Witty, humorous Sehwag regales media
Qaiser Mohammad Ali
New Delhi, Oct 31, 2008: When Virender Sehwag speaks, everyone listens. His press conferences comprise amusing answers and witty one-liners, and are a treat as was evident here at the Ferozshah Kotla on Friday (Oct 31, 2008). His answers are usually blunt but brutally honest and many of them had the media in splits and brought some freshness inside the non-air conditioned, suffocating press conference hall. Even his snubs are laced with unique humour, compelling people to burst into laugher.
Even when Sehwag, who was the most successful bowler with 22-4-66-3 on the third day of the third Test against Australia here todasy, does not have answers to awkward questions or wants to avoid straight replies, he has a knack of deftly steering clear. Usually, most of his answers are as straightforward as his “uncluttered mind” (as Greg Chappell once termed him) and simple but effective batting style.
When someone asked him when would India be able to bowl out Australia on Saturday, Sehwag said: “I will tell you tomorrow.” And people laughed. Next question: “Do you think India will be able to enforce the follow-on?” Pat came the answer: “I will tell you this also tomorrow.” This drew even a bigger laughter.
Asked about the status of Anil Kumble’s hand injury, Sehwag innocently said: “How would I know about it? I was on the field throughout the day.” The gathering was in splits now, even though the media knew that he was avoiding a direct answer.
Replying to a question as to which team is at an advantage at the end of day three, Sehwag threw up another gem: “The match is in no one’s favour right now. It can go either way. We will have to see how it goes tomorrow morning."
Like his adeptness at verbal volleys, Sehwag is also in fine form with the bat these days. His last nine Test innings have been 201 not out, 50, 21, 34, 45, 6, 35, 90 and 1 (in the only innings he has batted at Kotla, his home ground). His fans are expecting him to score a century when he bats a second time at the Kotla.
But so far in the match Sehwag, who is also well known for breaking solid partnerships with his effective off spinners, has shone as a bowler. His viciously turning deliveries have accounted for the top three Aussie batsmen. “I am looking forward to taking my first five-wicket haul in Tests tomorrow,” he offered, even without being asked.
PS: And the next day -- 11 days after he turned 30 -- he actually took his maiden five-wicket haul (40-9-104-5).
Saturday, 1 November 2008
Wednesday, 22 October 2008
Greg Chappell: India, Australia in transition at the same time
(EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW)
Qaiser Mohammad Ali
MOHALI, Oct 21, 2008: Cricket throws up interesting co-incidences, and sometimes several of them at the same. While the talk of retirement of senior most players is renting the Indian cricket air, world No. 1 Australia too are about to undergo a period of transition. Fortunately for Australia, they have found a man who has seen two big transition periods to guide the board through this period and rebuild the team of the future.
Greg Chappell, a great batsman and the Indian team’s coach from 2005 to 2007, Rodney Marsh and Dennis Lillee had all quit the international scene together in early 1980s. Their retirement created a big void in national team and there was another crisis when almost all the top players, led by Kim Hughes, undertook a rebel tour of South Africa, also in mid-1980s, and were banned from official cricket as that country at the time was barred by the International Cricket Council due to apartheid. Chappell was a selector during this period and he had helped build an almost new team, led by Allan Border.
Former captain Chappell, having seen these two crisis-ridden periods, has now been appointed the head of Cricket Australia’s (CA) Commonwealth Bank Centre of Excellence (COE). Amongst his responsibilities is the moulding and preparing the replacements for the likes of Ricky Ponting, Michael Clarke and Matthew Hayden in the next three years.
“The Australian cricket is going through an interesting stage at the moment. This team is in transition; it’s a very different team now than has been in recent times with a few senior players coming to the end of their careers. So, basically, in the next 18 months to two years this will be a new-look team, with Ponting and Clarke as the senior players and a lot of young players. So, it’s an exciting time to be taking over the COE,” Chappell told me in the lounge of the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium here immediately after Australia’s defeat.
“When I look back to the mid 1980s when I was a selector, we had to go through a similar process of finding the types of players that will have a chance of succeeding at the international cricket. And that will be my role at the COE, to work out with other state coaches and selectors and so on,” he said, minutes after a meeting with captain Ricky Ponting and the coach Tim Nielson.
Chappell, who is in India with the Australian team for the first two Tests of the ongoing series, pointed out that Australia plays a unique brand of cricket and his job at the Brisbane-based academy would be to nurture players who could meet greater demands from the three formats of the game – Test, One-Day International and Twenty20.
“The type of cricket that Australia wants to play needs the type of players that will best suit that structure and game plan. It’s not rocket science. You need good combinations of bowling, you need aggressive batsmen, good fielders, good catching – the modern cricketer is going to face greater demands on his ability and his mental capacities than ever before. Twenty20 is now a big part of the programme. So the cricketer of the future is going to look very different from the cricketer of the past,” said the 60-year-old master batsman who played 87 Tests and 74 ODIs.
Talking about his responsibility, Chappell said: “Well, it is a very important role. The COE academy was brought in for that reason: it was important to have the next generation of players ready to go.”
About his India visit he said that one of the reasons was “to understand a little bit more the requirements of the players here … to see what sort of things head coach Nielson looks for, what he needs to look at the team as it stands at the moment, and discuss with Ponting and the selectors about where do they feel their needs” lay.
“Therefore, what can we do at the COE that will best feed their needs because it’s no good turning out players that are not required. If we need left-arm spinners then we better find left-arm spinners; if we need tall fast bowlers then we better find tall fast bowlers. It’s no good turning out five-foot-ten-inch fast bowlers when they need six-foot-six-inch fast bowlers … so, all of those things,” he said.
Veteran Australian cricket writer Mike Coward, now in India to cover the series, said that quality players are difficult to replace. “Greg, Marsh and Lillee were quality players. You can only replace them with good players,” said Coward, who has covered over 200 Tests and many ODIs. “Chappell will be good in the new (COE) position as he is excellent in one-on-one (coaching).”
NOTE: This was the only interview that Chappell gave during his stay in India in his new role with the Australian team. He left for home after the Mohali Test.
Friday, 17 October 2008
Kumble hopes batsmen too will hit form
Qaiser Mohammad Ali
Mohali, Oct 16, 2008: India captain Anil Kumble is happy that the bowlers put up a good performance in the first Test and he now hopes that the batsmen will emulate their form in the second Test starting here on Friday.
“On Indian wickets, you definitely need a spinner to come into play, if not in the first innings then certainly in the second innings. That's certainly something we will look to cash in on,” Kumble, who is a doubtful starter with a shoulder injury, told reporters here after the an indoor practice session due to morning rain.
“Having said that, to win a match, we need to get big scores from the batters and every bowler has to contribute. I am really happy with the way our bowling unit is shaping up and I am confident that our batters will also come to the party.”
Left-arm pacer Zaheer Khan and Ishant Sharma bowled brilliantly in the drawn first Test in Bangalore, snaring 13 of the 16 wickets that fell.
“There were a lot of positives (from Bangalore). The way we bowled … restricted Australia to 400 on a good pitch. The fast bowlers -- the way Zaheer and Ishant bowled -- and I thought even the spinners controlled the game pretty well in the first innings, although we didn't get wickets. I thought we were in total control, the way the innings progressed,” he said.
Australia captain Ricky Ponting also praised Zaheer’s performance. “He was the stand out with reverse swing. And when it reverses the scoring rate goes down,” he said.
Ponting was not too much worried about the loss of his new ball bowler Stuart Clark, who is suffering from an elbow injury and will be replaced by rookie pacer Peter Siddle. “We are going to be competitive like any team,” he said.
"Peter has shown that he can use the old ball well in matches for Victoria and with Brett Lee good at the art of reverse swing too, we can do well with our pace attack."
Qaiser Mohammad Ali
Mohali, Oct 16, 2008: India captain Anil Kumble is happy that the bowlers put up a good performance in the first Test and he now hopes that the batsmen will emulate their form in the second Test starting here on Friday.
“On Indian wickets, you definitely need a spinner to come into play, if not in the first innings then certainly in the second innings. That's certainly something we will look to cash in on,” Kumble, who is a doubtful starter with a shoulder injury, told reporters here after the an indoor practice session due to morning rain.
“Having said that, to win a match, we need to get big scores from the batters and every bowler has to contribute. I am really happy with the way our bowling unit is shaping up and I am confident that our batters will also come to the party.”
Left-arm pacer Zaheer Khan and Ishant Sharma bowled brilliantly in the drawn first Test in Bangalore, snaring 13 of the 16 wickets that fell.
“There were a lot of positives (from Bangalore). The way we bowled … restricted Australia to 400 on a good pitch. The fast bowlers -- the way Zaheer and Ishant bowled -- and I thought even the spinners controlled the game pretty well in the first innings, although we didn't get wickets. I thought we were in total control, the way the innings progressed,” he said.
Australia captain Ricky Ponting also praised Zaheer’s performance. “He was the stand out with reverse swing. And when it reverses the scoring rate goes down,” he said.
Ponting was not too much worried about the loss of his new ball bowler Stuart Clark, who is suffering from an elbow injury and will be replaced by rookie pacer Peter Siddle. “We are going to be competitive like any team,” he said.
"Peter has shown that he can use the old ball well in matches for Victoria and with Brett Lee good at the art of reverse swing too, we can do well with our pace attack."
Sachin set to make history in Mohali
Qaiser Mohammad Ali
Mohali, Oct 16, 2008: Sachin Tendulkar is set to erase Brian Lara’s record of highest Test career aggregate and also become the first batsman in 131-year Test match history to score 12,000 runs.
Tendulkar, 35, is just 15 short of breaking West Indian Lara's career aggregate of 11,953 runs, scored in 131 Tests. The Indian has played 151 matches and amassed 11,939. Lara played 232 innings and hammered 34 centuries while Tendulkar has batted in 246 innings and has hammered a world-record 39 centuries. The Mumbai maestro is set to play the 50th innings of his 27th Test against Australia.
Tendulkar, the senior most member of the Indian as well as the Australian side, is just two catches short of joining the 100-catch club. He made his Test debut on the 1989 tour of Pakistan and made an immediate impression with his exciting batting. He went on to captain India, though not with much success.
Sourav Ganguly, who will be retiring at the end of the series, will also be eying a personal milestone. The left-hander is just 39 runs short of becoming only the fourth Indian and the 33rd in the world to aggregate 7,000 runs. Interestingly, Ganguly, who is just below Greg Chappell in the all-time Test aggregate tally, could overtake the former Australia captain and former India coach in this series.
Harbhajan Singh, playing at his ground the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, could well become only the third Indian and the 22nd bowler in the world to take 300 wickets. He has played 70 Tests.
Australia pace spearhead Brett Lee would also be eying the 300-wicket mark in this series. He has 291 scalps in 69 Tests and he too is familiar with the PCA Stadium as he turned out for the Punjab Kings XI in the Twenty20 Indian Premier League this year.
Qaiser Mohammad Ali
Mohali, Oct 16, 2008: Sachin Tendulkar is set to erase Brian Lara’s record of highest Test career aggregate and also become the first batsman in 131-year Test match history to score 12,000 runs.
Tendulkar, 35, is just 15 short of breaking West Indian Lara's career aggregate of 11,953 runs, scored in 131 Tests. The Indian has played 151 matches and amassed 11,939. Lara played 232 innings and hammered 34 centuries while Tendulkar has batted in 246 innings and has hammered a world-record 39 centuries. The Mumbai maestro is set to play the 50th innings of his 27th Test against Australia.
Tendulkar, the senior most member of the Indian as well as the Australian side, is just two catches short of joining the 100-catch club. He made his Test debut on the 1989 tour of Pakistan and made an immediate impression with his exciting batting. He went on to captain India, though not with much success.
Sourav Ganguly, who will be retiring at the end of the series, will also be eying a personal milestone. The left-hander is just 39 runs short of becoming only the fourth Indian and the 33rd in the world to aggregate 7,000 runs. Interestingly, Ganguly, who is just below Greg Chappell in the all-time Test aggregate tally, could overtake the former Australia captain and former India coach in this series.
Harbhajan Singh, playing at his ground the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, could well become only the third Indian and the 22nd bowler in the world to take 300 wickets. He has played 70 Tests.
Australia pace spearhead Brett Lee would also be eying the 300-wicket mark in this series. He has 291 scalps in 69 Tests and he too is familiar with the PCA Stadium as he turned out for the Punjab Kings XI in the Twenty20 Indian Premier League this year.
Monday, 1 September 2008
Dhoni's shy parents are a big hit in Delhi
By Qaiser Mohammad Ali
New Delhi, Sep 1, 2008: During the three days that Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s parents were in city to receive the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award on his son’s behalf they were clearly the most sought after among the other award winners, their families, top bureaucrats and sports administrators, who took turns to meet the shy and reticent couple and pose for photographs with them.
Amazingly, the more they tried to remain low profile, the more people were attracted towards them. Even someone of the stature of former cricket captain Bishan Singh Bedi walked up to the Ranchi couple's table at official sports awards dinner, hosted by the Sports Ministry on Aug 29, and congratulated on their son's winning the award and lauded his exemplary temperament on the field. “You have produced a hira (gem). His feet are still on the ground - that's the best thing about him,” Bedi told Dhoni's mother Devika Devi, with her husband Pan Singh standing next to her.
The quiet and humble couple from Ranchi was the toast at the huge Convention Hall of the five-star Ashoka Hotel as they sat at the round dinner table with only a former Delhi player, who had especially been summoned from Mumbai to be their permanent guide during their stay in Delhi.
Pan Singh told Bedi that they might be meeting for the first time, but he used to listen intently to the radio commentary of matches when the leftarm spinner represented India in 1960s and 1970s.
“I remember when they used to describe… here Bedi bowls an armer… I was always interested in cricket,” he said turning to Bedi and then to me. Bedi simply smiled.
“Have you gone around this jungle?" Bedi asked them, referring to the burgeoning national capital.
Pan Singh, visiting Delhi for only the second time and after over 40 years, and his wife, who was here for the first time, visited age-old Qutub Minar and a few other historical places. “I had seen the Lal Qila earlier,” offered Pan Singh.
Dhoni missed the awards ceremony at the President’s Palace on Aug 29 as he was playing the fifth and final ODI series in Sri Lanka. India won the series.
Talking about Dhoni's marriage, Pan Singh said that the most eligible bachelor of the country was free to marry the girl of his choice. “We will have no objection to his choice of girl. We will never impose our choice because if, God forbid, something goes wrong then we will be responsible,” he said.
The superstitious couple never watches live telecast of Dhoni's matches. “We only watch the highlights, like Mohammed Kaif's father. We think something might happen if we watch matches,” said Pan Singh. But it may not be due to any superstition that Dhoni parks his motorcycles at different places.
Talking about his son’s passion for bikes, he said: “He has eight bikes. Some of them are parked at our house (in Shyamali Colony in Ranchi) and some are at the residence of my daughter, who is married in the city,” said Pan Singh. He said the new home that Dhoni is building would take time to complete.
The Dhonis have their roots in Wali village in the Almora district of Uttrakhand, where Pan Singh's elder brother still lives. “The last time I visited Wali was when he performed janeo (sacred thread) on Dhoni after the tour to Kenya and Zimbabwe in 2004," he said.
By Qaiser Mohammad Ali
New Delhi, Sep 1, 2008: During the three days that Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s parents were in city to receive the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award on his son’s behalf they were clearly the most sought after among the other award winners, their families, top bureaucrats and sports administrators, who took turns to meet the shy and reticent couple and pose for photographs with them.
Amazingly, the more they tried to remain low profile, the more people were attracted towards them. Even someone of the stature of former cricket captain Bishan Singh Bedi walked up to the Ranchi couple's table at official sports awards dinner, hosted by the Sports Ministry on Aug 29, and congratulated on their son's winning the award and lauded his exemplary temperament on the field. “You have produced a hira (gem). His feet are still on the ground - that's the best thing about him,” Bedi told Dhoni's mother Devika Devi, with her husband Pan Singh standing next to her.
The quiet and humble couple from Ranchi was the toast at the huge Convention Hall of the five-star Ashoka Hotel as they sat at the round dinner table with only a former Delhi player, who had especially been summoned from Mumbai to be their permanent guide during their stay in Delhi.
Pan Singh told Bedi that they might be meeting for the first time, but he used to listen intently to the radio commentary of matches when the leftarm spinner represented India in 1960s and 1970s.
“I remember when they used to describe… here Bedi bowls an armer… I was always interested in cricket,” he said turning to Bedi and then to me. Bedi simply smiled.
“Have you gone around this jungle?" Bedi asked them, referring to the burgeoning national capital.
Pan Singh, visiting Delhi for only the second time and after over 40 years, and his wife, who was here for the first time, visited age-old Qutub Minar and a few other historical places. “I had seen the Lal Qila earlier,” offered Pan Singh.
Dhoni missed the awards ceremony at the President’s Palace on Aug 29 as he was playing the fifth and final ODI series in Sri Lanka. India won the series.
Talking about Dhoni's marriage, Pan Singh said that the most eligible bachelor of the country was free to marry the girl of his choice. “We will have no objection to his choice of girl. We will never impose our choice because if, God forbid, something goes wrong then we will be responsible,” he said.
The superstitious couple never watches live telecast of Dhoni's matches. “We only watch the highlights, like Mohammed Kaif's father. We think something might happen if we watch matches,” said Pan Singh. But it may not be due to any superstition that Dhoni parks his motorcycles at different places.
Talking about his son’s passion for bikes, he said: “He has eight bikes. Some of them are parked at our house (in Shyamali Colony in Ranchi) and some are at the residence of my daughter, who is married in the city,” said Pan Singh. He said the new home that Dhoni is building would take time to complete.
The Dhonis have their roots in Wali village in the Almora district of Uttrakhand, where Pan Singh's elder brother still lives. “The last time I visited Wali was when he performed janeo (sacred thread) on Dhoni after the tour to Kenya and Zimbabwe in 2004," he said.
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