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India thrash Sri Lanka to reach Champions Trophy final

June 21, 2013

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Cardiff, Jun 21: Inspired by their bowlers, India made short work of Sri Lanka in the second ICC Champions Trophy semi-final in overcast Cardiff by eight wickets with 15 overs to spare. Like the other semi-final on Wednesday at The Oval, the match turned out to be an anticlimax as the weight of expectation got to Sri Lanka. Their batting, barring skipper Angelo Mathews, was lacklustre and a total of 181 for 8 was never going to challenge India, for whom Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli scored fifties.

The match was won in the first half, when in conditions heavily weighted in favour of seam bowling, India's bowlers restricted Sri Lanka to a sub-par total. No doubt having the weather forecast and conditions on his mind, and perhaps influenced by the fact that teams batting first have won just two of 11 completed ODIs at Sophia Gardens, MS Dhoni opted to field after a delayed start. It proved an excellent toss to win, and with his trio of pace bowlers finding appreciable movement off a tricky surface and Suresh Raina holding three catches at second slip, India took charge early on.

In three victories during the league stage, Bhuvneshwar Kumar had struck in his opening spell and so the start he provided in seam-friendly conditions was always going to be important. True to form, he produced a breakthrough early by having Kusal Perera (4) caught by Raina in the third over. Finding appreciable swing off the surface, Bhuvneshwar operated with a full length and beat the bat several times as well as producing a some edges.

Tillakaratne Dilshan hobbling off the field with a thigh strain midway through the fifth over left Sri Lanka struggling, and with Umesh Yadav supporting Bhuvneshwar well in good first spell (5-2-16-0) India kept the scoring on a leash. There were 75 dot balls bowled in the first 15 overs - nine of which beat the bat - at which time Sri Lanka were 36 for 1.

The early pressure from Bhuvneshwar, who reeled off nine overs for 18 at the start, was a contributory factor to Sri Lanka's problems but the innings really turned after the first drinks break. Ishant Sharma produced edges off the bats of Lahiru Thirimanne (7) and Kumar Sangakkara (17) in successive overs, both left-handers poking to Raina at second slip. The low take off Thirimanne was especially sharp.

Sri Lanka survived lbw appeals against MS Dhoni, who gave the gloves to Dinesh Karthik and took the ball for the 24th over, and Ravindra Jadeja by virtue of using the reviews, but failed to accelerate.

Mahela Jayawardene got to 38 before he missed a swipe at Jadeja and was bowled, and India tightened their grasp in the batting Powerplay by conceding just 12 runs - two maidens - in five overs. Mathews scored Sri Lanka's first boundary for an hour by heaving Yadav for four and reached his half-century in 85 balls, but one run later was out slogging at R Ashwin in the 46th over. Two quick wickets to Ashwin ensured there was no late surge and Sri Lanka ended up with a disappointing total.

Defending 181, Sri Lanka's only chance was to bowl India out but Dhawan and Rohit Sharma put on 77 in 17 overs to lay the platform for victory. Nuwan Kulasekara found a bit of movement but India's openers played out the first 15 overs after which the surface eased out.

Dhawan, dropped on 18 by Mathews at first slip off Kulasekara, continued his rich vein of form in his second coming as an ODI batsman while Rohit played a few pleasing shots in his 33. Again he failed to convert a start, but his exit to Mathews allowed Kohli to get his highest score this tournament.

Dhawan was the slowest he has been in the tournament, but reached another fifty. He was given another life on 62, this time at point off Kulasekara, and carried on to 68 before Sangakkara effected a smart stumping.

Kohli was content to play second fiddle yet still found time to drive Kulasekara inside-out for four and swat Jeewan Mendis to the midwicket boundary. Once Dhawan departed, he hurried to fifty in 58 balls and finished off the game with 58* off 64 balls.

India will now play England in the final on Sunday.

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Agencies
August 5,2020

New Delhi, Aug 5: "Want to know what makes him tick," said Australian pacer Kane Richardson will talking about playing alongside Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) skipper Virat Kohli in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020.

The IPL 2020 will be played in the UAE from September 19-November 10 and the tournament will run for 53 days.

In the players' auction which was conducted in December 2019, RCB managed to bag key players like Richardson, Chris Morris, Aaron Finch, Dale Steyn, Joshua Philippe, and Isuru Udana.

In an interaction with news agency, Richardson talked about playing alongside Kohli and the learning curve which is in store for him by being in the same squad as Proteas great Dale Steyn.
"Huge. These guys (Virat, AB de Villiers) are the absolute legends of the game. Anything I can learn from them will be a bonus, that's for sure.

I am really looking forward to playing with Virat, there are few more competitive players in the world. I am really looking forward to seeing what makes him tick," Richardson said.

The 29-year-old pacer also said that he would want to learn from Steyn as to how to be consistent in all formats of the game over a long period of time.

"There are loads I can learn from Dale. He has been amongst the best at the highest level for so long. His control and ability to swing the ball without losing his pace is really impressive. 

I look forward to getting in his ear about how he performs so consistently over a long period, in all forms," said Richardson who has 39 ODI wickets to his credit.

Richardson has so far played 14 games in his IPL career so far and has picked up 18 wickets. The bowler played for Pune Warriors India in 2013, Rajasthan Royals in 2014, and RCB in 2016.

For this year's IPL, RCB has also bagged Australia's limited-overs skipper Aaron Finch, and Richardson thinks having a familiar face in the camp would help him to settle better in the franchise.

"Finchey is an awesome player and a fantastic leader. I am sure it will help to have two Aussies in the side along with Josh who is playing his first tournament after a massive summer in the BBL. We are all professionals, I'm sure it won't take long for us to gel as a side," Richardson said.

However, before the IPL starts, Australia is expected to tour England for a limited-overs series, comprising of three ODIs and as many T20Is.

The side was last seen in action in March this year as they played one ODI against New Zealand in Sydney. After the first match, the remaining two ODIs were postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Talking about the series against England, Kane replied: "We will be fresh, that's one thing, while the England players have been in a bubble for some time now. As long as we get enough practice in before and possibly some centre wicket it should not be an issue."

"They are World Cup holders and the number one ranked side for a very good reason. It will be a tough series also given they will have played a fair bit of cricket together by then. We know we need to work hard on our one-day game which will be a priority over the next period," he added.

The pacer also talked about how the lockdown was like for him, and Richardson feels that everyone would come back strong as a result of this break.

"The break from playing has been refreshing, to be honest. We have come back strong and are well into pre-season training with our states. As a bowler, our loads are not at their peak but we are working towards getting ready for a tour of the UK in a few weeks," Richardson said.

The Australian quick has so far played 25 ODIs and 18 T20Is, managing to take 39 and 19 wickets respectively.

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News Network
January 14,2020

Sydney, Jan 14: Retired South African big-hitter AB de Villiers on Tuesday said efforts are on to ensure his comeback in the national team for the T20 World Cup in Australia, a plan in which his IPL form will play a crucial role.

Speaking to Cricket Australia's official website 'cricket.com.au', the 35-year-old swashbuckler said he would love to be back two years after calling it quits internationally. He is currently in Australia to play in the Big Bash League.

"I would love to. I've been talking to 'Bouch' (new South Africa coach Mark Boucher), (new director of cricket) Graeme Smith and (captain) Faf (du Plessis) back home, we're all keen to make it happen," he said.

"It's a long way away still, and plenty can happen – there's the IPL coming up, I've still got to be in form at that time. So I'm thinking of throwing my name in the hat and hoping that everything will work out," he added.

De Villiers, nonetheless, is keeping a check on his expectations.

"It's not a guarantee, once again. I don't want to disappoint myself or other people, so for now I'm just going to try and keep a low profile, try and play the best possible cricket that I can and then see what happens towards the end of the year," he said.

"There are a lot of players (involved with CSA) who I used to play with. Guys who understand the game, leaders of the team for many years" he said of the present dispensation.

"So it's much easier to communicate than what it used to be in the past. They understand what players go through – especially players that have played for 15 years internationally.

"It doesn't mean that everything is going to be sunshine and roses, but it's definitely a lot easier and it feels comfortable, the language that's being used and just the feel that everyone has at the moment in South Africa about the cricket," he added.

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News Network
February 13,2020

Feb 13: Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna were buried in a private funeral service in Southern California last week, multiple outlets reported late Tuesday.

Citing Kobe Bryant's death certificate, Los Angeles Fox affiliate KTTV reported the remains of the former Lakers star and his daughter were transferred to Pacific View Memorial Park and Mortuary in Corona del Mar. Kobe and Brianna were laid to rest in a private ceremony there last Friday.

According to KTTV, the death certificate cited Kobe's cause of death as "blunt trauma" sustained in a "commercial helicopter crash." It also said his death was "rapid."

Corona del Mar is a community within Newport Beach, where the Bryant family lives.

Kobe, 41, and Gianna, 13, were among nine people killed when the helicopter they were in crashed on a hillside in Calabasas, Calif., northwest of Los Angeles, on Jan. 26. Orange Coast College baseball coach John Altobelli, 56; his wife, Keri; and their daughter Alyssa, 14 -- who played on the same club basketball team as Gianna Bryant -- also were killed. Christina Mauser, a 38-year-old who was the top assistant coach of the Mamba girls basketball team, was also killed in the accident, as were Sarah Chester, 45; her daughter Payton Chester, 13; and pilot Ara Zobayan, 50.

A public memorial service for the Bryants will be held Feb. 24 at Staples Center, beginning at 10 a.m. PT.

While the date -- 2/24 -- conveniently falls between two Lakers' home games, it still could have been chosen symbolically. Gianna -- one Kobe and Vanessa' four daughters -- wore No. 2 on her basketball jersey while Kobe was No. 24 for part of his 20-year-tenure with the Lakers, and his retired jerseys -- he also wore No. 8 -- hang at Staples Center.

The Los Angeles Times reported that "entry is expected to be severely restricted" at the venue despite Staples Center's capacity of about 20,000.

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