Rahul Dravid, who is known as ‘The Wall’, is going to be the new coach of Team India during the tour of Sri Lanka. Team India is scheduled to play the Sri Lanka tour with a new team combination where the regular Indian team is scheduled to play the WTC finals in UK.
Rahul Dravid Appointed as Coach for Sri Lanka Tour
“The Team India coaching staff will be in the UK and it is best that the young team is guided by Dravid as he has already worked with almost all of the India ‘A’ boys. The comfort the youngsters share with him will be an added advantage,” the official told ANI.
The tour of Sri Lanka will prove to be Rahul Dravid’s second stint with India after working as a batting consultant during the England tour in 2014.
Before taking over as the head of NCA in 2019, Dravid had worked closely with the current crop of youngsters at the U-19 level as well as in India A setup.
The India squad for the Sri Lanka series is expected to be selected at the end of June. The three ODIs will be played on July 13, 16, 19 and the T20Is are expected to be played between July 22-27.
They will serve a week-long quarantine beginning with three days of hard quarantine in hotel rooms followed by four days of training but with movement strictly restricted between the hotel and the grounds. They will then fly back to India on July 28.
To keep the safety of the teams’ bubbles intact, the matches are likely to be played without crowds. The Sooriyawewa ground near Hambantota and the stadium in Dambulla are the frontrunners to host the matches.
India last toured Sri Lanka in 2018 for the Nidahas T20 tri-series and in 2017 for a bilateral all-format tour.
Virat Kohli, who has already set up a fundraiser along with his wife Anushka Sharma, donated Rs 6.77 lakh for the coronavirus treatment of the mother of former Indian women cricketer K.S. Sravanthi Naidu.
Kohli helps Indian former Women cricketer
Sravanthi, whose mother is suffering from severe symptoms, appealed to BCCI and Hyderabad Cricket Association for help.
The ex-women cricketer had already spent Rs 16 lakh for the treatment of her parents who contracted the virus. While her mother is still critical, her father is in the ICU.
Notably, Kohli’s gesture was in response to the tweet tagged to him by N. Vidya Yadav, former BCCI South Zone convenor (women’s cricket) and sister of N. Shivlal Yadav, seeking help to Sravanthi.
Sravanthi Naidu – Former Indian women cricketer
“Honestly, I was amazed at his spontaneous gesture. Such a great gesture from such a great cricketer. I am also grateful to the Indian fielding coach R. Sridhar who also took up the issue with Kohli,” Vidya told Sportstar.
The 34-year old played four women’s One Day Internationals and one Test for India. She holds the record for producing the best bowling figures on WT20I debut (4/9).
Naidu played one Test and four ODIs as of 2014. She was a part of the 2014 India Women’s squad for three Twenty20s against Bangladesh and also the Women’s World Twenty20.
Meanwhile, Kohli has a hectic schedule ahead. He would first be leading the Indian team against New Zealand in the much-awaited final of the inaugural ICC World Test Championship, which starts from June 18 and will be played in Southampton. Then, the Kohli-led side will take on England in a five-match Test series.
India’s Senior Women squad for Test & ODI
India Women squad for the only Test match, ODI & T20I series against England has been announced by BCCI. The team will fly along with Men’s team to the UK.
Team India pacer Mohammed Shami has praised Rohit Sharma’s leadership saying that India’s opening batsman and limited-overs vice-captain gives freedom to bowlers.
“As a bowler, when I go to him for advice, he always gives positive answers. Rohit always pushes the bowlers to do what their mind tells them to, irrespective of how the batsman is playing or his strong points,” Shami told India TV on Wednesday.
“I think that is very important for the confidence of a fast bowler,” he said.
The 30-year-old pace bowler, who has recovered from a forearm fracture and played in the Indian Premier League for Punjab Kings, is part of the India squad for the tour of England where the Virat Kohli-led side will play six Test matches, starting with the World Test Championship final against New Zealand in Southampton on June 18.
Virat Kohli
“Rohit is a different character. He is a cool person, except when he comes to bat,” said Shami while adding that Kohli is as aggressive as fast bowlers.
“Fast bowlers are very aggressive, both old and new. But the one player who could probably emulate their aggression is our own captain! Sometimes, when a picture of Virat’s celebration of a wicket goes viral on social media, I funnily ask him, “Was it my wicket or yours?,” Shami said.
“He celebrates more than the bowlers! Sometimes he points out that you don’t look too happy with the wicket, so I simply tell him, ‘You did all the celebration for me!’.
“But it is important to have fun on the field. Virat shows aggression, obviously, but as a unit, he has led the team brilliantly so far. In addition, he is a very aggressive batsman too,” the pacer added.
The remaining 20 matches of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2021 edition will be held in Abu Dhabi, confirmed a source on Tuesday, as the Emirates Cricket Board (ECB) gave the green signal for Pakistan to host the series in the UAE.
PSL 2021 set to play in UAE
Only 14 matches of the tournament had been played when the pandemic forced the PCB to suspend the PSL 2021.
However, Wasim Khan, the PCB’s chief executive, said there is still plenty of obstacles to navigate before the future of the tournament is decided.
“We had an interactive and productive meeting in which we considered a number of factors,” Khan said after the Zoom meeting between the PCB and the six franchise owners on Friday.
“While the UAE has emerged as a preferred venue, a number of challenges remain, which will be worked through over the coming days. We remain committed to doing everything possible to complete the HBL PSL 6.”
Friday’s meeting also considered advice from Pakistan’s National Command and Operation Centre, the body overseeing the country’s Covid-response effort.
According to a statement from the PSL organisers, the viability of finishing the season is dependent on playing the matches before Pakistan departs for their limited-overs tour to the UK.
“As the [Eid] holiday period has already started in both the countries and the Pakistan men’s national cricket team has to depart for the United Kingdom on 23 June, the PCB will use this time to work with the Emirates Cricket Board to check if the event can be successfully delivered within the available time,” the statement read.
“During the holiday period, the PCB will work on a revised tournament schedule, while it will liaise with the ECB in relation to finalising playing and training facilities, hotel bookings, ground transportation and visitors’ visas.
“PCB will carry out a detailed financial and risk assessment as well as cost analysis before reporting back to the franchises, who will then review before a decision on the event venue is confirmed.”
UAE restricts Player’s families
Sources said that it is expected that the teams would proceed to Abu Dhabi by May 22. According to sources, families of players and officials have not been allowed to travel to Abu Dhabi.
The UAE recently banned entry of people from Pakistan due to Covid issues. A source said that the first game will be held on June 1 at Abu Dhabi.
Only 14 matches were held in the first phase held in February and March here at the National Stadium which had to be postponed when a handful of foreign players and officials tested positive for Covid-19.
Sources said that foreign players would come to Abu Dhabi directly. Because of a recent intensive spike in Covid cases in Pakistan, franchises had advised the PCB to shift the remaining matches to the UAE.
According to sources, if the UAE refused to grant the PCB’s request then the Board would go for its second option and hold the remaining matches in Karachi.
Aakash Chopra has said that the Indian selectors can’t look past Prithvi Shaw for the T20 World Cup, considering his solid form in IPL 2021.
Aakash Chopra Praises Prithvi Shaw
In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra believes that Prithvi Shaw ought to be in the Indian team’s plan of things for the T20 World Cup after his endeavors in IPL 2021.
“If Prithvi Shaw continues batting like this, I feel will have to be considered for the World T20. You just cannot ignore him now because of the kind of form he has shown, the kind of runs he has put, and the fashion in which he has scored those runs,” Chopra said.
Prithvi Shaw
“We had spoken earlier that Prithvi Shaw will be one of the finds of the tournament, that his strike rate will be the best. And he is standing there only. The way he has batted, six fours off six deliveries, it is not that easy to hit six boundaries in the first over,” the former Indian batsman added.
Aakash Chopra said that Prithvi Shaw’s stunning batting in IPL 2021 was likened to his presentation on Test debut against the West Indies.
“The way he has batted, the skills and fearless approach he has shown, he was taking risks but it did not seem like he was doing so. He has been absolutely sensational. We saw the old Prithvi Shaw, who had scored a century on his Test debut,” he concluded.
Shaw has absolutely advanced his case for selection in the Indian team for the upcoming T20 World Cup. Nonetheless, with many batsmen competing for the subsequent opener’s spot alongside Rohit Sharma, the 21-year-old should dole out some exceptional exhibitions in the series against Sri Lanka to stay in the selection scene.
Prithvi Shaw in IPL 2021 scored an impressive 308 runs with a strike rate of 166.48 by playing in 8 matches before the BCCI postponed the IPL 2021.
Suresh Raina in his autobiography book allocated a column on “How MS Dhoni Reacted to his IPL 2008 Contract with CSK”. The much-awaited Suresh Raina autobiography ‘Believe – What Life and Cricket Taught Me’ is set to available from July 19, 2021.
Raina praises Dhoni in his Autobiography
In this section, he explained the reaction he received from his “brother from another mother” MS Dhoni on his IPL 2008 contract.
With most icon players already bought by franchises, CSK put in an early bid for Dhoni – the person they were looking at to lead the side. Dhoni, who was already the captain of the Indian limited-overs team in 2008, was bought by the Super Kings for $1.5 million at the 2008 players’ auction.
Suresh Raina Autobiography book
Soon after he was bought in early, CSK was looking at forming a core featuring Indian stars. And that is where Suresh Raina was considered. With a base Base price of $125,000, Raina’s stocks skyrocketed to a price of $650,000 by the end of the inaugural auction.
By then, Raina had become friends with Dhoni and had spent a good two seasons with him. This benefitted the CSK as they went on to win three IPL titles and are to date considered one of the most consistent sides in the cash-rich league.
In a book titled ‘Believe’, Raina reveals what Dhoni told him after he was bought by CSK.
Like always, Dhoni kept it short and simple, he said merely three words ‘Maza aayega dekh.’
Excerpt from the book: The IPL auctions happened, and like every other cricketer in the country, I was waiting eagerly to know which team I would be playing for. I was elated to go to the Chennai Super Kings. It meant Mahi Bhai and I would be playing for the same team. I heard from him almost immediately after I was bought in the auction. He said, ‘Maza aayega dekh.’ There was a lot of attention on him, of course. And looking at some of the other figures whom Chennai had bought Matthew Hayden, Muttiah Muralitharan and Stephen Fleming I was just delighted to be in the same team as them. The IPL strengthened my bond with Mahi Bhai even further.
Click here to purchase Suresh Raina’s autobiography ‘Believe – What Life and Cricket Taught Me’ book.
St Lucia Zouks have retained the core of the team, which took them to the 2020 Caribbean Premier League (CPL) final, though skipper Daren Sammy will not be a part of the squad in the 2021 edition.
Sammy, the two-time T20 World Cup-winning captain, has been given the role of ‘T20 cricket consultant and brand ambassador’.
Daren Sammy will not play in CPL 2021
The players the Zouks retained are Andre Fletcher, Kesrick Williams, Rahkeem Cornwall, and Roston Chase. They will be joined by Obed McCoy, Mark Deyal, and Javelle Glen. The Zouks have 10 spots left to fill in their squad and the remaining players will be announced in the coming weeks.
Coach Andy Flower shared a personal message to Sammy on his newest appointment expressing “I have loved my interaction with him. Thank you very much for what you have done and look forward to working with you in the future. Preparations are ongoing as the franchise works aggressively on identifying exceptional players to bring to the team to victory.”
Daren Sammy on his new Role
“It’s been an absolute pleasure to have led and been a part of the St Lucia Zouks from its inception. Even though some may say good things must come to an end, it will not be in this instance. St Lucia Zouks and I will always be a team,” said Sammy.
“But since venturing into coaching, I realise I have a new passion that can allow me to still contribute and play a part in taking the franchise forward on its quest to winning a CPL title and developing future stars,” the 37-year-old player said.
Daren Sammy played 74 CPL games for the St. Lucia-based franchise, scoring 898 runs and picking up 24 wickets. His highest score was 60*, while his best figures were 3/18.
The CPL 2021 will get underway on August 28 in St Kitts & Nevis. Trinbago Knight Riders are the defending champions of the CPL, having won their fourth title last year.
AB de Villiers will not be returning to play for South Africa in the 2021 T20 World Cup, the country’s cricket board said in a statement on Tuesday.
Ab de Villiers will not return to South Africa team
When the squads for South Africa’s tours of West Indies and Ireland were announced on Tuesday (May 18), De Villiers’ name was missing.
This raised a lot of eyebrows only until Cricket South Africa clarified in its press release that the discussions with the now-retired cricketer ended with him deciding to not play for the country again.
“Discussions with AB de Villiers have concluded with the batsman deciding once and for all, that his retirement will remain final,”Cricket South Africa said in its statement.
AB de Villiers was in great form in IPL 2021
AB de Villiers, playing for the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), was in great form during the 14th edition of the IPL.
AB de Villiers
He had played multiple match-winning knocks for his team and had amassed 207 runs in six innings at an average of 51.75 and an amazing strike rate of 164.29 while also hitting 16 fours and 10 massive sixes.
After hitting a match-winning 76 not out off just 34 deliveries against Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2021, De Villiers had said that he would talk with South Africa coach Mark Boucher about a potential return.
“If I can slot in, it will be fantastic,” De Villiers had said. “I am absolutely interested, with regards to my form, my fitness, we have to get the best 15 together, we will plan accordingly. I am speaking with Boucher towards the end of IPL.”
Faf du Plessis too loses his spot
Faf du Plessis with AB de Villiers
Meanwhile, in another shocking decision, CSA have decided not to include their top batsman Faf du Plessis in their ODI squad against Ireland and T20I squad against West Indies.
Faf retired from Tests earlier this year but was expecting to contribute especially in the T20 format with the World Cup looming later in the year. It remains to be seen if he is not available or not considered for the tours.
The suspension of IPL 2021 has put a delay in the team expansion plan for the multi-million dollar league. The BCCI had planned to add a couple of teams in the roster with one of the teams based out of the mighty Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
BCCI postpones the plan of IPL Team Expansion
There were reports that the board would take out a tender regarding two new teams but now they have deferred it to July 2021. Earlier they were to release the tender in May 2021.
“Time is not right to even talk about the new IPL teams at this stage. We have to first decide the way forward on the suspended season and then only decisions can be taken on the new teams for IPL 2022. No discussion in this regard is happening at this stage in the BCCI. We don’t see any moment on this before July”, a senior BCCI official told InsideSport.co
BCCI’s Losses Will Go up to Rs 2500 Crore
If the suspended IPL 2021 isn’t completed, the Indian cricket board is estimated to incur losses of around Rs 2,500 crore, says BCCI president and former India captain, Sourav Ganguly.
The T20 league was canceled earlier this week once players and support staff began testing positive for coronavirus despite being in bio-secure bubbles for a significant period.“If we fail to complete the IPL, the loss will be close to INR 2500 crore (USD 340 million approximately). That is going by early estimates,” Ganguly told The Telegraph.
“There has got to be a lot of shuffling. Only a day has passed since we suspended the IPL. We have to speak to other boards and see if a window can be made available before the T20 World Cup. A lot of things are involved and we will slowly start working on them,” he said.
IPL board has not yet revealed any official announcement regarding the IPL reschedule.
Shiv Sunder Das, the former India men’s Test opener, has been appointed as the batting coach of India Women for the upcoming tour of England, while Abhay Sharma has been named the fielding coach.
Shiv Sunder Das appointed as batting coach
Rajkuvardevi Gaekwad, the current Baroda women’s selection panel chief, replaced long-time manager Trupti Bhattacharya, who served in the role until the home series against South Africa in March.
Das, who previously worked with the India women’s A team, including during the 2020 quadrangular series in Patna, told ESPNcricinfo he has been appointed only for the seven-match England tour.
India Women cricket team
“This is the first time I have been assigned a job with the India women’s national team, so it’s a quite exciting time for me,” he said. “I’m really looking forward to it. It will be a good challenge for me because I’ve toured England as a player and played a lot of league cricket. Conditions-wise I’m a bit familiar, so it will be nice to add value to the team. My focus is only on the England tour as of now because I’ve come in for the England tour.”
TOS understands that official confirmation to the largely new-look support staff of India Women was sent by Monday, with the touring contingent – including a 21-member playing squad – for the England assignment set to assemble in Mumbai on May 19.
Ramesh Powar was appointed as the head coach on a two-year contract on Thursday. The tenure of the rest of the support staff, where Tracy Fernandes has been retained as physio, remains unclear.
The nine-member support staff slated to tour England includes trainer R Naresh, performance analyst Sandeep Raju, and masseuse Neerja Desai.
Former India international and National Cricket Academy spin-bowling coach Narendra Hirwani, who worked as the spin consultant with India Women under former head coach WV Raman through July 2019 to March this year, doesn’t feature on the list.
Sharma, the former Railways wicketkeeper, has had stints with the India men’s sides and was the fielding coach of India Women for the South Africa series.
India’s fixtures in England include a one-off Test that begins on June 16 in Bristol and three ODIs and three T20Is, the tour-ender scheduled for July 15.
India wicketkeeper-batsman Wriddhiman Saha has reportedly tested negative for coronavirus while in quarantine clearing the way for him to join the rest of the Test squad announced by the BCCI earlier this month for the England tour. Though Saha was named in the 20-man Test squad, his availability was subject to fitness.
Wriddhiman Saha joins England tour squad
According to ESPNcricinfo, Saha has been allowed to visit his family in Kolkata after spending two weeks in quarantine in Delhi. He thus will enter the Indian cricket team’s bio-bubble in the week leading up to the departure for UK.
Saha is one of the three members of the Test squad including KL Rahul and Prasidh Krishna whose availability for the tour depended on fitness. Rahul underwent surgery for appendicitis while Krishna had tested positive for coronavirus.
Last week, Saha had dispelled the rumors surrounding his health via social media. “My quarantine period is still not over. As a part of the routine check-up, 2 tests were done, out of which 1 was negative and the other one came as positive.Otherwise, I am doing much better. Requesting everyone not to spread misleading stories/information without the whole context,” he had written.
The India squad is expected to assemble in Mumbai along with their families before departing for Southampton for the WTC final. There, they will have to undergo a 10-day quarantine at a team hotel which is within the premises of Ageas Bowl. The WTC final gets underway from June 18.
Tushar Arothe slams Indian women's Cricket Team selection committee
Former Indian women cricket team coach Tushar Arothe, who too enjoyed a successful stint with this time, from 2017-2018, talked to Cricketnext, about various aspects that are hampering women’s cricket in India.
Tushar Arothe on Indian women Cricket Team
The former Baroda Ranji player minced no words and admitted that there are a few problems that need to be dealt with, rather quickly.
Following are the Excerpts of the interview to the Cricketnext
On WV Raman’s Sacking
Well, I believe there were over 35 applications for the post. Then, they shortlisted it to eight. I don’t really know what the criteria was or how did they scrutinise the applications. I personally think it is a little unfair on Raman.
If you look at his tenure, he took the girls to the final of the T20 World Cup, and most of the other period under him, went in lockdown due to Covid-19. So once can’t really judge his tenure.
Also, if you’re looking at the South Africa series, these girls were playing a lot of cricket already, but the Indians girls were playing after a year and were rusty. So he had no chance to work with the girls, and there was no camp. So they could have given one more year to WV.
Why no Extension for Raman, and Why Someone like Ramesh Powar — Who Was Removed Earlier, Brought in?
Well, we had all heard about the problem between Powar and Mithali Raj during the World Cup in West Indies, 2018.
But now it’s a fresh start and now someone who has a stronghold in the team, should intervene and take a stock of the whole situation and make sure that both the parties are on the same page this time around.
Whatever happened in the past, we need to forget it here. It is the future of the Indian team we are talking about, here. I mean both need to have the same goal now, which is winning the World Cup, and not lose in the semis or finals.
Why are So Many Coaches Being Changed, That Too so Frequently?
Simply put, there is a lot of politics in women’s cricket. In comparison, men’s cricket is very transparent. What I have seen from very close quarters in the team is that, there is a lot of appeasement going on. I think the blame falls on former women players.
Also, it is about the culture in the team. If the team doesn’t do well in a tournament, the coach is sacked. If a player doesn’t get along well with the coach, the latter is changed at their behest.
You look at the coach before me, the way Purnima Rau was treated after doing so well with the team is beyond belief.
I think, in my case, what went wrong was I asked the players to focus on competing with the top sides and prepare accordingly for them.
Some players didn’t really like my approach since I also told them that the effort put in during their 2017 World Cup campaign — where they reached the final — wasn’t going to be enough in the future.
Why is Fielding Still a Grey Area for Team India?
When I took over, the girls were doing only one session per day, which is not enough at all — during the camp. I arranged for two sessions in a day for the team, since this is not a team of a charitable trust.
This is the Indian women’s cricket team, which needs to train like champions to be champions. In fact, I used to squeeze in a special session for three girls everyday, where we would do specialized, skill-based training.
Initially, the girls were all for it, but it all started to change, when I pushed them a little bit harder over their fitness. This is clearly the one area where we are still lacking. If you’re not fit, your fielding certainly goes for a toss. Again, this wasn’t a welcome move for some.
It’s not like I asked the girls to sweat it out alone, while I chill in the hotel room. No. Each and every staff member used to be present in every training session to work on the grey areas. All I can say is, the two seniormost players are still ready to give their best in every session, and every other player should learn from them.
How is the Bond Within the Team, or How Was it During Your Tenure?
I can’t really talk about the current scenario, but can certainly talk about my time as the coach. In my first assignment as coach, in South Africa, I didn’t see a great bond in the girls. We used to focus a lot on team gelling and team-building exercises.
So it did reap benefits for the team then. I think for the common good of the team, the girls will have to display that camaraderie every time they step on the field. Senior players again have a big role to play, they need to lift the team up now.
How Can All the External Factors be Handled Well by Those in Power?
I think players should be made accountable for their’s and team’s performance. That’s how the responsibility will come in the team.
And the other would be, ex-women players — who do have any business with the team or its functioning, should strictly stay away. I feel currently, that is not the case and there is an involvement of unnecessary people as well. I mean, they all mean well for the team, but it is clearly not helping, says Tushar Arothe.
Is Selection Still a Problem in Team India?
The selectors don’t have a vision. We were playing against South Africa after a long break. Shikha Pandey was not included in the team and I heard that she was rested. I mean, how do you rest a player who hasn’t played for 12 months? It is a complete mess.
Look at Taniya Bhatia, the safest pair of hands in the team. She wasn’t included in the team. Now again for the tour of England, these players are back. I ask, on what basis were they left out, and have been brought back now, says Tushar Arothe.
