Newly appointed Sri Lanka skipper Kumar Sangakkara on Saturday gave a thumbs up to John Buchanan’s concept of multiple captains and feels it opens up endless possibilities for the game.
Former Australia coach Buchanan, who is in charge of the Kolkata Knight Riders team in the Indian Premier League, proposed more than one captain for the side which has sparked a furious debate in India with Sourav Ganguly fans claiming this was a move to sideline the former India skipper.
Sangakkara though found the concept pretty interesting and said it can be tried out in Twenty20 cricket.
However, he also said communication between the coach and players would be vital for this experiment to be successful.
“If it’s a way to go forward and it shows results, why not? Everyone is looking for the edge to win. If this is going to provide them that in the future, then it’s well and good,” said Sangakkara, who will lead Sri Lanka for the first time in the Twenty20 World Cup in England this June.
Sangakkara said he understands Buchanan’s concept because he believes that leadership is always situational.
“I believe that leadership is always situational. It’s a very interesting concept, and I think it’s all about using the best man for a specific situation,” he told ‘cricket news web site´.
Source – hindustantimes.com
Ravi Bopara has said he hopes the Indian Premier League comes to England rather than South Africa in three weeks’ time. The England batsman, who has been signed by Kings XI Punjab for the coming season, at a cost of $450,000, was looking forward to playing in India, in the region from which his parents originate. But if the security issues in India preclude the 59-match tournament taking place in that country, then he would favour England rather than the other potential host country South Africa.
On Sunday the England and Wales Cricket Board chief executive, David Collier, said that, if required, it was ready to stage the tournament which could be fully accommodated in the desired time frame and on major grounds in England without recourse to altering fixtures. “I would welcome it being in England,” Bopara said in Guyana on Monday prior to catching the team charter to Barbados. “I don’t think there is anything wrong with it as long as the county schedule and the West Indies tour does not change.”
But like Andrew Flintoff before him Bopara has mixed feelings about the prospect of not playing in India. “I think it is disappointing,” he said. “What I was looking forward to was the crowds, the hype, the whole IPL thing. I was excited by it. But if we are playing in England, then I’ll just get on with it.”
However, he sounds a warning to those who might be expecting April and May in England to be conducive to the sort of pyrotechnics seen in the tournament’s inaugural season. “Conditions in India lend themselves to explosive cricket,” he said. “I don’t think it will affect the spectacle but it will be harder to get big scores. The seven English players involved, though, will be used to the conditions so that might help us and it should also help us for the World Twenty20 a month or so later. So I think it can be a good thing for us if it happens.”
Since the IPL player auction Bopara’s stock has risen. He replaced Ian Bell in the Test side and made his maiden Test century in the fourth Test in Barbados. For the Twenty20 match in Trinidad and the one-day internationals that followed in Guyana he was given the responsibility of opening, in an endeavour to find a combination that would be able to take advantage of the powerplays in place at the start of the innings. If his success has been muted so far, he has hopes that he can grow into a role he relishes.
“I would like to see myself opening long term,” he admitted. “I’ve always wanted to do it and I’m so happy I’ve got my opportunity with England. I want to make the most of it because I do want to open for the next so many years and I want to be known as England’s opener. I’m excited about it and I want to do it for however long I play international cricket. It can be difficult at the top of the order but it has its benefits as well. You can pierce the ring and it goes for four. But there are advantages and disadvantages.
“You are up against the new ball and you can always get a good delivery with that. Hopefully I won’t need a long run to prove myself. I want to do that over the next three games and the one-day series coming up in England and the Twenty20 matches I’ll be playing. I want to go to Barbados, score some big runs and win and that will prove myself.”
Source – guardian.co.uk
Fast bowler S Sreesanth will miss the Indian Premier League’s (IPL) season two in April-May due to a stress fracture in his lower back, his IPL team Kings XI Punjab announced on Wednesday.
Sreesanth is currently in Sydney receiving treatment from the Kings XI Punjab physio Patrick Farhart as part of his rehabilitation. The bowler will instead be associated with his team as ‘fan mentor and community face’.
“I intend to be with the team all along the IPL season. I will be their motivator and will cheer them through to the IPL Season 2 finals so that I can play the champions league with Kings XI Punjab. The new role that I will play in the interim for Kings Xi Punjab as a fan mentor and community face is going to be very exciting,” the bowler said in a statement.
“It is unfortunate that Sreesanth will not be participating in the season 2 due to his back injury. He is a performer and was a great asset to the team last season and his absence on the field will surely be felt, Kings XI Punjab coach Tom Moody said.
“Sreesanth is an integral part of Kings XI Punjab. The role that we have envisaged for him this year is exciting and vital. He will be pivotal to our playing squad and to our community through various initiatives which will promote the game and the franchise,” the Kings XI team co-owner Ness Wadia said.
Sreesanth had a run-in with Indian teammate Harbhajan Singh during a match here April last year with Singh slapping him in full public view on the Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) ground here following a verbal exchange
Source:hindustantimes.com
In a semi final match -2 it was a real team show by Chennai Super Kings and in they end they were successful in maintaining there 100% record against Kings XI Punjab. Today batting first Kings XI could manage only 112 and it was a cakewalk for the Chennai Super Kings as they defeated them by 9 wickets to enter the finals. Now its Rajasthan Royals vs Chennai Super Kings on 1st june and it expected that it will be some what better than the semi finals in which losing teams had a dismal show and it never looked they were posing any threats to the winners.
The semi finals of DLF – IPL are really not something which the spectators wish to see. The teams are scoring much lower than what they did earlier in the tournament. Today is was Kings XI vs Chennai Super Kings and Kings Punjab won the toss and decided to bat first. The decision proved to be really awful as they lost Hopes when the score was just 8. This was not the start anyone wish to have in an all important hopes. Ntini , Morkel and Gony all got two wickets each. After Hopes it was Sangakkara who also went back to pavilion.Soon after Yuvraj and Marsh also were back to pavilion. Batsmen followed one after the another and Kings XI were reeling at 45/6 in 10 overs. In the end it was Powar and Mota who helped them cross the hundred run mark and the team ended with 112 in 20 overs. It looks like the final of Rajasthan Royals vs Chennai Super Kings is on the cards,but cricket is full of uncertainty and thus we are fingers crossed this time.
