set the tone by striking the first delivery of the tournament, from Bangladesh bowler Shafiul Islam, to the boundary for four runs.
That was entirely in keeping with Sehwag’s reputation as cricket’s greatest top-of-the-order pyrotechnician. Those pyrotechnics are glorious while they last, which is not always very long. The average length of his previous innings in 223 O.D.I.’s was 32 deliveries.
Given his record in five-day tests, where he has shown an unmatched ability to play long, attacking innings, four times passing 250, it is surprising he has been so vulnerable. One reason perhaps is that he has attacked too rashly in one-dayers, safe in the knowledge that his usual partner is cricket’s greatest player of long, brilliantly calculated, one-day innings — Tendulkar.
Before this tournament, though, Sehwag spoke of wanting to play innings that last for the whole of the 50 six-ball overs of an O.D.I. innings.
Tendulkar’s early demise meant India needed Sehwag to do just that. He fell just short of batting to the end, but the 140 balls he faced still made it the longest innings he has played in an O.D.I.
There was also a notable difference in style. Only at the end, after being injured mid-innings and batting with a runner, did he seem to be blasting for the boundaries from every ball.
Sehwag scored from more than half of the deliveries he faced and found an ideal partner in India’s newest batting star, Virat Kohli, who reached his own 100 from the penultimate ball of the innings, taking it to the final total of 370.
Edwards and Thomas replace injured duo in Windies squad
Batsman Kirk Edwards and wicketkeeper batsman Devon Thomas have been drafted into the West Indies World Cup squad after Carlton Baugh and Adrian Barath were ruled out, the International Cricket Council said.
Opener Barath and wicketkeeper Baugh were both forced out earlier this week with hamstring injuries, forcing the West Indies Cricket Board to seek replacements.
Edwards, 26, is a right-handed batsman who has yet to make his West Indies debut, while Thomas, 21, has played two ODIs.
Baugh and Barath bring the number of replacements needed for the tournament to 10 after Ed Rainsford, Tinotenda Mawoyo and Sean Ervine of Zimbabwe, Australia's Nathan Hauritz and Michael Hussey, Praveen Kumar of India, England's Eoin Morgan and Sohail Tanvir of Pakistan were replaced.
Vettori agrees with ICC's 10-team 2015 World Cup move
After bowling out Kenya for 69, NZ captain Vettori says 10-team 2015 WC is a right move
It appears as if International Cricket Council's (ICC) decision to reduce the number of teams to 10 at the 2015 World Cup is justifiable. Kenya's abysmal performance here at Chepauk yesterday ” bowled out by New Zealand for 69 runs ” brought to the fore the ugly truth that cricket is still a sport confined to seven or eight teams.
Though the Kenyan team management, counting Jonty Rhodes, were sure of upsetting the Kiwis, who came here on the back of their worst run in ODI history, the Africans could not live up to the billing of the only minnow side to have made the semi-finals in 2003.
New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori agreed with ICC's move of getting rid of associate teams like Kenya for the next World Cup. "To be honest, I can see the benefits of ICC doing this. In 1996, we didn't have so many associate teams, and it was a successful World Cup. Just as long as the development of these lesser teams is done ¦ that's important for the sport. Everyone is talking about globalising the sport, and we won't know what these teams are capable of until they play in big tournaments. It's up to the ICC to see whether their development is done in different levels and tournaments. I can see both formats working, the World Cup won't lose out in any way," Vettori said.
However, West Indies' World Cup-winning skipper Clive Lloyd has another view. He told a TV station recently: "Why would we want to get rid of them? In the FIFA World Cup, teams like Senegal and South Korea have caused major upsets. That's why it's called a World Cup. It's important to grow rather than reduce the number of teams."
Cricket World Cup returns to the sub-continent Thursday
Dhaka, Feb 16 (IANS) No more England's preserve, the biggest event in the game of cricket - the World Cup - returns to its new power centre, the Indian sub-continent, for the third time Thursday with a gala opening ceremony here.
Amid a tight security blanket, the Bangladesh capital is all set to usher in 43 days of riveting action spread across 13 venues in three countries with a mesmerising 135-minute routine of song, dance and laser shows at the age-old Bangabandhu National Stadium. Two days later, Bangladesh and co-hosts India clash in the inaugural game at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur, on Dhaka's outskirts. The other host country Sri Lanka start off their campaign against lowly Canada in a group A encounter in Colombo Sunday. Of the three South Asian neighbours, India has organised the event with Pakistan in 1987, while Sri Lanka joined the duo as the 1996 hosts. For first time co-organisers Bangladesh, the honour has coincided with a historic occasion, as 2011 marks the silver jubilee of its first ever One-day International game against Pakistan in 1986. The tenth edition of cricket's quadrennial showpiece, featuring 14 teams and 49 matches -- 29 in India, a dozen in Sri Lanka and eight in Bangladesh -- has not been without its share of controversies. Terrorism, the tardy pace of preparations and the weather proved major hindrances. A big jolt came in February 2009, when the International Cricket Council (ICC) removed all the 14 games that were to be played in Pakistan following the terror attack on the Sri Lankan team bus in Lahore. Pakistan, however, remain official co-hosts, though they would play their home matches in Sri Lanka. As recent as a month ago, the ICC inspectors found five of the venues -- three in Sri Lanka and Wankhede and Eden Gardens in India -- were not ready. While four of the venues got the nod, the historic Eden -- that staged the World Cup final in 1987 and a semifinal in 1996 -- was stripped of the India-England Feb 27 tie on grounds of unpreparedness. With the match shifted to Bangalore, Eden was left with three other non-India matches only. With cricket and commerce now becoming synonymous, particularly in the sub-continent, the ICC's dictum that players cannot endorse products which have a conflict of interest with the Cup sponsors has triggered discontent. Four Indian players, including Sachin Tendulkar, met Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president Shashank Manohar on the issue. And now, Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has reportedly been warned by the ICC for breaching its ambush marketing clause. The game has a come a long way from the maiden edition of the World Cup in 1975 and the two subsequent editions in England. Those were the days when the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), headquartered at Lord's in London, ruled cricket. In 1987, the power centre started shifting with the sub-continental nations flexing their financial muscles as the bulk of the investors came from this part of the world. As the years went by, the ICC headquarters shifted to Dubai and now, the sub-continent calls the shots. England's fading clout has found an echo in on-field action. While India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka have all been world champions, England are still looking for their first World Cup success. Australia, with four Cup wins, remain the most successful side, followed by the West Indies with back-to-back wins in 1975 and 1979. While the West Indies are a pale shadow of their past cricketing might, Australia also are not being regarded as favourites as they are in the process of finding their feet once again after the retirement of prized players. With a formidable batting line up, India are being rated as the team most likely to win the trophy, followed by Pakistan and Sri Lanka. England, with their recent successes, are also being counted among the strongest Cup challengers, and if they manage to pull it off, they will be making a telling statement in a region which has played a big role in taking the World Cup away from their territory.
NGO to get Rs 25,000 from Reliance Life for every WC six
Though the Kenyan team management, counting Jonty Rhodes, were sure of upsetting the Kiwis, who came here on the back of their worst run in ODI history, the Africans could not live up to the billing of the only minnow side to have made the semi-finals in 2003.
New Zealand captain Daniel Vettori agreed with ICC's move of getting rid of associate teams like Kenya for the next World Cup. "To be honest, I can see the benefits of ICC doing this. In 1996, we didn't have so many associate teams, and it was a successful World Cup. Just as long as the development of these lesser teams is done ¦ that's important for the sport. Everyone is talking about globalising the sport, and we won't know what these teams are capable of until they play in big tournaments. It's up to the ICC to see whether their development is done in different levels and tournaments. I can see both formats working, the World Cup won't lose out in any way," Vettori said.
However, West Indies' World Cup-winning skipper Clive Lloyd has another view. He told a TV station recently: "Why would we want to get rid of them? In the FIFA World Cup, teams like Senegal and South Korea have caused major upsets. That's why it's called a World Cup. It's important to grow rather than reduce the number of teams."
Amid a tight security blanket, the Bangladesh capital is all set to usher in 43 days of riveting action spread across 13 venues in three countries with a mesmerising 135-minute routine of song, dance and laser shows at the age-old Bangabandhu National Stadium.
Two days later, Bangladesh and co-hosts India clash in the inaugural game at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur, on Dhaka's outskirts.
The other host country Sri Lanka start off their campaign against lowly Canada in a group A encounter in Colombo Sunday.
Of the three South Asian neighbours, India has organised the event with Pakistan in 1987, while Sri Lanka joined the duo as the 1996 hosts. For first time co-organisers Bangladesh, the honour has coincided with a historic occasion, as 2011 marks the silver jubilee of its first ever One-day International game against Pakistan in 1986.
The tenth edition of cricket's quadrennial showpiece, featuring 14 teams and 49 matches -- 29 in India, a dozen in Sri Lanka and eight in Bangladesh -- has not been without its share of controversies.
Terrorism, the tardy pace of preparations and the weather proved major hindrances.
A big jolt came in February 2009, when the International Cricket Council (ICC) removed all the 14 games that were to be played in Pakistan following the terror attack on the Sri Lankan team bus in Lahore. Pakistan, however, remain official co-hosts, though they would play their home matches in Sri Lanka.
As recent as a month ago, the ICC inspectors found five of the venues -- three in Sri Lanka and Wankhede and Eden Gardens in India -- were not ready. While four of the venues got the nod, the historic Eden -- that staged the World Cup final in 1987 and a semifinal in 1996 -- was stripped of the India-England Feb 27 tie on grounds of unpreparedness.
With the match shifted to Bangalore, Eden was left with three other non-India matches only.
With cricket and commerce now becoming synonymous, particularly in the sub-continent, the ICC's dictum that players cannot endorse products which have a conflict of interest with the Cup sponsors has triggered discontent. Four Indian players, including Sachin Tendulkar, met Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) president Shashank Manohar on the issue. And now, Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has reportedly been warned by the ICC for breaching its ambush marketing clause.
The game has a come a long way from the maiden edition of the World Cup in 1975 and the two subsequent editions in England. Those were the days when the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), headquartered at Lord's in London, ruled cricket.
In 1987, the power centre started shifting with the sub-continental nations flexing their financial muscles as the bulk of the investors came from this part of the world. As the years went by, the ICC headquarters shifted to Dubai and now, the sub-continent calls the shots.
England's fading clout has found an echo in on-field action. While India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka have all been world champions, England are still looking for their first World Cup success.
Australia, with four Cup wins, remain the most successful side, followed by the West Indies with back-to-back wins in 1975 and 1979.
While the West Indies are a pale shadow of their past cricketing might, Australia also are not being regarded as favourites as they are in the process of finding their feet once again after the retirement of prized players.
With a formidable batting line up, India are being rated as the team most likely to win the trophy, followed by Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
England, with their recent successes, are also being counted among the strongest Cup challengers, and if they manage to pull it off, they will be making a telling statement in a region which has played a big role in taking the World Cup away from their territory.
NEW DELHI: In an interesting philanthropic initiative for fighting illiteracy, private sector insurer Reliance Life Insurance will contribute Rs 25,000 for every 'six' scored in the upcoming cricket World Cup.
Going by the number of sixes hit by batsmen during the last World Cup four hears ago, there could be 'sixes' worth close to Rs one crore in the upcoming international tournament beginning February 19 due to the initiative.
Reliance Life Insurance on Wednesday said in a statement that it has joined hands with the International Cricket Council (ICC) and Room to Read - a global non-profit organisation promoting literacy and gender equality in education for this campaign.
The total donation collected from this campaign, named 'Boundaries for Books', will be made to Room to Read, towards establishing libraries and providing local language and English books to underserved children across India.
The money contributed for every single six would help providing at least 30 children access to fully functional libraries with books and trained teachers.
"Reliance Life Insurance is delighted to launch the Boundaries for Books campaign in association with ICC and Room to Read to hit illiteracy for a six," Reliance Capital .s vice chairman Amitabh Jhunjhunwala said.
Reliance Life Insurance is part of Anil Ambani group's financial services arm Reliance Capital.
Among others, the initiative has been supported by Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni, Ricky Ponting, Angelo Mathews, Dale Steyn and Shane Watson.
"If every six I hit will allow children to access books and libraries, then there is no better inspiration for me to play my best!" Dhoni said.
In the ICC Cricket World Cup 2007, there were 51 matches in which 1808 fours and 373 sixes were hit.
Cricket fans in Kohima wish Team India good luck
KOHIMA: Even though the game of cricket is not much popular in India's northeastern region, the ensuing ICC World Cup has aroused overwhelming interest among the enthusiasts of sports in Nagaland, who wished Team India
The Indian team is scheduled to take on New Zealand in a friendly match on February 16.
An ardent fan of the game in Nagaland wished on Tuesday the Indian cricket team, particularly Sachin Tendulkar, good luck.
"This message goes to the Indian team for the upcoming World Cup, wishing all the very best to all the guys and Sehwag, from my brothers side. Sachin please don't get sick this time and show to the world that we are capable of wining the World Cup," said Gabriella, an enthusiast of cricket.
Another cricket buff wished all the best to the Indian cricket team and said that they have all the support of fans from Nagaland.
"I wish the entire Indian cricket team best of luck for the upcoming World Cup 2011 and hope the Indian players will bring the cup to India. I want to say that lakhs of Naga supporters are with you," said Anthony, a cricket enthusiast.
India are among the favourites to win the cup, but several experts feel the 'favourites' tag will be the albatross around the team's neck when Dhoni and his men begin their quest for the World Cup glory.
A billion dreams will rest on their shoulders as they seek to become the second Indian team, after the 1983 'Kapil's Devils', to win the top prize in one-day cricket.
The 2011 ICC World Cup is being hosted by Sri Lanka, India and Bangladesh. The opening ceremony will be held in Dhaka on February 17. good luck for the Tournament.
Ian Chappell writes off England's chances of victory
Chappell played in the first one-day international, between Australia and England in 1971, and was skipper when Australia lost to the West Indies in the first World Cup final at Lord’s in 1975.
And he believes England’s traditional weakness against spin bowling, which surfaced again in the recent one-day series in Australia, will cost them in Indian conditions.
England routinely struggled to score quickly against the spin of Steve Smith and Xavier Doherty in the seven-match series, in which they were thumped 6-1, and have only two warm-up games to prepare for their first group match against Holland on Tuesday.
For Chappell that was evidence enough that they would struggle on even slower pitches. “England have got a chance of winning, but in my mind their chances have slipped based on what I saw in Australia,” he said. “That is mainly because I thought they played spin very poorly in Australia, and if you’re going to play spin poorly in Australia, I don’t like your chances much on the subcontinent.”
Chappell predicted that Sri Lanka, South Africa, India and Australia would contest the semi-finals, with England making it out of their group but falling at the last eight stage.
South Africa power past Aussies
England fans will, however, take comfort from the fact that before the Ashes series Chappell identified England’s top-order batting as their “Achilles heel” and said that they were taking “a hell of a gamble” on the out-of-form Alastair Cook.
It may seem a strange thing to say given the amount of one-day cricket England seem to play, but the question of how they will respond to Indian conditions is something of an unknown. However, they received backing from former India batsman Sanjay Manjrekar who predicted that England would reach the final four, along with Australia, India and South Africa.
“I’m one of the very few out here in the subcontinent who is giving England a chance,” said Manjrekar, a veteran of 74 one-day internationals and one of the commentators for the tournament. “They’ve got Jonathan Trott at the top, who’s the kind of top-order batsman that you need in 50-over cricket. He could be one of the highest run-getters in the league stage of the tournament.
“Ian Bell didn’t quite get going in that seven-match series against Australia, but he’s got some ability as well. Kevin Pietersen seems to be enjoying India, so if he can get his mood right, that’s a pretty decent batting order.”
According to Manjrekar, England’s recent trouncing in the one-day series in Australia was a result of post-Ashes fatigue. “I’m not going to let that scoreline of 6-1 influence me too much,” he said. “When I look at Andrew Strauss, I look at a class player. If Matt Prior gets going, he’s the kind of top-order attacking player that you need. Graeme Swann is world-class, the trajectory that Michael Yardy bowls might come to good use in India conditions. And they’ve got a decent seam attack.”
Manjrekar played down the importance of spin. “Conditions are an important factor, but the kind of rank turners that we used to have in the 1990s have disappeared,” he said. “We get more real belters, where the ball comes on nicely. Generally the balance is so much in favour of the batsmen. Bowlers really have to dig deep to make an impression.”
It may seem a strange thing to say given the amount of one-day cricket England seem to play, but the question of how they will respond to Indian conditions is something of an unknown. However, they received backing from former India batsman Sanjay Manjrekar who predicted that England would reach the final four, along with Australia, India and South Africa.
“I’m one of the very few out here in the subcontinent who is giving England a chance,” said Manjrekar, a veteran of 74 one-day internationals and one of the commentators for the tournament. “They’ve got Jonathan Trott at the top, who’s the kind of top-order batsman that you need in 50-over cricket. He could be one of the highest run-getters in the league stage of the tournament.
“Ian Bell didn’t quite get going in that seven-match series against Australia, but he’s got some ability as well. Kevin Pietersen seems to be enjoying India, so if he can get his mood right, that’s a pretty decent batting order.”
According to Manjrekar, England’s recent trouncing in the one-day series in Australia was a result of post-Ashes fatigue. “I’m not going to let that scoreline of 6-1 influence me too much,” he said. “When I look at Andrew Strauss, I look at a class player. If Matt Prior gets going, he’s the kind of top-order attacking player that you need. Graeme Swann is world-class, the trajectory that Michael Yardy bowls might come to good use in India conditions. And they’ve got a decent seam attack.”
Manjrekar played down the importance of spin. “Conditions are an important factor, but the kind of rank turners that we used to have in the 1990s have disappeared,” he said. “We get more real belters, where the ball comes on nicely. Generally the balance is so much in favour of the batsmen. Bowlers really have to dig deep to make an impression.”
South Africa power past Aussies
A span of 10 days can be real long in cricket. A 6-1 triumph in the one-day series against England at home had reinstalled the Australians as one of the favourites to win the World Cup. In the two practice matches here, however, the defending champions have looked anything but favourites.
If Sunday’s 38-run loss to India here at the Chinnaswamy stadium was disappointing, the seven-wicket defeat at the hands of South Africa on Tuesday was humiliating. Of course the teams will not read, or so they claim, too much into the outcome of the result of warm-up matches but this is exactly the kind of start Ricky Ponting would have done without.
Apart from the toss, there was little that went right for Australia. For the second time in as many matches, the middle-order batsmen failed to stitch anything substantial as Australia were forced to settle for a modest total – 217 all out in 47.1 overs -- upon opting to bat first. Unlike on Sunday when the Antipodeans were undone by Indian spinners, it was a combination pace and spin that rocked their middle and lower order, only a fighting 122-run association between Ponting (55, 84b, 7x4) and Michael Clarke (73, 96b, 6x4) saving them the blushes.
Given how things took a dramatic turn on Sunday night, a target in the upwards of 200 still appeared a competitive one. But Graeme Smith (65, 81b, 10x4) and Hashim Amla (60, 76b, 7x4) both of whom retired after stroking their way to half-centuries, snuffed out any Australian fightback with a calculated assault, guiding Proteas to a comfortable seven-wicket win. For all practical purpose, it was a nine-wicket win as Smith and Amla chose to retire out while Francois du Plessis was run out, rounding off a miserable day for the Aussie bowlers.
Slow off the blocks, the left-right combination took control of things as Australian bowlers made little impact on them. Smith was more aggressive of the two collecting a series of boundaries on either side of the wicket before Amla joined the party, Australian ordeal ending only when the two decided retire out in quick succession to give other batsmen to have a go at Aussie bowlers. JP Duminy made the most of the opportunity cracking an unbeaten 47.
It wasn’t the start Australia were looking at after deciding to bat first on a wicket that had good bounce and carry. Shane Watson lasted four balls, trapped in front by Dale Steyn’s fuller delivery. Brad Haddin, dropped earlier, too departed soon as paceman Lonwabo Tsotsobe’s smart work caught the batsman short of the crease.
With both the openers back in the hut without opening their accounts, skipper Ponting and his deputy Clarke set about the repair job. With the Protean pacemen steaming in, the two experienced campaigners decided to bide their time. A princely six runs came off the first five overs while the next five overs were marginally better with 21 runs being scored. Just when the two had begun to chance their arms, Ponting and Clarke fell to the left-arm spin of Robin Peterson triggering the collapse. From 128 for two, the Australians lost their remaining eight wickets for just 87 runs, failing to last 50 overs for the second time in as many matches.
No tweets during games: ICC to teamsIn a bid to ensure a corruption-free World Cup following the spot-fixing scandal, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has banned players and team officials from tweeting during matches. The decision, an initiative of ICC’s Anti-Corruption and Security Unit, was intended to restrain the players and officials from any possible approach by people with links to illegal betting during World Cup matches. The move from the ICC came in response to Australian team manager Steve Bernard’s tweets which attracted more than 1,100 followers to his @stevebernard37 account in the past six months, including during the Ashes and the subsequent ODI series, according to a report in ‘Sydney Morning Herald’ The long-time manager was told soon after arriving in Bangalore with the team last week that he, as well as any other player or team official at the World Cup, had been banned from tweeting during matches. “When it comes to issues of corruption we prefer to err on the side of caution. We don’t want to spoil anyone’s fun but there is a chance that sensitive information could be passed on during matches in this way, even inadvertently, and we just feel that team managers’ phones should be kept for operational purposes only. “This recommendation is not confined to the Australia team manager but all teams in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 and is certainly not a reaction to anything the Australia team manager has said or done in the past. It’s merely a precaution and is not something we are overly worried about at this stage,” ICC spokesman James Fitzgerald was quoted as saying by the newspaper. Players and officials will still, however, be permitted to tweet when matches are not occurring. Cricket Australia chief spokesman Peter Young believed that the in-game ban had been imposed by the ICC due to the heightened sensitivity about corruption in cricket. “(Bernard) is very judicious about what he does and doesn’t say but while he’s getting it right there needs to be one rule for all,” Young said. “It is, as I understand, a perception issue. They don’t want players or team management able to be communicating to the outside world because of the concern the information might be misused by the illegal betting industry.” Bernard and Australia coach Tim Nielsen began tweeting last August based on a request from CA, which wanted fans to get a better insight into the team. Bangladesh play down Pakistan warm-up game
For regular visitors to the Mirpur venue, be it players, officials or journalists, it was like entering familiar terrain, but one that had a different feel to it. Bangladesh's premier cricket ground has been transformed into an excellence centre and it was fully utilised on Monday, with three teams taking the opportunity to enjoy the facilities. After England used the Academy ground in the morning, Pakistan began to use the newly-laid turf on the northern side while Bangladesh sweated it out at the indoor centre in the eastern corner while also using the green retreat of the main venue for their fielding drills.
It is here, at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium, that the latter two teams will play a warm-up match tomorrow, a contest Pakistan at least are taking seriously. "Any match before the World Cup is going to be tough," Shoaib Akhtar said. "We are going to take it as a proper match rather than thinking it to be only a practice. We have seen India playing against Australia, which was a pretty serious match. "Bangladesh have beaten New Zealand few months ago and we all know what Bangladesh is capable of. I predict that Bangladesh is going to be in the semi-finals or in the quarters for sure." Pakistan have a settled enough line-up and if they do use 14 players tomorrow, it will be to test some of the youngsters. Ahmed Shehzad (despite his recent century), Asad Shafiq and Junaid Khan have never played an international game in the subcontinent and this game would be an excellent way to blood the trio in front of a sell-out crowd. Bangladesh, however, had a different strategy, and were determined to play down the significance of the game. "They will play fourteen players, we'll play thirteen so it's not a real match, just a practice match," Bangladesh coach Jamie Siddons. said. "It is a really good challenge, actually a great practice game."Pakistan are a good team but I'm not worried about them, I'm worried about us. We won't be experimenting, the batting line-up will be close to our actually starting XI. We will use extra bowlers as part of the thirteen and give everyone a try. Bangladesh captain, Shakib Al Hasan, adopted the same stance. "We are not thinking about the result but we are concentrating on properly using the practice game. We'd rather do well in the tournament than in these games. The players used the last game very well and I was impressed by the pacers. I think Rubel [Hossain] just returned from injury and he will come back better." This insistance on ignoring the result is an indication that the Bangladesh camp is keeping a close eye on the pressure the players might face in a home World Cup (although it is just a warm-up game), and why they are repeating the mantra that though a win is important for momentum, ultimately, "it's not a real game"
Turmoil in Zimbabwe cricket is over: StreakNAGPUR: The political instability in Zimbabwe had rocked cricket hard and players were the victims as they were denied Test cricket for number of years.
However, things are looking up and Zimbabwe are once again back in the main stream. The cricket development programme in the African country is on the right track and results will be seen soon, according to Heath Streak.
The former Zimbabwe captain, who himself had serious problems with Zimbabwe Cricket (CZ) after he was sacked as skipper unceremoniously in 2004, has joined the hands with the cricket board officials with only one aim: To take cricket forward in Zimbabwe.
The 36-year-old, who is now helping the side as bowling coach, said the turmoil in Zimbabwe cricket is finally over and people will see better performance during the World Cup.
"Yes, things are lot better now. The bad days are over. There are positive thoughts going on in Zimbabwe cricket and that is the reason why several former cricketers have joined CZ. Besides me, Grant Flower, Alistair Campbell (selection convener) and few others are part of the system in various capacities which is a very good sign for overall cricket in Zimbabwe," Streak told TOI on Monday.
"We are in a rebuilding phase. There is a vision in Zimbabwe to do well at the international level. With so many former cricketers involved in the present structure, things will only improve from here. Me, Grant and Campbell have played cricket for many years and now we hope to share our experience with the present team. Hopefully, we will inspire the boys to do well. We are looking forward to Test cricket, but it's a long way to go," explained Streak.
Zimbabwe will play their first Test against Bangladesh in August which will mark their re-entry to Test cricket after a long gap of six years.
Coming back to the World Cup, Streak said his team has the ability and talent to reach the knock-out stage. "Every team in the World Cup wants to do well. We know our limitations. We will take it one game at a time rather than aiming too far. Our preparations have been fine with some warm up matches. We have the ability and talent to reach the quarterfinals," said Streak.
Zimbabwe's all-time great all-rounder said the team's strength will be spinners during the World Cup. "We are relying on spinners and partly on our fielding. We have three quality spinners who can do well against all oppositions. Ray Price will spearhead the attack. He will be assisted by off-spinner Prosper Utseya and leg-spinner Graeme Cremer. The trio should be effective in sub-continental conditions," he remarked.
He, however, did not rule out the importance of pace bowlers as their success in the first two powerplays will be crucial.
"As a bowling coach and former fast bowler, I have to guide our pace bowling attack. They are a little inexperienced, but they are willing to learn fast. My motto will be to share my knowledge with the youngsters. I hope they will learn from me," he stressed.
Leon MacDonald stars for Marlborough
Three men with a shared past from last century have reunited to help Marlborough lift cricket's Hawke Cup off Otago Country.
Former All Blacks rugby fullback Leon MacDonald, one-time New Zealand fast bowler Carl Bulfin and Greg Stretch, who is not so well known on the national stage, all featured in Marlborough's overwhelming victory by an innings and 171 runs at Alexandra yesterday.
MacDonald hit 85 in his team's only innings of 472 while Bulfin took two cheap wickets as Otago Country surrendered for 83 before managing 218 in their second innings.
It marked the first time Marlborough have won the Hawke Cup in 17 years. The symbol of New Zealand minor association cricket last resided in Blenheim in 1994 when MacDonald, Bulfin and Stretch were integral members of the team.
Yesterday's result resonated with all the team members, particularly wicketkeeper-batsman Stretch, who has played 185 games for his province and is the chairman of the Marlborough Cricket Association,
"To a lot of the players here, this is our test match and to win is great but to win so convincingly is pretty special. To be part of it once is great, but to be part of it twice is something we'll never forget," he told the Marlborough Express newspaper.Special heroes for Marlborough were Central Districts allrounder Brendon Diamanti and his first-class teammate Ben Wheeler, both of whom ended the match with seven wickets.
It was Diamanti who destroyed Otago Country's first innings with the outstanding return of five for eight off 16 overs.
Marlborough defend the Hawke Cup against zone two winners Hawke's Bay in Blenheim on February 25-27.
Cricket South Africa Fires President Mtutuzeli Nyoka, Business Day Reports
Cricket South Africa fired its president, Mtutuzeli Nyoka, after a vote of no confidence, Business Day reported, citing acting president, AK Khan.
Nyoka had been in a dispute with Cricket South Africa Chief Executive Officer Gerald Majola since November over bonuses paid to officials, the Johannesburg-based newspaper said.
Nyoka promised to expose corruption in the running of the game in the country, Business Day reported.
BCCI's agenda against Dalmiya behind Eden fiasco: Kapil
KOLKATA: Captain of Indian World Cup winning team Kapil Dev on Sunday criticised the BCCI for Eden Gardens not being able to host World Cup matches involving India.
"It is also responsibility of BCCI to see that CAB completes the renovation work of the stadium in time," Dev said while participating in a cricket chat show here.
"I am not supporting CAB president Jagmohan Dalmiya nor BCCI. Everybody should have come together to host a match at Eden," he said.
Stating that adding "personal agenda" should not have come in arranging such matches, he asked: "Why for Mr Jagmohan Dalmiya, people of West Bengal will be deprived to see India in action at Eden Gardens in this World Cup?"
A stadium in Mumbai, where no match has been played earlier, has been allotted a match this time, but the match scheduled to be held in Kolkata, known for its love for cricket, has been taken away, Dev lamented.
"I also feel sorry for the people here," he said at a chat show in which three other former captains of World Cup -- Vivian Richards, Steve Waugh, and Sourav Ganguly -- were present.
Former Aussie skipper Steve Waugh said the Australians have a very good memory of Eden where they won the World Cup beating England in 1987.
About pressure to be faced by the Indian team for playing before the home crowd, Dev said, "Pressure will be there. But you have to take it in your stride as you have the crowd and the pitch in your favour."
On the dependence of the Indian team on Sachin Tendulkar, he said, "I don't like to depend on one player. Cricket is a team game."
Praising Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, he said Dhoni was able keep his cool under pressure.
Former West Indies great Richards said fielding would be going the deciding factor this time.
He said Indian batting has been improved quite a lot under coach Gary Kirsten.
According to the present format, all the rated teams should reach the quarterfinals, said Sourav Ganguly.
Pak worst prepared for World Cup but can still win: Imran Bat manufacturing units bank on India's good show for business
KARACHI: The current Pakistan cricket team has had the "worst" possible preparation for the World Cup but is still capable of lifting the trophy if it manages to stay united through the megaevent, feels the country's 1992 World Cup winning captain Imran Khan.
"The team had the worst preparation for the World Cup but it is all a matter of some players putting up their hands and performing consistently in the tournament and the team clicking and gelling together after a good start and anything can happen," Imran said when asked about the team's chances in the event starting February 19.
But Imran said the team management and the captain need to be very clear about how they approach the tournament.
"My mind is clear and my planning is clear the specialist players can win you matches so play them at the top. The top three or four batsmen should all be specialists and you can't have 'pinch hitters' coming in at the top even on the sub-continental pitches," the former captain said.
Imran feels the responsibility lies primarily with seniors such as Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq as far as batting is concerned.
"They have to play central roles in every match. The team management must focus their plans and strategy for every game around them. Because the World Cup is all about pressure and once you lose quick, wickets it becomes difficult for the incoming batsmen to handle the pressure," he said.
The cricketer-turned-politician also felt that it was wrong for critics and pundits to describe captain Shahid Afridi as a batting all-rounder.
"I don't consider him a batting all-rounder. To me he is a very energetic captain on the field a very good stock bowler and brilliant fielder. His batting is a bonus. We should not depend on it we should consider his captaincy, bowling and fielding as his main assets," he explained.
"He has all the batting talent in the world but he lacks management while batting and that has always been his weakness."
Imran said there were a number of players in the team who were not doing justice to their talent.
"Umar Akmal, Kamran Akmal, Afridi and even Abdul Razzaq are examples they have immense batting abilities but don't manage their innings well," he said.
Imran also felt that Afridi should never have left playing Test cricket last year.
"If he had decided to fight on and not left the test captaincy he would have been a much better captain today. Because test cricket is the real cricket and if as a captain you can learn to deal with the pressures of Test cricket then captaining in ODIs become much easier."
SANGAM (J-K): Bat manufacturing units in this south Kashmir town are banking on a good performance by the Indian cricket team in the upcoming World Cup to make up for the losses they have suffered during the violent protests that rocked the valley last year. Abdul Majeed Dar, the president of the Cricket Bat Manufacturers' Association, said if the Indian team has a successful World Cup, the demands for the bats made is likely to go up.
"If the Indian team does well, we will be happier as it would set off some of the losses we have suffered during the last year's protests in the valley," Dar said.
Tourists, most of whom take a cricket back home as a souvenir or for the love of the game, fled the valley overnight following widespread protests during the summer of 2010 due to the violent protests against the armed forces.
Atleast 15,000 skilled and unskilled workers at the bat manufacturing units are now hoping that the Indian team makes it to the title round of the event beginning February 19.
Some of these workers may have taken part during the last summer's valley-wide protests but now the considerations are purely financial as the progress of the national cricket team at the quadrennial event, which is hosted jointly by India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, directly affects their business.
"We hope that India makes it at least to the final of the world cup as it generally further heightens the cricket fever across the country," Mohammad Amin, owner of the many bat manufacturing units dotting the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway said.
Amin said the business for the bat manufacturers, who are fighting the odds to keep the trade going, was good following the excellent show in the 2003 World Cup when Saurav Ganguly led the team to the final before losing to Australia.
"We saw an increase of at least 2.5 times after the 2003 World Cup with order and enquiries pouring in from smaller cities of the country," he added.
Ghulam Mohiuddin, a worker in a nearby bat manufacturing unit, said if the demand for bats increases, it ensures that they get work throughout the year.
"When the demand is low, we get to make bats for five to six months in a year but if the demand increases, we will have year long work," he said.
Mohiuddin said during lean periods, he works odd jobs to sustain his family.
"I generally go with my neighbour, who is a carpenter but there is hardly any construction work going on in the winter season," he added.
The cricket bat sector in the Kashmir Valley has more than 200 units, both registered and unregistered, with a collective turnover of over Rs 10 crore per year and employees nearly 15,000 skilled and unskilled labourers.
Dar said the popularity of cricket has been on the rise since the 1983 World Cup win for India, the introduction of Indian Premier League (IPL) has also helped to sustain the largely unorganised willow industry in the valley.
ICC Europe Announces ECB Sky Sports Regional Award winners
The European winners of the ECB Sky Sports Coach Awards 2011 have been announced today with three outstanding talents being recognised in Europe.
Guernsey Cricket Board, Cricket Ireland and Cricket Scotland all have winners for this year's awards that recognise individuals who have made a significant contribution to the support and development of coaches and coaching in cricket.
Mike Kinder of Guernsey Cricket Association was honoured with the Outstanding Contribution and Services to Cricket Coaching Award for his dedication to the development of cricket. In his early years he set up the Sheffield Boys Cricket Scheme, where he was posted as Master in Charge of Cricket at Elizabeth College, a post which is still held 26 years later. He also held the post of ECB Cricket Development Officer for five years; before he set up the Guernsey Association of Cricket Coaches in 1984; which included the responsibility of organising the Guernsey Cricket Coaching Scheme, which he ran for over 20 years.
The Outstanding Coaching Award was awarded to Ireland's Andy McCrea. McCrea as a volunteer carefully balanced out his work-load with his full time profession. Andy has been at the forefront of many projects, namely overseeing huge growth in junior player participation levels through his tireless work as a coach and leader of the club's coaching team. As well as on club and school links; the club caters for boys and girls as young as five to 17.
The final award goes to Jamie Burton of Scotland for Young Coach of the Year Award. Burton was leading Coach of the Cricket Scotland ‘Western Regional Academy' junior squad (U14) for two seasons and as an exciting young coach, he is dynamic and proactive and provides a great coaching environment. Jamie is a role model for other young coaches who wish to make an impact on the lives of young players and climb the coaching ranks.
ICC Regional Development Manager Europe, Richard Holdsworth who chaired selection of the winners said: "The ECB Sky Sports Coach Awards are fantastic for coaches in Europe as it reveals the great work that many are doing. The three winners thoroughly deserve their awards for their success in each different category.
"Mike Kinder, Andy McCrea and Jamie Burton have all shown great dedication and enthusiasm to the development of cricket; their outstanding work is a great contribution to our growing game" added Holdsworth.
Sky Sports sponsorship of ECB Coach Education once again allows the ECB Coaches Association an opportunity to identify nominations for the annual Sky Sports Coach Awards. Now entering their fifth year, the awards are a way of saying thank you to people who have made a significant contribution to the support and development of coaches and coaching in cricket. These regional awards will now be put forward for the national awards.
Cup of joy brims over with cricket artwork
BHUBANESWAR: The World Cup has caught everyone's imagination, from sand artists to sculptors and advertisers, who want to wish Team India good luck.
International sand artist Sudarshan Patnaik has crafted a 125-ft long cricket bat, a ball and a stadium on the Puri beach. Patnaik has also launched a "sandy" signature campaign to wish the willow-wielders good luck.
"The sand sculpture will be featured in the Limca Book of Records as the longest cricket bat in sand," said Patnaik with pride.
Fifteen students of Patnaik helped him to put the artwork together. The artist, who has in the past handcrafted mind-blowing sand images of Michael Jackson, Barack Obama, George Bush, Saddam Hussein and Santa Claus, has a long association with cricket. He was invited to England to prepare sand sculptures for the 2009 World Cup. Recently, he showcased a sand animation show to wish Team India in CEAT Cricket Award in Mumbai.
L Eswar Rao, a stone sculptor from Jatani, has created a miniature form of the World Cup on a pencil nib, probably the smallest world cup! The one centimetre long world cup is minutely crafted on the granite bar of a pencil with the help of a needle and a blade. Rao has also created a world cup which is about half an inch long with tamarind seed.
"Since I love cricket and I am a great fan of Sachin, I want to do something to cheer the Indian team. I don't know if my message will reach them but I sincerely wish the Cup should come to India. Moreover, it is the last World Cup of Sachin. So it must come to India," said 28-year-old Eswar.
"It took me two hours to craft the miniatures. I am not eyeing a record. I just want to wish them luck," he added. KP rejects retirement talk
Kevin Pietersen has dismissed reports that he is set to quit one-day international cricket after the forthcoming World Cup. The Daily Mail claimed on Saturday that the England batsman was to stop playing in the 50-over format of the game and instead focus on Test and Twenty20 cricket, giving him more time to spend with his family.
However the 30-year-old - who was dropped from the one-day team last summer - has denied the story via his Twitter account.
He Tweeted: "Just to set the record straight... I have NO intention of retiring from ODIs after the World Cup!
"Pietersen is part of England's 15-man squad for the World Cup, with their campaign getting underway against Holland on February 22.He will extend his time abroad by playing in the Indian Premier League after the World Cup, having earned a £375,000 contract with the Deccan Chargers.
The IPL season runs from April 8 to May 22, after which the right-hander will return to his new county Surrey for the English domestic campaign.
In a bid to ensure a corruption-free World Cup following the spot-fixing scandal, the International Cricket Council (ICC) has banned players and team officials from tweeting during matches.
The decision, an initiative of ICC’s Anti-Corruption and Security Unit, was intended to restrain the players and officials from any possible approach by people with links to illegal betting during World Cup matches.
The move from the ICC came in response to Australian team manager Steve Bernard’s tweets which attracted more than 1,100 followers to his @stevebernard37 account in the past six months, including during the Ashes and the subsequent ODI series, according to a report in ‘Sydney Morning Herald’
The long-time manager was told soon after arriving in Bangalore with the team last week that he, as well as any other player or team official at the World Cup, had been banned from tweeting during matches.
“When it comes to issues of corruption we prefer to err on the side of caution. We don’t want to spoil anyone’s fun but there is a chance that sensitive information could be passed on during matches in this way, even inadvertently, and we just feel that team managers’ phones should be kept for operational purposes only.
“This recommendation is not confined to the Australia team manager but all teams in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 and is certainly not a reaction to anything the Australia team manager has said or done in the past. It’s merely a precaution and is not something we are overly worried about at this stage,” ICC spokesman James Fitzgerald was quoted as saying by the newspaper.
Players and officials will still, however, be permitted to tweet when matches are not occurring.
Cricket Australia chief spokesman Peter Young believed that the in-game ban had been imposed by the ICC due to the heightened sensitivity about corruption in cricket.
“(Bernard) is very judicious about what he does and doesn’t say but while he’s getting it right there needs to be one rule for all,” Young said.
“It is, as I understand, a perception issue. They don’t want players or team management able to be communicating to the outside world because of the concern the information might be misused by the illegal betting industry.”
Bernard and Australia coach Tim Nielsen began tweeting last August based on a request from CA, which wanted fans to get a better insight into the team.
Bangladesh play down Pakistan warm-up game
For regular visitors to the Mirpur venue, be it players, officials or journalists, it was like entering familiar terrain, but one that had a different feel to it. Bangladesh's premier cricket ground has been transformed into an excellence centre and it was fully utilised on Monday, with three teams taking the opportunity to enjoy the facilities. After England used the Academy ground in the morning, Pakistan began to use the newly-laid turf on the northern side while Bangladesh sweated it out at the indoor centre in the eastern corner while also using the green retreat of the main venue for their fielding drills.
It is here, at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium, that the latter two teams will play a warm-up match tomorrow, a contest Pakistan at least are taking seriously. "Any match before the World Cup is going to be tough," Shoaib Akhtar said. "We are going to take it as a proper match rather than thinking it to be only a practice. We have seen India playing against Australia, which was a pretty serious match. "Bangladesh have beaten New Zealand few months ago and we all know what Bangladesh is capable of. I predict that Bangladesh is going to be in the semi-finals or in the quarters for sure." Pakistan have a settled enough line-up and if they do use 14 players tomorrow, it will be to test some of the youngsters. Ahmed Shehzad (despite his recent century), Asad Shafiq and Junaid Khan have never played an international game in the subcontinent and this game would be an excellent way to blood the trio in front of a sell-out crowd. Bangladesh, however, had a different strategy, and were determined to play down the significance of the game. "They will play fourteen players, we'll play thirteen so it's not a real match, just a practice match," Bangladesh coach Jamie Siddons. said. "It is a really good challenge, actually a great practice game."Pakistan are a good team but I'm not worried about them, I'm worried about us. We won't be experimenting, the batting line-up will be close to our actually starting XI. We will use extra bowlers as part of the thirteen and give everyone a try. Bangladesh captain, Shakib Al Hasan, adopted the same stance. "We are not thinking about the result but we are concentrating on properly using the practice game. We'd rather do well in the tournament than in these games. The players used the last game very well and I was impressed by the pacers. I think Rubel [Hossain] just returned from injury and he will come back better." This insistance on ignoring the result is an indication that the Bangladesh camp is keeping a close eye on the pressure the players might face in a home World Cup (although it is just a warm-up game), and why they are repeating the mantra that though a win is important for momentum, ultimately, "it's not a real game"
Turmoil in Zimbabwe cricket is over: StreakNAGPUR: The political instability in Zimbabwe had rocked cricket hard and players were the victims as they were denied Test cricket for number of years.
However, things are looking up and Zimbabwe are once again back in the main stream. The cricket development programme in the African country is on the right track and results will be seen soon, according to Heath Streak.
The former Zimbabwe captain, who himself had serious problems with Zimbabwe Cricket (CZ) after he was sacked as skipper unceremoniously in 2004, has joined the hands with the cricket board officials with only one aim: To take cricket forward in Zimbabwe.
The 36-year-old, who is now helping the side as bowling coach, said the turmoil in Zimbabwe cricket is finally over and people will see better performance during the World Cup.
"Yes, things are lot better now. The bad days are over. There are positive thoughts going on in Zimbabwe cricket and that is the reason why several former cricketers have joined CZ. Besides me, Grant Flower, Alistair Campbell (selection convener) and few others are part of the system in various capacities which is a very good sign for overall cricket in Zimbabwe," Streak told TOI on Monday.
"We are in a rebuilding phase. There is a vision in Zimbabwe to do well at the international level. With so many former cricketers involved in the present structure, things will only improve from here. Me, Grant and Campbell have played cricket for many years and now we hope to share our experience with the present team. Hopefully, we will inspire the boys to do well. We are looking forward to Test cricket, but it's a long way to go," explained Streak.
Zimbabwe will play their first Test against Bangladesh in August which will mark their re-entry to Test cricket after a long gap of six years.
Coming back to the World Cup, Streak said his team has the ability and talent to reach the knock-out stage. "Every team in the World Cup wants to do well. We know our limitations. We will take it one game at a time rather than aiming too far. Our preparations have been fine with some warm up matches. We have the ability and talent to reach the quarterfinals," said Streak.
Zimbabwe's all-time great all-rounder said the team's strength will be spinners during the World Cup. "We are relying on spinners and partly on our fielding. We have three quality spinners who can do well against all oppositions. Ray Price will spearhead the attack. He will be assisted by off-spinner Prosper Utseya and leg-spinner Graeme Cremer. The trio should be effective in sub-continental conditions," he remarked.
He, however, did not rule out the importance of pace bowlers as their success in the first two powerplays will be crucial.
"As a bowling coach and former fast bowler, I have to guide our pace bowling attack. They are a little inexperienced, but they are willing to learn fast. My motto will be to share my knowledge with the youngsters. I hope they will learn from me," he stressed.
Leon MacDonald stars for Marlborough
Three men with a shared past from last century have reunited to help Marlborough lift cricket's Hawke Cup off Otago Country.
Former All Blacks rugby fullback Leon MacDonald, one-time New Zealand fast bowler Carl Bulfin and Greg Stretch, who is not so well known on the national stage, all featured in Marlborough's overwhelming victory by an innings and 171 runs at Alexandra yesterday.
MacDonald hit 85 in his team's only innings of 472 while Bulfin took two cheap wickets as Otago Country surrendered for 83 before managing 218 in their second innings.
It marked the first time Marlborough have won the Hawke Cup in 17 years. The symbol of New Zealand minor association cricket last resided in Blenheim in 1994 when MacDonald, Bulfin and Stretch were integral members of the team.
Yesterday's result resonated with all the team members, particularly wicketkeeper-batsman Stretch, who has played 185 games for his province and is the chairman of the Marlborough Cricket Association,
"To a lot of the players here, this is our test match and to win is great but to win so convincingly is pretty special. To be part of it once is great, but to be part of it twice is something we'll never forget," he told the Marlborough Express newspaper.Special heroes for Marlborough were Central Districts allrounder Brendon Diamanti and his first-class teammate Ben Wheeler, both of whom ended the match with seven wickets.
It was Diamanti who destroyed Otago Country's first innings with the outstanding return of five for eight off 16 overs.
Marlborough defend the Hawke Cup against zone two winners Hawke's Bay in Blenheim on February 25-27.
Cricket South Africa Fires President Mtutuzeli Nyoka, Business Day Reports
Cricket South Africa fired its president, Mtutuzeli Nyoka, after a vote of no confidence, Business Day reported, citing acting president, AK Khan.
Nyoka had been in a dispute with Cricket South Africa Chief Executive Officer Gerald Majola since November over bonuses paid to officials, the Johannesburg-based newspaper said.
Nyoka promised to expose corruption in the running of the game in the country, Business Day reported.
BCCI's agenda against Dalmiya behind Eden fiasco: Kapil
KOLKATA: Captain of Indian World Cup winning team Kapil Dev on Sunday criticised the BCCI for Eden Gardens not being able to host World Cup matches involving India.
"It is also responsibility of BCCI to see that CAB completes the renovation work of the stadium in time," Dev said while participating in a cricket chat show here.
"I am not supporting CAB president Jagmohan Dalmiya nor BCCI. Everybody should have come together to host a match at Eden," he said.
Stating that adding "personal agenda" should not have come in arranging such matches, he asked: "Why for Mr Jagmohan Dalmiya, people of West Bengal will be deprived to see India in action at Eden Gardens in this World Cup?"
A stadium in Mumbai, where no match has been played earlier, has been allotted a match this time, but the match scheduled to be held in Kolkata, known for its love for cricket, has been taken away, Dev lamented.
"I also feel sorry for the people here," he said at a chat show in which three other former captains of World Cup -- Vivian Richards, Steve Waugh, and Sourav Ganguly -- were present.
Former Aussie skipper Steve Waugh said the Australians have a very good memory of Eden where they won the World Cup beating England in 1987.
About pressure to be faced by the Indian team for playing before the home crowd, Dev said, "Pressure will be there. But you have to take it in your stride as you have the crowd and the pitch in your favour."
On the dependence of the Indian team on Sachin Tendulkar, he said, "I don't like to depend on one player. Cricket is a team game."
Praising Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, he said Dhoni was able keep his cool under pressure.
Former West Indies great Richards said fielding would be going the deciding factor this time.
He said Indian batting has been improved quite a lot under coach Gary Kirsten.
According to the present format, all the rated teams should reach the quarterfinals, said Sourav Ganguly.
Pak worst prepared for World Cup but can still win: Imran Bat manufacturing units bank on India's good show for business
KARACHI: The current Pakistan cricket team has had the "worst" possible preparation for the World Cup but is still capable of lifting the trophy if it manages to stay united through the megaevent, feels the country's 1992 World Cup winning captain Imran Khan.
"The team had the worst preparation for the World Cup but it is all a matter of some players putting up their hands and performing consistently in the tournament and the team clicking and gelling together after a good start and anything can happen," Imran said when asked about the team's chances in the event starting February 19.
But Imran said the team management and the captain need to be very clear about how they approach the tournament.
"My mind is clear and my planning is clear the specialist players can win you matches so play them at the top. The top three or four batsmen should all be specialists and you can't have 'pinch hitters' coming in at the top even on the sub-continental pitches," the former captain said.
Imran feels the responsibility lies primarily with seniors such as Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq as far as batting is concerned.
"They have to play central roles in every match. The team management must focus their plans and strategy for every game around them. Because the World Cup is all about pressure and once you lose quick, wickets it becomes difficult for the incoming batsmen to handle the pressure," he said.
The cricketer-turned-politician also felt that it was wrong for critics and pundits to describe captain Shahid Afridi as a batting all-rounder.
"I don't consider him a batting all-rounder. To me he is a very energetic captain on the field a very good stock bowler and brilliant fielder. His batting is a bonus. We should not depend on it we should consider his captaincy, bowling and fielding as his main assets," he explained.
"He has all the batting talent in the world but he lacks management while batting and that has always been his weakness."
Imran said there were a number of players in the team who were not doing justice to their talent.
"Umar Akmal, Kamran Akmal, Afridi and even Abdul Razzaq are examples they have immense batting abilities but don't manage their innings well," he said.
Imran also felt that Afridi should never have left playing Test cricket last year.
"If he had decided to fight on and not left the test captaincy he would have been a much better captain today. Because test cricket is the real cricket and if as a captain you can learn to deal with the pressures of Test cricket then captaining in ODIs become much easier."
SANGAM (J-K): Bat manufacturing units in this south Kashmir town are banking on a good performance by the Indian cricket team in the upcoming World Cup to make up for the losses they have suffered during the violent protests that rocked the valley last year. Abdul Majeed Dar, the president of the Cricket Bat Manufacturers' Association, said if the Indian team has a successful World Cup, the demands for the bats made is likely to go up.
"If the Indian team does well, we will be happier as it would set off some of the losses we have suffered during the last year's protests in the valley," Dar said.
Tourists, most of whom take a cricket back home as a souvenir or for the love of the game, fled the valley overnight following widespread protests during the summer of 2010 due to the violent protests against the armed forces.
Atleast 15,000 skilled and unskilled workers at the bat manufacturing units are now hoping that the Indian team makes it to the title round of the event beginning February 19.
Some of these workers may have taken part during the last summer's valley-wide protests but now the considerations are purely financial as the progress of the national cricket team at the quadrennial event, which is hosted jointly by India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, directly affects their business.
"We hope that India makes it at least to the final of the world cup as it generally further heightens the cricket fever across the country," Mohammad Amin, owner of the many bat manufacturing units dotting the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway said.
Amin said the business for the bat manufacturers, who are fighting the odds to keep the trade going, was good following the excellent show in the 2003 World Cup when Saurav Ganguly led the team to the final before losing to Australia.
"We saw an increase of at least 2.5 times after the 2003 World Cup with order and enquiries pouring in from smaller cities of the country," he added.
Ghulam Mohiuddin, a worker in a nearby bat manufacturing unit, said if the demand for bats increases, it ensures that they get work throughout the year.
"When the demand is low, we get to make bats for five to six months in a year but if the demand increases, we will have year long work," he said.
Mohiuddin said during lean periods, he works odd jobs to sustain his family.
"I generally go with my neighbour, who is a carpenter but there is hardly any construction work going on in the winter season," he added.
The cricket bat sector in the Kashmir Valley has more than 200 units, both registered and unregistered, with a collective turnover of over Rs 10 crore per year and employees nearly 15,000 skilled and unskilled labourers.
Dar said the popularity of cricket has been on the rise since the 1983 World Cup win for India, the introduction of Indian Premier League (IPL) has also helped to sustain the largely unorganised willow industry in the valley.
ICC Europe Announces ECB Sky Sports Regional Award winners
The European winners of the ECB Sky Sports Coach Awards 2011 have been announced today with three outstanding talents being recognised in Europe.
Guernsey Cricket Board, Cricket Ireland and Cricket Scotland all have winners for this year's awards that recognise individuals who have made a significant contribution to the support and development of coaches and coaching in cricket.
Mike Kinder of Guernsey Cricket Association was honoured with the Outstanding Contribution and Services to Cricket Coaching Award for his dedication to the development of cricket. In his early years he set up the Sheffield Boys Cricket Scheme, where he was posted as Master in Charge of Cricket at Elizabeth College, a post which is still held 26 years later. He also held the post of ECB Cricket Development Officer for five years; before he set up the Guernsey Association of Cricket Coaches in 1984; which included the responsibility of organising the Guernsey Cricket Coaching Scheme, which he ran for over 20 years.
The Outstanding Coaching Award was awarded to Ireland's Andy McCrea. McCrea as a volunteer carefully balanced out his work-load with his full time profession. Andy has been at the forefront of many projects, namely overseeing huge growth in junior player participation levels through his tireless work as a coach and leader of the club's coaching team. As well as on club and school links; the club caters for boys and girls as young as five to 17.
The final award goes to Jamie Burton of Scotland for Young Coach of the Year Award. Burton was leading Coach of the Cricket Scotland ‘Western Regional Academy' junior squad (U14) for two seasons and as an exciting young coach, he is dynamic and proactive and provides a great coaching environment. Jamie is a role model for other young coaches who wish to make an impact on the lives of young players and climb the coaching ranks.
ICC Regional Development Manager Europe, Richard Holdsworth who chaired selection of the winners said: "The ECB Sky Sports Coach Awards are fantastic for coaches in Europe as it reveals the great work that many are doing. The three winners thoroughly deserve their awards for their success in each different category.
"Mike Kinder, Andy McCrea and Jamie Burton have all shown great dedication and enthusiasm to the development of cricket; their outstanding work is a great contribution to our growing game" added Holdsworth.
Sky Sports sponsorship of ECB Coach Education once again allows the ECB Coaches Association an opportunity to identify nominations for the annual Sky Sports Coach Awards. Now entering their fifth year, the awards are a way of saying thank you to people who have made a significant contribution to the support and development of coaches and coaching in cricket. These regional awards will now be put forward for the national awards.
Cup of joy brims over with cricket artwork
"Bangladesh have beaten New Zealand few months ago and we all know what Bangladesh is capable of. I predict that Bangladesh is going to be in the semi-finals or in the quarters for sure."
Pakistan have a settled enough line-up and if they do use 14 players tomorrow, it will be to test some of the youngsters. Ahmed Shehzad (despite his recent century), Asad Shafiq and Junaid Khan have never played an international game in the subcontinent and this game would be an excellent way to blood the trio in front of a sell-out crowd.
Bangladesh, however, had a different strategy, and were determined to play down the significance of the game. "They will play fourteen players, we'll play thirteen so it's not a real match, just a practice match," Bangladesh coach Jamie Siddons. said. "It is a really good challenge, actually a great practice game."Pakistan are a good team but I'm not worried about them, I'm worried about us. We won't be experimenting, the batting line-up will be close to our actually starting XI. We will use extra bowlers as part of the thirteen and give everyone a try.
Bangladesh captain, Shakib Al Hasan, adopted the same stance. "We are not thinking about the result but we are concentrating on properly using the practice game. We'd rather do well in the tournament than in these games. The players used the last game very well and I was impressed by the pacers. I think Rubel [Hossain] just returned from injury and he will come back better."
This insistance on ignoring the result is an indication that the Bangladesh camp is keeping a close eye on the pressure the players might face in a home World Cup (although it is just a warm-up game), and why they are repeating the mantra that though a win is important for momentum, ultimately, "it's not a real game"
Turmoil in Zimbabwe cricket is over: Streak
NAGPUR: The political instability in Zimbabwe had rocked cricket hard and players were the victims as they were denied Test cricket for number of years.
However, things are looking up and Zimbabwe are once again back in the main stream. The cricket development programme in the African country is on the right track and results will be seen soon, according to Heath Streak.
The former Zimbabwe captain, who himself had serious problems with Zimbabwe Cricket (CZ) after he was sacked as skipper unceremoniously in 2004, has joined the hands with the cricket board officials with only one aim: To take cricket forward in Zimbabwe.
The 36-year-old, who is now helping the side as bowling coach, said the turmoil in Zimbabwe cricket is finally over and people will see better performance during the World Cup.
"Yes, things are lot better now. The bad days are over. There are positive thoughts going on in Zimbabwe cricket and that is the reason why several former cricketers have joined CZ. Besides me, Grant Flower, Alistair Campbell (selection convener) and few others are part of the system in various capacities which is a very good sign for overall cricket in Zimbabwe," Streak told TOI on Monday.
"We are in a rebuilding phase. There is a vision in Zimbabwe to do well at the international level. With so many former cricketers involved in the present structure, things will only improve from here. Me, Grant and Campbell have played cricket for many years and now we hope to share our experience with the present team. Hopefully, we will inspire the boys to do well. We are looking forward to Test cricket, but it's a long way to go," explained Streak.
Zimbabwe will play their first Test against Bangladesh in August which will mark their re-entry to Test cricket after a long gap of six years.
Coming back to the World Cup, Streak said his team has the ability and talent to reach the knock-out stage. "Every team in the World Cup wants to do well. We know our limitations. We will take it one game at a time rather than aiming too far. Our preparations have been fine with some warm up matches. We have the ability and talent to reach the quarterfinals," said Streak.
Zimbabwe's all-time great all-rounder said the team's strength will be spinners during the World Cup. "We are relying on spinners and partly on our fielding. We have three quality spinners who can do well against all oppositions. Ray Price will spearhead the attack. He will be assisted by off-spinner Prosper Utseya and leg-spinner Graeme Cremer. The trio should be effective in sub-continental conditions," he remarked.
He, however, did not rule out the importance of pace bowlers as their success in the first two powerplays will be crucial.
"As a bowling coach and former fast bowler, I have to guide our pace bowling attack. They are a little inexperienced, but they are willing to learn fast. My motto will be to share my knowledge with the youngsters. I hope they will learn from me," he stressed.
Leon MacDonald stars for Marlborough
Former All Blacks rugby fullback Leon MacDonald, one-time New Zealand fast bowler Carl Bulfin and Greg Stretch, who is not so well known on the national stage, all featured in Marlborough's overwhelming victory by an innings and 171 runs at Alexandra yesterday.
MacDonald hit 85 in his team's only innings of 472 while Bulfin took two cheap wickets as Otago Country surrendered for 83 before managing 218 in their second innings.
It marked the first time Marlborough have won the Hawke Cup in 17 years. The symbol of New Zealand minor association cricket last resided in Blenheim in 1994 when MacDonald, Bulfin and Stretch were integral members of the team.
Yesterday's result resonated with all the team members, particularly wicketkeeper-batsman Stretch, who has played 185 games for his province and is the chairman of the Marlborough Cricket Association,
"To a lot of the players here, this is our test match and to win is great but to win so convincingly is pretty special. To be part of it once is great, but to be part of it twice is something we'll never forget," he told the Marlborough Express newspaper.
Special heroes for Marlborough were Central Districts allrounder Brendon Diamanti and his first-class teammate Ben Wheeler, both of whom ended the match with seven wickets.It was Diamanti who destroyed Otago Country's first innings with the outstanding return of five for eight off 16 overs.
Marlborough defend the Hawke Cup against zone two winners Hawke's Bay in Blenheim on February 25-27.
Cricket South Africa Fires President Mtutuzeli Nyoka, Business Day Reports
Cricket South Africa fired its president, Mtutuzeli Nyoka, after a vote of no confidence, Business Day reported, citing acting president, AK Khan.Nyoka had been in a dispute with Cricket South Africa Chief Executive Officer Gerald Majola since November over bonuses paid to officials, the Johannesburg-based newspaper said.
Nyoka promised to expose corruption in the running of the game in the country, Business Day reported.
BCCI's agenda against Dalmiya behind Eden fiasco: Kapil
KOLKATA: Captain of Indian World Cup winning team Kapil Dev on Sunday criticised the BCCI for Eden Gardens not being able to host World Cup matches involving India.
"It is also responsibility of BCCI to see that CAB completes the renovation work of the stadium in time," Dev said while participating in a cricket chat show here.
"I am not supporting CAB president Jagmohan Dalmiya nor BCCI. Everybody should have come together to host a match at Eden," he said.
Stating that adding "personal agenda" should not have come in arranging such matches, he asked: "Why for Mr Jagmohan Dalmiya, people of West Bengal will be deprived to see India in action at Eden Gardens in this World Cup?"
A stadium in Mumbai, where no match has been played earlier, has been allotted a match this time, but the match scheduled to be held in Kolkata, known for its love for cricket, has been taken away, Dev lamented.
"I also feel sorry for the people here," he said at a chat show in which three other former captains of World Cup -- Vivian Richards, Steve Waugh, and Sourav Ganguly -- were present.
Former Aussie skipper Steve Waugh said the Australians have a very good memory of Eden where they won the World Cup beating England in 1987.
About pressure to be faced by the Indian team for playing before the home crowd, Dev said, "Pressure will be there. But you have to take it in your stride as you have the crowd and the pitch in your favour."
On the dependence of the Indian team on Sachin Tendulkar, he said, "I don't like to depend on one player. Cricket is a team game."
Praising Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, he said Dhoni was able keep his cool under pressure.
Former West Indies great Richards said fielding would be going the deciding factor this time.
He said Indian batting has been improved quite a lot under coach Gary Kirsten.
According to the present format, all the rated teams should reach the quarterfinals, said Sourav Ganguly.
Pak worst prepared for World Cup but can still win: Imran Bat manufacturing units bank on India's good show for business
KARACHI: The current Pakistan cricket team has had the "worst" possible preparation for the World Cup but is still capable of lifting the trophy if it manages to stay united through the megaevent, feels the country's 1992 World Cup winning captain Imran Khan.
"The team had the worst preparation for the World Cup but it is all a matter of some players putting up their hands and performing consistently in the tournament and the team clicking and gelling together after a good start and anything can happen," Imran said when asked about the team's chances in the event starting February 19.
But Imran said the team management and the captain need to be very clear about how they approach the tournament.
"My mind is clear and my planning is clear the specialist players can win you matches so play them at the top. The top three or four batsmen should all be specialists and you can't have 'pinch hitters' coming in at the top even on the sub-continental pitches," the former captain said.
Imran feels the responsibility lies primarily with seniors such as Younis Khan and Misbah-ul-Haq as far as batting is concerned.
"They have to play central roles in every match. The team management must focus their plans and strategy for every game around them. Because the World Cup is all about pressure and once you lose quick, wickets it becomes difficult for the incoming batsmen to handle the pressure," he said.
The cricketer-turned-politician also felt that it was wrong for critics and pundits to describe captain Shahid Afridi as a batting all-rounder.
"I don't consider him a batting all-rounder. To me he is a very energetic captain on the field a very good stock bowler and brilliant fielder. His batting is a bonus. We should not depend on it we should consider his captaincy, bowling and fielding as his main assets," he explained.
"He has all the batting talent in the world but he lacks management while batting and that has always been his weakness."
Imran said there were a number of players in the team who were not doing justice to their talent.
"Umar Akmal, Kamran Akmal, Afridi and even Abdul Razzaq are examples they have immense batting abilities but don't manage their innings well," he said.
Imran also felt that Afridi should never have left playing Test cricket last year.
"If he had decided to fight on and not left the test captaincy he would have been a much better captain today. Because test cricket is the real cricket and if as a captain you can learn to deal with the pressures of Test cricket then captaining in ODIs become much easier."
SANGAM (J-K): Bat manufacturing units in this south Kashmir town are banking on a good performance by the Indian cricket team in the upcoming World Cup to make up for the losses they have suffered during the violent protests that rocked the valley last year. Abdul Majeed Dar, the president of the Cricket Bat Manufacturers' Association, said if the Indian team has a successful World Cup, the demands for the bats made is likely to go up.
"If the Indian team does well, we will be happier as it would set off some of the losses we have suffered during the last year's protests in the valley," Dar said.
Tourists, most of whom take a cricket back home as a souvenir or for the love of the game, fled the valley overnight following widespread protests during the summer of 2010 due to the violent protests against the armed forces.
Atleast 15,000 skilled and unskilled workers at the bat manufacturing units are now hoping that the Indian team makes it to the title round of the event beginning February 19.
Some of these workers may have taken part during the last summer's valley-wide protests but now the considerations are purely financial as the progress of the national cricket team at the quadrennial event, which is hosted jointly by India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, directly affects their business.
"We hope that India makes it at least to the final of the world cup as it generally further heightens the cricket fever across the country," Mohammad Amin, owner of the many bat manufacturing units dotting the Jammu-Srinagar National Highway said.
Amin said the business for the bat manufacturers, who are fighting the odds to keep the trade going, was good following the excellent show in the 2003 World Cup when Saurav Ganguly led the team to the final before losing to Australia.
"We saw an increase of at least 2.5 times after the 2003 World Cup with order and enquiries pouring in from smaller cities of the country," he added.
Ghulam Mohiuddin, a worker in a nearby bat manufacturing unit, said if the demand for bats increases, it ensures that they get work throughout the year.
"When the demand is low, we get to make bats for five to six months in a year but if the demand increases, we will have year long work," he said.
Mohiuddin said during lean periods, he works odd jobs to sustain his family.
"I generally go with my neighbour, who is a carpenter but there is hardly any construction work going on in the winter season," he added.
The cricket bat sector in the Kashmir Valley has more than 200 units, both registered and unregistered, with a collective turnover of over Rs 10 crore per year and employees nearly 15,000 skilled and unskilled labourers.
Dar said the popularity of cricket has been on the rise since the 1983 World Cup win for India, the introduction of Indian Premier League (IPL) has also helped to sustain the largely unorganised willow industry in the valley.
ICC Europe Announces ECB Sky Sports Regional Award winners
Guernsey Cricket Board, Cricket Ireland and Cricket Scotland all have winners for this year's awards that recognise individuals who have made a significant contribution to the support and development of coaches and coaching in cricket.
Mike Kinder of Guernsey Cricket Association was honoured with the Outstanding Contribution and Services to Cricket Coaching Award for his dedication to the development of cricket. In his early years he set up the Sheffield Boys Cricket Scheme, where he was posted as Master in Charge of Cricket at Elizabeth College, a post which is still held 26 years later. He also held the post of ECB Cricket Development Officer for five years; before he set up the Guernsey Association of Cricket Coaches in 1984; which included the responsibility of organising the Guernsey Cricket Coaching Scheme, which he ran for over 20 years.
The Outstanding Coaching Award was awarded to Ireland's Andy McCrea. McCrea as a volunteer carefully balanced out his work-load with his full time profession. Andy has been at the forefront of many projects, namely overseeing huge growth in junior player participation levels through his tireless work as a coach and leader of the club's coaching team. As well as on club and school links; the club caters for boys and girls as young as five to 17.
The final award goes to Jamie Burton of Scotland for Young Coach of the Year Award. Burton was leading Coach of the Cricket Scotland ‘Western Regional Academy' junior squad (U14) for two seasons and as an exciting young coach, he is dynamic and proactive and provides a great coaching environment. Jamie is a role model for other young coaches who wish to make an impact on the lives of young players and climb the coaching ranks.
ICC Regional Development Manager Europe, Richard Holdsworth who chaired selection of the winners said: "The ECB Sky Sports Coach Awards are fantastic for coaches in Europe as it reveals the great work that many are doing. The three winners thoroughly deserve their awards for their success in each different category.
"Mike Kinder, Andy McCrea and Jamie Burton have all shown great dedication and enthusiasm to the development of cricket; their outstanding work is a great contribution to our growing game" added Holdsworth.
Sky Sports sponsorship of ECB Coach Education once again allows the ECB Coaches Association an opportunity to identify nominations for the annual Sky Sports Coach Awards. Now entering their fifth year, the awards are a way of saying thank you to people who have made a significant contribution to the support and development of coaches and coaching in cricket. These regional awards will now be put forward for the national awards.
BHUBANESWAR: The World Cup has caught everyone's imagination, from sand artists to sculptors and advertisers, who want to wish Team India good luck.
International sand artist Sudarshan Patnaik has crafted a 125-ft long cricket bat, a ball and a stadium on the Puri beach. Patnaik has also launched a "sandy" signature campaign to wish the willow-wielders good luck.
"The sand sculpture will be featured in the Limca Book of Records as the longest cricket bat in sand," said Patnaik with pride.
Fifteen students of Patnaik helped him to put the artwork together. The artist, who has in the past handcrafted mind-blowing sand images of Michael Jackson, Barack Obama, George Bush, Saddam Hussein and Santa Claus, has a long association with cricket. He was invited to England to prepare sand sculptures for the 2009 World Cup. Recently, he showcased a sand animation show to wish Team India in CEAT Cricket Award in Mumbai.
L Eswar Rao, a stone sculptor from Jatani, has created a miniature form of the World Cup on a pencil nib, probably the smallest world cup! The one centimetre long world cup is minutely crafted on the granite bar of a pencil with the help of a needle and a blade. Rao has also created a world cup which is about half an inch long with tamarind seed.
"Since I love cricket and I am a great fan of Sachin, I want to do something to cheer the Indian team. I don't know if my message will reach them but I sincerely wish the Cup should come to India. Moreover, it is the last World Cup of Sachin. So it must come to India," said 28-year-old Eswar.
"It took me two hours to craft the miniatures. I am not eyeing a record. I just want to wish them luck," he added. KP rejects retirement talk
Kevin Pietersen has dismissed reports that he is set to quit one-day international cricket after the forthcoming World Cup.
The Daily Mail claimed on Saturday that the England batsman was to stop playing in the 50-over format of the game and instead focus on Test and Twenty20 cricket, giving him more time to spend with his family.However the 30-year-old - who was dropped from the one-day team last summer - has denied the story via his Twitter account.
He Tweeted: "Just to set the record straight... I have NO intention of retiring from ODIs after the World Cup!"
"Pietersen is part of England's 15-man squad for the World Cup, with their campaign getting underway against Holland on February 22.
He will extend his time abroad by playing in the Indian Premier League after the World Cup, having earned a £375,000 contract with the Deccan Chargers. is part of England's 15-man squad for the World Cup, with their campaign getting underway against Holland on February 22.The IPL season runs from April 8 to May 22, after which the right-hander will return to his new county Surrey for the English domestic campaign.
Don’t underestimate us, warns Afridi
Pakistan cricket captain Shahid Afridi today issued a warning to the other World Cup teams, saying that none should underestimate his side as his players were “focussed and united” under his leadership.“They feel hungry to win a big event and want to play good cricket,” Afridi told reporters here.
Stating that a fruitful tour of New Zealand had bolstered the side’s morale, Afridi said Pakistan have left the spot-fixing scandal behind and are now eager to rebuild the team.
“I think we’re really going through a very tough situation. But I am very happy because we are trying to rebuild the team and keep the morale high,” said Afridi, admitting that Pakistan team was severely jolted by the spot-fixing scandal.
Three players -- former captain Salman Butt and pacers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamer -- were banned for five years by the International Cricket Council for their alleged involvement in spot-fixing, which ruled them out of the World Cup, and they now also face criminal proceedings in England.
ICC names Hyundai as official car partner
The International Cricket Council (ICC) and Hyundai, one of the world's biggest car manufacturers, today announced an agreement that makes Hyundai the official car partner of ICC with a unique presence at all ICC cricket events for the next five years.
The agreement awards Hyundai a worldwide rights package from 2011 until 2015 and will include the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011, which will take place in Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka, as well as all other ICC tournaments up to and including the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015.
ICC Chief Executive Haroon Lorgat said: "It is wonderful that Hyundai has come on board just in time for our flagship event, the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011. The partnership says much about the value of our great sport and that we continue to attract and retain sponsors of the calibre of Hyundai. The familiar brand and profile of Hyundai indicates the broad reach of cricket and, in particular, ICC events."
"We are fortunate to have a group of top-class partners whose commitment to the game is unquestioned. Without that commitment we would not be in a position to help our 105 Members grow the game as they do around the world."
Speaking on this announcement, HW Park, Managing Director and CEO of Hyundai Motor India Limited, said: "I am pleased to announce our partnership with the International Cricket Council. The ICC Cricket World Cup is one of the biggest sporting extravaganzas in the world, and we are proud to be a part of this event."
"Ground transportation is critical to the successful staging of an international event like the ICC Cricket World Cup and Hyundai will endeavour to provide the best and the most luxurious transportation option for the players, officials and VIP guests. Hyundai shares the ICC's deep-rooted passion for cricket and remains committed to supporting the game in the future as well."
The agreement awards Hyundai a worldwide rights package from 2011 until 2015 and will include the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011, which will take place in Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka, as well as all other ICC tournaments up to and including the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015.
ICC Chief Executive Haroon Lorgat said: "It is wonderful that Hyundai has come on board just in time for our flagship event, the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011. The partnership says much about the value of our great sport and that we continue to attract and retain sponsors of the calibre of Hyundai. The familiar brand and profile of Hyundai indicates the broad reach of cricket and, in particular, ICC events."
"We are fortunate to have a group of top-class partners whose commitment to the game is unquestioned. Without that commitment we would not be in a position to help our 105 Members grow the game as they do around the world."
Speaking on this announcement, HW Park, Managing Director and CEO of Hyundai Motor India Limited, said: "I am pleased to announce our partnership with the International Cricket Council. The ICC Cricket World Cup is one of the biggest sporting extravaganzas in the world, and we are proud to be a part of this event."
"Ground transportation is critical to the successful staging of an international event like the ICC Cricket World Cup and Hyundai will endeavour to provide the best and the most luxurious transportation option for the players, officials and VIP guests. Hyundai shares the ICC's deep-rooted passion for cricket and remains committed to supporting the game in the future as well."
| Riding on a fabulous run over the 12-month, cricket accounted for seven of the 12 awards on offer at the second annual Sports Illustrated India 2010 awards, with Sachin Tendulkar being named the Sportsman of the Year at a function on Thursday night. | |
| Tendulkar, who recently won the ICC Cricketer of the Year award, was the obvious choice for top honours, his trophy received by India coach Gary Kirsten in the maestro’s absence. In a programme attended by Virender Sehwag, Yuvraj Singh and Gautam Gambhir among others, Tendulkar’s childhood coach Ramakant Achrekar was given away the Lifetime Achievement award by Kirsten. VVS Laxman, India’s eternal crisis man, fittingly won the Game-changer of the year award for having helped India win three Test matches in different parts of the world -- Sri Lanka, India and South Africa. Mumbai teenager Arman Jaffer was selected the Sports Kid of the Year for his sensational 498 in an inter-school tournament, a world record at that level. The year also witnessed some impressive performances by athletes from other disciplines, both in the Commonwealth Games in Delhi and the Asian Games in Guangzhou. Ashish Kumar, who won a bronze medal in gymnastics at the Asiad, was the Surprise Package of the Year while 18-year-old boxing gold medallist Vikas Krishan clinched the Young Player of the Year award. World wrestling champion Sushil Kumar won the Editor’s Choice for Excellence award and tennis ace Somdev Devvarman, who recently breached the 100-rank for the second time to reach his highest rating of 80, claimed the Athlete of the Year honours. The Indian women’s 4x400 relay team of Manjeet Kaur, Sini Jose, AC Ashwini and Mandeep Kaur, which rallied to clinch the CWG gold in a thrilling race, was recognised for providing the Sporting Moment of the Year. Award winners: Sports kid of the year: Arman Jaffer (cricket). Domestic performance of the year: Rajasthan Ranji team. Surprise package of the year: Ashish Kumar (gymnastics). Coach of the year: Gary Kirsten (cricket). Sports administrator of the year: Col P K M Raja (boxing). Award for outstanding contribution to sport: Reliance. Sporting moment of the year: 4x400 relay women's team win at the Commonwealth Games. Young player of the year: Vikas Krishan (boxing). Lifetime achievement award: Ramakant Achrekar (cricket). Game changer of the year: VVS Laxman (cricket). Athlete of the year: Somdev Devvarman (tennis). Team of the year: Indian Test cricket team. Editor's choice award for excellence: Sushil Kumar (wrestling). Sportsman of the year: Sachin Tendulkar (cricket). | |
'Lanka should not win World Cup'
In a surprising move, a Sri Lankan newspaper on Friday urged cricket captain Kumar Sangakkara to not win the World Cup, fearing it would help the controversial interim committee strengthen its position. The privately-run but pro-government 'Island' newspaper said Sangakkara should not win the tournament for the "sake of the country."
"Call me a traitor, a quisling -anything," said the paper's sports writer Russell Palipane.
"I don't want Sri Lanka to be the champions of the cricket World Cup 2011!"
Palipane argued that the current interim committee, which runs the game, will make use of a cup victory to consolidate its hold on office without facing elections.
"Just imagine what will take place if Sri Lanka emerge champs. D S de Silva (the current head of Sri Lanka Cricket) and his cronies who make up the Interim Committee will claim it was their doing."
The writer also took swipes at two other key cricket officials.
"Kumar (Sangakkara) dear, please spare the country. Don't win it, for the majority of this country are nothing but a pack of jokers, like that former Chairman of Selectors (Asantha de Mel), about whom Marvan Attapattu (former skipper) had a few things to say, before he retired from international cricket."
The 'Island' outburst comes amid attempts by Sri Lankan authorities to galvanise support for the national team for the biggest event of the game.
Local radio and television stations have been adopting their own songs and video clips to shore up support for Sri Lanka, which won the trophy in 1996.
Ponting hopes three-time defending champ Australia peaks at right time in cricket World Cup
BANGALORE, India — Australia captain Ricky Ponting says there are no favourites for the World Cup and hopes his team peaks at the right time in a bid to win its fourth consecutive title.
Ponting, who led his team to victory in 2003 and 2007, hopes his "team plays its best cricket toward the latter part of the tournament."
Ponting said on Friday that Australia, which opens against Zimbabwe at Ahmedabad on Feb. 21, was coming together well.
"We are in good shape, confident and have the momentum with us," he said, "but it will be hard to maintain intensity throughout the tournament because of its length and gap between games. We will make sure we progress nice and steady and peak later on."
Australia know how to peak, having won a record four of the nine World Cups, including the last three.
"There is no doubt that Australia has a pretty good record in the World Cup and other big events, but we are not thinking about it right now," Ponting said. "We have a really good squad and we will be doing everything to the best of our ability.
"I am not really bothered about who the favourite is because a number of teams have the ability to win. India and South Africa are probably the standout teams but Pakistan and New Zealand are never too far away in ICC events and Sri Lanka are as good a team as any other in these conditions."
He was happy that his team had just beaten England 6-1 in a one-day international series while he recovered from a broken finger, but indicated that results before the tournament did not matter.
"Going into the last World Cup there was negativity around us. We lost the Commonwealth Bank series and lost to New Zealand, but we went there and won the World Cup," he said.
Ponting felt the schedule gave a good chance for injured players to recover.
"In most tournaments you get a break of two or three days between games but here we have got seven or eight days between some of our games. We at the moment are carrying a few guys who are stiff and sore and are working their way into full fitness. So it's good to have time between games."
Australia was in Group A with Sri Lanka, Pakistan, New Zealand, Zimbabwe, Kenya and Canada.
The tournament, being co-hosted by India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, runs from Feb. 19 to the April 2 final in MumbaiJust playing for Tendulkar won't get India World Cup: Waugh
NEW DELHI: Former Australian captain Steve Waugh does not believe in the refrain that the Indian cricket team should win the World Cup for Sachin Tendulkar, saying that a side cannot go on to lift the coveted trophy playing for just one person.
"I think that is not the right approach. You can't win the World Cup playing for just one person. You play for the team, for the country. The game is bigger than any individual," Waugh said on Friday.
Tendulkar, playing in his sixth and probably the last World Cup, holds almost every conceivable record in an illustrious career spanning over two decades, but the only thing missing from his impressive portfolio is the coveted trophy.
Waugh said that India are definitely one of the favourites and if the team does win, it will cap off a great career for Tendulkar.
The country has its hopes pinned on the champion batsman, and Waugh believed that Tendulkar's role will be crucial in tricky situations.
"Tendulkar may not be the star of the tournament but he is going to play key roles in crucial moments," he said.
In the capital to launch PlayUp, an interactive skill based gaming product, Waugh said the forthcoming tournament is likely to give the 50-over format a fresh lease of life.
"This could reinvigorate the 50-over game. This could reignite the passion among fans, and what better place than India to lift the game," Waugh, who led Australia to the title in 1999, said.
Many have said that India, seeking to break a 28-year-old jinx, would be under a lot of pressure playing in front of home crowd but Waugh said the team, especially skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, should "embrace" the pressure.
"Pressure is a good thing and as a captain it's a great thing that Dhoni is under pressure. India and Dhoni should embrace it," Waugh, who will be associated with the Australian contingent during the 2012 London Olympics, said.
Hyundai kick starts 'First Ball Tour' for ICC Cricket World Cup 2011
The countdown to the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 has begun and Hyundai Motor India Limited, the largest exporter and second largest car manufacturer in India, is also gearing up for the biggest sporting spectacle today by kicking off the Hyundai ICC First Ball Tour.
During the Hyundai ICC First Ball Tour fans will get an opportunity to preview the cricketing balls that will be used during the inaugural World Cup match between India and Bangladesh at select Hyundai showrooms in New Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai.
Speaking on this initiative, Arvind Saxena, Director, Marketing & Sales, HMIL, said, “The Hyundai ICC First Ball Tour is a first of its kind customer engagement initiative undertaken by any automobile manufacturer. As the official car partner for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011, we are confident that this initiative will be successful tool in building up excitement and creating a buzz for both the World Cup and Hyundai”.
This tour will aim to bring together fans of the sport in this cricket-crazy nation and give them an opportunity to indulge in some pure cricket mania. It will include a convoy of three Hyundai i10 cars decorated with flags from all the participating countries of the World Cup. The convoy will carry the cricketing balls in the boot of the car and will visit all the dealerships in the city. Hyundai representatives will hand over the case of balls to the match referee an hour prior to the start of the inaugural match of the ICC World Cup 2011 and the match referee will select the balls that will be used for the match from the case.
To generate excitement among its large customer base, special activities will be organized, including games and quizzes on cricket trivia, contests on juggling balls, and a special graffiti wall where fans can pen their thoughts and cheer for their favourite teams and players.
Cricket fever hits films
The three-and-a-half months of cricket matches including the World Cup and IPL have sent Hindi filmmakers in a tizzy over release dates.
Cricket matches have always had filmmakers sulking. And this time it’s a double hit, with the Cricket World Cup and the Indian Premier League 4 (IPL) stretched over three months. The Cricket World Cup will start from February 19 and go on till April 2 closely followed by the IPL 4, which will start from April 8 and end on May 28.
Already there is a scramble for Fridays, as leftover films from last year have spilled into this year. While big movies tend to play it safe and stay away during the cricket season, the smaller ones use the window to make it to the theatres.
A day before the Cricket World Cup on February 19 when India battles Bangladesh, Vishal Bhardwaj’s 7 Khoon Maaf releases starring Priyanka Chopra as the protagonist.
Zapak Games launches Cricket Power - the official ICC World Cup 2011 game
Zapak Games has released an official ICC World Cup 2011 cricket game, called Cricket Power. Available on zapak.com for download or at gaming CD retail outlets for Rs. 299, Cricket Power allows players to play and build their own World Cup game.
In Zapak’s words, if you play with all the participating countries and their assigned teams, and follow the World Cup schedule, then “it’s the closest you can come to reality and thus providing a perfect chance for you to bring the World Cup home.”
More of Zapak’s words describe the Windows game further: “Cricket Power aims to immerse the cricket frenzy gamers with all the on-pitch drama, intensity and excitement of fiercely competitive international cricket. Gamers can now indulge in scoring wickets or making the last winning run, saving deliveries and experiencing the thrill of hitting sixes. The game lets its users to experience the same adrenaline rush as their favourite players on field.” Junaid eager to dismiss Tendulkar in World Cup
KARACHI: Left-arm pace bowler Junaid Khan, who replaced the injured fast bowler Sohail Tanvir in Pakistan’s World Cup squad, has said he is not overawed at the prospect of making his international debut on such a big stage. “I’ll treat it as just another game of cricket,” Junaid told media on Thursday. “I’ve represented my country at junior levels and Pakistan A, so I know what the responsibility of playing for your country is like. I don’t think I’ll have any nerves and I am confident I can handle the situation.”
Junaid was selected on the basis of his consistent showing on Pakistan’s domestic circuit. In 35 first-class games, he has picked up 167 wickets at an average of just above 21. He was also the second-highest wicket-taker for Pakistan A in the unofficial ODI series during their recent tour of West Indies where he picked up five wickets in three games. “I’ve been working so hard over the last couple of seasons and I feel that I have consistently improved as a bowler, “Junaid said. “I’ve also been working hard on my batting and I feel that my call-up for the World Cup is warranted as I have done consistently well at all levels for Pakistan.”
There have been several high-voltage clashes between India and Pakistan in previous World Cups and Junaid said he was looking forward to another such encounter. “Just getting a chance to play in the World Cup is a dream come true for me,” he said. “But if we get to play against India in the World Cup, it would be a blast to bowl at Sachin Tendulkar and get him out. It is an ambition for me.”
He said he was thankful to Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and national selectors for reposing confidence in him. “God has been kind to me and I know this is a big opportunity. I don’t know if I will get a chance to play but I will do my best should I be given a chance,” he added.
Waqar: World Cup vital for Pakistan
A Pakistan triumph in the World Cup would help convince other countries to play international cricket in the country again following a lethal terrorist attack in 2009, according to coach Waqar Younis.
Pakistan currently play all of their home series at neutral venues after gunmen attacked the Sri Lanka team bus and a vehicle carring match officials at Lahore almost two years ago, killing several policemen and a driver.
The incident also led to Pakistan being stripped of co-hosting the World Cup, which starts next week and will be staged in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. "It's very important for us because our people want to see international matches," Waqar said. "I'm sure if we win the World Cup it will open a new chapter."
Three Pakistan players were banned for a minimum of five years by the International Cricket Council last week on corruption charges, and Waqar has praised his team for staying focused to beat New Zealand in Test and one-day cricket and only narrowly lose a one-day series to South Africa. "Despite so many controversies, the team had done well in the last year," he said.
ICC publishes final determination of independent Anti-Corruption Tribunal
The International Cricket Council (ICC) has this evening published a redacted and encrypted version of the final determination of the independent Anti-Corruption Tribunal following the hearing into spot-fixing charges against three Pakistan players – Salman Butt, Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif – which concluded in Doha, Qatar on 5 February 2011.
When handing down its decision, the tribunal expressed the strong view that its full written determination should be published widely (as the ICC has the power to do under the ICC Anti-Corruption Code), so that interested parties can read and fully understand the reasons for the tribunal’s determination.
The ICC shares that view and wishes all stakeholders and followers of the sport to see for themselves the effort and resource that the ICC has devoted to pursuing these charges, so that there can be confidence in the ability of the ICC (and its Anti-Corruption and Security Unit) to defend and maintain the reputation and integrity of the sport from corrupt activities.
Haroon Lorgat, the ICC Chief Executive, said: “It is the ICC’s intention to be as transparent an organisation as is feasible and to publish all its reports and findings for the benefit of stakeholders. Publishing the full written determination of the tribunal is clearly in the best interest of cricket.”
However, in light of a recent decision by the UK Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to pursue criminal charges against the three players, the ICC has taken steps to permit read-only and non-printable access to a redacted version of the tribunal’s full written determination via its website for the next seven days only (i.e. until Wednesday 16 February) and to those users located outside of England and Wales only.
WARNING: Anyone located inside of England and Wales is prohibited from accessing this determination. Accessing or attempting to access the determination in violation of this prohibition would be a breach of the terms and conditions of this website and therefore unlawful. Any publication or dissemination of the determination within England and Wales is subject to the strict legal restrictions set out in the Contempt of Court Act 1981.
Calcuttans want the Feb. 27 match back
Calcutta: With the International Cricket Council (ICC) satisfied that everything would be in place at the Eden Gardens before February 27, the day when the city was to host the India-England World Cup match, a common sentiment of Calcuttans is that the world body should review its decision of shifting the game to Bangalore.
It’s a fact that the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) slipped up rather badly last month, but a 24x7 effort since then has made a difference, encouraging the sentiment to get stronger. The sentiment was echoed by a cross section of sportsmen who spoke to The Telegraph on Wednesday, the day this newspaper published the ICC inspection team’s report.
The following are excerpts of what the sporting fraternity (in alphabetical order) said:
PK Banerjee: Calcutta should get an India match. It will be a massive disappointment if home team can’t play at the historic Eden Gardens. The stadium is ready and there is still enough time to bring one match here. From a personal point of view, India are in supreme form and I am keen to see them play here.
Sambaran Banerjee: Nothing can match Eden Gardens and it’s really unfortunate that we won’t be hosting an India match here. The Eden is looking magnificent now and the ICC should consider allotting at least the India-Ireland match, if not the February 27 game. The ICC has been too harsh in moving the India-England match out of the city. The new-look Eden is even ready to host the World Cup final.
Gopal Bose: It’s unfortunate but true that Eden Gardens will have to be happy with the three matches. The CAB was absolutely lackadaisical until the ICC took India-England match away. The CAB officials took it too lightly and missed three deadlines. It’s impossible for the ICC to again relocate the India-England match, and if they do so, the whole world will lose faith in them.
Devang Gandhi: The Eden should definitely get back the India-England match now that things are on the right track. One should bear in mind the history and sentiment of the cricket lovers. The World Cup is being held in the country after 15 years and the ICC should’ve considered that the spectators here would be deprived of such a big game.
Surya Sekhar Ganguly: I really hope that the ICC will reconsider its decision. Nothing can be a better news for the Calcuttans than the India-England coming back to Eden Gardens. With such rich cricketing history, Calcutta should get to host an India match. I am sure Calcutta will maintain a high standard if the match is played here.
Chuni Goswami: There is no denying the fact that the CAB had failed three deadlines earlier. For any big tournament, it is an utmost necessity to get the venues ready well before time. But despite all these, one must take the glorious history of the Eden Gardens into consideration. The history of India-England contests at Eden Gardens dates back to the days of Douglas Jardine. So, if logistics permit, the ICC should reconsider its decision and bring back the February 27 match to Calcutta.
31,000 seats at Wankhede, but just 4,000 for aam aadmi
All cricket fans hoping to be at the spanking new Wankhede Stadium for the World Cup final on April 2 must brace for likely disappointment. Just 4,000 of the 31,000 seats in the renovated stadium have been allotted to the general public by the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA).
Of the remaining 27,000 tickets, 8,500 will go to the ICC, which will pass them on to tournament partners and sponsors. The rest will be distributed to clubs affiliated to the MCA, and to members of Garware Club, which houses the Wankhede Stadium.
“There will be only 4,000 seats available for the general public,” MCA joint secretary Lalchand Rajput told The Indian Express after an Association meeting on Monday, chaired by its chief and ICC president Sharad Pawar. “The rest of the seats will have to be allotted to MCA-affiliated clubs, Gymkhana, Garware Club and others.”
Smith's men arrive in Chennai
The South Africa team, led by Graeme Smith, among the favourites to win the cricket World Cup, arrived here Wednesday ahead of their Saturday's warm-up match with Zimbabwe at the renovated M.A. Chidambaram Stadium. The South Africans are placed in Group B along with hosts India and Bangladeshalongwith England, the West Indies, Ireland and the Netherlands.
The South African side is scheduled to play the West Indies in their opening league match in New Delhi on February 24.
The team: Graeme Smith (captain), Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis, AB de Villiers (wk), JP Duminy, Francois du Plessis, Morne van Wyk, Colin Ingram, Johan Botha, Imran Tahir, Robin Peterson, Morne Morkel, Wayne Parnell, Dale Steyn and Lonwabo Tsotsobe.
Sreesanth's inclusion makes cricket fans in Kerala happy
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Cricket fans in Kerala were happy and relieved that S Sreesanth has been included in India's World Cup squad as a replacement for an injured Praveen Kumar.
Sreesanth said he was excited to represent India in World Cup.
"I just do not know how to express my feelings. I am so happy. Now I just want to give my best if I get an opportunity in the playing eleven," said Sreesanth who is in Bangalore.
Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) president TR Balakrishnan wished him luck for the World Cup beginning Feb 19.
"This is the best thing to have happened to him. He was so dejected after being left out and look he has comeback. I am sure he will make the most of the opportunity," said Balakrishnan.
When Sreesanth was left out of the original squad, fans were dejected.
"We are delighted. We just got SMSs about the inclusion of Sree in the team. All of us are happy to know about this," said an excited group of Class XII students.
Kerala Ranji coach and former state captain Ranganathan was also overjoyed.
"Ever since the news of Praveen Kumar's injury was in the air I had a gut feeling that Sreesanth would make it to the team and he has done it. He has the fighting spirit and I am certain he will do well," said Ranganathan.
Don't know why selectors didn't give Hussey more time: Ponting
Sydney: Australian cricket captain Ricky Ponting Wednesday described injured middle-order batsman Michael Hussey's axing from the World Cup squad as a "huge loss" and said he was not sure why selectors did not give the southpaw more time to regain fitness.
Ponting, who is himself recovering from a finger injury, suggested that one reason the selectors did not pick Hussey was that they wanted maximum fit players for the mega-event starting Feb 19. His comments come after Hussey expressed disappointment on not being given enough time to prove his fitness.
The lone specialist spinner Nathan Hauritz too was ruled out Tuesday due to a shoulder injury.
"I actually do not know why Hussey was not given more time," Ponting was quoted as saying by the Sydney Morning Herald.
"I'm not sure if the selectors have answered that question today or yesterday either, but I know what the selectors had spoken about - they wanted to have as many fit guys ready to go for the start of the tournament as possible.
"I think the medicos were not entirely sure or convinced when Michael's injury was going to come right. Just the uncertainty around his recovery time was the main reason he was not selected."
Ponting said the experienced lefthander will be dearly missed during the World Cup.
"He is a massive loss to our group," he said. "He is a class player in this form of the game. A very experienced player, a leader around our group."
Team India to start World Cup practice
Bangalore: The first Team India practice session for World Cup 2011 preparations start at 2:00 PM today, Wednesday, with players flying in to Bangalore for the training required for the mega-event.
The Indian outfit would slug it out at the KSCA B ground, housing the Karnataka Cricket Academy (KCA) and National Cricket Academy (NCA). Both the academies will provide the practice pitches for the players to get a look and feel of the conditions.
However, Dhoni’s men would not be given a chance to play on the actual ground which will see the World Cup action. Teams will be allowed in the main Chinnaswamy Stadium ground only for fielding practice under lights closer to the matches.
Battling some fitness issues, the Indian squad would hope for a good stretch at the practice venues and regain some confidence.
World Cup ads to cost Rs. 24 lakh per 10 sec
It could be a windfall for cricket World Cup broadcaster ESPN Star Sports if India reaches the knockout stages, as the spot rate for advertisements could then touch up to Rs. 24 lakh per 10 seconds.The broadcaster, which has reserved ad inventory of nearly 5-6 per cent for the last few matches, is keeping its fingers crossed and hoping India plays in the title round.
"If India does well and reaches the knockout stages, ad spot rates could jump up significantly, as high as five to six times of the existing rate," ESPN Software India Pvt Ltd executive vice-president (Ad Sales & New Media) Sanjay Kailash said.
While he declined to comment on the existing ad spot rate, as per industry sources, the broadcaster is charging around Rs. 3.5 lakh to Rs. 4 lakh per 10 seconds spot.
If India, counted as one of the favourites to win the title this time by many cricket experts, features in the quarter finals and beyond, then the ad rates could be as high as Rs. 24 lakh per 10 seconds.
"If India makes it to the semis, then increased demand will be seen from new advertisers who have not bought already. Rates will be more driven by the demand and ESPN will want to maximise given that they are already the last two or three matches," ZenithOptimedia, senior vice-president Naveen Khemka said.
Cost efficiency can be overlooked if brand objectives are met, he added.
The company is also responsible for selling the ad spots for Doordarshan which will broadcast all the matches to be played by India plus the two semi finals and the final.
"The inventory for DD is sold out. We have got a very good response," Kailash said, adding ad rates on DD is much lower compared to its ESPN Software India's channels (ESPN, Star Sports and Star Cricket) but did not specify details.
"The inventory for DD is sold out. We have got a very good response," Kailash said, adding ad rates on DD is much lower compared to its ESPN Software India's channels (ESPN, Star Sports and Star Cricket) but did not specify details.
Companies like Hero Honda, Parle Products, ITC, Jaypee Cement, Reliance Mobile, Pepsi, Tata Motors and Pidilite Industries have signed up as sponsors on DD.
Industry sources said ESPN is estimated to have garnered about Rs. 75 crore from ad spots on DD, while it is targetting Rs. 750 crore from the World Cup on its own.
Dutch cricketers want more exposure to major cricket teams to improve
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka — Netherlands cricket captain Peter Borren says semiprofessional sides such as his suffer from a lack of exposure to major teams and wants more matches against them.
New Zealand-born Borren said on Wednesday his team has played only one one-day international against a test-playing side in the past two years and it is hard to compete in tournaments like the World Cup without more such experience.
The Netherlands made its World Cup debut in 1996 and will be playing in its fourth tournament starting in 10 days on the subcontinent. The Dutch have won only twice in 14 World Cup matches and both against fellow associate members of the International Cricket Council.
"I think we need more opportunities against full member sides. It's not easy coming into a tournament such as this," Borren said.
"It's not really in our hands, we hope full members can try and embrace associate cricket and give us more opportunities to play against them."
He said a majority of Dutch cricketers are part-timers.
"They put a lot of time to their cricket and have to work 40 hours a week and have a home life," Borren said. "The commitment they have shown particularly in the last five months, it's been magnificent."
Borren said his team has prepared well for the tournament, despite being hit by cold weather while training in India and Dubai.
After losing to Canada by four wickets on Sunday and by 115 runs to Zimbabwe on Tuesday in Dubai, the Netherlands play two more warm-up games against Sri Lanka and Kenya.
Kenya, Canada and Ireland are other associate teams participating in the World Cup.
"It was completely misunderstood. It was in a sequence of questions I had said that I would not play domestic cricket if don't play in IPL. It was said in a different perspective completely," a peeved Ganguly told PTI at his residence.
"I had never said in the interview that I was retiring from all forms of cricket and there was no question of backtracking. I don't understand how they (media) came to such a conclusion," he said.
"There was no controversy at all. After learning that something was misunderstood during the interview, I had sent a rejoinder and said if I don't get to play IPL, I will not be participating in any forms of domestic cricket. But if I do get an opportunity to play IPL, I will play domestic cricket to stay fit," added the left-hander, who was snubbed by all the 10 IPL franchises for the fourth edition on the event.
Speculations about Ganguly's retirement from all forms of the game triggered yesterday after his interview to a television channel was misinterpreted by the media.
"It's very disappointing and shocking to know that the way the media interpreted it and blew it out of proportion. It should not have happened like this," Ganguly said.
"It was a classic example of I say something in some context which was understood completely in a different way in some other context," he said.
Asked how he sees his cricketing career panning out after all the franchises chose to ignore him for IPL IV, Ganguly said, "You have to wait and see.
"I will take a call if an opportunity comes in my way in future. I have already retired from International cricket (after Australia series) in 2008. And it's too far to talk about the next IPL."
MUMBAI: Having faltered twice at the doorstep of the title contest previously when they hosted the World Cup, India would be eager to break the jinx this time around and regain cricket's most coveted trophy when they commence their campaign in the megaevent against co-hosts Bangladesh at Dhaka on February 19.
In 1987, Kapil Dev failed to lead the country to their second successive crown as his team was swept off the perch by Mike Gatting-led England in the semifinal at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
Mohd Azharuddin also could not pilot his squad back on to the throne of one-day cricket nine years later when India co-hosted the World Cup along with Sri Lanka and Pakistan, as his team was knocked out by eventual champions Lanka in the semifinal at Kolkata's Eden Gardens.
This time around Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his men are aiming to disprove India's jinx as host nation of the World Cup, aiming to make it third time lucky in the tournament that the country is co-hosting with Lanka and Bangladesh.
The Dhoni-led team has the iconic Sachin Tendulkar, who will be playing in his sixth World Cup that would place him at par with Pakistan great Javed Miandad, to look forward to - besides a very talented and balanced team - for ferrying back the World Cup to India after 28 years.
Seeded second in the tournament and ranked number one in Group 'B', India's passage into the knock-out stage appears reasonably smooth if they play to their potential and are careful to avoid some pitfalls.
India's opening tie against Bangladesh would itself be looked at with interest for it was the country's eastern neighbours who inflicted a shock defeat on Rahul Dravid's team four years ago in the West Indies, which eventually knocked them out of the World Cup in the first round.
"The past is past. I am more optimistic than you," Dhoni said last week referring to the lung-opener against Bangladesh.
India's next opponents eight days later would be South Africa, against whom they have had mixed results in the recent past.
England and the West Indies loom as the major threats in the remaining matches but with the group also consisting of minnows Ireland (11th seed) and The Netherlands (13), Dhoni and his men would be fancying their chances of entering the last eight from where the do-or-die stage starts.
Tendulkar, who has created a staggering array of records in ODIs too apart from Tests, is going to be the lynch pin of the team's strong batting line up.
The batting maestro is already the highest run-getter in the tournament history (1796 in 36 matches) and has said often that it is his dream to be part of a World Cup-winning squad.
Over the last year or so he has played very few ODIs, missing most of them either to take rest or recovering from injury, to be totally ready for cricket's showpiece.
While Tendulkar would be the man marshaling the top order that has top shots Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir, Dhoni is there to take control of the latter part of the innings in the company of big-shot players like Yuvraj Singh, Yusuf Pathan and Suresh Raina.
Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh seem to hold the aces in pace and spin bowling with the others working in tandem with this pair.
The team looks very strong in batting, has a varied bowling attack with lots of options in part-time slow bowlers like Yuvraj and Pathan, but may be handicapped by lack of enough swift-moving out-fielders and attacking fielders inside the ring.
Some of the players would also be returning following lay-offs due to injuries. The list includes Tendulkar, Sehwag and Gambhir and they may take some time to get back into the groove.
While India have the advantage of playing all their league matches, barring the opener, in front of adoring home fans, it can also act as a double-edged sword especially if the players don't do well.
Dhoni sounded confident that the squad members would handle the pressure of huge expectations of the fans and followers with aplomb.
"We take pressure as an added responsibility. We will stick to the basics and prepare well. We have the potential to do well in the tournament. For a change we will not be the underdogs," Dhoni had said in Mumbai.
The Ranchi-born wicket-keeper batsman, however, refused to predict whether India will go on and repeat the feat performed by "Kapil's" 1983 "Devils".
"I never predict what will happen in cricket. We believe in each other and we believe in the process. We will take each game in the right frame of mind," said Dhoni.
Don't cut Shield cricket - Watson
Back-to-back Allan Border Medallist Shane Watson says reducing the Sheffield Shield season would hurt Australia's performance in the Test arena.
Cutting back from the current 10 Shield games per state per season, plus the final, is one of the options under consideration as Cricket Australia works out how to fit in a revamped and expanded Twenty20 competition.But Watson said his own experience suggested the Shield needed to remain at least, or Australia's Test prospects would suffer.
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"I personally think so yeah, because you need to get good consistent cricket under your belt as well," he said."I know from a body point of view that you do have to get your body used to doing what it needs to do and that is playing consistent cricket for a longer period of time.
"Ten games of Shield cricket is a great challenge for your body to be able to get through.
"If you make the next step up to international cricket, the schedule is all year round, so it's something people need to get used to ... so let's hope that it does stay at 10 because I think it's really important."
The CA board was meeting in Melbourne on Tuesday, with the format and scheduling of the new T20 competition one of the main agenda items.
Watson said while CA viewed a souped-up T20 tournament as very important, Shield cricket would always be the "backbone" of Australia's success in the game.
"They need to try to find the balance so it's not out of kilter a bit with too much Twenty20 cricket."
Bryan Adams to open ICC World Cup
The 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup will get off to a rocking start with 'Summer of 69' hitmaker Bryan Adams performing at the opening ceremony in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Adams is the only western artist to perform at the gala opening, which will see Bollywood trio Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy trio belting out the official song, 'De Ghuma Ke'.
The performance on February 17 will be broadcast to a TV audience of 200 million people by ESPN, said a press release.
The performance will fall near the end of the Canadian singer's tour of India that begins February 11th in Pune.
Also on his itinerary are Bangalore, New Delhi, Hyderabad and Mumbai, the city of Bryan's first concert in India in January of 1994 on the cricket grounds in Brabourne Stadium.
Canada is one of 14 qualifying countries taking part in the World Cup which will begin on February 19.
Pak sports minister urges ICC to review five-year ban on 'young' Mohammed Amir
Pakistan Sports minister Ajaz Jakhrani has urged the International Cricket Council (ICC) to review the five-year ban imposed on fast bowler Mohammed Amir.
Amir has been banned for five years over spot-fixing charges in the Lord’s Test match played against England in August last year.
Jakhrani said that he was surprised by the lengthy ban on Amir because of his young age.
“We think the ICC must review the ban on Aamir again because he is young and was influenced into doing things he might not have wanted to do,” the Daily Times quoted Jakhrani as saying.
“He should be given a chance to redeem and reform and make a comeback to cricket,” he added.
The mnister also said that the overall impact of the bans was a big shock for Pakistan cricket.
The ICC has also imposed bans on former captain Salman Butt and fast bowler Mohammad Asif.
Mendis, Perera bowl Sri Lanka to series win
Ajantha Mendis and Thisara Perera shared seven wickets as Sri Lanka won the third One-Day International against the West Indies by 26 runs to clinch the series 2-0 on Sunday.
West Indies captain Darren Sammy won the toss and sent the hosts in to bat first at Sinhalese Sports Club. Sri Lanka made 277/9 in 50 overs with captain Kumar Sangakkara (75) and Mahela Jayawardene (44) sharing a 95-run partnership. Sulieman Benn returned 4/38.
West Indies lost two wickets without scoring to open its innings but a 125-run partnership for the third wicket between Darren Bravo (79) and Ramnaresh Sarwan (44) lifted their spirits. But the touring side was limited thereafter and reached only 251 all out in 49 overs.
Mendis finished with 4/46 and Perera returned 3/36.
Johnson leads Australia to another win
Australia paceman Mitchell Johnson again found the WACA a happy hunting ground to inspire the hosts to a 57-run victory and a 6-1 series hammering of England in the seventh and final one day international on Sunday.
Johnson, who fired Australia to their only Ashes Test win on the same ground, ripped the heart out of the England batting with the key wickets of Jonathan Trott (14), Kevin Pietersen (26) and Ian Bell (8) as the tourists chased 280 for victory.
England, who arrived in Perth for the Ashes tour on October 30, looked like a team at the end of a long, gruelling summer and, despite a bright unbeaten 60 from Michael Yardy, laboured to 222 all out in 44 overs.
The tourists were already struggling by the time Johnson hit his stride with Andrew Strauss finishing his last match against Australia on this tour as he started the first -- with dismissal for a duck in the opening over of his team's innings.
Shaun Tait took away the top of the England skipper's off stump with a fizzing second ball, a delivery fewer than it took Ben Hilfenhaus to dismiss Strauss in the first Ashes test at the Gabba.
Steven Davies, a surprise omission from the England World Cup squad, failed to embarrass the selectors by following his skipper to the changing room with a six-ball duck in the next over.
Johnson, so often the object of derision from England supporters over the campaign, then took charge with his impressive 3-18, while Tait chimed in with 3-48 and spinner Jason Krejza did his World Cup hopes no harm with 2-53.
Australia had made a pedestrian start to their innings before Adam Voges and David Hussey both hit half centuries and shared a partnership of 95 to bring the match to life.
Local Voges, a late call-up after Australia decided to rest captain Michael Clarke and Shane Watson, rattled off an unbeaten 80 from 72 balls with Hussey notching 60 at a run-a-ball.
Their partnership was ended when Hussey was caught by Bell after getting a leading edge to a Liam Plunkett delivery -- one of two wickets for the seamer who was flown in from the West Indies after a rash of injuries to England bowlers.
Johnson had a short but eventful knock of 26, being dropped by both James Anderson and Steve Finn before Matt Prior, relieved of his wicketkeeping duties in favour of Davies for the match, caught him superbly on the boundary.
Finn had earlier cleverly caught opener Brad Haddin for 27, throwing the ball into the air as he tumbled back over the boundary rope before recovering to take the catch infield.
Anderson completed his last bowling assignment of the long and mostly successful tour of Australia with 3-48, including the wicket of John Hastings who had dislocated a finger in the warm-up.
Australia's domination of the one-day series will in no way make up for losing the Ashes on home soil for the first time in 24 years but will give the triple defending champions confidence ahead of the forthcoming World Cup.
Jairam Ramesh opposes proposal for cricket stadium in Kerala
Union minister for environment and forests Jairam Ramesh today expressed reservation on the building up of a cricket stadium at Edakochi, a mangrove-rich area near Kochi.
"All parties in Kerala stand united on the issue. But we should ask ourselves a question before demanding a stadium in such a mangrove-rich region. What is more important for us— cricket or mangroves?" Jairam asked while delivering the presidential address in the Fourth Southern Forest Ministers conference 2011 in Thiruvananthapuram.
Kerala Cricket Association had take up the stadium project in the wake of Kochi becoming a part of IPL. However, state based environmental activites have come out against the stadium holding that it would pose threat to mangroves.
Mangroves are nature's bio-shields and southern states in the country has a large mangrove cover. "But they are dwindling in an alarming rate. Especially in the last 25-30 years," he said.
He said everyone should remember how mangroves acted as bio-shields and protected the surrounding environ during the time of tsunami which hit south India some years back.
He wanted the south Indian states to take new initiative to regenerate mangrove areas to ensure their preservation and also for the purpose of generating livelihood for the local community.
Taylor, Walters to be included in Hall of Fame
Melbourne, Feb 6 (PTI) Former captain Mark Taylor and middle-order batsman Doug Walters are set to join the elitegroup of cricketing greats as they will be inducted into theAustralian Cricket Hall of Fame at the Allan Border Medal night here tomorrow
The 46-year-old Taylor, who captained Australia in 50Tests for 26 victories, and the middle-order star of the1970s, Walters, will be the 33rd and 34th men added to the group, which began in 1996 with 10 inductees, the ''Australian Associated Press'' reported.
"This year''s inductees are two Australian cricketing icons who both originated from country New South Wales and who in their own distinctive way, have had an enormous impact on Australian cricket," Bob Lloyd, the chairman of the selection panel, said.
"Both have outstanding playing records; Mark with over7500 runs as an opening batsman, brilliant slips fieldsman andone of Australia''s greatest captains and Doug as an exciting and entertaining batsman who averaged 48.26 over his 74Tests," added Llyod.
Taylor, now a noted television commentator, captained Australia from 1994 to 1999 as his team built a formidable record as the world''s No 1 cricket nation.
Taylor played 104 Tests for Australia, scoring 7,525 run sat an average of 43.49 with 19 centuries. He made his Test debut against the West Indies at Sydney in January, 1989.
Walters played 74 Tests, including his debut against England at Brisbane in December, 1965, and scored 15 centuries in his career.
Jacob Oram cleared of injury for World Cup
Allrounder Jacob Oram has been cleared to join his New Zealand cricket colleagues on their flight to the subcontinent for the World Cup.
The team depart Auckland on Tuesday but Oram's place had been in doubt after he missed the final one-day international against Pakistan in that city yesterday due to an ankle injury.
After a scan, X-ray and independent medical assessment Oram was today told he could board Tuesday's flight.
"The medical staff got the necessary assessment done and I was sweating on the results but pleased when the doctor let me know that I was fit to travel with the team to the World Cup," Oram said.
"I have inflammation around the joint so not a significant tear or break."
New Zealand Cricket medical staff will continue to treat Oram in India and he is expected to be available for selection for the warmup match against Ireland on Saturday.
England Cricket's Morgan to Miss Final One-Day Game With Broken Finger
Eoin Morgan will miss the England cricket team’s final one-day international in Australia tomorrow with a broken middle finger on his left hand.
Morgan felt discomfort earlier in the seven-game series which has gotten progressively worse and an X-ray revealed the break, the England and Wales Cricket Board said in a statement.
The 24-year-old batsman will return to the U.K. to see a specialist. A decision will then be made on his participation in the World Cup, which will be played Feb. 19 to April 2 in India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, the England board said.
Chennai Police to seek court's help for summoning Lalit Modi
Chennai: Chennai Police plans to approach a court against former Indian Premier League (IPL) chairman Lalit Modi, who is refusing to accept its summons to appear in person in a criminal complaint lodged by the Indian cricket board, a top police official said Saturday.
Speaking to reporters here, Chennai City Police Commissioner T. Rajendran said summons had been issued to seven people including Modi but only two - Kunal Das Gupta and Ajay Verma - had appeared before police to give their explanation.
Rajendran said police has given the other five time till Feb 15 and if they do not appear by then, the appropriate court would be moved for dishonouring the summons.
Modi had been asked to appear in person before the Central Crime Branch (CCB) on any one of the following dates - Jan 25, 27 and 28 - and clarify his position on a criminal complaint by Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary N. Srinivasan, alleging misappropriation of funds to the tune of Rs.469 crore.
England aim to end long tour on a high
It's a hundred days since England landed in Perth ahead of a long tour that would result in them smashing Australia by an innings in three Tests and winning the Ashes away for the first time in 24 years. They're back in Western Australia now, to end the trip with the seventh one-day international. It's a dead rubber, as Australia lead the series 5-1, but England fans will be thrilled with what has been achieved regardless of these limited-overs results. For Andrew Strauss, though, it has been a disappointing end to the trip, if only because the World Cup is rapidly approaching and one-day form would be valuable.
So, here is one last opportunity for the England players (those who haven't already been crocked by injury) to enjoy success before a fleeting visit home ahead of the World Cup. No doubt bodies and minds are exhausted - eight members of the side that will take the field in Perth were also part of the Test squad. But they should fancy their chances against an Australian side whose batting line-up has been severely diluted. Shane Watson and Michael Clarke are resting, and the hosts were already without Ricky Ponting, Michael Hussey and Shaun Marsh due to injuries.
But whatever happens on Sunday, Strauss and his men will fly out of the country as champions, and the silverware Australia will lift won't mean a thing compared to the Ashes and the upcoming World Cup.
Pak cricket community shocked after London Police charges trio
Tainted trio of Salman Butt, Muhammad Asif and Muhammad Aamir sent more shockwaves to cricket community in Pakistan after Britain's Crown Prosecution Service decided to charge the already suspended players of taking bribes and defraud during the England tour last year. The news from London came
hours after the Pakistan Cricket Board confirmed that Shahid Afridi will lead the side in the World Cup this month. The framing of charges came just a day before an International Cricket Council tribunal announces its conclusions in the spot-fixing scandal in Doha tomorrow, which rocked the world cricket last year.
The tribunal interrogated the players over 45 hours in Doha last month. Many leading players avoided comments on the sensitive issue but those who spoke out said they were shocked by the charges brought against Butt, Asif and Aamir. "We were waiting to see what happens tomorrow in Doha and now this news comes.
It basically means that the cricketers now not only face cricketing sanctions but also criminal charges and this is really bad for the image of Pakistan cricket," former captain Zaheer Abbas said. "I really don't know all the details right now and have just heard about it on television.
But it is a huge disappointment and it means now we have to prepare to defend ourselves on another front," Muhammad Aamir told a television channel in Doha. "Myself and my lawyer are still looking into the details of the announcement by the British Crown Prosecution Office and will take it from there, but right now the important thing is the verdict announcement tomorrow," he said.
Former captain Rashid Latif said the players are now in deep trouble and would have to hire best lawyers to defend themselves against all charges. "Being summoned to appear in a British court on corruption charges is a big thing and it is a sad day for Pakistan cricket," Latif said. Former pace bowler Sikander Bakht described the announcement as a bad day for Pakistan cricket that would bring more problems to the three players. "I don't know but maybe we might now have a situation where the ICC tribunal decides to hold its verdict until these criminal charges are sorted out in March," Bakht said.
The three players have been summoned by the Crown Prosecution Service to appear in a Westminister court on March 17 to formally face the charges against them.
Former test batsman and ex-national selector, Basit Ali said the announcement was a big blow for Pakistan cricket and added the pressure on the national team to play well in the World Cup.
"Our cricket image has taken a beating due to these unfortunate off the field happenings which have brought a bad name to us. I don't want to comment on the outcome because until now the players have not been proven guilty.
But I know one thing we must do well in the World Cup to tell the world that our cricket is not about these things but about cricket and we are a strong cricket nation," Basit added. The Pakistan Cricket Board's legal advisor, Tafazzul Rizvi and media manager, Nadeem Sarwar declined to make comments on the matter saying the board would stay away from the matter