India bank on Captain Cool Dhoni for an encore

Mahendra Singh Dhoni will relive a pathbreaking moment in his fairytale career when he leads India's defence of the World Twenty20 title in England.

Dhoni marshalled India to a stunning triumph in the inaugural World T20 in South Africa in 2007, his first assignment as captain after just two years as a regular team member.

He has not looked back since, rising from a lowly and poorly paid railway employee in his home town Ranchi in eastern India to become one of the country's most celebrated sportsmen.

Some call him India's lucky mascot, others marvel at his unflappable composure that has earned the dashing batsman-wicketkeeper the nickname of 'Captain Cool', but no one doubts his Midas touch.

The supremely confident Dhoni has won five of his seven Tests as captain, with the remaining two ending in draws.

He also has 31 wins in 50 one-day matches at the helm and and six victories in 12 Twenty20 internationals, securing Dhoni the status of cult figure in the cricket-obsessed country.

Lucrative sponsorship deals have followed and he is the highest-paid home star in the Indian Premier League with a 1.5-million-dollar-a-year contract with the Chennai Super Kings.

"He is a very impressive captain who knows how to get the best out of his team," said former India captain Dilip Vengsarkar, who handed Dhoni the top job in 2007 as chairman of the selection committee.

World batting record holder Sachin Tendulkar, now in his 20th year in international cricket, is another Dhoni fan.

"I am extremely happy and delighted at the way he has conducted himself," said Tendulkar. "He is a balanced guy and is always on his toes all the time.

"Before he was made the captain, standing in the slips I interacted with him, and he picked up a lot of things which clearly indicated that he has a sharp brain.

"His approach is pretty clear and not complicated."

Dhoni led India to its first Test series win in New Zealand in 42 years in March, following impressive home wins against world champions Australia and England earlier in the season.

But he himself admits that retaining the World Twenty20 title will be a tough act to follow.

"It will be silly to name favourites in a 40-over game, things can change so quickly," he said. "It all depends on how one plays on a particular day.

"The secret is to play to your potential and try to be as consistent as possible. Hopefully we will do that in England."

India are drawn with Bangladesh and Ireland in the preliminary round, but face the prospect of battling Australia, South Africa and England in the Super Eights.

Nehra for Zaheer?

There is some bad news for the Indian team, no matter how much the BCCI tries to play it down. Zaheer Khan — the man in-charge of India’s bowling for the forthcoming T20 World Cup is injured and his fitness may be a cause for worry for the entire length of the tournament. In the given scenario, will it make sense for Ashish Nehra to be sent-in as the back-up for Zaheer?
Nehra was in excellent form in the just-concluded IPL2009 and except for one game of the semi-finals, he bowled brilliantly with reasonable if not lightening pace. Further, he too is in the Zaheer mould, trying to move the ball in a subtle manner to keep the batsmen guessing. Further, he would be hungry for getting back to the international arena and this could be an added incentive for him to bowl hard and the conditions in England too would suit him.

Ashes History

1990-91 ----------- Australia 3 England 0 Drawn 2
1993 ----------- Australia 4 England 1
1994-95 ----------- Australia 3 England 1 Drawn 1
1997 ----------- Australia 3 England 2
1998-99 ----------- Australia 3 England 1 Drawn 1
2001 ----------- Australia 4 England 1
2002-03 ----------- Australia 4 England 1
2005 ----------- England 2 Australia 1 Drawn 2
2006-07 ----------- Australia 5 England 0

Stats by

Sudhakar Anbazhagan.

M. S. Dhoni

Full name Mahendra Singh Dhoni

Born July 7, 1981, Ranchi

Current age 27 years 326 days

Major teams India, Asia XI, Bihar, Chennai Super Kings, Jharkhand

Also known as Mahi

Batting style Right-hand bat

Bowling style Right-arm medium

Fielding position Wicketkeeper

The spectacular arrival of Virender Sehwag was bound to inspire others to bat with the same mindset. But the odds of a clone emerging from the backwaters of Jharkhand, whose state side has consistently scraped the bottom, was highly remote. That was until Mahendra Singh Dhoni arrived.
He can be swashbuckling with the bat and secure with the wicketkeeping gloves. His neck-length hair adds to his dash. Though Dhoni made his first-class debut in the 1999-2000 season, it was only in 2004 that he became a serious contender for national selection with some stirring performances when the occasion demanded. With his two centuries against Pakistan A, in the triangular tournament in Kenya, that he established himself as a clinical destroyer of bowling attacks.
In just his fifth one-dayer, against Pakistan at Vishakapatnam, he cracked a dazzling 148 - putting even Sehwag in the shade - and followed that up with a colossal 183 not out at Jaipur against Sri Lanka in November, when he broke Adam Gilchrist's record for the highest score by a wicketkeeper in ODIs. He made an instant impact on the Test level too, pounding 148 at Faisalabad, in only his fifth Test.
He was elevated to the vice-captaincy of the one-day squad for the tour of England and Ireland in 2007 and, soon after, was appointed captain of the Twenty20 squad for the World Championship in South Africa. A heady title triumph marked him out as a leader for the future and was handed over the reins of the one-day side in September 2007 after Rahul Dravid decided to step down as captain. It didn't take too long for him to enhance his reputation, claiming India's first tri-series triumph in Australia. He captained Chennai Super Kings in the IPL, losing out to Shane Warne's Rajasthan Royals in a tense final. As a stop-gap Test captain, he was credited with leading India to their biggest ever win in terms of runs (320), against Australia in Mohali.

Sudhakar Anbazhagan.

ICC World Twenty20 2009

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Symonds' double blow proves crucial

Adam Gilchrist: "Those two wickets in two balls, that really hurts especially when a team is chasing." © Associated Press
The IPL final could have gone either way but Andrew Symonds' back-to-back strikes tilted the balance in favour of Deccan Chargers, according to captain Adam Gilchrist and his Bangalore counterpart Anil Kumble.
Chasing a modest 144, Bangalore looked on course for victory until Symonds struck twice in the 15th over, removing both Ross Taylor and Virat Kohli with the second and third deliveries respectively. Gilchrist believed the match was evenly poised until then and congratulated Bangalore on making it a great contest. "I think for us, Pragyan Ojha did really well claiming three crucial wickets but those two wickets in two balls, that really hurts especially when a team is chasing," Gilchrist said.
Kumble agreed that over was the turning point. "On this track, chasing 144 was not a big task and we needed seven runs an over. But losing Taylor and Kohli in two balls hurt," Kumble said. "Earlier, we lost Rahul [Dravid] and that put the brakes on. We didn't have partnerships and still were one hit away from a win."
They were also plenty of positives for both captains to dwell on. Gilchrist, who was adjudged the Player of the Tournament, was delighted with the performance of the youngsters in the team and he singled out Harmeet Singh, who took two wickets and a stunning catch, for special praise.
"We have a number of youngsters in the side and all of them are eager to learn and grow," Gilchrist said. "It was amazing to see Harmeet tonight, the way he bowled and then took that amazing catch."
Kumble credited his team-mates for the incredible turnaround in the tournament, having finished second from bottom last season. "Two weeks ago, after the match against Mumbai, we said it was tough to win five in a row and reach the final. I credit my teammates for doing just that and coming so far," Kumble said. "Of course it was so near and yet so far but it was a good game of cricket today."
He also pointed out that it was a deliberate ploy to open the bowling, since he wanted to get rid of the hard-hitting Gilchrist at the earliest. "If you let someone like Gilchrist get away, he would run away with the match. It was for me to put up my hand and bowl. Fortunately it worked well," Kumble said.
Life came a full circle for Gilchrist and his team following a spectacular reversal of fortunes from the previous season, when they finished at the bottom of the table. Gilchrist felt the lack of pressure had a positive effect on his side.
"I really encouraged our team to try to play everything down and fly under the radar if you like, because we were happy with that, without having any expectations on us," Gilchrist said. "This is only the cricket I play now, so given what we went through last year, this is just a really tremendous effort from the whole franchise to turn it around. It's just been a great experience.
"The first thing I said at the start of our first meeting was, 'Guys, we're all in it together'. That was my first line of our first team meeting and yeah, we're all going to enjoy this together."
He was also full of praise for the way Bangalore scripted a very similar revival against the odds. "I'm thrilled for him (Kumble) and their franchise, the way they turned it around," Gilchrist said. "They experienced a lot of the pain and disappointment that we went through last year."

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The mix and match of Super Kings

Friday, May 22 2009

Johannesburg: While the Chennai Super Kings have been there but not done that, the Royal Challengers Bangalore find themselves in unfamiliar situation of being one of the four title contenders remaining in the Indian Premier League Twenty20 tournament.

The two southern neighbours clash yet again tomorrow at the New Wanderers stadium in the second semi-final. The Super Kings were in this position last year when they met and defeated Kings XI Punjab before missing out on the trophy with a last ball loss to Rajasthan Royals.

In contrast, the Challengers finished a lowly seventh last year when they rarely looked like a side that could even be ranked among top four, much less win the trophy. All that of course is a lot of water under the bridge and this year, the Challengers, refurbished and rejuvenated, have given a fair account of themselves to reach the semi-finals.

One of the secrets of Super Kings’ continuing success and consistent performance has been the stability in their team composition. They have a very settled captain in Mahendra Singh Dhoni besides a combination that is much the same as last year. As such, the players have had sufficient time together to bond as a team and understand their roles.

At the end of the day, the Super Kings have shown that they are not just a collection of individuals and star players, but are a confluence of contrasting skill sets that has meshed them mature into a fighting fit outfit.

As well as Dhoni has led, one cannot discount the value of the senior international players such as Matthew Hayden and Mike Hussey besides coach Stephen Fleming who have contributed in great measure by way of sharing their vast knowledge with other members of the team.

Recently, VB Chandrasekar, director of cricketing operations of the Super Kings squad, shed light on the parameters that guided the management in picking players. “Basically, we looked at cricketers who are team players to start with. Next was to decide on the composition and pick players who fitted into the roles we had in mind,” he said.

Thus, at this year’s auction, the Super Kings eyed Andrew Flintoff with a view to strengthen their bowling while also giving themselves an option of a strong, big-hitting middle-order batsman. Unfortunately, Freddie was coming off an injury when he arrived in South Africa and by the time he found his feet, it was time for him to depart to England for the series against the West Indies.

Then there are the likes of Makhaya Ntini and Muttiah Muralitharan who are the vital ingredients to the mix, given their extrovert personalities besides their status as the World’s top bowlers. It is another matter that Ntini is still to get a game in IPL-2, but his very presence has been comforting while he kept the players in good humour especially on days when nothing went right for them on the field.

So, the Super Kings team is not just about performers but also personalities selected with care and thought. Eyebrows went northwards when Thilan Thushara and George Bailey were picked up at this year’s auction, but the Super Kings knew what they were getting – a Sri Lankan all-rounder of sharp pace with his left-arm seamers and who can club the ball, and an Aussie batsman of some pedigree and proven track record at home. Both these newcomers had their moments while justifying their selection.

May be, few Tamil Nadu players have had opportunities to showcase their talent, but with the focus being on winning matches, only the best, as perceived by the skipper, have made it to the eleven. Thus, Palani Amarnath and Arun Karthik have spent the South African sojourn on the bench while Ravichandran Ashwin, Lakshmipathy Balaji and Subramaniam Badrinath enjoyed relatively fair success.

With the semi-finals just around the corner, perhaps it is hardly the time to dwell on team selection issues, but suffice it to say that the Super Kings have the ammunition and the right mix of players to pull off a triumph that eluded them last year.

Is it any wonder then that Shane Warne, the shrewd reader and thinker of the game, picked the Super Kings as the favourites for the title?

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