The Champions League Twenty20 Anthem. ESPN STAR Sports & Champions League Twenty20 have signed music maestro A.R. Rahman to compose the official anthem of Champions League Twenty20.

Champions League Twenty20 is premium, aspirational, truly world class and the highest honor the game has to offer. It is to cricket what A R Rahman is to music. this anthem will reverberate not just in India but will transcend all language barriers across the global cricket fraternity.

"Only the best only champions" theme song of Champions League T-20 Cricket series has been released. Dowload it from here.

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Fans are waiting to watch the T-20.

7:19 PM
Categories: Cini Mini, Cricket. Author: SacHu

Indian cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has reportedly offered to resign from the high-profile post following paceman Rudra Pratap Singh’s exclusion from the ODI team but the BCCI vehemently denied the development.

According to television reports, Dhoni had a disagreement with the selectors during the meeting on Thursday to pick the team for the fourth and fifth matches of the ongoing series against England.

Dhoni was unhappy that the selectors decided to drop RP Singh and include Irfan Pathan in his place and offered to resign, the television reports claimed, quoting an unnamed source close to one of the selectors.

The BBCI, however, was quick to rubbish the reports. “I can’t respond to something that is being floated around by somebody,” BCCI secretary N Srinivisan said.

The Indian players are currently in Bangalore to play the fourth match and the team management could not be immediately reached for their comments. Dhoni’s customary pre-match press conference is scheduled to be held later in the afternoon.

The reports said BCCI President Shashank Manohar was forced to interfere and sort out the issue.

The newly formed selection committee, headed by former Indian captain Krishnamachari Srikkanth had met on Thursday for the team selection when the differences apparently cropped up.

Last year, Rahul Dravid too had relinquished captaincy. Lack of say in selection matters was widely touted as the reason behind Dravid’s abrupt decision.

3:57 PM
Categories: Cricket. Author: SacHu

A fight for $6 Million, Top Twenty 20 Champions teams from 5 Countries. Starting from 3rd Dec 2008, Twenty20 Champions League schedule has been announced and listed below:

Dec 3rd - Middlesex Crusaders vs Victoria Bushrangers in Mumbai
Dec 4th - Sialkot Stallions vs Western Rambal Warriors in Banglore
Dec 4th - Chennai Super Kings vs Victoria Bushrangers in Mumbai
Dec 5th - Middlesex Crusaders vs Pretoria Titans in Chennai
Dec 5th - Rajasthan Royals vs Sialkot Stallions in Mumbai
Dec 6th - Western Australia vs Natal Dolphins in Banglore
Dec 6th - Victoria Bushrangers vs Pretoria Titans in Chennai
Dec 6th - Chennai Super Kings vs Middlesex Crusaders in Chennai
Dec 7th - Natal Dolphins vs Sialkot Stallions in Bangalore
Dec 7th - Rajasthan Royals vs Western Rambal Warriors in Bangalore
Dec 7th - Chennai Super Kings vs Pretoria Titans in Chennai

Dec 8th - Semifinal 1 (Group B Top team vs Group A Second placed team)
Dec 9th - Semifinal 2 (Group A Top team vs Group B Second placed team)

Dec 10th - Final (Winner of Semifinal 1 vs Winner of Semifinal 2)

Enjoy T20 Champions League!!!

5:35 PM
Categories: Cricket. Author: SacHu

India captain Anil Kumble has announced that he plans to retire from Test cricket after the third Test against Australia.

In 132 Tests, Kumble took 619 wickets, the highest among Indians and third in the all-time list.

The champion leg spinner has decided to call it quits on a ground where he has tormented the best of batsmen and teamsn over the years. Kumble's illustrious career spanned nearly two decades.

It was at the Feroz Shah Kotl, where Kumble bagged all 10 Pakistani wickets in the February of 1999 and spun India to a magical win.

Over the last few months, Kumble has not had the best of time on the field and has come under criticism for his form and fitness. Kumble injured his fingers in the first innings of the Kotla Test when he tried to take cach to send back Matthew Hayden.

The gritty spinner came back to bowl with 11 stitches on his fingers.

3:30 PM
Categories: Cricket. Author: SacHu

England were demolished as the Stanford Superstars became dollar millionaires in the high profile Twenty20-for-20 contest.

Chris Gayle's Caribbean collective cruised home by 10 wickets in typically flamboyant style after England were dismissed for a paltry 99 at Coolidge.

It will not go down in the official records but this clash for cash was one of the most humiliating defeats for an England team in history.

Although England captain Kevin Pietersen opted to bat first in Sir Allen Stanford's financial bonanza, only three men reached double figures during a regular tumbling of wickets.

They managed only seven fours between them, a proportion of which were via edges - a total the opposition openers managed inside the first five overs of the reply.

Upon levelling that boundary count, home captain Chris Gayle then upped the tempo to pump up the volume levels in the stands, by turning his attention to sixes, cracking Steve Harmison over the rope at long-on and deep midwicket.

Gayle towered a third off spinner Samit Patel to overshadow his younger partner Andre Fletcher, who nevertheless laced the boundary boards himself to follow up an unbeaten 90 against Middlesex two nights ago.

If England were to have any chance of triumphing in the US dollars 20million match, they required early wickets.

But two spurned run-out chances in the opening overs involving Patel and Pietersen were coupled with two television consultations going against Harmison.

First a leg-before appeal against Gayle in the first over was annulled after the ball was shown to be pitching outside leg-stump, then Fletcher survived after inconclusive replays of a waft that looped through to wicketkeeper Matt Prior.

Failure to separate the first-wicket pair provided the licence the home team needed to provide the excitement associated with the 20-over format.

Gayle revelled in the limelight, depositing off-spinner Graeme Swann for another maximum on his way to a 33-ball fifty.

If Fletcher's early blitz of fours provided the impetus, Gayle took on the baton to the finish, which came when he blasted Flintoff for his fifth six in only the 13th over.

While the Superstars emphasised the value of executing classical cricket strokes with extreme power, England suffered for their improvisation.

Openers Ian Bell and Prior both paid the price for moving around in their crease in the same Jerome Taylor over, the fourth of the innings.

Bell attempted to give himself room and only succeeded in jabbing a yorker into leg-stump while Prior walked across his stumps two deliveries later and was spectacularly bowled.

Such was the dominance of the Superstars' attack in the powerplay period, in fact, that only two boundaries were struck, both by Prior, a flowing extra-cover drive off Taylor and a pull over mid-on off Daren Powell.

With uneven bounce a feature of this week, cross-batted shots were potentially perilous as Owais Shah discovered.

In an attempt to haul the ball from outside off-stump, Shah skied a steepler to deepish square-leg where Dave Mohammed judged the catch perfectly despite team-mate Kieron Pollard almost causing a nasty collision.

England were deep in trouble when star man Pietersen missed an attempted sweep shot off medium-pacer Darren Sammy, which exposed and knocked over his leg-stump.

It triggered one of a number of extravagant celebrations from the West Indian players - Sammy lying on his back with arms aloft in an outpouring of emotion.

When Andrew Flintoff and Paul Collingwood perished in consecutive overs, England were 54 for six and struggling to set a three-figure target.

Flintoff, who had crashed Pollard for a straight four the previous delivery, swished too soon at a slower ball and was bowled. Then Collingwood swung giant left-arm spinner Sulieman Benn low to Ramnaresh Sarwan at deep midwicket.

Within two overs, England had also lost Luke Wright and Swann, who was preferred to fast bowler James Anderson when the XI was named yesterday morning.

Wright's attempt to hit the match's first six resulted in a failure to clear Sammy at long-on, who held a comfortable catch above his head off Pollard.

Swann was subsequently outfoxed by Benn, bowled by a full toss.

The only respite for England against a Superstars side, who had been drilled during a six-week training camp, came when Samit Patel was given a life on five by Mohammed at deep midwicket off Pollard.

That came with Pietersen's men on 66 for eight and Patel, who scampered for two, followed up by pulling the next ball for four.

He edged another one during a 28-run stand with Stuart Broad, which came to its conclusion in the penultimate over when he was run out after attempting to steal a second run from Gayle's misfield.

Benn wrapped the innings up when he castled last man Harmison at the death.

9:35 AM
Categories: Cricket. Author: SacHu

Zaheer Khan made short work of the Australian tail as India secured a 320-run victory in the second Test of the series.

Left-arm paceman Zaheer claimed three wickets in his first two overs as Australia crashed from 141 for five overnight to 144 for eight.

Leg-spinner Amit Mishra completed the rout by picking up the last two wickets as Australia, chasing a target of 516 for an improbable win, were eventually bowled out for 195.

Zaheer ended a blossoming partnership between Brad Haddin and Michael Clarke by bowling Haddin with the last ball of his first over.

Just one run was added to their sixth wicket stand, already worth 83 overnight, when Haddin was bowled by one which came back slightly off the pitch.

Haddin failed to add to his overnight score of 37.

Zaheer struck twice again off consecutive deliveries in his second over, first removing Cameron White (one) and then Brett Lee (zero).

White traded flash for prudence, slashing at an away going delivery and only edging to wicketkeeper Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

Lee was done in by one which moved slightly off the seam, knocking back off stump as the tailender shaped to defend.

"Especially at one time in the first innings, they [Australia] were 22 from 13 overs. I said to Rahul [Dravid], 'Look at the board, we won't see that again'"

Mahendra Singh Dhoni

Mitchell Johnson saved the hat-trick by playing forward and defending solidly.

He briefly held up India's charge, putting on 50 runs with Clarke for the ninth wicket and in the process showing runs could still be had from the fifth day's pitch.

He struck four boundaries in his 26 before offering a simple return catch to leg spinner Amit Mishra.

Clarke, meanwhile, reached his ninth half-century, getting past the mark by scampering through for a couple of runs courtesy of a mis-field in the covers.

He was the last man out attempting to pull Mishra through midwicket where Sehwag pulled off a smart catch to bring up India's biggest victory over the World Champions in terms of runs.

Is this THE BEGINNING OF THE END of the Ausies dominance in cricket?

6:29 AM
Categories: Cricket. Author: SacHu

A look at the top 10 leading run-scorers in Test cricket after Sachin Tendulkar went past Brian Lara’s record on Friday.

Tendulkar, who now has four world records, not only went past the West Indies legend but took it a step further as he crossed the 12,000-run mark.

The top ten list is dominated by India and Australia with three players each, while West Indies, South Africa, England and Pakistan are represented by a player each.


This is my biggest milestone: Sachin

Sachin Tendulkar Friday said that going past 12,000 runs in Test cricket was the "biggest milestone" in his career.
"It has taken me 19 years to get here, it cannot happen overnight. In the journey there have been ups and down. It is a process of success and failures and during this time stones have been thrown at you and you have to turn them into milestone," he said after being felicitated by the BCCI at the close of the first day's play of the second Test against Australia at Mohali.

The stadium erupted in celebrations once Tendulkar reached 15 in his innings of 88 as he went past Brian Lara's record to become the top run-getter in Tests. Sachin, however, said he was not that excited and wanted to carry on with the game.

"I was not that excited to be honest, the focus was on continuing the game and not lose my concentration. Sourav (Ganguly) and I decided that we had to concentrate and make a big partnership."

Tendulkar and Ganguly put on a 142-run stand after India were reduced to 174 for four at tea after getting off to a flying start.

The Mumbai Bomber, who was dismissed for 88, said he was disappointed at losing his wicket at that stage.

"It was disappointing that I got out as the role was to stay there and get a big knock. There was a lack of footwork, I was a fraction late to judge the new ball."

Even though he would have preferred to have his record come earlier, he was happy to have got to the record against a top side like Australia.

"I would have preferred to get my record earlier, but I am happy it has come at the right time. And australia are a top side and I am happy to get it against them," he said.

Asked whether he felt butterflies in the stomach as he approached the milestone, he said: "I was okay. I was trying to concentrate on my game but everyone was reminding me of the record."

Did he rue missing out on the record in Bangalore?

"No," pat came the reply. Tendulkar said the important thing on day five of the first Test was to save the game.

"I thought the most important thing was to save the Test match. We lost a couple of early wickets and then we had some decemt partnership. By the time I got out (on 49), I knew I had done my job and was relieved. I told myself that the record will come sometime."

Tendulkar said there was no special preparation for getting the record. "I decided to keep it simple and keep watching the ball."

5:56 PM
Categories: Cricket. Author: SacHu

Sachin Tendulkar has asserted that he would play as long as he enjoys his game and nobody should dare tell him when to stop.
Basking in his new-found glory as the highest Test run getter after breaking Brian Lara's record of 11,953 runs, the batting great said he does not have anything to prove to anyone and nobody should tell him when to call it quits.

"I don't need to prove anything to anyone. I have been around for 19 years and all those 19 years I did not play to prove anything to anyone, not in my first year not in the 10th, 15th or 19th year," a combative Tendulkar said.

"What I need to do is to contribute to whatever my team's requirements are. I'm not here to answer what x,y, and z is writing about me or saying about me. People will say lot of things, not necessarily they are always correct. I don't take thir opinions seriously," he said.

"What happens in the dressing room is more imporant. The planning of the captain, coach, manager and other players are much more important. I just focus on that," he said.

Tendulkar made it clear that though the clamour is growing for the retirement of the senior players in the side, he was in no mood to hang up his boots.

"I'm going to continue obviously, I'm feeling good. As I said, so many things are being said and written and not necessarily those are right. Those are only opinions", he said.

Meanwhile in Mumbai, Sachin's wife Anjali echoed similar sentiments sayinf that the cricketer will not stay a "minute longer" when he is not enjoying the game.

"I can be hundred per cent sure that Sachin will not play for a minute longer when he is not enjoying himself. He is still so eager to go out there and play. He will play as long as he feels he can play," Anjali told reporters.

She also rubbished the speculation that the 'Fab 5' are under pressure from the BCCI for their retirement.

"So far there has been nothing from the Board's side... nobody is telling anyone that you have to retire. I think people respect these guys enough."

5:52 PM
Categories: Cricket. Author: SacHu

Sourav Ganguly, who will retire from international cricket after the Australian series, has said he was tired of the constant humiliation and at being singled out for scrutiny. He has also issued a sharply worded criticism of his team-mates, saying some "have changed their hairstyle more than they have scored".

"I am bound to feel bad. I had to fight with my heart," he told Aajkal, a Bengali daily. "If there is a gun to your head all the time, how long can you bear this? After all, I have played 400 matches for India. I have played badly in only one series. Yet every Tom, Dick and Harry is playing in the team.
"
"There are players who haven't scored in the last three series for India, even for the last one year. There are some who have changed their hairstyle more than they have scored for India."

"How long would I have played? Maybe upto 2009. Maybe seven more Tests. For that I was not prepared to take any more humiliation. I was tired of being humiliated again and again. I don't want to play cricket at the mercy of others."

Ganguly made an impressive return to international cricket after losing his captaincy, and his place in the side, in early 2006. "Everything is possible in Indian cricket," he said. "When Greg (Chappell) dropped me, TP Singh (of Railways, now with the ICL) was my replacement. Where is he now?"

Asked what hurt more, being dropped by Chappell or being excluded from the Irani Trophy squad this year, Ganguly said: "Definitely the Irani Trophy. I couldn't imagine being dropped for that. That's when I said, not again."

"I thought a lot before reaching this decision. I have also thought about my plans for the next one year. If this (selection) committee had come three years earlier, the situation would have been slightly better for me."

8:39 AM
Categories: Cricket. Author: SacHu

The $20m (£11.5m) match between England and Sir Allen Stanford's Caribbean team is in doubt after a High Court ruling.

The West Indies Cricket Board has lost its case against team sponsor Digicel and been told it cannot sanction the match, set for 1 November in Antigua.

Digicel, overlooked as a sponsor, took action as it felt it had full branding rights on the match, claiming it was effectively a West Indies match.

The ruling added that no West Indians on central contracts could play.

That would mean star players like captain Chris Gayle and batsmen Shiv Chanderpaul and Ramnaresh Sarwan would be barred from playing for England's opponents, the Stanford Super Stars XI.

Digicel had been unhappy that Texan billionaire Stanford was only prepared to grant them minimal branding on the bowlers' run-ups and boundary boards. It felt it had a right to a larger slice of the publicity and marketing surrounding the match.

BBC Sport understands he, Digicel and the WICB will now be locked in furious negotiations over the next few days in a bid to save the match which is due to feature a whole week of warm-up matches.

Domestic Twenty20 champions Middlesex are also involved in the action - and are due to be paid handsomely should they win their match against Trinidad & Tobago.

The news is a blow to Kevin Pietersen's England squad, each of whom is set to become overnight dollar millionaires should the match go ahead - and they win it.

BBC Radio 5 Live reporter Pat Murphy said: "It is a humiliation for the West Indies board.

"Digicel maintain [England's opponents] are a full-strength West Indies XI and as the game is recognised by the ICC they are entitled to more than just recognition of their company on the bowlers' run-ups and boundary boards. After all they are the official sponsors of the West Indies Cricket Board.

"The game is now in doubt, the next couple of days will be absolutely crucial."

BBC sports editor Mihir Bose said all parties remained confident of an eventual settlement, with the cash-strapped WICB - which has the most to lose should the match not proceed - likely to have to forgo some of the money that was due to come to them.

WICB chief executive Dr Donald Peters said: "We understand the arbitrator has ruled against us and at this point we are trying to evaluate what the terms of the ruling are before we make any statement."

The England and Wales Cricket Board is keen that the match goes ahead as planned, as it feels it is the best way to lure the top players away from the temptations of the Indian Premier League.

On Monday, ECB chairman Giles Clarke was bullish there would be nothing in the High Court ruling to jeopardise the match, saying: "I'm sure the wise heads involved will sort out the issues.

"It's a matter between the West Indies Cricket Board and Digicel and I'm sure that everybody is seeking to find a sensible solution to enable this very dramatic and extremely exciting game of cricket to go ahead."

Stanford Super Series schedule:
25 Oct: Stanford Super Stars v Trinidad & Tobago
26 Oct: England v Middlesex
27 Oct: Trinidad & Tobago v Middlesex
28 Oct: England v Trinidad & Tobago
29 Oct: Stanford Super Stars v Middlesex
30 Oct: Rest day
31 Oct: Legends Beach Cricket match
1 Nov: Stanford Super Stars v England

11:36 AM
Categories: Cricket. Author: SacHu

Full name Sourav Chandidas Ganguly
Born July 8, 1972, Calcutta (now Kolkata), Bengal
Current age - 36 years 91 days
Major teams - India, Asia XI, Bengal, Glamorgan, Kolkata Knight Riders, Lancashire
Batting style - Left-hand bat
Bowling style - Right-arm medium
Height - 5 ft 11 in
Education - St Xavier's College
Relations Brother - Snehasish C Ganguly


Timeline

January 11, 1992
Inauspicious debut
Makes his ODI debut, his only international on the tour of Australia. Scores 3 and is duly dropped. His highest score on the tour is 29, against Queensland.

June 21 and 22, 1996
Test debut is different
In his first Test, at Lord's, scores an imperious century. Follows it up with another century in the very next Test at Trent Bridge, on July 4.

October 23, 1996
Quite a sighter
In his 11th one-dayer, in Jaipur, opens the innings for the first time, against South Africa. This is the first time the greatest opening combination in ODI history, him and Sachin Tendulkar, comes together. He scores 54, Tendulkar 64, in a 126-run stand.

August 20, 1997
Has a ball in Sri Lanka
Playing against Sri Lanka, scores his first ODI century, in his 32nd match, in Colombo. This innings follows a 147 in the second Test, an innings instrumental in drawing the Test.

September, 1997
If it's Toronto, it has to be Ganguly
High point of his career. Is the leading scorer and wicket-taker in the Sahara Cup. With 222 runs at 55.5 and 15 wickets at 10.66, he wins four Man-of-the-Match awards in five matches, and is the most unanimous Man of the Series, as India beat Pakistan 4-1.

November-December, 1997
Whipping Sri Lanka, round 2
With 392 runs at an average of 98, ends the three-Test home series against Sri Lanka as top scorer and Man of the Series.

January 18, 1998
Setting up a famous chase
Scores 124 against Pakistan in the then highest successful run-chase in ODI history, as India score 316 in 47.5 overs to win the Independence Cup in Dhaka.

July 7, 1998
Whipping Sri Lanka, round 3
Scores 109 against Sri Lanka in Colombo, in the then highest opening stand in ODIs. He and Tendulkar (128) put together 252 runs as India win the Singer-Akai-Nidahas Trophy final by six runs.

May 26, 1999
Whipping Sri Lanka, round 4
A day when he, in partnership, looks like breaking every batting record in the book. His 183 in Taunton is the then highest ODI score by an Indian; the 318-run partnership with Rahul Dravid (145) is the then highest partnership ever; and India's 373 for 6 is the then second-largest ODI total.

September, 1999
Captaincy calibre
Captains India for the first time in the Coca-Cola Singapore Challenge tournament, against West Indies, as Tendulkar is rested due to a sore back. Barely a week later, he leads India again in the DMC Cup - with Tendulkar skipping the tournament due to an injury - against West Indies. India win the series 2-1.

February, 2000
County calling
Signs up to replace Muttiah Muralitharan as Lancashire's overseas cricketer.

February 26, 2000
Tendulkar resigns, Ganguly obliges
Is named captain of the Indian team for the five-ODI home series against South Africa. The announcement comes after Tendulkar has resigned from captaincy. At the prime of his one-day form, he ends the series as top run-getter, but India lose a closely fought series. Is named full-time captain after the series.

March 21, 2001
Final frontier remains
End of a month of enthralling Test cricket. Ganguly is the leading face of a brash, aggressive Indian team who come back from an impossible situation to beat Australia 2-1. Is vindicated as a captain.

November, 2001
Tête-à-tête with match-referee
In an unprecedented and highly controversial action, Ganguly and five other Indian players are summoned by Mike Denness, the match-referee, and warned for excessive appealing during the Port Elizabeth Test. He is also accused of not controlling his players, and is punished with a suspended ban for one Test match and two one-day international matches. India lose the three-Test series 2-0, and the third is deemed unofficial by the ICC amid threats of a revolt by India and the BCCI.

July 13, 2002
Paying them in the same currency
Is seen waving his shirt emphatically at the Lord's balcony as an incredible win in the NatWest Series final caps off impressive back-to-back tours of West Indies and England. India had lost their last nine finals in a row, six under Ganguly. He scores a century in the Test series that follows. India draw the series 1-1.

March 20, 2003
Promised land
Scores a century in the World Cup semi-final as India make it to the final for the first time since 1983.

December 7, 2003
Leading from the front
In Brisbane, scores a brilliant counter-attacking century in a tricky situation to set the tone for Indian batsmen on the Australian tour.

April 16, 2004
Neighbours won over
Becomes the first Indian captain to win a Test series in Pakistan. Also with 15 Test wins, he becomes India's most successful captain. India win the five-ODI series too by a margin of 3-2.

October 10, 2004
Beginning of the false end
India lose the first Test against Australia in Bangalore by 217 runs. He struggles both as a batsman and as a captain, and his withdrawal from the last two Tests due to injury leads to much media speculation and controversy. Australia capture the final frontier with a 2-1 series win.

March 28, 2005
Decline continues
The signs of his decline are obvious after a dismal showing in a drawn series at home against Pakistan. Pakistan side triumphs in the decider at Bangalore, virtually signalling the end of the successful Ganguly-Wright relationship. Ganguly scores 48 runs in the series, at 9.60.

April 12, 2005
Bad gets worse
After the fourth ODI against Pakistan, with the six-match ODI series tied 2-2, he is banned for six matches for a slow-over rate and has to watch from the sidelines as India go down 2-4 to Pakistan.

September 15, 2005
After hundred, comes nadir
A slow hundred against a depleted Zimbabwe sends the critics into raptures, only for the controversial Ganguly-Greg Chappell saga to blow up in everyone's faces. Ganguly goes public with his dismay at Chappell's suggestions during the match that he step down from the captaincy, and the media goes wild. Chappell is not amused, maintaining that the Indian captain asked him for his honest opinion on his form and leadership in a private meeting between the two. The tour goes on, with India unsurprisingly beating Zimbabwe 2-0. On the team's return to India Ganguly is publicly ostracised and there are more and more calls for his sacking. Forty-eight hours after saying that he respected the Indian captain and looked forward to working with him in the future, Chappell fires off a damning memorandum to the BCCI.

October 21, 2005
Refusal to die
Hits a century in the Duleep Trophy match against a strong North Zone attack to remind the world that he is not done yet.

November 22, 2005
Passes the thorny baton
The selectors end his five-year reign as Test captain when they pick Rahul Dravid to lead India in the Tests against Sri Lanka.

January to March, 2006
Uninvited
Is picked for the Test series in Pakistan. Does not bat in the first Test, is dropped for the second, and scores 34 and 37 in the third in Karachi. His performance isn't enough to secure a spot in the one-day series that followed. Is not picked for the home Tests against England.

December 7, 2006
Beginning of the end of the end
India are doing miserably in South Africa, having lost all the one-dayers. Ganguly is picked for the Tests. India are 1 for 2, 37 for 3, 59 for 4 against Rest of South Africa in Potchefstroom. Ganguly comes in and scores 83, India win, and take momentum into the Test series.

December 15, 2006
Riposte continues
Scores a half-century with the tail in the Johannesburg Test, as India reach a crucial 249 and bowl South Africa out for 84. They go on to win by 123 runs, but lose in the final Test to squander an opportunity for a rare series win. Ganguly is the leading run-getter for India.

January 21, 2007
ODIs, here I come, again
In Nagpur, on his ODI comeback, scores 98 against West Indies. India go on to score 338 and win by 14 runs.

May 18-19, 2007
I have been expecting you, Test ton
Scores an even 100 in Chittagong, his third century in three-and-a-half years. His last two centuries are Bulawayo, 2005 and Brisbane, 2003.

July-August, 2007
Feels like home in England
Scores 249 runs at 49.80 in India's series win in England, and has secured his place in both Test and ODI sides.

November-December, 2007
E-done and double delight
Scores his first Test century at Eden Gardens, his home ground, and follows it up with his first double-century, in Bangalore. Pakistan are at the receiving end, as he top-scores with 534 runs in three Tests at an average of 89, and is the Man of the Series.

December 2007-January 2008
Beginning of another false end?
A mixed Test series in Australia (235 runs at 29.37, two half-centuries) is followed up by the ODI axe for the CB Series in Australia.

April 12, 2008
Mastering the Mean Street
On an under-prepared, dual-paced pitch in Kanpur, Ganguly scores a serene 87 to help India level the three-Test series against South Africa. Later calls it one of his best Test innings.

October 7, 2008
'I've decided to quit'
Two days before the start of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, announces it will be his last series. There have been talks doing the rounds that the BCCI has been trying to force the seniors into retirmement. He first denies such notions in a press conference, and then when the presser is over, makes the announcement. "Just one last thing lads, before I leave," he says. "I just want to say that this is going to be my last series. I've decided to quit. I told my team-mates before coming here. These four Test matches are going to be my last and hopefully we'll go on a winning note."

7:40 PM
Categories: Cricket. Author: SacHu

Sourav Ganguly has announced he will retire after the upcoming Test series against Australia.

"Just one last thing lads, before I leave, I just want to say that this is going to be my last series," Ganguly said at the end of a routine press conference in Bangalore. "I've decided to quit. I told my team-mates before coming here. These four Test matches are going to be my last and hopefully we'll go on a winning note."

Kris Srikkanth, the head of India's new selection panel, was of the opinion that Ganguly made the right decision. "I think Sourav Ganguly has been an extraordinary cricketer," he said. "He has brought so many laurels to the country both as a captain and as a player.

"I think he's probably taken the right decision. He had a good chat with me and my co-selector Narendra Hirwani. He wants a peaceful series without any troubles on his mind. As a player I can tell you that when you have an axe over your head it doesn't feel right. I hope he goes out with couple of hundreds. Ganguly was one of the best captains the world has ever produced and I think he deserves it."

India's selectors picked Ganguly in a 15-man squad for the first two Tests against Australia despite intense speculation on his future leading up to the selection meeting in Mumbai last week. Ganguly had reportedly considered quitting cricket after being overlooked for the Irani Cup match between the Rest of India and Delhi but India's selection panel valued his experience over youngsters like Rohit Sharma, Yuvraj Singh and Mohammad Kaif.

"To be honest I didn't expect to be picked for this series," Ganguly said. "But once I was chosen, I started preparing. Even when I was left out of the Rest of India squad, which was a bit of a surprise for me, I was still training with the Bengal boys."

Ganguly also dismissed speculation over a voluntary retirement scheme for the senior members of India's squad. "I don't think it's ever possible that anybody can offer you a VRS scheme. You cannot do that to players like [Anil] Kumble, [Rahul] Dravid, [VVS] Laxman, me, Sachin [Tendulkar] or anyone.

"What is important is what you get to know from the board [BCCI] and as far as I, and some of the senior players, are concerned, we have not received any intimation from the board on anything."

Ganguly, 36, has scored 6888 runs in 109 Tests, with 15 hundreds. He played 49 Tests as captain, the most by an Indian. The 21 matches won during his tenure is also an Indian record, and his win percentage of over 40 is the highest for players who have captained India in more than one Test. Starting with a hundred on debut, Ganguly's Test average has never dipped below 40.

In 311 ODIs, he scored 11,363 runs at 41.02. He captained India in 147 ODIs. His last ODI was against Pakistan in Gwalior on November 15, 2007. He is one of only three players to complete the treble of 10,000 runs, 100 wickets and 100 catches in ODIs, Sanath Jayasuriya and Sachin Tendulkar being the others. Along with Tendulkar, he formed a prolific partnership at the top of the order, with 6609 runs at an average of nearly 50 per stand in 136 innings.

Since his recall in December 2006 and till the end of the home series against South Africa earlier this year, Ganguly scored 1571 runs at 50.67, including a maiden double-century.

He, however, put on a lacklustre show against Sri Lanka in the recent series, and Ganguly will now be hoping for a gala exit.

7:09 PM
Categories: Cricket. Author: SacHu

South Africa will be looking to replicate their Test success in the One-Day arena, while England will be looking to get the "Pietersen Era" off to a good start. One thing both these One-Day outfits are blessed with is a genuine all-rounder. Jacques Kallis and Andrew Flintoff are arguably the greatest all-rounders in the game today and will make a real difference in this series. But are they the best all-rounders in the history of ODIs....close but no cigar is what the numbers reveal.

First, it is important to agree on the definition of an all-rounder. Ideally, an all-rounder is someone who can hold a place in the side purely as a batsman or a bowler. But such chimerical cricketers are few and far between; even someone like the great Sir Richard Hadlee would have struggled to play in the eleven as just a batsman. So an all-rounder can be one who bats in the middle-order, scores you a solid fifty and then comes on first change with the ball and picks up three wickets- your classic all-rounder. He could also bat atop the order, score a hundred and bowl a tidy ten overs, picking up a wicket or two- the batting all-rounder. And of course, he could come lower down, score a quickfire thirty and then take a fifer with the ball- and he would be called, you guessed it, the bowling all-rounder. As long as the batting and bowling all-rounders show the ability to do consistently well with both bat and bowl (defined as a minimum qualification of 1000 runs and 100 wickets in ODIs), they make the cut for consideration. That's a list of 42 all-rounders up for consideration based on overall One-Day records. Of course you have Adam Gilchrist, a different kind of all-rounder whom we shall not include for the purpose of our discussion.

The "All-Rounder Index" (ARI), is simply a combination of a batting index and a bowling index for each player. The batting index itself is a combination of average and strike-rate over the course of one's career. Likewise, the bowling index is a combination of bowling average and economy rate. These indices have been adjusted to give a higher weightage to averages as opposed to taking a simple product of the two factors (average and strike-rate). Further, they have been adjusted to ensure the batting and bowling scores are on the same scale and are hence are equally important to the overall ARI. And here are the top ten.

10. Kapil Dev: ARI 1563
Kapil Dev had a terrific strike-rate of 95 with the bat, but his bowling is what helped him crack the top ten. Kapil was an uncomplicated cricketer, accurate bowling and big hitting. He led by example to take India to a historic World Cup win in 1983, and without a doubt, is India's greatest all-rounder.

9. Andrew Symonds: ARI 1569
Perhaps one of the most under-rated cricketers when it comes to a discussion on the all-time greats, Andrew Symonds is arguably one of the greatest ODI batsman of all time. He averages over 40 with the bat with a strike rate in the 90s, which makes him the third best batsmen in this all-rounder list of 42. He has made a few handy contributions with his off-breaks as well. Roy's career may have got off to a shaky start, but his 143* against Pakistan in the 2003 World Cup was the turning point in his career and since then he has gone on to establish himself as Australia's best ODI all-rounder ever.

8. Richard Hadlee: ARI 1657
Sir Richard Hadlee is the best bowler in this list, with an average of under 22 and an economy rate of 3.3. He single-handedly carried the Kiwi side for a decade and a half, as one of the best fast bowlers of his generation. Hadlee also chipped in with some useful contributions with the bat, but a career average of 21.6 prevents him from making it higher on this list.

7. Chris Gayle: ARI 1662
As blasphemous as it may seem to some to put Gayle ahead of Hadlee and Dev, the numbers indicate that Gayle has earned his spot with some aggressive batting and clever bowling. Gayle averages close to 40 at a strike rate of over 80. While it could be argued that he plays in a time when scoring rates are higher and his strike rate should be more than openers and all-rounders of the past, Gayle also has to bowl in a time when runs are scored faster and his economy rate will be worse than a similar bowler in a previous decade. And Gayle has been a key bowler, often coming on at the death and going at 4.6 runs an over picking up a wicket or two for every ten overs. Gayle narrowly edges out Hadlee to come in at 7, but there's quite a difference between his score and number 6 on the list.

6. Jacques Kallis: ARI 1807
A Jacques of all trades, Kallis is in at 6. Kallis has an impressive batting average of 45.2 and a decent bowling average a bit over 30, but his low strike rate of 71 and an economy rate coming close to 5 peg him down to number five in the list. Kallis will figure much higher in a Test match equivalent version of the best all-rounders, but in the ODI version he is not the best of the best.

5. Imran Khan: ARI 1835
Imran Khan is one of the few classic all-rounders the game has ever seen, and he could play in the Pakistan squad purely as a batsman or a bowler. And Imran was consistent, never really showing a decline in form even in the latter part of his career. He played at a time when three other all-rounders (Hadlee, Dev and Botham) lay claim to being the best of their time, but in the end, Imran Khan in the shorter format of the game has proved to be better than them all.

4. Shaun Pollock: ARI 1839
The baby-faced assassin, Shaun Pollock was one of the tightest bowlers in the modern era. His economy rate of 3.67 is better than anyone else that played in his time, even McGrath wasn't as economical. Pollock was also an explosive lower-order bat, averaging 26 with a strike rate in the mid 80s.

3. Andrew Flintoff: ARI 1965
Touted as the next Ian Botham, Freddie Flintoff has actually out-performed his hero in the one-day version of the game. He started his career as an erratic, inconsistent player, but time has changed him into one of the highest impact players in today's game. Before he was out injured, Flintoff's bowling in ODIs was a revelation as he was England's most accurate and economical bowler. With Flintoff back at his best, England can realistically hope to bounce back in the upcoming one-day series.

2. Viv Richards: ARI 2023
Sir Issac Vivian Alexander Richards is arguably the greatest batsman in the shorter version of the game, fearless (never wore a helmet!), aggressive and down right intimidating. Yet, Richards is also the second greatest all-rounder of all time. Clearly, he was never a classic all-rounder, a batting all-rounder for sure. Richards' batting accomplishments were so phenomenal, one tends to overlook his efforts with the ball. Richards though has done enough to prove his ability as a bowler with 118 ODI wickets which has him at number two on this list.

1. Lance Klusener: ARI 2049

The master of masters is Lance Klusener. Zulu will be best remembered for his spectacular performances at the 1999 World Cup when he averaged over 140 with the bat and a shade over 20 with the ball, for which he won the Man of the Series. He will also be remembered for his starring role in the semi-final tie against Australia, where he single-handedly brought his side back into the game, only for the Proteas to choke right at the end. Klusener's career ended rather abruptly, but with a batting average of over 40 and a strike rate close to 90, he will be known as one of the most destructive batsmen the game has ever seen. Bowling was his forte when he started as a tearaway quick, but he adapted to injuries to a medium pacer who picked up regular wickets. Overall, Klusener was a fantastic player and is the best all-rounder in the history of One-Day cricket.

7:21 PM
Categories: Cricket. Author: SacHu

Sachin Tendulkar was selected in ODI Team of Year at the recently concluded ICC Awards. A look at the numbers reveals that Tendulkar is the greatest opening batsmen in the history of the one-day game. The all time top-ten opening batsmen list however does throw up quite a few surprises.

First, a definition of the criteria-

1. Batsmen who have scored at least 3000 runs in ODI cricket as an opener.
2. Only performances as openers are considered in computing averages and strike-rates.
3. A time-adjustment has been made to compare batsmen across eras. Strike-rates and therefore, runs-per over have significantly increased over the ages. In the 1970s, the average RPO in ODIs was 3.93. This went up to 4.38 in the 80s, 4.58 in the 90s and 4.87 since the turn of the century. Similarly, averages have also shown an increasing trend, though it is not as pronounced as the increase in strike rates. Therefore, a batsman's average and stike-rate have been adjusted to account for this difference across decades. For example, Desmond Haynes played 69 of his 238 matches as opener in the 1990s, and the rest in the 1980s. Using the decadal average adjustment, his average is increased by a factor of 1.02 (obtained by the division of the all-time average Avg by the average Avg in the respective decade) and his strike-rate by 1.05. That means his adjusted average is up from 41.4 to 42.4 and his adjusted strike-rate is up from 63.1 to 66.4.
4. Finally, batting points have been defined as a combination of batting average and strike rate. A simple multiplication of the two factors may be considered, but that would not be completely fair since strike-rates and averages are not measured on the same base. The top 50 all-time ODI run getters have an average Avg of close to 40 and an average SR of about 80. In order to account for this difference, batting points have been defined as Avg * (SR + 40).

To address one question that was raised by readers of the all-rounder article- this criterion does not include longevity. What that means is, someone like a Ganguly who has scored over 9000 runs as an opener, or Jayasuriya who has scored over 12000 runs are not rewarded for having amassed those many runs. The rationale for that is some players have simply had more opportunities to play in ODIs. As long as a player has scored at least 3000 runs, he is considered good enough to make the cut. However, higher runs scored have been used a tie-breaker in the event of players being within 10 batting points of each other. Here is the list of the top 10 openers of all time.

10. Sourav Ganguly- 4620 points

It might come as a surprise to some to see Ganguly this low on the list. The Prince of Kolkata has 19 tons as an opener at an average of 41.5. But it's his strike-rate that sees him lose out- 73.6 which is low for a player who played his cricket in the late 90s and the 2000s. That gives him an adjusted SR of 72.2 and that's enough for him to just squeeze into this top ten list.

9. Gary Kirsten- 4635 points

More famous now as Team India's coach, Gary Kirsten was South Africa's reliable sheet anchor. He was a grafter, often opting for the fine nudges and glances as opposed to taking the aerial route. He finished with 13 centuries with an average of 41.8

8. Graeme Smith- 4770 points

From one Protea opener to another- Graeme Smith is the modern day hard-hitting aggressive batsman. He took over as South Africa's youngest ever captain in 2003 and has since led from the front. He scores fast, at a strike-rate at 82 at a healthy average of 41. Smith may have been named captain of the ICC Test team of the year, but his impressive ODI record makes him the highest ranked South African on this list.

7. Saeed Anwar- 4788 points

Anwar will always be remembered by Indian fans as the man who always scored big hundreds against them. The biggest of those was 194 in Chennai, which is the highest individual score in ODIs. Anwar also loved playing in Sharjah, where he destroyed a number of bowling attacks. Anwar amassed over 8000 runs as an opener and finished with a fantastic conversion rate of turning fifties into hundreds, with 37 fifties and 20 tons.

6. Chris Gayle- 4832 points

The numbers seem to indicate that Hurricane Gayle is one of the most under-rated cricketers in today's game. He figured highly in the all-rounders list and is up at 6 on this list, and it's hard to argue with his average almost touching 42 and his strike-rate in the 80s. There may be doubts on whether or not the Jamaican left-hander should lead the Caribbean national team, but there is no doubting his place in the list of all-time great one-day batsmen.

5. Adam Gilchrist- 4847 points

Gilly revolutionized the game with his unique attacking style and is arguably the most exciting player in the modern game. He finished with a strike-rate of 98 which more than made up for a less than stellar average of 36.5. With his form declining towards the end of his career, Gilchrist proved his mettle with a breathtaking hundred that ‘squashed' the Sri Lankans in the World Cup final.

4. Matthew Hayden- 5019 points

In case you haven't noticed yet, this list seems to be filled with left-handers for some inexplicable reason. Winner of the ICC One-Day Player of the Year in 2007, Matty Hayden is the seventh and final left-hander in the top ten. And with an average in excess of 44 and a strike-rate close to 80, it's not hard to see why.

3. Mark Waugh- 5114 points

In terms of overall batting records considering all positions in the batting order, Mark Waugh is well behind his other Aussie mates. But Junior stepped up his game as opener, his career average of 39.4 up by almost 5 points when he batted atop the order. He was a terrific strokemaker and opening the innings took him from being just another really good player to a truly great ODI batsman!

2. Gordon Greenidge- 5162 points

Greenidge is one of the guys from yesteryear who would have gone unnoticed if it hadn't been for the decadal adjustment. An impressive average of 45.4, but a seemingly meager SR of 65.7. However, Greenidge played at a time when batsman did not score very fast. He formed the greatest opening combination the 80s with Desmond Haynes and while Haynes may have been the highest run-getter at ODIs at one point in time, it's Greendige's consistency and hard-hitting that sees him at number two on this list.

1. Sachin Tendulkar- 6007 points

Sachin Tendulkar tops the list with a commanding lead, almost 1000 points clear of his closest rival. 13245 runs as an opener, at an average of 48.2 with 38 centuries and 68 fifties. All that at a prolific strike-rate of 87.4! Not surprisingly, the Master Blaster is miles ahead of the competition amongst all opening batsmen in the history of the One-Day game. But is Tendulkar the greatest batsman in the history of One-Day cricket? That answer comes to you on another day with another list!

7:18 PM
Categories: Cricket. Author: SacHu

Australia are in for some tough times ahead because they no longer have the services of the best pace bowler of all time.

A definition of the criteria-
i. Bowlers who have picked up at least 150 wickets in ODI cricket are considered.
ii. A time-adjustment has been made to compare players across eras. Just like batsmen of an earlier era are disadvantaged by a slower pace of the game at their time, bowlers of today are disadvantaged by the faster pace and quicker scoring. Richard Hadlee bowled at a time when batsmen scored at an average of 4 to 4.5 runs an over, where as today a run a ball is the norm. Therefore, economy rates show an increasing trend. So do bowler averages though the trend is not as pronounced. Similar to the adjustment made for batsmen, a time-adjustment has been made to account for this difference across eras.
iii. Bowling points have been defined as a combination of average and economy rate (measured as runs per 100 balls). Like with the batsmen, a simple multiplication of the two factors may be considered, but that would not be completely fair since economy rates and averages are not measured on the same base. In order to account for this difference, bowling points are measured as Avg * (Eco-rate + 40). This number should be as low as possible, since great bowlers concede fewer runs per wicket (average) and concede fewer runs per 100 balls (eco-rate). Instead of taking a reverse scale, a reciprocal of this number has been taken and multiplied by a suitable constant number to avoid fractional values. This ends up measuring the bowling points on a scale with 6000 as the highest, making it comparable with the batting scale. For instance, Shoaib Akhtar has an average of 23.2 and an economy rate of 77.3. His adjusted numbers are 22.8 and 74.7, an improvement to account for the era he plays in. The Avg * (Eco-rate +40) gives him a preliminary score of 2620, the number that should be as low as possible. Finally, the reciprocal of this number and adjusted to avoid fractional numbers gives him a bowling score of 4966 points. Not that complicated really!
iv. Finally, a longevity adjustment has been made. This rewards bowlers who have picked up more wickets. To the bowling points calculated above, the number of wickets taken by the bowler has been added. Therefore, Akhtar ends with 4966 + 219 = 5185 points. And that's the final score. The longevity bonus does not impact the ratings significantly, only contributing 5-10% of the overall score. However, in cases of bowlers with similar scores, the bowler with more wickets gets the edge.

And here's how the top 10 stack-up.

10. Waqar Younis- 5064 points
The original Sultan of Swing (and Reverse-Swing), Waqar Younis ran through batting line-ups with his fast yorkers. He ended up with 416 wickets, but enough gave away too many runs in his efforts to pick up wickets. That resulted in an economy rate of 4.7 runs per over, high for someone who played predominantly in the 1990s, and 10th position on this list.

9. Makhaya Ntini- 5116 points
A reason South Africa never really dropped off the radar amongst top international teams is because Ntini spear-headed the attack and made up for the losses of Alan Donald and more recently, Shaun Pollock. South Africa's first black cricketer, Makhaya Ntini currently has 257 ODI wickets and will be hoping to joining to 300 club soon.

8. Shoaib Akhtar- 5185 points
Disclaimer- these ratings only consider performances in international ODI cricket and not off the field behaviour! Despite all that's been made up of bad boy Akhtar, the Rawalpindi Express has a phenomenal ODI strike-rate of a wicket every thirty balls and at his best, was the most feared bowler in cricket. Unfortunately, it's not his bowling that sees him in the headlines these days.

7. Brett Lee- 5335 points
In his prime right now, Brett Lee is only going to move higher with time. He already has the best strike-rate of anyone on this list, with a wicket every 29 balls. He took a bit of stick early on in his career which results in an economy rate of 78.5 per 100 balls, but he has become a more complete and controlled bowler. Lightning Lee will certainly be a handful in the upcoming India-Aussie Test series.

6. Curtly Ambrose- 5614 points
This silent giant's first love was basketball, but thankfully for the Windies and cricket lovers, he pursued the leather ball. His economy rate was outstanding, under 3.5 runs per over and the best adjusted economy rate in these rankings. Add too that he did pick up the odd wicket or two, 225 to be precise!

5. Wasim Akram- 5713 points
The only left-arm quickie in this list is Wasim Akram. Listing his credentials would take an entire article. Suffice to say, 502 wickets at 3.89 runs per coupled with 414 test wickets might just make him the greatest pace-bowler of all-time. He loses out on this list because his average 23.5 is not as good as the others in front of him.

4. Alan Donald- 5759 points
"White Lightning", as he was fondly known, Alan Donald took the world by storm at the 1992 World Cup during South Africa's return to international cricket. The sight of the war-paint wearing tear-away quick running in intimidated batsmen and captured the attention of millions world-wide. He ended with his ODI career with 272 wickets at an average of just 21.8.

3. Shaun Pollock- 5798 points
Immaculate, accurate and frugal would best describe Shaun Pollock. How else could a bowler go at just 3.7 runs per over in this day and age. Even in the later stages of his career, Pollock was miserly leading South Africa to the 2007 World Cup semi-final with an economical spell against England, and edges out his counterparts as the top Protean in this list.

2. Richard Hadlee- 5989 points
158 wickets in 115 ODIs for Sir Richard Hadlee, one can only wonder how much more he could have accomplished had there been more cricket at this time. The numbers speak for themselves, an economy rate of 3.3 and an average of 21.6. Among the great all-rounders of the 1980s, Hadlee clearly stood out as the best bowler in the lot.

1. Glenn McGrath- 6161 points

The best of the best- Glenn McGrath possesses a knack to bowl an unwavering line and constantly in the "corridor of uncertainty". 250 matches, 381 wickets, an average of 22 and an economy rate of 3.88 for a man who played more than half of his cricket in the new millennium. He led his country to three world cup triumphs, and finished Man of the Series in the 2007 edition. "Pigeon" made a number of top-class batsmen look like lame ducks and Australia certainly has not be flying as high without him

7:08 PM
Categories: Cricket. Author: SacHu

The batting team will decide when to introduce either the second or the third Powerplay during their innings, starting with the one-day series between New Zealand and Bangladesh in October. The change from the earlier scenario, in which the fielding side decided when Powerplays would be taken, is part of the ICC's new playing conditions which takes effect from October 1.

The ICC Chief Executives' Committee had met in June and unanimously approved certain changes. The amendment to the Powerplay rule also allows the captain three fielders outside the 30-yard circle during the second and third Powerplay. The previous rule allowed the captain to have two fielders in the outfield during the first Powerplay, and three in the others.

The committee also aimed to curb players from taking comfort breaks during a match by stating that substitute fielders will be only permitted in cases of injury, illness or other wholly acceptable reasons, which should be limited to extreme circumstances.

The ICC also decided to retain the free-hit rule as well as the mandatory changing of the ball at the start of the 35th over of an innings.

The interval rule, implemented in June, which allowed the umpires to reduce the length of time between innings in an ODI, if the innings of the side batting first is delayed or interrupted, was also retained.

"In the event of time being lost [playing time lost less any extra time provided] up to and including 60 minutes in aggregate, the length of the interval shall be reduced from 45 to 30 minutes. In the event of more than 60 minutes being lost in aggregate, the duration of the interval shall be agreed mutually by the umpires and both captains subject to no interval being of more than 30 minutes' duration or less than 10 minutes' duration. In the event of disagreement, the length of the interval shall be determined by the match referee."

Umpires can now consult the third umpire on whether or not a catch was taken cleanly. "Following such consultation, the final decision will be made and given by the bowler's-end umpire. Should the bowler's-end umpire still not be able to decide, a not-out decision shall be given."

10:47 PM
Categories: Cricket. Author: SacHu

Recent news is that our Master blaster, the little hero of the world cricket "Sachin Tendulkar" is set to act with our Universal Hero "Dr. kamal haasan". Both are joining hands for a documentry film of about 30 minutes. And the main motto of this documentry film is to create awareness among the youth about the importance of Education. Sachin plays a role as a cricketer himself and Kamal haasan plays the role of sachin's fan. The film is being produced by a social welfare organisation . It seems that both the hero's agreed to act for free. The film is planned to screen next december. It will be a huge feast for both the fans worldwide. Hope both the hero's will rock.

10:06 AM
Categories: Cini Mini, Cricket. Author: SacHu

Former India coach Greg Chappell, who is now Australia's assistant coach, said he was "amused" by concerns that he would share inside information about the Indian team with Australia.

"I am also flattered by the fact that people think that I wield a magic wand and can change things overnight," he said. "Australia and India have played a lot against each other in recent times. The Indians must be having the footage of Australian players as much as the Australians have of the Indians. There are no secrets between the two teams now."

Australia kicked off their first warm-up match of the tour on Saturday after arriving in India six days ago. Chappell dismissed suggestions that India will lose their home advantage because of the amount of time Australia have to acclimatise before the Tests. "The series will be decided by which team is able to put the basics together consistently and prepared to work the hardest," he said. "Mental aspects are as important as physical aspects. The team that shapes up better mentally will be the favourite team."

He said it was Australia coach Tim Nielsen's idea to reach India early and practise at the Rajasthan Cricket Academy. "He did say that if the Champions Trophy was cancelled they would consider coming here The idea was as most of the players are coming for the first time for Test cricket, they would want to have a camp here. I then spoke to Lalit Modi (RCA chief) and that was how it came through."

Chappell also backed Australia's captain Ricky Ponting, who has a poor record in India (he averages 12.28 in eight Tests, making it by far his least productive venue in a career during which he has averaged 58.37) to come good in the series. "He is conscious of the fact that his record here is not so good as compared to other countries. I can see a steely glint in his eyes and that means a few runs around in India this time. If I were in the Indian team that would be the thing that would have been worried me."

Though several of Australia's experienced players having retired since the previous tour to India in 2004, Chappell said most of the newer squad members have prior experience of the country from A team or academy side visits. "The team is in transition after the retirement of some great players. But with that comes the opportunity for somebody to step up in win for Australia. Historically whenever such an opportunity came somebody has won matches for Australia. We are hoping that happens in this series."

4:51 PM
Categories: Cricket. Author: SacHu

The challenge facing Delhi on the fourth day - they needed 265 runs with seven wickets in hand - was always going to stretch them, and their batsmen, with the exception of Gautam Gambhir, caved without a fight. They were bowled out within the first session: Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh exploited the cracks in the pitch to pick up seven wickets, and Rest of India won the Irani Cup for the 21st time by 187 runs in Vadodara.

The slide started in the second over of the day. Gambhir had batted aggressively on the third evening and needed a stable partner. Aakash Chopra, who had not opened because of an ankle injury, joined him with a runner. He had scored 182 in last week's Nissar Trophy and a confident 42 in the first innings against a versatile and experienced attack. Chopra's resistance in the second innings, however, ended with his first ball. He drove away from his body at a Zaheer Khan delivery and inside-edged it on to his stumps.

Kumble brought Harbhajan on inside the first hour to take advantage of the wearing pitch and the offspinner struck immediately. Mithun Manhas tried to pad a delivery but the ball turned into him, deflected off the bat handle, and went to Rahul Dravid at first slip. The only point of interest after that was whether Gambhir, who scored steadily despite the regular setbacks, would reach his century. He fell on 91, edging an attempted cut off Kumble to Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

This was the last opportunity for the national players to get match practice ahead of the Tests against Australia and coach Gary Kirsten would have expected more. Before the start of the game he, and Kumble, had said this game was an important component in their preparation for the Australia series and each individual had a role to fulfill and understood it well.

If Sourav Ganguly doesn't make the Test squad, it will open up a vacancy in the middle order. Two of the contenders for the spot, S Badrinath and Mohammad Kaif, had the opportunity to push their claims in the Irani Cup but failed to turn in convincing performances. Badrinath looked in discomfort in the first innings and did not move his feet. He made a scratchy 16 off 62 balls before he was bowled while trying to cut. He was more confident during his 36 in the second innings before he was struck on the elbow and bowled once again by Ishant Sharma.

Kaif had made adjustments to his batting stance after chats with Kirsten but met with little success. He failed to convert a start in the first innings, top-edging a pull to midwicket, and edged a scorcher from Ishant off his second ball in the second innings.

One of the biggest positives was the performance of the bowlers. Zaheer Khan bowled wicket-to-wicket and focused on the batsman's weaknesses: he exploited Sehwag's slow footwork and trapped him lbw with one that cut in during the second innings. Ishant was hostile and extracted pace and bounce from a slow pitch, Munaf Patel proved his recovery was on the right path, while both Kumble and Harbhajan showed how dangerous they could be on a helpful surface. Only RP Singh was erratic with his line and length.

The most significant outcome from this game, however, was the resolute batting of Rahul Dravid, who opened for Rest of India. His poor form over the last year has hurt India but here he succeeded in the most demanding of situations. As the wicket grew slower, Dravid stuck it out for nearly five hours in the second innings. He played the majority of the deliveries confidently, used soft hands to block short balls aimed at the body, and waited for the bowler to feed his strengths.

It was the sort of preparation Dravid would have hoped for ahead of the Australia series and it was a terrific example of mental discipline for the rest to follow.

4:39 PM
Categories: Cricket. Author: SacHu

Australia's Test squad still plans to depart for India on Sunday despite increased fears over security following deadly bomb attacks in New Delhi on Saturday. Cricket Australia officials were due to meet with representatives from the Australian government's department of foreign affairs on Monday afternoon to receive an update on the safety situation in India.

Michael Brown, Cricket Australia's general manager of cricket, will also receive a report on Tuesday from Reg Dickason, the team's security advisor, but a spokesman said there had been no change to the schedule for the four-Test series. "Our position is that the tour is going ahead unless we are otherwise persuaded," Peter Young, Cricket Australia's general manager of public affairs, told Cricinfo. "Our advice is there are some concerns and to exercise caution, but currently they do not compromise the tour. Our plan is to depart on September 21 subject to our advice."

Australia have scheduled warm-up games in Jaipur and Hyderabad, where bombs have gone off over the past year, before heading to Bangalore, where one person was killed in attacks in July, for the opening Test on October 9. While Cricket Australia will continue to discuss the issue with their security advisers, the government and the Indian board, more information on the situation in the country is available from members of the Australia A squad.

The outfit is currently in Hyderabad, 1500km south of New Delhi, for a one-day tri-series and the first match will be against New Zealand A on Monday. Young said the team wanted to stay and play.

"In consultation with the BCCI, we have upgraded security in and around the dressing rooms and they will have an escort to the ground," Young said. "They have also been told not to leave the hotel without good reason. It's just a matter of prudence." The squad is travelling with a security advisor who is part of Dickason's team.

The Australian Cricketers' Association does not believe the danger in India is as bad as in neighbouring Pakistan, but Paul Marsh, the chief executive, said he expected "heat" if Australia toured. "If the team stays in India, there might be some who criticise us for double standards," he told the Sydney Morning Herald. "But people need to understand our starting point is that we always want to tour.

"We go to extreme lengths to obtain the best advice on the situation of each country we visit. In Pakistan's case this year, people we rely on told us not to tour. If they say not to tour again, we'll listen. Bombs going off anywhere are a concern."

More than 20 people were killed in the explosions in New Delhi, which will host the third Test from October 29. "The threat assessment for India has been considerably lower than that of Pakistan," Marsh said in the Australian. "We want to find out if the latest bombings will change that in any way and what our independent experts think about our Australia A players being over there at the moment. As always we'll rely on the advice of the experts."

11:48 AM
Categories: Cricket. Author: SacHu