Australia to fight for 'respect', says new coach Langer

Agencies
May 3, 2018

Melbourne, May 3: Newly appointed Australia coach Justin Langer will charge his players with winning back the "respect" of the cricket world after a ball-tampering scandal left the team's reputation in ruins.

Long touted as head coach-in-waiting, Langer was named as Darren Lehmann's replacement on Thursday, his predecessor having resigned in the wake of the Cape Town scandal even though he was cleared of wrongdoing.

A gritty opening batsman who played in some of Australia's greatest-ever teams, Langer takes over a depleted side, with disgraced former captain Steve Smith and his deputy David Warner serving year-long bans in the fall-out from South Africa.

"For me, I think one of the things that's really important is we keep looking to earn respect," the 47-year-old told reporters in Melbourne on Thursday.

"To me, respect’s worth more than all the gold in the world.

"It’s not just about how we play our cricket, it’s about being good citizens and good Australians," he said.

Perth-born Langer scored more than 7,500 runs in 105 tests, including 23 centuries, before retiring with a slew of greats at the end of the 2006/07 Ashes series.

He has had success coaching Western Australia state since 2012, guiding Perth Scorchers to three domestic Twenty20 titles in the 'Big Bash', making them the most successful franchise in the tournament's short history.

Appointed coach of Australia's test, one-day and T20 teams for the next four years, Langer's first on-field assignment will be on tour against England next month for an ODI series.

One of his jobs will be to participate in a players' review aimed at improving team culture and conduct, which former players and media pundits have long criticised as boorish and out of step with public expectations.

Uncompromising Teams

Like his predecessor Lehmann, Langer carved out a career in some of Australia's most successful and uncompromising teams in the 1990s and early 2000s, led by captains that championed "hard, aggressive cricket" and never apologised for the use of targeted sledging to throw opponents off their games.

He felt Australia's players would need to "modify their behaviour a bit", but said the nation expected their teams to play tough as well as fair.

"The public will be disappointed if we don’t play good, hard, competitive cricket," said Langer, dressed in a dark suit and tie alongside Cricket Australia boss James Sutherland.

"How people view us, that's really none of our business.

"We know in this world everyone's got an opinion. If we go about our behaviours on and off the field really well, those outcomes will look after themselves."

Along with Smith and Warner, young opening batsman Cameron Bancroft was banned for nine months, having been caught on camera with a piece of sandpaper while out in the field during the third test in Cape Town.

Langer said he was stunned that "cricket tragics" Smith and Bancroft had been involved in the ball-tampering, but they and Warner would all be welcomed back into the side if they met "standards" once their bans were served.

A father to four daughters, he also described himself as a "hippy", as well as a mentor, to the amusement of reporters. He is also a man who meditates and spends at least one month a year growing a beard and walking around in bare feet during his downtime.

Rebuilding trust in Australia's dressing room, as well as the cricket world, will be crucial, Langer said.

"We’ll have to work on that," he said. "I would say, without being in it (at South Africa), camaraderie wasn’t as right as it needed to be.

"I've said for years if you’ve got that camaraderie, then it’s like that glue that keeps everything together, particularly when you’re under pressure," he said.

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News Network
March 5,2020

Mar 5: India reached a maiden women's Twenty20 World Cup final Thursday after their last four clash against England was washed out, sparking calls for the International Cricket Council to include reserve days in future events.

Harmanpreet Kaur's unbeaten side were due to face the 2009 champions at the Sydney Cricket Ground, but the rain began pouring early in the day with barely any let-up.

With a minimum 10 overs per side needed for a result and no break in the weather, the umpires called it off without a ball being bowled.

Normally, five overs per side are needed to constitute a Twenty20 match, but the rules are different for ICC tournaments.

Four-time champions Australia are scheduled to take on South Africa later in the second semi-final, with that match also under threat.

With no reserve day, the highest-ranked teams from the two groups move into the final if play is not possible

That would pit India against South Africa at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Sunday, where organisers are hoping to attract 90,000 plus fans, denying Australia a chance to defend their crown.

A reserve day is allowed for the final and the lack of one for the semis has been criticised by some players, with England captain Heather Knight among those calling for change.

"If both semi-finals are lost it would be a sad time for the tournament," she told reporters ahead of the match. "It's obviously going to be a shame if it does happen and I'm sure there will be a lot of pressure on the ICC to change that."

Cricket Australia chief Kevin Roberts said he sought clarification from the ICC about adding a reserve day with the Sydney weather looking ominous, but the request was denied.

"We've asked the question and it's not part of the playing conditions and we respect that," he told Melbourne's SEN radio.

"It gives you cause to reflect and think about how you might improve things in the future, but going into a tournament with a given set of playing conditions and rules, I don't think it's time to tinker with the rules."

It is not the way India would have wanted to make the final, but they are deserving of being there having gone through the group phase as the only unbeaten team.

After opening their campaign by upsetting Australia, they beat Bangladesh, New Zealand and then Sri Lanka.

While the entire team played well, teenage batting prodigy Shafali Verma excelled, which saw her elevated to the top of the ICC T20 batting rankings this week aged just 16.

She is only the second Indian after Mithali Raj to reach number one, pushing New Zealand veteran Suzie Bates down to second.

Ranked four in the world, India had made three semi-finals before this year and lost every time, including against England at the last World Cup.

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News Network
June 3,2020

Colorado, Jun 3: Formula One boss Chase Carey has said that races will go ahead even if a driver tests positive for coronavirus.

His remarks come as organisers revealed a revised 2020 calendar and the schedule for the first eight races was put in the public domain.

"An individual having been found with a positive infection will not lead to a cancellation of a race. We encourage teams to have procedures in place so if an individual has to be put in quarantine, we have the ability to quarantine them at a hotel and to replace that individual," the official website of Formula One quoted Carey as saying.

"Some things we'd have to talk through and work through. The array of 'what ifs' are too wide to play out every one of them, but a team not being able to race would not cancel the race. I do not think I could sit here and lay out the consequences," he said.

Carey added the organisers will be having the necessary procedures in place so that the race does not get cancelled if a driver ends up testing positive for coronavirus.

"But we will have a procedure in place that finding infection will not lead to a cancellation. If a driver has an infection, teams have reserve drivers available," Carey said.

"We would not be going forward if we were not highly confident we have necessary procedures and expertise and capabilities to provide a safe environment and manage whatever issues arrive," he added.

The Formula One 2020 season will be beginning with the Austrian Grand Prix in July.

F1 currently expects the opening races to be closed events but hopes that fans will be able to attend again when it is safe to do so.

The season will kick off with the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring on July 5, followed a week later by a second race on the same track.

The Hungarian Grand Prix will follow a week after that, before a break. There will be then two back to back races at Silverstone, followed by the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona.

The Belgian Grand Prix will follow that, with the Italian Grand Prix at Monza a week later on September 6.

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Agencies
May 25,2020

Chandigarh, May 25: Legendary former hockey player Balbir Singh Senior died in a private hospital on Monday, his family said.

He was 96 years old. His condition was critical for nearly a fortnight.

He was undergoing treatment at Fortis Mohali and was in a "semi-comatose condition".

He was hospitalised on May 8 with high fever and breathing trouble. His COVID-19 test came negative.

Balbir was part of the Indian teams that won gold at the 1948 London Olympics, Helsinki 1952 and Melbourne 1956. His record for most individual goals scored in an Olympic men's hockey final remains unbeaten.

Balbir had set this record when he scored five goals in India's 6-1 win over Netherlands in the gold medal match of the 1952 Games.

He was the head coach of the Indian team for the 1975 men's World Cup, which India won and the 1971 men's World Cup, where India earned a bronze medal. He was also conferred with the prestigious Padma Shri in 1957.

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