Rivalry with Virat Kohli goes back to U-19 WC days, says Bangladesh pacer Rubel Hossain

Dhaka, Feb 2: Bangladesh's front line pacer Rubel Hossain has revealed his rivalry with India's flamboyant batsman Virat Kohli goes back to their U-19 cricket days. Rubel Hossain and Virat Kohli were seen getting into pitched rivalry in last year's World Cup quarter-finals as well as during India's tour of Bangladesh in June last year. 

In the ICC World Cup 2015 encounter, Virat Kohli chased a wide delivery from Bangladeshi pacer Rubel Hossain and edged it to wicket-keeper Mushfiqur Rahim for just 3 runs off 4 balls. With his bowling Rubel Hossain kept Kohli silent with the bat, when it mattered the most for the Indians. This wasn't the first time, when the Bangladesh pacer showed aggression against one of the world's best batsman. Hossain represented Bangladesh in Under-19 World Cup in 2008 when Kohli led the Indian side. 

Back then, the duo were involved in heated exchange during one of the group matches and the matter was calmed down only after the umpires intervened. The pacer was quoted by a TOI report, as saying, "Both of us go back a long way. I got Virat out a couple of times in our U-19 days. Then in international cricket too, I have got him a few times. I won't say he is a bunny but yes, I am confident against him." Though he quickly proceeded to clear the air about their relationship by saying off-the field they have good relation. "On the field he may be very aggressive but outside he is a very nice guy . We speak to each other. He, in fact, came to our dressing room after the (2015 World Cup) quarterfinal and we chatted for a long time. "I get a different feeling when I bowl against him. I will not allow him to hit me and want to take his wicket. Whenever I see him at the other end, it pumps me up since Under-19 days," the Bangladesh pacer further added. 

For More Information,Visit us on :-

http://www.dailythanthi.com/

Faulkner ruled out of ODI series

Allrounder to be replaced by Marcus Stoinis after suffering hamstring injury in Chappell-Hadlee opener. Australia has suffered injury upon indignity with World Cup Final hero James Faulkner sustaining a hamstring injury that will see him take no further part in the current Chappell-Hadlee Trophy Series which New Zealand now leads 1-0. Faulkner, one of only two batsmen (along with Matthew Wade) to reach 30 in Australia’s hefty 159-run loss to the Black Caps in the first game of the three-match series today, sustained the injury during New Zealand’s innings although the severity won’t be known until scans are undertaken.

He will return to Australia tomorrow to begin his rehabilitation and will be replaced in the 14-man squad by Victorian allrounder Marcus Stoinis, who will be plucked from the Bushrangers’ Sheffield Shield match against Tasmania at the MCG. Fellow allrounder Ian Holland will debut for the Bushrangers in Stoinis's stead.  “James reported increased stiffness in his right hamstring during the first innings tonight and found it difficult running during our batting innings,” Cricket Australia’s Sports Science and Sport Medicine Manager Alex Kountouris said tonight. “Unfortunately, with the short turnaround between games we do not believe he will recover in time to take any further part in the series. “As a result, he will return to Melbourne tomorrow to have scans and start rehabilitation. “We are hopeful this is only a low-grade injury but will know more in the coming days.”

Faulkner, who also captured two wickets as the Black Caps piled on 8-307 at Eden Park today, joins Mitchell Starc (foot and ankle surgery), Pat Cummins (back), Nathan Coulter-Nile (shoulder), Aaron Finch (hamstring) and coach Darren Lehmann (deep vein thrombosis) as absentees from a full-strength ODI squad. Man of the Match in his team’s World Cup triumph over New Zealand at the MCG last March, Faulkner was playing his 50th ODI for Australia in Auckland today which made him – along with fellow all-rounder Mitchell Marsh – the most experienced members of a revamped bowling attack. Given that auxiliary seamer Scott Boland has played just four ODIs, leg spinner Adam Zampa remains uncapped and 26-year-old Stoinis made his only 50-over appearance for Australia in England last September, the world champions face a tough task to win the final two matches of the Chappell Hadlee Series. “It’s unfortunate that James has suffered this injury but the situation presents another good opportunity for Marcus Stoinis,” chairman of selectors Rod Marsh said tonight. “He is a promising young all-rounder who had a taste of international cricket last winter in England, and hopefully this call-up will continue with his development.”

For More Information,Visit us on :-

http://www.dailythanthi.com/

Australia's shortest all-out ODI innings

146 Number of balls in which Australia were bowled out, the fewest for Australia in ODIs. Their previous lowest was 152 balls (25.2 overs), against England at Edgbaston in 1977. New Zealand, though, have dismissed a team in fewer overs four times. However, this is New Zealand's best at home. They had bowled out Australia in 32.2 overs at the same venue in the 2015 World Cup.

159 Runs by which Australia lost this match; it is their second-biggest margin of defeat against New Zealand in ODIs (in terms of runs). The biggest is 206 runs, in Adelaide in 1985-86, when they were bowled out for 70.

6.08 Australia's run rate in their total of 148 in 24.2 overs, which is the fourth-highest in all-out totals of 150 or fewer runs in ODIs. However, two of the top three run rates had come in shortened matches; only Canada's 92 at 6.20 is higher than Australia's run rate in a full 50-overs innings.

0 Instances of New Zealand losing a home ODI after posting 300 or more when batting first. This was the 18th time they scored 300 or more batting first, of which they have won 17; one match was tied. New Zealand are the only such sideamong the Test-playing teams.

0 Number of previous instances, since 2002, of Australia being six down within the first 10 overs of an ODI innings. Today, they were 41 for 6 in nine overs. They had lost five wickets in the first 10 overs twice in this period: against West Indies in Brisbane in 2004-05 and against South Africa in Centurion in 2008-09. In this game, New Zealand were 71 without loss after 10 overs, while Australia slumped to 47 for 6.

3 Number of New Zealand players who have scored 6000 or more runs in ODIs. Brendon McCullum became the third batsman to do so, in this match, after Stephen Fleming and Nathan Astle. McCullum took 226 innings to achieve it, which is the most among the three: Astle achieved it in 182, while Fleming got there in 206.

2013 The last time Kane Williamson got out for a duck in ODIs, against England at Lord's. The duck in this match was only his second in 80 ODI innings; in his first five innings he was out for zero three times.

182 Runs scored by New Zealand in the first 25 overs of their innings - the most by any team against Australia in the first innings, since 2002.

64* The previous highest ODI score for Martin Guptill against Australia, in Brisbane in 2008-09. Today's 90 was only his second score of 50 or more against Australia in 16 ODI innings. Before this match, he had averaged only 21.78 against Australia, his lowest against a Full-Member side.

79 Runs added by Matthew Wade and James Faulkner; it is the fourth-highest stand for Australia's seventh wicket after the team has lost their sixth wicket for 45 runs or less. The highest also came in an ODI between Australia and New Zealand: 107 by Jacob Oram and Daniel Vettori in Mohali in the Champions Trophy in 2006.

5 Sixes hit by Guptill in this innings, the joint second-highest for New Zealand against Australia with Craig McMillan. Lance Cairns at the MCG in 1982-83, and Jacob Oram at the WACA in 2006-07, had hit six sixes each.

For More Information,Visit us on :-

http://www.dailythanthi.com/

Amount of respect Mahendra Singh Dhoni gets in India is unbelievable: Sourav Ganguly

New Delhi: Former Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly on Tuesday heaped praise on limited-overs skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni's ability to stay calm under pressure.

"MS has this fantastic ability to remain calm under any situation. Lot of people have asked me that "you have been with him, so how does he remain calm? I tell them that he doesn't show it. From inside he is different, from outside he is different. That goes around in the dressing room and he gets a lot of respect.

“We only look at the criticism but amount of respect he gets in India is unbelievable," Ganguly said in an event organised by NDTV.

While answering the question, if he is ready to coach the Indian cricket team at the moment, Ganguly, who is heading the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB), said that his administrative responsibilities will not allow him to take up the job.

"I really don't know as I have got another job to do at the moment. I am actually running the cricket (as CAB president). You can't do both at the same time. You have to see where life goes. At the present moment, 'No' (to coaching) as I am an administrator with responsibilities of running the game," added the 43-year-old.

For More Information,Visit us on :-

http://www.dailythanthi.com/

'Most ridiculous cricket I've ever seen' - Chris Gayle panned for turning down easy single

The Melbourne Renegades have kept their Big Bash League finals hopes alive with a thrilling five-wicket win over the Sydney Thunder but it was Chris Gayle in the limelight yet again for all the wrong reasons.

A week after being condemned for his inappropriate interview with broadcaster Mel McLaughlin, the West Indian was left blushing after inexplicably failing take an easy single at Spotless Stadium on Monday night.

After smashing it to long on, Gayle turned back his batting partner Tom Cooper in an ordinary display which was slammed on social media and by the commentators.

Even Cooper was seemingly unimpressed, saying: "it wasn't a good bit of cricket" on the Channel 10 broadcast.

In commentary, former Australian captain Ricky Ponting was not amused.

"This is the most unbelievable, ridiculous cricket I've ever seen," he said.

"Sometimes in cricket and in life you get what you deserve, and he got what he deserved there.

"What sort of message does that send to the boys on the sideline?"

Mark Waugh was equally as perplexed.

"We can't work it out so you'd have to ask him why he didn't take the single."

To make matters worse, Gayle was dismissed by Clint McKay the next ball, throwing his wicket away after his flying start of 28 off 20 balls.

Despite Gayle copping a barrage of criticism over the last week, White described the Caribbean big-hitter and self-styled "world boss" as a good teammate and defended his decision not to run when an easy single looked on offer.

"He probably thought he hit it straight to him, that's why he didn't run," White said.

"He probably hasn't got the number of runs that he would have liked but he gets us off to a [good] start, we're 10-an-over off the first three overs and that's so underrated, the momentum shifts straight away.

"If you asked him as well, he'd be looking for that explosive 100 off 50 balls but what he does do is get the momentum rolling."

Thunder captain Hussey also said he understood Gayle's rationale and he was attempting to control the strike and backing his ability to hit big.

"I understood what he was trying to do, he was trying to take advantage of the power play and that's what he's there for," Hussey said.

"He generally does it extremely well so he obviously lined up that bowler and thought he could get him.

"Fortunately for us it went our way but on another day he could have hit the next ball for six."

After the Thunder posted 173-5, the Renegades snuck over the line after stellar innings from Dwayne Bravo (47 off 24) and Cameron White (61 off 46).

The win elevated the Renegades to six points, level with the Thunder with just one game remaining and sets up a thrilling final round of fixtures.

There were a few tense moments in the final overs after Bravo and White were both dismissed by Andrew Russell in the 18th over but Peter Nevill and Ben McDermott showed cool heads to guide their side over the line with four balls to spare.

Earlier the home side looked headed for victory after half centuries from Usman Khawaja and Shane Watson helped them post an imposing total.

Khawaja's golden summer continued when he fired a sublime 62 in a 42-ball knock that included nine fours and one six.

He smashed the Renegades bowlers to all corners of the park as his impressive purple patch continued.

Since November, he's scored four centuries and two half centuries in his seven innings in all forms of the game.

Watson, who also hit 62, was strong in the middle order and showed he still had plenty to offer following his test retirement.

The Thunder have several injury woes with Andre Russell nursing a sore collarbone after being hit by a Nathan Rimmington short ball during his dismissal in which he hit his wicket.

South African allrounder Jacques Kallis left the ground during the Renegades' run chase with a hamstring strain.

For More Information,Visit us on :-

http://www.dailythanthi.com/

'Still not convinced about DRS' - Dhoni

MS Dhoni, India's limited-overs captain and a staunch cynic in DRS matters, has offered yet another trenchant defence of his stance. Just like in the first international of their last summer in Australia, India could, if DRS was in place, have easily overturned a critical decision that went against them.

In a chase of 310, Australia were 2 for 21 when George Bailey gloved the first ball he faced down the leg side, but was reprieved by umpire Richard Kettleborough. Bailey went on to a score a hundred that helped turned the chase into a stroll, and later didn't shy away from cheeky gamesmanship. "Would've been interesting to see on DRS, but we're not the team that doesn't want it," he said.

When the question was put to the team that doesn't want it, Dhoni retorted: "Are you indirectly saying we are not getting decisions in our favour because we don't use DRS?"

When told that that was not the case, Dhoni repeated his general mistrust of the umpires' role in DRS. Responding to how a review of the Bailey decision could have changed the course of the match, Dhoni said: "It could have but at the same time we need to push the umpires to make the right decisions. You have to see how many 50-50 decisions don't go in our favour. It always happens, then you have to take it. But I am still not convinced about DRS."

Asked whether he felt his team tended to get penalised by the umpires for not agreeing to use DRS, Dhoni said, "I may agree with you. I may agree with you. That's what…" And then he didn't complete the thought.

When asked if the team was united in its opposition of the DRS, Dhoni didn't answer that question, but did offer a slightly more nuanced explanation for his stance. "First DRS should ideally be the decision-making system," he said. "If you see the deviations in DRS, there are quite a few deviations. Even the makers agree that can happen. Now you have to also take into account whether it was given not out or out. If it was given out it needs to touch the stump [for the decision to remain out]; if it was not out it needs to hit half the stump [to be given out]. That itself makes the variable too big. In cricket every inch, every millimetre, matters.

"DRS should not be the umpires' decision justification system. It should be giving the right decision. Like in tennis you don't say the umpire called it out and half the ball has to pitch inside the line. It has to be plain and simple. You don't have to keep too many things in consideration. You either say, 'This is DRS, doesn't matter whether it is given out or not out, if half the ball is hitting the stumps, you are out.' Irrespective of the decision. Now, for example, you take DRS, in an lbw decision, what changes everything is whether it was given in favour or not. It can mean a margin of one inch overall, and that is very big."

This is, at its best, a limited understanding of the nature of decisions made in tennis and cricket. Tennis only adjudicates on what has happened, not what would have happened. The lbw decision is unique to cricket. It deals with what would have happened, which is the reason for a margin for error. At its worst, however, this is a deeply cynical view of the umpiring machinery. ESPN cricinfo spoke to a few other players over the course of the last year, and they expressed similar feelings that what shows up as "umpire's call" in DRS will tend to go against them, and DRS will be used only to justify it.

Shashank Manohar, India's new board president, also the ICC chairman, had earlier stood by India's opposition of DRS on tenuous grounds as well. "Instead of the umpire imagining the bounce and the direction of the trajectory, it is the person sitting behind the camera who is going into the DRS," he said in a Facebook interaction with the fans. "He is going to have his imagination put in the place of the umpire's imagination with regard to the bounce."

For More Information,Visit us on :-

http://www.dailythanthi.com/

Hastings to cover for resting Mitchell Marsh

Mitchell Marsh's elevated place in Australia's plans has been underlined by the national selectors' decision to rest him from the second ODI against India in Brisbane in order to give him an extra day's rest at home in Perth.

While Marsh played only a limited role in Australia's Test summer, his participation in all six Tests left the panel to conclude he needed some rest amid limited-overs assignments that prelude February's tour of New Zealand. The Victorian John Hastings has been duly requisitioned from the Melbourne Stars Big Bash League side to be part of the ODI squad in Brisbane.

"Mitch is a tremendous asset to Australian cricket and we are conscious of managing his workload and his travel, especially with so much cricket to come during the rest of this summer and beyond," the selection chairman Rod Marsh said. "By taking this decision we have opted to give him an extra day at home in Perth after match one, before he flies to Melbourne on Thursday to prepare for Sunday's third match of the series.

"In John Hastings we have a high-quality replacement, a player who has been in excellent form for the Melbourne Stars in the ongoing BBL. John also showed his quality with a match-winning spell of 3 for 21 in the decisive one-day international of the series against England in Manchester in September, so we know what he can do if called upon.

"At this stage John will be with the squad only for game two but should we suffer any injuries to our bowlers in either Perth or Brisbane then we may look at retaining his services for longer."

Hastings will thus miss the Stars' next BBL match against the Brisbane Heat in Melbourne on Thursday, before likely returning in time for their final qualifying match ahead of the tournament finals.

For More Information,Visit us on :-

http://www.dailythanthi.com/