Ranji Trophy: Quality umpires needed for big games,says Pravin Amre

March 1, 2015

Bengaluru, Mar 1: Although Mumbai failed to make it to the final of the 2014-15 Ranji Trophy, Pravin Amre, the coach, felt his young side had shown a lot of character against Karnataka, the defending champions, to bounce back after being bowled out for just 44 in their first innings in their semifinal.

Ranji Trophy umpireChasing a steep 445 for victory, half-centuries from Aditya Tare, the captain, Shreyas Iyer and Siddesh Lad took Mumbai to 332 at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Saturday (February 28), before they subsided to a 112-run defeat. However, Amre said there were a lot of positives to take from the loss.

"Getting 44 all out on the first day was not acceptable," said Amre after the match. "But if you see the way we fought back, as a coach I am very proud of the boys. Not many teams get out for 44 and make such a comeback. Particularly the way we got two wickets on the first day. The other teams would have just given away the match at that stage (bowled out for 44), but our boys have shown their character."

Amre rued the fact that certain decisions did not go in Mumbai's favour and urged the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to ensure highest quality of umpiring in domestic cricket. Robin Uthappa, who made 68 in the first innings, was lucky to survive a huge shout for lbw from Shardul Thakur when on 8 on the opening day. Aditya Tare was a victim of a poor decision when the ball moved after missing the edge only for him to be given out caught behind on the same day in Mumbai's first dig.

"As a coach, I don't want to give this as an excuse, but everybody has got evidence," said Amre. "I think BCCI should also think about keeping quality umpires in big games.

"The match referees can go and watch, there is evidence. Robin Uthappa's decision, had it been 30 for 3, the match would have been different. Same thing with Tare's decision at a vital time. I think those were the turning points for me."

Although Mumbai started the chase positively, Suryakumar Yadav's defensive approach on the third day shifted the momentum in Karnataka's favour, with the batsman taking 26 balls to get off the mark. However, Amre felt the approach didn't have any detrimental effect on the team's chances, pointing at Tare's dismissal on 98 as the key moment.

"I think Tare's dismissal again was vital. From there, I think the momentum went to Karnataka. I'm sure if he had got that 100, it would have been one of those big hundreds. Suryakumar Yadav plays his own game. I think that playing defensively was his mindset at that particular moment. But, as long as he was at the wicket, it was very important for us because if we had wickets in hand, anything could have happened."

A young side with hardly any experienced pros to look to for guidance during tough times, Mumbai's roller-coaster season had started with a loss to Jammu and Kashmir at home. An innings defeat against Tamil Nadu had put them on the brink and the 40-time champions were staring at relegation. Suryakumar's decision to quit captaincy only compounded their woes. However, Tare brought in stability as Mumbai scripted a remarkable turnaround towards the end of the league stage.

An in-form Baroda side were beaten in a do-or-die clash. A first-innings lead over Karnataka allowed Mumbai to enter the knockouts, and their thumping win against Delhi, one of the most consistent sides this season, sealed them a semifinal berth. Amre lauded the young side and said it was a huge challenge to handle a team in transition.

"As a coach, handling a young side was very challenging. I learnt a lot and also I was happy that some of my decisions worked and the satisfaction was there. This is a hugely talented side in a rebuilding phase.

"I had to identify the talented players. I was very happy with the way we set Shreyas Iyer's batting number. It was entirely my decision to bat him at three. There was this responsibility on Shardul Thakur to go and deliver. (I was) backing many players like Akhil Herwadkar - he came and delivered in the quarterfinal against Delhi. The important one was Tare, backing him as captain and I think he did a great job. It wasn't an easy job."

Tare reprimanded for criticising umpiring decisions

Aditya Tare, the Mumbai captain, was reprimanded for his comments against poor umpiring decisions after the first day's play. Like Amre, Tare had earlier pointed to the two decisions that had gone against Mumbai. V N Kutty, the match referee, charged him with a Code of Conduct violation and cautioned Tare after he pleaded guilty.

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News Network
July 6,2020

Karachi, Jul 6: Former Pakistan captain Inzamam-ul-Haq has said that questions will be raised if Indian Premier League is slotted in the window allotted to ICC T20 World Cup in Australia, which in all likelihood will be cancelled in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The ICC is yet to decide the fate of the T20 World Cup in Australia which is scheduled to take place from October 18 to November 15.

"There are rumors that the World Cup was clashing with the Indian Premier League (IPL) and the Australia-India series, therefore, it (T20 World Cup) won't take place," Inzamam said in his YouTube channel on Sunday.

"The Indian board is strong and has control in the International Cricket Council (ICC). If Australia says that we cannot hold the World Cup because of the Covid-19 pandemic, then their stance will be easily accepted, but if any such kind event happens during the same time, then questions will be raised," he said.

The 50-year-old former batsman, who has scored 8,830 runs in 120 Tests and 11,739 runs in 378 ODIs for Pakistan, further said, "People will think, if a country could host 12 to 14 teams (16 teams), then why the ICC could not look after the teams, after all Australia is such an advanced country.

"Another thing is the ICC should not be allowed to give priority to private leagues (IPL) on international cricket. This will lead to young players forcing on private leagues other than international matches."

The former coach, however, agreed that it is not easy to host 16 nations during the T20 World Cup.

"Australia can say that it was difficult for it to manage 18 teams (16) for the mega event as it is not easy. Likewise, the Pakistan team was in England in a hotel and all the facilities were being provided there, therefore, it has not been easy to manage 18 teams (16)," he said.

The fate of Asia Cup which PCB will be hosting in a neutral country for security reason is also an issue as no one knows the fate of the tournament originally scheduled in September.

Inzamam said: "I have also heard that objections are also raised on the dates of the Asia Cup as it is clashing with some other event.

"The ICC, the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) and all cricket boards should sit together and give a strong message that any such kind of impression (giving priority to private leagues instead of international cricket), won't take place," he said.

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News Network
June 13,2020

New Delhi, Jun 13: Five centrally contracted Indian cricketers including Cheteshwar Pujara, Ravindra Jadeja and KL Rahul have been issued notices by National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) for failing to disclose their whereabouts as the BCCI cited "password glitch" as the reason for delay.

The other players to have received the notice include women stars Smriti Mandhana and Deepti Sharma, who are among the five cricketers in the 110 strong National Registered Testing Pool (NRTP). Speaking to PTI, NADA DG Navin Agarwal confirmed that BCCI has sent an official explanation for their five NRTP players' failure to submit whereabouts.

"There are two ways to fill up the whereabouts form in the ADAMS (Anti Doping Administration & Management Systems) software. Either athlete does it himself or association fills it up on his or her behalf," Agarwal said. "Now athletes in some discipline aren't educated enough or do not have access to internet and find themselves unable to handle the whereabouts clause of the ADAMS or upload the filled up

"They use assistance of their concerned federations. So federations have accepted responsibility of uploading their whereabouts," Agarwal said.

He said cricketers too at times find it tough to complete the process on their own. "Similarly in cricket also, although these people are well qualified and they can do it, perhaps they don't have the time for whatever reasons, so the federation concerned, the BCCI has taken upon itself the responsibility of uploading their whereabouts." So why didnt BCCI upload the the three-month whereabouts this time?

"Well they have given an explanation which appears to be reasonable but a decision will be taken. They have said that there has been a glitch with regards to password in ADAMS. Now they have said that issue has been resolved," Agarwal added. NADA DG added that "BCCI's explanation will be discussed as to whether it will be counted as one of three filing failures or not. It will be decided on the explanation given and how they (BCCI) proceed from here."

While country has been under lockdown, the rule to submit three months of whereabouts is mandatory. Three such failures to disclose leads to one Anti Doping Rule Violation (ADRV), which could lead up to two years of suspension upon hearing.

While BCCI has "officially gagged" its employees from talking to the media, it couldn't be ascertained that why as normal a glitch as a password error took days to resolve. A BCCI veteran, who has been privy to cricket operations, asked why the five cricketers were not told to upload the form themselves.

"This was lockdown period where they are not living out of suitcases. Some of the names have also engaged in multiple instagram chats and podcasts which their agents are managing," he said.

"If cricket operations team were having a glitch in fixing password, well the five cricketers could have been asked to do so and they would have done it individually with some guidance. "Probably NADA would be lenient this time but if it becomes an official warning, then who's responsible," he added.

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News Network
January 15,2020

Dubai, Jan 15: India skipper and batting mainstay Virat Kohli was on Wednesday named captain of the International Cricket Council's ODI and Test teams of the year, capping off a memorable season for the world No.1.

Apart from Kohli, there were four other Indians who were picked in the ICC's Test and ODI Teams of the Year.

While the Test team featured double-centurion Mayank Agarwal, opener Rohit Sharma, speedster Mohammed Shami and left-arm spinner Kuldeep Yadav found a place in the ODI side.

Kohli enjoyed a tremendous run in both the formats in 2019. The 31-year-old hit his seventh Test double hundred on the way to a career-best unbeaten 254 against South Africa in October last year.

It was a breakthrough year for opener Agarwal, who smashed two double tons, one century and went beyond the fifty-run mark twice. He hit a career-best score of 243 against Bangladesh in November.

Kuldeep, too, enjoyed a memorable year as he joined the golden list of bowlers with two hat-tricks. The chinaman claimed his second ODI hat-trick of his career against the West Indies last month.

In the absence of Indian pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, Shami rose to the occasion making the best in the business hop, skip and jump with his pace, swing and bounce through the season. He scalped 42 wickets in 21 ODIs over the last 12 months.

The ICC's Teams of the Year 2019:

ODI Team of the Year (in batting order): Rohit Sharma, Shai Hope, Virat Kohli (captain), Babar Azam, Kane Williamson, Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler (wicketkeeper), Mitchell Starc, Trent Boult, Mohammed Shami, Kuldeep Yadav

Test Team of the Year (in batting order): Mayank Agarwal, Tom Latham, Marnus Labuschagne, Virat Kohli (captain), Steve Smith, Ben Stokes, BJ Watling (wicketkeeper), Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Neil Wagner, Nathan Lyon.

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