Cricket News
2005
Captain Dravid scripts Indian victory
Jul 31 2005
In a mirror image of the first game of the Indian Oil Cup, India made heavy weather of chasing a modest total under lights at the Rangiri International Stadium in Dambulla. West Indies, after choosing to bat, made a complete mess of things, and ended up with 178, a total that India were able to overhaul with 14 overs to spare and 6 wickets in hand
In Picture: Virendar Sehwag celebrates one of his two wickets as India dismiss West Indies for 178 at Dambulla.
Scores: Windies 178 (N Deonarine 41); India 180/4 36 overs (R Dravid * 52 (65), S Raina 35 (42))
ICC shifts from London to Dubai
Jul 31 2005
The International Cricket Council (ICC) will have a new address from Monday as it shifts to Dubai from Lord's where it had its office for 96 years.
The move from Lord's will bring together for the first time its offices spread across England, Monaco and Cyprus.
ICC will remain in its new office at the Dubai Media City until its own building in the Dubai Sports City is completed in 2007, the year in which the world body will also have its Global Cricket Academy up.
This move will help the world body save around $2 million annually. Another advantage of the relocation will be that each of the 10 Test-playing countries will get an extra $150,000 every year from the ICC.
The Dubai government has played an important role in facilitating the shift as it has met 50 percent of the ICC's relocation cost. The government is providing accommodation to its staff for the first two years, until the ICC moves to Dubai Sports City - the world's first integrated purpose-built sports city.
Sri Lanka stumbles, but wins opener
Jul 30 2005
Sri Lanka beat India by 3 wickets with 10 balls remaining in the
curtain-raiser of the Indian Oil Cup, which also features West
Indies. Jayasuriya top scored with 43 (51).
Earlier, India won the toss and opted to bat. Muttiah Muralitharan
and debutant Dilhara Lokuhettige both bowled well to to restrict
India to 205-9. Without Sourav Ganguly or Sachin Tendulkar available,
they struggled with only Rahul Dravid (54) and debutant Venugopal
Rao (38) coping. India were 5-64 before Dravid hit 54 off 96 balls,
with 6 4s.
Scores: India 205/9 (R Dravid 54 (96), Venugopal Rao 38 (74) Muralitharan 3-33 ); Sri Lanka 209/7 (Jayasuriya * 43 (51))
ICC reduces Ganguly's six-match ban by two games
Jul 28 2005
The International Cricket Council has reduced by two games a six-match
ban imposed on India captain Saurav Ganguly for his team's slow
over rate. He will now have to sit out only two matches as he
missed the last two games of the Pakistan series pending his first
appeal. The decision, which is final and binding, will allow Ganguly
to play a part in a one-day tri-series in Sri Lanka starting on
Saturday, where Rahul Dravid will lead the side.
Dhoni slams stylish 88 to steer India to big victory
Jul 28 2005
Wicketkeeper Mahendra Dhoni scored a stylish 88 (97 balls) to
guide India to a 93-run victory over a Kurunegala District Invitation
XI yesterday.
India, playing their last warm-up game before a triangular series
with Sri Lanka and West Indies starts on Saturday, scored 250
in 42.2 overs and then bowled out the young Sri Lankan side for
157 in 36.2 overs.
Brief scores: India: 250 all out in 42.2 overs (MS Dhoni
88, S Raina 29; Dilan Karunaratne 3-47) bt Kurunegala District
Invitation XI: 157 all out in 36.2 overs (L de Silva 51, J Mubarak
46; I Pathan 3-20, A Nehra 2-36, V Sehwag 2-18).
Two new faces in Sri Lankan one-day squad
Jul 24 2005
Sri Lankan cricket selectors have named a squad that includes
two uncapped players, Upul Tharanga, a left-hand opening batsman,
and Dilhara Lokuhettige, an allrounder, for the one-day series
against India and West Indies beginning at Dambulla on July 30.
The tournament gets underway with Sri Lanka taking on India under
lights. This will be Australian Tom Moody's first one-day series
as the Sri Lankan coach. His counterparts Greg Chappell, India's
coach, and Bennett King, West Indies coach, are also from Australia.
Sri Lankan Cricket Team: Marvan Atapattu (captain),
Mahela Jayawardena, Sanath Jayasuriya, Kumar Sangakkara, Upul
Tharanga, Tillekeratne Dilshan, Russel Arnold, Chaminda Vaas,
Upul Chandana, Muttiah Muralitharan, Nuwan Zoysa, Dilhara Lokuhettige,
Dilhara Fernando, Farveez Maharoof, Lasith Malinga. Coach: Tom
Moody. Manager: Michael Tissera.
Indian team arrives in SL for tri-series
Jul 23 2005
The Indian cricket team led by Rahul Dravid arrived in Colombo
today to take part in a triangular one-day series against Sri
Lanka and the West Indies.
The Indians will travel to the Buddhist pilgrim city of Dambulla
to play their first match against Sri Lanka on July 30. The following
day, the Indians face the West Indies before travelling back to
Colombo for the remainder of the matches. The final match will
be played on August 9 in Colombo.
Dravid hints at new opening pair
Jul 23 2005
Captain Rahul Dravid on Saturday sent out an ominous warning to
his rivals ahead of the tri-series, saying his team had the resources
and variety to counter different conditions in Sri Lanka. Dravid
said the composition of the team will provide a lot more selection
options during the tournament which will also give him the opportunity
to try out a few youngsters.
The stylish Karnataka batsman said he had devised a few strategies
for the tournament but was reluctant to discuss it with the media.
"I do not want to reveal what the side will be and which pair
will open for us. We have more or less set our ideas but I am
not going to give it out to the media right away," he said.
With Sachin Tendulkar ruled out of the tournament because of the
elbow injury and Sourav Ganguly still uncertain to make the trip,
the Indians will be going into the tournament with a new opening
partner to Virender Sehwag .
World Cup Cricket 2007 schedule announced in Trinidad
Jul 20 2005
India has been drawn with Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, and Bermuda
in Pool 2 for the 2007 World Cup to be played in the West Indies.
India have a fairly easy opener in the 2007 Cricket World Cup,
against Bangladesh, with hosts West Indies and Pakistan featuring
in the tournament opener on March 13 at Jamaica.
India, placed in Group B alongwith Bangladesh, Bermuda and Sri
Lanka, will play their first match on March 17. India, who will
play all their Group matches in Trinidad, will take on qualifiers
Bermuda on March 19, four days before they face top notch team,
Sri Lanka, in their last league match. The top two teams from
each of the four groups will qualify for the second round, the
Super Eight Series, which will be held between March 27 and April
22. The semifinals will be played at Jamaica and St Lucia on April
24 and April 25, respectively with the final at Barbados on April
28.
Before the opening ceremony on March 11, all the teams will play
warm-up matches between March 5 and 9 with India slated to play
Holland (March 6) and West Indies (March 9).
 Match
schedule for the 2007 Cricket World Cup (ICC CWC 2007)
POOL 1 (St Kitts & Nevis)
Australia, South Africa, Scotland, Netherlands
Wednesday, March 14 : Australia v Scotland
Friday, March 16: South Africa v Netherlands
Sunday, March 18: Australia v Netherlands
Tuesday, March 20: South Africa v Scotland
Thursday, March 22: Scotland v Netherlands
Saturday, March 24: Australia v South Africa
POOL 2 (Trinidad & Tobago)
Sri Lanka, India, Bangladesh, Bermuda
Thursday, March 15: Sri Lanka v Bermuda
Saturday, March 17: India v Bangladesh
Monday, March 19: India v Bermuda
Wednesday, March 21: Sri Lanka v Bangladesh
Friday, March 23: India v Sri Lanka
Sunday, March 25: Bermuda v Bangladesh
POOL 3 (St Lucia)
New Zealand, England, Kenya, Canada
Wednesday, March 14: Kenya v Canada
Friday, March 16: England v New Zealand
Sunday, March 18: England v Canada
Tuesday, March 20: New Zealand v Kenya
Thursday, March 22: New Zealand v Canada
Saturday, March 24: England v Kenya
POOL 4 (Jamaica)
Pakistan, West Indies, Zimbabwe, Ireland
Tuesday, March 13: West Indies v Pakistan
Thursday, March 15: Zimbabwe v Ireland
Saturday, March 17: Pakistan v Ireland
Monday, March 19: West Indies v Zimbabwe
Wednesday, March 21: Zimbabwe v Pakistan
Friday, March 23: West Indies v Ireland
Super Eight Stage
Tuesday, March 27 - Sunday, April 22
Antigua & Barbuda, Grenada, Guyana, Barbados
Semi-finals
Semi-final 1, Jamaica, Tuesday, April 24
Semi-final 2, St Lucia, Wednesday, April 25
Finals
Barbados, Saturday, April 28
Miandad's son to marry fugitive's daughter
Jul 20 2005
The marriage of former Pakistani cricket captain Javed Miandad's
son would normally be a joyous occasion with the cream of Pakistani
society jostling for invitations. Saturday's wedding in Dubai
between Junaid Miandad and Mahrukh Ibrahim is, however, shrouded
in secrecy and some of Miandad's cricketing colleagues are unlikely
to attend for the bride is the daughter of India's most wanted
man.
Dawood Ibrahim is accused by the Indian government of a wave of
bomb attacks in Bombay in 1993 that killed 260 people and the
union between his family and Miandad's has raised eyebrows in
both India and Pakistan. Ever since Dawood got involved in match-fixing
over a decade ago, many of the cricket players were on his pay
rolls who earned huge sums of money. India says he is in hiding
in Karachi, but Pakistan denies this.
Miandad, who played 124 tests and 233 one-day internationals for
Pakistan between 1975 and 1996, is considered one of the country's
all-time cricketing greats. He insists the marriage is a sacred
and personal matter and no one has any right to comment on it
or pass judgement.
The Indian Express newspaper said in a front-page report on Monday
that Miandad had invited some prominent Indian cricketers as well
as the chief of a hardline Hindu group. But the paper said most
were unlikely to attend as Indian and U.S. security agencies were
expected to keep a close watch. The paper said invitations had
been sent to former Indian cricket captains Sunil Gavaskar, Sachin Tendulkar , Ravi Shastri and Dilip Vengsarkar, and to Asian Cricket
Council chief Jagmohan Dalmiya as well as veteran film star Dilip
Kumar.
Dravid to lead team, Sourav 16th man
Jul 18 2005
The senior selection committee named Rahul Dravid as the captain
of the Indian team for the Sri Lankan tri-nation tournament besides
including Sourav Ganguly as the 16th member of the team.
The 15-member squad announced here on Monday also includes two
uncapped players, Uttar Pradesh all-rounder Suresh Raina and Andhra
batsman Y. Venugopala Rao. V.V.S. Laxman, who was omitted from
the teams that played the Bangladesh one-day series and the six-match
one-day series against Pakistan at home, has been recalled. Railways
all-rounder J.P. Yadav, who had featured in two ODIs a couple
of years back, has also returned. Left-arm paceman Irfan Pathan,
who played in the third one-dayer against Pakistan at Jamshedpur
in the six-match series at home and was not part of rest of the
series, is also back in the squad. Punjab left-hander Dinesh Mongia,
Mumbai all-rounder Ajit Agarkar and Railways left-arm spinner
Murali Kartik have been left out.
Indian Cricket Team: Rahul Dravid (capt), Virender Sehwag (vice-capt), VVS Laxman, Yuvraj Singh, Mohd Kaif, Suresh
Raina, Venugopal Rao, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Harbhajan Singh, Anil
Kumble, Zaheer Khan, Irfan Pathan, L Balaji, Ashish Nehra and
JP Yadav. Sourav Ganguly - 16th member.
South Africa to visit India in Nov for ODI series
Jul 09 2005
The South African Cricket Board has officially announced that
their national team would visit India between November 14 and
29 this year to play five One-day Internationals against the home
side.
The ODIs would be held on November 17, 20, 23, 26 and 29 at venues
yet to be decided, according to the official website of Cricket
South Africa.
The Indian Cricket Board, however, was yet to confirm the dates
or venues for the tour.
Sachin should prove fitness: Selectors
Jul 08 2005 Sachin Tendulkar , who would be out of action for four months as
he recovers from an operation to cure an elbow injury, would have
to prove his fitness by playing domestic matches in order to make
it to the Indian team. According to the Board of Control for Cricket
in India (BCCI) sources, the selection committee members will
insist on Tendulkar proving his match fitness by playing in domestic
matches.
The Indian team is to tour Sri Lanka for a tri-nation tournament
(from July 30) with West Indies as the third team. Sachin is not
attending the ongoing camp at the National Cricket Academy in
Bangalore.
Ganguly to join cricket camp
Jul 03 2005
Indian cricket captain Sourav Ganguly, will take a break from
his English County stint with Glamorgan and join the team's conditioning
camp in Bangalore later this month. He was expected to join his
team-mates on July 13 following coach Greg Chappell's insistence
that the captain be present during his first camp with the Indian
team. Ganguly's arrival will coincide with the start of the cricket
camp, the third and final leg of the near month-long training
programme at the National Cricket Academy.
The camp began on June 27 with a eight-day programme for the fast
bowlers and would be followed by a fitness programme from July
5 to 12 when the rest of the 36 probables will join the 16 pacers.
Champions Trophy - India crawl in through back door
Jul 02 2005
The 2006 Champions Trophy to be held in India has been reduced
to eight teams instead of 12 to make the limited-overs tournament
more competitive, the ICC said on Thursday. ICCs Mark Harrison
clarified to HT that the host country plus five top teams will
get automatic entry to the ICC Championship, with the next four
fighting it out for the remaining two spots. Even if India continue
their abysmal performance of last season, they are assured of
a back-door entry to the Champions Trophy.
VVS, Bhajji, Pathan may not figure in Johnnie Walker
Super series
Jul 02 2005
The Three India cricketers will not play the Super series to be
played against Australia in October this year as they have been
dropped from the list of 20 probables for the World XI team, selected
by former cricketers Sunil Gavaskar, Aravinda de Silva, Michael
Atherton, Clive Lloyd, Jonty Rhodes and Richard Hadlee.
It has also been confirmed by reliable sources that the three
players have been chopped from the one-day side as well.
However, Indias other stars Sachin Tendulkar , Anil Kumble, Rahul Dravid and Virender Sehwag remain in contention for the selection
of final 14-string side, to be decided in the middle of August.
The selectors, meanwhile, are in a dilemma to the team skipper.
The contenders are Michael Vaughan (England, captain), Brian Lara
(West Indies, former captain), Sachin Tendulkar (India, former
captain), Inzamam-ul Haq (Pakistan, captain), Shivnarine Chanderpaul
(West Indies, captain) and Stephen Fleming (New Zealand, captain).
Tri-series in Lanka to be played under old rules
Jul 02 2005
The tri-series between India, Sri Lanka and West Indies would
not be played under the new rules for ODI matches announced recently
by the International Cricket Council (ICC).
Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) has intimated Board of Control for Cricket
in India (BCCI) of its decision not to introduce the new rules
for the seven ODIs to be played in the tournament starting from
July 30.
|
|
In
March 2004, in the 1st Innings of the 1st Test versus Pakistan
at Multan in Pakistan, Virender Sehwag became the first
Indian batsman to score a triple century. 
| 
