Kohli, Unadkat guide RCB to thrilling 4-run win over Delhi

May 11, 2013

RCB_to_thrillingNew Delhi, May 11: One just got the feeling that it was going to be Virat Kohli's night on Friday. There is a familiar swagger to the Royal Challengers Bangalore skipper's footsteps when he comes out to bat at the Feroz Shah Kotla. And why shouldn't it be like that? After all, Kohli has learnt most of his trade at this very ground.

Kohli was almost 'Gaylesque' as he smashed his way to 99 off 58 deliveries (4x6, 10x4) to help RCB post 183 for 4 after being invited to bat first by the new Delhi Daredevils skipper David Warner.

After taking 44 balls to reach his fifty, Kohli blasted his next 49 runs off just 14 balls courtesy four sixes and four boundaries and was unlucky to be run-out going for a second off the last ball of the innings which would have given him a well deserved century.

The Daredevils tried their best to make a match of it but fell short by a mere four runs. Thus, RCB's hopes of qualifying for the Playoffs got a big boost.

The home side made a fight of it through Unmukt Chand (41, 35b, 4x4, 1x6) and Ben Rohrer (32, 27b, 4x4) but it was the late assault by Irfan Pathan and Morne Morkel which sent shivers down RCB's spine

In the end, it was Jaydev Unadkat (5/25) - drafted into the side in place of RP Singh - who held his nerve in the final over (with 19 needed) after picking up the big scalps of Virender Sehwag (18) and Mahela Jayawardene (19) earlier.

As regular skipper Jayawardene will be forced to sit out Daredevils' next outing in Chennai, Warner was given the reigns to get used to the job but that had no effect on Delhi's fortunes. It was their 10th loss of the tournament.

Even luck was on Kohli's side. The very first ball he faced could have been his last as he edged Morne Morkel to the 'keeper only for the bowler to overstep the line marginally.

A change of willow was required the very next ball when is bat cracked but the third ball went screaming off the middle of the bat to the midwicket boundary.

If that wasn't all, the RCB skipper was offered another lifeline by Delhi teammate Sehwag, who spilled a relatively easy offering at short mid-wicket when Kohli was just 14 with Siddharth Kaul being the unfortunate bowler.

Delhiites had come out in droves in spite of the fact that Daredevils are already out of the race. That was to watch one man - Chris Gayle. The West Indian opener though lasted just six balls before dragging an Irfan Pathan delivery back on to the stumps.

The fireworks were provided by Kohli and the 'super-innovator' AB de Villiers (32 n.o., 17b, 2x4, 2x6). The shot of the innings was De Villiers paddle-sweeping his South African counterpart Morkel over fine-leg for six.

Kohli, taking AB's cue, exploded in the 18th over bowled by Umesh Yadav - smashing the speedster for two sixes and a four in an over which cost 24 runs. Yadav, in fact, went for a staggering 65 in his four overs.

Daredevils had some control over the match till the 15th over as RCB reached 99/3 but there was carnage after that. Kohli and AB were on fire and added 94 runs off just 40 balls. The last five overs of the innings yielded 84 runs and the Daredevils had their backs to the walls yet again.

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News Network
July 21,2020

Melbourne, Jul 21: Cricket Australia's chief executive Nick Hockley has said that the Indian players and staff will most likely be asked to face two weeks of quarantine before the four-match Test series.

This scenario will bring the Adelaide Oval and its newly constructed hotel firmly into view as the sort of biosecure bubble, ESPNCricinfo reported.

India and Australia are slated to face each other in a four-match Test series, which is to begin from December 4 at Brisbane.

"The two-week quarantine is pretty well-defined. What we are working on is making sure that even within that quarantine environment, the players have got the absolute best training facilities, so that their preparation for the matches is as optimal as it can possibly be," ESPNCricinfo quoted Hockey as saying.

"Certainly the fact that the Adelaide Oval has a hotel. It does provide a facility not dissimilar to Old Trafford or Ageas Bowl where the hotels are integrated into the venue," he added.

Hockley also said that an exacting standard of biosecurity and testing would be applied before the series against India as the coronavirus cases are spiking in the subcontinent.

"It's widely known and it's unlikely that international travel restrictions would have lifted by the time that India will be due to come into the country. Clearly there will be testing regimes. We will be able to test people before that they get on to the plane and it is the nature of the situation of making sure we have the quarantine arrangements in line with government and health authority protocols," Hockley said.

"The key thing for the players is that there's regular testing and that we appropriately quarantine them when they come in and all of those plans are currently in development," he added.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Monday announced the postponement of the T20 World Cup 2020 slated to be held in Australia from October 18-November 15 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Following the announcement, the BCCI is likely to go ahead with the Indian Premier League (IPL) in the October-November window. However, it is known where the T20 tournament will be played as cases continue to rise in India.
"I think the BCCI has made no secrets that they are considering what that means for the IPL. For us, it's about getting a bit of an understanding and certainty around what that means. Clearly, in a normal course, some of our best players are obviously top picks for those IPL teams," Hockley said.

"It's a bit premature to speculate on that. We need to understand what the plans are if any and once we understand that we will make decisions accordingly," he added.

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coastaldigest.com web desk
August 3,2020

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) will not end its partnership with Chinese companies. Vivo, the Chinese smartphone maker, is the main sponsor of the new IPL season as well. Apart from Vivo, PayTM and Dream 11 will also be at the helm of the 13th edition of the IPL. The IPL governing council meeting on Sunday decided to retain the old sponsors.

As soon as the IPL GC announced the decision of retaining the sponsors, a huge number of fans took to Twitter to slam the board for the same. #BoycottIPL started trending as the users urged others to boycott the tournament for the Chinese connection.

Earlier, the demand for exclusion of Chinese companies from the IPL was strong in the wake of the India-China border dispute. But the BCCI cannot abruptly end its collaboration with them. Because of the signed contract itself. And in this age of declining economy, it is difficult to find new sponsors quickly.

The current BCCI contract with Vivo is for five years. Vivo has invested Rs 2,199 crore to become the main sponsor of the IPL. The contract was signed in 2017. However, the BCCI’s move is paving the way for new discussions as calls are mounting across the country to boycott Chinese companies.

The BCCI announced other important decisions besides retaining sponsors. The IPL will be held from September 19 to November 10. The Indian government has given permission to the BCCI to hold the IPL in the UAE. With this, all obstacles in the way of organizing the tournament were removed.

The IPL matches will be played at 7.30 pm Indian time (6 pm UAE time). Most matches are about one match a day. There are a total of ten ‘double headers’ (two matches a day) in the tournament. Franchisees are allowed to appoint as many replacements as they want in the new season in view of the new health situation. At the same time, the maximum number of players a franchise can accommodate is 24. The BCCI is also planning to host a women’s IPL tournament.

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News Network
May 12,2020

New Delhi, May 12: Chennai Super Kings have rejected the idea of an IPL with only Indian players in the near future, differing with Rajasthan Royals, the franchise which is keen on the option given the circumstances caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The IPL, which is indefinitely postponed, can be held in the September-October window if the scheduled T20 World Cup in Australia doesn't take place.

"CSK is not keen to do an IPL with only Indian players. That way it would be playing another Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (domestic T20 competition). The franchise has not been in touch with the BCCI of late as the situation is worsening," a CSK source said on conditions of anonymity.

"Let's hope we can have the IPL later this year," he added.

CSK are three-time IPL champions, making them the second most successful team in the event's history after Mumbai Indians, who have won the tournament four times.

The BCCI is also very keen to stage the IPL and if it doesn't happen, the world's richest board would be in financial trouble like Cricket Australia.

"The board will take a revenue hit of Rs 4000 crore if it doesn't happen. The board will be in a big problem," BCCI treasurer Arun Dhumal said earlier this week.

With COVID-19 cases continuing to rise in India, the board and IPL team officials see little point in discussing when the event can be held.

"There has been no discussion with the BCCI ever since it postponed the IPL. There is no point in discussing also as things are unlikely to be okay anytime soon," the CSK source said.

"We expect the BCCI to take the best possible decision when the time comes," he added.

For the IPL to happen with foreign players, travel restrictions, which are currently in place, will have to be eased.

There is an option of conducting the IPL outside India and Sri Lanka Cricket has even offered to host the biggest T20 league in the world.

M S Dhoni was expected to make a much-awaited comeback with the IPL but that too has been postponed indefinitely.

Teammates like Suresh Raina and Piyush Chawla have already spoken about how eager Dhoni was to return.

According to them, Dhoni had the determination of a youngster before the league was suspended due to the lockdown imposed to contain the pandemic.

"Dhoni is his own man but I see him playing the IPL for at least two three years. When it comes to playing for India, only he knows best," the source added.

Last month, Rajasthan Royals executive chairman Ranjit Barthakur had said the franchise was open to a shortened IPL with only Indian players.

"Earlier we could not think of an Indians-only IPL but now there is enough quality to choose from. It is better to have an Indians-only IPL than not have it at all," he had told news agency.

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