Aim is to break into top 10 by year-end: Jwala Gutta

November 5, 2015

Mumbai, Nov 5: India's top women's doubles pair in badminton, seasoned campaigners Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa, are aiming to crack the top 10 in world rankings before the year comes to an end.

jwala"We are currently ranked 11th. We had broken into the top ten after the Canadian Open but I fell sick during the Japan and Korea Opens and the rankings have come down a bit. But our aim is to be in the top ten by year-end and also qualify for the Super Series finals (in Dubai)," said the senior of the two players, Jwala, today.

The Indian pair is currently ranked 11th in the Super Series events too and the top eight pairs would qualify for the finals scheduled in Dubai from December 9-13.

Jwala and Ashwini, who bagged the 2010 Commonwealth Games gold in Delhi and followed it by clinching the bronze in the 2011 World Championships, have been signed up by Not for Profit organisation, Olympic Gold Quest, today.

The two players will be supported by OGQ, jointly founded by sports legends Prakash Padukone and Geet Sethi, in the run up to next year's 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, it was announced by OGQ's CEO, Viren Rasquinha, at a media conference here.

"We are very excited to be associated with OGQ and it's very important we get this kind of support. It's less than a year to go for Rio and we will work harder and try to achieve better result than earlier (London, 2012). Every professional athlete needs individual attention like in training, nutrition etcetera and OGQ will provide it," said Jwala.

Agreeing with her partner, Ashwini said "We are looking forward to working harder and doing better than before in all the tournaments prior to and in the Olympic Games. We need a fit body to give 100 per cent. They (OGQ) will give us 100 per cent support if we need anything."

Asked about Rio, Jwala said she and her partner were on target to qualify for the Olympics for which they need to be in the top 16 at the cut-off date - April 30.

Immediately the pair's aim is to do well in China open, starting on November 10, followed by the Hong Kong (from November 17) and Macau Open (from November 24).

"(Post OGQ support) We will have better preparations, focus more on the game, more on the tiny things that will make a difference and also increase our chances of doing well at the Olympics. (Sense of) insecurity and stress has gone down. I am sure we are going to do well." said Ashwini.

"We hope to qualify for the Super Series finals and by the end of the year remain in top 10," said Jwala who also welcomed the appointment of a specialist doubles coach from Malaysia to train them and other Indian doubles pairs.

"We needed a specialist who understands doubles which is a totally different event. It's very important to have a specialist doubles coach who can identify our strong and weak points.

"People think doubles is for lazy players but they don't realise it's much faster, has more power and reflexes should be faster. The game of doubles needs better understanding which the specialist coach will have," she added.

"Pairs need to have rapport and trust each other. That's very important," added Ashwini.

Both were virtually dismissive of the government's special initiative for Rio - Target Olympic Podium.

"Right now it's OGQ," said Ashwini when asked about TOP to be part of which the two players had fought tooth and nail after they had been left out of the scheme initially.

"I guess we are," said Jwala when asked about being chosen for TOP.

Badminton legend Prakash said Jwala and Ashwini have so far not lived up to their full potential and hoped their association with OGQ will help them do so.

"I hope they do well in the Olympics and in other tournaments as well. They are doing exceptionally well and we felt they can do better with OGQ support. They will get our full support," he said.

Prakash also welcomed the appointment of a specialist doubles coach for the players in Hyderabad, but cautioned the fans and the authorities need to be patient.

"We have been asking for one and finally we have got the specialist coach and hopefully he will make a difference. But he cannot change things overnight. We need to be patient. It will need 2-3 years to see the result," the former All England singles champion said.

Prakash also said Indian badminton was seeing the best phase in its history with a number of players doing well, unlike in the past.

"Indian badminton is at its best phase. Never have we had so many good players at the same time. But for doing well in the Olympic Games you need to be at your peak in that one week as every one will be eager to do well in an event that takes place once in four years," he said.

"You may beat the world champion the week before the Olympics and the week after, but it all boils down to you being at your best during that one week. That's why you need to be mentally strong also," said the Bengaluru stalwart.

He also expected the Indian shuttlers to put up a better show in Rio than in London in 2012 when Saina Nehwal won the bronze in women's singles and P Kashyap entered the men's singles quarter finals.

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News Network
May 11,2020

Karachi, May 11: Pakistan might play more Test matches during their tour of England if it goes ahead as scheduled in July after the West Indies pulled out of an assignment there in June owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Pakistan Cricket Board and the England and Wales Cricket Board officials are due to have a video conference on May 18 to discuss how they should proceed with the tour given the situation because of the pandemic.

"At present we have to play three Tests and three T20 internationals but the number of Tests could be increased and the tour could start a bit early in July," a PCB source said.

The source said that the ECB could offer to organise a four or five Test series against Pakistan if the West Indies tour didn’t go ahead.

Issues that are likely to be discussed in the May 18 meet are a quarantine period for Pakistani players when they arrive in England in July and limiting the venues for the matches and playing before empty stadiums.

PCB CEO Wasim Khan confirmed the video conference but said so far, the ECB has not spoken to them on increasing the number of matches on the tour which is scheduled between July and September.

"Things will be clear after the meeting but whatever decision we take we will consult our captains and head coaches before giving any confirmation," Khan said.

The PCB has so far kept mum on the chances of the series taking place in England because of the COVID-19 situation.

But with the British government due to announce measures to ease the lockdown in the country, it appears Pakistan could be touring on schedule.

Some former players have, however, asked the PCB to tread on the side of caution.

"If the West Indies have decided to postpone their series in June because of safety reasons and because of the situation then the PCB should also be very careful before taking up any offer from the ECB," a former captain said.

The West Indies Cricket Board said its players have to be convinced of their safety for it to commit to the assignment, which "is not possible in June."

"...we will continue our discussions with the ECB and other Internationals Boards on trying to find new dates," it said in a recent press release.

"We will only travel to England to play the series if our players can be assured that it is safe to do so," it added.

Pakistan is also scheduled to play an ODI series against Ireland while in UK but that series could be rescheduled and also be held in England.

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Agencies
June 9,2020

The International Cricket Council (ICC) has confirmed interim changes to its playing regulations, which include the ban on the use of saliva to shine the ball and allowing home umpires in international series as per a release issued by the international body.

The ICC Chief Executives' Committee (CEC) ratified recommendations from the Anil Kumble-led Cricket Committee, aimed at mitigating the risks posed by the COVID-19 virus and protect the safety of players and match officials when cricket resumes.

COVID-19 Replacements

Teams will be allowed to replace players displaying symptoms of COVID-19 during a Test match. In line with concussion replacements, the Match Referee will approve the nearest like-for-like replacement.

However, the regulation for COVID-19 replacements will not be applicable in ODIs and T20Is.

Ban on Saliva on Ball

Players will not be permitted to use saliva to shine the ball. If a player does apply saliva to the ball, the umpires will manage the situation with some leniency during an initial period of adjustment for the players, but subsequent instances will result in the team receiving a warning.

Whenever saliva is applied to the ball, the umpires will be instructed to clean the ball before play recommences.

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News Network
June 9,2020

Bengaluru, Jun 9: Former India skipper Rahul Dravid has said that Virat Kohli understands that the real respect for him as a cricketer will come through success in the longest format of the game.

Dravid, popularly known as 'The Wall', also said that Test batsmanship has become exciting to watch now as batters play aggressive shots more often.

"I actually believe Test batsmanship has become more exciting than before, the aggressive element of Test batsmanship is going forward, players are playing shots and it is good to see, a good thing for India is Virat Kohli really values Test cricket, he understands that the real respect for him as a cricketer will come from his success in Test cricket," Dravid told Sanjay Manjrekar in a videocast hosted by ESPNCricinfo.

He also said that defensive batting in cricket is not irrelevant, but added that players can have successful careers without having a good defensive technique.

"I don't think it is becoming irrelevant, maybe the value of defensive batting is not the same as it was a generation ago, it can never become irrelevant, I think you still need to defend your wicket if you want to score suns, I feel now you can survive without a good defensive technique in cricket," Dravid said.

"Today, you do not need to have a good Test career to have a successful career, look at the best players in the world today, a lot of them have a good defensive technique and they can play out difficult periods of the game," he added.

The 47-year-old Dravid also said that all young players want to represent their country in all three formats during their initial days, but eventually, they become realistic as time passes by.

"I would say in my interaction with the younger players, everyone's hero is someone who has succeeded in all formats of the game. I think all players start off wanting to play all formats, but then guys get a little realistic about their careers, superstars of the game will still want to play to all formats of the game," Dravid said.

Dravid is the only player in the history of cricket to be involved in two 300-plus ODI partnerships.

He played 164 Tests, 344 ODIs and one T20I for India. Dravid had announced his retirement from international cricket in March 2012.

He finished his career with 48 international centuries.

He has also coached the Indian junior sides (India U-19 and India A) and he is now the head of the National Cricket Academy (NCA).

Dravid has also led the side during his playing days and under his leadership, the side had managed to register their first Test series win in England.

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