All-rounder Shane Watson, who is racing against time to get fit for the Test series against India, is the highest earning Australian cricketer ahead of captain Michael Clarke and Ricky Pointing.
The Business Review Weekly magazine reported that Australian cricket might be at its all-time low in nearly 30 years but cricketers are getting richer more than ever before. The number of cricketers in the Business Review Weekly annual list have doubled from five to 10 this year.
Watson is the highest ranked cricketer in 11th spot, with a $4 million annual contract with Cricket Australia (CA) and an additional $1.8 million deal with the Indian Premier League (IPL) team Rajasthan Royals.
Skipper Clarke and his predecessor Ricky Ponting are equal 16th on the rich list, each earning $3.5 million a year though they don’t have a contract with an IPL team.
The list of top-50 highest earning sportspersons is headed by basketball star Andrew Bogut, who earns $13 million a year. Bogut becomes the first basketballer to top the list.
Last year’s top earner, Formula One driver Mark Webber fell to the third spot despite a strong season in which he finished third overall behind Red Bull team-mate Sebastian Vettel with two Grand Prix victories.
The top-five is dominated by motorpsorts. Ahead of Webber ($9 million) in the second place is MotoGP World Champion Casey Stoner ($9.5 million) while motocross star Chad Reed ($8.5 million) is fourth.
Cyclist Cadel Evans with a historic Tour de France victory broke into the top five with $5 million in earnings.
Socceroos star Tim Cahill with an earning $4.5 million was the highest-ranked footballer at the No.9 spoot.
Saturday, 31 December 2011
We Are Tentative Starters: Dhoni
India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni conceded they are “tentative starters” on a tour and praised the Australian bowlers after their 122-run loss in first Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) here Thursday.
“Bowlers brought us back in to the game but we couldn’t bat well. We were short by 50-odd runs in the first innings. The main difference was their lower order scored some runs in both the innings. If we had got them earlier, we would have had 50-60 runs less to chase,” Dhoni said after the match.
India, chasing a 292-run target, were bowled out for 169 in the second innings on the fourth day of the Boxing Day Test for their eighth defeat on the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).
India let Australia make 240 in their second innings from the overnight total of 179 for eight with veteran Michael Hussey scoring a gritty 89 on a difficult wicket.
India had let the hosts off the hook even in their first innings where they managed 333 after being reduced to 214 for six. The bowlers got India back into the match by delivering in both the innings but the fame batting line-up failed to live up to the expectations.
Dhoni said he was not worried by the failure of an experienced line-up and expressed confidence on bouncing back in the second Test in Sydney starting January 3.
“We are known to be tentative starters, I think in the next game we will be better.”
The skipper also praised the Australian bowlers for their match-winning effort.
“You have to give credit to the Australia bowlers for the way they bowled. They kept a nagging line and bowled in the right areas,” he added.
“Bowlers brought us back in to the game but we couldn’t bat well. We were short by 50-odd runs in the first innings. The main difference was their lower order scored some runs in both the innings. If we had got them earlier, we would have had 50-60 runs less to chase,” Dhoni said after the match.
India, chasing a 292-run target, were bowled out for 169 in the second innings on the fourth day of the Boxing Day Test for their eighth defeat on the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).
India let Australia make 240 in their second innings from the overnight total of 179 for eight with veteran Michael Hussey scoring a gritty 89 on a difficult wicket.
India had let the hosts off the hook even in their first innings where they managed 333 after being reduced to 214 for six. The bowlers got India back into the match by delivering in both the innings but the fame batting line-up failed to live up to the expectations.
Dhoni said he was not worried by the failure of an experienced line-up and expressed confidence on bouncing back in the second Test in Sydney starting January 3.
“We are known to be tentative starters, I think in the next game we will be better.”
The skipper also praised the Australian bowlers for their match-winning effort.
“You have to give credit to the Australia bowlers for the way they bowled. They kept a nagging line and bowled in the right areas,” he added.
Ind Vs Aus Test 1 Day 4 : Australia Beat India By 122 Runs
Australia beat India by 122 runs in the first cricket Test with a day to spare and took a 1-0 lead in the four-match series at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) here Thursday.
India were bowled out for 169 in the second innings while chasing 292 to win. Australia were bowled out for 240 in the second innings earlier in the day. Australia had made 333 in the first innings and bowled out India for 282.
Earlier in the day, a crucial last-wicket stand of 43 runs between James Pattinson (37 not out) and Hilfenhaus (14) took Australia to a comfortable 240 runs for an overall lead of 291 runs. Australia made 333 in the first innings and bowled out India for 282.
India were bowled out for 169 in the second innings while chasing 292 to win. Australia were bowled out for 240 in the second innings earlier in the day. Australia had made 333 in the first innings and bowled out India for 282.
Earlier in the day, a crucial last-wicket stand of 43 runs between James Pattinson (37 not out) and Hilfenhaus (14) took Australia to a comfortable 240 runs for an overall lead of 291 runs. Australia made 333 in the first innings and bowled out India for 282.
Monday, 26 December 2011
Saturday, 24 December 2011
Australia Series A Different Ball Game: Gambhir
While expressing happiness over India’s 4-1 series win against the West Indies here on Sunday, stand-in captain Gautam Gambhir cautioned that the forthcoming tour of Australia would be a “different ball game” that will put to test both the technique and mental toughness of the players.
“It always helps to get runs under your belt, but in Australia, those are different conditions. We all know this is not what we are going to get in Australia. The Australians are tough nuts to crack and will come hard at us,” he said at a post-match media interaction here after India beat the West Indies in the fifth and concluding game.
“In Australia, your mental toughness will be tested the maximum. You will be getting a quality attack and they will be coming hard at you. I think one good thing is the guys that have gone early (to Australia) will be able to acclimatise (to the conditions). And we’re playing two practice games this time,” he said.
Gambhir also sought to play down his captaincy record of six wins out of six by saying that he was only as good as the teams he had.
“I’ll stick to the saying that the captain is as good as his team. One captain can’t win you the game; it is still 11 people on the park. I am lucky to have such teammates, during the series against New Zealand, I was lucky to have Yuvraj Singh. Today the team-mates stood up and delivered,” he asserted.
“It always helps to get runs under your belt, but in Australia, those are different conditions. We all know this is not what we are going to get in Australia. The Australians are tough nuts to crack and will come hard at us,” he said at a post-match media interaction here after India beat the West Indies in the fifth and concluding game.
“In Australia, your mental toughness will be tested the maximum. You will be getting a quality attack and they will be coming hard at you. I think one good thing is the guys that have gone early (to Australia) will be able to acclimatise (to the conditions). And we’re playing two practice games this time,” he said.
Gambhir also sought to play down his captaincy record of six wins out of six by saying that he was only as good as the teams he had.
“I’ll stick to the saying that the captain is as good as his team. One captain can’t win you the game; it is still 11 people on the park. I am lucky to have such teammates, during the series against New Zealand, I was lucky to have Yuvraj Singh. Today the team-mates stood up and delivered,” he asserted.
Bowling Will Be India’s Weak Link: Shane Warne
Australia’s spin legend Shane Warne feels that bowling will be India’s weak link in the four-Test series starting in Melbourne on Boxing Day.
Warne said injuries to frontline pacers Zaheer Khan and Ishant Sharma will doom India.
“England just beat them four-nil. They have got some wonderful batting and all that sort of stuff but I think their bowling is a bit weak,” Warne was quoted as saying by Herald Sun.
“And if Zaheer Khan or Ishant Sharma goes down with injury then it should be a good time for the Australian batters,” he said.
Warne said the packed international schedule was to blame for many injuries.
“The bottom line is that they have to play too much cricket – there is too much expected of an international cricketer. And we are playing two Test series to cram everything in. It is ridiculous. To me that is not right. Let the players recover, so they can be the best players they can be,” he said.
Warne said injuries to frontline pacers Zaheer Khan and Ishant Sharma will doom India.
“England just beat them four-nil. They have got some wonderful batting and all that sort of stuff but I think their bowling is a bit weak,” Warne was quoted as saying by Herald Sun.
“And if Zaheer Khan or Ishant Sharma goes down with injury then it should be a good time for the Australian batters,” he said.
Warne said the packed international schedule was to blame for many injuries.
“The bottom line is that they have to play too much cricket – there is too much expected of an international cricketer. And we are playing two Test series to cram everything in. It is ridiculous. To me that is not right. Let the players recover, so they can be the best players they can be,” he said.
‘Tendulkar Greater Than bradman’
India’s batting great Sachin Tendulkar and not Australian legend Don Bradman is the greatest Test batsman who ever lived, a Gold Coast academic says.
Griffith University researcher Nicholas Rohde said he can prove with statistics that Tendulkar is the greatest. Rohde, however, admitted that if he could go back in time, he would prefer to watch Bradman every time.
Rohde said that by applying economic principles to batting performance, he has been able to rank players back through time.
“People are welcome to disagree and there would be other statistical ways of looking at it which would give you different results,” The Daily Telegraph quoted Rohde as saying.
Rohde said his obsession with cricket led him to the idea of coming up with a ranking system, even if it did mean trying to marry sport with economics.
“I don’t see it as entirely trivial, but it isn’t an indisputable result either; it’s somewhere in the middle. My feeling is that devotion to Don Bradman probably robbed India of a national icon a little bit. And if you wanted my personal opinion on who was the better of the two, Bradman or Tendulkar, I would say that it was perhaps too close to call,” he said.
As a part of his calculation, Rohde took the total number of runs a batsman has scored in his entire career, and subtracted the number of runs that an average player of the same era would have scored if they’d played the same number of innings. He constantly updates the figures and calculates new ranking tables.
“Bradman has been number one until recently, but Tendulkar for the time being is just a little tiny bit ahead. No ranking system is definitive and people are always free to disagree, although I do feel it’s a fairly sensible and intuitive way to rank the players,” he said.
Griffith University researcher Nicholas Rohde said he can prove with statistics that Tendulkar is the greatest. Rohde, however, admitted that if he could go back in time, he would prefer to watch Bradman every time.
Rohde said that by applying economic principles to batting performance, he has been able to rank players back through time.
“People are welcome to disagree and there would be other statistical ways of looking at it which would give you different results,” The Daily Telegraph quoted Rohde as saying.
Rohde said his obsession with cricket led him to the idea of coming up with a ranking system, even if it did mean trying to marry sport with economics.
“I don’t see it as entirely trivial, but it isn’t an indisputable result either; it’s somewhere in the middle. My feeling is that devotion to Don Bradman probably robbed India of a national icon a little bit. And if you wanted my personal opinion on who was the better of the two, Bradman or Tendulkar, I would say that it was perhaps too close to call,” he said.
As a part of his calculation, Rohde took the total number of runs a batsman has scored in his entire career, and subtracted the number of runs that an average player of the same era would have scored if they’d played the same number of innings. He constantly updates the figures and calculates new ranking tables.
“Bradman has been number one until recently, but Tendulkar for the time being is just a little tiny bit ahead. No ranking system is definitive and people are always free to disagree, although I do feel it’s a fairly sensible and intuitive way to rank the players,” he said.
Simmons Promoted As Head Coach Of Delhi Daredevils
India’s bowling coach Eric Simmons will take over as the head coach of Delhi Daredevils ahead of the fifth season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) in April-May 2012.
The South African, who takes over from Australian Greg Shipperd, was earlier a bowling and assistant coach with the team. Former India fast bowler T.A. Sekar also returns to Daredevils as its mentor after a two-year stint with Mumbai Indians as team manager. Daredevils finished last in IPL-4.
GMR Sports’ business chairman Kiran K. Grandhi welcomed Simon’s elevation and Sekar’s return.
“I am sure that Simons’ taking over as Head Coach and Sekar’s return as Mentor will help the team overcome the disappointments of last season and become most competitive again,” Grandhi said.
Daredevils captain Virender Sehwag said it would be exciting working with Simons.
“Eric has done a good job as bowling coach and now he can do that as head coach. I have a very good relationship with Eric. He has given me some good suggestions and he is a man with has a lot of experience in cricket and in life. I think our partnership will work well for the team,” Sehwag said.
“Eric can make a difference as has been with the team for a couple of years as bowling coach. If someone else had come, he would have to start from the scratch. It is good Eric has taken over and I am hoping he will do a good job. He has spent nearly four years working in India and has worked with a lot of Indian and foreign boys. He has been working with Umesh Yadav and Varun Aaron and they are our biggest assets in Delhi Daredevils,” Sehwag added.
Simons, who is currently in Melbourne with the Indian team, said it is an honour to be promoted as the head coach.
“It is an honour and a wonderful challenge going into the new season. The IPL is a dynamic and exciting place for any cricketer to be involved in at the moment. To have the trust and confidence shown in me as coach is something I am grateful for. It is committed united of owners, management and players,” he said.
The South African, who takes over from Australian Greg Shipperd, was earlier a bowling and assistant coach with the team. Former India fast bowler T.A. Sekar also returns to Daredevils as its mentor after a two-year stint with Mumbai Indians as team manager. Daredevils finished last in IPL-4.
GMR Sports’ business chairman Kiran K. Grandhi welcomed Simon’s elevation and Sekar’s return.
“I am sure that Simons’ taking over as Head Coach and Sekar’s return as Mentor will help the team overcome the disappointments of last season and become most competitive again,” Grandhi said.
Daredevils captain Virender Sehwag said it would be exciting working with Simons.
“Eric has done a good job as bowling coach and now he can do that as head coach. I have a very good relationship with Eric. He has given me some good suggestions and he is a man with has a lot of experience in cricket and in life. I think our partnership will work well for the team,” Sehwag said.
“Eric can make a difference as has been with the team for a couple of years as bowling coach. If someone else had come, he would have to start from the scratch. It is good Eric has taken over and I am hoping he will do a good job. He has spent nearly four years working in India and has worked with a lot of Indian and foreign boys. He has been working with Umesh Yadav and Varun Aaron and they are our biggest assets in Delhi Daredevils,” Sehwag added.
Simons, who is currently in Melbourne with the Indian team, said it is an honour to be promoted as the head coach.
“It is an honour and a wonderful challenge going into the new season. The IPL is a dynamic and exciting place for any cricketer to be involved in at the moment. To have the trust and confidence shown in me as coach is something I am grateful for. It is committed united of owners, management and players,” he said.
Thursday, 22 December 2011
Wednesday, 21 December 2011
Saturday, 17 December 2011
Monday, 12 December 2011
Dhoni, Kohli Among Top-10 Odi Batsmen In Icc Rankings
Pakistani spinners Saeed Ajmal and Mohammed Hafeez dominate the ODI rankings while Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Virat Kohli are the only two Indian batsmen in the top-10 in the latest International Cricket Council (ICC) rankings released here Wednesday.
India captain Dhoni dropped one place to the fourth place and is now sharing the place with Kohli, who moved up one place. Rohit Sharma, who has hit three consecutive half-centuries against the West Indies, moved up 21 places to 35th but Gautam Gambhir lost seven places in the latest rankings to 19th position and is now level with South Africa’s JP Duminy.
The 31-year-old Hafeez climbed up six places in the bowlers rankings after a strong performance in the recent three-match series in Bangladesh. He now sits just 19 ratings points behind team-mate Ajmal, who heads the list.
Among the bowlers, Hafeez took six wickets in the series at an average of just 8.16 and an economy-rate of less than two runs per over making him the pick of an impressive bunch. Ajmal did enough to stay on the top of the world rankings with series figures of 4-52.
There were also gains for Umar Gul, who rose three places to 26th position, and Shoaib Malik, who gained 35 places to 82nd in the world.
Hafeez’s bowling, coupled with some good support with the bat down the order, has earned him one place on the Reliance ICC Player Rankings for ODI all-rounders and he now occupies the second position, having overtaken Australia’s Shane Watson. He is just 13 ratings points behind leader Shakib Al Hasan of Bangladesh.
Despite losing the series 0-3, Shakib was his usual competitive self and his series figures of 4-90 earned him three places on the bowling rankings as he moves to seventh overall.
For India, R Ashwin has broken into the top 20 of the bowling charts for the first time in his career. With two matches remaining in the ongoing series with the West Indies, the 25-year-old from Chennai has gained three places and moves up to 18th position in the rankings.
There is also good progress for Ravi Rampaul in the bowling rankings (up one place to 13th), while in the batting list those moving up include Lendl Simmons (up five spots to 25th), Darren Bravo (up 15 to 54th) and Andre Russell (up 34 to 76th).
ICC One-Day Rankings –
Batsmen:
1. Hashim Amla (South Africa) 845 rating points
2. AB de Villiers (South Africa) 792
3. Jonathan Trott (England) 778
4. Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Virat Kohli (both India) 766
6. Shane Watson (Australia) 759
7. Kumar Sangakkara (Sri Lanka) 752
8. Mike Hussey (Australia) 741
9. Michael Clarke (Australia) 717
10.Umar Akmal (Pakistan) 704
Bowlers:
1. Saeed Ajmal (Pakistan) 737
2. Mohammed Hafeez (Pakistan) 718
3. Daniel Vettori (New Zealand) 691
4. Graeme Swann (England) 689
5. Mitchell Johnson (Australia) 688
6. Morne Morkel (South Africa)2011
7. Shakib Al Hasan (Bangladesh) 662
8. Doug Bollinger (Australia) 660
9. Shahid Afridi (Pakistan) and Dale Steyn (South Africa) 644
All-rounders
1. Shakib Al Hasan (Bangladesh) 420
2. Mohammed Hafeez (Pakistan) 407
3. Shane Watson (Australia) 405
4. Shahid Afridi (Pakistan) 370
5. Jacques Kallis (South Africa) 352
India captain Dhoni dropped one place to the fourth place and is now sharing the place with Kohli, who moved up one place. Rohit Sharma, who has hit three consecutive half-centuries against the West Indies, moved up 21 places to 35th but Gautam Gambhir lost seven places in the latest rankings to 19th position and is now level with South Africa’s JP Duminy.
The 31-year-old Hafeez climbed up six places in the bowlers rankings after a strong performance in the recent three-match series in Bangladesh. He now sits just 19 ratings points behind team-mate Ajmal, who heads the list.
Among the bowlers, Hafeez took six wickets in the series at an average of just 8.16 and an economy-rate of less than two runs per over making him the pick of an impressive bunch. Ajmal did enough to stay on the top of the world rankings with series figures of 4-52.
There were also gains for Umar Gul, who rose three places to 26th position, and Shoaib Malik, who gained 35 places to 82nd in the world.
Hafeez’s bowling, coupled with some good support with the bat down the order, has earned him one place on the Reliance ICC Player Rankings for ODI all-rounders and he now occupies the second position, having overtaken Australia’s Shane Watson. He is just 13 ratings points behind leader Shakib Al Hasan of Bangladesh.
Despite losing the series 0-3, Shakib was his usual competitive self and his series figures of 4-90 earned him three places on the bowling rankings as he moves to seventh overall.
For India, R Ashwin has broken into the top 20 of the bowling charts for the first time in his career. With two matches remaining in the ongoing series with the West Indies, the 25-year-old from Chennai has gained three places and moves up to 18th position in the rankings.
There is also good progress for Ravi Rampaul in the bowling rankings (up one place to 13th), while in the batting list those moving up include Lendl Simmons (up five spots to 25th), Darren Bravo (up 15 to 54th) and Andre Russell (up 34 to 76th).
ICC One-Day Rankings –
Batsmen:
1. Hashim Amla (South Africa) 845 rating points
2. AB de Villiers (South Africa) 792
3. Jonathan Trott (England) 778
4. Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Virat Kohli (both India) 766
6. Shane Watson (Australia) 759
7. Kumar Sangakkara (Sri Lanka) 752
8. Mike Hussey (Australia) 741
9. Michael Clarke (Australia) 717
10.Umar Akmal (Pakistan) 704
Bowlers:
1. Saeed Ajmal (Pakistan) 737
2. Mohammed Hafeez (Pakistan) 718
3. Daniel Vettori (New Zealand) 691
4. Graeme Swann (England) 689
5. Mitchell Johnson (Australia) 688
6. Morne Morkel (South Africa)2011
7. Shakib Al Hasan (Bangladesh) 662
8. Doug Bollinger (Australia) 660
9. Shahid Afridi (Pakistan) and Dale Steyn (South Africa) 644
All-rounders
1. Shakib Al Hasan (Bangladesh) 420
2. Mohammed Hafeez (Pakistan) 407
3. Shane Watson (Australia) 405
4. Shahid Afridi (Pakistan) 370
5. Jacques Kallis (South Africa) 352
India Will Miss Harbhajan In Australia: Gilchrist
Former Australian captain Adam Gilchrist feels that Harbhajan Singh will be missed by India during their tour Down Under as the feisty off-spinner can get under the skin of the champion team.
Harbhajan’s slump in form has paved the way for two young spinners Ravichandran Ashwin and Pragyan Ojha to be picked for the four-Test series against Australia.
“Bhajji is a great competitor, his fighting qualities are admirable, he is very much like an Australian that way. He will be missed. But a player has to be picked on performances,” Gilchrist told reporters when asked about the exclusion of the turbanator.
“Ashwin and Ojha have set very high standards,” he added.
India’s tour to Australia starts Dec 26 and with both teams fielding new faces in their bowling attack.
Gilchrist feels that the bowlers will play the key role in deciding the series.
“It is a series that’s quite difficult to predict. Both teams are equal, the batting of both the teams are the strong points, while injury has plagued both the bowling line-ups.”
“Whichever bowling line-up settles down first that team will have the upper hand,” Gilchrist said on the sidelines of a promotional campaign on behalf of University of Wollongong in New South Wales.
India will be taking an inexperienced bowling attack, with the likes of Varun Aaron, Umesh Yadav and Abhimanyu Mithun, all touring Australia for the first time.
Australia, on the other hand, are having an injury crisis with Ryan Harris, Mitchell Johnson, Pat Cummins and Shane Watson currently side-lined.
Gilchrist felt that India-Australia contests are of high intensity and among the best sporting rivalries in the world.
“The rivalry between India-Australia is terrific. I was a part of the 2001 series and it was one of the best series ever.”
“Any series India play is an interesting one, the Indian people are very passionate about he sport. I love coming to India it’s a fascinating country.”
“I continue to come stay here 2-3 months every year with the IPL and other things,” he said.
Harbhajan’s slump in form has paved the way for two young spinners Ravichandran Ashwin and Pragyan Ojha to be picked for the four-Test series against Australia.
“Bhajji is a great competitor, his fighting qualities are admirable, he is very much like an Australian that way. He will be missed. But a player has to be picked on performances,” Gilchrist told reporters when asked about the exclusion of the turbanator.
“Ashwin and Ojha have set very high standards,” he added.
India’s tour to Australia starts Dec 26 and with both teams fielding new faces in their bowling attack.
Gilchrist feels that the bowlers will play the key role in deciding the series.
“It is a series that’s quite difficult to predict. Both teams are equal, the batting of both the teams are the strong points, while injury has plagued both the bowling line-ups.”
“Whichever bowling line-up settles down first that team will have the upper hand,” Gilchrist said on the sidelines of a promotional campaign on behalf of University of Wollongong in New South Wales.
India will be taking an inexperienced bowling attack, with the likes of Varun Aaron, Umesh Yadav and Abhimanyu Mithun, all touring Australia for the first time.
Australia, on the other hand, are having an injury crisis with Ryan Harris, Mitchell Johnson, Pat Cummins and Shane Watson currently side-lined.
Gilchrist felt that India-Australia contests are of high intensity and among the best sporting rivalries in the world.
“The rivalry between India-Australia is terrific. I was a part of the 2001 series and it was one of the best series ever.”
“Any series India play is an interesting one, the Indian people are very passionate about he sport. I love coming to India it’s a fascinating country.”
“I continue to come stay here 2-3 months every year with the IPL and other things,” he said.
Australia Series A Different Ball Game: Gambhir
While expressing happiness over India’s 4-1 series win against the West Indies here on Sunday, stand-in captain Gautam Gambhir cautioned that the forthcoming tour of Australia would be a “different ball game” that will put to test both the technique and mental toughness of the players.
“It always helps to get runs under your belt, but in Australia, those are different conditions. We all know this is not what we are going to get in Australia. The Australians are tough nuts to crack and will come hard at us,” he said at a post-match media interaction here after India beat the West Indies in the fifth and concluding game.
“In Australia, your mental toughness will be tested the maximum. You will be getting a quality attack and they will be coming hard at you. I think one good thing is the guys that have gone early (to Australia) will be able to acclimatise (to the conditions). And we’re playing two practice games this time,” he said.
Gambhir also sought to play down his captaincy record of six wins out of six by saying that he was only as good as the teams he had.
“I’ll stick to the saying that the captain is as good as his team. One captain can’t win you the game; it is still 11 people on the park. I am lucky to have such teammates, during the series against New Zealand, I was lucky to have Yuvraj Singh. Today the team-mates stood up and delivered,” he asserted.
“It always helps to get runs under your belt, but in Australia, those are different conditions. We all know this is not what we are going to get in Australia. The Australians are tough nuts to crack and will come hard at us,” he said at a post-match media interaction here after India beat the West Indies in the fifth and concluding game.
“In Australia, your mental toughness will be tested the maximum. You will be getting a quality attack and they will be coming hard at you. I think one good thing is the guys that have gone early (to Australia) will be able to acclimatise (to the conditions). And we’re playing two practice games this time,” he said.
Gambhir also sought to play down his captaincy record of six wins out of six by saying that he was only as good as the teams he had.
“I’ll stick to the saying that the captain is as good as his team. One captain can’t win you the game; it is still 11 people on the park. I am lucky to have such teammates, during the series against New Zealand, I was lucky to have Yuvraj Singh. Today the team-mates stood up and delivered,” he asserted.
No Killer Instinct: Kieron Pollard
Kieron Pollard was all but inconsolable after his maiden One-day century went in vain as the West Indies went down to India by 34 runs here on Sunday. He was to admit later that the recent teams from Caribbean lacked the “killer instinct” to finish a match.
“We had a chance in the first couple of games. It’s just the mental aspect or killer instinct. Past West Indian sides had it, then the Aussies had it and now India is doing really well. Hopefully, we will be better equipped mentally to handle close finishes in future,” he said at a post-match media conference here.
Pollard, the last man out as West Indies unsuccessfully chased a target of 268, sat on his haunches at the wicket for a while as the Indian players tried to console him. His explosive 119 that contained as many as 10 sixes, proved a futile exercise.
However, prior to his dismissal, Pollard celebrated his first international century that he nearly missed but for Virat Kohli dropping a sitter, and he hoped that he would be more consistent in future.
“I hope so (be consistent). Thank God I got my maiden hundred. I wanted the team to win, but didn’t happen today. I just have to go back and reflect on what went wrong.
“The first couple of games were really close. Hopefully, we will take a couple of months off international cricket and reflect and come back strong for Australia,” he said.
On his scoring the century, Pollard said: “I was looking for a different approach. I had a couple of starts in the earlier matches. Thank God that one of the best fielders in India (Kohli) dropped me on 99 tonight.
“I have to be positive. I have to look for singles, but when the ball is in your arc, go for it. Hopefully, I will learn from this and do well for West Indies cricket and for myself.”
Pollard obviously declined to comment on some of the umpiring decisions that went against the West Indies. “I don’t want to comment too much on that. At the end of the day, it is just cricket,” he said.
“We had a chance in the first couple of games. It’s just the mental aspect or killer instinct. Past West Indian sides had it, then the Aussies had it and now India is doing really well. Hopefully, we will be better equipped mentally to handle close finishes in future,” he said at a post-match media conference here.
Pollard, the last man out as West Indies unsuccessfully chased a target of 268, sat on his haunches at the wicket for a while as the Indian players tried to console him. His explosive 119 that contained as many as 10 sixes, proved a futile exercise.
However, prior to his dismissal, Pollard celebrated his first international century that he nearly missed but for Virat Kohli dropping a sitter, and he hoped that he would be more consistent in future.
“I hope so (be consistent). Thank God I got my maiden hundred. I wanted the team to win, but didn’t happen today. I just have to go back and reflect on what went wrong.
“The first couple of games were really close. Hopefully, we will take a couple of months off international cricket and reflect and come back strong for Australia,” he said.
On his scoring the century, Pollard said: “I was looking for a different approach. I had a couple of starts in the earlier matches. Thank God that one of the best fielders in India (Kohli) dropped me on 99 tonight.
“I have to be positive. I have to look for singles, but when the ball is in your arc, go for it. Hopefully, I will learn from this and do well for West Indies cricket and for myself.”
Pollard obviously declined to comment on some of the umpiring decisions that went against the West Indies. “I don’t want to comment too much on that. At the end of the day, it is just cricket,” he said.
Loss To New Zealand A Wake Up Call Before India Series: Clarke
Australia have plenty to think about ahead of the Boxing Day Test against India. They lost to New Zealand at home after 25 years Monday, prompting captain Michael Clarke to call for consistency in their performance ahead of the highly anticipated India series.
Australia collapsed to 233 all out from 159 for two while chasing a 241-run target in the second Test in Hobart, letting New Zealand level the two-match series.
Australia lost heavily to South Africa in the first Test of their away tour last month, though they managed to salvage pride by winning the second and levelling the series.
Clarke said they have to show consistency against top teams.
He said it was “painful” to see his team coming up with “very poor performances” after patches of “individual brilliance”.
“You have seen some really good patches of individual excellence, and as a team we have been playing really well in patches,” Clarke told reporters at the Bellerive Oval in Hobart.
“But then you are seeing the other side as well, where we are letting ourselves down by very poor performances. We can’t seem to find that middle road. We are inconsistent at the moment, which is a real pain,” said Clarke referring to his team being bowled out for 136 after wrapping New Zealand for 150 on the opening day. In the second innings, Australia fell short seven runs of the target while opener David Warner was left stranded on 123 not out, his maiden Test century.
Michael Clarke conceded that out of form Phillip Hughes needed to go back to domestic cricket to regain his touch. Hughes has scored 9, 9, 88, 11, 10, 7, 4 and 20 in his past eight Test innings.
“He is obviously really disappointed like all the batters are, the way we played today,” Clarke said. “But Hughesy is probably the most disappointed. He has been getting out the same way. I know he has been working hard in the nets trying to improve that deficiency in his technique and he will continue to work on that. But he needs to find some runs, it is as simple as that. If he is not making them for Australia he is going to have to go back and score some for New South Wales.”
Australia play four Tests against India, beginning Dec 26 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, and finishing in Adelaide Jan 28.
Australia collapsed to 233 all out from 159 for two while chasing a 241-run target in the second Test in Hobart, letting New Zealand level the two-match series.
Australia lost heavily to South Africa in the first Test of their away tour last month, though they managed to salvage pride by winning the second and levelling the series.
Clarke said they have to show consistency against top teams.
He said it was “painful” to see his team coming up with “very poor performances” after patches of “individual brilliance”.
“You have seen some really good patches of individual excellence, and as a team we have been playing really well in patches,” Clarke told reporters at the Bellerive Oval in Hobart.
“But then you are seeing the other side as well, where we are letting ourselves down by very poor performances. We can’t seem to find that middle road. We are inconsistent at the moment, which is a real pain,” said Clarke referring to his team being bowled out for 136 after wrapping New Zealand for 150 on the opening day. In the second innings, Australia fell short seven runs of the target while opener David Warner was left stranded on 123 not out, his maiden Test century.
Michael Clarke conceded that out of form Phillip Hughes needed to go back to domestic cricket to regain his touch. Hughes has scored 9, 9, 88, 11, 10, 7, 4 and 20 in his past eight Test innings.
“He is obviously really disappointed like all the batters are, the way we played today,” Clarke said. “But Hughesy is probably the most disappointed. He has been getting out the same way. I know he has been working hard in the nets trying to improve that deficiency in his technique and he will continue to work on that. But he needs to find some runs, it is as simple as that. If he is not making them for Australia he is going to have to go back and score some for New South Wales.”
Australia play four Tests against India, beginning Dec 26 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, and finishing in Adelaide Jan 28.
