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Afridi to lead Pak in ICC Champions Trophy opener

shantanu — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 14:49:44 +0000

Johannesburg: Flamboyant all-rounder Shahid Afridi will lead the Pakistan cricket team in their ICC Champions Trophy opener against the West Indies tomorrow as regular skipper Younus Khan has been ruled out due to a hand injury.

Younus, who suffered a hairline fracture in his right index finger during a warm-up match against Sri Lanka at Benoni three days back, is, however, likely to be fit for Pakistan’s second match against archrivals India on Saturday.

His unavailability for the match paves the way for vice-captain Afridi to take on the mantle of leading the One-day side for the first time in his career.

Meanwhile, Pakistan coach Intikhab Alam inisisted that the Younus’ injury is not very serious. “It’s a hairline fracture. However the injury is not serious. We hope he will be fit to play against India,” he said.

Younus did not play in the second warm-up match on Saturday due to the same injury.

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Ishant says he will depend more on bouncers

shantanu — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 12:48:28 +0000

Johannesburg: India’s pace spearhead Ishant Sharma today said he will rely more on bouncers in the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy as it could prove to be an effective weapon in the seaming tracks here. The lanky Delhi speedster also made it clear that he had no plans to drop a yard in speed to regain his form during the tournament beginning September 22.

“This issue of drop in pace depends on conditions. In Australia you could be quick in air while in sub-continental conditions it’s different. I am essentially a fast bowler and I don’t ever want to be a medium-fast bowler,” Ishant said.

“All through these years I didn’t think bowling bouncers was necessary to me. But now I am realising with my pace it can make a difference. I am now practicing bowling bouncers,” he said.

Ishant had a not-so impressive outing in the recently-concluded tri-nation Compaq Cup in Sri Lanka which India won and the 21-year-old bowler blamed the scheduling of the event for his poor performance, saying it was tough on a pacer’s part to play three games in a span of four days in hot and humid conditions.

“I was off my line in the final but then you have to consider the conditions,” he said.

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Indian Cricketer Virendra Sehwag (VIRU) Interview

shantanu — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 15:05:23 +0000

“If you know your ability and have even a little bit of a strong mindset, you can get success, because your ability takes you to success. Then things like technique, hard work and practice come automatically, because when you get success you want more”

“I have never changed my thinking, I have never changed my batting style”

“In Adelaide I told Tendulkar that I was absolutely tired. The reason was I was concentrating from both ends: not only when I was taking strike, but I was also thinking how I would face the ball when I was the non-striker. That was the first time something like that happened. Even during my two triple-centuries I was physically tired but not mentally”

“If somebody is constantly bowling outswingers or outside off, even if he is bowling on length, for me it is boring cricket”

“Tendulkar told me he would hit me on the bum if I hit sixes. At 295 [in Multan, 2004] I told him I was hitting Saqlain for a six and that he could hit me on the bum if he wanted”

“I have asked Tendulkar many times what the zone is. He tells me that’s when ‘I see nothing except the ball’. I have asked Rahul Dravid the same thing. He says sometimes when he is in really good form, he sees the ball and not even the sightscreen, the non-striker, the umpire or who is bowling. I ask how that is possible. I have never entered that zone”

“If Kirsten thinks something is wrong in your batting he comes and tells you that he has noticed over a couple of months you’ve changed something in your batting”

“In my view if you have good or bad technique it doesn’t matter. But you will survive if you can adjust your game at international level, you are mentally strong, you know your strengths and how to score runs”

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‘This is Sachin’s new house’

shantanu — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 14:22:27 +0000

Says an email with pictures of a strange shell-like home. Unfortunately for voyeurs, it’s a fake mail

The email reads: ‘This is Sachin Tendulkar’s new house in Bandra-Mumbai-India. The architect is Javier Senosiain’.

It has an attachment of eight photographs showing a bizarre house patterned after a snail. While some of the pictures show the exterior of the house, the others are shots of a bedroom, bathroom, lounge and kitchen.

Unfortunately for voyeurs, the email is a fake, but so widespread is its reach, that it now has a title: The Shell-House Scam and blogs on the Internet. Yet, the house actually exists in Mexico city.

As does the architect Javier Senosiain, who features in the email. Senosiain’s staff in Mexico City was shocked and bewildered when told about the emails.

Adriana Navarro, his assistant, replied to email queries stating categorically that, “Senosiain does not have any work in India.

We do not know Sachin Tendulkar. The work is that of a shell we call Nautilus House, and is here in Mexico.” Navarro added, “This particular house was designed for a Mexican family and is in Mexico City.

Sachin Tendulkar is not the owner of this house. Javier Senosiain does not know anything about cricket and has never been to India, even for a visit.”

Sachin’s wife Anjali Tendulkar refused to comment on the matter.

Sach, He’s Moving

Sachin Tendulkar bought a villa at Bandra (W) recently. He is to shift there, leaving his current residence in La Mer building in Bandra (W). Aishwarya Rai lived in La Mer before she married to Abhishek Bachchan. Adman Prahlad Kakar also lives in
La Mer.

Around the World

Professor Nandini Sardesai, wife of the late cricketer Dilip Sardesai, too received the email of the shell house scam.

She said, “A Canada-based friend sent it to me so you can imagine it has gone around the globe. I did not know what to make of it. The house looked strange but interesting.”

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Ponting warns England that there is more to come from his blade

shantanu — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 15:34:42 +0000

Nottingham (UK), Sep.17 (ANI): Having retired from Twenty20 cricket and opting to concentrate his energy and skills on the longer versions of the game, Australian skipper Ricky Ponting has warned England and other international sides that he can expect telling scores from his long blade.

Speaking on the eve of the sixth one-day international against England to be played here, Ponting said: “My decision to retire from international Twenty20 was to give me the best chance of playing both 50-over cricket and Test match cricket a little bit better, just to free up a couple of extra weeks in the calendar, to get that break, to come back and feel fresh and play better.”

“So I guess looking back at it it’s worked quite well so far, although the proof will be in the pudding in the next couple of years. Looking at the next 12 months there’s a chance that when I don’t play Twenty20 internationals that I’ll probably get another four weeks off. Some of the guys in our change room right now would like to have four weeks off in the calendar, trust me,” the Sydney Morning Herald quoted him, as saying. (ANI)

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