AUS VS PAK:We have an advantage over Pakistan: Ponting

Australian skipper Ricky Ponting reckons that having played a match at the slow Centurion track will give his team a distinct advantage over Pakistan in their must-win Champions Trophy encounter on Wednesday.


Ponting said there was no margin for errors in such crucial games and his tem had prepared well to beat Pakistan for a place in the semi-finals.


"It would be easier (for us) if Pakistan were to do so though we are preparing as if we would face their best team in the park. We can beat them and directly qualify," said Ponting when asked about reports that Pakistan would be fielding their B side in tomorrow's game. If Australia wins tomorrow's first game, the match between India and the West Indies would lose all relevance, and Ponting said he would want his side's semi-final hopes to be decided by their own work."There is no margin or error. If it gets rain affected tomorrow or not, the destiny is in our hands. If we don't make it to the semifinals, we would be disappointed.


"We have prepared very well. We have had very good last few weeks. We want to be the number one side of the world and that's why we prepare the way we do," he said at a press conference here.



"In the run-up to the game, South Africa and India were spoken about highly. Now South Africa are out and India have their work cut out. But we have prepared very well and have been playing good cricket in the last few weeks. We are in good enough position to make the next stage," Ponting said.


Ponting felt his side would have an advantage in Wednesday's game as they have had a first feel of the slow Centurion wicket against India.


"We would be disappointed with yesterday's result (against India). We were in pretty strong position. With 10 overs left, we were looking good for 300. It would have been

very competitive.


"We played their spin bowlers which would be a great help against Pakistan. Sure some positive did came out of yesterday's game."


Ponting had words of sympathy for struggling Indian pacer Ishant Sharma and said his troubles could be due to the workload his young shoulders were carrying for a while.


"People now say that Ishant is a bit off the boil now. It could be the workload, physical and mental drain. I don't really know but confidence is a big thing in international cricket. It happens to fast bowlers as well as to batsmen.


"It's a big job, as a coach, as fitness advisers. Juggling the workload is a big issue. We all the time try to embrace it. I took a break in Dubai and missed the first three games in England."

INDIA DEPRESSED :India to delay naming playing XI against WI

With his side's Champions Trophy semi-final hopes hanging by a slender thread, India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni on Tuesday said he would name his squad for Wednesday's match against West Indies depending on how the match between Pakistan and Australia progresses.


If Pakistan beat Australia at Centurion by a big margin, India will need to defeat West Indies by a huge margin to make it to the semi-finals in their last Group A match, which will start five hours later here.


Dhoni said he would keenly follow the Pakistan-Australia game and would decide on his playing eleven only after he has seen how the day's game is heading."We would delay our team selection. It depends on how the match is progressing. If we need to strengthen our batting we would do so. If we need the bowling to get stronger, we would

do that," Dhoni said at a press conference here.


A lot of calculation would be on tomorrow and Dhoni expected not only his support staff, but even seniors and others to chip in with their suggestions.


"Not only the coach and the support staff, even the seniors would be needed to chip in with their advice.


"Unfortunately, not everything is in your hand. Lot of things need to happen: Pakistan to win, we to beat West Indies and net run-rate," he said.


Dhoni is hoping that the Indian fans would be cheering for Pakistan to win against Australia.


"All of India wants its team to do well. Knowing that Pakistan's win (against Australia) earlier in the day is so important, they all would be cheering for Pakistan," he said.


It didn't concern Dhoni that Pakistan, the arch-rivals, could actually be attempting to lose by giving a few of their star players a rest against Australia.


"Now that they have qualified, they could be looking to experiment with their bench strength. It depends on what they want to get out of tomorrow's game."


Looking at how the tournament has gone by for India, Dhoni squarely blamed his bowlers for the side's ills.



"We batted in only one game so you can't say the batting has let us down. But we have bowled twice and we are not bowling that well. Yesterday (against Australia), the bowlers were much better, they were neither too short nor too full. But we have to admit we didn't bowl that well," he said.


Personally though, Dhoni was prepared to look his team's performance in Champions Trophy philosophically.


"Losing and winning is part and parcel of any sport. It's enough for me that I am playing for my country and am leading the side which not everybody gets a chance to do. That's enough for me.


"We have done very well in the last 18-20 months. We have done well all over the world. We have the potential to do well. The boys can bounce back and on their day can give any side tough fight."


On Ishant Sharma's poor show so far, Dhoni had words of encouragement and said the young fast bowler would strike form soon.


"It's not about the drop in pace. It's about the line and length you bowl. I thought Ishant, in his second spell yesterday, was the old Ishant we know. Keeping it on the off-stump and bringing the ball in and not giving too much width to the batsmen.


"It happens all the time in cricket. A few good shots and a batsman is back in form. A few good balls and a bowler regains his confidence."


Dhoni also responded with interest to his Australian counterpart Ricky Ponting's suggestion that the workload of cricketers, particularly fast bowlers, needs to be managed well.


"It's a tough thing to say. You rotate a few players and lose a game and it becomes a big issue in India. One thing which whole of India needs all the time is win. You have to admit with so many games being played, you can't win all the games.


"This is something which everyone has to understand. You need bench strength but you don't want to miss big players in big tournaments. The second line must be readied though. You need to groom them. They ought to have played 20-30 games so when a senior misses out, a young player is ready to step in."

ICC gives nod for Radmond to replace Ryder

ICC event technical committee have allowed New Zealand to replace Jesse Ryder by Aaron Redmond in the ongoing Champions Trophy here.


Ryder was forced out of the squad after suffering an injury to his left groin during his side's 38-run victory over Sri Lanka at the Wanderers on Sunday and the all-rounder will now be replaced by Redmond.


The confirmation of Ryder's replacement was conveyed to New Zealand Cricket (NZC) on behalf of the committee later on Sunday.


The 30-year-old right-hander Redmond has played seven Tests and three T20Is for New Zealand, but has never before represented his country in an ODI.


New Zealand will play its next match against England at the Wanderers tomorrow needing a victory to be sure of progressing to the semi-final.


The event technical committee of the ICC Champions Trophy 2009 consists of David Richardson (ICC General Manager – Cricket and event technical committee chairman), Don McIntosh (tournament director), Campbell Jamieson (representative of IDI, the ICC’s commercial arm which runs major ICC events), Mike Gajjar (CSA representative), Sanjay Manjrekar

(independent nomination) and Nick Knight (independent nomination).

Sehwag eyes India return against Australia

Dashing India opener Virender Sehwag on Saturday exuded confidence that he would be fully fit for the seven-match one-day international series at home against Australia, commencing in Baroda on October 25.


"I am not yet fit for international cricket as can't throw (the ball) from the boundary line. But I would be fully fit for the series against Australia," said Sehwag here in presence of the BCCI chief selector Krishnamachari Srikkanth.


Sehwag also said that he would play in the Champions League Twenty20 tournament for the Delhi Daredevils after leading the Rest of India side against Ranji Trophy champions Mumbai in the five-day Irani Cup tie, beginning on October 1 in Nagpur."I will play in the Champions League and in the Irani Cup match. There I'm captaining the side and would be fielding in the slips or other close-in positions," he said on sideline of a promotional event.


The flamboyant batsman, who would turn 31-years-old on October 20, has not played international cricket since he suffered a shoulder injury during the second edition of Indian Premier League in May.


Sehwag, who has two Test triple centuries, missed India's short visit to the West Indies, the triangular ODI series in Sri Lanka and also the ongoing ICC Champions Trophy in South Africa.


Sehwag reiterated he had never said he was not interested in leading the country, but only indicated that he was not keen to be vice-captain as a younger player should be groomed to take over the reign from Mahendra Singh Dhoni in future.


"I never said I did not want India captaincy. I only said in that interview I did not want to be the vice captain as I want someone younger to be groomed for the job," he said.


On relinquishing the captaincy in IPL, Sehwag said, "For two years we did not qualify for the finals. It seems my luck is not there. I don't know where I would go after this year (as there's going to be a second grand auction for all players after the 2010 edition). That's why I refused captaincy.He praised his Delhi and India team-mate Gautam Gambhir by saying the left handed opener was "a good cricketer with good brain."


Sehwag described the upcoming Champions League as a good opportunity for youngsters to grab the attention of selectors.


"For youngsters it offers good opportunity to play in front of TV audience and big crowds. Performing well in the Champions League or IPL counts. It's a good platform for the youngsters," he said.


Sehwag was confident India, even without him and two other key members - Zaheer Khan and Yuvraj Singh, was capable of doing well in the Champions Trophy.


"I am confident we will play well against Pakistan. We have always done well against them in the World Cup, Champions Trophy and World T20. Just because two-three of us are not there does not mean we will not play well," he said.


Former Test opener and captain Srikkanth felt that the pressure was more on Pakistan than on the Indians.


"The pressure is more on Pakistan. We need to get a good start," he said.


Srikkanth, in his second year as chief selector, said that the Irani tie in Nagpur was the right platform for Sehwag to get back into the groove for the tough season ahead.


"In the Irani Cup he can be relaxed. It gives him a good opportunity for Viru to get back his mental and physical frame of mind (for cricket). By grace of God he would be fit for the series against Australia," the one-time dasher said.


Srikkanth did not feel the rise of the T20 was a concern for the well-being of the 50-over game. "All three formats can exist side by side by spacing them out and tweaking the 50-over game a bit. Already the Power Plays are there," he said.


The former Tamil Nadu player was emphatic that India possessed a terrific bench strength and would continue to be a force to reckon with in world cricket.

Disappointed Smith eyes next ICC tournament

Expressing disappointment after yet another failure at an ICC event by bowing out of the Champions Trophy, South African captain Graeme Smith said his side was trying their best but somehow have not being able to cross the line. "I don't know why. It is not about lack of performance or lack of trying. Everything has been done at the moment. We have the potential. We have to back ourselves and get over the line at some point of time," he said on Sunday night after his side's 22-run loss against England to bow out of Champions Trophy at home."There are lots of opportunities (to win ICC tournaments) and hopefully we do it at some stage may be next year. There is no point in making excuses. It is up to the players who are sitting in the dressing room to perform and make it count," he added. Smith is disappointed that his side were to bow out of the tournament at the group stage in a big tournament as they failed to chase down 324 against England."It is hugely disappointing to go out of the tournament at this stage. It was about giving your all and try as deep as possible and hope somebody would stay with you. Unfortunately that did not happen," said Smith who scored a brilliant 141 but failed to find support from any of his team-mates.

"We were very close and we lost wickets at crucial moments. Had it been something just more than 300 we could have chased down but above 320 was tough," he said. Smith said his side will have to improve in bowling if they want to do well ahead in the season. "In two out of three games we had to chase down above 300 that puts a lot of pressure on the batsmen. We have to improve in that aspect. England are coming here and there is a big season ahead," he said.

He also gave credit to the Englishman for their all-round performance."We have to give credit to them. They batted and bowled well. Owais Shah and Paul Collingwood were outstanding and Eoin Morgan had a fantastic innings. They also bowled really well. They took the battle to us and we could not match them," Smith admitted.

INDIA VS AUSTRALIA ODI :Aussies have edge over India, says Waugh

Both Australia and India have played pretty average cricket in their opening games of the Champions Trophy. The defending champions were tested severely, more by the conditions than the opposition at the Wanderers, while a few kilo metres away, India went down to Pakistan at Centurion.


Australia, to be fair, have not had time to acclimatize, and were put into bat in very difficult conditions. But considering they were pitted against a very inexperienced West Indies team, they should have done better. Finally it was Mitchell Johnson, Australia’s strike bowler, who saved his team and got them to a strong position.


In the India-Pakistan game, it was the absence of some senior pros like Yuvraj Singh and Virender Sehwag that cost M S Dhoni dear. As he mentioned in a surprisingly candid post-match interview, the bowlers also had a poor day.


I know a loss against Pakistan would hurt India, but they must remember that their team has been doing well and sometimes a reversal can happen. The Pakistan team, unpredictable as ever, were exceptional on Saturday.


They seemed a happier unit of players who were playing for each other. Also, the return of Mohammed Yusuf from his ICL stint has added class and solidity to their middle order.


As mentioned, the absence of Sehwag and Yuvraj was crucial, but it was good to see youngsters like Virat Kohli being put into a pressure game like the one on Saturday. The Indians must realize that they cannot depend on the likes of Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid always, and that it is necessary to continuously blood new talent for the health and development of the side.


Today’s game is a must-win for India, and they do have the potential to win against Australia. However, the latter would have learnt from the game on Saturday, and would put in a much-improved effort on Monday.


Their bowling looked good on Saturday, and I expect their batsmen will put in an improved performance as well. That is not to say that the team does not have a few problem areas.


Shane Watson and Michael Hussey have both been out of sorts, and this does make the batting a little vulnerable. They did not do well against a young inexperienced West Indian outfit, so it remains to be seen how they fare against India, world-class bowling attack.


However, both teams will be relieved it’s a day-night game, which means early morning moisture and movement will not tilt the game in favour of one team. Conditions at Centurion are more suited to both sides, and will ensure a more fair contest.


There is no arguing that India have done very well against various teams in the last 12 months, especially in one-dayers. They have the potential to do well here as well. It’s just that the non-availability of some of their seniors makes the batting look a little less formidable than it usually does.


Of course, it would be great for India if someone puts up their hand and does the job for India, especially one of the younger players. However, if I had to pick up a favourite for Monday, it would have to be Australia, their insipid outing against West Indies notwithstanding.