Keeping '19 WC in mind, need to assign specific roles: Virat Kohli

Agencies
August 20, 2017

Dambulla, Aug 20: India captain Virat Kohli wants specific roles for certain players keeping a two-year time frame leading upto the 2019 World Cup, in mind.

"For us, it is about the time frame. It is not about which opposition we are playing. You can't pick and choose. I have never believed in that and we as a team don't believe in that," Kohli said when asked about whether he will use players depending on the opposition.

"Two years to go for the World Cup and now is the time to give players certain roles to get into the groove and understand what we need to do," said Kohli.

The skipper confirmed that KL Rahul is a certainty in that middle-order while Kedar Jadhav and Manish Pandey will be fighting for the remaining middle-order slot.

Rahul will be batting at No 4, chairman of selectors MSK Prasad had said but skipper doesn't want any set pattern.

"KL will definitely be playing in the middle-order. We are not going to be predictable or have a set pattern anymore in terms of what we are going to do in ODI or T20 cricket.

Anyone could go anywhere. That s what we are looking to do, said the skipper.

He indicated that Pandey may have to wait.

"Someone like Manish, he has done well and has grabbed his opportunities. He has got a hundred in Australia as well, and we know about his talent and what he brings onto the field as well. He is a superfit guy and has a bright future ahead of him. So he will certainly be backed.

"All three guys (including Kedar Jadhav) will have to compete for two spots in the middle-order. There are no guarantees I would say. As long as there is healthy competition, everyone will keep pushing each other and that is healthy for Indian cricket," the skipper opined.

Despite his series winning knocks in the West Indies, Ajinkya Rahane will have to wait in the wings as a third opener with Shikhar Dhawan having hit a purple patch.

"Shikhar Dhawan is an impact player. Shikhar and Rohit, we know what they have done (achieved) in the past together.

We understand their potential also Jinks (Rahane's nickname) understands that at this stage, he is the third opener in the team," said Kohli.

Kohli conceded that Rahane has been shuffled in the batting order, which has been a tad unfair.

"We certainly back him (Rahane) because he has been shifted around a bit in the batting order, which is not healthy for a guy, who likes to open in the shorter format.

See, he grabbed his opportunities in the West Indies and he was man-of-the-series and he continues to be in the set up.

"I think he (Rahane) is much more relaxed after that West Indies series. Yes he felt the pressure before but he has overcome that now. He is enjoying his cricket," he added.

With a whole lot of ODI matches lined up in coming months, Kohli stressed on the experiment part not only getting bogged down by the expectation of an India victory everytime that they step onto the field.

"For us, it's all about when you want to start giving roles to players and experimenting as a team. Sometimes we get so carried away by team India's expectations that you have to win every game and that we don't follow a pattern. So it's very important to understand that as a group," the skipper said.

For him, accepting challenges and critical comments along the way is a part of that process.

"Criticism will come along the way, but we should be ready to embrace challenges and be ready to take risks and to lose a few games when you need to try out something. We are very comfortable with trying things in very different ways.

"But we need to start making the effort because 8-10 months down the line, we will be solid in our roles and what we need to do as a team," he added.

"We definitely believe in our core group that is the only way you can reach finals of a big tournament and be consistent as an ODI side. But if you want to be world-beaters and win everywhere in the world, you need to do certain things that are out of the box as well. So we're all ready to embrace that," skipper explained.

With regards to the bowling combination for this first ODI, picking three spinners is not an option for the skipper one day ahead of the game.

"I don't see having three spinners on this track. I have played here in the past. It is probably a three-fast bowler kind of a pitch, where Hardik Pandya is good enough to give us 7-8 overs. So I see only two guys (spinners) taking the field."

However who those two guys would be depends.

"Now who are those two going to be really depends on what we feel like going in with as a team but having wrist spinners (chinaman Kuldeep Yadav and leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal) in the team is always an advantage.

"If you look at teams across the world, they have at least one wrist spinner, if not two in their side, giving breakthroughs in the middle overs, which is very important. So all three are very skilled (including Axar Patel) but only two can take the field which we haven't decided as of now. But we should be clear by tomorrow morning," Kohli said.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
coastaldigest.com web desk
August 3,2020

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) will not end its partnership with Chinese companies. Vivo, the Chinese smartphone maker, is the main sponsor of the new IPL season as well. Apart from Vivo, PayTM and Dream 11 will also be at the helm of the 13th edition of the IPL. The IPL governing council meeting on Sunday decided to retain the old sponsors.

As soon as the IPL GC announced the decision of retaining the sponsors, a huge number of fans took to Twitter to slam the board for the same. #BoycottIPL started trending as the users urged others to boycott the tournament for the Chinese connection.

Earlier, the demand for exclusion of Chinese companies from the IPL was strong in the wake of the India-China border dispute. But the BCCI cannot abruptly end its collaboration with them. Because of the signed contract itself. And in this age of declining economy, it is difficult to find new sponsors quickly.

The current BCCI contract with Vivo is for five years. Vivo has invested Rs 2,199 crore to become the main sponsor of the IPL. The contract was signed in 2017. However, the BCCI’s move is paving the way for new discussions as calls are mounting across the country to boycott Chinese companies.

The BCCI announced other important decisions besides retaining sponsors. The IPL will be held from September 19 to November 10. The Indian government has given permission to the BCCI to hold the IPL in the UAE. With this, all obstacles in the way of organizing the tournament were removed.

The IPL matches will be played at 7.30 pm Indian time (6 pm UAE time). Most matches are about one match a day. There are a total of ten ‘double headers’ (two matches a day) in the tournament. Franchisees are allowed to appoint as many replacements as they want in the new season in view of the new health situation. At the same time, the maximum number of players a franchise can accommodate is 24. The BCCI is also planning to host a women’s IPL tournament.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
July 20,2020

The International Cricket Council (ICC) today confirmed the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in Australia 2020 has been postponed due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic

At today’s meeting of the IBC Board (the commercial subsidiary of the ICC), windows for the next three ICC men’s events were also agreed to bring clarity to the calendar and give the sport the best possible opportunity over the next three years to recover from the disruption caused by COVID-19.

The windows for the Men’s events are:

1. ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 will be held October – November 2021 with the final on 14 November 2021

2. ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 will be held October – November 2022 with the final on 13 November 2022

3. ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 will be held in India October – November 2023 with the final on 26 November 2023

The IBC Board agreed to continue to monitor the rapidly changing situation and assess all the information available in order to make a considered decision on future hosts to ensure the sport is able to stage safe and successful global events in 2021 and 2022.

The IBC Board will also continue to evaluate the situation in relation to being able to stage the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2021 in New Zealand in February next year. In the meantime, planning for this event continues as scheduled.

The Board will also continue to evaluate the situation in relation to being able to stage the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2021.

ICC Chief Executive Manu Sawhney said: “We have undertaken a comprehensive and complex contingency planning exercise and through this process, our number one priority has been to protect the health and safety of everyone involved in the sport.

“The decision to postpone the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup was taken after careful consideration of all of the options available to us and gives us the best possible opportunity of delivering two safe and successful T20 World Cups for fans around the world.

“Our Members now have the clarity they need around event windows to enable them to reschedule lost bilateral and domestic cricket. Moving the Men’s Cricket World Cup to a later window is a critical element of this and gives us a better chance of maintaining the integrity of the qualification process. This additional time will be used to reschedule games that might be lost because of the pandemic ensuring qualification can be decided on the field of play.

“Throughout this process we have worked closely with our key stakeholders including governments, Members, broadcasters, partners and medical experts to enable us to reach a collective decision for the good of the game and our fans. I would like to thank everyone involved for their commitment to a safe return to cricket.”

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
May 12,2020

New Delhi, May 12: Chennai Super Kings have rejected the idea of an IPL with only Indian players in the near future, differing with Rajasthan Royals, the franchise which is keen on the option given the circumstances caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The IPL, which is indefinitely postponed, can be held in the September-October window if the scheduled T20 World Cup in Australia doesn't take place.

"CSK is not keen to do an IPL with only Indian players. That way it would be playing another Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (domestic T20 competition). The franchise has not been in touch with the BCCI of late as the situation is worsening," a CSK source said on conditions of anonymity.

"Let's hope we can have the IPL later this year," he added.

CSK are three-time IPL champions, making them the second most successful team in the event's history after Mumbai Indians, who have won the tournament four times.

The BCCI is also very keen to stage the IPL and if it doesn't happen, the world's richest board would be in financial trouble like Cricket Australia.

"The board will take a revenue hit of Rs 4000 crore if it doesn't happen. The board will be in a big problem," BCCI treasurer Arun Dhumal said earlier this week.

With COVID-19 cases continuing to rise in India, the board and IPL team officials see little point in discussing when the event can be held.

"There has been no discussion with the BCCI ever since it postponed the IPL. There is no point in discussing also as things are unlikely to be okay anytime soon," the CSK source said.

"We expect the BCCI to take the best possible decision when the time comes," he added.

For the IPL to happen with foreign players, travel restrictions, which are currently in place, will have to be eased.

There is an option of conducting the IPL outside India and Sri Lanka Cricket has even offered to host the biggest T20 league in the world.

M S Dhoni was expected to make a much-awaited comeback with the IPL but that too has been postponed indefinitely.

Teammates like Suresh Raina and Piyush Chawla have already spoken about how eager Dhoni was to return.

According to them, Dhoni had the determination of a youngster before the league was suspended due to the lockdown imposed to contain the pandemic.

"Dhoni is his own man but I see him playing the IPL for at least two three years. When it comes to playing for India, only he knows best," the source added.

Last month, Rajasthan Royals executive chairman Ranjit Barthakur had said the franchise was open to a shortened IPL with only Indian players.

"Earlier we could not think of an Indians-only IPL but now there is enough quality to choose from. It is better to have an Indians-only IPL than not have it at all," he had told news agency.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.