Mohammad Irfan, Pakistan's towering inferno

December 27, 2012

Mohammad-Irfan

Bangalore, December 27: Cricket may be mostly about skills at the highest level, but it doesn't harm international athletes to have an ace up their sleeve in the form of a genetic gift. While batsmen blessed with perfect footwork and timing, bowlers able to generate frightening pace and fielders possessing quick lightning reflexes are a dime a dozen now, Pakistan pacer Mohammad Irfan stands out -- quite literally -- for what makes him special.

Dwarfing his peers on the pitch at 7'1, the 30-year-old quick, who made his Twenty20 international debut against India in Bangalore on Tuesday, is by far the tallest international cricketer in the world, dwarfing legendary West Indian pacer Joel Garner at 6'8."

Like most tall pacers, Irfan, who attended IPL team Kolkata Knight Riders' trials in 2011, has the ability to work up a full head of steam on the pitch, consistently bowling at 140km/h.

At the Chinnaswamy stadium on Tuesday, he extracted a tremendous amount of bounce that saw the Indian batsmen digging deep against his thunderbolts. At one point, he even had opener Gautam Gambhir and Ajinkya Rahane in a serious spot of bother thanks to rising deliveries aimed at the body.

He returned for a second spell with a new opponent in Yuvraj Singh, only to dish out more of the same as he had the southpaw on the backfoot. Putting in a disciplined effort on the day, Irfan returned with impressive figures of 1-25 from his quota of four overs.

Born in East Pakistan's Punjab province in the town of Gaggu Mandi, Irfan hails from the same place which produced another tall Pakistan quick -- Mohammad Zahid. Life had been a struggle for Irfan until opportunity came knocking on his door in 2010.

Working in a pipe factory at the time, his performances in club cricket -- where he played for Khan Research Laboratories scalping 43 wickets that season -- impressed former cricketer and Pakistan's National Cricket Academy coach Aaqib Javed so much that he invited Irfan to work with him.

Thereafter, Irfan went on to make his ODI debut for Pakistan on September 2010 against England at Chester-le-Street, after the removal of disgraced pacers Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Aamer from the squad following the spot-fixing controversy.

It wasn't a good debut as he gave away 37 runs in 5.3 overs without a wicket. That apart he had to leave the field midway due to cramps as England went on to win the match by 24 runs. Irfan went on to play only two ODIs in 2010.

Tougher times followed when he was drafted into Pakistan's 2010 World Twenty20 squad but his name was withdrawn in the last minute. But having made his T20 international debut -- relatively late at 30 -- Irfan will hope that he can enjoy a run that allows him to become a bowler who is not just famous for his towering stature.



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News Network
January 29,2020

Hamilton, Jan 29: India defeated New Zealand in the third T20 International via Super Over to take an unassailable 3-0 lead in the five-match series here on Wednesday.

India posted a competitive 179 for five at Seddon Park after being sent into bat. Opener Rohit Sharma top scored for India with a 65-run knock while skipper Virat Kohli contributed 38 runs in team's total.

Later, skipper Kane Williamson smashed a 48-ball 95 but New Zealand faltered in the final over to take the match into the Super Over.

Needing nine runs of the last over, New Zealand lost Williamson and Ross Taylor to finish at 179 for six and tie the match.

In the Super Over, New Zealand scored 17, a target which India overwhelmed in the final ball with Rohit smashing Tim Southee for two consecutive sixes.

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Agencies
April 12,2020

London, Apr 12: Former Formula 1 legendary driver Stirling Moss died at the age of 90 on Sunday.

"All at F1 send our heartfelt condolences to Lady Susie and Sir Stirling's family and friends," Formula 1 said in a statement.

Often referred to as the greatest driver never to win the world championship, Moss contested 66 Grands Prix from 1951 to 1961, driving for the likes of Vanwall, Maserati and Mercedes, where he famously formed a contented and ruthlessly effective partnership with lead driver Juan Manuel Fangio.

In his 10-year-long stint at the tracks, Moss took 16 wins, some of which rank among the truly iconic drives in the sport's history - his 1961 victories in Monaco and Germany in particular often held up as all-time classics.

Moss won the 1955 Mille Miglia on public roads for Mercedes at an average speed of close to 100mph, while he also competed in rallies and land-speed attempts.

Following an enforced retirement from racing (barring a brief comeback in saloon cars in the 1980s) after a major crash at Goodwood in 1962, Moss maintained a presence in Formula 1 as both a sports correspondent and an interested observer, before retiring from public life in January of 2018.

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News Network
January 7,2020

Indore, Jan 7: With the first T20I being washed out, India and Sri Lanka will now hope that rain gods stay away from the Holkar Stadium when the two teams face each other in the second match of the ongoing three-game series on Tuesday.

Only toss could take place on Sunday at Guwahati`s Barsapara Cricket Ground before rain gods came in and left damp spots on the pitch thus forcing the game to be called off without a ball being bowled.

Hairdryers were used to dry the pitch after water seeped in through leaking covers at the Barsapara Stadium, a sight which is not usually seen in international cricket. And that hasn`t gone down well with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) which now awaits chief curator Ashish Bhowmick`s report on the same.

The Men in Blue, who enjoyed a brief break, are coming into the series on the back of T20I series victories against Bangladesh and West Indies respectively and thus would be the more confident side out of the two.

Just like Guwahati, the team management and other Indian cricket fans would focus on comeback man Jasprit Bumrah who is making his return to international cricket. Bumrah has been out of action after India`s tour of the West Indies in July-August due to a stress fracture on his back and thus would be rearing to go and perform for the team.

Dhawan, like Bumrah, was not part of the West Indies series after he hurt his knee during the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. The left-handed opener was not at his absolute best in the T20I series against Bangladesh and faced criticism from several quarters.

While Bumrah will grab more eyeballs during the remaining two matches, the series is also important for left-handed opening batsman Shikhar Dhawan, making a comeback into the team post knee injury.

However, recently, he scored a century in the Ranji Trophy and showed glimpses of returning to form.

In the bowling department, the team management would be checking out how the likes Navdeep Saini and Shardul Thakur react to pressure situations in death overs alongside Bumrah in the absence of frontline speedsters Mohammed Shami Deepak Chahar and Bhuvneshwar Kumar.

Young-off spinner Washington Sundar would like to put up performances to ensure that he gets to be part of the squad travelling to Australia for the World T20 in October.

Shivam Dube would also like to perform better - both with bat and ball - till Hardik Pandya is fully fit and back in action.

Wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant - like recent times - will once again be watched with careful eyes. Pant knows that he cannot take things lightly and need to perform as Sanju Samson as already warmed the benches for six straight T20Is.

For Sri Lanka, the remaining two matches of the series would be about giving match practice to the likes of Angelo Mathews who is returning to the national side having last played a T20I against South Africa in August 2018

In their last T20I series, Sri Lanka suffered a 0-3 rout in Australia as all their three departments failed to put in a commanding performance.

India and Sri Lanka have faced each other in 17 T20Is, out of which India have won 11 -- joint most for them against all opponents faced in shortest format.

With the three-match series now effectively turning into a two-game affair, both India and Sri Lanka would want to win in Indore to make sure they can`t lose the series. Also, Sri Lanka have never beaten India in a bilateral T20I series, a record which they would desperately like to change in the remaining two games.

Squads:

India: Virat Kohli (c), Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Shivam Dube, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Navdeep Saini, Shardul Thakur, Manish Pandey, Washington Sundar, Sanju Samson.

Sri Lanka: Lasith Malinga (c), Dhanushka Gunathilaka, Avishka Fernando, Angelo Mathews, Dasun Shanaka, Kusal Perera, Niroshan Dickwella, Dhananjaya De Silva, Isuru Udana, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Oshada Fernando, Wanindu Hasaranga, Lahiru Kumara, Kusal Mendis, Lakshan Sandakan, Kasun Rajitha.

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