Sachin back into top 10 ODI batsmen rankings

Master blaster Sachin Tendulkar has moved back into the top 10 of the International Cricket Council (ICC) rankings for One-Day International (ODI) batsmen. In the latest rankings issued on Monday, Sachin moved up three places to sit at joint 9th, alongside Chris Gayle of the West Indies.

He is the only Indian batsman in the top 10. Vice-captain Yuvraj Singh is at 15th place, while captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni occupies the 16th position.

On the debit side of the ledger, however, former captain Rahul Dravid has slipped seven places and is now lies in 22nd place. India's highest-placed bowler in the relevant table is Harbhajan Singh, down in 29th position.

Australia's Andrew Symonds is within touching distance of top spot in the ODI batsmen rankings.

The powerful right-hander, who bludgeoned a brutal 107 from just 88 balls against India in Nagpur on Sunday, has rocketed up six spots to second place and is now just eight rating points behind his captain and team-mate Ricky Ponting.

That rise is a reflection of his outstanding form during the ongoing series as he is the leading run-scorer from either side with 365 runs at an average of 91.25 and a strike-rate of 110.94 runs per hundred balls.

Symonds, who has reached a career-high tally of rating points, forms an impressive Australian 1-2-3 at the top of the batting table, behind Ponting but ahead of Matthew Hayden, the winner of the ODI Player of the Year award at the ICC Awards in September and the second highest run-getter in the current series.

Three other Australians are in the top 11 - Michael Hussey (5th), Michael Clarke (8th) and Adam Gilchrist (11th).

The news is just as good for Ponting's men in the bowling list with left-arm wrist spinner Brad Hogg breaking into the top 10 on the back of being joint leading wicket-taker (alongside team-mate Mitchell Johnson) in the India series with 11 victims.

Hogg is one of three Australia bowlers in that top 10 with Nathan Bracken (3rd) and Brett Lee (9th) also featuring.

Source : cricket.indiatimes.com

All eyes on Dravid but India plans to pound Pakistan with a young team aided by big weights

A big debate is going on Dravid. While the debate is on, young Indian team equipped with the T20 triumph and a respectable show against the Aussies are ready to take on the Pakistan team that looks weaker than normal.

Sandeep is seeking Pawar's intervention in bringing Dravid back. But BCCI is adamant. They want to rest Dravid for now. A message is being sent all Indian crickets. It is simple and clear – ‘perform or quit.’

Indian team is not affected by these controversial political maneuvers. They are determined to take on the Pak Team.

The team got further excited as they were greeted by the PM Manmohan Singh and Indian President.

It is a young team with a young outgoing dashing captain that resembles Kapil Dev in the past. India performs the best when such non-conventional non text book style cricketers dominate the scenes.

This team will be aided by the experience and guidance of Sachin Tendulkar and Saurav Ganguly. Very soon, trust me, Dravid will be back after resting a little bit and getting things together for him.

Source : indiadaily.com

Final Momemts - ICC Twenty20 World Cup South Africs 2007

Dravid at fifth, Dhoni drops to 15th in latest ICC player rankings

Team India captain Rahul Dravid has made it to the top five ODI batsmen list in the latest LG ICC Player Rankings following his good form in the ongoing seven match series against England.

Dravid, who hit 46, 92 not out and 56 in the three matches, is at the fifth position with 738 points.

However, Mahendra Singh Dhoni who will be captaining India in the inaugural Twenty20 World Cup in South Africa next month has dropped down ten places to 15th position following his dismal form in the first three matches of the series.

Australian captain Ricky Ponting continues his dominance on the batting chart with 799 points with Englishman Kevin Pieterson following him at 782 points. Australia's Mike Hussey 766 points and fellow Aussie Matthew Hayden 746 points are at the third and fourth positions respectively.

The LG ICC Player Rankings for ODI bowlers chart shows England's Andrew Flintoff, who took five wickets in the second ODI at Bristol, breaking into the top ten with 658 points.

Leading the chart is South Africa's Shaun Pollock, who is way ahead with 874 points, with a gap of 80 points between him and the next in line Nathan Bracken 794 points. New Zealand's Shane Bond is at the third place with 790 points while Sri Lanka's Chaminda Vaas and M.Muralidaran are at the fourth and fifth places with 741 and 730 points respectively.

In the team rankings, India remains at the fifth place with 110 points, only one point behind Sri Lanka at the fourth. However, Australia's dominance 129 points is continously under threat by South Africa 124 points who won the series against Zimbabwe 3-0. New Zealand 114 points is at the fourth place while England is at the eighth position following their two wins in three matches against India.

Source : http://www.newindpress.com

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Indian Cricket Team for 20-20 World Cup Cricket Tournament

01. M. S. Dhoni (C/WK) - Wicket Keeper/Batsman
02. Yuvraj Singh - Batsman All-rounder
03. Virender Sehwag - Batsman All-rounder
04. Harbhajan Singh - Bowler
05. Ajit Agarkar - Bowling All-rounder
06. Dinesh Karthik (WK) - Wicket Keeper/Batsman
07. Gautam Gambhir - Batsman
08. Robin Uthappa - Batsman
09. Joginder Sharma - All-rounder
10. Yusuf Pathan - Bowliing All-rounder
11. Piyush Chawla - Bowler
12. Sreesanth - Bowler
13. Irfan Pathan - Bowling All-rounder
14. RP Singh - Bolwer
15. Rohit Sharma - Batsman

Indian cricket's Rip Van Winkle wakes up to realities, but how

By Ashis Ray

Not surprisingly, Rahul Dravid, speaking on behalf of his colleagues, has voiced concern about the payment system and restrictions on players' endorsement incomes arbitrarily and unilaterally declared by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) after its two-day conclave.

Clearly, the emerging theme of the meet was to make the unsuccessful representatives on the field scapegoats for India's unexpected early exit from the World Cup, and raise a red herring of cricketers' remunerations being the cause of it.

Some members of the Indian squad that went to the West Indies are unquestionably responsible for the abysmal failure and must pay for such non-performance. Given the suspicions that have been raised, their commercial contracts also need to be closely scrutinised. But a blanket dilution of fees and restraint on extraneous earnings would be unfair and unjust.

Reading between the lines, the BCCI's working committee attempted to attribute their decision to recommendations received from seven former captains invited to the conference, who have apparently distanced themselves from such advice since. Now BCCI officials seem to be divided on whether to insist on their proposal or listen to the players' point of view.

A productivity-based disbursement structure is propitious. But to dispense with retainers is debatable and may create insecurity. Also, rigid restrictions on cricketers' general proceeds could be unworkable under Indian law, if the players refuse to sign such an agreement with the BCCI. At the end of the day, it's the players' presence on the green that lays the golden egg. A potential biting of the hand that feeds the BCCI is yet another instance of this organisation being incapable of thinking through important decisions.

The wholesale gag on players also militates against freedom of speech as granted by the Indian constitution. It is common sense that if a player makes unacceptable statements, disciplinary action can be taken against him.

As expected, the BCCI's introspection has proved to be essentially an exercise in futility. It failed to address fundamental issues, such as the transfer of executive powers in the board and its affiliated associations to fulltime, caring, knowledgeable and professional persons. Instead, in a typically populist style of fooling the Indian people, it papered over cracks, that, too, clumsily.

Akin to Rip Van Winkle, the officials have woken up to the fact that international players should compulsorily be playing domestic tournaments, that subsidiary associations should 'prepare fast and lively wickets' for such competitions and India under-19 and 'A' teams should be touring overseas more frequently to gain experience of foreign conditions. That the world's richest cricket board had not been implementing the last mentioned is a tragic reflection of its ineffectiveness.

The BCCI wildly stated that all associated units should start their own academies linked to the National Cricket Academy (NCA). Would it not have been more sensible to initially have zonal institutes, while sourcing talent from the innumerable privately owned coaching camps that exist in most provinces?

It emphasises the medieval state of the BCCI that it will take six months to ratify a change in its constitution before selectors can be appointed on a fulltime, remunerated basis. Besides, it's shocking that the working committee has 'directed' the selection committee to send a 'young team' for next month's tour of Bangladesh. This is naked interference in the remit of selectors, who are supposed to pick a side purely on merit. Youth for the sake of it is a ludicrous policy. While it's wise to encourage younger players, they must deserve inclusion.

It makes sense to prepare for next year's Champions Trophy tournament with younger legs, but it could unduly jeopardise India's prospects if replacement of senior exponents is not undertaken in a phased manner. The same should also apply in test matches, but even more judiciously.

What's welcome though is the retention of Dravid as captain and the appointment of Ravi Shastri as interim cricket manager, Venkatesh Prasad as bowling coach and Robin Singh as fielding trainer. It will also be a boon for Indian cricket if Greg Chappell is recruited for an authoritative and meaningful role at the NCA. But more critical is the choice of long-term coach and the assistants around him.

(Ashis Ray is the author of the recently launched 'One-Day Cricket: The Indian Challenge' - Harper Collins - which can be bought online on www.ians.in)

Source : news.monstersandcritics.com

Indian cricket stars’ lookalikes hide from angry fans after India’s World Cup loss

NEW DELHI (AP) – Life as a lookalike of an Indian cricket star can have its perks, but lately it’s had a nasty downside, with some hiding from irate fans after India’s loss to Sri Lanka, a news report said Sunday.

India’s defeat to Sri Lanka on Friday disappointed millions of Indians with the team facing its ouster from the World Cup in the Caribbean. Fans vented their anger by burning effigies and posters of the players in several Indian cities and towns.

The team’s participation in the tournament has also resulted in the deaths of two Indians, one who hanged himself and another who died of a heart attack.

Lookalikes of Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag and Mohinder Dhoni – popular among cricket–mad Indians during better performances – have been watching their backs in recent days. In the past, they made frequent appearances on television and were cheered by spectators during cricket matches.

"When Sehwag plays well, I am treated well by people. But when he scores badly, even the lives of my wife and child are in jeopardy as people threaten to beat me up for Sehwag’s bad performance," The Times Of India newspaper quoted Yogendra Shah as saying.

He has temporarily moved out of Mehsana, his home town in western Indian state of Gujarat, to escape the wrath of cricket fans, the daily said.

Police have been drafted to protect the homes of some players and prevent a recurrence of the vandalism that followed a five–wicket upset loss to Bangladesh on March 17.

Suresh Rathod said he was treated like a very important person by cricket fans because he resembled India’s star batsman Tendulkar.

He said people’s extreme reactions were understandable as they felt let down by their heroes. "The Indian players have betrayed the trust of millions of people who worship them."

He said he had joined thousands of people in praying for the Indian team’s success in the World Cup.

However, Mukesh Patel, a clone of wicket–keeper Dhoni, has refused to go into hiding or shorten his long hair just because his idol got out without scoring in Friday’s match against Sri Lanka.

"I had long hair before Dhoni burst on to the cricket scene," the daily quoted him as saying.

Meanwhile, cricket fan Mahadeb Swarnakar, 28, allegedly hanged himself Friday after an argument with his wife because he wanted to watch the India–Sri Lanka match on a neighbor’s color television, while his wife wanted him to watch it with her at home on their monochrome set, said police superintendent Hari Kishore Kusumakar.

The poor farmer’s wife, Sadhana Swarnakar, panicked and also tried to hang herself, but survived when the rope broke. The incident took place in Shaktinagar, a village 60 kilometers north of Calcutta, the capital of West Bengal state, Kusumakar said.

Also Friday, P. Raju, a 28–year–old cricket enthusiast, died after he suffered a heart attack in Hyderabad, the capital of southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, while watching India losing badly to Sri Lanka, said his wife, P. Kavita. He died on arrival at a hospital.

Kavita told The Associated Press that her husband was shocked by India’s poor performance.

Source : http://www.caycompass.com

India Coach Greg Chappell’s Insatiable Hunger For Experimentation Met With A Disaster

Was Greg Chappell the right choice to coach India coach after New Zealander John Wright made way for him in 2005? In retrospect one believes that the BCCI did not make a right choice, considering that he produced more victories in India than abroad.

As a player, Greg, was supposed to be one of the finest batsman Australia ever produced. But it seemed that coaching was not his forte. After all, he never had the experience of coaching an international team once he had hung his boots as a cricketer.

The biggest drawback of Greg’s coaching tenure with the Indian team was his insatiable hunger for experimentation, which met with a disaster.

His ploy to juggle and shuffle the batting order by playing around with cricketers’ fortunes seemed to shake their confidence right till the onset of the World Cup and through the tournament as well. And, the results were there for everyone to see as he messed up the entire dynamics of Indian cricket in association with captain Rahul Dravid, who never seemed to be bold and forthright like his predecessor Sourav Ganguly.

The Dravid-Chappell combo seemed to push India deep into a hole rather than lift the team out of it from time to time.

The batting positions of players of the caliber of Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag, Yuvraj Singh, Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Irfan Pathan, including that of Dravid himself were relentlessly toyed with during Chappell’s tenure.

His first few months or in fact days with Indian cricket brought about the exit of one of India’s most successful captains – Sourav Ganguly.

It was a pity then that Ganguly did not find any supporters in Indian cricket to help him hold on to his position in the team, which had become a world beater under his astute
leadership.

Once Greg arrived he played his cards well, sought the ouster of Ganguly first and then rallied for Dravid to be roped in as captain at the expense of Ganguly’s exit from Indian cricket for a while.

Unfortunately, even Dravid seemed to have kept mum when Ganguly needed total support from his pro with whom he debuted at Lord’s in 1996 while scoring his maiden hundred at the Mecca of world cricket.

It was a pity that Dravid, who fought tooth and nail to retain a terribly out of form Virender Sehwag for a place in the World Cup squad, never batted in favour of Ganguly then.

Kudos to Ganguly, who gave himself time until World Cup, to make a comeback into the Indian team and did it in great style once he was selected for the South Africa tour. He made his bat do the talking and the rest is history.

Coming to Greg, his lunacy to play around with key batting positions cost India the World Cup. A team as talented as India was thrown into shambles by one man’s single-minded desire to prove his point and that was to keep experimenting.

Had Greg given the team the stability it needed in terms of secured batting positions for senior pros, India would have done much better than enduring a first round exit.

Dravid’s captaincy was a total failure, as he never seemed to motivate his players on the big stage and instead of him taking the lead role by stepping up the order, the “Wall” simple crumbled when it mattered the most. At times his decisions seemed dreadful.

It is an after thought that Dravid now wants to own total responsibility for India’s shock exit from the World Cup, but can he undo what has already transpired. He isn’t God any way.

Source : http://www.cricketworldcuplatest.com

Abhishek Bachchan comes out in support of cricket team

The battered Indian cricket team, out of contention in the World Cup, has found a supporter in Bollywood star Abhishek Bachchan who said the players had given it their best.

"I was very disappointed last night. But what we should understand is that it is difficult to perform under the kind of pressure they were in. They gave it their best," Bachchan said at the India Today Conclave in New Delhi on Saturday.
Abhishek said just because the players endorsed products and appeared in advertisements did not mean they were compromising with the game.

"It would be unfair to come down on them for doing too many endorsements and call for replacing them," Abhishek said.

Empathising with the Indian team Abhishek said, "I have faced failure. And I know it is difficult to go out there and perform."

Abhishek was responding to a question on whether corporate sector interest in films would lead to a decline in their quality, as was the case with cricket.

Source : http://www.apunkachoice.com

Bangladesh win to eliminate India

PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad (Reuters) -- Bangladesh coach Dav Whatmore praised his team for holding their nerve to clinch a maiden World Cup second round berth with victory over debutants Bermuda on Sunday.

Bangladesh chased a revised target of 96 in gathering gloom after Bermuda scored a challenging 94 for nine in the rain-affected final Group B match that was restricted to 21 overs.

"This is very significant for us," Whatmore told a news conference. "It was something that I personally knew we had the potential to do. It is reality now."

Bangladesh, who needed only to avoid defeat, joined group winners Sri Lanka in the Super Eights, their victory pushing India out of the competition.

"This game was the most difficult you could be in to qualify," the Australian said. "Chasing that total was never easy. The ball was doing all sorts of things in the first 10 overs."

Bermuda seamer Saleem Mukuddem took three early wickets to leave Bangladesh struggling on 37-3.

"Yes, my heart was pumping a little bit," Whatmore added. "The boys haven't been in this situation before. They have done very, very well."

Source : http://edition.cnn.com