Kolkata Knight Riders beat RCB by 2 runs

April 25, 2014

Kolkata_Knight_RidersSharjah, Apr 25: A stunning catch by Australian Chris Lynn in the last over made the difference as Kolkata Knight Riders narrowly beat Royal Challengers Bangalore by two runs in an Indian Premier League (IPL) match at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium here Thursday.

Royal Challengers, looking for their third win on the trot, put Knight Riders into bat and they scored 150 for seven in 20 overs with Chris Lynn (45) and Jacques Kallis (43) doing the bulk of the scoring.

Royal Challengers were in control throughout the run chase after a flying start provided by Yogesh Takawale (40 off 28 balls). Virat Kohli (31) and Yuvraj Singh (31) then took over and it seemed they would canter to victory.

Sunil Narine (1/17) removed Kohli in the 16th over but needing 29 runs off 25 balls, Royal Challengers were still the favourites.

Even when Yuvraj was dismissed, they needed just 10 off eight balls.

However, it all turned sour for Royal Challengers in the final over. Requiring six off three balls, A.B. de Villiers tried to hoick Vinay Kumar over the deep mid-wicket boundary but after initially slipping, Lynn regained balance and pulled off a match winning catch.

Albie Morkel (6 not out) still had a chance to give his team the victory but failed to bring out the big shots.

Earlier, captain Gautam Gambhir recorded his third consecutive duck as Knight Riders slumped to 10 for two in the second over.

A circumspect Kallis and a marauding Lynn combined brilliantly to take their team to 90 for two in 11.2 overs.

The Knight Riders were once again pegged back, losing three wickets for just 17 runs. Yusuf Pathan's (0) dismal run continued and the former Royals smasher looked a shadow of his earlier self.

Some lusty blows from Robin Uthappa (22) and Suryakumar Yadav (24 not out) saw Knight Riders reach a fighting total of 150 runs.

Varun Aaron was the pick of RCB bowlers picking up three wickets for just 16 runs.

Brief Scores:

Kolkata Knight Riders: 150 for seven in 20 overs (Chris Lynn 45, Jacques Kallis 43; Varun Aaron 3-16, Mitchell Starc 2-33)

Royal Challengers Bangalore: 148 for five in 20 overs (Yogesh Takawale 40, Virat Kohli 31; Vinay Kumar 2-26, Sunil Narine 1-17)

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Agencies
January 25,2020

Headingley, Jan 25: England have become the first team in the world to score 500,000 runs in Test cricket. They achieved the feat during the ongoing fourth and final Test against South Africa being played at The Wanderers.

On Friday - the opening day of the Test match -- England captain Joe Root's single through the covers took the Three Lions to a landmark 500,000 run-mark in the longest format of the game. They achieved the feat in their 1022nd Test match.

Australia comes second in the list, with 432,706 runs in 830 Tests. India, meanwhile, are third, with 273,518 runs in 540 Tests, followed by West Indies (270,441 runs in 545 Tests).

In the third Test played at St George's Park in Port Elizabeth, England had become the first team to play 500 Test matches on foreign soil. Australia are the second team to play the most away Test with 404 matches they have played so far.

India have played 268 Tests on foreign soil in which they have won 51, lost 113 and 104 have ended in a draw.

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Agencies
August 2,2020

New Delhi, Aug 2: Batting great Rahul Dravid has attributed Chennai Super Kings' consistent run in the IPL to skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni's instincts, game-smarts and the incredible amount of work that goes behind the scenes.

N Srinivasan, the former BCCI president and head of India Cements, which owns the CSK franchise, agreed that Dhoni is a man of instinct who doesn't believe in attending team meetings and going over data.

Both were speaking at a webinar organised by the Great Lakes Institute of Management.

"If you look at the success CSK has had, they've got really good access to data and they've got really good access to people behind the scenes and they've run cricket teams at the junior level," Dravid said at the webinar according to ESPNcricinfo.

The former India captain added, "They understand talent and they've obviously got a good scouting process in place. But, what they also have is a captain who really understands instincts.

"So, I mean, look, I know Dhoni quite well and I hope he hasn't changed, but I know Dhoni is probably not one to look at reams of data and statistics."

The Super Kings have won the lucrative tournament three times -- one less than Mumbai Indians -- and reached the knockouts in each of the 10 seasons they have been a part of.

Srinivasan also spoke about how Dhoni's instinct and judgement contributed to his team's success at a time when a lot of emphases is placed on data.

"We're awash with data just now. To give you an example, there are bowling coaches and in a T20 game, they play videos of every batsman whom they're going to come against and they see how he got out, what's his strength, what's his weakness etc.

"So, MS Dhoni doesn't attend this, he's a pure instinct man. The bowling coach, (head coach Stephen) Fleming will be there and everybody will be there, everyone is giving opinions, (but) he'll get up and go.

"In the context of instinct, he feels that okay he can assess a batsman or player on the field, that's his judgement. On the other hand, there is so much of data that is available to help a person also analyse. It's a very difficult line to draw (between data and instinct)."

Srinivasan also recalled how Dhoni once refused to take "one outstanding player" suggested by the franchise boss as that could have broken the team's cohesion.

"There was one outstanding player that we suggested to MS, he said: 'no sir, he will spoil the team'. The cohesion within the team is important and see in America, franchise-based sport has been there for such a long time," he said.

"In India, we're just starting and we're new to it. But we at India Cements have had a lot of experience running teams at junior levels."

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News Network
May 6,2020

New Delhi, May 6: He has flattered to deceive on umpteen occasions but highly-rated wicketkeeper-batsman Sanju Samson says he has learnt to accept his failures in pursuit of the calm demeanour that former India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni possesses.

The 25-year-old from Kerala has always been talked about by the likes of Rahul Dravid and Gautam Gambhir but it hasn't translated into international success with only four T20 Internationals in his kitty in the last five years.

"I have learnt to understand and focus more on my strengths and (be more) accepting (of) the failures. I try to contribute to the team's cause and try to take the team over the line. I am learning to focus and control my emotions while batting like MS Dhoni," Samson said during a podcast organised by Rajasthan Royals.

He recently made a comeback in India's T20 side and it was a worthy experience for him.

"It was great to be a part of the Indian team again. To be a part of one of the best teams in the world, surrounded by players like Virat bhai and Rohit bhai, it was a fantastic experience," Samson said.

In one of the games in New Zealand, Samson was sent to bat in the Super Over, something which made him feel wanted in the Indian set-up.

"It was a great feeling to be trusted by the players such as Virat bhai and Rohit bhai to go out there and bat in the crucial moments. It's a great feeling when the team and the players consider you to be a match winner."

On a lighter note, Samson revealed that he refers to Steve Smith as "chachu" (uncle) after Brad Hodge once started calling him by that name.

"I share a very good relationship with 'Chachu' Steve Smith. He is one of the best brains in world cricket and we all enjoy a lot playing under him."

Asked what's the back story of the nickname, Samson said: "It started with Brad Hodge, he used to call Smith 'Chachu', then when Hodgy left, I started calling Smith 'Chachu'. In return Smith also started calling me 'Chachu'. We both really enjoy and continue calling each other that."

While Dhoni is his idol, he also loves watching Jos Buttler in Royals and makes notes on how the star Englishman prepares for games.

"I observe Jos especially given he too is a wicketkeeper-batsman. He's always working on his skills and his game and never sits idle.

"He's either working on his keeping, batting in the nets or running around the park. I love to observe and know how he thinks and prepares as a keeper before a game.

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