India doesn't deserve brickbats for SA loss : Ganguly

South Africa deserves the kudos for their outstanding win on Saturday but India is really not worth the brickbats which it is getting. They did lose a big game but that doesn’t mean that the World Cup is over for them. Dhoni and his boys need to remember, all that is happening around is only for creating hype for TRPs and sales.

I am fascinated to see how people who had almost handed over the trophy to India much before the World Cup had started, are now finding faults in the Indian team at the drop of a hat.

I had stated at the beginning of the tournament that India has as much chance to win the World Cup as the other big teams and I still stand by that. The key to winning the World Cup or reaching the ultimate level for any big side will be playing good cricket on a particular day and India just needs to focus on that.

There is a big game coming up for India against the West Indies. It’s good that the boys have got a chance to go back home for few days before that. It will help them to unwind and mentally settle themselves before they give it one big go for the final goal.

All the team members as well the cricket loving people of the country need to remember that this is not happening for the first time. There have been instances galore when a team has faltered at the start but has ultimately done well to reach the final stage.

In 1983 India would have been almost eliminated had they lost to Zimbabwe. From a dire strait in that match, Kapil Dev’s 175 not only kept them in the hunt but India went on to create history. In 1992 Pakistan bounced back from the jaws of elimination to lift the cup. Similar was the case for Steve Waugh’s Australia in 1999.

In 2003 also, we had a bad start and when people wrote us off we gathered ourselves to storm into the final. So it is nothing new as regards all the noise which is happening surrounding the Indian team.

Many people are finding fault with Dhoni as regards Ashish Nehra bowling the last over. I don’t find a fault in that and had I been there I would have done the same.

People forget but I do remember, Ashish bowled the last over against Pakistan at Karachi some years back in an even tighter situation and brought victory for the team. After Zaheer gave away only four runs in the forty-ninth over Dhoni had every reason to believe that a seamer was more suited to do the job. But he should have used Ashish one more over earlier to get him warmed-up because Nehra doesn’t have the best of physiques to come on strike and fire away.

Firing straight away is also not what our batsmen should have been doing after Sachin and Sehwag had set up such a wonderful platform. You can’t keep such a momentum going all through. With the run-rate already running high the middle-order should have given them some time to settle down and could have gone for the blast at the end.

This needs to be addressed seriously as the collapse has not happened for the first time. Against England we lost seven-wickets for few runs and against South Africa nine-wickets, this time for very few. In the match against the West Indies my advice to Dhoni would be, play on a good strip.

I have watched a few games at Chennai and it seems to be extra dry and all set to provide help to the spinners. If you play on a good strip India is way ahead in all departments to West Indies. But if you are put on a difficult strip and get to bat second, then it could be trouble against Roach and company.

Also, my advice will be to stick to a set team from now on. Generally, Dhoni doesn’t have the habit of chopping and changing too much. If you keep doing that, the players become a bit skeptical.

So from here on Dhoni needs to get his eleven set for the rest of the tournament and it should be in the manner he feels comfortable. Also, Zaheer needs to bowl the forty-eighth and fiftieth over in any situation. That should be it.

—The writer is a former Indian captain, Sourav Ganguly

Read More

Ganguly: Best candidate for next Indian coach

In the midst of the trials and tribulations for India at the World Cup stands the more pressing concern of the future of the Team post World Cup. This in regards to their Coach Gary Kirsten, a man who is widely respected and liked amongst the players deciding to give up the post.

So in a Nation that lives, sleeps and dreams about cricket this has become a point of much conjecture from the men in the palaces to the men in the street.

The key man being bandied around is the ex New Zealand Captain and current Coach of the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) Stephen Fleming. The very astute Fleming is held in high esteem as seen in this quote:

'Fleming, 37, is respected for having a shrewd cricketing mind and isn't the type to ignite controversies. Plus, he's known to manage players exceedingly well.'

Which indeed are key prerequisites for such a high profile job. Plus the fact the he has such a great working relationship with the current Indian Captain MS Dhoni as seen at CSK. This also is seen as something heavy in his favour.

Though as an outsider looking in this seems as flawed logic. For it seems that a man who has been on the wrong side of average in his Captaincy in Dhoni is calling the shots. Thus in sport when an individual starts to get bigger than the Team-well the latter is the loser.

So viewing this as a huge issue amongst a host of others issues in Team India. Why would you hire a man like Fleming who would simply pander to Dhoni and the staus quo?

Granted it would be a recipe to have India stay where they are in the game,but hardly a blueprint to propel them forward. For Fleming would be expert at looking after the playing side of the game, but would he be able to deal with the Indian players and their eccentricities?

Which in India is probably a bigger issue than the playing of the game. So who should be the man to achieve this desire of taking India to the next level by being able to be a master of every facet of Indian cricket?

The name of Anil Kumble has been bandied around and his professionalism and attention to detail would be a great bonus in the job. Though would he be able to handle the huge ego's of the players or would they indeed handle him with little or no respect?

Again to labour on the point of players is the rumour that there is a lobby within it that treats training programs and schedules with sheer disdain. Which is hardly a recipe for success and you'd have to question Kumble's success in dealing with it.

Though what of another Indian who had a reputation of having such a presence that he could turn sand into glass with a stare. Such was the heat and fire in his eyes.

In Sourav Ganguly?

Though he hasn't the experience in Coaching, but he has the experience in the game.

Plus as seen in his Commentary he has an intimate understanding of the needs of the Indian Team. Citing such things as tactics, attention to fielding and lack of depth in bowling in his insights.

In Ganguly as seen in his Captaincy you would have a man who would stand in the face of anything and impose his will and get it done his way.

If Dhoni wanted to run the show it wouldn't matter what his backing or his support Ganguly would fix him.

As for the players who didn't want to train they'd be gone.

If needs be, he'd burn Indian cricket to the ground and reinvent it in a bigger and better way.T hen if any administrator or big wig dared to stand in his way. You think they would win-good luck lads take your brass knuckles and id still back Sourav!

Then in the midst and aftermath of this the winner would be Indian Cricket.

So though it is unlikely and in truth pie in the sky stuff. For India likes to play safe and look after it's 'investments' like M.S.Dhoni..

Sourav Ganguly would be the one to cure the many ills in Indian cricket with his iron fist.

COURTESY : Cricindian

Read More

DADA to play for MCC in Emirates Airline T20

As the eyes of the cricketing world focus on the sub-continent for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011, local fans will soon also be able to enjoy top-class action at the Emirates Airline Twenty20.
The tournament - which last year featured Pakistan star Shahid ‘Boom Boom’ Afridi - will once again take place at The Sevens cricket ground on April 1.

The annual event will also feature some top names, including England stars Steve Harmison, Monty Panesar and Chris Read, who will be among the line-ups of the three leading county teams confirmed for the tournament: Sussex, Durham and Nottinghamshire.

They will be joined by defending champions Fly Emirates XI - the team of amateurs made of talented employees of the Emirates Group - which stunned the opposition to take top honours in 2010.

Also featuring will be a specially assembled MCC side. The tournament has been sanctioned by the famous founding club of cricket and will be billed as an MCC Spirit of Cricket event, while its star-studded team will feature India great Sourav Ganguly among others still to be announced.

“Cricket fever is all around at the moment and local fans will have an opportunity to share in the excitement with the Emirates Airline Twenty20 taking place in Dubai at the beginning of April,” said Tournament Director Matthew Jackson.

Running alongside the Emirates Airline Twenty20 will be an Under-11s Quick Cricket tournament. Friends and families of the school children participating in this fun tournament are expected to come and cheer them on, adding to the festive atmosphere.

Read More

India must be ready for Ireland challenge: Ganguly

NEW DELHI: Ireland shocked England by three wickets on Wednesday and former India skipper Sourav Ganguly on Friday said Mahendra Singh Dhoni's men must be ready for the Irish challenge when they face-off in their group B World Cup match in Bangalore on Sunday.

"India are the better side when it comes to the two, but they must be ready and up for the challenge that Ireland will provide them with," Ganguly said on this week's ICC Cricket World Radio Show.

"Ireland has some outstanding players, chasing down England's target with ease and Kevin O'Brien giving an outstanding performance so India will have to be up and ready for it," he added.

Ganguly, who led India to the finals of the 2003 World Cup, said Dhoni needs to weigh his bowling options properly before going into the match on Sunday.

"India will have the chance to review their bowling attack -- as to whether they go with three fast bowlers or continue with two spinners and two seamers, which I don't think is the way forward," he said.

"They need three fast bowlers and then have someone like Yusuf Pathan bowling his ten overs."

India won their World Cup opener against Bangladesh, before finishing even-stevens with England in the second match. They will take on Ireland in Bangalore in their third match of the World Cup.

Read More

Taibu in debt to Ganguly,Ponting !

Pint-sized Tatenda Taibu smashed 98 as Zimbabwe kept their World Cup quarter-final hopes alive on Monday,paying tribute to lessons learned from Ricky Ponting and Sourav Ganguly.

Taibu played with the Australian and Indian in his time with Indian Premier League side Kolkata Knight Riders and he believes his short spell alongside them made him a better player.

"Sharing the dressing room with great players such as Ricky Ponting, Sourav Ganguly was a great experience. I learnt a lot about the game from them," said Taibu after Monday's 175-run win over Canada.

"It helped me improve as a player."

The win over Canada gave Zimbabwe, who made 298 on Monday, their first victory after a 91-run loss to defending champions Australia.

The 27-year-old Taibu, a former national skipper, said the advent of Twenty20 cricket had helped more teams pile up big scores.

So far at the World Cup, the 300-run barrier has been breached six times with India and England both making 338 in Sunday's nail-biting tie in Bangalore on Sunday.

"T20 has helped in piling up big scores. Also, with the introduction of the batting powerplay and innovative shots, you get bigger scores," he said.

Zimbabwe captain Elton Chigumbura said that Monday's 175-run win would provide much-needed impetus with four group league matches still to play.

"Obviously, I am happy with the performance of the boys. We got a big partnership (181 between Taibu and Craig Ervine) going.

"We would still like to take it one game at a time and not think about a quarter-final berth straight away."

Zimbabwe are in Group A at the World Cup with Australia, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and New Zealand tipped to fill the four quarter-final qualifying berths.

Read More

Sourav ‘defends’ Kumble googly

Bangalore: Sourav Ganguly had come down to the print media box from the TV commentators’ room, to meet a couple of senior journalists from Calcutta, when Anil Kumble came to the same area.

That was during the second session of play, at the Chinnaswamy, on Sunday.

The former India captains greeted each other and when somebody commented on Kumble’s red-and-gold badge announcing that he was the Karnataka State Cricket Association president, he looked at Sourav and quipped: “He could have something similar, if he wants to!”

Sourav initially pretended not to hear, but then smiled. It’s no secret that, at some point, he’d like to take control of the Cricket Association of Bengal, which has been Jagmohan Dalmiya’s fiefdom.

Asked by The Telegraph if Sourav should take the plunge, so to say, Kumble replied: “It’s entirely up to him... He’ll first have to put together a team...”

Sourav appeared to agree.

Kumble came to power last November, unseating Mysore royal Srikanta Datta Narasimharaja Wadiyar. It helped that cricketers, past and present, got together to end Wadiyar’s three-year rule.

Read More

Sourav to host 'KBC' Bangla?

After Prosenjit Chatterjee turned down the offer, it remains to be seen whether the buck stops with Dada pulling off a Big B.

That "Kaun Banega Crorepati" is happening in Bengali is not news anymore. But the buck doesn't stop here. Speculations are rife about who's going to be in the hotseat. Latest development on that front is that Sourav Ganguly has been approached to pull off an Amitabh Bachchan.

A source close to the unit confirmed the news, saying, "Yes, Sourav has been approached by the channel. But he has other commitments till Mayend . The channel is trying to work out the dates currently." If sources are to be believed, Sourav is toying with the idea and in case, he cannot be part of "Ke Hobe Kotipati" (the Bengali version of the programme), he might be on board for other game shows with the channel. It's heard that Sourav's popularity as an anchor on the popular game-based reality show, " Dadagiri Unlimited" , triggered the channel's decision to rope him in.

Meanwhile, it has also emerged that Tollywood's numero uno actor, Prosenjit Chatterjee, was approached for the role. But the actor turned the offer down, reasoning, "Yes, they had approached me for "KBC", but I've not yet decided to host a show on television. Another reason why I couldn't make up my mind was because it's difficult to fill in the shoes of a stalwart like Amitabh Bachchan." Sources say, veteran actor Mithun Chakraborty was also approached for the same. Seems like, the race to the hotseat is hotting up by the minute.

Read More