IND vs WI 3rd T20I: India win big to take series 2-1

News Network
December 12, 2019

Mumbai, Dec 12: KL Rahul was determined, Rohit Sharma elegance personified and Virat Kohli at his brutal best in India’s series-winning 67-run victory over the West Indies in the third T20 International here on Wednesday.

The ‘Maximum City’ witnessed the maximum entertainment as the trinity of Rahul (91 off 56 balls), Rohit (71 off 34 balls) and captain Kohli (70 not out off 29 balls) contributed in a total of 240 for 3 which completely took factors like, dew, flat track out of equation. An asking rate of 12 from the start would be Herculean for any team and West Indies in the end managed only 173 for 8 with Mohammed Shami (2/25 in 4 overs) enjoying a good outing in his first game of the series.

With a cushion of runs on the board, Deepak Chahar (2/20 in 4 overs) was also steady while Bhuvneshwar Kumar (2/41 in 4 overs) and Kuldeep Yadav (2/45) also got wickets even though they were a bit expensive. West Indies were never in contention and ‘local man’ Keiron Pollard’s (68 off 39 balls) five sixes in familiar surroundings was nothing more than consolation for the visitors.

While this is only a bilateral series but the manner of victory taking into context West Indies as a T20 opposition and the swagger with which the hosts defended a total will only help them gain confidence. There were 16 sixes that lit up the Mumbai skyline with Rohit hitting five, Rahul four and surprising everyone, ‘boundary man’ Kohli had seven of them in all.

India needed a good start but Rohit and Rahul made it a brilliant one as they conjured 135 runs in 11.4 overs. The true nature of the pitch with no lateral movement only made it easier as the batsmen could hit through the line. Rohit in particular pulled with disdain and also got one one knee to hit the slog sweep into the cow corner.

Rahul was more classical in his approach with shots square off the wicket, using the pace of the spinners’ deliveries to play it as late as possible. But the man who made the difference between a good and winning score undoubtedly was skipper Kohli, who again looked charged up, enjoying his battle with Kesrick Williams. After Rishabh Pant’s duck stuck out like a sore thumb, Kohli took it upon himself during the 95-run stand with Rahul as he demonised the bowlers.

There was another flicked six off Kesrick Williams, whom he intimidated after playing each shot. Jason Holder was taken for 54 runs in his 4 overs and the fifth bowling combination of left-arm spinner Khary Pierre (0/35 in 2 overs) and Pollard (0/33 in 2 overs) gave away 68 in their four.

In fact, any hopes of a competitive game was over when Kohli smashed 27 off Pollard in the 19th over.

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News Network
July 24,2020

Bengaluru, Jul 24: Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan, who was earlier banned by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for breaching the Anti-Corruption Code, on Friday, said that people are bound to make mistakes and the important thing is that how well they make a comeback.

Shakib was banned from all forms of cricket on October 29 last year after he accepted the charges of breaching the ICC's Anti-Corruption Code. He will be able to resume international cricket from October 29, 2020.

"You have to be honest. You just can't lie to the people and pretend different things. Whatever happened has happened. People are bound to make mistakes. You are not 100%. The important thing is how well you can comeback from those mistakes. You can tell other people not to make those mistakes. Tell them the path so that they never take those paths," Shakib told Deep Dasgupta in a videocast hosted by ESPNcricinfo.

The 33-year-old all-rounder said he has seen many controversies ever since he was first made captain in 2009. He had trouble with the board chief, selectors and the media, mainly about selectorial decisions and not being made permanent captain between 2009 and 2010.
He believes those experiences have changed him as a person over time.

"I think [it's] combination of both [controversy following him, and vice versa]. I got the responsibility so early in my career, I was bound to make mistakes. I was captain when I was 21. I made a lot of mistakes, and there are so many things that people think about me. Now I realise that it was my fault in some areas, and in some I was misunderstood. But I get it completely. It is part and parcel in the subcontinent," Hasan said.

"Of course I will try to minimise [my mistakes] as much as I can, but by the time I got married, and now I have two kids, I understand the game and life better. It has made me a calmer person than I was in my twenties. I have changed quite a lot. People won't see me doing a lot of mistakes now. My two daughters changed my life completely," he added.

Shakib is likely return to international cricket during Bangladesh's proposed Test series against Sri Lanka in October. 

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News Network
April 28,2020

New Delhi, Apr 28: West Indies flamboyant batsman Chris Gayle has lashed out at former teammate Ramnaresh Sarwan calling him 'worse than coronavirus'.

Gayle, the colossal figure in the shortest format of the game blamed Sarwan for his departure from Caribbean Premier League (CPL) franchise Jamaica Tallawahs.

The left-handed batsman joined St Lucia Zouks as their marquee player for the 2020 CPL season after Tallawahs chose not to retain him.

Gayle has played for Tallawahs and St Kitts and Nevis Patriots in the past. He has won the CPL title twice with the Tallawahs and played in the final with the Patriots in 2017.

"The owner of the franchise is a very nice man, I have no problem with him. I think he was actually persuaded to get rid of Chris Gayle," Gayle said in three parts on his YouTube channel.

"So someone has to be in his years telling him to get rid of Gayle. Sarwan, you are worse than the coronavirus right now. What transpired with the Tallahwahs, you had a big part to play.

Sarwan, you are a snake. You know, you are not the most loved person in the Caribbean. You are still stabbing people in the back," he added.

Gayle is the leading T20 run-scorer of all time as well as the man with the most centuries in the format. He is also the leading CPL run-scorer of all time, having amassed 2,344 runs in the tournament.

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News Network
March 2,2020

Christchurch, Mar 2: India captain Virat Kohli on Monday said the under-fire Rishabh Pant has got a "lot of chances" but the team is not looking to try someone else in the youngster's place just yet as one player can't be singled out in a collective failure.

Pant has been under the scanner for the past one year because of his inconsistent run. His tally of 60 runs across four innings in the 0-2 Test series loss to New Zealand, which concluded here on Monday, has only amplified the debate whether it was prudent to leave out a keeper of Wriddhiman Saha's calibre and back Pant.

"...we have given him (Pant) a lot of chances in the home season as well starting from Australia. Then he was not playing for a bit. In turn he really worked hard on himself," Kohli came to Pant's defence after the series here.

"You need to figure out when is the right time to give someone else a chance. If you push people too early, they can lose confidence," he added.

"...collectively, we didn't perform. I don't believe in singling him out. We take the hit together as a group whether it's the batting group or as a team."

When asked if he believes Pant has taken his place in the side for granted, Kohli made it clear that the culture of this team doesn't encourage anyone to think along those lines.

"I don't see anyone taking his place for granted in this team. That's the culture we have set. People are told to take responsibilities and work hard. Whether it happens or not is a different thing. Then you can have a conversation with the players," he said.

"But no one has come here thinking I am going to play every game or I am indispensable," he added in no uncertain terms.

Kohli, just like head coach Ravi Shastri, made it clear that Pant can make a difference in overseas conditions and he won't like to deviate during future tours.

"The time that he didn't play, he really worked hard on his game. So we thought this is the right time because of his game and the way he plays because he can make a difference lower down the order.

"That was our planning behind it. We can't really fluctuate when it comes to what we planned," he added.

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