Under-17 world cup: We conceded a stupid goal in first half, says India coach

Agencies
October 7, 2017

Oct 7: Team India coach Luis Norton de Matos was 'happy with the performance but unhappy with the result' after his side's 0-3 loss to USA in their opening Group A clash at the JLN Stadium in the FIFA Under-17 World Cup on Friday.

Matos accepted that there was big gap between the two teams. "We started the game but slow. There was a big occasion to get a goal in first minute but after that they controlled the game. We didn't lose control and we didn't lose our focus. I am not happy with results of course," said Matos, during the post match conference.

Trailing 0-2 with about seven minutes of regulation time left, India came agonisingly close to scoring their first goal in the premier event, but defender Anwar Ali's effort hit the woodwork.

And, quiet rightly so, the ball thudding against the horizontal left Matos shattered.

"If we had scored that goal, the scoreline would have been 2-1 and USA would been different in the last 10 minutes.

"That could have changed the complexion," he said.

"I'm happy with the collective effort of the players for the team, but not happy with the results. As I had said, there is a big gap between us and other teams in our group."

After a first half in which India rarely got a feel of the ball, the host nation produced an improved performance in the second half.

"USA played with with very strong force. This was the first time for our players playing in front of 40,000 people. They missed some chances. USA was much more experienced team."

"Of course there is this big problem of culture of not playing in such competitions. It is the first time they are playing in a tournament of such magnitude." "USA played seven international games in the last two months as part of preparations. They have been preparing very hard for this tournament."

However, the match marked a historic moment in the history of Indian football, as the Indian U-17 National Team became the first ever Indian participant in a FIFA Tournament.

In the country's maiden appearance, India showed sparks in patches, but lagged way behind in class.

"We conceded a stupid goal in the first half. At half- time, it was very much possible to overturn the game," he stated.

"We were more confident in the second half. For Indian players the experience of playing in the World Cup will help them in the long run," said the 63-year-old who was entrusted with guiding the U-17 team in the mega event this March.

USA coach John Hackworth, too, was not pleased with his team's performance, but praised the Indians for their spirit and tenacity.

"I am not very happy with the performance. This is not the way we play. But India really put up fight. They were hard to break down. So, full credit to them," Hackworth said.

Asked to name one Indian player who stood out in the game, the American picked three - central defenders Anwar and Sanjeev Stalin and goalkeeper Dheeraj Moirangthem.

"The two stoppers stood out and also the goalkeeper did a very good job."

Midfielder Chris Durkin also praised the Indian team but said they got a little complacent in the second half, which was evident in their play.

USA scored in the 30th, 51st and 84th minute to emerge winners in the Group A match.

In the early minutes of the first half, India saw the efforts go off-target after USA started putting pressure on Indian goalkeeper Dheeraj Moirangthem.

USA was awarded a free-kick in the 10th minute, after the hosts committed a foul, which the boys in blue successfully managed to defend.

India were awarded the first corner of the game when Aniket Jadhav tries to cut into from the right. However, the hosts failed to convert it into a goal.

It was in the 30th minute of the game when USA put themselves ahead courtesy Josh Sargent, who successfully converted the penalty into a goal which was awarded to him after he was tripped by Jitendra Singh.

The visitors started the second half with enhanced energy and enthusiasm.

In the 51st minute, USA doubled their lead through Chris Durkin.

Though, India's star forward Komal Thotal created multiple chances and impressed the home side with his skills, USA survived the scare and started a counter-attack.

Andrew Carleton eventually pulled back the third goal for his side just six minutes before the full time to give the visitors a 3-0 lead, after India hit the crossbar.

The Indian Colts will now lock horns with Colombia on October 9, followed by their final group game against Ghana on October 12 respectively at the same venue.

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News Network
February 12,2020

Mount Maunganui, Feb 12: India captain Virat Kohli on Tuesday berated his bowlers for their mediocre performance as he tried to explain the team's first ODI series whitewash in over three decades, saying that the visitors lacked composure all through.

The five-wicket defeat here meant that India lost the series 0-3 to an injury-plagued New Zealand that had been deflated by a 0-5 whitewash of its own in the T20 format just last week. It was India's first whitewash in 31 years in an ODI series in which all matches have been played.

"The games were not as bad as the scoreline suggests. It boils down to those chances that we didn't grab. I don't think it was not enough to win games in international cricket," Kohli said in the post-match presentation.

"With the ball, we were not able to make breakthroughs, we were not at all good on the field. We haven't played so badly but when you don't grab those chances, you don't deserve to win," he added.

"Batsmen coming back from tough situations was a positive sign for us, but the way we fielded and bowled, the composure wasn't enough to win games," he asserted.

The ineffectiveness of Indian bowlers can be gauged from the fact that the team's pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah finished the series without a wicket and the attack couldn't dismiss the complete rival line-up even once.

Kohli lauded New Zealand for bouncing back after the T20 hammering.

"New Zealand played with lot more intensity. We didn't deserve to win because we did not show enough composure," he said.

The batting mainstay is looking forward to the Test series, which begins on February 21, to make amends for the disappointment.

"I think because of the Test Championship, every match has that more importance. We have a really balanced Test team and we feel we can win the series here, but we need to step on to the park with the right kind of mindset," he said.

His opposite number Kane Williamson, who missed the first two games due to injury, was lavish in his praise for the home team's grit.

"An outstanding performance, very clinical. India put us under pressure, but the way the guys fought back with the ball and kept them to a par total. The cricket in the second half was outstanding to see," he said referring to the side's effortless chase of a 297-run target.

"We know how good they (India) are at all formats but for us the clarity about the roles the guys had was the most important thing. Outstanding effort against a brilliant India side," he added.

Player of the Match Henry Nicholls, who scored 80 on Tuesday, said his team benefitted from good batting starts during the series.

"To come back and win 3-0 after the T20Is is nice. The way (Martin) Guptill played today allowed us to get ahead. We got a 100-run stand, but we were fortunate enough to get good starts this series," he said.

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Agencies
August 3,2020

New Delhi, Aug 2: The finals of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 will be played on November 20, the sources within the BCCI confirmed on Sunday.

The IPL's governing council met earlier today, and it has also been decided that the evening matches will start at 7:30 pm, half an hour earlier than usual.

Jay Shah, the secretary of BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) and Arun Dhumal, treasurer of BCCI did not attend the IPL's governing council meeting.

"The tournament will run for 51 days, usually the IPL should go on for 49 days as per the constitution, however in the meeting it has been decided that we will go to Supreme Court for conducting the IPL in 51 days," sources within the BCCI said.

"As the tournament is running for 51 days, we will get the chance to play fewer doubleheaders, there would be just 10 double headers, evening matches will start at 7:30 and the afternoon matches will start at 3:30. 

The matches will be played across three venues at Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and Sharjah as travelling here by road is easier and bio-secure environment can be maintained," he added.

The IPL's governing council also confirmed that Women's IPL will also go on and four teams would be participating in it.

"When it comes to women's IPL, there would be four teams and the matches would be played at the time of playoffs for men's IPL," the source said.

The source within the BCCI also said that the governing council would be meeting again to discuss the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for all the franchises that need to be followed in the IPL.

The governing council meeting discussed the quarantine measures along with the standard operating procedures (SOP), bio bubble training facilities, stay and travel of the players.

Issues related to the broadcaster, shifting, and scheduling of the tournament, and DXB app to be downloaded for players and other officials were also discussed as well.

A few days earlier, the IPL Governing Council chairman Brijesh Patel had confirmed that the 13th edition of the mega event will commence on September 19 in the UAE.

This year's IPL was slated to commence from March 29 but the tournament was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) had also confirmed receiving the official Letter of Intent from the BCCI to host the 2020 edition of the IPL.

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News Network
June 24,2020

New Delhi, Jun 24: Star Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan deeply regrets his "silly mistake" of not reporting a corrupt approach by an Indian bookie to the ICC, leading to his one year suspension from the game.

Shakib was banned for two years, one year of it suspended, for failing to report corrupt approaches during an IPL edition by an alleged Indian bookie named Deepak Aggarwal.

"I took the approaches too casually When I met the anti-corruption guy and told them and they knew everything. Gave them all the evidence and they knew everything that happened," Shakib told Harsha Bhogle on 'Cricbuzz in Conversation'.

"To be honest, that's the only reason I was banned for a year, otherwise I'd have been banned for five or 10 years," he added on the ICC's investigation.

The 33-year-old, who was in brilliant form before the ban, amassing 606 runs in the 2019 World Cup in the UK, said he regrets how he went about the situation.

"But I think that was a silly mistake I made. Because with my experience and the amount of international matches I've played and the amount of ICC's anti-corruption code of conduct classes I took, I shouldn't have made that decision, to be honest."

Lesson learnt, Shakib's advice to all young criceters is to never take any such message lightly.

"I regret that. No one should take such messages or calls (from bookies) lightly or leave it away. We must inform the ICC ACSU guy to be on the safe side and that's the lesson I learnt, and I think I learnt a big lesson," he added.

The all-rounder, whose ban ends on October 29, said he became a bit arrogant and never felt he was doing anything wrong by not reporting the bookie's approach immediately.

"Because you do most things right in your life, you tend to get arrogant with some decisions. You may not realise but you're doing wrong by the books. It never came to my mind that I am doing something wrong

"It was just a feeling of 'okay, what's going to happen, leave it' and I continued with my life. But that's the mistake I made. And that happens," Shakib said.

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