R.P Singh was given a chance to perform in Champions League,But the performance was not up to the mark for the selection panel,He was not able to find a place in the team for the Australia Series 09.....

Venkatesh Prasad, India's bowling coach, has exposed a word that it is too much to expect from fast bowler Ishant Sharma while he remains relatively new to the international scene....

RCB,Delhi Daredevils T0 Slug It Out In First All-lndia affair Of The Meet



Bangalore: The Champions League T20 will get an all-Indian treat for the
first time when hosts RCB take on Delhi Daredevils at the M Chinnaswamy
Stadium here on Saturday. The contest in all probability will be a cracker, adding more fervour to the Deepavalli celebrations, considering the big names involved in the second round encounter

After the morale-sapping loss to Victoria Bushrangers on Thursday, each match in their group will be crucial for RCB including those not featuring them. For the record, the Victoria-cape Cobras encounter on the
a same day preceding the all-IPL sides tie, will sea1 RCB’s fate in the 12-team tourney if the Cobras get it past the Aussie team.

RCB skipper Anil Kumble realizes that the things are not all in their
hands going into their last League Stage match. “We now need to win
against Delhi with a huge margin. It is tough in this format - we lose the first game of the tournament, then we qualify for the next round but the other team takes points. It is tough but that is how the format is. You only play two games and it is not easy when the other teams come in with points. It is a must-win against Delhi,” said Kumble after the loss against Victoria. But that task will be easier said
than done against a team boasting the likes of explosive Team India batting pair Of Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag, the in-form SriLankan Tilllakaratne Ditshan, the ever surprising Dinesh Karthik, et al.

In their final group encounter the Daredevils. finally gave the breaks to
one Glenn McGrath (yes, the legendary McGrath!) and the lanky pacer
quietly did the job he is so passionate about - troubling the rival batsmen. The DD coach David Saker even mentioned that the slow nature of thy wicket here might suit the
Aussie’s art perfectly.

With speedster Dirk Nannes complementing McGrath with pace, quite hot stuff at that, it would be a tough challenge for the RCB batsmen but how Team India spinner Amit Mishra pans out on a helpful track too remains crucial fir Delhi. On the other hands, RCB will be stronger with the return of abounded Jacques Kallis, who according to team sources is fit to play after pissing the last match with a side strain. His services were dearly missed during the defeated Victoria. Anyhow the team combination will depend a lot on the Victoria-Cobras tie and a victory for Cobras might see the reserves in action for RCB.

Bangalore: Just like India rooted i for Pakistan in their Champions Trophy encounter in South Africa recently Bangaloreans can be expected to lend their considerable support to an Australian team, the victorian Bushrangers, here on Saturday.

For only a victory for the Bushrangers can keep their opponents down to two points and keep RCB alive in the Champions League T20 - at least until the hosts' match against Delhi Daredevils, which follow the late afternoon tie between the Cobras and the Bushrangers.

The Bushrangers, fresh from their League Stage win over RCB on ''Thursday had an optional net session at the Chinnaswamy Stadium On Friday but opener Rob Quiney stated in very clear terms that it wasn't an indication of taking things lightly.

“We will not take the game lightly that's for sure,” he said as some of his mates had batting practice at the nets before getting in some catching drills.

With their bowling having more than held its own as also the tor-order during what could have been a tricky chase against RCB, the lack of exposure for the middle and late order could be a worry but its something Quiney chose to brush aside, saying: “They have all been practicing hard and if they get out there, they can do the required job.”

As for the Cobras what they require is some runs from Herschelle Gibbs.His humour is intact during an informal chat with the media but should he get amongst the runs, more so in the company of skipper Andrew Puttick, the man 5 who scored the CL T20s first century the Bushrangers could find themselves with too much to do. Which is not what the local crowd would want 2 on their Diwali holiday.

Magical Pollard Innings Helps T&T Down Australian Team

Hyderabad: They came as the underdogs but have packed off the more fancied teams already. Friday night was their biggest day in the Champions League T20 Championship as Trinidad & Tobago scored an astonishing four-wicket victory on the back of a blistering knock by Kieron Pollard. The youngster smashed an unbeaten 54 off 18 balls as the West Indians snatched an unlikely win.His unbeaten was studded with five fours and an equal number of huge sixes. T&T smashed at 171 for six in 18.3 overs.
The West Indian side ran into early trouble losing their top three batsmen with just 30 on the board. Skipper Daren Ganga and Darren Bravo kept the fight on but soon lost their way and at 91 for five it looked as if the Blues would romp to another handsome win.

Denesh Ramdin struck some hefty blows to keep the chase on before he was run out. But the night belonged to Pollard who produced some blistering fireworks to light up the gloom.


Earlier Philip Hughes and David Warner warmed up the cockles of the sparse crowd with some blistering stroke play to help Blues to 170 for fouls On Diwali's eve the Australians produced some crackling fireworks to run ragged the West Indian attack. This promoted skipper Gang: to turn to his brother Sherwin Ganga and the off-spinner didn't disappoint. He kept the runs in check. But the Bltles were not going to be tied down for long. Running like a pair of hounded hares, the southpaws stole runs with ease and hit the occasional boundary to keep the score moving at a more than healthy run rate. At the end of the 11th over, the Blues were 77.

In what's a pressure game for Delhi Daredevils, where a defeat will spell elimination, Gautam Gambhir won the toss and chose to give his batsmen the best use of the conditions. The pitch for the earlier game today and the ones before have played slow and kept low and therefore Gambhir's decision at the toss wasn't surprising...

Pakistan has won the T20 Cup in style beating Sri Lanka in a huge wicket margin...

Karachi: The Pakistan Cricket Board will announce on Monday whether Younis Khan will continue as captain of the Test and ODl sides or a new skipper will take over. PCB Chairman Ejaz Butt is due to address a press conference immediately after concluding a meeting of the governing council in Lahore in which he is expected to inform the members what he plans to do.

Pakistan cricket has plunged into a crisis since last week when Younis submitted his resignation to Butt in protest against the match-fixing allegations made against him and his team for lossing to Australia and New Zealand in the Champions Trophy.

The crisis has also created a clear divide in Pakistan cricket with one side pressurizing the board to accept Younis' resignation and opt for a new captain while the other side believes the board should convince Younis to take 'back his resignation by accepting some of his demands.

The anti-Younis camp is propagating that if the board does not accept his resignation. it might lead to all open revolt by around eight to nine players in the team against his captaincy Former captains backed Younis Khan to continue as the national team skipper, saying he is the bast man to lead the side.

Govt. not to interfere:Pakistan's Sports Minister Aftab Shah Jillani on Sunday
said the government would not interfere in the Younis Khan captaincy issue and would allow the Cricket Board to take whatever concision it felt was best for the team. Jillani told reporters that he had conveyed this to the board chairman Ejaz Butt.

“The PCB knows best what to do. But we hope whatever decision is taken is
taken keeping in mind the long term in terest of Pakistan cricket,” he said.

PCB chief blames media: Pakistan Cricket Board chairman Ejaz Butt on Sunday blamed the media for making speculations cad insisted he had not taken any decision to replace Younis Khan by Shahid Afridi as national team captain.
“It is all speculation by the media that the board has decided to remove Younus as captain and appoint Shahid Afridi in his place. No such decision has been taken,”