Gautam Gambhir's absence is good for Australia: Matthew Hayden

February 17, 2013

Melbourne, Feb 17: Gautam Gambhir's exclusion from India's squad for the first two Tests against Australia is a "positive" development for the tourists, feels former cricketer Matthew Hayden.gautam-gambhir-5

Hayden, who had a good tour of India in 2001, said Gambhir formed a "potent" opening combination with Virender Sehwag and the left-hander's exclusion will be a welcome relief for the Australian bowlers.

"The fact that India has dropped Gautam Gambhir is a positive step for Australia," Hayden said about the diminutive left-hander, who struck a century for India A against Australia in a warm-up game on Saturday.

"He always rallied when playing Australia and that combination of Virender Sehwag and Gambhir was a very potent one ... Gambhir relishes the niggle and returning fire. It was a big surprise they left him out," he was quoted as saying.

Hayden, who turned out to be a nightmare for the Indian spinners during the 2001 series, came up with a list of dos and don'ts for the touring Australian contingent in order to achieve success on Indian soil.

He gave advise to the Australian batsmen on how to tackle the turning ball on Indian pitches.

"Going to India, there is always a big mention of their spinners. I don't think we should buy into that too much. It's a spinning ball, it's not like it is coming down on you at 165km/h," said Hayden, who made an incredible 549 runs at an average of 110 during the 2001 tour of India.

"There is way too much made of various strategies; you can't be thinking you have to go there and change your game. You have to have invested the time to come up with a few scoring options. You just can't sit there and wait for a spinner to dominate you," Hayden said.

"The successful method is not the same for everyone. My strategy was to come forward - more of a height thing. Being so tall, my obvious advantage was my reach. It allowed me to smother spin ... I could play straight down the ground and the sweep shot as well," he added.

Hayden feels India's choice of venue for the first Test of the four-match series was strategic.

"Australia will be playing on pitches with two different soil types. They will start on the red soil in Chennai then black soil in the other three Tests. Red soil pitches provide real spinning conditions, so the choice of venue for the first Test is probably strategic.

"India will try to get off to a flyer, then they will go to more benign conditions where they will try to drown us in some ways," he said.

Appreciating the diverse culture of India, the burly opener also asked his countrymen to explore the nation during the tour.

"Some of the great experiences I have had on tours were with friends outside the Australian touring party. You have to embrace the Indian experience," Hayden said.

"I have a great affiliation with their food and a great appreciation for the Indian religions and festivals. The best thing I could say to the Australian cricketers is just open your eyes to new things," he said.

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News Network
February 13,2020

Feb 13: Veteran India batsman Suresh Raina feels Mahendra Singh Dhoni is the best captain India ever had.

Raina and Dhoni play for the same IPL franchise -- the Chennai Super Kings --, which is also led by the latter.

"I think we have the best captain who has changed the Indian team like anything. Now we have that same aura in our dressing room," Raina said on 'The Super Kings show' on Star Sports Tamil.

The 38-year-old Dhoni has retired from Test cricket but his future in the limited overs formats is a subject of intense speculation.

The two-time World Cup-winning former captain took a break from cricket after India's exit from the 2019 World Cup in England. He is set to be back in action at the IPL, where he will captain the CSK, starting March 23.

With three restricted stands at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai finally being reopened, Raina urged the fans to fill the venue in every CSK home game.

"We have all the seats available. Hopefully, we'll have more fans now so that there is it will be more energy on the field," the 33-year-old Raina, a former India batsman, said.

Raina, who last played for India in 2018, also expressed his excitement about the prospect of playing with CSK's latest acquisitions.

"This year we have a lot of new talent in our team. Piyush (Chawla) is there, then we have Hazelwood, Sam Curran, Sai Kishore from Tamil Nadu, he has been bowling really well for them. So, I think we have a lot of mixture of youngsters and seniors."

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Agencies
April 12,2020

London, Apr 12: Former Formula 1 legendary driver Stirling Moss died at the age of 90 on Sunday.

"All at F1 send our heartfelt condolences to Lady Susie and Sir Stirling's family and friends," Formula 1 said in a statement.

Often referred to as the greatest driver never to win the world championship, Moss contested 66 Grands Prix from 1951 to 1961, driving for the likes of Vanwall, Maserati and Mercedes, where he famously formed a contented and ruthlessly effective partnership with lead driver Juan Manuel Fangio.

In his 10-year-long stint at the tracks, Moss took 16 wins, some of which rank among the truly iconic drives in the sport's history - his 1961 victories in Monaco and Germany in particular often held up as all-time classics.

Moss won the 1955 Mille Miglia on public roads for Mercedes at an average speed of close to 100mph, while he also competed in rallies and land-speed attempts.

Following an enforced retirement from racing (barring a brief comeback in saloon cars in the 1980s) after a major crash at Goodwood in 1962, Moss maintained a presence in Formula 1 as both a sports correspondent and an interested observer, before retiring from public life in January of 2018.

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Agencies
August 9,2020

Manchester, Aug 9: Chris Woakes and Jos Buttler played knocks of 84 and 75 respectively as England gained an improbable three-wicket win over Pakistan in the first Test of the three-match series here at the Emirates Old Trafford.

England chased down a total of 277 on the fourth day of the first Test.

Chasing 277, England openers Rory Burns and Dom Sibley put on 22 runs for the first wicket, but Mohammad Abbas finally provided the breakthrough to Pakistan as he had Burns (10) adjudged leg-before wicket in the 12th over.

Skipper Joe Root came to the crease next, and he along with Sibley ensured that the side does not lose any more wickets before the lunch break, and England went into the lunch break at 55/1.

Sibley and Root eventually put up a 64-run stand, but their partnership was finally brought to an end by Yasir Shah as he dismissed Sibley (36) in the 36th over. Soon after, skipper Root (42) was also sent back to the pavilion by Naseem Shah, reducing England to 96/3 in the 39th over.

All eyes were on all-rounder Ben Stokes (9), but Pakistan's Yasir Shah sent him back to the pavilion in the 42nd over, and England was left in a spot of bother. Shaheen Shah Afridi, then also got among the wicket-taking charts as he scalped the wicket of Ollie Pope (7), reducing England to 117/5 in the 45th over.

Chris Woakes and Jos Buttler then got together at the crease, and the duo played in an aggressive manner to retrieve the innings for England. The hosts went into the tea break at 167/5, still, 110 runs away from the target with five wickets in hand.

Buttler and Woakes continued their march to frustrate the Pakistan bowling attack and the duo brought the target within the grasp of England. Both batsmen put up a stand of 139 runs, however, with just 21 runs away from the target, England lost the key wicket of Buttler (75) as Yasir Shah had him trapped in front of the wicket.

With England just needing four more runs for the win, Yasir Shah dismissed Stuart Broad (4), but in the end, Woakes and Dom Bess ensured England's win by three wickets.

For Pakistan, Yasir Shah was the pick of the bowlers as he scalped four wickets.

Earlier, resuming day four at 137/8, Yasir Shah (33) along with Mohammad Abbas (3*) and Naseem Shah (4) added 32 more runs to the overnight score to give England a target of 277 to win the first Test.

Stuart Broad was the pick of England bowlers as he scalped three wickets.

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