Nobody will dominate like Australia: Dravid

The one-team domination in Test cricket has ended with Australia's decline, feels veteran Indian batsman Rahul Dravid, who foresees the number one spot changing hands every few months between India, Sri Lanka and South Africa.

"I don't think you'll see one team dominating like Australia did, at least not in the immediate future," Dravid said.

"There are three or four teams that are evenly matched and you could see the number one spot change hands a few times in the next couple of years," the 36-year-old, who makes a comeback to the Indian One-day side after two years, added.

Asked whether India would also face the transitional crisis that the Australians are battling once the likes of Sachin Tendulkar retire, Dravid said it would boil down to how well the Indian pace bowling attack shapes up.

"We've got a great blend of experienced cricketers, and promising talent coming through. We've done really well over the past couple of years and if we can keep a core group of fast bowlers fit enough to support the spinners then we have as good a chance as anyone," he told 'The Guardian'.

"When Australia dominated, it was the bowling of (Glenn) McGrath and (Shane) Warne that was the key and I believe that England won Ashes series because they had the more balanced bowling attack. We certainly have that balance, and so do Sri Lanka and South Africa. I think the bowling strength will determine which team gets to top," he added.

On his assessment of the Ashes that England won 2-1, Dravid said the series never looked one-sided and could have gone either way.

"I always expected it to be close, and it was. But England won the moments that mattered, and over the course of the five Tests, I'd say that they just about edged it," he said.

Source: NDTV

Muralitharan bowls highest number of Test maidens

Sri Lankan spin legend Muttiah Muralitharan on Thursday surpassed Australia's Shane Warne in creating a new world record by bowling the highest number of maiden overs in Test cricket.

Muralitharan, playing in his 128th Test currently underway against the New Zealand, overtook Warne's record by bowling his 1752nd maiden over at the Galle Stadium. Warne has bowled 1751 maidens in his 145-Test career.

Muralitharan set up the record when he bowled the 79th over of the first innings during the first Test for a maiden. It was the 27th over of Murali and the batsman on the crease against whom the deliveries were bolwed was allrounder Jacob Oram.

Muralitharan is the highest wicket-taker in both Tests and in ODIs. He took the wicket of Gautam Gambhir in February this year in Colombo, to surpass Wasim Akram's ODI record of 502 wickets.

The 37-year-old Muralitharan became the highest wicket-taker in Test cricket when he overtook the previous record-holder Shane Warne in December 2007.

Source: NDTV

Dhoni, Yuvraj lead ICC ODI batsmen ranking

Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni continued to top the one-day batsmen chart with his deputy Yuvraj Singh occupying the second position in the the latest ICC ODI Player Rankings released on Wednesday.

Apart from Dhoni and Yuvraj, Delhi dasher Virender Sehwag, at the seventh spot, is the other Indian to feature in the top 10 batsmen list.

Master blaster Sachin Tendulkar and Gautam Gambhir are at the 14th and 17th spot respectively in the chart.

However, no Indian features among top 10 ODI bowlers with left-arm pacer Zaheer Khan languishing at the 17th spot in the list which is being headed by Sri Lankan Nuwan Kulasekara, followed by Kyle Mills and Daniel Vettori of New Zealand.

Meanwhile, Bangladesh skipper Shakib Al Hasan continued to top the ODI all-rounders table, followed by England's Andrew Flintoff in the second spot and Kiwi Jacob Oram at the third position.

India also managed to hold on to their second best ODI team status with 126 rating points.

South Africa tops the table with a point lead over India, while World Champions Australia is lying third with 119 points.

Source: NDTV

Injured Pietersen out of Champions Trophy

England batsman Kevin Pietersen will miss the Champions Trophy due to complications following surgery on a chronic Achilles tendon injury.

Pietersen had hoped to return in the September 22-October 5 tournament in South Africa, but his recovery was set back last week when he developed an infection in some scar tissue.

As well as missing the Champions Trophy, he won't feature in the one-day series or Twenty20 matches against Australia.

But Andrew Flintoff, who is retiring from Test cricket next week when the Ashes series concludes, was selected Monday in all three limited-overs squads.

With Pietersen ruled out, selectors called up uncapped Kent batsman Joe Denly.

"Joe Denly has impressed the selectors for a while with some excellent performances in one-day cricket," national selector Geoff Miller said. "With Kevin Pietersen unavailable through injury, this is an excellent opportunity for Joe to step up to the next level and show what he is capable of."

Denly will travel with England to Belfast for a one-day international against Ireland on Aug. 27, just three days after the fifth and final Ashes Test against Australia at The Oval is scheduled to finish.

That team will be captained by Paul Collingwood, in the absence of the rested Andrew Strauss. The 15 players chosen to face Australia in two Twenty20 internationals at Old Trafford will also be rested against Ireland.

Strauss will return for the seven ODIs against Australia in September and the Champions Trophy.

"Strauss has led the side extremely well in both forms of cricket this summer," Miller said. "But the selectors felt it would be beneficial for him to have a short break from international cricket following the conclusion of the Ashes Test series, and Paul Collingwood will lead the side in Ireland and in the international Twenty20s."

Squad for one-day series against Australia and Champions Trophy:

Andrew Strauss (captain), James Anderson, Ravi Bopara, Tim Bresnan, Stuart Broad, Paul Collingwood, Joe Denly, Andrew Flintoff, Eoin Morgan, Matt Prior, Adil Rashid, Owais Shah, Ryan Sidebotton, Graeme Swann, Luke Wright.

Squad for Twenty20 series against Australia:

Paul Collingwood (captain), James Anderson, Ravi Bopara, Tim Bresnan, Stuart Broad, Joe Denly, Andrew Flintoff, Eoin Morgan, Matt Prior, Adil Rashid, Owais Shah, Ryan Sidebotton, Graeme Swann, Jonathan Trott, Luke Wright.

Squad for One-Day International against Ireland:

Paul Collingwood (captain), James Anderson, Ravi Bopara, Tim Bresnan, Stuart Broad, Joe Denly, Andrew Flintoff, Eoin Morgan, Matt Prior, Adil Rashid, Owais Shah, Ryan Sidebotton, Graeme Swann, Luke Wright.

Source: NDTV

I will not be fit before Champions Trophy: Sehwag

Recuperating from a shoulder injury, flamboyant India opener Virender Sehwag is not sure if he could regain full fitness before the ICC Champions Trophy, to be held next month in South Africa.

Sehwag had injured his shoulder during the semi-final of the second edition of the Indian Premier League in South Africa after which he had to undergo a surgery for the Grade II lesion at a Nottingham hospital in June.

"My shoulder is better than before. It takes time to recover from any surgery. But if it (recovery) takes time, I can't help it. I can just wait and watch," Sehwag told reporters here today when asked about the recovery.

The Delhi batsman has been following a rehabilitation programme since going under knife, which has almost ruled him out for the September 8-14 tri-series in Sri Lanka and has now also cast a shadow over his availability for the Champions Trophy as well.

Sehwag also welcomed International Olympic Council's move to include women boxing in 2012 London Olympics.

"It's a great thing to happen. I am associated with women's empowerment from my university days so I think men and women should get equal representation in every field," Sehwag, who is also the chief patron of Shikhar, an NGO working for social development said on the occasion of the organisation's launch of a new initiative -- 'Support Centre for Women Empowerment'.

He also wished the countrymen on the eve of India's 63rd Independence Day.

Source: NDTV

IPL welcomes ICL players in third edition

The Indian Premier League confirmed on Tuesday that the players signed with Indian Cricket League can take part in the third edition of the cash-rich tournament.

This follows the grant of amnesty by the board earlier this year. All the rebel players who have played internationals will go into an auction later this year.

The auction will include players like Shane Bond who is expected to go to the highest bidder. And the likes of Justin Kemp, Hemang Badani, Deep Dasgupta, Rohan Gavaskar will benefit the most since IPL teams can only play 4 foreigners at a time and will need more quality Indian players.

Lalit Modi also made it clear that Northamptonshire cannot play in October's Champions T20 League in India as the county side still have three ICL players who have not applied for amnesty.


Modi said Northants still have in their ranks three former South Africa players - Nicky Boje, Andrew Hall and Van der Wath - who have not severed their connection with the 'Rebel' League.

"Champions League rules are very clear that no team with players connected to any unauthorised cricket can be a part of it. Northants will be disqualified from the League if they enter the final (of England domestic T20 cricket) and there would be a vacant slot," he said.
Source: NDTV

Tendulkar chases 15,000 test runs, World Cup victory

While many of his contemporaries have retired, Sachin Tendulkar has no intention of applying the brakes on his record-breaking career and instead wants to score 15,000 test runs and win the 2011 World Cup.

"I've given it (retirement) no thought at all," the 36-year-old, who has scored the most runs and hundreds in tests and one-dayers, told the September edition of The Wisden Cricketer magazine.

"I'm good at cricket, so I will play a while longer. I still love the game as much as ever, it is my job but it remains my passion too," added the batsman

Tendulkar, who has aggregated a record 12,773 test runs with 42 hundreds, has seen players such as West Indian Brian Lara and team mates Anil Kumble and Saurav Ganguly hang up their bats but the Mumbai player wants to make sure he can fulfil one of his childhood hero's wishes.

Tendulkar said compatriot Sunil Gavaskar, who was the first to surpass the 10,000-mark in tests, has set him a target.

"I'm not pleased yet with what I have done," said Tendulkar. "Sunil Gavaskar has told me that I have to get to 15,000 runs. He said he would be angry with me, would come and catch me if I didn't.

"I admire him so much and to score that many would be a terrific achievement but that is not the only aim.

"What else? "Winning the (one-day) World Cup in 2011."

HUGE MONEY

He did not agree with concerns that test cricket was on a decline due to the rising popularity of Twenty20, such as the lucrative Indian Premier League (IPL).

"There is no way test cricket is dying," he said. "Twenty20 cricket is the dessert and you can't survive on that. Who wants to eat only desserts?

However, he cautioned upcoming players to focus on the game.

"Maybe in 10 years, or even now people will pick up cricket bats thinking only about the huge money in Twenty20 cricket," he said.

"Money should just be coincidental. The passion and the desire are the most important things," he said. "I worry about runs, not contracts."

Tendulkar rejected suggestion from former Australia coach John Buchanan that he was losing confidence against short-pitched bowling.

"Maybe he needs to change his opinion," he said. "There must be something very wrong with all the bowlers around the world that they have allowed me to score so many runs."

Scource: Reuters

Treat cricketers differently - Yuvraj

Yuvraj Singh has hit back at the criticism over the Indian cricketers' decision to reject the World Anti Doping Agency's regulations concerning drug testing, asking for cricketers to be treated differently from other sportsmen. "Their sports and our sport is different," he told news channel CNN-IBN. "We play more and we get very little time with our families and I feel we are travelling more. We are playing a lot of time in a year and we should be given more space, with due respect to other sports." Indian cricketers have raised concerns that the code's 'whereabouts' clause will require them to divulge information that could violate privacy and threaten their security. However, several top Indian athletes previously tested by WADA have said the code does not infringe on privacy. The Indian sports minister MS Gill endorsed the view, saying all national sports bodies and players should support the WADA and adhere to its regulations. The BCCI plans to ask the ICC to walk out of the WADA umbrella and develop a cricket-specific anti-doping code, but cricket's governing body is unlikely to support such a suggestion. The extensive travelling, Yuvraj said, gave India's cricketers too few days to spend at home each year. "After nine months of playing, we come home for just ten days," he said. "We don't want somebody to intrude upon our privacy for dope tests during that small period. We have put out our points in front of the BCCI and they will speak to the ICC."


Scource: ESPN cricinfo

Gibbs dumps Cape Cobras to play for Deccan Chargers in Champions League T20

South African opener Herschelle Gibbs will play for the Deccan Chargers in the Indian Champions League Twenty20 series rather than his home team Cape Cobras, which is also participating in the tournament.

Gibbs' agent Donne Commins told the Afrikaans daily Beeld here that the player would be available for the IPL side and Cape Cobras will be compensated because Gibbs would not be available to play for them.

Gibbs helped Deccan Chargers win the second edition of the Indian Premier League which was shifted to South Africa because of security concerns during the elections in India.

The Cape Cobras and the Diamond Eagles are the South African teams in the USD 6mn Champions League which will also have leading Twenty20 sides from England, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Australia participating in the mega-event to be held from October 8-23 in India.

The Cape Cobras, who beat the Diamond Eagles in the final of the Pro20 series in South Africa this year, will play against the Royal Challengers Bangalore in the opening game of the Champions League.

Although their IPL teams have not qualified for the Champions League, two other South Africans who excelled in the IPL series here, Rajasthan Royal's Graeme Smith and Mumbai Indian's JP Duminy, may well also be playing for the Cape Cobras in India.