Nothing seems to faze this West Indies side: Clive Lloyd

October 13, 2012

Clive_Lloyd

Former West Indies skipper Clive Lloyd tells Deba Prasad Dhar that Windies have six of the 15 best strikers in world cricket.

It’s been a long title drought for the West Indies. What does winning the World T20 mean?
Winning this tournament was a lift that the team needed. For all those people hoping that the West Indies cricket would rise again, let’s hope this is turning point.


What were your realistic expectations from the team before the tournament?
I expected them to do well. We are one of the most explosive sides around. Out of the 15 big hitters in the world, six belong to our team. They are all phenomenal strikers. It gives them impetus on the field. They know they can go out there and dominate. That’s what they must do in the longer version too. Apart from Chris Gayle, we have Samuels (Marlon) who’s growing in confidence in both Tests and ODIs. We have a couple of good spinners and decent fast bowlers, basically an attack that can dislodge any opponent. We’re close to being quite a balanced side.


The core of the team is the same. What has changed?
They are gelling together. They seem to be quite happy when they go out there. Nothing seems to faze them. And they’re showing purpose. You have got to give credit to the captain (Darren Sammy), for he hasgot them playing as a unit. Don’t forget he has been under pressure too. In the long run, we’ll find out how good he is. So far he has done marvellously well.


How do you think Marlon Samuels has come along?
From the England series onwards he has done well. You can see that he’s concentrating a lot more and making his wicket difficult to get. You realise he’s not going to gift it. He is batting in a position where you need to be solid. And Samuels is solid.


Much was expected from the West Indies after their Champions Trophy win in 2004. Yet, they didn’t progress as well as they would have liked...
This looks a much better squad than the one in 2004. They have been together for quite a while now...like playing in the IPL. They seem to be strong-willed.


But is winning a T20 title truly an indication of how good a side is?
It isn’t really, but the win suggests that we can be a good ODI outfit. This is the start, the impetus that we needed to excel in the longer version.


Are Samuel Badree and Sunil Narine ready to operate in tandem?
Well, I hope so. I’m sure that’s what the thinking will be in the future. At least we have two spinners who are able to confuse the batters. In the longer format, we’ll know how good they are. In the one-day game, I don’t think too many people will attack them and be successful. Reminds me of our times. We had Inshan Ali, he was a left-armer. We had Imtiaz Ali, although he was a leg-spinner. And then Dinanath Ramnarine (the leg-spinner who became part of the the West Indies Players Association).


Chris Gayle’s showing in the World Cup...a kind of an apt reply to those keen on his ouster?
Chris just wanted to be back. He looks a really happy soul. Once he is happy, I’m happy. He creates that force and sort of generates the warmth needed for team spirit. I don’t think he’s giving the establishment any problems. They had one little spat. But he’s really a decent fellow to work with.


Given Gayle’s strike-rate (at times close to 200), how can he be so consistent?
If you watched his knock against Australia, he paces his innings to a nicety. He’s strong and has good eyes. He treats even the quicks with disdain. They are scared of bowling to him.


What areas must be addressed if the Windies are to be a force to reckon with, at least in ODIs?
First, they will have to identify who are their ideal ODI players and who are the Test cricketers. Someone like Kieron Pollard can do the kind of job Andrew Symonds did for Australia. Pollard is explosive and can be a handful down the order. We have enough bowlers to choose from — both pace and spin. Now is the time to move on to the next level.


Realistically, what can this team achieve?
They can do as much as they like. They are young and have everything before them. They can make this a golden period.


Perhaps, being one of the top three ODI teams to start with?
Why, I’m hoping they’ll be No 1 shortly.



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Agencies
February 13,2020

New Delhi, Feb 13: Sanjiv Chawla, a key accused in the match-fixing scandal involving former South African cricket team captain Hansie Cronje in 2000, was extradited from the UK on Thursday, Delhi Police said.

The 50-year-old British national, accompanied by a crime branch team from London, reached IGI Airport this morning, a senior officer said.

He is likely to be taken to the crime branch office for questioning, he added.

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News Network
July 26,2020

Chennai, Jul 26: Indian Grandmaster Viswanathan Anand suffered his fifth straight defeat in the USD 150,000 Legends of Chess online tournament, going down 2-3 to Peter Leko of Hungry.

The former world champion got off to a good start and won the first game of the best-of-four contest. The next two games were drawn before Leko levelled by winning the fourth.

The Hungarian then claimed the Armageddon (a tie-breaker) to ensure Anand remain winless and at the bottom of the points table.

Anand, who is making his maiden appearance on the Magnus Carlsen Chess Tour, had earlier lost to Peter Svidler, Magnus Carlsen, Vladimir Kramnik and Anish Giri.

World no. 1 Carlsen bounced back strongly to avoid an upset, beating veteran Vasyl Ivanchuk 3-2 to stay on top.

Legends of Chess is a unique event where Carlsen, Liren, Nepomniachtchi and Giri, semifinalists at the Chessable Masters (part of the Magnus Carlsen Tour), received an automatic invite and are up against six legends aged 40-52, who have been at the top of world chess at various points in their career.

The tournament is part of the Magnus Carlsen Chess Tour. The winner of this event will qualify for the USD 300,000 Grand Final scheduled from August 9 to 20.

Results of Round 5: Peter Leko beat Viswanathan Anand 3-2; Magnus Carlsen beat Vasyl Ivanchuk 3-2: Vladmir Kramnik beat Ding Liren 2.5-1.5; Anish Giri beat Boris Gelfand 2.5-1.5; Ian Nepominiachtchi beat Peter Svidler 3-1. 

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News Network
January 27,2020

Hamilton, Jan 27: In awe of Jasprit Bumrah, New Zealand wicketkeeper Tim Seifert says the Indian speedster's subtle variations have been difficult to pick in the ongoing T20 series and his side needs to a learn a thing or two about adapting from the visitors.

India beat New Zealand by seven wickets in the second T20 International in Auckland on Sunday to grab a 2-0 lead in the five-match series.

Bumrah returned with figures of 1-21 from his four overs as Indian skipper Virat Kohli changed his bowling plans from the first game.

"Even in the first game, Bumrah bowled slower balls that were going wider. Normally, death bowlers get into straighter lines, plus yorkers and mix it with chest height. He kind of changes things a lot and is tougher to play," Seifert said.

"...the ball was holding a lot more which made it tougher. So sometimes as a batsman you have to move away from the stumps and see if they bowl straight. I was backing myself to do something different instead of just standing there at the wicket," said the stumper, who remained unbeaten on 33 off 26 balls.

"It was tricky and the ball was holding a little bit. When Kane (Williamson) got out in the over against Yuzvendra Chahal, we knew it was the over to push because they had Bumrah coming back," he added.

He said New Zealand batsmen need to take a cue from their Indian counterparts on how to adapt to different conditions quickly.

"...Indian batsmen showed how to get under the ball and time it. They showed it a couple of times that and on the slower wickets you just have to keep it like that. Once you lose your shape, you are not in position," he said.

"Try to get them (bowlers) off line or off balance, try to get into that position to hit good balls. That's T20 cricket as well. Sometimes it's going 100 per cent but some times you have to take a breath and re-assess. Indian batters did that well."

Seifert believes New Zealand bowlers did reasonably well in the two games but they have been outplayed by the Indian batsmen.

"To be honest, in the first game they were 110-1 and they had wickets in hand. We didn't bowl too badly in that first game. In the second game, we only got 130 and it is tough to bowl at Eden Park (with that total)," he said.

"170 was the target in mind but once you get 130 on the board, that was going to be very hard at Eden Park against a team that is very strong and playing really well. But our spinners were outstanding. Good balls have gone to boundary.

He said coming into the T20 series on the back of a lost Test rubber in Australia also didn't help New Zealand's cause in the first two games.

"Boys are coming off a Test series (in Australia) and a lot of them haven't played T20 cricket for a while," he said.

"But for some like me, I have had the Super Smash for the last two months, so I have played a lot of T20 cricket. They have two games under their belt now so hopefully they will have a better understanding."

Asked if New Zealand would want to play on India's strength of chasing, Seifert replied, "Even in ODI cricket, India have chased down big totals but I think on that wicket it was going to get slower and slower.

"But with that small target on Eden Park, something special has to happen with top six (for a collapse). One batsman got fifty and the other was batting very well. We needed top five-six in the first 10 overs," he said.

The Black Caps are still confident of bouncing back in the series.

The third T20 will be played here on Wednesday before back-to-back matches in Wellington and Mt Maunganui. Seifert said they would like to replicate the 2019 tour of India, where New Zealand came out 2-1 victorious in the three-match series.

"We have lost the first two games but we haven't played badly. We definitely haven't played our best though while India has played very well. If we lose the series on Wednesday, it is not the end of the world. But if we can turn things around, and win, we will take things from there," he said.

"We won the series 2-1 last time, so we have to treat it like a three match series again. But we have to treat it like the first two are must-win games."

"We are not playing our best at the moment. There are 20-odd games before the World Cup, and that tournament is the pinnacle, so we will get there (in preparation),” he signed off.

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