Smug cheat? No, I'm a silent assassin: Stuart Broad

November 21, 2013

Smug_cheatBrisbane, Nov 21: Stuart Broad said England felt like "silent assassins" over their understated Ashes build-up after he made his loudest critics eat their words with a memorable five-wicket haul on Thursday.

The paceman was dubbed a "smug Pommy cheat" by a local newspaper as the series got under way, over his decision not to walk during the last Ashes Tests, and was booed loudly by the Brisbane crowd.

But Broad let his bowling do the talking as he removed all four of Australia's top order and then broke up a dangerous rearguard partnership for first-day figures of five for 65 off 20 overs.

Afterwards, with Australia at 273 for eight at stumps, the beaming 27-year-old walked into the post-play press conference with a copy of the offending newspaper under his arm.

"I saw this outside (the press conference room) and it made me smile," he told reporters.

Broad said the tourists had come into the Ashes "under the radar", with all the attention on the Australian team and their predictions about what was in store for England.

"We've never focused on what the other team are doing, we've got a lot of experience in that dressing room and we almost felt a bit like silent assassins on this trip," he said.

"We were just going under the radar, all the attention had been on the Australians. That was perfect for us, it meant we could just get on with our business and get ready.

"Now we're in for the fight, you'll see our players stand up. It's a relief we've actually started the series quite well, we'd usually be under the eight ball by now so we're delighted in that changing room."

Broad said he took no extra motivation from the boos at the Gabba ground, where Australia are unbeaten in 25 years, calling it all "good banter".

"Good fun. It was something a bit different but I think I coped with it okay actually," he said. "It's all good banter.

"There's something about Ashes cricket that brings out the best in me. Playing against the Aussies, it means so much to me. I'm delighted with today's performance but looking to the future and obviously I want a lot more."

Broad revealed that in medical assessments he was among three players mentioned by the team psychologist who would thrive on getting abuse, along with Kevin Pietersen and Matt Prior.

"So they picked good men to go at and it's good fun," Broad said. "I wouldn't class it as one of my better five-fors from a bowling point of view, but I would say I would class it as my best from a scenario day and experience."

Broad said he was particularly delighted to get the wicket of Australian skipper Michael Clarke for the sixth time in eight innings.

Clarke looked uncomfortable against a planned short-pitched delivery and popped a gentle catch to Ian Bell at short leg for one.

"He's obviously their star man, averages over 50 in Test cricket so we know what a big player he is for them," said Broad.

"So I think you always have specific plans for their best players so to have two short legs in to get him caught short leg, was awesome.

"For the plan to work gives us as a whole team a lift, but as bowler to execute it, when you said you would, is obviously brilliant."

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January 27,2020

Hamilton, Jan 27: In awe of Jasprit Bumrah, New Zealand wicketkeeper Tim Seifert says the Indian speedster's subtle variations have been difficult to pick in the ongoing T20 series and his side needs to a learn a thing or two about adapting from the visitors.

India beat New Zealand by seven wickets in the second T20 International in Auckland on Sunday to grab a 2-0 lead in the five-match series.

Bumrah returned with figures of 1-21 from his four overs as Indian skipper Virat Kohli changed his bowling plans from the first game.

"Even in the first game, Bumrah bowled slower balls that were going wider. Normally, death bowlers get into straighter lines, plus yorkers and mix it with chest height. He kind of changes things a lot and is tougher to play," Seifert said.

"...the ball was holding a lot more which made it tougher. So sometimes as a batsman you have to move away from the stumps and see if they bowl straight. I was backing myself to do something different instead of just standing there at the wicket," said the stumper, who remained unbeaten on 33 off 26 balls.

"It was tricky and the ball was holding a little bit. When Kane (Williamson) got out in the over against Yuzvendra Chahal, we knew it was the over to push because they had Bumrah coming back," he added.

He said New Zealand batsmen need to take a cue from their Indian counterparts on how to adapt to different conditions quickly.

"...Indian batsmen showed how to get under the ball and time it. They showed it a couple of times that and on the slower wickets you just have to keep it like that. Once you lose your shape, you are not in position," he said.

"Try to get them (bowlers) off line or off balance, try to get into that position to hit good balls. That's T20 cricket as well. Sometimes it's going 100 per cent but some times you have to take a breath and re-assess. Indian batters did that well."

Seifert believes New Zealand bowlers did reasonably well in the two games but they have been outplayed by the Indian batsmen.

"To be honest, in the first game they were 110-1 and they had wickets in hand. We didn't bowl too badly in that first game. In the second game, we only got 130 and it is tough to bowl at Eden Park (with that total)," he said.

"170 was the target in mind but once you get 130 on the board, that was going to be very hard at Eden Park against a team that is very strong and playing really well. But our spinners were outstanding. Good balls have gone to boundary.

He said coming into the T20 series on the back of a lost Test rubber in Australia also didn't help New Zealand's cause in the first two games.

"Boys are coming off a Test series (in Australia) and a lot of them haven't played T20 cricket for a while," he said.

"But for some like me, I have had the Super Smash for the last two months, so I have played a lot of T20 cricket. They have two games under their belt now so hopefully they will have a better understanding."

Asked if New Zealand would want to play on India's strength of chasing, Seifert replied, "Even in ODI cricket, India have chased down big totals but I think on that wicket it was going to get slower and slower.

"But with that small target on Eden Park, something special has to happen with top six (for a collapse). One batsman got fifty and the other was batting very well. We needed top five-six in the first 10 overs," he said.

The Black Caps are still confident of bouncing back in the series.

The third T20 will be played here on Wednesday before back-to-back matches in Wellington and Mt Maunganui. Seifert said they would like to replicate the 2019 tour of India, where New Zealand came out 2-1 victorious in the three-match series.

"We have lost the first two games but we haven't played badly. We definitely haven't played our best though while India has played very well. If we lose the series on Wednesday, it is not the end of the world. But if we can turn things around, and win, we will take things from there," he said.

"We won the series 2-1 last time, so we have to treat it like a three match series again. But we have to treat it like the first two are must-win games."

"We are not playing our best at the moment. There are 20-odd games before the World Cup, and that tournament is the pinnacle, so we will get there (in preparation),” he signed off.

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May 3,2020

New Delhi, May 3: In a startling revelation, India speedster Mohammed Shami has claimed that he thought of committing suicide thrice while battling personal issues a few years ago, forcing his family to keep a watch over him at all times.

He said his family members feared he "might jump" from their 24th floor apartment.

Shami, one of India's leading bowlers in recent years, opened up on his personal and professional life during an Instagram chat with teammate and limited overs squads' vice-captain Rohit Sharma.

"I think if my family had not supported me back then I would have lost my cricket. I thought of committing suicide three times during that period due to severe stress and personal problems," Shami revealed during the session on Saturday.

Now one of the mainstays of Indian bowling attack across formats, the 29-year-old was struggling to focus on his cricket, then.

"I was not thinking about cricket at all. We were living on the 24th floor. They (family) were scared I might jump from the balcony. My brother supported me a lot.

"My 2-3 friends used to stay with me for 24 hours. My parents asked me to focus on cricket to recover from that phase and not think about anything else. I started training then and sweated it out a lot at an academy in Dehradun," Shami said.

In March 2018, Shami's wife Hasin Jahan had accused him of domestic violence and lodged a complaint with the police, following which the India player and his brother were booked under relevant sections.

The upheaval in his personal life forced his employer BCCI to withheld the player's central contracts for a while.

"Rehab was stressful as the same exercises are repeated every day. Then family problems started and I also suffered an accident. The accident happened 10-12 days ahead of the IPL and my personal problems were running high in the media," Shami told Rohit.

Shami said his family stood like a rock with him and the support helped him get back on his feet.

"Then my family explained that every problem has a solution no matter how big the problem. My brother supported me a lot."

Speaking about another painful period in his life after his injury in the 2015 World Cup, Shami said it took him almost 18 months to get back on the field.

"When I got injured in the 2015 World Cup, after that it took me 18 months to fully recover, that was the most painful moment in my life, it was a very stressful period.

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March 13,2020

Mar 13: The start of the Indian Premier League (IPL), the world's most lucrative cricket competition, has been postponed from March 29 until April 15 over the coronavirus, the Indian cricket board said Friday.

"The Board of Control for Cricket in India has decided to suspend IPL 2020 till 15th April 2020, as a precautionary measure against the ongoing Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) situation," the BCCI said in a statement.

The two-month Twenty20 competition is estimated to generate more than $11 billion for the Indian economy and involves cricket's top international stars.

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