Don't think you are favourite against Pak: Ganguly

Agencies
June 15, 2019

Manchester, Jun 15: India must not entertain thoughts that they would start favourites in the marquee World Cup clash against Pakistan, warned stalwarts, Sourav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar.

Ganguly said the Indian team perhaps made the mistake of taking Pakistan lightly in the 2017 Champions Trophy final and had to bite the dust.

"India needs to be very careful, don't go into this game thinking they are the favourites. I think they did that the last time in 2017 in the ICC Champions Trophy finals and Pakistan beat them hands down. It's going to be a great game of cricket," commented Ganguly as an expert for Star Sports ahead of the game.

Tendulkar also said that India cannot afford to take the traditional rivals lightly.

"Pakistan has always been unpredictable, and they are a dangerous side - so there is no way the Indian team is going to take them lightly. Every step that the Indian team takes forward, we would want to be 100% sure of what we are doing, and it is well thought and well planned," he said.

The hype and interest an India-Pakistan cricket match generates are surreal and both Tendulkar and Ganguly agreed that "it is more than just a cricket match".

"People get a bit carried away, and excited with this game, so from that point of view it's going to be a huge game in Manchester on Sunday. My first trip as a captain against Pakistan in 2003 - we had never won there before, but then we won both the Test Matches and One-Days. My memories of playing against Pakistan have been happy times for India," said Ganguly.

Tendulkar also recalled the build-up of that 2003 tour.

"A year before we played each other, people had started talking about that match. They said, come-what-may, you must win that game, after that whatever happens they really don't care. I said, don't think like that because players think differently," said Tendulkar.

Ganguly also felt that handling pacer Mohammed Amir will be key for India.

"In this World Cup 2019 team, Mohd. Amir was nowhere in the picture. They had dropped him, he comes back and takes up being the leading fast bowler in the squad. That's what you get from a side like Pakistan."

Anil Kumble, another Indian stalwart, said since the two teams do not play each other quite often, it leads to building up a bit of "drama".

"If you have to win the World Cup you have to consistently beat teams, and India-Pakistan matches have always been marquee events. ICC knows that; as soon as they opened out the schedule and ticketing, within 15 minutes the match was sold out and that's the importance of an India - Pakistan match.

"The World Cup comes once in four years, making the match all that more important. For a player, it's another match, you still must do your skill sets well, you still have to bowl well, and take those catches, that's something the Indian team will be focused on," said Kumble.

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Agencies
March 8,2020

Mumbai, Mar 8: Shikhar Dhawan, Hardik Pandya and Bhuvneshwar Kumar returned to India's ODI squad as the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced the team for the upcoming South Africa series.

South Africa are scheduled to tour India for a three-match ODI series, starting from March 12.

India's ODI squad: Shikhar Dhawan, Prithvi Shaw, Virat Kohli (C ), KL Rahul, Manish Pandey, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah, Navdeep Saini, Kuldeep Yadav, Shubman Gill.

Cricket South Africa (CSA) have already announced their squad for the series and spinner George Linde was given maiden ODI call-up.

South Africa squad: Quinton de Kock (c, wk), Temba Bavuma, Rassie van der Dussen, Faf du Plessis, Kyle Verreynne, Heinrich Klaasen, David Miller, Jon-Jon Smuts, Andile Phehlukwayo, Lungi Ngidi, Lutho Sipamla, Beuran Hendricks, Anrich Nortje, George Linde, Keshav Maharaj, Janneman Malan.

The first ODI will be played in Dharamsala while the other two matches will be played in Lucknow and Kolkata on March 15 and 18, respectively.

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News Network
July 2,2020

Jul 2: Cricket Australia has decided to not use the Dukes ball from this summer's Sheffield Shield, having used it alongside Kookaburra for four seasons.

CA has confirmed that the Kookaburra ball will be used for the entire 2020-21 first-class season.

Australia has been using Dukes ball since the 2016-17 season in Shield matches with an aim to help its cricketers prepare for the hostile English conditions.

CA's Head of Cricket Operations, Peter Roach, said the decision to axe the Dukes was the right call. "The introduction of the Dukes ball has been a worthwhile exercise, particularly in the lead up to overseas Ashes series where the Dukes is used so well by our English opponents," Roach said.

"We have been happy with how the ball has performed when used in Australian conditions over the past four seasons. We do, however, feel that reverting to one ball for 2020-21 will provide the consistent examination of our players over a full season that CA and the states are presently seeking. The Kookaburra is the ball used for international cricket in Australia and many parts of the world and we see benefits this season of maximising our use of it," he added.

Roach said the ineffectiveness of spinners in first-class cricket in recent times played a role in CA's decision to do away with the Dukes. "We have noted that spin bowlers in the Sheffield Shield have been playing less of a role in recent seasons, most notably in games when the Dukes ball is in use. We need spinners bowling in first-class cricket and we need our batters facing spin. We hope that the change to one ball will have a positive benefit here," he said.

The CA official, however, didn't rule out the possibility of re-introducing it later.

"We see a definite opportunity to reintroduce the Dukes ball at some stage in the future."

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News Network
March 27,2020

New Delhi, Mar 27: Batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar on Friday donated Rs 50 lakh to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, which has so far claimed 17 Indian lives and wreaked havoc globally.

Tendulkar's donation is so far the biggest contribution among India's leading sportspersons, some of whom have pledged their salaries while a few others have donated medical equipment to fight the dreaded outbreak, which has caused more than 24,000 deaths globally.

"Sachin Tendulkar decided to contribute Rs 25 lakh each to Prime Minister's Relief Fund and Chief Minister's Relief Fund in his bid to join the fight against COVID-19. It was his decision that he wanted to contribute to both funds," a source privy to the development, told PTI on conditions of anonymity.

Tendulkar has been associated with a lot of charity work and there has been umpteen times, he has taken up social causes, helped people, which has never been brought to public notice.

Among other prominent cricketers, the Pathan brothers -- Irfan and Yusuf -- donated 4000 face masks to Baroda police and health department while Mahendra Singh Dhoni, through a Pune based NGO, made a contribution of Rs 1 lakh.

Among athletes from other disciplines, wrestler Bajrang Punia and sprinter Hima Das are some of the prominent names to have donated their salaries in the battle against the dreaded virus which has led to a 21-day national lockdown.

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