Ind vs WI: India opt to bowl against West Indies in 3rd ODI

November 27, 2013

MS_DhoniNew Delhi, Nov 27: Indian captain MS Dhoni won the toss and chose to bowl against the West Indies in the series deciding third ODI at the Green Park in Kanpur on Wednesday.

Both India and the West Indies are unchanged from the last match.

It will be two-paced wicket and the colour of the pitch is changing since morning. First few overs it will be tough but as the day progresses, it will be good for batting.

After being mauled in the two Tests and then surrendering the opening ODI at Kochi, the visitors bounced back at Visakhapatnam to keep the series alive.

This has put Dhoni and his boys under pressure ahead of a tough tour of South Africa next month. With the series level at 1-1, any slip-up will dent the home team's reputation and confidence.

For Dhoni there are some problems that need quick-fix solutions. The most serious being the lack of expertise in bowling 'death overs'. Notwithstanding the dew factor, runs have flowed rather too easily in recent times, leaving Dhoni flummoxed. Bhuvaneshwar Kumar and Mohammad Shami have looked good with the new ball, but have failed to contain in the end overs.

The patchy form of Suresh Raina and Yuvraj Singh, the two left-handers in the middle-order, is also worrying. Both have looked out of sorts and the side would be hoping that they get some useful runs under their belt before the upcoming tour.

The most comforting factor for the side is the way the top-three — Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli have shaped. The trio has made it a habit of providing India with flying starts, and Dhoni has always been reassuring later in the order. Also the spinners — Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja — have been on the mark, and have kept things under control in the middle overs.

West Indies, on the other hand, can take heart from the fact that they have kept the series alive till the end despite losing their two best shorter-version players, Chris Gayle and Kieron Pollard, to injuries.

Interestingly, the West Indies have an all-win record at Green Park, having won both the matches they have played here.

Skipper Dwayne Bravo is a wily fox with the ball, and a dangerous customer with the bat. Also, playing in the IPL regularly has helped him to adjust to the conditions well.

Another one who has a good knowledge of the Indian pitches is Sunil Naraine. The way he kept Yuvraj guessing with his variety at Visakhapatnam must have made his skipper happy. The 'mystery' spinner can be quite handy here on a slow turner where the ball is likely to keep low as the match progresses.

With Johnson Charles, Kieran Powell, Marlon Samuels, Darren Bravo, Lendl Simmons and Darren Sammy in their ranks, the Caribbeans bat deep down the order. Even if a couple of them can come up with good scores, it will test India's powerful batting line-up.

Teams:

India: MS Dhoni (Capt.), Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohit Sharma, Mohammed Shami.

West Indies: Dwayne Bravo (Capt.), Kieran Powell, Johnson Charles, Marlon Samuels, Darren Bravo, Lendl Simmons, Darren Sammy, Jason Holder, Sunil Narine, Ravi Rampaul, Veerasammy Permaul.

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Agencies
August 1,2020

Bengaluru, Aug 1: Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Chennai Super Kings (CSK) are aiming to set up their preparatory camp for the 13th edition of the tournament from early August.

This year's IPL was slated to commence from March 29 but the tournament was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Recently, the IPL Governing Council chairman Brijesh Patel had confirmed that the 13th edition of the mega event will commence on September 19 in the UAE.

As per a report in ESPNcricinfo, CSK players have been asked to report to Chennai first, following which they will leave for Dubai via a charter flight only after approval from the Indian government.

The IPL Governing Council will meet on August 2 to finalise the schedule and other key arrangements for the tournament. Also, the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) around securing eight teams for 51 days across three venues will be formally established in that meeting.

CSK, who has the oldest squad in the IPL, are looking for a month's preparation before ahead of the tournament.

Before the coronavirus pandemic, the side was the first team to start their training camp in March. Senior players like Suresh Raina and Ambati Rayudu had begun training their training in December 2019.

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Agencies
July 31,2020

Hampshire, Jul 31: David Willey's maiden five-wicket haul guided England to a six-wicket victory over Ireland in the first ODI here on Friday.

With this win, the hosts have taken a 1-0 lead in the three-match ODI series.

Chasing a small target of 173 runs, England got off to a bad start as opener Jonny Bairstow was given LBW in the third over, bowled by Andy McBrine. Jason Roy was then joined by James Vince and the duo added 22 runs on the board before the former was dismissed.

Craig Young then got hold of Vince, who was caught behind after scoring 25 runs. Sam Billings and Tom Banton then took the charge of the chase but the latter too was caught behind which ended his 11-run innings.

Banton's dismissal brought skipper Eoin Morgan on the field. Billings and Morgan played stunning innings and kept scoring boundaries. Morgan struck a scintillating six on the last bowl of the 28th over to take England over the line. Morgan scored 36 runs while Billings played a knock of 67 runs.

Earlier, after being asked to bat first, Ireland witnessed a poor start as Paul Stirling was dismissed in the very first over of the innings, bowled by Willey. Andy Balbirnie then joined Gareth Delany but Willey struck again in his next over, removing Balbirnie.

Delany then played furiously and smashed three consecutive boundaries to Saqib Mahmood in the fourth over. However, the fall of wickets did not stop as England took three wickets in quick succession. Mahmood bowled Harry Tector while Delany and Lorcan Tucker were sent back to the pavilion by Willey.

Kevin O'Brien and Curtis Campher then took the charge and played cautiously, taking their struggling side over the 50-run mark. Adil Rashid got hold of O'Brien (22) in the 22nd over before Simranjit Singh was run out in the same over.

Andy McBrine was the next batsman and he played brilliantly along with Campher, who went on to complete his half-century. Both formed a 66-run partnership before McBrine (40) was dismissed by Tom Curran.

Campher remained unbeaten on 59 but failed to find a partner as England bundled out Ireland on 172 runs.

The second ODI between both teams will be played on Saturday.

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News Network
April 8,2020

New Delhi, Apr 8: Former Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar on Wednesday proposed a three-match ODI series against arch-rivals India to raise funds for the fight against the Covid19 pandemic in both the countries.

The two nations have not played a full-series since 2007 due to the terrorist attacks on India by Pakistan-based outfits and the resultant diplomatic tension. They only play each other in ICC events and Asia Cup.

"In this time of crisis, I want to propose a three-match series in which for the first time, the people of neither country would be upset at the outcome of the games," Akhtar told PTI from Islamabad.

"If Virat (Kohli) scores a hundred, we will be happy, if Babar Azam scores a hundred, you will be happy. Both teams will be winners irrespective of whatever happens on the field," he said.

"You are bound to get massive viewership for the games. For the first time, both countries will play for each other. And whatever funds are generated through this can be donated equally to the government of India and Pakistan to fight this pandemic," added the 44-year-old.

No idea of logistics

With both countries in a lockdown amid the fast-spreading pandemic, the games can only be organised when things improve. However, Akhtar feels the sooner they are held, the better it would be but could not tell how the logistics of such an initiative would be worked out.

"Everyone is sitting at home at the moment, so there will be a massive following for the games. May be not now, when things start improving, the games could be organised at a neutral location like Dubai. Chartered flights could be arranged and the matches could he held.

"The whole world will tune into it, so much money can be raised to deal with this crisis. In difficult times, the character of the nation comes forward."

Start of a new era?

"It could even lead to resumption of bilateral cricketing ties and relations of both countries improve diplomatically. You never know," said the 'Rawalpindi Express'.

In these extraordinary times, Akhtar feels both countries should help each other. "We can only propose the matches. The rest is up to the authorities (to decide)."

India cricketers Yuvraj Singh and Harbhajan Singh were recently trolled for asking their social media followers to donate to Shahid Afridi's charity foundation which is doing its bit in Pakistan's fight against the deadly virus.

"It was inhuman to criticise them. It is not about countries or religion at the moment, it is about humanity," he opined.

India memories

Akhtar has spent a lot of time in India as a commentator. He fondly recalled his days in Mumbai during the World T20 in 2016, the last time he came to India for work.

"I am forever grateful about the love I have received from the people of India. For the first time I am revealing this, whatever I used to earn from India, I made a significant amount there, thirty percent of it, I used to distribute among the low income staff who used to work with me in the TV," he remembered.

Akhtar used to visit the city's slum areas with his face covered to hand out financial help to elder women there.

"From drivers, runners to my security guys. I took care of a lot of people. I was like if am earning from this country, I have to help my colleagues also.

"I also remember visiting slums of Dharavi and Sion in the wee hours to meet people I worked with," added Akhtar.

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