Injured MS ruled out of Asia Cup; Kohli to lead

February 21, 2014

Kohli_to_lead_Asia_CupNew Delhi, Feb 21: Mahendra Singh Dhoni has been ruled out of the Asia Cup, which starts next week in Bangladesh, owing to a side strain that he picked up during the second Test in New Zealand. The Indian skipper, who landed in Mumbai along with the rest of the team on Wednesday night, will now undergo a 10-day rehabilitation to recover from a Grade I left side-strain that he suffered while diving to collect a ball in Wellington. Virat Kohli will take over the reins as India fight it out against sub-contintental rivals Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Afghanistan during the two-week tournament.

“He has informed the BCCI that he has a pain in his side and that he is still unsure whether he can travel to Bangladesh next week. Virat will be leading the side at the Asia Cup,” a BCCI official said.

Sanjay Patel, BCCI secretary, told The Indian Express that Dhoni’s injury wasn’t so serious that he would miss the upcoming World T20 in Bangladesh. “It isn’t serious. He picked up the injury during the third day of the second Test against New Zealand. The team physio submitted his report and then a second physio, the NCA physio, was consulted, and accordingly the decision was taken. He would be available for the World T20,” Patel said.

The enforced break though could very well be a blessing in disguise for the beleagured Indian skipper. His leadership has come under heavy fire of late following the disastrous tour to New Zealand, where Dhoni & Co failed to win a single international match—not to forget his abysmal record away from home over the last few years. At the same time, the 33-year-old has also been playing non-stop cricket for close to seven months. And the two weeks off prior to the World T20, also in Bangladesh, will be an opportunity for the experienced skipper to fight off his fatigue, both physical and mental.

This will also be a chance for Kohli to showcase his captaincy credentials. While many experts have called for the youngster to step in as captain even in Tests, this will be his first major ODI assignment after he had led India to a 5-0 win in a series in Zimbabwe last year.

Kohli surely won’t have it as easy as he did in Zimbabwe, considering the circumstances in which he will be taking over the leadership role. India were thrashed by both New Zealand and South Africa in the one-dayers before the Test matches on those respective tours and his side have more than just pride to play for in Bangladesh.

And what will make matters worse for this rookie captain is the fact that his side, minus Dhoni the finisher, will be taking on the Asian powerhouses in conditions rather suitable for their exploits.

Meanwhile, Dhoni will be replaced behind the stumps by Dinesh Karthik, who recently hit back-to-back centuries in the ongoing Corporate Trophy for India Cements.

‘Can’t afford to fail again’

Sourav Ganguly believes it is only experience that forces MS Dhoni to remain as captain for India’s tour of England and Australia, countries in which they got blanked in Test cricket the last time around, later this year.

“If he fails again, then it’s time to bring a new captain,” Ganguly said. “He has to be bold in taking decisions. He needs to take risks to win. Sometimes, his decisions are negative.”

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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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News Network
June 12,2020

New Delhi, Jun 12: The BCCI on Friday called off Indian cricket team's short tour of Zimbabwe in August due to the threat posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The announcement was on expected lines after Sri Lanka Cricket announced on Thursday that India's limited overs tour in June-July was postponed indefinitely.

"The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Friday announced that the Indian Cricket Team will not travel to Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe owing to the current threat of COVID-19," BCCI secetary Jay Shah said in a statement.

"Team India was originally scheduled to travel to the island nation from 24th June 2020 for three ODIs and as many T20Is and to Zimbabwe for a series comprising three ODIs starting 22nd August 2020," Shah added.

The Indian team is yet to resume training and the camp is unlikely to take place before July. The players will take around six weeks to be match-ready.

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News Network
May 4,2020

May 4: Yuzvendra Chahal is among the best leg-spinners in international cricket right now but he can be more effective with better use of the crease, says former Pakistan spinner Mushtaq Ahmed.

Ahmed picked Chahal, Australia's Adam Zampa and Pakistan's Shadab Khan among the top leg-spinners in white-ball cricket.

"Chahal as been impressive. He is definitely among the top leg-spinners of the world. And I feel he would be more effective if he uses the crease a lot more," Ahmed said.

Ahmed, who has coached all around the world and is currently a consultant for his native team, said India's ability to take wickets in the middle-overs in the limited overs format through Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav has been a game-changer for them.

Both the wrist-spinners were brought into India's limited overs set-up following the 2017 Champions Trophy. Though, of late, both Chahal and Kuldeep havn't been playing together.

"He (Chahal) can go wide of the crease at times. You got to be smart enough to understand pitches. If it is a flat pitch, you can bowl stump to stump," said Ahmed, one of the best leg-spinners Pakistan has produced.

"If the ball is gripping, you can go wide of the crease because you can trouble even the best of batsmen with that angle. That way your googly also doesn't turn as much as the batsman expects and you end up taking a wicket."

Chahal has taken 91 wickets in 52 ODIs at 25.83 and 55 wickets in 42 T20s at 24.34. He is not a huge turner of the ball but uses his variations very effectively.

Ahmed also feels the likes of Chahal and Kuldeep have benefitted immensely from former captain M S Dhoni's advice from behind the stumps.

"You have got to be one step ahead of the batsman. You should know your field position as per the batsman's strength. I always say attack with fielders not with the ball. If you understand that theory, you will always be successful," the 49-year-old, who played 52 Tests and 144 ODIs, said.

"India has become a force to reckon with in all three formats as it uses its bowlers really well. Dhoni was a master at getting the best out of his bowlers in limited overs cricket and now you have Virat Kohli."

He also said the art of leg-spin remains relevant more than ever.

"You need leg-spinners and mystery spinners in your team as they have the ability to take wickets at any stage of the game. I see a lot of them coming through in the next 10-15 years.

"Most batsmen now like playing express pace but with a good leg-spinner in the team, you are always in the game," added member of the 1992 World Cup-winning squad.

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