Chennai Super Kings beat Kolkata Knight Riders by 14 runs

April 29, 2013

Chennai_SuperChennai, Apr 29: Manvinder Bisla lost the battle to Mike Hussey in the end, and revenge was served at Chepauk on Sunday, but only just.

Bisla matched the Aussie veteran stroke for stroke, as Ko l k at a Knight Riders, chasing a mammoth 201 for victory, raised visions of the miracle of 2012. But with 22 to get off 10, Hussey hit the stumps direct from mid-off to get Bisla out and that was it. KKR had to get 18 off the last over but Eoin Morgan failed to get the elevation and the defending champions went down by 14 runs, leaving themselves in a deep hole. Super Kings, on the other hand, are unstoppable and look good for a top-two finish.

The KKR chase was all about Bisla, who probably played better than the 2012 final. He swung his bat with absolute freedom and kept finding the fence. Gautam Gambhir and Jacques Kallis helped him for a while, but when it was 100 to get off eight overs, CSK would have thought they would get there easy. Bisla fought on and got it down to 28 off two overs, but Hussey's hit finally pulled the curtains down.

Before Bisla took centrestage, it was Hussey who stamped his class yet again. The pitch was a batting beauty, the ball was coming on, and the KKR bowlers struggled to find the right length. Anything short was getting pulled, anything up was played over the top and the likes of L Balaji, Shami Ahmed and Jacques Kallis simply ran out of ideas. The openers, Hussey and Wriddhiman Saha, were frantic in their running between the wickets as well and there was not a single quiet over.

Hussey, quite clearly, was taking the lead, while Saha (39 off 23 balls) was ready to play second fiddle. But the Bengal boy, playing his first match of the tournament, showed that he is not at all a misfit in this CSK line-up that has such fantastic hitters.

Spin was introduced early on, but both Saha and Hussey gave the impression that they were reading Sunil Narine (1-35 ) pretty well. When the West Indian mystery spinner started leaking boundaries, Gautam Gambhir looked a little resigned.

The 100 came up in the 10th over and Saha knew that his job was done. He went for the big shot, holed out and allowed Raina to come in. Raina and Hussey looked even more dangerous and when the Aussie was getting tired, the Indian left-hander looked to take charge. A century would have been the icing on the cake for Hussey, but the team man that the Aussie is, he kept looking for the big shots even when he was within striking distance. He finally got out for 95, leaving Dhoni to provide the final touches.

Delhi Daredevils beat Pune Warriors India by 15 runs


Raipur, Apr 29: A change in 'home' venue brought about a change in Delhi Daredevils' luck. The team that had lost seven of their eight games before this game, edged out Pune Warriors in a close finish at the swanky Veer Narayana Singh stadium on Sunday as Raipur made its debut on the T20 league map.Delhi_Daredevils

After Pune Warriors had made a strong start in chase of a target of 165, Daredevils bowlers hit back in the final overs to help their team clinch the issue by 15 runs, their just the second win of the season. With this win, Daredevils have finally managed to rise in the points table. The bottom place is occupied by Pune now.

It was a battle between two bottom-placed teams, yet it generated tremendous enthusiasm among the spectators as Raipur witnessed its first big-ticket cricket event. To them it did not matter whether the 'home' team Delhi, which has adopted the city for a couple of games, won or lost. They had come to be entertained and be part of a new experience. And they were not disappointed as they saw Indian stars like Virender Sehwag and Yuvraj Singh perform for them in a keenly-contested affair.

After DD had notched up 164 for five, PWI, led by Yuvraj Singh and Luke Wright, were going well. But Umesh Yadav accounted for the duo in the 18th over to give DD the upper hand. Getting 35 runs in the last two overs proved beyond the reach of the remaining PWI batsmen.

Earlier, when DD were sent in to bat by Pune, they slipped to 96 for four. DD were, not for the first time this season, in deep trouble. However, David Warner and Kedar Jadhav rebuilt the innings to bring DD back into the game. Warner, pushed down the order, salvaged things with his powerful hitting. He struck the ball hard and handsome to attain his third fifty this season.

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News Network
June 3,2020

Colorado, Jun 3: Formula One boss Chase Carey has said that races will go ahead even if a driver tests positive for coronavirus.

His remarks come as organisers revealed a revised 2020 calendar and the schedule for the first eight races was put in the public domain.

"An individual having been found with a positive infection will not lead to a cancellation of a race. We encourage teams to have procedures in place so if an individual has to be put in quarantine, we have the ability to quarantine them at a hotel and to replace that individual," the official website of Formula One quoted Carey as saying.

"Some things we'd have to talk through and work through. The array of 'what ifs' are too wide to play out every one of them, but a team not being able to race would not cancel the race. I do not think I could sit here and lay out the consequences," he said.

Carey added the organisers will be having the necessary procedures in place so that the race does not get cancelled if a driver ends up testing positive for coronavirus.

"But we will have a procedure in place that finding infection will not lead to a cancellation. If a driver has an infection, teams have reserve drivers available," Carey said.

"We would not be going forward if we were not highly confident we have necessary procedures and expertise and capabilities to provide a safe environment and manage whatever issues arrive," he added.

The Formula One 2020 season will be beginning with the Austrian Grand Prix in July.

F1 currently expects the opening races to be closed events but hopes that fans will be able to attend again when it is safe to do so.

The season will kick off with the Austrian Grand Prix at the Red Bull Ring on July 5, followed a week later by a second race on the same track.

The Hungarian Grand Prix will follow a week after that, before a break. There will be then two back to back races at Silverstone, followed by the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona.

The Belgian Grand Prix will follow that, with the Italian Grand Prix at Monza a week later on September 6.

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News Network
May 25,2020

Karachi, May 25: Pakistan head coach and chief selector Misbah-ul-Haq believes Babar Azam is destined to be a world-class player and is very close to being in the same league as India skipper Virat Kohli and Australia's Steve Smith.

"I don't like comparisons but Babar is currently very close to being in the same class as Virat Kohli, Steve Smith or Joe Root," Misbah said in an interview to Youtube channel, Cricket Baaz.

"He believes in the work ethic that if you want to better Kohli you have to work harder than him at your skills, fitness and game awareness."

The 25-year-old, who was named captain of the Pakistan T20 team ahead of the Australia series in October last year, was recently handed the reins of ODI team as well.

"Making him the T20 captain was a tester. We wanted to see how he will respond to this challenge. All of us agree that he has done a very good job and his biggest plus is that being among the worlds top players he leads by example," Misbah said.

"If you are a performer like Babar then it becomes easier for you to motivate the rest of the team and get things done.

"Even when I was made captain in 2010 my performances were here and there and I was in and out. But captaincy changed my game and mindset and I became a more hard-working and motivated cricketer."

Misbah said Babar always challenges himself and would get better as a captain with experience.

"He is in a zone of his own. He just doesn't want to be in the team. He just doesn't want to play for money. He wants to be the top performer for Pakistan. He is always pitting himself against other top batsmen like Kohli or Smith," he said.

"He loves challenges in the nets and on the field. He has really matured as a player and in time he will get better as a captain with experience."

Babar was the leading run-scorer of the T20I series against Australia last year. He also scored 210 runs, which included a hundred, at 52.50 in the Test series against the same opponents.

In the two-Test home series against Sri Lanka, Babar ended the series with 262 runs with an average of exactly 262.

Misbah feels Babar had changed as a batsman when he got runs in the Tests in Australia.

"Before that he was getting runs in tests but not consistently. In Australia and in the following tests against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh he changed," he said.

Talking about his experience as a head coach, Misbah said: "Having captained, it has helped me a lot. As captain I had to manage everything and also having played under top coaches ... I have seen closely their work ethics and how they managed things.

"It is a learning process. Having remained captain it is a big advantage for coaching because you know the players and their mood swings. You know which player will respond in a given situation,which player is feeling pressure in a scenario.

Misbah said it is not easy juggling between different roles.

"Most important thing as a coach is mentally and psychologically how you handle a group of players," the former skipper said.

"Sometimes captain and coach is different as you have to take tough decisions. Being chief selector makes it it a bit difficult but I had experience of creating and managing teams, I have been building teams since 2003. Till now it is going well."

Misbah feels in Pakistan cricket there were different parameters for judging foreign and local coaches.

"I don't know why it is like this why do we have different eye for locals and foreigners. Maybe we feel they have something special. It looks like every decision by a foreign coach is right. In contrast we tend to be very critical of local coaches no matter what decision they take," he said.

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Agencies
January 23,2020

Aurangabad, Jan 23: An FIR has been registered against three people including former cricketer Mohammed Azharuddin for allegedly duping a travel agent, Mohammad Shadab, of more than Rs 20 lakh.

However, Mohammad Azharuddin has refuted allegations and said: "I strongly rubbish the false FIR filed against me in Aurangabad. I am consulting my legal team and would be taking action as necessary."

Azharuddin's personal assistant Mujeeb lives in Augurangabad and has good relations with the travel agency of Shadab.

The travel agent alleged that Mujeeb asked him to book some flight tickets but did not pay the amount.

The police have booked the three under Section 406, 420 and 34 of the Indian Penal Code.

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