Newzeland Players Depressed at World cup

Melbourne: Allan Border feels the tragic earthquake in New Zealand will motivate their team to do better in their World Cup clash against Australia in Nagpur.

New Zealand players expressed their remorse when news of the quake reached them on Tuesday, with opener Martin Guptill describing it as a "terrible thing to have happened again".


The International Cricket Council (ICC) say they are working with officials for Friday's match to organise the best way to honour those who have lost their lives in the tragedy.


"They're a side that tend to lift against Australia and given the recent events in Christchurch, they've got the added incentive to do well," Border was quoted as saying in foxsports.


"Not that that should make that much difference, but you've got that incentive in the back of your mind to lift for the sake of your countrymen. They're a dangerous opponent, there's no doubt about that."

Sachin bats in left hand

Bangalore: Senior Indian batsman Sachin Tendulkar on Wednesday surprised everyone when he opted to bat left handed during the team's practice session at the M Chinnaswamy stadium.

Indian cricket team, which has been camping here for their crucial Group 'B' league match against England on Sunday, had a rigorous batting session at the National Cricket Academy before shifting to the stadium.

Tendulkar grabbed everyone's attention by choosing to bat left-handed with a few of his teammates and local bowlers bowling at him.

He also did not wear gloves, while all other batsmen, who faced two deliveries each, wore their cricketing gears.

Tendulkar sent the very first delivery he faced over the ropes before stepping out to hoist another six sixes, missing only one out of eight deliveries.

Besides the rigorous batting session, the team also went through a brief 10-minute catching practice session.

Today, for the second consecutive day, Virender Sehwag did not join the team for the training session while off-spinner Harbhajan Singh also skipped practice on Wednesday.

Pacers Zaheer Khan and Ashish Nehra had light training session at the NCA gymnasium to strengthen their backs.

Like Tuesday, Kirsten spent more time with youngsters such as Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh, Virat Kohli and Yusuf Pathan.

South Africa VS WestIndies LIVE 2011 world cup

New Delhi: Even after a recent series win over India and a comfortable pre-tournament victory over defending champion Australia, South Africa's talent-filled team still needs to prove it has the mental strength to claim a first World Cup title.


The Proteas again carry the tag of the tournament's biggest underachievers into this year's event and start against a team that has contributed before to their World Cup misery.



In 1996, West Indies pulled off a surprise quarterfinal win over the Proteas at the last World Cup on the subcontinent, lending an extra edge to Thursday's Group B game at the Feroz Shah Kotla ground.


It will also be the first match at the New Delhi venue since a one-day international in 2009 between India and Sri Lanka was abandoned because of a dangerous pitch.


South Africa has already had to fend off the 'chokers' tag here, with off-spinner Johan Botha this week calling the description "overused" and allrounder Jacques Kallis saying it is not something that affects the 2011 team.


"I think the word choker gets used far too often every time a team loses nowadays," Kallis said. "It is certainly not something that haunts us. We have a lot of young players ... so that doesn't even cross our mind. We don't worry about the past."


With key player Kallis back to full fitness after a niggling side injury, South Africa has no obvious weakness in its lineup — apart from its tendency to mess up its World Cup campaigns.


Batsmen Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers occupy two of the top three places in the ODI batsmen rankings, Kallis is widely considered the best allrounder in the world and Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel form one of the game's most feared fast bowling combinations.


Even spin, crucial on subcontinental pitches and often South Africa's weakness, is now well-covered by Botha, left-armer Robin Peterson and Pakistan-born legspinner Imran Tahir — who South Africa has high hopes for.


The Proteas trounced West Indies 5-0 in the Caribbean in the last ODI series between them in early 2010.


But South Africa's previous World Cup jitters will provide West Indies with something to focus on in both countries' tournament opener, according to allrounder Dwayne Bravo.


Along with the '96 slip against West Indies, South Africa has lost semifinals in 1992, 1999 and 2007 and made a farcical exit from its home tournament in 2003 when a run rate miscalculation resulted in its elimination in the first round.


"South Africa will be under pressure for not having won the World Cup, Bravo said, "and we have our confidence very high. I know our guys are ready and looking forward to this game."


West Indies believe they are better than a rank outsider to win the competition — and Thursday's game — and much better than their dismal recent form suggests.


West Indies last beat a major team in an ODI series in 2008, but Bravo and coach Ottis Gibson picked out an array of experienced allrounders in the Caribbean team who all have matchwinning ability.


Chris Gayle, Kieron Pollard, captain Darren Sammy and vice-captain Bravo will worry South Africa, along with experienced batsman Shivnarine Chanderpaul and young fast bowler Kemar Roach.


"Our chances are as good as any other team," Bravo said. "Winning a World Cup is about the team playing good on a particular day. We have an allround team and allrounders are very important.


"Captain Sammy, Pollard, myself and Chris Gayle are all top quality allrounders and any two of us getting a good game could put us in a position to win a game."


Gibson said if his important players performed, West Indies had a "fantastic chance" of doing well in the tournament.


Organizers hope the Feroz Shah Kotla, which was re-laid following the 2009 debacle, will hold up and Kallis said it was the first real chance for South Africa to show off a newfound variety in its bowling attack — which has historically been pace-driven.


"For the first time we can play in any conditions or on any wicket," Kallis said. "We have good fast bowlers, who have produced the goods in the last few years, and we have got some interesting spinners.


"From that point of view we have got our bases covered and we just need to produce the goods now."

PAKISTAN VS KENYA WORLD CUP MACTCH 2011highlights:Afridi shines with the ball

Hambantota: As a coach, Waqar Younis knows the drill of how teams need to win the games that matter in convincing fashion.


He has been through the drill as well as an elite fast bowler, captain and now the man who as an integral part of the management team that is trying to pull Pakistan together after a year fraught with controversies.



Before the game against Kenya at the Sooiryawewa Stadium on Wednesday, even the isolation of the venue in this part of Sri Lanka failed, to underline just how Pakistan were in a mood to show the top sides they mean business.


Pre-match Waqar, the bowler who delivered some toe-crushing deliveries in his time, was interested only in delivering thoughts of victory. His comments of how Younis Khan is in good form and Umar Akmal is a youngster who will do probably well in this tournament.


“All we need to do is click and click at the right time,” Waqar commented.


How right he was. A convincing 205 runs victory over Kenya is the sort of result that Pakistan hoped to deliver their fans at home as well as those following the side in Sri Lanka. Despite the initial top-order stutters, they were always in command of the situation.


Umar went on to win man of the match with his innings of 71 off 52 balls and a smart strike rate of 136. He was fluent and decisive and for those who remember his batting in Australia and New Zealand, there much to suggest that he will be one of the middle-order men to watch. There is a lot of flexibility about his batting and the rotation of the strike was an impressive detail to watch.


This is despite a major fielding improvement in the early stages by Kenya, still reeling for their 10 wickets defeat by New Zealand in the opening game on Sunday. It has to be admitted that it is not the Kenya of 2003, the one that reached the semi-final, and while Pakistan were wary of the side from East Africa, they were never really challenged.


At the start, the story of Pakistan is about Shahid Afridi’s leadership skills. There was a lot of pre-tournament comment about how he would handle the side. He was rarely under pressure in this second game in Hambantota and his five wickets in eight overs, giving away explains much about his luck.


Kenya though led to their own downfall through some soft dismissals and you can bet the coach Eldine Baptiste, a former West Indies all-rounder who has been in the job for 18 months and from the look of his charges and their efforts so far this tournament, has a long way to go before the team starts showing signs of revival.


As for Pakistan, the admission they are having to play in Sri Lanka s opposed to home venues because of political instability, explains at times the type of split personality which has left the side struggling at times for an identity. There will be some worry about the top-order failures as well.


Mohammed Hafeez and Ahmed Shehzad at times struggled to find each other and it would be cruel, yet perhaps kind, to suggest their early departures might yet be a blessing. It at least allowed some solid batting practice for Kamran Akmal (55), Younis Khan (50) and Misbah—ul-Haq (65) to build partnerships.


All this allowed 21-year-old Umar Akmal to display the form, which has turned him into a bubbling technician, not afraid to play his strokes and work the ball around. His 118 run partnership with Mishbah was the perfect platform needed by the Pakistan lower-order. Pakistan have also gone for the seven-batsmen plan with two of them doubling as all-rounders with Hafeez off-spin adding the to the variety.


Afridi at least didn’t do his usual grandstanding when taking his wickets. His DJ antics were absent and just as well, as the way Kenya’s innings capitulated explained there is a lot of work ahead of them to make an impact again. At this rate, their chances of playing in the ICC crumbs on the table offering ICC World T20 in Sri Lanka next year depends on how they can recover.


What is interesting about the way Afridi bowled is that he had the batsmen under pressure most of the time and enjoyed the experience of bowling in a situation that was more a practice than a genuine contest. This may seem harsh, but it is the type of batting that Kenya provided in the latter part of their innings. From 73 for three to a total of 112 in a little more than six overs explains the debacle.

No 'Hot Spot' for 2011 World Cup

New Delhi: Hot Spot will not be part of the Decision Review System (DRS) to be used during the 2011 ICC World Cup as the supplier of the technology was "not willing" to provide the cameras, according to an ICC spokesman.


In October 2010, the ICC had announced that the Hot Spot cameras would be used in the semi-finals and final of the World Cup, to be held in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh from February 19 to April 2.


The Hot Spot is not an essential element of the UDRS paraphernalia but is supposed to be one of the more accurate indications of the point of contact between ball and object. Sachin Tendulkar, a vocal critics of the UDRS, has in the past given his thumbs-up to the Hot Spot technology.

South Africa wants to break the world cup jinks

New Delhi: Ever since South Africa's first appearance at the World Cup in 1992, the tournament has consistently brought heartbreaks for the rainbow nation. And because of their unfortunate knack of losing from winning positions, they have also been historically tagged as 'chokers'.


The rain-affected semifinal loss in 1992 was followed by an unlikely quarterfinal exit against the West Indies four years later. The drama of the Lance Klusener-Allan Donald run-out put their chances in 1999 to rest and 2003 saw the South Africans crash out early on their home turf.

This time it's no different for the green-clad Proteas. Ranked No. 3 in the ICC ODI rankings, South Africa are one of the hot favourites to win the cup but that's when they choke and ultimately succumb to the pressure of expectations.


But Graeme Smith, who will lead the team for the last time in ODIs after giving up the T20 captaincy earlier, has the machinery that can churn out consistent wins for the team.


South Africa's top order looks absolutely brilliant with the likes of Graeme Smith, Jacques Kallis and Hashim Amla in superb one-day form and dependable AB de Villiers will be raring to go in the mega event. If South Africa are to be successful in India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, they will need solid performances from these specialists.


These four batsman have the pedigree to post the big scores that are likely to be necessary in the subcontinent. Coming in the tournament after an ODI series win at home against India, Proteas will be high on confidence and will surely give every opponent a run for its money.


South Africa's bowling also looks well take care of. Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel are venomous in any format and on almost any surface. In addition, they now have Lonwabo Tsotsobe, whose rise in the series against India has come as a welcome surprise for South Africa.


Johan Botha, South Africa's T20 skipper, is a miserly spinner who can thrive on spin-friendly Indian tracks. However, a question mark remains over the second spinner's role, with the uncapped Pakistan-born Imran Tahir having no international exposure.


The unfulfilled expectations of the past and less hype around the side this time around will stand the Proteas in good stead when they set foot on the subcontinent.


They would surely be expecting another semifinal finish as they are being viewed to reach the quarterfinal stage by default from a group that has three low-lying teams in Bangladesh, Ireland and Netherlands besides India, England and West Indies.


Schedule


February 24: South Africa vs West Indies at Delhi

March 3: South Africa vs Netherlands at Mohali

March 6: South Africa vs England at Chennai

March 12: India vs South Africa at Nagpur

March 15: South Africa vs Ireland at Kolkata

March 19: South Africa vs Bangladesh at Mirpur


Squad


Graeme Smith (captain), Hashim Amla, Johan Botha, AB de Villiers, JP Duminy, Faf du Plessis, Colin Ingram, Jacques Kallis, Morne Morkel, Wayne Parnell, Robin Peterson, Dale Steyn, Imran Tahir, Lonwabo Tsotsobe, Morne van Wyk.