Sehwag’s fifty guides Delhi to victory

Virender Sehwag hit a rollicking half—century as Delhi Daredevils scored a 38—run win over Kochi Tuskers Kerala to keep its play—offs hopes alive in the Indian Premier League here on Saturday.  Sehwag blazed his way to a 47—ball 80 to lead his side to a competitive 157 for seven after electing to bat on a very difficult track, which had uneven bounce.  Delhi were gasping 37 for three at one stage but Sehwag played sensibly as he first guarded his wicket when his teammates were vanishing from the other end and then played his usual aggressive self.  The visitors then bowled out the hosts for 119 in 18.5 overs to record a much—needed win as they were languishing at the bottom of the points table, coming into this...

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Happy to get the Orange Cap: Virat Kohli

Young Indian batsman Virat Kohli had more than one reason to be delighted after his team Royal Challengers Bangalore's triumph over Pune Warriors as the right-hander didn't just produce a match-wining knock, he also overtook Sachin Tendulkar as the leading run-scorer of the ongoing IPL. Kohli was handed the Orange Cap for topping the batting aggregate with 291 runs, 24 ahead of batting maestro Tendulkar who plays for the Mumbai Indians. "I had been keen to bat up the order in the last three IPLs. But I could get to bat only at five, six or seven. This time I got the chance to bat at three and I am happy that I have been able to score runs and contribute to the good showing of the team," said Kohli, who also completed 1000 IPL...

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Rajasthan Royals eager to continue winning streak

Buoyed by back-to-back comprehensive victories, a confident Rajasthan Royals would start outright favourites when they take on the lowly Pune Warriors in an Indian Premier League match here on Sunday.  The hosts have shown remarkable grit to bounce back after three consecutive losses away from home.  After coming back to their own citadel, Shane Warne’s men have taken full advantage of the home conditions to upset Kochi Tuskers Kerala and Mumbai Indians with stunning performances.  The legendary leg-spinner has been outstanding tactically and as impressive as ever with the ball.  One of his most recent strategic masterstrokes came when he dared to open the attack with the unorthodox left-arm spin of youngster...

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Beating Super Kings not impossible, says White

While admitting that every game from here on was important in the context of qualifying for the playoffs of the Indian Premier League, Cameron White believes that his team Deccan Chargers has a difficult -- but not impossible -- task of beating the Chennai Super Kings here Sunday.  "Every game is very important from now because it seems everyone is beating everyone out there. So no one is really skipping away from the top of the table. If we win tomorrow, that will be our fourth win and would be close to getting into the top-four position. "Chennai are a good side, especially here on their home crowd. We need to put a few things in place to get the right result. It is quite hot here, but it is that they have a good side and a...

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We have not done badly, says Gilchrist

With three wins from five matches, Kings XI Punjab captain Adam Gilchrist on Friday said his side have not done badly in the Indian Premier League and they still have a chance to advance further in the tournament. Gilchrist said there's no point to ponder over a loss as Twenty20 is a very unpredictable format and his side's chances to finish among top four in league stage are as good as any other team. "You can't sit down and get too disappointed with two losses or get carried away with wins because you know it can change in an instant," Gilchrist said at the pre-match press conference. "We are doing well and happy with the way things are going. We have chances as good as any. This tournament is so unpredictable, everyone is...

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Gambhir gives each and every player lot of space: Manoj Tiwary

Kolkata Knight Riders batsman Manoj Tiwary feels that Gautam Gambhir's willingness to give each and every member of team a "lot of space" makes him stand out of the pack. "Gautam is an innovative captain. He comes up with lot of ideas and makes it a point to discuss it with the players. He tries to understand each and every player's game and gives them a lot of space," Manoj said on Wednesday. When asked that how he had benefitted from his interactions with Gambhir, the Bengal captain said, "Everyone knows how good a player of spin bowling Gambhir is. He gave some useful advice about how my footwork should be against the spinners." About team's principal owner Shah Rukh Khan, Manoj said that the locket he presented to each and every...

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Fletcher is the best man for the job, says Akram

Former Pakistan captain Wasim Akram feels the decision of BCCI to appoint Duncan Fletcher as the chief coach of the national team is a positive one. "After Gary Kirsten, Fletcher is the best man to be Indian team's mentor," Akram said on Friday. "He is very experienced and has vast knowledge. Waqar (Younis), who played in Glamorgan when Fletcher was coach, praised his coaching skills a lot." Akram feels most Indian players are experienced enough to handle situations on their own but Fletcher still had a role to play. "This Indian team doesn't need coaching, but Fletcher's excellent man management skills will surely help," said Akram. Former India captains Sunil Gavaskar and Kapil Dev have spoken in favour of an Indian coach,...

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Botha stars in Rajasthan's seven wicket win over Mumbai

Johan Botha produced an all-round show to enable Rajasthan Royals inflict a seven wicket defeat on table toppers Mumbai Indians in an Indian Premier League match on Friday.  After spinning a web around the Mumbai batsmen with impressive figures of three for six, Botha sparkled with the bat as well, scoring vital 44 runs off 39 balls, during which he struck two fours and a six, to set the platform for Rajasthan's victory.  Chasing a paltry 95-run target, Rajasthan batsmen played sensibly to overwhelm Mumbai's score with 11 balls to spare at the Sawai Man Singh Stadium.  Apart from Botha, Shane Watson (26 off 32) and Ross Taylor (13 not out) made double digit scores while Munaf Patel (2/18) emerged as the best bowler...

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Kapil Dev and Sunil Gavaskar unhappy India have chosen Duncan Fletcher

Duncan Fletcher's appointment as India coach has not gone down well with two of the country's cricketing legends. The 62-year-old former England coach was given a two-year contract by the Board of Control for Cricket in India on Wednesday but the former India captains Kapil Dev and Sunil Gavaskar have questioned the decision to snub homegrown candidates. Fletcher will be the fourth foreigner to take charge of the Indian team's fortunes after John Wright, Greg Chappell and Gary Kirsten, who is leaving the role having just won the World Cup. Asked by the Hindustan Times for his opinion on Fletcher, Dev replied: "Who is Duncan Fletcher? I would like to see Venkatesh Prasad and Robin Singh as coaches of the Indian team. "Not because...

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Pune Warriors face tough task against Royal Challengers

Having lost four games on the trot in the fourth edition of the Indian Premier League, Pune Warriors will have to pull up their socks and perform as a team when they take on a confident Royal Challengers Bangalore at the M Chinnaswamy stadium on Friday. The eight-wicket defeat to Chennai Super Kings at Mumbai in their previous game has put the Warriors in a tricky position. With barely two wins from six matches and languishing at the ninth position with only four points, they can't afford to lose anymore matches. Warriors now require to approach the next three games with a must-win attitude if they harbour hopes of qualifying for the semifinal play-offs. Three successive wins would ensure that they have ten points from nine games...

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Incredible Ishant destroys Tuskers

A fiery spell by Ishant Sharma gave the Deccan Chargers a much-required lifeline in the IPL, almost single-handedly taking the Hyderabad side from a seemingly losing position to a highly delightful win over Kochi Tuskers Kerala at the Jawaharlal Nehru stadium on Wednesday.  Taking a cue from the way the rival bowlers had spelt gloom on his side earlier in the day, the lanky fast bowlers was simply irresistible as he ran through the Tuskers top-order from wherein the local side found no way to retrieve itself.  Sharma finished with figures of five for 12 while Steyn returned with a three wicket haul costing him only 16 runs.  The target of 130 was something like Mount Everest to climb for KTK all of a sudden — or...

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Warriors go down without a fight, this time at home

After suffocating against Chennai’s spinners on a slow turner at Chepauk on Monday, the Pune Warriors were expected to have an easier time when they returned to the familiar environs of the DY Patil Stadium to take on the Super Kings once more. The rock-hard Navi Mumbai surface, however, exposed another glaring weakness in Pune’s lineup - the inability of their top order to handle the short ball.  Miscued pulls brought about three of the first four dismissals effected by the Chennai seamers. Jesse Ryder was too late on his shot against Doug Bollinger, Mohnish Mishra didn’t shift his weight back against the same bowler, and Manish Pandey made the same mistake while trying to hoick a short one from Tim Southee. When R Ashwin tumbled...

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Duncan Fletcher: Right man for the job?

Duncan Fletcher With Gary Kirsten having taken India to the pinnacle of cricketing success, Team India's new coach Duncan Fletcher, despite his mentoring credentials, has a tough act to follow.  Even though the former Zimbabwe captain has a fair idea of what it feels to be in the eye of the storm having faced up to a tough English media, coaching World Champions India will be akin to taking the poison chalice. Success here will catapult you to the public imagination of disproportionate belief, while failure will the same turn on to you. Where Gary Kirsten excelled as the coach was the fact that the South African maintained a very low profile and was never eager to be the centre of attention, something which the Zimbabwean...

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Dhoni played the innings of his life, says Yuvraj

Yuvraj Singh, on Monday, complimented India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni for his match-winning innings of 91 not out in the World Cup final, terming it as the latter’s best-ever knock.  “It was a dream come true. As MS (Dhoni) said I did not know what to do. I wanted to jump on MS and keep jumping on him. He had just played the innings of his life,” the flamboyant batsman said. The wicketkeeper-batsman had promoted himself to No. 5, ahead of in-form Yuvraj, and simply took the game away from Sri Lanka by slamming two sixes and eight fours in his 79-ball masterpiece at the Wankhede Stadium. “It was the highlight of my career. To win the World Cup after 28 years was very special. Can’t explain the...

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Pune in dire need of a win against Chennai

Pune Warriors India would need to lift themselves up when they clash with Chennai Super Kings at their home venue, the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai, on Wednesday, less than 48 hours after being beaten by them at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. The Warriors, led by Yuvraj Singh, began their debut season on a high with back-to-back victories over Kings XI Punjab and Kochi Tuskers Kerala earlier this month, both at the DY Patil Stadium. But the defeat against Delhi Daredevils at home, despite scoring an imposing 187 for five started the Warriors' slide and they lost successive ties to the Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium, and to the Super Kings. On a sluggish pitch, Warriors allowed the Mahendra Singh Dhoni-led Super...

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