No rift between MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli: Mohammed Shami

June 28, 2015

Bengaluru, Jun 28: Insisting that all was well in the Indian cricket dressing room, pacer Mohammed Shami on Saturday said reports of rift between Test captain Virat Kohli and ODI skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni are simply wrong.

dhoni"That the team is divided and the team is not performing -- there is no truth in these things. I have shared the dressing room with all of them including Virat and Mahi Bhai. I never felt anything like that (there is a rift between them). If media is making an issue then it is wrong," he told PTI here.

The injured pacer is in the city undergoing fitness training at the National Cricket Academy. Shami has been out of action since the World Cup due to discomforting pain and injury in his left knee.

Shami also requested media not to highlight "baseless" stories of disunity and rift between Kohli and Dhoni, and instead write about the team's ad players' performance.

"I request media not to highlight these baseless stories. This only divides the team, and affects team's and players' performance," he said.

Asked whether Dhoni should give up captaincy after a poor show by India against Bangladesh, Shami said it is not fair to draw conclusions on the basis of one bad series.

"I like his captaincy, I mean look at his record. Mahi Bhai has won us World Cups in all formats of the game. One should not draw conclusions based on just two series where we haven't performed. According to me, he should continue," he said.

Asked when is he likely to begin bowling in the nets,

Shami hoped that he would be able to do that next month onwards.

"I cannot write and give, but I hope to start bowling in the nets next month," he said.

Shami has been out of action since the World Cup after he complained of pain in his knees.

After he was ruled out of last IPL, Shami, who was the fourth highest wicket-taker of the World Cup with 17 wickets in seven matches, underwent knee surgery in New Delhi.

Asked how is he feeling after five to six days of his rehabilitation at the NCA, Shami said his body is in a better shape now.

"From past five to six days, I have been undergoing fitness training here. I am now in a comfort zone and my body is not feeling tight. There is no problem and I am slowly increasing the weight," he said.

Would it be a easy for him to get back into the Indian team after an injury, Shami said, "In my reckoning, whoever performs well, he should be in the team."

Asked if Dhoni missed his services in the dismal Bangladesh tour, Shami said indisciplined bowling cost India the series for the first time against the hosts.

"The series against Bangladesh went awry. As far as bowling is concerned, it is important to pick wickets with new ball in first 10 overs and in powerplays. That probably did not happen. We picked wickets late which resulted in Bangladesh scoring many runs. Even the line and length was a bit indisciplined," he said.

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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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News Network
February 16,2020

Feb 16: Mayank Agarwal finally found some form going his way and Rishabh Pant mixed caution with his customary aggression as India's warm-up fixture against New Zealand XI ended in a draw in Hamilton on Sunday. The match was called off an hour after lunch with India reaching 252 for four just 48 overs into their second innings. Agarwal, who had gone through a wretched period since the second Test against Bangladesh, retired on 81 off 99 balls with 10 fours and three sixes to his name. To the relief of the Indian team management, Pant played in his customary manner to reach 70 off 65 balls, but also showed discretion when the opposition bowlers were in the midst of a good spell.

There were four sixes -- two each off leg-spinner Ish Sodhi and off-spinner Henry Cooper. While Sodhi was hit down the ground, Cooper was dispatched over extra cover on a couple of occasions.

He didn't curb his aggression though; there were times when he was ready defend against the spinners and also leave some of the deliveries that the Kiwi pacers bowled.

Even though Pant is easily the better batsman compared to his senior Wriddhiman Saha, the innings might have come too late in the day considering that the latter is a better keeper and possibly a more responsible batsman in pressure situations.

The biggest positive to have emerged from the second innings is Agarwal's poor run coming to an end.

The Seddon Park track easing out was definitely a factor but Agarwal's footwork was more assured as he played some glorious on-drives and pull-shots off fast bowlers.

Before this game, Agarwal had played 10 competitive games including first-class, ODIs and List A matches and couldn't cross the 40-run mark in 11 completed innings.

He even bagged a pair against New Zealand A in an unofficial Test match. Once he had got his form back, he didn't come out to bat after lunch giving Saha an opportunity to score an unbeaten 30, his runs coming mostly against non-regular bowlers.

The Agarwal-Pant pair added 100 runs in 14.3 overs and it also helped that part-timers like Cooper was introduced into the action. In the morning, Prithvi Shaw (39 off 31 balls) was bowled through the gate by Daryl Mitchell as the batsman left a gaping hole between his bat and pad.

Shaw, though, seemed to have done enough during his brisk 72-run stand with Agarwal, which could put an end to the debate around the opening slot even though the tracks in Wellington and Christchurch could be a test of technique for the flamboyant Mumbaikar.

It was a match that Shubman Gill would perhaps like to forget in a hurry as he was dismissed cheaply for the second time in a row. He scored 8 before Daryl Mitchell trapped him leg before.

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News Network
March 29,2020

Sydney, Mar 29: Steve Smith's two-year leadership ban ended quietly Sunday, leaving him eligible again to captain Australia at a time of uncertainty over when international cricket will resume.

Smith was stripped of the captaincy and banned from leading Australia for two years over his involvement in the 2018 ball tampering scandal in South Africa. His sentence ended Sunday and he can again captain Australia if called upon.

Australian players were due this week to conclude a series of matches in New Zealand and, for some, to join the Indian Premier League. But it wasn't clear Sunday if the IPL will take place this year and when international matches will resume. Australia's scheduled mid-year tours to England and Bangladesh are in doubt.

Smith told Channel Nine television's Sports Sunday he is doing his best to stay mentally and physically fit, training in his home gym, going on 10 kilometer (6 mile) runs and practising the guitar.

"It's obviously not looking likely (the IPL will go ahead) at the moment," Smith said. "I think there might be some meetings over the next few days to discuss what the go is with it all.

"I'm just trying to stay physically and mentally fit and fresh and, if it goes ahead at some point, then great. And if not, there's plenty going on in the world at the moment. So just play it day by day."

It seems unlikely Smith will return to the captaincy when cricket resumes. Tim Paine is firmly established as Australia's test captain and at 35 is not immediately considering retirement. Aaron Finch has captained Australia successfully in white ball cricket.

The conclusion of Smith's ban ends the period of upheaval in Australian cricket that followed the ball tampering incident in the second test at Cape Town in 2018 when Cameron Bancroft, with the knowledge of Smith and his vice-captain David Warner, used sandpaper to change the condition of the ball.

Smith and Warner received one-year bans from international and most domestic cricket and Bancroft was banned for nine months. The scandal also resulted in the resignation of coach Darren Lehmann and the departure of Cricket Australia's chief executive, James Sutherland.

Warner remains under a career-long leadership ban.

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