Indian fans boo MS Dhoni after 2nd ODI vs England, Kohli lashes out

Agencies
July 16, 2018

London, Jul 16: Skipper Virat Kohli had to once again come to the rescue of under-fire former skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, whose painstaking 37 off 58 balls, came in for sharp criticism after England beat India by 86 runs in the second ODI at the Lord's.

Hailed as one of the best ever finishers in limited overs, Dhoni in the past couple of years have struggled to finish a lot of high-pressure games unless there has been top-order support from the other end.

India were chasing a competitive target of 323 on a Lord's track that slowed down and for once the top order failed with a lot of responsibility on Dhoni. However Dhoni failed to force the pace with India managing only 236 in 50 overs.

When former England skipper Nasser Hussain asked the question about Dhoni's approach, Kohli didn't look amused.

"This thing comes up again and again when he's not able to play the way he does," Kohli said at the post-match presentation ceremony.

"It's unfortunate that people jump to conclusions quickly. When he does well, people call him the best finisher ever, and when things do not go well, people pounce on him," the Indian captain seemed trifle irritated with knee jerk reactions from fans and critics alike.

As he has done umpteen times, Kohli defended Dhoni.

"The idea was to take the innings deep. He has the experience but sometimes it doesn't come off. We totally believe in him and the ability of all the players," the skipper said.

With less than a year to go for the World Cup, Dhoni is very much in the scheme of things of the Indian team management for his vast experience and ability to read any match situations.

However his waning abilities to carry the team alone in pressure situations at times has come under scanner.

Since the home ODI series against Australia last September, Dhoni has batted 13 times scoring 267 runs with four not outs. The average has been 29.66 which can be put in perspective considering at what time of the innings, he comes into bat.

However the most telling statistic is a strike-rate of 78.07 which is an indication that he is not able to force the pace down the order right at the onset.

With Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul batting in the first four positions, the latest that the former skipper can come into bat is No 5 but Suresh Raina is being seen as an enforcer in that position.

It leaves Dhoni with either No 6 or 7 depending on where Kohli wants the big-hitting Hardik Pandya.

"Had it been 80 in 7 overs and if Hardik would have been around, Dhoni would have still gone for it. But with 120 odd runs and Hardik being dismissed, he knew that chase was out of bounds. We shouldn't judge a player on the basis of one match," former India pacer Ashish Nehra said at the post-match TV show.

Kohli on his part felt that it was one bad day and also the fact that England brought forth their A game.

"We started pretty well with the bat. It was a good wicket but got slower. When we lost three wickets in three overs that hurt us. I thought that's where we fell behind. Credit to the bowlers, they stuck to their guns. Today was a day when we couldn't get going.

"Moeen and Rashid are both quality bowlers in this format and sensed we couldn't take risks. They created pressure in the middle overs. If it was one down we could have attacked a bit more," Kohli said.

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News Network
January 20,2020

Jan 20: Both Steve Smith and Rohit Sharma made sparkling centuries in Bengaluru, but it was the Indian who finished on the winning side, leading his team to a 2-1 series win.

Smith, having run out his captain Aaron Finch early on, dug in to bring up his ninth ODI century, his 131 off 132 balls setting India a target of 287 on Sunday, 19 January. Continuing the dazzling display of batting at the M Chinnaswamy stadium, Rohit struck 119 in 128 balls, and skipper Virat Kohli chipped in with 89, as the hosts chased down the target with seven wickets to spare in 47.3 overs.

With Shikhar Dhawan hurting his shoulder in the fifth over of the day and sidelined for the rest of the match, Rohit was reunited with KL Rahul – who had a chance to open the innings after coming in at No.3 and No.5 in the first two matches, while also standing in as wicket-keeper. The vice-captain was on the ball right away, dominating the scoring as India raced to 61/0 in the first 10 overs.

The introduction of spin gave Australia a vital breakthrough: Ashton Agar trapped Rahul in front on review, and although the new pair of Rohit and Kohli weren't unduly troubled, the run-rate slowed down. Josh Hazlewood, playing his first ODI in India and his first match in the format in 14 months, was especially miserly, conceding just 10 runs in his first five overs.

But, having settled in, the duo built a useful partnership of 137 and gave themselves the chance to hit out with wickets in hand. The part-time bowling of Finch and Marnus Labuschagne was punished, Rohit lapping up the short balls and sending them soaring into the stands. His century, his eighth against Australia, came with a single to third man.

Zampa finally got the breakthrough, having him caught in the deep going for another big one. But with Kohli having loosened his arms with a couple of beautiful fours off Pat Cummins to go past his half-century, India remained on course.

The skipper missed out on a hundred, but with Shreyas Iyer too clearing the ropes, there were no hurdles as India wrapped up an entertaining series win.

Earlier, the Indian bowlers struggled to find their lines after Australia chose to bat, but Australia weren't able to fully capitalise. David Warner was thrown by the movement to nick Mohammed Shami to the wicket-keeper, while Finch was caught short after Smith pulled out of a run, to leave the hosts at 46/2.

Labuschagne and Smith, though, combined for another special partnership, going at a brisk rate and showing delectable timing against spin. They had guided their side to 173 in the 32nd over when the a sharp piece of fielding from the home captain and strong bowling pulled things back.

Kohli, at cover, plucked a drive from Labuschagne soon after the batsman had reached his maiden fifty. Ravindra Jadeja had his second of the over when the experiment to send Mitchell Starc at No.5 lasted just three balls.

Alex Carey gave Smith company as he brought up a well-earned century, having fallen just short the previous game. The former skipper stepped up the scoring once he crossed three figures, a wristy helicopter six over deep square leg the highlight of his innings. But, excellent death bowling by Shami, who finished with four wickets, ensured the tourists were kept to under 300 – a total that proved below par.

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Agencies
August 2,2020

New Delhi, Aug 2: BCCI president Sourav Ganguly on Sunday said the Women's IPL or the Challenger series, as it is better known, is "very much on", ending speculation about the parent body not having a plan for Harmanpreet Kaur and her team.

The men's IPL will be held between September 19 and November 8 or 10 (final date yet to be locked in) in the UAE due to the surge in Covid-19 cases in India. The women's IPL will also be fit in to the schedule, according to the BCCI chief.

"I can confirm to you that the women's IPL is very much on and we do have a plan in place for the national team also," Ganguly told PTI ahead of the IPL Governing Council meeting later on Sunday.

The BCCI president, who is awaiting a Supreme Court verdict on waiver of the cooling-off period to continue in the position, did not divulge details but another senior official privy to the development said that women's Challenger will be held during the last phase of IPL like last year.

"The women's Challenger series is likely to be held between November 1-10 and there could be a camp before that," the source said.

The former India captain also said that the centrally contracted women players will have a camp which has been delayed due to the prevailing situation in the country.

"We couldn't have exposed any of our cricketers -- be it male or female to health risk. It would have been dangerous," Ganguly said.

"The NCA also remained shut because of Covid-19. But we have a plan in place and we will have a camp for women, I can tell you that," he added.

The BCCI's cricket operations team is chalking up a schedule where Indian women are likely to have two full-fledged white-ball series against South Africa and the West Indies before playing the ODI World Cup in New Zealand. 

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News Network
February 13,2020

Feb 13: Veteran India batsman Suresh Raina feels Mahendra Singh Dhoni is the best captain India ever had.

Raina and Dhoni play for the same IPL franchise -- the Chennai Super Kings --, which is also led by the latter.

"I think we have the best captain who has changed the Indian team like anything. Now we have that same aura in our dressing room," Raina said on 'The Super Kings show' on Star Sports Tamil.

The 38-year-old Dhoni has retired from Test cricket but his future in the limited overs formats is a subject of intense speculation.

The two-time World Cup-winning former captain took a break from cricket after India's exit from the 2019 World Cup in England. He is set to be back in action at the IPL, where he will captain the CSK, starting March 23.

With three restricted stands at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai finally being reopened, Raina urged the fans to fill the venue in every CSK home game.

"We have all the seats available. Hopefully, we'll have more fans now so that there is it will be more energy on the field," the 33-year-old Raina, a former India batsman, said.

Raina, who last played for India in 2018, also expressed his excitement about the prospect of playing with CSK's latest acquisitions.

"This year we have a lot of new talent in our team. Piyush (Chawla) is there, then we have Hazelwood, Sam Curran, Sai Kishore from Tamil Nadu, he has been bowling really well for them. So, I think we have a lot of mixture of youngsters and seniors."

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