The Royal Battle to Unforgettable Glory

Border Gavaskar Trophy 2010, perhaps  the most awaited test series of the year… for it was the clash of two world class teams, Numero Uno test team India and the second best test team Australia.

The great epic of Mohali

Indeed, it was the best test match I have ever seen in my life. The whole Test was exciting except for the first day where the Australians were scoring on a cautious pace. But, the excitement started and the whole match’s result was changing every day.

Battle of the Champs: India vs Oz

Yeah ,the much awaited Clash of the Titans will get underway as Australia Face India in a Two match test series with the Latter playing Host. India-Australia (Or Border- Gavaskar Series, whatever you call it) Test series have been fiercely contested in the recent past and Considering the quality of the players involved, It won’t be a surprise if this series turns to be a close one.

Journey to the peak- India

The historic day – 6th December 2009, is a day I shall always cherish, not only me but every Indian in whose soul lies nothing but unadulterated cricket. My love… my pride… my favourite team, – “MY INDIA” reached the pinnacle of glory of being the number one test team for the very first time in the history of international cricket.

Sachin rested, Yuvraj back for Tri Series

The Board of Control for Cricket in India announced the Indian Squad for the upcoming tri series. Yuvraj Singh has been called back while the likes of Gautam Gambhir, Sachin Tendulkar and Harbhajan Singh have been rested.

The Committee headed by Kris Srikkanth, selected the One Day team for the Tri Series against Sri Lanka and New Zealand in Lanka from 10th August.

Team India in Colours- a poem

TEAM INDIA IN COLOURS

Here come the talented men in blue,

In appreciation my whistle blew,

Maxertainment 3: KKR stun last year runners up RCB

Sourav Ganguly-led Kolkata Knight Riders registered their second consecutive victory after they beat the Bangalore Royal Challengers by 7 wickets at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Sunday. With this win they have now defeated the two finalists of the IPL season 2. Knight Riders made a blazing start of their innings in order to chase down the modest target set by Bangalore Royal Challengers. Openers Manoj Tiwary and Brad Hodge gave a tremendous start to the Knight Riders. Together they put up the opening stand of 101 runs.

Tiwary, after making his maiden IPL half-century, got out to van der Merwe’s delivery. Brad Hodge also became the victim of van der Merwe after scoring 50. Sourav who had failed to get any score on the board last time looked good today and his 6 off a Del Steyn delivery reminded his golden days. He was unlucky to get out while trying to hit the winning shot.

The Challengers, after a disastrous start, managed to set the target of 136 to Kolkata Knight Riders. Earlier, Knight Riders captain Sourav Ganguly won the toss and elected to field first against the Bangalore Royal Challengers at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Sunday.

Charles Langeveldt and Angelo Mathews soon justified Ganguly’s decision and got the two quick wickets of SP Goswami and Manish Pandey. Goswami was caught by Ishant Sharma, while Pandey was bowled by Mathews.

After the two quick wickets, the Bangalore was looking to consolidate the innings but Murali Kartik gave them another jolt when he got the wicket of Virat Kohli. He was caught by Angelo Mathews. All eyes were on Rahul Dravid after the devastating start, but he too disappointed everyone and became the second victim of Angelo Mathews.

Robin Uthappa, who was trying to have a good partnership with Kallis, walked down the track and went for the lofted big hit but ended up nicking it behind the wicket, Mathews was the bowler.

RE van der Merwe was caught by Hodge and Mathews picked up his fourth wicket. However, Jacques Kallis remained not out on 65.

Preview: KKR vs RCB

Preview: KKR vs RCB

Kolkata Knight Riders VS Royal Challengers Bangalore

Venue: EDEN GARDENS, KOLKATA

Date: 14^th March, 2010

Time: 3pm

Kolkata Knight Riders
With ‘Miracle-Coach’ Dav Whatmore at the helm and Bengal’s dearest Dada running affairs on the pitch, the Knight Riders would want to put last season’s horrendous run behind them and start afresh. After winning the 1^st game, they will try to prove that the win was not just a fluke. Sourav who failed to score in the last match will try to shut the crtics’ mouths. Owais Shah and Angelo Mathews need to keep up the form they showed in the match against DC. Bowling seems to have improved thanks to the tips and tricks of the legendary Wasim Akram. Team’s bowling comprises of pace batteries like Ishant and Langaveldt and if they hold up, we may see a resurgence of the Dark Knights.
KEY PLAYERS: Sourav Ganguly, Angelo Mathews, Ishant Sharma, Charl langaveldt

Royal Challengers Bangalore

This year, Bangalore boast of a very strong team indeed, with fantastic hitters of the likes of Ross Taylor, Cameron White, Kevin Pietersen and new signing Eoin Morgan, and the dependability of South Africans Jacques Kallis and Mark Boucher. They also possess possibly the best of the local batting talent, in dynamic and ambitious youngsters Virat Kohli, Manish Pandey and Robin Uthappa, apart from stalwart Rahul Dravid. Skipper Anil Kumble leads the bowling attack that also boasts of the likes of test No.1 Dale Steyn. On paper they look strong enough to do an encore of last year’s final appearance. With an inspiring captain at the helm, one cannot rule out them going all the way.

KEY PLAYER: Jacques Kallis, Manish Pandey, Dale Steyn, Anil Kumble

SQUADS:

RCB: Jacques Kallis, Manish Pandey, Srivats Goswami, Vinay Kumar, Bhuvanesh Kumar, K P Appanna, Eoin Morgan, Akhil Balachandra, A Mithun, Steven Smith, Virat Kohli, Praveen Kumar, Robin Uthappa, Mark Boucher, Dale Steyn, Dillon Du Preez, Cameron White, Ross Taylor, Kevin Pietersen, Roelof van der Merwe, Rahul Dravid, Anil Kumble, S Sriram

KKR: Sourav Ganguly(C), Brendon McCullum, Chris Gayle, Brad Hodge, Owais Shah, Manoj Tiwari, Rohan Gavaskar, Chirag Pathak, Cheteswar Pujara, Harshad Khadiwale, Wriddhiman Shah, Angelo Matthews, Laxmi Ratan Shukla, Ganapati Vignesh, Ajit Agarkar, Varun Aron, Iqbal Abdulla, Eklakh Ahmed, Ashoke Dinda, Ajantha Mendis, Charl Langeveldt, Murali Karthik, Ishant Sharma

Preview: Kolkata Knight Riders

When Shah Rukh Khan bought the Kolkata Knight Riders, he would have never imagined in his wildest dreams that his side would fare so badly in the first two editions of the IPL.

They were hurt in the first edition of the mega-event by their lack of firepower in batting, with McCullum and Gayle  both not taking part in the later stages of the tournament, and were beset by controversies in the second edition: Coach John Buchanan’s multiple captaincy theory, the Fake IPL player saga that purported to expose the inner secrets of the team, and an inability to finish out close matches. They lost five matches in the last over, and mid-way through the tournament, owner Shah Rukh Khan left the team to fly back to India.

A year later, KKR have a more settled look to their side with Dav Whatmore taking over the reins of the side after Buchanan was given the boot. There are no multiple captains either, with India’s most successful captain ever Sourav Ganguly named captain for the whole tournament.

With Chris Gayle available for almost the entire tournament, it gives them the explosive package that they sorely missed in the first two editions. The team management has exchanged Moises Henriques with Owais Shah and Manoj Tiwari from Delhi.  By buying Shane Bond for a whooping price in the auction, the bowling line up looks power packed with the likes of Ishant Sharma, Charl Langeveldt, Ashoke Dinda and Ajantha Mendis in the ranks.

Legendary Wasim Akram has been appointed as the bowling mentor. It will be an ideal opportunity for youngsters such as Cheteshwar Pujara and Ganapathi Vignesh – who cut off his links with the ICL to prove his worth this season. KKR will be hoping for a much better showing this time around and with a glance at their squad that feat is not beyond them.

KEY PLAYERS:

Sourav Ganguly: One of the finest captain, Sourav Ganguly is back as the captain of the KKR. Ganguly was termed the ‘God of off-side’ for his fluent run-scoring ways in that region. Never mind six, seven or eight fielders on the off-side, he could still pierce even the narrowest gap between them and score runs fluently. A match-winner, Ganguly is capable of demolishing bowling attacks single-handedly, and his liking for spin bowlers is well documented. His part time medium pace can also prove to be dangerous for the opponents.

Chris Gayle: Devastating – the only word defines this man from the West Indies. The first player to score a century in Twenty20 Internationals, Gayle will try to score quick runs for the team as the opener. He may not turn the ball much, but puts batsmen in trouble by bowling in a good line and length with his lethal Off Spin.

BB McCullum: Another devastating batsman in the side, who recently got a international T20 century, will be hoping to carry forward the recent form. He will be keen to play another innings like the one he played in the IPL season 1 opener.

Bradley Hodge: The 35 year old Australian Veteran is a lot to play for. Being the highest run scorer for KKR last year, he surely will be aiming to achieve that feat this season too since he is in fine form for the Aussies. Not only swing his bat, he would have to roll his arms too with is milky off spin.

Ishant Sharma: Lean and tall, Ishant can bowl around the 145kmph mark consistently, and generate bounce while bowling long spells. With Akram in as the bowling coach, it can be expected of him to be more dangerous for the batsmen.

SQUAD:

Sourav Ganguly(C), Brendon McCullum, Chris Gayle, Brad Hodge, Owais Shah, Manoj Tiwari, Rohan Gavaskar, Chirag Pathak, Cheteswar Pujara, Harshad Khadiwale, Wriddhiman Shah, Angelo Matthews, Laxmi Ratan Shukla, Ganapati Vignesh, Ajit Agarkar, Varun Aron, Iqbal Abdulla, Eklakh Ahmed, Ashoke Dinda, Ajantha Mendis, Charl Langeveldt, Murali Karthik, Ishant Sharma

Kallis and Amla lead The Proteas!

The World Championship of Cricket started in Nagpur’s VCA Stadium today. The South Africans won the toss and chose to bat. India’s most experienced bowler Zaheer Khan struck both the openers home. First Ashwell Price went for a duck attempting for a shot. Next was amazing as the Proteas Captain, Greame Smith was clean bowler for 6. They were 6-2, but it went on to score 291 for 2 at Stumps, Day One.

Dhoni’s logic of not attacking the new batsmen was wrong and because of that they had freedom to settle. Instead of Bowling Zaheer, he opted for Part timer Sehwag. That caused all the havoc for the Indians.

Both Amla and Kallis continues for a great 285 partnership. Both of them scored centuries. 

Kallis played with greater poise and authority in the second session. He negotiated both medium-pacers and spinners with equal felicity.

Every time the two seamers chose the corridor of uncertainty, Kallis chose to shoulder arms. The ones going down the leg side was dispatched with disdain.

He batted impressively against both Harbhajan Singh and Amit Mishra. He smothered the spin with soft hands and read Mishra’s surprise googlies well. The two spinners did bowl occasional loose balls and Kallis invariably pounced on them.

The 34-year-old veteran paced his innings with extraordinary care and resilience and carved out a chanceless century to rescue his team. He peppered his fine innings with 13 fours and 2 sixes.

Lets see what happens tomorrow! Probably, The Africans won the day except for the first session.

THANKS, CRICKET NIRVANA