Women's Asia Cup: Bangladesh pip India to win maiden title

Agencies
June 11, 2018

Kuala Lumpur, Jun 11: Indian women faced abject humiliation after Bangladesh beat the six-time champions by three wickets to win their maiden Asia Cuptrophy today.

The tournament turned out to be the most embarrassing for the 'Women in Blue' as they lost to the minnows twice inside a week.

The tournament also raised a big question mark about the utility of two veterans Mithali Raj and Jhulan Goswami in the shortest format even as the BCCI is forced to carry on with them due to lack of credible replacements.

Needing two off the last delivery of the match, Jahanara Alam hit rival skipper Harmanpreet Kaur towards deep mid-wicket and scampered home for a double to chase down a modest target of 113.

For India, it was Harmanpreet (56 off 42 balls, 2/19) and leg-spinner Poonam Yadav (4/9), who put up a semblance of fight as a below-par batting effort once again became their undoing.

Bangladesh skipper Salma Khatun decided to field and none of the Indian batters save Harmapreet (seven boundaries) looked comfortable against the Bangladesh attack.

Had it not been for Harmanpreet's innings, India who had slumped to 62 for 5, would have been shot out for less than 100.

The worst part was the number of deliveries wasted by the top three batters -- Mithali Raj (11 off 18 balls), Smriti Mandhana (7 off 12) and Deepti Sharma (4 off 11 balls).

India barely managed 21 runs in the Powerplay overs and never had the momentum going their way.

A lot of credit would got to left-arm spinner Nahida Akhtar (0/12 in 4 overs), who bottled up Mithali, whose T20 batting once again came under scanner. She was simply unable to get the boundaries. Deepti's inability to produce big shots has always been a problem and it again became a factor in defeat.

With Veda Krishnamurthy (11 off 10 balls) also falling cheaply, it became increasingly difficult for Harmanpreet to bat freely.

Veteran Rumana Ahmed (2/22 in 4 overs) and off-spinner Khadija Tul Kubra (2/23 in 4 overs) inflicted the maximum damage.

Chasing a modest total, spinners Poonam and Ekta Bisht (0/13 in 4 overs) did try to bring India back in the match but Jhulan Goswami (0/20 in 2 overs) was expensive with the ball apart from being slow in the field.

Middle-order batswomen Nigar Sultana (27 off 24 balls) and Rumana Ahmed (23 off 22 balls) were the ones instrumental in Bangladesh's successful chase.

Rumana's only boundary -- a drive through extra cover off Harmanpreet's final over eased the pressure even though she was run out off the penultimate delivery.

CoA member Diana Edulji has been pretty active about starting a women's IPL and the first step was taken with an exhibition match.

However, two defeats inside a week against Bangladesh, to whom India have never lost in either format before this tournament, indeed is a wake-up call.

While their contribution in popularising the women's game is immense, Mithali and Jhulan haven't contributed enough in India's recent T20 campaigns.

While Mithali became the first Indian to complete 2000 T20 runs, her only decent score (97) came against Malaysia as she failed twice against Bangladesh apart from low scores against Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

Jhulan on the other hand has been inconsistent and also her slow movements on the field has cost India dearly at times.

Brief Scores:

India 112/9 in 20 overs (Harmnpreet Kaur 56 off 42 balls, Khadija Tul Kubra 2/23, Rumana Ahmed 2/22).

Bangladesh 113/7 in 20 overs (Nigar Sultana 27 off 24 balls, Rumana Ahmed 23 off 22 balls, Poonam Yadav 4/9, Harmanpreet 2/19).

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Agencies
April 15,2020

Former Australia batsman Mike Hussey has heaped praise on MS Dhoni, saying the veteran Indian wicketkeeper-batsman is the "greatest finisher" the game of cricket has ever seen.

"Dhoni is the greatest finisher of all time that the cricketing world has ever produced," Hussey said while speaking to Sanjay Manjrekar on ESPNcricinfo's Videocast.

"Dhoni can keep his cool and make the opposition captain blink first. Dhoni also has unbelievable power. He knows that when he needs to clear the ropes, he can do it. He has that kind of self-belief. Honestly, I didn't have that kind of belief in myself," he added.

The former Australian batsman, who shared the dressing room with Dhoni for the Chennai Super Kings, said the 38-year-old Indian believes in the philosophy that he who panics last, wins the game.

"I tried not to let it reach 12 or 13 runs an over," said Hussey while talking about his ability to finish the game without much hiccups.

"And I learnt this from MS Dhoni. He is incredible. He believes that he who panics last wins the game. So Dhoni would keep his cool, and keep it longer because the pressure is on the bowler as well," he added.

The 44-year-old believes that the greatest players of the game have a few common traits like "they don't hang on to a defeat for too long. If they lose, they move on quickly. They don't let a loss or a win hamper their thinking".

"They are always consistent, and level headed whether it's MS Dhoni or Ricky Ponting."

Hussey, who played 59 IPL matches for CSK, further revealed the secret about the franchise's success in the Indian Premier League.

"And I learnt this from MS Dhoni. He is incredible. He believes that he who panics last wins the game. So Dhoni would keep his cool, and keep it longer because the pressure is on the bowler as well," he added.

The 44-year-old believes that the greatest players of the game have a few common traits like "they don't hang on to a defeat for too long. If they lose, they move on quickly. They don't let a loss or a win hamper their thinking".

"They are always consistent, and level headed whether it's MS Dhoni or Ricky Ponting."

Hussey, who played 59 IPL matches for CSK, further revealed the secret about the franchise's success in the Indian Premier League.

"Supportive owners who let coach Stephen Fleming and captain Dhoni decide how to run the team, excellent chemistry between the coach and the captain, Dhoni's leadership and lastly the foresight of the owners, Fleming and Dhoni to pick the best players, particularly the good Indian players and then stick with them for as long as possible."

"This has built an excellent continuity in the team. And once you have continuity, you build relationships and trust that otherwise takes time to grow," he added.

Hussey also said that once Dhoni bids adieu to the game, CSK would probably like to start all over again.

"That's a 60-million-dollar question, and I am equally intrigued. I believe the owners would like to keep Dhoni involved in some way or the other," said Hussey.

"However, whenever the change of guard happens, CSK might want to start all over again, build a brand, new team, and use their existing philosophy as they enter the next decade of IPL. It is definitely going to be more challenging in current times," he added.

Dhoni was supposed to lead CSK in the 13th IPL edition which now stands postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

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News Network
April 14,2020

Melbourne, Apr 14: As all sporting action across the world has come to a halt due to the coronavirus pandemic, Australian bowlers are pondering as to how Indian skipper Virat Kohli might play in front of no spectators.

India and Australia are scheduled to play a four-match Test series later this year, and it is being speculated that the series might end up taking place without any crowds due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Australian spinner Nathan Lyon on Tuesday said that it would be interesting to see how Kohli goes about it if he does not get a chance to get the audience behind him.

"He is probably good enough to adapt to any scenario. But I was talking to Mitch Starc the other day and we actually said that if we are playing with no crowd, it'll be quite amazing to see Virat trying to rev up the empty seats," cricket.com.au quoted Lyon as saying.

"It is going to be a little bit different, but Virat is a superstar. He will be able to adapt to any climate that we are able to play in," he added.
During the 2018-19 series, India managed to defeat Australia in Australia for the first time in a Test series.

Australia, at that time were without the services of David Warner and Steve Smith. However, the series later this year promises to be a mouth-watering prospect.

"I am excited about the prospect of India coming out to Australia, it's up there with the biggest series alongside the Ashes. They are an absolute powerhouse of the cricket world, and to have those guys out here is going to be fantastic. Playing in front of crowds or no crowds is out of our control, we have got to follow the advice of all the amazing medical people around the world," Lyon said.

"I have not thought about no crowds or massive crowds, it is just about the opportunity of playing against India again. They had the wood over us last time they came over here but we are a much stronger Australian cricket side at the moment, and I am just unbelievably excited about playing them here at home," he added.

Lyon was slated to represent Hampshire in County Championship this year, however, his stint was called off last week due to COVID-19.
He is Australia's third-highest wicket-taker in the longest format of the game as he has total of 390 wickets in Test cricket.

Lyon was last seen in action in the Big Bash League for Sydney Sixers.

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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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