World championship must for Test cricket’s survival: Mike Hesson

Agencies
November 13, 2018

Mumbai, Nov 13: Former New Zealand coach Mike Hesson on Monday emphasised that the World Test Championship is “critical” for survival of the longest format of the game. As per the International Cricket Council (ICC), the nine top-ranked sides will compete in the championship with each side playing six series on a home-and-away basis against mutually selected opponents in a two-year cycle.

The cycle will begin soon after the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019, with the Ashes in England set to kick-start the event. The top-two sides will then contest in the ICC World Test Championship final in June 2021.

“Test cricket will survive as long as there is context. The World Test Championship is critical to its survival. If there is no context to matches and they just operate bilateral tours in isolation, then the relevancy will disappear over time,” Hesson told a select group of reporters here at an interaction arranged by Star Sports group of channels.

Hesson, who coached New Zealand for six years before taking over as head coach of IPL team Kings XI Punjab, stressed Test cricket even now generates a lot of interest. “People are getting scared that Test cricket is disappearing, but I think that’s not the case. There is still a high level of interest,” added the 44-year-old Hesson.

“With the World Test Championship, you know that you play eight Tests over a two-year period. Players love playing Test cricket and playing for their country, but if you add context, that leads towards a points table or final or whatever, then it has so much more meaning,” he elaborated.

Meanwhile, on his new IPL assignment, Hesson said, “It has been a big month and I am trying to get started for the auction in a few weeks’ time. “Getting to know the team around Kings XI Punjab has been an important part of the last couple of weeks. I am doing some scouting and running some trials. I have enjoyed it”.

Asked what has impressed him most in the IPL, Hesson said, “Every year the skills the bowlers bring are different. Last year we saw the knuckle ball for the first time. Before that we saw the slower bouncer. Every year we see bowlers coming up with different initiatives.”

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News Network
April 30,2020

New Delhi, Apr 30: Indian skipper Virat Kohli on Thursday mourned the demise of veteran Bollywood actor Rishi Kapoor, called his death 'unreal and unbelievable' loss.

"This is unreal and unbelievable. Yesterday Irrfan Khan and today Rishi Kapoor ji. It's hard to accept this as a legend passes away today. My condolences to the family and may his soul rest in peace," Kohli tweeted.

Opening batsman Shikhar Dhawan also expressed his heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of the deceased.
"It's shocking to hear about the sudden demise of #RishiKapoor ji. My heartfelt condolences to his family and friends. May his soul rest in peace," Dhawan tweeted.

Earlier today, actor Amitabh Bachchan confirmed the news of the demise of the 67-year-old Rishi Kapoor. Rishi Kapoor was admitted to the Sir HN Reliance Foundation Hospital in Mumbai on Wednesday.

In September 2019, the veteran actor returned to Mumbai after staying in New York for almost a year for cancer treatment.

He was last seen in the 2019 film 'The Body' alongside Emraan Hashmi and Shobita Sobhita Dhulipala.

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News Network
April 7,2020

London, Apr 7: Bowling coach Waqar Younis feels that it was the absence of pacers Wahab Riaz and Mohammad Amir which saw Pakistan getting whitewashed during Australia tour last year.

Amir and Riaz had quit the red-ball format ahead of the matches against Australia in 2019.

"Just before the Australia series, they ditched us and we had the only choice to pick youngsters.

We were the new management and decided to go on with taking in the younger lot and groom them. ESPNcricinfo quoted Younis as saying.

Pakistan was not able to win a single match in Australia as they got defeated both in T20Is and Test series.

"It's not like we have lost a lot, but yes they left us at the wrong time. But anyway, we don't have any grudge against them," Younis added.

"We cannot control players' choice on what they want to play, but then there should be a mechanism so we all are on board. "It's not like I am saying we could have won in Australia but we could have done better than what we have done," he opined.

Amir gave up the red ball format in July in order to manage his workload and extend his white-ball career for Pakistan as well as in T20 leagues around the world, while Riaz took an "indefinite break" from Test cricket in September last year.

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Agencies
January 25,2020

Headingley, Jan 25: England have become the first team in the world to score 500,000 runs in Test cricket. They achieved the feat during the ongoing fourth and final Test against South Africa being played at The Wanderers.

On Friday - the opening day of the Test match -- England captain Joe Root's single through the covers took the Three Lions to a landmark 500,000 run-mark in the longest format of the game. They achieved the feat in their 1022nd Test match.

Australia comes second in the list, with 432,706 runs in 830 Tests. India, meanwhile, are third, with 273,518 runs in 540 Tests, followed by West Indies (270,441 runs in 545 Tests).

In the third Test played at St George's Park in Port Elizabeth, England had become the first team to play 500 Test matches on foreign soil. Australia are the second team to play the most away Test with 404 matches they have played so far.

India have played 268 Tests on foreign soil in which they have won 51, lost 113 and 104 have ended in a draw.

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