All to prove: Smith, Warner face World Cup test in IPL

Agencies
March 21, 2019

New Delhi, Mar 21: The big-bucks Indian Premier League begins Saturday with disgraced Australian duo Steve Smith and David Warner back in action and looking to get some runs under their belts before the World Cup.

The timing of the Twenty20 extravaganza, tentatively scheduled to end on May 12, is awkward, however, wrapping up less than three weeks before the start of the 50-over World Cup in England and Wales on May 30.

Australia captain Smith and his deputy Warner were both given 12-month suspensions last March from state and international fixtures for their roles in an infamous ball-tampering scandal.

The bans did not include club games but IPL's governing council decided not to allow the banned duo in the 11th edition of the T20 league last year in a bid to stay clear of any controversy.

Both played in the recent Bangladesh Premier League but both soon bowed out because of elbow injuries, and now they are keen to get noticed again by Australia's selectors.

The lucrative league kicks off with three-time winners and defending champions Chennai Super Kings, captained by Mahendra Singh Dhoni, hosting Virat Kohli's Royal Challengers Bangalore on Saturday.

Warner, now hipster-bearded, is expected to feature for Sunrisers Hyderabad along with Afghan spin sensation Rashid Khan and New Zealand's Kane Williamson against Kolkata Knight Riders on Sunday.

Smith is likely to be in action for Rajasthan Royals, along with England's Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler, on Monday against Delhi Capitals.

Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting said that although their bans will expire before the World Cup, winning back their places is not a given, particularly given Australia's blistering recent series victory in India in their absence.

"Those guys have not played any high-level cricket for a long time," Ponting told the Times of India newspaper, saying Smith and Warner "still have to prove they are the best players".

"If they don't have a good IPL, then there will be a few more question marks regarding their names," said Ponting, who is the head coach for IPL side Delhi Capitals.

Famous for its pyrotechnics, cheerleaders and huge pay cheques, the league has consistently attracted top foreign stars to play in India's sweltering heat.

Punjab spent big in the player auctions, snapping up little-known Indian spinner Varun Chakravarthy for $1.2 million -- making him the top buy along with Indian paceman Jaydev Unadkat, who went to the Royals.

Apart from India's Test regulars making an impact for the eight franchises, the IPL is a breeding ground for young performers eyeing a place in the national side.

But there are concerns that the gruelling, six-week IPL -- eight teams all playing each other, plus the knockout stages -- raises the risk of fatigue and injury ahead of the World Cup.

Ponting told reporters in Delhi on Tuesday that he expected national selectors might "put restrictions" on some players, for example, India and its fast bowlers, in the IPL's closing stages.

Kohli, India's captain, said players should "enjoy" the IPL but that their workload would be "monitored".

"Everyone knows that no one wants to miss the World Cup and cost the team good balance," he said.

Senior batsman and Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma echoed his national captain's advice, saying the World Cup -- when India will be one of the favourites -- is "our priority".

"Keeping everything in mind we would take a decision collectively (on workload) on each individual," the top-order batsman added.

This year's IPL also faces another hurdle in India's mammoth general elections that run alongside the glitzy tournament, and organisers are keeping their fingers crossed for its smooth running.

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) chief executive Venky Mysore said that staging the tournament just as 900 million people go to the polls in the world's biggest democratic exercise to date is a "miracle".

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Agencies
March 6,2020

Mumbai, Mar 6: Former India batsman Virender Sehwag expressed excitement over the upcoming Road Safety World Series and said he is looking forward to playing with Sachin Tendulkar again.

"I am very excited about this tournament because I will get another chance to play with Sachin. We have played many international matches together and there was a gap and then we played an All-Star match and now again getting a chance. I am looking forward to playing with Tendulkar," Sehwag told media persons.

In the opening match of the Road Safety World Series, India Legends will play against West Indies Legends on March 7. The main aim of the Series is to create awareness about road safety and change people's mindset towards their behaviour on the roads.

Sehwag hailed the initiative of Road Safety World Series and said: "I think it is a very good initiative by the government that they are working towards creating awareness regarding road safety. Awareness regarding road safety is important for everyone."

Road Safety World Series, a five-nation T20 cricket tournament, will showcase some of the biggest names in cricket from India, Australia, Sri Lanka, West Indies, and South Africa.

Players who will feature in this series include Tendulkar, Sehwag, Brian Lara, Yuvraj Singh, Zaheer Khan, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Brett Lee, Brad Hodge, Jonty Rhodes, Muttiah Muralitharan, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Ajantha Mendis and many more. Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar is the Commissioner of the Series.

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Agencies
February 7,2020

New Delhi, Feb 7: It was on February 7, 1999, that Anil Kumble became just the second bowler in the history of cricket to take all ten wickets in an innings of a Test match.

He achieved the feat against Pakistan at Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium, now known as Arun Jaitley cricket stadium in Delhi during the second Test of the two-match series.

India had set Pakistan a target of 420 runs in the match and the visitors got off to a steady start as openers Shahid Afridi and Saeed Anwar put on 101 runs for the first wicket.

It was then Kumble who came into the attack and wreaked havoc on the Pakistani batting line-up.

The spinner, also known as 'Jumbo' first dismissed Afridi (41) in the 25th over. After the right-handed batter's dismissal, India kept on taking wickets through Kumble and Pakistan was reduced to 128/6 in no time.

Kumble then kept on taking wickets at regular intervals and he got his tenth scalp in the 61st over after dismissing Wasim Akram.

This effort enabled India to register a win by 212 runs, and Kumble became the second bowler after England's Jim Laker to take all ten wickets in a single Test inning.

Kumble finished with the bowling figures of 10-74 from 26.3 overs.

Kumble announced his retirement from international cricket in 2008 and finished with 619 wickets in the longest format of the game.

He has the third-highest number of wickets in Tests, only behind Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralitharan (800) and Australia's Shane Warne (708).

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Agencies
June 4,2020

Bengaluru, Jun 4: Indian men's hockey team defender Harmanpreet Singh is delighted and honoured to be nominated for the Arjuna Award by Hockey India.

The Indian women's hockey team captain Rani Rampal has been nominated for the prestigious Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award while her compatriots Vandana Katariya, Monika and Harmanpreet Singh have been nominated for the Arjuna Award.

"I was extremely delighted to hear the news. It's an honour to be nominated for the Arjuna Award and I am sure the nomination will motivate me to perform even better in the upcoming years. All of us have received tremendous support from Hockey India over the years and I was extremely happy to know that Rani has been nominated for the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award and Vandana Katariya and Monika have been nominated for the Arjuna Award. They have put up some brilliant performances in the recent past and I would like to extend my congratulations to them," Harmanpreet said.

The 24-year-old dragflick sensation stepped up his role in the team and shouldered the responsibility of vice-captain with aplomb. As a defender-dragflicker, he was instrumental in the team's winning performance in the FIH Series Finals in Odisha. At the Tokyo 2020 Olympics Test Event, he captained the team to victory in the absence of Manpreet Singh who was rested for the tournament.

Harmanpreet was also part of the Indian team that won the FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifiers against Russia last year. Harmanpreet said that he has been able to perform for the team only because of the support he has received from his teammates.

"I am very happy with the way I have been contributing to the team in the last couple of years. However, I have been able to come up with the goods only because of the way my teammates have supported me. Hockey is a team sport and all of us ensure that we are contributing to the team's cause in some way or the other. If we score a goal, then it's not only the goal scorer, who takes the credit, but the entire team is credited for a particular effort," said the defender.

Harmanpreet added that booking a place in the Tokyo Olympic Games was the biggest achievement for the team in 2019.

"It was simply amazing to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics in front of our home crowd last year. I will cherish the memory forever. The balance of our side was fantastic and everyone chipped in to make the tournament a memorable one. Now, we will give everything we can to come up with great results at the Olympics next year. It's our sole target at the moment and all of us are up for the challenge. Hopefully, we will become a much better side once we play our first match in Tokyo," he said.

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