Tuesday, June 07, 2016

CRICBUZZ IPL TOP 20

By Unknown 1:04:00 pm

Kohli suggests Vettori's name for India coach

By Unknown 4:07:00 pm

by Samrat rai • Last updated on Monday, 09 May, 2016, 01:46 AM

Vettori and Kohli have been working together closely in IPL © IPL

Former New Zealand left-arm spinner Daniel Vettori, who is currently the head coach of Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore and Big Bash side Brisbane Heat, could find himself in the running for the position of India's national coach.

India and RCB skipper Virat Kohli, who took over the reins of the Test side from MS Dhoni after the latter's retirement from the game's longest format in December 2014, has suggested Vettori's name for the high-profile job. In line with the trend of international captains getting to have a say in the appointment of a coach considering the way Greg Chappell and Gary Kirsten were handed the responsibilities in the past Kohli seems to be convinced that Vettori is the right man for the job.

Sources confirmed to Times of India that Vettori's name has indeed been suggested by Kohli but there was no confirmation yet if the BCCI is giving the New Zealander a serious thought yet.

With India scheduled to play 18 Test matches between June 2016 and March 2017, the appointment of a national coach could come around any time soon.

Vettori announced his retirement from international cricket in March last year after New Zealand suffered a heartbreak in the final of the ICC World Cup in Melbourne against Australia. Soon after hanging his boots, the 37-year-old from Auckland took up his first coaching role when Brisbane Heat came calling in April 2015.

He had already been coaching the Royal Challengers in the IPL since 2014 and is therefore two years into the role of a coach, a job that he seems to be enjoying thoroughly .

Vettori replaced the experienced Stuart Law at Brisbane, signing a three-year contract. It is to be seen if India do go by Kohli's suggestion and hand Vettori an offer letter, and if he will be able to wriggle out of his Big Bash duties.

The Kiwi has been full of praise for Kohli too in his last few years at the RCB, first as skipper and then coach. Incidentally, when he took over as the RCB captain in 2013, Kohli had replaced Vettori for the role.

TOI had reported last month about BCCI approaching Rahul Dravid for the role of the head coach but the former India captain later said he would have to weigh the decision with a lot of consideration. "Any decision that I make at this stage of my life would depend on whether I have the bandwidth to do all of these things," Dravid was quoted as saying in early April, after which he got busy coaching the Delhi Daredevils.

While the details are not out yet on what the BCCI is thinking, it seems to be clear now that barring the role of the chief coach, there won't be any other new appointments for now. Assistant coaches Sanjay Bangar, Bharat Arun and R Sridhar are likely to continue with their jobs.

Rising Pune Supergiants vs Sunrisers Hyderabad,

By Unknown 4:00:00 pm

SRH 137/8 (20.0 Ovs)

RPS 133/8 (20.0 Ovs)

Sunrisers Hyderabad won by 4 runs

PLAYER OF THE MATCH
Adam Zampa

Phew, this match would have poked a dead man alive! Having opted to bat, Warner took the road less travelled and reaped dividends with an atypical win and a top slot in the points table. Pune are out of the IPL, and dare I say, out of that recursive loop of injuries that marred their entire campaign, sadly. If there ever was a vicious spell, Pune Supergiants suffered under it. That's it from tonight. Join us tomorrow as the IPL production line continues to churn out thrill. Good night from Pratyush Sinha on behalf of Sagar Chawla, Abhishek Chaudhary and our scorerVenkatesh. Ta-ta!

Adam Zampa: "Has not sunk in yet but a disappointing end to the game. Knew that the batsmen would come hard. We were under pressure there but legspinners are always in the game. Dhoni did not really tell me that I had to bowl the last over. Just picked up the ball and threw it on the ground. I wanted to bowl obviously - it was spinning and was pretty tough out there. He just told me that leg side was his (Hooda's) strength and asked me to fire it wider (referring to a mid-pitch chat that led to a wicket). We have to try and finish this season well now. India and Indian people, the pressure of fans, the crowd is a different experience."

Adam Zampa is the Man of the Match. His bowling figures are the second-best ever in the history of IPL

"It was a very close game. I knew the wicket would be slow and tough, and hence runs on board were key. We were 25-30 runs below par. When I came back, I saw 20 odd for 1 after the powerplay, all sorts of thoughts came to my mind. The guys are a great bunch of lads. We are always in each other's faces, jumping around in pools. Everybody comes out with a smile and gives their 100 percent. I tend to sit back, assess the condition and then do my job. We have a great bunch of support staff. Last couple of games have been phenomenal. Zampa has a big future ahead. Dhoni had good faith in him to give him the last over of the innings," lets out an obviously jolly Warner

"Initially I look to swing the ball. We believed in ourselves. Nehra bowled a tremendous over," chirps out Bhuvneshwar donning his new Purple Cap. Russell has the same number of wickets but Bhuvneshwar has a superlative economy

"Well, close games are tough ones to digest but you also have to look at what went right. We won 3 games comfortably and other games went down to the wire. Something is not right for us. The new ball bowling was good and we did well to restrict them. If you compare the bowling attacks, their's can exploit the condition more. We lost Rahane early and a partnership was important but we kept losing wickets. Zampa was very good. The first few games, we played with the best eleven. Wickets were something that we lacked and he (Zampa) gave us that stability too. What's important is to see the bench strength now. If we can't field the players, we can let them go to other franchises. It's to be seen who grabs the opportunity and it will make it easy for us in the next season," says poker-face Dhoni

It always looked a tricky total from the start on this tricky wicket. To compound matters, the strategy employed by Dhoni was baffling to say the least. Sending in Ashwin at no.4 and Tiwary ahead of himself was not what the doctor ordered, but that's MSD for you. Some really good seam and swing bowling by the SRH bowlers on this muggy evening never let the RPS batting take off. The best finisher in the business almost got the RPS home in the end but the brilliance of Nehra proved to be the game changer in the end.

One would have thought that this will be easy for RPS but cricket as they say is a game of glorious uncertainties. It kept swinging like a pendulum until the end when it came down to MSD and Perera. It was 14 off 6, and they failed to get RPS home. Nehra, the experienced pro, managed to put the lid on the RPS run in this tourney. It was drama as Dhoni got run out on the second last ball. The penultimate over by Mustafizur was important too as he gave away only 8 runs in that over
.

Mumbai Indians set to move to VIZAG

By Unknown 5:46:00 pm

SHIFTING VENUES

DELHI , by SAMRAT RAI • Last updated on Friday, 29 April, 2016, 07:19 AM

Mumbai Indians were caught in a mess after an initial go ahead to play in Jaipur after the Rajasthan High Court too intervened. © BCCI

Contrary to speculation surrounding the shifting of venues, IPL defending champions Mumbai Indians look all set to move their home matches in May to Visakhapatnam, the Andhra Pradesh port city. After the Bombay High Court ruling that matches would have to be shifted out of Maharashtra in view of the severe drought situation in the state, the BCCI and the franchises were left facing a huge logistical exercise in terms of finding alternate venues.

While Kings XI Punjab pulled out of Nagpur and Rising Pune Supergiants settled for Visakhapatnam, Mumbai Indians were caught in a mess after an initial go ahead to play in Jaipur after the Rajasthan High Court too intervened.

The team, not knowing where they'd be playing next, was left in a state of confusion, knowing that the last three 'home matches' will be crucial to their standing in the league table.

However, sources now say that instead of looking at any further options, the BCCI and Mumbai seem to have settled for Visakhapatnam for the three home matches in May . An official announcement could be out on Friday .

Depleted Pune look to stop Gujarat in their tracks

By Unknown 5:32:00 pm

Preview by Gokul Gopal:

As the two new teams of the Indian Premier League 2016 cross paths for the second time in the season, there is a hint of contrast to their campaigns. While Rising Pune Supergiants have huffed and puffed to two wins in six fixtures and are currently part of a mid-table clutter, Suresh Raina's Gujarat Lions have secured five wins in six to sit atop the points table.

"It was like playing a practice match for CSK," Jadeja had reckoned after the last face-off between the two sides. The Saurashtra spinner's words reflect the fact that the two teams are made up of former teammates who are now competing to outwit each other.

Gujarat had gotten the better of their fellow-debutants in the previous fixture, when they chased down 164 with two overs to spare. After a much-needed victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad, Rising Pune Supergiants will hope to deny Raina & Co. from doing the double over them on Friday (April 29).

Despite putting an end to their four-game losing streak, Pune have been dented by Faf du Plessis's finger injury that ruled him out of the rest of the season. Usman Khawaja, the Australian opener, has been named as the South African's replacement, but it remains to be seen if he can make it on time for Friday's fixture. With Kevin Pietersen also ruled out, MS Dhoni will have the headache of finding the right batting combination at the top of the order, if Khawaja isn't available.

The skipper can take heart in the fact that his misfiring bowling unit struck form in their previous fixture, when they restricted a David Warner-led batting unit to a paltry total. In the face of a daunting challenge against the likes of Brendon McCullum and Dwayne Smith, Dhoni will hope Ashok Dinda can provide his side with yet another dream start.

As far as Gujarat are concerned, despite exceptional batting from their openers, they were kept on their toes all through. While their ability to hold their nerve and eke out a narrow one-run win highlights their sheer resolve, Raina will hope his boys can work harder to close down games after gaining an early upperhand. The likes of Dhawal Kulkarni and Praveen Kumar will be pivotal to Gujarat's fate in the fixture against the likes of Steven Smith, who has slowly but steadily started to warm up to the tournament.

Team News:

Rising Pune Supergiants: Pune had made two changes in their previous game, bringing in Dinda and Marsh for Ankit Sharma and Albie Morkel. With both the inclusions doing well, Dhoni might have to give up the luxury of an extra batsman in Saurabh Tiwary, who hasn't faced a single delivery in the last two games, and could possibly make way for the extra spinner.

Gujarat Lions: Aaron Finch, who was struggling with his hamstring a few days back, had flown to Mumbai to see a specialist. It remains to be seen if he's available for selection. Given McCullum and Smith's explosive batting at the top, the Aussie may not be rushed back into the side. Given the surface in Pune assists the spinners, Gujarat Lions might also look at including Shadab Jakati or even Shivil Kaushik, the left-arm chinaman bowler, as an extra spin option. If they decide to do that, Ishan Kishan might have to make way.

Teams:

Gujarat Lions (From): Dwayne Smith, Brendon McCullum, Suresh Raina(c), Dinesh Karthik(w), Ravindra Jadeja, Dwayne Bravo, Ishan Kishan, James Faulkner, Praveen Kumar, Dhawal Kulkarni, Pravin Tambe, Sarabjit Ladda, Pradeep Sangwan, Paras Dogra, Shadab Jakati, Eklavya Dwivedi, Jaydev Shah, Dale Steyn, Andrew Tye, Aaron Finch, Akshdeep Nath, Umang Sharma, Amit Mishra, Shivil Kaushik

Rising Pune Supergiants (From): Ajinkya Rahane, Steven Smith, Saurabh Tiwary, MS Dhoni(w/c), Thisara Perera, Mitchell Marsh, Rajat Bhatia, Ravichandran Ashwin, Murugan Ashwin, Ashok Dinda, Albie Morkel, Usman Khawaja, Irfan Pathan, Ishant Sharma, Peter Handscomb, RP Singh, Jaskaran Singh, Adam Zampa, Ankit Sharma, Scott Boland, Ishwar Pandey, Deepak Chahar, Baba Aparajith, Ankush Bains

Rohit, spinners give India big win in warm-up

By Unknown 3:03:00 pm

WORLD T20 2016 WARM-UP

Rohit, spinners give India big win in warm-up

BY SAMRAT RAI Kolkata, Last updated on Friday, 11 March, 2016, 12:16 AM

India added gloss to their tag of pre-tournament favourites with a 45-run victory © Getty

Rohit Sharma scored a blazing unbeaten 98 and four bowlers picked up two wickets each as India began their World T20 campaign with a convincing 45-run win over West Indies in a warm-up encounter at the raucous Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Thursday (March 10).

Rohit, who bludgeoned nine fours and seven sixes in his 57-ball essay, shared an 89-run stand for the third wicket with Yuvraj Singh (31 off 20) to help the hosts notch up 185 on the board before the bowlers, led by Pawan Negi and Ravindra Jadeja - the two left-arm spinners - bowled West Indies out for 140 inside their quota of 20 overs.

It was a warm-up game and the result counts for little at this time but the fixture served a timely reminder of where these teams are at the moment. India, already in the middle of a purple patch in T20Is, were able to keep their bench strength match-ready. Mohammed Shami, playing in an India shirt for the first time since the 2015 World Cup, and Negi, so often condemned to warming the benches, put in performances that added gloss to India's tag as pre-tournament favourites. West Indies, on the other hand, encountered familiar problems with bowling and playing spin.

On a flat Eden wicket, one on which the captains - MS Dhoni and Darren Sammy - mutually agreed that India would bat first, the hosts got off to a rather sedate start.

Rohit, as he often does in limited-overs, began in rather tepid fashion. Dhawan was far more assured in an opening stand of 32. The left-hander, fresh from a half-century in the Asia Cup, helped himself to a flurry of well-timed boundaries even as his partner bided his time at the start of the innings. The duo added 32 runs inside five overs before the introduction of left-arm spinner Sulieman Benn accounted for Dhawan (21)

A 20000-strong crowd at the Eden Gardens rose expectantly at the fall of the first wicket, hoping to catch star batsman Virat Kohli in action but this being a warm-up game, the Indian team management was more concerned about giving their fringe players a run. Ajinkya Rahane walked in at three and attempted to get going straight away, only to be beaten by Benn's turn and getting stumped. Rohit and new batsman Yuvraj Singh steadied the innings and by the half-way mark India reached 62 for 2.

Rohit, who had meandered to 25 off 28 balls, suddenly turned a switch on. The carnage began early in the second half when off-spinner Ashley Nurse was brought into the attack. The youngster, called in to replace Sunil Narine, conceded 16, with Rohit peppering the mid-wicket boundary. When Andre Russell came back into the attack in the next over, he was slammed straight back over his head for a six.

Russell followed that with a fuller delivery, Rohit simply walked across his stumps and lapped him over the short-fine fielder. 31 runs came of two overs as India rocketed to 93 in 12 overs with Rohit completing a 37-ball half-century.

Sammy brought himself into the attack in the 13th over and should have had Yuvraj on 7, only for Nurse to grass a straight forward chance at deep mid-wicket. The flamboyant left-hander, unwilling to be left behind by Rohit's belligerence, then unfurled a succession of powerful drives and a monster straight six before falling for a 20-ball 31.

Ravindra Jadeja, Pawan Negi and Hardik Pandya were promoted up the order but couldn't make a significant mark on the innings. Rohit, on the other hand, powered into the 90s with a nonchalant flicked-six off Taylor before failing to score off the last two deliveries of the innings to remain unbeaten, two short of a century.

West Indies had reason to believe that they could hunt down 185. It was a flat wicket and openers Chris Gayle and Johnson Charles had added 26 off the first two overs of the chase bowled by Ravichandran Ashwin and Harbhajan Singh. Jasprit Bumrah, Dhoni's go-to man, cleaned Gayle up with a skiddy inswinger, giving India a much-needed opening. Shami then forced Charles to edge one to the keeper bringing in two new batsmen to the crease simultaneously.

It was the perfect setup for Dhoni to employ his classic choke by spin. Negi and Jadeja bowled out their spells in one go conceding just 41 from their 8 overs while returning two wickets apiece. Jadeja's surprise round-arm deliveries proved too hard for West Indies to get away while Negi was generous in his use of flight and got significant purchase off the wicket.

By the 13th over, West Indies had slipped from 36 for 1 to 84 for 6 with India's outfielding, particularly that of Rahane (four catches) functioning in top gear. Shami returned for a second spell and accounted for Ashley Nurse while Pandya got amongst the wickets as well to send West Indies hurtling towards an inconsequential but an eye-opening defeat.

Brief Scores: India 185/6 in 20 overs (Rohit Sharma 98*, Yuvraj Singh 31; Jerome Taylor 2-26) beat West Indies 140 in 19.2 overs (Chris Gayle 20; Pawan Negi 2-15, Ravindra Jadeja 2-26) by 45 runs

india ease win over bangladesh ,clinch 6th asia cup title

By Unknown 8:44:00 pm

BAN 120/5 (15.0 Ovs)

IND 122/2 (13.5 Ovs)

India won by 8 wkts

PLAYER OF THE MATCH
Shikhar Dhawan

PLAYER OF THE SERIES
Sabbir Rahman

So that concludes the 2016 Asia Cup. India have had great practice ahead of the World T20. They have won as many as 10 out of their last 11 games. Dhoni spoke about the side being well-settled and surely, they are red-hot favourites for the crown. We still have a bit of time though. A few teams have already arrived in India, while the rest will be there very soon. The qualifiers have already begun and Bangladesh will be playing the qualifiers for a place in the main tournament. Good luck to them, for they played excellent cricket here in the Asia Cup. It was great bringing all the action to you. Hope you enjoyed our coverage. Looking forward to your company for the qualifiers. Goodbye!

- As of now, under MS Dhoni's able leadership, India have won eight multi-nation tournaments. He finds himself in the fourth place in that regard.

- MS Dhoni also became the first Indian to thump 300 international sixes.

- MS Dhoni has ended a T20I with a six on three occasions now (successful run-chases).

- This is also the second occasion that India have won the Asia Cup, with MS Dhoni as the captain.

- India have now won all their eight encounters batting second in T20Is in Mirpur.

- This was the first time, India took part in a rain curtailed game in T20Is. The Indian camp would be pleased that they ended up on the winning side.

- It is also their seventh successive victory in T20Is. It equals India's best run in this format of the game.

- This is already the most number of matches that India have won in a calendar year in T20Is.

- India have been on a roll in the shortest format of the game, in recent times. They have won 10 out of their last 11 encounters. Their only loss in that period came against Sri Lanka in Pune.

Spirited Bangladesh up against in-form India in summit clash

By Unknown 10:59:00 am

ASIA CUP T20, 2016

Spirited Bangladesh up against in-form India in summit clash

Dhaka, by SAMRAT RAI • Last updated on Saturday, 05 March, 2016, 07:09 PM

The momentum is with MS Dhoni's side but the home support for Bangladesh can put India under pressure © AFP

The setting is perfect for an exciting Asia Cup T20, 2016 final on Sunday (March 6). It's fitting that two of the best teams have made it to the final but as Mashrafe Mortaza, the Bangladesh skipper, admitted, India will start the game as favourites thanks to their brilliant run in Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is) recently.

But Bangladesh will bank on a lot of other factors to favour them. Home conditions for starters. The pitches at the Shere Bangla National stadium in Dhaka were clearly favouring the seamers a lot more when the tournament started. But gradually, that sheen is wearing off although the new-ball still keeps them in the game early on. Bangladesh will be without the services of their premier pacer Mustafizur Rahman (out due to a side strain) but also boast of three others who can make up for his absence on a given day. Taskin Ahmed has started the fill-in role well while Bangladesh also plumped for an extra spinner in the absence of Mustafizur. They are likely to persist with a similar combination for the final as well.

The hosts though will be sweating over the fitness of Shakib Al Hasan, who injured his hip-flex area during practice on Friday (March 4). There was nothing serious said the physio, but he also said that it would take 48 hours for him to recover. While he might still pull up fine in time for the final, it might be a risky proposition to push him to play so close to the World T20. Shakib is one of the bedrocks of both, batting and bowling, for Bangladesh and it could be a crucial blow if he does pull up unfit.

For India, there aren't any injury concerns at the moment. Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan and MS Dhoni, all had niggles at various points during the tournament but have recovered well. Their team combination is public knowledge now with MS Dhoni making no bones about the names or number of pacers, spinners and all-rounders he prefers. The pace-department led by Ashish Nehra and Jasprit Bumrah has been one of their biggest strengths in T20Is recently. The duo has managed to strike in their opening spells in eight out of the last nine games. What it has ensured is that the spinners come in under lesser pressure whenever they have been called upon. Ravindra Jadeja and R Ashwin have made sure that they operate at the same level so that there is no let-up in pressure.

Likewise in the batting department, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have been instrumental in ensuring that the middle order enjoys some leeway in most games. One amongst the two have always set up the innings with the rest chipping in. Shikhar Dhawan is yet to make a meaningful contribution in the tournament but has the backing of the team-management to come good. With Yuvraj Singh finding form and Hardik Pandya showcasing his abilities as a power-hitter, the batting looks well-rounded with possible match-winners in every slot.

Bangladesh will be wary of the odds stacked against them but as has been repeatedly stressed by both teams, it requires one good spell or innings to win a match in the Twenty20 format. The hosts will be hoping that someone from their team finds that magic patch on Sunday.

Backed by what is expected to be a full house, it will reverse the pressure on the Indians. MS Dhoni's men have largely sailed on cruise-mode in this series and have not been put under real pressure often enough. When they have been under the pump, it was either Rohit or Kohli, who has rescued them. The bowling in particular is yet to face a crunch situation. Therein lies an opportunity for the likes of Tamim Iqbal and Sabbir Rahman to try and make a mark. If the new-ball is made to pay, it will put India's bowling in an unfamiliar position.

It is well-known that reversing the momentum is probably the most difficult task in T20Is. If Bangladesh's batting can come good early, the crowd-factor could also play up and put India in the unfamiliar territory that they have so far kept away from.

Dew is also expected to play a part in the second-half of the innings. Teams batting second will fancy their chances of a chase despite the pressure of a final. Given the proximity to the World T20, the significance of a victory in the final cannot be understated. It will set the ball rolling and in this format, any team could ask for nothing better.

Teams:

Bangladesh (From): Imrul Kayes, Tamim Iqbal, Mashrafe Mortaza (C), Abu Hider, Arafat Sunny, Mohammad Mithun, Nurul Hasan, Soumya Sarkar, Taskin Ahmed, Sabbir Rahman, Nasir Hossain, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah, Shakib Al Hasan, Al-Amin Hossain

India (From): Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Ravichandran Ashwin, Suresh Raina, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, Harbhajan Singh, Ashish Nehra, Pawan Negi, Ravindra Jadeja, Yuvraj Singh, MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, Shikhar Dhawan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Parthiv Patel