Zaheer is Sachin of our bowling unit: Dhoni

September 22, 2012

Zahir_DhoniColombo, September 22: Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni on Saturday defended beleaguered speedster Zaheer Khan, calling him the "Sachin Tendulkar of Indian bowling" but at the same time indicated a few changes in the team line-up for the last World T20 group match against England on Sunday.

"It's easier to go after a bowler when is not doing well. For me, Zaheer is the Sachin Tendulkar of the Indian bowling attack. He has been the leader of the bowling unit for a number of years now," Dhoni said during the pre-match media interaction.

"He might not have been so effective in the last few matches but in those situations others need to step up. I believe it's a matter of time for him to get back to form," he added.

However, Dhoni looked a little circumspect when asked whether he would remain a 'Zaheer backer' even if the bowler's bad patch is a prolonged one.

"It's a difficult question to answer. Obviously, it depends on the format. For me, he is an experienced cricketer but then you have to look at the format. In this format you don't get too many matches."

With a place in the Super Eights already confirmed, Dhoni indicated that there were plans to make a few changes in the playing XI for their game against England.

"We are looking to make a few changes in the side. Obviously, we only name the playing XI on the day of the match. We ideally want most of our 15 members to get some game time in the middle before we get on with the Super Eights," he remarked.

The skipper has looked in good touch and it was his 8-ball 19 that helped India reach close to 160 but he is still not keen on dropping Yuvraj Singh down the order.

"In the Indian team, we have two types of players. We have to look at which player suits what slot. Suresh Raina is one such player who can hit a six off the very first ball while the likes of Virat and Yuvraj need to have a look at the bowling and play their shots once they get set," Dhoni said.

Virender Sehwag was hit in the knuckles during yesterday's net session but Dhoni insisted that "everyone including Viru is fit."

The inevitable question of Kevin Pietersen's absence cropped up and Dhoni did admit that it is difficult to replace a player of his calibre.

"It is very difficult to replace a player like Pietersen especially in this format. Also the fact that he can make a difference having done well across all the formats makes him a special player."

An English scribe asked that what exactly was their plan to counter 'KP', and Dhoni was quick to reply, "We knew that he is not in the squad so we didn't plan anything."

However, the Indian captain was full of praise for the England team for the manner they beat Afghanistan on Friday.

"Yes, it was a very good performance by the England team. But rather than looking at their positives, we need to worry about our own things and look at what all we can do to win," Dhoni stated.

The cliched question about playing four bowlers was asked and Dhoni was up and ready to defend the logic of not having a fifth specialist bowler.

"If we look at the Pakistan game, we had 12 players including five bowlers. Also in that match, it was our No 7 batsman ( Rohit Sharma) who won the match for us."



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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.”

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News Network
April 12,2020

Mumbai, Apr 12: Always eager to share his vast knowledge and experience, cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar has interacted with 12,000 doctors on sports injuries.

In his over two decade long illustrious career, Tendulkar suffered many health issues, the most prominent being the tennis elbow injury.

The veteran of 200 Tests and 463 ODIs, got to know through one Dr Sudhir Warrier, an orthopaedic surgeon, that several young doctors across the country were utilising the lockdown time to effectively gain knowledge on sports injuries through live webinars.

A session on sports injuries was held on Saturday and Tendulkar, knowing that his experiences will help these doctors, volunteered to be a part of it.

Tendulkar, accordingly, interacted with around 12,000 doctors, who attended the session.

It is reliably leanrt that the 46-year-old legend said he was grateful to the medical fraternity for their service.

During the session, the young orthopaedic doctors got to know how the requirements and treatment outcomes of athletes are different from regular patients, sources said.

Dr Warrier moderated the session with Dr Nitin Patel, physiotherapist, who has worked with Indian cricket team and IPL franchise Mumbai Indians.

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News Network
June 17,2020

New Delhi, Jun 17: Indian skipper Virat Kohli on Wednesday paid tributes to Indian Army soldiers, who were killed during the face-off with the Chinese troops in Ladakh's Galwan Valley.

Extending condolences to the kin of bravehearts, Kohli said, "No one is more selfless and brave than a soldier."

"Salute and deepest respect to the soldiers who sacrificed their lives to protect our country in the Galwan Valley. NO one is more selfless and brave than a soldier. Sincere condolences to the families. I hope they find peace through our prayers at this difficult time," he tweeted.

The violent face-off happened on late evening and night of June 15 in Ladakh's Galwan Valley as a result of an attempt by the Chinese troops to "unilaterally change" the status quo during de-escalation in Eastern Ladakh and the situation could have been avoided if the agreement at the higher level been scrupulously followed by the Chinese side, India said on Tuesday.

The Army confirmed that 20 soldiers were killed in the face-off, including 17 who were critically injured at the stand-off location and exposed to sub-zero temperatures in the high altitude terrain.

Indian and Chinese troops have disengaged at the Galwan area in Ladakh where they had earlier clashed on the night of June 15 and 16, Indian Army said.

Former cricketer Irfan Pathan tweeted, "We will always be indebted to our jawans of #IndianArmy who lost their lives in #GalwanValley #JaiHind."

Expressing similar sentiments, Indian batsman Shikhar Dhawan wrote, "A sacrifice that will never be forgotten by the nation. Heartfelt condolences to the family and loved ones of the Indian Army officer and the two soldiers. Saluting your bravery, Jai Hind! #GalwanValley."

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