Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Former skipper Sunil Gavaskar said captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has become more assertive and added that the faith shown on him by the Board and the selectors will spur him to do better. "If the captain has the confidence of the board and the selectors, it gives him confidence to employ tactics on the field. It's a huge plus. Now that he is doing so well, it will give him even more confidence," Gavaskar said. 

Dhoni stroked a maiden counter-attacking double hundred to lead India to a comfortable eight wicket victory over Australia in the first cricket Test. "He has changed a bit from the England series. He is more assertive. Towards the end of England series in Nagpur, he was trying to be more assertive, showing displeasure at the lack of efforts by the players and we have seen that in Chennai as well," Gavaskar told a news channel. 

The legendary opener also tried to reason what Dhoni meant when he said that he never dreamt about representing India. "He (Dhoni) came from a place where cricket was not the number one sport. That might have given him a thought that he would not play for India," Gavaskar reasoned. Gavaskar felt that being a bit detached from the game has also helped him remain a "secure person". "He is a very secure person within himself. He is a very confident man. If tomorrow, he wasn't playing cricket, I dont think he would be regretting anything. He would say I had my time and I enjoyed it. If you have such kind of an attitude, you tend to put on less pressure," he said. 

Source :- http://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/54560/dhoni-was-more-assertive-in-chennai-gavaskar
Posted by kbstorm On Wednesday, February 27, 2013 No comments READ FULL POST

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Legendary fast bowler Wasim Akram stepped down from the post of mentor and bowling coach of IPL champions Kolkata Knight Riders citing personal reasons. 

Akram has been an integral part of the team for the past three seasons and was also part of the core team along with chief coach Trevor Bayliss and captain Gautam Gambhir that helped in devising the strategy for the champion side. 

According to team management, Akram has expressed his desire to spend more time with his family as his two sons Taimur and Akbar are barely in their teens. 

Akram has been living out of the suitcase for quite a few years now due to his increased media commitments as well as the hectic travelling and camps related to Indian Premier League. 

KKR CEO Venky Mysore in a media release issued by the franchise stated: "Wasim Akram will be badly missed. He is a legend and a great motivator to have around the team. However, we fully appreciate the reason why he will be unavailable. We hope to work with him in future." 

Source :- http://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/54552/akram-steps-down-as-kolkata-bowling-coach
Posted by kbstorm On Tuesday, February 26, 2013 No comments READ FULL POST
India took one hour and 15 minutes on the fifth morning of the first Test against Australia in Chennai to race away to an eight-wicket victory. 

There were some minor hiccups on the course to victory with both openers perishing in the course. While James Pattinson removed Murali Vijay, who could not clear his lofted drive mid-off, Virender Sehwag was done in by Nathan Lyon. However, Sachin Tendulkar, who joined Cheteshwar Pujara at the fall of the second wicket was in no mood to wait and smashed the off-spinner for two consecutive sixes as India inched closer to victory. 

Ravindra Jadeja ended a stubborn last-wicket stand between debutante Moises Henriques and Nathan Lyon as Australia managed to add just nine runs to their overnight score. With Henriques left stranded on 81, 19 runs short of a hundred on debut, India had to chase a mere 50 to go 1-0 up in the four-Test series. 

Pattinson extracted good bounce off the deck and even troubled Vijay in the first over - how Australia wished they had a few more on the board to defend to give the Indians a run for their money. However, with Sehwag finding the fence three times during his innings, the 50-run target never seemed too daunting anyway. 

Source :- http://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/54554/india-race-to-1-0-lead-with-chennai-victory
Posted by kbstorm On Tuesday, February 26, 2013 No comments READ FULL POST

Monday, February 18, 2013

Gautam Gambhir's exclusion from India's squad for the first two Tests against Australia is a "positive" development for the tourists, feels former cricketer Matthew Hayden. Hayden said Gambhir formed a "potent" opening combination with Virender Sehwag and the left-hander's exclusion will be a welcome relief for the Australian bowlers. 

"The fact that India has dropped Gautam Gambhir is a positive step for Australia," Hayden said about the diminutive left-hander, who struck a century for India A against Australia in a warm-up game on Saturday. 

"He always rallied when playing Australia and that combination of Virender Sehwag and Gambhir was a very potent one ... Gambhir relishes the niggle and returning fire. It was a big surprise they left him out," he was quoted as saying. 

Hayden, who turned out to be a nightmare for the Indian spinners during the 2001 series, came up with a list of dos and don'ts for the touring Australian contingent in order to achieve success on Indian soil. 

He also gave advise to the Australian batsmen on how to tackle the turning ball on Indian pitches. 

Source :- http://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/54460/gambhirs-absence-a-positive-for-australia-hayden
Posted by kbstorm On Monday, February 18, 2013 No comments READ FULL POST

Friday, February 15, 2013

Pace bowler, Tim Bresnan underwent an elbow surgery in the United States and is involved in a race against time for the start of England's international commitments against New Zealand in May. 

The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) have stated that Bresnan will be undergoing a rehabilitation period for at least six to eight weeks and might be available for the New Zealand series which starts on May 16. 

The ECB statement read: "England and Yorkshire bowler Tim Bresnan has undergone an uncomplicated operation on his right elbow to remove extra bone and scar tissue." 

"Bresnan will now commence a six-eight week rehabilitation and back to bowling programme before returning to competitive cricket early in the summer." 

Bresnan has been troubled by his right elbow for quite some time and underwent an operation on the joints in late 2011. He struggled against the visiting South Africans in 2012 and went wicketless in two Test matches on the tour of India. He was left out of the tour to New Zealand in a bid to help him recover from the injury. 

Source :- http://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/54430/bresnan-undergoes-elbow-operation
Posted by kbstorm On Friday, February 15, 2013 No comments READ FULL POST
All-rounder Parvez Rasool on Thursday became the first cricketer from Jammu and Kashmir to bag an IPL contract, signing up with Pune Warriors for the 2013 season. Rasool, who was the star performer for the Board President's XI, grabbing seven Australian wickets, was being chased by at least three franchises but the 24-year-old signed on dotted lines for the Sahara Pariwar owned franchise. 

"A few franchises approached me but it was Pune who approached me first. So it was an ethical decision to join them as they had shown interest much before the Australia match happened. I am very excited and it is an honour to play in the IPL and become the first cricketer from the valley to achieve this feat," an excited Rasool said over phone from Bilaspur where the Jammu and Kashmir squad is based for Vijay Hazare Trophy. 

According to IPL sources, Kings XI Punjab were chasing Rasool because of the Chandigarh based franchisee's proximity to Jammu and Kashmir. Since Rasool is an uncapped player, he will be getting Rs 20 lakh as per IPL norms. "Parvez is an asset for us. He is a capable all-rounder and since we can have only four foreigners, his batting and off-break bowling makes him a good choice in the playing XI." Also the kind of exposure that he will be getting interacting with international cricketers will be phenomenal. Trust me, he can be a good player in the longer version too," a franchise official stated. 

Source :- http://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/54434/pune-warriors-sign-parvez-rasool
Posted by kbstorm On Friday, February 15, 2013 No comments READ FULL POST

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

Australia's public broadcaster said it will not broadcast or report live from the upcoming Test series in India after deciding not to pay inflated rights fees. 

The ABC said it could not afford the broadcast rights fees demanded by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), understood to be much higher for the four-Test series beginning February 22 than previous Australian tours. 

It had still intended to send veteran radio commentator Jim Maxwell, but the BCCI refused him accreditation. 

"It is really disappointing," an ABC spokeswoman told AFP. 

"It will result in it being covered through the news just like a news item but there won't be any feeds, certainly not ball-by-ball coverage." 

As a general rule, ABC covers Australia's Test matches in India, although it did not broadcast the 2010 series as it clashed with the Commonwealth Games. 

Source :- http://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/54400/australia-state-broadcaster-dumps-india-tests
Posted by kbstorm On Tuesday, February 12, 2013 No comments READ FULL POST

Monday, February 11, 2013

Consistency has always been a problem with Shikhar Dhawan since his first-class debut back in 2004 but after his maiden call-up to the Indian Test squad, the Delhi left-hander is determined not to let this chance go abegging. 

"I can't blame anyone for not being able to cement my place in the India squad when I was touring West Indies last year. I wasn't consistent enough and that's why couldn't play more than five ODIs. I guess, it's all in the mind and I am not going to let this opportunity go," the 27-year-old said. 

Dhawan has played five ODIs scoring 69 runs with a half-century that came in the West Indies. 

"No excuses for not delivering but pitches in West Indies were extremely slow and the ball wasn't coming onto the bat. I should have scored more runs," Dhawan, who has scored 5679 runs in 81 first-class matches, said. 

Source :- http://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/54394/dont-want-to-waste-opportunities-shikhar-dhawan
Posted by kbstorm On Monday, February 11, 2013 No comments READ FULL POST
Gautam Gambhir was dropped for the first two Test matches against Australia while Shikhar Dhawan and Murali Vijay were named in the 15-man Indian squad. 

Apart from Dhawan, who received his maiden Test call-up, Uttar Pradesh seamer Bhuvneshwar Kumar was rewarded for his good showing in the recent limited over games against Pakistan and England with a place in the Indian Test team for the first time. 

Gambhir, who was left out after a string of poor performances, will now captain the India A side in the 3-day practice match against Australia on February 16. 

Virender Sehwag, who has been given an extended run, might play in the middle order in case India decide to open with Vijay and Dhawan while Ajinkya Rahane and Ravindra Jadeja will also be vying for a place in the middle order. 

Source :- http://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/54388/gambhir-dropped-dhawan-picked-for-australia-tests
Posted by kbstorm On Monday, February 11, 2013 No comments READ FULL POST

Thursday, February 7, 2013


Indian paceman Praveen Kumar found himself in a fresh controversy after he reportedly abused an opposition player during a match of the BCCI's Corporate Trophy.

The incident happened after Praveen bowled a short-pitched delivery at Ajitesh Argal during the match between ONGC and Income Tax on Monday.

When Argal, who represented Income Tax team, checked with the umpire whether it was a no ball an angry Praveen started abusing the batsman prompting the on-field umpires to report the incident to match referee Dhananjay Singh.

It was learnt that the match referee has described Praveen as "mentally unfit" in his report to the BCCI.

Source :- http://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/54364/praveen-abuses-opposition-player
Posted by kbstorm On Thursday, February 07, 2013 No comments READ FULL POST
Australia's pacer Peter Siddle feels that their pace attack will have a huge role in the tour of India, despite the pitches known to be favorable for spinners. India's famed batting line up struggled against England's spinners in the recent Test series but Siddle felt that each team should stick to its own strengths and not copy the others. 

"The best way of attacking India is with whatever your best line-up is. The way we've won Test matches for years now has been with our pace and I think that is going to play a big role," he said. 

However, he also added that Nathan Lyon, Australia's lead spinner, will be a very important part of the attack. 

"But Nathan (Lyon) is going to play a big role at the other end, and his game is going to flourish even more with the pressure we build at our end. Combined, we'll do well and definitely be able to take 20 wickets. We're strong, we've got a good set of quicks going over and we've got good back-up for Nathan over there with spin," he said. 

Source :- http://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/54363/pacers-will-have-a-big-role-in-india-siddle
Posted by kbstorm On Thursday, February 07, 2013 No comments READ FULL POST

Wednesday, February 6, 2013

Pakistan cricketers Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif left for Switzerland Tuesday to fight to overturn bans imposed two years ago for spot-fixing. 

Captain Butt and fast bowlers Asif and Mohammad Aamer were banned by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for contriving to bowl deliberate no-balls during the Lord's Test between Pakistan and England in August 2010. 

Butt was banned for 10 years, with five suspended, Asif for seven years with two suspended and the then teenager Aamer for five years. 

The trio were also jailed by a British court over the scandal in November 2011. All three were released last year after completing half of their sentences. 

Aamer, now 20, decided not to pursue his appeal to the Swiss-based Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) after pleading guilty to the charges in Britain. 

But Asif's appeal will be heard in the Lausanne court on Thursday, exactly two years and a day after they were banned, and Butt's on Friday. 

Source :- http://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/54348/pakistans-asif-butt-fight-spot-fixing-bans
Posted by kbstorm On Wednesday, February 06, 2013 No comments READ FULL POST
The Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur, the home ground of the Rajasthan Royals franchise, will not host any match in the upcoming 6th edition of the IPL. Rajkot and Ahmedabad have been named as the replacement venues. The BCCI, in a meeting in Chennai decided to shift all the matches from Jaipur to Rajkot and Ahnedabad and cited the long-standing impasse between Rajasthan's sports council, the custodians of the stadium and the Rajasthan Cricket Association as the reason for the decision. 

The sixth edition of the IPL commences on April 3 with Eden Gardens, Kolkata hosting the opening ceremony. The list of the home matches to be played by the Rajasthan Royals are as follows: April 8, Monday : RR Vs KKR (8 PM) April 14, Sunday: RR Vs KXIP (8 PM) April 17, Wednesday: RR Vs MI (8 PM) April 27, Saturday: RR Vs Sun Risers Hyderabad (4 PM) April 29, Monday: RR Vs RCB (4 PM) May 5, Sunday: RR Vs PWI (8 PM) May 7, Tuesday: RR Vs DD (4 PM) May 12, Sunday: RR Vs CSK (8 PM). 

Source :- http://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/54356/jaipur-not-to-host-ipl-matches
Posted by kbstorm On Wednesday, February 06, 2013 No comments READ FULL POST

Monday, February 4, 2013

The bidding war that his name triggered at the IPL players auction left Chris Morris' head spinning and the South African all-rounder conceded that he has never seen the kind of money he would now be drawing. "I have never in my life seen this much money," said Morris, who was bought for a whopping $625,000 (Rs 3.3 crore) by the Chennai Super Kings, 31 times more than his base price of $20,000. Morris was sought by the Mumbai Indians and the Royal Challengers Bangalore as well but they were outbid by CSK at the auction in Chennai where only 37 of the 108 players in fray managed to find buyers. 

Morris followed the auction on his ipad and was amazed to see the interest in him. "Neil McKenzie had a little joke with me when it got to ($) 450,000 but nobody could really believe what was happening," Morris said. In rands, the 25-year-old's earnings are now 5.5 million and he has no clue how to spend the money except for splurging some of it on his parents. "I honestly don't know. I suppose one of the things I'd like to do is give my parents anything they should like and spoil them a little bit," he said. 
Posted by kbstorm On Monday, February 04, 2013 No comments READ FULL POST
Australian captain Michael Clarke won his fourth Allan Border Medal for the nation's cricketer of the year at a gala ceremony in Melbourne on Monday. Clarke, 31, and his predecessor, Ricky Ponting, are the only players to win the medal, considered Australian cricket's most prestigious individual prize, four times. 

The Test and one-day skipper won for the second straight year with 198 votes, ahead of joint runners-up Mike Hussey and two-time winner Shane Watson, who each polled 165 votes. 

Clarke also comfortably won the Test cricketer of the year award, again for the second year in a row, after scoring 1,080 runs at an average of 77.14 in the nine Tests covered by the voting period, from February 25 last year to January 28 this year. 

Watson won the Twenty20 award and also polled well for the one-day honour, which was won by paceman Clint McKay. 
Posted by kbstorm On Monday, February 04, 2013 No comments READ FULL POST
Former England captain Andrew Strauss was on Monday awarded honorary life membership of the MCC, the prestigious English institution responsible for safeguarding the game's rules. 

Strauss, 35, guided England to consecutive Ashes victories over Australia in 2009 and 2011 before announcing his retirement from all forms of cricket in August last year. 

He is the 27th former England skipper to become an honorary life member of the MCC and joins a select group of current and former players, umpires, administrators and journalists. 
Posted by kbstorm On Monday, February 04, 2013 No comments READ FULL POST
Owners of Indian Premier League side Rajasthan Royals have been slapped with a fine of one billion rupees ($18.8 million) for alleged foreign exchange violations, media reports said on Monday. 

The enforcement directorate of the ministry of finance has given the owners, who include Bollywood star Shilpa Shetty and her businessman husband Raj Kundra, 45 days to pay the fine or file an appeal. 

"The foreign investment in the franchise was made in flagrant contravention of Foreign Exchange Maintenance Act," NDTV news channel quoted an order from the directorate as saying. 

This is the first major fine imposed on an IPL team by the government, which has been investigating financial and foreign exchange irregularities in the Twenty20 league. 
Posted by kbstorm On Monday, February 04, 2013 No comments READ FULL POST

Sunday, February 3, 2013

Glenn Maxwell was the prized possession at the IPL 6 auctions held at Chennai and was bought by the Mumbai Indians for a whopping 1 million dollars - five times more than his base price. Maxwell is highly rated back in Australia and maybe his cameo, opening the innings against the West Indies in the 1st ODI at the WACA a couple of days ago camouflaged the bidders in Chennai. 

Ricky Ponting was the first player to be auctioned and was bought by the Mumbai Indians at his base price of $ 4,00,000. Australian Test captain, Michael Clarke was sold to the Pune Warriors for $ 4,00,000. Limited over specialist, Johan Botha, went to Delhi Daredevils. RP Singh was a big gainer and was bought by the Royal Challengers Bangalore for $ 4,00,000 - at 4 times his base price. Luke Pomersbach was sold to Kings XI Punjab for $ 3,00,000 - 6 times his base price. 

The other big winners were the spin wizard from Sri Lanka, Ajantha Mendis who was bought by the Pune Warriors for $ 7,25,000, Australian Kane Richardson, again, sold to the same franchise for $ 7,00,000 along with Mumbai all-rounder Abhishek Nayar ($ 6,75,000) and the hard hitting Sri Lankan bowling all-rounder Thisara Perera who went to the new Sunrisers Hyderabad franchise for $ 6,75,000. 

Chris Morris of South Africa was ultimately sold to the Chennai Super Kings for 30 times his base price while upcoming Lankan all-rounder Sachithra Senanayake was also grabbed by the Kolkata Knight Riders for more than 12 times his base price. Promising Australian bowling all-rounder James Faulkner was bought by the Rajasthan Royals for $ 4,00,000. 

JP Duminy and Varun Aaron were ruled out for the entire IPL 6 season due to injuries. The two Englishmen, Ravi Bopara and Matt Prior remained unsold. Interestingly, there were no takers for the swashbuckling Herschelle Gibbs and Ireland's Kevin O'Brien. A total of 37 players were sold in the auction. 

Bought 

Ricky Ponting - $400,000 to Mumbai Indians (base price $400,000) 

RP Singh - $400,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price $100,000) 

Johan Botha - $450,000 to Delhi Daredevils (base price $300,000) 

Michael Clarke - $400,000 to Pune Warriors (base price $400,000) 

Luke Pomersbach - $300,000 to Kings XI Punjab (base price $50,000) 

Phillip Hughes - $100,000 to Mumbai Indians (base price $100,000) 

James Faulkner - $400,000 to Rajasthan Royals (base price $100,000) 

Glenn Maxwell - $1,000,000 to Mumbai Indians (base price $200,000) 

Moises Henriques - $300,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price $100,000) 

Abhishek Nayar - $675,000 to Pune Warriors (base price $100,000) 

Thisara Perera - $675,000 to Sunrisers Hyderabad (base price $50,000) 

Jesse Ryder - $260,000 to Delhi Daredevils (base price $100,000) 

Darren Sammy - $425,000 to Sunrisers Hyderabad (base price $100,000) 

Jaydev Unadkat - $525,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price $100,000) 

Pankaj Singh - $150,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price $50,000) 

Ravi Rampaul - $290,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price $50,000) 

Manpreet Gony - $500,000 to Kings XI Punjab (base price $200,000) 

Fidel Edwards - $210,000 to Rajasthan Royals (base price $100,000) 

Sudeep Tyagi - $100,000 to Sunrisers Hyderabad (base price $100,000) 

Dirk Nannes - $600,000 to Chennai Super Kings (base price $200,000) 

Nathan McCullum - $100,000 to Sunrisers Hyderabad (base price $100,000) 

Ajantha Mendis - $725,000 to Pune Warriors (base price $50,000) 

Jeevan Mendis - $50,000 to Delhi Daredevils (base price $50,000) 

Chris Morris - $625,000 to Chennai Super Kings (base price $20,000) 

Sachithra Senanayake - $625,000 to Kolkata Knight Riders (base price $50,000) 

Christopher Barnwell - $50,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price 50,000) 

Nathan Coulter-Nile - $450,000 to Mumbai Indians (base price $100,000) 

Ben Laughlin - $20,000 to Chennai Super Kings (base price $20,000) 

Kane Richardson - $700,000 to Pune Warriors (base price $100,000) 

Jacob Oram - $50,000 to Mumbai Indians (base price $50,000) 

Quinton de Kock - $20,000 to Sunrisers Hyderabad (base price $20,000) 

Dan Christian - $100,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price $100,000) 

Akila Dananjaya - $20,000 to Chennai Super Kings (base price $20,000) 

Clint McKay - $100,000 (base price $100,000) 

Jason Holder - $20,000 to Chennai Super Kings (base price $20,000) 

Ryan McLaren - $50,000 to Kolkata Knight Riders (base pirce $50,000) 

Kushal Perera - $20,000 to Rajasthan Royals (base price $20,000) 

Unsold 

Aaron Finch - base price $200,000 

Upul Tharanga - base price $100,000 

Martin Guptill - base price $100,000 

Darren Bravo - base price $100,000 

Herschelle Gibbs - base price $200,000 

Adam Voges - base price $100,000 

Matthew Wade - base price $200,000 

Tim Paine - base price $100,000 

Matt Prior - base price $200,000 

Kaushal Silva - base price $20,000 

Prasanna Jayawardene - base price $50,000 

Dane Vilas - base price $20,000 

Denesh Ramdin - base price $50,000 

Dinesh Chandimal - base price $100,000 

Ravi Bopara - base price $100,000 

James Hopes - base price $100,000 

Vernon Philander - base price $100,000 

Doug Bollinger - base price $200,000 

Cameron Boyce - base price $20,000 

Veerasammy Permaul - base price $20,000 

Suraj Randiv - base price $50,000 

Devendra Bishoo - base price $50,000 

Steve O'Keefe - base price $100,000 

Paul Harris - base price $20,000 

Rangana Herath - base price $100,000 

Sulieman Benn - base price $20,000 

Aaron Phangiso - base price $20,000 

Farveez Maharoof - base price $50,000 

Scott Styris - base price $100,000 

Ben Cutting - base price $100,000 

Josh Hazlewood - base price $100,000 

Travis Birt - base price $100,000 

Henry Davids - base price $20,000 

Ben Rohrer - base price $50,000 

Rilee Rossouw - base price $20,000 

Kevin O'Brien - base price $50,000 

Rory Kleinveldt - base price $50,000 
Posted by kbstorm On Sunday, February 03, 2013 No comments READ FULL POST