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Sachin smashes 150 as India cross 500
2008-01-04 08:44:00
Harbhajan?s invaluable innings came to an end when he pushed at one from Mitchell Johnson. The ball took the outside edge which flew to gully where Michael Hussey made no mistake. Harbhajan made 63 and his innings was critical in India ?s effort to go past the Aussie total. India were at 474/8 when he was dismissed.There was almost a sense of deja vu at the Sydney Cricket Ground for India. Two test matches, two centuries and the same ground. Sachin Tendulkar joined VVS Laxman in the centurions? list as he notched up his 38th career ton, 8th against Australia and 5th in Australia. India, who slumped at one stage after lunch, losing two quick wickets, recovered from that position to end at 424/7 at tea.Tendulkar brought up his hundred when he played a drive off the backfoot through cover and ran hard for a couple. It was a special moment for a man who suffered from ninetyitis in 2007 and his celebrations showed it all. This was his third hundred at the SCG and a very special effort to ...
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Sachin brings up No. 38, India inch closer
2008-01-04 08:41:00
There was almost a sense of deja vu at the Sydney Cricket Ground for India . Two test matches, two centurious and the same ground. Sachin Tendulkar joined VVS Laxman in the centurions? list as he notched up his 38th career ton, 8th against Australia and 5th in Australia. India, who slumped at one stage after lunch, losing two quick wickets, recovered from that position to end at 424/7 at tea.Tendulkar brought up his hundred when he played a drive off the backfoot through cover and ran hard for a couple. It was a special moment for a man who suffered from ninetyitis in 2007 and his celebrations showed it all. This was his third hundred at the SCG and a very special effort to give his team a good chance in the game. His innings was all about class and control. He played superbly with Harbhajan and one good thing about the partnership was that Sachin showed a lot of confidence in his partner, who is known to be a flash in the pan as far as batting is concerned. The duo have so far added...
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Ganguly's 239 is highest by an Indian left-hander
2007-12-12 10:42:00
Sourav Ganguly's flamboyant 239 in the first innings against Pakistan in the third Test here Sunday is the highest score by an Indian left-handed batsman.He is the second Indian left-hander after Vinod Kambli to register a double hundred in Test cricket. The top three innings by Indian left-handers in Tests are:Runs Batsman Opponents Venue Series239 Sourav Ganguly Pakistan Bangalore 2007-08227 Vinod Kambli Zimbabwe Delhi 1992-93224 Vinod Kambli England Mumbai 1992-93Other statistical highlights of the day are as follows:# India (626) recorded the highest ever total at Chinnaswamy Stadium, obliterating Pakistan's 570 against India in March 2005.# India's previous highest at this venue was 541 for six wickets declared against Sri Lanka in 1993-94.# India's previous best against Pakistan at this venue was 449 in March 2005.# Ganguly (239 off 361 balls) posted his career-best score in Tests - his first ever double century, obliterating his 173 off 361 balls against Sri Lanka at Wank...
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Twenty20 a real test: Clarke
2007-12-12 09:53:00
Stand-in Twenty20 skipper Michael Clar ke says Australia is determined to take a serious attitude into tonight?s clash against New Zealand at the WACA ground in Perth.Compared to their lofty standards in Test cricket and one-day internationals, the Australians have so far underperformed in the ultra-abbreviated form of the game.Clarke says the players will face the Black Caps with the same intensity they take into all forms of the game.?I think you?ll see Australia continue to take Twenty20 cricket as serious as one-day cricket and Test cricket,? he said.?I think it?s a form of the game that now stands alone.?That attitude comes in stark contrast to the relaxed approach taken into the Twenty20 World Cup earlier this year, in which Zimbabwe pulled off a shock early upset to topple the one-day world champions.Australia bowed out of the tournament in the semi-finals with a loss to eventual champions India.Meanwhile Clarke says a transition to the captaincy is by no means a certainty.He ...
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Get ready for another ICL
2007-12-12 09:53:00
ICL is here to stay. Buoyed by the success of Twenty20 games in Panchkula the Indian Cricket League is planning to host another tournament in March next.An agency conducting survey regarding the viewership of programmes being run on various TV channels found out huge interest generated by the ICL matches among cricket buffs. ?While the current Indo-Pak series got 2 rating points, the ICL matches got 1.8 rating points,? Essel Group?s executive vice-president, Ashish Kaul, revealed here.?The tournament will be held at the same venue (Tau Devi Lal Stadium at Panchkula) in March next and possibly one more in October,? Kaul revealed here.?The number of teams likely to participate the next time is likely to go up.? Kaul said adding that the focus, at the moment, was on the Tau Devi Lal stadium, where more facilities would be added to make it a better venue.?The ICL matches will reach there in the households in Europe, the USA, the Caribbean, South Africa, Sri Lanka and other countries,? s...
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BCCI banning ICL unfortunate, says Lara
2007-12-12 09:52:00
Panchkula : Brian Lara on Tuesday said that Indian Cricket League is an excellent platform for upcoming players and BCCI closing the door of national team for ICL players was unfortunate.?I feel this (restraining players) is unfortunate. Individuals must be given options and doors should not be closed on them. For any cricketer the ultimate dream is to represent ones country,? Lara said.?Many of those playing in ICL have been on national squads earlier. However, I am optimistic that this is just an aberration and the Boards will allow players the option to play for their country,? he said.Lara, captain of Mumbai Champs, one of the six teams featuring in ICL?s Twenty20 tournament, said youngsters have learnt a lot in the company of former international players.?The confidence and motivation of some of the Indian players playing in this tournament is something to watch for. It is great to see these players learn valuable things here and I am sure four or five years from now they will ...

India near cricket Test series win over Pakistan
2007-12-12 09:50:00
BANGALORE, India (AFP) ? Misbah-ul-Haq relished India?s attack with a second successive century to boost Pakistan ?s hopes of forcing a draw in the third and final Test here on Tuesday.The middle-order batsman followed his second-Test 161 with a brilliant 133 not out as Pakistan warded off a threat of follow-on to post 537 in their first innings in reply to India?s 626.India were strongly placed to clinch their first Test series against Pakistan at home since 1980 after reaching 131-2 in their second innings at stumps on the penultimate day for an overall lead of 220.The hosts lead 1-0 in the series, with the final Test heading for a draw.India lost openers Gautam Gambhir (three) and Wasim Jaffer (18) before former captains Sourav Ganguly (63 not out) and Rahul Dravid (35 not out) steadied the innings with an unfinished 105-run stand for the third wicket.Ganguly, who smashed a maiden Test double-hundred in the first innings, raced to his half-century off 57 balls with a six off leg-s...
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Kolkata Tigers beat Delhi Jets
2007-12-10 06:34:00
Craig Macmillan led from the front and blasted an unbeaten 31-ball blitzkrieg of 58 to guide Kolkata Tigers to a four-wicket win over Delhi Jets in the Indian Cricket League Twenty20 match in Panchkula on Saturday.The win also kept alive the Kolkata outfit?s hopes of making it to the semifinals.Though McMillan set the stadium alight with his splendid strokeplay ? hitting five fours and four sixes in his entertaining knock ? teammate Lance Klusener was adjudged Man of the Match for his 3-16 and run-a-ball 27.Chasing a target of 150, Macmillan and Klusener took charge when the chips were down with the team reeling at 62 for five.Requiring 52 runs in the last five overs, Macmillan snatched the match away from the Jets when he scored 24, including three sixes, of an Abbas Ali over. They weaved a partnership of 85 runs before Klusener got out at 27.In the end, the Tigers reached the target with seven balls to spare. They now have four points from three matches.Barring Deep Dasgupta (32),...
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Host Panchkula looks to score big with Indian Cricket League
2007-12-10 06:34:00
The New Delhi Jets coach watches his captain Marvan Atapattu, once a star for Sri Lanka, at the nets during the Indian Cricket League (ICL) tournament, an event and its players blacklisted by the sport?s governing body.The game isn?t the cause of amusement. Of all things, Malhotra?s thinking of real estate.?I?ve been told land prices around here have shot up 25%,? he says. ?People thought ICL would be a flop. It?s a stupendous success.?A top Panchkula government official can?t confirm the statistic, but proudly offers anecdotal evidence: The government rate for a 500 sq. yard plot is Rs35 lakh, while the market rate has soared to Rs1 crore.District commissioner Rajender Kataria says that ?one month ago, no one had heard of Panchkula?, whose population of 319,398 is merely three times a capacity crowd at Kolkata?s Eden Gardens stadium. ?Now, we are on the international map.?This young town, barely 18 years old and dwarfed by nearby Chandigarh, has pinned much of its future on the Zee...
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Players? representative body needed in India: Maddy
2007-12-10 06:33:00
Panchkula : Darren Maddy is ?Dazza? to friends. And here at the India n Cricket League, he has a lot of friends ? ?I am trying to pick up the local language?. Playing for the Kolkata Tigers, Maddy had a dream spell against the Chandigarh Lions (4 for 6) but he still feels the Twenty-20 format is loaded in batsman?s favour.The English player is also hopeful that the England and Wales Cricket Board would not banish him from playing at the ICL, and feels that a players body in India could have averted the situation the Indian ?rebels? are facing.Sportline spoke to him even as he was preparing for Kolkata Tigers? next match.* How do you feel playing such cricket outside of England, especially in India? What are your thoughts on the ICL and the pitch here at Panchkula that has been reworked for this championship.? Maddy: Oh, I am enjoying every bit of touring and playing my cricket in India. It has been five years since I last visited India. Although, one doesn?t find seaming pitches in ...
More About: Players , Body , Representative , Resent

Lack of star power may short-circuit the ICL
2007-12-10 06:32:00
If you?re a sports aficionado, a late-November game between the Lions and the Jets means a battle of attrition between two of American Football?s perennial strugglers. It?s not usually a match-up that you pencil into your calendar as a highlight of the sporting year, and there?s seldom much at stake other than professional pride.But last Friday, at an obscure stadium on the outskirts of one of north India?s smaller cities, the Lions of Chandigarh and the Delhi Jets fought out a twenty-over game that could have far-reaching ramifications as far as the game of cricket is concerned.There may have been only 6,000 people watching, but that represented a full house for the Tau Devi Lal Stadium, a far more modest venue than Ford Field or Giants Stadium.As is the case with their North American namesakes, there were few marquee names on view. The Lions were led by Chris Cairns, the New Zealander who flirted with greatness throughout an injury-interrupted career, and also included the South A...
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Test cricket gives me shivers: Yuvraj
2007-12-10 06:32:00
For Yuvraj Singh it was the one opportunity he couldn?t let go so easily. Regarded as India?s best batsman in the one-dayers and Twenty20 cricket, the left-hander has found it really hard to break into the Test team.So when he finally got his chance after nearly 18 months, he made sure he made the most of it. It was Pakistan once again who suffered at the hands of the elegant left-hander as he smashed a magnificent 169 in the third Test in Bangalore on Saturday.The 25-year-old later revealed that he was nervous at the start as he walked in to bat with India in trouble at 61 for 4.?I was very nervous when I went out, I have never been a confident starter in Test cricket because I haven?t played Test cricket,? said the left-hander.?Test cricket does give me the shivers. But I enjoyed the innings very much. I went out with positive thoughts. I have been batting well, and I told myself that I just needed to be confident and back myself,? Yuvraj added.When asked what calmed his nerves, h...
More About: Cricket , Test Cricket , Hive

Indian Twenty20 leagues war hots up
2007-12-10 06:30:00
AS REBEL Twenty20 Indian Cricket League tournament chairman Kapil Dev expressed his desire to sign Australia?s elite players, the Board of Control for Cricket in India is considering an ?amnesty? so the ICL?s international brigade can switch camps.The BCCI ?olive branch? approach to the likes of West Indian great Brian Lara, Australians Stuart Law and Ian Harvey, Kiwis Chris Cairns and Nathan Astle, former Pakistan skipper Inzamam-ul-Haq, South Africa?s Lance Klusener and Sri Lankans Russel Arnold and Marvan Atapattu is viewed as a strategy to derail the breakaway league.If the players accept the offer it will not only beef up the Indian Premier League?s ?star power? which includes Ricky Ponting, Adam Gilchrist, Michael Clarke, Brett Lee and Michael Hussey ? but also pave the way for them to win the mind-boggling revenue from the subcontinent?s lucrative pay-TV market.?We could allow the foreign players to play in the Indian Premier League if they terminate their contracts with ICL,...
More About: Hots , Leagues , Went

Srinath?s tips for openers in Australia
2007-12-07 06:53:00
Javagal Srinath, up there right at the top shelf when it comes to the fast bowling greats from India, sees reasons to worry when he looks ahead at India?s tour of Australia , and the men who must fight the best cricketers in the world, at their own terms and playing conditions.The injuries to the prime pace bowlers, the lack of depth in the talent pool, bothers him most. Then, the uncertainty over of the opening batting combination is worrisome. According to him, how you start in Australia will determine how you finish. He says that to do well in Australia, the openers need to have the right technique, patience ? and also the instinct to get the runs when they?re available. He says you can?t afford to be over-attacking and over-defensive.Srinath examines the case of the four openers in the list of 24 probables for Australia, though he says, firmly, that he won?t say who will be the three he would pick up if he were a selector: Wasim JafferHe looks a class apart, and he can adapt to d...
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Akhtar hopes wicket assists him
2007-12-07 06:50:00
Shoaib Malik, his left foot in a green cast, bears a rueful smile on his face ? the captain, who twisted his ankle after the loss of the first Test at Delhi, will have to miss the third Test.?Yes, it?s very disappointing, and I wish I?d been able to play,? says Malik, who?s been advised a five-day rest by a local orthopaedic. ?But sometimes, that?s how it goes, and no point in worrying over it now.?Actually, there is a lot of worry in the Indian camp ? on this track, where pace is generally a factor, their own new ball attack has been rendered impotent by injuries to their all their first-choice pacemen. And Pakistan clearly hold an ace ? Shoaib Akhtar.Akhtar, back from the nets where he ran in with aggression, his eyes blazing, had had a light repast is relaxed and on the phone, two bright-eyed autograph hunters on his trail. ?I hope there is something in the wicket for me,? he says when he finally gets off the talk.Akhtar, who brashly declares that Pakistan should have won the fir...
More About: Hopes , Wicket

India should play as a team, not individuals: Kirsten
2007-12-07 06:47:00
JOHANNESBURG : The India n cricket squad does not exactly have an enviable record playing abroad but newly-appointed coach Gary Kirsten believes he can definitely help with changing this. "I want the (Indian) players to play less as individuals and more together as a team," Kirsten told the Afrikaans daily Beeld here on Thursday. "There are fantastic players in the group and I'm looking forward to working with them." The BCCI announced on Wednesday that Kirsten would take over the reigns after the Indian side was without a coach for the greater part of this year. Australian Greg Chappell lost his position as coach after the shock first round ousting of India in the World Cup in March in the West Indies. One of Kirsten's first tasks will be to help India outwit Graeme Smith's side when they tour India in March and April next year. Kirsten said that he was excited about the new challenge: "I thought very carefully about the offer because of few logistical reasons, but not over the p...
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Sri Lanka's Sangakkara tops ICC batting rankings
2007-12-07 06:24:00
LONDON - Sri Lanka batsman Kumar Sangakkara has knocked Australia skipper Ricky Ponting off the top of the International Cricket Council's (ICC) latest test rankings, released on Thursday.Sangakkara is the first Sri Lankan to top the batting rankings after a tremendous run of form, including a superb 152 in the first test defeat of England this week.Sri Lanka's world record-breaking spinner Muttiah Muralitharan already tops the test bowling rankings.The 30-year-old Sangakkara, who has also risen to equal sixth on the ICC's all-time batting rankings, on Tuesday became the first batsman in the history of the game to register scores of 150 or more in four successive Tests.England's Ian Bell has broken into the top 15 on the ICC's batting rankings for the first time after knocks of 83 and 74 during the first test in Kandy.Team mate Matthew Hoggard, doubtful for the second test because of a back injury, moved up five places in the bowling rankings and now stands fifth.
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2011 cricket World Cup format may be changed
2007-12-07 06:15:00
Bangalore: The format of the 2011 cricket World Cup , to be held in Asia, might undergo some changes and more number of matches may be played than the 2007 tournament held in the West Indies.Niranjan Shah, secretary of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), said here a number of formats would be discussed at a meeting of the four joint hosts - India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh - in Delhi this weekend.?We will be discussing a few formats at the meeting. One of them would be reverting to including quarter final stage instead of the Super Eights,? Shah told IANS.?According to the proposal, if we play quarter-finals there will be 59 matches in the tournament,? he said.A total of 51 matches were played in 49 days in the 2007 tournament in March-April while 54 matches were played in South Africa in 2003.The International Cricket Council (ICC) wants to restrict the number of days of the World Cup. Therefore, it might not approve a World Cup with a quarter final round that...
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Pakistan?s Shoaib Malik ruled out of final India test
2007-12-07 06:14:00
BANGALORE, India - Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik has been ruled out of the final test against India beginning on Saturday after failing to recover from an ankle injury.Shoaib twisted his left ankle while playing soccer after the first test in New Delhi, which the hosts won by six wickets, and the injury kept him out of the second test after his foot was put in a cast.Younis Khan, who led the team to a remarkable draw in Kolkata, will stand in as captain again.?Shoaib Malik was sent to a local orthopaedic surgeon for evaluation of his injury. The surgeon has advised another five days of plaster. That means he is out of the third test match,? Pakistan media manager Ehsan Malik told reporters on Thursday.India, 1-0 up in the series, will field a depleted pace attack after spearhead Zaheer Khan and Munaf Patel were ruled out with injuries on Wednesday.Left-arm swing bowler Irfan Pathan was named in their squad along with the inexperienced Vikram Rajvir Singh and 19-year-old Ishant Sharma.
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It always feels great to play in India: Vikram Solanki
2007-12-07 06:14:00
Panchkula : It?s Thursday morning in Panchkula and Vikram Solanki, in defiance of a famous description often used against him by Ian Botham in the commentary box, is out there for the fitness sessions scheduled for the day. In fact, one of the most illustrious county cricketers of India n origin could not look more happy or content, as he wanders along the fairways of Tau Devi Lal Stadium, venue for the Indian Cricket League 20-20 Championship.After playing for Rajasthan in the 2006 season, the Worcestershire captain is now playing for Mumbai Champs in what is considered to be his second outing for a domestic side in his native country.Excerpts from an interview* You made your debut for Worcestershire as a 16-year-old in 1992. In 2005, you were appointed as the captain of the side. How has the experience with Worcestershire been?I was fortunate to be picked for Worcestershire after playing for Wolverhampton Cricket Club. I still remember when I made to the Worcestershire; there were ...
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IPL only with CA consent: Gilchrist
2007-12-07 06:13:00
HOBART: Wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist says Australia?s cricketers are not trying to be ?rebels? and will heed the company line when it comes to playing in the Indian Premier League.The vice-captain said on Sunday that he was one of about a dozen top-level players to receive a letter from Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland, warning them against playing in next year?s IPL Twenty20 tournament without Cricket Australia?s consent. Cricket Australia has told 11 of its top players, including captain Ricky Ponting,Brett Lee and Gilchrist that they would not be granted permission to play in the ICC-sanctioned Indian Premier League?s Twenty20 tournament.James Sutherland claimed the players signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to play in the tournament in April and May without consulting the Board. ?A number of significant issues remain unresolved, particularly regarding Australian players? participation in the proposed events and the terms of participation,? Sutherland sai...

Murali magic downs valiant England
2007-12-06 08:18:00
Muttiah Muralitharan bowled two magical deliveries when it mattered most to hand Sri Lanka an 88-run win over a fighting England in the first Test in Kandy on Wednesday.The off-spinner, who became Test cricket?s most successful bowler in the first innings, got out Matt Prior and Ian Bell in the space of three deliveries with the second new ball to end England?s spirited challenge.The tourists, needing to bat out the final day for a draw after being set an improbable victory target of 350, were bowled out for 261 in the last 30 minutes of the match at the Asgiriya stadium.Sri Lanka took a 1-0 lead in the three-match series going into the second Test, which opens at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo on Sunday.England, who resumed the final day at 9-1 in their second knock, slumped to 90-5 in the morning session before Bell (74) launched a heroic rescue attempt in the company of the lower order batsmen.He put on 49 for the sixth wicket with debutant Ravi Bopara (34) and a defiant 10...
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Kirsten to be India's cricket coach, to go to Australia
2007-12-05 06:14:00
Gary Kirsten said in Johannesburg on Tuesday that he had accepted the BCCI?s offer to become the coach of the Indian cricket team. Kirsten, 40, will start his assignment by joining the team as a consultant on its tour of Australia starting later this month.The former South African opener said his two-year contract would commence from March 1. The BCCI is set to publicise the appointment on Wednesday, two days after the deadline they had set to make the announcement.A top board official, on condition of anonymity, told the Hindustan Times on Tuesday that the confusion between the board and Kirsten was sorted out. ?It?s just a matter of making it official,? he said. ?It will be made official on Wednesday.?Kirsten, who met the BCCI special committee for appointing the coach last week, had agreed to communicate his final decision by Monday. However, there were reports suggesting that some senior Indian players were unhappy about being kept in the dark about the choice of coach. Kirsten,...
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Gilchrist?s fears about IPL
2007-12-05 06:06:00
Melbourne: Cribbing about burnout and then making a beeline to play in the cash-rich Indian Premier League (IPL) would portray cricketers as hypocrites, fears Australia vice- captain Adam Gilchrist.Gilchrist said though cricketers had always played county cricket to earn extra money in the off-season, complaining about burnout and then making a dash for cash in the Twenty20 might project them in a bad light.?I do see that, I think that?s definitely something Cricket Australia will feel, and that?s something we as a playing group have to consider,? Gilchrist was quoted as saying by The Age.?(But) it has been going on for years and years. Players have been going to England in off-seasons and taking opportunities to play and learn the game and earn some good money over in England. But I do understand critics might say that we are trying to get less (cricket), but when something else comes up we want more,? he said.Neil Maxwell, IPL?s Australian agent, however, argues that IPL?s shorter...
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?Insulted? Azhar complains to Pawar, leaves Kolkata
2007-12-05 06:02:00
CAB leaves out former captain?s name from souvenir highlighting great performances at Eden Gardens, despite his stellar showings kolkata : For Mohammed Azharuddin, his recent visit to his favourite venue, Eden Gardens, didn?t quite turn out to be the honeymoon he was expecting this trip to be. The former Indian captain was invited by the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) as a special guest for the ongoing India-Pakistan Test. However, after a spate of unsavoury incidents involving him, an irked Azharuddin cut short the camaraderie and the trip, and left the city in a huff, two days into the match. It was learnt that 44-year-old Azhar was extremely offended to find that the CAB, despite having invited him as guest, didn?t make a single mention of him in the much-hyped souvenir that is being circulated among spectators, dignitaries and other high-profile guests. Upset with this treatment despite his phenomenal record at Eden, Azhar had a serious word on this with the Board of Contro...
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Kirsten seeks assurances before becoming India coach
2007-12-04 06:00:00
CAPE TOWN : Former South Africa opening batsman Gary Kirsten has delayed taking over as India coach, saying he wants assurances from the players over the job. "I have heard rumours about some senior players expressing their concern about my possible appointment and I would prefer to have clarity on that before I commit myself," Kirsten said. Kirsten had been expected to sign his contract on Monday. "I'm not sure whether the players have concerns or not," said the South African. "I only met (captain) Anil Kumble on my recent trip to Delhi and he was very supportive. "If there are concerns then I would like to find out whether they are about me as an individual or the process by which I was interviewed and then offered the job." Indian newspapers had quoted anonymous senior players as saying the existing management structure was working well and Kirsten's appointment was unnecessary. "There is absolutely no need for a coach at this moment," an unnamed player was quoted as saying in ...
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