'Dhoni miffed with Gambhir's attitude and on-field ethics'

December 12, 2012

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New Delhi, December 12: Under fire after back-to-back defeats in the home series against England, Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni is unhappy with Gautam Gambhir's "attitude and on-field ethics" and has lodged a complaint to the BCCI against the left-hander, a media report claimed today.

Dhoni feels that Gambhir puts his interest above the team and has become too self-centred. The Indian captain has gone to the extent of lodging a complaint to the BCCI tagging the opener's approach as "selfish" and "hurtful to the team", 'cricketnext' website reported, quoting an Indian player who pleaded anonymity.

"Of late Gambhir has gone into a shell and focusing on just to save his place in the team. His prolonged poor form has resulted in low self-esteem and he's cut off from other issues pertaining to the team," the player was quoted as saying.

"But what irked Dhoni was Gambhir playing for himself and not for the team. It was evident in the way Gambhir batted in the second innings of the Mumbai Test that he was more interested in carrying his bat by remaining not out, rather than shielding the tailenders and scoring quick runs.

"...Every run was crucial but Gambhir chose to be a mute spectator. The whole world saw that and everyone was taken aback. The effort to contribute to the team wasn't there. Look how well R Ashwin batted with maturity during his unbeaten 91 in the Kolkata Test and he isn't a specialist batsman. He shepherded the tailenders superbly and scored vital runs. If Ashwin can do, why couldn't Gambhir?" the player said.

While assuaging thoughts of any bad blood between Dhoni and Gambhir, the report cited the run-outs of Virender Sehwag in the first innings of the Kolkata Test and Cheteshwar Pujara in the second as moments which precipitated India's downfall and left Dhoni miffed with Gambhir's current approach. @Body:

"On both occasions, Gambhir was at fault. While there were clearly three runs in Sehwag's case which Gambhir declined, the call for a run to Pujara was ill-judged. He was having a tough time against Steven Finn and wanted to get off the strike. His desperation cost Pujara his wicket. Dhoni doesn't have doubts about his integrity or commitment," the player said.

Gambhir's attitude has not gone down well with Dhoni, who is determined to win the Nagpur Test and level the series, and he conveyed his thoughts to the BCCI officials in no uncertain terms, the report claimed.

The website report said one of the BCCI officials will speak to Gambhir before the match and the matter will be sorted out. "It is important that all the members take the field in the last Test with the motto of giving their best shot," he concluded.

A source close to Gambhir asserted that though the opener hasn't performed to the potential in this series, Dhoni was playing gimmicks to undermine Gambhir.

"Dhoni's captaincy is under fire. He's being censured by one and all. His place in the Test team is questioned; his defensive and unimaginative mindset as a captain is unmasked, so he's trying to pass the buck and blame others - whether his batsmen, spinners, Sehwag and now Gambhir - to save his face," the website said, quoting the source.

"He (Dhoni) sees Gambhir as a potential threat to his captaincy and wants to undermine him. Mohinder Amarnath has tipped Gambhir to take over the captaincy from Dhoni and proclaimed that Dhoni uses his clout in the BCCI to push his agenda. He thinks that he can dictate terms in every matter...", the report added.


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News Network
May 18,2020

Karachi, May 18: Former Pakistan captain Younis Khan believes it is at least five years too early to compare Virat Kohli and Babar Azam as the Indian skipper has proven himself in "every kind of situation" and the latter has not.

"Virat Kohli is far more experienced than Babar. He has at least five years more experience of top cricket and he is at the peak of his career," said Younis, Pakistan's leading run-getter in Tests.

"Kohli has far more exposure than Babar and he has been in every kind of situation and proven himself. No one gets 70 international centuries like that and this are proof of his class and abilities. He has scored runs in every situation and all opposition."

Younis said said Babar still has a long way to go.

"Babar has been in top cricket for just around five years. He has got a very impressive batting average across all three formats and he is getting better by the day.

"You see him batting and you can see he has got the same qualities that Kohli had at the start of his career."

Besides amassing 70 international hundreds, 31-year-old Kohli averages more than 50 in all three formats. The India skipper has scored more than 20,000 runs while 25-year-old Babar has 6680 runs across formats though the Pakistan limited overs skipper has played significantly lesser number of games.

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News Network
June 29,2020

Jun 29: The West Indies cricketers will sport a 'Black Lives Matter' logo on the collars of their shirts during the upcoming three-Test series against England to protest against racism in sports.

Skipper Jason Holder, who has voiced his support to the cause that has once again come to the forefront after the killing of American George Floyd, said in a statement on Sunday: "We believe we have a duty to show solidarity and also to help raise awareness."

The ICC-approved logo, designed by Alisha Hosannah, will be the one which featured in the shirts of all 20 Premier League football clubs since the sport's resumption earlier this month.

"This is a pivotal moment in history for sports, for the game of cricket and for the West Indies cricket team," Holder was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.

"We have come to England to retain the Wisden Trophy but we are very conscious of happenings around the world and the fight for justice and equality. "As a group of young men, we know of the rich and diverse history of West Indies cricket and we know we are guardians of the great game for a generation to come."

Holder, who wants racism to be treated at par with doping and corruption, said they arrived at the decision to wear the logo after much thought.

"We did not take our decision lightly. We know what it is for people to make judgments because of the colour of our skin, so we know what it feels like, this goes beyond the boundary. There must be equality and there must be unity. Until we get that as people, we cannot stop," he said.

"We have to find some way to have equal rights and people must not be viewed differently because of the colour of their skin or ethnic background."

The West Indies players are likely to wear the shirts for the first time in this week's four-day warm-up match at Emirates Old Trafford, starting on Monday.

The opening Test of the series, which will mark the resumption of international cricket after the coronavirus-forced hiatus, will get underway at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton on July 8.

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News Network
May 8,2020

New Delhi, May 8: India skipper Virat Kohli believes cricket in empty stadiums is a real possibility in post COVID-19 world and though it is unlikely to have a bearing on the intensity of players, he feels the magic would certainly go missing.

Cricket Boards across the globe are exploring the option of resuming the sport in empty stadiums. There is speculation that fans could be kept away from stadiums in a bid to salvage the T20 World Cup in Australia, which is currently under threat due to the global health crisis.

"It's quite a possible situation, it might happen, I honestly don't know how everyone is going to take that because we all are used to playing in front of so many passionate fans," Kohli said in Star Sports' show 'Cricket Connected'.

"I know it will be played at a very good intensity but that feeling of the crowd connecting with the players and the tension of the game where everyone goes through it in the stadium, those emotions are very difficult to recreate," he added.

Kohli said the many moments which are created because of the passion brought in by fans, would be missing.

"Things will still go on, but I doubt that one will feel that magic happening inside because of the atmosphere that was created.

"We will play sports how it is supposed to be played, but those magical moments will be difficult to come by," he said.

Cricketers such as Ben Stokes, Jason Roy, Jos Buttler and Pat Cummins have backed the idea of playing behind closed doors.

However, legendary Australian Allan Border has said it would defy belief to host a World Cup without spectators.

Another Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell and some other cricketers have also expressed similar sentiments.

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