"Silly Points"

Sourav Ganguly announces last hurrah as India prepare to cull 'Big Four’
Source: Telegraph UK | Simon Briggs | 08 Oct 2008 9:26AM BST



Sourav Ganguly, the former India captain, has announced that he would be retiring from all cricket at the end of the four-Test series against Australia, which begins in Bangalore. His only comment was: “I hope I can go out on a winning note.”

Ganguly, 36, will thus be the first of the so-called 'Big Four’ to leave the game, though there is speculation in India that VVS Laxman, who is 33, and Sachin Tendulkar, 35 (but feeling more like 45 after almost two decades in the national side), will be close on his heels.

Pressure is even being applied from board level. One Indian official said last week that the five senior players in the team – who also include Rahul Dravid, 35, and Anil Kumble, who will turn 38 during the series – had all been told to plan their retirement by December at the latest.

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Anil Kumble retires from Test cricket
Source: Times of India | 2 Nov 2008, 1458 hrs IST, AGENCIES



NEW DELHI: India skipper Anil Kumble announced his retirement after the third Test against Australia, quitting the game at his favourite Feroz Shah Kotla ground. Mahendra Singh Dhoni has been named India's captain for the Nagpur Test against Australia. ( Watch )

The 38-year-old is Test cricket's third-highest Test wicket taker with 619 wickets, trailing only Sri Lankan spinner Muttiah Muralitharan and Australia's retired Shane Warne.

"It was a very tough decision, especially when you have performed for 18 years and been so competitive," he said at the presentation ceremony after the match had ended in a draw. "But the body helped me make the decision. This injury also helped."

Kumble had suffered a deep cut in his left little finger which needed 11 stitches during the match.

"I had already decided to leave after this series, but decided once I realised I won't be 100 percent for Nagpur (fourth Test)."

Kumble said he would want to go to Nagpur for the final Test to wish Sourav Ganguly on his last Test and Laxman on his 100th Test. "I may not be going with the team tomorrow. But I would want to be in dressing room in Nagpur and see that India win the series."
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Kumble backs Dhoni to shine
Source: The Press Association | 3rd Nov 2008

Former India captain Anil Kumble believes Mahendra Singh Dhoni is the perfect man to replace him as Test skipper.

The 38-year-old quit the international scene with immediate effect on Sunday after India were held to a draw in the third Test by Australia in New Delhi. He will hand on the responsibility to one-day captain Dhoni and reckons the 27-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman will do a fine job.

"He has done exceptionally well. He is perfectly in position to take over the mantle. We have the right man and we can depend on him." he said.

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Dhoni will be India's most successful captain!

He is an astute leader and uses the resources at his disposal very efficiently.

Virender Sehwag named vice-captain of Team India
Source:

New Delhi, November 7: :
Opening batsman Virender Sehwag has been named the vice-captain of the Indian team for the upcoming one-day internationals and Test series against England. The Delhi cricketer is also the vice-captain of the team for the fourth and final Test against Australia

In the one-dayers, however, Sehwag replaced Yuvraj Singh, who is struggling with his form for sometime now.

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Hadlee foresees Dhoni's India becoming no.1 in all formats
Source: NDTV Cricket | Press Trust of India | Friday, November 07, 2008 9:04 PM (New Delhi)



Australia may continue to enjoy their numero uno status in world cricket for some more time but bowling great Richard Hadlee believes the Indian team under Mahendra Singh Dhoni would eventually topple them and rule all three formats of the game.

Here as the brand ambassador of Sunday's Airtel Half Marathon, Hadlee is highly impressed by what he saw of Dhoni and believes under him, India would emerge as the number one team in Test, One-day International and Twenty20 as well.

"It may not happen right now, but I think in a few years, India may go on to become the number one team and dominate all three formats of the game," Hadlee said.

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Source: TOI - 2 Feb 2009, 1833 hrs IST, PTI

KOLKATA: Sourav Ganguly might have walked into the sunset of his cricketing career, but the former India captain on Monday said he is still good enough to play both forms of the game at the international level for at least a year.

Asked if he is still good enough for international cricket at 36 years of age, Ganguly replied, "Two-hundred percent." "I think I am still good enough for both forms of cricket. I played my best in my last years. If I had played, I could have easily continued for at least one or one-and-half years more.

"But that's not possible now, though. One has to accept the fact that retirement was part and parcel of a sportsperson's life," Ganguly said. "I have Indian Premier League to look forward to. But turning out in the IPL could not be compared to playing for India," he added.

Ganguly was speaking at a function to release 'Dada Tantra', a book based on him and authored by sports journalist Goutam Bhattacharya. "You have to see life as a bigger picture. Cricket is just a part of it. Time is the biggest factor and in due course I am sure people will forget the professional part of me," Ganguly said.

The left-handed batsman, who had an infamous spat with the then India coach Greg Chappell which led to his exclusion from the team in 2005, said the Aussie's contribution in his ouster was very little. "There were other persons in the board and in selection committee who influenced him. I don't think Greg's role in that episode was more than 15 per cent," Ganguly said.

"Those one-and-half months, I was very upset. When you see wrong things happening against you, obviously you get more angry than normal." Ganguly said he chose not to say anything against Chappell but do the talking with his bat. "Greg Chappell then lost his job as coach. Eventually, I made a comeback under Rahul Dravid and went on to reach another milestone -- to play 100 Tests which was a personal goal for me. I chose my bat and ball to do the needful.

Narrating about the mental agony he went through during a lean patch in 2003-04, Ganguly said, "There was a time when I would check in the internet and look for the top three-four players and their statistics. How much runs, centuries they have scored to get there.

"But eventually, it was not of any help and was a sheer waste of time. Success, failure, agony are part of every sportsperson's life. But instead of wasting energy pondering about that one should work hard for the next stage," he said when asked about the formula for success.

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Source: Indian Express | Posted: Feb 03, 2009 at 0023 hrs IST

Mumbai: A lot has been written about how Greg Chappell had effected Sourav Ganguly’s ouster from the Indian team in 2005. The former India captain, however, feels the Australian’s role in episode wasn’t much and the then Indian coach was influenced by some in the Indian Cricket board to act against him.

“There were other persons in the board and in selection committee who influenced him. I don’t think Greg’s role in that episode was more than 15 per cent,” said Ganguly, who retired from international cricket last year.

“Those one-and-half months, I was very upset. When you see wrong things happening against you, obviously you get more angry than usual.” Ganguly said he chose not to say anything against Chappell but do the talking with his bat.

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Source: Cricket 365 | February 04 2009

Rahul Dravid insists he is not close to retiring, despite suggestion that the out-of-form batsman should make way for India's new crop of batsmen.

The former captain averages just 21 in his last eight Test innings and faces a constant battle for his place in the team as Rohit Sharma and other young, capable middle-order batsmen wait in the wings.

"Such thoughts on retirement never crossed my mind," Dravid told the Daily News & Analysis. "Sometimes, maybe to some extent, your priorities may change a bit, but no, I don't think I ever thought of walking away.

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Source: TOI | 5 Feb 2009, 2242 hrs IST, PTI

COLOMBO: Mahendra Singh Dhoni led cricket team on Thursday created a new Indian record of winning nine One-dayers on the trot after defeating Sri Lanka by 67 runs in the fourth match.

The winning streak had started with the home series against England in November last year.

India had blanked England 5-0 in the seven match series, which was cut short due to Mumbai terror strikes. India has convincingly beat Sri Lanka in the all four ODIs in the five-match series, improving the prospects of grabbing the number one ranking.

Prior to this record, India had established the eight-match winning streak four times, with last being under Rahul Dravid in 2006.

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Source: TOI | 9 Feb 2009, 1538 hrs IST, AFP

NEW DELHI: India's cricket chiefs on Monday named swashbuckling opener Virender Sehwag the country's player of the year for 2007-2008.

Sehwag, 30, will receive the Polly Umrigar award, named after a former India captain, at a function organised by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in Mumbai on February 18.

Sehwag dominated Indian batting since his return to the Test side on the 2007-08 tour of Australia after being overlooked for the away series against Bangladesh and England and the home matches against Pakistan.

In 2008, the opening batsman scored 1,462 runs in 14 Tests at an average of 56.23, including a blistering triple-century against South Africa in Chennai. Sehwag was also part of India's World Cup-winning Twenty20 squad in South Africa in September, 2007.

Cheteshwar Pujara, a 21-year-old from Saurashtra, was named the best batsman in domestic cricket for scoring 807 runs at an average of 73.36 runs in the country's premier first-class tournament for the Ranji Trophy.

Uttar Pradesh seamer Sudeep Tyagi, who picked up 41 wickets at 21.63 in the Ranji Trophy, was named the best bowler in domestic cricket.

Former Test batsman Gundappa Viswanath will receive the C.K. Nayudu award, named after the legendary India captain, for his lifetime contribution to the game.

The stylish middle-order batsman, who scored a Test century on debut against Australia in 1969, has served as India's chairman of selectors in the past.

India stars Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Harbhajan Singh, recipients of the country's fourth-highest civilian awards, the Padma Shri, last month, will also receive special awards from the BCCI.

Dhoni led India to victory in the World Twenty20 championships, while Harbhajan surpassed 300 wickets during the home series against Australia last October-November.


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Source: TOI | 18 Feb 2009, 2234 hrs IST, PTI

MUMBAI: Flamboyant opener Virender Sehwag on Wednesday said he wanted to emulate his idol Sachin Tendulkar and win the Best Cricketer of the Year Award of the Cricket Board and was happy to achieve the feat after eight years in international cricket.

"I have always watched Sachin on TV and wanted to emulate him. It's a great honour to win this award, especially a year after my role model Tendulkar won it. It took me eight years to do so. My first award was the Castrol Award. I thank the BCCI for this honour," Sehwag said after receiving the Polly Umrigar Award from Board President Shashank Manohar.

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Source: Press Trust of India | 15:58 IST, Saturday, February 28, 2009 (London)

The wax statue of Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar will be unveiled at Madame Tussauds Museum in April, the first Indian sportsperson to be featured in one of London's famous tourist attraction.

A spokeswoman of Madame Tussauds said on Friday that Tendulkar, the world's highest run getter in Tests, will be the first Indian sportsperson to be featured at the world famous wax museum. He joins other cricket legends like Brian Lara and Shane Warne to find a place there.

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Source: NZHerald | 4:00AM Sunday Mar 01, 2009

The New Zealand Cricket Players' Association will make no concessions to bully-boy tactics from the BCCI as a compromise is sought to allow the 'Indian Six' to play in the State Championship. The BCCI on Friday removed Sachin Tendulkar and Dinesh Karthik from the Masters Twenty20 international that acted as a curtain-raiser to India's clash with New Zealand.

New Zealand Cricket, caught in a diplomatic nightmare, are trying to steer a middle course through a political minefield as the New Zealand Cricket Players' Association and BCCI, Indian cricket's governing body, fail to see eye-to-eye.

After withdrawing Tendulkar and Karthik on account of a former ICL player, Hamish Marshall, being included in the NZCPA Masters side, the BCCI have no choice but to prevent their players playing for any major association that has players with Indian Cricket League (ICL) links. The ICL is regarded as a rebel league by Indian authorities.

Six test specialists - VVS Laxman, Rahul Dravid, Amit Mishra, Murali Vijay, Laxmipathi Balaji and Dhawal Kulkarni - were to be divided among the teams to get some competitive cricket in before the test series.

But the NZCPA refuse to countenance the possibility of Daryl Tuffey, from Auckland, and possibly Canterbury's Chris Harris and Northern Districts' Marshall, who is this season playing as an overseas player, being withdrawn from their squads because of their ICL links. "We're not against the Indians playing in our domestic competition, far from it," NZCPA's Heath Mills said.

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