Dwayne Smith’s blistering knock leads CSK to sixth consecutive win

May 6, 2014

New Delhi, May 6: Delhi 178-5 in 20 overs: Dinesh Karthik led a collective batting effort with a fighting fifty as Delhi put up a formidable total. Karthik (51 runs, 36b, 4x4, 3x6) combined well with former CSK player Murali Vijay (35 runs, 30b, 2x4, 1x6) for a splendid 71-run partnership for the third wicket after a shaky start.

Dwayne_SmithJP Duminy (28 no) and Kedar Jadhav (29 no) provided superb finishing touches with their fiery cameos as DD put on their best total of the season on board after being put into bat.

Duminy blasted paceman Mohit Sharma for four boundaries in a row in the 18th over while Jadhav finished the innings with a flourish by hitting the same bowler for two sixes and a four in the final over. The two batsmen raised an unbeaten 58-run stand in only 5.4 overs.

The DD openers took some time to settle as the ball was seaming a bit initially but after getting their eye in, they cut loose. Young paceman Ishwar Pandey bowled a rare maiden over but he was taken to task in his next by Quinton de Kock, who hit him for two sixes after Vijay struck a magnificent straight boundary.

The South African southpaw needlessly ran himself out while attempting a third run.

Skipper Kevin Pietersen failed to come out of his lean patch as he was dismissed for a golden duck. The England batsman failed to read the line of a Mohit delivery and found his stumps shattered in the process.

CSK: When you've got Brendon McCullum and Dwayne Smith (79 runs, 51b, 4x4, 8x6) in such form, even the most challenging target seems easy to chase down. The two put up their fourth fifty-run partnership (82 runs in 11.2 overs) to put Chennai in the driving seat from the off.

The first three overs were relatively quiet but then Smith decided to attack and cracked a hat-trick of sixes in the 4th over - bowled by Jaydev Unadkat. But from then onward, if you observe Chennai's

innings, there weren't too many big overs — what CSK did right was get a boundary almost every six balls which meant the pressure never got to their batsmen.

McCullum was dropped in the 7th over by Jadhav but that cost Delhi just nine runs. However, it could have derailed CSK's momentum. McCullum was eventually out for 32 (off 35b, 5x4) when he was caught at long-off in the 12th over.

If Delhi thought that would turn the tide in their favour, then it wasn't to be. Suresh Raina (47 runs, 27b, 6x4, 1x6) came on and started pounding the bowlers. He hit two fours in the first three deliveries he faced and provided able support to Smith.

Smith meanwhile, was in another zone. Nothing got past him — the West Indian smacking eight sixes and four fours as Delhi's bowlers tried and failed to fox him. The match was actually won in the 18th over itself with Smith heaving Shami for two fours and a six — CSK needing only 16 off 12 after that over.

When they eventually got him, it was too late. Smith skied one and got caught by Vijay in the 19th over (bowled by Parnell, conceded just five runs) to make for a slightly nervous ending for CSK than anticipated. They needed 11 off the last over but Dhoni (12 off 5b) smacked a six over long-on in the 2nd ball and then took a quick double before slapping a four through extra-cover to end it in style.

Turning point: Dinesh Karthik's wicket was probably what stopped Delhi from posting an even bigger total. The timing of that wicket (13th over) allowed CSK some breathing space and took out Delhi's most effective batsman from the equation.

Man of the match: Smith for his blistering 79-run innings. He's in absolute top form.

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Agencies
July 21,2020

New Delhi, Jul 21: With the T20 World Cup's postponement clearing the decks for a full-fledged IPL, the glitzy event's Governing Council will meet in a week or 10 days' time to plan its next course of action, eyeing UAE as the host this year.

An IPL between September and early November has been made possible by the ICC's decision on Monday to postpone the T20 World Cup in Australia, scheduled for October-November, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"The IPL GC will meet within a week or 10 days and all decisions (including final schedule) will be taken there. As of now, the plan is to have a full fledged IPL comprising 60 games and most likely in the UAE," Patel told PTI.

Asked about the main challenges in conducting the event in current scenario, Patel added: "Just the operational side of it. Whether you do it here or outside, it doesn't matter (with no crowds)."

The franchisees had already been working on their plans for the IPL even before the ICC announcement.

With majority of the Indian players not having access to grounds amid the pandemic, teams will need at least three to four weeks to get them match ready.

Foreign players will fly in directly to the UAE from their respective countries.

"Our players will need at least three to four weeks of training, if not more. We will finalise all our plans once the BCCI announces the dates. It looks like the IPL will be in the UAE and we are ready for that," a team owner told PTI.

Since India tour Australia for a four-Test series right after the IPL, training of the Test players is also an important issue.

Test specialists like Cheteshwar Pujara and Hanuma Vihari, who are not part of the IPL, are likely to train for the eagerly-awaited series in a bio-secure environment at the newly-renovated Motera Stadium in Ahmedabad during the time of the IPL.

A few fringe players are expected to join them at Motera along with the Indian team's support staff, which is free during the IPL.

Work from home has become the norm amid the pandemic, therefore, there is a possibility that IPL commentary will happen from the comfort of the living room, a safer and cost effective-option considering the likes of Sunil Gavaskar, who is 71, are involved.

The viewership is expected to be a record one with people craving for live cricket, something KXIP co-owner Ness Wadia has said.

However, it remains to be seen how much the broadcasters and teams are able to attract from the sponsors in the current financial climate.

More moot points and questions ahead of the IPL GC meeting:

1) More double headers expected (original schedule had only five double headers).

2) BCCI will need to provide a Standard Operating Procedure to IPL teams even though they will have their own SOPs in place.

3) Will the BCCI compensate teams for not being able to generate gate money this year?

4) Will there be virtual commentary from Star Sports? It was seen in the recent 3TC event in South Africa with the likes of Aakash Chopra, Deep Dasgupta and Irfan Pathan commentating from home.

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Agencies
January 16,2020

New Delhi, Jan 16: Veteran cricketer Mithali Raj was on Thursday demoted to Grade B from A in the BCCI central contracts while Radha Yadav and Taniya Bhatia were elevated to the middle bracket.

Mithali not being kept in the Rs 50 lakh category was expected as the 37-year-old retired from T20s in September last year. However, she remains the ODI captain and plans to carry on till the 2021 World Cup.

T20 skipper Harmanpreet Kaur retained his A category contract alongside Smriti Mandhana and Poonam Yadav.

Radha and Taniya, who both had a Grade C contract worth Rs 10 lakh last year, have now entered Grade B (Rs 30 lakh).

Players getting a central contract for the first time are 15-year-old opener Shafali Verma and Harleen Deol, who like the teenager is an attacking batter.

Shafali has attracted a lot of attention ever since making her India debut last year. She recently made 124 against Australia A in Brisbane. The opener will be expected to deliver in the upcoming T20 World Cup Down Under.

Dropped from the list is Mona Meshram, who was in Grade C last year and hasn't played a single game in recent times.

The latest contracts run from October 2019 to September 2020.

Grade A (Rs 50 lakh): Harmanpreet Kaur, Smriti Mandhana, Poonam Yadav.

Grade B (Rs 30 lakh): Mithali Raj, Jhulan Goswami, Ekta Bisht, Radha Yadav, Taniya Bhatia, Shikha Pandey, Jemimah Rodrigues, Deepti Sharma.

Grade C (Rs 10 lakh): Veda Krishnamurthy, Punam Raut, Anuja Patil, Mansi Joshi, D Hemlatha, Arundhati Reddy, Rajeshwari Gayakwad, Pooja Vastrakar, Harleen Deol, Priya Punia, Shafali Verma.

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News Network
January 30,2020

Hamilton, Jan 30: Caught unaware about the Super Over scenario, Rohit Sharma took five minutes to “find” his abdomen guard after the third T20 International against New Zealand had ended in a tie on Wednesday.

The India vice-captain said the team had almost given up with New Zealand going great guns at one point.

“Everything was packed. All my stuff was inside my bag. I had to get it out. It literally took me five minutes to find my abdomen guard because I didn’t know where it was,” Rohit said.

“I mean we never thought it would go to the Super Over, the way they were batting at one point. It looked like they could easily win the game,” he added.

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