World T20 preview: India, England boss Group A

September 17, 2012

India_Boss_group

The unpredictable nature of Twenty20 cricket is what makes makes Group A of the 2012 ICC World Twenty20 an interesting proportion. It consists of India, England and Afghanistan and on the face of it the first two teams look set to qualify for the next round, but any laxity on their part and Afghanistan might queer their pitch.


Over the last one year, Afghanistan have emerged as a team with a fine blend of dash and defiance. They've been inconsistent, but shown fighting spirit and vigour and they have a couple of very good players for the Twenty20 format like Karim Shadiq and Mohammad Shehzad, both of whom are explosive batsmen. Mohammad Nabi is a capable allrounder who can turn a match on his own while in the bowling, legspinner Samiullah Shenwari could be Afghanistan’s trump card as his economy rate of 5.45 in international matches suggests. Fielding is this team’s Achilles' heel.


England's batting looks inexperienced without their star batsman Kevin Pietersen but the likes of Eoin Morgan, Jonny Bairstow, Alex Hales, Jos Butler and Michael Lumb are tailor-made for Twenty20s. There will also be an interesting tussle for the allrounder’s spot, with Luke Wright making a strong case to be picked ahead of an out-of-form Ravi Bopara. There are few worries with England’s bowling, however, with Steven Finn, Stuart Broad, Jade Dernbach and Graeme Swann combing to form on the best bowling attacks in the tournament.


That leaves India, who will have a distinct advantage over other teams as they had just played a five-match ODI series in Sri Lanka and are well-versed with the conditions and pitches. The resounding comeback of Yuvraj Singh against New Zealand is a major boost and their formidable batting line-up make them one of the favourites to win the World Twenty20. Virat Kohli is in the form of his life while MS Dhoni and Suresh Raina have been consistent performers for India in limited-overs cricket.


India's journey in the tournament will, however, depend on how their bowlers perform. R Ashwin and L Balaji will play a crucial role as both of them are adept at varying the pace which comes in handy on slow Sri Lankan pitches. Irfan Pathan’s recent Twenty20 form, which includes a five-wicket haul in a tournament warm-up match against Sri Lanka, makes him the bowler to watch.


Match one - India v Afghanistan, Sept 19, Premadasa Having easily beaten Afghanistan the last time they met in Twenty20s, India won’t expect too stiff a challenge but they know all too well about the perils of underestimating a weaker team. If India’s top-order batsmen will fire, the Afghanistan bowlers will have an extremely grueling day in the field.


Match two - England v Afghanistan, Sept 21, Premadasa Afghanistan will eye this match as an opportunity to stage an upset. Most of the England batsmen have not played in subcontinent conditions and their vulnerability against spinners is a known fact. To top it all, England have a history of losing to non-Test playing in big ODI tournaments. Shehzad and Shadiq might just become party poopers for England.


Match three - England v India, Sept 23, Premadasa This will be a battle between the England bowlers and Indian batsmen. Their fielding gives England an advantage while India know the conditions better than their counterparts.





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News Network
June 20,2020

Dhaka, Jun 20: Former Bangladesh skipper Mashrafe Mortaza on Saturday tested positive for coronavirus.

The skipper had gone for a coronavirus Test last week, and now his reports have come back as positive, ESPNCricinfo reported.

As per a report in ESPNCricinfo, it is not known how Mortaza contracted the virus.

Mashrafe, also a member of the parliament from Narail 2 constituency, had stepped down as the ODI captain of the country in March this year.

Covid-19 cases have crossed 1,00,000 mark in Bangladesh and the government is now planning area-wise lockdown.

Bangladesh was slated to face Sri Lanka in July in a three-Test series and the side would have later hosted New Zealand in August, but both series look unlikely now.

The Asia Cup, scheduled for September, is also uncertain due to the coronavirus.

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News Network
May 27,2020

Bengaluru, May 27: Pakistan pacer Shoaib Akhtar has revealed that he was never able to dismiss Inzamam-ul-Haq in the nets.

The Rawalpindi Express praised the former Pakistan skipper and said Inzamam could see the ball one second earlier than the rest of the batsmen could.

"Honestly, I don't think I could ever get him (Inzamam) out, he had the time and I always felt he saw the ball a second earlier than the rest of the batsmen because I had a complicated action unlike Brett Lee, I felt I could never dismiss Inzamam-ul-Haq," Akhtar told Sanjay Manjrekar in a videocast hosted by ESPNCricinfo.

"I couldn't get him out in the nets, I think he could see the ball a second before anyone else," he added.

Inzamam played 120 Tests and 378 ODIs for Pakistan.

He finished his career with 20,569 runs across all formats.

The right-handed batsman called time on his career in 2007 and he played his last Test against South Africa in Lahore.

On the other hand, Akhtar played 224 matches for Pakistan in international cricket and took 444 wickets across all formats.

The Rawalpindi Express last played an ODI in 2011 as he played against New Zealand in the 50-over World Cup.

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Agencies
June 7,2020

New Delhi, Jun 7: Former Pakistan spinner Danish Kaneria on Sunday said that Sourav Ganguly would be fit to lead the International Cricket Council (ICC), and added there is no reason for respective cricket boards to not support Ganguly if he wants to hold the post.

In an interaction with media, the former spinner said Ganguly has all the qualities of leading the ICC as he has been a reputed cricketer and knows what a player goes through in his life.

"I also think that it would be really helpful if Sourav Ganguly goes on to lead ICC, it will help cricket and the players as a reputed cricketer will hold such a big post, he has played professional cricket, he has led the Indian side and he has also held an administrative post in the Cricket Association of Bengal," Kaneria told media.

"It depends on all of the boards whether they want to support Ganguly or not, if other boards support Ganguly and PCB doesn't, then also Ganguly would have the maximum number of votes, as a cricketer Ganguly is fit to lead the ICC, he had led the Indian side so well and he has earned a name for himself, so I don't see any reason for boards not supporting Ganguly," he added.

Ganguly had become the president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) last year, but speculation continued to rise over the former skipper heading the ICC.

"He is currently the president of the BCCI, he knows in and out of everything, he knows what players have to deal with and he is aware of what cricket needs, he knows what support needs to be given to associate nations, players would be able to put forward their point in front of Ganguly," Kaneria said.

In May this year, Cricket South Africa's (CSA) director of cricket Graeme Smith had backed Ganguly to lead the ICC looking at the current scenario.

"Now it is even more important to have someone in a role who can provide leadership who understands and can navigate the challenges in the game today. I think post-COVID with the things that are going to come our way, to have strong leadership is important. I feel that someone like Sourav Ganguly is best positioned for that at the moment," sport24.co.za had quoted Smith as saying.

"I know him well, I played against him a number of times and worked with him as an administrator and in television. I feel that he has got the credibility, the leadership skills, and is someone that can really take the game forward and I think that, more than anything, that is needed right now at an ICC level," he added.

ICC's elections are slated to be held in July this year and current chairperson Shashank Manohar has already clarified that he is not seeking a tenure extension.

Ganguly was exceptional in making India play its first day-night Test last year.

India had played its inaugural day-night Test against Bangladesh at the Eden Gardens last year.

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