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Ridiculous selections must stop, says Shane Warne

Agencies
January 4, 2019

Sydney, Jan 4: Spin legend Shane Warne on Friday criticised the Australian team picked for the three-match ODI series against India, terming the selections ridiculous and senseless for not keeping in mind the upcoming World Cup.

Australia named a revamped 14-member squad, including veteran pacer Peter Siddle, Usman Khwaja and Nathan Lyon.

"Just saw the Aust ODI squad that was announced & was absolutely staggered at some of the players that were left out & some of the inclusions - they don't make any sense whatsoever.These ridiculous selections must stop in all forms of Australian cricket - end of!" Warne tweeted.

Shortly after Warne named his own ODI side on Twitter.

The 49-year-old put his weight behind all-rounder D'Arcy Short.

"I cannot believe that D'Arcy Short has been left out of the side. I don't know what he's done wrong. He can bowl and his batting at the top is dynamic. He's in terrific form, and he and Finch make an awesome partnership at the top," Warne was quoted as saying by foxsports.com.au.

Warne insisted that the correct combination of players should have been selected keeping in mind the conditions the side will face in England during the World Cup in May-June this year.

"When you're picking this team you want to look at some players you are interested in, but you've also got to look at those players with the World Cup in mind and the conditions you're going to have in England," he said.

"Those conditions are going to be flat wickets that will probably spin a bit, so you need clever bowlers and you need some bowlers with pace. And they're little grounds. So a mixture of power hitting and people that can bat time; you need that right combination."

Warne was also critical of pacer Peter Handscomb's treatment by Cricket Australia.

"I don't think it's fair on Peter to keep putting him out into the international arena, even for the Sydney Test match here. Whether he makes 100 or 200, it's still not the right selection or the right message that you're sending to the rest of first-class cricketers."

Handscomb was dropped for the Boxing Day Test after scoring 68 runs at 17 across his first four innings of the series before being brought back for the fourth and final Test.

"To say you haven't got a technique that's good enough for international cricket and you're dropped, just like last year, and then you put him back in again a week later. It doesn't make any sense," Warne said.

Apart from Short, Warne named Aaron Finch,wicketkeeper Alex Carey, Shaun Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, either Ashton Agar or Mitchell Marsh depending on conditions followed by James Pattinson, Jhye Richardson, Riley Meredith, Adam Zampa

"I would have liked to see them go with a bit more youth and a bit more pace with the ball in Meredith and Pattinson to add to Jhye Richardson, I think those three are very good. Behrendorff with his left arm is okay, but I think there's better options."

Completing Warne's 14-man squad are spinner Nathan Lyon and Chris Lynn.

"Lynn is there if you need a bit more power at the top, then I've got Nathan Lyon that I'd like to see with the white ball as well at some stage."

Warne, who has been critical of the Australian pace attack in the ongoing Test series, also denied holding any "personal vendetta" against the pacers.

"The bowlers when you look back at 2018 and all the numbers they have put in for an attack that is meant to be one of the best in the world, the numbers don't stack up," he said.

"That's facts, it is not a personal vendetta or anything like that. We have nothing against these guys, we are just dealing in facts."

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News Network
January 10,2020

Karachi, Jan 10: Former Pakistan batsman and current U-19 head coach Ejaz Ahmed feels that his side can beat defending champions and arch-rivals India in the forthcoming ICC Youth World Cup beginning in South Africa on January 17.

"India has a very good cricket system and it is organized but I know that we have more passion than them when we play against each other and that is how we also beat them in the semi-finals of the recent Asian Emerging Nations Cup," Ejaz said.

Ejaz, who has played 60 Test and 250 ODIs, was head coach of the Pakistan Emerging side which beat India before eventually winning the title in Bangladesh last year.

"Even in the past, we beat India because of our greater passion and this time also I know the passion of our players will prevail over them although they have a very strong outfit," he added.

The 51-year-old Ejaz, however, said at the end of the day it would be all about how a team plays on that particular day.

"It is the same in the World Cup it does not matter which team is number one or defending champions what will matter is how a team plays on a given day. I personally feel our team is well balanced," he said.

Ejaz did not believe that India would get advantage of having played a four-nation tournament with South Africa, New Zealand and Zimbabwe in South Africa before the World Cup.

"Our players have also trained hard in Lahore and we have played around 11 matches. We will also reach South Africa nine days before the World Cup and we have some practice games and I think our preparations are also very good for the tournament," he said.

The former batsman also said the absence of fast bowler Naseem Shah will not impact much on the team's performance. Naseem was withdrawn from the Pakistan U-19 squad after he played for the senior team in three Test matches against Australia and Sri Lanka.

"Look there was no controversy at all. The way we now see things is that you can't expect a MBA to go and take BA exams. That is how we look at Naseem Shah, he has made the grade for Pakistan and now he should be performing for the senior team," said the head coach.

"We have a couple of exciting young talent in the ranks. I expect Rohail and Haider to play for the senior team in two to three year's time, they are that good."

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News Network
January 8,2020

Indore, Jan 8: Skipper Virat Kohli struck an unbeaten 30 as India beat Sri Lanka by seven wickets in the second Twenty20 international in Indore on Tuesday.

The hosts rode a 71-run opening stand between KL Rahul, who hit 45, and Shikhar Dhawan, who made 32, to chase down their target of 143 in 17.3 overs and take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series after the first match was rained off.

Leg-spinner Wanindu Hasaranga took the wickets of the Indian openers but Shreyas Iyer, who scored 34 before falling to paceman Lahiru Kumara, and Kohli, who hit the winning six, got the team home.

The third match is on Friday in Pune.

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Agencies
August 7,2020

Islamabad, Aug 7: Former Pakistani fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar, known for his blistering deliveries on the cricket field, recently baffled many with a deadly off-field bouncer by claiming he is willing to eat grass if it enabled an increase in budget for his country's Army!

"If Allah ever gives me the authority, I will eat grass myself but I will increase the budget of the army," said Akhtar in an interview with ARY News.

The 'Rawalpindi Express', considered the fastest bowler in history said he does not understand why the civilian sector cannot work in collaboration with the Armed forces.

"I will ask my army chief to sit with me and make decisions. If the budget is 20 per cent, I will make it 60 per cent. If we insult each other, the loss is ours only," the once feared fast-bowler said.

Akthar had also claimed to ARY News interview that he was willing to take a bullet for his country and had turned down a county stint just because he wanted to fight the 1999 Kargil War.

Ties between India and Pakistan have been strained in the recent months over several issues, the latest being Pakistan's attempt to broach in the UNSC the issue of Kashmir on the first anniversary of the India's move to scrap the special status of Jammu and Kashmir and to split the erstwhile state into two union territories .

Pakistan also has not been in a good financial position and under prime minister Imran Khan, himself an all rounder cricketer, has added nearly USD 22 billion, that is 35 per cent to the nation's international debt pile in the last two years, according to an Asia Times report in July.

While Pakistan recently received USD 1.39 billion from the IMF to cushion the economic shocks caused due to COVID-19 outbreak, Akthar had a few months ago proposed that a joint cricket match be played between India and Pakistan to raise funds to fight the coronavirus. The suggestion that was put down by cricketers in India.

Meanwhile the 'Pindi boy' whose deadly pace and bounce was once dreaded by batsmen had recently taken to Twitter to deny former India cricketer Virender Sehwag's claim of sledging him.

Sehwag along with other Indian crickerters such as Harbhajan Singh and even Rahul Dravid had been at the receiving end of Akthar's sledging and antics during their playing days.

"Yes, totally self made story by him. Mujhe yeh bol k bach k jana kidhar tha us nay," Akthar tweeted to a report in which Sehwag claimed that he had sledged the 'Rawalpindi Express' by telling him that Sachin Tendulkar was his father.

During an awards ceremony Sehwag had recounted that fed up with Akthar's sledging and retaliated by telling him to say the same things to Tendulkar, who smashed the 'Pindi boy' for a six. Sehwag quipped that he told Akthar then that "Baap baap hota hai".

In the recent ARY interview, asked about the allegation made against him by former India cricketer Virendra Sehwag that he makes pro-India comments for greater following on social media channels, Akhtar said, "I cannot talk on the basis of hate." 

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