Dhoni takes India to 112 after dramatic batting collapse

Agencies
December 10, 2017

Dharamsala, Dec 10: Mahendra Singh Dhoni blasted 65 off 87 balls to single-handedly take India to 112 all out after the hosts suffered a dramatic batting collapse against Sri Lanka in the opening one-dayer of the three-match series here today.

Put into bat, Indian batsmen looked clueless as the pace troika of Suranga Lakmal (4/13), Nuwan Pradeep (2/37) and Angelo Mathews (1/8) stifled the hosts with a fine display of swing bowling under seaming conditions at the picturesque HPCA stadium.

The half of the Indian batting line-up was gone for just 16 runs and at one stage, there was a possibility of the hosts being dismissed less than their lowest-ever ODI score of 54, but Dhoni showed his class once again and take the score past the 100-run mark.

Left tottering at 29 for seven, Dhoni and Kuldeep Yadav (19) stitched 41 runs in 47 balls for the eighth wicket to resurrect the Indian innings.

Dhoni clobbered 10 boundaries and two sixes in his crucial knock even as only two other Indian batsmen -- Hardik Pandya (10) and Yadav -- could reach double-digit figures.

With an early start to the match, Lakmal, who completed his quota of 10 overs in a single spell, emerged as the wrecker-in-chief for Sri Lanka, returning with impressive figures of 10-4-13-4.

Indian's poor batting technique in seaming conditions came to the fore once again as Lakmal exploited the early testing conditions to the full.

Such was the dominance of the Lankan seamers that India scored 11 for 3 in the powerplay overs, the lowest 10-over score in an ODI in the last five years, and second-lowest overall and it would be a timely reminder for the hosts who would be playing in seaming pitches when they tour South Africa next month.

Sri Lanka put India on the backfoot right from the start with Mathews trapping opener Shikhar Dhawan in front of wicket in the last ball of his first over. The on-field umpire had given not out before a review by Sri Lankan team showed that the ball had hit him on line.

Lakmal produced some extra bounce with his away going delivery and Rohit ended up poking at the ball to be back to the pavillion after the third umpire overturned another not out decision.

With India tottering at 2-2, Dinesh Karthik joined debutant Shreyas Iyer in the middle. After four maiden overs in the first five overs, Iyer finally hit the first four and also got off the mark when he guided a Mathews delivery to the mid-wicket boundary.

Living dangerously on the other end, Karthik was then sent back to the hut by Lakmal as India ended the powerplay overs at 11 for 3. Nuwan Pradeep replaced Mathews even as Perera persisted with Lakmal and it worked as the pacer produced a superb delivery to induce a thick outside edge off Manish Pandey as India slumped to 16-4.

Two balls later, Pradeep uprooted Iyer's stumps when the debutant inside-edged a delivery onto the stumps as the hosts lost half their side in the 14th over. Pandya then scored a couple of boundaries before giving an outside edge to Pradeep.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar could not stay for long and it was left to Dhoni and Yadav to avoid the ignominy of being bowled out for their lowest ODI total of 54 against the same opponent in 2000 at Sharjah.

Yadav looked in good touch as he blasted four boundaries but Dickwella produced a brilliant stumping off the bowing of spinner Akele Dananjaya to end his innings in the 26th over.

Dhoni then added 17 and 25 runs with No. 10 Jasprit Bumrah and No. 11 Yuzvendra Chahal before being holed out in the 39th over at cover off Perera.

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News Network
July 12,2020

New Delhi, Jul 12: Former India batsman Sachin Tendulkar has urged the International Cricket Council (ICC) to do away with 'umpire's call' whenever a team opts for a review regarding a leg-before wicket (LBW) decision.

The Master Blaster has also said that a batsman should be given out if the ball is hitting the stumps.

Whether more than 50 per cent of the ball is hitting the stumps or not should not be matter, he further stated.

"What per cent of the ball hits the stumps doesn't matter, if DRS shows us that the ball is hitting the stumps, it should be given out, regardless of the on-field call," Tendulkar tweeted.

With this tweet, the former India batsman also shared a video, in which he has a discussion with Brian Lara regarding the working of DRS.
"One thing I don't agree with, with the ICC, is the DRS they have been using for quite some time. It is the LBW decision where more than 50 per cent of the ball must be hitting the stumps for the on-field decision to be overturned," Tendulkar said in the video.

"The only reason they (the batsman or the bowler) have gone upstairs is that they are unhappy with the on-field decision, so when the decision goes to the third umpire, let the technology take over, just like in tennis, it's either in or out, there's nothing in between," he added.

This call for doing away with umpire's call has been recommended by many former players.
Whenever a verdict pops up as 'umpire's call, the decision of the on-field umpire is not changed, but the teams do not lose their review as well.

ICC recently introduced some changes to the game of cricket, and they gave all teams liberty of extra review as non-neutral umpires will be employed in Test matches due to the coronavirus pandemic.

As a result, all teams will now have three reviews in every innings of a Test match. 

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Agencies
January 11,2020

London, Jan 11: Former cricketer Sachin Tendulkar's famous lap around the Wankhede Stadium after the World Cup 2011 win has been nominated in Laureas's list for the most inspiring sporting event in the last twenty years.

The moment featuring Tendulkar has been described as "Carried on the shoulders by a nation".

On his sixth attempt at the World Cup and with India not having won the competition since 1983, Tendulkar finally became a part of the team that lifted the coveted trophy. Carried on the shoulders of the Indian team, he made a lap of honour, shedding tears of joy after the victory was sealed in his home city.

The 2011 World Cup was also the first time, in which a host nation ended up winning the trophy.

Apart from Tendulkar, England's Andrew Flintoff is the only other cricketer to feature in the list. In 2005, England managed to defeat Australia in an Ashes Test, but Flintoff chose to first shake hands with Brett Lee rather than celebrate with his side.

Matthias Steiner (weightlifting), Natalie du Toit (swimming), Sky Brown (skateboarding), Alistair and Jonathan Brownlee (triathlon), Xia Boyu (mountaineering) have been nominated in the list.

Female tennis stars also feature in the list for coming up with an equal play, equal pay campaign. After pressure from Venus Williams and others, Wimbledon announced that female tennis players would receive prize money equal to the men's.

German international footballer Miroslav Klose was playing for Lazio in Italy's Serie A in 2012 against Napoli when he rose for a ball in the early moments of the game.

The ball came spiraling off his hand and skirted into the back of the net and a goal was awarded. While most players would carry on as if nothing had happened, Klose was honest with the referee and admitted that he handled the ball.

As a result, he also finds a place on the list.

The Laureus Sporting Moment Award celebrates the moments where the sport has unified people in the most extraordinary way.

This campaign has shortlisted 20 sporting stories from the last 20 years that have left their mark on the world.

The winner will be decided on the basis of public voting. It has already started, and the final date to cast the vote is February 16.

Finally, the result will be declared on February 17.
With three knock-out rounds, the top-20 moments will be whittled down to ten then five, with the top-five moments going head-to-head.

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Agencies
June 14,2020

New Delhi, Jun 14: From being a 20-year-old mischievous talented striker to 35-year-old, India captain Sunil Chhetri has seen Indian Football through thick and thin. Coaches, who have nourished the striker with utmost care to yield the best for the team have seen numerous changes from close quarters but one aspect has remained absolutely perpetual, resolute - Chhetri's never-say-die attitude and 'dedication.'

Igor Stimac, current head coach of the Blue Tigers recalled seeing Chhetri during the preparatory camp ahead of the King's Cup 2019 - his maiden assignment with the Blue Tigers.

The Croatian pointed out that despite being the senior-most member of the troop, "Chhetri craved to push maximum to achieve the result after the heartbreak in AFC Asian Cup."

"Dedicated, workaholic and team man -- those are some of the attributes which define Sunil Chhetri. When I first saw him last year, they were back to the National Team camp after a long gap following the AFC Asian Cup. A few boys were new but the fire under his belly probably was more than anyone else. That's the secret of his long career. Congratulations!" All India Football Federation (AIFF) quoted Stimac as saying.

Sukhwinder Singh, while reminiscing the India-Pakistan bilateral series in 2005, revealed that he wasn't sure about the youngster's credibility at all.

"I needed someone who had the trickery, didn't have the fear and had to be quick. Honestly, Sunil wasn't in my mind at all. He wasn't my first option. I had my doubts," Sukhwinder, coach during Chhetri's first national team endeavour, recalled.

He had seen the youngster from close quarters while coaching in JCT FC where Chhetri started blossoming and hogging the limelight. Chhetri, who scored more than 20 goals during his 3-season-long stay in JCT, had already shown signs of performing in the bigger stages which convinced Sukhwinder Singh picking him up for the high-octane bilateral series in Pakistan.

"I haven't seen anyone as dedicated as Sunil. I saw him maturing in JCT and there were flashes of what he could do in the future. I still remember his hunger. In 19 years of my coaching career, I haven't seen anyone as dedicated as Sunil. He remained undaunted and was never willing to shy away from working hard. Shouldering the responsibility for 15 years demands discipline and he keeps it above everything else," Sukhwinder maintained.

According to Stimac, Chhetri is someone who always runs the extra yard, breaks some more sweat during the training session which, in the process encourages the youngsters to emulate him. The entire process aids the cumulative progress of the team and raises the bar.

"I see him as someone who always pushes the bar in the training and never compromises with the regime. He drives the team and he is the character who defines the team. Numerous characters have glorified the Indian Football history and he's definitely one of them who have made his country proud," Stimac said.

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